Asherons Call: Dev Q&A

03-15-2004, Funky BM asks... Can we please get..... One-eyed One-horned flying purple people eater as Pets??
Makes as much sence as some thing I see, so I thought I'd throw it out.
Thank you for considering this, FBM

Scenario, Lead Artist answers...
We introduced One-eyed, One-spiked, Golden People Drainers this month. Is that close enough?

03-15-2004, Binky asks... Let's post our ideas for pvp BEFORE they are hardcoded into the next patches?

srand, Producer answers...
That's the plan. You notice that we've started talking a lot more about what's coming up in the future. We're going to continue doing that, especially as it related to PK changes. Of course, the changes that went live this month didn't go through that feedback process because we hadn't started that feedback process yet -- and now we're having to revert them, which I think just shows how important the feedback process is.

03-15-2004, Yojiritsu of FF asks... Biting Strike test results
Theogrim CombatStats [ S: 705 | Misses: 7 (1%) | Hits: 528 (75%) | Crits: 170 (32%) | Min Avg Max: 5 ~ 18 ~ 62 | WPM: 0 ]
Shows a 32% crit rate at the end of combat.
But it hovered around 30% most of the time.
Since we dont know if the devs can change the effectives of these Quest imbue effects : This was tested using the 9-18 damage SoLL ( no infusions ).

srand, Producer answers...
Each Biting Strike weapon has its own particular critical rate.

03-15-2004, Jarella asks... I am pretty sure it was posted somewhere that they decided to go with the lower price...
You buy the cd key and have the option of dling the client as well but you don't have to get the client if you don't want to. I can't remember where I saw that...probably somewhere up in this thread.

Jessica, Executive Producer answers...
What Jarella said. After you make the purchase, you get your CD key and the option to download the client.

03-15-2004, Davidge asks...
Jessica, Jessica, has the problem with issued invalid keys from Fileplanet been fixed at the source so it won't repeat?
Is it safe to go there now and try to get a new key without fearing the hassle of being one of the unlucky ones?

Thanks.

Jessica, Executive Producer answers...
It should be. We haven't had a case of it for over 24 hours now.

03-15-2004, Davidge asks... Ahh . . .That would explain it.
I wanted to purchase keys for myself and family, and was rather hoping for a shopping cart feature where I could specify more than one key on the same fileplanet billing.
Alas, I see no such option. Looks like I have to wade through 3 entries and re-enter that info 3 times.
Another reason is to prevent fraud alerts on credit cards, if I purchase three keys, and have to enter the CC in 3 times, I am very likely to get a phone call from my bank . . .

Jessica, Executive Producer answers...
I'll keep this in mind for our own billing this summer. Good point.

03-15-2004, KPD157 asks... To Ibn, What is the Official Critera for a +Envoy to Determine suspected UCM?
Ibn, Lots of us have been wondering just how does a +Envoy actually Choose to administer the UCM Test. For a long time we have been Debating the Ramifications of
1) What happens when a Person reports a possible UCM?
2) Will Certain Buff Bots and Unattended Fellow Bots be suspected of UCM?
I would like to Know your Official Critera, if it exists, for a +Envoy to give the Test for UCM in the First place. In Learning this we prolly can make sure we don't do something that will attract the Attention of a +Envoy. I am sure the Criteria if it exists would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the UCM Activity Exists.
If anyone wants to add their own questions concerning the "UCM Criteria" Please feel free to do so I will be sending Ibn a PM should this topic get lost from the Front page and not get a response from him

Thank you for your Time Ibn

Katahdin, Player Support Manager answers...rs...[/b]
Jumping in...
UCM...
We observe, if our observations don't answer the question 'hmmm wonder if there is anybody really there', then we test.
Buffbots, Fellowbots - If they are NOT engaged in vulning, and not in combat, it's NOT UCM.
The person who reports UCM,
Contrary to popular belief, we are NOT being swamped with single individuals reporting UCM's. It's just not happening. If and when it does, I'll deal with it. That's my job after all.
Harassment - IS a CoC violation. But if what you are reporting is camping or griefing, it's not harassment. If it helps, think of harassment as stalking, real life threats, abuse which continues over time. That's harassment in an Envoy's eyes.

Hope this helps.

03-16-2004, AC-Vet asks... Will Weapons and Armor ever reach a point where...
It breaks if not maintained or has stats modified for same reason?
I wonder if this is possible for Developers to write code that shows weapon status for lack of player maintainance?
As in alot of games Items wear out and have to be maintained to keep thier natural properties, just like a normal item can be tinkered to have alternative stats, I think that the reverse effects should be implimented into the game as well....
There are a number of ways to impliment this to incorperate diffrent skills....
Alchemist can apply oils to revitalize weapons.
Cooks can renew armor by reapplying Dye or something...
Tinkers can apply a unused salvage to restore items to full....
as for the deteration of a weapon or armor....I would let that up to Turbine to determine how it would work....kind of like so many strikes of a weapon type or hits on armor....reduces full effectiveness...until the weapon reaches a point of breaking or non repairable.

Its a fun idea to be bounced around to make the game a lil more intresting....

Orion, AC1 Designer answers...

It is possible. Item wear has been discussed before, but this is not something that is currently in development. But don't discount the idea entirely.

03-15-2004, Celestin asks... Ensorceled Housing Items
Would it be possible to go back and look at a number of quest-reward housing items like the Arcane Pedestal and consider them as possible candidates for casting spells similar to the Font of Jojii?

I know this has probably been asked before, but I'm having trouble finding a post asking about it that received an answer from the developers.

Orion, AC1 Designer answers...

This may happen, or it may not, it's more likely that we'll add items with this functionality through current content rather than updating objects from the past. It's easier to keep a handle on things that way.

03-16-2004, Kirtimukha asks... Now my point here is NO NEW PLAYER in their right mind would want to start on Darktide. I don't understand why Turbine doesn't realize this.
They are going to open a NPK World without opening a new PK World. It is a mistake to try to rollout Worlds like this.
If they were smart they would open a New PK World and NPK at the same time and market it to the masses.

Orion, AC1 Designer answers...
As has been stated before, there are currently no plans to open a new player-killer only server. That does not mean that it will never happen. We need the numbers to justify opening a new server like this.

Alternative rules servers are also a possibility, though they would likely exist for limited amounts of time and have very special rules.

03-17-2004, Rebel Yell asks... IBN: New Ban wrinkles?

VN boards have a thread which states that your offering a account wipe option rather then a 1 year ban. Is that true and if so does it apply to the characters and items or what?

If its a total wipe I don't see why somebody wouldn't just buy a new account.

Katahdin, Player Support Manager answers...
Not true.

It's not an either or proposition.

03-17-2004, Korrigan asks... It is a shame you are changing the lure spells (for PK)
You simply send the melees back to their gimp status, and the mages to god status. Thanks for that.

Jessica, Executive Producer answers...

Actually, we just acknowledged that we had to go back to the drawing board and talk to y'all about what needs to change in PvP a whole lot more before changes are made.

That is a good thing, isn't it? Aren't we more likely to put together a comprehensive plan with your input, one that meets everyone's needs here?

03-17-2004, Grinless asks... Admitting mistake and takign the time to reconsider is, indeed, a very good thing and the fact you actually did so honors you Jessica.
But, sometime you cannot please both side and a hard choice must be made for the good of the game. What some of us fear is that this time you actually reverted a good change because one side significantly raise their voices and, not, for the greater good of the game.
Just tell us you are reverting because you think the current implementation is flawed and not because of the boards outcry...

Take care,

Jessica, Executive Producer answers...

We think it is flawed, indeed. Our PvP guy spent a long time playing with the changes on DT in a real-world setting with plenty of enemies about, and reading the boards, and came to that conclusion. So it is back to the drawing board.

03-18-2004, Nailer asks... Ibn: Making the hookable portals non-functional on current villas is completely unfair
The worst part about it is is that not everyone that got the portals even knew they were for bugged and just supposed to be for mansions; there was no "You must be a monarch" clause to pick it up.

Also, why not make it widely known that you were going to try to make portals currently hooked on villas unusable? On Harvestgain, these things were selling for about ONE HUNDRED singularity keys! Can you pay those back to us, Ibn? And possibly the time wasted doing the quest to even get the portal too?

Why should we have to pay for your mistake?

Orion, AC1 Designer answers...
The description of object that gifts the item to you specifically states that a mansion would fuel the energy necessary to power the device.

03-18-2004, Frieze asks... Stealth Nerf to Untraining Maxxed Skills?
You have too many available character points to be able to absorb the experience from your Sword skill. Please spend some of your character points and try again.
I have 6k in unassigned xp. Did they change it so that you can't untrain a maxed skill? ...
I had 4 skill credits, so I trained cooking... down to 127xp unassigned, no dice.

Something has changed.
I sold back a maxed skill a few months ago and had no problems.
I tried to sell back leadership today....as a matter of fact...and i got the same message u got.

Orion, AC1 Designer answers...
No, this was not changed. But the wording is very confusing. It should not read "character points" it should read experience points. When you are untrained a skill that you have put the full allotment of 4.2 billion and change, the server stops you from rolling over any of that experience. You need to get your total spendable experience as low as it will possible go before you untrain the skill.

03-18-2004, Aztek asks... Moving characters from one server to another
Will this ever be a possibility? Not moving any items, just one character, one time per account.

[ur=http://forums.ac.turbinegames.com/member.php?s=&action=getinfo&userid=2]Ibn[/url], AC1 Online Community Relations

We can't do it currently, but it has been discussed in a "someday" sort of fashion. If it were ever implemented, I can imagine we would look at preventing people from transferring characters to a world with different game rules. (For example no transferring your uber char with uber equipment from Morningthaw to Darktide.)

03-18-2004, LordShadowz asks... 2) I would like to see a better way of giving feedback.

What I think you guys should do is on the spalsh and login screen place links to the AC forums here and put polls and such ON THE LOGIN screen. This way everyone who logs in and plays will have the ability to give feedback and participate in votes.

Ibn, AC1 Online Community Relations

Getting changes made to the login screen is pretty difficult at this point and frequently requires a server restart. I don't think folks would be particularly pleased to have the worlds restart just to get a link to a feedback thread. We are working on better ways of getting feedback, but they'll have to wait until we take over billing and authentication at least.