SC vs HC vs SSFHC vs SSFSC

BLight was my second league (after the Beta) i played in Trade and not SSF (well after i reached 92 on the first one)
I was getting too much good stuff for once, but not viable for my summoner so i though "ok lets try a Trade switch to see if i can finally try some build requiring Uniques i have never drop in 7years)

So i migrate to trade, i tried some stuff:
- Double Cospri Malice cast on crit cyclone
- Super booster HErald of Ice with some Synthesis uniques and stuff
(There is so much uniques i never had the chance to get my hands on)

But i feelt sooo spoiled, like in a few hours i mad 2 OP characters with no real sense of progression or difficulty, i guess its a one time experience.

I'm too loww to play HC (i tried a few years XD) but SSF was/is the only way for me to enjoy each drop, the sense of progression, making choices, feel the impact of gathering Currencies to actually craft and fail.

Swapping once for Trade league remind me sooo bad the D3 time were you could by anything on the AH and, rip the content. And you are wasting so much playtime by just searching hours for good items/ratio, selling, look for pricing, replying to ppl mid map for another trade... its endless.

I know some ppl like to play in group or farm currencies to buy their HH and stuff, but some ppl like me only enjoy the game when you don't feel spoiled, "cheating" because you could buy anything by just running 100x a map and makes loots meaningless if its not exalt or 150C value ^^'.

This way i can make a good league starter then follow the game according to what special Unique or decent item i loot, to make new characters accordingly^^. So each league feel fresh because i never know what i'm gonna be able to make according to the RNG^^.

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DrB00M wrote:

the answer is likely the most logical one... Play trade league SC, beef up some character, do all the new 3.9 content and learn... then come back to HC at some point.

That's how I feel too. HC is much more intense and interesting to play, but you have to learn the boss fights somehow... and SC is a good way to do that.

Hi DrBOOM,

I play around 95% in HC, and i don't agree with your sentences 1 + 2 and 3 because HC doesn't limit your builds. What limits your builds is the fact that you fear too much of dying, losing your stuff and restarting again and again.

I advise you to try SC trade league so you will be able to experiment the whole content, and to do something different. And maybe in few leagues you will come back to HC.

You don't want to lose your investment in a blink of an eye so you dont experience some contents. And maybe you consider your items as the most important thing. A lot of people share your idea.

But here is my state of mind : I play HC for the challenge, the thrill, the emotions it gives to me. What i fear the most is not to lose my items, it is to waste my time playing some characters (or builds) with less involvement, and less memories, as our time is very precious.

For instance, i started to play POE when the 10 acts were introduced. In HC.
Of course i knew noting about the game and bosses. And i have watched videos and have read informations about them just before killing the boss act. And i will always remember the powerful feelings as i defeated Kitava act 10. My hands were shaking as hell !
I am sure it would just have been a « normal » one in SC, nothing really special.

For this blight league, i defeated for the first time the red elder, what an amazing thrill again !
Then, i decided to try to kill the shaper, but was OS by the Minotaur before ^^. And what a strong memory it was, eventhough i died ^^

So if i take into account the risk (to die), the reward (the emotions and loots) and the build, the most fun to play will always be HC, eventhough i do less contents.

Have fun and stay safe exile ; )

Start in SSFHC, since you indicate that you already play HC.
I prefer SSFSC as I don't have the time to worry about losing a character.
My last 2 runs in SSF, I made it to maps with no deaths.
Of course, it is a different mindset in SSF but it is fun (for me)

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Bakudan wrote:

But i feelt sooo spoiled, like in a few hours i mad 2 OP characters with no real sense of progression or difficulty, i guess its a one time experience...

...This way i can make a good league starter then follow the game according to what special Unique or decent item i loot, to make new characters accordingly^^. So each league feel fresh because i never know what i'm gonna be able to make according to the RNG^^.

This is true, you're inspiring me to play SSF a little more now :) The idea of just picking a good league starter would need to be done anyhow in trade league, so no loss of time there.

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Archwayroad_station wrote:

You don't want to lose your investment in a blink of an eye so you dont experience some contents. And maybe you consider your items as the most important thing. A lot of people share your idea...

...For instance, i started to play POE when the 10 acts were introduced. In HC.
Of course i knew noting about the game and bosses. And i have watched videos and have read informations about them just before killing the boss act. And i will always remember the powerful feelings as i defeated Kitava act 10. My hands were shaking as hell !
I am sure it would just have been a « normal » one in SC, nothing really special.

The problem is I started before the 10 acts were released... running various builds. Since then, besides a few builds that I ignore simply for the currency requirement, i've widdled the game down. I've probably tried most builds or the ones I haven't really aren't that different from one another (different skill, but AoE is AoE for example).

Starting over again and again is getting pointless when the fruit of the game (trying a new build) is getting less available.

PoE's meta is trade. Stick to that and you can trivialize any content. If you want a feeling of progression, then whatever league you choose should be preceded by SSF; that said, the suggestion to learn in standard then go HC is an excellent one.

I play only SSF. Never understood the attraction of trading, the fun for me at least is finding stuff.

I also play hardcore in two ways:

1. Actual HC and as my final run in a league from scratch

2. Self policed HC in SSFSC, where if I die I delete the character. Not difficult for me as I lose interest in characters when I die. However, I keep all the gear so each run becomes slightly faster.

It works for me and I have fun. I need that anxious feeling that knowing if you die it is all over for that character to be fun.

I play almost all ARPGs hardcore. POE has tons of 1 shot mechanics so it is the most difficult I think especially SSF.

I do wish GGG would show the SSF crowd more love.

I also discover everything (as best I can, sometimes just reading an article of forum post you get spoiled) myself. I do not look at or use anyone's else's builds, I dont watch any videos on bosses and how to beat them. All my characters are just trial and error.

Only exception to that is that I have looked at the wiki for some information such as a couple trading recipes, and at some info on how some numbers are calculated.

I am super excited about POE2. It will be infinitely more fun and complex to figure things out in that version. Seems like it will be 10X as complex.

After watching more Exilecon content, I've realized SC will even moreso be the route I go.

They have confirmed MORE powercreep are happening in 3.9 onwards, and life of monsters are being increased. Each of these concludes HC to be less and less viable.

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johnnysd wrote:

I do wish GGG would show the SSF crowd more love.

The fact that they gave us a SSF mode is enough love, in my opinion.
I prefer SF to Trade, as you noted, because I like to find stuff myself too.

Bro! I know what you feel. I was HC player since 2013. My builds always was ridiculous tank and dps was quite low. I never killed Shaper or any of his guardians.
In Blight i played sc ssf. Today I 1st time killed Shaper (wos suprisely easy, some guardians and red Elder are imo harder). I will not force Uber Elder or Uber Atziri. In next league i back to HC bc game in SC is boring for me.

If you wana try ALL content go trade SC and you will do all easy. In ssf can be realy hard to do things like Chayula.
But belive me, You will back to HC ;)