This is just a thought: What if we had 4 extra debuffs - for a total of 8 debuff options - in Elite mode so that players have more freedom in HOW they reach the highest tier of research points? Players who prefer to play with specific gear can choose it and pay the price of having to wear more debuffs; players who are cool with randomized loadouts for the highest tier of rewards can keep it that way; and there's elbow room for compromise between the two extremes.
I was inspired by the fact that some players (like me), though perfectly able to do the highest tier of rewards as they stand, didn't have fun with the random boring gear the loadout restriction mechanic rolled for us (dagger set #541, recently-nerfed-though-previously-fun hammer, I don't even remember the last melee because it was so forgettable). Circuit does this too - except it gives you back a different dimension for fun and creativity in the form of Decrees. Since Archimedea is intended to be a - per se - "hard mode," I thought maybe a way to trade off giving back the degree of freedom/fun in the loadout options would be to introduce extra curses to bear: either you fully embrace the randomized loadouts for that highest tier, or you pay a price in the form of extra debuffs in exchange for keeping some of the gear you enjoy more.
Again, just a thought. I don't think the system absolutely needs changing, but this might be an idea to explore.
This is just a thought: What if we had 4 extra debuffs - for a total of 8 debuff options - in Elite mode so that players have more freedom in HOW they reach the highest tier of research points? Players who prefer to play with specific gear can choose it and pay the price of having to wear more debuffs; players who are cool with randomized loadouts for the highest tier of rewards can keep it that way; and there's elbow room for compromise between the two extremes. I was inspired by the fact that some players (like me), though perfectly able to do the highest tier of rewards as they stand, didn't have fun with the random boring gear the loadout restriction mechanic rolled for us (dagger set #541, recently-nerfed-though-previously-fun hammer, I don't even remember the last melee because it was so forgettable). Circuit does this too - except it gives you back a different dimension for fun and creativity in the form of Decrees. Since Archimedea is intended to be a - per se - "hard mode," I thought maybe a way to trade off giving back the degree of freedom/fun in the loadout options would be to introduce extra curses to bear: either you fully embrace the randomized loadouts for that highest tier, or you pay a price in the form of extra debuffs in exchange for keeping some of the gear you enjoy more. Again, just a thought. I don't think the system absolutely needs changing, but this might be an idea to explore.
