@zaannox said in Please Don't Mess Up The New PL Commendations!:
@archangel-timmy Then they shouldn't lock cosmetics behind these extraordinarily long Commendations. Until Casuals get their cosmetics locked behind exceptionally long Commendations, we shouldn't either! What ever happened to Rep being the determining factor to unlock cosmetics?
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Maybe if I put everything in bold you'll actually read it? The only reason I compared the Skeleton Ships to the Shrouded Ghost is because you need to kill the Shrouded Ghost just as much as the other sharks to get the commendation, which is very difficult to do. It's me comparing Rare adding big number to something that makes no sense. Why 500 Skeleton Ships? Why not 100? Why not 250? Why lock a cosmetic item behind this to begin with?
First off, if you are going to be a snarky you should have some ground to stand on. At no point during our little back and forth here have you directed those questions at me, nor did I reply to anything containing those questions.
Is this why you aren't quoting the people you reply to? So that you can avoid the context and attack people? Not a very good way to get your point across and promote any sort of change :?
Since you have now actually brought this question to me, I will answer.
The skeleton ships are not an “exceptionally long” commendation, they are entirely within the realm of completion by anyone including casual players. The Ghost is not comparable as that is near impossible to complete in its current form, and still beyond comparison when dropped to 5 with its current rarity.
My reasoning for not considering these to be exceptionally long to earn is based on how things have played out for me. Previously I stated I was at 200 or so as of a week and a half to two weeks ago, now I am around 300. Those 200 are casual sinks that either spawned on me or were in my path, not me seeking them out. Might not seem like much or seem slow to you, but is it really when you are working on all of the other content and commendations? I don’t think so, especially considering I had not made any attempt at actively seeking out the ships, didn’t complete any Fleets during that time, pure casual play.
Now, over the course of 8-9 days of the last 2 weeks, I have sunk nearly 100 of them playing for roughly 2-5 hours a night with a particular goal in mind. That time includes 7-8 fleets with the rest being random spawn or roaming ships, along with 8-10 forts various PVP encounters and Bottle Merchant voyages with crates. I don’t consider that bad at all, far from “exceptionally long”…
For the record, PvP skill level and PvE skill level are 2 different things. I know people who can sail a ship extraordinarily well but can't PvP for their life. I for instance, am a PvP god, but if you make me take care of the ship? We sinking boyz! So that middle paragraph of yours just tells me you're good at PvE.
I can concede to this point to a degree as I have encountered crews with mixed skills across the PvEvP spectrum. I just find it hard to see it taking that long to sink a single skeleton ship, but I can’t say I have seen it all either. This also follows one of my other points and my answer to one of your above questions.
As others have pointed out, the only thing to gain in this game is cosmetics and there is only so much being level such and such in so and so faction can/should get you. With level limits on the factions themselves, Commendations are the obvious expansion points for cosmetics outside of new factions and micro-transactions. There is no real reputation applied to a Pirate Legend other than access to the Athena’s, of which you get access to cosmetics based on that reputation level the exact same as you do with the other factions. You haven't peaked by reaching a certain level, beyond that comes notoriety through commendations, which yield more reward!
Personally, the title of pirate legend meaningless as the entire process if mostly void of any sort of skill requirement and is purely a time sink. From that perspective you get rewarded with cosmetics that match the effort put in, some clothes and livery and nothing overly special. Commendations are where things like titles and specialized cosmetics should shine, they are the above and beyond of your faction reputation.
On that note, the commendation requirements haven’t been implemented to their fullest because they merely extend the same process of building faction rep. These should be tied to some sort of skill in order to achieve, like sinking skeleton ships! I and many other are apparently better than others at this, so we are getting rewarded for that skill by receiving these sooner. Just as you are good at PVP, you will probably obliterate me in regards to achieving commendations and rewards for the Arean well before me and that will be much deserved. I won’t be on here complaining that it needs to be lowered to meet my play style or skill level. If they are tied to wins, I will eventually get them, but it is going to take me a while because I am not skilled in that area.
FYI, everything should be tied to reputations if we're talking cosmetics. I should be able to buy every cosmetic in the game until Arena and Hunter's call come out. Why? I'm PLA10. I HAVE BEAT THE GAME!
This touches on what I mentioned above. I don't feel maxing a certain faction warrants everything. Leveling these factions is simple, and not noteworthy. Cosmetics should also be awarded for skill, and that skill should be noted through a Commendation.
I can only imagine what disgusting "goals" they have in mind for the Athena Capstan, Cannons, and Wheel. 10,000 nautical miles on an Athena Voyage. Ugh. I can already see it. News FLash Rare: Exaggerated numbers aren't goals; their a drag. It's boring. It's unimaginative. It's annoying. It makes people quit the game. Stop doing it. If you don't, at least have the decency to do it to all your players, not JUST legends.
I am sure there will be more that take time, but are still within the realm of completion. Tedious probably, but still doable. I personally hope they find a way to make them more skill based, but I don't imagine that being very easy with throwing a line out and wrestling in a fish.
I know this was pretty long and ranty but I feel strongly about this.
I had a hard time trying to respond to this as points where repeated and mixed around. So I apologize if my replies are a but jumbled.
TL;DR; Commendations should give rewards, but should also be more reliant on skill rather then repetitive tasks to reward players sooner or later.
- Turning in cargo: Tedious, but not extreme.
- Killing large numbers of skeleton ships efficiently: PVE Skilled, potentially tedious, but not extreme.
- Large number of Arena wins: PVP Skilled, TBD.