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 Post subject: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: February 22nd, 2014, 1:22 pm 
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Well, it looks like I'm about to go two for two for combat articles this year. I'm not overly fond of combat. I'm really not. But with the continuance of the evolution (or is it de-evolution at this point?) of combat it is giving me plenty of fodder to write about. At this rate, I'll be writing about this all year...

So according to the current poll, unless something drastic happens, it looks like the 138 combat level is coming back. What this means is still confusing, and how we can vote without knowing the true implications of something is sketchy to begin with, but we can confer from this is that players didn't like the 200 level scale. Many people seem to like how 138 was all inclusive and represented being "max" more honestly, but I like the higher and even number of 200. If this is how Jagex decides to go is anyone's guess, but one thing that seems to surely be coming back is probably more controversial than the number above our heads: Pure accounts.

Like I said, I'm not huge on combat, but I can appreciate those who are. I can also appreciate the place that pures fit in the ecosystem of an MMO. In the combat triangle of life, they have an important niche they fill. Probably the most dividing thing about EoC was that pures aren't viable. In essence, we were all seen as pures by the system since it only took into account your highest offensive stat. In any formula where more than one offensive stat is calculated pures can exist and, as sure as rain in the plains of Spain, they will exist.

This makes for a very interesting combat dynamic. The pure accounts of yesteryear were abandoned. Jagex says there will be a way to roll back combat stats, but a majority of those players probably left when they saw no hope for their viability in the new system. For the first time since the wilderness made its return, pures will be at home in the wild and more potent as ever with the new ***** of abilities and offensive options. This may very well lead us into a new era of players where PKing is actually enjoyable and possible. This is a cause for further controversy. Some may feel this is an area of the game that doesn't need to be revitalized and that the community improved without PKers. Others, some of which may have already moved on to 07 servers or quit entirely, would applaud the move.

As a clan leader for over five years I have mixed emotions about it. My best experiences in the game were with my clanmates and it was a big part of my life - my real life, not just RS life. I could probably write a year's worth of articles on what I learned and the many experiences I had leading a clan. How we had to change over the years - with free trade being removed and coming back, the wilderness changes, how play style has evolved - it all took a toll on us and prompted adjustments. We started as wilderness based following the philosophy of only killing those who killed skillers in the wild. Eventually we became more skilling based. With the creation of citadels, that become our primary focus. Mine, like many RS clans, eventually had to close simply because we had no reason to exist anymore. EoC killed what was left of these old style of clans. Any that remain now are more communities than anything. Shells of the former glory and righteousness they once stood for. I miss them - not so much the work involved in running one, but even that gave me purpose to play. If it wasn't for my clan I probably would have quit long ago. Without a clan now, even months after the fact, I still feel like a lost puppy. Without a home and nothing to rally around. Clans are important to retaining players of any MMO and Runescape is suffering without them. If you don't agree then you probably weren't ever a part of clan, and I feel bad for you missing out on that aspect of the game.

I guess given my history I would like pures to be back in the game. Many other clan leaders including arguably the most vocal of them all, His Lordship of the Wilderness Guardians, has been chiming in on the most recent announcements. You may recall seeing some of His Lordship's work on YouTube, including the "Why Runescape is Dying" at the end of November last year that got a lot of people talking. He has long campaigned to Jagex to make the wilderness an important part of Runescape again. All the pieces for a revival of the wilderness and therefore clans would be available and ready for Jagex to make the right decisions to make them relevant again.

Lets look at a case study that illustrates this. Through the greater part of the 20th century, wolves were hunted and killed for sport in much of the northwest of the United States to the point that they were placed on the endangered species list in 1978. A survey of Yellowstone National Park conducted in the late 70s found that absolutely no wolves were present within the park or surrounding area. In the early '90s Yellowstone National Park reintroduced wolves into their ecosystem to study their impact. In studies still continuing, scientists find that the elk population has been impacted and a significant increase in new trees, which elk feed on, was noted. Much of Yellowstone's area has had deforestation and fire recovery issues, so new growth will help restore these areas. Much like reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone National Park, adding predators to an ecosystem can bring about balance and allow other aspects of that environment to flourish. Pures can be our wolves. Having these predators in Runescape again might just improve the entire game.

This was originally posted as an Informer Runescape article.


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 Post subject: Register and login to get these in-post ads to disappear
PostPosted: February 22nd, 2014, 1:22 pm 
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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 20th, 2014, 3:28 pm 
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I'm fairly indifferent towards the actual combat level system, I however don't like the confusion and complaining I'll have to listen to from the switch.

Side question, does anyone know if constitution and prayer will continue to not be calculated in combat level?

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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 20th, 2014, 5:11 pm 
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PunchMonkey wrote:
I'm fairly indifferent towards the actual combat level system, I however don't like the confusion and complaining I'll have to listen to from the switch.

Side question, does anyone know if constitution and prayer will continue to not be calculated in combat level?

The new combat system will calculate those as well as Summoning I believe.

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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 20th, 2014, 8:07 pm 
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I feel that all the new updates in the combat beta are going very well and the re introduction of pures to society is not only an important step in healing the wilderness but bringing up world numbers again, fingers crossed to see full worlds for the first time in 2 years!


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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 21st, 2014, 6:23 pm 
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I have not played runescape in 5 years. A lot of these changes are foreign to me, but the combat calculation has always made no sense at all to me. I understood the formula just fine, but the logic behind using that formula was complete rubbish. The current combat system, based on this site's calculator, sets you at max combat level with any offense 99 and 99 defense, but that scaling is horrible considering battle-mages and other hybrid builds for pk. the old formula had a similar problem of trying to make only your highest offense stat (or two in the case of 2(atk+str)/3 ) override all levels in the other offense stats, which in all application just doesn't accurately represent what your character is capable of.

A few points:
1: max combat level should represent only a player who has base level 99 in all combat purpose stats.
2: all combat stats should have a fair representation in this number.
3: your highest combat stat should pull more weight than other stats .

1: it kind of explains itself. maximum implies there's nowhere higher to go. I could have 99 everything and 1 defense and only be considered level 100 but still truck kids by suprize (may or may not be applicable with EoC but pures could definitely full-0 you in one special back when i was active) alternatively I could have 1 attack 99 strength and defense and be L200 but i'd get wrecked every time i fought because i'd never hit. whatever level they decide max should be, it needs to equate to all 99s.

2: secondary offense stats shouldn't be completely masked by whatever your highest is, and attack+strength need a new way to be calculated into your level. In the old level calculation, having medium attack and strength could mask 99 ranged and magic because of their increased value to the formula. 75 attack and strength was more influence than 99 ranged or magic, making each level of ranged and magic only worth about 1/200th of a combat level. This is stupid. I'm fine with different stats having different influence like prayer being 1/4 compared to offense and defense being 1/3, but having a 99 not show you anything is troublesome. That is all runescape is: glorification of reaching achievements.
Spoiler for side rant:

really the runescape offense system is fairly messed due to melee requiring two skills to function while ranged and magic only require 1. I've always hated that. Personally I think they should break it up further. your melee effectiveness is your melee accuracy (attack) combined with your physical power (strength). your ability to fire a bow relies on your ranged accuracy (ranged) and your ability to pull the bowstring, crossbowstring, etc back far enough fast enough, or your ability to throw a chinchompa with adequate force. this too should be based on your strength skill. lastly I don't care how magical you are. every non-action mmo makes this mistake: you can't autolock spells on people. sure you could tag them with a homing curse so your projectiles all fly towards them, or use lightning spell or aura AOE around you, but projectiles miss, magic or not. Thus, magic accuracy should be channeled into to ranged accuracy and the magic skill itself would only govern your magical strength. The end result is instead of having only attack and strength linked with ranged and magic isolated '\, ' , you'd have a system where all offense relies on two skills '\,/'\, attack + strength = melee. ranged + strength = ranger. ranged + magic = mage. under this system your ability to wield weapons is dependant purely on your strength and magic stats. your attack and ranged stats determine your accuracy, precision, and in the case of physical ranged, what ammunition you can use, as different ammuntions have their own weights and tips that change its flight arc and patterns.
as for the attack + strength deal, players need to suck it up and take a 50% rate. you don't reach your maximum melee potential until you have two 99s. the old combat formula tries to let melees appreciate raising two skills instead of one while still preventing them from getting 2x combat level benefit by giving it reduced returns, but more total returns than either magic or ranged had. (66% effectiveness but 2 skills makes 132% effectiveness of melee stats towards combat level). Melee is the most common way to play rs. it doesn't need glorification. cut it down to 50% effectiveness so that 99 attack and strength gives you the same combat level as having just 99 magic or just 99 ranged. If anything this will just encourage people to level the less-played combat types if they want a higher combat level faster. Alternatively attack and strength could have increased effectiveness early and reduced later so that the early levels still give you that rewarding feeling (and prevents melee pures from having an even lower combat level) and later levels you still cap out the same as other offense skills.

3: everything needs a roughly similar value. a player with level 99 prayer vs 10 prayer, 99 is going to school your *** while 10 is going to fall over and die. it matters in combat calculation (which confuses the hell out of me that prayer isn't part of the calculation anymore) a player with 99 strength 99 attack will floor a 99 str 60 attack just due to the greater likelyhood of a special attack *critting* them (don't know if this is still applicable). a ranger with high magic might freeze or root you while a low magic ranger just has to kite or facetank. these stats might not be your main combat type but they have an influence and need to be represented sufficiently. all values from here on are randomly thrown in and I take no responsibility if they make no mathematical sense. instead of your main combat type completely overshadowing your other types, let your highest combat stat define 25% of your combat level, so at most 50 combat at lv 99 keeping combat cap 200. the other 5 stats make up in order from highest to lowest stat level, 20%, 15%, 15%, 15% and 10%. So lets say your character is 70 attack, 99 strength, 99 ranged, 80 magic, 50 summon, 45 defense, and 70 prayer. in order that's 99 rng is 50/50 levels, (70+99)/2= 84.5 melee total is 34/40, 80 mag 70 pray 50 summon are 24/30, 21/30 and 15/30, respecitvely, and 45 def is 9/20. grand total is level 153 combat out of a possible 200. This setup makes your first 2 99s make a big deal in your combat level, while your last 99 has a very small influence. I think this accurately represents how your main combat stats that are probably your highest levels are the biggest influence on how you will perform, while the ones you don't use are probably both underleveled and not something that will boost your actual combat proficiency by an astounding amount.

longwinded cooper is longwinded and ranty. sad face that nothing in this essay will ever actually happen in this game.

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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 23rd, 2014, 8:14 pm 
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Great article, it's sad that they alienated such a huge portion of their playerbase with EoC and the combat changes. A lot of people who quit during the release of EoC have moved onto other games to fill the gap that Runescape left (I know I pretty much have at this point). Unfortunately I can't see the game getting back to being as fun and community based as it was before. After putting so much time and effort into the game and then seeing Jagex go ahead with EoC despite the huge amount of outcry destroyed a lot of players trust in Jagex and if they ever decide to return they will be very hesitant to invest as much time as they previously did, it just won't ever be the same. It's sad to see that they ruined the great thing they had going but I know for sure that I will never forget the fun times I had in the game. For me the game is pretty much over, I reached a lot of goals that I thought I would never reach when I first started the game back in the mid 2000s when I was 11 or so years old. Would I invest that amount of time in one game again? Probably not. But it was a great learning experience and got me into computers which is now my passion and likely career. I have no idea where I would be today had it not been for Runescape, so for that I am happy.

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 Post subject: Register and login to get these in-post ads to disappear
PostPosted: April 23rd, 2014, 8:14 pm 
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 Post subject: Re: [Informer Article] Making Runescape Pure Again
PostPosted: April 23rd, 2014, 9:34 pm 
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Well Bonsai, there's always legacy mode - for better or worse.


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