To achieve this, we will rework the way the costs in Tournaments are calculated. Up until now, they were directly linked to your Squad Size, meaning that any Squad Size Upgrade technology, both the mandatory and optional ones, would result in higher costs. This will be abolished and instead we will base the costs on a series of progression factors, which involve city development and researches in general. However, one key difference is that we want to ensure that every progression factor will still bring you more in benefits, than it would "cost" you in terms of added costs in the Tournaments. This means that, while the progression in the Tournaments becomes more costly as your city grows over time, the increase is nowhere near the amount of resources the progressed city will be able to produce extra thanks to the progress made.
I have a very hard time believing this.
When we consider how the spire has been calculated which claimed the same, but inreality is horrible by natute. and to show that let me explain.
and shoutout to
@MinMax Gamer to
figure it out.
or the more simplified version using a 700% base relic bonus
Problem 1, exponential curves:
1.0042^M this is an exponential curve, this means to keep the game up to par, everything in the game needs to have an exponential curve is wel.
Because of this the number will rise faster and faster up as the game progresses.
Those curves look like this:
And we already have entered the steep part of this curve which means it will accelerate upwards faster and faster.
Problem 2, the lever effect:
The lever effect is another problem that makes balancing with a formula like this a nightmare.
this formula has 4 values greater than 1, this means that if you influence one number it's effect is multiplied by 3 other values and as there values are bigger than one it's again a value you cannot control.
A spire formula should have been made like this:
- Base difficulty based on expansions and research, these values should be liniear and easily controllable and if needed easy adjusted when a new chapter comes out.
- A difficulty reduction beased on the relic bonus
- A added difficulty for the wonders to a limited extend where it still makes sense,
- Start with a max difficulty based on the above parameters, then work your way back.
Based on this a formula would look like this(using some arbitrary numbers)
- Relic = 0.3 +(relic boosts / 10) example: 0.3+700%*10% = 0.3+7*0.1 = 0.3+0.7 = 1, this way a relic bonus never creates a lever effect while keeping the original intend
- Base difficulty: Value * research + value * expansion, this creates a liniar difficulty, and the relic bonus formula can be used to adjust difficulty for the beginning players.
- Wonder difficulty: Wonder levels * value= Y, if Y >1 Y=1, how many wonder levels you need to reach the max difficulty is then determined by the development team. There is a clear limit where wonders in general do no longer add advatages to the spire, so keeping the difficulty grow while there is no advantage left. for example the Spire Library adds nothing to the game that makes the spire more easy, yet it does increase it's difficulty, and there are many wonders like that in this game.
In the end a fomulat looks like this
Relic reduction(max 1) * (research + expansion difficulty) * wonder modifier(max 1 again) = Difficulty
Using a basis like this makes sure that things never get out of control like they are now. there is a defined limit how difficult the spire could become at a certain point in the game, and during the entire process you as developers are in control, unlike the current formula that runs wild when you add new things.
Problem 3: Punishing paying players
This is also a part of the lever effect, I am already in the situation that buying premium has a worse effect on my spire difficulty then then not buying it. the value that a (premium) expansion adds depends on 3 other factors which makes no sense, it adds "x" power, and not 3 or 20 times "x".
Premium is a bonus to make thing easier, it's 1 of your sources of income, but yet you build a formula that punishes people that actually buy them by making there game more difficult as an end result, this incentive people NOT to buy premium. this sounds from a commercial standpoint just wrong.
Problem 4: Tournaments, a new formula.
The same people who came up with the former formula, came up with a new one for the tournaments, this gives me beyond little confidence they will actually achieve what they say, and just like the tower formula this will be obfuscated for a while with voodoo and magic untill someone like MinMax gamer figures it out, by that time the damage has already been done.
Knowing I am most likely like the spire formula at the wrong end of the stick I am seriously consideren to quit. I already bummed once again I actually spend some money again in this game not long ago. as once again I am likely punisched for it.
Ps: the thing dony just mentioned shock me as well, no longer can we predict what the enemy units will be?
You promised when the tower came out you would not change the tournaments as many of use were really scared about it.
This promise is now broken, and for the worse, as usual you give us 1 bone (4 to 1 battle) but then take away the entire cow we had to our exposal.
I am seriously considering quitting this game if this continues in this type of implementation.
I have seen many changes to elvenar, and I have never even considered thinking about it, usually I just adapt, but this change seriously makes me thinking about it as I have no clue how I could adapt to this seemingly horror.
The tournaments are one of the things I really enjoy and it seems it's not changing but completely taken away from me.