Somethings I need to get off my chest (rant, feel free to drop your rants here too!)

[Lupophobia]

Jarbas when you have dark ele can hit from 300~400 with megid normally with sword buff 600~700  with dark armor, some have attack a shield on them, and they already resist melee so thats problematic.
Megid isnt this isnt that big of an issue, but their punches can easily do 1.2k, rather i find it more annoying that nanoblasts can be invalidated so easily when SUV's are like free damage pops.
the only situations nanoblasts should be used is to bypass the damage nerfs to melee attacks for those enemies, but they're so squishy that it's hard to consider them at times unless you use the invincible one, which i really hate using.
I wouldnt consider megid, or their fist to be their main threat, its more of the fact that this fire enemy can deal multiple elemental attacks at you, and one of them is dambarta, something i noticed they like to do is double cast a tech, before changing what they want to use, so They'll use dambarta, then you'll stagger, but immediately go and cast a 2nd dambarta. and have two up at the same exact time, and it S U C K S. it makes it hard for them to be approached for melee and you'll have to resort to just using guns overall.

the biggest issue for them though is definitely the double stacking of half guard and shield buff for melee.
Also there's mizuri's in this mission that all have 50k HP, nice. also half guard. Also extremely evasive. (This is literally the definition of "I hate beasts.") 
I really hate mad beasts S2. but ashviens is here.

[Lupophobia]

I also really hate incapacitate on melee weapons, even having demonic muramasa, its so much of a gamble if it procs or not for these darn bugs im usually able to just keep mashing gravity strike over and over and over without using JA, just to see how often it'll actually proc and alot of times it'll be like half HP, the element doesnt even match and i'm not even using with JAs to deal more damage, thats alot of swings man.  
Even if i shoot the bugs they still have 50k hp. and i only do like 1500 a shot. so I'll be here awhile. i do not look forward to S3 or S4 bugs. 

[Zeta]

My experience with difficulty and enemy damage...

Prior to S2 I used to run around with neutral armor. Both because I couldn't be bothered to farm new armor (doing Military Subway for Armas Lines was not a fun experience for an acrofighter), and because it made things more exciting and challenging. There are some situations that this didn't work so well in (Castle of Monsters for sure. Dark Falz Final was also pretty dangerous), but generally I could make neutral armor work out if I was careful and kept on my toes. Enemy TECHNIC users with sword boosts were a serious threat that often had me playing evasive with twin handguns (and yes I mean you, packs of Olgohmon), but I'm guessing that sword boost enemies are supposed to hit like trucks. Back then I often used Agatarides instead of Megistarides, to save meseta.

Come S2 and the neutral Armas Line I dropped like 3m on is collecting dust. S2 feels like a huge jump. Now I have to have a full set of elemental armor, and I find myself having to chug Megistarides for the damage reduction on top of that. A -> S was cool because whoa suddenly all the enemies are faster and I have to adapt and learn to deal with it. S -> S2 is more like 'whoa suddenly all the enemies are level 150+ and hit like trucks'. Pretty big jump, makes me wonder what exactly S3 and S4 are going to be like.

I'm a pretty big fan of dangerous enemies and challenge, but at the same time I rolled my newman off Masterforce to Wartecher because I was tired of dying 1~3 times per Sacred Stream S2. Having to Jellen 20 the sword buff Shinowa Hidoki so I can just barely avoid getting 2 shot even with light armor is a bit too much for even me. Though now that I'm playing Wartecher instead I'm generally not in any danger of dying on that mission. 

7 minutes ago, Lupophobia said:

the biggest issue for them though is definitely the double stacking of half guard and shield buff for melee.

Yeah these two things should definitely not stack. I had to level up my newman alt to cap so that I could run Sacred Stream S2 with its horde of strike resist + shield buff robots. Going through that mission as a non-TECHNIC user is basically not an option given how the bots take like 1/3rd damage from anything but techs.

[Lupophobia]

I feel the tankier issues wouldn't be much of an issue if heavier weapons could do the job effectively.
Like rods? Have them bypass the tech restriction if you use rods, Melee? heavier weapons for tougher more durable enemies,
Bullets? There's an anti tank andriod rifle.. So lore wise it would make sense if rifles pierced the shell of heavier enemies.

It would be interesting if weapons had more of a role to combat certain issues.

TCSMs for SEs, 
Rods for tankier mobs,
wands for better speedier dps.

Heavy two hand weapons,  Armor pierce.
dual wield, Evasive enemies or multi-target enemies.
single weapon, singe target damage focus.

Not really sure what to do with bullets, but they already fit in to a sort of role already, but could also have features to bypass certain mechanics like half-guard or tankier enemies for better solo-ability.
Not saying disregard the mechanic, but rather, have more options for the tools you currently have to deal with it.

[Seority]

Perhaps I haven't played enough missions solo, but the game doesn't seem as drastically hard as you are putting it. Sure, it's not a cake walk and does take some time, but things seem fairly do-able.

My issue is when you've battled through all that mess, what you're rewarded with is frequently underwhelming. "Oh look, 4 Photons at clear boxes again." That's the main thing that kills my momentum over anything else.

Also, I feel the same with @Selpheain which I want to use my cards and techs while I play, but then I'm cutting my dps in half if I don't soley use my dagger. It seems like certain things are so op, that you're doing something wrong if you don't play a specific way.

[Lupophobia]

1 hour ago, Seority said:

Perhaps I haven't played enough missions solo, but the game doesn't seem as drastically hard as you are putting it. Sure, it's not a cake walk and does take some time, but things seem fairly do-able.

My issue is when you've battled through all that mess, what you're rewarded with is frequently underwhelming. "Oh look, 4 Photons at clear boxes again." That's the main thing that kills my momentum over anything else.

Also, I feel the same with @Selpheain which I want to use my cards and techs while I play, but then I'm cutting my dps in half if I don't soley use my dagger. It seems like certain things are so op, that you're doing something wrong if you don't play a specific way.

Right, the issue isnt just exactly one thing, its multiple small issues compiled upon each other, then your reach the end and its just 
and if you want the run to go by faster, you end up  skipping mobs which usually means:

6k and i guess a few vulcaline, ebons and vestaline. 

I end up losing more resources to just repurchasing all my photon chargers  and replenishing the basic items in this mission, and I don't even mean scape dolls.
 

Edited August 29, 2021 by Lupophobia

[Zeta]

9 hours ago, Seority said:

Perhaps I haven't played enough missions solo, but the game doesn't seem as drastically hard as you are putting it. Sure, it's not a cake walk and does take some time, but things seem fairly do-able.

I'm not complaining that the game is too hard or anything, just pointing out how much of a spike that S -> S2 was. It's a much bigger jump than any of the previous difficulties, and we still have two difficulties to go. What will enemies on S3 and S4 be like? I'm curious to know.

10 hours ago, Seority said:

My issue is when you've battled through all that mess, what you're rewarded with is frequently underwhelming. "Oh look, 4 Photons at clear boxes again." That's the main thing that kills my momentum over anything else.

Yeah, it's not fun to break clear boxes and get things that are effectively worthless. I wouldn't complain if photons and other sub 7* crafting materials disappeared from clear boxes completely.

10 hours ago, Seority said:

Also, I feel the same with @Selpheain which I want to use my cards and techs while I play, but then I'm cutting my dps in half if I don't soley use my dagger. It seems like certain things are so op, that you're doing something wrong if you don't play a specific way.

I think everyone can agree that buffs to less appealing PAs and weapons would be great to see. In particular I'd love to see more use out of one handed sabers. They're super stylish but they aren't good at mobbing (which my single claw is good at) and they're outclassed by daggers or assault crush for multi hitbox enemies. The main use I've found for them is to Spinning Strike tanky single hitbox enemies (like bal soza). And yes I know 'farm incap sabers', but come on I want to use them against things that aren't vulnerable to incap too.

 

[Lupophobia]

in a fair situation its not really much of an issue, I think its really more of an issue because of the level restrictions in place currently,  like if players were given a chance to go from lvl 119=>140 or 150 then the gap between stats wouldnt be nearly as massive.

[Selphea]

Actually the gap still would be massive.

For instance a level 165 Dark Falz 2 with a 280% ATP modifier gains 4480 ATP compared to retail, based on the current stat adjustments.

[Lupophobia]

On 8/30/2021 at 6:57 PM, Selphea said:

Actually the gap still would be massive.

For instance a level 165 Dark Falz 2 with a 280% ATP modifier gains 4480 ATP compared to retail, based on the current stat adjustments.

Looking at the numbers its still massive... But there seems to be some.. drop off at some point? like sega steadily increasing it up to 180 to be higher and higher.. actually i'm not even sure. what the % fluctuation actually is.

But there definitely seems to be an severe spike after 140, and 140 was already a 8~10% jump, Then from there its almost 40~50% jump. 5 levels higher. it doesn't.. make any sense.

Edited September 2, 2021 by Lupophobia

[Lupophobia]

Maybe... the issue isnt the drop rate, but the fact that certain missions have a higher loot table over others.. cause it seems like specifically missions i run don't drop much, and this is with the boost active, and i believe this is like my 16th run?

Still no luck on ashviens

However, on missions that are more up-to-date in terms of official/clementine, like White Beast, Robotanical, Sunken, or any missions exclusive to AOTI and JP.. The clear rewards seem alot more rewarding..
I could be entirely wrong, but this is what it FEELS like.

And yes i'm aware drops were shuffled and adjusted and implemented in their own way from clementine, but i'm really curious if the type of mission also affects it, and we're not really aware of it.
(like  a hidden modifier for those missions.)

Edited September 5, 2021 by Lupophobia

[Aelphasy]

I hope you haven't based your whole analysis / thinking on that mission, because it really gives that impression.

 

 

Quote

Maybe... the issue isnt the drop rate, but the fact that certain missions have a higher loot table over others..

... Yes ? Yes. It's known.

Quote

and i believe this is like my 16th run?

Try 50-60 more at least or go run another one.

[Lupophobia]

7 hours ago, Aelphasy said:

I hope you haven't based your whole analysis / thinking on that mission, because it really gives that impression.

 

 

... Yes ? Yes. It's known.

Try 50-60 more at least or go run another one.

if you need to do 50~60 runs to see one item drop with increased drop rate for one particular mission then the issue becomes the missions drop rates. And no I wasn't just basing this off one mission, Because I cycle through missions in order to keep the scenery fresh.
I've run this mission alot more than just 15~16 times outside of the boost, and it just seems disproportionately low considering that its also the only mission that drops ashviens and no one else cares to farm the item.  meanwhile anything else I farm has a much higher rate than this. No I dont believe this is just public knowledge because there isn't a spreadsheet detailing the rates of items outside the game. It was of my understanding that drops were simply just spread out to give more variety to missions. That's all. Not that cherry picked missions would have higher rates over all than any other mission because it defeats the purpose of variety when implementing the drop rates.

[Selphea]

The missions with a boss seem to have nice drops and are pretty profitable. Some missions like Lab Recovery though, you wade through all those Mizura and Jarba and Polavohras just for 4 boxes at the end. That's a huge oof right there.

[Seority]

As a player whom has spent double digit hours hunting for items that dropped in only a few runs for others...

It's just RNG. Some of us have a it way worse than others. 

Oddly, the ones that bitch about this the most, seem to be the more lucky ones. Maybe I should try this strat out? 

[Lupophobia]

9 hours ago, Seority said:

As a player whom has spent double digit hours hunting for items that dropped in only a few runs for others...

It's just RNG. Some of us have a it way worse than others. 

Oddly, the ones that bitch about this the most, seem to be the more lucky ones. Maybe I should try this strat out? 

RNG for me works like this, Assume nothing, always profit. But whenever i actively want to farm and get something, I'm usually constantly denied in getting that specific item.