New Outposts. Hear me out.

Hello, i'm new to THIS forum, but have been posting on others for a while now. Here is my suggestion:

People are always making suggestions about new skills. For me personally, i'd like nothing more than the odd new OUTPOST appearing around old areas- it would add a GREAT amount of depth, and show ANet are not forsaking the older areas. They could come out extremely rarely, as if the area has just been discovered or people have just started a community in the area, or the outpost has just been built. It would make it feel more like an "ever growing game" for me.

you may say about the cartographer titles. with the closed-off arenas, a few outposts would simply negate the land lost- and people have never needed exactly 100% anyway.

The small outposts in prophecies were always my favourite. Maguuma Stade, Port Sledge, Ice Tooth Cave- the new outposts wouldn't need to be big at all. they could be as tiny as the Barradin Estate courtyard that serves as an outpost in pre-searing.

As i've said, i'm absolutely sure just a few more outposts would add a massive amount of depth, show ANet never stop caring about the older areas like pre-searing & shiverpeaks, and would give the feeling of an "ever-growing" game.

There wouldn't need to be many, and they wouldn't need to be large. A few suggestions:

1) A small clearing with a few tents, surrounded by trees, to the south of Regent's Valley (PRE-SEARING)

2) A tiny community, a bit like Dakutu Village, enclosed in the hills in the south-eastern corner of Kessex Peak (KRYTA)

3) A little, dark night-time clearing, surrounded by those glowing, green tree-houses, at the northernmost tip of The Falls (very well hidden) (MAGUUMA)

4) An outpost similar to Dragon's Throat, hidden in the Undercity (Kaineng city needs an outpost that you don't HAVE to go to! it's a CITY!) (KAINENG CITY)

5) A miniscule little underground outpost hidden deep in Rhea's Crater, very dark, surrounded by creatures trapped in the jade (JADE SEA)

6) a tiny version of the Ancestral Lands Fortress, with stained-glass windows and gargoyles. the counterpart of #5, in morning veil falls. (ECHOVALD)

I don't believe Elona needs any.........

If ANet took the basic ideas from a few of us peoples and immortalised them as Outposts, perhaps as part of a forum competition... well, who doesn't like that idea, hmm?? we could work around the problem brought about by the cartographer titles!

Go on.. rip it to pieces!

Except for special events, i'm pretty sure Anet is done with older chapters. Your ideas are cool, but really, do we need little no-nothing outposts?

we wouldn't NEED them, but you gotta admit it would add a lot of depth and show they care! ANet only stated they would not be bringing out any more sorrow's furnace-stylee things out for older chapters.

personally, i'd like nothing more! i always did greatly appreciate places like Maguuma stade etc.

I would like outposts placed in the "empty areas" such as Dragon's Gullet. Seriously, who goes there?
But yeah, Priest is right. ANET is done with the first 3 games.

i really believe anet should not just dump the first three games i mean really there are a lot of people that love thoses games and you are abandoning the people who bought the older games and just havenet bought the newer ones... really anet says each game is stand alone, and they dont charge monthly fees but if they compleatly abandon the first games it is as if they are FORCING you to buy the new games... so yes /signed we need at least something to show us that anet still cares about the good ole' games lol

Yes, this game needs more deserted outposts, and more playerbase fragmentation.

Yesterday, I saw almost a full player group. This madness has to stop.

Tenshi's right! if you believe ANet might forsake the older chapters, don't just give up- show your support of ideas like this

This idea wouldn't fragment the playerbase any more at all! do you blame Ice Tooth Cave for taking all of it's two residents away from mission groups?? deserted as they often may be, they add depth. Not every outpost has to have a point; THAT gives a hurried, unrealistic, on-rails feeling. it was the small ones like Maguuma stade that i appreciated most of all! It would also give people more of a reason to go casually exploring!

yea i agree factions has NO un-required outposts and that game was way to fast and imo boring as hell for pve.... tyria has great depth and is fun to just explore, i think we need more of this

Uhm, no unrequired outposts in Factions? Just what are you smoking? There is no requirement that you go to Bai Paasu Reach, Eredon Terrace, Breaker Hollow, Saint Anjenka's Shrine, Lutgardis Conservatory, Brauer Academy, Durheim Archives, Amatz Basin, The Aurios Mine, or Seafarer's Rest. Yes, they each have quests etc, but you don't need to do any of those quests to finish the game.

I think this is a nice idea. Anything that adds more depth in my opinion is always worth considering ^^

i agree this would be awsome, as i like the little outposts that have no one there. it makes me feel like i have reached a place where no one has explored, it adds deapth and vastness to the world. A-net did great with Night Fall with the refences to the other games (man in kamadan talks about the linch, and outside greatsunspear hall is the black moa bird, the play about Tyria in vabbi). Little touches like this really show how great a game is and how much effort was put into it.
BTW is it possible to get 100% explored of Tyria with the closed off area's (Fort Koga, D'alleso (SP) arean, Amoon arena, and Ember Light arean) and other areas as that?

I agree. Prophecies is a classic (though all the chapters are great), and I see no reason for them to just dump them save for holiday events. It's a harsh way to get people to keep buying the chapters, and sort of makes you lose faith in their loyalty to the older games (but you suddenly love them again when they have a holiday event that applies to the older games).

Spartan - Yeah, I love references to other games/chapters.

My thoughts exactly on this guy, :P Faction's bashing for the sake of bashing needs to stop, especially when you don't know what the heck you're talking about

Prophecies (Tyria) did have more of an epic scale about it, but both are excellent games with plenty of places to explore, remote and unremote (try visiting the outposts mentioned above in the Jade Sea or Echovald... I'm suprised how many people don't and then you hear them complaining about a 'lack of depth' to Factions, Geesh!)

i'm sure everyone would love to see more of the same kind of stuff Prophecies had- remote outposts, making casual exploration fun. i really do think ANet should add some more of these to the older areas like pre-searing and kryta like in my original post. Guys- do not pass judgement on whether you think it WILL happen, but on whether you WANT it to happen! this suggestion is a plea to ANet, and they themselves are aware of any and all prospective problems. i simply want to gather support. more of a petition, if you will.

I think its a good idea, not pre-searing though, areas stuck in a certain time frame should not change.
But new outposts in old campains /signed
Not just because exporing, its fun but each outpost should have at least 1 quest to go with it, most likely a master quest.

I am aware that Anet may have forgotten about the former campains, if so shame on them(I'll break out the Caco Demon again ya' hear!(means I'll go play AO a real MMO))
It should not be so hard for them to just make a few little aditions every time the pach number is devidable by 3 or what ever, several other online games do something like that, why not Anet?
Perhaps they are at a lack of manpower trying to make too may chapers a year, but at that I still think 2-6 people could ad several outposts and quest to the game in a month or a little over.

They used to use several areas in ascelon to test sertain AI behaviors, that encurred suprising mob behaviors at times, which was fun when this would be continued in other areas that are less visited I would already think it a inprovement to the far to static world.

an alternative:

A while back, ANet introduced the "brand a boss" competition, in which players were immortalised in the game by names they came up with being given to the sorrow's furnace stone summit bosses. this did WONDERS for public relations! perhaps a similar thing for outposts, vaguely designed by players (like i have done above) and given names by their inventors, then handpicked by ANet?

i believe this would be great for ANet's public relations, back up their stance that each game is stand-alone, give the feeling of an ever-growing world, and give reason for casual exploration. do not post about whether you think this will happen, just say whether you would LIKE it to- this is more of a plea to ANet, who are already fully aware of any prospective problems. i am here to gather support.

Agree, there is a large patch of area between TOA-Fishermen's haven, also the mejesty rest area could do with some more outpost as well.

Also what is it with ascalon? How long has it been on fire? I mean for people who finished all 3 chapters, there should be a quest for rebuilding ascalon or something after you beat abadon. ( sorry off topic there)

** Imagine a new UW or FOW but different types of drops **

Right now UW and FOW from all campaigns, lead to exact same area, same enemies, same drops, same solo builds... Take that idea, Make 1 far, hard to reach outpost from each campaign, and make them lead to an area that is extremely difficult where full team of 8 is required... no chance at soloing... almost like some parts at the end of Nightfall... And make the area have totally random enemies and drops. You enter, for say... 2k... and you land in 1 of 10 random enemy layouts (pathing, types, weapon setups) on the same map.... Sometimes, lvl 28 dwarves, or lvl 28 Aflicted, or... lvl 28 Char... lvl 28 kurzick or luxon Guards... could be very random, with same map setup, And just cause your killing aflicted, doesnt mean they wont drop dwarven axe... or the luxon guard with a dragon sword....

pay 2k each time to enter limits ppl zoneing in and out looking for 1 certain map, randomness in drops, enemies, pathing = more people want to do it less people can figure out farm builds, as well as controling farmers...

Now you say.. 2k to enter?!? if a team of 8, lvl 20s expecting a good hard fight cant put together 2k, something is wrong

^^ And to motivate people from each campaign to reach the post from each campaign there could be some type of moral boost or such you can get from each one... or... make it only able to be entered during certain hours from each campaign, not based on favor, based on real life time.. like 6 hr window for each campaign, 6x3 = 18 hrs, = it rolls over so ppl don't cry as much about when they have time to play

They could add these outpost once you have completed the game, to continue the storyline, sort of an epilogue.

i agree with Dougal Kronik's idea as well, but whether they are accessable after the game's complete or during it, i definitely think some outposts should be added in hard to reach areas. one thing though- i doubt this will get picked up by ANet it's likely to go down and forgotten.

Hi Aptaleon, I really think this is a great idea, ANet should really do something about this. I mean, how many explorable area's are there without outposts. Your suggestions about how they would look like are great too. I hope ANet would do something about this.

Gaile has said this will not be happening, so i woulsnt get your hopes up

Gaile has only said that there will be no more Sorrow's Furnace style updates... that is to say, extra content will not be added*. New outposts, however, are always a posibility. They created a new one for the canthan new year festival... all else they would need to do is ever-so-slightly redo an explorable area to include a portal. it wouldn't take much to fit one in, and it would be soooo welcome.

(*or, more recently, when she misunderstood what i was asking her in person, she said that they will not rename existing outposts)

I don't see the point... Small outposts are always empty and there's not much to do there.


And outposts serve as a refuge for people running or fighting, where they can go back to full health and lose their DP. If there are too many, people can retreat easily, and it would make runs alot easier, which might unbalance the game a bit, I dno..

i did think about that, and all of my ideas were placed at the ends of long journeys, (like riiight at the end of the falls), not in the middle of them, so as not to devalue the challenge, so it wouldn't affect runs. i also opted to leave popular runs completely alone and only really affect lesser-visited areas, to increase their popularity.

About the point about my outposts not having much to do... well, they would see some popularity by simply being new! it's undeniably the case, isn't it?

How exactly would an unneeded and empty outpost add depth?

it would give reason to casually explore, giving people a reason to revisit old areas. it would give areas like the falls a point- people would actually travel through them, and be rewarded for it. that is depth. the outposts would experience some popularity for simply being new. i've had a lot of people agree with me on this, loads would love to see it- that's depth.

quite a few people consider ANet as trying to "force you to buy new chapters by forgetting and forsaking the older ones". although i do not agree with this (charr bags? defender of ascalon?), i can see where they stand if ANet never expands them, even into a few outposts. my idea would very much enforce ANet's stance that every game is stand-alone, and would dismiss such concerns, without the need for extra game content.

some are needed tho. one in the falls would be great with Totem axe's n behemoth's! and loads have moaned about factions being all on-rails like Apatelon said, so more would be good there too, to make it feel more like a real world. But others i'd just like to see. Would get people just exploring more

There are no do-nothing outpost.

Even those in Prophecies have Trainers with skills you can't get on previous ones until next set of missions or armor you can't craft anywhere else, or they are just there to have a rest. and keep the job done to prevent to high DP stacks and save time.

Kaineng have few outpost because is everything near.

OK, I see where you are coming from here but what exactly would you like A-net to be working on? miniscule outposts that wont make a difference or posibly new chapters and brand new content that is both enjoyable and exciting.

Also, what you are asking would be a free update correct? Well, I am sure blizzard could do what you are asking and for all I know they might do it already but A-net has given us all a huge gilf by coming out with a game that has no monthly fees, so if they want to keep the tech support up, then they need some sort of income and the best way for them to do that is by coming out with new chapters, not litle towns and outposts.