Do you like the trend?

[szin]

What I really liked about Eternium was the low pay2win impact compared to other games. With the daily gem pack you could support game at low costs and still achieve a lot just by playing. In addition the season pass for a reasonable price filled up ressources well.

The changes to very frequent ANB are a game changer though, as gems get sucked up fast, participating in every ANB and trying to achieve a good ranking. Money makes a difference there, as you definitely need (more than 1) legendary crafting crates and quite some gems for companions, sockets and such to reach top level.

Now with new item slots, enchantings and such, money will make even more difference. As you'll need / can buy more crafting mats, sockets ...

The much I like the game developing, I'm sad where the trend is going.

[TonyW]

Actually I'm thankful that I can play att all without having to wait for time-related ingame currency, like so many other mobile games. Big thumbs up for Eternium!

And about the ANB, I have learnt that if you are ambitious, you need to pay, or take breaks between ANBs. That's just the way it is. I have no intention to place high in the leaderboard, mainly because I know that the competition is slanted from the beginning. I cannot expect to compete with players who are willing to sepnd hundreds and thousands of real-life money.

[szin]

That's just the way it is now. Or let's put it this way, it was this way before but got exxagerated by schedule and equipment changes.

[dudemus]

i have been playing mmo fantasy type games for 25 years now. in some of the old subscription based games people found ways to sell items over ebay and such. i do like it when at least the money being spent goes to the dev team and funds development.

i have also never been one to fight for the top, i try to focus more on my development and get better rather than focusing on being in the top. so i am not really bothered if this is a trend as you predict if it helps the game keep development going.

[szin]

Oh well, I guess people are just so much used to the dominance of pay to win, so they don't bother anymore.

I'm not the free to play fan either, as I think there will be no good game without players paying for it. So I always support the development. However, I'd prefer if everyone had the same chances no matter of money to spent. Sadly games without pay to win factor (for instance monthly fee for everyone or just skins to buy without impact on the gameplay...) are getting fewer and fewer.

[Ubba Lothbrokson]

Actually I'm thankful that I can play att all without having to wait for time-related ingame currency, like so many other mobile games. Big thumbs up for Eternium!

And about the ANB, I have learnt that if you are ambitious, you need to pay, or take breaks between ANBs. That's just the way it is. I have no intention to place high in the leaderboard, mainly because I know that the competition is slanted from the beginning. I cannot expect to compete with players who are willing to sepnd hundreds and thousands of real-life money.

This is pretty much how I feel about things. I enjoy playing the game for what it is without feeling like I have to be #1 on the leaderboards. I do support the game by buying Season Passes, which I consider a good value considering the upper-line rewards, and sometimes a value pack during ANB to give me a boost. As long as I get at least one CT and maybe a couple of medals per round I am satisfied.

[mahara]

From bronze 4 up until now (silver 5) you could place in top 100 with under 1000 gems spent easily. So no i dont think there is an issue unless you want to compete for top 10

[BAgate]

Mahara, think about what you just said. If it was 'easy' everyone would do it, but since that didn't happen, it obviously isn't 'easy'. The super skilled or gifted can do that, but most can't. Be thankful you fall into that category, but don't assume everyone else does as well.

[mahara]

..." then why do only about 5-10% of those who participate in each event hit those benchmarks?" ...
Because instead of trying to understand the game and do some testing in order be good in events such as ANB (which is very unique imho), it seems like everyone who doesn't do good in such events will just go to the forums and make million excuses as to why they could not compete against the top 100 or so contenders.
Ofcourse there is (imho majority of casual players) who just play when they can and how they can and don't want to spend countless hours reading information and trying new builds, strategies etc. and are trying to place as high as they can, but they hardly make any statements as to why they can't compete with the top dogs.
And ofcourse 1 last thing. There can be only 100 hundred players in top 100 leaderboard.

[BAgate]

Mahara - first, I was refering to the percent that hit trial100, not the top 100. Second, again, think about what you are saying. This is a fricking game, and your position is the good stuff should only be available to those who "spend countless hours". I play games to relax, not to stress out about getting that last little bit of performance. But that doesn't mean I should be consigned to a lesser tier that progresses slowly and can't access the best medals and celestials (I am not saying I should progress as fast as the best, but I should not be a second class citizen). Your style and reason for playing is not inherently better than mine.

[mahara]

What good stuff do you mean? Those few more medals you can get by being in top 100?

Getting to trial 100 on regular basis was imho doable since the first major overhaul of sets and introduction of normal crafting. With introduction of ephemeral crafting it became easy, not that i am complaining, ANBs were pretty much ruled by RNG on good drops before this.

With this update? As long as they dont change anything I think i’ll make TL 100 in an hour which i never did before and never even dreamed about. My personal best is so far TL 70 in 40 minutes.

If you are struggling to get to TL 100 just search this forum or ask for help. Record some of your runs so more experienced players can pinpoint your mistakes or just give you good tips. This game has probably the best and the most friendly community i ever saw.

[Montresor]

I agree with mahara here. I don't think I'm particularly skilled with the game controls, but I have read the boards and discord and reddit and I have learned from other players how to plan and be patient and thereby be successful in ANBs. 1000 gems is a tight budget - I tend to usually buy one crate and open up my training slots which puts me at around 4k gems, but I also left 3+ hours on my event timer on silver and placed in top 50 - and I wasn't really that efficient with my game time. Between the 100 gems/day pack, the 100 gems from quests, and the season rewards, I'm still at over 12k gems. If you watch ads you can have considerably more without spending much money at all.

I would say learning how to manage the event is most important for top 100. Top 25 or higher, sure, you'll need to spend more gems, but getting both CTs and a fair number of medals is completely doable

[BAgate]

So to summarize, you spent money on the gems/day pack, possibly on season (couldn't tell from your post), and spent time on forum/discord learning. And ads only appear on mobile, so unless you are running an emulator PC users don't get them.

That's not F2P.

And you still haven't addressed my main point. If it is so easy why are only 5-10% of players doing it? You shouldn't have to spend money or read these forums to hit TL 100, but you generally do. And while repeat medals are minimal, the first couple are not. 2 green and 2 red (which can only be gained by top 100 finishes) give 30 power, 8% exp and 8% EG. That makes a BIG difference.

[Coldet]

I’m by no means a top contender and I could care less. However I would be lying if I did not acknowledge that I too feel the game is strongly encroaching on the pay to win category of games.

I personally feel the Legendary crates should not be available during the ANB series.

Edit: they would however make for interesting rewards at TL 100

[Ozymandius]

I 1000 gems is a tight budget - I tend to usually buy one crate and open up my training slots which puts me at around 4k gems

I think that your estimate of gem use for an ANB is far more reasonable. I am usually closer to 5k after reforging XP off my gear in the final push. I am not sure when it became fashionable to say that you can be competitive in an ANB without spending many gems, but I am always a bit skeptical of such claims. I have been able to get through Trial 100 on a minimal gem budget using the E-box gear and gradually crafting replacement gear, but for me the game is much more enjoyable if I get my hero to level 70, buy the legendary crafter's crate, build a full starter set of legendary gear, and start pushing into higher trials with higher XP and better gear drops. Running a minimal gem ANB is sort of like choosing hot dogs instead of a T-bone steak. You could do it, but why would you want to...

Of course, I am still in favor of having an ANB event that places a solid cap on the maximum number of gems that can be used during the event (e.g., everyone starts with 5k gems with no way to purchase or add more gems during the event; other than gems that are earned through game play). That would level the playing field for younger players who cannot afford to purchase season passes or event chests and maybe even topple some of the whales that are buying unlimited gems to gain a competitive advantage.

[Ubba Lothbrokson]

The other side of this - what else are you going to spend your gems on? Opening all those locked crates for stuff to salvage?

[Anjaeka]

I agree with mahara here. I don't think I'm particularly skilled with the game controls, but I have read the boards and discord and reddit and I have learned from other players how to plan and be patient and thereby be successful in ANBs. 1000 gems is a tight budget - I tend to usually buy one crate and open up my training slots which puts me at around 4k gems, but I also left 3+ hours on my event timer on silver and placed in top 50 - and I wasn't really that efficient with my game time. Between the 100 gems/day pack, the 100 gems from quests, and the season rewards, I'm still at over 12k gems. If you watch ads you can have considerably more without spending much money at all.

I would say learning how to manage the event is most important for top 100. Top 25 or higher, sure, you'll need to spend more gems, but getting both CTs and a fair number of medals is completely doable

But you aren’t taking into account the fact that a lot of people aren’t on Android (no 100 gems/day) and ads have been broken for MONTHS so no gems from that. That just leaves the daily quests and a seasonal perk that you only get 4 times a year. Also, the three hours that you had left over in silver is hardly proof that most can compete without spending the 4,000 gems you did.

The next comment is usually something like, “You can always skip events!” Well, here’s the problem with that: The only way to get glory and CE’s is by playing events. I was actually looking forward to skipping Gold but since all of the new gear requires glory, I’ll have to participate in order to craft. I seriously doubt I’ll get all I need from War Supplies. Additionally, any stockpile of CE’s people have been holding are going to get put on new gear since no one will be able to use all of their existing sets. Most competitors are going to have to start over. You gotta play the events and the events cost gems and/or money. It’s becoming a viscous cycle. (And don’t get me started on how much more farming for gold and materials this update is going to necessitate.)

[Turgeon]

Im kinda new to the game since ive started playing In january2020. Im doing every anb. And always got my 2 ct. and finish top 250 . My gem budget is always about 1500 gem maybe 2000. Ive never bought anything from the game im still a FReee to Play. It will come since i like the game and want to help a bit for dev team. Ill probably buy the next season pass but not because i nneeed it but just to give some money for a good game... if im able to do it probable everyone can

[Anjaeka]

Oh believe me, I financially support the game. I believe the developers deserve to get paid well for what they do and I’m happy to be able to contribute. My issue is when people say it’s cheap or free to be competitive in this game. It’s not. It’s free to play and have a little fun; but not to compete. Especially when you don’t get the ads or the 100 gem/day pack.

[Turgeon]

Yes youre probably true anjaeka. Im playing to have fun more then to be real competitive. So yes to be real competitive i shoulda pay or invest way more hour of real time life into game. So next step for me will be to put some cash into the game when the time will come to be competitive. I prefer to learn the gamevery well before invest badly

[szin]

It really doesn't take huge amounts of gaming skill to get 2 CT and a couple of medals from bronze and silver ANB without spending more gems than you can recover during the course of the event. A good set up and strategy are needed, but major skills are not required..

I doubt that! The 2 CT may be doable, but I'm convinced for medals you need at least one legendary crafting crate. 2.500 gems every 2 weeks (not speaking of gems for sockets, companions...) doesn't seem easy to "recover" at all. With the new items, I think it will need 2 legendary crafting crates for a good medal ranking and more than 6k gems per ANB... of course it depends on how many whales are going for it. If none, then of course medals rankings may be achieved cheaper.

[Anjaeka]

^^This is exactly right!

[mahara]

I am sorry to stop your bandwagon dead in it's tracks but it is not required to do anything you mentioned to place in top 100 during ANB. I stand by my statement. It is possible to be in top 100 while spending under 1000 gems. With the new sets and other items time will tell but i think it will be pretty much the same.

[Montresor]

So the only problem is... Nobody writes games for free. Developers, support teams, have to eat. Have to pay their rent or mortgage, etc. We all have lots of expectations of support responsiveness, bug fixes, new releases and updates and all of that takes work.

[Turgeon]

Here again top 250 in silver anb. With low gem budget. Maybe travis can say us howmany gem ive used. But i think im under 2k. One sure thing is that ive not open any leg crate...

[Turgeon]

Thnk travis u rock

[Hurricane]

There is no way mahara is making consistent top 100 with under 1000 gems. Travis...?

[LodWig]

Travis, you keep a log of every transaction in the game? Or is it just the difference in Gems possessed after and before the event? Can you tell me how much I spent in last gold and silver?

Ah it won’t do, I have posted these amounts on Discord...