New "Shadow Quest"

[Energizeric]

Guys, if any of you played PL then you will remember the ichor quest. What made the ichor quest fun was that while doing the quest for this elite weapon, you had a chance to get black dragon gear as drops, and as we all know those today are the most valuable items that exist in PL. What made this quest interesting was:

1) The only way to get the elite weapon was to do the quest.

2) The only way to get the black dragon helm & armor was to farm the dungeon.

3) You could do both #1 & #2 at the same time. So you were guaranteed to get the elite weapon, and had a chance to get black dragon helm & armor.

4) Both the elite weapon and black dragon gear were discontinued after the quest ended and the new expansion was released, so even more incentive to work to get items that would be rare and would become discontinued.

What made the ichor quest NOT good in my opinion:

5) The elite weapon could not be sold, and it was not the best weapon available at the time, but was instead about equal to some other weapons. It should have been the best, and you should have had the option to sell it if you wanted to.

6) A common complaint was when you beat the boss, you only had a CHANCE to get an ichor each time. It was not guaranteed. I think this was a bad idea. I think each time you beat the boss you should have gotten one. If they wanted to make the quest longer, they could have increased the number of ichors required.


So I have taken some of the items I think were good ideas from the ichor quest and have implemented them here. At the same time, I have fixed some of the items from the ichor quest I think were bad ideas. So that is how I came up with this idea. It is very similar, but I think having been through this already in another STS game, we know which things players liked and we know which they did not like. So STS can get it right this time.

[Taejo]

Guys, if any of you played PL then you will remember the ichor quest. What made the ichor quest fun was that while doing the quest for this elite weapon, you had a chance to get black dragon gear as drops, and as we all know those today are the most valuable items that exist in PL. What made this quest interesting was:

1) The only way to get the elite weapon was to do the quest.

2) The only way to get the black dragon helm & armor was to farm the dungeon.

3) You could do both #1 & #2 at the same time. So you were guaranteed to get the elite weapon, and had a chance to get black dragon helm & armor.

4) Both the elite weapon and black dragon gear were discontinued after the quest ended and the new expansion was released, so even more incentive to work to get items that would be rare and would become discontinued.

What made the ichor quest NOT good in my opinion:

5) The elite weapon could not be sold, and it was not the best weapon available at the time, but was instead about equal to some other weapons. It should have been the best, and you should have had the option to sell it if you wanted to.

6) A common complaint was when you beat the boss, you only had a CHANCE to get an ichor each time. It was not guaranteed. I think this was a bad idea. I think each time you beat the boss you should have gotten one. If they wanted to make the quest longer, they could have increased the number of ichors required.


So I have taken some of the items I think were good ideas from the ichor quest and have implemented them here. At the same time, I have fixed some of the items from the ichor quest I think were bad ideas. So that is how I came up with this idea. It is very similar, but I think having been through this already in another STS game, we know which things players liked and we know which they did not like. So STS can get it right this time.

Yes, looting the Black Dragon gear made sense because they are armor pieces whereas the quest reward is a weapon - and all the gear that you acquire compliments each other as sort of a set. However, you mentioned that the quest reward is a mythic ring, but the rare drop is also a ring (arcane). To me, this just makes us choose which one we want more; and obviously if I looted the arcane ring the only motivation to finish the quest is to sell the mythic ring later. I guess in some people's mind that is a double win situation, and positive outcome. Me personally, I'd rather have the chance at two pieces of wearable jewelry that compliment each other, like the Ichor quest. It just seems odd to have two of the same type of item coming from the same quest line. So maybe this would be a good opportunity to introduce an arcane necklace instead (as the ultra rare drop.

[Drearivev]

Agreed. To piggy back on this, maybe design the quest so that the Arcane version would require the L31 Bloodruby ring + double the components (so 1/20/12/4) and leave the Mythic version to just collecting the normal list of components.

Hint hint, I said Amulet

[Energizeric]

Yes, looting the Black Dragon gear made sense because they are armor pieces whereas the quest reward is a weapon - and all the gear that you acquire compliments each other as sort of a set. However, you mentioned that the quest reward is a mythic ring, but the rare drop is also a ring (arcane). To me, this just makes us choose which one we want more; and obviously if I looted the arcane ring the only motivation to finish the quest is to sell the mythic ring later. I guess in some people's mind that is a double win situation, and positive outcome. Me personally, I'd rather have the chance at two pieces of wearable jewelry that compliment each other, like the Ichor quest. It just seems odd to have two of the same type of item coming from the same quest line. So maybe this would be a good opportunity to introduce an arcane necklace instead (as the ultra rare drop.

Nope, look again at my original post. The quest reward is a mythic shadow amulet, while the rare drop is an arcane shadow ring. So they actually both complement each other very well.

Those two jewelry items along with the upgraded mythic armor/helm, and an arcane or mythic weapon would make the ultimate set.

[Taejo]

Nope, look again at my original post. The quest reward is a mythic shadow amulet, while the rare drop is an arcane shadow ring. So they actually both complement each other very well.

Those two jewelry items along with the upgraded mythic armor/helm, and an arcane or mythic weapon would make the ultimate set.

Haha. Oops. I wasted a lot of time typing then

[Joncheese]

Hi Guys,

Just want to start off by saying Thx to Energezric for this idea. This game IMO is in desperate need of something that end gamers and serious 'Elite Runners' can get their teeth stuck into. I completely agree that this quest should be in depth, time consuming and hard. I also support the idea of having the chance of arcane items dropping throughout the dungeon, but would emphasise on them being EXTREMELY RARE, as no doubt they will be farmed just like everything else in this game. Thats a good thing for everyone though, as STS will make their money on loot elixirs, and we will have something else on the 'want' list.

What i will say however is that if we are going to be able to use a previous mythic item as a base for the Shadow Amulet, why not make it the Lunar pendant or Doom or something like that. IMO the mythic ring is still a good ring, i still use mine and i for one would be gutted if i knew i could use it as a base for the amulet. Why? Because i spent time and money getting it, and if i don't get the Arcane ring i would have to go and buy another one, and they are still fetching 3.6 million in cs. Also is the mythic ring not lvl 31? If so then it has only been out for one expansion, so why not use something that has been out since 26 (like the mythic armor and helm). Plus as this is an amulet surely u should use an amulet as a base?

My only idea towards the possible design of these new items would be as follows:

- Shadow amulet glows Purple around ur neck.

- Shadow Amulet would show a black mist flowing round the player (similar to the mist that we all die in in Shuyal), maybe bats flying round you? Something that incorporates Shuyal and
just looks really cool and different, but is not too difficult for the Devs to achieve. Just a simple rotating animation.

- Arcane ring should emit a purple glow.

- Possibility for one of/both items to proc in some way. Maybe a black cloud that forms over the user giving them increased dmg for 'x' seconds, or the ability to terrify (using a shadow of
of a bat that flies out from you or something) like that of Samael.

My knowledge of creating MMO's and how things work behind the scenes are extremely limited, so forgive me if you read the above and think that im being completely unrealistic. These are just some little touches that i would add.

I cannot emphasise enough how much I LOVE THIS IDEA. Its brilliant. Devs please think about this, and all you players out there get behind it. There is no reason why something like this cant be done without affecting the economy of AL and whilst boosting all of our interests. I for one would be counting down the days until it happened.

As always if i've missed anything please tell me, i always miss something

[Energizeric]

What i will say however is that if we are going to be able to use a previous mythic item as a base for the Shadow Amulet, why not make it the Lunar pendant or Doom or something like that.

Good point! I missed that completely. Taejo had gotten confused and thought it was a mythic ring being rewarded, so that's why he suggested possibly using the mythic ring as a base. But yes, it should be the amulet. I can see two positive effects of this idea:

1) It will give some value to the current mythic amulets we all have, as it will allow you to use them as a base for crafting the shadow amulet.

2) It will encourage some players to just farm for the extra crafting items, even after they have crafted their shadow amulet. Since there will be enough players who would rather not run the quest and instead just craft using their mythic amulet as the base, there will be a need for more of the crafting items and they will hold premium values. (for anyone who has played PL, perhaps crafting this shadow amulet will be like the glyph/demonlord crafting was -- the crafting items will be scarce and very sought after, which is a good thing!)


And yes, it would be nice if both the arcane ring and the mythic amulet each had some kind of unique visual effect. I'm sure STG will come up with something nice for that as they always do. "Smoke" effects were very popular in PL, so maybe that is something we can introduce here.

[Joncheese]

Good point! I missed that completely. Taejo had gotten confused and thought it was a mythic ring being rewarded, so that's why he suggested possibly using the mythic ring as a base. But yes, it should be the amulet. I can see two positive effects of this idea:

1) It will give some value to the current mythic amulets we all have, as it will allow you to use them as a base for crafting the shadow amulet.

2) It will encourage some players to just farm for the extra crafting items, even after they have crafted their shadow amulet. Since there will be enough players who would rather not run the quest and instead just craft using their mythic amulet as the base, there will be a need for more of the crafting items and they will hold premium values. (for anyone who has played PL, perhaps crafting this shadow amulet will be like the glyph/demonlord crafting was -- the crafting items will be scarce and very sought after, which is a good thing!)


And yes, it would be nice if both the arcane ring and the mythic amulet each had some kind of unique visual effect. I'm sure STG will come up with something nice for that as they always do. "Smoke" effects were very popular in PL, so maybe that is something we can introduce here.

Exactly mate! I think it would be a great idea to incorporate the older amulets. Their prices have dropped significantly since the expansion and it would give the AL economy a much needed boost. Also would that mean that each amulet would hold different specs? What i mean by that is, i use a Lunar Pendant, Killingsworth (warrior) uses the doom amulet.... Would they hold different specs? Or is it going to be a 'one size fits all' amulet. Does what im saying make sense?

[Energizeric]

Actually, I was thinking there would be one single shadow amulet for all classes. It would have class neutral stats like the mythic ring, so that all classes can use it.

[Joncheese]

Actually, I was thinking there would be one single shadow amulet for all classes. It would have class neutral stats like the mythic ring, so that all classes can use it.

Makes things alot simpler, good idea.

[Deadroth]

Great! As i said i am glad of that You don't put words on wind Energ! You started to polish up that diamond! I am curious that Your awesome suggestion wid that quest will be accepted by Dev. However it would move the al economy. More Peeps would at last start to regularly use cs, than screaming their offers in chat, and ofc STS team would make money on elixirs.
I think now it is very good suggestion. Waiting for future improvements, which will be added for sure i see XD

PS. In case of ring. I would love to see glowing effect, but i would make it a bit bigger than other rings like troll necro or blood, and ofc purple

______
Dead

[Taejo]

Taejo had gotten confused and thought it was a mythic ring being rewarded

Yeah yeah... it happens a lot in my old age Sorry for the confusion!

[Drearivev]

Hi Guys,

Just want to start off by saying Thx to Energezric for this idea. This game IMO is in desperate need of something that end gamers and serious 'Elite Runners' can get their teeth stuck into. I completely agree that this quest should be in depth, time consuming and hard. I also support the idea of having the chance of arcane items dropping throughout the dungeon, but would emphasise on them being EXTREMELY RARE, as no doubt they will be farmed just like everything else in this game. Thats a good thing for everyone though, as STS will make their money on loot elixirs, and we will have something else on the 'want' list.

What i will say however is that if we are going to be able to use a previous mythic item as a base for the Shadow Amulet, why not make it the Lunar pendant or Doom or something like that. IMO the mythic ring is still a good ring, i still use mine and i for one would be gutted if i knew i could use it as a base for the amulet. Why? Because i spent time and money getting it, and if i don't get the Arcane ring i would have to go and buy another one, and they are still fetching 3.6 million in cs. Also is the mythic ring not lvl 31? If so then it has only been out for one expansion, so why not use something that has been out since 26 (like the mythic armor and helm). Plus as this is an amulet surely u should use an amulet as a base?

My only idea towards the possible design of these new items would be as follows:

- Shadow amulet glows Purple around ur neck.

- Shadow Amulet would show a black mist flowing round the player (similar to the mist that we all die in in Shuyal), maybe bats flying round you? Something that incorporates Shuyal and
just looks really cool and different, but is not too difficult for the Devs to achieve. Just a simple rotating animation.

- Arcane ring should emit a purple glow.

- Possibility for one of/both items to proc in some way. Maybe a black cloud that forms over the user giving them increased dmg for 'x' seconds, or the ability to terrify (using a shadow of
of a bat that flies out from you or something) like that of Samael.

My knowledge of creating MMO's and how things work behind the scenes are extremely limited, so forgive me if you read the above and think that im being completely unrealistic. These are just some little touches that i would add.

I cannot emphasise enough how much I LOVE THIS IDEA. Its brilliant. Devs please think about this, and all you players out there get behind it. There is no reason why something like this cant be done without affecting the economy of AL and whilst boosting all of our interests. I for one would be counting down the days until it happened.

As always if i've missed anything please tell me, i always miss something

Only weapons proc. If rings/amulets proc, they should've done that from the start.
And another thing, those who have never got their hands on a Mythic and probably never will (like me) would probably never get one. The only way I see myself getting a Mythic amulet or Arcane ring is from this type of thing. Now, if the current Mythic amulets would be upgraded into the Shadow Amulet, then I see myself never owning that. If it could be how Ener put it before (gather all ingredients, craft it into Shadow Amulet base), that is the only way I see myself getting this item. So people who don't have gold or plat could actually get this Shadow amulet. The way Jon put it just seems like "the rich get better, the poor stay poor".

No offence intended, but that is the point of view from someone who doesn't have any Mythics

[Energizeric]

Only weapons proc. If rings/amulets proc, they should've done that from the start.
And another thing, those who have never got their hands on a Mythic and probably never will (like me) would probably never get one. The only way I see myself getting a Mythic amulet or Arcane ring is from this type of thing. Now, if the current Mythic amulets would be upgraded into the Shadow Amulet, then I see myself never owning that. If it could be how Ener put it before (gather all ingredients, craft it into Shadow Amulet base), that is the only way I see myself getting this item. So people who don't have gold or plat could actually get this Shadow amulet. The way Jon put it just seems like "the rich get better, the poor stay poor".

No offence intended, but that is the point of view from someone who doesn't have any Mythics

I think his idea was that you could do it either way. You could either run the quest to build the shadow amulet base, or you could use a mythic amulet as your base if you have one.

[Joncheese]

I think his idea was that you could do it either way. You could either run the quest to build the shadow amulet base, or you could use a mythic amulet as your base if you have one.

Exactly

[Psykopathic28]

I did read and I actually really enjoyed the concept. Imagine instead of being 100 of each it was more like 250 and you had 1 for a ring 1 for an amulet and 1 for a sword or whichever weapon for each respective class.

Example :

Amulet, gem shards 177/250
Ring, gem shards 250/250
Weapon, ???? 78/250

For each you would also have to gather some metal for the base of the item

Example:
Ring, gold ore 12/15
Amulet , silver ore 25/25
Weapon, mythic steel 32/75

The 1st components would be gathered and taken to the smith at Nordr and he would be paid for his services.
The base components taken to an enchanter in Shuyal

Here's where a really big change I thought would be cool,
For each item sts would have the base stats; str,intel,dex,damage,dps (these would all show immediately upon the smith completing his work. Then for your final stat the enchanter would give you a choice or 2 amongst a variety of options.

Examples being :
5% crit
5% move speed
+3% damage
+75 armor
+200 health
3% mana regen
3% health regen
Applies poison damage on attack
10% chance to freeze target on attack
5% chance to reflect 25% damage when attacked

You could choose any 2 of a list of say 10. The items all would still be tradable and you can still only complete each quest one time.
After the season ends the items would then become discontinued and new bosses would come making drops for new items. The items would still be tradable and you could still only do the quest once. Talk about a way to incorporate gear variety right?
Since each of the 3 items have 2 components needed the new expansion would always require giving attention to each of the 6 new bosses to obtain the items. You would still have helm and armor and pets in crates.

I feel you really are into something and with a few tweaks, possibly ones I mentioned and possibly ones I didn't, along with some I'm sure sts will need to make to gain revenue this could be a huge exciting concept possibly incorporated into new expansions. It would create a balance from advantages gained by spending and advantages received from pure hard work.

You could even go a step further to make each separate item it's own quest each season also. This would contradict the discontinued items idea but there are many routes you could take this and make it awesome and fun.

I think maybe to be a lil more clear on the components. Say for example the quests were incorporated in shuyal, the 250 piece components would be in quest form. You would get them each from a different boss in a different map. The smaller components would be pinks that drop from another boss and are tradable. Sizes chosen because of size of item.
Example
Shadow plains defeat boss 85% chance of getting a Ring, gem shard 15% chance getting a helmet
Forest breach - 25chance mythic steel. ___% chance locked crate ___% chance etc sorc
Forest if shades - 85% chance getting Amulet, gem shard 15% chance at pink armor
Undim fields - 25% chance gold ore etc etc
Shuyal tower - inan hesh 85% chance ???? Etc etc ashral heart 25% chance silver ore etc etc

Also giving inan hesh like a .05% chance to reroll a mythic charm that gives 5% damage and 25 armor for being in your inventory.

Something along those lines, you get the idea.

I also like the idea about possibly using the prior rings and amulets to infuse into the new 1's. This could be done in place of the 2nd component or perhaps used as alchemical pieces to power up the helm / armor by paying the smith 100k to infuse the metal from the jewelry to the blade / sword / staff then do another extensive quest for the alchemist to infuse the arcane energy from the jewels to put another buff on the armor / helm respectively. ( choices again such as above)

Any kind of change to really mix things up and add as much variety as possible I think will be great for the community. Even you merchants will get more of a challenge by having to price so many variations of each of the items. Some might say too complicated but when has simple ever been that fun? You people who disagree with that statement can go play Tetris or something. lols

Tell me what you think Ener

[Energizeric]

I like some of your ideas Psyk.

First I'll address your ideas that I do NOT like:

I'm not sure if I like the idea of new weapons, as we already have both mythic and arcane weapons. It seems to me the areas to improve are rings and amulets, and that's why my quest idea has both a ring (as a drop) and an amulet (as the crafted item).

Many players have already pointed out that some of the new legendary rings and amulets are better in certain respects to the mythic ones, so this is an area where a new mythic (or arcane) item will be welcomed. Mythic & Arcane weapons are already the best, so coming out with new ones is just a way of having us chase our tales. If I already have the best weapon, why would I want to get a new one? That's just keeping me busy for the sake of keeping me busy. I think most players would NOT like this idea.

I don't like the idea of these items dropping in the regular elite shuyal dungeons. Why? For this new quest idea to be implemented, STG has to agree that this will not hurt their plat revenue. Offering both an arcane and a mythic item in ways other than locked crates will cost them some plat sales, so they have to make up those sales in other ways. By having a separate dungeon just for this quest, players will know exactly what drops there, and will be encouraged to run the dungeon with luck elixirs so they can increase their chance of getting a good drop. Imagine getting an arcane ring as a drop. How much will it be worth? 10m? 20m maybe? Some insane amount that is way higher than any other drop anyone has ever gotten in AL.

Having a specific dungeon that only drops these limited time items will also encourage players to use other elixirs to speed up their runs. Remember that this quest disappears after the season ends, so the more runs you get, the more chances you have at getting these rare drops. Imagine the night before the quest is discontinued... How much are the crafting items going for then? Probably insane amounts as everyone rushes to try to craft that final amulet before it's too late! If you were to mix this loot up with the regular elite shuyal loot that drops in the elite shuyal dungeons, then I think nobody is going to get too excited about it, at least not enough to run constantly with elixirs.

Now for the idea that I REALLY LIKE!.... I like the idea that you can choose from different stats to customize your amulet. I'm thinking there could be 3 or 4 different stats, and you can choose any two that you like. Or maybe STS should just make a few different amulets (similar to how they did with the archon rings) and let us choose which one we want to craft, and maybe each one could have a slightly different recipe as far as which crafting components are needed. Maybe they all need the shadow amulet base, but some need more links, clasps or gems than others. That would certainly make it more interesting. It all depends on how complicated they want to make it. I gave a very simple version in my first post, but of course I'm sure STG will alter it somewhat..... that is if they are open to the idea at all. I guess we will find out!

[Psykopathic28]

Just an FYI I didn't wanna the idea incorporated to shuyal with gear that's already flooded on market. I just used shuyal as an example for the layout. Idea actually was to incorporate that sort of loot table similar to what you suggested but in elite maps of new expansion with completely new pinks to compliment things. I simply used your idea to also bring attention to all maps in a new expansion instead of only like 2 most profitable.

I left out the arcane ring out of the equation because I didn't see any chance of it being granted hence it's replacement with the mythic charm. The new weapons also were just to fill the last maps.

[Soundlesskill]

Hmm... But it would be a bit of a bummer for thosr who spent millions to get the arcane achievement, just to find out later it can be looted by killing mobs

[Joncheese]

Hmm... But it would be a bit of a bummer for thosr who spent millions to get the arcane achievement, just to find out later it can be looted by killing mobs

I think the idea is that this achievement is going to be pretty hard, worthy of an arcane achievement IMO. And i think (correct me if im wrong ener) it is going to be aimed at the slightly more hardcore gamer rather than the casual one due to its in depth questline. The aim is to increase Plat sales for STS whilst giving us end gamers something to get stuck into. Its also going to be slightly easier for those that are geared (the ones who have saved millions already) to achieve, just as it is easier for us to run elite maps.

Im a big supporter of this idea, i cant stress that enough. It will inject some much needed variety and challenge into what is already a great game and that should be embraced by all, if not for this reason then at least that of the predicted economy boost that it will provide.