#1 - Aug. 19, 2012, 2:58 p.m.
I've defeated all the tamers (twice, one before reset and one after) and leveled over half a dozen pets to 25, so I thought now would be a good time to give my overall feedback!
First off, the Tamer quests are enjoyable and sometimes challenging. They give you a great view of the diversity of pets out there and the abilities you can look forward to using or developing solid tactics for. Stormlash on Aki is a good example of where a little thought on how to tackle him (ie use his electrical storm weather to your advantage) makes what seems a rough trainer more manageable. Bloodknight Antari was the only one that seemed a little overtuned.
Secondly, the dailies seem like a good idea. I particularly like how every tamer in Pandaria has its own daily. But there is one issue... the pet satchel currently doesn't feel very rewarding. The bandages and vanity things get sorta old, sorta fast. As it stands there isn't really much keeping me coming back to spend the time to do these. Ideas like Porcupette are what would. I'm not saying have a ton of pets come from the bags as small chances, 'cuz then RNG would feel too punishing to collectors. But be creative. Here are my thoughts on what could come from the bags:
-Master trap (>.>) - One time use, allow you to guarantee capture a pet that is below 35%. A 5%ish chance per bag doesn't seem too OP.
-Magical Pet Potion - Grant a level to a pet below the level 10.
-Greater Magical Pet Potion - Grant a level to a pet below level 20.
-Master Magical Pet Potion - Grant a level to a pet.
Alternatively, you can add a token system to the bags with a vendor, and allow these pet victory tokens to purchase extreme goodies.
For example: 200 tokens could (ie once every ~20 days if you do all dailies) allow you to purchase a "magical stone" (>.>) that upgrades the quality of any captured battle pet (Only pets caught in the wild) by one rarity.
I dunno, things that will keep us coming back for the dailies for a long time.
Third point I'd like to mention is I love the skill types, and I love finding ways to battle efficiently, and I believe the system has this for people. General hints from tamers after defeating them for other trainers might be a nice way to help those people who aren't as mindful. Simple things like "Oh I heard that trainer in XYZ likes to use continuing attacks that do small individual damages that add up. Better find a pet with good attack reduction/absorption" or "Using a multi-attack skill against thorns is a bad idea" or "Using multi-attack skills while debuffing the mob to heal on hit is an effective way". I dunno, not hold their hands per se, but little hints :)
4th: The leveling rate seems to be mostly OK. The final couple levels to 25 can feel a little brutal, but overall I wouldn't change much here.
My 5th point has to do with capturing. At the moment, the idea of leveling up 30 pets to 25 before getting your best trap seems a little daunting. I don't think its overly annoying, but I was thinking maybe attaching the pristine trap to 15 level 25 pets. 30 is leveling ~3 of every family type to max level, and can be seen as a little overkill. But like I said, its not a huge concern. I plan to obtain a rare version of every pet possible and level every pet to 25 eventually, so I'm in it for the long haul anyway ;)
Lastly, on the idea of capturing, I believe a max of 5 times before one is guaranteed to be caught is a little punishing. I've come across a few high level rares that I could beat and capture, but my team is obliterated by the time it finally gets caught and I lose the overall battle. I obviously haven't got a pristine trap yet, so I can't really give the best feedback, so all I can say is that I hope pristine traps make this feel less punishing. I don't really want to level up 30 pets to 25 on the beta, I want to have some sense of newness going into live ;)
I'm an avid pet collector, and I've played a certain game and watched its TV show for 14 years since I was a "tween", and I can't tell you how much this addition excites me. I hope my feedback is useful for yas!
Once again thanks for making such a sweet addition!
