13.4 : Pioneer backpack modification

[Cz]

The Pioneer Backpack can be modified using a screwdriver so that, instead of it increasing your size slightly, it will reduce your size slightly.

WARNING: If you do this, make sure you EMPTY THE BACKPACK; otherwise you will lose all the items in the pack!

[_______Spookymonster]

What about the hacker's tool making the 'pack fit in a utility slot instead of the back slot?

[______________Scorus]

Or some tool that can let it fit onto a shoulder.

As I've said before, I won't take my rainbow leopard-print cloak off for a nano cloak, so I certainly won't do it for a backpack. I appreciate the free gift, but certainly you weren't trying to give your players a choice between the pack and all the wonderful clothing that you have worked so hard to produce.

Scorus

[__________starknaked]

Cosmik, this may not be the purpose of this thread, but can you tell us why the Pioneer backpack adds +140 to Tutoring, when Tutoring has not been implemented and seemingly never will?

I say that because you all seem to dislike the fact that we have been equipping high level items as it is, and have taken steps to stop this, like nerfing the store surgical clinics. Obviously if Tutoring were fixed, its only purpose would be for us to equip higher level items than we could otherwise.

I would love for Treatment Tutoring devices to be fixed, though, so we didn't have to all max our treatment every level (this is silly, only doctors and such should be doing this).

[Cz]

Originally posted by starknaked
Cosmik, this may not be the purpose of this thread, but can you tell us why the Pioneer backpack adds +140 to Tutoring, when Tutoring has not been implemented and seemingly never will?

Hm, I dare steal this one from Cosmik.

There are no plans on not fixing Tutoring, so I am pretty sure that bonus on Tutoring will come in handy someday.

Cz

[Cosmik]

Let me just elaborate on that and steal some thunder back

Tutoring is up for a fix. It will work, and we hope soon. So, as Cz said, those packs will come in very handy.

[___________LostLogic]

Originally posted by Cosmik
Let me just elaborate on that and steal some thinder back

Tutoring is up for a fix. It will work, and we hope soon. So, as Cz said, those packs will come in very handy.

Any chance of letting another tool make it fit on your shoulder?

[______________Nietya]

What, so tutoring is going to help people overequip even more? Not like it's a big enough problem already, or anything...

*sigh*

[______________Scorus]

Originally posted by Nietya
What, so tutoring is going to help people overequip even more? Not like it's a big enough problem already, or anything...

*sigh*

The funny thing is that the Tutoring devices do exactly what the Portable clinics were supposed to do, transfer skill levels from one character to another temporarily. I wish I still had the official explanation for why the portable clinic treatment transfer was disabled, but I remember thinking that it could be applied word for word to Tutoring devices.

Scorus

[_______zeroframerate]

Originally posted by Cz
The Pioneer Backpack can be modified using a screwdriver so that, instead of it increasing your size slightly, it will reduce your size slightly.

And this has more priority than certain bugs out there? Just seems like Funcom is just trying to accomplish successfully anything just to re-affirm their confidence in programming.

[______________Nianna]

And will using the screwdriver on it again turn it back to size increasing or is this a one-time permanent modification?

[_________CaptFallout]

i don't think anyone complained about the scale modifier. What we complained about were two things:

1. Tutoring doesn't work.

2. It's a back item.


Why "fix" it when you wo'nt make it a shoulder item? No one cares about a 1% increase/decrease in size. What we care about is the ability to wear it.

Make it a shoulder item.

[____________Sinclare]

Actually it is going to be quite usefull (i hope)...Advent morphs are usless 99% of the time because we are too big to fit through doors...I hope the modifer is big enough to fix that problem.

[______________Nietya]

Actually, Capt, what people care about isn't the ability to wear it... it's whether or not it's even USEFUL. If you have to take off tank armor/secundus coat, it's not... if it's a shoulder item, like you said, it might be... wearable? But fact is, is it really useful? +1 to all stats is nice and all, but the backpack itself seems centered around this idea of rewarding "pioneers"... but giving this large bonus to tutoring... how many months until you fix it from when you gave it to people?

How about you reward the people that you shafted when you gave your CANCELLED account members a free month, but screwed over current account members. How about that?

-Nietya

[____________Sinclare]

I never thought I would agree with Capt to any extent but in this case I do.

It would be nice if it would go on a shoulder slot instead of your back slot...although I don't wear tank armor or coats because I can't afford the IP investment but it would let me wear two backpacks...

As far as the usefullness goes, I have found it quite usefull. That little extra bit added to treatment really helps when trying to equip implants..last night it made the difference between 2 points of treatment that I was short of. Otherwise, I would have had to wait until I got a extra 150,000 exp for the next level.

As far as the free month for those who canceled...$13 ain't squat. There are times when I take a 2 or 3 weeks and just go play something else for a break but I always come back. Wasted 3 weeks? I think not, otherwise you just get bured out playing the same game every day.

[Cz]

I am faily sure we have heard it all, and that no changes have been made now doesn't mean we won't make changes later. No need to turn this thread into a discussion about what is not in the patch. Use other forums for that.

zeroframerate, the item designer is not a programmer. We won't let him play with the code.

Nianna, I'll check whether the change is reversible.

Cz

[_____________Brynild]

Just tought I'd clear up that there is no Treatment Tutoring Device

Only the following:

Chemistry Tutoring Device
Computer Literacy Tutoring Device
Electrical Engineering Tutoring Device
Field Quantum Physics Tutoring Device
Mechanical Engineering Tutoring Device
Nano Programming Tutoring Device
Pharma Tech Tutoring Device
Psychology Tutoring Device
Weapon Smithing Tutoring Device

[RoboKa]

First
Why introduce the modification ability to the pioneer backpack if it seems to have a major bug (loose all its contents)? Do you hate your support staff?

Second
I'm an engineer and I am trying to get into trade skills, but you could make things a lot easier with this simple suggestion (yeah, I know, its probably a coding nightmare, but I offer an easy out too)!

I am starting to need to store a lot of mission loot. Rings for melting, stones for cutting, parts for weapons, instruction disks for nano clusters, robot junk for Arul Saba; you get the point. To do this I am keeping a lot of backpacks in the bank with weapon parts in one, cluster parts in another, and so on. This keeps them organized and lets me store more. I also keep a bag in the bank with my future guns and armor that I have looted, but, not yet grown into.

Now, whenever I want to get at this stuff, I have to go to the bank and either get out all of the bags, or get them out one by one and check and see which one has the stuff I'm looking for i it. With 5-10 bags in the bank, this can be quite time consuming and a pain in the neck. Wouldn't you rather I played the game and interfaced with other players rather than open and close the bags I don't need? I know you are working on making the bank contents have static locations, but with several bags in there, it will still be a hassle.

So, why don't you do either of the following:

• Hard Way: Allow us to label the bags kinda like we do macros. We could open a bag and type in chat "/bag rename Guns" and the word Guns would appear over the bag's icon.
• Easy Way: Sell bags in different colors. Same 3 sizes, just add a color tint to the icon, a color to the name and maybe a couple words to the description. Let's see; red, yellow, blue, green, orange, purple, white, black, grey, tan and brown; 11 bags in 3 sizes = 33 different bags, fast and dirty!

Come to think of it, this would also be a great help in my inventory where I currently carry 4 bags; 1 for extra ammo and health buffs, 1 for nano crystals and implants ready to be installed (ya ne'er know when a friendly doc will show up) and 2 just in case I want to do more than one mission before returning to base with the loot (ok, I lied, I care 3 for loot).

Think about it. The hard way would be nice, but the easy way would work just fine and it would be a big win for little effort (that's what my development team is trained to look for)!

Anyway, thanks for listening...

[_______Spookymonster]

Originally posted by Cz
No need to turn this thread into a discussion about what is not in the patch. Use other forums for that.
Cz

On the contrary; you asked us to comment on this particular change for the new patch, and that is exactly what we are doing. The fact that we are calling this 'fix' useless and unwanted doesn't invalidate our comments. Our suggestions for how to convert this change to something useful are, I feel, quite on topic.

[______________Scorus]

Originally posted by RoboKa
First
Why introduce the modification ability to the pioneer backpack if it seems to have a major bug (loose all its contents)? Do you hate your support staff?

I don't think you could call it a bug, more of an unfortunate consequence. When the bag is changed it becomes a completely different item, an item with a completely new number in the item database. Therefore the old item is deleted and the new one is put in (much as happens when you are building implants). Therefore the contents of the old item will be similarly deleted.

The message when 13.4 went on the test server said that they are going to implement a check. So I assume it will be something like "Doing this operation will delete anything still in the pioneer backpack, are you sure you want to continue?" If that isn't enough warning for the player, then chalk it up to natural selection.

Scorus