Contracts vs cheap kills aka grinding

Time: yesterday, 20 minutes left to complete a contract.
Place: DIABLO STATION.
Contract: Kill / destroy 15 blast pods

I went there to make the contract, i thought 20 minutes were more than enough to complete that particular challenge. So , i entered Diablo Station to activate the event there, i completed the event but only destroyed 9 blast pods. I was alone.

I exited Diablo station and go back again to reinitiate the event again. In those few seconds that i left the place and return the instance must have changed.
When i entered the place only one pheromone spot left to be destroyed, i thought to my self, cool it will be faster.
Two players there only, and suddenly i hear someone asking not to shoot at the pheromones.
I didn`t at first, i looked around and watched what they were doing. Cheap sniper kills on the skitterlings.
Ok i thought to my self again, maybe if i go out and come again , maybe the instance could shift again.
I go out and come again and they were still there.
Because i had one more contract to complete in the same time window i went to Marin to kill some 99rs near the antenas. DONE.

Less then 5 minutes to end/fail contract, i returned to Diablo Station and, THEY were still there killing skitterlings uppon spawning.
Once again i thought to my self, but this time i picked up my shotty and started running to the place they where and destroyed the pheromones.

I was cumplimented with some words of apreciation for my deed.

Come on people, you go grind cheap kills to a place, the only place where a specific contract must be done and the ones that actually are playing the objective are to blame !?

People can grind anywhere at anytime, contracts in the other hand have specific time frames.
Get a grip and don`t insult people that are just trying to play the game as it should be played.

And this was my rant of the day :)

I can think of at least a dozen way better places to grind BASR kills...

Next time just do your own thing. Not like there's a community you have to worry about getting shunned by. Hell, they probably wouldn't even see your name.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Swag

I can think of at least a dozen way better places to grind BASR kills...

Next time just do your own thing. Not like there's a community you have to worry about getting shunned by. Hell, they probably wouldn't even see your name.

---

And that is the greatest problem with this game, the lack of social interaction.

Generally if I see someone at a spot where I know they are grinding I just do something else. I know this is an MMO but I can be selfish and I do kinda get pissed when I'm in my groove and someone comes along and screws it up. haha

But again I know I'm in the wrong because it's an MMO so they have no right to complain. Just ignore them and move on.

Hopefully the UI fix comes soon and they fix the push to talk for PC so people might actually use it. 90% of my social interaction occurs in TeamSpeak. Most of the time the chat in game breaks and I can't even use clan chat.

Defiance's Miss Manners Responds:

If they are in a public spot they have to expect public action. Since they asked you not to shoot the pheremones, you might owe them a "sorry dude I need the blast pods" tell, but only if your feeling social. You were more than hospitable going out and coming back like you did.

They can ask for something like that, but you or anyone else has no obligation to comply.

Thats my take anyway.

This wouldn't be a problem with open world PvP.

Survival of the fittest! You earn your grinding spot! =D

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Orbital

Hopefully the UI fix comes soon and they fix the push to talk for PC so people might actually use it. 90% of my social interaction occurs in TeamSpeak. Most of the time the chat in game breaks and I can't even use clan chat.

---

I'm sure there are others like me, I will simply never us a game's provided voice chat. General chat is bad enough, the last thing I want to do is have to listen to these morons over voice chat.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Kibblehouse

Defiance's Miss Manners Responds:

If they are in a public spot they have to expect public action. Since they asked you not to shoot the pheremones, you might owe them a "sorry dude I need the blast pods" tell, but only if your feeling social. You were more than hospitable going out and coming back like you did.

They can ask for something like that, but you or anyone else has no obligation to comply.

Thats my take anyway.

---

Well said. Sums it up nicely.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by drackiller

I was cumplimented with some words of apreciation for my deed.

Come on people, you go grind cheap kills to a place, the only place where a specific contract must be done and the ones that actually are playing the objective are to blame !?

---

I got my BASR kills there too, but when someone came to do the quest, I'd just get a higher ground and kill all things spawned there. I mean, kills are still kills, what's the problem? Tell them you're there for the contract if you care and do your thing, nothing wrong with it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Sonickat

I'm sure there are others like me, I will simply never us a game's provided voice chat. General chat is bad enough, the last thing I want to do is have to listen to these morons over voice chat.

---

Truer words, have yet to be spoken.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Keeper Riff

I got my BASR kills there too, but when someone came to do the quest, I'd just get a higher ground and kill all things spawned there. I mean, kills are still kills, what's the problem? Tell them you're there for the contract if you care and do your thing, nothing wrong with it.

---

Like i said b4 , i was short of time. I tryied to explain them after that, i even wrote a message, but they just prefered to insult and instantly fast travel i guess :)
Some fault is mine, because i rarely use my headset, if i had being making use of it, probably all would be good.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Swag

I can think of at least a dozen way better places to grind BASR kills...

Next time just do your own thing. Not like there's a community you have to worry about getting shunned by. Hell, they probably wouldn't even see your name.

---

Nagh.. most will shun you before they read your name.

Farming kills cool. Everyone does it. People just miss
the "maximize play time" scenario this game has.
They chase the pursuits that are insignificant, in the
sense of productivity and multitasking. After those
easy ones are completed they have "nothing to do"
and are "bored". Which we have all read Threads on here
of such. Contracts are the way to go.. earn that vendor
Reputation. . and don't hesitate to destroy those pheromones
regardless who asks you to.. even if it is Carl Von Bach.

Now imagine if this game didn't have any shards. Popular places would never be empty. lol

I started playing on my PC a couple weeks ago, and I wonder - how do you even SEE someone saying something to you in chat?

The chat window is like 1 line exposed, teeny tiny. All I ever see in it are "you are currently bound at blah blah" messages.

Every single player I've ever seen in the game could have said something to me, I wouldn't know.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ironbar Sinister

I started playing on my PC a couple weeks ago, and I wonder - how do you even SEE someone saying something to you in chat?

The chat window is like 1 line exposed, teeny tiny. All I ever see in it are "you are currently bound at blah blah" messages.

Every single player I've ever seen in the game could have said something to me, I wouldn't know.

---

I play at a resolution of 2560x1440.

You don't know tiny until you see the chat window at THAT resolution.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ironbar Sinister

I started playing on my PC a couple weeks ago, and I wonder - how do you even SEE someone saying something to you in chat?

The chat window is like 1 line exposed, teeny tiny. All I ever see in it are "you are currently bound at blah blah" messages.

Every single player I've ever seen in the game could have said something to me, I wouldn't know.

---

its worse when you try to go past the bridge to the island, I get spammed with 10+ bind messages.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Remag Div

I play at a resolution of 2560x1440.

You don't know tiny until you see the chat window at THAT resolution.

---

Yah, I do - on my Dell U2711. ;)

I say don't worry about those fools... they can re-enter the area and be back to what they were doing and you can move along to other better things to do.

There are like a dozen better places. Just tell them to go Big Stone Reach.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ironbar Sinister

I started playing on my PC a couple weeks ago, and I wonder - how do you even SEE someone saying something to you in chat?

The chat window is like 1 line exposed, teeny tiny. All I ever see in it are "you are currently bound at blah blah" messages.

Every single player I've ever seen in the game could have said something to me, I wouldn't know.

---

Only started yesterday and thought I was the only person around until I noticed little purple dots were other folk.

First "mmo" i've played that rivals a library for silence.

I play on PS3 and the chat window is quite visible and very noticeable if someone is writing.
But the insults were via voice chat, since i don`t mute chanels , on proximity i hear people talking.
what matters is that i completed the contract in time ;)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by drackiller

I play on PS3 and the chat window is quite visible and very noticeable if someone is writing.

---

That's because the console's resolution is *** and the UI is super big. The map is like half the screen on consoles. LOL

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Remag Div

That's because the console's resolution is *** and the UI is super big. The map is like half the screen on consoles. LOL

---

LOL, i believe so, but in consoles that depends also in the level setting of the overscan, that i have in minimum.

i did the assassin pursuit in an open world environment where i had to deal with people killing my targets as they thought they were helping. I just had to deal with it, it was my choice of location. Its not a single player game (though it can feel that way) so you have to deal with other people who may have priorities that aren't the same as yours. Its why skitterlings almost drove people mad before the changes to red crystal arkfalls, it wasn't anyones fault except bad design choices.

I never thought to use skitterlings for sniper practice, thats massive overkill. BASR can hit for 6k, there wouldn't be anything left. I prefered raiders as they were more predictable (or were for me by time I got BASR to lvl 16 and Semi Auto to lvl 10 using same 13 raiders) and the guys with shields always seemed to have 100 ark salvage which was a nice earner.

I used to do all the contracts I could but I am getting lazy, almost 1k with soleptor yet they have nothing I want, the other 2 pve reps are close to 1k too, Paradise really needs more quests and I don't do pvp so yeah, I don't really bother now as the weeklies tend to do themselves over the period of a week, and I will do a daily if I am in area.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Remag Div

This wouldn't be a problem with open world PvP.

Survival of the fittest! You earn your grinding spot! =D

---

Ahh the AC-DT memories :D Thanks for that!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by drackiller

Time: yesterday, 20 minutes left to complete a contract.
Place: DIABLO STATION.
Contract: Kill / destroy 15 blast pods

I went there to make the contract, i thought 20 minutes were more than enough to complete that particular challenge. So , i entered Diablo Station to activate the event there, i completed the event but only destroyed 9 blast pods. I was alone.

I exited Diablo station and go back again to reinitiate the event again. In those few seconds that i left the place and return the instance must have changed.
When i entered the place only one pheromone spot left to be destroyed, i thought to my self, cool it will be faster.
Two players there only, and suddenly i hear someone asking not to shoot at the pheromones.
I didn`t at first, i looked around and watched what they were doing. Cheap sniper kills on the skitterlings.
Ok i thought to my self again, maybe if i go out and come again , maybe the instance could shift again.
I go out and come again and they were still there.
Because i had one more contract to complete in the same time window i went to Marin to kill some 99rs near the antenas. DONE.

Less then 5 minutes to end/fail contract, i returned to Diablo Station and, THEY were still there killing skitterlings uppon spawning.
Once again i thought to my self, but this time i picked up my shotty and started running to the place they where and destroyed the pheromones.

I was cumplimented with some words of apreciation for my deed.

Come on people, you go grind cheap kills to a place, the only place where a specific contract must be done and the ones that actually are playing the objective are to blame !?

People can grind anywhere at anytime, contracts in the other hand have specific time frames.
Get a grip and don`t insult people that are just trying to play the game as it should be played.

And this was my rant of the day :)

---

Well the problem is in this game as in others there will always be different competing things people need or want to do. Main example: killing skitterlings at arkfalls (and no I don't want to discuss that particular black hole argument). The hulker at San Quentin (and no I don't want to argue that one either). Freight yard turret kills vs. doing the team effort thing to try and actually win the match.

Those are all examples of objectives that collide.

I'd say if you are attempting to finish a contract well you do that. If I happen to be somewhere and someone is using that particular area for their own pursuit but I have a timed contract to finish out and can't do it any other way, it's just too bad. I wouldn't go out of my way to do that to someone (you weren't) but that person can snipe elsewhere and get more for doing so.

Sometimes, you just have to do what you need to do and it's not like that sniper couldn't have gone out and come back in to start it again.

No I don't want to argue about the San Quentin Hulker but the same thing applies there. I've heard people get upset because someone killed the Hulker when they wanted to keep him alive to get weapon xp. Well, so what. When I go for the Hulker for weapon xp I always kill him, get the reward weapon for doing so and re-rack it. I kill all the raiders, disable the turrets, and go again. I don't do that just to anger someone who is farming the Hulker for xp, but if I'm killing Hulkers for a pursuit then yes, he's dead.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Colif

i did the assassin pursuit in an open world environment where i had to deal with people killing my targets as they thought they were helping. I just had to deal with it, it was my choice of location. Its not a single player game (though it can feel that way) so you have to deal with other people who may have priorities that aren't the same as yours. Its why skitterlings almost drove people mad before the changes to red crystal arkfalls, it wasn't anyones fault except bad design choices.--snipped

---

Funny thing is people still argue about it. One guy online insisted people need to stop because he doesn't want arkfalls to take too long and he got into a heated argument about it. Well, personally I think it's all good. If I tag a lot of bugs at arkfalls and then do what I want to do to get the most damage, I'm ok with it. I get lots of drops and I like it sometimes being number one and letting others get the kills they need. I like it also because they do me a service by getting rid of all the pesky bugs that attack me.

I do go all over the place to try out the BASR just to change things up. And Bolinas' hot shot is a good place to go once in awhile. The snipers are the last things I have left and I just plan to get them slowly, so I don't really pursue them. I snipe once in awhile. And I'd never let it interfere with what someone else is doing where possible.

It`s curious but, the last 3 daily contracts from VBI have been the same contract in Diablo Station.
It´s kind of strange that the contract is repeating day after day.
At least it`s easy to achieve.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Remag Div

This wouldn't be a problem with open world PvP.

Survival of the fittest! You earn your grinding spot! =D

---

We wouldn't need grinding spots. We'd just be grinding each other.

Okay. That came out wrong.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by drackiller

It`s curious but, the last 3 daily contracts from VBI have been the same contract in Diablo Station.
It´s kind of strange that the contract is repeating day after day.
At least it`s easy to achieve.

---

That does happen sometimes for all of them. Echelon sometimes is constantly Avenger kills. Recently it seemed stuck on capture and hold defense kills.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Indra Echo

That does happen sometimes for all of them. Echelon sometimes is constantly Avenger kills. Recently it seemed stuck on capture and hold defense kills.

---

Yup, i guessed that much :)

I honestly don't understand why people choose to grind in such a boring manner. For the 5000 sniper kills you'd be better of killing things that gives you decent xp/salvage and weaponskill at the same time. I had like lvl 16 BASR when I got my 5000th kill. The final sniper weapon pursuit gives only 15 EGO, 1 lvl of weaponskill gives 4 EGO, you do the math. People are blinded by their eagerness to get the pursuits

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ozzy

I honestly don't understand why people choose to grind in such a boring manner. For the 5000 sniper kills you'd be better of killing things that gives you decent xp/salvage and weaponskill at the same time. I had like lvl 16 BASR when I got my 5000th kill. The final sniper weapon pursuit gives only 15 EGO, 1 lvl of weaponskill gives 4 EGO, you do the math. People are blinded by their eagerness to get the pursuits

---

The only thing in defense of it is that no matter what you're killing you are gaining weapon xp too. Except if you keep killing the mutants near the New Freedom crash site. I snipe skitterlings and a lot of things but in different places and they all give me salvage and skill so what's the difference. If someone does it to get the 5000 kills out of the way first, fine. But the problem is when they think that their pursuit is more important than someone else's-especially if they're doing it in a contract area, since contracts have a finite time, pursuits don't.

It's kind of like those people that would use the now fixed shortcut for Scrapworks Salvage just to get the coop over with. Well, that interfered also with people who were trying to get a contract done (getting Dark Matter things in Scrapworks). People are so sure that what they want to do is way more important than what someone else might want to do. It's a theme of the game.

The issue is clearly that if someone is doing something in an area and it might conflict with the need of someone else coming into that area, then contracts tend to be more "important". The OP did all that he could do at the time to try and reset it. The only other thing I'd suggest is if time permits, next time something like that comes up, log out and back in so you have more of a chance to be in a different phase. That is if you didn't try that too-sometimes the game puts you right back in the same phase and sometimes it doesn't.

Killing 5000 skitterlings might be the fastest way to do the pursuits. But it's not necessarily the smartest, nor the most fun way to do it. That's all I'm saying. I've killed plenty of skitterlings with my BASR, AR, Combat shotty and LMG by the way, but not in the same spot 5000-ish times.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ozzy

I honestly don't understand why people choose to grind in such a boring manner.

---

Because I'd like to actually play the game with that outfit, not get it when I'm already done everything and bored with the game.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Ozzy

Killing 5000 skitterlings might be the fastest way to do the pursuits. But it's not necessarily the smartest, nor the most fun way to do it. That's all I'm saying. I've killed plenty of skitterlings with my BASR, AR, Combat shotty and LMG by the way, but not in the same spot 5000-ish times.

---

Well it depends on the person of course. Fastest for some is the smartest. People are all wired differently so they see things differently. What works for me, might not for you and vice versa. So, the smartest thing for me is what I like to do. I don't like to farm Sutro Tower so telling me I should won't make me want to do it. I like farming the faster Horseshoe Bay but I can't make others like it.

And that's how it should be. Personally, I like to see my pursuits drop off as quickly as possible but that doesn't mean that works for you and I wouldn't try to get you to agree. Fun for me isn't fun for everyone. So I'm glad you found things you like to do and maybe even a better way to do it. And like you I often do try to combine Contracts so that if I am doing one it also finishes another-pursuits too sometimes.

But the BASR one, well I'll be glad to get the 5000 kills done and when doing other things I'll work more specifically on ranking it up. It's one of the two I have left to finish.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Keeper Riff

Because I'd like to actually play the game with that outfit, not get it when I'm already done everything and bored with the game.

---

That's another thing. Sure you can wait to earn some things, but sometimes it can be more fun to get something to play with right away.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by xCouchSoldierx

Okay. That came out wrong.

---

It came out as it should be, you were correct saying that in my point of view. :)