Asheron's Call Homepage

[Severlin]

Sooo...

I am slogging through 9 years of quest timer data so I can create a timer panel hopefully as a precursor to some better quest tracking tools for the players. (No promises; the sheer amount of data might make a full blow quest system too time consuming.) Anyway as I am trying to figure out the best way to display quest timer data I am also thinking about how to make it easier for people to not only track quest timers but to coordinate around them.

What if I changed the quest timers that were great than 20 hours so they all refreshed at the same time? Would people find that it would be easier to track and coordinated quests?

Here's what I mean. Let's assume the plan is to have longer quest timers be divided into day long, twice weekly, weekly, biweekely, or monthly. We pick some abitrary server time - say 5:00 am EST. Everyone's quest timers reset at the same time. As an example schedule:

Daily: Each day 5 am EST.
Twice weekly: Tuesday and Friday at 5 am.
Weekly: Tuesday at 5 am.
Biweekly: Every other Tuesday at 5 am.
Monthly: Every fourth Tuesday at 5 am.

Assuming we could tweak the actual time, and we could implement it so people in other timezones aren't hurt by the system, so people think handling quest timers this way (along with a timer display panel) would help them track quest timers and organize around them?

Sev~

[Gedatsu]

*bangs head on desk*

[Hexxor]

I do not think you need to put that much development time in to a Quest tracker. Just set it up so we can add/delete and modify a quest. Leave it blank for us to fill out even. Just the give us the tool.

If you want to add something nice to it, have it update a central server that everyone can read data from or even simpler let us store the quest data on the local machine. If on the local machine make it an easily transportablie file, you know maching to machine.

This would be a great inital start. Add other stuff later.

Hexxor

[Paloma]

Consistency would be nice and a global reset would be great - if it were applied consistently.

One of the reasons many players end up "breaking" their timers is because timers function in so many different ways. In the majority of older quests, if a player disposes of a needed item (some loot trophy required for the next step), the timer expires in X amt of time, and the player can retrieve the item a 2nd time and continue on. In cases like the Bur Recall quest, the K'nath Core, etc, this doesn't hold true.

For Elysa's Phantasmal Arrow, the arrow can be created and carried about for 3 months, but when the player moves to complete the quest, they aren't able because the timer/flag was on creating the arrow itself, not on using the portal involved. It is quite easy for a player to have 3 or 4 Phant. Arrows in his or her possession, and still not be able to complete the quest. Nor are they able to use the arrows they already possessed.

And, the piece de resistance.... Bonecrunch/Jarvis/Key/Chest rewards have more timers involved than Elysa has bedmates.

(Side plug: Make each mob/boss drop rewards in line with Lunnum's keys please)

[Paraduck]

While it would probably help casual players, I'd find this a bit annoying.

Also, if I'm understanding your post correctly, if people knew when the timers reset, they could do it a few minutes before the timer and then repeat the quest almost immediately again, right?

[self_adhesive]

This would be a happily welcome change which would greatly benefit those of us on smaller servers who still like to try epic quests on timers.

It also gives a slight edge to folks who REALLY want to take advantage of the system.
e.g. Daily timer = 5 am EST
Take your toons on Colo champs at 4:55am and again at 5:05am.

They aren't technically getting ahead, but it has a bigger mental impact when you consider something like Aerbax where you could conceivably run, win, and get rewards in back to back runs.

I would favor this change even outside the realm of a quest timer system, so if it is a step in getting to quest timer, I get icing on the cake.

[Hexxor]

Originally Posted by Paraduck

Also, if I'm understanding your post correctly, if people knew when the timers reset, they could do it a few minutes before the timer and then repeat the quest almost immediately again, right?

I do not think that is what he intends. You will probably have to wait until the DAY your timer is up, but it will reset at 5am instead of when ever you ran it last.

Edit: Even if you ran it before 5am you would then be on a new DAY later. So when 5am rolls around it would not be your day to reset. I think it could work.

[Sizz-Lorr!]

i think a hard reset would be ok in some cases and not so much on others. i agree that all we really need is something to show us timers for quests we are flagged for that have timers for completion with the option to remove them from the list if desired (i don't want to do encrusted bloodstone jewel ever again). the mechanic exists to tell us up front what the timer is for quests (deru tree) and i'd be happy if all the npcs that start quests did the same thing, especially the dark idol guy and the golem for saving asheron.

[NoWorries]

Originally Posted by Paraduck

While it would probably help casual players, I'd find this a bit annoying.

Also, if I'm understanding your post correctly, if people knew when the timers reset, they could do it a few minutes before the timer and then repeat the quest almost immediately again, right?

Only the very first time. The next time you tried to do it that way your timer would not be up before the reset.

For example using the 5am tuesday setup and a weekly quest:

You do the weekly quest at 4:30 am and at 5:30 am. The following tuesday you are not able to do that quest again until after 5 am since you already did it this week.

[Severlin]

Originally Posted by Hexxor

I do not think that is what he intends. You will probably have to wait until the DAY your timer is up, but it will reset at 5am instead of when ever you ran it last.

Edit: Even if you ran it before 5am you would then be on a new DAY later. So when 5am rolls around it would not be your day to reset. I think it could work.

If you happened to be awake at 4 am you could run a daily quest, let the timer reset, and run the daily quest again an hour later. The advantage here is if you do the quest a different time each day you don't get timer drift where the timer keeps shifting. You can log on any time during the day/week/month and do the quest.

The downside is if you procrastinate and wait until the last minute and something happens (your internet goes down, something comes up, or worse for us the server has an issue) you might miss you quest for that time period.

Sev~

[Siz]

Perhaps I'm missing something, but I don't understand why it would need to be so complicated.

Many quests have timers. The game somehow already keeps track of those timers. Just make a panel in the character info sheets somewhere that displays what the game already keeps track of. I don't see why it would need to be more complicated than that.

EDIT
Sort of like the sheet that tells what buffs you have on you and when you expire. If you don't have a particular buff, it doesn't display a count down for it.

I don't see why quest timers should be any different. As soon as you complete one, it puts the countdown on the sheet and that's the end of it. Simple. But there's probably some arcane technical issue as to why that can't be done.

[Severlin]

Originally Posted by Hexxor

I do not think you need to put that much development time in to a Quest tracker. Just set it up so we can add/delete and modify a quest. Leave it blank for us to fill out even. Just the give us the tool.

If you want to add something nice to it, have it update a central server that everyone can read data from or even simpler let us store the quest data on the local machine. If on the local machine make it an easily transportablie file, you know maching to machine.

This would be a great inital start. Add other stuff later.

Hexxor

Yes, longer term I am thinking that an in game quest journal might be the way to go. An NPC could be set up to automatically add a page with preset data, but the player could also add a page and add custom data as well. We would probably want a way for players to share data then. But that would be much longer term than just helping players track all their quest timers.

Sev~

[Hexxor]

So even after the inital reset, it is possible to do 2 back to back runs IF you happen to miss a run in between.

Anyone resubbing would be able to make 2 back to back runs.

I do not think that is a big deal though.

[Severlin]

Originally Posted by Siz

Perhaps I'm missing something, but I don't understand why it would need to be so complicated.

Many quests have timers. The game somehow already keeps track of those timers. Just make a panel in the character info sheets somewhere that displays what the game already keeps track of. I don't see why it would need to be more complicated than that.

EDIT
Sort of like the sheet that tells what buffs you have on you and when you expire. If you don't have a particular buff, it doesn't display a count down for it.

I don't see why quest timers should be any different. As soon as you complete one, it puts the countdown on the sheet and that's the end of it. Simple. But there's probably some arcane technical issue as to why that can't be done.

That's the current plan. That helps you view quest timers but it doesn't help you manage them.

When I talk about being time consuming, I am not talking about a way to view timers. I am talking about a way to view all the quests you have encountered. Or at least an in game quest journal that let's you enter quest data yourself.

Sev~

[Siz]

Originally Posted by Severlin

That's the current plan. That helps you view quest timers but it doesn't help you manage them.

When I talk about being time consuming, I am not talking about a way to view timers. I am talking about a way to view all the quests you have encountered. Or at least an in game quest journal that let's you enter quest data yourself.

Sev~

I see, reading comprehension mistake on my part.

I think trying to backtrack may be a bit too much of a hassle. Here's my take on what you should do:

For the majority of quests, just have it update as people do the quests again. Don't backtrack and try to hunt down the info for anyone. If a timer hasn't expired on a quest, that's fine, if they try to do it, it will update the sheet to show that the timer isn't done. From there the info is available from that point on and people can utilize it as they see fit.

For the ones that are 1 time only or special quests, that's a lot less info to backtrack. Just set those up to be managed initially, it will cut down the amount of work it seems to me. Within a month or two everything will have evened out.


EDIT

To clarify, when you put this in, everyone's quest timer panel would be blank. As they do quests etc, it updates it even if their timers aren't up. Just communicate that clearly so that everyone understands. Some will complain a bit, but it will die down once people start to get their stuff updated. It's better than nothing, it requires less of your time, and it gets the job done.