For explorer area "journals" add location text

[sephiroth1084]

So, we used to have explorer points in the big wilderness zones--unique locations and sights we have to find and walk through to earn the XP and check off the spot. This makes sense for uncovering the map for the area.

Now, we have "journals"--hidden gems of knowledge, narrated by a major NPC (or NPCs) in the related quest story arc that we have to find scattered around the wilderness. These are a lot more interesting, and more flavorful than the explorer points.

HOWEVER, one thing I've always liked about the explore points is that you can open your quest journal, and read a brief description of the location you're looking for, and can use that to direct your search for spots you're missing, or should go. Sometimes they aren't very helpful, but oftentimes they can be. And this is something I miss. I don't really enjoy bushwhacking my way through the King's Forest looking under tree roots that are hardly distinguishable from one another, or having to go to the ddowiki to figure out where Journal 25 resides in relation to Journals 24 and 26, which I have.

Thus, my proposal is to combine these two ideas. Keep the "journals," but place them in spots that would make sense for an explorer point in the old wilderness areas, and give them that little tag line, like, "The broken down farmhouse," or, "The swaying wheat field."

[Cordovan]

Thanks for the feedback!

[nibel]

/signed

The only journal area I know from heart is High Roads because it only have 12 journals in unique locations. Cannith journals (also 12) are stacked in piles of rubble, and are hardly visible if you don't know where to look. The larger explorers (KF, GH, SH) have so many journals that is impossible to memorize all of them.

[Scuddy]

Good luck with this one. With the huge number of journals in this game I could see how they would put resources into moving them around. And besides would it be any easier really to find a journal in the kings forest next to say a burnt house with the huge number of burnt houses in the zone?

[sephiroth1084]

Good luck with this one. With the huge number of journals in this game I could see how they would put resources into moving them around. And besides would it be any easier really to find a journal in the kings forest next to say a burnt house with the huge number of burnt houses in the zone?

It would be a little easier.

But the journals for the King's Forest could be labeled:

• Riverside docks - #1
• Fishing village overlook - #4
• The log dam - #5
• The Miller's Farmhouse - #3
• The wheat field - #6
• The inland cliffs - #7
• The fording tower - #9

etc...

Doesn't require moving in this case, and some may be vague, but giving an idea of what's around them, what feature to be looking for, would be immensely helpful!

Some of the ones in Scchindylrynn should probably be moved, because many aren't near any discernible feature, but most are. Really, writing up descriptions, moving a few journals per explorer area...that should take all of a few hours, tops.

The only one that this really doesn't work for is the Demon Web, because it is so featureless, but it kind of gets away with it, because there is basically 1 journal per island.

[sephiroth1084]

Thanks for the feedback!

Please push this along to the people who can make it happen, Cordovan.

Also, because I just thought of this: would it also be possible to have journals we've found drop a map marker like a shrine or a chest?

[SisAmethyst]

It would be a little easier.

But the journals for the King's Forest could be labeled:

• Riverside docks - #1
• Fishing village overlook - #4
• The log dam - #5
• The Miller's Farmhouse - #3
• The wheat field - #6
• The inland cliffs - #7
• The fording tower - #9

etc...

...yet another splendid idea by sephiroth... it's getting tired to always get "You must spread some Reputation ..."

Can't someone else come up with things like this for a change?

[Qhualor]

The thing I've never liked about the journals and snowflakes is that they seemed more like random locations instead of points of interest like Vale or GH has. They could be behind some tree or in the water or behind a house. I like it more when I'm in the vicinity instead of actually finding and running up to a hidden journal.

[sephiroth1084]

...yet another splendid idea by sephiroth... it's getting tired to always get "You must spread some Reputation ..."

Can't someone else come up with things like this for a change?

Heh. Thanks.

Other people do come up with good ideas. I have my own list of "You must spread some Reputation..." people.

[Roland_D'Arabel]

It would also be nice if one found, a marker would appear on your map so you know where you found it. Helping others get the journals would be so much easier this way.

[Talon_Moonshadow]

Yeah... the only way I knew where to find the last on in Searing Heights was to look for a "Lone Tree."

[EllisDee37]

It would be a little easier.

But the journals for the King's Forest could be labeled:

• Riverside docks - #1
• Fishing village overlook - #4
• The log dam - #5
• The Miller's Farmhouse - #3
• The wheat field - #6
• The inland cliffs - #7
• The fording tower - #9

etc...

Agreed, and for those without landmarks of substance:

Behind the Rock
Atop the Hill
Beneath the Bush
etc...

It'd work fine for King's Forest, Schyndylryn, High Road, and possibly the Underdark (only messages I've never done) but it might be tricky for the Demonweb. There's a whole lotta sameness going on there, but not in a bad way. I rather like the Demonweb area but am having trouble coming up with any kind of distinguishing landmark names for the messages.

[nibel]

the Underdark (only messages I've never done)

Underdark is classic explorer zone, with zones of interest instead of journals.

In fact, I miss zone-of-interests explorers as well. The journals are a nice gimmick, but being overused in the last year. I think it would be fair game to make one zone journalesque, and one zone exploresque.

[sephiroth1084]

Underdark is classic explorer zone, with zones of interest instead of journals.

In fact, I miss zone-of-interests explorers as well. The journals are a nice gimmick, but being overused in the last year. I think it would be fair game to make one zone journalesque, and one zone exploresque.

Could always do both:
Slayers
Rares
Explorers (opens map)
Journals

[ahpook]

While I would prefer the descriptive text suggested here, I would at least be appeased if the numbers were grouped in to a consistent path or pattern (zig zag or spiral) so that at least you could guess where #5 might be if you know where #4 and #6 were. The kings forest wasn't bad for this but others like the demon web, gianthold and schindylryn seemed very random.

[Erdrique]

Having some type of landmark associated with the Journal entries would help me out tremendously, as I seem to keep running into the same journals over and over again. I think it would add in a little flavor to the newer explorer zones.