Curse

Bright Star Shine · May 31, 2011, 05:25 PM // 17:25

This is in response of another post, and something I have mentioned on the forums countless times before. (sidenote: was gonna use the official wiki but it's down atm, so had to resort to the unofficial)

This thread isn't a rant on inscriptions, well, actually, yes it is, but it's also meant to be able to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the concept inscription.

To start with: this game was built on the idea that anyone could have an optimal weapon without much trouble and getting one shouldn't prove troublesome. The entire idea is that skin is cosmetic and that cosmetics are the only thing in this game that you should pay for. Thus having cheap max armor that looks meh-ish, and the expensive armors that mostly also look meh-ish but have bragging rights attached to them.
With weapons there is a similar thing. You haveCollectors, Green weapons and Weapon smiths. Between those 3 possibilities, you could find nearly any weapon with nearly any modifier combination on it. There are a couple exceptions, like +10/-2 shields, prenerf things and certain mods on certain attribute lines (Shield of the Forgotten for example). But, you could have all the mods, sometimes the attributes just didn't fit.

Now, the wise thing to have done -from Anet- would have been: include every possible modifier combination in either of the 3 above mentioned forms. There are very little combinations left out, and the only thing that needed a fix was the attributes.
If they had done this, they would have had a game where anyone, regardless of wealth or playstyle, could have any weapon combination they wanted, given they either farmed the collectibles, farmed the materials, or killed the boss enough times over to get the green. Ok, this is not ideal, but it wouldn't give any room for complaints.

What would the result of this choice have been? It would have had as a result that if someone really wanted a skin with a certain modifier combination on it, said person had to start looking for it, and buy it from another player. What would the benefit of this have been? That certain mods would be more desirable, also nicer skins with the more desirable mods would be more expensive. Thus creating a market where rare skins and rare mods would be worth something, and players would have to pay for the cosmetic side of weapons.

Now what do we have? Every single q9 weapon is worth ~5-10k, except for some of the fancy and wanted skins. There is no market for weapons what so ever, except for the fancy skins. If someone wants a perfect axe, all he/she has to do is go until he/she finds a q9 blue/purple/gold axe that has an inscription slot on it, and mod it as desired.

This leaves me with another big issue with inscriptions. Blue and purple weapons now also have to potential of being perfect weapons. Why is this troublesome? Because initially, purple and blue weapons were designed to be imperfect. Ok, I have to admit that they didn't serve any use except for merchant food, but they were the faze some players had to go through. I remember fighting with a blue non-max katana for the first couple of weeks of my play.

My -personal- main problem with inscriptions is that they killed the weapons market completely. In the old days, a crappy skin q9 15^50 sword would still be worth something, because it was a desirable mod on it, nowadays, you'll just have to merch anything that isn't a nice skin.

Quote:

There are lots and lots of ways to make gold by playing the game instead of sitting around Kamadan trying to sell stuff.

I know this, I personally exploit one of the games High-end areas on a daily basis to make tons of cash, but "there are better ways to make money" is not an argument for not having a weapons market. There not being a weapons market is a bad thing because it is a potential way for new players to make money. Getting a good weapon is random, but can be very nice (the entire reason people do UWSC/FoWSC/Dungeons).

Quote:

And therefore inscriptions is a good thing because now you can mod your weapons which makes things more equal amongst players. Rich and poor can now afford to buy some nice weapons, not just the rich players.

True, but it makes getting a perfect weapon TOO easy. They are literally given to you from the start. But then again, Anet has resorted to handing everything to the players anyway lately.

Quote:

If people want riches, they have elite tomes, they have ectos, rubies and sapphires. Why do you explicitly want to try make a profit on weapons that should be on an equal basis for all?

I don't want to make profit, I just don't like the idea of every bloody weapon being perfect without even trying.

I know that inscriptions won't be reversed, but I'd like to see some opinions on the matter. I'd also like this not to result in a trollthread or flamewar.

Discuss.

slowerpoke · May 31, 2011, 05:37 PM // 17:37

Usability is better than greed.

Artisan Archer · May 31, 2011, 05:56 PM // 17:56

Max level equipement is cheap but this is bad because that means max level equipement cheap?

I'm sorry, this is one of the better features of guild wars, imo.

Denim · May 31, 2011, 05:56 PM // 17:56

This thread touches the heart of GW..well, maybe mine. What's wrong with inscriptions is what's not right with the game. Premise: Adapt to new areas with new skills. Ya, right. So, i need new weapons, inscriptions, runbes, et maybe al. Thousands of Others. Storage: 7 tabns..Say what? I say simplify..somehow, anyhow. Well, I had my rant. I feel better..

Venganza · May 31, 2011, 06:01 PM // 18:01

Totally pointless, given NF has been out quite a while.

Warvic · May 31, 2011, 06:01 PM // 18:01

I liked the old system aswell!

But the new system is better for most players in general. As slowerpoke said: Usability is better than greed.

Bristlebane · May 31, 2011, 06:02 PM // 18:02

Quote:

this game was built on the idea that anyone could have an optimal weapon without much trouble and getting one shouldn't prove troublesome.

And therefore inscriptions is a good thing because now you can mod your weapons which makes things more equal amongst players. Rich and poor can now afford to buy some nice weapons, not just the rich players.

If people want riches, they have elite tomes, they have ectos, rubies and sapphires. Why do you explicitly want to try make a profit on weapons that should be on an equal basis for all?

Outerworld · May 31, 2011, 06:06 PM // 18:06

It would have been better if the inscription system had been introduced at the very start of GW imo.

Pugs Not Drugs · May 31, 2011, 06:07 PM // 18:07

he isnt saying that poor people dont deserve max weapons, hes saying that they dont deserve max weapons with good skins, which kind of makes sense. I would agree with him if there was more variety in the skins offered by collectors and crafters, rather them all crafting the same skin. so people who couldnt afford non collector or crafter weapons would have a variety of skins to chose from, just one that is not as large as if they actually got weapons as a drop

Quaker · May 31, 2011, 06:26 PM // 18:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bright Star Shine

Now what do we have? Every single q9 weapon is worth ~5-10k, except for some of the fancy and wanted skins. There is no market for weapons what so ever, except for the fancy skins. If someone wants a perfect axe, all he/she has to do is go until he/she finds a q9 blue/purple/gold axe that has an inscription slot on it, and mod it as desired.

I somewhat agree with you, but, you have failed to make any argument for why this is a problem. So what if there's no market for weapons - why would you need one? To make gold? There are lots and lots of ways to make gold by playing the game instead of sitting around Kamadan trying to sell stuff.

Also, another aspect of this is that, this shows up more now because the game is relatively stagnant. If new campaigns and/or expansions were still coming out regularly, there would always be new skins, etc., to be the latest desired item. Part of the reason why most weapons are cheap these days is because most people already have them.

Verene · May 31, 2011, 06:44 PM // 18:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pugs Not Drugs

he isnt saying that poor people dont deserve max weapons, hes saying that they dont deserve max weapons with good skins, which kind of makes sense. I would agree with him if there was more variety in the skins offered by collectors and crafters, rather them all crafting the same skin. so people who couldnt afford non collector or crafter weapons would have a variety of skins to chose from, just one that is not as large as if they actually got weapons as a drop

What exactly constitutes a "good skin", though? Everyone has different taste, after all. Some of my favorite weapon skins are common as dirt, and yet I think they look a lot better than a lot of the rare/desired ones. And I can easily afford those rare/desired skins.

More variety in what is offered by crafters/collectors would be nice, though.

Overall, I don't really get the argument against inscriptions. Okay, so people can mod weapons as they wish instead of having to farm with the hopes that maybe, just maybe, they'll get a drop that will actually be useful, or shell out tons of money. So what? There's still plenty of skins that you can only find uninscribable (or are far, far more common that way).

Lest121 · May 31, 2011, 06:55 PM // 18:55

With the introduction of heroes Anet knew the old system wouldn't work, imagine no inscr and having to pimp out your heroes? I remember when NF first launch Strength and Honor was expensive and kinda rare, inscr didn't kill Guildwars weapon value, it's all the different farming runs we have today.

Anon-e-mouse · May 31, 2011, 07:02 PM // 19:02

Time is mainly what's killed the value of most items, not inscriptions.

Problem is with the old system if you were lucky and got the 'perfect' drop, you made it rich instantly. Which pre-disposes that those people (like me) who've never ever even got a 'good' drop would never be 'rich' simply because we're not that lucky.

All the OP has to do is take a deep breath.. and exhale cos inscriptions are basically here to stay.. I just wish there was a max weapon in GW2... cos I fear it's going to be like every other MMO out there, where there is no one weapon that's 'max'..

Hobbs · May 31, 2011, 07:03 PM // 19:03

Collector/crafter weapons are just as easy to get as inscriptions. Problem?

Bristlebane · May 31, 2011, 07:05 PM // 19:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pugs Not Drugs

he isnt saying that poor people dont deserve max weapons, hes saying that they dont deserve max weapons with good skins, which kind of makes sense.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bright Star Shine

Every single q9 weapon is worth ~5-10k, except for some of the fancy and wanted skins.

So what's the problem? Obviously there's still fancy and wanted skins, thereby in your definition separating the rich and the poor. Just make your money on the nice skins. And if you can't find them then do you deserve them in the first place, because you haven't tried hard enough?

Dzjudz · May 31, 2011, 07:09 PM // 19:09

GW isn't about grind, getting to level 20 is just a tutorial mostly (except perhaps in proph); getting proper weapons shouldn't be difficult either.

Powertrading max modded weapons is sad.

melissa b · May 31, 2011, 07:09 PM // 19:09

I really wish cool looking weapons were really expensive because I farm so much gold when I speed clear doa and other people don't and I want to stand out and show how big my e-peen is.

I'll ignore the benefits of....
Better customization
More Utility
Decreased storage needs
better adaptability
Less Grind
etc

dasmitchies · May 31, 2011, 07:14 PM // 19:14

You have a problem with GW, not the systems inherent to the game. The devs released inscriptions for precisely the reason you hate them; no player would be left behind. Gw is an egalitarian based loot system. Skins can be considered elite but not stats. You probably would be happier playing WOW where a drop can equal to winning the lottery. Sadly, people like you always fail to consider these games are just electrons floating in a processor and have no real value beyond entertainment.

Bright Star Shine · May 31, 2011, 07:30 PM // 19:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by dasmitchies

You have a problem with GW, not the systems inherent to the game. The devs released inscriptions for precisely the reason you hate them; no player would be left behind. Gw is an egalitarian based loot system. Skins can be considered elite but not stats. You probably would be happier playing WOW where a drop can equal to winning the lottery. Sadly, people like you always fail to consider these games are just electrons floating in a processor and have no real value beyond entertainment.

I realize this, don't worry, I don't take the game too seriously, you all just seem not to grasp the fact that perfect weapons are available. You keep bashing on about "now every player can have his perfect weapon" but they already could, thus inscriptions were actually unnecessary. They also made nearly every green weapon redundant, except for hero use.

@melissa, I'm not even gonna get started on you, I asked not to start a flame war, yet all you did was comment on me personally, but you said nothing constructive to the thread. Shows once again the person YOU are. Nothing but a big troll who loves attention with retarded threads..

AndrewSX · May 31, 2011, 07:37 PM // 19:37

The very basic phylosophy of GW (at least in theory) is to have less grind as possible, and enjoy the game (lvl stops at 20, expensive armor/weapon is just good looking).

Inscriptions enbody this perfectly.

If there's a minority of players that done everything in this game, got bored of SC'ing or title hunting, and now find the only interesting thing to do trading and collect weapons there's nothing wrong with it: but do not start moan about inscriptions cause weapon rarity is screwed and blabla walloftext.
The very large majority of players (i know doesn't mean so much, but) has nothing against those mods. Tbh, not everyone have so much money to trash saying "Well, i'd prefer no inscr, so every nearly decent non-collector/reward | insert weapon here | worth money and nobody can have same stats (and sometimes skin) spending just a little".

Now, i'm not a great trader/collector at all, but inscription are just good for their use: give to player base (which keep game alive afterall) the way to do not have to spend/chase mod they're looking for. If you dislike it for any reason, chanta and tyria drops are still there.

I don't have anythnig against collectors at all, but complaining seems so pointless after all the years inscr are around.