Voyages doesn't work either. whales would run a solid 4 day voyage, but then have the same score. Everyone else would end up with similar scores too.
Not sure about that. For one thing you could make the VP drop randomly from the event, thus increasing variability (DB loves their RNG). You could use time boosts to reduce the recall times, etc. If people want to go for top 15, then it would be a monstrous amount of DIL and sure some random chance.
For everyone else, Skill boosts could increase your primary or secondary skill letting you adjust voyages, time boosts could shorten recalls. Then it becomes optimizing crew, planning voyages so recalls coincide with sleep, could be alot of fun. If nothing else it would be different.
I would like to address 2 items related to this thread:
1. Regarding whether a Hybrid Event that starts out with a Faction phase and ends with a Galaxy phase should be counted as a Galaxy Event, it can be argued it depends on the type of player.
I personally do think of these Hybrid Events as Galaxy Events, because I know for me my ability to achieve a ranking that will allow me to finish in the top 2000 (and qualify to FF a Super Rare character in Ranked Rewards) is going to require me to get the vast majority of my Victory Points during the Galaxy phase, and then of course I am dependent on the size of my inventory. But for a player who is prepared to spend money to achieve a high ranking, the Hybrid Event gives them the option to load up on Victory Points during the Faction phase by using Shuttle Boosts and/or the Dilithium Speed Up Cost option, and then completely skip the Galaxy phase. Keeping this exception in mind, I nevertheless generally agree conceptually with those who wish to include these Hybrid Events in their ‘count’ of how many Galaxy Events we are having.
2. I do not agree with the premise that when there are this many Galaxy Events, players are forced to choose between participating in the Events or leveling crew, and that both cannot be done simultaneously.
For the purpose of this conversation, let’s put aside those players who actually keep it going for everyone else by spending large amounts of money on it (but we should say Thank You to them!!), and consider what low/no spending players can do in the game. Even excluding those who spend big, again there are still multiple types of players to consider. Those who have been playing for a longer period of time have advantages over newer players – for anyone who disagrees with this reality, and expects a game to somehow be ‘equal’ for all players, irrespective of how much time they have invested into the game, I suggest you stop reading now as we are never going to agree.
I know what is possible if you manage your resources well as someone who has played the game a long time. Back in late November 2017, I decided to push for a top 100 finish in the Galaxy Event Fast As Light (I finished # 91), which understandably used up a meaningful amount of my inventory. Of the 7 Galaxy/Hybrid Events we have had since then, I finished 3 of them in the top 1000, 3 of them in the top 2000, and there was 1 where I only completed the Threshold Rewards to get a single FF character. I consider these results of finishing in the top 2000 in 7 of the last 8 Galaxy Events as my having ‘participated’ in the events, especially considering how many new FF characters I got from these finishes, plus also adding some Legendary characters to my crew. And during this time, I have also definitely leveled crew, which is proven by the fact that the following are true:
- every FF character I own is Immortalized (just reached 200 this week)
- I have 18 Super Rare characters who are FE, and just waiting for additional Stars in order to become Immortalized
- every Legendary character I own is FE, which includes The Caretaker, who I only got 2 days ago
- during this time I also Immortalized 3 of the Voyages one-time drop only characters
And all of the above was accomplished without spending a single cent. If this does not show that an older player can participate in numerous Galaxy Events, and level crew at the same time, then I suspect we have different definitions for what it means to participate in events and level crew at the same time.
Now let us consider what a newer low/no spending player can do. Looking back to when I was a newer player, and I believe this still to be true today, it is very difficult for newer players to get FF characters from a Faction Event – to clarify, I am speaking here of Super Rare / 4* characters; obviously they can get Uncommon / 2* characters. But with good inventory management, it is very possible for newer players to get a FF 4* character from a Galaxy Event – I know this is where most of my first ones came from when I was starting out. Therefore, I think having numerous Galaxy Events actually helps out newer players, because it gives them a path to acquire characters who will be their strongest crew, which will consequently help them with Voyages in particular, but all parts of the game in general.
I like galaxies just because I get a FF 4* to add to my collection. Factions I need to get at least 1 event pack and if I'm unlucky like the last one, after 4 packs and 3 Rakal Trois(who was already immortalized) and a Trader Odo, I had to spend 18k honor to FF Dukat.
2. I do not agree with the premise that when there are this many Galaxy Events, players are forced to choose between participating in the Events or leveling crew, and that both cannot be done simultaneously.
....
And all of the above was accomplished without spending a single cent. If this does not show that an older player can participate in numerous Galaxy Events, and level crew at the same time, then I suspect we have different definitions for what it means to participate in events and level crew at the same time.
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Really well thought reply. The issue I think though is the "catch up effect" Newer players have tons more crew to level. I have been working on all the 1, 2 and 3 star crew and trying to level 4 stars I have picked up from events. It takes an overwhelming amount of chrons and I have been playing for about a year. Think about it, until just recently, every event was 3 new crew. I see people complaining about all the new crew recently and the lack of repeats, well that how it is for a newer player every event. Frankly, I was able to build up a good crew because there were so many less galaxy events a year ago and I could use chrons to level those that I got.
For someone with a FE roster, sure leveling and competing is easy. Not so if you are trying to collect and catch up. I can't imaging how really new players balance this at all.
The thing I don't understand is that after a shuttle faction event it's like yay shuttle bonus extra trainers to help levelling crew up... after a galaxy event it's oh great have to wait about 6-10 hours for my replensihing voyage to come back...
I think what would ease the pain is a free Chroniton refill after the event/included with claim rewards or tier it among the rankings 1/3, 2/3, full. To set people back up, or alternatively perhaps double the two chroniton boosts after the event.
[was on Sabbatical/Hiatus] Currently a trialist at Galaxy SquadronSTAY SAFE and KBO
2. I do not agree with the premise that when there are this many Galaxy Events, players are forced to choose between participating in the Events or leveling crew, and that both cannot be done simultaneously.
....
And all of the above was accomplished without spending a single cent. If this does not show that an older player can participate in numerous Galaxy Events, and level crew at the same time, then I suspect we have different definitions for what it means to participate in events and level crew at the same time.
.
Really well thought reply. The issue I think though is the "catch up effect" Newer players have tons more crew to level. I have been working on all the 1, 2 and 3 star crew and trying to level 4 stars I have picked up from events. It takes an overwhelming amount of chrons and I have been playing for about a year. Think about it, until just recently, every event was 3 new crew. I see people complaining about all the new crew recently and the lack of repeats, well that how it is for a newer player every event. Frankly, I was able to build up a good crew because there were so many less galaxy events a year ago and I could use chrons to level those that I got.
For someone with a FE roster, sure leveling and competing is easy. Not so if you are trying to collect and catch up. I can't imaging how really new players balance this at all.
It feels like drowning. I can choose to either skip a "free" 4/4 to level some blues and know that there's another 3 characters that I won't see for 6 months or more or I can have a 12 hour window each week where I get to spend some chrons on my crew before I start saving up for next week's event.
Faction events are a saving grace, as far as I'm concerned. I can actually devote my resources to improving my crew, but even then if I want decent voyages so I can use the respite from galaxy to utilize maximum chrons for leveling crew then my weaker shuttles will give me an unfused reward crew. I usually end up with one faction event crew FF and a lot of 2-3 hour voyages.
After about 50 days, it's gotten a bit easier to level crew during faction events, but Galaxies are not fun whatsoever. Neither is the feeling of perpetually treading water. I'm sure I'll enjoy events more in the future, but with weak crew it's more stress than fun.
p.s. For next week's event I have zero Quarks, zero Roms and zero FE Ferengi. That means the new player has to spend more chrons to achieve the same result as a long time player although they need the chrons more. I don't necessarily disagree with that system, but it's just another barrier for new players.
I've noticed that when people talk about liking Galaxy Events, what they actually say is they like Galaxy Event *rewards*. They like being able to end an event with a 4/4 from thresholds, without having to rely on rank rewards. They like getting a 10x Premium Pull from community rewards. And, hey, I like those things, too, so I get that! I don't recall ever once hearing anyone defend Galaxy Events on the basis that they actually enjoyed playing them, though.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
I realize that I am in the minority, but I prefer the flexible nature of the Galaxy. For me it's the easier format because I don't have to manage my logins over the weekend. I can run a long session and grind through most of the levels during phase 1. A quick login on phase 2 to turn in the super rares and run a few mission to threshold out and I can go back to finishing crew. I can usually threshold outwithin 6 hours of phase 2. A faction event takes me nearly the whole time to get to the same point.
I've noticed that when people talk about liking Galaxy Events, what they actually say is they like Galaxy Event *rewards*. They like being able to end an event with a 4/4 from thresholds, without having to rely on rank rewards. They like getting a 10x Premium Pull from community rewards. And, hey, I like those things, too, so I get that! I don't recall ever once hearing anyone defend Galaxy Events on the basis that they actually enjoyed playing them, though.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
Here goes Data1001 again, as the outlier. I actually genuinely enjoyed the gameplay of Galaxy events... up until shortly after Voyages were introduced, I suppose, which gave the average player a lot more chronitons to work with, and made it significantly more difficult to rank decently. Prior to that, I was able to place top 50 with nothing more than a little pre-farming for a week and a half, and a couple of extra EAS tickets on Fri & Mon. After that (and with the addition of the $9.99 chroniton packs becoming a regular thing), that was really no longer possible for me. I still got into the top 10 once after that point, but it wasn't cheap. Nowadays it also takes a much greater expenditure of time to place well, which for me took away from my enjoyment of building recipes — it started to become a grind. (Not nearly as much of a grind as I find Expedition events to be, but enough to sour me on them.)
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing. ~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
I like galaxy events. Save chrons for a few days then do event for two and take other two off. I like that you can get two 4/4 guys whereas with faction you get stuck with a 3/4. But I can understand the frustration if you are not going 8 hrs on your voyages to get lots of chrons.
I've noticed that when people talk about liking Galaxy Events, what they actually say is they like Galaxy Event *rewards*. They like being able to end an event with a 4/4 from thresholds, without having to rely on rank rewards. They like getting a 10x Premium Pull from community rewards. And, hey, I like those things, too, so I get that! I don't recall ever once hearing anyone defend Galaxy Events on the basis that they actually enjoyed playing them, though.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
Here goes Data1001 again, as the outlier. I actually genuinely enjoyed the gameplay of Galaxy events... up until shortly after Voyages were introduced, I suppose, which gave the average player a lot more chronitons to work with, and made it significantly more difficult to rank decently. Prior to that, I was able to place top 50 with nothing more than a little pre-farming for a week and a half, and a couple of extra EAS tickets on Fri & Mon. After that (and with the addition of the $9.99 chroniton packs becoming a regular thing), that was really no longer possible for me. I still got into the top 10 once after that point, but it wasn't cheap. Nowadays it also takes a much greater expenditure of time to place well, which for me took away from my enjoyment of building recipes — it started to become a grind. (Not nearly as much of a grind as I find Expedition events to be, but enough to sour me on them.)
You say it's the gameplay you enjoy(ed), but then talk about rank having an impact on that enjoyment. If it's purely rank you're after, that ship has probably sailed. If it's rewards enough to make your commitment feel worthwhile, I'm in agreement with the suggestion of percentage-based reward tiers. I think that's critical to the growth of a game without taking away the carrot for the big spenders. If anything, there's more room at the top for people who want to throw a little money at each event.
I've noticed that when people talk about liking Galaxy Events, what they actually say is they like Galaxy Event *rewards*. They like being able to end an event with a 4/4 from thresholds, without having to rely on rank rewards. They like getting a 10x Premium Pull from community rewards. And, hey, I like those things, too, so I get that! I don't recall ever once hearing anyone defend Galaxy Events on the basis that they actually enjoyed playing them, though.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
Here goes Data1001 again, as the outlier. I actually genuinely enjoyed the gameplay of Galaxy events... up until shortly after Voyages were introduced, I suppose, which gave the average player a lot more chronitons to work with, and made it significantly more difficult to rank decently. Prior to that, I was able to place top 50 with nothing more than a little pre-farming for a week and a half, and a couple of extra EAS tickets on Fri & Mon. After that (and with the addition of the $9.99 chroniton packs becoming a regular thing), that was really no longer possible for me. I still got into the top 10 once after that point, but it wasn't cheap. Nowadays it also takes a much greater expenditure of time to place well, which for me took away from my enjoyment of building recipes — it started to become a grind. (Not nearly as much of a grind as I find Expedition events to be, but enough to sour me on them.)
You say it's the gameplay you enjoy(ed), but then talk about rank having an impact on that enjoyment. If it's purely rank you're after, that ship has probably sailed. If it's rewards enough to make your commitment feel worthwhile, I'm in agreement with the suggestion of percentage-based reward tiers. I think that's critical to the growth of a game without taking away the carrot for the big spenders. If anything, there's more room at the top for people who want to throw a little money at each event.
A lesser ending rank itself was not the main reason my enjoyment was impacted. Rather, it was mostly the fact that I had to spend a lot more time building recipes in order to come close to the same rank I once was able to achieve. It was the grind, which took away a lot of the enjoyment for me. I'm necessarily a lot more choosy now when deciding which Galaxy events I want to bother with at all, which I want to clear the threshold rewards and then stop, and which I want to go all out for (not many of the latter). But I won't deny that a small part of why I don't like playing them as much as I used to, is because in the past I knew that I did have a decent shot at a good rank (sub-100 or at least sub-500), merely by putting in an hour or two of play each day and combining that with a little pre-farming — and now I don't expect to even end up in the top 5000 with the same amount of effort. So it's discouraging in that regard, yes.
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing. ~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
I've noticed that when people talk about liking Galaxy Events, what they actually say is they like Galaxy Event *rewards*. They like being able to end an event with a 4/4 from thresholds, without having to rely on rank rewards. They like getting a 10x Premium Pull from community rewards. And, hey, I like those things, too, so I get that! I don't recall ever once hearing anyone defend Galaxy Events on the basis that they actually enjoyed playing them, though.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
Here goes Data1001 again, as the outlier. I actually genuinely enjoyed the gameplay of Galaxy events... up until shortly after Voyages were introduced, I suppose, which gave the average player a lot more chronitons to work with, and made it significantly more difficult to rank decently. Prior to that, I was able to place top 50 with nothing more than a little pre-farming for a week and a half, and a couple of extra EAS tickets on Fri & Mon. After that (and with the addition of the $9.99 chroniton packs becoming a regular thing), that was really no longer possible for me. I still got into the top 10 once after that point, but it wasn't cheap. Nowadays it also takes a much greater expenditure of time to place well, which for me took away from my enjoyment of building recipes — it started to become a grind. (Not nearly as much of a grind as I find Expedition events to be, but enough to sour me on them.)
What I'm reading, @Data1001, is that what you dig (or, at least, dug) about Galaxy Events was how high you could reliably rank in them. That's a perfectly fair and fine thing to appreciate. I get it, too; it's one of the things I really enjoy about Expeditions, after all.
But is that satisfaction in rank quite the same as enjoying the actual playing of the event? That is, do you take genuine pleasure in the farming and crafting processes?
Speaking for myself about Expeditions, I can say that I sincerely do take some (admittedly twisted) satisfaction in grinding out my hour long tickets, wearing my crew to complete exhaustion for a few last victory points, knowing that so many other players were abandoning their tickets rather than subject themselves to that tedium. And I enjoy challenging myself to see how far I can push myself to stick with it, if I'm being honest.
My favorite thing about Expeditions, though, was using them to gauge my growth as a player by seeing how much more competitive I was able to be from one to the next. It's been so long since the last one that it's no longer meaningful for me to use as a barometer of my progress in the game, but it once was and I loved the format for it.
But is that satisfaction in rank quite the same as enjoying the actual playing of the event? That is, do you take genuine pleasure in the farming and crafting processes?
I did, yes. I still do, to a certain extent, but much less than I used to (because of the monotony of the longer grind, which is now necessary in order to be competitive). For me, the process itself was enjoyable. And on top of that I also enjoyed being able to score substantial VP with relative ease (compared to the other types of events), and in knowing that my efforts to level up event/bonus crew were paying off in getting me more rare rewards.
Speaking for myself about Expeditions, I can say that I sincerely do take some (admittedly twisted) satisfaction in grinding out my hour long tickets, wearing my crew to complete exhaustion for a few last victory points, knowing that so many other players were abandoning their tickets rather than subject themselves to that tedium. And I enjoy challenging myself to see how far I can push myself to stick with it, if I'm being honest.
My favorite thing about Expeditions, though, was using them to gauge my growth as a player by seeing how much more competitive I was able to be from one to the next. It's been so long since the last one that it's no longer meaningful for me to use as a barometer of my progress in the game, but it once was and I loved the format for it.
I can understand that, even if I don't share the sentiment.
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing. ~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
I'm in the boat of actually liking Galaxy and Hybrid events ... especially hybrid!!
... but as Travis says ... for the rewards, not gameplay. I can't stand grinding out 130.000 VP ... the current event I was so lazy I only just finished after phase 2 had started, which naturally cost me more chronitons ... ah well, I really can't stand the building etc.
But I love the rewards ... I'm f2p ... a FF 4*, a 10x portal pull ... these are one of the few ways I can reliably get new 4*s onto my crew or add stars to ones I already have. I also really dig that older crew are used as ranked reward ... I've managed to FF Rakal Troi and Noah these last 2 events because I've had then 3/4.
I almost always bail the moment I get all threshold rewards, sometimes I continue a bit, to use up all the super-rares.
But, what I also like is I can decided when to push for those ... just need a handy stack of chrons (with supply kit) and I can do it all in one rush if I feel like it ... Faction events require my attention all weekend and even though I can rank top 1000 in Faction events, but the rewards are a lot worse usually and I end up spending Honor to FF any new threshold crew.
My life is so that I usually cannot devote a whole weekend to an event, so miss out on a day (or 2), which naturally affects my final ranking.
Hybrid events are the best of both worlds for me ... easy getting 130.000 VP and community rewards too, can't ask for more really for the little effort I put in.
ps - and about levelling crew ... since the start of the current event I've:
- levelled and FE Away Team Saru from 80-100.
- immortalised Away Team Neelix.
- levelled 4* Pulaski to 90.
- levelled Kelby from 70-90.
- levelled Soran from 30-50.
so ... no real issues getting thresholds and levelling crew during such events.
Honestly I love galaxies for not interfering with my sleep schedule. With Voyages they are pretty tolerable even with top 1000 and quite good if you don't want there.
Ewww expeditions. Hehe. I do like the changes DB made to them to make them more tolerable but I still dislike them. They also seem to be buggier than other events and I think DB makes less money on them. I would like to see a new kind of event like a ship battle event or a gauntlet event or a voyage event.
For hybrid events it would be great if DB started with galaxy part then we wouldnt have to keep hoarding and spending chrons after the first two days. I think that would alleviate a lot of problems. For many people on these full galaxy events they only go the first two days then relax the rest doing just little bits to hold rank.
Can we please get a freaking break so we can actually level crew?!?!
They don't want you to level crew. Well, at least not without spending money. The whole rational to games like this is a balancing act where they make it as difficult as possible so people spend money to relieve the burden, but not make it so difficult that it causes more than an acceptable percentage of people to quit. That's how money is made in this type of game. It's all human psychology.
Of the 3 event types, Galaxy events, by far, are the most profitable for them.
How is Galaxy the most profitable, most people get a FF 4* character, unlile factions if you play well you may get one, have you seen the scores people pull on faction events, that is 100's of $'s if not more, galaxy, if you are really keen on the event rewards, you can save up crons all week, hit the threshold and YAY another FF 4*
Because many people buy the $100 offer (as they do in other events) but then they also buy all 5 of the $10 chroniton offers that are only offered during galaxy events. Some people only buy the chronitons which are, again, not offered anytime other than galaxy events. That's why they are the most profitable.
You just need to think about what you want from a galaxy. And probably most importantly, accept that unless you're a whale you'll never "collect them all" in this game - took me a while to learn that but it's alot less stressful now that I've accepted it, so...
If there's nothing I want from a galaxy I'll simply sit it out. I may create one item to partake in the shared rewards. (Selfish I know, hanging on to everyone's coat tales, but a X10 portal pull is a X10 portal pull)
If I want the threshold 4* I'll run a supply kit and get to threshold within a couple of hours. Helpful to store a few extra chronitons for the preceding days if you want to do this. Then you sit it out and end up finishing at about 15,000th place!
If you want something from the ranked rewards you have to sacrifice the leveling of existing cards for that weekend (This is the mode I'm playing this week as I want 3 stars to add to an existing FE Noah).
So, yes, Galaxies are tedious and I used to think the way you do. But then I realised that I'm the only one that can control my method of play and altered it accordingly.
Sadly, the most important thing to remember is the mantra "I will never collect them all"
I'd like to have a weekend off at least once a month to have a break, prevent events from becoming too stale, and to give players a chance to focus on existing crew.
I like to have a weekend off once a month, so I take one off for a break. Why can't you? Is someone forcing you to take part?
Can we please get a freaking break so we can actually level crew?!?!
They don't want you to level crew. Well, at least not without spending money. The whole rational to games like this is a balancing act where they make it as difficult as possible so people spend money to relieve the burden, but not make it so difficult that it causes more than an acceptable percentage of people to quit. That's how money is made in this type of game. It's all human psychology.
Of the 3 event types, Galaxy events, by far, are the most profitable for them.
I like how you say three event types like expedition events are still a thing
Can we please get a freaking break so we can actually level crew?!?!
They don't want you to level crew. Well, at least not without spending money. The whole rational to games like this is a balancing act where they make it as difficult as possible so people spend money to relieve the burden, but not make it so difficult that it causes more than an acceptable percentage of people to quit. That's how money is made in this type of game. It's all human psychology.
Of the 3 event types, Galaxy events, by far, are the most profitable for them.
How is Galaxy the most profitable, most people get a FF 4* character, unlile factions if you play well you may get one, have you seen the scores people pull on faction events, that is 100's of $'s if not more, galaxy, if you are really keen on the event rewards, you can save up crons all week, hit the threshold and YAY another FF 4*
Because many people buy the $100 offer (as they do in other events) but then they also buy all 5 of the $10 chroniton offers that are only offered during galaxy events. Some people only buy the chronitons which are, again, not offered anytime other than galaxy events. That's why they are the most profitable.
Only DB knows which event is the more profitable, personally I have been boycotting them, not buying the packs, or chrono deals as to do so would just encourage more of them! If they become more interesting and less reliant on clicking through an inordinate amount of animations then perhaps I would give a damn.
The game seems to be set up to... playing daily and competing in events.
Yes, I'm selectively chopping the full quote, but my point is that the game's current setup obviously works for the wide variety of playing styles and commitments. That fact it is difficult for some doesn't mean a change needs to be made. Mind you, I don't really like Galaxies, but DB effectively only runs three types of events (Faction, Galaxy, Faction/Galaxy Hybrid), so the real culprit in the pile-up of "too many galaxies" can be laid at the feet of there only being those three options to rotate.
I, for one, am glad for the back-to-back weeks of light weekend playing of only going for the threshold 4* and then checking out for the rest, which really just means dumping my chrons towards leveling the crew I can get from the threshold. It's somewhat liberating when you stop caring about trying to get ranked crew from Galaxies, no matter how much you may like that character.
I don't think any of the events are perfect and they all have pros and cons
Galaxy events:
Pros:
You can play at your own pace
Don't need to have a massive crew to do well so more open for newbies
Crew are not locked out for long periods
Con:
Can be a bit of a grind and can be kind of dull
Can be time consuming
Burns crons
Faction events:
Pros:
Not a grind
Quick to play
Cons:
Need 4 shuttles and a decent crew to be competitive
Shuttle crew locked out for 3 hours at a time (which has knock on impact on Voyages)
Need to be around every three hours to set the next shuttles out
Expedition events:
Pros:
They are infrequent
Crew are not locked out for long periods
Need a deep crew to be competitive
Cons:
Even more of a grind than Galaxy events
Very time consuming
Get boring very quickly
Comments
Not sure about that. For one thing you could make the VP drop randomly from the event, thus increasing variability (DB loves their RNG). You could use time boosts to reduce the recall times, etc. If people want to go for top 15, then it would be a monstrous amount of DIL and sure some random chance.
For everyone else, Skill boosts could increase your primary or secondary skill letting you adjust voyages, time boosts could shorten recalls. Then it becomes optimizing crew, planning voyages so recalls coincide with sleep, could be alot of fun. If nothing else it would be different.
1. Regarding whether a Hybrid Event that starts out with a Faction phase and ends with a Galaxy phase should be counted as a Galaxy Event, it can be argued it depends on the type of player.
I personally do think of these Hybrid Events as Galaxy Events, because I know for me my ability to achieve a ranking that will allow me to finish in the top 2000 (and qualify to FF a Super Rare character in Ranked Rewards) is going to require me to get the vast majority of my Victory Points during the Galaxy phase, and then of course I am dependent on the size of my inventory. But for a player who is prepared to spend money to achieve a high ranking, the Hybrid Event gives them the option to load up on Victory Points during the Faction phase by using Shuttle Boosts and/or the Dilithium Speed Up Cost option, and then completely skip the Galaxy phase. Keeping this exception in mind, I nevertheless generally agree conceptually with those who wish to include these Hybrid Events in their ‘count’ of how many Galaxy Events we are having.
2. I do not agree with the premise that when there are this many Galaxy Events, players are forced to choose between participating in the Events or leveling crew, and that both cannot be done simultaneously.
For the purpose of this conversation, let’s put aside those players who actually keep it going for everyone else by spending large amounts of money on it (but we should say Thank You to them!!), and consider what low/no spending players can do in the game. Even excluding those who spend big, again there are still multiple types of players to consider. Those who have been playing for a longer period of time have advantages over newer players – for anyone who disagrees with this reality, and expects a game to somehow be ‘equal’ for all players, irrespective of how much time they have invested into the game, I suggest you stop reading now as we are never going to agree.
I know what is possible if you manage your resources well as someone who has played the game a long time. Back in late November 2017, I decided to push for a top 100 finish in the Galaxy Event Fast As Light (I finished # 91), which understandably used up a meaningful amount of my inventory. Of the 7 Galaxy/Hybrid Events we have had since then, I finished 3 of them in the top 1000, 3 of them in the top 2000, and there was 1 where I only completed the Threshold Rewards to get a single FF character. I consider these results of finishing in the top 2000 in 7 of the last 8 Galaxy Events as my having ‘participated’ in the events, especially considering how many new FF characters I got from these finishes, plus also adding some Legendary characters to my crew. And during this time, I have also definitely leveled crew, which is proven by the fact that the following are true:
- every FF character I own is Immortalized (just reached 200 this week)
- I have 18 Super Rare characters who are FE, and just waiting for additional Stars in order to become Immortalized
- every Legendary character I own is FE, which includes The Caretaker, who I only got 2 days ago
- during this time I also Immortalized 3 of the Voyages one-time drop only characters
And all of the above was accomplished without spending a single cent. If this does not show that an older player can participate in numerous Galaxy Events, and level crew at the same time, then I suspect we have different definitions for what it means to participate in events and level crew at the same time.
Now let us consider what a newer low/no spending player can do. Looking back to when I was a newer player, and I believe this still to be true today, it is very difficult for newer players to get FF characters from a Faction Event – to clarify, I am speaking here of Super Rare / 4* characters; obviously they can get Uncommon / 2* characters. But with good inventory management, it is very possible for newer players to get a FF 4* character from a Galaxy Event – I know this is where most of my first ones came from when I was starting out. Therefore, I think having numerous Galaxy Events actually helps out newer players, because it gives them a path to acquire characters who will be their strongest crew, which will consequently help them with Voyages in particular, but all parts of the game in general.
27×1★; 45×2★; 72×3★; 121×4★; 14×5★
FE, not fused crew count:
0×2★; 0×3★; 18×4★; 21×5★
Really well thought reply. The issue I think though is the "catch up effect" Newer players have tons more crew to level. I have been working on all the 1, 2 and 3 star crew and trying to level 4 stars I have picked up from events. It takes an overwhelming amount of chrons and I have been playing for about a year. Think about it, until just recently, every event was 3 new crew. I see people complaining about all the new crew recently and the lack of repeats, well that how it is for a newer player every event. Frankly, I was able to build up a good crew because there were so many less galaxy events a year ago and I could use chrons to level those that I got.
For someone with a FE roster, sure leveling and competing is easy. Not so if you are trying to collect and catch up. I can't imaging how really new players balance this at all.
I think what would ease the pain is a free Chroniton refill after the event/included with claim rewards or tier it among the rankings 1/3, 2/3, full. To set people back up, or alternatively perhaps double the two chroniton boosts after the event.
It feels like drowning. I can choose to either skip a "free" 4/4 to level some blues and know that there's another 3 characters that I won't see for 6 months or more or I can have a 12 hour window each week where I get to spend some chrons on my crew before I start saving up for next week's event.
Faction events are a saving grace, as far as I'm concerned. I can actually devote my resources to improving my crew, but even then if I want decent voyages so I can use the respite from galaxy to utilize maximum chrons for leveling crew then my weaker shuttles will give me an unfused reward crew. I usually end up with one faction event crew FF and a lot of 2-3 hour voyages.
After about 50 days, it's gotten a bit easier to level crew during faction events, but Galaxies are not fun whatsoever. Neither is the feeling of perpetually treading water. I'm sure I'll enjoy events more in the future, but with weak crew it's more stress than fun.
p.s. For next week's event I have zero Quarks, zero Roms and zero FE Ferengi. That means the new player has to spend more chrons to achieve the same result as a long time player although they need the chrons more. I don't necessarily disagree with that system, but it's just another barrier for new players.
If DB added community rewards to other event formats (which was something they talked about experimenting with back on the old forum, but never did), that would almost surely break the spell. So, yeah, there are plenty of players who like Galaxy Event rewards, but there are few, if any, who genuinely like the actual format.
Here goes Data1001 again, as the outlier.
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing.
~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
You say it's the gameplay you enjoy(ed), but then talk about rank having an impact on that enjoyment. If it's purely rank you're after, that ship has probably sailed. If it's rewards enough to make your commitment feel worthwhile, I'm in agreement with the suggestion of percentage-based reward tiers. I think that's critical to the growth of a game without taking away the carrot for the big spenders. If anything, there's more room at the top for people who want to throw a little money at each event.
A lesser ending rank itself was not the main reason my enjoyment was impacted. Rather, it was mostly the fact that I had to spend a lot more time building recipes in order to come close to the same rank I once was able to achieve. It was the grind, which took away a lot of the enjoyment for me. I'm necessarily a lot more choosy now when deciding which Galaxy events I want to bother with at all, which I want to clear the threshold rewards and then stop, and which I want to go all out for (not many of the latter). But I won't deny that a small part of why I don't like playing them as much as I used to, is because in the past I knew that I did have a decent shot at a good rank (sub-100 or at least sub-500), merely by putting in an hour or two of play each day and combining that with a little pre-farming — and now I don't expect to even end up in the top 5000 with the same amount of effort. So it's discouraging in that regard, yes.
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing.
~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
What I'm reading, @Data1001, is that what you dig (or, at least, dug) about Galaxy Events was how high you could reliably rank in them. That's a perfectly fair and fine thing to appreciate. I get it, too; it's one of the things I really enjoy about Expeditions, after all.
But is that satisfaction in rank quite the same as enjoying the actual playing of the event? That is, do you take genuine pleasure in the farming and crafting processes?
Speaking for myself about Expeditions, I can say that I sincerely do take some (admittedly twisted) satisfaction in grinding out my hour long tickets, wearing my crew to complete exhaustion for a few last victory points, knowing that so many other players were abandoning their tickets rather than subject themselves to that tedium. And I enjoy challenging myself to see how far I can push myself to stick with it, if I'm being honest.
My favorite thing about Expeditions, though, was using them to gauge my growth as a player by seeing how much more competitive I was able to be from one to the next. It's been so long since the last one that it's no longer meaningful for me to use as a barometer of my progress in the game, but it once was and I loved the format for it.
Not exactly. Though I did enjoy being able to reliably reach a decent rank, to be sure.
I did, yes. I still do, to a certain extent, but much less than I used to (because of the monotony of the longer grind, which is now necessary in order to be competitive). For me, the process itself was enjoyable. And on top of that I also enjoyed being able to score substantial VP with relative ease (compared to the other types of events), and in knowing that my efforts to level up event/bonus crew were paying off in getting me more rare rewards.
I can understand that, even if I don't share the sentiment.
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing.
~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
... but as Travis says ... for the rewards, not gameplay. I can't stand grinding out 130.000 VP ... the current event I was so lazy I only just finished after phase 2 had started, which naturally cost me more chronitons ... ah well, I really can't stand the building etc.
But I love the rewards ... I'm f2p ... a FF 4*, a 10x portal pull ... these are one of the few ways I can reliably get new 4*s onto my crew or add stars to ones I already have. I also really dig that older crew are used as ranked reward ... I've managed to FF Rakal Troi and Noah these last 2 events because I've had then 3/4.
I almost always bail the moment I get all threshold rewards, sometimes I continue a bit, to use up all the super-rares.
But, what I also like is I can decided when to push for those ... just need a handy stack of chrons (with supply kit) and I can do it all in one rush if I feel like it ... Faction events require my attention all weekend and even though I can rank top 1000 in Faction events, but the rewards are a lot worse usually and I end up spending Honor to FF any new threshold crew.
My life is so that I usually cannot devote a whole weekend to an event, so miss out on a day (or 2), which naturally affects my final ranking.
Hybrid events are the best of both worlds for me ... easy getting 130.000 VP and community rewards too, can't ask for more really for the little effort I put in.
- levelled and FE Away Team Saru from 80-100.
- immortalised Away Team Neelix.
- levelled 4* Pulaski to 90.
- levelled Kelby from 70-90.
- levelled Soran from 30-50.
so ... no real issues getting thresholds and levelling crew during such events.
Because many people buy the $100 offer (as they do in other events) but then they also buy all 5 of the $10 chroniton offers that are only offered during galaxy events. Some people only buy the chronitons which are, again, not offered anytime other than galaxy events. That's why they are the most profitable.
3 free 4* crew via community rewards.
Use a couple hundred chrono, get a couple hundred back as reward
Use a boost kit, get one back as reward
It's like they are paying me to play
If there's nothing I want from a galaxy I'll simply sit it out. I may create one item to partake in the shared rewards. (Selfish I know, hanging on to everyone's coat tales, but a X10 portal pull is a X10 portal pull)
If I want the threshold 4* I'll run a supply kit and get to threshold within a couple of hours. Helpful to store a few extra chronitons for the preceding days if you want to do this. Then you sit it out and end up finishing at about 15,000th place!
If you want something from the ranked rewards you have to sacrifice the leveling of existing cards for that weekend (This is the mode I'm playing this week as I want 3 stars to add to an existing FE Noah).
So, yes, Galaxies are tedious and I used to think the way you do. But then I realised that I'm the only one that can control my method of play and altered it accordingly.
Sadly, the most important thing to remember is the mantra "I will never collect them all"
I like to have a weekend off once a month, so I take one off for a break. Why can't you? Is someone forcing you to take part?
"You will never 'collect them all'"
I like how you say three event types like expedition events are still a thing
Join the eXo|plosion today!
Jim,
Yes, I'm selectively chopping the full quote, but my point is that the game's current setup obviously works for the wide variety of playing styles and commitments. That fact it is difficult for some doesn't mean a change needs to be made. Mind you, I don't really like Galaxies, but DB effectively only runs three types of events (Faction, Galaxy, Faction/Galaxy Hybrid), so the real culprit in the pile-up of "too many galaxies" can be laid at the feet of there only being those three options to rotate.
I, for one, am glad for the back-to-back weeks of light weekend playing of only going for the threshold 4* and then checking out for the rest, which really just means dumping my chrons towards leveling the crew I can get from the threshold. It's somewhat liberating when you stop caring about trying to get ranked crew from Galaxies, no matter how much you may like that character.
GoT Chief Communications Officer
Galaxy events:
Pros:
You can play at your own pace
Don't need to have a massive crew to do well so more open for newbies
Crew are not locked out for long periods
Con:
Can be a bit of a grind and can be kind of dull
Can be time consuming
Burns crons
Faction events:
Pros:
Not a grind
Quick to play
Cons:
Need 4 shuttles and a decent crew to be competitive
Shuttle crew locked out for 3 hours at a time (which has knock on impact on Voyages)
Need to be around every three hours to set the next shuttles out
Expedition events:
Pros:
They are infrequent
Crew are not locked out for long periods
Need a deep crew to be competitive
Cons:
Even more of a grind than Galaxy events
Very time consuming
Get boring very quickly