Akzerus

I'd like to leave one final thought regarding this discussion. I believe there are two very different ways of looking at progression in MMORPGs. One perspective is that if previous generations of players had to overcome a certain amount of frustration, then future players should experience exactly the same journey. The other perspective is that we should preserve the challenge, the dedication, and the sense of achievement while improving the parts of the game that unnecessarily drive players away. Personally, I strongly believe in the second approach. If a close friend, a family member, or even a complete stranger decided to start playing EuroAion, I wouldn't want them to experience every unnecessary frustration I went through simply because I experienced it myself. To me, empathy, consideration, and solidarity shouldn't only be reserved for the people we know. They are values that strengthen any community. I genuinely want every dedicated player to enjoy a rewarding journey built on effort and perseverance, not one that can become permanently blocked by unlimited bad luck. More importantly, this is not just about helping new players. It is about the long-term future of the server. The MMORPG genre has become far more competitive over the years, and several new Aion private servers have already launched or are preparing to launch. Because of that, I believe it is more important than ever to find a healthy balance between rewarding loyal veteran players and creating an environment where new players genuinely want to stay. Veterans are, and always will be, the foundation of every successful MMORPG. Their loyalty deserves recognition and respect. But every veteran was once a new player. If new players struggle to become long-term members of the community, the server inevitably loses opportunities to grow, no matter how dedicated its current veterans are. If a progression system can reduce permanent progression blocks caused purely by bad luck while preserving the same level of dedication and difficulty, then more players are likely to stay active, more alliances will be formed, more legions will remain alive, more PvP will naturally occur, and the entire endgame ecosystem becomes healthier. The goal of my suggestion has never been to make the game easier. The goal has always been to make every successful effort count toward meaningful long-term progression. Because I believe a healthy MMORPG should preserve meaningful challenges, not unnecessary frustration. Today's new players are tomorrow's veterans. And helping them become part of EuroAion's future is one of the best investments the server can make.

Hello EuroAion Team, First of all, thank you for all the work and dedication that has gone into maintaining EuroAion over the years. EuroAion has successfully preserved what many players consider to be the best version of Aion, and it remains one of the highest-quality private servers available today. This suggestion is intended as a possible improvement to an already excellent foundation. The current situation Obtaining an endgame PvE Mythic weapon is currently based entirely on RNG. This affects several important endgame instances, including: Illuminary Obelisk Sauro Supply Base Danuar Reliquary Eternal Bastion The difficulty of obtaining these weapons is not the issue. Long-term goals and difficult progression are an important part of MMORPGs and are one of the reasons many players continue playing for years. The issue is that the current system offers no guaranteed long-term progression for players who experience extremely bad luck. A player may successfully complete hundreds of runs over several months or even years and still never obtain the specific Mythic weapon they need. This is especially noticeable in alliance instances such as Eternal Bastion, where several independent layers of RNG are combined: A Mythic weapon must first drop. It must be the correct weapon type. Multiple players may already be waiting for the same weapon. Loot priority or alliance loot rules must also be respected. Except in Eternal Bastion, even after obtaining the weapon, players may still pursue the optimal version with the highest number of manastone slots and enchantment level. When all of these factors are combined, progression can become entirely unpredictable, regardless of the amount of time and effort invested. Why this could be improved One of the fundamental strengths of MMORPGs is the feeling of long-term progression. Players are generally willing to invest hundreds of hours into difficult content when every completed activity represents measurable progress toward an important goal. The current system can create situations where highly dedicated players complete hundreds of successful runs without making any visible progress toward obtaining the weapon they need. When this happens, the challenge is no longer the amount of effort required. The challenge becomes the absence of any guaranteed progression despite continuous effort. A rewarding progression system is not defined by how quickly players reach the end, but by whether players can consistently feel that their time investment is leading toward meaningful progress. Suggested solution Rather than increasing drop rates or making Mythic weapons easier to obtain, this suggestion proposes introducing a long-term guaranteed progression system. Each endgame instance already rewards players with instance-specific items that gradually lose most of their value after repeated runs. For example: Eternal Bastion → Pashid's Horn These existing instance materials could be exchanged after collecting a significant amount (for example, 150–200) for one Mythic weapon from that specific instance. The current loot system would remain completely unchanged. This means: Players who are lucky could still obtain their weapon early through RNG. Players who are unlucky would always know that every completed run contributes toward the same long-term objective. The excitement and prestige of obtaining a rare drop would remain exactly as they are today. The only difference is that long-term dedication would always have a guaranteed destination. Why this could benefit EuroAion This proposal is not intended to shorten progression. It is not intended to reduce the amount of farming required. It is not intended to make Mythic weapons common. Players would still need months of consistent participation before collecting enough instance materials to exchange for a weapon. However, every completed run would always retain value because it would contribute toward measurable long-term progress. Many modern MMORPGs have adopted similar "bad luck protection" systems because they help maintain player motivation while preserving the excitement of rare drops. A system like this could encourage more players to continue participating in endgame PvE content over the long term, knowing that every successful run contributes toward a meaningful objective, regardless of RNG. Such a system would reward dedication without reducing the prestige of obtaining endgame equipment. Increased Activity Across Endgame PvE Another important benefit of this system is the positive impact it could have on overall endgame activity. Because every successful run would always contribute toward a meaningful long-term objective, players would have an additional reason to continue participating in endgame PvE instances, even after long periods of farming. This could naturally lead to: More players running endgame instances on a daily basis. More groups and alliance premades being created. Faster group formation for PvE content. Greater interaction between new and veteran players. A more active and dynamic endgame environment. Rather than reducing the amount of content players complete, this system could actually encourage more consistent participation across all major PvE instances by ensuring that every successful run always has lasting value. Final thoughts This suggestion is not about making the game easier. It is not about removing RNG. It is not about replacing the current loot system. The purpose is simply to ensure that consistent dedication is always rewarded in the long term. The objective is not to shorten the journey, but to ensure that every step of that journey always has value. EuroAion has built one of the strongest Aion 4.x experiences available today, and this suggestion is offered with the hope of making an already outstanding server even stronger for both current and future players. Thank you for taking the time to read this suggestion. Feedback from both the community and the EuroAion Team would be greatly appreciated.

Your last response seems to come from a very personal and emotional perspective as a veteran, and I can understand why you feel strongly about this topic. However, throughout this discussion I have always tried to remain respectful. At no point have I disrespected anyone, behaved arrogantly, or used inappropriate language. The fact that we have different opinions does not justify personal attacks or dismissive comments. Healthy discussions are built on arguments, not on insults or sarcasm. My suggestion was made with the sole intention of discussing possible ways to improve the long-term health of the server. Whether people agree or disagree with it is completely fine, and constructive criticism is always welcome. However, I don't see any value in continuing a discussion that has shifted from debating ideas to attacking the person presenting them. For that reason, I won't be replying to any further messages in this particular exchange. I would be happy to continue discussing the suggestion with anyone who wishes to do so in a respectful and constructive manner, including other members of the community or the EuroAion team.

Rewarding Veteran Players for Supporting New Players One possible addition to this system could be introducing a small long-term reward for veteran players who actively help new players complete endgame PvE content. For example, participating in successful runs alongside players who are still progressing through their gear journey could also contribute toward a separate veteran progression or reward system. This would achieve several positive goals at once: Encourage experienced players to help newer players instead of avoiding them. Strengthen cooperation between different generations of players. Create a healthier and more welcoming community. Increase activity across all endgame instances. Give veteran players a new long-term objective after completing their own progression. Most importantly, it would address the concern that a guaranteed progression system somehow diminishes the effort of long-time players. Instead of ignoring the years they have already invested, it would recognize their experience and give them a meaningful new role within the game's endgame ecosystem. A successful MMORPG is not built only on progression systems. It is built on a community where experienced players become the reason why new players choose to stay. Today's new players are tomorrow's veterans. A veteran's greatest achievement shouldn't only be the gear they wear, but the players they helped become veterans themselves. The strongest MMORPG communities are not the ones where veterans simply stay. They are the ones where veterans inspire new players to stay as well.

I think that's actually a very valid concern, and I completely understand why many veteran players would feel that way. The thing is, I don't believe this suggestion would take away the value of the effort they already invested. In fact, I'm saying this as someone who has been playing EuroAion for around four years. I've spent hundreds of runs farming endgame instances myself, and if I had had the opportunity to make that journey less dependent on pure RNG while still requiring the same amount of dedication and time, I would have gladly taken it. The problem isn't that obtaining these weapons is difficult. The problem is that progression can completely stop for an unlimited amount of time simply because luck never arrives. A player can successfully complete hundreds of runs and still feel exactly as far away from their goal as they were months before. That's the part that slowly destroys motivation. A guaranteed long-term progression system wouldn't make these weapons "easy" to obtain. Players would still need to clear the same difficult instances, invest the same time, and remain active for weeks or months. The only difference is that every successful run would always move them at least one small step closer to their objective. From my perspective, that doesn't reduce the value of veterans' achievements. It simply removes the possibility of becoming permanently stuck because of bad luck. I also believe this could make PvP healthier in the long term. Many veteran players eventually spend most of their time fighting opponents who are significantly less geared than they are. Helping more dedicated players gradually reach competitive equipment would create more balanced fights, stronger rivalries, more active legions, and a more competitive endgame overall. Instead of always seeing the same names at the top of the rankings, we could see more players eventually becoming competitive through persistence and dedication. I also think this would have a positive impact on the server itself. More players would keep running endgame instances. More alliances and premades would be created. More new players would stay instead of giving up after months of feeling no progression. More active players means more PvP, more PvE, more competition, and ultimately a healthier server. Veteran players absolutely deserve recognition for the years they've dedicated to EuroAion. But creating systems that also encourage new players to stay and eventually become long-term veterans is, in my opinion, one of the best investments any MMORPG can make. Today's new players are tomorrow's veterans. Every long-term player was once a beginner who simply decided to stay. Giving players a reason to stay is one of the greatest investments any MMORPG can make.