Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two Phase II testing is currently taking place 5+ days each week. More information about testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two Phase II testing is currently taking place 5+ days each week. More information about testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Mule System vs Caravan System (Please add the Mule System as soon as possible.)
Slyfers
Member, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One, Alpha Two, Early Alpha Two
It seems that the Ashes wiki is outdated regarding the role of Mules, and this should be confirmed by a dev or in the next livestream because it seems that most people who are making videos or comments on the caravan system either forgot they exist or don’t know they exist at all.
If Mules are supposed to carry the smallest crates and commodities (and if they don’t, they should in regarding to commodities), then why haven't they been added to the game for testing? They should have been introduced at the start of Phase Two with the marketplace, and since the caravan system is already implemented, it shouldn't be much of a problem to implement Mules, as the Mule system uses the same UI as the caravans.
How can the economy team properly test and balance the economy between selling glint, using a Mule, or using a Caravan, and get useful feedback from the community on these systems without having all three in the game at the same time? Right now, the community is trying to turn the Caravan system into the Mule system.
To me, the quest to get your first Mule is already in the game. Instead of giving players a quest to transfer three small crates by using a Caravan, the game should give them a basic Mule that can carry those three small crates—similar to the quest for the first ground mount. Since players have already completed the quest, the Mule should be sold at a vendor.
We just need one Mule implemented for testing. It could be implemented without any extra features—just like the marketplace. The free Mule should only be able to carry common 1-slot commodities (assuming rarity will eventually be added to the smallest commodities).
Currently, this is what the Ashes Wiki says about Mules:
Q: How will mules work with caravans when considering risk-versus-reward? What would be the incentive to run multiple player protected caravans if similar results could be achieved by each individual player riding a mule instead?
A: You are not able to satisfy the type of cargo capacity that's available within a caravan system, because we have certain crate sizes, of which only the smallest crate size can be leveraged with a mule. That is something that obviously is the inherent risk between the two systems. The reward however is that you are now no longer subject to the opt-in event, but instead are governed by our flagging system as a protective measure; although it is not entirely protective, because players can choose to still kill you with risk of corruption in exchange for the reward of taking your shit.[2] – Steven Sharif
• Crates carried by mules can be added to "in the wild".[3]
Q: Can people put crafted bags on their mules?
A: No. The mules use the cargo system, so the cargo system is crate-based. You have to acquire the crates and then you can equip them to the vehicles and/or mules. Mules cap out at the small crate value; and you can add to that crate in the wild.[3] – Steven Sharif
If a player dies there will be a period of time before their mule despawns. Other players must kill the mule to be able to loot it.
If a player's mule dies its corpse will contain the same percentage of lootable items as the player (based on their flagging status).
And here is what the wiki says about the commodities:
Player commodities are types of cargo that can be transported by caravans and merchant ships.
In my opinion, Mules are intended for small guilds, solo players, and those who do not want to be constantly in a group to do content, with little chance of having to deal with PvP due to the flagging system. On the other hand, caravans are more suited for large or elite guilds and those who wish to hire NPCs to guard their caravans. (If players can no longer hire NPCs to help guard their caravans, it should be reintroduced—perhaps added later in phase 3 after the Summon archetype is introduced, reusing some code for the NPC guards).
Okay, time for some harsh criticism:
There are currently about five flying mounts for mayors, multiple ground mounts (but no gliding mounts), a few aquatic mounts, and one caravan loadout (i.e., one horse), yet we do not have a single mule mount. The caravan preview came out in October of 2023, but we haven't seen a single showcase of the mule system. If the mule system is built on the foundation of the caravan system, then why hasn’t a mule been introduced into the game? To me, the mule system is a core feature of the gameplay loop for moving resources and commodities, but it’s not in the game to be tested or to provide feedback on.
There are now numerous YouTube videos, along with comments on both the forums and Discord, criticizing how awful the caravan system is and calling for it to be completely changed (essentially turning it into the mule system).
I hope we get clear information soon—either from a dev or during a livestream—about the purpose of the mule system.
If Mules are supposed to carry the smallest crates and commodities (and if they don’t, they should in regarding to commodities), then why haven't they been added to the game for testing? They should have been introduced at the start of Phase Two with the marketplace, and since the caravan system is already implemented, it shouldn't be much of a problem to implement Mules, as the Mule system uses the same UI as the caravans.
How can the economy team properly test and balance the economy between selling glint, using a Mule, or using a Caravan, and get useful feedback from the community on these systems without having all three in the game at the same time? Right now, the community is trying to turn the Caravan system into the Mule system.
To me, the quest to get your first Mule is already in the game. Instead of giving players a quest to transfer three small crates by using a Caravan, the game should give them a basic Mule that can carry those three small crates—similar to the quest for the first ground mount. Since players have already completed the quest, the Mule should be sold at a vendor.
We just need one Mule implemented for testing. It could be implemented without any extra features—just like the marketplace. The free Mule should only be able to carry common 1-slot commodities (assuming rarity will eventually be added to the smallest commodities).
Currently, this is what the Ashes Wiki says about Mules:
Q: How will mules work with caravans when considering risk-versus-reward? What would be the incentive to run multiple player protected caravans if similar results could be achieved by each individual player riding a mule instead?
A: You are not able to satisfy the type of cargo capacity that's available within a caravan system, because we have certain crate sizes, of which only the smallest crate size can be leveraged with a mule. That is something that obviously is the inherent risk between the two systems. The reward however is that you are now no longer subject to the opt-in event, but instead are governed by our flagging system as a protective measure; although it is not entirely protective, because players can choose to still kill you with risk of corruption in exchange for the reward of taking your shit.[2] – Steven Sharif
• Crates carried by mules can be added to "in the wild".[3]
Q: Can people put crafted bags on their mules?
A: No. The mules use the cargo system, so the cargo system is crate-based. You have to acquire the crates and then you can equip them to the vehicles and/or mules. Mules cap out at the small crate value; and you can add to that crate in the wild.[3] – Steven Sharif
If a player dies there will be a period of time before their mule despawns. Other players must kill the mule to be able to loot it.
If a player's mule dies its corpse will contain the same percentage of lootable items as the player (based on their flagging status).
And here is what the wiki says about the commodities:
Player commodities are types of cargo that can be transported by caravans and merchant ships.
In my opinion, Mules are intended for small guilds, solo players, and those who do not want to be constantly in a group to do content, with little chance of having to deal with PvP due to the flagging system. On the other hand, caravans are more suited for large or elite guilds and those who wish to hire NPCs to guard their caravans. (If players can no longer hire NPCs to help guard their caravans, it should be reintroduced—perhaps added later in phase 3 after the Summon archetype is introduced, reusing some code for the NPC guards).
Okay, time for some harsh criticism:
There are currently about five flying mounts for mayors, multiple ground mounts (but no gliding mounts), a few aquatic mounts, and one caravan loadout (i.e., one horse), yet we do not have a single mule mount. The caravan preview came out in October of 2023, but we haven't seen a single showcase of the mule system. If the mule system is built on the foundation of the caravan system, then why hasn’t a mule been introduced into the game? To me, the mule system is a core feature of the gameplay loop for moving resources and commodities, but it’s not in the game to be tested or to provide feedback on.
There are now numerous YouTube videos, along with comments on both the forums and Discord, criticizing how awful the caravan system is and calling for it to be completely changed (essentially turning it into the mule system).
I hope we get clear information soon—either from a dev or during a livestream—about the purpose of the mule system.
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