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Post by Kyn on Jul 3, 2024 9:21:43 GMT -5
It appears I have somehow already forgotten a day. My perfect streak got broken real quick. xD;; I nearly missed a step myself. What saved me was comparing my current points against the 'Current Max Points' counter on Jellyneo's TVW hub and realizing, "I thought I completed all the steps so far, why am I short points?"
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Post by Stephanie (swordlilly) on Jul 3, 2024 9:31:50 GMT -5
I also forgot yesterday. xD I was more interested in Artfight.
The funny thing is I actually checked in on Neopets, collected bank interest and checked the quest log, but completely forgot that there was supposed to be an event going on. :’)
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Post by Gelquie on Jul 3, 2024 11:29:14 GMT -5
It's so easy to forget to collect void essences. You don't need to check the plot every day, but the essence count only counts every day. And in my opinion, it's a bit of a menial task. I don't blame anyone for forgetting. The Neopets news talked about how people don't need to log in every day to participate in this plot, in order to account for adult lives and busy times. But the pace feels a bit off to me on this one. I feel the comics are short for two days during a set-up period. But that could still be to help give backlog space... Except we still have to log in every day for the essences if we want the prize. Because we can collect 70 essences per week, and we need 56/70 essences to get the prize. Which means you still have to log in 6 out of 7 of those days, which is practically every day. (And combined with Quests which are required every day if you care about the weekly prize, as people often do, it seems daily participation is encouraged anyway.) I understand the idea, it just feels lopsided. And at the current pace it makes it slightly easier to forget about the plot if everyone else around me is not also talking about it. But that's meta, and I shouldn't come here just to give Opinions. So I'll talk about a few plot things. I think it's really cool that we're seeing Baelia. I think they're doing a good job of representing depression with her. And Tavi sounds like a good friend. I wonder if Tavi is living with her? She was traveling, but I'd need to review where she was traveling from, or if it was somewhere she didn't mind being away from.
Whether or not Baelia can help with the curse itself, she might be able to help those who are grey. Empathy counts for a lot in depression, and even if Baelia isn't necessarily doing well herself, she at least knows what can work and what not to say. That could make a big difference for some of the cursed-grey Neopians. Not all contributions are directly stopping the curse and the ones causing it. Some contributions are helping those who have been harmed by these events.
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Post by downrightdude on Jul 3, 2024 16:16:04 GMT -5
I found a Faded Light Faerie Doll in my inventory! Don't know where it came from, but it's plot related. And there's a free Void cupcake in he NC Mall!
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Post by Twillie on Jul 3, 2024 17:50:43 GMT -5
I found a Faded Light Faerie Doll in my inventory! Don't know where it came from, but it's plot related. And there's a free Void cupcake in he NC Mall! The Light Faerie doll is the prize you automatically get from reading today's comic update! And ooh, didn't know about the cupcake, will have to grab that.
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Post by downrightdude on Jul 3, 2024 17:55:20 GMT -5
I found a Faded Light Faerie Doll in my inventory! Don't know where it came from, but it's plot related. And there's a free Void cupcake in he NC Mall! The Light Faerie doll is the prize you automatically get from reading today's comic update! And ooh, didn't know about the cupcake, will have to grab that. I wondered why we didn't get any prizes. Thanks twillie!!
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Post by Carolyn on Jul 3, 2024 18:02:47 GMT -5
One of my Discord groups has made a Void Alert ping to help remember and that's helped so far. Because I would totally forget otherwise...
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Post by Ian Wolf-Park on Jul 3, 2024 21:33:51 GMT -5
It's so easy to forget to collect void essences. You don't need to check the plot every day, but the essence count only counts every day. And in my opinion, it's a bit of a menial task. I don't blame anyone for forgetting. The Neopets news talked about how people don't need to log in every day to participate in this plot, in order to account for adult lives and busy times. But the pace feels a bit off to me on this one. I feel the comics are short for two days during a set-up period. But that could still be to help give backlog space... Except we still have to log in every day for the essences if we want the prize. Because we can collect 70 essences per week, and we need 56/70 essences to get the prize. Which means you still have to log in 6 out of 7 of those days, which is practically every day. (And combined with Quests which are required every day if you care about the weekly prize, as people often do, it seems daily participation is encouraged anyway.) I understand the idea, it just feels lopsided. And at the current pace it makes it slightly easier to forget about the plot if everyone else around me is not also talking about it. But that's meta, and I shouldn't come here just to give Opinions. So I'll talk about a few plot things. I think it's really cool that we're seeing Baelia. I think they're doing a good job of representing depression with her. And Tavi sounds like a good friend. I wonder if Tavi is living with her? She was traveling, but I'd need to review where she was traveling from, or if it was somewhere she didn't mind being away from.
Whether or not Baelia can help with the curse itself, she might be able to help those who are grey. Empathy counts for a lot in depression, and even if Baelia isn't necessarily doing well herself, she at least knows what can work and what not to say. That could make a big difference for some of the cursed-grey Neopians. Not all contributions are directly stopping the curse and the ones causing it. Some contributions are helping those who have been harmed by these events. Don't worry, you're not the only one complaining about the overall pacing.
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Post by doctortomoe on Jul 3, 2024 23:10:49 GMT -5
Is there a prize pool of void essence prizes yet? Cause a friend got a Tears of the Water Faerie and I got a Blue Petpet Paint Brush
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Post by downrightdude on Jul 4, 2024 0:00:58 GMT -5
Is there a prize pool of void essence prizes yet? Cause a friend got a Tears of the Water Faerie and I got a Blue Petpet Paint Brush I thought everyone got a platinum nerkmid (can't remember which one I got).
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Post by Ian Wolf-Park on Jul 4, 2024 1:21:12 GMT -5
Is there a prize pool of void essence prizes yet? Cause a friend got a Tears of the Water Faerie and I got a Blue Petpet Paint Brush I know Jellyneo has a prize pool for the Void Essence prizes.
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Post by Twillie on Jul 4, 2024 10:13:59 GMT -5
Yup, they've got one right here!
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Post by Duke Pikachu on Jul 4, 2024 17:38:35 GMT -5
So this was posted earlier today in New Features. Hello Neopians! We’ve seen some confusion over the cadence of plot content releases, so we wanted to highlight a few details to help clear things up:
Since many Neopians have grown up and assumed full time jobs and responsibilities, the plot has been designed in a way where content rolls out slowly but steadily. Although there are periods of time where new content will appear every day, many chapters alternate release days with off days. Each chapter also has a catch up day built in on the last day of each chapter so that everyone has a chance to get all caught up on content before the next chapter releases.
This relaxed release schedule allows everyone to follow along with the story in real time as content releases, but it also gives more casual players a chance to enjoy the story at their own pace. If you only have Sunday as a free day to play, then you can use that day to catch up on the chapter storyline and any content that may have been released that week without losing out on prizes. It’s only after each chapter concludes at the end of each three week period that you will miss out on any exclusive rewards.
Please keep in mind that this plot is a marathon, not a sprint. There is A LOT of story that will be unfolding over the course of the year, and although we would love you to follow along with us as it is released, we also don’t want anyone to stress over this event. It should be a fun activity that you can enjoy at your own pace, not a stressor causing you to skip out on sleep or develop anxiety about missing prizes while you are on vacation.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you all for joining us on this journey into the unknown. Hope to see you on the other side of the abyss!
~~The Neopets Team So, I know I'm coming later into this discussion, but then again it also has given me time to see how this approach has unfolded for the majority of Chapter 1. Now, if it was up to me, I'd just do things as previous plots have done them. However, with that said, it would also have to mean current TNT knows how past plots were presented as they were happening which I'm not sure they do. Also, "reading" the pages as they come out and the dialogue scripts, another thought crossed my mind: Are they maybe doing this to buy THEMSELVES time to prepare the visual content and story beats? Like I'm sure they have the story fully written, but part of me questions whether they have the entire story drawn out (not just comics but also affects on the overworld and assets for puzzles) and character dialogue done. Releasing one page at a time gives them more time to draw the future comic pages, and by having the dialogue bits not be in comic form they buy themselves even more time. Because, as others have said, if their intent was to make a more relaxed experience so people can follow at their own pace, the feeling isn't being returned. Notably this is because of having a Daily component in order to fill in for lack of content. Note this wasn't an issue with past plots, when they released a plot comic and possibly a plot step that was it for a few days, people had plenty of time to read and do any possible puzzles or battles before the next one. And, even if the next one was released and you haven't read the comic/done the puzzle of the previous release, you can still with little to no penalty. From my recollection, and correct me I'm wrong, but like the only things you could miss out on in plots were community steps and, for wars, waves of opponent which had a set limit of challengers. Otherwise you could join in at the near end of a plot and, if you were quick enough, could read through the comics and solve the puzzles and catch-up to everyone who has been with the plot since the start and likely still get near the same number of plot points. I don't understand this narrative that they're making the content roll out slowly for the sake of adult players who now have busier lives; implying that past plots didn't go at a steady pace that allowed people to catch-up. If anything what they're doing is worse for adults with super busy schedules as they require a daily tasks that, if they want a bonus prize for doing, have to do pretty much everyday (they can miss one day, but that's a missed day of earning plot points), on top of seeing if there's a new comic page or dialogue to read through; and all on top of likely wanting to do their normal Dailies. And it's not like they wouldn't know this could have been a problem; People have complained for years about the daily participation requirement for the Altador Cup. And while this isn't on the same level of time investment, those who can't log in everyday will feel bad they're at the very least missing out on plot points if not bonus prize if they miss 2 days. Sure in the long run this likely isn't going to be an issue (we know at least 60k in the min plot points someone can earn, and earning even only half of that would get them a batch of the top prizes), but at the beginning when plot points are being eked out, it can give the wrong impression fast. And also, look, I get that there are players who have kids who take most of their time or they need to work longer/more jobs to make a living. But at the same time, when it comes to the daily component, it shouldn't take you more then a couple of minutes; especially since we know where the void essences are and will move. And call me a cynic, but I have a feeling the vocal majority who are complaining about the hassle of logging in everyday to collect Void Essences and check-up on story updates don't have any of those above problems; they're just lackadaisical (there's nothing stopping them from logging in everyday, they just don't want to (yet have plenty of time to complain on the Neoboards...), yet they also feel they deserve the same amount of benefits as players who do put in the effort to log in everyday). And again, this discussion never existed before with past plots; the Altador Cup for sure but that's an entire different beast. (Looks like this covers all of Page 6. I'll hopefully get to Page 7 and 8 by the end of today or early tomorrow... then I can get to my thoughts on the story so far, activities, and other connected things)
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Post by Duke Pikachu on Jul 4, 2024 21:49:28 GMT -5
Don't feel I can further contribute on any discussion on Page 7, so as of this post I'm up-to-date! (Let's see how long it takes me to fall behind again...) It appears I have somehow already forgotten a day. My perfect streak got broken real quick. xD;; I nearly missed a step myself. What saved me was comparing my current points against the 'Current Max Points' counter on Jellyneo's TVW hub and realizing, "I thought I completed all the steps so far, why am I short points?" JN's "Current Max Point" Counter has been useful, with how slow paced things are I do find myself double checking just to make sure I didn't overlook something. I'm still matching it, though as of typing this it's currently at 399 points. I'm not OCD but even I find the lack of a single additional point to get a nice round even 400 to be irksome (it feels like those moment in Pokemon when you see the experience bar get to the very end... but doesn't level up, only for you to check it after the battle to see you're single digits away. Well would have been nice to level-up against the Gym Leader/Rival/Villain Team Admin, now if you'll excuse me I got to have my Pokemon smack the next unfortunate wild life that crosses our path *sigh* ). Anyway, while it's nice now, I do wonder if later on it'll start to be less useful. It's nice they provide the Breakdown page to double-check if you're missing any points, but the thing is once you begin missing points the counter becomes less and less useful. I wonder if there's a way they can work in a personal counter when you're logged into your JN account. " Why would you need that when the hub on the site shows your current points"? Well from how I figure, when the next day starts you can do what you think everything there is to do, check JN and/or the Neoboards to see if you missed anything, then you can double check with your old points saved on JN to make sure you got all the new points; then you update your JN points and repeat the next day. I also forgot yesterday. xD I was more interested in Artfight. The funny thing is I actually checked in on Neopets, collected bank interest and checked the quest log, but completely forgot that there was supposed to be an event going on. :’) I've already created a shortcut on my "Your Dailies" on JN and placed it right on the top, right next to my Quest Log shortcut. While it leads to the hub page, I named it "Collect Void Essences" and used a Void Negg as the link image; you think it's overkill but I've had days where I almost forgot to do my Quest Log, Battledome, or any Daily as one small thing sidetracked me so I feel the hammering in gets the message across to future me. So I'll talk about a few plot things. I think it's really cool that we're seeing Baelia. I think they're doing a good job of representing depression with her. And Tavi sounds like a good friend. I wonder if Tavi is living with her? She was traveling, but I'd need to review where she was traveling from, or if it was somewhere she didn't mind being away from.
Whether or not Baelia can help with the curse itself, she might be able to help those who are grey. Empathy counts for a lot in depression, and even if Baelia isn't necessarily doing well herself, she at least knows what can work and what not to say. That could make a big difference for some of the cursed-grey Neopians. Not all contributions are directly stopping the curse and the ones causing it. Some contributions are helping those who have been harmed by these events. I don't think they live together. As you said, Tavi mentions she goes on frequent travels, so while she may have a home it's likely just an occasional pit stop to rest and drop off, store, or pick up things before heading out again. Similarly enough Baelia also doesn't seem to use her home much considering the condition that it's in. I can actually see Baelia preferring to either sleep outside or sleeping over at someone else's house; Baelia probably can't get creative thus her home's interior is dull, so by sleeping elsewhere she can at least see interesting sights and/or see how someone else has decorated their home (eitherway it'll probably have more colors).
Avoiding speculation for this post, at this current point I actually don't see Baelia being able to offer much insight. Maybe, infact probably very likely later on she might, but she's just beginning her journey so is currently seeking answers herself. Don't blame the Leader Council for thinking she might, at this point they're also grasping at straws though so far I'd say have made logical moves.
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Post by Fraze on Jul 5, 2024 4:04:44 GMT -5
It seems like a lot of people ITT are looking at this daily void collection activity from the perspective of trying to get 100% completion or close to it. But if that's how you're choosing to approach the event, then criticizing TNT for the "adults with busy lives etc" statement is kiiinda having your cake and eating it. If you want to grab every possible plot point, then almost by definition you should be ready to put in more time and effort than someone playing more casually. And as 100% completion runs go, a daily that takes about a minute isn't that bad. Moreover, from the perspective of that casual or moderately invested player, a simple daily is actually a pretty good idea. Being The Dude Who Does Math At Things, I crunched the numbers, and if the plot runs for 10 months as predicted and void collection remains a thing the whole way through, then doing it every day will net 15000-16000 points - so roughly a quarter of the total possible plot points. That also means that even if you only do the daily a few times a week, you'll still rack up enough points to get one of the juicy big-ticket prizes. Which I'm sure Duke Pikachu will have things to say about, but at the very least it shows that TNT really is making this event accessible for people who either want or need to play more casually.
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