About a server merge...

[Nestroy]

Again, for people that want to see dungeon scaling done away with, you don't fully understand what you're asking. Good players will continue to solo and pugs will be noob-central even more so than now.

At least we would have pugs.

We now face the problems that the noobs are not learning, but leaving the game. All of you had been noobs in their beginning time as well. It takes time to learn the game.

[Tscheuss]

and it will be a lot slower to solo elites at level (as it should!).

Why? In full groups it won't make any difference.
If new players prefer to solo easily then there is Normal/Casual for that.

Even I very often solo or duo with a guildier since putting lfm now = increased scaling and high chance of -10% xp death penalty.
At least I will always put lfm if scaling will be removed (even -10% xp death penalty would be worth that if quest will be completed at least 15% faster).

There is no such thing as a -10% death penalty.

[ishr]

Admit a group is not the same when we're all but soloists gathered together...
Admit you gave self-healing and survivability to everyone but Fighters so no one absolutely needs to join a group...
Admit even if you hadn't done that, we would still be better off solo'ing because Heroics are mostly easy for a veteran as long as they take it cool...

unfortunately these will not be solved by a server merge, people don't group any more because content is too easy and nobody needs to work as a team any more. it used to be that you needed at least 2 or 3 people to play specific roles to defeat a quest. now you can just roll up with whoever (or nobody else at all) and make quick work of it. although some of your grievances CAN be solved by a server merge, these can only be solved by changes in game design.

[NaturalHazard]

unfortunately these will not be solved by a server merge, people don't group any more because content is too easy and nobody needs to work as a team any more. it used to be that you needed at least 2 or 3 people to play specific roles to defeat a quest. now you can just roll up with whoever (or nobody else at all) and make quick work of it. although some of your grievances CAN be solved by a server merge, these can only be solved by changes in game design.

The focus should be not on forcing people to group but providing more incentives to do so, and more incentives to play as well, some type of end game, some raids that stay relevant, a system when adding more people to your group by random is not more likely going to slow you down than help speed things along.

[Raithe]

it used to be that you needed at least 2 or 3 people to play specific roles to defeat a quest...

This has never occurred in the entire history of DDO. Every single quest in the game, possibly barring a few with switch requirements, was solo'd on elite by some particular character, at or near the time of its release. Some raids might have taken some time to be solo'd, but eventually even they fell (to power creep, if nothing else). I remember jjFlannigan (a programmer that developed several 3rd party DDO programs/websites), used to run a paladin/sorc back when pally/sorcs were shunned by the metagaming lemmings (actual gamers knew they were overpowered)...

If what you are trying to claim is that the average PUG is now usually a non-cooperative kill count competition, I'll agree for the most part. That's because that for the players that are left playing, that is what matters to them (in a generalized sense), and that is why the few people remaining still group and group often - to play the lame form of PvP that metagamers like to play...

You are correct, however, that merging servers would just attract some additional metagamers back to the game, momentarily, to participate in even more mob mow-downs - which would only hasten the demise of the game, and it would be a non-development-oriented expense for which I don't think Turbine is currently willing to foot the bill. We'll see...

[Nayus]

This has never occurred in the entire history of DDO. Every single quest in the game, possibly barring a few with switch requirements, was solo'd on elite by some particular character, at or near the time of its release. Some raids might have taken some time to be solo'd, but eventually even they fell (to power creep, if nothing else). I remember jjFlannigan (a programmer that developed several 3rd party DDO programs/websites), used to run a paladin/sorc back when pally/sorcs were shunned by the metagaming lemmings (actual gamers knew they were overpowered)...

If what you are trying to claim is that the average PUG is now usually a non-cooperative kill count competition, I'll agree for the most part. That's because that for the players that are left playing, that is what matters to them (in a generalized sense), and that is why the few people remaining still group and group often - to play the lame form of PvP that metagamers like to play...

You are correct, however, that merging servers would just attract some additional metagamers back to the game, momentarily, to participate in even more mob mow-downs - which would only hasten the demise of the game, and it would be a non-development-oriented expense for which I don't think Turbine is currently willing to foot the bill. We'll see...

1st: TheUberz are a minority, we should concentrate on the average player instead. Even because by making average players need to group to complete a quest we actually give the soloist something to brag about.

2nd: It's because characters keep getting more and more powerful with enhancement, loot and whatever "passes" while mobs only get nerfed, content is too easy and that's another HUGE problem in this game. I join a party without any cleric or any crowd-control and no one is even considering the possibility of dying? Of course I'll keep hitting X after every encounter.

3rd: It was always like this and it will always be like that for as long as kill count exists, the only difference will always be how much you're risking to get ahead of everyone else in the kill count. Nowadays your party won't wipe because you switched your main weapons for Paralyzers and you probably won't die because you tried to solo a encounter (splitting up). Difficulty of content is an entirely separate problem and should have its own thread.

[Robai]

There is no such thing as a -10% death penalty.

"-10% xp death penalty" = the absence of "+10% Flawless Victory Bonus"
(just in case you didn't know )

[Oxarhamar]

1st: TheUberz are a minority, we should concentrate on the average player instead. Even because by making average players need to group to complete a quest we actually give the soloist something to brag about.

2nd: It's because characters keep getting more and more powerful with enhancement, loot and whatever "passes" while mobs only get nerfed, content is too easy and that's another HUGE problem in this game. I join a party without any cleric or any crowd-control and no one is even considering the possibility of dying? Of course I'll keep hitting X after every encounter.

3rd: It was always like this and it will always be like that for as long as kill count exists, the only difference will always be how much you're risking to get ahead of everyone else in the kill count. Nowadays your party won't wipe because you switched your main weapons for Paralyzers and you probably won't die because you tried to solo a encounter (splitting up). Difficulty of content is an entirely separate problem and should have its own thread.

so because you need someone to hold your hand in the quest you want to force players to group.... you real funny now

let me explain how that will go for you.

You NEED group for quest.
Put up LFM.
Group no fill.
No change.

[Nayus]

so because you need someone to hold your hand in the quest you want to force players to group.... you real funny now

I never said that, stop using troll methods to divert the point and hide your lack of arguments.

[Oxarhamar]

I never said that, stop using troll methods to divert the point and hide your lack of arguments.

stop trying to force everyone else to play the way you want.

[Sam1313]

I have a character on every server between the levels of 4 to 11, Except on Cannith wich is my home server there I have a 28 AA ranger, 19 AA ranger, TR 14 Wizard. From what I have seen on other servers, Cannith is not small. It's not as small as most of you think it is. A lot of people on the Cannith server work between the hours of 8am EST to 5 pm EST and also a lot of these people go Anonymous. The thing I have noticed on Cannith unlike the other servers is that there are few LFG's. This could be because the players on cannith are vets and solo everything except the raids. Or We have great guilds that hold guild parties so there is no need to post a LFG. If cannith had to be forced to merge with any of the other servers then I would hope that it would be Orien.

[Ivan_Milic]

I have a character on every server between the levels of 4 to 11, Except on Cannith wich is my home server there I have a 28 AA ranger, 19 AA ranger, TR 14 Wizard. From what I have seen on other servers, Cannith is not small. It's not as small as most of you think it is. A lot of people on the Cannith server work between the hours of 8am EST to 5 pm EST and also a lot of these people go Anonymous. The thing I have noticed on Cannith unlike the other servers is that there are few LFG's. This could be because the players on cannith are vets and solo everything except the raids. Or We have great guilds that hold guild parties so there is no need to post a LFG. If cannith had to be forced to merge with any of the other servers then I would hope that it would be Orien.

Nice try to get people to join Cannith.

[Tscheuss]

"-10% xp death penalty" = the absence of "+10% Flawless Victory Bonus"
(just in case you didn't know )

The absence of +10% bonus is 9% less than what it would be with said bonus (other bonuses notwithstanding).

Either way, the absence of a bonus does not constitute a penalty.

This is a case of counting chickens.

[Tscheuss]

Vote NO on server merge.
Vote NO on more lag.

[Icywave]

The absence of +10% bonus is 9% less than what it would be with said bonus (other bonuses notwithstanding).

Either way, the absence of a bonus does not constitute a penalty.

This is a case of counting chickens.

On top of that... it isn't 10% of total xp, but BASE XP... so yeah big deal if someone dies ... not!

[Chai]

Again, for people that want to see dungeon scaling done away with, you don't fully understand what you're asking. Good players will continue to solo and pugs will be noob-central even more so than now.

Wrong. We do know what we are asking, because we played the game for years without dungeon scaling. When people need to learn the game rather than have victory handed to them, it makes the PUG scene far less noob central than it is now.

[jalont]

Wrong. We do know what we are asking, because we played the game for years without dungeon scaling. When people need to learn the game rather than have victory handed to them, it makes the PUG scene far less noob central than it is now.

I'm sorry, was this back in the "good old times" where content was "hard" and people "raided" because they wanted the "challenge"? Yeah, I don't know Chai. Content's always been easy. Content will remain easy after the removal of scaling. People that want to run with friends/guildies/channel/solo will continue to do just that. People who want to PUG will continue to do so, just like they do now.

Pugging isn't a popular way of playing DDO. No amount of force is going to make people suddenly like it.

[jalont]

At least we would have pugs.

We now face the problems that the noobs are not learning, but leaving the game. All of you had been noobs in their beginning time as well. It takes time to learn the game.

This is totally opposite of what I would expect. New people will no longer be able to learn by running content solo, pushing them into the PUG system, and pushing more non-newbs out.

[Nayus]

stop trying to force everyone else to play the way you want.

LMAO, I apologize if you didn't notice this was a MMO.

[Nayus]

This is totally opposite of what I would expect. New people will no longer be able to learn by running content solo, pushing them into the PUG system, and pushing more non-newbs out.

It's called "Normal Difficulty".

And Casual is a difficulty level too.