1.7.5 Content Update (76708)

[asommers]

Added a brand new, optional, premium-content mini-dungeon, The Mount Fang Boss Stomp. See Fran in the Mount Fang Towne.
Winter Festival is now complete. It will return next year. Hope everyone had a fantastic holiday season.
Added 1v1 PvP map. A Duel in the Desert!
The game no longer attempts to display invalid characters in chat

[DirtyTac0]

Could you briefly describe premium content my guild paid for a run through it cleared all were displeased with loot. I think they might be expecting to much from drops. Am I right or am I wronge? Is this dungeon for practice like the older boss map? Do elite items drop there? These are my immediate questions listening to about 40 people talk on my guild chat. Hoping to clear it up some for them.

[ninjaduck]

Thanks for this Asommers :) Ive been eager for the 1V1! :D

[Samhayne]

Could you briefly describe premium content my guild paid for a run through it cleared all were displeased with loot. I think they might be expecting to much from drops. Am I right or am I wronge? Is this dungeon for practice like the older boss map? Do elite items drop there? These are my immediate questions listening to about 40 people talk on my guild chat. Hoping to clear it up some for them.

Previously, if you wanted to farm you would need to run Dungeon 1, then Dungeon 2, then Dungeon 3, then Dungeon 4 then on to Dungeon 5 to hit all the bosses. The Mount Fang Boss Stomp has all 5 bosses in it that all drop the same combined loot table containing all of the possible drops from those 5 bosses. So, with one clear of the Boss Stomp you get 5 chances for loot.

If someone is looking to maximize the number of drops for their time spent, taking advantage of the Premium Boss Stomp would probably be the way to go. If you want to run the normal dungeons, you can still get the same loot - it will probably just take you longer, as you need to clear the maps, etc.

Please let us know if you have more questions.

[Battlelock]

Could you briefly describe premium content my guild paid for a run through it cleared all were displeased with loot. I think they might be expecting to much from drops. Am I right or am I wronge? Is this dungeon for practice like the older boss map? Do elite items drop there? These are my immediate questions listening to about 40 people talk on my guild chat. Hoping to clear it up some for them.
They didn't up the elite pink drop rate for the premium access. The premium access ONLY gives you the same drop rate & table as the regular Fang Levels. The normal Fang boss gauntlet doesn't drop elite pinks at all. Hope this answer might be a little clearer for you.

[Samhayne]

They didn't up the elite pink drop rate for the premium access. The premium access ONLY gives you the same drop rate & table as the regular Fang Levels. The normal Fang boss gauntlet doesn't drop elite pinks at all. Hope this answer might be a little clearer for you.

The Premium Mt. Fang Boss Stomp does drop all of the same drops as the bosses do in dungeons 1-5. It does drop elite pinks. The rarity should be equivalent, with the caveat that in the Boss Stomp, all of the bosses pull from the same loot table. In dungeons 1 to 5, each boss has it's own specific loot table.

We did not remove the old boss gauntlet that you do not have to pay to sneak in. Battlelock is correct that the old boss gauntlet does not drop pinks. If you want pinks, you either need to run dungeons 1 to 5 or the Premium Mt. Fang Boss Stomp.

[Walkhardd]

Nice update. Looking forward to the 1v1 map. :)

[maneatingtree]

Yay!

[Nick41324]

Just had a great 1v1 match with a good friend in the new map and i love it. The only thing i had a problem with is that you don't regain your hp once the other person is dead. Could it be possible for that to be in a future update? If not, you guys really out did yourselfs with the new WF items, new maps, new gear, and so on in the past few months. Thank you sts :D

[Snakespeare]

We did not remove the old boss gauntlet that you do not have to pay to sneak in. Battlelock is correct that the old boss gauntlet does not drop pinks. If you want pinks, you either need to run dungeons 1 to 5 or the Premium Mt. Fang Boss Stomp.

Will this be removed in the future? It seems like a waste of space in an environment where program size limits have required the reuse of floor plans.

[Luchta]

Will this be removed in the future? It seems like a waste of space in an environment where program size limits have required the reuse of floor plans.

I think the purpose of the non-premium boss gauntlet is for practicing. Not sure if it's ideal to remove it permanently but you do have a point. We already have dungeons 1 to 5 which is already the best place to practice killing bosses.

[Swimmingstar]

1v1 I'm trying it out today!

[LwMark]

So basicallly yu kan get 5pinks in 1 run if the pink gods are with yu!

[adidaman]

Idc what people are saying, I love the update guys (:

[Appleisaac]

Aww... I like the 1v1 but i thought we would get our hp and manna back after a kill

[Snakespeare]

I think the purpose of the non-premium boss gauntlet is for practicing. Not sure if it's ideal to remove it permanently but you do have a point. We already have dungeons 1 to 5 which is already the best place to practice killing bosses.

Do you know anyone who "practices" killing a boss, knowing that it has zero chance to drop a pink? I think that "practice" thing Sam said is something he was told to say. The fact is, until recently, boss brawls did drop pinks.

[wvhills]

Do you know anyone who "practices" killing a boss, knowing that it has zero chance to drop a pink? I think that "practice" thing Sam said is something he was told to say. The fact is, until recently, boss brawls did drop pinks.

+1 to snake. boss brawls were never intended for "practicing". They were there so the rushers would play there instead of rushing all the regular maps and they did drop pinks.

[Battlelock]

I think the purpose of the non-premium boss gauntlet is for practicing. Not sure if it's ideal to remove it permanently but you do have a point. We already have dungeons 1 to 5 which is already the best place to practice killing bosses.

Do you know anyone who "practices" killing a boss, knowing that it has zero chance to drop a pink? I think that "practice" thing Sam said is something he was told to say. The fact is, until recently, boss brawls did drop pinks.
Not sure what boss brawls you're referring to but the only boss brawls I know that dropped ELITE pinks was Forest Haven Skeletal Cult Crypts & the swamps Bayou Boss Brawl.
Yes all boss brawls dropped pinks but only 2 I know of dropped the ELITE pinks.

[Flip]

To my understanding the boss brawls have inferior loot tables compared to running the dungeons naturally, that's not a recent change. The premium boss stomp does not have that restriction.

[Battlelock]

For arguments sake, yes boss brawls dropped pinks, but trash. Only a couple dropped the good ones. So if you're truly arguing they dropped pinks, they did. Who farms trash?

[shanmarie33]

They didn't up the elite pink drop rate for the premium access. The premium access ONLY gives you the same drop rate & table as the regular Fang Levels.

Does everybody even know about that tidbit? I heard that long ago, hence never wasted my time playing it. I actually had forgotten about that until now.


Do you know anyone who "practices" killing a boss, knowing that it has zero chance to drop a pink? I think that "practice" thing Sam said is something he was told to say. The fact is, until recently, boss brawls did drop pinks.

Yep. I recently started farming...alot. Even though the drop rate is very low, premium pinks do drop. This forum has had 1000's of debates on "the business model" of STS... HELLO!!??!!?? If all gauntlets prior to Mt. Fang dropped pinks or rares or premium loot, and only Vamp Feast doesn't...it was most likely the plan from the start. Prehaps even test the water to gauge reactions with pay per play Winter Fest. Personally, I don't love it, but I do choose to pay to play. Will my thought on that last forever, probably not, but I do now. As long as STS is up front, honest, and thorough with its explanation of platinum items and what a customer gets when spending their money, thats good enough for me and I believe many plat buyers as well. If you happen to not be a plat buyer, well, I regret to say, your opinion probably doesn't matter too much. I do believe STS wants to dialog with the community and certainly has responded in the past. Right now I see the biggest factor in it all being sustainable income for the company. That is also highly debated on the forum. As I have said, stop buying the plat if you want to change the reaction...Well, I have said it, but haven't actually done it...why?...becasue I like the premium content...PERIOD...and it seems...so do the masses.

[Snakespeare]

[stupid rant deleted]
The boss crawls were created to give people with too much time on their hands something to do so they wouldn't leave after they hit level cap.

Personally, I never liked them. I'd rather run the five maps in succession with one group all the way.

[Urqui]

Hah Fran!
That's my real name lol
Means I'll be giving access to Epic Vampire Feast>=]

lol Posted this on wrong thread 3 seconds ago(idiot lol)

[Gaddy]

Oh brother! Here we go again...

[Riccits]

thx for the new map, we can save a lot time now!

[Moogerfooger]

Not sure what boss brawls you're referring to but the only boss brawls I know that dropped ELITE pinks was Forest Haven Skeletal Cult Crypts & the swamps Bayou Boss Brawl.
Yes all boss brawls dropped pinks but only 2 I know of dropped the ELITE pinks.

Right after Nuri's came out, I got an elite pink from one of the bosses in the Nuri Boss level, forget what it was called. Never saw one again, so it may have been patched.

[elrond]

My thought is that I have killed hundreds of bosses in Mt. Fang without ever getting an elite pink drop. Do I now pay for that same (to this point 0) chance of getting an elite pink. I have only gotten 5 pinks in total, but no set pieces and I have been playing since the day it was released. I don't see paying real money for this. Maybe it will lower the prices of the set pieces in cs and I can pick up my last piece a little cheaper, I have had to buy the other three pieces.

[Snakespeare]

Elite pinks drop in AO3 boss brawl, Victory Lap. They always have. There were no elite pinks before AO3. The bosses in all the brawls from Balefort to AO2 have always used the exact same drop table as their counterparts in the maps. In short, up until the Forest Haven revamp, all boss brawls dropped pinks. Campaigns released after the FH revamp had these new nerfed boss brawls.

When the Forest Haven boss brawl did NOT drop ANY pinks, it caused quite a stir. The usual screaming happened on the MB and they reluctantly gave a minute chance to get one of the three FH pinks from the boss brawl.

Boss Brawls were added to the game so that level capped players could farm. Before the elite cap (an extra level at 10x XP and a vanity prize), farming and PvP were the only things to do, aside from making a dozen characters.

With the elite cap, the need to give capped players something to do was lessened, and the boss brawls changed into mixed leveling/farming. But now the players seeking elite cap just buy 4x elixirs and run in the levelling maps with the people who haven't reached the cap.

I would like to go off on a tangent about King's Forest, Mega-Maze, and all that, but suffice it to say, they were added to give the capped players more things to do. The capped players started threads pleading for things to do. If you weren't here at the time, then you just don't know. They were irritating threads especially to noobs like me. But the game was in a reactive state and these players got what they asked for, farming zones for their pink obsessions. And then King's Forest, Mega, and other maps even had new special pinks created just for them, the bone armors, level 29.

This recent definition of a boss brawl as "a place to practice" may be what the devs who took over PL thought they were for. But that is not what they were meant for originally.

[elianel]

Srr to say but where is the pink that you promise ah?

[FluffNStuff]

Elite pinks drop in AO3 boss brawl, Victory Lap. They always have. There were no elite pinks before AO3. The bosses in all the brawls from Balefort to AO2 have always used the exact same drop table as their counterparts in the maps. In short, up until the Forest Haven revamp, all boss brawls dropped pinks. Campaigns released after the FH revamp had these new nerfed boss brawls.


AO2 was actually the first Boss Brawl with nuked pinks. While they did drop good pinks, the 'best' pinks, ie the Blasters, The Dark Matter Staffs, the Wands, the Daggers, the Talons, the Shock Lances, the Sunkiller Staffs and the Royal Shadow staffs were only dropped by the main level bosses. Also, an interesting note about the Victory Lap drops, as players thought it was a bug that T-Paxx had the drop table of the mini-bosses, but it was hinted at by Cinco that ALL Victory Lap bosses should have had the mini-boss loot table.

[saool]

The mobs and bosses seem harder to kill...and I was using elixir...bleh not for me lol I'll just farm the regular levels. :)

[Hankomachos]

Love the 1vs1 map. =D

[Snakespeare]

I thanked you, Fluff, but idk... I could swear I've seen those drop in Plasma. Must have nerfed it later?

[Snakespeare]

The mobs and bosses seem harder to kill...and I was using elixir...bleh not for me lol I'll just farm the regular levels. :)

I was on a 4x combo and I was dying a lot. Perhaps because they were all pugs.

[Luchta]

Srr to say but where is the pink that you promise ah?

The devs didn't promise any elite pink to drop like apples as if it's harvesting season. Like they keep saying, the loot table is the same. No different than killing regular dungeon bosses. You only get the chance to confront the bosses faster so it only means the chances of getting the pinks is already there and ready but the chances of actually looting the pink is no different that going through dungeons 1-5.

[FluffNStuff]

I thanked you, Fluff, but idk... I could swear I've seen those drop in Plasma. Must have nerfed it later?

Daggers and talons from level 1. Wands from level two. Two handed swords from the never farmed boss on mynas. Plasma swords and later added shock lance from four. Blasters from rloxx on five, dark matter (not desert shadow) staffs and later added sunkiller / royal staffs from btoxx, also in five. One of the fun things about ao2 is they would add new weapons to current bosses every couple weeks.
As for the difficulty of the crawl, mobs/bosses are all 65, so that makes them harder. That issue came up with the original swamps brawl, as the mobs/bosses were level 31-34 in game but all 35+ in the gauntlet.

[Riccits]

The mobs and bosses seem harder to kill...and I was using elixir...bleh not for me lol I'll just farm the regular levels. :)

u cant buff, thats why seems harder

[Luchta]

I swear I read somewhere that Sam mentioned bosses would be easier to kill.


As I understand it, that is the case - it would be faster to kill the bosses, but that they have the same loot tables.

Ok found it. So was this idea changed?

[FluffNStuff]

I swear I read somewhere that Sam mentioned bosses would be easier to kill.



Ok found it. So was this idea changed?

Easier to kill as in less mobs/per boss, but the bosses themselves are not easier. It is just faster to get to them, versus clearing all the levels.

[Engelhard]

I have ran the map one time to see what it was like....ran it with a pug and was unable to kill two of the bosses plus it took forever.....people left game so we paid plat and we did not finish.....I was disappointed........one pink did drop on this run it was a Chiroptera sword of the dead.....not for me but I wast to jealous lol.....I will stick to the other maps unless maybe I hit the lottery :)