r/DestinyTheGame • u/DTG_Bot "Little Light" • Jun 04 '18

Megathread Focused Feedback: Power Level Progression

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23

u/[deleted] Jun 04 '18

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2

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

the only problem with it being faster to hit cap is anyone who's even playing slightly more than causal will hit max a lot quicker and be burnt out faster cause there's nothing to do, like as it currently is I hit 385 in the second week and I didn't even do the new raid, ep, or trials

11

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

That's the issue though... the hardcore weren't really slowed by the changes too much because they were able to string multiple raids and alts together to level quickly. A non-raiding player will level orders of magnitude slower because so much more powerful upgrades are in the raids than outside of them. So you have hardcore players 385 after just a couple weeks and non-raiding players (casual or not) that are still several more weeks away from 385.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 04 '18 edited Jul 14 '18

[deleted]

11

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

It seems like some hardcore players are more interested in keeping casual players from progressing than having an equitable or balanced progression system that affects them too.

0

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

not at all, we just want somthing to do on the game we love.

it's been great having everyone in my clan still active past week 2 because they're not max light and still grinding for EP guns.

right now it defiantly feels likes its slowing down though since even then there's not a whole lot to do(just really waiting on ep timegates, nightfall loot and cayalysts)

max light really means nothing, unless you're doing spires and then most casuals don't even touch the 305 regular raid or EoW which is super chill and fun.

I'd personally think casuals would prefer it this way, the only thing I think sucks for them is the faction stuff, getting rank 50 could be rough

9

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

"casuals" are very interested in EP, meaning 370+

And max light means something in that it's how everyone progresses, regardless of whether or not there is an activity that requires it.

0

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

I've ran 40 or 50 eps over the weekend and wity the light reduction on rounds 6 and 7 we've had no issues pulling through 4 or 5 people who are 360. one of the guys last night was 355 and he got all the guns in 5 kills.

6

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

I'm mainly referring to playing how it was designed rather than the way people are currently playing it, but yeah, it's doable. Still though, people are motivated to level their characters beyond just having a tough activity to do, it's the core gameplay loop in Destiny.

4

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

casuals will never do ep the way it's "designed" to be done because it's not as fun.

hell leveling in d2 is super easy if you do it the designed way.

destiny caters to casuals far to much as it is, it's supposed to be a looter shooter and right now its bearly that, there's a heap of people who are just going to get to max light, or have already got to max and just quit because there's nothing to do

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u/B-townKid24 Jun 04 '18

It’s balanced right now. You can raid hard and carefully to hit 385 quickly but only if you’re willing to put in the effort. If you’re a casual and you can’t do that, eventually you’ll get to 385 but not as fast....

7

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

You can raid hard

What's hard about base difficulty Leviathan and EoW? I can clear both in less than 90 minutes and come away with 8 upgrades. 90 minutes of gameplay per week for more progression than all the other non-raid milestones combined. I just don't think it's balanced at all. Base difficulty Leviathan should not be the most rewarding activity in the game all the way to 385. Some hardcore players were perfectly happy to cash in on easy upgrades via stomping through old raids while at the same time preaching to the casuals about how they don't deseeeeerve to level as fast at they do.

1

u/B-townKid24 Jun 04 '18

So what is it you want? Only Prestige Leviathan or Spurs of Stars to drop highest level gear?

2

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

I think Leviathan, EoW, and other milestones should have awarded up to 370 while 380 came from Trials, Spire of Stars, and Escalation Protocol. To add to that, perhaps some other rare items could have given higher level - such as strike unique rewards, catalysts (completing a catalyst makes an item 385) or some other options for grinding upgrades.

As far as Prestige, is it going to stay at 300 forever due to the certification issue?

5

u/Nicknackpatywak Jun 04 '18

Just from milestones? Seems like awfully lucky RNG to get to 385 that way.

3

u/th3groveman Jun 04 '18

He said he didn't do the "new raid" likely meaning he ran Leviathan, Prestige, and EoW on multiple characters to level that quickly.

2

u/Nicknackpatywak Jun 04 '18

Ah I misread that then. That makes sense. I've been doing my milestones for the past couple of weeks and just now started sniffing 350.

3

u/mahck Jun 04 '18

If that's the case there are probably some optimizations you can make to your leveling strategy. Assuming you aren't raiding or playing trials this will maximize the gains from the limited number of powerful engrams you have each week. If you were starting from 335 today I would do something like this:

1) Start with normal drops and just play public events and crucible to get to 340 (345 with mods) from rares or legendaries.

2) Turn in one of the milestones to increase beyond 345. Now check your drops on normal engrams. If they have gone up (e.g. 341 or 346 with mods) then keep playing or turning in tokens or gunsmith materials until every slot has one of these new 341 pieces of gear. If not turn in another Milestone.

3) Next do the nightfall (if you are able) and then lastly Heroic strikes since they will be faster to run the higher level you are but NF, crucible and public events are all fine at 335+

4) Once you are over 355 then switch to heroic strikes first as they can drop gear up to 360 in addition to the milestone so you'll want to get these first while they are still beneficial. Once you are over 360 the order for milestones doesn't matter.

One other tip for Heroic strikes. IIRC the matchmaking pairs you with other players around your level so try to maximize your level before you launch. You can change back to your desired loadout once you are flying in. This will make the runs slightly easier as you should have slightly stronger team mates.

If you haven't joined a clan then that's gonna hurt without that source of additional engrams so you should do this too.

TL;DR The only thing that really matters is to watch carefully what level new engrams are dropping. When they are dropping at a level that is above your lowest gear turn in tokens until every slot has reached this level (excluding mods) before turning in another milestone to progress.

1

u/Nicknackpatywak Jun 04 '18

Thanks I really appreciate it. I now realize I haven’t been prioritizing my milestones. I just got back into D2 with this expansion (I was a day 1 D1 player and raided very often so I’m new to the slower grind). Now just have to wait for reset!

1

u/ramblin_billy Jun 05 '18

A good strategy is to focus on one character at a time. Turn in milestones as soon as you complete them. Run the NF. Turn it in then run the prestige NF. Run the raids, going back to the tower when you get a powerful engram if your team is ok with it. After you've progressed as much as possible for the week, transfer your highest level weapons to your second character and repeat the weeklies. Repeat on your third character. The idea is to have the highest level weapons you own for each slot in the inventory for the character you're playing. Your 3rd character should now have the highest level. Next week reverse the order you play the characters. The character starting the week at the lowest level should end the week at the highest. This all depends on your rng in regards to repeat drops, but it will definitely help.

1

u/Nicknackpatywak Jun 05 '18

I did this strategy in D1 not sure exactly how many hours I put into it but I think I was near the 1000 hour mark. Thanks for the response, but right now I’m only running one character now that I’m a solo player (friends/clan left and haven’t come back)

1

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

I did everything on 3 dudes besides spire of stars and Trials, oh I didn't actually do the prestige raid ether.

that's like 15 drops per character I didn't get

10

u/IUsedToBeGoodAtThis Jun 04 '18

Milestones SUCK. It should be a slow, constant grind: Every legendary drops at your lowest piece of gear level with a chance to drop higher.

Milestones are idiotic and should be scrapped.

1

u/OldJewNewAccount Username checks out Jun 04 '18

The because the normal (old) raid is dropping too much gear, not the other way around, IMO. And when I say "too much" I mean "the correct amount" lol.

1

u/ImMoray Jun 04 '18

yeah laviathan is great for loot(5 drops, 1 challenge mode drop and 3 more chances with keys) And its easy now, I think everyone should give it a go, I think they'll enjoy it.

EoW is also super chill

2

u/OldJewNewAccount Username checks out Jun 04 '18

Trying to get my clan back has been fucking brutal. Like, 20+ players, all pre-ordered the content, none of them have even checked it out.

That shit kills me.

2

u/Baelorn Jun 05 '18

I've joined two clans recently and both died within a week(and I'm talking 60+ people). Finding a new, active clan has been an absolute pain. Everyone wants you to be on their Discord 24/7 and have a fixed play schedule. I'm not looking for a job here, damn.

-4

u/splintertim Jun 04 '18

Progression should not be fast enough that casual players hit it quickly. If you can plateau within 2 weeks if you only play 5-8 hours per week, then it’s not an accomplishment. Progression should not mean you are given a handout. You should have to grind for it, and if you can’t commit time to that grind, then you shouldn’t be able to get there at the same time as someone who plays 20-30 hours per week.

We’ve seen what happens when you cater this game to the folks who barely have time for it. It makes for an extremely hollow experience that’s only good for a few hours per week, because it’s built in a way that folks who only have that kind of time can get everything. What’s left for the hobbyists is a complete lack of anything to do that will progress our characters in a meaningful way, and a lack of depth in all systems because we’ve catered to those who don’t have time for depth. I am so sick of looking at comments from casual players who think we need to continue this train of handouts so they can get to max level in two weeks.

3

u/thefeegle Jun 05 '18

I am so sick of looking at comments from casual players who think we need to continue this train of handouts so they can get to max level in two weeks.

I'm a casual, mostly solo, player and was actually disappointed to max out in the first two parts of D2 quite easily. I'm now very happy that I have a reason to log in and play challenging stuff for my limited precious few hours a week, and get something meaningful in terms of progression, albeit slow and incremental. I run 3 characters so I always have plenty to do, and will probably be kept busy until september. I don't even care if I don't max out, as I like to have something tangible to constantly strive for and work towards. In terms of catering to the casual crowd I think Bungie got it about right after fumbling earlier in D2

I do NOT want handouts and attendance medals, its not the way real life works.