Forums » General Pantheon Discussion

Group Size

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    • 3 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:26 PM PDT

    While watching the game play online I noticed the group size was still set at 6. I was wonderin if there are any plans to maybe expand the group size to a maximum of say 8. This would allow for more people to play together and allow the groups to become more dynamic. I have played games for a very long time and always felt that the limit of 6 hurt social game play. I have spent years telling one person no that was asking for a group invite simply because I could not have 7 people in a group. It would be great to allow a group of 8 players and would really make you guys unique compared to Everquest where I currently play. Is this something you would consider doing? Keeping fingers crossed for a larger group ability....

     

    Breznicann and Pada

    • 1618 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:28 PM PDT

    It has not been finalized. But, if they allow 7, people will want 8. If they allow 8, people will want 9.

     

    • 3 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:35 PM PDT

    You are correct there Beefcake but it would be nice to have a larger group than the classic 6 people group. I believe this game is going to be HUGE. I would just like to be able to have a few more friends in group rather than having to say no so very often. Hope that since they are going a new path with a classic style part of the new path could be a larger group without the need to form up as a raid.

    • 2886 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:38 PM PDT

    This is something that will probably be up for discussion in testing phases and I'm sure they'd be happy to hear your opinion on it. But I can assure you there's A LOT that goes into the decision of group size. Combat balance, class balance, etc. are all affected by group size so there'd hafta be a very, very good reason for them to change it. Just to be different is not a good enough reason on its own.

    • 9 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:48 PM PDT

    I get what my hubby is saying here. There have been many times I wished i could have an extra slot of two so that I could play with more of my friends at once. Maybe a way to balance it would be to decrease the amount of exp gained by group memebers if you go beyond the 6 group member limit. I mean a raid can have up to 54 people in EQ but a group is limited to 6. The problem with difference in comparison is that the exp gained for raid is the same if it is 7 members or 54 members. This limits the amount of groupage for a guild with a large member roster and also promotes clique formation. In a social game where VR is focusing heavly on social interaction it would be great to see a new dynamic where you have larger group sizes. This could help facilitate more social interaction amoung the members. I have fell in love with this game and I am a HUGE supporter of it... Spreading the word all across the EQ server I am currently on. Sharing links to Pantheon and talking to anyone who will listen about this game.

     

    I would like to see a larger group size as I am sure others will like to see this as well.....

    • 17 posts
    March 13, 2017 5:56 PM PDT

    I'd really like to see 6-8 people become the norm. It irks me so much that newer MMOs have been gradually shrinking group sizes, making it more and more difficult to play with friends.

    • 1618 posts
    March 13, 2017 6:08 PM PDT

    The problem is mob Balance. They have to make an encounter balanced for the group size. Adding an extra person makes the challenge too easy.

    So, you can't just add an extra person. 

    If they balance the encounters for 8, then everyone has to bring 8 or the encounter is too hard for 6-7.

    • 257 posts
    March 13, 2017 6:30 PM PDT

    Beefcake said:

    The problem is mob Balance. They have to make an encounter balanced for the group size. Adding an extra person makes the challenge too easy.

    So, you can't just add an extra person. 

    If they balance the encounters for 8, then everyone has to bring 8 or the encounter is too hard for 6-7.

     

    I agree.  A group of 4 people in a 6 cap is manageable. One group of 4 to fill an 8 cap will sting a bit. I think it's a bit easier to work with too many people than not enough (for group-content, NOT raid content).

    • 85 posts
    March 13, 2017 6:44 PM PDT

    I think 6 is the perfect group size. Tank , Heals , Dps , CC , and 2 extra classes... 

    • 2752 posts
    March 13, 2017 6:55 PM PDT

    Personally don't want to see it go above 6. The more members in a group the less personal contribution matters, the less each specific role matters/group composition matters, and the more bland the gameplay tends to become. You will almost always have every tool needed in every group when you start going above 6, not to mention it very likely includes more items flooding into the world faster as having a rare mob drop a single good item for 6 is sort of passable, having one drop for 8 is kind of bullshit so you'd have to up the number of drops and the arguing that comes from it "you can't roll on each item!" etc.  

     

    It tends to make grouping even harder as the game progresses, as content will likely be balanced more with the max member count in mind so you can't as easily slap together a group and run off to an off the beaten path zone and the lower level groups tend to suffer the most. 

     

     

    • 279 posts
    March 13, 2017 8:03 PM PDT
    Just going to echo what a coup others are saying.

    6 is in my opinion the magic number for a game where CC/utility classes matter.

    I could see some content designed for 12 (tthink mini raids).

    But actual group design 6 just seems to fit fluidly. I absolutely abhor anything less than 6, IF they do end up going more than 6, I am sure I could adjust.

    However I used to do alot of off hours playing in EQ, and filling a group at 3am was difficult. Granted with the right 3 or 4 classes and attitude you could generally so anything that a 6 man group could.

    If they do up the group amount past 6 I'd be curious to see if that sort of balance will be maintained or if it would become to steep of a curve for all but the most min maxed low man crews to overcome.

    Also for those that are suggesting more I have a question for you: what would the average party in your mind look like?
    • 2138 posts
    March 13, 2017 8:13 PM PDT
    • 578 posts
    March 13, 2017 8:20 PM PDT

    I remember this being discussed at one point and the devs actually considering group sizes of 8. I feel like they are now either leaning towards 6 or maybe even set on groups of 6 though.

     

    • 12 posts
    March 13, 2017 8:22 PM PDT

    6 is the perfect group size for general group content, in my opinion, to agree with some others that have replied here.

    I am sure there will be something for larger groups, maybe 7-12 player groups would tackle "group x2" type mobs, 13-24 people would tackle x4 mobs, etc.

    I think it would be fun to have some challenges in the world that require a LOT of people, if the servers can handle that sort of thing...like 40+ players to take down some epic mobs.

     

    • 9115 posts
    March 14, 2017 2:07 AM PDT

    Manouk said:

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/423/group-sizes

    Some discussion ;)

    As Manouk has kindly pointed out, we already have several discussions on group sizes, one of which is linked here for your convenience. I will have to go ahead and close this down as it is a duplicate thread, please use the search function prior to creating a new thread as more often than not you will find that your idea/suggestion/question has already been discussed over the years. :)

    Here are the developer guidelines for reference: https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/1595/pantheon-developer-forum-guidelines

    More Links for those too lazy to use the search function ;)

    General

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/2672/group-size - Group

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/2883/raid-size-group-size - Raid and Group

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/2714/raid-size - Raid

    Champion:

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/423/group-sizes - Group

    VIP

    https://www.pantheonmmo.com/content/forums/topic/5110/group-size-6-8 - Group


    This post was edited by VR-Mod1 at March 14, 2017 4:49 PM PDT