Not talking about the obvious BG issues here, or the actual combat (proc sets etc.) there are other threads for these.
Just the simple ability to find some classic and quality AvA gameplay. Note that this is from the perspective of a player on PS4 EU. Pop- locked and queues for Vivec for prime time. Very little to ZERO action in the no-CP's, and about 1 bar each on Kyne during PT.
First off, the campaigns. 1 CP campaign and 2 non-CP campaigns, and one specifically for under level 50's. This layout I have no problems with. Being that I am completely convinced, ever since Azura went from CP to No CP, literally over night, having gone from 3 fps in combat to as smooth as large battles can get, that No CP simply performs better. You won't convince me otherwise as I have experienced it first hand.
*whispers* I also have a theory this may be one of the reasons ZOS put stop points and more rounding on the CP stars, less variables!
So then, why is everyone queuing to enter this nonsense? It's simple, you cant experience the excitement of large battles that this game provides without a large population. This is to the point that players will queue, get in, get kicked, and then try again!!? It's madness to me but I understand the attraction. The feeling of lending oneself to the campaign, to win, to play with friends, etc. But also, because ZOS have made it very difficult to allow players to even try other campaigns. Currently you have to wait 30 or 7 days to change your campaign!! Why? And why can't we guest on all other campaign's, not just one. Not that that would change much, as people also want to climb leaderboards and shoot for rewards.
Remove the cost to change campaign, or greatly reduce it.
Note; I'm aware that ZOS actually increased it up to what it is shortly after console launch, if someone can remind me as to why I would be interested to know.
Now we have to look at this from the new player to the vet players perspective. This is because, and one of the deciding factors to me making this thread, I have seen a very significant amount of new players in Vivec ever since the expac.
If we were to guess, it would appear that the maxed out PvP AvA players want to utilize their CP and fight in the most populated campaign. But we certainly can't say that about the newbs. In fact, they are gimping themselves a great deal playing in that campaign. They are but free AP. It's the attraction of the large battles, the immersive atmosphere, the attack and defend flow. It's awesome, who can blame them. But it's severely broken, lag, disconnects, queues. And the fact that these new players haven't a hope in hell up against experienced maxed stat players leaves me thinking that it can't be something they could enjoy for as long as we all hope they would.
What can be done? For starters, the adds are completely broken. This is to the point that even experienced players, with CP intact, can struggle to capture resources. What chance do others have? People are actually forced to go where the groups are. It's a disaster
@ZOS.
But let's assume they weren't totally borked. The no-CP campaigns are still brutal for players. Not so much the experienced players, but again, the new players need to rely on groups, I don't feel it should be like this. As for Imperial City, isn't it obvious? Why would people farm in a place where the adds are actually challenging? I enjoy it myself but understand that losing half your stones to one-shot boss mechanics is detrimental to a players enjoyment, and thus decision to where they want to play. And the sewers, the bosses down there are actually tougher than the city, and they only grant 500TV, and thats to a small group! They need to be the same, if not more rewarding, due to how much longer it can take to travel between them, to entice players. How come this has never been addressed?
Adds in IC and sewers need to be heavily nerfed in the no-CP campaigns. But I'm not against a large buff to them in the CP one. Perhaps it should be as challenging as it is in no-CP, but the way it is currently, you could sadly consider deleting IC for those campaign's.
Now for a controversial topic, being that we have gathered that the maxed out CP players are struggling due to performance, queues, lag. And new players are the same, adding in that they are fodder and can't sustain without numbers.
Maybe it might be an idea to simply not allow players without any CP on their account into the CP campaign? Only allow them into Kyne or one of the other two. Yes, players will say that they want to play with friends and guildies, but does it not seem a lot fairer to have the CP players meet them where they can actually contribute? This would be after adds are re-balanced of course. It would be far more satisfying for new players i'm sure.
And yes, I'm aware that this would then attract many of the maxed gear players across at the thought of tackling lesser experienced players, but I guess then we can separate those that want to actually compete in the most competitive campaign from those that just want to zerg bust newbies for the highlight real. I'm not judging, it's fun as hell, and it would provide us with what we all want, better performance, less queues, and a more competitive campaign that 'can' actually perform.
I feel something needs to be done, and if you are still with me I'm sure you feel the same. Cheers for reading. And let's hope AvA can live on on our respective platforms, but ZOS need to take action.
PC EU - NoCP PvP, is real PvP
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Played since beta, and then on console at release, until the game became unplayable on console.