Plunderstorm

Wyrmrest Accord
141

I had to think on this one for a minute. Because I think of myself as a PvPer…kind of. But I don’t really compete anymore. I don’t do RBGs. I don’t have a rating in Arenas. I don’t know if I ever had a rating in arenas. If I did, it was probably something like 1000.

But I did love world-PvP. Still do. So I think that’s what appeals to me in Plunderstorm. That, and a few other weird things, like the fact that I can go hide under a bridge and listen to a cluster of people fighting on it while I giggle uncontrollably that they haven’t seen me yet. Or the fact that my very first drop from a mob or a chest might be a purple fire whirl and then despite my lack of skill, it’s on.

RNG doesn’t bother me here. If I pull crap talents, oh well. I know that’ll probably (maybe) be a short match. But not necessarily. The match that I got the highest solo in (#3), I only had a green fire whirl and a normal faeform. I did have control of some things, though. I knew where I wanted to land. I did my quest, I leveled up. I was familiar with the map. I was familiar with the abilities. I understood BR strategy. I watched. If I saw someone with fire whirl in the distance, I let them engage someone else. When they were low health with attacks on CD, and trying to pick up loot from their kill, I moved in and killed them. If I saw them drink the tea (T), I booked it. If I’m level 6 and I find a sweaty level 10 early in the match, then oh well…that loss isn’t on my lack of talent, just my lack of sweaty-ness. And by then, I’ve gotten what I want as far as minimum points, so anything else is just extra.

I don’t think Plorm appeals to the typical PvPer in WoW. It’s unbalanced. It can be infuriating. People who are used to winning a lot don’t find it appealing. People who take getting ganked personally will despise it. All I can say is, that’s a mighty nice transmog and if that takes me getting smacked down 40-50x to get it, sure thing. Most of those won’t be on me, and the ones that are…meh. Oh well.

In a nutshell, it’s not like other PvP. Don’t take it seriously. You almost can’t. It’s a BR 4 years late, missing a lot of features, and was probably only developed because Blizz had the code from their purchase of the studio who created it. 6 weeks is about as long as interest will last. I predict most people farming transmogs will be finished with it by Monday and once they nerf fire whirl (because it’s coming), that’ll tank it for sure.

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It’s SO RNG dependent. And then when you’re in the last 15 or 10 or 5 players, it’s so situational.

You can start by landing on a pack that includes an elite and get lucky with a multi-star AOE skill and be level 3 in like 15 seconds.

Then there’s the RNG of the rest of the skills that you get.

Then it’s just a scummy sort of PvP playstyle of kiting, jumping into 1v1s – no idea if other BR are like this but you’ll be fighting someone and a 3rd party goes after you or both of you and with the right abilities you can really take out people who have been kiting and fighting each other for quite a while.

So it’s probably 80% RNG, 10% situational luck, 10% skill.

I’m also a casual PvPer, random BG hero on many alts, and there was a lot of dissonance for me at first because it’s just its own thing. And I don’t fault anyone for hating it. It won’t grow on everyone.

A patch for a game you love shouldn’t be such an “acquired taste” thing, which is why they’re getting such backlash – lessons learned for them, I guess.

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143

Yeah as annoying as it can be third partying is the name of the game for Battle Royales, and really always has been. This I agree can be scummy but it’s just kind of endemic to the genre. And the RNG with pickups also is pretty par for the course for a BR. I will say there is a meta that’s been developing for which pick-ups are the best and what aren’t. Like people are complaining about firestorm (super valid imo) but there’s also items some people think are underrating really hard. Like for instance someone with a Rime Arrow can really clutch things out because a smart player will use it as a heal cancel on their enemy even when they’re far away.

But I have to say I don’t know if think this is exactly a lesson learned kind of scenario, I mean maybe with the longterm radio silence bit but I think Blizz knew this was going to infuriate a certain portion of the playerbase (though let’s all be honest, anything they do is going to infuriate a certain part of the playerbase) and I think they just wanted to do something fun like Kirsy was saying and were pretty upfront that they were trying something new with the whole radio silence thing. But I think with the event itself Blizz views it as really successful, it’s brought a lot of new eyes to the game so it’s just been really valuable purely from a marketing standpoint.

Anyways while I’ve been having fun but there’s really not enough depth in this game mode to keep me playing after I hit renown 40. I’m already kind of over at this point lol but I need to finish the renown track.

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I definitely don’t have a problem with losing. Of course I like to win, but losing to what feels more like a gimmick than someone who plain outskilled me and taught me some valuable lessons in the process just doesn’t feel good. The more I think about it, the more I realize that just taking the MOBA leveling out would make this mode a million times better for me. Let people be on a more even playing field for the whole match like most other BRs with the only determining factor in power being the spell ranks.

Still, I know that BRs aren’t for me for all the reasons I listed. Those long periods without the dopamine hit of success and the amount of investment before you even have the chance to find it just aren’t my style. I feel like this issue lies at the root of why a lot of people don’t favor the fundamental design of BRs. But after watching more streamers today go through the exact same thing (with the exception of those few I talked about before who seem to be playing in another reality), my irritation has faded. I might not mess with the mode anymore. And if I do, I’m going to do my best to give zero you-know-whats about the PvP engagement part. Keep the spirit of that competition for the actual game and just let the transmogs go if that’s the way the cookie crumbles. I do hope to get those trader’s tendies, but if I can’t bear to reach the required renown levels for that either, then so be it.

This is very much a thing in all BRs, some more than others. My observations have shown me that third-partying is particularly bad in Apex Legends. A little less so maybe in Fortnite and Warzone, but it still definitely happens. Fortnite and Apex players have a little bit of a harder time retreating to heal before engaging, but it’s much easier in Warzone with the auto health recovery after a few seconds that it has.

Still, I find Plunderstorm’s specific blend of BR concepts particularly grating. It is what it is. Many people are enjoying it, and I’m glad for them.

As Arrowhead, the creators of the original Magicka and the Helldivers games say: a game for everyone is a game for no one. Something I agree with and something for me to remember with respect to this limited time mode.

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Typical response to “pvp happened.”

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Hotfixes went out about an hour ago. So fire whirl and faeform both got nerfed.

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Third partying is the permiere feature of a battle royale and knowing when to engage vs disengage from a fight is one of the highest skill ceilings of how the game mode works. It is not always the right call to become a third party but it is definitively encouraged if you can make it work because you get rewarded for playing aggressively, something battle royales want to encourage. This is also why the top competitive players rotate around the storm in traditional battle royales. Often straggler players will be coming in either just barely getting out of the storm or be moving in tandem with the storm. Picking off those players is important to getting whatever you need. In this game, plunder + XP for killing them, whatever spells or items they could have.

It’s also why movement spells/items or movement denying spells/items are so crucial. Pure defensive items like repel can be strong situationally but overwhelmingly the more movement based defensive options, whether denying or supplying movement, are the better options overall. Hit them with a whirlwind then follow up with a strong focused attack. Dodge their aimed abitlies or get out of there entirely if you can should you be outmatched. Survive, try to grind another level if you can and be ready to engage again later. Keep an eye out for every ability on the ground, every bit of plunder. It all adds up.

Figuring out how to counterplay someone is part of the battle. It’s something you can get better at over time, but it also requires situational knowledge. In some sense there is RNG yes. That’s just inherently how the game works, but there are ways to mitigate that RNG. As the game mode progresses people will learn, likely already have learned the best spots to drop to get levels quickly, to find items more reliably. Where are the chest spawn locations vs mob density, etc, etc.

One thing this mode lacks from other BRs (primarily shooters) Is a lack of mechanical skill outside of learning how movement works. How movement works in WoW is not the same as most other games, your momentum carrying will vary and it’s a genuine learned skill to apply in this game mode. It’s also not one you would ever learn while playing WoW Normally. Outside of speedrunning and other small situational times in PVP/PVE areas the way your character moves, the quirks and limitations of WoW do not matter.

There are the abilities you aim but their skill cap is smaller than movement. Not nonexistant, being able to aim a spell and hit someone is important, but it’s more forgiving. Still learning how to time the ‘hold down’ skills and the right time use the tools you find is something you will learn over time. It’s all strategy.

There is a learning curve to the leveling system, how to level fast is important but I’m finding some players are pretty much gifted levels because there’s a group of players que’ing into the game mode to complete their quest and lose. I’ve run into multiple players who want to stop fighting the moment I’m on them, I’ve had some say ‘Thanks’ in chat because they want to be out of the game. They don’t want to learn how to ‘play properly’, they care about getting what they can and then getting out. This is even worse if they choose to kill themselves, denying someone experience and resources later on.

That’s not fun for me or anyone else trying to win and enjoy the game how it’s meant to be played. It’s entirely because this renown is tied solely to this game mode that players who actively don’t want to play are still playing, all because they want to get some rewards.

I think in the future it would’ve been better for this renown to be something you could also earn in game, I understand why it wasn’t this time around, but we will have cross character renown in the game come The World Within and there should be ways to get renown (slower, but still possible to finish) outside this game mode.

Also, the Leveling system in of itself will deny counterplay. I’m really curious why they added in the first place. There is no way to get stronger in fortnite outside of finding better guns. The counterplay lies in your mechanical skills. In this game, even if you are the better player if you find yourself a few levels below the curve you will have a drastically harder time getting anything done, much less winning.

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Two of the strategies we’ve used that are pretty effective are:

  1. Letting a team engage Pieces of Hate. For some reason, players doing this can’t manage to stay out of its AOE and every time it AOEs, it will drop their health to half. So run in range and hit them with a ranged attack. Then clean up their drops and the Pieces of Hate. It can be dicey if other people have this same idea.

  2. Fight on the blue wall. If a team with better abilities and more levels have you on the ropes, get to the blue wall. But don’t commit. Keep bouncing along the wall’s edge. If you have a movement ability or a vanish, skirt it quickly while it’s moving in. The other team will think you killed yourself and will move off, but really you just moved along the map away from them until you can get out of sight. Then drink the tea and get back into the game.

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More Blunderstorm-style transmog incoming:

Now, if it’s obtained through this thing, I won’t be getting any of it. I like the eyepatches, but honestly the 15 levels I managed to complete were 15 more than I wanted to participate in. I won’t be participating in any of this ever again.

If they hand this stuff out only via Blunderstorm, so be it. I’m not angry anymore. I hope you guys enjoy the booty you get from this game.

I’m done with it forever, no matter what they put in.

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150

PR-wise, I think Blizz should have announced at Plunderstorm launch that there will be recolors from other forms of content.

That brings the Plunderstorm rewards more in line with classic PvP armor, rather than making it unique and thus the only way to grind for that silhouette. That in itself would cut down a lot of the complaints, I think.

I’m happy to get more pirate content, and I hope these other recolors will come from a variety of different play experiences - and I hope Blizz will announce that out front.

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Honestly the recolors don’t look that great to me besides maybe the dark and purple one (which I can see pieces of going well with the shop version of the Valentines day gear) but I am extremely happy to see updated eyepatches lol

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The problem with gear like this is that I almost solely play Gnomes and Dwarves.

“Busy” looking gear just bothers me visually because the characters I play are small. It makes the “busy” even more “busy” looking and most times, sadly comical. That’s why I tend to stick to fairly simple mogs for my characters.

I like the eyepatches (updated! yes!) and the simple pirate gear I managed to get from this event. I would never wear the red/gold regalia. It’s just too much for me to look at on little characters.

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Well been playing it for most of the week, been enjoying it and while I am unsure if I will play it EVERYDAY for the time it is available I’d definitely be down for it to become a reoccurring thing with some tweaks, additions and maybe even a proper pirate themed location next time

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If they put all the recolors into WoW Trading Post after I fight my way through 40 levels of Plorm, I’m gonna be really pissed. But if they make them season rewards for having to play more Plorm, I’m gonna be really pissed. And I sincerely hope they don’t put them into the store.

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Thanks for the rundown!

I’m level 20 now and can usually make it to the top 10, with a lot of deaths when there are 3 or 4 of us left. I’m usually level 8 but in bad cases, 6 or 7.

I think my main thing to improve if I want a shot at the FoS is to level faster. Maybe I’m tunneling PvE too much to try to level via mobs and chests. Players give a lot of XP?

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Just went in and tried duos. Early in a match, we ran into a solo who was in duos competing for our PvE mobs. We chased the guy for a bit before killing him. But as we chased him, he continued to level. He wasn’t hitting anything. He wasn’t pulling PvE mobs as he ran. He just ran. And he leveled from 3 to 5…running.

I don’t know how this happened, but it reinforces my belief that the levels are far too determinate in this mode. And it also reinforces that level gain is arbitrary, hokey, and gimmicky.

I think this is the last time I touch this mode. It’s so poorly designed that I don’t care if they had the coolest thing in WoW history locked behind the crappy renown levels. I’d say it was fun, but that’d be a bald-faced lie.

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Could be a glitch?

I haven’t seen anyone land with multiple abilities in a day or so but it was definitely happening.

I’m not sure exactly how it happened, but after I died in one match, I was still holding some of my mouse buttons, and I had a “grabbed” ability on the character screen. I let it go but I wondered if that was how people were doing that. Hopefully fixed by now.

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That’s super odd. Do you know if he was actually solo or had a partner way off somewhere else farming? AFAIK all gold/levels are shared between people no matter the distance.

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If your partner is killing something no matter where on the map, you get the xp. So his partner was probably working to level up.

Also as a side note, whatever they’ve hot fixed today, it’s suddenly a lot harder to get through matches. I don’t know if it’s matchmaking or what, but I’m not seeing any of the fun PvEers now, just sweat-lords. It’s a lot less fun :frowning:

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If he had a partner still alive, that partner was nowhere in his area code. We chased him for a bit, and there was no one in sight at any given moment. I suppose it’s still possible, but I maintain that MOBA leveling systems have no place in BRs. It creates one singular way to play. Cheese the levels somehow or get wrecked. That’s it. Strategy, stealth, positioning, and skill are removed in favor of who gets the best drop location, elite farming spot, and/or chests to hit level 5 in the first minute. Then everyone else around you is quite literally fodder and you can faceroll your way across any chance they had to succeed.

After the experience I described, I went and logged into CoD and played a match there. As frustrating as that game can be with its EOMM and the cheaters who still get around Ricochet and the true gamers who just react like automatons when your first pixel shows up on their screen, it was still a better time than Plunderstorm.

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