Solo players need a buff to help them survive

Azurephoenix999 · November 2015

The Problem

Let me be frank about this, playing this game solo sucks. As you clear the first few veteran ranks all the enemies get so much more difficult to beat. In order to take down more than two or three of them at once, you need to have as many buffs as possible, focus all of your attribute points on one, forcing you to adhere to a specific style of play, and you need to choose all of the best skills. Granted, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but that's what it feels like when you've thrown yourself at the same dungeon over and over again for the past hour only to not get past the first room.

Playing the game solo makes it 10 times more difficult. I wouldn't mind so much if there weren't group-oriented dungeons that, if you care even the slightest about gathering all of the skyshards, you'll simply have to force yourself through at one point or another.

I know the public dungeons are meant to be tackled in a group, but what the hell are you supposed to do if you can't find one? I've had the game for months, but I've never had anyone to play with. None of my friends have the game, and then there are people on these forums that insist that I join a guild full of random strangers when there's no guarantee that they'll help me either (I have an aversion to guilds full of people I don't know, and I'm not the only one).

The group finder on the game sucks balls, there is no option to find help for public dungeons and when I go on "World" it only gives me 2 zones to choose from, neither of which are the one that I need help with.

Then there's the forums, where you can only find people to play with if they happen to stumble across your "I need help" amongst the hundreds of others, and also happen to have the same console, same megaserver, and same alliance.

TL;DR: Finding a group on this game is a freaking nightmare

When you're in a group, you have one or two guys that focus on dealing damage, one guy that does crowd control, one guy that focuses on tanking, and one guy that focuses on healing the group.

When you're solo, you need to do ALL of those things by yourself, which is difficult to pull off correctly due to the limited number of attribute points available. If you want to play this game, you have to play the "right" way, or you'll fail at literally everything you do after level 50.

The Solution

I believe that there should be a buff for people who play solo to make things, at least a little bit, easier on them. It should be active in all PVE areas, whenever a player has got nobody else in their group.

Name: Lone Wolf
Damage Dealt: +50%
Damage Received: -25%
Health Regen.: +25%
Magicka Regen.: +50%
Stamina Regen.: +50%

I'm genuinely looking for feedback here, so please comment with your opinions.

Comment "1" if you believe solo players should get the buff.
Comment "2" if you believe the buff I've proposed is unbalanced, but that solo players should still get something. (State what could be a suitable alternative)
Comment "3" if you believe solo players should get nothing whatsoever. (State why)

Publius_Scipio · November 2015

There is already a better and more dynamic battle leveling system in place. And as far as buffs go, there is something called champ points. That's pretty much all you need.

Spliffo · November 2015

No need to buff just a L2P issue

Azurephoenix999 · November 2015

Publius_Scipio wrote: »

There is already a better and more dynamic battle leveling system and place. And as far as buffs go, there is something called champ points. That's pretty much all you need.

Each champion point you get gives you a tiny buff. These add up in the long-term, but in terms of the here and now, they're pretty much useless.

Bhakura · November 2015

Uh let it out, PVE is already mindnumbing easy, dont need to make it easier.
And before you start, only have 90 CP, so its really not that.

i suggest you revise your build, gears used, points spent. Theres not a single PVE solo content in this game that is hard enough to warrant such a buff.

You are very lucky not to have played eso when it just came out, vet content then was freakish hard, one little mistake and you could respawn, now you can just poke your nose let mobs beat you up and when you are finished poking, finish them all of and laugh about it, thats how hard this game is ><

Azurephoenix999 · November 2015

Spliffo wrote: »

No need to buff just a L2P issue

I don't need someone telling me to "git gud" right now. Okay?

I believe that if you have literally nobody around that you can group with, the game should be just as enjoyable without them.

Anorak · November 2015

Or or or or hear me out here or.... we could have MORE THAN 1 PERSON IN A GROUP! I know crazy, but in a game that is part of a muliplayer genre I think it may be possible if the community and devs work hard to make it happen

LoreRiley · November 2015

No L2P PvE is waay to easy as is and this in PvP would be annoying

Scyantific · November 2015

Are you serious right now?

Like are you legitimately serious???

MrDerrikk · November 2015

I can solo most of the games content up until Craglorn (where I can do 3/4 of the Delves and the quests that don't need 3 people) and feel it's about right. Granted I'm built for sustain DPS and still die whilst learning build changes.

Spliffo · November 2015

Azurephoenix999 wrote: »

Spliffo wrote: »

No need to buff just a L2P issue

I don't need someone telling me to "git gud" right now. Okay?

I believe that if you have literally nobody around that you can group with, the game should be just as enjoyable without them.

Sorry but I was being honest. I'm only an average player and can say vet zones are a breeze. If anything the mobs need a buff not the players

ColoursYouHave · November 2015

What are you talking about? The solo PVE content (Maelstrom Arena aside) in this game is painfully easy. Even public dungeons/world bosses are easily soloable.

Vangy · November 2015

What class are you rolling op? Can we get a picture of your stats/gear/skill set up? The pve content up till maelstrom arena is ridiculously easy. I've soloed all craglorn content that dosent need a group to step on stones to open door etc. (Trials excluded as well). And I'm not using some godlike OP 500 cp build. I'm just your slightly above average joe who runs an optimised stamina build for dk. Hear me out I really just is a L2P issue most likely. We will know what's wrong once we see your set up.

Scyantific · November 2015

Like seriously man there is no way this isn't a troll post.

I mean FFS he's on console, he hasn't even gotten the changes from Orc-landia yet.

TheShadowScout · November 2015

How about.... NO?

I am a habitual solo player. Its true that more then two or three opponents can be too much. Lucky us, most opponents come in groups of two or three... entirely manageable, IF you, as the word goes, LtP. In fact, a great many of the standard fights are a bit on the easy side once you get past the "learning the ropes" stage, and have halfway decent gear.

The matter is quite different in group-ish stuff of course. Craglorn, Public Dungeons, Dolmen, World Bosses, etc. There you will often find your self facing groups of six or more mobs. And there only the most powerful builds will still be able to solo stuff at level (my templar can do it, my nightblade has serious trouble...).
And then there is the full group stuff like dungeons where you want a full trinity (tank, healer and DPS - though in ESO, those roles can be more fluid then in many other games) along.
As. It. Should. Be.

Group stuff is -supposed- to be for a group. Its -not- supposed to be all that soloable. Yes, some stuff thats supposed to be done by more then one player can be soloed - and can actually be fun, and a neat training opportunity. Other stuff cannot be soloed, and should not be soloable in any case.

I'd much rather skip grouptastic stuff and do it someday when I have some friends to run with then buff a solo player to the point where the game becomes mindnumbingly boring...

Champion system is more then enough, you can get a nice few 5% to 10% buffs with the first hundred points...

There really is no need for anything more. Worse, anything more would mess up the game IMO.

MrDerrikk · November 2015

They've even made Dolmens soloable (I was able to do these at lvl ~40 with no gear to speak of) which has made it very easy indeed to do absolutely that is not group related.

Iluvrien · November 2015

3. Leave it as is.

You stated in your OP that you don't want to join a group of strangers in a Guild. I have to assume that also refers to PUGs.

It seems your major issue is more that none of you friends play ESO, rather than ESO itself is too difficult to play.

My guild went quiet for a long period after our GM abandoned us. During that time I had pretty much nobody to group with.

You know what I did? I tried to solo it. If I couldn't solo it I answered LFX messages in zone, or calls for help with Dolmens or World Bosses. I made myself available on other people's timetables because it helped me out too (and I got to fight alongside some awesome folks... and some not so awesome folks).... and after we did a couple of activities together I often suggested a couple more. 8 times out of 10 the people I was with were open to helping me out after I had helped them out.

I managed to complete the content that way, bit by bit. I don't regret it, and sometimes I had far more fun doing so that I would have otherwise done had I just attempted to solo it.

The point being that there is some content that is just for groups (or people who create insanely OP solo builds). In the same way there is some content that is only available if you PvP. In the same way there is some content that is only available if you are into competitive PvE.

I write off the stuff I have no interest in on the basis of choosing the play the way I want. That is my taking responsibility for my choice of play style. How about you doing the same?

RAGUNAnoOne · November 2015

3, it isn't that hard to solo most areas sure you will die sometimes but... I really hate to say it as it is overused but it is something you have to learn from.

Shunravi · November 2015

Not for me thanks

if it got any easier to solo I'd fall asleep...

Allyhoo811 · November 2015

The content in this game that is intended to be completed solo definitely does not require a special buff for ungrouped players. None of the content is horribly difficult when tackled at level (aside from a few specific instances and, depending on your build, facing multiple mobs at low levels when you have limited aoe/cc skills). Plus, the content is so easy to over-level that any buff to a solo player would trivialize the content more than it already is.

As for the group content, this is an MMO, some of the content needs to be group oriented for the people who like that playstyle (just as some content needs to be designed for the players who prefers a mostly solo experience). If you want to be able to complete this group content, you need to be willing to do what it takes to find a group.

Until additional improvements are made to the grouping tool, that may mean joining a guild. I know from your past posts on the subject that this is something you are very much opposed to, but it is just the nature of the MMO beast. You may join a guild and absolutely hate it. You may find a guild and meet some terrific people. But you won't know until you try. I get that joining a guild of "random strangers" can be awkward and uncomfortable (I'm an introvert by nature, believe me I get it), but I don't really see how it's any more uncomfortable than creating forum threads asking for people to help you out with group content (which based on your OP seemed like something you were okay with doing). Either way the people you'd be doing content with would start out as strangers.

Personally, I think adding text chat to consoles would be a better method of solving this issue than adding a "solo player buff". It is much easier to interact with internet strangers for the first time when you don't have to use voice chat. Then once you find a group/guild of people that you're fairly comfortable with, using a mic to coordinate dungeons doesn't seem as strange.

TLDR; please, ZOS, don't add a solo player buff -- instead add tools that make it easier for console players to communicate with each other (like us PC players have)

P.S. This comes from an averagely skilled, mostly solo player, who only occasionally dabbles in group content.

Gilvoth · November 2015

Azurephoenix999 wrote: »

The Problem

Let me be frank about this, playing this game solo sucks. As you clear the first few veteran ranks all the enemies get so much more difficult to beat. In order to take down more than two or three of them at once, you need to have as many buffs as possible, focus all of your attribute points on one, forcing you to adhere to a specific style of play, and you need to choose all of the best skills. Granted, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but that's what it feels like when you've thrown yourself at the same dungeon over and over again for the past hour only to not get past the first room.

Playing the game solo makes it 10 times more difficult. I wouldn't mind so much if there weren't group-oriented dungeons that, if you care even the slightest about gathering all of the skyshards, you'll simply have to force yourself through at one point or another.

I know the public dungeons are meant to be tackled in a group, but what the hell are you supposed to do if you can't find one? I've had the game for months, but I've never had anyone to play with. None of my friends have the game, and then there are people on these forums that insist that I join a guild full of random strangers when there's no guarantee that they'll help me either (I have an aversion to guilds full of people I don't know, and I'm not the only one).

The group finder on the game sucks balls, there is no option to find help for public dungeons and when I go on "World" it only gives me 2 zones to choose from, neither of which are the one that I need help with.

Then there's the forums, where you can only find people to play with if they happen to stumble across your "I need help" amongst the hundreds of others, and also happen to have the same console, same megaserver, and same alliance.

TL;DR: Finding a group on this game is a freaking nightmare

When you're in a group, you have one or two guys that focus on dealing damage, one guy that does crowd control, one guy that focuses on tanking, and one guy that focuses on healing the group.

When you're solo, you need to do ALL of those things by yourself, which is difficult to pull off correctly due to the limited number of attribute points available. If you want to play this game, you have to play the "right" way, or you'll fail at literally everything you do after level 50.

The Solution

I believe that there should be a buff for people who play solo to make things, at least a little bit, easier on them. It should be active in all PVE areas, whenever a player has got nobody else in their group.

Name: Lone Wolf
Damage Dealt: +50%
Damage Received: -25%
Health Regen.: +25%
Magicka Regen.: +50%
Stamina Regen.: +50%

I'm genuinely looking for feedback here, so please comment with your opinions.

Comment "1" if you believe solo players should get the buff.
Comment "2" if you believe the buff I've proposed is unbalanced, but that solo players should still get something. (State what could be a suitable alternative)
Comment "3" if you believe solo players should get nothing whatsoever. (State why)

your right, we need alot more solo strength and buffs and also alot more solo content.
just my opinion and belief.
i love playing solo, and hope we see ALOT of solo stuff in dark brotherhood expansion.

Scyantific · November 2015

dwemer_paleologist wrote: »

Azurephoenix999 wrote: »

The Problem

Let me be frank about this, playing this game solo sucks. As you clear the first few veteran ranks all the enemies get so much more difficult to beat. In order to take down more than two or three of them at once, you need to have as many buffs as possible, focus all of your attribute points on one, forcing you to adhere to a specific style of play, and you need to choose all of the best skills. Granted, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but that's what it feels like when you've thrown yourself at the same dungeon over and over again for the past hour only to not get past the first room.

Playing the game solo makes it 10 times more difficult. I wouldn't mind so much if there weren't group-oriented dungeons that, if you care even the slightest about gathering all of the skyshards, you'll simply have to force yourself through at one point or another.

I know the public dungeons are meant to be tackled in a group, but what the hell are you supposed to do if you can't find one? I've had the game for months, but I've never had anyone to play with. None of my friends have the game, and then there are people on these forums that insist that I join a guild full of random strangers when there's no guarantee that they'll help me either (I have an aversion to guilds full of people I don't know, and I'm not the only one).

The group finder on the game sucks balls, there is no option to find help for public dungeons and when I go on "World" it only gives me 2 zones to choose from, neither of which are the one that I need help with.

Then there's the forums, where you can only find people to play with if they happen to stumble across your "I need help" amongst the hundreds of others, and also happen to have the same console, same megaserver, and same alliance.

TL;DR: Finding a group on this game is a freaking nightmare

When you're in a group, you have one or two guys that focus on dealing damage, one guy that does crowd control, one guy that focuses on tanking, and one guy that focuses on healing the group.

When you're solo, you need to do ALL of those things by yourself, which is difficult to pull off correctly due to the limited number of attribute points available. If you want to play this game, you have to play the "right" way, or you'll fail at literally everything you do after level 50.

The Solution

I believe that there should be a buff for people who play solo to make things, at least a little bit, easier on them. It should be active in all PVE areas, whenever a player has got nobody else in their group.

Name: Lone Wolf
Damage Dealt: +50%
Damage Received: -25%
Health Regen.: +25%
Magicka Regen.: +50%
Stamina Regen.: +50%

I'm genuinely looking for feedback here, so please comment with your opinions.

Comment "1" if you believe solo players should get the buff.
Comment "2" if you believe the buff I've proposed is unbalanced, but that solo players should still get something. (State what could be a suitable alternative)
Comment "3" if you believe solo players should get nothing whatsoever. (State why)

your right, we need alot more solo strength and buffs and also alot more solo content.
just my opinion and belief.
i love playing solo, and hope we see ALOT of solo stuff in dark brotherhood expansion.

I hope all the solo stuff is locked behind PvP.

danno8 · November 2015

Every single class can put a build together that can solo all dolmens, public dungeons and delves.

Just use one of those builds.

Here is a quick hint:

Stamina builds: Brawler+Rally

Magicka Builds:
-Templar - Puncturing Sweeps
-NB - Sap essence + Siphoning Attaacks
-Sorcerer - Hardened Ward + Mines + Bolt Escape + CF
-DK - All DoT's + Cheap Ultimate (Battle Roar passive) + Blocking + GDB

Other people can elaborate more if you need it. Point is all classes can do it easily.

Gilvoth · November 2015

danno8 wrote: »

Every single class can put a build together that can solo all dolmens, public dungeons and delves.

Just use one of those builds.

Here is a quick hint:

Stamina builds: Brawler+Rally

Magicka Builds:
-Templar - Puncturing Sweeps
-NB - Sap essence + Siphoning Attaacks
-Sorcerer - Hardened Ward + Mines + Bolt Escape + CF
-DK - All DoT's + Cheap Ultimate (Battle Roar passive) + Blocking + GDB

Other people can elaborate more if you need it. Point is all classes can do it easily.

your a great joke teller.

mrdankles · November 2015

DannyLV702 · November 2015

I'm solo 95% of the time and completely disagree with you. You're killing the fun. If you're solo, you're SUPPOSED to be watching your back. There's so much I could say, but I'm sure everyone else already gets it.

MrDerrikk · November 2015

Scyantific wrote: »

I hope all the solo stuff is locked behind PvP.

Now now, there are some soloists like myself that aren't making a fuss and actually like the game as is. I wouldn't mind more PvP, but you have to remember that ZOS are trying to balance this game between the strictly solo ES crowd and the MMO crowd.

MrDerrikk · November 2015

danno8 wrote: »

Every single class can put a build together that can solo all dolmens, public dungeons and delves.

Just use one of those builds.

Here is a quick hint:

Stamina builds: Brawler+Rally

Magicka Builds:
-Templar - Puncturing Sweeps
-NB - Sap essence + Siphoning Attaacks
-Sorcerer - Hardened Ward + Mines + Bolt Escape + CF
-DK - All DoT's + Cheap Ultimate (Battle Roar passive) + Blocking + GDB

Other people can elaborate more if you need it. Point is all classes can do it easily.

Alternatively you could make yourself such a glass cannon that you kill everything instantly, as that doesn't seem to be being penalized ATM.

Publius_Scipio · November 2015

Azurephoenix999 wrote: »

Publius_Scipio wrote: »

There is already a better and more dynamic battle leveling system and place. And as far as buffs go, there is something called champ points. That's pretty much all you need.

Each champion point you get gives you a tiny buff. These add up in the long-term, but in terms of the here and now, they're pretty much useless.

Ok.... So if you're having some difficulty, instead of simply needing another buff, go out and gain another couple of levels and CP and then come back to the content.

You just told me you couldn't lift the bar at the gym so you are demanding steroids to help you. Instead you grab some lower weight, build up your damn BICEPS and return to the bar. O yeah one more thing, Greek yogurt > steroids.

Flameheart · November 2015

Can't believe to read something like this...is it really about solo play too difficult ?

Stranglehands · November 2015

this is the proper soloing routine for each zone:
- go and solo all the dolmens, world bosses and the public dungeon
- do the bare minimum cadwell's almanac main questline to get to the next zone
that's usually good for leveling up to the next vet rank