DLC will be level independent content but what about current ingame zones? @ZOS Clarification please

mistermagic87b14_ESO · January 2015

The new DLC was said to be level independent. Meaning that you can experience it regardless of what level your character has reached.

My question is that let's say I'm a level 20 I'm halfway through a zone and the first DLC releases.

I pay a sub fee or crowns and I go and do the new area. After doing some or all of the content in the DLC I just purchased I'm ready to go back and do the level 20 area I left off doing, but I'm now over leveled because the new content disregards your level but the older content doesn't.

Is it in the plans to make the older areas in the game scale to your level - or to a specific level range?

Additionally could ZOS make it so I could choose the zone to be a specific level? Similar to choosing which type of dungeon you want - normal or VR.

Thoughts?

RainfeatherUK · February 2015

As far as im aware from Reddit AuA a while back, scaling doesnt apply to the 1-50 experience as it currently exists, no.

mistermagic87b14_ESO · February 2015

RainfeatherUK wrote: »

As far as im aware from Reddit AuA a while back, scaling doesnt apply to the 1-50 experience as it currently exists, no.

Thanks - can you link me please?

Tandor · February 2015

I don't believe there to be any plans to scale the existing content. The new arrangement for DLC will enable you to choose when to go to the new zones, as well as giving you some choice in which content you do which will please altoholics like me.

Its main selling point is that everyone will be able to benefit from the DLC rather than with most MMO expansions and updates where you have to be the right level and a lot of players miss out because they're either too high or too low for it.

I agree with the OP, however, that the danger is that if you only play one character or are in any way completionist you may end up over-levelled for some of the existing content depending on when you do all the scaled DLC. Time will tell.

Karmine · February 2015

The 1-50 Zones are involved with "Your Alliance Story" so yea, it would mess up the story a bit.

Seraphyel · February 2015

I don't know how level independent DLCs will work.

How will Zenimax bring up new endcontent? Or was Craglorn the only thing they do for the endgame "rushers" (LOL)?

UrQuan · February 2015

Seraphyel wrote: »

I don't know how level independent DLCs will work.

How will Zenimax bring up new endcontent? Or was Craglorn the only thing they do for the endgame "rushers" (LOL)?

I'm a little confused by your question. I thought the whole point of the DLC scaling to your level was so that it would be useful to the folks at endgame as well as those who are still leveling.

Tiveria · February 2015

This is a good question if you go do a new dlc and out level the zone you were supposed to be leveling in, then you are to skip the the rest of the zone or just get no exp killing mobs just exp from quests lol.

So many things changing I just don't see how its going to work!

Seraphyel · February 2015

UrQuan wrote: »

Seraphyel wrote: »

I don't know how level independent DLCs will work.

How will Zenimax bring up new endcontent? Or was Craglorn the only thing they do for the endgame "rushers" (LOL)?

I'm a little confused by your question. I thought the whole point of the DLC scaling to your level was so that it would be useful to the folks at endgame as well as those who are still leveling.

How can a zone that is scaling with your level be called endgame? It can't.

Endgame is the thing you do with the highest level. If characters with level 20 are there next to characters with VR14, it can't be endgame.

That's my issue.

Kragorn · February 2015

mistermagic87b14_ESO wrote: »

The new DLC was said to be level independent. Meaning that you can experience it regardless of what level your character has reached.

How on Earth to ZOS expect open-world non-group content can scale to character's levels?

I know they've SAID they will but common sense tells you such a mechanic can't work on the game as it stands today, even remotely.

Either they're telling us ALL future content will be group-only or else they can't deliver what they seem to have been telling us they will: simple case.

Just one example, how can a world boss scale to people with no CPs and those with hundreds, without implement a mob 'tagging' mechanism which kills such content entirely for the majority of players who don't want to play the 1990s 'camp the mob' game.

Or another, how can a public solo dungeon scale to everyone inside it. It can't without some distortion to the XP and rewards given to one or other of the 0-CP or hundreds-CP players killing the same mobs/bosses at the same time.

starkerealm · February 2015

Kragorn wrote: »

mistermagic87b14_ESO wrote: »

The new DLC was said to be level independent. Meaning that you can experience it regardless of what level your character has reached.

How on Earth to ZOS expect open-world non-group content can scale to character's levels?

Either they're telling us ALL future content will be group-only or else they can't deliver what they seem to have been telling us they will: simple case, how can a world boss scale to people with no CPs and those with hundreds, without implement a mob 'tagging' mechanism which kills such content entirely for the majority of players who don't want to play the 1990s 'camp the mob' game.

By scaling the players to 50 under the hood, I suspect.

Dreamo84 · February 2015

Could be separate phases based on level range? Or perhaps the mob just hits you and gets hit based on your level.

To me it's a lvl 10 troll and to you he's a lvl 50 troll and it's almost like an illusion... Lol that's just a guess.

mistermagic87b14_ESO · February 2015

Kragorn wrote: »

mistermagic87b14_ESO wrote: »

The new DLC was said to be level independent. Meaning that you can experience it regardless of what level your character has reached.

How on Earth to ZOS expect open-world non-group content can scale to character's levels?

I know they've SAID they will but common sense tells you such a mechanic can't work on the game as it stands today, even remotely.

I see them doing this mainly to appeal to new console players and new PC players. They dont' want to turn them away from purchasing DLC or a SUB because if it's all end game content then new players wouldn't have a reason to buy it till much later into their progression.

From my perspective - Instanced zones based on different level ranges. Which means it wouldn't really be as open-world as it currently stands. Your level 50 friend will be in the same area/zone scaled to level 50 - while you on a level 10 would be in a level 10 version of that zone.

Unless they plan on doing level scaling - lowering your level to the content similar to how GW2 lowered your stats to match the content but I don't see that happening. It would defeat the purpose of being able to play your character the way you made it and you wouldn't be as powerful in DLC areas.

Fleshreaper · February 2015

They may be looking at it as a game of percentages. Mob has 100% health, your base attack is going to do 1% damage, special attacks will do more % damage based on gear and spell used. If you have a level 22 fighting a group boss with a level 50 both players base attack will do 1% damage. Special heavy attack will do 4% damage + 1% for green gear, + 2% for blue, and so on. Champion points might work the same way, add a couple of +% to the damage.

UrQuan · February 2015

Kragorn wrote: »

mistermagic87b14_ESO wrote: »

The new DLC was said to be level independent. Meaning that you can experience it regardless of what level your character has reached.

How on Earth to ZOS expect open-world non-group content can scale to character's levels?

I know they've SAID they will but common sense tells you such a mechanic can't work on the game as it stands today, even remotely.

It would actually be pretty easy to do.

A mob would display to each player as if it was the same level as them. This is purely cosmetic. For the purposes of this discussion let's assume that under the hood the mob is actually level 50.

When the mob attacks a player, for the purposes of that attack the mob's abilities scale to the level of the player. If the player is level 20, the mob hits the player as if it was a level 20 mob.

When a player attacks the mob, for the purposes of that attack the player's abilities scale to the level of the mob. If the player is level 20, the player hits the mob as if he was level 50.

XP and loot would scale to the player's level.

The only problem with this is that a level 4 player and a level 50 player are both going to fight at a very similar level of effectiveness (the main difference really being skills and equipment that the level 50 has).

You could somewhat solve that by saying that the scaling works within a range, such that there can be differences between the levels, but only by a maximum of, say 5. So in the example above, the level 20 player would see the level 50 mob as being level 25, it would hit the player as if it was level 25, and the player would hit it as if the player was level 45. A level 47 player would see the mob as level 50, and there wouldn't be any scaling involved (since both player and mob are within the allowable 5 level range difference). This would allow there to be a more meaningful difference between a level 4 player and a level 50 player, but there still wouldn't be a particularly meaningful difference between a level 4 player and a level 20 player.

Anvos · February 2015

Its really too hard to say at this juncture how things will work and things could very well be subject to change, though the most likely answer I can think of is that they pull something like Cyrodil where you get a stat boost to 50 but its still likely better to be the true level, also I don't really see pug groups for dungeons and stuff taking a 20 with a group of 50s/vets.

Personally I see no reason for anything to scale below 50/vet levels though since there is enough content in your faction to get you to 50.