Entertainer Archive
Thread: What are the top entertainer issues
As I mentioned elsewhere, I would like to collect a list of issues. While the discussions have been dealing with some of the broad issues that entertainers face, I would also like to collect other issues with entertainers, and get an idea of what is more important to the community.
I am looking for issues that relate to entertainers as a whole. If the issue is specific to dancers, musicians or image designers, it really should be a dancer, musician or image design issue. If it is something that relates to entertainers as a whole, but specifically the elite professions, such as location registration or buffs, I will still consider it for inclusion.
Some examples of what I would consider entertainer issues would be fixing location registration, returning xp to bandflourishes, andentertainer content. Some examples of what I would not consider forentertainer issues would be dancers falling, master musician not getting all the music/instruments, or hair color being lost on hair style change.
So, please list whatchangesto entertainers you would like to see, in order of priority. Higher priority first, lower priority last. If it makes sense to include, please also include what resolution to the issue you would like to see. If you don't have an answer, don't try to come up with something.
I'll just add that I think Master Entertainers should get discounts on Cantina rent, a small vendor fee reduction (but not enough to impact the Merchant prof), um, cheaper planet map advertising (again, not enough to impact Merchant), also ME should be able to do /register party or /register event either on the planet map or on a billboard/terminal system.
As I mentioned elsewhere, I would like to collect a list of issues. While the discussions have been dealing with some of the broad issues that entertainers face, I would also like to collect other issues with entertainers, and get an idea of what is more important to the community.
I am looking for issues that relate to entertainers as a whole. If the issue is specific to dancers, musicians or image designers, it really should be a dancer, musician or image design issue. If it is something that relates to entertainers as a whole, but specifically the elite professions, such as location registration or buffs, I will still consider it for inclusion.
Some examples of what I would consider entertainer issues would be fixing location registration, returning xp to bandflourishes, andentertainer content. Some examples of what I would not consider forentertainer issues would be dancers falling, master musician not getting all the music/instruments, or hair color being lost on hair style change.
So, please list whatchangesto entertainers you would like to see, in order of priority. Higher priority first, lower priority last. If it makes sense to include, please also include what resolution to the issue you would like to see. If you don't have an answer, don't try to come up with something.
( copy from the musicians board of things that apply to entertainers )
#1: Unattended Gameplay aka AFKers
This has to go. Unattended gameplay is bad for any game and the developers know this or else the EULA refering to 3rd party software would make no sense. Please note thatI would gladly accept this fix as the only fix for the next 6 months. This is my number #1 through #5 priority.
#6: More songs.
Make Imperials play Imperial March and RebelsLeias Theme as faction perks ( and please keep the FP requirements reasonable, I cannot run 2000 faction delivery missions. Maybe grant1-5 FP when buffing a faction member of your own side overt ?
There is nothing more starwarsy than the Imperial March. I don't want a random SW4. I want STAR WARS !
#7:Mission payment.
Self explanatory. While better designed missions may be difficult to implement, doubling the payout so that at least I come out ahead when doing a mission should be about 2 lines of code and/or a two line SQL statement. It's not as if I would singlehandedly cause the economy to collapse if I actually make 200cr net gain from a mission.
#8: return xp for bandflos
#9: Did I mention unattended gameplay ?
1) healing of battle fatigue /mind wounds tied to active participation by entertainer instead of passive. Entertainers actively choose whom to heal. Without active participation, entertainers cannot get entertainment healing exp. Devise a system for this which cannot be macroed around (i.e. popup boxes as with surveying)
2) return xp for bandflourishes, and equalize xp for dancers such that it pays to dance the same dance as other dancers. Bandflourisher expends extra energy, forcing trading off who is leader.
3) missions: better payouts, and location-based missions to encourage grouping. Ideally missions on a given day should lead to a certain number of hot-spots around the galaxy (maybe 1 cantina per planet). Mission payouts are not split among group. Player cities can register if they want their cantina to be a mission location, but only if that city has a shuttleport, and the city is not factionally aligned (don't want entertainers getting blown up by mines).
4) Additional dance content at master entertainer. Barring that, a fix for the formal/formal2 base dance.
I'll just add that I think Master Entertainers should get discounts on Cantina rent, a small vendor fee reduction (but not enough to impact the Merchant prof), um, cheaper planet map advertising (again, not enough to impact Merchant), also ME should be able to do /register party or /register event either on the planet map or on a billboard/terminal system.
I would have to say /registration. Here's what's wrong:
-Registration is unavailable at outpost cantinas. Certainly, it is so rare that an entertainer is even there, and the ticket prices are so high, that this could be a REAL benefit to those in the field, AND those entertaining.
-Registration is unavailable in player cantinas,unless the faction matches up EXACTLY with the cantina. Ironically, neutrals are hurt most by this, as well as destroy the concept of "covertness." I know you have seen me debate this on the Dancer forum, Tiaga, and my more lengthy response is there.
-Registration in its current form allows a player to /register, log off, and have a perpetual sun icon displayed when no service is available. If registration is to mean anything at all, then it has to provide a GUARANTEE that qualified persons are available to assist you.
-Registration is unavailable to the base profession. Now I'm sure that the developers had a reason for this, but things have changed with the development of player cities. Now, it is quite possible that we will need to staff upwards of 200 player cities, in addition to the NPC cities. This changes EVERYTHING, as we need to allow characters of all skill levels (or at least the Master Entertainer) to participate in the distribution of service.
To me, the registration idea is a real good one, and one I would promote to my clients if it were a true representation of a guarantee of service. However, when qualified personnale are entertaining at a venue, but the venue appears on the world map to be empty (because of faction issues), on the same map as a cantina that shows that service is available when nobody is actually there, makes this once promising system a laughing stock.
1) Unattended gameplay. There's no social interaction, and therefore no reason for me to log on. This will be the issue that causes me to cancel my account. Whether the solution is positive or negative enforcement, I don't care. I just want to be able to find other entertainers who are active and social. If I can't, it's game-breaking.
1a) I'd settle for a developer response at this point that said either:
A)"Things are working as intended with the 'afk' situation and will not be changing in the forseeable future.
or
B) "We recognize thatthere is a very serious problem and are doing everything we can to put an end to it. Expect a solution in (x) months."
Basically, I want to hear in no uncertain terms whether I'm wasting my time holding onto false hope, or if there's actually going to be some relief around the corner.
2) Entertainer missions. They need improvement. Vast improvement. They should provide an alternatemeans of acquiring experience (though, perhaps less than performing)and a worthwhile monetary reward. They do neither.
3) Additional content. Songs, dances, flourishes, appearance changes, the whole thing.While the Dancer, Musician, and Image Design forums have these on their top 5 lists, they're features that are badly needed on the entertainer trees as well.
4) Cantina registration.Fix it. Expand it. It's clearly of very limited use right now, but it has the potential to be a powerful tool.
5) Improvements to Master Entertainer. This doesn't really apply to me, as I have no desire to be a master entertainer. Then again, perhaps there's a reason for that. Something needs to happen for MEs. The ideas for lower cantina maintenance, lower vendor costs, etc. were interesting. Perhaps skewing MEs toward "management" and away from "performance" is a good idea; it takes nothing away from the elite professions, but adds abilities all elite professions could make use of. Something to think about, anyway.
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Really, though, I'm in agreement with Nvoigt. Afkers are the only game-breaking issue in the game for me, and it's such a major issue that I've been seriously considering cancelling my account for months. I barely log in anymore because the social atmosphere that the profession promised has entirely vanished. This needs to beaddressed in some way, and I don't think additional content is going to have any effect on it.
1. AFKs
2. AFKs
3. AFKs
4. Make missions worth doing
5. Did I mention AFKs?
Nhari wrote:
1) Unattended gameplay. There's no social interaction, and therefore no reason for me to log on. This will be the issue that causes me to cancel my account. Whether the solution is positive or negative enforcement, I don't care. I just want to be able to find other entertainers who are active and social. If I can't, it's game-breaking.
1a) I'd settle for a developer response at this point that said either:
A)"Things are working as intended with the 'afk' situation and will not be changing in the forseeable future.
or
B) "We recognize thatthere is a very serious problem and are doing everything we can to put an end to it. Expect a solution in (x) months."
Basically, I want to hear in no uncertain terms whether I'm wasting my time holding onto false hope, or if there's actually going to be some relief around the corner.
Really, though, I'm in agreement with Nvoigt. Afkers are the only game-breaking issue in the game for me, and it's such a major issue that I've been seriously considering cancelling my account for months. I barely log in anymore because the social atmosphere that the profession promised has entirely vanished. This needs to beaddressed in some way, and I don't think additional content is going to have any effect on it.
I tend to agree. It is a game breaking issue. It was a problem before the holocron so the popular argument that it will die off doesn't hold much water for me. Until the game breaking problem is resolved, little else matters. I won't need new dances, music, instruments, or content if I no longer play the game.
Here are my top issues:
[1] No gameplay elements
None... I mean, if you count the startmusic command as gameplay, then I GUESS there is some, but the difference between Entertainer and Marksman (a macro-able profession) is that in Marksman it's more fun to do things manually instead of with a macro. For entertainer, typing /flo 3 ever 10 seconds is a burden, not a joy.
[2] No entertainer content
None whatsoever... There is nothing in this game for entertainers to do than to pick a spot and type /startdance <dance>... Missions are a joke (and most certainly don't count as content), so there is nothing an entertainer can do that is unique to entertainers... I'm surprised that the profession has lasted as long as it has.
[3] There is nothing to make Entertainers individuals
Right now one Master Dancer is the same as every other Master Dancer. For other classes there are weapons, armor, tools, resources, etc that they have to collect and learn how to use in order to become the best at what they do. Not to mention that each of those varies in quality or type which affects performance. FWG5 or Republic Blaster? Scatter Pistol or LLC? Do I want light Mabari or do I want Adv Composite with doc buffs? For Entertainers it doesn't matter what they do, players get healed all the same. The only reason that we switch dances or instruments is for XP or because Folk is better on my ears than SW3...
Nhari wrote:
1a) I'd settle for a developer response at this point ended gameplay. There's no social interaction, and therefore no reason for me to log that said either:
A)"Things are working as intended with the 'afk' situation and will not be changing in the forseeable future.
or
B) "We recognize thatthere is a very serious problem and are doing everything we can to put an end to it. Expect a solution in (x) months."
Basically, I want to hear in no uncertain terms whether I'm wasting my time holding onto false hope, or if there's actually going to be some relief around the corner.
Actually, things ARE working as intended with the 'afk' situation, at least at the root of the problem. Macros are a part of the game (a part that I love), and changing that would be game-breaking itself.
The only thing the devs could comment on would be whether or not they plan on changing the way dancing works. Right now I can macro the entire Brawler tree, Marksman tree, Entertainer tree (aside from clicking a lot for ID), the Scout tree (aside from making new traps/camps every so often), and I can macro the Artisan and Medic trees aside from the crafting (in which I can make a macro to help with that a lot).
The only reason that AFKers are such a pain in the Entertainer's side is because it'sa profession COMPLETELY LACKING IN [Gameplay] AND [Content]!!! Since there is nothing for your character to really do, all you can do is socialize Player to Player. And AFKers happen to drop the ball on one half making the profession Player to NPC...
Message Edited by Tiaga on 01-17-2004 02:02 PM
1) Glaring lack of content that makes this profession and the elites that spawn from itso completely boring that even masters AFK rather than subject themselves to the play of it.
2) The lack of an image design perk at master entertainer.
3) Missions. They are boring and do not pay enough to encourage being completed.
4) Entertainer healing experience is slowly becoming impossible to gain at a normal rate.
5) There is no entertaining and fun solo content. A player who wants to sit at the keyboard and play their character should always have something fun to do. Image designer, musician, dancer... They all need some kind of content for times when another player is not around.