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Phase I of Alpha Two testing will occur on weekends. Each weekend is scheduled to start on Fridays at 10 AM PT and end on Sundays at 10 PM PT. Find out more here.
Check out Alpha Two Announcements here to see the latest Alpha Two news and update notes.
Our quickest Alpha Two updates are in Discord. Testers with Alpha Two access can chat in Alpha Two channels by connecting your Discord and Intrepid accounts here.
Comments
Families are a means to relate up to nine characters.[1][2][3]
Marriage increases family size by one to allow player housing permissions to be shared.[4]
This size increase only applies if the family's head is married.[5]
A character may only belong to one family at a time.[1]
https://ashesofcreation.wiki/Families
The spouse of the head of the family will increase the family size by 1 which means that the spouse cannot belong to another family. Thus, no chain summoning as described by Squeezy is possible. Note, the non head of family members can be married to players in other families. However, those partners will not be able to summon one another using the family summon system.
Idea one was interesting. I have no opinion about whether it should be added.
Squeezy said (with my comments added):
2. An idea I like more, and which I've never seen in an MMO before, would be a crafted teleporting stone (replace teleporting stone with "family marker"). It could be a late-game or an early-game, craftable, item (family marker) that could be made by a specific profession and can be sold to other players. You can again, attune up to 8 players to that stone and then split it into 8 pieces amongst the players. Players can then perform some form of ritual, out of combat, to be able to summon to a specific person within that stone's attunement . The stone can, then or have some long cooldown, or both (all of this matches the current system for family summoning). If the summoning stone is breakable, it keeps that item in demand for crafters to resupply it (This is an marker for a cost to switching members that could easily be applied to the current system of costs for switching families). An added cooldown could also potentially solve some issues with spam teleportation (Cooldowns will be tested during Alpha 2. While there has not been a confirmation from IS, it seems apparent from the many lengthy threads on this topic that IS will test the cooldown for longer periods).
You redefined family summoning to using a stone. Apparently you just don't want to have to refer to your group of friends that you can teleport to you as your family.
Personally, I think changing the concept of family summons to a group summoned by a stone is fine. It would probably be great for RPers. It would also probably be good to add an additional detail to the stone explaining why the stone carries can enter each others houses while others cannot since the current reason of being family would not apply.
I never noticed the alien in the background until now.
This is my personal feedback, shared to help the game thrive in its niche.
At the same time, I don't necessarily want to be "related" to someone to be able to teleport to them.
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Apparently you just don't want to have to refer to your group of friends that you can teleport to you as your family.
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It's not just not wanting to be in a family to teleport. Creating a teleporting stone would make it an Actual, object in-game, not just some overhead system that you can use. The stone creates a physical connection of teleportation to the in-game world. It also creates player agency, where players have to create stones, gather to attune to stones, and eventually buy new ones, once they use them.
ᚺᛖᚨᚱᚦ ᛟᚠᚦᛖ ᛊᚺᚨᛞᛟᚹ ᛁᛗᛁᚱ
The functional purpose of the stone or family for summoning is the same. The family system creates an in game marker of who can teleport. Player agency exists fully as you described under the family system. Players can move between families with a cost that is currently unspecified but can be anything, including your exact proposed costs. The exact cost will be announced later and based on balance and Stevens goals. If you think it is best to have a cost per summon of buying new stones on each use, then the family summon could be adjusted to have an equivalent cost per summon to limit use if that is important to balancing the ability.
There is no functional difference between the systems.
The only differences are the name and the image of a stone in inventory vs a listing of family members.
In fact, the systems can even exist simultaneously. Where family members can create family summoning stones that mimic your suggestion in every way and effectively add additional costs to summoning to limit overuse or to add money, material, or time sinks.
While, I can agree that the costs can remain the same, for moving family members or whatnot, and I agree, your point stands that I don't want to have to be related to someone in order to get summoned by them. However, when the stones, break on every use whereas the family system has an arbitrary cooldown based on "balance". The stone usage can also have a cooldown, along with it breaking, but most importantly it's all physically corresponded in-game.
ᚺᛖᚨᚱᚦ ᛟᚠᚦᛖ ᛊᚺᚨᛞᛟᚹ ᛁᛗᛁᚱ
In that regard, a port stone is better than a family system.
On the other hand, the family system adds to the social constructs.
The attitude toward group summoning will be different too. People will mostly preemptively plan how to use a port stone, versus a family summon which will mostly be used reactively (except the people trying to find a way to exploit family summoning).
the fact that a single summon takes 5eva to happen is a good thing though.
Currently, the only cost at the time of summon is a cooldown. However, maintaining a family is required and maintaining a family has a cost.
- There are costs associated with family creation and maintenance.[5]
- Some costs are shared among the family members and other costs are specific to the family head.[5]
https://ashesofcreation.wiki/FamiliesCosts can be adjusted or moved around. Testing will be done and costs will be addressed. If a cost per summon needs to be added, then it can be brought up. The stone summoning and family system can exist at the same time as families could be the ones that can make a family summoning stone as an explanation for costs.
Personally, I just see it as renaming the current system. Whether teleportation is marked as an in game stone or an in game family has very little impact on anything aside from perception. Which I only see as useful from an RP perspective.
Lets agree to disagree then. Although overall, I do stand on the side no teleportation all together.
ᚺᛖᚨᚱᚦ ᛟᚠᚦᛖ ᛊᚺᚨᛞᛟᚹ ᛁᛗᛁᚱ
Family members share property. This includes access to mats grown on the property such as crops and storage. Additionally, family members can share the taxes on a piece of property.
https://ashesofcreation.wiki/Families
Ok, I agree.
The cost per teleport idea is interesting. I've been thinking through what could be done with it.
(This is not an exhaustive list of differences. I have only focused on those that seem mechanically or economically important)
If a player gathers the mats to summon, how much time should the gathering require?
If players can buy the mats or teleportation stone or item, how much should that cost?
There is the question of who pays the cost.
There is also the question of cost to create the summon item vs. what is gained by summoning.
But if you make families large, like 8 people, then you only need 3 families for a 20 people raid. Yes, you still need 3 people to make it there, but if it well done you easily take those people who actually have plently of time and they're the responsibles for summoning.
Some people might even have alts stationed at certain locations, and just summon members. No where does it says that you need to be max level for family.
I think the summoned character should get a CD so they can't be summoned again for like 30 minutes - 1 hour. Other than that the family system is ok and it is meant to be a way to get a party of your close friends to content. After you get there you still have to make it home safe with any materials you might have gained in that time.
Agree but a little differently, perhaps the other way round, the summoning character not the summoned might be better placed to have a cool down.
Perhaps the cool down related to the general buff time. ie if a buff round (if there is such a thing) lasts 20min, the so too the summons capability.
ᚺᛖᚨᚱᚦ ᛟᚠᚦᛖ ᛊᚺᚨᛞᛟᚹ ᛁᛗᛁᚱ
I can't think of something that won't be used by guilds for unintended purposes.
I was thinking about a follow while offline, but it's something that you need to set up. But that would require your character to move while offline.
Maybe something along the lines of "shrinking your character" and you get transported, but if the other character dies, you also die, lose mats and death penalty.
I mean, it's the only way I can think people would consider exploting it. Free Teleport, not matter how many restrictions you put, it's still free teleport.