I am sorry to say it, but the whole Trials system is one of the worst ideas and implementations ZOS has come up with.

It is like they sat around a table in some disconnected board room and bounced ideas off each other asking "what makes the hardcore audience keep doing raids week after week, month after month, paying their subscriptions" and the answer they came up with was "the epeen factor."

Yet they COMPLETELY missed the concept.

Having a time-based "leaderboard" where you directly compare the size of your epeen to others, and a constant notification/nag message sent out to the entire world informing them of said time? It may work for speed runs in solo games but in an MMO it is really just offensive!

"Epeen" is about reaffirmation of one's own accomplishments by a reward that is substantial, lasting, and actually MEANS something (tier gear, raid-specific vanity items, etc.), NOT some empty, fleeting, and ultimately meaningless comparison of numbers with others.

The rewards for achievements should reinforce one's perception of their OWN power, skill, and determination. This aspect of pride in one's character is disturbingly absent in this game.

Having my name on some leaderboard to compare times is NOT rewarding. If anything, it encourages OCD people to exploit the latest number-crunching, player style-excluding, content-skipping, game-breaking fad of the moment to shave a few seconds off their time AT ANY COST.

Meanwhile 70% of the builds and playstyles (even entire CLASSES) in the game are excluded from participation in the "end-game" because their presence might mean you bust that loot pinata 30 seconds after you would have with another FOTM class/build.

If trials were simply about defeating the content, stamina builds would actually be included. But by putting this ridiculous min-max time factor on it and broadcasting it to the world, ZOS is catering to this player and playstyle-excluding elitism, which is the WORST aspect of modern gaming. Disgusting.

I find the whole thing quite insulting to the spirit of all gamers. Even at the top of the pile, I'd feel the same way.