Now we sometimes need 5 …

Sulu's Husband

The term escapes me (crates?) but a picture is worth a thousand words. Someone saw it on Confident Culber and now I see it on Zhaban. Who has been clamoring to expend more resources to level up? Shan, what’s the official explanation? This is just another thing to get more people to gather the pitchforks. Please don’t say it is an experiment/trial in gameplay. This is a significant change especially since it appears on the upper levels.

Veterinary Phlox

Since it's only asking for one casing and two polyalloy, it doesn't seem like an issue to me. Allowing more items in a build may make it easier for more generic items to be used, as there isn't the same need for intermediary steps.

W.W. Carlisle

It may be an attempt to come up with new "recipes". It's bound to be tricky.

~peregrine~

Cross-posting from this thread in the Engineering Room:

Shan wrote: »

While this is a bit unusual it does not negatively affect the crew build and the cost to build the final item. As such this will not be changed.

🖖

Bylo Band

Veterinary Phlox wrote: »

Since it's only asking for one casing and two polyalloy, it doesn't seem like an issue to me. Allowing more items in a build may make it easier for more generic items to be used, as there isn't the same need for intermediary steps.

This is an excellent observation. Needing 1 casing and 2 polyalloys is actually easier than those builds that need 4 polyalloys.

Webberoni

Not only does it unnecessarily change something that has been a standard since the game began, but it also looks horrible with the recipe pieces overlapping other graphics on the screen.

AviTrek

To use what I posted in the other thread.

Who cares? It can be five unique items of a couple each or four unique items with higher quantities for those items. They can also add extra levels in a build tree to include more unique items at different levels, or they can flatten the number of build levels and put more unique items at each level.

If you want to complain about how it looks visually I agree it's sloppy. It will also make WRG's life more difficult handling different screen sizes in the future. And we know they struggle with screen sizes already. But in terms of build cost, this doesn't change anything they couldn't have done already.

(A) Traveling Man

I don't think this is either a good or a bad thing on its surface. I am curious as to the reasoning behind the change, however. It must have been made for some reason.

Grinding is the worst part of every game like this, but it is also essential to it. Potentially, this could make crafting some gold items much more expensive than it might cost in time, chrons, and sanity now. Or - it could add some needed variety to those recipes.

The change is definitely worth noting. However, I still don't think we have enough information to be passionate about whether or not it is a good or a bad change.

I know I was already having display issues on my phone (game still doesn't display right on a Z Flip), and I thought this was a glitch at first when I saw it. I know my preference would be for them to focus on the QoL stuff before making changes like this - but then, I am sure there is more to the story on this tweak.

Zombie Squirrel

AviTrek wrote: »

To use what I posted in the other thread.

Who cares? It can be five unique items of a couple each or four unique items with higher quantities for those items. They can also add extra levels in a build tree to include more unique items at different levels, or they can flatten the number of build levels and put more unique items at each level.

If you want to complain about how it looks visually I agree it's sloppy. It will also make WRG's life more difficult handling different screen sizes in the future. And we know they struggle with screen sizes already. But in terms of build cost, this doesn't change anything they couldn't have done already.

Even if it doesn t matter for most long term players, when u need 5 different SR items instead of 4, there is a bigger chance u have to farm an item with chrons because u don t have it in stock. So there is an increase in chron investment.

AviTrek

Zombie Squirrel wrote: »

AviTrek wrote: »

To use what I posted in the other thread.

Who cares? It can be five unique items of a couple each or four unique items with higher quantities for those items. They can also add extra levels in a build tree to include more unique items at different levels, or they can flatten the number of build levels and put more unique items at each level.

If you want to complain about how it looks visually I agree it's sloppy. It will also make WRG's life more difficult handling different screen sizes in the future. And we know they struggle with screen sizes already. But in terms of build cost, this doesn't change anything they couldn't have done already.

Even if it doesn t matter for most long term players, when u need 5 different SR items instead of 4, there is a bigger chance u have to farm an item with chrons because u don t have it in stock. So there is an increase in chron investment.

But there is also the equipment tree. They could have made one of the items be something that is crafted from two items. The total item count would be exactly the same, but it would look like 4 at every level because the extra items are buried in a deeper tree. The total crafting cost is what matters and you can't tell that by looking at a single screenshot of the final items required in crafting the item.

AviTrek

The estimated chron cost and credit cost to FE Zhaban according to datacore is less than the cost for Raffi or Elnor. It looks weird to have the five items there, but it doesn't change the actual cost.

SoupKitchen Riker

Honestly, it doesn’t matter to me one way or the other. I figured it was only a matter of time before we saw builds such as this. If not mistaken, we’ve already seen 4*’s and a 5* to make a new 5* item. If I am mistaken, well, it probably won’t be long before we see that too.

Jhamel

There is room for a sixth item as well, but four looks better and doesn't interfere with overlapping boxes.

EnderW

I've taken some time to think this over and I've decided I'm not happy about this development, for two reasons:

1) it's a classic "let's make the basic mechanics harder, that'll improve the game" thinking. No, it's not; it's not improving anything, it's just making things harder. Nothing is added to the game.

2) I'm increasingly tired of the over reliance on a few items for item builds. I loath 3* Polyalloy right now; they are in EVERYTHING. They were even in the build for a drink last year. It doesn't help that a large number of these over-relied on items don't have multiple missions to get them, or just have away team missions (looking at you basic hyperspanner, which doesn't even have an away mission that drops at a high rate), making it that much harder to keep these high-use items in stock. If we were getting more missions and ship battles that evened out this inequity, it wouldn't matter. But we're not getting any new missions. So expect me to howl when we get a legendary build that requires 5 4* databases, 5 4* polyalloy, and 5 4* casings, in addition to two SR item builds (both of which will, of course, require 10 3* polyalloy).

Jhamel

Endie, you have a replicator for such builds. Luckily the credit yield has increased recently, so it's a bit easier to replicate stuff now. But yes, there have to be new missions (and episodes) with a higher chance of dropping items that are purrently missing heavily.

Frank?

With the uproar over this, I was shocked to see, when I clicked on the thread to read, that the outrage is about something silly like both Polyalloy and Casings being used (and really, who can pick which one is which out of a police lineup....)
...and not the fact that on the same level, you have to build not only his 'Outfit', not only his 'Apron', but also his civilian disguise! I assume those were his pants and socks? It had the picture of another shirt, which he is already wearing and we built.

I feel the mob should focus their flaming pitchforks onto my line of questions. We should hold the developers accountable for pants and socks.

Commander Sinclair

At least it didn't require 2 or 3 Gold items to build the final item. Such is becoming all too frequent in some of the purple builds requiring at least one or two (or 3!) purple builds to make the final purple item.

Or did I just open that can of worms? ...my bad.

Navarch

Frank? wrote: »

With the uproar over this, I was shocked to see, when I clicked on the thread to read, that the outrage is about something silly like both Polyalloy and Casings being used (and really, who can pick which one is which out of a police lineup....)
...and not the fact that on the same level, you have to build not only his 'Outfit', not only his 'Apron', but also his civilian disguise! I assume those were his pants and socks? It had the picture of another shirt, which he is already wearing and we built.

I feel the mob should focus their flaming pitchforks onto my line of questions. We should hold the developers accountable for pants and socks.

Apparently the mob prefers people to be pants-less.

As for 5 and 6 item builds: this isn’t an improvement, but I can replicate around it.

(HGH)Apollo

Problem will be if the five things get more difficult in future builds.

Jhamel

There are FIVE ... items!

Peets

(HGH)Apollo wrote: »

Problem will be if the five things get more difficult in future builds.

For a great strong card, I won't mind.