The Counterproductive Renown System

[~jackinthegrn]

When I started playing this game... guilds were a way for like-minded friends to group together (which in my opinion is productive and positive). Since they introduced guild levels and the renown decay system it has become a contest to see who can earn and maintain a guild's level. This is of course because of the rewards turbine offers for guilds of higher level. Now you are forced to kick good friends out of your guild if they are gone from the game for more then a month or face losing renown and the benefits of a high level (which in my opinion is negative and unproductive). I tried to have an open mind when they introduced this aspect of the computer game, but kicking out friends from your guild just because they have taken a month vacation??? I know this post is late in coming, but I really wanted to give turbine's guild renown system a fair trial period. Please turbine, the original Dungeon and Dragons game was a wonderful way of socializing and gaming at the same time (I helped play test the original game for TSR back in the 70's). I'm one of the main officers in one of the larger guilds on the Kyhber server and I have consistantly pushed for our guild to ignore this horrible month deadline and our guild level has suffered for it. Your renown system is actually encouraging guilds to distance themselves from casual players and that is just plain anti-social and not in the spirit of the original game. Also, this renown decay system is a total faliure as a business model. How are you going to get casual players hooked on DDO if you are discouraging guilds from recruiting them? I am very curious on what response I will get from this post (it's my first ever). Sincerely, Jack

[dunklezhan]

kicking after x amount of time should no longer be necessary as the decay rules changed months ago so that characters inactive for over 30 days are removed from the 'active' roster and no longer count towards your decay. Hover over your Guild level in the social panel, and it will tell you your modified guild size, and how this has been calculated.

in the guild I'm in, there is no 'competition' to generate renown. There is a standing advisory that if you don't need the end reward or the plat for it, please take the renown instead, because we'd quite like the next level of airship please... but that's it. Incidentally, the guild has had a 'kick if inactive for more than 30 days without any contact' policy for a lot longer than renown has been around, just to keep things tidy. But if you let the guild leader know you'll be away, then you aren't kicked.

If your guild is behaving in the way you describe and you don't like it... then you're in the wrong guild.

[Hendrik]

When I started playing this game... guilds were a way for like-minded friends to group together (which in my opinion is productive and positive). Since they introduced guild levels and the renown decay system it has become a contest to see who can earn and maintain a guild's level. This of course because of the rewards turbine offers for guilds of higher level. Now you are forced to kick good friends out of your guild if they are gone from the game for more then a month or face losing renown and the benefits of a high level (which in my opinion is negative and unproductive). I tried to have an open mind when they introduced this aspect of the computer game, but kicking out friends from your guild just because they have taken a month vacation??? I know this post is late in coming, but I really wanted to give turbine's guild renown system a fair trial period. Please turbine, the original Dungeon and Dragons game was a wonderful way socializing and gaming at the same time (I helped play test the original game for TSR back in the 70's). Your renown system is actually encouraging guilds to distance themselves from casual players and that is just plain anti-social and not in the spirit of the original game. I am very curious on what response I will get from this post (it's my first ever). Sincerely, Jack

Quite anti-social of you to kick your friends when they do not count for decay don't ya think?

[Letrii]

I'd be happy if they just removed renown decay. Makes sense having to earn the rewards, but I don't see any reason for the decay.

[blitzschlag]

Quite anti-social of you to kick your friends when they do not count for decay don't ya think?

yeah, what will your friends think if they ever come back to the game?

how rude

[Servilis]

I'd be happy if they just removed renown decay. Makes sense having to earn the rewards, but I don't see any reason for the decay.

As the Title sais. I do see a reason for renown decay. Whenever u dont do Anything to be known for in the world, people start to forget u.
(the ship selling dude forgets the name of your officers and such:) )

I do agree that it is Annoying and need to be cut at least by half.

So it was aboute decay reasons.

P.S. I hate This DECAY!!!

[Vanquishedfo]

To me the flaw of the guild system is that it caters to harder core players who like to grind. City of heroes has a guild and base system that few other MMO even begin to rival. It allows for a huge roster, and coalitions with up to 10 other guilds. And a completely customizable base building system on par with the dungeon builder from NWN1 and 2.

But most importantly is the fact a single character who starts his own guild, can by the time he reaches max lvl, always afford to create a base with top tier benefits all by themselves.

DDOs system is so directed towards the renown horse race that few guilds who favor friends over benefits even imagine having thier guild past lvl 25 or so. Especially if its players who are not rolling in characters with capped plat and have to choose between something worth vendoring or AHing, or a nice sized renown token.

I think renown should be awarded with xp at the end of quests. So that instead of it being some kind of loot. It should be something all who adventure earn equally. If people feel somekind of further bonuses should come, maybe individual renown for those who disarm traps, get through quests without dieing etc as recognition of something.

And no I dont think healing counts. It is seen as needed by many yes, but only because content is allowed to be designed around that silly holy trinity attitude that has no place in DDO. We can all carry pots, so while yes if you saved someone who was inncapped I see that as heroic, just baby sitting red bars or rezzing zergers is not really worthy of renown imo.

but mainly it should just be tied with our xp gain and done in a way any ONE person can lvl a guild to max benefits by the time they cap thier toon.

Then if someone is just after the benefits they can do so on thier own. If your about friends then the more you have the faster your guild will cap, but wont in anyway have true ADVANTAGE over other players, which is something only some fatboy in his mommas basement elitist would feel they deserve for all thier hard core time invested.

[MrkGrismer]

Renown only matters if you let it.

(This being said by a person that is in a guild of one, only because I don't want the renown to go completely to waste :D ).

[Kinerd]

Now you are forced to kick good friends out of your guild if they are gone from the game for more then a month or face losing renown and the benefits of a high level (which in my opinion is negative and unproductive).Nobody's forcing you to do anything. If you want to ignore renown and you are in a group of like-minded people, renown is meaningless.
To me the flaw of the guild system is that it caters to harder core players who like to grind.Every system that rewards effort will do so.
I think renown should be awarded with xp at the end of quests.Case in point - hard core players grind out XP dramatically faster than casual players. Do you begrudge completionists the similarly paltry advantages they have gained?

[Captain_Wizbang]

1) bad behavior from wanna-be elitists.

2) the whole decay system should be removed from this game PERIOD!

[Adalita]

When I started playing this game... guilds were a way for like-minded friends to group together (which in my opinion is productive and positive). Since they introduced guild levels and the renown decay system it has become a contest to see who can earn and maintain a guild's level.

Entirely your choice if you want to view guilds in this way. You don't have to grind for renown, and guess what? Guilds are still a way for like-minded friends to group together. Guild renown is not required to enjoy any part of DDO. You have lost nothing!

Reading between the lines it sounds like that some of your like minded friends in your guild are more interested in renown that you are, which can be a difficult situation. Have a think about retiring from being an officer, it may make your gaming experience a lot more rewarding.

[TheMidnightMage]

I agree that the system is a pain, however I understand the need for it. The main thing that I would change is the Decay that needs to go...

[doubledge]

let's hope decay decays to nothing.

[Hendrik]

The ONLY change to Decay I want to see is Inactive Status.

I would like to see a threshold where removing an Inactive player, say 30 days for example, does NOT count Active for 14 days upon removal.

[OLDTIMEDD]

This is just my opinion but it seems that the decay is used to keep activity higher. Activity means possible revenue for Turbine which in turn keeps the game going.

While I agree the decay is annoying, there are ways to keep it from becoming excessive. That is as I have noticed on our guild so far, I may be wrong as I do not pay that much attention to it ( yet :D) .

Play the game as you like, with whom you like but most importantly HAVE FUN!:eek:

[leadhead]

What, does it get worse at higher levels? I am in a whopping 3 man guild to which we all play for about 4 hours or so on a friday night and speedily made our way to guild level...oh I think we are on like 18 or 20 or some thing..it happened in a matter of a couple months time. Actually our guild has like 20 - 30 toons in it, but that is because all 3 of us have serious altitus! If there was any decay, it is such a non factor...nothing to kick friends out of a guild for! LOL!

Havent you people ever heard of bros before....renownos?! :\ Neither have I! :)

[Lithic]

If they got rid of decay, then you'd see tons of mass-invite guilds that get all the newbs straight out of korthos and kick them if they go inactive for 7 days so they can reinvite more newbs. Sort of like a certain army from a certain newb island did on Argo.

Once such guilds got to lvl 100, they would then kick all the newbs to make room for their guild leader's friends.

How would a system that gives thousands of new players a very bad first impression of the game be better than what we have today, where a few scant over-competitive guilds occasionally prune the inactive?

[Falco_Easts]

Personally I agree. While a lot of people/guilds don't care about renown/guild buffs the fail that was Rise of the Guilds changed the way people looked at guilds and not in a good way.

[Kmnh]

I said it before, guild levels and buffs are bad for the game. I wish they would kill these :/