General

Dear all,

I am making this post in an effort to inform the public about a SILENT change in how the ranger tp functions today, and add a plethora of problematic questions on the issue of how/why/where the "ultimate balance" of ranger tps has completely broken game mechanics and lore itself.

Disclaimer: The short version of this post has already been forwarded to the DEV team and Tamarea.

I will start with the major issue:

Did you know that Rangers can respawn when Red-Flagged to their "tunnel'?
Did u know that effectively a Ranger can participate in PvP content, die, and then respawn directly to their TP?

Did you know that a Ranger can participate in PvP content and for all intends and purposes, have absolutely no penalty in terms of game mechanics?

I will explain: According to game-mechanics, when a player decides to activate their PvP tag, which is not like OP tag, and engage in combat with another player, one of the few talked about things that happen, but in factuality do happen, is that until they are able to de-activate their PvP tag (which has a certain cool-down) they cannot Teleport anywhere. Therefore if you engage in PvP content, win or lose, you have to stay where you are, until the timer elapses. (That means either you die and respawn to the portal, or wait until the timer elapses and teleport wherever you want).

One of the MAJOR/GAME-BREAKING changes that occured with the "ultimate balance" of the ranger tp, is that apparently Game-Mechanics do not APPLY to them. They can still die and teleport to their tunnel.

Q; Star, what are you talking about? This is not stated in the changes on the Ryzom Forge meeting. Isn't this a violation of the game-mechanics and something that flies directly in the face of how the game works?

A: Exactly dear friend, that's exactly right. On the Ryzom forge meeting pertaining to the "ultimate balancing of the ranger tp mechanics" only the following is stated:

Maintenance & improvements

Ultimate balancing of the Ranger gameplay: addition of resurrection points to the Paths of 250-regions and Prime Roots regions, capitals' Paths moved closer to a K teleporter and Wastelands' Path moved toward Midway Point.

Questions:

a) Where does it say on this that a ranger is allowed to engage into PvP content and teleport back to their tp? Which is essentially the same thing.

b) Why this issue wasn't publically adressed in the ryzom forge meeting? Every other single major change has been open to the public.

c) How is it possible that a single faction can overcome game-mechanics, just by virtue of being in a faction?

d) Is Ulukyn and Tamarea aware of the issue? If so, what are they planning to do about it?

The problem:

I will just state the problem with an example, nothing more is needed to demonstrate the blatant abuse of this:

We engage into PvP content with "rangers" for the Kizokin boss:

There used to be 2 outcomes:

a) We wipe them, they cannot come back, since no respawn point on GoC. Since there is ten min cooldown before you can tp again, the fight was won, the boss was won.

b) They wipe us. we cannot go back since there is no respawn point on GoC, we cannot tp back since cooldown restriction by being RED pvp flagged, the fight was lost, the boss was lost.

Now you have added the most dangerous, game breaking, game-mechanics dont matter anymore, outcome:

I present you the ultimate ranger balancing outcome:

The Schrödinger's Boss:

c) We wipe them. They can come back. They can tp back or respawn back, since for them it's the same apparently. Is the fight won? Is the fight lost? Is the boss won? Is the boss lost? Apparently NO ONE KNOWS. Since you are allowing PvP tagged players in areas NO ONE has the ability to respawn or teleport to if they get wiped the opportunity to come back, again, and again, and again, and again, and again. THE BOSS IS BOTH WON AND LOST and the FIGHT IS BOTH WON AND LOST.

The Ultimate Ranger balancing Outcome: The Schrödinger's Boss.

I do not think I have to add anything more on this part. It's blatantly obvious to anyone and everyone that this :

a) Does not obey by game-mechanics.

b) Gives Rangers a without-precedent advantage into end game content.

c) Essentially gives them free cookies: Hey you lost on the first fight on the boss? That's okay, you can try again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Hey you can keep trying for fifteen days straight since even if you wiped fifteen days in a row, you still can come back and get the boss and disrupt the others from getting it. You only have to win ONCE.

So, I think, we should expect this blatant abuse to eradicate if not tomorrow, the next patch. (Need I add that the same group of people who used the campfires bug which I was the one that reported to the Dev team and demanded fixed, are exactly the same ones that use these tactics? No I do not, everyone on Atys knows this).

Further Issues

Leaving aside the I expect to be fixed EXPLOIT of what was stated above.

I made a post a year ago; demanding every faction to have a respawn point at GoC (for instance).

You can find it here for reference:

https://app.ryzom.com/app_forum/index.php?page=topic/view/28814/1 4#14

In that very post I argued. among other things, that since the Devs added a tunnel, then it makes sense that the tunnel could be used to add a much needed for everyone, respawn point at GoC.

Despite no Dev commenting on that post, I was told by some people working on the lore team and/or ryzom team, that the tunnel is not a respawn point.

Then riddle me this: The tunnel connecting GoC to Silan, isn't a respawn point at GoC, for anyone. But the Tunnel the rangers have in GoC is a respawn point?

How does that make sense game-mechanics wise?

How does that make sense lore-wise?

Where is the lore that states that Ranger tunnels are Respawn Portals?

What is happening here?


Who designed the Ranger faction? It seems that they really do not care at all, apparently, for consistency, for game-mechanics, for lore?

We all pay exactly the same subscription in this game; having something as blatant as this, changes made that were not discussed, no poll was conducted (like the OP manufacturing) about tps serving as respawn points, about Rangers being able to TP to wherever they want when red-flagged, inconsistencies on what IS and IS NOT a respawn point, absence of lore justification.

I kindly suggest the whole Ryzom team to take this very very seriously and take immediate action regarding this.

Star

Would even add more about this..

[EDIT] Deleted an unuseful personal comment.

https://app.ryzom.com/app_forum/index.php?page=post/view/190086

Well written and well explained.

If all of this is true (which I am sure it must be) then this is massively explotative and needs to be fixed immediately.

While I can understand that Ranger pathways were really REALLY bad perviosuly (discuss this in another topic if you want to dispute me) it's definitely not properly balanced at present.

+1 to fix this urgent matter, particularly for pvp and end-game type players.
(Of which, almost everyone active seems to be...)

Ha. Ha. Ha. That's not at all the case, very few people PvP in faction-pvp mode, very few people are running around tagged...
Which is probably also the reason why this "exploit" was introduced - Ryzom Team members are Volunteers (with very few excpetion(s) :P), players who love the game like everyone of us and take the time to help in development and keeping the game alive. No one of the active PvPers must have tested or thought out the changes, which is why it was even introduced.

I don't see what THAT has to do with the issue you bring up here. Also other than being discussable as to wether it was an exploit or a feature (if i hit a lower lvl creature with my weapon and enchant higher lvl mobs to get good xp is that an exploit too now? So should we forbid to have aggro of multiple mobs?), that approaches very dangerously of a personal aggression, which is IIRC forbidden by CoC...

You can ask Ulukyn and Tiximei who handled the issue if it was an exploit or a feature:) I have logs which clearly state it is an exploit; and feel free to ask them:)

No personal aggression; just stating facts.

My two dappers.

Speaking as a Ranger, and having been a (Ranger / Ranger Aspirant / hopeful homin) since the server merge in 2012 CE, and having listened to Wilk and Wuaoi speak and having studied the Precepts and all ...

It is my opinion that no one on the DEV team even thought about Rangers doing flagged PvP and so when the rez points were set up they just used the conveniently available mechanic of the vortex portals without thinking.

Now that it is clear that there is an exploit, I would hope that it gets fixed ASAP, and I hope that the fix does not act to inconvenience us normal Rangers.

BTW, I have NO idea what the roleplay justification of having the Paths turn into rez points is. I haven't heard anything and can think of no possible reason for them to be so, but I have to admit that it is sort of convenient.

@Bitty

As far as i get, Lorists said inside your pathways, there is kind of mini vortex energy. That's what makes you travel that fast on it.

OK, that's just crazy talk, but I hadn't even heard that. If it's some sort of vortex in there, then that explains the rez-points, but there's still a problem with balance. Thanks.