Well, seems like we're moving to the phase of the thread where the two social vampires duel to see who can feed off the other more, so I'mma go play some FF11.
Most of the people that work at Intrepid, on Ashes, are people I would consider experts at game design. I say this with actual first hand knowledge, as a number of them are people I have known personally for over a decade.
Mental gymnastics continues. So according to your own words, they are experts, but...
Ashes has completely disconnected the time they want players to spend leveling from what the actual point of leveling in an MMORPG is about. They have just slapped a random amount of time and said "yep, we want it to take this long".
Well, seems like we're moving to the phase of the thread where the two social vampires duel to see who can feed off the other more, so I'mma go play some FF11.
you are right but you are missing something. steven has team of experts that challenge his ideas or bring them to life.
I'm not sure how much I can get in to this here - but they don't challenge him half as much as they would like. They do at times, but not as much as they would want to.
They have families to feed, and they know Steven better than you and I do.
I think I'll leave it at that.
Edit; I will add, the tech sector as a whole has had millions of layoffs over the last few years.
You clearly were not talking about Steven in particular in that quote.
This goes back to you not understanding things well - particularly nuance.
You don't have the context for the comments you are attempting to dissect. I am not going to add full context to every post in order for people like you to better understand. However, you questioned me, I explained the parts you were missing, that should be enough for you to understand.
You now have that information, you have no reason to persue this.
Deal with it.
Edit to add; if I was doing as you say, you wouldn't be alone in trying to "call me out". There would be a dozen or more people joining you, some of whom have posted in this thread during this time. There is no shortage of people on these forums that would love to call me out.
They won't though, because they know the context above, and they know that this has long been my opinion. It is only you that doesn't get that, because you are trying to call me out on something you didn't understand the underlying context.
Nobody asked you about "the deep context". You directly contradicted yourself and now, as long as you obviously won't admit that, you are trying to justify it. Period. That simple.
WIthout it, all you are showing is that you are jumping to conclusions before you understand.
P.S. Congrats on getting an AI girlfriend.
This kind of thing is toxic behavior that could well see you get banned from these forums.
You probably want to stop it.
If someone wants to like a post, that is no business of yours, you have no place commenting on it - especially not a comment designed to be derogitory - regardless of how ineffective it is, or how much is resembles a 1990's verision of childish.
I’m not sure what your problem is, but it seems like you have some fear or hesitation towards AI in general. Just so you know, speech-to-text technology uses AI, as do platforms like Grammarly, which help people structure their writing. These tools can be incredibly helpful, especially for individuals who have disabilities or find it challenging to put their thoughts into words. AI is a powerful resource that can support people in expressing themselves more clearly and effectively.
However, I do think you’re being childish and taking things out of context or not understanding them properly from the start. I’m going to ignore you from now on, but I still wish you all the best in life and happiness.
However, I do think you’re being childish and taking things out of context or not understanding them properly from the start. I’m going to ignore you from now on, but I still wish you all the best in life and happiness.
Buddy, I absolutely don't mind using AI or if someone does that. But when you paste a comment 80% of which is some weird random and irrelevant combination of words - meaning no offence, but that's just not the way you should communicate with people.
This kind of thing is toxic behavior that could well see you get banned from these forums.
You probably want to stop it.
If someone wants to like a post, that is no business of yours, you have no place commenting on it - especially not a comment designed to be derogitory - regardless of how ineffective it is, or how much is resembles a 1990's verision of childish.
Well, let me provide me an answer using your own words because you clearly don't know the context and you didn't care to ask. Instead, you jumped to a conclusion before you cared to understand.
I can identify a random excuse when I see one. [/b]
It would seem that you can't - or at least that you have many false positives.
Well, let me provide me an answer using your own words because you clearly don't know the context and you didn't care to ask. Instead, you jumped to a conclusion before you cared to understand.
If you make an assumption without context, I immediately provide you with that context.
You have not done that, you have just stated that I do not have the context.
I can identify a random excuse when I see one. [/b]
It would seem that you can't - or at least that you have many false positives.
Well, let me provide me an answer using your own words because you clearly don't know the context and you didn't care to ask. Instead, you jumped to a conclusion before you cared to understand.
If you make an assumption without context, I immediately provide you with that context.
You have not done that, you have just stated that I do not have the context.
I can identify a random excuse when I see one. [/b]
It would seem that you can't - or at least that you have many false positives.
Well, let me provide me an answer using your own words because you clearly don't know the context and you didn't care to ask. Instead, you jumped to a conclusion before you cared to understand.
If you make an assumption without context, I immediately provide you with that context.
You have not done that, you have just stated that I do not have the context.
Nice one!
With that, perhaps people won't notice that you make a claim without backing it up - that you never in fact provided the context that you claimed I was missing.
The fact that the poster you were acting derogitorily towards has decided to put you on ignore suggests there is no added context to be found to the above, despite your claim to the contrary. The fact that you have now twice failed to provide it confirms that to be the case.
If I am wrong in making the statement that there is no context at all to your behavior towards Pendragxn, then I am only wrong due to your inaction.
3
DygzMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
@Dygz based on data from others on this forum, the story and related questing must be at least 25 hours, probably more. I based this number on the gap between 'the people on the forum who I know would skip to max level'/some online complainers and JustVine's/my numbers. Since we never skip story and we actively pursue basic exploration and quest activities, but are otherwise high-efficiency players, I would guess that you can approximate the time spent doing those things by subtracting the playtime of those likely to skip it.
You might have fun if you hop in, you don't actually need to do much of the 'fighting game' stuff to enjoy that aspect, but you will need to group for a few things (the game will organically push this for a few things, so you're likely to be fine). It's 'Arcade Mode', you don't have to take on any of the Hardcore-type challenges unless you're counting navigation. That said, as noted above, I don't advise it beyond that for your mental structure type (as you've described it).
Thanks for the summary!!!
I do want to try T&L, but there's a few other games I need to jump back into first.
So yeah, we ended up having a podcast with @Dygz@Fantmx and Legendary Neurotoxin (sorry, I don't know your forum name) on Theory Forge channel and we mostly spoke about the leveling topic.
Here is the recording of that conversation/debate on their channel:
another edit: doing the solo tower is more fun if you do it as you level up instead of doing it at max level. but you can also ignore some mechanics if you play wand main...
I've quoted the part of your post that I consider actually relevant to anyone.
I consider your opinion on fighting games to be equivalent to that of Mag7. There's no benefit to bringing them up in conversations with me, I'm simply never going to be convinced that you have any idea what you're talking about, and your inability to grasp the underlying point of what I was saying in the post reinforces that perception of mine.
Stop the cap, you are just yapping at this point. The same people that yap will be the ones that will never actually play against you.
What server are you on in TnL, or do we run it on soul cal even though I've not played it in months?
"never going to be convinced that you have any idea what you're talking about" Talking doesn't matter if you can't even win matches, sorry.
Well, seems like we're moving to the phase of the thread where the two social vampires duel to see who can feed off the other more, so I'mma go play some FF11.
go play tnl 8D
I'm actually curious what rank her guild is on the server she is on. My guilds are 9+10 atm and winning conflict bosses lmao.
Well, seems like we're moving to the phase of the thread where the two social vampires duel to see who can feed off the other more, so I'mma go play some FF11.
go play tnl 8D
I'm actually curious what rank her guild is on the server she is on. My guilds are 9+10 atm and winning conflict bosses lmao.
I want azherae to teach me about fighting games, since I don't know anything and that's his mission in life. to teach people about fighting games, but instead, he is an ass to me. oh well
I want azherae to teach me about fighting games, since I don't know anything and that's his mission in life. to teach people about fighting games, but instead, he is an ass to me. oh well
Boys, this is not a thread for T&L discussion. Meaning no offence, but there is a thing called Discord - you can use it
I want azherae to teach me about fighting games, since I don't know anything and that's his mission in life. to teach people about fighting games, but instead, he is an ass to me. oh well
Boys, this is not a thread for T&L discussion. Meaning no offence, but there is a thing called Discord - you can use it
That changes people people start doing call out, im just replying
I want azherae to teach me about fighting games, since I don't know anything and that's his mission in life. to teach people about fighting games, but instead, he is an ass to me. oh well
Boys, this is not a thread for T&L discussion. Meaning no offence, but there is a thing called Discord - you can use it
well, judging by the title, this is a thread about bullets and dodging. bullets are projectiles, and you can shoot projectiles in fighting games. you can also dodge.
not the first thread where the conversation organically moves to a different topic, and wont be the last 8D
seems silly for me to do this but ill jump in 17 pages later. In my opinion, the fact that we already plan to have this much of a time required to hit 50 is pretty damn good. The problem that old games with long times to hit max level run into is lack of diverse and interesting content to fill in that time. DaoC, Everquest, ultima, etc. much of the leveling time is spent spam farming a dungeon or location for tens of hours.
The design of ashes seems to try and fill in that time with more ways to level through questing and exploration with dynamic events popping up all over the place similar to guild wars 2. A kind of merging of the old and new archetypes of leveling content.
So at the end of the day we have to trust intrepid to balance the line between mindless hours of grinding mobs and quest hub theme park. the current direction seems to be more balanced on paper than most would give credit.
Take Throne and liberty for example, I have played it for at least 12 hours a day since early access. if I was playing ashes of creation I would now be near or at 50. That seems pretty reasonable to me considering its been a few weeks since launch.
so roughly 15 days is what we are looking at for what I would say hardcore players might need to hit 50.
Another thing to note about ashes that might not be talked about, is that maybe higher level content just wont be ready yet when players are, forcing them to slow down and farm lower level mobs or even go get tradeskills leveled while they wait for their node to upgrade.
Another thing to note about ashes that might not be talked about, is that maybe higher level content just wont be ready yet when players are, forcing them to slow down and farm lower level mobs or even go get tradeskills leveled while they wait for their node to upgrade.
It has been mentioned. I'm pretty sure there will be a way to reach level 50 even without metros unlocked. Steven said that they expect hardcore players to reach the level cap when about ~25% of the nodes only reach Stage 3. I would assume by that time there will definitely be stage 4 nodes and maybe even a stage 5 node (that requires "a few weeks" according to wiki to be developed).
So yeah, I assume metros are not mandatory to reach level 50. Obviously, if you have metros, it would probably take less time to reach the level cap, but I expect it do be doable even without them
seems silly for me to do this but ill jump in 17 pages later. In my opinion, the fact that we already plan to have this much of a time required to hit 50 is pretty damn good. The problem that old games with long times to hit max level run into is lack of diverse and interesting content to fill in that time. DaoC, Everquest, ultima, etc. much of the leveling time is spent spam farming a dungeon or location for tens of hours.
The design of ashes seems to try and fill in that time with more ways to level through questing and exploration with dynamic events popping up all over the place similar to guild wars 2. A kind of merging of the old and new archetypes of leveling content.
So at the end of the day we have to trust intrepid to balance the line between mindless hours of grinding mobs and quest hub theme park. the current direction seems to be more balanced on paper than most would give credit.
Take Throne and liberty for example, I have played it for at least 12 hours a day since early access. if I was playing ashes of creation I would now be near or at 50. That seems pretty reasonable to me considering its been a few weeks since launch.
so roughly 15 days is what we are looking at for what I would say hardcore players might need to hit 50.
Another thing to note about ashes that might not be talked about, is that maybe higher level content just wont be ready yet when players are, forcing them to slow down and farm lower level mobs or even go get tradeskills leveled while they wait for their node to upgrade.
One of my main concerns about Ashes of Creation is leveling speed. According to wiki, it would take approximately 45 days of playing 4-6 hours per day to reach level 50, which is ~225 hours. Which is not much at all and it will inevitably lead to some, or even all problems I described in the video.
1. The average player would reach level 50 within approximately ~2 months. It means the only future updates he will care about are those related to endgame. Therefore, Intrepid will be forced to prioritize endgame content to prevent those players from leaving; this will not stop and will only get worse over time.
2. Those ~2 months might not even be relevant on release. Alpha 2 and Beta phases have no NDA. Therefore, there will be plenty of YouTube guides about leveling up fast.
3. Those ~2 months will be even less relevant post launch: nodes will be more developed, economy will function, market will have everything a player needs. Also, players will be able to get help from friends, guilds etc. They might also get powerleveled by their high-level friends even with current restrictions (for example, level 42 player can get carried in a group of lvl 50 players in high level zones)
5. Slower progression extends the longevity of the game. Simple example: x1 Lineage 2 servers could stay active for years. Servers with x5, x10 or higher rates normally lasted several months at best, despite the fact that players were literally playing the same game. And yes, there were many casual players in Lineage 2 as well.
6. Fast leveling leads to having more alts with different artisan skills. As a result, the whole idea of interdependent player relationships will slowly die. Especially, if we take into account, that artisan level does not really require adventuring level.
7. The faster the leveling is, the more low- and mid-level content players tend to skip. Taking into accounts #1, #2 and #3, the situation will only get worse over time.
8. As a result of #7, the low- and mid-level economy slowly but surely dies over time. New World is a perfect example. Seen the same in Lineage 2 as well.
I agree with these points.
I'd especially emphasize on 1, 5+6(very connected) and 7+8 (very connected to each other too)
1. I think you are actually thinking ahead of your time. Literally giving some golden advice here. The most relevant thing to say about your point number 1 is:
Why do MMORPGs have to rely so heavily on the "numbers go big" gimick. That's literally what all MMORPGs are relying on - making numbers bigger. Ex. your damage bigger, your hp bigger, more armor number, more movement speed, faster clear time, your level number must go brrrr too.
Why? This is so cheap. It's predating on a psychological factor of the mind thinking bigger and more is better.
I really hope AoC listens to you my friend. You are giving advice that can make this MMORPG into something real and very big.
Instead of relying on number go brrr, MMORPGs should start relying on the RPG part more - storyline, quests, combat, exploration - richness of world, hidden secrets etc.
And instead of cheaping out on this psychological factor that sends people into autistic 24/7 solo or raid-mindless grind, MMOs should focus on the social factor. So like - make some quests really hard to discover and long to complete on your own, for example i remember in WoW in stranglethorn vale there was a quest which required you to collect all pieces of some journal. Yes, recreate this and make the journals even rarer and harder to get. Some pieces requiring teamwork, other pieces being hidden, third part of pieces just requiring you to farm mobs(come on, lets be real, we all love to farm at least a little). This way you make it a requirement for guilds or solos to search for parties who wanna do the teamwork group parts, the second parts you'll need information from players who have found the pieces to tell you where they are and lastly the third part would have low drop rate so again unless you wanna solo farm for ages you'll need to trade pieces or collect them together with your guild.
So capitalize on the social aspect of it being an MMO. Make social events, quests and ideas that give incentives to players to use the ingame chat, to search towns for information and for groups, etc.
Right now we have this but it's more connected with solo grinding again rather than group efforts. So I remember steven giving examples of how to level nodes and one was by questing and another was by depositing mats into the node. Sure, man but that's again solo-gameplay. I can quest alone for the most part and I can go gather mats and deposite them solo. SO WHY AM I PLAYING AN MMO FOR? I can literally do this in a single player RPG game and it'll be more fun due to better combat mechanics, storyline etc. Whats the point of it being an MMO if I can grind it out solo?
And again - having the emphasis on being max level in order to do end-game content is such a cheap trick. Mainly because like I said - you can grind out level 50 on your own, usually skipping lots of low and mid content. So pop just like that you are max level after 1-2 months and you are already geared or gearing towards killing the Lich King????????????????????
No... please.. Make AoC a memorable MMORPG. Where the combat with that dragon you showed us Steven is super hard, memorable and not only requires you to stat-check it with 2 months of work. Make it so that's the cherry on-top ice cream finish of your character's adventure. The rest of the adventure should be WHY you are playing the game. The end-game boss shouldn't be the goal. Or at the very least make it so end-game bosses are gate-kept by requiring specific items from low-mid game content in order to summon them or unlock the area in which they wait for you.
As for your other points - 5, 6, 7 and 8:
I completely agree. Making things fast only encourages players to play MMORPGs solo. The reason why humanity IRL is so heavily interconnected even nowadays in this modern age of comfort and internet and has always been so heavily dependent on being part of a tribe/pack/community is exactly because OTHERWISE THINGS ARE JUST TOO SLOW. Meaning IRL you can't be your own 5 star food chief and your top level mechanic, and your own financial advisor, and your own bodyguard, etc. etc.. You can't even be your own farmer. You need others, otherwise you'd never be able to do the things you want to do. It's because mastering just one of these things takes a lifetime. So going from 1-50 in 2 months really is too fast. It's not slow enough to discourage people from trying becoming their own top tier chief, engineer, cartographer, etc.
This also de-values what it means to be top tier in a profession. If leveling is made slower then professions will also become more valuable. Meaning you'd have to pay more for someone to craft you something. You'd also have to show respect to players who have reached a top level of any profession because it would be rare to have those. There'd be like just a hand full of them in each server.
I've never understood the idea of having lots of levels to lock people out of content. All having lots of levels does is means that the game has to do a stat and level squish sooner and runs out of room in expansions. Imo, MMOs shouldn't launch with more than 30 levels or so.
Also, 4-6 hours PER DAY is a lot for most people. Like I work 40 hours a week and casually play FFXIV. I might spend 8 hours during the weekend, maybe 10, play it, but no more than 2 hours a couple nights during the week, and several nights I don't even play because I have evening stuff to do, stuff to get ready for work the next day, family to spend time with, or just want to go to sleep.
The average player is going something like 1-3 hours per weekday and maybe 3-4 on weekend days/days off.
This means even using the numbers you gave, people are going to be 3-4 months getting to level cap at truly average levels of play. Note that some players are even slower, and a lot of players may be in game but not doing leveling up things, such as gathering or crafting.
Ashes also isn't designed around endgame in the normal sense that a lot of MMOs are.
Further, it's not healthy for games to launch without "end-game" anyway. There was some game, either Warhammer Online or Asheron's Call...one of those around that era, that launched without an end-game. People found the game super fun to level in...but when they got around half-way to the level cap, the game simply had no content. The devs hadn't implemented it yet. Dogged plaeyrs persisted, grinding near worthless exp mobs all the way to level cap expecting something...but there was nothing. The game died because it was launched without end-game content.
NO MMO SHOULD BE DOING THIS.
And if the MMO has end-game content, or its version of that (like Ashes will), then it doesn't matter if people get to end-game quickly since there's content to do. Devs have to add content with patches every so often of have a lot of RNG to mix things up (which AoC will with the node system) anyway.
Comments
But yeah, go on, keep squirming. It's enjoyable to watch
go play tnl 8D
They have families to feed, and they know Steven better than you and I do.
I think I'll leave it at that.
Edit; I will add, the tech sector as a whole has had millions of layoffs over the last few years.
So, that's a factor.
You don't have the context for the comments you are attempting to dissect. I am not going to add full context to every post in order for people like you to better understand. However, you questioned me, I explained the parts you were missing, that should be enough for you to understand.
You now have that information, you have no reason to persue this.
Deal with it.
Edit to add; if I was doing as you say, you wouldn't be alone in trying to "call me out". There would be a dozen or more people joining you, some of whom have posted in this thread during this time. There is no shortage of people on these forums that would love to call me out.
They won't though, because they know the context above, and they know that this has long been my opinion. It is only you that doesn't get that, because you are trying to call me out on something you didn't understand the underlying context.
P.S. Congrats on getting an AI girlfriend.
WIthout it, all you are showing is that you are jumping to conclusions before you understand. This kind of thing is toxic behavior that could well see you get banned from these forums.
You probably want to stop it.
If someone wants to like a post, that is no business of yours, you have no place commenting on it - especially not a comment designed to be derogitory - regardless of how ineffective it is, or how much is resembles a 1990's verision of childish.
I’m not sure what your problem is, but it seems like you have some fear or hesitation towards AI in general. Just so you know, speech-to-text technology uses AI, as do platforms like Grammarly, which help people structure their writing. These tools can be incredibly helpful, especially for individuals who have disabilities or find it challenging to put their thoughts into words. AI is a powerful resource that can support people in expressing themselves more clearly and effectively.
However, I do think you’re being childish and taking things out of context or not understanding them properly from the start. I’m going to ignore you from now on, but I still wish you all the best in life and happiness.
Well, let me provide me an answer using your own words because you clearly don't know the context and you didn't care to ask. Instead, you jumped to a conclusion before you cared to understand.
Another checkmate, cutie pie
You have not done that, you have just stated that I do not have the context.
With that, perhaps people won't notice that you make a claim without backing it up - that you never in fact provided the context that you claimed I was missing.
The fact that the poster you were acting derogitorily towards has decided to put you on ignore suggests there is no added context to be found to the above, despite your claim to the contrary. The fact that you have now twice failed to provide it confirms that to be the case.
If I am wrong in making the statement that there is no context at all to your behavior towards Pendragxn, then I am only wrong due to your inaction.
I do want to try T&L, but there's a few other games I need to jump back into first.
Here is the recording of that conversation/debate on their channel:
He has a REAL FACE, behind that Avatar !!! (Ò_ô) !!!
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Kinda starting to look for a Guild right now. (German)
Stop the cap, you are just yapping at this point. The same people that yap will be the ones that will never actually play against you.
What server are you on in TnL, or do we run it on soul cal even though I've not played it in months?
"never going to be convinced that you have any idea what you're talking about" Talking doesn't matter if you can't even win matches, sorry.
I'm actually curious what rank her guild is on the server she is on. My guilds are 9+10 atm and winning conflict bosses lmao.
I want azherae to teach me about fighting games, since I don't know anything and that's his mission in life. to teach people about fighting games, but instead, he is an ass to me. oh well
Boys, this is not a thread for T&L discussion. Meaning no offence, but there is a thing called Discord - you can use it
That changes people people start doing call out, im just replying
well, judging by the title, this is a thread about bullets and dodging. bullets are projectiles, and you can shoot projectiles in fighting games. you can also dodge.
not the first thread where the conversation organically moves to a different topic, and wont be the last 8D
The design of ashes seems to try and fill in that time with more ways to level through questing and exploration with dynamic events popping up all over the place similar to guild wars 2. A kind of merging of the old and new archetypes of leveling content.
So at the end of the day we have to trust intrepid to balance the line between mindless hours of grinding mobs and quest hub theme park. the current direction seems to be more balanced on paper than most would give credit.
Take Throne and liberty for example, I have played it for at least 12 hours a day since early access. if I was playing ashes of creation I would now be near or at 50. That seems pretty reasonable to me considering its been a few weeks since launch.
so roughly 15 days is what we are looking at for what I would say hardcore players might need to hit 50.
Another thing to note about ashes that might not be talked about, is that maybe higher level content just wont be ready yet when players are, forcing them to slow down and farm lower level mobs or even go get tradeskills leveled while they wait for their node to upgrade.
So yeah, I assume metros are not mandatory to reach level 50. Obviously, if you have metros, it would probably take less time to reach the level cap, but I expect it do be doable even without them
Having Hu-mons as the ONLY playable race!
I win, I have 2 more achievements.
Vlhadus asked Steven the question about leveling speed
Timestamp: 50:35
Link:
I agree with these points.
I'd especially emphasize on 1, 5+6(very connected) and 7+8 (very connected to each other too)
1. I think you are actually thinking ahead of your time. Literally giving some golden advice here. The most relevant thing to say about your point number 1 is:
Why do MMORPGs have to rely so heavily on the "numbers go big" gimick. That's literally what all MMORPGs are relying on - making numbers bigger. Ex. your damage bigger, your hp bigger, more armor number, more movement speed, faster clear time, your level number must go brrrr too.
Why? This is so cheap. It's predating on a psychological factor of the mind thinking bigger and more is better.
I really hope AoC listens to you my friend. You are giving advice that can make this MMORPG into something real and very big.
Instead of relying on number go brrr, MMORPGs should start relying on the RPG part more - storyline, quests, combat, exploration - richness of world, hidden secrets etc.
And instead of cheaping out on this psychological factor that sends people into autistic 24/7 solo or raid-mindless grind, MMOs should focus on the social factor. So like - make some quests really hard to discover and long to complete on your own, for example i remember in WoW in stranglethorn vale there was a quest which required you to collect all pieces of some journal. Yes, recreate this and make the journals even rarer and harder to get. Some pieces requiring teamwork, other pieces being hidden, third part of pieces just requiring you to farm mobs(come on, lets be real, we all love to farm at least a little). This way you make it a requirement for guilds or solos to search for parties who wanna do the teamwork group parts, the second parts you'll need information from players who have found the pieces to tell you where they are and lastly the third part would have low drop rate so again unless you wanna solo farm for ages you'll need to trade pieces or collect them together with your guild.
So capitalize on the social aspect of it being an MMO. Make social events, quests and ideas that give incentives to players to use the ingame chat, to search towns for information and for groups, etc.
Right now we have this but it's more connected with solo grinding again rather than group efforts. So I remember steven giving examples of how to level nodes and one was by questing and another was by depositing mats into the node. Sure, man but that's again solo-gameplay. I can quest alone for the most part and I can go gather mats and deposite them solo. SO WHY AM I PLAYING AN MMO FOR? I can literally do this in a single player RPG game and it'll be more fun due to better combat mechanics, storyline etc. Whats the point of it being an MMO if I can grind it out solo?
And again - having the emphasis on being max level in order to do end-game content is such a cheap trick. Mainly because like I said - you can grind out level 50 on your own, usually skipping lots of low and mid content. So pop just like that you are max level after 1-2 months and you are already geared or gearing towards killing the Lich King????????????????????
No... please.. Make AoC a memorable MMORPG. Where the combat with that dragon you showed us Steven is super hard, memorable and not only requires you to stat-check it with 2 months of work. Make it so that's the cherry on-top ice cream finish of your character's adventure. The rest of the adventure should be WHY you are playing the game. The end-game boss shouldn't be the goal. Or at the very least make it so end-game bosses are gate-kept by requiring specific items from low-mid game content in order to summon them or unlock the area in which they wait for you.
As for your other points - 5, 6, 7 and 8:
I completely agree. Making things fast only encourages players to play MMORPGs solo. The reason why humanity IRL is so heavily interconnected even nowadays in this modern age of comfort and internet and has always been so heavily dependent on being part of a tribe/pack/community is exactly because OTHERWISE THINGS ARE JUST TOO SLOW. Meaning IRL you can't be your own 5 star food chief and your top level mechanic, and your own financial advisor, and your own bodyguard, etc. etc.. You can't even be your own farmer. You need others, otherwise you'd never be able to do the things you want to do. It's because mastering just one of these things takes a lifetime. So going from 1-50 in 2 months really is too fast. It's not slow enough to discourage people from trying becoming their own top tier chief, engineer, cartographer, etc.
This also de-values what it means to be top tier in a profession. If leveling is made slower then professions will also become more valuable. Meaning you'd have to pay more for someone to craft you something. You'd also have to show respect to players who have reached a top level of any profession because it would be rare to have those. There'd be like just a hand full of them in each server.
Also, 4-6 hours PER DAY is a lot for most people. Like I work 40 hours a week and casually play FFXIV. I might spend 8 hours during the weekend, maybe 10, play it, but no more than 2 hours a couple nights during the week, and several nights I don't even play because I have evening stuff to do, stuff to get ready for work the next day, family to spend time with, or just want to go to sleep.
The average player is going something like 1-3 hours per weekday and maybe 3-4 on weekend days/days off.
This means even using the numbers you gave, people are going to be 3-4 months getting to level cap at truly average levels of play. Note that some players are even slower, and a lot of players may be in game but not doing leveling up things, such as gathering or crafting.
Ashes also isn't designed around endgame in the normal sense that a lot of MMOs are.
Further, it's not healthy for games to launch without "end-game" anyway. There was some game, either Warhammer Online or Asheron's Call...one of those around that era, that launched without an end-game. People found the game super fun to level in...but when they got around half-way to the level cap, the game simply had no content. The devs hadn't implemented it yet. Dogged plaeyrs persisted, grinding near worthless exp mobs all the way to level cap expecting something...but there was nothing. The game died because it was launched without end-game content.
NO MMO SHOULD BE DOING THIS.
And if the MMO has end-game content, or its version of that (like Ashes will), then it doesn't matter if people get to end-game quickly since there's content to do. Devs have to add content with patches every so often of have a lot of RNG to mix things up (which AoC will with the node system) anyway.