I believe Rattati said that mercs can earn personal warbarges. These warbarges allow players to invest in themselves beyond earning SP and ISK. That will help retain players, for sure.

I believe Rattati said that mercs can earn personal warbarges. These warbarges allow players to invest in themselves beyond earning SP and ISK. That will help retain players, for sure.

It will also be another layer of rules to chew on after they understood SP, ISK, skills, dropsuits, fittings, meta-levels, eWar, damage profiles, FW, ...

I missed this "warbarge" talk... Where can I find this thread please???

This game is incredibly difficult for new players...but we all started there and we stuck around!

This game is incredibly difficult for new players...but we all started there and we stuck around! My character has existed for a year and a half but after 1.7 and 1.8 I was gone for 6-8 months....but I played my ass off and earned 30 million SP from 6/2013 to now even with HUGE times when I've left.

Recently, I've begun playing in the battle academy over multiple profiles, to earn isk with the frontline suits and to swipe the 25,000 starting isk as well as liquidate the assets. I've been piling up ISK by doing this, but have begun a new thing as well.

I find players that are new...the ones who SOS on the teamchat for help (it happens often) and I've come across numerous players ages 12-34 or so who have no clue what is going on and I've explained the game to them and added them on PSN and offered to mentor them while I am online.

I tell them upfront, if you're weak willed and you expect a COD kill streak, you're on the wrong game but if you want fierce competition, grueling gameplay and feel like putting up or shutting up, this is the game for you but you have to really want it or you're not going to "get it" so to speak.

The players I've talked too seem to appreciate me telling them upfront this game is hard...I'd say out of 10 players, I've retained 6 or so that still play weeks later and when we talk they tell me I wasn't kidding and they can barely even get a kill and don't understand the skill tree.

So that's my part of retaining new players for Dust 514

TL;DR - I help new players as much as I can so we have a growing playerbase.

Obligatory: fukin casuls


I agree. The NPE is a harrowing experience that chews up scores of newbies with few survivors. It really, really needs some love.

A solid number of vets never have, because at the time we started playing there were no protostompers and people with gigantic SP advantages - everyone was on an even playing field.

Again, I've no problem with you personally, Michael, but this particular statement does not seem to me to be indicative of a healthy attitude towards new players.

Just to underline this point:
I would not be playing this game if I had to start over now. Playing as a new player outside of the academy is terrible and no fun at all.

Seriously, this is game is not fun if you're not a vet. I don't think I'd recommend anyone to start playing this game now, or at any point after January 2013, for that matter. My respect to all those who did start later than that, but I wouldn't do it and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

That's exacly the point, I, as a solo player, lack the feeling of ownership and progression, yes I see my SP and ISK go up, but I want to invest in something that I personally own and reflects my power. Then, joining a corporation that both wants me and the power of my warbarge, while augmenting my own warbarge and opening up PC to me through "free or earned" clone packs, daring to attack one of the old powers in PC, is the underlying concept of this vision.

Eh just extend the academy experience until the newbros are at 10 million skill points or something and add better tutorials etc.

I think first and foremost we need to define these "classes" of players and find different ways we can "feed" there enjoyments into this game so far. Right now we are full of vets and new players and some casuals. Most games survive off the casuals as they usually are in steady. We need to focus at the foundation if CCP wants this game to have a good mark in their future games like lol Legion. So, let's define these classes?

ive been playing since OB back in feb? 2013 and the game play feels kinda boring to me, but having a personal ship and or station, or even like a ship/station for my corporation would be freaking amazing, i would solely play games just to get isk and upgrade my ship/station, somewhere i can socially interact with my corp in-between matches, who knows maybe even play some mini games? bet on another corps PC battle?

It will also be another layer of rules to chew on after they understood SP, ISK, skills, dropsuits, fittings, meta-levels, eWar, damage profiles, FW, ...

My question is: What do personal Warbarges do that the already implemented progression systems can't handle?