A crazy idea to help new toons

Swight

Dalayan Elder
When starting a new toon one of the biggest issues to getting started is having no plat to buy anything and the game doesn't really seem to start at all til you get at least a second bag(so you aren't running back to town so frequently to sell loot which some mobs drop quite a variety like the ratmen in the newport sewers) which at low levels can take a while when you are getting money in the silvers when bags are priced in gold and plat pieces. I know when I start a new alt I almost always give them some plat to buy bags and their first spells if applicable, but a new player wouldn't have this benefit.

Now what I am suggesting is not just give every new toon plat(though in someways I am) there would be problems with this as some people would create new toons repeatedly to make plat which I don't think anyone wants.

Instead what I propose is a vendor credit for new toons similar to the one for charms. All items purchased by this credit would be No Drop so people couldn't just make money off the items purchased for their higher toons. This credit would likely need to be activated via a dialog choice on each vendor so people could use their mob earned funds for items that can be dropped.
 
When starting a new toon one of the biggest issues to getting started is having no plat to buy anything and the game doesn't really seem to start at all til you get at least a second bag(so you aren't running back to town so frequently to sell loot which some mobs drop quite a variety like the ratmen in the newport sewers) which at low levels can take a while when you are getting money in the silvers when bags are priced in gold and plat pieces. I know when I start a new alt I almost always give them some plat to buy bags and their first spells if applicable, but a new player wouldn't have this benefit.

Now what I am suggesting is not just give every new toon plat(though in someways I am) there would be problems with this as some people would create new toons repeatedly to make plat which I don't think anyone wants.

Instead what I propose is a vendor credit for new toons similar to the one for charms. All items purchased by this credit would be No Drop so people couldn't just make money off the items purchased for their higher toons. This credit would likely need to be activated via a dialog choice on each vendor so people could use their mob earned funds for items that can be dropped.

https://shardsofdalaya.com/forum/threads/hey-you-new-guy.28528/
 
didn't know about that thread. main difference would be mine would make it more a client coded thing.
 
I dont think it would be unreasonable to give a 10pp reward for completing the dream. No 65 player is going to consider that an efficent way get platinum.
 
I just want to say that the new newbie quests (and many of the old ones) had their platinum rewards increased substantially. I am not sure if a quest that is specifically in place to give platinum is something we want, though. Also, nearly every city now has a bag quest for a fun large slightly WR bag.

Then again maybe I am biased - I remember when I finally got enough cracked staves to buy a bag and was all thrilled by it. I think if new players can get money from older ones by asking pretty quick if they want to, and if they want to work at it themselves, they still have that opportunity.
 
Honestly, might not be that hard... set up a GM bot account selling a quest item for 1cp, playes buys said quest item for a 1 time turn in (put the quest turn in mob in the bank) for xp and cash.
 
When I first started I was looking for the struggle, there is something about that feeling of earning your first store bought bag that really energizes me to play a character. I came here looking for that struggle though and stayed because this game effectively doesn't end. Its taken me years to get a character I can actually take fancy places and I would say I just reached the first 3rd of the game. Almost done with my AAs, gear ranges between a few decent BoEs, some T4-T6 gear, a handful of T8 and one or two T10.

I think a small amount of money, 5-10pp wouldn't be unreasonable. That is a few bagpacks and probably your first 3 sets of spells. I wouldn't mind making one or two minor changes, I don't think the money is over powered and in a couple of respects might do well for the economy by getting newbies to that first mithril on a melee.

I can personally attest to the fun and rewards from the new lowbie quests. They give good money and pretty solid items, almost too solid. A lot of those quest items beat out drops till you get to the mid 40's and most of the fresh players to reach 55 are still wearing a lot of the lower level quest items and zone drops. It is almost like there is a decent sized gear void in the Early or mid 30's that doesnt really lift till earlish 50's. There are a fair amount of quests in that range and some nice zones, Paw and MelB spring to mind, but the good stuff in MelB requires a group around the late 40s, or a friend/box in the mid 50's and Paw is a ghost town (I think) because it is needed for a faction and for a religion, but maybe also because there are one or two nasty pulls and a few spots with irritating wall aggro.

Comparatively, Cesspits and Runnyeye have just tons and tons of gear and a lot of it is great and will carry you to the 50's. I mean Franci's staff, once fully leveled, is one of the better caster items while leveling and is pretty hard to replace pre 50. Its certainly not impossible to replace and there is a lot of good gear in the those levels but I feel you need to scrub the Wiki pretty hard to find a fair amount of it. I enjoy investing time in that sort of thing, I have a binder on my desk with print outs and lists of quests and items I need but I doubt that it is in the realm of rewarding to the average player.
 
That "Struggle" we all so fondly remember isn't what you think it is. You remember it from 1999. In EQ.

Being part of the first major MMO with a hundred thousand people playing it was thrilling, and so you put up with the hassle because everyone else was doing it. You could talk about needing bags or your big plan to get a langseax in your xp group with strangers because they were a dime a dozen. You had this sense of accomplishment because you were the first of your friends with an inventory full of backpacks and a full set of crap rotted cloth armor.

Now a new player in Shards might as well play with a cricket sound loop playing. There's nobody to talk to and he's struggling all alone while people spam ooc "Group LF T8 DPS" and then you die again in fearstone spamming /yell to nobody.

The struggle is real. Give the people some money.
 
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