What do you want to see from a server?

[[Admin]ßІί†ž]

MY 2 cents worth . After managing a pserver for over a year , here is my take :

Players will stay on a server where uber is "earned" . Instant PvP is instant fail . Those servers as we all know come and go with each moon phase . They attract a lot ( not all ) customers , who don't appreciate the results of a disciplined effort to create their own build of toon. You don't value what you don't have to work for.

There are hundreds of little families of Shaiya players who travel together . They appreciate a enjoyable social setting . They relax and unwind by farming , helping each other and yakking on Skype . Having valuable quests , worthwhile farming areas and Raids for Boss's are what they live for. You attract them by creating these areas and make them worthwhile to occupy their time . Instant PvP servers have huge amounts of tension and not much to do thats worthwhile when you want to relax and get away from PvP .

Having items like 30 day ress runes , teles , PIDS , EE , and move/summons runes available for free are key to keeping gameplay interruption free and free of losing a toon.

Making higher level lapises farm able , but not too plentiful helps keep players busy and happy.

Making sure the higher level gears drop enough in game to satisfy your population is key to keeping prices down . I have seen so many servers fail because Admins restrict the flow of the economy . Its all about supply and demand , and too many Devs do not get it.

Keep PvP hot by making sure Hi-Demand items drop from Bosses . And find a common area to have the next highest items drop to create a zone of constant pvp . That way when there aren't any bosses , they will gravitate to this area . So many servers spread drops out over so many areas on pvp maps , it actually encourages solo hunting of weak players by uber players . Uber pvpers need to be magnetized by drops in a specific area to keep them happy and in pvp with other uber players , not out raping noobs. I have learned this the hard way .

Don't create items that give a donator an unfair advantage . Instead , make these rare items drop from ingame bosses in limited quantity , AND have them as a donator item. This way , if a donator chooses to , he can get uber faster , but not have an unfair advantage.

Be sure to make gear drops that are graduated thru the maps , so players can get the gear they need to kill THE NEXT level of mobs. I have seen some servers that were so poorly planned , that you had to kill mobs that were too hard to get the next level of gear, using the gear that was available to them on easier maps.
The key is to make the gear available that they will need to kill on THE NEXT map on the easier map.

This is already a wall of text , so I'll stop :P

THE BEST EP4 SERVER EVER - Shaiya Exile -by LilproHacker

[Gotsome]

Hahaha, I think I've probably already given you more then enough of my own personal input .

[vaisran]

Haven't read through all the posts yet, but I really like the idea of this thread. Like Snuggle said, Shaiya is one of those games that is just so damn hard to get away from. I've tried countless other MMO's, ranging all across the board, but nothing seems to compare to the distinct flavor Shaiya has. That being said, let's get down to what I like to see in a pserver.

Episode: This one is important, because it determines the content the game has. When I quit OS, it was right before the level cap raise of ep5. I then came back to check things out, tried to get back into it, but all the changes were so disgusting, I just ended up leaving every time I was faced with the new content.

Ideally, I'd prefer an ep4 server, nothing more, nothing less. It seems, however, most 'ep4' servers that are made introduce new gears with jacked up stats and level 7 or higher lapis. Nothing about that feels like the ep4 I knew and loved so long ago aside from capping at 60.

Skills: We all know how much ep5 botched up the skills. Honestly, mages and pagans are so terrible with their dreadful cooldowns on all the old key skills, it's pointless to roll one and actually be decent (or maybe I just suck, w/e). There were a few nice additions, but I'd still prefer the old style of ep4 where everything felt nice and balanced.

Enchanting: This is a rather touchy subject, and depends really on what all the server has. Most servers either skip it, or go all out, nothing in between, which in my opinion is the right way to do it as to prevent a large gap between players. Personally, I've never liked enchanting all that much, but maybe that's just my experiences from OS speaking and the prices associated with it. I'm okay with it being in the game if it's easy to successfully enchant something (as in highers than 80% success rates).

Lapis: This is what bothers me a lot about servers. I've seen quite a few with lapis that should never exist in any version of the game. Most tend to have level 8 lapis generally given to donators and the such, or create their own special types of lapis. This takes away from the feel that I'm playing a game that I used to enjoy. I understand the reason a lot do this though, with all the increased stats from the new gear, people need more stats to hit harder in pvp so people can get kills. But I still like the classics.

As for farming of them, I like to see changes in drop rates/locations. Level 5's in d2 is the most common change people are probably aware of, and I actually like that. Gives more purpose to go there than just to kill Kimu. Stigma/AZ I'd say drop level 5's and occasionally a level 6. Having OI open multiple times a day, and reducing the party size requirement to 5 or so is a must have. In there I like to see multiple level 6's from all the bosses. Flash and sonic most are familiar with from jungle bosses, which I like the idea of myself.

Gear: Quite simply, take all of the standard gear drops, then bump them all up one rank. Nightmares/ghosts in FL/CL drop legends instead of dreads, Anky/Asta/Cloron Troll/Fant. Troll all drop goddess, and the typical goddess droppers stay the same, maybe tossing in some extra 59 weapons here and there.

Leveling: I understand a lot of people hate OS partially due to the grind (myself included), but I feel there should be at least a little bit of leveling. I prefer a steady rate of x15 or x20 experience. Way faster than OS, but there's the feeling of making your character and getting to end-game pvp. For servers that can afford it, it's always nice to have multiple servers, one that's essentially straight to level cap, the other a bit more grindy like I prefer.

Item Mall: Regarding IM items. Any server that completely favors donators over everyone else instantly goes on my do-not-play list. That brings up the issue of how to distribute IM goods. I've seen several servers turn Canta, D-Water, Jungle, and DD into item mall drop maps, where essentially every mob has a chance to drop random IM goods, ranging from remedies and potions, to rec runes, linking hammers, and lapisia. Fortune bags are also a nice item to have, but few servers implement those anymore.

However, there has to be an incentive to donate otherwise the server will eventually fail (unless the owner is just bored and has plenty of money lying around to keep it running). I don't mind seeing special packages for donators that just speeds up the process of having to farm everything to link with and such, but nothing that is completely exclusive to them that would create an imbalance in pvp. Vanity stuff can be all theirs like UM only mounts.

Also, no nosses... pretty self explanatory there.

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Well... that's about it for now. Can't think of anything else to add right this moment. If anyone knows of a server that fits all my demanding criteria, let me know and I'd love to come play on it :P