Watch the Live-Stream we did with the Developers regarding this policy change and the future of ROSE Online on our Official Twitch.TV Channel. If you don't quite understand what's is detailed below, be sure to watch the Stream! It might be easier to understand it when you hear it.
Why is this happening?
The Development team has noticed over the years that the concept of "Free Trade" has had a negative effect overall with the interactions in-game involving events, quests, and general Economy. That negative effect has been a loss in appreciation for the effort to obtain an item through game play and a depreciating value for what that means, especially for new players who have never attempted to go through the effort to obtain them.
This makes it especially difficult to come out with new content that can be appreciated, when the first sets gained can be openly shared and the desire to own one's own set diminishes. It causes it to be less an acheivement to gain.
What to expect from this change?
The development team wants you, the community, to have a more unique experience with each character and increase the sense of accomplishment when experiencing game play. With these changes, we're looking to the community to return to some of the "old ways" (for those who remember) where helping someone meant joining their adventures, partying to obtain an item and their goals. We look at this as a means to help the mentality of what an MMORPG was meant for, bringing people together to enjoy what the world of ROSE Online has to offer you as a group and community.
What we are also doing with this change, as a follow up feature change, is a new drop system, that will better cater to the expectations of finding and farming for rare and epic items. As discussed in the stream, we have a new drop system that will be build from scratch to completely give us the flexibility and control we've been wanting, and the community has been expressing a great desire for improvement on. This new system will allow for multi-drops per kill, the return of skill features like "Stockpile" that will actually work as expected, and new farming stats that can actually affect specific types of drops!
When will this happen?
These changes being implemented will NOT happen all at once. They changes will be implemented in stages. Each stage will be put to a schedule, starting one week after the Database has been updated, and each stage will be announced, so you may know what to expect to happen. The implementation will begin withi high level items and equipment first, being converted over to the new system, and we will work down from there, where event and Item Mall costumes will be the LAST done. Giving you pleanty of time to organize and prepare for the final outcome.
- The item is able to be traded and vended.
- Generally, this item cannot be sold to the NPC or dropped on the ground.
This is typically used for Item Mall consumables to ensure that they are not accidentally sold to the NPC.
- The item is restricted to the current account.
- Can be placed in to Account and Premium Storage.
- The item restricted to the current character.
- Can be placed into Character Storage.
- Cannot be placed in to Account or Premium Storage.
- The item cannot be moved off of the current character's inventory.
This is typically used for mechanical items that are part of a quest so it has to stay on the character.
- An item will become bound to the character or account when an equipment or costume item is equipped into an equipment or costume slot. This is typically applied to equipment items.
- Typically displayed on the item tool-tip as Character Bound on Equip or Account Bound on Equip.
- A message will pop-up once you try to equip a Character Bound Item or Account Bound Item.
- Equipment already equipped when converted to the new trade system will not automatically become bound. You will need to unequip and then reequip it, and be given the pop-up confirmation that you wish to have it bound.
- An item will become bound to the character or account when an item is used or consumed. This behavior is typically applied to consumable items and mounts.
- Typically displayed on the item tool-tip as Character Bound on Use or Account Bound on Use.
- A message will pop-up once you try to use a Character Bound Item or Account Bound Item.
- Items with this condition when converted to the new trade system will not automatically become bound. You will need to actively use it where you will be given the pop-up confirmation that you wish to have it bound.
- An item will become bound to the character or account when an item is obtained through any means, resulting in the item being placed into the character's inventory. (example: purchasing from an NPC store, taking out of the Purchase Tab, etc).
- Typically displayed on the item tool-tip as Character Bound on Acquire or Account Bound on Acquire.
- We never intend for this feature to be placed on an item you will not be able to preview in some manner before putting in your inventory and "surprise" bind it to your character or account.
- No existing items will have this restriction during the implementation process.
- Locked Items are similar to bound items, in that they are restricted to an account or character when acquired/used/equipped, however locked items cannot be unbound using the Item Unbinding Coupon. Locked items are generally not intended to be moved off the character or account after being used in some way.
Unbinding items that have been bound.
- Items that are "Bound" can be Unbound from their trade restriction with a new item called the Item Unbinder Coupon. This will reset an item back to it's original restrictions before the item was bound. So you can have full use of the item as it was prior to becoming bound, until it meets its condition to become bound once again.
- For example, an item which was originally Account Bound on Equip, will become Account Bound once the item has been been equipped in your costume or equipment section (A message will appear when you try to use/equip the item). Using the Item Unbinder Coupon on the item will return the item to being Account Bound on Equip.
- The Item Unbinder Coupon will be available initially only through the Valor shop (priced at 100 Valor each).
- Each Item Unbinder Coupon is good for unbinding one (1) bound item per use.
- If in time, the community wishes there to be a direct Item Mall purchase version, we are prepared to provide one. Until then, we will enforce that this feature be kept through in-game efforts alone.
- Reminder: Honor can be converted in to Valor, at a premium cost of 2 Honor for 1 Valor.
- Please note that the Item Unbinder Coupon obtained from the Valor shop will be Locked to the Character, as it is not intended to be a marketable commodety.
- Again, the intention is that if after an item becomes bound and you have finished your "use" of it and you wish to return it to the market economy, you give back a little effort in play time when doing so. In a way it is as if you "farmed" for the item, but you get exactly what you already had for the 100 Valor Points.
Which item types will be affected by these changes?
- Most Item Mall consumable items will continue to be full Tradeable.
- Item Mall Mounts will become Account Bound on Use.
- Mounts obtained from starter packages, which will be Locked to the Character.
- Mounts obtained from Dungeons or in-game rewards, will be Character Locked on Use.
- Most Item Mall and Lucky Spin equipment /costumes will become Account Bound on Equip.
- For equipment obtained through Dungeons, and equipment that has a level requirement of 100 and above that are Monster Dropped or Crafted, will become Character Bound on Equip.
- For equipment that has a level requirement under 100 that are Monster Dropped or Crafted, will become Account Bound on Equip.
- For materials, most Monster Dropped and Disassembled materials will continue to have no restrictions.
- Basic equipment (NPC and crafted yellow items) will continue to have no restrictions.
Again, we will provide a comprehensive list of what items that will be affected by the changes, per stage and in advance, so you will have the opportunity to make preperations to either place the items where you wish them to be, or obtain additional items.