Map improvements - Shrines/Chests

[Narmolanya]

Want to really refine the map?

1. Multiple maps per instance, such as for indoor/outdoor or upstairs/downstairs adventures.
2. Teammate dots are numbered.
3. Teammate dots are highlighted for some conditions, such as talking, typing, or dying.
4. A high Listen score can reveal red blips for nearby active foes.
5. Players can designate a waypoint/marker to be seen by their allies.

Thanks you saved me a bunch of iPhone typing. This is more or less what I was going to advocate for.

[Kalari]

As part of our effort to help new and returning players, we're continuing to refine our in-game map...

One of these changes is a quest/adventure area feature that shows shrines and chests on the map once you've discovered them!

No more "where was that chest we found a minute ago". No more "this blueish area I think was where a shrine was". And there's nothing quite like being almost out of resources, only to reveal that there is a shrine close by! As you make your way through a zone and uncover the Fog of War, you will be able to see the icon of the shrines and chests on your full map, as well as your radar. Never lose track of your shrines and chests again!

This is awesome Madstone will finally not annoy me too much.

[Praut_Ektor]

The chest and shrine mapnotes will only appear when *you* find them.

There are a couple other map improvements that you'll be hearing about soon.

Something many of you have brought up, multi level maps, and indoor/outdoor maps are not in the works at this time. There are some technical issues we need to work out (we do know it would be great to have!).

I hate to point this out but I thought the original idea was to work on this a year ago, like when Tangleroot was becoming and explorer zone.

It's been a little better with some maps, but I will believe it when I see it.

[sephiroth1084]

Nice idea.

Definitely second the desire for some map feature to distinguish different floors and areas (indoor/outdoor).

Oh! And for those times when there is a portion of the map that isn't shown normally (some secret rooms), it'd be nice if, after discovering this area, we could get it filled it somehow.

Personally, I'd like any alterations to the map to look like character-made markings (think John Madden describing plays). This would be flavorful and would ensure that additions to the map would be clear:

PC 1: Hey guys, meet at the secret room.
PC 2: Uh...where is it?
PC 1: Check your map...
PC 2: Uh...the secret room has been filled in and now looks like everything else on the map, so...?

[Riggs]

Cool.

And showing red dots on the map for enemies (and maybe yellow for NPCs) would be double awesomeness.

[Ghirmeshk]

NPC dots would be nice, but this is a good change.

[Solmage]

You need to explore the area, just like how all our other mapnotes work. And, like moorewr has stated, this will still be very helpful for people who need to find their way back to a shrine or chest.

Since you're apparently trying to make shrines easier to use...

- Any way you could make changes to dimension door or teleport so you can set one of the locations to the last shrine you visited (f.ex by casting the spell while targeting the shrine) and to also allow you to teleport back to a given party member?

- How about a mana storing item you could put your spare mana into? Obtainable as a favor reward, you could fill it with your excess mana at the shrine, and then shrine, later recalling the extra mana. A 10 second timer to get the mana out should help maintain game balance, as well as the container emptying (or breaking) on exit.

- Please allow spells to be changed at a shrine even if you already moved. Add a 30 second timer to do so if necessary, but it's a real pain as a wizard to not be able to memorize a new spell you realize you need in an area you've never been to before, or because - silly you - you cast a buff before swapping spells.

[Hendrik]

Since you're apparently trying to make shrines easier to use...

- Any way you could make changes to dimension door or teleport so you can set one of the locations to the last shrine you visited (f.ex by casting the spell while targeting the shrine) and to also allow you to teleport back to a given party member?

- How about a mana storing item you could put your spare mana into? Obtainable as a favor reward, you could fill it with your excess mana at the shrine, and then shrine, later recalling the extra mana. A 10 second timer to get the mana out should help maintain game balance, as well as the container emptying (or breaking) on exit.

- Please allow spells to be changed at a shrine even if you already moved. Add a 30 second timer to do so if necessary, but it's a real pain as a wizard to not be able to memorize a new spell you realize you need in an area you've never been to before, or because - silly you - you cast a buff before swapping spells.

Actually, they are making the Map easier to use - not Shrines.

[cdbd3rd]

NPC dots would be nice, but this is a good change.

Aye, even with my debate here, I will not ever say that any improvement on our maps is not a great thing.
Hopefully, the list of good suggestions here might make it onto the 'think list' to be considered later.

[GlassCannon]

Excellent! No more extremely poorly drawn(intentionally...) MSPaint maps for me!




That aside, wonderful additions are yet to be experienced and I look forward to them with eager anticipation

[Hendrik]

Excellent! No more extremely poorly drawn(intentionally...) MSPaint maps for me!




That aside, wonderful additions are yet to be experienced and I look forward to them with eager anticipation

Stop looking at my DDO Notes!!!!

[Anastasios]

I've been a big fan of the map interface as it stands...The only issue I had was with the outdoor instances always resetting when you left them and not staying filled out every time you went back into an instance. If this solves this problem then I am all for it, but I can't say the use of specific points and what not makes it all that much more interesting.

One of the highlights since the inception of the outdoor areas has been figuring out where the specifics are-this might kind of take some of that fun out, and make it a bit more noob friendly, which I guess isn't a bad thing, and should not cause alot of fuss. I know I am looking forward to seeing if there maybe was a shrine I never even knew about somewhere out there.

Just make sure you fix the map for the Black Anvil Forest...that place to this day messes me up, that instance is so huge and daunting....bad things happen to good people in there...

[Mellkor]

It would be nice for the fog of war to remain in some form. I often use it in areas I know well to see where I have not been yet!

-JR

[uncus2]

What about after you have explored the map then the map is always shown filled out when I log back in or after the instance has reset?

Ditto that! Especially in Explorer Areas!

[Do'Urden]

Idea for Mod 9 named rare loot....fully programmable GPS Nav System!!!

[szalkerous]

I will agree, I've wanted map enhancements for a long time, so this news is nothing but great to me.

I understand multi-level maps are not on the ticket this time around, but please understand the usefulness of that particular enhancement and be sure to seriously slate it in as soon as realistically possible. I know it's a huge amount of work, not so much programmatically, as it is to alter the map data. But I think that's a feature that would make the entire player base very happy.

-sz

[moorewr]

Ditto that! Especially in Explorer Areas!

Explorers do have a mechanism in place they could use.. fill in the area around explorers you have completed in your quest journal.. or reveal the whole map if you have completed the entire explorer "quest." Nice idea.. could be simple for them to implement, too...

[UnderwearModel]

and can we get rid of the darn bench seats so when I run in I don't have to jump over them.

I can't sit on them anyway.
I cannot put a whoopee cushion on them. (Or can I?)

[rfachini]

You need to explore the area, just like how all our other mapnotes work. And, like moorewr has stated, this will still be very helpful for people who need to find their way back to a shrine or chest.

I can see wanting to go back to a shrine, but going back to a chest I already opened is a pretty rare event. If you need to RP it, the rest of your party could have written an X on your map to show you where they found a chest or shrine.

There have been plenty of times when others have opened a chest I wasn't at yet, and I needed to find my way to it. Returning to a chest I already found, not so much. (Unless you change them to reset every 15 minutes on normal. )

Anyway, it would be nice to have spots others find marked on your map too- but either way this is a nice addition to the game. Thanks!

[Alavatar]

Any chance of a map improvement that allows players to draw on it like an interactive white board?