Hey there,
I wanted to share my experience and opinion regarding the season server after playing it for 3 weeks.
First of all, I’d like to say that the server was a fun project for me and I enjoyed it. I will mostly comment and make suggestions on high lvl content, since I pretty much rushed everything up to lvl 90.
Heaven’s Liar:
The decision to change the exp-rates was a very good one in my opinion, but I don‘t really understand why hl2, especially Zin mobs, got their exp decreased again. This makes the lvling process to reach the high lvl runs (100+) significantly harder. Sure New forest (95 map) compensates that, but if you are not playing sura the amount of time and gold you need to spend, to tank there is absurd. Imo the exp-nerf is not needed. If people want to lvl up fast they should be able to on a season server.
95 Map:
I believe the respawning mobs (mobs spawned by En-Tai-Annihilator) got their exp gain removed. I guess that was to prohibit afk farming there, but on the season server this made lvling to 120 a lot slower/harder, especially once the maps got crowded. Maybe increace the exp rates of Annihilators to speed up the lvling process. This increase in lvling to 120 is pretty important, because all the bosses from high lvl runs are 120 and become significantly harder without the ability to poison them.
Devil’s Catacomb:
One change I would suggest for this run on the season server is a 100% drop rate for the soul crystal key. The Frequency by which people can do it is already limited via the relic drop from demon tower. Imo there is no need to have a second barrier to enter the run. Especially with such high rng on the drop%.
Hell Run:
Due to the boss dmg and resistance in his „def state“ this is still a pretty hard run on the season server. Especially for classes other than Sura, the time and money for preparation is pretty high. I believe if he would do similar dmg as the boss in ice run, this problem would be „fixed“ for Warrior and Assasin. Furthermore I think the high bell resistance is long overdue for change (same goes for Ice run boss).
Ice Run:
Still a very nice and enjoyable run. One little tweak I’d suggest is making Ice Grail drop 100% from boss, similar to the Flame Key in hell run.
Erebus Run:
Not too hard, not too easy, good drops, low item requirements in comparison to other runs. Pretty good overall.
Ochao Run:
After completing this run many times I am a bit confused. The run seems still very hard overall. The 2 death rule applies, Jotun hits very very hard and overall it's a multi person run for sure. I don’t really understand why the drops from Jotun are still that bad. I was under the impression, when the Season server gets merged, people should have caught up to a degree with S1 players. I have done a good amount of Ochao runs and the drop has been very disappointing. With the few moonstones I have received, it is pretty much only depending on being VERY lucky to upgrade pvp and pve Items before the server-merge. At the current rate of drop, combined with the upp% to +9 I would probably just barely make my full set before the merge. Keep in mind I others will need much longer untill they complete their first ochao run. Imo the drops for the moonstone should get adjusted a bit. This way it won’t be a exclusive item and cost 20+ won (This suggestion is based on the impression, that Season server players should be able to make +9 high lvl gear without grinding months).
Hydra Run:
Still a very balanced run. Not to hard for lvl 100 chars, if they come in a group. Drops are fine. No suggestions for change here.
Meley Run:
Oh boy here we go again. So, this run is borderline impossible for the casual lvl 105 players. This is fine in my opinion, it should not be a easy run, if no thought has been put into the mechanic/gear for it. However, the one thing I would adjust is the entry cost. Sure, we haven’t done many runs, but so far, the drops of Flame of the Dragon have been pretty low, and considering the entry cost for it I would rate the gold gain about cutting even. Lowering the crating recipe to maybe 2/1 Fkey and 1 ice grail would help here a lot and make it possible to make a good DSS ring before the merge (blue dss rolling is no joke and a similar change has been done with the Hydra ticket). Basically no one is doing this run for profit, only if they desperately need DSS-changers. Most importantly, this change would encourage casual players to try the run, and adjust their gear while being able to test new item-sets without spending 10w+ every time they enter with 3 or more people.
Ice Witch:
Very hard Boss, still needs a big group, especially if it is contested. Drop is accordingly. Overall fits well.
Overall Suggestions:
Upgreade Materials:
I expected this server to be a bit faster pace compared to S1, which it was. One thing that many people were struggling with, were upgrading materials. I don’t think it would harm the market if the drop rates for them would get increased. This would also solve the problem, that poly marbles are still very expensive.
Enhance Change scroll:
I expected the Changer drops after lvl 90 to be like the low lvl area. After all it is the most used and most important item to create and improve high lvl pvp and pve items. Giving metinstones a higher % for them would only make players, especially casual ones, unlock high lvl runs and their drops faster and more consistently.
Sash System:
The amount of fine cloth needed to successfully craft a 25% sash is way too high at the moment. This should not be an end game item. This spot should be reserved for a perfect Sash with good 75 weapon absorption. I managed to make 2 custom Sashes(which barely covers my own needs), while farming the best fine cloth farming spot consistently. My suggestion would be to increase the % for combining 2x 10% sashes. Or/On top of that increase the Fine Cloth drop from bosses in dungeons like Orc maze/Azrael/Ice run, on the 90 maps and for the low lvl bosses like Tigris etc..
In conclusion the server is enjoyable, however imo a lot of my suggestions would make it a better experience for casual/new players who aim for high lvl content.
Cheers
[GA]Elspeth
