Development Manifesto: Harvest Crafting

As a long time player (8 years) with 4000+ hours who usually gets a headhunter each league.
I agree that Harvest is TOO powerful, and in a way trivializes a lot of the content, because it is much too easy to craft good items with the right augments compared to pre-harvest. But it does feel really nice for build diversity.

My biggest problems with pre-harvest is that slamming an Exalt and a good piece of gear can often BRICK your item making it from good to pretty much trash.
Exalt slamming carried too much of a risk for it to be that "exciting" that most of the "above average" casual players would not prefer using Exalted orbs to craft.

The plan to remove annulment mods is the most disappointing.

Having the ability to "unbrick" an item is good for progression instead of feeling like you have to start all over again with a new item cause you've now slammed t5 life regen onto your Explodey, reflect, +50 intelligence crusader chest.

Go ahead remove Augment mods fine.

But PLEASE let us retain the ability to annul shit mods.
:(

You can see how utterly redundant it would be to make crafting EVEN HARDER, and proceed with game changes that basically destroy the previously mirrored items every patch...

It's insane if the devs think this is what gives a game longevity.

"

If this league is a success, it's because of the Atlas rework (it's fun), the Maven missions (it's fun), Ritual (it's fun and more mobs and more loot!). Yes some players like, adore, worship harvest, but the limited evidence we have is that players absolutely hated the original Harvest league.

Regarding player retention: This doesn't account for the fact that the garden was a real pain in the bootyhole to set up, and a lot of people quit over that. A lot of normies didn't bother wanting to spend hours trying to set up something if they didn't know if it was worth their time.

Honestly harvest became way more accessible this league and that accounts for a lot. Sure the groves are time consuming but even noobs know that rem/add, aug, rem was all good.

Heres a lesson GGG.

Overdoing nerfs = less fun for most
Less fun for most = less people playing
Less people playing = less $$ income
Not enough income = no GGG

Or

Not enough income = seek outside investors
Outside investors = not GGG anymore

So either path your philosophy and wishes will inevitably crash and die.

I have never heard of a company that surged in success from being unenjoyable and disliked by the majority of its customers due to decisions it repeatedly makes.

wtf GGG, what are you doing?
i am just start thinking about crafting, about ssf, about new builds, but that?..

What do you mean the crafts are to easy to obtain. I was playing SSF style this league and it took me 50+ hours of running atolls to get somewhat decent rings (not perfect) for my build. This is with 4 harvest watchstones

but you know what? I actually enjoyed the experience. Knowing that I was getting closer and closer to what I wanted to achieve. (instead of blindly deleting currency)

Normally in a league I hit endgame play for a few days and quit. You know why? Not because my character is super overpowered. Its because farming good upgrades in endgame is ridiculously tedious. More then half of the time its literally gambling and deleting currency that you spent hours farming. The people who find this an enjoyable experience must literally have all the time in the world to play this game

GGG in a recent forum you said your hiring some new employee's. You should hire some players of the game also. Your so disconnected with how the average player plays this game. It is not fun closing your eyes and throwing an exalt at my item. Literally nobody does this! Who is going to brick an 100ex item when they have a 0.1% chance to make it better with that slam.

You guys should really come out with polls or something before you decide things like this so you stop getting so much backlash.

Well thats my 2 cents. It has definitely sucked out my will to play next league.

GGG you don't play your own game huh?!

i trust ggg knows better.
good job,for me this brings new fun rules to play by in next league.

Here are some examples of statements that make sense:
- Crafts that add mods of specific types to items can now only be applied to non-influenced items, except for Boots and Gloves.
- Crafts that add mods of specific types to items can now only be applied to non-influenced items, except for crafts that apply Fire modifiers to items
- Crafts that add mods of specific types (like Physical Modifiers, for example) to items can now only be applied to non-influenced items, except for the existing craft that applies an influenced mod to an influenced item.

"

Crafts that add mods of specific types (like Physical Modifiers, for example) to items can now only be applied to non-influenced items, except for the existing mod that applies an influenced mod to an influenced item.

As written, this statement does not make sense. Is this statement specifically talking about augments or is it also talking about remove a random non-X modifier and add a random X modifier?

"

CrimsynVinsyndt wrote:

"

Zepepsico wrote:

I disagree. Everyone may want a min-maxed character, but it should not be obtainable unless with serious and extreme efforts!

I assume that you like myself and im sure many others also work 2 jobs 60-70 hours a week? Possibly with a family and maybe youre a good parent/partner and dont spend 6-12 hours a night on PoE? You're okay with chasing a build for years even if its nerfed into unplayability 7 months into your journey because 2 streamers made that build with 3000 ex budgets and it made GGGs personal preferences pout?

I would love to see your stream on how you make 200 ex an hour at 2 hours maximum a night.

I forgot the persons name but someone made a video on youtube that used to old crafting system to make a 2H axe that took 2 years and 15,000 exalts to min-max. That still leaves 8 pieces to craft. I would LOVE to see your stream at 2 hours a night as you farm in the ballpark of 40,000 exalts for the next 10 years and show us all how much fun you are having.

Perfect statement. By the time ANYONE who isn't part of the 1% wants to craft something, the game changes fundamentally and the item(s) are now worthless.

Harvest doesn't even make it overpowered; you still have to get the crafts required for your item, AND you still have to hit the right mod and tier.
Last but not least, the item will be vendor trash eventually anyway because a new base, or new mod will come out.

Every league is basically this. Such simple things like rings with curses on hit change destroyed every other ring in existence prior to that, including mirrored rings.

Can you imagine having mirrored rings that are now vendor trash?


That is what GGG is doing to crafting.