Endgame Tamer Currencies and Vendors.

[wreckognize]

I had this idea after @bradley- had posted that he wanted some sort of item that would help him have better control of high end pets.

Basically the problem is that players do not have enough control over their highest level pets. It's understandable, nobody really wants to delve into the world where they are sub-par at best. But the problem with an easy fix like allowing more control might end up being overflooding of gold, the way that the shard is set up currently.

The suggestion is to make tamers able to get Talismans that enable them to control their highest level pets a bit better. Also, these Talismans will also enable the user to produce new currencies when they slay monsters.

These new currencies can then be used to purchase both Upgraded Talismans for better pet control, and various other items that benefit tamers.

In exchange for gaining more pet control, and earning this new currency, the mobs slain will actually drop less gold.

The goal here is to create a cyclical balance wherein tamers can achieve new endgame goals and endgame character development while not disturbing economic balance in the game. It would benefit the economy

In order to achieve this balance, I will suggest some numbers.

Firstly I think there should be 3 Tiers of Talisman.

The first will be able to be purchased via sink and donation vendors, and when equipped gives a bonus of 10% extra control over the highest level pet possible. Gold drops will decrease by 10% of normal and new currency will go into the tamers bankbox for any mob that the wearer did most of the damage.

The second will be only purchasable using the new currency produced by the first Talisman, and grants a bonus of 20% extra control over the highest level pet possible, and equal 20% less gold on the corpse as well as another new currency.

The third will produce the highest end possible currency, also granting a 30% bonus for pet control, and 30% less gold per mob slain.

Some suggested names for these currencies: Whelp Tokens, Wyvern Tokens, and Dragon Coins. The items on the vendors should be added pending review annually or semi-annually to keep things fresh.

One possible drawback to this suggestion is that it may generate some replies about already existing currencies that crave attention from development, thus de-railing this original idea.

To alleviate from this I will suggest that platinum stop spawning from now on, like trash tokens, and then get rid of both of those vendors during some kind of ''Spring Cleaning''. Maybe those items could then be incorporated into the new tamer vendors in some way as well such as the ranger armor.

***I would like to see at least one or two VERY expensive items on each vendor type, that will ensure that even the highest tier tamers will still have some desire to farm the lesser currencies.***

Now I also will suggest some plausible tamer related items that could be added.

*Some kind of magical leash that when used on a follower will allow it to come with you when you recall.
*Tamer titles (please feel free to post one if you have a good one)
*Druids mask - deer mask that when equipped increases Veterinary by +5 (middle tier tamer currency)
*Druids robe - when equipped increases Veterinary by +5 (highest tier tamer currency)

 

[Babethoven]

what has this shard come to................

 

[wreckognize]

what has this shard come to................

I'm glad you asked that question.

Here on UOF, we're amazingly fortunate to even have an economy still, if you compare it to other UO shards historically.

That said, By adding desirable (key word here) items to new types of vendors, we can both further the endgame for all PvM templates (even Parry or Bard etc) AND keep the economy balanced for at least another solid year, while adding a great gold sink/donation item at the same time.

The idea still needs more plausible items though in order to function properly. I'd like to see more jewelery type items involved in this, and of course over time more types of vendors and currencies for other templates as well.

 

[Messremb]

Staff can barley keep the donation vendor stocked with desirable items, now you want to remove 2 vendors and currencies that are neglected, and add in 3 new currencies , and 3 new vendors for staff to update. you know the definition of insanity don't you? new currencies is nothing but a hassle.

-1

but please keep them coming.

 

[bradley-]

Well, my new suggestion was going to be much more harsh to tamers than what you're suggesting @wreckognize. You're suggestion does sound alright.. A 30% gold reduction for 30% better control sounds great to me but I agree with @Messremb in that we don't need any more currencies.

 

[wreckognize]

Staff can barley keep the donation vendor stocked with desirable items, now you want to remove 2 vendors and currencies that are neglected, and add in 3 new currencies , and 3 new vendors for staff to update. you know the definition of insanity don't you? new currencies is nothing but a hassle.

-1

but please keep them coming.

Well I'm glad that you think the staff is incapable and that I am insane. To be honest tho in staffs defense, neither the platinum or trash vendors were added by the current staff so I wouldn't be so quick to say that they couldn't handle another vendor type. Grasping at straws there.

@bradley- My problem with having more control over the pets goes farther than just economic problems. Having more control over these endgame pets will also mean that farming with them will become more boring and tedious, and easier.

Having gold farming be tedious and boring is why most shards fail. The players get bored and stop playing, even if us die-hards don't really understand why they would. It's because other games are not boring and tedious.

That said, by giving more control over these pets, we NEED to find another way to keep tamers from getting tired and bored. That is why the extra currencies, to counter the boredom of making taming more tedious and less random chance, by making these players goal driven for goals that they can't get without earning through doing said activities.

You're right in a sense, maybe there is a better way to keep players interested once we make controlling 7th level pets able to be controlled by pressing two buttons and then recalling to the bank. I'm interested to hear any other ways we could accomplish that goal.

 

[bradley-]

I was talking to eppy earlier and we went back and forth with different ideas.. I suggested adding a semi-rare drop in the newbie dungeon that is a wearable (I suggested a body sash so the donations still roll in for CBDs and sash layering deeds) which grants full control over all bonded pets but at the price of giving up musicianship. That way, the new players who join UOF have something they can get and efficiently sell for start-up gold, and you destroy the most powerful PvM template in UO (the provo tamer). So, the upside is you gain full control over your pets and new players can more easily get into the game. The downside is that if you want to control your meta, you need to drop music & provo/peace/disco. Another downside (for the dungeon dwelling PKs) is that there will be significantly more PvP tamer templates rolling around. I've encountered many PK ganks in dungeons and still survived as a provo tamer with no wrestle, eval, or resist... I can only imagine the PvP devastation I could do as a PvP tamer..

Like I said.. My suggestion is a little more harsh than yours.

 

[wreckognize]

Yes I see your point there, although I'm not entirely sure that farming even without bard skills would be any less tedious if you had full blown control over a level 7 meta, or any less profitable at least during some times of day. It's still a viable alternative.

After some consideration though I'm thinking that I'd still rather reduce the gold amount while giving players the ability to further their characters development, instead of taking away age old UO skills which some players value for nostalgia.

That way, the new players who join UOF have something they can get and efficiently sell for start-up gold

not sure about this..

It might be better if new players end up getting a boost, sure, but having it happen by making a friend or some other sort of player interaction like player ran events is better than just inserting gold into their backpacks.. not to mention that there will be an initial period of time when every tamer on the shard will want one, which makes it super exploitable..

One nice way to help get new players started is by running a player made event, and advertising it outside of these forums. Player ran events forum is nice, very nice, but rarely do players who have ran player events advertise them outside this forum... that is definitely hurting our ability to pick up new players for sure.

But yeah I'd rather new player hand ups come from making actual friends or plainly interacting with the players here to get it, so that they can get advice on what to spend it on or what to do before they lose an amount of gold they would have a hard time getting themselves.

 

[Cerebellum]

No. I'm tired of hearing about taming. It's always been the most important, catered to and spoiled class on UOF. Screw Tamers. /rant