Is the design of Lock Mastery supposed to feel backwards to intuitiveness? I feel like if I dropped from my 168 ranks to like 50 ranks it would go faster getting reps on tough locks and audience reps from pool boxes, which makes little to no sense. Get better at lockpicking, get worse at learning lock mastery? I'm not 100% sure of this, but it feels like my new rogue (level 13 or 14 or so) is getting more locks which should fall into the sweet spot of rep range, but I need to hit 15 and start working lock mastery to see how it actually is.
LORDDEMANDRED
RATHBONER
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/13/2020 12:14 AM CDT
There is a much higher range of locks that will give reps with 168 ranks than 50 ranks. Your maxlock is lower and the fraction of it you need for a rep is higher. The pool has some funny properties though so it might actually throw you more in the small range you have at 50 ranks than the large range you have at 168 ranks.
The low 50s critter I remember with really tough locks is seekers if you want somewhere to hunt rep boxes because no one is putting their boxes in the pool.
The low 50s critter I remember with really tough locks is seekers if you want somewhere to hunt rep boxes because no one is putting their boxes in the pool.
LORDDEMANDRED
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/13/2020 07:09 AM CDT
Yes. Okay, but with 50 ranks, I get to partake of boxes that are modded down to me. And generally if they get modded down, they get modded down to the top of the skill range, rather than the bottom, right? At least that's my experience, also on my level 66 rogue. So... By decreasing the number of total boxes IN my range, I increase the total number of boxes that are moved to the TOP of my range. Which means...
RATHBONER
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/13/2020 11:53 AM CDT
>Yes. Okay, but with 50 ranks, I get to partake of boxes that are modded down to me.
Dropping from 168 to 50 would be a bad idea unless the pool is doing something weird in the way you think. You are right to think that if you do need to change from 168 because the pool is altering locks, you should go all the way down to 50.
Most GM mechanics clarifications only get made on discord so I've no idea if the pool is changing lock sizes. The epidemic has cut the amount of time I have for GS and I've barely looked at discord since the pool was released. AFAIK from what has been announced on the forums it only changes the lock sizes you have access to with time, not the actual locks.
Dropping from 168 to 50 would be a bad idea unless the pool is doing something weird in the way you think. You are right to think that if you do need to change from 168 because the pool is altering locks, you should go all the way down to 50.
Most GM mechanics clarifications only get made on discord so I've no idea if the pool is changing lock sizes. The epidemic has cut the amount of time I have for GS and I've barely looked at discord since the pool was released. AFAIK from what has been announced on the forums it only changes the lock sizes you have access to with time, not the actual locks.
OM1E5GA
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/13/2020 03:26 PM CDT
<You are right to think that if you do need to change from 168 because the pool is altering locks, you should go all the way down to 50.>
The pool doesn't change the traps or locks at all.
I think the confusion comes in because if a box with an easy trap is in the pool for a while, there will be phantom difficulty added to the lock. This only serves to allow it to go to locksmiths that would otherwise be too skilled for the box otherwise. If a box was put in the pool with a -100 lock, it will be be a -100 lock for any locksmith that gets it regardless of their skill.
If you're hunting for your own boxes, it can make sense to hold back or untrain picking ranks for learning LM. If you're relying mostly or exclusively on the pool, the majority of the boxes you get should be within range of what you can get ranks off of regardless of your skill unless there's just no one hunting things that drop boxes in that range.
Starchitin, the OG
A severed gnomish hand crawls in on its fingertips and makes a rude gesture before quickly decaying and rotting into dust. A gust of wind quickly scatters the dust.
The pool doesn't change the traps or locks at all.
I think the confusion comes in because if a box with an easy trap is in the pool for a while, there will be phantom difficulty added to the lock. This only serves to allow it to go to locksmiths that would otherwise be too skilled for the box otherwise. If a box was put in the pool with a -100 lock, it will be be a -100 lock for any locksmith that gets it regardless of their skill.
If you're hunting for your own boxes, it can make sense to hold back or untrain picking ranks for learning LM. If you're relying mostly or exclusively on the pool, the majority of the boxes you get should be within range of what you can get ranks off of regardless of your skill unless there's just no one hunting things that drop boxes in that range.
Starchitin, the OG
A severed gnomish hand crawls in on its fingertips and makes a rude gesture before quickly decaying and rotting into dust. A gust of wind quickly scatters the dust.
LORDDEMANDRED
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/15/2020 01:35 PM CDT
<The pool doesn't change the traps or locks at all. >
I mean... when my little level (now) 14 rogue is pulling level 98,99,etc boxes from Ithzir and finding -120 traps and -350 locks on them...consistently, very consistently, it tells me that the phantom locks/traps thing works in reverse, as well. So that big locks/traps don't sit in the pool and collect dust when nobody who can pick -1200 locks and disarm -400+ traps is on... or whatever their actual ranges are.
So it's doing something that lets my little guy have access to those. But of all the low level boxes I ever see on my older rogue, none of them are ever seemingly higher level locks than they should be. A level 20 critter's lock is about in the right range. So... with an approximately -410ish lock being what I currently require to get a rep (give or take, sometimes it works, sometimes I even get a rep from something less?)... and level 14s pulling the big locks if nobody higher is around or eligible (darn you worker, for stopping my roll!), well... you see where my question of 50 ranks or 138 ranks being better for working on lock mastery. I'll post an update when my little one hits 15 this week and I start using the pool to see how his lock rep work goes...
I mean... when my little level (now) 14 rogue is pulling level 98,99,etc boxes from Ithzir and finding -120 traps and -350 locks on them...consistently, very consistently, it tells me that the phantom locks/traps thing works in reverse, as well. So that big locks/traps don't sit in the pool and collect dust when nobody who can pick -1200 locks and disarm -400+ traps is on... or whatever their actual ranges are.
So it's doing something that lets my little guy have access to those. But of all the low level boxes I ever see on my older rogue, none of them are ever seemingly higher level locks than they should be. A level 20 critter's lock is about in the right range. So... with an approximately -410ish lock being what I currently require to get a rep (give or take, sometimes it works, sometimes I even get a rep from something less?)... and level 14s pulling the big locks if nobody higher is around or eligible (darn you worker, for stopping my roll!), well... you see where my question of 50 ranks or 138 ranks being better for working on lock mastery. I'll post an update when my little one hits 15 this week and I start using the pool to see how his lock rep work goes...
OM1E5GA
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/15/2020 04:20 PM CDT
<I mean... when my little level (now) 14 rogue is pulling level 98,99,etc boxes from Ithzir and finding -120 traps and -350 locks on them...consistently, very consistently, it tells me that the phantom locks/traps thing works in reverse, as well.>
Capped boxes can range quite low depending on the hunting area, so those numbers aren't exactly surprising. If you were seeing numbers from that regularly from something like minotaurs I might think something was up, though. Critter level has never been a good indicator of lock difficulty, where the box was found is a much better gauge.... but there are still outliers (like the occasional box with a -20 lock that seem to be able to come from any hunting area). I've also noticed that hunting pressure can noticeably push down the average trap/lock difficulty in an area.
Starchitin, the OG
A severed gnomish hand crawls in on its fingertips and makes a rude gesture before quickly decaying and rotting into dust. A gust of wind quickly scatters the dust.
Capped boxes can range quite low depending on the hunting area, so those numbers aren't exactly surprising. If you were seeing numbers from that regularly from something like minotaurs I might think something was up, though. Critter level has never been a good indicator of lock difficulty, where the box was found is a much better gauge.... but there are still outliers (like the occasional box with a -20 lock that seem to be able to come from any hunting area). I've also noticed that hunting pressure can noticeably push down the average trap/lock difficulty in an area.
Starchitin, the OG
A severed gnomish hand crawls in on its fingertips and makes a rude gesture before quickly decaying and rotting into dust. A gust of wind quickly scatters the dust.
RATHBONER
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/15/2020 09:05 PM CDT
Reim is another example of a place that generates capped boxes at -300 or so.
>(like the occasional box with a -20 lock that seem to be able to come from any hunting area)
There's a fumble chance on lock generation. When it fumbles this is what happens.
>(like the occasional box with a -20 lock that seem to be able to come from any hunting area)
There's a fumble chance on lock generation. When it fumbles this is what happens.
LORDDEMANDRED
Re: Lock Mastery question
08/16/2020 08:49 AM CDT
<Capped boxes can range quite low depending on the hunting area, so those numbers aren't exactly surprising. If you were seeing numbers from that regularly from something like minotaurs I might think something was up, though. Critter level has never been a good indicator of lock difficulty, where the box was found is a much better gauge.... but there are still outliers (like the occasional box with a -20 lock that seem to be able to come from any hunting area). I've also noticed that hunting pressure can noticeably push down the average trap/lock difficulty in an area.>
This is over tons and TONS of boxes I've been picking. I'm not talking about the fumbled locks that I already know exist... I'm talking about my 66(woops, now 67, sorry) rogue seeing Ithzir boxes and higher, etc, ALL with locks at the top of MY skill. And I have a buddy who sees the same thing on his new rogue (I think 15 already?). This is not just an occasional box. This is super, super common.
This is over tons and TONS of boxes I've been picking. I'm not talking about the fumbled locks that I already know exist... I'm talking about my 66(woops, now 67, sorry) rogue seeing Ithzir boxes and higher, etc, ALL with locks at the top of MY skill. And I have a buddy who sees the same thing on his new rogue (I think 15 already?). This is not just an occasional box. This is super, super common.
