Squee's big problem with content is... well... Crystal Tower.
Why?
Because it's faceroll easy.
LotA/CT is so incredibly herpderp loltastic that it basically rendered 2.1 a non-patch. We got a laughably easy dungeon that you have to deal with psychotic trolls just to run, even if you queue with a full group--because apparently Squee's toasters are totally incapable of forming groups larger than 8 players--and even then it takes a grand total of maybe an hour to complete.
An hour. To complete the entire dungeon, even if your party is full of trolls, naked idiots with snowman heads and completely brainless fools. So that means that any patch where content is added to Crystal Tower--which means every other patch, by the way--is effectively Not a Thing. The only reason why people are still running CT even now is the loot lockout mechanic--Square knew they had to add that or the dungeon's utilization would drop to basically 0% within a month.
CT is a problem. On the surface it's a neat design philosophy, with different stages and challenges to clear before moving onto the next part. But it's way, way, way, way too easy. The difficulty gap between CT and Coil is like the goddamned Grand Canyon--and I'm talking about Turn 1 and 2. The difference between Acheron and Twintania is so hilariously huge that it's like you're playing two totally different games. Hell, the final bosses of Copperbell and Haukke HM are tougher than Acheron!
Crystal Tower is wasted effort. If they want to make each content patch more meaningful, LotA and CT need their difficulty massively boosted. These dungeons should be between level 50 4-player dungeons and Coil in difficulty. Right now they're easier than anything but WP, CM and Prae.
I'd say the boss difficulty for CT needs to be at least that of the hardmode primals (minus Titan HM's lag-death that causes the fight to be much more difficult than intended) and Ultima HM. If pickup groups can clear Coil, they can handle a tougher (and ultimately more enjoyable) CT.
Oh and remove that stupid loot system, too. It's beyond inane. Have each boss drop gear tokens... kill bone dragon, get a glove or belt token, trade it for gloves or a belt at some NPC in Mor Dhona.
Why?
Because it's faceroll easy.
LotA/CT is so incredibly herpderp loltastic that it basically rendered 2.1 a non-patch. We got a laughably easy dungeon that you have to deal with psychotic trolls just to run, even if you queue with a full group--because apparently Squee's toasters are totally incapable of forming groups larger than 8 players--and even then it takes a grand total of maybe an hour to complete.
An hour. To complete the entire dungeon, even if your party is full of trolls, naked idiots with snowman heads and completely brainless fools. So that means that any patch where content is added to Crystal Tower--which means every other patch, by the way--is effectively Not a Thing. The only reason why people are still running CT even now is the loot lockout mechanic--Square knew they had to add that or the dungeon's utilization would drop to basically 0% within a month.
CT is a problem. On the surface it's a neat design philosophy, with different stages and challenges to clear before moving onto the next part. But it's way, way, way, way too easy. The difficulty gap between CT and Coil is like the goddamned Grand Canyon--and I'm talking about Turn 1 and 2. The difference between Acheron and Twintania is so hilariously huge that it's like you're playing two totally different games. Hell, the final bosses of Copperbell and Haukke HM are tougher than Acheron!
Crystal Tower is wasted effort. If they want to make each content patch more meaningful, LotA and CT need their difficulty massively boosted. These dungeons should be between level 50 4-player dungeons and Coil in difficulty. Right now they're easier than anything but WP, CM and Prae.
I'd say the boss difficulty for CT needs to be at least that of the hardmode primals (minus Titan HM's lag-death that causes the fight to be much more difficult than intended) and Ultima HM. If pickup groups can clear Coil, they can handle a tougher (and ultimately more enjoyable) CT.
Oh and remove that stupid loot system, too. It's beyond inane. Have each boss drop gear tokens... kill bone dragon, get a glove or belt token, trade it for gloves or a belt at some NPC in Mor Dhona.
attractive enmity device