there is no point to faction restriction

[moosepoop]

i dont understand. if you create different accounts, then you can switch factions instantly. what is the point then of faction restrictions on one account? why dont we just have the old timer lock when you switch characters?

this seems like a pointless inconvenience.

[TheDAWinz]

i dont understand. if you create different accounts, then you can switch factions instantly. what is the point then of faction restrictions on one account? why dont we just have the old timer lock when you switch characters?

this seems like a pointless inconvenience.

Dude, you can have 3 chars of different factions on the same server, go watch higby's livestream.

[AzureWatcher]

People will do it anyways. There's no way they can stop it.

I have two computers, a desktop and a laptop, on different IPs. So I can effectively spy and there's no way for anyone to stop me. *manic cackle*

--

Edit: To the guy above me, that's only for the beta. One faction per server when the game launches.

[Littleman]

It does seem counter-intuitive... at first.

Then you consider that people that actually play will gain exp and certifications faster than character's that don't. Empire hoppers will advance slowly, while active loyalists will cert up faster. How much faster is anyone's guess.

Still, despite being a TR loyalist, I'll have a VS and NC on stand by slowly toiling away just in case if people I actually care about decide to play and pick another faction because of the slogans pandering to simple thinkers.

[Badjuju]

It should cut down on spies and cross faction griefers. Obviously won't eliminate the problem but should help.

[moosepoop]

It should cut down on spies and cross faction griefers. Obviously won't eliminate the problem but should help.

how does that help if you can instantly switch to another account?


im making this topic because i plan on spending money on the game, and i really dont want to put my credit card info on multiple accounts.

[AzureWatcher]

how does that help if you can instantly switch to another account?


im making this topic because i plan on spending money on the game, and i really dont want to put my credit card info on multiple accounts.

The way it is now requires much more effort to do and will reduce the spy/exploit threat by a wide margin.

Just have your VS guy on server A, TR on B, and NC on C.

[residualshade]

The way it is now requires much more effort to do and will reduce the spy/exploit threat by a wide margin.

Just have your VS guy on server A, TR on B, and NC on C.

i agree with this. if your going to be playing a different faction take it to another server. faction loyalty is a big part of the game.

[QuantumMechanic]

Dude, you can have 3 chars of different factions on the same server, go watch higby's livestream.

That is from pre-beta footage. You won't be able to do that at release.

I see the OP's point, but I prefer it as one faction per server. I plan on playing on three different servers, a different empire on each. One being my main and the others for when I want to play my "alts".

[Envenom]

i dont understand. if you create different accounts, then you can switch factions instantly. what is the point then of faction restrictions on one account? why dont we just have the old timer lock when you switch characters?

this seems like a pointless inconvenience.

The TR does NOT tolerate defectors. Choose your damn allegiance or GTFO.:mad:

[SpcFarlen]

The TR does NOT tolerate defectors. Choose your damn allegiance or GTFO.:mad:

Loyalty until death.


But i like the idea of faction lock. It prevents people from hoping on one side just because they are "winning".

[Brusi]

This horse has been flogged at least once before.

Attempt to create a culture of faction loyalty by limiting to 1 empire per account. If you have a problem with this, you fucken already know what to do!

[Sledgecrushr]

I would like to see one account with one character per faction. This would help pave the way towards space warfare and interplanetary conquest.

[SpcFarlen]

I would like to see one account with one character per faction. This would help pave the way towards space warfare and interplanetary conquest.

I don't follow this, but it intrigues me.

[Sledgecrushr]

Loyalty until death.


But i like the idea of faction lock. It prevents people from hoping on one side just because they are "winning".

Good, because I dont want you thinking you can get away when I am farming you./sarcasm

[mindmines]

You should stay loyal to your faction. Build up your character. It's your virtual Identity. Why want to play multiple factions?

[Sledgecrushr]

Every account should also have a unique name. If in the future they wish to create a whole system of planets supporting potentially many hundreds of thousands all playing together then every character should have a unique name.

[mindmines]

^Exactly...

[Rivenshield]

Fuck the fourth empire.

/spit

[Flaropri]

how does that help if you can instantly switch to another account?

Because it is slightly more annoying, and you have to put more effort into doing it. It's marginal, but it does help.

[RJTravis]

People are oh so quick to forget about the in game shop.

you will have to buy all your shiny armor upgrades on all 3 accounts if you want to not look like a scrub.

Then you will need to level them all then on top of that if you are busted spying people are going to TK you grief you until you delete your self :rolleyes:

[SpcFarlen]

Good, because I dont want you thinking you can get away when I am farming you./sarcasm

So what the NC now resort to using farm tools to kill these days? Interesting.

[XxAxMayxX]

Yeah I agree it doesn't make much sense but I personally will never play another faction besides VS EVER!!!!!!!!!!

[FINALCUT]

This really doesn't bother me tbh. I call it intel when someone spies on my faction. Real military uses humint all the time. Part of war,just deal with it.

[iMarx]

Being locked to a Faction helps promote "Realm Pride" and less "I'm losing vs NC, Gonna go play my NC"

It's a good move and one the same as the original, if someone wants to have two accounts, power to them

[opticalshadow]

This really doesn't bother me tbh. I call it intel when someone spies on my faction. Real military uses humint all the time. Part of war,just deal with it.

i call it a waste of time, just sit in your pretty little base, well be there soon enough.

[FINALCUT]

i call it a waste of time, just sit in your pretty little base, well be there soon enough.

Didn't say I'm gonna do it. I would find spying very boring tbh. I just don't care if others do it.

[moosepoop]

at least that prevents faction stacking.

[IAMDANIEL]

Dude, you can have 3 chars of different factions on the same server, go watch higby's livestream.


will someone link this livestream please?

nm found it

[Duckforceone]

i would guess most people would end up getting 3 accounts.

1 to play and level up, the other 2, to passively level up one of each faction... so that when you decide to go to another faction, you have a high level soldier...

[Katanauk]

Doesn't matter to me. I am NC. NC I am.

But you can have different faction on other servers so no big deal to you flaky types really . . . ;)

[adddemon]

i hope they don't limit to one faction per account, thats going to make coordinating with friends a pain.

[Sephirex]

i hope they don't limit to one faction per account, thats going to make coordinating with friends a pain.

What?! If they're not on your faction, they're not your friends.

[adddemon]

What?! If they're not on your faction, they're not your friends.

:lol:

with that kind of outlook, im curious how people would react if they allowed faction transfers (cash shop item). people being able to play with their friends is kinda a big deal for the longevity of a game like this i would think.

of course, the first solution obviously would be to just try and get your friends coordinated on one faction, but things happen sometimes, and if they chose one faction, they are stuck? seems harsh.

[Astrok]

People will do it anyways. There's no way they can stop it.

I have two computers, a desktop and a laptop, on different IPs. So I can effectively spy and there's no way for anyone to stop me. *manic cackle*

--

Edit: To the guy above me, that's only for the beta. One faction per server when the game launches.

Not only that but what if i want to try all 3 factions...when beta starts im sure i try them all.Atleast i will play TR eventually i like to see the weaknesses and stronger parts of my enemies NC/vanu.

[Redshift]

I think the main point is people will play all factions, the small bit of inconvenience is not going to stop anyone from doing it. So why bother putting the incovenience in at all, it's just an annoyance.

Forcing people to have 3 accounts removes all SOE's control completely, if they let you have 3 on one account but had a 30 minute swap timer of something you'd find laziness would take over and most people would stick to one account, at least then you wouldn't get people swapping sides because the base battle isn't going their way.

[Klockan]

I think the main point is people will play all factions, the small bit of inconvenience is not going to stop anyone from doing it. So why bother putting the incovenience in at all, it's just an annoyance.
You can play all factions on the same account, just not on the same server.

[AThreatToYou]

:lol:

with that kind of outlook, im curious how people would react if they allowed faction transfers (cash shop item). people being able to play with their friends is kinda a big deal for the longevity of a game like this i would think.

of course, the first solution obviously would be to just try and get your friends coordinated on one faction, but things happen sometimes, and if they chose one faction, they are stuck? seems harsh.

I imagine you will be limited to only one faction per server. So, if you want to play with your friends on another faction, you might be able to hop onto another server or just create another account.

However, you won't want to do that. It will always be better to choose just one faction for all of your friends to play on. If they don't or you don't want to decide right away, that's fine, try them out for a few days either on different servers, accounts, or during beta and decide which one you'll all want to play on.

PlanetSide is a team-based/faction-based PvP game. It's always harder to coordinate with friends in a PvP environment, and I think running the mill for awhile before you choose your team is the best and the given option.

And to the OP, there is a point to faction restriction. While it is true players can just hop accounts to play on another faction, it sort of removes the convenience and doesn't make it appear as though it is "available" to the player. Come to think of it, there's little reason to have a "Character" system when, per server, there's no reason to have more than one character...
The whole point is to hide the option from your regular zergling I imagine.

[Piper]

There IS a huge point to it in the abstract. :) I could waffle about that for years, but won't bore folks.

However given the payment/account system they seem to be going with, pragmatically, for PS2 (as we understand it) there is very little point to it, yes, and that is :(

[Sledgecrushr]

What I would like to see in the future is interserver warfare via space combat. And to set the stage for this kind of expansion they need to start the game off with every account requiring a unique name.

Warhammer Online allowed you to play only one faction per server. In my opinion this was a horrible mistake. Population imbalances could last for months and you were literally trapped on a server within a faction. Lets try and avoid the mistakes of the past and open this game a bit.

[Klockan]

What I would like to see in the future is interserver warfare via space combat. And to set the stage for this kind of expansion they need to start the game off with every account requiring a unique name.

Warhammer Online allowed you to play only one faction per server. In my opinion this was a horrible mistake. Population imbalances could last for months and you were literally trapped on a server within a faction. Lets try and avoid the mistakes of the past and open this game a bit.
If you got a problem with it just create another account. However I think that this way your average Joe will not have all 3 factions on the same server.

[Noxey]

Ill be over the moon if its one faction per server, will do wonders for faction community and build better rivalries between players.

[Redshift]

If you got a problem with it just create another account. However I think that this way your average Joe will not have all 3 factions on the same server.

That fully depends on how many servers there are.

[Klockan]

That fully depends on how many servers there are.
There will at least 3, trust me.

[Marinealver]

There will always be loyalists(and I am not talking about TR) and there will always be mercenaries.

What hopefully is put into place is a system that rewards loyaltists however at the same time is flexible enough for mercinaries to switch sides.

As for now we have alts. They will never be as powerful as your main, but it is a side switch.

[NoDachi]

I thought the PS1 system worked the best.

Allow you to switch chars on the same server but with repercussions if you did.

[basti]

i dont understand. if you create different accounts, then you can switch factions instantly. what is the point then of faction restrictions on one account? why dont we just have the old timer lock when you switch characters?

this seems like a pointless inconvenience.

What makes you think you can create multiple accounts that easily?



1 Character per server, no spying via same account, allow no second accounts. Problem solved.

[Piper]

What makes you think you can create multiple accounts that easily?

1 Character per server, no spying via same account, allow no second accounts. Problem solved.

How is that done though? Another email account=Another Sony Station account=Another free PS2 account? As we understand it? No way to stop that?

Because PS1 at launch had next to no value in dual-boxing (though I think some people did it for tanking? :eek:) folks bought and subscribed to one account generally, and so one empire per server followed.

[Pyreal]

With multiple cap points one person can't make a big difference when he's running two chars.

Say he's playing NC against TR:
He logs on to his TR char with his other comp and goes to TK or block a door or spy... so what? The battlefield will be so dynamic and have so many factors one 5th column rat isn't going to change anything.

It's not like he can open the main gate and let the cavalry in.

Also, while he's fooling around on his TR symp his NC char is AFK.

[moosepoop]

What makes you think you can create multiple accounts that easily?



1 Character per server, no spying via same account, allow no second accounts. Problem solved.

what if the factions are imbalanced and i want to help the least populated faction?

[AThreatToYou]

what if the factions are imbalanced and i want to help the least populated faction?

Then why the fuck are you playing PlanetSide 2 in the first place and not Battlefield 3, Call of Duty, or Blacklight? Faction loyalty. If your opponents are getting stomped because they are low pop, stomp them. Stomp them with glee and joy.

[Klockan]

what if the factions are imbalanced and i want to help the least populated faction?
Then most would change to the dominating faction. A majority don't like being the underdog, giving people more flexibility only worsens the issue.

[Sifer2]

Faction switching was only added to PS1 after the population got low. Before that it wasn't necessary. After it was added it resulted in the "4th Empire" problem. It is better not to allow it. Yes account hoppers can do it but that extra hassle helps cut down on the number that will bother.

[moosepoop]

Then why the fuck are you playing PlanetSide 2 in the first place and not Battlefield 3, Call of Duty, or Blacklight? Faction loyalty. If your opponents are getting stomped because they are low pop, stomp them. Stomp them with glee and joy.
hay babby. wat r u wearing? i rub your smooth thighs.


i didnt see u elite snobs proclaim faction loyalty when you all switched to vs to play the overpowered lasher.
Then most would change to the dominating faction. A majority don't like being the underdog, giving people more flexibility only worsens the issue.

you are right. either way though faction imbalance is gonna be caused by this and its not gonna be good.this is a game.i play to have fun. population imbalance ruins gameplay. this is a first and foremost a fast paced multiplayer shooter.

[Piper]

because population imbalance ruins gameplay. this is a multiplayer shooter.

Yes and no in the case of PS1. Because its not an MMOrpG where a huge population imbalance means you really can't do a thing, because of eight metric tons of healing spellz/FX. Nor is it so small scale that you can notice another 16 people on the other side. You could still take people with you in PS1 when you were outnumbered. You could still pull off a sneaky drain and start a fight elsewhere on the map, etc etc.

Ok, so you're outpopped? So what, at least in PS1. You'd get your collective empire backsides handed to you for a while and before not to long the other two empires that outpop you would start to go at it and you'd be free to pick and choose a fight where you like as a team. Such are the tri-empire mechanic.

Being empire outpoped didn't mean you as an individual suffered for a good fight often at all. Only on those rare occasions you were totally zero based AND warp gate camped.

Also, early on, before empire swapping was allowed the populations seemed very equal and stable, at least on my server, it was arguably when people could swap empires that imbalances really started to happen.

Outpopped=Need to fight better is all. The scale of PS1 was such that it really didn't matter a lot of time, as I said, once empire hopping was allowed people really started to obsess with the population numbers (which if I recall weren't displayed at the start in real time anyway).

[Tehroth]

Faction lock is in the game for a good reason. If a faction starts winning then there would be a exodus of people flocking to that faction because alot of people go to a winning team. Not to mention people spying, Tking and the such.

You can only have 1 faction character per server. It should be if you wanted to play a different faction on the same server you must delete your other character.

[moosepoop]

Also, early on, before empire swapping was allowed the populations seemed very equal and stable, at least on my server, it was arguably when people could swap empires that imbalances really started to happen.


you have a point about ps1, but in ps2 the ttk is significantly faster, so the amount of pop imbalance to disrupt game play is less now.

Faction lock is in the game for a good reason. If a faction starts winning then there would be a exodus of people flocking to that faction because alot of people go to a winning team. Not to mention people spying, Tking and the such.

when i play ps1, i pick the least populated faction because they are less likely to get pop locked on a continent, and have higher xp bonuses.

why cant we have a faction limit? where a faction cannot have more players than certain % of the total pop. that would make more sense.

[Piper]

Faction lock is in the game for a good reason. If a faction starts winning then there would be a exodus of people flocking to that faction because alot of people go to a winning team. Not to mention people spying, Tking and the such.

But as we're discussing, instead of logging out to the character screen to log back in to a different empire. People will just be logging out to the account log in to log back in as a different empire.

It's going to take all of whole seconds longer. :eek:

So er....meh.

[moosepoop]

But as we're discussing, instead of logging out to the character screen to log back in to a different empire. People will just be logging out to the account log in to log back in as a different empire.

It's going to take all of whole seconds longer. :eek:

So er....meh.

EXACTLY. theres no point to this.

it will also bloat up the total number of accounts so SOE wont be able to estimate their total player base, unless thats what they want; making people make multiple accounts to beef up their player count.

[Piper]

you have a point about ps1, but in ps2 the ttk is significantly faster, so the amount of pop imbalance to disrupt game play is less now.

A good reason to look at the TTK then? :p

It's all moot. :( Free accounts=empire hopping. Unless SoE has some sort of bizarre miracle up its sleeve we don't know about.

If they'd gone with the PS1 model at launch, buy the client, pay a sub', fix empires to servers we could have a discussion about the merits of fixing faction. But they haven't, so, that ship.....


....sailed.

[moosepoop]

id pay money to have a "premium account" where i can switch empire on the same server. f2p sells convenience, right?