Please let Companions level faster

spartaxoxo

I agree with this completely. Companion leveling sucks. And the more of them they add, the worse it feels to level them.

Zodiarkslayer

It is not about how to level them. I think their total experience required to get from 1 to 20 should be halved.

The grind is just too long. When you finally get them to lvl20, you are so fed up and annoyed with them, that you immediately dismiss them, never to recall them again.

SilverBride

Zodiarkslayer wrote: »

It is not about how to level them. I think their total experience required to get from 1 to 20 should be halved.

The grind is just too long. When you finally get them to lvl20, you are so fed up and annoyed with them, that you immediately dismiss them, never to recall them again.

I think this is very reasonable and I'd love to see this happen along with adding experience for questing.

Grizzbeorn

SilverBride wrote: »

Zodiarkslayer wrote: »

It is not about how to level them. I think their total experience required to get from 1 to 20 should be halved.

The grind is just too long. When you finally get them to lvl20, you are so fed up and annoyed with them, that you immediately dismiss them, never to recall them again.

I think this is very reasonable and I'd love to see this happen along with adding experience for questing.

I like those ideas, as well.

Snamyap

SilverBride wrote: »

Necrotech_Master wrote: »

i would agree those last 5 levels take far too long, where the early levels are so fast

i think it literally takes 10 xp to get from lvl 1 to 2, and 300 xp to get from lvl 2 to 3

where as the quantity of xp needed from lvl 15-20 is like 3 full DSAs with 150% xp scrolls

if you always have 150% xp scrolls, outside of a double xp event, it takes about 6-7 full DSA runs to max level a companion (which is about 1 hour each run, so time consuming, and in the case for someone who doesnt like arenas, its an excruciating long time)

i agree only getting xp for kills (which means no dolmen xp, no quest xp), makes them level much too slow in the last 5 levels they need

I only take them to Dragonstar Arena when I have the 150% scrolls, which isn't that often. I've never been able to completely solo these but I can make it far enough to get me through the hour the scroll lasts. But that is an hour of mental torture for me and shouldn't be the only way to get decent experience for them.

I don't think it took too long but regardless. Public dungeons have indeed the downside of competition. But they are pretty much trivial unless you're still relatively new to the game. The mobs being trivial should allow you to wear a full set of gear with the training trait. Just use crafted gear or invest in some easily available gear from guild merchants.
Couple that with an exp scroll and it goes pretty fast. Yes, the last few levels still take a bit but at least you get a sense of decent progress.

I do agree on the exp from quests though, you should be able to level them regardless of your playstyle. And when a chapter is released you shouldn't have to choose between doing the brand new questcontent or leveling up the brand new companions.

ApoAlaia

tl:dr:

It can be a reasonably fast affair if one is prepared to go out of one's way to get it done however if one expects it to happen 'organically' one is in for the long haul.

This seems to be very much by design and personally I do not understand the thought process behind it. As such all I can argue is 'Personally I'd rather it felt more like an adventure and less like a chore.'

Long story:

I personally didn't find it particularly taxing.

After unlocking Ember and Isobel with each of my 18 chars on my main and putting them through the usual drill (fully complete the zone with 2, collect skyshards/do the PDs until at least one of the items needed for the collectible has dropped with the remaining 16) I had to supplement it with about 3 pots (or 150 mins) per companion during unsociable hours (thus little to no competition for mobs) in Spellscar using 150% pots and a XP grind setup.

I am not the most competent at these matters so I reckon someone more skilled could have potentially done it in 2 pots. Someone who does this regularly and has a partner in crime should have been 1 pot in nBRP.

Said that it didn't feel 'organic' in any shape or form; I don't feel the need to grind for XP these days, I'm well past CP2500 which means CP gains are slow and provide little to no tangible benefit so I had to go 'out of my way' to get this done.

If I'd have relied on the XP gains during 'normal' gameplay alone it would have taken a long, long time.

Why the devs feel that a protracted levelling cycle of the companions is desirable I don't know however other than the team in charge of dungeons/trials, where I can kind of see where they are coming from and where they are going with it, I am done trying to understand the thought process of the rest.

I don't really purchase my vehicles in Maelstrom Arena so I don't think I will ever be able to comprehend their line of thought, not that it would matter because it tends to be a case of 'my way or highway' anyway.

Sarannah

The first 15-16 levels aren't that hard, it is only the final 4-5 levels which take quite a bit of experience. But that is fine, as this is an MMO which is not meant to grant everything right away. Besides, when you're done leveling them, you're done leveling them forever. And if you specifically target getting them exp, it doesn't take that long.

My Ember is level 18 at the moment, and my Isobel is level 20. Haven't used any exp scrolls, and only did a DSA once on Isobel(for endeavours). So it is not that bad.

PS: ZOS please fix companion aggro. Companions should not get aggro at all, unless they specifically have taunting skills equipped. My DPS Ember(lightning staff/medium gear) is dead 99% of the time in any tough fight or against multiple opponents, and dies almost always right away in the beginning of those fights. Making DPS companions useless. Whereas my tanking Isobel survives quite a bit, as she was build to do that.

Jim_Pipp

The glacial levelling up speed has hugely contributed to the popular opinion that companions are ineffective.

The stat difference between a level 12 and a level 20 alone helps overcome a lot of their survivability problems... But players have no way to know that until they've done this huge grind!

It's hilarious that the prolific trait is only useful on max level companions, and an interesting design choice that ultimates are such a significant power up for reaching max level.

Then if you want to try a different weapon or armor line then it's like levelling up the last 5 levels AGAIN!

Eric_Prince

It would be great to have companion exp scrolls sold for event tickets like those recently introduced guild accommodations. Something like +100% exp for 2 hours.

bmnoble

They need to scrap them only getting a portion of the XP we get from killing enemies and just give them the full amount instead.

RealLoveBVB

You should try to run in training gear and moras whisper. Body parts alone will grant you additional 92% more xp.

One day I was farming the lead in vile manse and my companion got from 16 to 19. It's super fast

bmnoble

RealLoveBVB wrote: »

You should try to run in training gear and moras whisper. Body parts alone will grant you additional 92% more xp.

One day I was farming the lead in vile manse and my companion got from 16 to 19. It's super fast

Make one of your training sets Heartland Conqueror as well that way you get an extra 9% XP from the 5th piece bonus that doubles the weapon trait, for example normally with the training trait applied to a staff you get 9% bonus XP from kills with the Heartland Conqueror set you get 18% bonus XP from the kills instead.

JamuThatsWho

SilverBride wrote: »

I have my Companions with me all the time so they get every bit of experience they can, even if I don't need their help at the time. I've taken them to Dragonstar Arena (and I hate arenas) when I have experience scrolls to powerlevel them. Yet my Ember is just level 16 and my Isobel is level 14. I haven't even started leveling their rapport yet.

Please allow our Companions to gain experience from our quests, too. I don't mind putting some effort into leveling them but this is like crawling at a snail's pace.

I'd say a good balance would be to level the first Companion at the current rate, then every other Companion after that gets a perm XP boost.

Dr_Con

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind. I got mirri to 20 i think in a day or two. Obviously if you're always grouped or pvping, you won't have your companion out and they won't level up. You will not level your companion fast by doing main quest/storyline stuff, sorry it's just not going to happen in the current state of the game without changes.

the guild leveling/rapport stuff is a bit of a drag, especially when you want to use mirri to get mage's guild stuff but bastian is the one who gives you +125 rapport for doing it.

it's hard to level companions organically, but they are not the focus of this story- remember that you are the main character!

Necrotech_Master

Grizzbeorn wrote: »

Necrotech_Master wrote: »

using a scroll = more xp for ourselves, which means the companion gets a higher amount as well

Yes, we get a boost for using them, but
I thought I had read a description somewhere which stated that XP scrolls had no effect on Companion leveling.

I'm not arguing; I'd be happy if I'm not remembering properly.

the scrolls have always "indirectly" worked on the companions

as in you couldnt officially apply the scroll to the companion, but because they gain a % of your kill xp, raising your kill xp (through a scroll, or training gear) indirectly helps the companion

as to the topic, i think that the xp curve should be smoothed out a bit, like it could take the same amount of time to go from 1-20, but they really need to smooth it out, so the last 10 levels dont take 50x as long as the first 10 levels

Scaletho

Companions leveling faster, crafting gear, better interactions player-companions, stop horrible grind for blue/purple gear (back to point two)... the list is long but no improvement so far.

Kiralyn2000

RealLoveBVB wrote: »

One day I was farming the lead in vile manse and my companion got from 16 to 19. It's super fast

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind. I got mirri to 20 i think in a day or two.

And again - it's "easy and quick" if you "grind" and "farm". For those of us who don't mass-kill mobs constantly, it's a months-long task.

"It's just a few DSA's!" I've never done DSA. I don't imagine I ever will. I don't do dolmen circles - I might join in one that's going on if I'm near it, but that's it. I might do one in a week. Only times I've gone in public dungeons recently is for "kill the PD boss" endeavors. In which case it's a direct line to the one in Deshaan, kill the boss, waypoint out. Not multiple laps of the whole dungeon killing dozens of groups to get some rare drop.

You will not level your companion fast by doing main quest/storyline stuff, sorry it's just not going to happen in the current state of the game without changes.

And that's the problem.

(plus the part where I unlocked the companion on the characters who aren't combat gods and aren't capable of just grinding through public dungeons crowds with ease. The ones who quest & overland. Why would I need a companion on the stronger characters?)

SilverBride

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind.

I don't level my own characters by grinding so I am certainly not going to level my companions that way. Nor should I have to. We and they should be able to level at a reasonable rate just playing the game.

Nomadic_Atmoran

I have my Mirri out often enough but shes still only lvl 17. Ive tried to power level her in the past but I just dont have it in me to put that kind of effort into something I dont really need even when Im leveling new characters.

Aislinna

Today my Isobel hit level 20; so in the 3 months since High Isles released I've leveled both companions just by having them tag along with me and I did no focused power level grinding (ugh how not fun) or xp boost scrolls to level them faster. And given how casual I play, my expectations were met and I am good with how fast the companions leveled up.

When I first got the companion, most days, I did a daily mage, fighter and undaunted quest to level their skill lines, so that was 10 (20 for both) dailies that I don't normally do and once companion guild skill was level 10, I stopped doing them. Rapport still happens, just not as fast.

My normal game play is doing the daily non-dlc vet pledges, or a normal arena/dlc dungeon with a friend during the week (companions gained xp) and on weekends, I do normal trials with my guilds (companions are not out and gain no xp). Then I normally play solo 1-2 hours and do various things, like chase a quest line, gather skyshards/lore books for a new character I just started using, etc. Last week was spent mostly in Southern Elsweyr running a circuit farming runestones for the mythic lead, harvesting whatever else I came across, opening treasure chests to increase legerdemain, fishing, doing antiquities and occasionally joining a dragon fight if it landed near me and there was a group fighting it (I can't solo them). Of those activities, only killing the overland mobs I came across and the dragons gave any xp to my companion. I do daily writs, but do not have my companion out, as I find them annoying in the crafting area.

peacenote

Kiralyn2000 wrote: »

RealLoveBVB wrote: »

One day I was farming the lead in vile manse and my companion got from 16 to 19. It's super fast

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind. I got mirri to 20 i think in a day or two.

And again - it's "easy and quick" if you "grind" and "farm". For those of us who don't mass-kill mobs constantly, it's a months-long task.

"It's just a few DSA's!" I've never done DSA. I don't imagine I ever will. I don't do dolmen circles - I might join in one that's going on if I'm near it, but that's it. I might do one in a week. Only times I've gone in public dungeons recently is for "kill the PD boss" endeavors. In which case it's a direct line to the one in Deshaan, kill the boss, waypoint out. Not multiple laps of the whole dungeon killing dozens of groups to get some rare drop.

You will not level your companion fast by doing main quest/storyline stuff, sorry it's just not going to happen in the current state of the game without changes.

And that's the problem.

(plus the part where I unlocked the companion on the characters who aren't combat gods and aren't capable of just grinding through public dungeons crowds with ease. The ones who quest & overland. Why would I need a companion on the stronger characters?)

I would like to add to this that, while I am the the type of player that will grind - sometimes I find it relaxing and fun - I STILL feel that it is way too much effort to naturally level companions if you don't grind. I want companions to be able to level alongside me because they are supposed to be a companion to what I'm doing. PLUS it is way more fun when you get a leveling announcement when you are tackling content you want to do.

Not everyone can bring their companions with them everywhere. I play 3 times a week but I have raid night and a dungeon group and the companions can't level when they aren't out. I would let them tag along but the game doesn't allow it.

My companions are in this state:
-Mirri is 20 and has her ultimate but needs a good amount of leveling in the guild lines.
-Bastian is 19 but has the guild lines maxed out.
-Isobel I just unlocked on Sunday
-Ember I haven't stumbled across yet in High Isle

Obviously no one has reputation maxed out with a single one of my characters. Caring about multiple characters is out of the question. The grind is ridiculous.

I really wish the companions got quest xp, and that there was a way to work towards the gear you want. Perhaps we could deconstruct the drops and get tokens and there could be a vendor somewhere. I'm not paying a million gold for purple gear, which is yet another type of grind that's out there for the companions.

I noticed the last event had guild advancement tokens to buy for companions, but I never have enough tickets as it is. That's the WORST place to put those and not very helpful.

Anyway I agree with those of you who say they level too slowly. I was originally excited about Ember but when I realized the cost of gearing her up and how long it would take to level her, I realized it's going to be a long time until I actually get to use her. For the play time I have where I can actually bring companions out, there are times when I want a leveled companion which means the new one ones can't even level every play session.

My point is, I think there is an assumption that only solo players use the companions but that's not true... and the companions level EVEN SLOWER if you also participate in end game and can only use them periodically. It feels like quite the mountain to climb, made worse by the fact that they are "nice to have" not "must have."

Deter1UK

SilverBride wrote: »

I have my Companions with me all the time so they get every bit of experience they can, even if I don't need their help at the time.

Yet my Ember is just level 16 and my Isobel is level 14. I haven't even started leveling their rapport yet.

Please allow our Companions to gain experience from our quests, too. I don't mind putting some effort into leveling them but this is like crawling at a snail's pace.

Yes indeed, though:

[Ember 250 rapport per day from High Isle delve daily + Mage Guild Daily (public dungeon so good xp)]
[Isobel 250 from High Isle world boss daily + Bolgrul daily]

are quick way to gain and progress their personal quests unfortunately the xp gain from personal quests is almost zero as there is next to no combat, however I found doing all of those was quick enough to include in my daily routine without loss.

My bugbear is the requirement to fence a purple Item for the achievements as I don't recall ever getting one from stealing/pickpocketing in several years of playing...

jaws343

SilverBride wrote: »

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind.

I don't level my own characters by grinding so I am certainly not going to level my companions that way. Nor should I have to. We and they should be able to level at a reasonable rate just playing the game.

I got both Ember and Isobel to 20 just farming the pet fragments in High Isle public dungeons. Not really intentionally grinding either of them. Both hit 20 before I found all 50 fragments.

SilverBride

jaws343 wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind.

I don't level my own characters by grinding so I am certainly not going to level my companions that way. Nor should I have to. We and they should be able to level at a reasonable rate just playing the game.

I got both Ember and Isobel to 20 just farming the pet fragments in High Isle public dungeons. Not really intentionally grinding either of them. Both hit 20 before I found all 50 fragments.

I don't farm either. If I need something I buy it.

SPR_of_HA_community

May be - if players already have some high level companions - other companions need to level UP faster.

They looks different, but not to overperforming. The most interesting thing about them for me is personality (not to annoying to my actions as a player - like disliking them), good looking, interesting skills.

It really is not to much need to level each companion slow. First companion - may be, but not each of them.

jaws343

SilverBride wrote: »

jaws343 wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind.

I don't level my own characters by grinding so I am certainly not going to level my companions that way. Nor should I have to. We and they should be able to level at a reasonable rate just playing the game.

I got both Ember and Isobel to 20 just farming the pet fragments in High Isle public dungeons. Not really intentionally grinding either of them. Both hit 20 before I found all 50 fragments.

I don't farm either. If I need something I buy it.

My point is more that, you absolutely can level them while doing something else entirely that is kind of expected of a player.

While you can buy those fragments, the expectation is that a player is actually farming for them. Or generally other gear, or items, etc.

So, a player choosing to spend gold for those items that drop from places that rather quickly level companions, isn't really a problem with companion level speed.

fizl101

Deter1UK wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

I have my Companions with me all the time so they get every bit of experience they can, even if I don't need their help at the time.

Yet my Ember is just level 16 and my Isobel is level 14. I haven't even started leveling their rapport yet.

Please allow our Companions to gain experience from our quests, too. I don't mind putting some effort into leveling them but this is like crawling at a snail's pace.

Yes indeed, though:

[Ember 250 rapport per day from High Isle delve daily + Mage Guild Daily (public dungeon so good xp)]
[Isobel 250 from High Isle world boss daily + Bolgrul daily]

are quick way to gain and progress their personal quests unfortunately the xp gain from personal quests is almost zero as there is next to no combat, however I found doing all of those was quick enough to include in my daily routine without loss.

My bugbear is the requirement to fence a purple Item for the achievements as I don't recall ever getting one from stealing/pickpocketing in several years of playing...

The fencing a purple item, get something white that you can improve, improve it then fence it

SilverBride

jaws343 wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

jaws343 wrote: »

SilverBride wrote: »

Dr_Con wrote: »

the leveling system is fine- you might need to do an nBRP or craglorn grind.

I don't level my own characters by grinding so I am certainly not going to level my companions that way. Nor should I have to. We and they should be able to level at a reasonable rate just playing the game.

I got both Ember and Isobel to 20 just farming the pet fragments in High Isle public dungeons. Not really intentionally grinding either of them. Both hit 20 before I found all 50 fragments.

I don't farm either. If I need something I buy it.

My point is more that, you absolutely can level them while doing something else entirely that is kind of expected of a player.

While you can buy those fragments, the expectation is that a player is actually farming for them. Or generally other gear, or items, etc.

So, a player choosing to spend gold for those items that drop from places that rather quickly level companions, isn't really a problem with companion level speed.

I play by questing. I don't care about fragments or farming them.

If a companion can get experience from farming fragments with one player they should also get experience from questing with another. But they don't get any experience from the quest they helped with.

Snamyap

I think the issue with quest experience is that some quests give a ton of experience and ZOS was/is afraid the companions would level too fast. Master writs I believe give a lot of exp for instance.

SilverBride

Snamyap wrote: »

I think the issue with quest experience is that some quests give a ton of experience and ZOS was/is afraid the companions would level too fast. Master writs I believe give a lot of exp for instance.

I never thought about writs because I never have my companion with me when I'm doing those. Maybe they could just earn experience from the zone quests that they actually help with.