PvP in this game is fundamentaly unfun for majority of the players due to balance issues, which is why pop dropped 30% ever since PvP really kicked in

[Iloros]

Before PvP really kicked off these past few days, people were leveling all kinds of builds, queues were growing, and places like the Beth Jedda bandit camp were always populated.

Once veterans reached their endgame builds, everything changed. Alvarins and Mounted Archers (many of them also Alvarins ofc) started dominating every fight, including beginner farming spots. The Beth Jedda camp that used to have 10+ players ALWAYS is now usually empty, and most of the map feels the same outside of dungeons.

The meta has almost no variety. Most PvP is the same Alvarin/MA builds using the same few weapons. An MMORPG built around customization shouldn't have 90% of players on two builds. Human, Thursar, and Oghmir players have either rerolled Alvarin or quit because their builds can't compete.

IK Human can MA that is why I keep saying Alvarin/MA every race can MA.

Even as a veteran with decent mastery, good gear, and plenty of gold, I don't enjoy leaving town because most fights have little or no counterplay. If it feels like that for veterans, newer players have it even worse.

Group PvP isn't much better. You either run into large groups of MAs and just get demolished before getting anywhere or coordinated veteran Alvarin groups that steamroll everyone if you make it to a dungeon or maybe an overhwelming amount of new/average players. Solo play is already dead, and small scale fights are again becoming more rare and in case you do get one its vs unbeatablr Alvarin comps. The promised anti-zerg mechanics havent done shit, adrenaline is a good mechanic but has nothing to do with antizerg because it doesnt scale based off players hitting you or anything.

I'm not blaming players, they'll always use what's strongest. The problem is balance. If PvP was actually fun, the player count should have gone up once people reached endgame, not dropped. This meele game 100% has more ranged builds now by far, heavy meeles are completely useless in everything other than Oghmirs in group fights (I dont even say the Oghmir part sincerily its just an argument I dont wanna have so sure Oghmirs are not bad in large teamfights that happen once a blue moon as if that matters)

Obviously other things contributed to people quitting but this is the core issue, I swear I rememver the day pvp started around Beth Jedda pop just started dropping and my own experience became way worse so no wonder someone with less tolerance just leaves after experiencing what I do. The que was there and pop was still growing up until PvP started and this was people's gameplay loop outside a zerg:

Gear up for 10mins > go out > get dismounted and killed by MAs on the way there with no counterplay or die to Alvarins in there with no counterpmay if you get lucky and make it there. It just isnt fun no wonder people with no tolerance aka normal people quit already.

TL;DR: PvP is overwhelmingly one-sided in most clashes, every fight I won it'd be hard to lose and almost every fight I lost I can't win even if I played perfectly. Alvarins and Mounted Archers are still too strong, the nerf did nothing, 15 days in and build diversity is gone already, not because people rerolled but because players of other builds QUIT, anti-zerg mechanics don't work except counter reduce, and the game needs serious balance changes asap, not 3% armor pierce nerf, what a joke.

 

[Locke]

Low IQ Devs that did nothing but buff zerg friendly and cheat friendly builds such as mage and archer since the game's release.

Such idiots can't even manage to implement something as simple as "gain x health and gain x stamina after killing a player" to help smaller groups and
counter mindless zerging. It's like they haven't really gamed since the late 90s and the last time they really played their own game was in alpha/beta.

1 month and we're back at 500 players.

 

[Jackdstripper]

Its a desert map with huge empty spaces, almost no cover anywhere, and visibility to the horizon. Of course its an MA paradise. On top of that, nobody is wearing metal armors, so arrows do very good damage. It doesnt get much better than this for MAs. Its literally the best scenario for them. Sarducca in MO1 was the same mostly due to heat mechanic which prevented people from using steel armor.

However i dont think thats the main reason for the player drop off. Id say part of it is the novelty has worn off. Some people simply wanted to see the sites and explore the new continent. Some people played hard to level fast and now that they reached a decent level of masteries,and set up their bases, they can take a break. Others, like you, have figured out the current Sarducca MA meta and arent very excited about it.

I think at least half of the players will return to Nave in a month or 2. A lot more will simply quit playing when the vets start using their increasing advantage to gank all the farming spots on the regular.

All that will be left in Sarducca is: MAs, dedicated dungeon farming characters, the few US ping lovers that just refuse to go back to Nave's ping.

 

[Iloros]

Low IQ Devs that did nothing but buff zerg friendly and cheat friendly builds such as mage and archer since the game's release.

Such idiots can't even manage to implement something as simple as "gain x health and gain x stamina after killing a player" to help smaller groups and
counter mindless zerging. It's like they haven't really gamed since the late 90s and the last time they really played their own game was in alpha/beta.

1 month and we're back at 500 players.

I predicted this but one of the devs that hates me becuase hes an alvarin player deleted my previous posts LOL. Robmo, thank god he got fired or reduced to almost nothing.
Literlaly had a post saying exactly word for word what would happen, people farm and theres 2-3k players, pvp dudes on the most cancer builds in zergs get their builds to 30-60 mastery and some nice trinkets 14-18% pierce dmg, they demolish everyone else and game drops in pop within a month.
Exact thing is happening, they did the smallest nerf ever on alvarins and just fundamentaly statcheck nerfs arent only thing that they need changed, they need to be less survivable and able to escape and reset.

But nah 3% armor pierce nerf, embarassing. Neb or whatever group of people are doing balnace are truly dissappointing, Klean who I have nothing against and I think has good takes, and this is all hearsay coz i dont really watch twitch much, but I heard that he came back on ptr I believe, told them to buff khurites, and they litearlly buffed khurites LOOOOL ???? Dude did the same with poleaxes, BOTH GOOD CHANGES BTW, but the fact that they need another guy to tell them what to do, but wont listen to the community or EVEN BETTER do changes themselves with analytics is a tell sign. Thye dont have a balance team at all.

 

[Iloros]

Its a desert map with huge empty spaces, almost no cover anywhere, and visibility to the horizon. Of course its an MA paradise. On top of that, nobody is wearing metal armors, so arrows do very good damage. It doesnt get much better than this for MAs. Its literally the best scenario for them. Sarducca in MO1 was the same mostly due to heat mechanic which prevented people from using steel armor.

However i dont think thats the main reason for the player drop off. Id say part of it is the novelty has worn off. Some people simply wanted to see the sites and explore the new continent. Some people played hard to level fast and now that they reached a decent level of masteries,and set up their bases, they can take a break. Others, like you, have figured out the current Sarducca MA meta and arent very excited about it.

I think at least half of the players will return to Nave in a month or 2. A lot more will simply quit playing when the vets start using their increasing advantage to gank all the farming spots on the regular.

All that will be left in Sarducca is: MAs, dedicated dungeon farming characters, the few US ping lovers that just refuse to go back to Nave's ping.

Literally irrelevant, games need to be balanced regardless of situation. MA is op on myralnd too lmao and best mounted by far, I wont even bother much man. Thats like if they added a whole continent and 3k plaeyrs joined and you could only play a min height Oghmir coz they added tons of places where only they can go that arent accesible to others, its not balanced its not good for an mmorpg and people will leve if their builds are weak.

its a problematic thing I dont need excuses. It is the main reason, pvp started people stopped playing, I LITERALLY SAID that vets destroying all the spots WITH OP BUILDS which is key, are the reason, Do not underestimate balance my man, game with pvp 24 7 but good balance and fun gameplay is a way better game than game with balanced pvp amount but unbalanced pvp gameplay wise. When I die in a 1v1 vs Thursar or Oghmir I dont f eel bad at anything but myself, when I die to some bullshit that I literally had no coutner for, it makes you not wanna play coz you understand you are just at mercy of your enemies hand unless you meta slave, which most people just wont do, def not in a mixed review game wiht a sub that also requires you 10 euros and 3000g to reset your build, whole day too lol.
Myralnd was LITERALLY what you just described, it was "dedicated dungeon characters" aka alvarins coz they are op asf, and dedicated moutnes aka MAs coz they are op. Lmao. Lets not pretend Myrland was some Thursar Oghmir map and now finally poor Alvarins and MAs get to play, no they are fundamentaly OP and its even worse on Sarducca even post double nerf WHICH NOONE TALKS ABOUT becuase its an irrelevant tiny nerf. Congrats daggers are a bit weaker and MAs can't 3 shot you through steel anymore, only 4 shot, that it?