Please fix Endless Archive difficulty

jaws343 · November 2023

Lugaldu wrote: »

jaws343 wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Galeriano wrote: »

What do You mean by saying "not everyone can play this thing"? Everyone can enter and play there solo which is what was promised. It was never promised that everyone will be able to venture far into it. Initial stages were designed for players with lesser skill but there is also a limit to how low You can set difficulty without making it so easy it becomes boring even for less experienced people.

Not offering different difficulty levels is an absolutely ridiculous design decision. This means that players are bound to become frustrated - vet players find it boring because it's too easy, and inexperienced players can't get through any of the gameplay at all.

I disagree. The whole point of the arena seems to be one content for all players. That is a significant difference from the existing arenas. Two modes, solo and duo, and everyone gets the same sort of content at the same difficulty as everyone else, for as far as they can take it.

Just the sort of content ESO needs.

But that's exactly what doesn't work. You can already see it in the discussion in this thread. If arc 1 is supposed to be an equivalent to a base game dungeon, which more or less "everyone" can do solo, then it would have to be something like the good old fungal grotto that you can quickly run through (e.g. because you have to do a daily). And if you need more challenge, then it gets more difficult from arc to arc. But at the moment arc 1 is not that easy, if you are unlucky and get some difficult trial bosses and bosses with one-shot mechanics then its even impossible to finish that one. And even if arc 1 had the difficulty of a base game dungeon, I would still doubt that beginner players would be able to get through solo or with a companion, because they probably also cant solo the base game dungeons. Such players are completely excluded here. It would therefore definitely make sense if there were a gradation of difficulty and not one content for everyone.

Or maybe, beginner players shouldn't be trying to solo content built for duo players.

Y'all want normal and vet versions, but maybe you need to realize that the normal version is the duo version, WITH another player. And solo is Vet. And running with a companion is a step between the two.

The EA was announced as a solo activity or duo activity and it was not stated that solo automatically means a "vet version". I still think that the differences in player skills are light years apart, as you see again and again in the discussions about difficulty of the game, and that you simply can't bring them to a common level.

It is a fairly logical implication that a dungeon designed for two players will be more difficult for someone soloing it.

There are players who cannot solo public dungeon bosses. Players need to realize that content can't always be adjusted for them and they need to just get better at the game or find a partner to duo it with.

valenwood_vegan · November 2023

Imo, the problem isn't so much that the EA is "too easy" or "too difficult" - it's that the design is such that most of a player's time in the EA will be spent doing content that is too easy, in order to reach the right level of challenge. And then soon after that, it's over.

I found it fun for brief periods of time when difficulty reached a good level of challenge for me (around arc 3), but the challenge is short lived and the difficulty becomes too great, or you roll a marauder or an unfamiliar boss with a one-shot mechanic... and there is very minimal opportunity to learn before you run out of threads and start over.

I would love to keep trying arc 3, because I think with some practice I can complete it. But it's simply not fun to slog through the first two arcs every time to reach that brief time when the difficulty matches my desired level of challenge.

I'm not sure exactly what the solution is, but one thing is that some method of saving progress would really help. Like maybe you can start from the beginning of the last arc you were on when you took a break. Of course you'd lose leaderboard progress at that point. But the way it's set up now, is exhausting and unhealthy, and simply doesn't work for players who have limited time and real life responsibilities.

The other thing that might help, is to have some kind of "practice mode" where you can pick any arc that you've previously reached... and run it. Without rewards even, that's not the point - the point is actually having an opportunity to learn some of the bosses and mechanics at the desired difficulty level that presents a challenge... without having to start over and waste an hour or two getting to that point.

Lugaldu · November 2023

jaws343 wrote: »

There are players who cannot solo public dungeon bosses. Players need to realize that content can't always be adjusted for them and they need to just get better at the game or find a partner to duo it with.

Of course it makes sense that a game presents challenges and should encourage players to improve (which probably happens normally during the game anyway), but it is somehow questionable if the widely announced content that is supposed to be there "for everyone" turns out to be just an activitiy for "some".
If we look at the entire huge game world with all its different activities, then its logical that not everybody can do everything right away. The problem here is that things have been announced (new activity for everyone) but the progression is unbalanced. The first level should be designed in such a way that everyone can get at least a "taste" of the activtiy and “experience some success”, even the player who has just reached CP 10 or has no CP at all. Sure, the level 10 player can go in there and fight against the boring trash mobs, but will not be able to get even a first reward box. I feel sorry for all those people who cannot get even those 220 currency from that first reward box and will get nothing from the trash mobs.

Soarora · November 2023

valenwood_vegan wrote: »

I'm not sure exactly what the solution is, but one thing is that some method of saving progress would really help. Like maybe you can start from the beginning of the last arc you were on when you took a break. Of course you'd lose leaderboard progress at that point. But the way it's set up now, is exhausting and unhealthy, and simply doesn't work for players who have limited time and real life responsibilities.

Honestly, I think letting us keep the instance until we lose all threads and still have it count for the leaderboards is a great idea. I want to scorepush but I’m not dedicating 6 hours straight to a leaderboard run. The leaderboards suggest unhealthy habits.

zaria · November 2023

jle30303 wrote: »

OP says "bosses with 12m hit points in the FIRST arc"

Now let's get a handle on that number.

BASE GAME world bosses are 1.8 million. The vast majority of players can't even solo those.

BASE GAME dungeon bosses are maybe 1.2-1.8 million on normal.

DLC world bosses have been recently getting up as far as 4-5 million, sometimes with adds, and in most cases aren't soloable by anybody except absolutely elite players.

The Deadlands Havocrels, and the Preserver of Galen, have 10 million HP each. These are not regarded as soloable by the average player.

"Average" players do not have complete sets of, say, Nirn (a DLC dungeon thing) and Deadly (a PVP outfit) all in correct traits. They might have, say, a base game dungeon outfit or a crafted. "Average" players are the ones still using things like Hundings, Julianos, Briarheart, Mothers Sorrow. If you're lucky. Certainly won't have a DLC monster helm, though they might just have a base-game monster helm and shoulders.

The "average" is not where you think it is.

An "Arc 1" boss, even a final one in a part of the game meant to be soloed, should not be throwing you right in at "Preserver of Galen" level.

12 million health is dragons and normal trial bosses. Now he might see an trial boss, ran into one from AS and one from MoL but they are scaled back and might have 1.2 million health.
Now you might run into bosses you don't know the mechanic on. Like trial bosses who are always tanked and an DD might not know how to handle, that killed me on an MoL boss at stage 3. Was killed on 2 by another boss I never seen before and did not come back on re spawn.

boi_anachronism_ · November 2023

code65536 wrote: »

Jaraal wrote: »

There absolutely should be a non-scoring, lower rewards normal mode

There is. It's called Arc 1.

They nerfed the Arc 1 difficulty significantly since PTS, and there are plenty of people who will just do Arc 1 and stop.

Now, you can choose to continue, for more challenge--and more rewards. But "just do Arc 1 again instead of proceeding to Arc 2" is basically that "lower rewards normal mode".

People wanting lower difficulty will inevitably want comparable rewards which will simply lead to vet players exploiting it for currency because they will get much further much much faster. This will create even more animosity. I dont see a great solution.

Isteris wrote: »

I cant really say what level of player I am, average I would think but that would be for others to decide. I found the first arc easy to solo, tho on the other hand didn't provide much of a challenge as I could see the mechanics and work out my priority targets but to a new player with 3 lives I think that may be an ask too far. Arc 2 no real problems until I got to Tho again and got one shotted twice until I worked out what was doing it, normal players are probably done on Arc 2 and then it just becomes a grind of 2 Arc's for very little reward. My one life remaining got me to cycle 4, arc 3. now for me that took longer than VMA without any must have loot and I am certain I could progress but I'm just not going to grind 2 Arc's with three lives at least one of which I'm likely to lose on route before having to work out the new mechanic for Tho 3, time vs reward it just ain't worth it.

This wasnt about total newbies. Op suggested they were an "average to above average" player which seems to possibly be inaccurate based on their comment.

Kaelthorn_Nightbloom · November 2023

valenwood_vegan wrote: »

Imo, the problem isn't so much that the EA is "too easy" or "too difficult" - it's that the design is such that most of a player's time in the EA will be spent doing content that is too easy, in order to reach the right level of challenge. And then soon after that, it's over.

This is accurate.

As an experienced solo player, you spend 3 hours grinding through 700+ mobs (4 arcs x 5 cycles x 2 stages x 3 packs x 6 mobs = 720) to get to the hard stuff on Arc 5 only to be stunned by an effect that came from off screen while a Marauder 1shots you during your Break Free with 33k armor, Major and Minor Protection, and defensive CP.

Happened last night.

FantasticFreddie · November 2023

Yeah, we only had a few rounds of trash where we actually got to USE some of the more interesting verses, and then bam, run was over.

Quethrosar · November 2023

MachineGod wrote: »

I went through Arc's 1 & 2 as a duo with no buffs. Just heavy attack. For context that was because of a bug where if you get transformed by the watcher side quest for the tomebooks it strips all buffs and sets bonuses until you re-equip them.

So if you cant progress through Arc 1 and find it "difficult" beyond holding a heavy attack button for 30 mins then you really should find something else to do besides basic combat.

Wait, what?

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

valenwood_vegan wrote: »

Imo, the problem isn't so much that the EA is "too easy" or "too difficult" - it's that the design is such that most of a player's time in the EA will be spent doing content that is too easy, in order to reach the right level of challenge. And then soon after that, it's over.

This is accurate.

As an experienced solo player, you spend 3 hours grinding through 700+ mobs (4 arcs x 5 cycles x 2 stages x 3 packs x 6 mobs = 720) to get to the hard stuff on Arc 5 only to be stunned by an effect that came from off screen while a Marauder 1shots you during your Break Free with 33k armor, Major and Minor Protection, and defensive CP.

Happened last night.

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

Elsonso · November 2023

Lugaldu wrote: »

jaws343 wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Galeriano wrote: »

What do You mean by saying "not everyone can play this thing"? Everyone can enter and play there solo which is what was promised. It was never promised that everyone will be able to venture far into it. Initial stages were designed for players with lesser skill but there is also a limit to how low You can set difficulty without making it so easy it becomes boring even for less experienced people.

Not offering different difficulty levels is an absolutely ridiculous design decision. This means that players are bound to become frustrated - vet players find it boring because it's too easy, and inexperienced players can't get through any of the gameplay at all.

I disagree. The whole point of the arena seems to be one content for all players. That is a significant difference from the existing arenas. Two modes, solo and duo, and everyone gets the same sort of content at the same difficulty as everyone else, for as far as they can take it.

Just the sort of content ESO needs.

But that's exactly what doesn't work. You can already see it in the discussion in this thread. If arc 1 is supposed to be an equivalent to a base game dungeon, which more or less "everyone" can do solo, then it would have to be something like the good old fungal grotto that you can quickly run through (e.g. because you have to do a daily). And if you need more challenge, then it gets more difficult from arc to arc. But at the moment arc 1 is not that easy, if you are unlucky and get some difficult trial bosses and bosses with one-shot mechanics then its even impossible to finish that one. And even if arc 1 had the difficulty of a base game dungeon, I would still doubt that beginner players would be able to get through solo or with a companion, because they probably also cant solo the base game dungeons. Such players are completely excluded here. It would therefore definitely make sense if there were a gradation of difficulty and not one content for everyone.

Or maybe, beginner players shouldn't be trying to solo content built for duo players.

Y'all want normal and vet versions, but maybe you need to realize that the normal version is the duo version, WITH another player. And solo is Vet. And running with a companion is a step between the two.

The EA was announced as a solo activity or duo activity and it was not stated that solo automatically means a "vet version". I still think that the differences in player skills are light years apart, as you see again and again in the discussions about difficulty of the game, and that you simply can't bring them to a common level.

It has always been reasonable to assume that doing it solo would not be as easy as doing it duo. Calling solo a "vet version" is all Forum, but one should expect it to be more challenging than duo.

As for Solo With Companion, not sure where that sits between the two. Seems more like it would be Solo With Dead Companion most of the time.

Bashev · November 2023

Quethrosar wrote: »

MachineGod wrote: »

I went through Arc's 1 & 2 as a duo with no buffs. Just heavy attack. For context that was because of a bug where if you get transformed by the watcher side quest for the tomebooks it strips all buffs and sets bonuses until you re-equip them.

So if you cant progress through Arc 1 and find it "difficult" beyond holding a heavy attack button for 30 mins then you really should find something else to do besides basic combat.

Wait, what?

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

valenwood_vegan wrote: »

Imo, the problem isn't so much that the EA is "too easy" or "too difficult" - it's that the design is such that most of a player's time in the EA will be spent doing content that is too easy, in order to reach the right level of challenge. And then soon after that, it's over.

This is accurate.

As an experienced solo player, you spend 3 hours grinding through 700+ mobs (4 arcs x 5 cycles x 2 stages x 3 packs x 6 mobs = 720) to get to the hard stuff on Arc 5 only to be stunned by an effect that came from off screen while a Marauder 1shots you during your Break Free with 33k armor, Major and Minor Protection, and defensive CP.

Happened last night.

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

With similar stats I have between 25-30k DPS on a single target. It is not great but it does the job, slowly.

Kaelthorn_Nightbloom · November 2023

Quethrosar wrote: »

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

My secret

I do around 30k single target and 15k aoe while fully maxxed out on defense. With Visions, I also have 41k health and 22k shield. That's without Gaze of Sithis and I'm constantly block weaving.

If it wasn't for the random 1shot mechanics and having to spend 3 hours getting back to Arc 5, I would be at Arc 6 or 7.

Someone else got to Arc 6 before me.

freespirit · November 2023

At this time I cannot comment on how I find the difficulty as I have only had a quick look and left with all my lives intact.

What did surprise me was coming up against a Trial Boss in the first arc, although it was from an "easy" Trial and was nearly dead before the pink axes actually made me realise who I was fighting!! 🤣

I need to spend more time there but I suspect I might be one of the people who think there should be a "normal" and a "veteran" mode. From conversations in guild chat people are struggling with one shot Bosses and difficulty ramping up too fast.

I just think it was an amazing idea that potentially at the moment has not been that well implemented, I hope to prove myself wrong later!

AzuraFan · November 2023

Bobargus wrote: »

I think there should be a normal mode for casuals, and a veteran mode for those who have the builds and gears.

When i say "normal mode for casuals", i mean overland level easiness being the first priority, perhaps normal dungeon level difficulty at most.

I'd love it if they did this. My optimum level of difficulty (meaning I have a fun experience, rather than a frustrating one), is the DLC public dungeon level of difficulty, and the non-DLC dungeon difficulty. That's just about the right amount of challenge for me. I can solo them (including the group events in public dungeons), but it's not easy. But at the same time, it's not frustrating. If there was a difficulty mode for the EA that offered that, I'd play the heck out of the thing.

But because I know up front that the EA is geared (pun intended) toward players who like to max their builds and such, I'm not eager to try it because I know it'll probably be more painful than a root canal without anesthetic.

I hope they listen to this type of feedback. After all, the EA is completely instanced. Players should be able to choose a difficulty level going in. Why can't a player choose overland, public dungeon, dungeon, or trial level of difficulty? Why not make the EA something everyone can enjoy?

Necrotech_Master · November 2023

the only thing i think is a little overtuned in the archive are the marauders, even in arc 2 their light attacks were hitting something around 8-11k dmg which i feel is extremely high

everything else i felt like was fine, difficulty wise, though i could definitely tell some of the trial bosses would probably give casual players more issues due to never seeing the mechanics

my other comment about the archive is getting dragon bosses, the platform for the boss fight i feel is slightly too small and it could be too easy to get knocked off the ledge

Bashev · November 2023

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Quethrosar wrote: »

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

My secret

I do around 30k single target and 15k aoe while fully maxxed out on defense. I also have 41k health and 22k shield. That's without Gaze of Sithis and I'm constantly block weaving.

If it wasn't for the random 1shot mechanics and having to spend 3 hours getting back to Arc 5, I would be at Arc 6 or 7.

This can be achieved with heavy attack build or bash build. If you block weave it is a bash build. If you have such big shield is either sorc, arcanist or DK. But if you use Bash build it is a Sorc because it is the best option.

Alienoutlaw · November 2023

freespirit wrote: »

At this time I cannot comment on how I find the difficulty as I have only had a quick look and left with all my lives intact.

What did surprise me was coming up against a Trial Boss in the first arc, although it was from an "easy" Trial and was nearly dead before the pink axes actually made me realise who I was fighting!! 🤣

I need to spend more time there but I suspect I might be one of the people who think there should be a "normal" and a "veteran" mode. From conversations in guild chat people are struggling with one shot Bosses and difficulty ramping up too fast.

I just think it was an amazing idea that potentially at the moment has not been that well implemented, I hope to prove myself wrong later!

all of those boss's are scalled back to 1.2m health and their mechanics are also scalled back (so there is no one shot for eg) personally i have found the experience to be fun (apart from the bugs) and running duo to be the most rewarding in terms of enjoyment...........some "stages" can get repetitive with the same Add's ect ect

Alienoutlaw · November 2023

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Quethrosar wrote: »

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

My secret

I do around 30k single target and 15k aoe while fully maxxed out on defense. I also have 41k health and 22k shield. That's without Gaze of Sithis and I'm constantly block weaving.

If it wasn't for the random 1shot mechanics and having to spend 3 hours getting back to Arc 5, I would be at Arc 6 or 7.

Someone else got to Arc 6 before me.

i think the random 1 shot is a bug, as it happens in Add phases as well as boss encounters

alternatelder · November 2023

Braffin wrote: »

alternatelder wrote: »

Confirmed, we lost a Q4 story content to something aimed at a small portion of the population that likes hardmode activities.

May we have some proof regarding your claim, that only a small portion of the playerbase is interested in EA?

Where did I say specifically that? It is well known that only a small percentage of the playerbase takes part in hardcore endgame activities.

Jaraal · November 2023

MachineGod wrote: »

For context that was because of a bug where if you get transformed by the watcher side quest for the tomebooks it strips all buffs and sets bonuses until you re-equip them.

Well that explains what happened on that run, I was not aware of that. Hopefully that was fixed in today's patch?

Rowjoh · November 2023

'average' is in the eye of the beholder.

Kaelthorn_Nightbloom · November 2023

Alienoutlaw wrote: »

i think the random 1 shot is a bug, as it happens in Add phases as well as boss encounters

The 1shots I'm experiencing aren't bugs. I can see what happened when I die and it's working as intended.

For example, in Arc 5 I accidently stand in molten aoe for 1 second and I take 24k damage because it's an AOE DoT and block doesn't mitigate any damage. Or I get stunned and during the Break Free, a Marauder does 34k damage in 1 hit because I'm not blocking.

Arc 5 just hits hard especially after Cycle 3. By the time you get here, you are tired and make mistakes.

Alienoutlaw · November 2023

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Alienoutlaw wrote: »

i think the random 1 shot is a bug, as it happens in Add phases as well as boss encounters

The 1shots I'm experiencing aren't bugs. I can see what happened when I die and it's working as intended.

For example, in Arc 5 I accidently stand in molten aoe for 1 second and I take 24k damage because it's an AOE DoT and block doesn't mitigate any damage. Or I get stunned and during the Break Free, a Marauder does 34k damage in 1 second because I'm not blocking.

Arc 5 just hits hard especially after Cycle 3.

i was not aware so my appologize, i think Arc 4 & 5 are stupidly to strong even on duo with a player that hits 105k dps we struggle, in my personal opinion an "endless archive" should be just that difficulty ramps up in stages as you progress through each Arc, the way it seems to have been made is Arc5 is this highest difficulty and you get the "EA "completion" so essentially its not endless at all its 5 variations of difficulty with 4 being vet trial and 5 being vet trial HM and after that it plateau's at vet trial HM at Arc 5 and above

edited for additional txt

Braffin · November 2023

alternatelder wrote: »

Braffin wrote: »

alternatelder wrote: »

Confirmed, we lost a Q4 story content to something aimed at a small portion of the population that likes hardmode activities.

May we have some proof regarding your claim, that only a small portion of the playerbase is interested in EA?

Where did I say specifically that? It is well known that only a small percentage of the playerbase takes part in hardcore endgame activities.

At least Arcs 1-3 aren't a "hardcore endgame activity" tho. Calling them so is nothing more than framing.

Whoever can't complete Arc 1, shouldn't talk about vet hm content, as they clearly haven't the slightest idea what they're talking about.

Additionally I'd still like to see proof for your claim, that "only a smalll percentage of the playerbase takes part in hardcore endgame activities". Afaik zos isn't publishing any numbers regarding this topic at all. So how exactly do you want to know, that you aren't completely wrong?

Castagere · November 2023

Bashev wrote: »

No No No. You will nerf the only challenging solo content in the game.

I am not a PvE-er myself but i just went with my PvP build and my game crashed at arc 3. I had no issues with the bosses and I found them too easy and boring in the first 2 arcs. I just waisted some time to reach the fun part and now I have to start over.

If ZoS nerf the EA to arc 5 let say i hope they will give us an option to jump directly on Arc 6 and not wasting time doing trivial fights.

Then ZOS should have not made the claim that anyone can solo it when clearly it is not for everyone. ZOS needs to explain why they made that claim.

Kaelthorn_Nightbloom · November 2023

Bashev wrote: »

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Quethrosar wrote: »

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

My secret

I do around 30k single target and 15k aoe while fully maxxed out on defense. I also have 41k health and 22k shield. That's without Gaze of Sithis and I'm constantly block weaving.

If it wasn't for the random 1shot mechanics and having to spend 3 hours getting back to Arc 5, I would be at Arc 6 or 7.

This can be achieved with heavy attack build or bash build. If you block weave it is a bash build. If you have such big shield is either sorc, arcanist or DK. But if you use Bash build it is a Sorc because it is the best option.

I wouldn't be surprised if a Void Bash Azureblight tank with 4-5 aoe dots gets 1st place on the Solo Leaderboards. You'd have to swap back to single target build for bosses but the trash packs would be safer and faster with an aoe tank.

Braffin · November 2023

Castagere wrote: »

Bashev wrote: »

No No No. You will nerf the only challenging solo content in the game.

I am not a PvE-er myself but i just went with my PvP build and my game crashed at arc 3. I had no issues with the bosses and I found them too easy and boring in the first 2 arcs. I just waisted some time to reach the fun part and now I have to start over.

If ZoS nerf the EA to arc 5 let say i hope they will give us an option to jump directly on Arc 6 and not wasting time doing trivial fights.

Then ZOS should have not made the claim that anyone can solo it when clearly it is not for everyone. ZOS needs to explain why they made that claim.

Where exactly did zos claim, that anyone could solo EA, regardless of build, experience and skill?

Afaik they announced, that anyone will be able to start EA, as it's basically a f2p-addition, but they never guaranteed that any combination of build/playerskill will accomplish several Arcs in a row or something like that.

Bashev · November 2023

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Bashev wrote: »

SkaraMinoc wrote: »

Quethrosar wrote: »

how do you do more than 1 dps with that setup ?

My secret

I do around 30k single target and 15k aoe while fully maxxed out on defense. I also have 41k health and 22k shield. That's without Gaze of Sithis and I'm constantly block weaving.

If it wasn't for the random 1shot mechanics and having to spend 3 hours getting back to Arc 5, I would be at Arc 6 or 7.

This can be achieved with heavy attack build or bash build. If you block weave it is a bash build. If you have such big shield is either sorc, arcanist or DK. But if you use Bash build it is a Sorc because it is the best option.

I wouldn't be surprised if a Thews of the Harbinger tank running Void Bash and Azureblight spamming 4-5 aoe dots gets 1st place on the Solo Leaderboards. You'd have to swap back to single target build for bosses but the trash packs would be safer and faster with an aoe tank.

I was thinking to try maser 2 hand as backbar for adds.

Castagere · November 2023

Braffin wrote: »

Castagere wrote: »

Bashev wrote: »

No No No. You will nerf the only challenging solo content in the game.

I am not a PvE-er myself but i just went with my PvP build and my game crashed at arc 3. I had no issues with the bosses and I found them too easy and boring in the first 2 arcs. I just waisted some time to reach the fun part and now I have to start over.

If ZoS nerf the EA to arc 5 let say i hope they will give us an option to jump directly on Arc 6 and not wasting time doing trivial fights.

Then ZOS should have not made the claim that anyone can solo it when clearly it is not for everyone. ZOS needs to explain why they made that claim.

Where exactly did zos claim, that anyone could solo EA, regardless of build, experience and skill?

Afaik they announced, that anyone will be able to start EA, as it's basically a f2p-addition, but they never guaranteed that any combination of build/playerskill will accomplish several Arcs in a row or something like that.

Oh, I see they didn't guarantee that you could do it. Give me a freaking break.

Freelancer_ESO · November 2023

jaws343 wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

jaws343 wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Elsonso wrote: »

Lugaldu wrote: »

Galeriano wrote: »

What do You mean by saying "not everyone can play this thing"? Everyone can enter and play there solo which is what was promised. It was never promised that everyone will be able to venture far into it. Initial stages were designed for players with lesser skill but there is also a limit to how low You can set difficulty without making it so easy it becomes boring even for less experienced people.

Not offering different difficulty levels is an absolutely ridiculous design decision. This means that players are bound to become frustrated - vet players find it boring because it's too easy, and inexperienced players can't get through any of the gameplay at all.

I disagree. The whole point of the arena seems to be one content for all players. That is a significant difference from the existing arenas. Two modes, solo and duo, and everyone gets the same sort of content at the same difficulty as everyone else, for as far as they can take it.

Just the sort of content ESO needs.

But that's exactly what doesn't work. You can already see it in the discussion in this thread. If arc 1 is supposed to be an equivalent to a base game dungeon, which more or less "everyone" can do solo, then it would have to be something like the good old fungal grotto that you can quickly run through (e.g. because you have to do a daily). And if you need more challenge, then it gets more difficult from arc to arc. But at the moment arc 1 is not that easy, if you are unlucky and get some difficult trial bosses and bosses with one-shot mechanics then its even impossible to finish that one. And even if arc 1 had the difficulty of a base game dungeon, I would still doubt that beginner players would be able to get through solo or with a companion, because they probably also cant solo the base game dungeons. Such players are completely excluded here. It would therefore definitely make sense if there were a gradation of difficulty and not one content for everyone.

Or maybe, beginner players shouldn't be trying to solo content built for duo players.

Y'all want normal and vet versions, but maybe you need to realize that the normal version is the duo version, WITH another player. And solo is Vet. And running with a companion is a step between the two.

The EA was announced as a solo activity or duo activity and it was not stated that solo automatically means a "vet version". I still think that the differences in player skills are light years apart, as you see again and again in the discussions about difficulty of the game, and that you simply can't bring them to a common level.

It is a fairly logical implication that a dungeon designed for two players will be more difficult for someone soloing it.

There are players who cannot solo public dungeon bosses. Players need to realize that content can't always be adjusted for them and they need to just get better at the game or find a partner to duo it with.

Is this really a good example of content that can't be adjusted?

I am not saying that an adjustment is necessarily going to be worth the time to implement as the appeal outside the people that like it/can do it already may not be that high but, I think from a theory perspective you could do it.

One of the major gaps between players when it comes to skill/resources is the rate at which players do damage.

Thus, in the early parts you could use the rate at which players clear trash to figure out if they need help for the boss fights.

If the player looks like they'll need help, toss them/them and their companion some buffs behind the scenes, rig the verses for boss fights to be useful options (Aka if the boss fight has 0 adds don't give a verse that requires you to kill something to get value), and have the npc's actually show up/be more useful if things take "too long" in the first round rather than just talking about it.

For example, it's pretty clear the companion AI doesn't really handle many of the bosses well. You could somewhat mitigate those issues for players that aren't performing well in the trash by giving them a significantly enhanced version of the Undeath passive and knockback immunity.

For player buffs, if you added a buff that capped damage taken in a single hit to 65% of max hp for non-knockback damage you'd likely avoid some of the one shots while still getting the point across. Adding a behind the scenes version of Undeath and a buff that scales up your recovery stats when any of your pools is low would also allow a bit of support without necessarily taking away all of the difficulty.

If you used a time system you could also use it to produce "Dangerous Shortcuts". If someone is doing lots of damage fast , you could allow them to take a "Dangerous Shortcuts" and skip an entire tier if they can beat the content in the shortcut. (You'd likely want less rewards and a lower score for skipping as you miss part of the endurance challenge)

TLDR:

You probably could actually tweak it so the difficulty experience hits better for people without actually adding a normal/veteran mode but, I wouldn't necessarily say it would be worth the effort.