POE2 disrespecting our time (Post-0.4.0)
" Are you really saying you can't survive on a meme-build without T1 affixes and that fighting a T3 boss 3 times to get the unique helmet (which has a 33% drop rate) is too much? I think I'll end the conversation here. I only play SSF and it is my duty as one to inform you of my status. Last edited by SoFaux#7759 on Jan 11, 2026, 5:13:54 AM
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" You are intentionally missing the point to make this personal. Let me clarify one last time for the sake of the thread: I am not talking about "Me"; I am talking about the "System." 1. The "Meme-Build" Fallacy: I'm not asking for meme-builds to clear T16s. I'm stating that in the current SSF environment, even legitimate off-meta archetypes are statistically starved of the basic currency/crafting materials needed to reach a playable baseline. 2. The "33% Drop Rate" Fallacy: This is where your trade mindset shows. • Fighting a boss 3 times is easy. • Farming the Access (Keys/Fragments/Maps) to fight that boss 3 times in SSF is the actual grind. 2. If the boss requires a specific fragment that has a 5% drop rate from maps, I have to run 60 Maps just to fight the boss 3 times. That is not "just fighting a boss." That is a multi-day grind for a chance at an item. I am advocating for the Health of the Game Mode, not asking for charity for my character. But since you insist on making this about "skill" rather than "math," let's end it here. |
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" You are correct, it would be amazing "single player game" which many are currently playing as psuedo-ssf, coz no matter what we do, we won't catch up in economy. All the more reason to give this a go. Furthermore, 1200hours is vast exaggeration. You are not, and will not and probably never did play 12 character in a single season. Maybe 3-5 character at most. Seeing all the story in different angle, you won't get bored anyway. There's also the fact that 100 hours for me is 10 hours for you. Speed runners can even go like 6 hours of mindless campaign. Really, it's not that much. Just as it is right now. Someone mentioned before even if you want to SKIP, they GGG still need to make a place to for character leveling from 1-60. You cannot freely get level 60 character with a click of a button. That would be so stupid for all and any arpg game. Your character is not pokemon. I supposed they can make something like endless tower or whatever, like delve from level 1. But from my experience in MMO, if something like exist, people would stop playing the campaign and those big beautiful world that took months of work to craft will be wasted. Also, you still need time to grind. Honestly, the problem is people just want to emulate things now. The thing they theorycraft in POB or worse, the thing they copied. Stop playing with POB so much if it's just gonna make you impatient. Go make a new character, with some idea, and the rest go blind and figure it out along the way. Actually, play the game. Not a build. Last edited by Exilion99#5481 on Jan 11, 2026, 5:36:01 AM
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" Off-topic but a bit too funny to skip. As I was reading this, I just sold this chance-find ring for 1 divine:  Stuff like that is part of the reason I play on HC. In my opinion the economy is more stable and more fun. Softcore economy is kinda weird and there are good reasons as to why very few games actually allow fully unrestricted trade. Last edited by tzaeru#0912 on Jan 11, 2026, 5:38:05 AM
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" There is a lot of romanticism in your post that clashes with the mathematical reality of PoE 2. "Play the game, not a build" / "Go Blind": This is terrible advice for a game this complex. In Skyrim, you can "go blind" and have fun. In PoE 2, if you "go blind" without understanding scaling, defenses, and synergy (which PoB helps you visualize), you will hit a brick wall in Act 3. "Playing a Build" IS playing the game in an ARPG. The math is the gameplay. Ignoring it isn't "pure," it's just inefficient. The "Skip" Misconception: Nobody is asking for a "Click button -> Get Lvl 60" feature. That is a strawman. We are asking for Adventure Mode (like D3/D4). We start at Level 1. We still have to grind monsters to Level 60. But we can do it in Endgame Systems (Delve, Heist, or randomized Maps) instead of running fetch quests. We want to kill monsters, not deliver letters to NPCs for the 10th time. "Wasted World": Forcing players to walk through the "beautiful world" repeatedly doesn't make them appreciate it; it makes them resent it. Assets are reused in Maps anyway, so nothing is wasted. Let the campaign be a one-time epic journey, and let Alts be about the mechanics. Speedrunners: Balancing the game around people who speedrun for a living (6 hours) is unfair to the dad who has 6 hours a week. |
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" That screenshot is actually a fantastic example of exactly what I mean! In Hardcore, that ring is valuable (1 Divine) because survival is everything and items leave the economy when characters die. It makes total sense there. But in Softcore (where most of us play), that exact same item is unfortunately worth almost nothing—maybe 1 Alchemy or vendor trash—because the market is flooded with items that never disappear. This is the core of the friction: We are trying to balance one game mode (SC) based on the economy of another (HC). I respect the HC economy, but applying those rules to SC makes the campaign feel unrewarding for the majority, since we don't get that same "1 Divine drop" excitement from leveling gear. We just need a solution that respects both playstyles! |
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" I believe we're playing different games. - I've never felt starved for resources until I've already established a baseline to clear T16. This is because I've already accumulated enough currency to craft items that let me not get one-shot by mobs, which is not a difficult thing to do. I do have to avoid one-shots from bosses; self-found gear isn't going to help me here on a league-starter. For example, I never run logbooks or Expedition tablets until I already have a full set of T1-3 affixes on gear. I've never needed to. I prioritize defense on gear with an essence because resistances can be fixed by using 2 resistance rings. A weapon can easily get +3/5 gem levels with a perfect essence and an Omen of Sinistral/Dexral Crystallisation. 2 more gem levels on top of that is not going to suddenly make a build viable. Where did I get those omens? I got them from abysses on my way to T15. No farming was required because I am rarely replacing my weapons. Throughout my 7 SSF characters, I never once had to use an Expedition tablet or a logbook to acquire the currency needed to recomb. I don't have a need until I've cleared Uber bosses and want perfect gear. Admittedly, this is where I roll an alt unless I want to farm a unique from one of these bosses for the alt. Never once have I had item rarity intentionally slotted onto my gear; it is entirely pointless for SSF characters in my opinion. - Now we're talking about a boss that is not Xesht? At that point, I'm chancing tablets for a Grand Project with an Omen of the Ancients and hopping Atlas nodes. I never run out because a Ritual tablet is always slotted. Do you think the players who reach this content 2 or 3 days into trade-league are trading for gear (that doesn't exist yet) to beat this content? I also don't think it is unreasonable for the game to ask you to run 5 maps that drop 30+ splinters each to fight a boss that drops a helmet one-third of a time. - What fragments have a 5% drop rate? There is a lot of math in this game, but you don't need to optimize up to your teeth in order to progress in SSF. Like it or not, there is a skill element involved. Reaction speed, spatial awareness, and knowledge can be used to progress in maps even if your gear is 30 levels behind. By the time I hit T15 maps on my warrior in patch 0.3, I still had a level 45 helmet because I didn't have much space in my stash to collect bases and it was already pretty good. " I've never played in trade-league. In fact, I've never traded in an online game before. Players that do are the majority so hearing about it the game normally operates is inevitable. I very much wish that PoE2 was DRM-free and offline. There wouldn't be network issues nor notifications on my screen about the latest MTX bundle. That isn't realistic in today's world though. When I spoke about WoW Classic, I hadn't played that game until an SSF mode had released. Maybe, playing every league isn't the best decision? I don't have any plans to play every league. Even with all the praise PoE1 gets, I couldn't imagine playing the same game, from beginning to end, on several different characters every season. I only play SSF and it is my duty as one to inform you of my status. Last edited by SoFaux#7759 on Jan 11, 2026, 7:35:10 AM
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Solo Self-Found isnt mode for guys with 3 jobs, 3 wives, 7 kids, 13 cats and 13 dogs. On top of that Solo Self-Found is made for RNG enthusiasts who are capable of adapting their builds or creating more efficient build simultaneously with loot from their lucky RNG encounters.
When you got specific build in mind, with specific items and aiming for beating specific endgame content, then Trade league is more suitable, because you simple turn currency into items, skiping the RNG struggle and even skiping now PMing with Merchant Tabs. Regardless of drop ratios, currency availability and general game balancing, understanding the above is crucial for your 'feeling' of enjoyment or struggle. I stoped playing SSF due to understanding that and would never ask for SSF to be changed due to my own life state or choices. Some demons can only be cast out through prayer and fasting.
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" Okay, I stand corrected on the "Trade Mindset" comment. I respect that you are a pure SSF player who wants an offline experience. We actually agree on that wish. However, your post highlights exactly why we disagree on balance: You are an Outlier. The "Skill vs. Gear" Argument: You mentioned clearing T15 maps with a Level 45 Helmet because of your "reaction speed and spatial awareness." While that is impressive, it is also an indictment of the game's current design direction. This is an ARPG (Loot-based Game), not a bullet-hell arcade game. If "Player Skill" can completely bypass the need for gear upgrades for 50 levels, then the Loot Hunt—the core loop of the genre—is fundamentally broken. Balancing the game around players who can "Dark Souls" their way through T15s with trash gear alienates the 99% of players who rely on gear to survive, which is how an RPG is supposed to work. RNG Experience: "I got them from abysses on my way to T15... No farming was required." This is classic Survivorship Bias. You happened to get the specific Omens and Essences you needed naturally. Many players go 200 maps without seeing the specific Omen they need for their weapon. Just because the RNG curve smoothed out for you doesn't mean the mathematical drop rates are healthy for the average distribution. "Maybe don't play every league": That is a dangerous sentiment for a Live Service game. If the solution to "The campaign is too long" is "Stop playing," the player base will shrink, revenue will drop, and development will slow down. We complain because we want to play, but the friction is pushing us away. I am happy you are enjoying the challenge, but please understand that balancing a game around the top 1% of mechanical players usually kills the game for everyone else. |
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" I understand the "Spirit of SSF" you are describing—the idea of being a scavenger who adapts to the loot. Theoretically, that sounds great. But here is why that logic fails in PoE 2 specifically: The game mechanics actively punish adaptation. If I am playing a Warrior and I drop a build-defining Bow: Respec is Expensive: I can't easily pivot my passive tree because Gold costs for respecs are punishingly high in the early/mid-game. Alts are a Slog: I can't just "roll a Ranger" quickly because the campaign is a 40-hour hurdle. In games like Hades or Grim Dawn, adapting to RNG works because pivoting is cheap or runs are short. In PoE 2, once you commit to a build, you are locked in by the massive time/gold investment. So, telling people to "just adapt" isn't realistic. We aren't refusing to adapt because we are stubborn; we are refusing because the game makes "pivoting" mathematically inefficient compared to just suffering through with a bad build. So even by your own definition of SSF, the current balance is failing to support that "Adaptation Playstyle." |
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