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You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!
For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.
You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Are Flying Mounts okay in Ashes?
BRAD_AoC
Member, Alpha Two
For those who don't know, currently the only known source for flying Mounts in the game is being a mayor of a node. This Flying Mount is extremely fast compared to ground mounts and can be used without limits, anytime and anywhere in the world.
That being said, I really think flying mounts, even with their currently limited availability, either shouldn't be a thing or be nerfed & restricted massively. I'm aware that becoming Mayor is a difficult feat and there won't be many people on each server able to use a flying mount, yet I still think the line between ground mounts, which keep players in the game world, and flying mounts, which completely detach players from the game world, should not be a crossed in the way it currently is in the Alpha.
It was stated multiple times that one of the main purposes for flying mounts is to allow Mayors to overlook the battlefield in node wars, and I think it's fine if that was the exclusive timeframe where you could use them, but having permanent access to a superfast flying mount provides way too many advantages, and frankly feels completely out of place in this otherwise very grounded and slower pace feeling MMO. I'd also like to highlight the fact that many MMO players view the introduction of flying mounts in World of Warcraft extremely negatively and ever since have a pretty firm stance against them.
I definitely think the spectacle of seeing somebody on an epic flying mount could be exciting to have in the game, but I think it should be an extremely limited ability that is restricted to very specific activities and events in the game instead of being a permanently available pocket mount. I know we're in an extremely early Alpha stage and nothing is final, but I really hope that Intrepid will eventually change these flying mounts to prevent a lot of the cheesy strategies that flying mounts enable currently.
I know a lot of the guild leaders that are looking forward to having a massive advantage over everybody else will obviously heavily disagree with this take, but I encourage everybody to have a civil discussion about this topic and really think about if flying mounts are something they really want to have in Ashes.
That being said, I really think flying mounts, even with their currently limited availability, either shouldn't be a thing or be nerfed & restricted massively. I'm aware that becoming Mayor is a difficult feat and there won't be many people on each server able to use a flying mount, yet I still think the line between ground mounts, which keep players in the game world, and flying mounts, which completely detach players from the game world, should not be a crossed in the way it currently is in the Alpha.
It was stated multiple times that one of the main purposes for flying mounts is to allow Mayors to overlook the battlefield in node wars, and I think it's fine if that was the exclusive timeframe where you could use them, but having permanent access to a superfast flying mount provides way too many advantages, and frankly feels completely out of place in this otherwise very grounded and slower pace feeling MMO. I'd also like to highlight the fact that many MMO players view the introduction of flying mounts in World of Warcraft extremely negatively and ever since have a pretty firm stance against them.
I definitely think the spectacle of seeing somebody on an epic flying mount could be exciting to have in the game, but I think it should be an extremely limited ability that is restricted to very specific activities and events in the game instead of being a permanently available pocket mount. I know we're in an extremely early Alpha stage and nothing is final, but I really hope that Intrepid will eventually change these flying mounts to prevent a lot of the cheesy strategies that flying mounts enable currently.
I know a lot of the guild leaders that are looking forward to having a massive advantage over everybody else will obviously heavily disagree with this take, but I encourage everybody to have a civil discussion about this topic and really think about if flying mounts are something they really want to have in Ashes.
At the end of the day, it's night.
2
Comments
What power is one (1) mayor going to have in a node siege involving hundreds of players?
Besides being able to survey the battle from the sky??
I'm talking about all the stuff you can do outside of node sieges and other events. Scouting for easy Caravan targets, farming & processing several times the amount of materials of any other player (Mayors are by default the best tradeskillers in any guild just because of the mount) and a lot of other stuff that is kinda gamebreaking in one way or another.
I honestly think if Flying Mounts would be exclusively usable in Node Wars and other events, they'd be pretty fine.
And, processed items still have to get from the freehold back to the node city.
That’s the whole reason for caravans in Ashes of Creation … to carry large quantities of supplies from A to B.
What other “kinda gamebreaking” examples do you have?
I don’t think the impact is as big as you think it is … but we shall soon find out now that Alpha 2 is live.
fully agree with u. its top op in open world, and usual game situations.
Well my guildie is the Mayor of Miraleth on Shol (EU) right now and the farming and processing he can do is absolutely crazy. Because of the flying Mount you can use multiple different stations in different places at once to process vastly more materials than any single player ever could.
You also don't need to use a caravan to transport materials over, he's literally just flying everything from one place to another, and because he's so fast it doesn't take long whatsoever. I think you don't truly understand how broken the flying mounts are currently.
Then no One will ever be able to exploit a for example flying Island like the tiny Ones around the Aela Capital which lies in Ruins and is the starting Area ... ... ^.^
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
The current implementation of being a mayor of any node is temporary since Metropoles aren't in the game yet, so flying mounts wouldn't be possible this early on a server normally.
That is a very bad concept. If there are flying mounts, they should be available to everyone.
ABSOLUTELY WRONG. The more prestigious and powerful these mounts are, the more epic and climactic the battles will be.
Mayor's will not be hotdropping on solo gatherers, or even ferrying goods like in Alpha currently.
They will be Countering the other flying players.
It will be impossible for normal players.....
this game will not give you something just because you logged in and this is absolutely great because when you achieve something you feel it.
Nooope lol
That's not the point at all.
In my opinion, it's fundamentally bad when something is unnecessarily limited to a few people.
This backfired in WoW to a certain Extent, though.
How many People i more or less "knew" in WoW for Example took their Time and rode on their Ground-Mounts through the Dragon-Isles ?
Yes. It would take noticeably more time. But some Area's were very beautifully made. Only to have +97% of all Players just quickly DASH OVER THEM in the Air with Dragon-riding because it is so fast.
Is is the Reason why in many Expansions People needed to "unlock" flying on the new Expansion's Continent first.
People shall appreciate Verra. Not think they are (quite literally) "ABOVE" exploring it and can just quickly fly everywhere.
Plus. When Everyone can fly -> People will not cross the Oceans with Ships.
Would be ONE HELL of a Shame if they miss all the cool Content that Sir Steven and his mighty Crew plan to have available on the Oceans.
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
Of course, you can stick to the concept of providing the mayors with mounts for those specific roles.
Why not make these mounts "unique" in a special way, but also give the normal player the chance to "grind their ass off" to earn themselfes other flying mounts.
With this you still have something special for the uniqe roles in terms of what mount it is (e.g. a Dragon) but on the other hand you give the normal player the opportunity to also have a flying mount (of course something other than a Dragon in this example)
Mark my Words,
you won't ever see a " SINGLE ", epic Ground-Battle of two Armies against each other, if all the participants in these Armies can fly around.
You will constantly see People dashing down from the Sky like some Eagles or other Birds of prey -> looking for assumed weak-points of the opposite Army to attack.
You could of Course disable Fly-Mechanics for things like Node-Wars, Node-Sieges, etc. -> but how would this even be explained how this would suddenly be unable to work ?
Would someone need to place a powerful Artifact ? That prevents People to use flying Mounts around the Radius of one or several Metropolis' Cities ?
I see so much trouble coming only with the Possibility that everyone can fly ... ...
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
Yeah, no.
so a few people out of 10,000...hmmm
So just because it's only a handful of people on the server being able to exploit, it's okay? What a weird take.
Exactly.
This is probably also pretty exactly what Intrepid has intended, if my Memory serves correct. I think i have read the Term "gliding Mounts" very often. You can put a Flying-Mounts Skin/Model for Example on a Glider and then glide down.
Hopefully somewhat far, like in Enshrouded with the best Gliders.
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
Not "okay" because it is just a few. - > But : it is supposed "to be special" ... ... ...
If only the Mayor of for Example a Metropolis can have a flying Mount,
and he has like : "Five to Ten Officers" he entrusts with weaker, smaller flying Mounts in the final, released Game : which lets say can also fly fully and completely - and are just noticeably weaker in a Siege when they defend their own Node or so,
then this would make " Eleven People " able to fly -> per Metropolis, right ? How many Metropolis Cities can there be in the End - with 85 Nodes planned in the likes of 18 or 19 Biomes or so ?
When a Metropolis can exist around lets say all 5 Nodes or so,
this would make Ten Metropolis Cities, plus 35 divided by Five is Seven ... ... " Seventeen Metropolisses* ",
Seventeen times Eleven, are 187 People - right ?
Maybe just me -> but i think this is the very exact/about Number of People they should aim for. Maybe if being able to oversee the World from above would be to overpowered,
these would probably already be to many. All Caravans on the Ground of the Surface World would always be able to be seen from someone who scouts them out for the own Node's Citizens to attack.
If for every single Metropolis -> ONLY the Mayor can have a flying Mount fully capable of unlimited flying - then this would make the Number of People who could for example prey on Caravans from the Air by being able to scout them out, down to "17 People".
This would still be enough People so that Caravans are easily in Danger. Even if there will be a "magical Notice anyway" when a Caravan from another Node starts to somewhere,
or at least for Nodes on hostile Relationships with the Node which Citizens spawn the Caravan.
17 People would be veeeeryyyyy few to be able to discover and exploit the World of Verra from above however they please for as long as they are Mayors.
187 People would be already a WHOLE LOTTA MORE so that a more realistic Chance is there, that "many" People can discover and explore the World of Verra with a View from above.
But would already f~ xxx Caravans over on a far more daily Basis.
You can of Course - > in let's say for Example the Kae'lar Riverlands -> set/programm it so -> that Nobody can just fly through the Airspace during Wintertime. Freezing Cold and Snowfall and so on,
or when a cloudy, rainy - and maybe stormy Day hits the Biome. Lightning for Example during a very cloudy, rainy Sky, could be an extreme Danger to everyone on a flying Mount.
Plus You could build in/programm a "Timer", that the LOOONNNGER You are in the Air -> the more You and your Mount run danger of being spotted by huge, dangerous Predators in the Air, which would love to tear you into pieces and eat you up ... ... ...
- Swarms of Harpies,
- maybe some flying, monstrous Corruption-thingy Monsters,
- maybe some huge Birds of Prey,
- or maybe even " DRAGONS " who view You flying through that Airspace as a trespassing of their Territory and challenging their Dominion and/or Ownership of that Airspace ... ...
( because after all -> what Business has a tiny, weak Being without Wings - sneaking around in their* Sky ? )
Wasn't there a winged Race in DnD on Toril ? Something like winged Elves ? And then many Dragons which were pissed off at seeing these tiny Elves "FLYING" through the Sky instead of those Elves being Dragons,
started to slaughter all of them ? Until most of the Race was genocided ?
I think there was something like that.
You could limit People being able to fly around undisturbed in Airspaces with a "LOT" of Mechanics actually. Even if you let always a Metropolis Mayor up to Ten People of those's Trust have flying Mounts.
Verra must stay a Place where You have to watch your back, after all ... ... ...
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
I think You are assuming, that those Streamers -> let's say for Example a legendary, balding Sir from Austin Texas,
will always have HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE behind them -> voting them into Mayorship, right ?
Which i think ... ... ... ... Yes - could easily happen.
But hands down.
You can of Course say that "Guilds" are already not normal People because of heavily and efficiently organised Guilds can be. But You can safely bet that not every Guildleader in the World of Verra will be a Streamer.
✓ Occasional Roleplayer
✓ Currently no guild !! (o_o)
I give a s°°° about the advantages that a flying mount user has over me.
As long as this advantage is not totally screwing me over in general, which I doubt it will.
It's ridiculous, short-sighted, selfish behavior.
Don't fight to eliminate content, fight to make that content more fun.
Don't enjoy travel? Well come up with ideas on how to make travel more fun. Don't argue that travel should be removed.
The people who argue for mounts, for faster mounts, for flying mounts.. these people are the same people who eventually become the people who shout that, "there's no content in this game"
They are the reason we ended up with Dalaran in WoW, with it's portals to every region in the game. Everyone just hearthing to Dalaran and portaling wherever they want to go, then flying straight to the destination.
Retail WoW is a hub-game, like Monster Hunter or Destiny. You hang out in the hub, get teleported or teleport to your destination, do the content, then teleport back. That's not an open world social sandbox mmo.
They are the reason we ended up with the LFG auto-dungeon-party system that teleports you to the dungeon instead of having to interact with the community and journey to the dungeon to do it.
These people are the reason why classic WoW was so very much requested.
These are the people who endlessly tormented the New World devs and community complaining about having to travel everywhere and "needing" mounts.
When the world is made based on a speed of travel, and then you increase that speed, the world and content becomes smaller and more trivial.
These people are the reason why Ashes is a breath of fresh air, with it avoiding these anti-social, anti-immersion systems.
Inconvenience is gameplay.
As for complaining about only a few people being able to exploit something in the way the 10 people who have flying mounts will be able to..
So what, they earned those mounts, that's the point. If you want to earn them, earn them, whether it be by also becoming popular like a streamer, or by winning the military node tournament, or buying/breeding flying mount eggs, etc.
This thread is just dripping with entitlement.
[edited for readability]
I can give you a cheesy stratergy that happened in alpha 2 the other day.
One of the mayor in my server was flying around a cave training mobs onto group in there to wipe them and then looted them, mobs couldnt hit him cause he was flying so it was safe for him but everyone on the ground would be trained mobs onto which then agroed them. I guess u can shoot out the mount but u gotta know it coming to target the mount fast enough to target him as he flies by.
Mobs i think need various ways to dismount flyers or flying mounts should be limited to a distance around their node.