Gear check For Group Finder, becoming a necessity.

[ImpactHound]

How do you define the threshold? For example, after I level a toon to 55, I always run the dailies and weeklies long enough to get a full set of 66 gear from the vendor before doing 55 HMs. However, since they don't carry belts/bracers, I leave those at 58. Would I not qualify if you set the gear check at 66? What about when fully geared toons in my guild bring along fresh 55s just to help them get gear?

 

Maybe I've just been lucky, but I just haven't experienced this issue with under geared people. Occasionally I do see them in FPs, but we hardly ever wipe as a result of that, because the content is pretty trivial. Usually when we wipe it's due to someone not knowing the mechanics of a fight, and has nothing to do with level of gear.

 

If the group finder had a queue requirement that your character did not meet, and your guild wants to pull you through it because you're friends, then you go to the actual flashpoint. The barring only happens on the queue tool itself, not going to the actual instance in person like at launch, it's been reiterated several times.

[Lone-gunman]

I am a healer at 55. A dps at 55. and a tank at 55.

 

as a dps I know what awaits me for entering gf queue. That's not what I'm going to rant about.

 

I'm ranting about the fact that we get (clueless) people queueing up in level 55 HMs with blue level 44 armorings on them. Just had a whole group of em, the most powerful one had 1 69 item, and green implants, and not even the latest ones.

 

Mandalorian raiders 55 HM. Naturally, cc for this group is overrated, and of course we get shredded when we get 5 salky hounds jumping on us in 1 go.

 

Keep going in, keep dying. Had enough as we wouldn't stand a chance. But yeah what gets me is that I get the lockout. The only one with the proper gear in it, why is this happening, why does any dps have to wait another hour in GF because of people that... don't know... Can't read?

 

It is evident most people can't, so yeah,although I believe this was already done, I request once again an automated gear checker for group finder, at least for the high level end game content.

 

And yeah also if you could implement a queue status for the group finder it would also be appreciated. Thanks for reading me out

 

I have a few 55 tanks and DPS and I do not do much 55HM through Group Finder because I am trying to gear them up. I have done a ton of Group Finder instances. Randomly grouping with people can be a chore but I think a gear check tool only will degrade the community of rand Group Finder folks. No real solution to your specific issue or the genral issue of people trying to sqeak by doing HMs the instant they hit 55.

[Jacen_Starsolo]

Bad idea. And all the major reasons already been covered.

[Tachenko_Yuri]

The idea of GF is finding players that you can play with and contribute to. It is not for anyone to be carried along, neither it is for creating an additional challenge of carrying around a person not prepared for the mission.

 

This, this, more of this, and even more of this.

 

How do you define the threshold?

 

I don't define anything. in the group finder it says the gear rating recommended for each type of flashpoint or operation batch, but people don't read and here we are, carrying people through stuff cuz they're too lazy to earn their gear the proper way.

 

Also, again

 

Also all naysayers do consider this! 66 Gear is readily available from multiple sources including crafting and GTN and does not require grinding, as has been already mentioned.

 

Not to mention entire an new area with gives daily comms x2 per quest, and easy flashpoints who yield 10 of those per day.

 

So there's no excuse.

 

Edit. I do suppose SOME of the 55HMs can be done with full dreadguard or hazmat (63) . But wouldn't be easier to just get the far more easily acquirable 66?

Edited August 16, 2013 by Tachenko_Yuri

[FromTheDuDe]

=.= gearing in this game is so *********** easy.....hell if you grinded partisan gear out youd be geared enough to hm and that takes like 4 days combined with dailies. Also love all the fail logic flying around, "what if we want to carry guildies?" then why are you using group finder?

[GuruVII]

Because it gives out comms?

[morfius]

Gearing a friend/guild member in premade is not an issue here - groups can be able to use GF as it is now if they are full (whole group queuing have nothing to do with PUGs) ... just to travel and take their dailies/weeklies.

If it is PUG (or replacement), BW could simply put a check box (we have 1 for groups in progress) that match only with players meeting gear level.

Is it hurts?

 

But solving a social/political problems with technical steps just don't work... community will not become better because of this.

Edited August 16, 2013 by morfius

[Insidion]

I agree with the OP. The group finder (for both flashpoints and operations) should check to ensure that everyone meets the minimum gear level required for the content. I queued for a HM FP on my Jugg yesterday as tank, only to find I was placed in a group with a sorc with 19k health and a sniper with 21k. The other DPS, a 27k marauder, quit immediately. We got a replacement DPS, and wiped repeatedly, until I quit the group in frustration, thus getting a lockout.

 

Bioware could improve this system dramatically be implementing just a basic gear check to ensure that a healer with 19k health cannot queue for a hard mode. Anyone who argues against that is simply being ridiculous or trolling.

[DarthTHC]

I agree with the OP. The group finder (for both flashpoints and operations) should check to ensure that everyone meets the minimum gear level required for the content. I queued for a HM FP on my Jugg yesterday as tank, only to find I was placed in a group with a sorc with 19k health and a sniper with 21k. The other DPS, a 27k marauder, quit immediately. We got a replacement DPS, and wiped repeatedly, until I quit the group in frustration, thus getting a lockout.

 

Bioware could improve this system dramatically be implementing just a basic gear check to ensure that a healer with 19k health cannot queue for a hard mode. Anyone who argues against that is simply being ridiculous or trolling.

 

Why do DPS and healers need health?

[codycroft]

Indeed, what I think OP wants is a que for 'speed runs', and not to be stuck with 'newbs' trying to gear. While I can sympathize with him/her, sometimes you have to either suck it up and try to teach, or drop group. If you want to say their guild should run them, or gear them, you can easily flip it and say if you want a speed run, grab your guild.

[Andryah]

New czerka hardmodes with tough tactics and fights in it, people still in the group finder with 61 gear.

 

Luckily enough for me, i'm in 72 as are other guildies, so we can compensate.

 

but the problem's still there. people in full 61 entering stuff that isn't meant for them. yet.

 

You seem to be coping quite well... which undermines your argument.

 

AND.. didn't we beat this to death last month?

 

Gear check won't insure your group knows it's keester from a whales blow hole in terms of ability to play the encounter...and it won't check and determine who pulls their weight and who does not. For all this.. you need votekick to actively manage group performance.. and since you have votekick.. you have the tools to deal with gear issues as well.

 

Personally, I'd rather have an undergeared player who knows what they are doing, follows directions, and has both tenacity and initiative to work the encounter... then any form of gear check. And for this.. you actually need to know the player. Gear check is for scrubs who mindlessly PUG and have impatient disregard to actually knowing their group and playing TOGETHER....IMO.

 

TL;DR... fixing one element (with a game-bot) that injects challenge will not solve all elements (which frankly are more common IMO) that impact a groups ability to perform properly in an encounter... and which require actual human observation and decisions as to how to address on a case by case basis.

Edited August 16, 2013 by Andryah

[mikebevo]

No

 

 

Only time I don't fall asleep healing these is when I have a undergeared group.

[PlasmaJohn]

Why do DPS and healers need health?

Health is an indication of their relative gear level. I inspect anybody with less than 25k. If you show up with only 19k there will be words. (Polite ones! I swear )

 

If your gear only gives 19k health you're just not going to be able to keep up with the healing or DPS required of a HM55 flashpoint. You might be able to carry a DPS if everybody else is overgeared, but I certainly wouldn't want to try carrying a healer that bad off. If it was a friend I'd make them a set of blue grade 28 mods.

 

End-game is not Casual. While you don't have to be hardcore you really do need to start paying attention. A gear check won't fix stupid, but it'll help ensure that people have the tools to succeed.

[LordArtemis]

A change like this would likely not be received well by the community.

 

The game is moving toward casuals more every day. If there ever was a day to add gear check, that day has passed.

 

So I vote no.

 

On a side note, Premades and HM/Ops is the exclusive domain of Hardcores. Casuals do not belong in that content. By the same token PUGs and SM is the domain of Casuals and Hardcores do not belong.

 

Most of the problems with gear would be solved, IMO, if that simple rule was followed.

Edited August 16, 2013 by LordArtemis

[Andryah]

On a side note, Premades and HM/Ops is the exclusive domain of Hardcores. Casuals do not belong in that content. By the same token PUGs and SM is the domain of Casuals and Hardcores do not belong.

 

Most of the problems with gear would be solved, IMO, if that simple rule was followed.

 

I agree with this assessment.

[Tachenko_Yuri]

You seem to be coping quite well... which undermines your argument.

 

AND.. didn't we beat this to death last month? Had to bring it up back due to the new czerka flashpoints that are more challenging that the ones we had up until now.. imo at least.

 

Gear check won't insure your group knows it's keester from a whales blow hole in terms of ability to play the encounter...and it won't check and determine who pulls their weight and who does not. For all this.. you need votekick to actively manage group performance.. and since you have votekick.. you have the tools to deal with gear issues as well. true, but at least one would have the numbers/stats in order to ( partially, at least ) not be a drag

 

Personally, I'd rather have an undergeared player who knows what they are doing, follows directions, and has both tenacity and initiative to work the encounter... then any form of gear check. And for this.. you actually need to know the player. Gear check is for scrubs who mindlessly PUG and have impatient disregard to actually knowing their group and playing TOGETHER....IMO. yes, knowing tactics does have it's fair share of it.. but to beat some mechanics ( enrage timers and such ) , it's just a matter of numbers, provided by gear

 

TL;DR... fixing one element (with a game-bot) that injects challenge will not solve all elements (which frankly are more common IMO) that impact a groups ability to perform properly in an encounter... and which require actual human observation and decisions as to how to address on a case by case basis.

 

Maybe a 66 would be a bit excessive, but a 63 one is essential imo, since people apparently are unable, or deliberately avoiding to read requirements, and since czerka area came into play, 66 gear from vendors just got a tad easier to obtain...

[mikebevo]

61 is more than enough, if someone has a clue.

[Bilirubin]

Threads like this are what have been keeping me out of the 55 HMs TBH. I'm just back from a year away, dinged 55, have all my gear at 66, but as a tank I have not ran any of the instances. How welcoming would you all be to hear your tank say "I have not done the instances yet, please brief me on the mechanics pre pull" even if I'm sitting on 30k hp?

[Bilirubin]

I agree with this assessment.

 

Yeah I don't so much. As a "casual" I still managed somehow to clear NiM KP, HM LI etc. back when it was current content.

 

Or has the definition for "casual" changed from numbers of hours spent in game?

[hadoken]

Threads like this are what have been keeping me out of the 55 HMs TBH. I'm just back from a year away, dinged 55, have all my gear at 66, but as a tank I have not ran any of the instances. How welcoming would you all be to hear your tank say "I have not done the instances yet, please brief me on the mechanics pre pull" even if I'm sitting on 30k hp?

 

Did you do any instances levelling up? That's all the 55 hardmodes are, rehashes of content you've likely already seen (with a new mechanic or two thrown in, and bonus bosses).

 

It really isn't anything special.

[Tachenko_Yuri]

Threads like this are what have been keeping me out of the 55 HMs TBH. I'm just back from a year away, dinged 55, have all my gear at 66, but as a tank I have not ran any of the instances. How welcoming would you all be to hear your tank say "I have not done the instances yet, please brief me on the mechanics pre pull" even if I'm sitting on 30k hp?

 

I would be welcoming. Because you're geared adequately for the situation, and had the honesty of saying so.

Edited August 16, 2013 by Tachenko_Yuri

[Bilirubin]

Did you do any instances levelling up? That's all the 55 hardmodes are, rehashes of content you've likely already seen (with a new mechanic or two thrown in, and bonus bosses).

 

It really isn't anything special.

 

No, just quested and WZ. TBH it didn't take very long to hit 55 in fully min-maxed Rakata/BH gear. Also never seemed to pick up the FPs while sub 55. Was guildless at the time.

 

When I first came back someone suggested I run the HMs first as a DPS to get the mechanics. Perhaps I am taking this too seriously but after seeing some of the abuse heaped on tanks in WoW...mind, this community isn't the same which is one reason I am back here, but still.

 

Feh, being too sensitive. Will run some tonight and report back.

[hadoken]

No, just quested and WZ. TBH it didn't take very long to hit 55 in fully min-maxed Rakata/BH gear. Also never seemed to pick up the FPs while sub 55. Was guildless at the time.

 

When I first came back someone suggested I run the HMs first as a DPS to get the mechanics. Perhaps I am taking this too seriously but after seeing some of the abuse heaped on tanks in WoW...mind, this community isn't the same which is one reason I am back here, but still.

 

Feh, being too sensitive. Will run some tonight and report back.

 

It's nothing more than the usual as a tank - interrupt stuff if you can, step out of different colored circles on the ground. I have yet to see any mechanic in this game that hasn't been introduced to MMOs in another game years prior

[tyranusdarec]

I run FPs and HMs all the time. And I do worry about my gear. I look at the gear requirement for an HM that says 148. I then check my gear. hmmm I got everything at 156 except one piece that is 140. Am I still ok to go? I sure as hell dont want to wipe a group. Also no gear rating is showing on implants, relics, or earpiece. Mine are all purple and level 53 but does that mean I am good to go or not?

 

I have since fixed the 140 piece to 156. But still what about the pieces that dont have a rating?

 

While I know gear checks suck. How about being able to see your overall gear value? I havent found a number anywhere that tells me my overall gear value or a command to type in and see it? I am not saying dont allow people access with low gear ratings. Just something so I can see, personally, if I am good to go or not.

 

I have been wanting to try to get into operations. But everytime I see someone forming up for one they always say "Know fights and be geared"... Well fights I can watch on youtube. But what is "geared" for operations? What is the rating required?

[hadoken]

I have been wanting to try to get into operations. But everytime I see someone forming up for one they always say "Know fights and be geared"... Well fights I can watch on youtube. But what is "geared" for operations? What is the rating required?

 

You could probably get through story mode 55 operations in 50HM flashpoint gear (146?) as it isn't anything more difficult really than the 55HM flashpoints (which you can definitely do in 50HM flashpoint gear, have myself multiple times). Not sure offhand on hardmodes, imagine 55HM flashpoint gear would be sufficient, certainly easily blended with what you get from story mode operations.

Edited August 16, 2013 by hadoken