Perspective...

[miakiss]

I've been playing this game, like many of you, for almost 6 years and seen many things change for better and worse.

I think the best thing about the game is the amazing number of different things one can do in the world of Norrath. Whatever mood I am in there is always something that can appeal, whether it is grouping, soloing, socialising, tradeskilling, shopping, or just exploring a zone I haven't seen.

So, while I am disappointed about the trivial change to solstice robes (if you see one of my posts from a couple of days ago, I just bought 150 gem studded chains which I haven't used yet), I am frankly sitting here laughing to myself when I read about people who are going to cancel their accounts because of it.

Are you saying that the change to the trivial to one recipe in a game as rich as this is enough to make you want to leave?

If so, then you are probably better off doing something else with your spare time, as you have obviously not been making the most of this great game.

Another thing I am a little confused by is the attainment of maximum skill as an end in itself, rather than as a means to make things (isn't that the point of tradeskills?). I recently spent a few hours and 15k plat raising my rogue's poison skill to 275. Why? So that I could have an Expert title? No, so that I could do OoW aug combines with a close to 95% success rate. Will I spend another 10k raising it to 300? Probably not, unless a recipe appears that makes it worth while (Having said that I did snap up about 20 stacks of phosphorus powder I came across on a merchant ).

Attaining 300 is just a demonstration that we have persistence (baking), or persistence and a lot of money (other skills), and are not in the mood to do anything more challenging with our time. There is not really any skill involved that I have noticed. So, yeah I can admire you in the 1750/2100 club for your commitment, but not for much else... and yes I probably tend towards that sort of obsessive goal-seeking myself (although not as badly as some of you!).

This isn't really meant to be an attack on anyone, although I guess I have been a bit controversial in some ways. I love tradeskills and have a lot of sympathy with the "just because it's there" justification for wanting to reach 300, but please get a bit of perspective!

To throw your toys out of the pram just because of one trivial change... well I have lots of children of my own, so I recognise a tantrum when I see one.

Edit: And another thing!!!!

I assume if you are quitting because of the solstice robe change, then you would have quit anyway when you reached 300 tailoring.. because obviously there is nothing else worth doing in the game.

[Angelsyn]

It's not just one Trivial change...

It's the trivial change of the most commonly used skill-up path in Tailoring.

It's also the trivial changes on the next-most commonly used skill-up path (Velious Leathers) in Tailoring.

And nothing inserted to take their places.

If the Trivials for Velious Leathers had been smoothed out over the range of 230 to 280, many people would have cheered... but making them all next-to-worthless for anyone of 250 Skill (or better) hurts alot.

As for the Solstice Robe change... I'm going to get to work on a bunch of Sickle combines as quickly as possible. Who knows when that trivial will be dropped.

[miakiss]

And now from the "changed trivial" thread in the general forum, we have:

The change to tailoring trivial levels, "trivializes the play time I invested".

Invested??? What return are you expecting from your investment? It's a game... you are meant to enjoy it while you are actually playing, not "invest" in it.

If you don't enjoy doing trade skills then stop. Achieving 300 will not make your life happy and fulfilling, nor even impress members of the opposite sex, or make you rich.

Having said that... I did meet my future real life wife in Nektulos Forest.... but I was level 6 at the time and didn't even know what a trade skill was (blissful ignorance)

[Ravenswood]

Something I find that helps keep things in perspective for me is to periodicaly stop and imagine what would happen if the servers were suddenly destroyed by some freakish natural disaster. Everything, EVERYTHING that I've spent so much time could disappear forever, just like that. Why? Because it isn't real; it simply doesn't exsist in the real world. It's amazing how silly everything seems when you put it in proper perspective.

Having said that, I still love EQ, and I still love tradeskilling. I do waste a lot of time in front of the computer, but I'd probably be watching tv if I wasn't playing. There have been changes that have P'ed me off, and there will continue to be such changes. However, people that cite a single occurence as a reason to leave have simply been fed up ( and in my opinion burned out) with the game for a long time but have not been able to kick for various reasons.

One of the most liberating things I've ever done was to quit a MMORPG I use to play prior to EQ, and delete the 146th level earth mage that had been around for several years. It was simultaneously one of the saddest and most exhilarating moments I can remember. I didn't do it because I was mad; I did it because I realized that I had been bored with the game for a long time, and needed a change. I wish more people would simply admit to that as a reason for leaving, rather than constantly blaming something or someone else as the primary reason.

[miakiss]

Exactly. Sometimes one needs to try to take a step back and reassess why one plays.

The thing about EQ, and I'm sure other similar games, is that you get caught up in the endless cycle of "must do this", "must achieve that", which is exactly what keeps the subscription money coming in for Sony et al.

[Hael of TT]

I stated I would quit EQ if this wasnt fixed, but I wont be quitting EQ simply because of this. The trivial change is just the last of a number of reasons and was the one that tipped me over the edge. I chose to not state my other reasons because this isnt an open rant forum. The reasons do exist tho.

[Myrron]

Ranting about the changes made in the game is ok. This is more of a rant about fellow tradeskillers. People are upset, and while it may or may not be justified in some people's minds, this is not the time to publicly rant about it. While this is not directed towards any one individual, it is directed at the community as a whole, and I don't see any productive reason for keeping this thread open.

--Myrron Lifewarder