My reasons NOT to play Return of Reckoning in 2025 as a NEW/SOLO player!

[AsylumZA]

Heyas all!

My experience as a new/solo player to RoR has been one of utter turmoil and not the greatest to be honest. What's worse is that its left a even more bitter taste in my mouth because I'm a Warhammer fan!

So .. as all good stories go .. lets begin!

I started up a few weeks ago after seeing something pop up on my feed on YouTube and I thought "Oh cool!" I remember playing this game like 20 some years ago and I remember it to be fun! So I downloaded it and installed it, to only be met by having to scour the interweeebs to learn how to 'fix' the game with FPS and MODS.

Now after getting that done, I could actually 'play' the game ..

Spoiler:

wow was I not ready for what was to come after that ...

So I login and my brain goes .. wtf am I supposed to be doing now .. So again I go and search the interweebs and find out that as a lvl 1 I'm supposed to be walking from where I spawned to the T1 open RvR area, which I did. I then learnt that I had to try and gain RR (Renown Rank) and to try and do this without levelling a ton, so that when I did go to the next open RvR Tier I would have marks and such to buy gear with etc etc. ( I got to lvl 16 with RR 24 and had 600 marks )

Spoiler:

I'm not going to even talk about my Tier 1 experience because that was chaotic and something I don't ever want to do again TBH.

Along came lvl 16 where I turned into a chicken and I was like .. WTF .. I have no clue what I'm supposed to be doing next?!?! Again I turned to the Interweebs and found out that now I had to fly to a new area to open RvR, I thought cool cool, lets go do it, it cant be worse then Tier 1 as now people would know what to do in regards to healing etc etc.

Spoiler:

Illusions of Grandeur!

I then kinda got my bearings and joined a WB to only find out that you get kicked insta because as a low level you dont bring anything to the table... but hold on .. you're supposed to be bolstered (Brough up to their level and damage), NOPE!

Now .. lets talk about bolstering. Its the biggest con ever! ( Worse than Pyramid Schemes) In tier 1 when you hit stuff, you can actually see your damage being applied to characters and their Health bar. However in Tier 2 which is another con, because you're actually in Tier 4 and will permanently be in Tier 4. When you hit something their health bar doesnt move! But wait your bolstered ... and you're supposed to have the same feeling as Tier 1 .. NOPE! You do less damage because people that are naturally lvl 40 have more skills/tactics/stat lines and better gear because they've been playing the game longer than you.

I wish I could say that I had SOME pleasant interactions and I guess I did , to some degree 10% (good) vs 90% bad.

Sorry that this has been a ramble, however I think its only fair to be transparent to NEW/SOLO players and let them know EXACTLY what they will be getting themselves into. If you're a sadomasochist, this games for you, however if you love your sanity, find something else to play or just accept that Tier 1 will be the only time where you actually feel like you're doing damage and able to compete.

Not going to even talk about Guilds, because well .. if you aint in a click you'll never get into a click ..

The END! (Much love and peace to you all)

[gersy]

If you're a sadomasochist, this games for you,

true

[Illuminati]

Thanks for the feedback. WAR is a challenge if you haven't played the original (nostalgia creates a lot of energy to learn) and haven't played multiple MMOs.

In its current state, WAR (a game from 2008!) never had time to mature the new player experience very well, Great opportunity for streamers to host a 1x a month 'let's get started campaign' where you go from character creation to generic UI layout to play to level 5 (or near).

There are 2 guilds I notice, 'New Order' and 'New Destro' 'something' that players get into until level 39 I believe that answer questions, etc.

Anyway, tis why you see modern games with 6 buttons only, no UI layout capabilities, etc. but we all love the PVP in WAR and deal with the BS because of it =p

[shoelessHN]

The big zerg/blob guilds that will carry you to rr80 BiS all openly recruit everyone and anyone.

[toffikx]

You getting kicked out of a warband, that is an Autoband (addon) problem. Warband leaders that use this addon should be prohibited from listing their warband in the LFG tool. You either make it inclusive or go do your own thing in /5.

You are right that the game knowledge is hard to come by, RoR Wiki can be helpful, but it does not have an answer to everything. Devs try to help with some explanation in the game through mails and/or reaching certain milestones. Adding to it the obscure and outdated default UI, it is an issue for sure.

Am not sure what you mean with guilds, but there are a lot of big, helpful guilds that are open to anyone, both on Destro and Order.

If you are new, 1-16 and 16-39 scenarios are a good place to find meaningful fights in. Yes, you get XP, sometimes more than Renown, but in my opinion it’s not that big of a deal. Even if you hit 40 with > RR 40, you can still compensate with getting PvE gear, and/or grinding your way up in warbands. At 40/45, you’ll have Conqueror gear, which is just fine on any character, although melee dps may have a harder time, than other archetypes.

As for solo players, this game is simply not solo-friendly. I wish it was, but the game is built around fundamentals that really contradict the idea of solo play. For reference, even my BiS geared mara is a renown pinata, for any groups that hunt me down.

If you aren’t a fan of warbands or large-scale generally, there are small-scale guilds that (2-6 man group content) do scenarios and fight in RvR zones. People also search for other players to fill their groups in /5 chat (LFG chat). A trio (usually dps-tank-healer) is a good combination and can provide you with plenty of opportunities for cool fights. It’s also probably as close to a solo playstyle as possible, with the exception of going solo yourself.

Last but not least, patience is a virtue you will benefit from in this game. It is old-school, with all the pros and cons associated with it.

[Morradin]

I play in EU prime and sometimes in NA prime too. Every single day, I see war bands forming openly accepting level 16+ characters. Are they they best war bands on the field? Nope. BUT they are effective.
Seriously, did you, as a solo player, in the default RoR realm public guild expect to join a private guild run warband? Now if you join one of these guilds that form the private good warbands, you can get in.
You have no one helping you get BiS for your level and renown rank. You have no one helping you get best pots and talismans for your level and renown rank.

Don't get me wrong. I play solo as well. And I have inherited two rank 40 guilds (one in either realm) that allows me all available guild benefits, and allows me to keep playing solo. But I also realize that as a solo player I have limitations.

[Coocooclock]

Can we go ahead and remove this? I believe in TOS there is to be no doom and gloom post about why you are leaving the game or are not playing the game. There's better ways to be constructive than this.

[agemennon675]

You getting kicked out of a warband, that is an Autoband (addon) problem. Warband leaders that use this addon should be prohibited from listing their warband in the LFG tool. You either make it inclusive or go do your own thing in /5.

You are right that the game knowledge is hard to come by, RoR Wiki can be helpful, but it does not have an answer to everything. Devs try to help with some explanation in the game through mails and/or reaching certain milestones. Adding to it the obscure and outdated default UI, it is an issue for sure.

Am not sure what you mean with guilds, but there are a lot of big, helpful guilds that are open to anyone, both on Destro and Order.

If you are new, 1-16 and 16-39 scenarios are a good place to find meaningful fights in. Yes, you get XP, sometimes more than Renown, but in my opinion it’s not that big of a deal. Even if you hit 40 with > RR 40, you can still compensate with getting PvE gear, and/or grinding your way up in warbands. At 40/45, you’ll have Conqueror gear, which is just fine on any character, although melee dps may have a harder time, than other archetypes.

As for solo players, this game is simply not solo-friendly. I wish it was, but the game is built around fundamentals that really contradict the idea of solo play. For reference, even my BiS geared mara is a renown pinata, for any groups that hunt me down.

If you aren’t a fan of warbands or large-scale generally, there are small-scale guilds that (2-6 man group content) do scenarios and fight in RvR zones. People also search for other players to fill their groups in /5 chat (LFG chat). A trio (usually dps-tank-healer) is a good combination and can provide you with plenty of opportunities for cool fights. It’s also probably as close to a solo playstyle as possible, with the exception of going solo yourself.

Last but not least, patience is a virtue you will benefit from in this game. It is old-school, with all the pros and cons associated with it.

This message should be pinned somewhere so every new player can see it and learn from it

[Florian90210]

That's very noob "please hold my hand and wipe my ass" "valuable feedback".

[saiho]

That's very noob "please hold my hand and wipe my ass" "valuable feedback".

Your boomer ass self is the reason this game never gets any new players and actually builds a playerbase, and instead bleeds players. No new player wants to play this game bc the new player experience is that ass, Return of Reckoning has had so many chances with insane levels of exposure and everytime new players come theyre gone within the first 5 days of the game, then you wonder why you cant fill up warbands or roam in this game anymore. And the 55 year olds playing it are now taking care of their grandchildren and got no time to play