Couple questions from a newbie

[Murdertrain]

Hi guys,

Bought Defiance back at release, more as a way to support something new and innovative (with the show thing) than to play much. I was raiding hard in Rift so I didn't have much spare time to play Defiance. That said, I always had fun when I'd log in. After a while I stopped but just came back with this game as my primary gaming focus.

Now, one of the things that's appealing about Defiance is that it doesn't *seem* to require as much research/theorycrafting/etc as some of the more traditional MMOs. I don't know if this is true, but I like the idea of just logging in, doing some stuff and logging out without spending hours min/maxing, researching builds, and squeezing every ounce of output from my toon as possible. This may come in time, but right now I'm having an absolute blast just logging in, shooting stuff, doing some missions and arkfalls.

I did a decent amount of research before starting in earnest, but a couple of questions have me confused. I'm hoping you guys can help.

1) If I find a weapon whose skin I like, can that weapon be upgraded sufficiently to compete with "endgame" gear someday? Or is it the same as a level 30 sword vs a level 90 sword in, say, World of Warcraft? I ask because I have seen some slick guns but they're replaced (stat-wise) pretty quickly.

2) I assume at some point I'll have enough EGO to unlock all the perks/powers?

3) I have no problem whatsoever spending money to support a game (or game company) I enjoy and believe in--Defiance is no exception. But at my current EGO rating (~200) should I be spending any cash (real or ingame) on Tier 4 lockboxes? Will a weapon I loot out of a T4 box be as powerful for me at EGO 200 as it will at EGO 700? I guess I'm asking if they scale or become obsolete and replaced? (This question kind of ties back into #1 I guess.) Put simply: Am I better off waiting until very high level before investing real/ingame cash into my character? So far I've had little trouble killing things, so the upgrades I've bought have been more for convenience.

4) Am I better off leveling the crap out of one weapon (I LOVE my bolt-action sniper) then bringing the others up later? Or is balance across all weapon types better?

5) Right now I just wander around doing every sidequest I find, as well as hitting each and every arkfall I'm near. I do the main story when I run out of the sidequests or arkfalls. Is this the intended/optimal way to level? Am I gimping myself in some way?

Thanks for any help.



<3 Murder

[Shadow Andreas]

Hi guys,

Bought Defiance back at release, more as a way to support something new and innovative (with the show thing) than to play much. I was raiding hard in Rift so I didn't have much spare time to play Defiance. That said, I always had fun when I'd log in. After a while I stopped but just came back with this game as my primary gaming focus.

Now, one of the things that's appealing about Defiance is that it doesn't *seem* to require as much research/theorycrafting/etc as some of the more traditional MMOs. I don't know if this is true, but I like the idea of just logging in, doing some stuff and logging out without spending hours min/maxing, researching builds, and squeezing every ounce of output from my toon as possible. This may come in time, but right now I'm having an absolute blast just logging in, shooting stuff, doing some missions and arkfalls.

I did a decent amount of research before starting in earnest, but a couple of questions have me confused. I'm hoping you guys can help.

1) If I find a weapon whose skin I like, can that weapon be upgraded sufficiently to compete with "endgame" gear someday? Or is it the same as a level 30 sword vs a level 90 sword in, say, World of Warcraft? I ask because I have seen some slick guns but they're replaced (stat-wise) pretty quickly.

2) I assume at some point I'll have enough EGO to unlock all the perks/powers?

3) I have no problem whatsoever spending money to support a game (or game company) I enjoy and believe in--Defiance is no exception. But at my current EGO rating (~200) should I be spending any cash (real or ingame) on Tier 4 lockboxes? Will a weapon I loot out of a T4 box be as powerful for me at EGO 200 as it will at EGO 700? I guess I'm asking if they scale or become obsolete and replaced? (This question kind of ties back into #1 I guess.) Put simply: Am I better off waiting until very high level before investing real/ingame cash into my character? So far I've had little trouble killing things, so the upgrades I've bought have been more for convenience.

4) Am I better off leveling the crap out of one weapon (I LOVE my bolt-action sniper) then bringing the others up later? Or is balance across all weapon types better?

5) Right now I just wander around doing every sidequest I find, as well as hitting each and every arkfall I'm near. I do the main story when I run out of the sidequests or arkfalls. Is this the intended/optimal way to level? Am I gimping myself in some way?

Thanks for any help.



<3 Murder

Hey Murder....welcome. I'll see if I can give you some quick answers:

1- Guns and shields will change a little as your EGO goes up....and they will get a little better....but there are many people that use low EGO weapons. Use one you like and if you find a better one....replace it. Color code for rarity is White, Green, Blue, Purple, Orange (Orange is "the best")

2- Yes....you will eventually unlock all powers and perks....I'm almost at EGO 4000 and only have a few perks left. Note that once you max your XP by unlocking all powers and perks....you no longer get XP.

3- Do not spend RL money on boxes, you can grind Ark Salvage and Scrip to buy them....the only thing I would buy with RL money is inventory space.....as much as you want to buy (I bought 30....and want to buy more when I can justify the $$$). You can buy outfits and vehicles if you want....that is a personal choice (you do get a lot of re-colored outfits by doing pursuits).

4- Personal choice and depends on what you are doing and your play style.

5- I took my time doing main story and side quests....when I got tired of doing those....I moved to something else like ArkFalls and Sieges.

[Market]

1) You will continue to find better gear as your EGO goes up, but the skins are pretty much the same on EGO 200 gear as it is on EGO 2000 gear.

2) Indeed. You will max out on XP unlocking all the Perks and upgrading them.

3) No. nonononoooo. lol You can earn the very same lockboxes through playing the game. Spend money on skins for your character, but buying boxes is going to frustrate the stuffing out of you with all the generic blue gear you'll get and how few epic or legendary items it will get you. Higher EGO ratings in general will give you more stats on gear. When you start out, seeing nano effects or synergies on gear is rare. Once you get up over 1500 EGO, you'll be seeing these stats on most of the gear you pick up. Shields will have higher capacities as you raise your EGO, too.

4) Leveling your gear is totally up to what you want to accomplish, really. If you're after pursuits, then swap it up! If you're good with a few different weapon types, focusing on them won't hurt you in the future.

5) There is an XP cap that you will eventually hit. There doesn't seem to be any hindrance to leveling one way or another.

I hope this helps!

Good hunting!

EDIT:

Shadow and I were apparently answering at the same time, but I'm the slower typist... lol

[Murdertrain]

Wow,

Thanks for the quick and thorough response guys.

That's gonna help a ton (especially the not-blowing-real-cash-on-lockboxes part.) I'm a long-time MMO vet but always did subscription-based games. These micros are a whole new paradigm to wrap my head around. Your responses help

Time to get into game. If you see Murdertrain running around, say Hi. I'll be plowing my way through everything that doesn't plow me first.



<3 Murder

[Market]

Happy to be of assistance!

Very happy to save you from the financial mistake that many have made before you! lol

[Shadow Andreas]

Any time....happy to help!

Good luck out there...remember to keep your mags loaded and don't stop shooting till there all lying motionless!

[seros]

Wow,

Thanks for the quick and thorough response guys.

That's gonna help a ton (especially the not-blowing-real-cash-on-lockboxes part.) I'm a long-time MMO vet but always did subscription-based games. These micros are a whole new paradigm to wrap my head around. Your responses help

Time to get into game. If you see Murdertrain running around, say Hi. I'll be plowing my way through everything that doesn't plow me first.



<3 Murder

Are you the same murdertrain from SWTOR that played on the republic side? a smuggler if I remember correctly..

[samuelsinn]

alll of the above .

the lock boxs it is sajusted to wait till ego lvl 1000-1500 befor you start poping them. something about better weapons with synergys and nanos

and dont ever EVER EVER spend cash on lock boxes.

also dont waist time on T4 lock boxes it seems theres a higher drop rate on the T3s for the OJ weapons

thats about it. everything else was overly 100% addressed

[Tesseract]

4) Be aware that once you MASTER a weapon you stop adding to you skillz when you use it. Mastering it does add some little bonus effect but you need a new one (it can be the exact same weapon type, just not mastered) to keep building skill.

I've heard something about resetting a mastered weapon but if that is possible I don't know how, plus what I saw said it was not worth the scrip/salvage.

[Shadow Andreas]

4) Be aware that once you MASTER a weapon you stop adding to you skillz when you use it. Mastering it does add some little bonus effect but you need a new one (it can be the exact same weapon type, just not mastered) to keep building skill.

I've heard something about resetting a mastered weapon but if that is possible I don't know how, plus what I saw said it was not worth the scrip/salvage.

To reset the weapon (mastery bonus will stay) go into your salvage matrix, tab to the right, choose the weapon (like you would to add mods) and the last choice will be reset weapon.