Group tool looks empty...

Parasaurolophus

I was afraid of this. I thought it would be full and people would monitor it. But now there are only 4 positions in all of America. I'm afraid we have discovered the real population of players.

LunaFlora

it is brand new.

some people probably don't even know it exists yet because they don't read about updates.
and others just make groups with friends/guild members.

give it time

Billium813

I used it for Vet HM dungeon today and it took like 30 minutes to get a group together. During which, I talked about the group tool in zone chat and it seemed like most people either didn't know that it was a new thing, or forgot and said they'd use it later... I really just think no one knows about it yet and they're just doing their regular Dungeon Queue dailies.

I actually really like all the configurations available for the group tool (CP requirements, role requirements). As it is, the Playstyle drop down seems kinda clumsy. It'd be nice if the group tool also added a HM requirement for Dungeons, and maybe added achievement requirements for some trifecta runs.

NeuroticPixels

Super empty. And like I said in another post… the player base is very separated. Separated by servers (NA or EU) and by platforms. And while you’re playing, we’re further “separated” due to instances (multiple instances can exist per zone, etc).

Though I hope the group finder isn’t bugged in a way that only shows players in our instance. That seems highly unlikely, but we have no way of knowing if there’s been issues with LFG posts not appearing for everyone, unless a dev or community manager pipes up on social media or the forums….. or we get an unannounced patch one day and suddenly there’s several more postings in the LFG than there ever was. lol

Guess we’ll see! I do hope it becomes much more popular. I was really looking forward to the custom group finder.

Araneae6537

I saw some people saying you needed to be in the same zone or instance but I may have misunderstood or they may have been mistaken. Barring any such problems, I agree with what others have posted here — many don’t know about it yet, and then many others are busy with Witches’ Festival or any of the other new features introduced this update. I ended up getting involved with tracking down and doing writs and getting my first two master crafting stations. But I definitely intend to check out the new group finder in the near future!

Danikat

I agree with all the points raised so far. I suspect most people don't read the patch notes and even if they read the news on the main site the group tool and anything else in Update 40 is lucky to get a brief mention, it's easy to get the impression the only thing in the update is the Endless Archive because that's all ZOS wants to talk about.

Add on the fact that the update only happened yesterday, it's the middle of the Witches Festival and the big new thing ZOS does want to tell players about is a solo/duo activity there's probably not a lot of people who know the group finder exists and are in a position to use it right away.

The other thing to consider is that the group finder will only show you groups that haven't filled up yet. As soon as one gets enough people it disappears from the listing. That makes sense because it's useless to show you groups you can't join, but it also means you can't get an accurate idea of how many groups have formed using it from looking at the listings.

Having said that a common problem in my other MMO (which has had a similar tool for years) is that a lot of people are oddly reluctant to be the one to start the group, so if they don't see one they want to join they'll sit and wait for one to start instead of starting it themselves, even if they know exactly what they want to do. The easiest way to get around that is to be the one who breaks the cycle - if you want to use the group finder and don't see a group to join you should start one.

NeuroticPixels

Danikat wrote: »

if you want to use the group finder and don't see a group to join you should start one.

THIS! ☝️☝️☝️

Same goes for the Auto Invite addon. So few leaders and so many lazy or nervous folk. 🫤

notyuu

To quote what most people across the 4 guilds I'm in have said when I asked if they thought the new group finder was bugged

"The what?"

meaning most people probs aint aware that it exsists

Jaimeh

Danikat wrote: »

Having said that a common problem in my other MMO (which has had a similar tool for years) is that a lot of people are oddly reluctant to be the one to start the group, so if they don't see one they want to join they'll sit and wait for one to start instead of starting it themselves, even if they know exactly what they want to do. The easiest way to get around that is to be the one who breaks the cycle - if you want to use the group finder and don't see a group to join you should start one.

I see this a lot in the zone chat when I'm Craglorn, there'll be a bunch of LFG messages by different people for the same trial, but no one will take the initiative to start it even though they essentially have half the group sorted. I haven't used the new tool yet, maybe it's because most people aren't aware of it, and usually in the first day of the patch people either do housekeeping things or jump straight in the new content, the archive in this case, so maybe there weren't enough people around. It could also be a parameter issue to do with the matching system, so until more people start using it might be better to keep the parameters pretty general in order to get a group faster.

SpacemanSpiff1

people may not even know about it.

its kind of shocking how many people dont read patch notes or announcements.

gariondavey

The majority of players:
-don't read the patch notes
-don't have optimized pve or pvp set ups
-don't understand or play the game on a deep level

Gray_howling_parrot

Parasaurolophus wrote: »

I was afraid of this. I thought it would be full and people would monitor it. But now there are only 4 positions in all of America. I'm afraid we have discovered the real population of players.

How long did you wait after it launched before you posted this?

It JUST came out. I’ve started groups and had them fill almost instantly. It could also mean groups are filling fast?? My god dude lol.

kah

I feel like it might be a good idea for them to add a popup/banner after each big update (similar to what they do when they announce the start of events), highlighting the most exciting changes and providing a link to the patch notes for those people who want the nitty gritty.

Billium813

So far, my usage is:

1) Use Dungeon Finder for 2 non-DLC Vet HM pledges. 100% of the time, it's not hard to do HM on non-dlc dungeons and everyone wants to do HM anyway.
2) Use Group Finder for DLC Vet HM pledge. Using the CP restriction really helps get a good group together and saying "Vet HM" in the group title really helps to know everyone is down for it.

UGotBenched91

It’s strange they didn’t have a pop up come up when first logging into game that said what was new. Considering most people probably don’t read patch notes.

Ilsabet

Danikat wrote: »

The other thing to consider is that the group finder will only show you groups that haven't filled up yet. As soon as one gets enough people it disappears from the listing. That makes sense because it's useless to show you groups you can't join, but it also means you can't get an accurate idea of how many groups have formed using it from looking at the listings.

Cooperharley wrote: »

I’ve started groups and had them fill almost instantly. It could also mean groups are filling fast??

I was going to say something similar. If the tool is doing its job and people are finding fills quickly, that's a lot of listings that you'll never see.

It is nice to open the listings and have a bunch of things to peruse, and hopefully the finder will become more popular as more people become aware of it and it becomes more ingrained as a gameplay tool, but asking for what you want directly is definitely the best way to go if there's something particular you want to do.

I successfully used it yesterday on EU to find a duo partner for nDSA to level companions and try for a Master's 2h. Took about 5-10 minutes to find someone, which sure beats all the nonproductive asking-around I've done in the past. I'm looking forward to using it for chill quest runs next time we get new dungeons.

ikzaa

Well, it is not surprising, that "Feature" arrives at least 5 years late.

Tannus15

i saw this last night. one of my guild mates said it was empty, so i took a look and saw 3 groups.

it only shows you groups you can join according to your role

my mate was on a dps and there was a trial group filling that only needed 1 tank and 1 healer so it didn't show for him.
I was on my tank, so i saw it.

once a group is full, it's gone. people are using it and it's working, but due to the build in filtering the whole thing feels like it's empty.

NeuroticPixels

Tannus15 wrote: »

it only shows you groups you can join according to your role

Valuable information. Thanks.

Daoin

one section was being used to buy crowns yesterday, not sure if that is what the the thing is for though but yes i also think the thing is failing a bit

Thee_Cheshire_Cat

i only discovered it yesterday. Glad to see they have implemented it in this game. It's been a grand hit in others. It should become busier in time as people become aware of it.

i11ionward

Yesterday I tried Dungeon Finder for the first time. Found a group for vAA. Completed hardmode and speed run with pugs is a very good result, thanks to Dungeon Finder.

Arizona_Steve

Used it yesterday to create a nFG1 group for the endeavor.

Mooncake

The experience I've had with the Group Finder so far is this: I create a group for RND for the daily, one player joins almost instantly, sees only the two of us in the group and then immediately leaves. It's like people are expecting the dungeon to start immediately upon joining.

Just now one player (a DPS) told me they "didn't have that much time" to wait for the group to fill up, so they were gonna use the Dungeon Finder instead. Sure, buddy, good luck with your 10-15 minute wait on that.

The other issue I saw yesterday is that the role-enforcement setting doesn't seem to be working properly. I set the usual 1T 1H 2DPS and there were 3 DPS in the group when it filled. So either someone faked their role or the role-enforcement isn't working.

So yeah, so far not a very good QoL improvement over the Dungeon Finder.

Necrotech_Master

Tannus15 wrote: »

i saw this last night. one of my guild mates said it was empty, so i took a look and saw 3 groups.

it only shows you groups you can join according to your role

my mate was on a dps and there was a trial group filling that only needed 1 tank and 1 healer so it didn't show for him.
I was on my tank, so i saw it.

once a group is full, it's gone. people are using it and it's working, but due to the build in filtering the whole thing feels like it's empty.

that is a default filter, you can change the filter to see "all" groups, but it wont let you join a group in which your current role does not match the groups needs (this does reset to the default, but i havent played enough to see if its from any zone change or if you have to like log out and back in such as when changing characters)

i poke my head in there, i see groups listed but not a ton and i see that for 2 main reasons

1. the update has been out for 3 days, likely most people dont even know about it yet or havent had a chance to use it
2. as noted, it only lists groups that have an opening for your active role by default, and group listings are removed when it is filled up

the 2 categories ive seen the most groups listed are trials and zone

Mooncake

ikzaa wrote: »

Well, it is not surprising, that "Feature" arrives at least 5 years late.

More like +10 years late? I've played a certain sci-fi franchise MMO since it launched F2P in 2012 and it has *always* had a group finder. It's so funny that ZOS is implementing this now like it's such a novelty.

AvalonRanger

New group finder tool saved my terrible PUG life little bit.
I met far more better player than my PUG life before.

But, text box is very limited capacity. So, I can't write group purpose precisely.
And, I choose standard and education mode. But still speed runner destroy Vet dungeon mission.

endgamesmug

I got through about 6 or 7 trial pugs on another account yesterday, it worked flawlessly. Taking a fraction of the time zonechat usually takes to put a group together, this is definitely the future of pugging-good job zos im sold!😁

Paulytnz

I have a feeling it will be the opposite on console. It will be filled to the brim with groups looking for people. But it won't be, if you get me - Gold Sellers will exploit this feature to advertise their websites.

Soooo, I guess you could look at this as a positive for the time being and count yourselves lucky you may not have as many bots/gold sellers as we on console do.

Shagreth

Everywhere I go I see tons of people (EU, which already has much fewer players than US) and that's despite instancing. I don't think it's a population thing.

KalevaLaine

I tested it several times - one time nSS I joined as a heal and left after 4 minutes fighting the first trash lol.

Yesterday I created a group for 6 keys, worked out pretty well.

But I think (cause some players left my groups after joining at a 2/4 or 3/4) people want to be lazy and only want to join full groups.