Idea on dragon adventuring post 100th

[ssylva]

First off every 5 million exp past 100th a dragon would go up a rating point(solving some powerlevelling and grouping issues).

The exp could be spent on various abilities and stats and you obviously could not get everything. This would lead to each dragon being somewhat different // customized (which is a very good thing).

You could spend exp on the following abilities:

Base Strength (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Dexterity (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Power (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Focus (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Health (10 points) -> 2 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Armor (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Evasion (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Tooth/Claw (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Base Primal (10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Etheral Armor (10 points) -> 7 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Dragon Breath(10 points) -> 5 million exp (repeatable, +10% cost per time taken)

Dragons Gift V -> 20 million exp (one time only)

Refreshing Breeze timer reduction(10 seconds) -> 5 million exp(doable 6 times, +20% cost per time taken)

Tail Whip Stun Duration Increase(1 second) -> 5 million exp(doable 5 times, +20% cost per time taken)

Stunning Bolts(2% chance for a bolt spell to stun target 5 seconds) -> 5 million exp(doable 5 times, +20% cost per time taken)

Critical Heals(2% chance for a heal/hot tick to heal double) -> 5 million exp(doable 5 times, +20% cost per time taken)

Penetrating Winds(+25 accuracy with grazing/unrelenting winds) -> 5 million exp(doable 5 times, +20% cost per time taken)

Golden Bolt(shares timer with gold rage -- fires a triple bolt at target, shares gold rage timer) -> 20 million exp(one time only)

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Example of the costs:

First time you take refreshing breeze reduction it costs 5 million exp

The second time it takes 20% more -- 6 million exp

Third time 20% more - 7.2 million exp

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Obviously there are other things that could be added to this idea but this is the gist of a potential way dragons could be allowed to advance post 100 and hence give them something to do with exp, significantly reduce the powerlevelling problems out there, and allow dragons to better group with bipeds.

[Illi]

These are excellent ideas! Nice job, Ssylva! I especially like the golden bolt aspect, I have always thought it was wrong that Helians did not have a dmg output ability like a Lunus has. I am a Lunus, but still would like to see this ability for Helians. I also like the stun idea and critical heals. Rating idea is also good.

Excellent post!

[Goriax]

I like it. It would give dragons a way to progress past 100 and allow them more individuality at the same time.

However, this may need a few tweaks. Remember that one guiding principle in HZ is that, other then race, there arevery few irrevocable decisions. You can always come back and redo things. You can buy back training points and drop schools for example. It might be good to continue to apply that principle. It need not be easy, just possible.

One thing to think about. Rather then getting the enhancement directly, perhaps you get training points. Or perhaps it's possible to drop the skill enhancement and rating boost (I don't think bipeds get back the experience if they drop schools so dragons probably shouldn't get back the experienceif they drop a skill).

I've currently got about 80 mil experience past 100. When some biped proposes hunting for experience with him I laugh. This would have it make more sense. The actual numbers (skill increase and experience required for a skill increase) would probably need to be playtested thoroughly first.

[ssylva]

Yes I would figure you would be able to drop abilities (but I do agree that while your rating would come down, you wouldnt get any of the experience back).

As for training points, I thought of that but I considered it a complication vs just using the exp points directly. Plus exp is inherantly more granular than training points would be(allowing a gradual uptick in costs on repeat buys instead of large jumps).

[Dragonboy]

I would vote for Spiked scales to get a shorter timer AND an increase of damage

[Goriax]

Actually, I figured the training points would be more granular. Note that it takes several training points to buy most upgrades.

The advantage of training points is that it lets them plug into an existing system -- complete with a way for people to change their minds -- with no more coding. I thought it might require less Dev time that way thus increase the chances of it happening (I hope). However, at this point we're picking nits.

[Tribunal]

Wow, that is quite a good list.

I commend you those are excellent Ideas.

[Lumineux]

I really like the theory behind this. It would take some tweaking, but I think the concept is very sound. Would give us a bit of customization too.

[imported_Lycaunoss]

It's a fantastic idea but there are a couple of minor problems with it. Like some others have suggested I think Training points would be a better way of implementing even just for the simple reason that training points does most of what you suggestion needs anyway. They would also allow the flexibility to unlearn these things bu unspending the TP's with buy back points.

My only other problem is that I think it would feel like a business transaction. In essence we would be buying skills and the coin would be our xp. That's not necessarily a terrible bad thing but I kinda like doing the quests even if they are only kill x of y. Interaction with npc's is a good thing. How about using that council of elders?

Finally I'm thinking that the numbers would maybe be too low? I'm not sure if my perception is a bit skewed though. Personally I have 61 million xp over level 100 and I havn't really hunted in the past 8 months almost. That would buy me a lot of upgrades I think. Perhaps a reset of xp would be in order....

[ssylva]

Considering that it would take 10 times spent to get a +1 to the skill bonus on a stat (and that is 80 million exp -- 16 rating)[another point is with the +10% per point it makes the second +1 in the same skill to be a further 207 million exp -- 42 rating which is whynot very many people will concentrate to that degree]and that many bipeds have 150+ ratings I feel that the exp there is quite balanced...

You are also forgetting that as you gain exp your rating goes up making it harder to gain exp....

[ssylva]

Actually having the council of elders be the ones who you talk to to spend the exp would possibly be a method of implementation as opposed to having there be an extra screen or anything... IE You could add a link to each one for spending a certain kind of exp -- one might have the stat training duties -- another one the primal training duties etc.

I have been charged with the Training of defensive abilities -- You may be trained in Health, Armor, Evasion, or Etheral Armor for a cost of 5 million experience -- note this will increase your rating by one and anything over 50 million will be lost.

I am sure you could couch that a bit better but that is the general idea.

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If one went that way then one would have to do two things differently though...

1) You would have to have some cap on the amount of saved exp, or people would store a ton of exp at a lower rating(or just have it reduce the exp to say 50 million if you are over 55 million when doing this) -- this would also be a way to reward people who have extra exp now as they would get 11 points right off...

2) You would have to figure it "the other way" meaning instead of having the exp go up you would have to have the return drop on repeatables... IE You would get 10 str for the first couple of times then it would drop to 9str etc... One would have to take care though because in general such formulas decay differently (and more drastically) than the formula provided earlier... IE it isnt 10% less return per or you would cap a lot sooner. At any rate you would get say 10 str (25 health) the first time and it would provide less each time you repeated it... IE like 10 10 10 9 9 9 9 9 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 7 7 7 etc.)

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It would probably be a little less work done that way though.

[Dhalin]

This sounds a lot like the Merit System in FFXI.

Once you got Max Level (Lv75) in that game, you were allowed to switch to "Merit Mode". When you gain Exp, they are turned into Limit Points instead. Every 10,000 limit points gave you 1 Merit Point. You were allowed to spend that Merit Point into various upgrades for the character, say, More Strength, More Dexterity... or if you were, say, a Healer, better healing spells, etc. The first upgrade cost 1 merit point, the 2nd would cost 2, the third would cost 3, etc.

A good idea, gives Dragons something to do after Max Level. This is certainly a better idea than most games go... every other game on the market wants to do the Camping Thing, where they stick 3-5 POWERFUL mobs in the game, slap some good loot on them, and make them 21-24 hr respawns. *rolls eyes*

That is getting SO old in these MMORPGs... its been done, done again, and Overdone. I hope Horizons never goes that route, but then after seing the Daknor quest, I dunno... maybe this game IS in danger of turning into another EverCamp...

But anyways I digress... I think the OP's idea is good, and would support it.

--Dhalin

[ssylva]

At any rate a Dev response would be very nice here:

A) We have something completely different in mind and while these ideas are interesting they arent going to happen

B) We are already working on something similar to this and might or might not incorporate some of what is stated

C) We are considering this idea among others and have not started doing practical work on this issue yet.

D) Things are currently set to remain as they are with an eventual raise in the level cap but it is currently planned to be say bipeds with 12 classes all at 150th vs dragons with their current classes and maybe 1 or2 more at 150th.

E(I can dream) We have decided to run with this idea and have our own version of it almost ready to be deployed

F) Other -- state.

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In addition I am also interested in timelines -- Whatever decision is made on dragon advancement -- when about is it likely that 100th level dragon characters will have some use for the expthey rack up?

A) Sometime very soon (March/April)

B) In progress but not on the front burner (May-July estimate)

C) In planning but not much/none coded (August-November)

D) Unlikely any time soon -- our priorities lie elsewhere(December or later if at all)

[AA0]

They have already stated they have something else planned for dragons. This is also not a unique idea, as its been posted a few times before.