Hard and Fast Questing

[Sindaleus]

Hello community goers. I recently started DDO. While I received a /tell to join a party for a chaptered quest series, I naturally accepted the invitation. However, load and behold, while partying with this group, I was introduced to bliz quest running. The twist was not everyone was keeping up. The two meleers in the party raced ahead and within a few minutes later he dies while the party is still gathering inside the quest entrance. When anyone attempted to rescue the meleer the party their confronted with a concentrated group of mobs that the meleers failed to kill along their merry path to the finale end, then asks to be taken to the shrine if possible.

The said meleers gets rescued with a near death struggle (lacking melee class support) by the remaining party members. The party manages to get them ressurected. Once they've rested and potion heal up their off racing ahead again. The whole scenario repeats again. After the quest chapter was completed. One meleer says "Sorry, I shouldn't run ahead." Feeling invested to finish the quest chapters, to at least get the end rewarded, I continued on. The said meleers races ahead again and dies. Do you see the trend, or should I continue?

At the end, or whenever a meleer died, as the Cleric, I got the brunt end of the stick from their complains for not getting healed. I was put-off by their complaints. I served my role well to those within casting distance. Afterwards, from my experience, that the invested quest chapter progress doesn't justify the experience gain with such hassle from party members over their inconciderate playstyle and questing method.

Heres what I want to know. Is this the trend for doing quests in DDO? Doing Hard or Elite, and with spell fizzle rate, it places a higher dependency on meleers to fill the ranks in the party for quest completion. Maybe not every quest. but I would bet the majority are. Is frequently happening in DDO, or not, because its making me re-think my approach on playing and partying in-game.

I didnt get the 911 on it, so I'm asking.

[jaitee]

lol this is why you shouldnt start a cleric as your 1st character, but in any case, as i said in a post before, clerics are hard for new beginners in DDO, simply because they do not regen like other games

maybe next time speak up, and tell that melee to stop or die?

but yes, this is the trend of the game ~ run run run, kill kill kill, win

its not as bad as it sounds, the game is fun, just get to know it and give it some time

im not sure if you can put "looking for a slow group" in the LFM anymore as it might be a exploit, LOL

[Sindaleus]

lol this is why you shouldnt start a cleric as your 1st character, but in any case, as i said in a post before, clerics are hard for new beginners in DDO, simply because they do not regen like other games

Where's that warning label over these classes, lol.

Yeah. I'll speak up next time around. I have to say not all meleers are like this, I must have had the cream of the crop experience.

[Aspenor]

Next time pick up his stone, and make sure to drop it just out of range of the nearest shrine, so he is tantalized by the possibility of being ressurected and can just barely not make it to the shrine.

Then just leave him there and move on

[Forceonature]

Next time pick up his stone, and make sure to drop it just out of range of the nearest shrine, so he is tantalized by the possibility of being ressurected and can just barely not make it to the shrine.

Then just leave him there and move on

I've had a friend of mine do this "safer for everyone if you stay in my backpack" approach once. The player did exactly the same thing as the OP's antagonist did. He told him "after we finish this quest, I'll take you back to the res shrine. You'll still get your chests and the end reward, but you're killing us by continously zerging ahead."

Don't worry, it's rare that you get a player like that.

[jaitee]

I've had a friend of mine do this "safer for everyone if you stay in my backpack" approach once. The player did exactly the same thing as the OP's antagonist did. He told him "after we finish this quest, I'll take you back to the res shrine. You'll still get your chests and the end reward, but you're killing us by continously zerging ahead."

Don't worry, it's rare that you get a player like that.

lol rare? i run across one of those atleast 5 times a day

[Tahlyn]

Don't worry, it's rare that you get a player like that.

You're kidding right?

[jaitee]

Where's that warning label over these classes, lol.

Yeah. I'll speak up next time around. I have to say not all meleers are like this, I must have had the cream of the crop experience.

there isnt a label, but i guess you could look at it as, because in this game, you do not regen like most games, healers are a bit more challenging to play

worst part is at low lvls, when you have a small spell pool and just started the game

[frugal_gourmet]

IMO, this has got nothing to do with clerics being hard to play. Your teammates are just lousy players. Despite your newness, you already sound better at the game than them.

Fighers can heal too. It's not exactly rocket science to drink a potion. Nor is it rocket science to figure out the quest is easier with actual help from other players.

[Avelin]

IMO, this has got nothing to do with clerics being hard to play. Your teammates are just lousy players. Despite your newness, you already sound better at the game than them.

Fighers can heal too. It's not exactly rocket science to drink a potion. Nor is it rocket science to figure out the quest is easier with actual help from other players.

I agree. The players running ahead are at fault here. Do not be discouraged. Not everyone plays that way. The ones that zerg ahead should not do so if they are not equipped to handle it alone. I can see if you are level 16 and are doing level 6 elite quests for favor. Then yeah, it should be expected that everyone will be zergging around. Most people don't run ahead unless they are experienced enough to handle it. It sounds like the one's you ran with here were not very experienced and shouldn't be running ahead. They even said it themselves. I would have let them die and if you happened to come accross his or her stone, pick it up and take it with you. If you happen upon a shrine, then he or she gets to play again. If not, then he or she learned a lesson in how to play as a party.

[Spectralist]

Is it a trend? Well, yeah it is. But not one that everyone ascribes too. And, fortunately, most people who run ahead like that manage it better then the fellow you were playing with. Or maybe it's just that i'm usually up there with them helping out.

Look at it from our perspective too though. Waiting is boring. Sadly this game has a lot of waiting. And a great deal of it is due to other players simply being slow. After a while enough just gets to be enough and i, and many others, just aren't waiting for it anymore. And by 'it' of course i mean all the tiny little pointless pauses. Kill a group of enemies, half the players stand around for 30 seconds for no discernible reason; form a group and 1-2 players will take 3 minutes longer to get there then everyone else; loot a chest and 1-3 players usually ends up standing there looking at it for a good 20 seconds. And then theres the annoying habit people have of all standing around seemingly waiting for someone else to lead the way.

That doesn't excuse someone incompetent enough get themselves killed constantly though. But then when he started to run forward why didn't everyone follow him?

healers are a bit more challenging to play

I really don't think they're any more challenging to play. They're just more likely to be blamed, and occasionally verbally attacked, for someone else's stupidity. Indeed with how many twinkies there are fighting through the first few levels nowadays you can often see people go several quests with barely taking more then a dozen damage.

[GeneralDiomedes]

This has been case from about 2 weeks after the game came out. It's not a trend, and it's never going to change.

Your only options now are
- guilds (incl. permadeath)
- static group of newbs <-- very rewarding
- solo
- the first 24 hours after new content comes out

[Sindaleus]

That doesn't excuse someone incompetent enough get themselves killed constantly though. But then when he started to run forward why didn't everyone follow him?

The party didn't follow them because they were still quest updating or phasing into the instance. Meanwhile, the 'zerger' went ahead by the time you're entering the quest instance. Or get the red name news flash on the party status bar approaching the quest site.

When someone pauses to soak up the scenary, checks out a chest location, or tries to learn quests by stopping to take note of things doesn't always justify the 'not wanting to wait' rationale of veteran players. Instead, it may be the hint someone is running the quest for the first time or add to their familiarity that merits such pauses for the next go around. Of course, each to their own on playstyle on not wanting to wait on others.

[DoctorWhofan]

Hello community goers. I recently started DDO. While I received a /tell to join a party for a chaptered quest series, I naturally accepted the invitation. However, load and behold, while partying with this group, I was introduced to bliz quest running. The twist was not everyone was keeping up. The two meleers in the party raced ahead and within a few minutes later he dies while the party is still gathering inside the quest entrance. When anyone attempted to rescue the meleer the party their confronted with a concentrated group of mobs that the meleers failed to kill along their merry path to the finale end, then asks to be taken to the shrine if possible.

The said meleers gets rescued with a near death struggle (lacking melee class support) by the remaining party members. The party manages to get them ressurected. Once they've rested and potion heal up their off racing ahead again. The whole scenario repeats again. After the quest chapter was completed. One meleer says "Sorry, I shouldn't run ahead." Feeling invested to finish the quest chapters, to at least get the end rewarded, I continued on. The said meleers races ahead again and dies. Do you see the trend, or should I continue?

At the end, or whenever a meleer died, as the Cleric, I got the brunt end of the stick from their complains for not getting healed. I was put-off by their complaints. I served my role well to those within casting distance. Afterwards, from my experience, that the invested quest chapter progress doesn't justify the experience gain with such hassle from party members over their inconciderate playstyle and questing method.

Heres what I want to know. Is this the trend for doing quests in DDO? Doing Hard or Elite, and with spell fizzle rate, it places a higher dependency on meleers to fill the ranks in the party for quest completion. Maybe not every quest. but I would bet the majority are. Is frequently happening in DDO, or not, because its making me re-think my approach on playing and partying in-game.

I didnt get the 911 on it, so I'm asking.

You are on Thelanis, good for you! Cleric is your first character good for you! You play like I play, so good for you! I play alot of clerics so here is my advice if you fall into that situation:

1. Say "I'm New" when you join the party.
2. Ask how they are going to do it, fast or slow. If fast, back out immediatally!
3. If slow, and melees run ahaed without waiting for the party, ignore them. Take care of the party that is sticking together. If the whine about it to the point of accusing you of being a bad cleric, apologise to the rest of the party and then drop.
4. Many self-healers (pot drinkers) think they can handle anything. Smart ones will wait for buffs then race off, stupid ones won't.
5. Finally, if they leave you behind, lost, drop group!!

No, most parties do not run like that. If they do, they will announce it. You accepted a request from a guy who did not tell you that he zergs, rather stupidly zerging I might add. Not your fault. Bad PuG. If you need a group or help, I'll PM my alts and I can assure you that I do not zerg, or be stupid (Quiet Ringos!), and is known for having patience of a saint towards new people. I like new people, new people are fun play the game with!

[Premier]

Grouping gets better at higher levels. Zerging is still prevailent but they'll at least wait for buffs! You're doing everything right so keep it up! Peace!

-Premier

[JacknCoke]

Next time just tell them "I dont heal stupid" or tell him "if you keep running off ill cary your stone but I'm not waisting my mana or resources on you" and leave it at that.

[QuantumFX]

Sindaleus - Unfortunately other players are what make playing a cleric a frustrating experience. The best advice I think anyone could give you is to tell any group that you run with "Hey I'm new at this so play carefully". (Careful play is different than slow play.) If they ignore this then they are the ones at fault. If they get obnoxious over chat then ask them "What part of 'Hey, I'm new at this so play carefully' didn't you understand ?"

As for Hard and Fast playstyles. Don't shy away from it if you've done the quest multiple times before and know your way around. It's a great educational experience for quests.

[aldan]

Someone may have already said it but create your own groups and put "no zergin please" or something in your LFM.

[transtemporal]

OP: Just out of curiosity, did the LFM say it was a zerging run, or not?

Zerging can succeed really well if everyone is zerging (yes, even clerics ) and sticking together. Not so well if everyone runs off in different directions or doesn't know the quest or doesn't know their limitations or just isn't on board with the concept. If thats the case in any quest, zergers should really adjust to the pace of the group.

[BattleCircle]

Cleric is very difficult to learn the game with, you spend so much of your time watching hp bars that you really don't learn the quests, ie its hard to watch the bars, keep everyone healed and watch the map too. I would get frustrated when someone is blocked or out of range, not to mention the zergers that insist on being healed when they are out of range or blocked, LOL. OH MY it can be frustrating!

OP, Just stick with it, be demanding in your "rules" I mean why not, they are demanding of your heals. Cleric can be a very fun class to play, you just have to make sure that the zergers know that you are not going to help them if they don't stick with the group. This game is all about the group working together, you are the cleric.... you are the one in control, no matter who is leading the party, or crying the blues,