How fast should you get your promotions ?

[jason24]

Just wanted to see what the community thinks about the speed at which we get our promotions.
I would imagine that the majority of players ( and i could be wrong here ) want to be an official Captain (as opposed to a Commander captaining a ship ) .

So would you like to see the promotion speed being slow so you feel that you have really earned the title Captain. ?

or

Would you like it to see promtions being fast so you can just get to being a " real " Captian of a StarShip which is the rank we should be to command a ship ?


Does this make sence.......... ?

In other words How quickly should we be able to get to Captain ?

[Rota]

4-6 months of casual gaming should achieve rank of Captain. imo

1 month for those serious hardcore grinding power gamers

[fractaleye]

I hope not fast at all. The whole ranking system for Star Fleet doesn't have that many levels (if you start with officers), and I'd rather it take some time for me to get to Captain.

Of course, that all depends on what affect our rank will have in the game. If it's just an arbitrary word at the beginning of our name, it'll be pretty meaningless, so, yeah, Captains all around!

If it has a pretty major impact on what ships, episodes, kits, BOs, etc we can have (and this is better imo), then I'd rather have each level earned to be something of a milestone.

[loyaltrekie]

Considering we have no idea right now what exactly the "rank" role will play we can't really discuss it. If it opens up new "tiers" of ships; it should take a bit of time. Of course all time is relative to the players time invested so once agian hard to pinpoint. For example reaching max "rank" should be the same as attaining "max level" in other games; as from what I understand when you hit "max rank" you'll have "unlocked the ability" to pilot most/all of the classes/tiers of vessels. So its something that shouldn't come "lightly".

Of course depending on what else the rank system will hold will depend on how it works and the time invested. Since it is an MMO they need the "grind" so if the rank system is essentially the "level" system; making it a very short time till max(or this case captain) would be a little silly and counter-productive IMHO.

You also have to consider if they are staying with "canon" ranks

Admiral
Commodore
Fleet Captain
Captain
Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant
Lieutenant, Junior Grade
Ensign

*The Chain of command/rank system has always been silly and argued upon(the existence of fleet captain and commodore); also there are multiple grades of admiral.

They already don't have much to go by; so you would assume each one would be slow to aquire to increase longevity.

[jason24]

I hope not fast at all. The whole ranking system for Star Fleet doesn't have that many levels (if you start with officers), and I'd rather it take some time for me to get to Captain.

Of course, that all depends on what affect our rank will have in the game. If it's just an arbitrary word at the beginning of our name, it'll be pretty meaningless, so, yeah, Captains all around!

If it has a pretty major impact on what ships, episodes, kits, BOs, etc we can have (and this is better imo), then I'd rather have each level earned to be something of a milestone.

I pretty much agree with you on these points.

So then let me ask, once we reach the rank of Captain is that when the " end game " should start ? or should we still be able to carry on doing normal missions for StarFleet or the K.D.F. like you would in the shows ?

[Rota]

I pretty much agree with you on these points.

So then let me ask, once we reach the rank of Captain is that when the " end game " should start ? or should we still be able to carry on doing normal missions for StarFleet or the K.D.F. like you would in the shows ?

Captain will be the top player rank for a long time... maybe if they can get 3 or 4 expacs out we might see a few ranks added to be able to achieve admiral.

[fractaleye]

I pretty much agree with you on these points.

So then let me ask, once we reach the rank of Captain is that when the " end game " should start ? or should we still be able to carry on doing normal missions for StarFleet or the K.D.F. like you would in the shows ?

I think definately be able to still do normal missions. Not knowing what Cryptic has in store for the 'end game,' I'd hate to think once you reached that Captain plateau you couldn't explore, do episodes, diplomacy etc.

If you couldn't, I'd hope there would be a way to turn down a promotion. I'm sure Cryptic won't limit it this way; I'm just being pessimistic.

[Sorenzy]

Hopefully there will be more to the ranking system then just knocking out storyline quests and 'grinding' your character to maximum potential...it should take in effect the statistics of your StarFleet career for one, the number of planets and first contacts you've discovered, number of enemy ships destroyed, number of 'men and material' that you've lost, etc.

Also maybe if they designed a mechanic that forced you to maintain your current rank for at least 30 days before you are eligible for the next promotion opportunity, but after a specific rank, like Commander and beyond for instance.

For example lets say that I get promoted from Lieutenant Commander to Commander, now I have to be a Commander for 30 days or whatever preset amount, before I am even eligible to get promoted further to Captain and so on and so on.

There should not be Admirals putting about 72 hours after launch.

From what I perceive from the episodes is that Starfleet promotes more on merit then time in service (although there are minimal time requirements discussed) although they also portray most Admirals as incredibly short sighted idiots that fall for any and all ploys of the more hostile empires.

[jason24]

For example lets say that I get promoted from Lieutenant Commander to Commander, now I have to be a Commander for 30 days or whatever preset amount, before I am even eligible to get promoted further to Captain and so on and so on.



I really like that idea

[loyaltrekie]

For example lets say that I get promoted from Lieutenant Commander to Commander, now I have to be a Commander for 30 days or whatever preset amount, before I am even eligible to get promoted further to Captain and so on and so on.

There should not be Admirals putting about 72 hours after launch..

Why? I'm just a little curious on why you think that. If people want to "grind" up as fast as they can rank wise before doing anything else that should be there prerogative there shouldn't be a forced ingame "cool down" for essentially "leveling up". While I endorse putting the controller down occasionally and doing something else; built-in game roadblocks shouldn't be the way.

Take whatever it is you want to do and imagine if someone wanted to road block that; lets say you could only visit 5 new planets per day; or PvP 10 different ships per day etc. The game shouldn't punish/limit you for playing something your paying for.

[Rota]

Why? I'm just a little curious on why you think that. If people want to "grind" up as fast as they can rank wise before doing anything else that should be there prerogative there shouldn't be a forced ingame "cool down" for essentially "leveling up". While I endorse putting the controller down occasionally and doing something else; built-in game roadblocks shouldn't be the way.

Take whatever it is you want to do and imagine if someone wanted to road block that; lets say you could only visit 5 new planets per day; or PvP 10 different ships per day etc. The game shouldn't punish/limit you for playing something your paying for.

/agree
gameplay time and effort should be rewarded.
Someone who has spent a few hours a week should not become captain at the same time the guy who plays 60 hours becomes captain.

PS: Those 60 hour gamers are insane. But I can't deny they exist

[Hornet331]

/agree
gameplay time and effort should be rewarded.
Someone who has spent a few hours a week should not become captain at the same time the guy who plays 60 hours becomes captain.

PS: Those 60 hour gamers are insane. But I can't deny they exist

60hours only to become captain?.... ble i hope it takes a lot longer, since captain (as of now) is the highest rank, for a casual gamer 60h might seem much, but for an avarage gamer thats hardly a month worth of gameplay... and for the hardcore gamers that would be less then a week.

I hope that it would take at least 2 month, even for hardcore gamers to reach the rank of captain.

[loyaltrekie]

60hours only tobecome captain.... ble i hope it takes a lot longer since captain is hte highest rank, for a casual gamer 60h might seem much, but for an avarage gamer thats hardly a month worth of gameplay... and for the hardcore gamers that would be less then a week.

I hope that it would take at least 2 month, even for hardcore gamers to reach the rank of captain.

He was comparing random numbers of hardcore to casual players; not his estimate on time needed to achieve a given rank, reread his post.

[lajkalove]

i personlay hope that it would take a lot of time and effort to become an captain in any given fleet since its only the best and brigtest in a given fleet there get those promotions in the first place :) i hope for atleast 2 3 monthes hardcore playtime to get to captain :D

[andrewprofit]

Id say a couple years between promotions. Just make sure there is a small random possibility that it could never happen or that it will happen on the first day to mix it up a little.

[FlyD4wn]

I also think it should take some time, if captain indeed is the highest rank, 60 hours is very little for a MMO.

I am personally a "hardcore" gamer, if I have time(and thats something I going to have less and less as I am becoming older :P) I will play the game and I can probably make 60 hours in a week with alot of free time, and being the highest rank in a week just takes the fun away for me.

I also would like to see that you have to do something "special" before you become the rank of captain, its not something that happens everyday.(atleast not in the series =) )

[Rota]

I also think it should take some time, if captain indeed is the highest rank, 60 hours is very little for a MMO.

nobody said 60 hours.

I was comparing a gamer that might play 60 hours "per week" to a casual gamer in order to discount someones roadblock suggestion.
In combination with an earlier statement I suppose that means I think the time should take is approximately 300 hours of gameplay.

[Bob177]

I also think it should take some time, if captain indeed is the highest rank, 60 hours is very little for a MMO.

I am personally a "hardcore" gamer, if I have time(and thats something I going to have less and less as I am becoming older :P) I will play the game and I can probably make 60 hours in a week with alot of free time, and being the highest rank in a week just takes the fun away for me.

I also would like to see that you have to do something "special" before you become the rank of captain, its not something that happens everyday.(atleast not in the series =) )

Maybe if you maxed out a certain, specific random set of skills you'd open a Captain Slot? Oh wait...someone tried that before :)

B

[WinterPark1701]

4-6 months of casual gaming should achieve rank of Captain. imo

1 month for those serious hardcore grinding power gamers

I'd hope that it would take a little longer then that.

[Vaul]

If there are time limits, they should be fair for all. Minimum stat/skill requirements as well as x amount of play time.

Example. A casual gamer that plays 3 hours a week or another, hardcore gamer,that plays 30 hours a week would both be eligible for a promotion after 60 hours of PLAY time. I do not see how this would be unfair for anyone.

I just hope that it is not all about killing, blowing up stuff to get a promotion. There must be certain episodes in which we must partake to be able to advance. Remember, Diana Troi had to take exams in order to get promoted to Commander. Something like that in game would be nice also. A holodeck based Episode where you must prove your worth.

[loyaltrekie]

If there are time limits, they should be fair for all. Minimum stat/skill requirements as well as x amount of play time.

Example. A casual gamer that plays 3 hours a week or another, hardcore gamer,that plays 30 hours a week would both be eligible for a promotion after 60 hours of PLAY time. I do not see how this would be unfair for anyone..

If its based on play time; all you have to do is leave your client running; so once again, whats the point?

[Aldan]

Hopefully moderate pace. Any hardcore gamer will blow through content faster than devs can dream it up, code it, test it, then go gold.

I just dont want to see another star war galaxies with thousands of Jedi running around after the first few weeks.

[loyaltrekie]

I just dont want to see another star war galaxies with thousands of Jedi running around after the first few weeks.

I highly doubt you played SWG as even the first few months there were hardly "thousands of jedi running around".

[Swea]

my thought, completly speculation, is that your rank up will probly comewith such and such amount of lvls. For example, we knowwe will start at LT and max is Admiral, so if at lvl 1 your LT at lvl 10 you'll get LT. commander, lvl 25 commander ect ect. just my guess, much like anythingon here purly speculation though.

[knightofhyrule730]

If i recall correctly, We start at Lieutenant and end at Admiral, with 2 or 3 other ranks in the middle.

therefore, i think that the ranking up should be slow. once you max out, what else are you going to do if youre not in a fleet :P

[ronaldheld]

If you start at Lt Commander, it would take a while to make the rank of Captain.

[Lepton]

My hope is there will be some sort of effective level cap near captain despite the fact that it does not look as if that is going to be the case. I don't think we need thousands of admirals or commodores running around on servers. Or perhaps achieving Admiral could be something like trying to become a Jedi in Star Wars Galaxies before the NGE. Long, arduous, and nearly impossible.

I think the question should be more like, "How long should it take to have access to every ship in the game?" Via CCP's reasoning in EveOnline, it should take years and years. It would take a new player nearly 6 months to be able to fly a Tech 1 battleship and that's just the bare minimum required skills, not the ISK or experience to actually use one. We aren't even exploring the notion of getting Tech 2 or now Tech 3 ships. This is why I quit Eve, not to mention that it was damn boring.

Be that as it may, it depends on what Cryptic's vision is for the game and adding new content and the quality of the gameplay. If gameplay ends up being grindy, then they better have new content available as soon as possible, as the more grindy things tend to get the more grindy people we will have playing the game. If the basic gameplay is so engaging that leveling, gear, and access to new ships is merely a lovely bonus, then ranking is not that important. This was certainly not that case in EveOnline.

I am perfectly content to run around in a lowly cruiser if there is fun stuff to do and one can participate in end-game or raid content at that level, but if one is effectively squeezed out of events or whole areas of gameplay due to one's level or ships, then my expectation would be that leveling need be relatively rapid.

There were things in Eve that I was never going to be able to do, never even see, for years considering the way the game is structured and how corporations and alliances chose to play out combat for sovereignty. Frankly, I think that is totally unacceptable and merely a mechanism for maximizing CCP's revenue. It was certainly not fun.

My hope is that Star Trek Online mirrors nearly none of CCP's implementation of EveOnline.

[curtst]

We know there are 5 ranks in the game. Only question is what is the top rank?

Seeing as there are only 5 ranks in the game, I would assume it will take time to get to the next rank.

Ranks could start at LTJG and go to Capt. Or start at Lt, and go up to Adm.

I see one of those structures given the info given.

[fractaleye]

My hope is that Star Trek Online mirrors nearly none of CCP's implementation of EveOnline.

I would like to see some of Eve's elements in ST:O, but I agree with your statement about CCP's skill based system is a good moneymaker. Right now, my character is learning capital ship skills (after almost 2 years of playing), and 1-3 weeks for just 1 skill level is starting to be less attractive to me.

Eve is (imo) PvP which just happens to be set in space. That said, I do like Eve's market and sandbox gameplay. But I look for ST:O to be different than Eve, and better (for me at least) as well.

[Musterion]

They should be spaced such that you really feel like you earned each rank :) I've no clue how you'd go about doing that though.

[codeminer]

There should not be Admirals putting about 72 hours after launch.



I doubt this would happen right after launch.

Most MMO's take a few months, at least, to "max" out a character at a 'normal' pace, and that's with the help of guides and other experienced players.

Even with the few experienced players from the Betas, you still need "maxed" out characters to "power level" newer characters, and it will still take some time to figure out HOW to "power level".

So, 72 hour Admirals. No. At least not for maybe 5-6 months after launch me thinks.

In CoH/V, they kept data on how fast players leveled, and I think Cryptic will do the same during Beta testing. So expect a fairly well planned leveling rate that'll make them money, but not frustrate us too. :)

I think 6 months to Captain is fair. And don't forget about alts too! As you get better, then 6 months for Klingon Admiral. Then hopefully by then they'll have more factions. :cool:

[Vaul]

If its based on play time; all you have to do is leave your client running; so once again, whats the point?

I did mention time played and skill.

AS for leaving your character online, I am sure they can have you auto log out after x amount of time if certain actions, skills are not used. If they are smart, they will make it that x amount of time in acquiring the needed skills is a big part of the time needed to get the next rank. It could also be how long you spend in different regions, etc

I also do not want it to be like SWG. The notion of grinding to get to Admiral will take away from the exploration, diplomacy, etc that is star trek in my opinion. "unlocking admiral" as it was in SWG is not the way to go.

[Zepath]

For this game, I expect to see the first Admiral within 6-8 weeks.

As for me, I don't care how fast I level, as long as I'm entertained along the way. Being the highest level has never meant you were the better or more experienced player in the game (to me).

In fact, those that race to the top are usually your least informed players, and typically have their heads up their rear when it comes to over-all game play.

[Saladin_Class]

For all you civilains, are you aware that on top of getting a premotion. You must spend a minium time in rank.

Which means you have to spent X years in your current rank, before you are ellgable for premotion.

So far there has only been one game Ive known of that ever had this in it.

[ronaldheld]

Is it wall hours since the last promotion, or hours spent playing the game?

[Admiral-Darren-Wright]

Well, id rather you didnt get your rank maxed out to soon,

i know that the first promotion can take place very early, but if the max rank was to early it would mean there was an area of drive to get there, missing.

[ExpendableCrewman]

[QUOTE

From what I perceive from the episodes is that Starfleet promotes more on merit then time in service (although there are minimal time requirements discussed) although they also portray most Admirals as incredibly short sighted idiots that fall for any and all ploys of the more hostile empires.[/QUOTE]

LOL just like real life!!!