i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Storm legions gives new content mostly for 50+ characters. There is not much new for lower lewers, except I think Dimensions (i.e. hausing).
I'm also new to rift. Lvl 31 now. So my suggestion would be to wait and play till u have 30days of game time. Then if u like rift, and think u will continue to play for longer, get storm chaser edition (free strom legion + 12 months of game time):
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Good Morning,
Personally I would say wait a bit before you buy storm legion. I have forgotten if dimensions comes with storm legion or not. However since your 20 see how you feel about the game at 40 or so. If you still like it then I would say go ahead with storm legion.
Hm not sure if you mean the actual add ons that you get from curse for instance or the macros in game that you set up. Either way you will probably need a raid and dps addon if you like raiding and doing dungeons. I would suggest going to curse.com and looking at the addons there to see what fits your playstyle.
As for macros, you won't really need any until later in game and even then trion I think changed some skills around to get away from the macro spamming. On my rogue I only have one macro atm for 2 skills. Then again there are a lot of people in game that will help you along the way should you have any questions. Also you can PM me here if you wish if you need answers to something.
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Storm legions gives new content mostly for 50+ characters. There is not much new for lower lewers, except I think Dimensions (i.e. hausing).
I'm also new to rift. Lvl 31 now. So my suggestion would be to wait and play till u have 30days of game time. Then if u like rift, and think u will continue to play for longer, get storm chaser edition (free strom legion + 12 months of game time):
off course u can get it now, and will have 12 months + 30 days u have now. I did this, and no regrets for now ;-)
Ah welcome to Rift as well. Yes at 50 in storm legion its very interesting and a big place. lol I'm still on one continent and haven't cracked 51 yet, which for me I like very much. I also like the fact that you get planar experience alongside regular experience.
I think you will really like the game and hopefully you have found a good group of people to xp with.
If you are certain you are going to get over level 50 before quitting the game.. definately get it now. Main reason is because of the new souls.. more souls you have to play with = a better game. Simples.
You shouldn't quit before getting max level anyway, because.. and this is a promise.. the real game starts at endgame in Rift. It's like it's the opposite way around. Normaly in MMOs. the leveing is the most fun and the endgame gets a little boring. In Rift the leveling (1-50, not 50-60) can be a little boring if it's all you do and the endgame is where it is the most fun. When leveling.. always break it up with some warfronts and some dungeons, even if you don't normally do that kind of thing or even if you arn't good at it.. it's about breaking up the pace so you don't get burned out.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Good Morning,
Personally I would say wait a bit before you buy storm legion. I have forgotten if dimensions comes with storm legion or not. However since your 20 see how you feel about the game at 40 or so. If you still like it then I would say go ahead with storm legion.
Hm not sure if you mean the actual add ons that you get from curse for instance or the macros in game that you set up. Either way you will probably need a raid and dps addon if you like raiding and doing dungeons. I would suggest going to curse.com and looking at the addons there to see what fits your playstyle.
As for macros, you won't really need any until later in game and even then trion I think changed some skills around to get away from the macro spamming. On my rogue I only have one macro atm for 2 skills. Then again there are a lot of people in game that will help you along the way should you have any questions. Also you can PM me here if you wish if you need answers to something.
And of course welcome to Rift
ty very much i will do that . i will play the game for 30 days and than make up my mind about buying storm legion .ty ty
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Storm legions gives new content mostly for 50+ characters. There is not much new for lower lewers, except I think Dimensions (i.e. hausing).
I'm also new to rift. Lvl 31 now. So my suggestion would be to wait and play till u have 30days of game time. Then if u like rift, and think u will continue to play for longer, get storm chaser edition (free strom legion + 12 months of game time):
off course u can get it now, and will have 12 months + 30 days u have now. I did this, and no regrets for now ;-)
I *STRONGLY* advise against a new player buyiing the year package. Simply because the odds are not in your favor of sticking around a year in Rift. I would wait at least 3 months before making a year commitment. Rift is a game that many people float in and out of, 2 months here, one month there sort of thing.
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
see if the offer is on to sub for a year and get storm legion for free.not sure if its still going but it will save you a bit in the long run if you intend on staying in game
This is not true. There are plenty of top builds and really good soul combinations that don't use the new souls.
Try a PvE solo cleric build using purifier.. useless compared to supporting melee souls with justicar.
Try healing with a mage using chloro and harbinger <--- bad combination.
Try doing a raid or dungeon where everyone is using the new souls in one way or another.. fail.
Any harbinger build can not out damage a full pyro build, even a harbinger/pyro build.
The list does on...
The new souls weren't just added to the mix.. they completely changed every single skill tree the game because the new souls were being introduced, they balanced everything out 'around' the new souls not 'into' the new souls. Every soul has it's place, more than one place actually, and the new souls are not the primary focus of the games balance in any way. There may be a few overpowered builds at the moment using the new souls but they will quickly be nerfed out because it isn't intended.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
i just got the rift base game + 30 days .should i buy storm legion now ? or should i wait ? both of my toons are already lvl 20 and also which add ons i should use to enchance my experience ? or are they called macros ? :P
Storm legions gives new content mostly for 50+ characters. There is not much new for lower lewers, except I think Dimensions (i.e. hausing).
I'm also new to rift. Lvl 31 now. So my suggestion would be to wait and play till u have 30days of game time. Then if u like rift, and think u will continue to play for longer, get storm chaser edition (free strom legion + 12 months of game time):
off course u can get it now, and will have 12 months + 30 days u have now. I did this, and no regrets for now ;-)
I *STRONGLY* advise against a new player buyiing the year package. Simply because the odds are not in your favor of sticking around a year in Rift. I would wait at least 3 months before making a year commitment. Rift is a game that many people float in and out of, 2 months here, one month there sort of thing.
yup i am not buying the full year subscription . i only play mmo when i have holidays ,not during university sessions so that option is definitely not for me .
Please go soloing with any and all Defiler builds, then try this. It's my creation, I call it The Druidicar of Agony and you are the first to see it. Compare the two and get back to me.
Have Greater Faerie Healer out at all times (no micro management required)
Put Rightous Mandate on your pet
Weapon:
Staff or Two-Handed Mace/Hammer
Greater Planar Essences:
Crystal Vine (buy in Stillmoor) or better with same effect - Heal Over Time from healing
Frozen Deep One Tear (buy in Iron Pine Peak) or better with same effect - Absorb Shield from healing
All other abilities are situational and/or optional. Adding any other damaging abilities into the rotation will lower your self healing. Never use Hammer of Duty though, your convictions are there for Doctrine of Bliss if you need it.. which you won't most of the time.
Sit back and enjoy your high survivability, above average ST damage, comfortably AOEing, solo cleric, bearing in mind how rediculously easy it is to play this build.
For better AOE/farming but slighty lower single target DPS and survivability, use the following build:
I'd argue that this is one of the, if not the, best solo build(s) available in the game at the moment. It out performs the cleric's Duracell 1.11 build in every way except AOE damage. But, the AOE version has pretty much exactly the same aoe damage as duracell but offers much more self healing and STILL outperforms the most popular solo Cleric build in every other way as well. Speaking of which, the community's general opinion, although a false one, is that a build that doesn't use the new soul, Duracell, is the best solo build. Also for my build, in the Justicar tree, you can even take the 4 points out of Stronghold and put them in Reparation for group healing, putting your Rightous Mandate on the last member for whole group heals.
Also, please make a full Pyro, play it properly (if you can) and test the damage numbers with a DPS meter.. then do the same with any Harbinger build.
Try to prove my claims wrong if you like, I'll listen. I'll even use your builds. Give me a Harbinger that can out damage a full Pyro build and I'll be happy you proved me wrong, cos I'll start using that build for DPS in expert dungeons.
BTW, I know you probably won't bother really trying this out or might not have a Cleric. But my cards are on the table.. do what you want with them. But.. if you are not willing or curious about whether you can find better builds, even when they are handed to you, then in my opinion you are not even remotely qualified to be commenting on the balance in this game.
Everyone is using the new souls because they are new, not because they are the best.
The majority isn't even trying out other combinations because they are too busy messing about with the new ones or they are just adding their extra 10 points into their old 66 point build instead of finding 'new' builds. An extra 10 soul points changes everything for every soul. Once the novelty of the new souls has gone, you and everyone else will realise this once you start trying out the other souls again. There are good builds with the new souls and there are good builds without them.
Almost all the 'best' builds I've conceived don't have any of the new souls in them, and I don't make that claim lightly, I've spent A LOT of time testing things out. For example, the highest DPS Cleric build at the moment is an all physical damage melee + Vex + Sanction Heretic Inquisitor/Shaman/Druid combinition. It's also one of the higher DPS builds in the game at the moment when properly geared. You'll notice the new soul isn't in that combo. You are saying that build is gimped because the new soul isn't in it.. if it was, it would be gimped.
That brings me to another point. Souls fill certain roles. There is no good way the Defiler can greatly help a DPS or Tank role. Harbinger can't help a healing or support role in any way, can't even help an AOE DPS role. Tempest can't support or group heal, or Tank, single target damage is poor. Tactician can't help a tanking role and is average across the other but excels in support. They all have some uses in solo builds but so does every soul in the game. Using those souls in those roles is what will gimp you.
Hows that for fully explaining myself instead of just throwing around statements without really knowing what I'm talking about? Which brings me to the question, do you even have the expansion? Because everything you said about it is completely false. It's like you don't understand the game mechanics one bit. Won't be wanted in groups if you don't have the expansion? lol The other day I was asked, 'asked', in a group to change from being a Harbinger into a heavy Stormcaller build, which annoyed me a bit because I was having fun playing a Harb. You're just making stuff up.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
I do appreciate the effort. I have a 50 rogue and mage. I will take that path for leveling my cleric though.
All I can say is play around for a couple hours on a friends account that doesn't have the xpac and feel the difference in how the game feels now. It's not like I just can't go to another continent, but it's that the game feels different and not in a fun way.
My point is that if you're going to play, then you really need to have the xpac to enjoy all the game has to offer.
Well, it's not a good leveling build. Do the Duracell for 1-50 then change over if you do level a Cleric.
The last bit there, I totally agree with. I said pretty much the same thing in my first post on this thread I think.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
I love Rift, but the Storm Legion expansion is super harsh on new players when they get to level 50. Trion made Storm Legion to be a HUGE platinum sink because their core player base are long term players who have 1,000s of platinum with nothing to do with it.
I am a fairly new player to Rift, and a bit of an alt-a-holic, with 4 level 50s at the time of the expansion. I wanted to have all the "crafting" professions covered (there are 6), as well as cover all the "gathering" professions (there are 3). Storm Legion was a kick in the cajones for me, since my characters were new to 50 and had between 20-70 platinum apiece. This is what awaited.
Immediately stepping into the new contients will set you back 60 platinum to train your 5 professions (3 professions + Fishing and Survival) past level 300 (the pre SL max).
Every time you level your character, you will need to spend 2-5 platinum to level up your abilities, and that's per build. If you have, say, a DPS, Healer and Tank build, plus an extra build for, say, leveling/grinding, that's 4 builds. That'll be up to 20 platinum per level up if you want to keep all builds current. As of now, I can only afford to level my "leveling" specs on each toon.
Every item you craft in order to train your crafting-based professions can set you back 1-2 platinum per item in simple vendor-sold, required crafting ingredients. That says nothing of the needed raw materials like ore, wood, plants, fish, etc. I chose to drop 2 of the "crafting" professions I had at 300 because, between all of the cash sinks Trion put into the game, each "crafting" profession was going to drain about 200 platinum to get to level 375 (the SL max), and that assumes I gather every piece of material myself that I can, and just buy the vendor-required items for recipes.
A new 50 arriving on the new continents (assuming that you're coming with the best gear you can get these days, which is quest gear since no one will be doing any raiding of pre-SL dungeons getting you epic T1 or T2 gear) will usually require 1 minute to kill each mob. Playing in the pre-SL areas to grind for the game currency to get better gear is pointless, as no one is there to help, and you can't fight "zone invasions" alone. It's safe to assume you'll be in a mix of quest greens and "Planar" gear, level 42-45 purples that are replaced by the first quests you do in SL.
People will claim that you gets tons and tons of platinum in game now. I find it's not at all true, unless you choose to sell everything you gather, no longer collect the in-game "Artifacts" and instead sell them, and basically spend at least 1/2 your play tiem grinding to make the in-game currency to simply level your skills.
Storm Legion is very, very harsh on new players. I wouldn't recommend it someone unless they really enojoy grinding away and not "playing" the game (i.e., questing and progressing through the story).
You should be able to get to 50 within the month, as leveling in Rift pre-50 is super easy. So make the SL determination once you hit level 50.
To determine if you want to play Rift in SL, ask yourself this: given your playstyle while leveling up to 50, do you have 200-300 platinum in the bank ? If not, then I think SL is going to be as hard for you as it's been for most of us who only started playing Rift within the past 3-6 months. If your gameplay includes grinding mobs, farming materials, playing the Auction House, neglecting any aspects of the game (i.e., crafting, artifact collecting) that might make more money selling what you gathered as you played, then SL is the expac for you.
If you simply like to "play" an MMO, do quests, participate in zone events, etc., then you're up the creek, and there's not a paddle in sight.
As I said, I actually love the GAME of Rift. Sadly, in Storm Legion, I'm playing something more akin to Runescape, grinding away at stuff I'd rather not do, while others who were in Telara long before me and accumulated huge piles of platinum, get to "play" the game in the expansion.
Can you think of a way they could have done it without giving veterans the upper hand?
If they made it easier for people new to 50 it would be even easier for those that had been 50 for a long time. There's no avoiding catering for veterans in the sense you describe, other than rendering gold useless in the expansion and using a newly introduced currency instead, it's impossible.
Veterans spent a lot of time getting all the plat, you think it's fair to render that time useless and lower the value of their effort by letting all the new people have a free pass without working as hard? Time they had to pay for? I don't anyway. It's not like veterans got all the extra plat for nothing. They have spent loads of time doing the things you are saying you don't want to do so they can have that much money. It works ok in a game concept like GW2's because you don't have to have paid extra for that time.
Why should you be able to max all your crafting for hardly any cost or effort? Doesn't that go against the point of having progression in the first place? Veterans have already put in that effort, you havn't.
... it's like a new sports team joining a sports league and saying to all the teams that worked hard to get into the 1st division "Hey, we deserve to be where you are because we are new". Makes no sense whatsoever. If you want the same level of access and recognition as those that have put in time and effort, you have to put in time and effort as well.
Anyway, I had 1 character in Tier 1 PvP gear and 2 others that had been leveled through only instant adventures and even had some level 30-40 gear on at the start of the expansion. I had about 90 Plat going into the expansion (I have about 300 plat now and have got all the upgrades I needed along the way). I havn't had any of the issues you are describing. By the time you reach the second zone in either expansion continent you have better than the old tier 3 raid gear on anyway. The reason you have no Plat is because you are deep into the biggest money sink in the game, crafting. That's your choice. Who says you need to do everything at once? You don't need to, you just want to. I only gather and I sell all my mats and I have plenty of money.
I'm not disagreeing with you saying that some people should wait to get the expansion, some should. I'm just saying my experience with the expansion is very different to what you described. You want it all for nothing and, other than GW2, you are probably in the wrong genre. There is nothing different happening in Rift in this sense compared to what has happened with every other MMO expansion.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
Unless your really into housing just go without the expansion. Once you hit max level you should have a better understanding if you like the game to buy the expansion and continue on. Chances are if your that sure you might even want to invest in 1 year subscription for a free expansion if your that confident. Till then, don't worry so much about the game until you know for certain you like it to buy the expansion, your not going to be missing out on much till the end.
Originally posted by Purutzil Unless your really into housing just go without the expansion. Once you hit max level you should have a better understanding if you like the game to buy the expansion and continue on. Chances are if your that sure you might even want to invest in 1 year subscription for a free expansion if your that confident. Till then, don't worry so much about the game until you know for certain you like it to buy the expansion, your not going to be missing out on much till the end.
Do you have the xpac? The whole game feels different, and in my opinion sucks, without the xpac.
The OP should probably wait uhtil he knows if he's subbing or not, but once he does, then he should buy the xpac or just not sub.
By the way you don't need the xpac for housing.
The game is "different" in the new continents because Trion abandoned "high fantasy" and went with some kind of Steampunk/Fantasy/Sci-Fi hybrid. Mechs, airships, robots, modern weaposn abound. Dusken and Brevane are wholly different from the pre-SL continent of Mathosia.
However, a new player will not see any of the difference. The old pre-50 world is still as it was. You can level to 50 without any of the new souls easily. They are not all necessary, and to this date, I've not altered my builds to include them. So far, they do not fit my playstyle.
Comments
Storm legions gives new content mostly for 50+ characters. There is not much new for lower lewers, except I think Dimensions (i.e. hausing).
I'm also new to rift. Lvl 31 now. So my suggestion would be to wait and play till u have 30days of game time. Then if u like rift, and think u will continue to play for longer, get storm chaser edition (free strom legion + 12 months of game time):
http://stormlegion.riftgame.com/en/storm-chaser/
off course u can get it now, and will have 12 months + 30 days u have now. I did this, and no regrets for now ;-)
Good Morning,
Personally I would say wait a bit before you buy storm legion. I have forgotten if dimensions comes with storm legion or not. However since your 20 see how you feel about the game at 40 or so. If you still like it then I would say go ahead with storm legion.
Hm not sure if you mean the actual add ons that you get from curse for instance or the macros in game that you set up. Either way you will probably need a raid and dps addon if you like raiding and doing dungeons. I would suggest going to curse.com and looking at the addons there to see what fits your playstyle.
As for macros, you won't really need any until later in game and even then trion I think changed some skills around to get away from the macro spamming. On my rogue I only have one macro atm for 2 skills. Then again there are a lot of people in game that will help you along the way should you have any questions. Also you can PM me here if you wish if you need answers to something.
And of course welcome to Rift
Ah welcome to Rift as well. Yes at 50 in storm legion its very interesting and a big place. lol I'm still on one continent and haven't cracked 51 yet, which for me I like very much. I also like the fact that you get planar experience alongside regular experience.
I think you will really like the game and hopefully you have found a good group of people to xp with.
If you are certain you are going to get over level 50 before quitting the game.. definately get it now. Main reason is because of the new souls.. more souls you have to play with = a better game. Simples.
You shouldn't quit before getting max level anyway, because.. and this is a promise.. the real game starts at endgame in Rift. It's like it's the opposite way around. Normaly in MMOs. the leveing is the most fun and the endgame gets a little boring. In Rift the leveling (1-50, not 50-60) can be a little boring if it's all you do and the endgame is where it is the most fun. When leveling.. always break it up with some warfronts and some dungeons, even if you don't normally do that kind of thing or even if you arn't good at it.. it's about breaking up the pace so you don't get burned out.
ty very much i will do that
. i will play the game for 30 days and than make up my mind about buying storm legion .ty ty 
I *STRONGLY* advise against a new player buyiing the year package. Simply because the odds are not in your favor of sticking around a year in Rift. I would wait at least 3 months before making a year commitment. Rift is a game that many people float in and out of, 2 months here, one month there sort of thing.
see if the offer is on to sub for a year and get storm legion for free.not sure if its still going but it will save you a bit in the long run if you intend on staying in game
This is not true. There are plenty of top builds and really good soul combinations that don't use the new souls.
Try a PvE solo cleric build using purifier.. useless compared to supporting melee souls with justicar.
Try healing with a mage using chloro and harbinger <--- bad combination.
Try doing a raid or dungeon where everyone is using the new souls in one way or another.. fail.
Any harbinger build can not out damage a full pyro build, even a harbinger/pyro build.
The list does on...
The new souls weren't just added to the mix.. they completely changed every single skill tree the game because the new souls were being introduced, they balanced everything out 'around' the new souls not 'into' the new souls. Every soul has it's place, more than one place actually, and the new souls are not the primary focus of the games balance in any way. There may be a few overpowered builds at the moment using the new souls but they will quickly be nerfed out because it isn't intended.
yup i am not buying the full year subscription . i only play mmo when i have holidays ,not during university sessions so that option is definitely not for me .
I definately do, yes.
Please go soloing with any and all Defiler builds, then try this. It's my creation, I call it The Druidicar of Agony and you are the first to see it. Compare the two and get back to me.
___________________________________________________________________
Build:
50 Version: http://rift.magelo.com/en/soultree#n8ig/rv9g30/Dky8h142
60 Version: http://rift.magelo.com/en/soultree#n8ig/rv9g90/Dky8h1458
Buffs:
Use all (Through Step optional)
Main Single Target Rotation:
Opener/Puller:
Vex (refresh when needed)
Macro:
suppressmacrofailures
cast Combined Strike
cast Sanction Heretic
cast Bolt of Radiance
cast Strike of Judgment
AOE:
Vex everything
Even Strike (spammable)
Pet:
Have Greater Faerie Healer out at all times (no micro management required)
Put Rightous Mandate on your pet
Weapon:
Staff or Two-Handed Mace/Hammer
Greater Planar Essences:
Crystal Vine (buy in Stillmoor) or better with same effect - Heal Over Time from healing
Frozen Deep One Tear (buy in Iron Pine Peak) or better with same effect - Absorb Shield from healing
All other abilities are situational and/or optional. Adding any other damaging abilities into the rotation will lower your self healing. Never use Hammer of Duty though, your convictions are there for Doctrine of Bliss if you need it.. which you won't most of the time.
Sit back and enjoy your high survivability, above average ST damage, comfortably AOEing, solo cleric, bearing in mind how rediculously easy it is to play this build.
For better AOE/farming but slighty lower single target DPS and survivability, use the following build:
AOE Version:
50 Version: http://rift.magelo.com/en/soultree#nA9k/rv9g30/Dky8h0
60 Version: http://rift.magelo.com/en/soultree#nA9k/rv9g30/Dky8h1450
New AOE macro:
suppressmacrofailures
cast Soul Drain
cast Even Justice
___________________________________________________________________
I'd argue that this is one of the, if not the, best solo build(s) available in the game at the moment. It out performs the cleric's Duracell 1.11 build in every way except AOE damage. But, the AOE version has pretty much exactly the same aoe damage as duracell but offers much more self healing and STILL outperforms the most popular solo Cleric build in every other way as well. Speaking of which, the community's general opinion, although a false one, is that a build that doesn't use the new soul, Duracell, is the best solo build. Also for my build, in the Justicar tree, you can even take the 4 points out of Stronghold and put them in Reparation for group healing, putting your Rightous Mandate on the last member for whole group heals.
Also, please make a full Pyro, play it properly (if you can) and test the damage numbers with a DPS meter.. then do the same with any Harbinger build.
Try to prove my claims wrong if you like, I'll listen. I'll even use your builds. Give me a Harbinger that can out damage a full Pyro build and I'll be happy you proved me wrong, cos I'll start using that build for DPS in expert dungeons.
BTW, I know you probably won't bother really trying this out or might not have a Cleric. But my cards are on the table.. do what you want with them. But.. if you are not willing or curious about whether you can find better builds, even when they are handed to you, then in my opinion you are not even remotely qualified to be commenting on the balance in this game.
Everyone is using the new souls because they are new, not because they are the best.
The majority isn't even trying out other combinations because they are too busy messing about with the new ones or they are just adding their extra 10 points into their old 66 point build instead of finding 'new' builds. An extra 10 soul points changes everything for every soul. Once the novelty of the new souls has gone, you and everyone else will realise this once you start trying out the other souls again. There are good builds with the new souls and there are good builds without them.
Almost all the 'best' builds I've conceived don't have any of the new souls in them, and I don't make that claim lightly, I've spent A LOT of time testing things out. For example, the highest DPS Cleric build at the moment is an all physical damage melee + Vex + Sanction Heretic Inquisitor/Shaman/Druid combinition. It's also one of the higher DPS builds in the game at the moment when properly geared. You'll notice the new soul isn't in that combo. You are saying that build is gimped because the new soul isn't in it.. if it was, it would be gimped.
That brings me to another point. Souls fill certain roles. There is no good way the Defiler can greatly help a DPS or Tank role. Harbinger can't help a healing or support role in any way, can't even help an AOE DPS role. Tempest can't support or group heal, or Tank, single target damage is poor. Tactician can't help a tanking role and is average across the other but excels in support. They all have some uses in solo builds but so does every soul in the game. Using those souls in those roles is what will gimp you.
Hows that for fully explaining myself instead of just throwing around statements without really knowing what I'm talking about? Which brings me to the question, do you even have the expansion? Because everything you said about it is completely false. It's like you don't understand the game mechanics one bit. Won't be wanted in groups if you don't have the expansion? lol The other day I was asked, 'asked', in a group to change from being a Harbinger into a heavy Stormcaller build, which annoyed me a bit because I was having fun playing a Harb. You're just making stuff up.
Well, it's not a good leveling build. Do the Duracell for 1-50 then change over if you do level a Cleric.
The last bit there, I totally agree with. I said pretty much the same thing in my first post on this thread I think.
I love Rift, but the Storm Legion expansion is super harsh on new players when they get to level 50. Trion made Storm Legion to be a HUGE platinum sink because their core player base are long term players who have 1,000s of platinum with nothing to do with it.
I am a fairly new player to Rift, and a bit of an alt-a-holic, with 4 level 50s at the time of the expansion. I wanted to have all the "crafting" professions covered (there are 6), as well as cover all the "gathering" professions (there are 3). Storm Legion was a kick in the cajones for me, since my characters were new to 50 and had between 20-70 platinum apiece. This is what awaited.
Immediately stepping into the new contients will set you back 60 platinum to train your 5 professions (3 professions + Fishing and Survival) past level 300 (the pre SL max).
Every time you level your character, you will need to spend 2-5 platinum to level up your abilities, and that's per build. If you have, say, a DPS, Healer and Tank build, plus an extra build for, say, leveling/grinding, that's 4 builds. That'll be up to 20 platinum per level up if you want to keep all builds current. As of now, I can only afford to level my "leveling" specs on each toon.
Every item you craft in order to train your crafting-based professions can set you back 1-2 platinum per item in simple vendor-sold, required crafting ingredients. That says nothing of the needed raw materials like ore, wood, plants, fish, etc. I chose to drop 2 of the "crafting" professions I had at 300 because, between all of the cash sinks Trion put into the game, each "crafting" profession was going to drain about 200 platinum to get to level 375 (the SL max), and that assumes I gather every piece of material myself that I can, and just buy the vendor-required items for recipes.
A new 50 arriving on the new continents (assuming that you're coming with the best gear you can get these days, which is quest gear since no one will be doing any raiding of pre-SL dungeons getting you epic T1 or T2 gear) will usually require 1 minute to kill each mob. Playing in the pre-SL areas to grind for the game currency to get better gear is pointless, as no one is there to help, and you can't fight "zone invasions" alone. It's safe to assume you'll be in a mix of quest greens and "Planar" gear, level 42-45 purples that are replaced by the first quests you do in SL.
People will claim that you gets tons and tons of platinum in game now. I find it's not at all true, unless you choose to sell everything you gather, no longer collect the in-game "Artifacts" and instead sell them, and basically spend at least 1/2 your play tiem grinding to make the in-game currency to simply level your skills.
Storm Legion is very, very harsh on new players. I wouldn't recommend it someone unless they really enojoy grinding away and not "playing" the game (i.e., questing and progressing through the story).
You should be able to get to 50 within the month, as leveling in Rift pre-50 is super easy. So make the SL determination once you hit level 50.
To determine if you want to play Rift in SL, ask yourself this: given your playstyle while leveling up to 50, do you have 200-300 platinum in the bank ? If not, then I think SL is going to be as hard for you as it's been for most of us who only started playing Rift within the past 3-6 months. If your gameplay includes grinding mobs, farming materials, playing the Auction House, neglecting any aspects of the game (i.e., crafting, artifact collecting) that might make more money selling what you gathered as you played, then SL is the expac for you.
If you simply like to "play" an MMO, do quests, participate in zone events, etc., then you're up the creek, and there's not a paddle in sight.
As I said, I actually love the GAME of Rift. Sadly, in Storm Legion, I'm playing something more akin to Runescape, grinding away at stuff I'd rather not do, while others who were in Telara long before me and accumulated huge piles of platinum, get to "play" the game in the expansion.
Can you think of a way they could have done it without giving veterans the upper hand?
If they made it easier for people new to 50 it would be even easier for those that had been 50 for a long time. There's no avoiding catering for veterans in the sense you describe, other than rendering gold useless in the expansion and using a newly introduced currency instead, it's impossible.
Veterans spent a lot of time getting all the plat, you think it's fair to render that time useless and lower the value of their effort by letting all the new people have a free pass without working as hard? Time they had to pay for? I don't anyway. It's not like veterans got all the extra plat for nothing. They have spent loads of time doing the things you are saying you don't want to do so they can have that much money. It works ok in a game concept like GW2's because you don't have to have paid extra for that time.
Why should you be able to max all your crafting for hardly any cost or effort? Doesn't that go against the point of having progression in the first place? Veterans have already put in that effort, you havn't.
... it's like a new sports team joining a sports league and saying to all the teams that worked hard to get into the 1st division "Hey, we deserve to be where you are because we are new". Makes no sense whatsoever. If you want the same level of access and recognition as those that have put in time and effort, you have to put in time and effort as well.
Anyway, I had 1 character in Tier 1 PvP gear and 2 others that had been leveled through only instant adventures and even had some level 30-40 gear on at the start of the expansion. I had about 90 Plat going into the expansion (I have about 300 plat now and have got all the upgrades I needed along the way). I havn't had any of the issues you are describing. By the time you reach the second zone in either expansion continent you have better than the old tier 3 raid gear on anyway. The reason you have no Plat is because you are deep into the biggest money sink in the game, crafting. That's your choice. Who says you need to do everything at once? You don't need to, you just want to. I only gather and I sell all my mats and I have plenty of money.
I'm not disagreeing with you saying that some people should wait to get the expansion, some should. I'm just saying my experience with the expansion is very different to what you described. You want it all for nothing and, other than GW2, you are probably in the wrong genre. There is nothing different happening in Rift in this sense compared to what has happened with every other MMO expansion.
The game is "different" in the new continents because Trion abandoned "high fantasy" and went with some kind of Steampunk/Fantasy/Sci-Fi hybrid. Mechs, airships, robots, modern weaposn abound. Dusken and Brevane are wholly different from the pre-SL continent of Mathosia.
However, a new player will not see any of the difference. The old pre-50 world is still as it was. You can level to 50 without any of the new souls easily. They are not all necessary, and to this date, I've not altered my builds to include them. So far, they do not fit my playstyle.