A progression report & discussion on SSF casual.

(all statement based on 1. you are causal player; 2. you are not using meta-build; 3. average luck, aka 1 divine and 0 ex in 2 days 23 hours 45min and 39 sec of in-game time, well I do afk to do other works so -12 hours should be sufficient)

(build: boneshatter jugg, 2-hand axe, strong build but yet not that meta if you donno how to craft a good axe in SSF, block all but harvest, allocate all essence notable, no fragments but +50% base content, then heading to synthesis, maven and shaper-elder to boost speed for 4 voidstone. I consider it a SSF atlas sieging build)

Brief: SSF casual need more ways to stabilizing chaos, vaal, and fusing/6link. Or players become frustrated or helpless on progression towards 4voidstone/end grind for those fancy build or gears.


Until today I just realized that, when you blocked all league mechanics, you won't get that much of chaos to buy incomplete maps from Kirac in SSF. (assuming you are still in the staging level to climb the map tier). This reminds me of an old, frustrating but seems now needed-again vendor recipe, the chaos recipe.

I only did chaos recipe hardly back in...Idk, bestiary and abyss? with set-up stash tab and loot filter, separate ilvl 68-74 rings/amulet/belts to use only one of them when all drops ilvl is too high for chaos. It was hard time, consuming your time in stash tab but giving stabilized payback.

Same goes to vaal orb, It is so hard (without trading) to get enough vaal orb to corrupt your 11+ maps, to finish the bonus objective. I guess one day you will need to pick up Vaal gems again.

And, same goes to fusing a 6-link

For me I have spent about 300 fusing on a 30% armour (found from ritual while not yet blocked), including most of my alt, and all jeweler. That's all I have. I know 300 is not reaching the average quantity that giving a 6link on 30%, yet considering I am already sieging 14+ maps with attack skills, my dmg is too low to make it efficient for more resources, a 6-link is extremely needed.

I found that without trading it is so hard to get a proper 6link under my current build setup (here referring to atlas setup), even with all corrupted boxes. Yes I found no tabula, and only 1 6-link card (1/11). I have passed level of grinding bone crypt for 6-link card or tabula, without proper progression you are unable to lock-farm enough maps for cards anyway. Kirac gives no stack-card mission for those 6-link maps.

So, I am stuck. The character is OK to play. But for a better progression I will need to either farm tons of t11 maps for more resources, or unlock expedition for more resource, or go to learn chapter "how to craft a 2-handed axe" to boost character power beyond t14+ (still need to fix no map to progress with issue though)

I have been through many leagues, I remember reach 4-void stone so easily in AN league with a PC pathfinder, and scourge with Seismic trapper, only trading limitedly for some chaos. This league is indeed a league that wealth is not dropped evenly (and never was, tbh). My first character, a RF in trade league THIS league reach t16 and 2 void stone without much pain as well, (with limited trade for chaos). But he did not have a 6-link either (IKIK you can buy one, I don't want to, this self restriction is a self-study of resource planning, allocating to prepare for SSF). I tried SSF once, It was so bad that I realized I know nothing about crafting, I went back to trade, setting self-restriction for massive trading, in order to learn how to survive in SSF.

This time, I am planning to stay longer in SSF. Yet, more strategy is needed. A fast-pace atlas sieging plan is not working.

Conclusion: GGG, I haven't check your financial report, so IDK how you make your profit. If you are still profiting from the majority of the player base somehow (either direct purchase or indirectly from investment as a company holds large influences on consumers? idk). So I cannot analyze your ROI strategy. But I guess too much frustration of the player base issue is already on your billboard of the developer office room right? My suggestion is to, please, try a SSF yourself. Truly. After so many leagues the current basis of game is kinda harsh to a certain limit. I remember your devs talking about you can kill players so easily but that's not the idea of designing game (on a conference one year, forgot the detail). I hope you keep such promise.





Again, addressing the set-up. Casual. Not meta (semi? boneshatter jugg is kinda op as a build). I know there will be pll start laughing how fast they finished atlas with what the hell build, or getting 6-link so easily. Either I donno sth and they know, or they just pussying. Such pussying will be ignored.

"

TheFazzos wrote:

Well,
What you can do now:
- Vaal side areas for corrupted 6-links and Vanity
- Strongbox with the node "all strongboxes are rare and corrupted"
- Farm Cells and Pen for The Chains That Bind divination card.
- Of course open all your Stacked Decks.
- Save fuses in case you find an armour that is really worth 6-linking.
- There's a Bestiary recipe that gives you a 6-link armour so Einhar.
Before saying there's something wrong with the game, what about asking for advice?

- Guess it goes the same as corrupting strongbox so I did. returning nothing so far
- did, nothing so far
- I haven't be able to lock-farm any map since my progression isn't reaching such level (actually you do need to be able to reach t16 farm to unlocking your very first favored slot right? b4 that all kinds of card farming method is strongly RNG)
- did, yet without good resource of them it is RNG as well (when you are be able to farm cards you wont need a 6-link so urgently, that's my point) ofc expedition do gives a lot, and that's why I am planning on modifying my leaguestart strategy.

Before saying someone need advice, how about thinking if they already know what you know?? Stop pussying on how many method you know. They all have their limitation and I have acquired some 6-links by almost all methods during previous leagues so those are not even advice.

I am aware your challenge lvl is pretty high so I am assuming you put a lot of effort into this league already. Having all those atlas passives, voidstone and etc will be totally different from a char without them and struggling with a less-meta build - which is typical for general players, and especially for new players.


And it is the problem of current leagues. THERE ARE PLAYERS WHO DON'T KNOW HOW TO PROGRESS TO YOUR LEVEL!

"

TheFazzos wrote:

I went my first 10 days with a 5 link. Guess your build can't do that?
A quick look on Poe.ninja will tell you that many 95+ level people managed to get there on a 5 link.
Chains That Bind also dropa from Control Blocks, Slave Pen and Shavronne's Tower. No need for favourite map slots. Need around 2 hours to farm a full set.
Complaining here won't give you a 6 link for sure.

I reach 2 voidstone with 4link THIS league in 3 days (in game time), and I am aware I am so freaking slow. so Stop pussying, kiddo. Things do get achieved so easily if you use meta-build and fixed methods. But what if you are NOT? That's where I am trying to research on atm to start again SSF, when I already reach 90 in this trade league.

-for poe.ninja. There are so many trap builds either promoting gold-farmers or the gear is so fancy so the build is promoting RMT. It is really not a good place for "finding a build", if you don't know how to identify a build. Don't you know that? Oh... I see.

Beside, why wont' you mention aqueduct? When ppl asking for advice for 6-link, those 2 aqueduct is definitly more a popular answer than your "advice", you know? You forgot it? Or simply... don't know? Oh.... i see.

"

Draegnarrr wrote:

It reads like you are doing the right things to me OP but the nature of SSF and trade tbh is that sometimes you get cucked. Fusing rng is a big one and it isn't uncommon to not be able to buy your way out of it even on trade at the start of a league.

Best bet for an actually good axe is Rog into a fracture IMO, Rog will occasionally make a pretty sound one and if you can fracture merciless or dictators(nearly as good is fine) then just spam shrieking essences of contempt for the rest.

Its a long slow grind though but you can fill out most gear slots from Rog, 5l Boneshatter maps nicely its your bossing performance that will be reduced by no 6l so just setup a strategy with a bunch of goals in mind and chase them all on the same path it comes together eventually.

I DO need to learn Rog for sure. Essence&Harvest used to be the best combo for leaguestart but now it seems not.