VGOEmulator.net

A while back, Mar 2015 in fact, I challenged the Developers and Content Designers to come up with a short list of some "goals" we might achieve VGOEmulator 1.0 RELEASE (the Playable Game). They went to the Wish List and Game Features forums here, and to VGOPlayers.com Community to gather a list of unique player suggestions - and the list was over 180 suggestions!!!

We then set out to organize them by system, feasibility and priority - and from the final list, I presented the team with one more list to debate - the Official VGOEmulator Server Rules set. This is not "everything you ever needed to know about Vanguard", but instead gives our Developers and Designers some direction to start in building towards OUR end-game.

Keep in mind, almost ALL of this comes from veteran player feedback on these very forums - so nothing should be a surprise to anyone.

While this is no longer open for debate, I wanted to share the final goals for our team with the public so you knew what was coming.

[quote]VGOEmulator Server Rules

Starter Locations:

• Original Home Town option
  • Restore original VG level for areas
    Rebuild original quests/missives/tasks
    Fix XP curve, insane grinds from original game (slowww dowwwwn)
    Bring back Mekalia[/list:u]
    Isle of Dawn option
    • Retune rewards to match original starter area rewards
      Scale leveling to match original starter areas
      Provide a way for players to rift -to- IoD (or take a boat to and from)[/list:u][/list:u]
      
      Class Specifics:
      • Restore Necromancer Wraith and Skeleton forms
        Rogue Poison Making
        Sorcerer Chaos Volley
        Psion Thought Pulse
        Restore Warriors to their original specs
        Cleric/Shaman regen modifiers (negligible, balanced)
        Shaman Totem Quests[/list:u]
        
        General Gameplay:
        • Max Level of 50 - Pre-APW Content
          Fix XP Curve overall (not so fast)
          Fix "Dot" difficulty rating (not so easy)
          Adjust "Leashing" and mob reset conditions (preserve pull strats)
          Remove "Furious" from trash mobs (only level 50+ trash)
          Slappy, Scrappy and Randolph, gone forever
          No /claim for server rewards (leave as server optional)
          Remove "Lock-out Timer Removal" potions and their like
          CUSTOM: Add never-before-seen content/dungeons to sparse areas[/list:u]
          
          Adventuring:
          • Restore original quest lines (home towns, Misthaven Vampires)
            Balance MOB populations around level 25
            Group encounters difficult raised (see Fix Dots) to slow XP gain
            Set rez sickness back to original design[/list:u]
            
            Crafting:
            • Balance crafted gear to loot/quest rewards - make crafting a worthwhile trade[/list:u]
              
              Diplomacy:
              • No changes[/list:u]
                
                Faction:
                • Racial Factions (KOS)
                  MOB Factions (KOS and Alliances, social)[/list:u]
                  
                  Items/Itemization/Loot:
                  • Re-balance quest rewards, drop rates
                    Increase mats/comps drop rates
                    Restore Yellow/Orange loot drops[/list:u]
                    
                    Questing:
                    [list]Fix repeatable quests that should not be (eg., OT Shield)
                    Rewards for original starter areas to match IoD (IoD being tuned down)
                    Fix Epic quest grinds
                    Original flying mount quests will be the only flying mounts
                    New, VGOriginal(tm) Quest Lines (rewards TBD)[/list:u]
                    
                    Raiding:
                    [list]Won't come until post-release[/list:u]
                    
                    Travel/Mounts:
                    [list]Boat rides between continents
                    No cash shop boats - only crafted boats (tentative)
                    [list]This depends on server populations, if no crafters, then we sell boats[/list:u]
                    Get rid of Cash Shop Mounts completely
                    Fix rental mounts / duration is too short
                    Restore original Riftway network
                    Lock Riftstones, requiring player to right-click to unlock first
                    Restore shard use/consumption (stack: 200)
                    Add White Rifts to starter zones - for friend travel (beware Faction)
                    Caravans are implemented[/list:u]
                    
                    Bug Fixes (tentative):
                    [list]Fix Rogue Smoke Bomb
                    Fix Rogue backstab to work from anywhere, but if not from behind, there is a penalty
                    Fix clickies/timers
                    /anon = anonymous
                    "You can't do that yet" messaging separate from important feedback
                    Echo important NPC text to chat so it is not missed during combat[/list:u]
                    
                    
                    Post-Release Ideas:
                    [list]Release APW
                    Fix APW gear bonuses -or-
                    Fix various faction grinds preventing player progression (SOD/POTA)
                    Fix POTA grind -or-
                    Rescale entire progression from 51-55 (Swamp, POTA T1, T2/SOD, APW, T3)
                    Finish Stiirhad
                    Create level 50 "solo areas"
                    Ocean battles - Lots of water chunks, lets fill them up
                    Crafters to make/enhance crafting tools
                    Mentoring System
                    AA System (tentative, not sure we can do this yet)
                    Enhance Achievement System
                    PvP[/list:u][/quote]
                    
                    As you read this list, keep a couple things in mind:
                    [list]
                  • Our server relies heavily on the Data and Rulesets - so customized servers will be possible and can truly be unique experiences[/*hfmq45qz]
                  • The VGO Ruleset above may change as we get into the design should we realize we got something wrong, and[/*hfmq45qz]
                  • Player feedback is very important to this team so during Beta testing should we find our Rules are wrong, we will change them accoringly[/*hfmq45qz]
                  • While many people wanted VGO to be a "harder, slower game like at launch", server populations will dictate just how hard and slow it actually is...[/*hfmq45qz][/list:u]
                    This is why planning in advance is almost impossible, but the team needed a direction to start, and that is what this has provided. Check it out, let us know what you think.

Let me add one more thought; definitely keep posting Game Features and Wish List thoughts, because all ideas are great ideas and if we do not use them ourselves, someone else might.

Very much spot on.

/agree level 50 release, APW first "crown" on the masterpiece, high level progression critically reviewed, perhaps fill in some of the vacant real estate.

Parallel topic on possibly changing Isle of Dawn also worth strongly considering.

One part not clear to me is the swath of level 20 revamps. For some 15-16 starting areas, choking it down to three teens areas is...underwhelming. As a Vulmane, I would for instance somehow path out from Dahknarg to 3R & RK, which really has no sensible flow to me. Maybe between Veskal's and Kaon's Rush, you could keep one 20s and drop the other back down. If it was me, I would tend to make KR for 20s, as Lyceum is an awesome dungeon and having higher health and more abilities would keep it nice and crunchy; from what I recall, Veskal's spider caves were pretty much just spider caves which seems like a lower level design.

Certainly not debating the scheme, as I can't really find anything to disagree with, and I never say that. If I could stream the blood from my body over the internet to help make the list materialize, that's what I would be doing.

I don't know if it ever came up, in all the threads for suggestions, about Veskals and Kaon's Rush level revamps. I think they were best as a teens area. Because anyone that was from Halgarad or Dahknarg would go through vault of heroes and then immediately into Veskals, and from there, into Kaon's Rush. But around the time that they did this, they removed the Halgarad/Dahknarg starter areas.

So if we are going to restore Hal/Dahk starter areas, we might want to rethink Veskals/KR - Because you'll have level 12 guys running through a level 25-30 area just to get to the closest riftway. And while that might sound hilariously funny watching those poor newbs run for their lives, just to get slaughtered in an epic gangfest of spiders and redcaps - it probably wouldn't work out so well for those players.

Alternatively, if we want to leave Veskals/KR as it was for sunset - we should probably put a riftstone in Vault of Heroes.

IMO, the SOE revamp of the starting areas was an abomination. I would love to see it all put back the way it was before -- start in the original starting cities, put the quests back the way they were before, put the items back the way they were before, return the modified chunks to their original level, etc.

BTW, they didn't actually remove the old starting areas (except Mekalia), they just changed where they sent you at character creation. The last of my 60-some Vanguard charcters was a Varanjari rogue who started in Halgarad. I came in at Tursh, of course, but I had one of my higher level characters give him bus fare to Halgarad, and he was off. It was fun, but lonely.

It may not have been spelled out in precise language above, but it is our goal to restore as much of the original starting area content as is available. All were collected, except Mekalia which of course will be a 100% "from memory" experiment in Custom Content Design. I think I found 1 NPC in our collects, and a few signs, but that was all that was left of Mekalia.

The reason for the lack of "language" is in case it is not possible.

When you say "Original flying mount quests will be the only flying mounts", does this include or exclude the Pegasus mount which was obtained via City Faction (it was the only flying mount one could obtain via Diplomacy (albeit very slowly ala play obtained via City Faction) and did not require some sort of raid to get. It wasn't very fast, BUT it was the only way to fly on our own for us non-raiders.

I am hoping you are not leaving that one out. (and wondering about city faction mounts in general as they are not mentioned under mounts)

I am also cheering for the Pegasus. This all sounds really good though. Going to be a very busy time ahead.

disregard (double post)

OMG, this list really contains everything I would like to see.

• Original starter areas/quest[/*1ngts4kv]
• Original Xp Curve[/*1ngts4kv]
• KOS factions[/*1ngts4kv]
• Balanced crated gear[/*1ngts4kv]
• So much more[/*1ngts4kv][/list:u]
  
  I just have a few questions that I couldn't find in the list: (I know it's very early for this content, but will ask anyway)
  
  1. Rare and ultrarare harvesteable nodes spawned in the original game, but were later changed in just regular nodes with a change to drop rare materials. Do you have an idea how you will handle this.
  2. At original release there was a quest that gave an ultrarare T2 resource as a reward. This reward couldn't be found anyware else and had no purpouse in game. It was removed later on. Will you add this with a purpouse or will you keep it removed?
  3. Same question with some rare crafting orbs (Orb of Dark Magic/Matter/Power)
  
  Keep up the good work!!