End game testing observations

[Bach]

Been at end fame for a couple of weeks now. Have observed the following:

Most port battles are by far player vs. tower. If enemies do show up they are small in number. It doesn't seem to be players not wanting to. It seems the game mechanics make it very difficult for defenders to get to port battles before they are already over. By the time you know it happening you gave only about 30min to get the right ship and get to the port. This probably prevents a lot of players from participating. Perhaps some way players can get more advanced notice to have time to get to the PBs.

Players are now being told they need 1st rates in order to attend important port battles. But it only makes sense as the standard PB ship has become the 1st rate. I know the crew mechanic is expected to curb 1st rate usage but I doubt it will work. Since few Port Battles actually result in full 25v25 fights few 1st rates will actually be sunk. Resulting in the crew loss mechanic becoming ineffective. I think if we can figure out a way to let players get too port battles in time we might start to see more 25v25s.

Port Battle ping pong - current mechanics tend to result in player nations only fighting towers. As such a battle groups get through PB's do fast they just take all the ports that have timers open in that area. Then they go away till another team takes them back in the same any. Only the towers are the losers.

[Sir Robert Calder]

Been at end fame for a couple of weeks now. Have observed the following:

Most port battles are by far player vs. tower. If enemies do show up they are small in number. It doesn't seem to be players not wanting to. It seems the game mechanics make it very difficult for defenders to get to port battles before they are already over. By the time you know it happening you gave only about 30min to get the right ship and get to the port.

 

This is a player population problem, which if I remember correctly you are a PvP2 player. Unless the ports are extremely out of the way, port battles that take place near concentrations of clans or near capitals rarely go uncontested. The devs still realize this as a problem since defenders are such a disadvantage, and it will be changing in the future it seems.

[Diggled]

Guess you havent read all the dev posts with ideas in the works have ya?  Nearly all your points are addressed ins some manner

[Slamz]

This is a player population problem, which if I remember correctly you are a PvP2 player.

 

We moved to PVP1 some time ago.

 

And it IS a player population problem but the question you should be asking is why so many people reach the endgame and then stop logging in. On all servers. What's causing that player population problem?

 

I just hope there's some awareness that the lack of reliable open sea conflict in the endgame is a real problem.

 

And I'm not sure diplomacy changes or port battle flag changes will fix that. We need to think up some more reasons for max rank players to be spending time in the open sea, preferably doing something that tends to make them run into each other. That's a lot of entertainment value but the game doesn't do anything to drive it.

[Bach]

I followed some of the new dev thread but only lightly. I'm waiting to be able to test stuff before to many comments.

That said, I didn't see anything in the new dev thread that changed the "why" end game level players sail the seas. There has to be something more than just port battles or they may only log in for those and not the time in between. Worse yet, in between port battles the only thing for end game players to do is most likely going to be too just hunt down leveling players. Since they are the only ones mostly moving around on the open sea other than PB's.

Game needs some kind of strategic objectives that need to be accomplished in between port battles. Zone control missions or something that put end game level players into the same sea zone and away from new player areas.

[The Spud]

If you read the wars and PB thread under the development section, you will read allot of good ideas about changing the pace of the game.

 

PB will be a big an national effort announced one or two days in advance, wars will need to be declared and will be active for a set period of time. Points will be awarded with PvP fights won, PB, raids of ports, etc...

So combat will be allot more concentrated, and it will be allot clearer who is fighting who and where the action is going down.

 

I think we'll see this implemented soon....