Handbooks "redeemable" by all characters on an account

Jetdoc

Jetdoc

Hell's Protector

Join Date: Jul 2005

The Eyes of Texas [BEVO]

D/A

I've been thinking about this for a while, and decided to post this here for y'alls thoughts. I did a quick search of Sardelac for a similar idea, and didn't see anything...but if there is one, please close this.

There has been a ton of discussion on how to reduce the Asura/Norn/Vanguard/Delver grind in EotN in maxing titles. This "grind" is magnified for players (like myself) that play multiple characters in PvE.

Now, I'm NOT in favor of making these titles account-based, but I thought a way to "bridge the gap" could be to make the Hero and Dungeon Handbooks customized to an account, and not to an individual character. That way, if a player uses multiple characters, he/she can choose which character will receive the reputation points for redeeming the book.

This is the philosophy that A-Net followed with the Bonus Mission Pack (i.e. making their rewards redeemable by any character on the account), so I thought that this would be a nice compromise for players that want to max these titles on one character but don't want to abandon playing other characters.

Thoughts? I may not have considered how this could be abused, so please feel free to share your thoughts on that as well.

Johny bravo

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Aug 2006

[SoS]

N/

For the same reason these titles shouldn't be account based you shouldn't be able to transfer books. The idea of the title is that you have perfomred services that have increased your reputation with a group, not when I say you I mean a particular character. Now that character is seen in a different light by that group.

Also as far as abuse is concerned. now you can use your level 8 ursan character to do the harder stuff and give the book to your lower level character to get credit.

MithranArkanere

MithranArkanere

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Nov 2006

wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigo

Heraldos de la Llama Oscura [HLO]

E/

For the same reasons all grind titles should be account-based those books should be redeem-able with any character.

And for abuse, there's no way it could be any. Currently people do the UBER-EASY Olafstead run, and then go Ursan elsewhere.

Of course there should be limites to that, like a minimum of rank 1 to be able to use books completed by other characters and such, but it's something that could be done.

Afterall, it's completely normal to have join companies, gang, towns, etc with references from someone else that has a good reputation there: "Here are some friend of mine, treat them like you'll treat me".

Don Doggy

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Oct 2006

W/

/signed
Anything for less grind.

Puebert

Puebert

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Oct 2005

Mo/

If its only per account.

Cause if you were able to sell books...
well,
that would be bad mkay?

MithranArkanere

MithranArkanere

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Nov 2006

wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigo

Heraldos de la Llama Oscura [HLO]

E/

Of course, that would be madness. One more reason to eBuy gold.

But per account it's just fine.

zwei2stein

zwei2stein

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Jun 2006

Europe

The German Order [GER]

N/

Looks like great idea.

D E C E P T I V E

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Jan 2007

/signed,

Funny, this is actually how I thought the books could be used, so after I beat GWEN with one of my characters I tried to cash the book in with another. It didnt work. I think it should.

Its actually a nice anti grind thing because if you dont want to kill everthing outside of sifhalla a gazillion times just to increase norn rep with another character you could actually play through the game with different characters and increase rank on one you dont want to take through gwen.

Arduin

Arduin

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: May 2005

The Netherlands

Limburgse Jagers [LJ]

R/

So instead of 'grinding' reputation once on each of your 10 characters, you want to grind it all 10 times one character, then pass those books on to your other 9 characters? How does that reduce grinding?

Thinking lorewise, I think it's kinda weird a character just freshly arrived in EotN could possibly have max Vanguard rating, without ever questing for those people or doing missions. Sure, he could be a friend of your other character (-> MithranArkanere), but it still sounds like free-loading to me. (as in just let me buy that Asura armor because my friend is Not Too Shabby and passed me some books, so you just have to trust me I'm as competent as he is, without ever having to proof it.)

Operative 14

Operative 14

Forge Runner

Join Date: Nov 2006

Arizona, USA

[OOP] Order of the Phoenix I

I think this is a pretty good idea, provided they customize them to the account. But it would be a very nice change to be able to do this or that mission on this or that character, and trade my Hero's Handbook around instead of having to do it all on one character.

As they intoned in the developer update where they outlined the upcoming changes to HoM, they are trying to make things more friendly for those of us that play multiple characters. If they don't want to make the EotN race titles account wide (though I certainly advocate that they should), this would be a good compromise.

/Signed

MithranArkanere

MithranArkanere

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Nov 2006

wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigo

Heraldos de la Llama Oscura [HLO]

E/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Arduinna
So instead of 'grinding' reputation once on each of your 10 characters, you want to grind it all 10 times one character, then pass those books on to your other 9 characters? How does that reduce grinding?

Thinking lorewise, I think it's kinda weird a character just freshly arrived in EotN could possibly have max Vanguard rating, without ever questing for those people or doing missions. Sure, he could be a friend of your other character (-> MithranArkanere), but it still sounds like free-loading to me. (as in just let me buy that Asura armor because my friend is Not Too Shabby and passed me some books, so you just have to trust me I'm as competent as he is, without ever having to proof it.)
As I said, it could require rank 1.

So it would be: "See? I'm the same stuff, so I'll pick my friend's Normal tome instead of him since he's not using it".

Of course, just making the titles account wide or making an account wide version of them that uses the highest rank title in the account for that title would be better, but unless they do that, this will do.

Age

Age

Hall Hero

Join Date: Jul 2005

California Canada/BC

STG Administrator

Mo/

I would still like the idea of account based but this isn't bad.I never knew about the books at the beginning of the game and wnet right through it without them on all my my charactors.We never had boooks in campaigs and what they do using book when they use scrolls.

D E C E P T I V E

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Jan 2007

Quote:
Originally Posted by Arduinna
So instead of 'grinding' reputation once on each of your 10 characters, you want to grind it all 10 times one character, then pass those books on to your other 9 characters? How does that reduce grinding?.
It doesnt really reduce grinding, just redundancy. The way i would use it if something like this were implemented would be....finish gwen on my ele, mesmer, necro, and use their books to get norn rep for my sin, so it wouldnt be repeating the game with the same character. Even if it was with the same character it still wouldnt be as bad as having to kill everything outside of sifhalla 100 times or so.

I would agree to make all grind based titles account wide too, that would be even better, but probably less likely.

Shayne Hawke

Shayne Hawke

Departed from Tyria

Join Date: May 2007

Clan Dethryche [dth]

R/

Seems like a reasonable enough solution, actually.

/signed

Dryndalyn

Dryndalyn

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: May 2007

/notsigned

That's crazy! I would just give all the books to my survivor character and then I would no longer have to work at that title.

Shayne Hawke

Shayne Hawke

Departed from Tyria

Join Date: May 2007

Clan Dethryche [dth]

R/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dryndalyn
/notsigned

That's crazy! I would just give all the books to my survivor character and then I would no longer have to work at that title.
o, jeez, cuz liek, survivor is HARD rite now.

Load up Kilroy as your boxing buddy and mash 8. Gg.

Rhamia Darigaz

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Apr 2008

/notsigned cause it won't happen and i want to be able to say "i told you so"
i'm semi-neutral to the idea itself but it's definitely not my idea of where anet should be investing its resources.

spyke136

spyke136

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Aug 2006

W/

Quote:
Originally Posted by Rhamia Darigaz
/notsigned cause it won't happen and i want to be able to say "i told you so"
i'm semi-neutral to the idea itself but it's definitely not my idea of where anet should be investing its resources.
what resources...it would be like 5 lines of code changed max.

probably just get rid of the bool check for if the book.name == player.name

or just change it to check account based.

they could do this with no effort at all. heck let me do it remotely and i'll do it for free.