[2016] Alternative Maps (clarified)

The existing map variations have something that go against them, because:

a) Classic K3K map has the no-immunity ennead which to be honest looks like an obvious bug that never got fixed to keep the quest newbie friendly.
b) Classic dunc map has very wide areas right on the start. Can't tell if that is an intentional design to allow people to do short version of the uber without requiring teleport.

Also old dunc map has this narrow entrance which is the result of tileset transitioning. I think that's possibly another advantage.

But a note, this topic isn't about upcoming map variations. It's about the existing ones and whether the concept should be dumped for most ubers due to some people re-rolling map (ureh map will be hardened eventually regardless of these poll results). There are many, many bugs to fix in the new patch and I don't think my time is best invested doing map variations which are cool but noone really look forward to.

It sounds like Dustin's post has good merit based on the above. I really liked the new k3k perhaps because I found it spiced one of the HC-doable Ubers!

But on the other hand, Alex found it an impediment and would re-roll it. (He was also on HC and is the only HC to hit 121 so he's a pretty solid player)

Is it possible to go with Random variance much like norm-d2 progression (or something similar?). I'm not a coder, so perhaps this is très difficile?

yes ,many people don't like change. they don't want to quest become difficult and reward the same as the past
if you want to change a map , i think you should change it's quest or add new items or increase new attribute to make people accept it

I agree with suchbalance that if there was to be only one variant, then the new maps for k3k and dunc should become default for the reasons Marco listed.

TL;DR: Keep only the "best" version of a map right now. Fix bugs and cheese or even redesign whole maps but keep only one version for now, add more later as needed.

Since the point is to remove useless map rerolling I voted yes. It's obviously the easy way out, if you only have one map you can't possibly reroll it. But I thought a while on it and bot the yes and no options have their own merits. Ultimately I voted yes for the following reasons:

Easiest way to remove map rerolling
Lighter workload for you, so you can concentrate more on bugfixes / new features
No need to balance maps against each other. Having different maps while keeping difficulty the same is very hard I reckon
Familiarity. Since map design is an integral part of uberquests, unlike the normal game, it is easier to learn and understand the mechanics of a uberquest if you don't also have to learn new maps
Less chance of bugs or inconsistencies between different versions of a map

That said, I also like variety, so you should consider my vote as a "weak" yes. I would like, as others have said, for you to keep what you believe should be the right map for k3kba and duncraig, fix any bugs / inconsistencies / cheese in other maps and then, if you want to and you have the time, add other maps.

i am pro content, but if i have to vote for new maps and therefore sacrifice skill rebalance ( holy melee-pure nova skill character; stormzon ;etc) or uber-balance ( soul of wrath - witch -uldy - idk) then i clearly vote against new maps. After all your time and motivation to do all this for us is limited !

Voted "yes" cuz the map overhaul will take you lots of time wich can be invested in something else.
Keep the ones with less cheese potential (k3k, dunc) and make them default and only one variation and thats it for now.

I voted before reading the voting options and thought since the title was Alternative Maps, that I'd vote YES to have alternative maps... I was fooled.

RollsRoyce wrote:i am pro content, but if i have to vote for new maps and therefore sacrifice skill rebalance ( holy melee-pure nova skill character; stormzon ;etc)

Nothing wrong with holy melee, can farm dunc/fauzt/toraja and do all but the toughest of charms with crafts/rws only (unless you mean pure holy melee without dragon morph).

Retaliate = 40-50k damage not hard to reach (which goes to 80k with deadly strike)
Merkabah = 80k /s puts most things into hit recovery every second
Path of Flames = 100k /s
Vessel of Retribution = 160k /s
Dragon Oath = 1-2hk many heroic shield bosses

= that's 340k damage per second to everything around you even without retaliate, dragon oath or procs

voted NO , visiting the same uberquest(map) over and over is like going in vacation in the same spot where nothing changed since your last visits - it gets boring- specially when you farm for SU's - > you get some automatic instincts/routes/a mindless robot approach due to repeating . A new (random?) map size/structure/arrangement would make it more interesting and will keep your awareness at a higher level every time you go back to "x" uberquest . this is my impression after hundreds of hours and re-runs while farming . a new player might prefer the idea of a single map

[2016] Alternative Maps (clarified)

Should uberquest maps consist of only one variant?