Breed rarity by season?

[Shirubia]

EDIT: Forgot to add, but this would NOT apply to breeding dragons, only cave ones

 

Not sure if it could be possible... But considering the seasonal dragon changes.

 

Some breeds could become more common in certain seasons, some examples:

- Stone dragons could be more common in spring, but less so in summer and normal rarity in autum and winter.

- Nebula Dragons could be common during winter, less so during summer.

- Daydream Dragons could be rare during winter, but fairly common the rest of the year.

 

Of course this wouldn't apply to dragons already rare (Metals, Xenowyrms, Xymorphs, elemental trio), I just mean the dragons that are already in the very common, common and maybe the uncommon variety. And maybe it would help with the flow of eggs from biomes (So it doesnt stay stuck at the same 3 eggs forever)?

 

Just an idea, thank you for your time

Edited December 13, 2017 by Shirubia

[angelicdragonpuppy]

I've always liked the idea of seasonal rarity fluctuations for non-rare dragons, as long as it makes sense based on the breed's description. Presumably your examples are just examples and nothing more, but in case it was a serious suggestion, I don't think those ones have any good reasons to migrate.

Edited December 12, 2017 by angelicdragonpuppy

[Shirubia]

Those were the first dragons that came to my mind, and somewhat the seasons I would relate them to. But they are only examples just at the top of my head - Of course dragons would need a bit more of lore for the seasonal rarity (Migration? Hibernate?) and insight from their creators/spriters.

[Nyxity]

It already feels like it is that way to me. O.o... I can nearly never find what I am looking for in the biomes... then, when I am no longer looking for something, they seem to pop up plenty. I usually have better luck finding CBs I'm looking for in the AP ironically enough.

[Dragon_Arbock]

I could see Nebula color rarities changing based on season, since as the planets go around the sun, what stars are visible changes. I don't know how annoying that might be to lineage builders though.

[Nyxity]

^ It actually be less annoying. Though it can be annoying when you have to wait for the right Lunar Herald color to come around to keep the lineage intact, it is at least consistent.At the moment Nebula Dragons are always a gamble.

[HeatherMarie]

I don't really like any idea that makes it harder to get commons. Commons are supposed to be, well, common. They are supposed to be seen a lot. And honestly there seem to be enough non-rares that are actually fairly hard to get, I don't want to struggle to gather the breeds that are supposed to be plentiful.

 

If it were to happen it should definitely only happen with breeds where it would make sense to do so. Nebulas have in their encyclopedia "Since winter is often the best time to observe the skies, Nebula dragons seem to grow accustomed to cold weather." so I could see a case for them being more common in winter. The other examples in the OP don't really make sense for the breed. (I clicked on a few random dragons in the encyclopedia, and found that Storms "Seem impervious to drastic temperature changes" so they wouldn't be good for this suggestion either, but Dorsals are said to live in hotter climates, so maybe they'd be more common in summer?)

[angelicdragonpuppy]

@Marie19R the thing is, there are so many commons now that finding a SPECIFIC common among the swarm of common breeds can be a hassle. There are so many jostling for space that they can sometimes be hard to find, not because they're actually rare, but because there are so many other commons that could be pulled up instead. To put it another way, if you have a hundred different colored marbles and put them all in a jar, your chance of pulling any one color is equal... but your chances of pulling the one you specifically want are still one in a hundred. This is especially true of the most recently released commons, which can really eclipse the rest (especially in breeding... but that's another story!). So having some seasonal fluctuation would, yes, make finding some commons more difficult AT TIMES, but it would also help by making it easier to find things when they are in season, since they'd have a better chance of competing. I also think it would make commons more desirable as people hurry to snag them while they're around. Imagine there are two equally common dragon breeds, X and Y. X is available all year round as a common. Even if people could use more, there's no compelling reason to prioritize them over other things, so they tend to be ignored. In contrast, Y is uncommon during spring and summer (increasing demand during those times, as people will have to offer more to get them, and that in turn encourages people to grab them to trade), but very common during fall and winter (increasing demand at the start and end of the season, as people remember to grab what they need while it's there, or scramble to get it before it goes). Theoretical, of course, but based on what I've seen with other rarity fluctuations I think it'd be close. So both would have an equal amount of eggs being distributed in the end, and be available year round, but the migrant would probably generate a lot more user interest.

 

And another point, which is related to the above but worth mentioning on its own. Periodically people do mention being concerned that the amount of dragons on DC is getting to unmanageable levels (mostly in terms of all the commons competing, as mentioned), so adding seasonal distributions would potentially quadruple how much room it feels like the cave has to fit in breeds. (Ok, the effect wouldn't be THAT extreme since not everything would migrate... but it still would help with the finding the common you need issue)

 

Edit: oh, also! It doesn't help as much, but I think it would be fun if some dragons simply migrated across BIOMES, too. Seasonals do that and I've always found it pretty neat. Might also still have a positive effect in simply stirring up the status quo of what's normally sitting around each biome.

Edited December 12, 2017 by angelicdragonpuppy

[Dragon_Arbock]

^ That really is the struggle of it. The game can always use new breeds to keep it interesting, but it's at odds with being able to easily find what you're looking for.

Seasonal rarity fluctuations could work, but I just as easily would go for new biomes or two rows of eggs. I would even say that having to wait 5 minutes for the active eggs to change also drags this down when nobody is taking any eggs.

[Fuzzbucket]

I loathe this idea. I build all kinds of checkers and it's bad enough having to hold out for sesonals as well as cope with the overwhelming predominance of the newer breed etc. Please no!

[The Dragoness]

3 minutes ago, fuzzbucket said:

I loathe this idea. I build all kinds of checkers and it's bad enough having to hold out for sesonals as well as cope with the overwhelming predominance of the newer breed etc. Please no!

Sorry, but me too. It makes sense for Seasonals, because it's a mechanic made specifically for them. But I don't see the connection at all with Daydreams or Stones. Nebulas...maybe. But they can already be difficult to find. No thanks.

[Dragon_Arbock]

I see nebulas all the time.

I think what I really want is just a more time-efficient way to hunt. The system now is wait for xx:x4.55 spam F5, and hope what you're looking for shows up at the 5 minute shuffle. Taking time is understandable for rares, but kinda annoying for commons.

I guess I still take a bit of issue with the ratios system too, considering it takes a while for new breeds to reach the number of older breeds, if they ever do.

 

I don't hate the idea of certain breeds being more common at certain times of the year, so long as they don't disappear completely at other times.

 

[olympe]

I doubt that a seasonal preference for breeds will work out well for DC. Because, let's face it, there's 1/4 of the year where you have an above-average chance to find them, and 1/4 of the year where the breed in question turns into a blocker.

 

If breeding is affected by this migratory behavior, this will also impact all kinds of mixed-breed lineages and prevent us from actually breeding much more than 2 generations per year for most checker lineages.

 

What I could get behind, though, is a shorter rhythm. Like based on the moons of Valkemare.

[Dragon_Arbock]

9 minutes ago, olympe said:

If breeding is affected by this migratory behavior, this will also impact all kinds of mixed-breed lineages and prevent us from actually breeding much more than 2 generations per year for most checker lineages.

I would assume breeding would not be affected by it. I'd hope, anyway.

 

Just my two cents, but the moons of the game aren't very intuitive and the fact that we need things like the Lunar Herald and Dark Lumina theory threads should say something. 

Maybe do what Pokemon BW did and make each 'season' a month, or something.

[Jazeki]

I wouldn't mind as long as it didn't affect breeding and it was immediately clear--perhaps even stated on the encyclopedia/dragon page--what season each breed was. I don't particularly enjoy the "thrill" of figuring out breeding/drop times and the like. At least seasonals are straight forward.

 

[HeatherMarie]

8 minutes ago, Jazeki said:

I wouldn't mind as long as it didn't affect breeding and it was immediately clear--perhaps even stated on the encyclopedia/dragon page--what season each breed was. I don't particularly enjoy the "thrill" of figuring out breeding/drop times and the like. At least seasonals are straight forward.

 

 

Good point! I *loathe* the scramble to figure out how/when/etc to find new releases that have those time restrictions, and even with old ones like Lunars I have to use an outside hatchery to find out what color is dropping and when I can hunt for the ones I need. If it is very clearly stated somewhere in their description or encyclopedia page, I wouldn't dislike this suggestion *quite* so much.

 

I still don't really like it though. If the issue is too many commons competing with each other, there are other ways to deal with that... More rows in the biomes, so more eggs can be available at once. Implementing one of the long-suggested ways to move biome eggs faster, like kicking to the AP after a couple minutes or cycling faster. Or the long-suggested FIX THE RATIOS (!!). I would much rather *any* of those be implemented then having to scramble to get my needed common during 1/4th of the year.

[Sazandora]

I faintly remember some other suggestion that was kinda similar to this, about some dragon breeds migrating elsewhere and not dropping in the cave during that time. Or something like that.

And in that suggestion TJ said something like that if some breeds migrate/become more or less common during certain times, then all breeds will -- including rares!

 

So I'm a little unsure about this one. On one hand I'm neutral about it, but on the other I got a feeling TJ would make rares and uncommons also be affected by this.

[Ruby Eyes]

Not fond of this. I want to breed my dragons all year round and not be hindered by time issues like *some* dragons already do - and these are quite enough for my taste. Let's keep them special, please.

[The Dragoness]

1 hour ago, Marie19R said:

 

Good point! I *loathe* the scramble to figure out how/when/etc to find new releases that have those time restrictions, and even with old ones like Lunars I have to use an outside hatchery to find out what color is dropping and when I can hunt for the ones I need. If it is very clearly stated somewhere in their description or encyclopedia page, I wouldn't dislike this suggestion *quite* so much.

 

I still don't really like it though. If the issue is too many commons competing with each other, there are other ways to deal with that... More rows in the biomes, so more eggs can be available at once. Implementing one of the long-suggested ways to move biome eggs faster, like kicking to the AP after a couple minutes or cycling faster. Or the long-suggested FIX THE RATIOS (!!). I would much rather *any* of those be implemented then having to scramble to get my needed common during 1/4th of the year.

This. Lunar Heralds may be one of my favorite breeds, but those special mechanics can be a huge pain. 

[Jazeki]

2 hours ago, Sazandora said:

I faintly remember some other suggestion that was kinda similar to this, about some dragon breeds migrating elsewhere and not dropping in the cave during that time. Or something like that.

And in that suggestion TJ said something like that if some breeds migrate/become more or less common during certain times, then all breeds will -- including rares!

 

So I'm a little unsure about this one. On one hand I'm neutral about it, but on the other I got a feeling TJ would make rares and uncommons also be affected by this.

I do faintly remember this as well. As of right now, I am okay with it, but if TJ pops in and reconfirms that rares and uncommons migrate as well, then I'll change my stance. Having the biomes move isn't so important that I want to cut the chances of being to see or catch uncommons and rares. 

[olympe]

Another thing to consider - migrating or hibernating/aestivating or whatever doesn't make sense for all breeds on DC, probably not even for most of them. 

 

Unless, of course, we introduce breeding seasons - after all, we're not looking for/at adult dragons in the biomes, but for dragon eggs. The obvious downside of this approach is that this would quite naturally affect our breeding results, so I'm not really in favor.

 

Maybe we should drop this idea, after all?

[Fuzzbucket]

Yes please let's drop it!  But about Lunar heralds - check my signature and many others, where the current colour is shown!

[Shirubia]

Seriously, I only grabbed stones, daydreams and nebulas because they were the first dragons that came to my mind to put as EXAMPLES, not because they made sense and would be affected.

 

Second, this would only apply to caveborn dragons, not breeding since our dragons are... Well, domesticated? In an enclosure?

 

And like I said it would only affect very, very common breeds. Not making them dissapear, but making one turn more uncommon during seasons (That BW season mechanic sounds good if people don't want to wait too much for them) or periods of time, and making another easier to obtain.

 

And wow for everyone who literally wants to bite my head off because the suggestion in this topic.

[Sazandora]

Yes, I know you're intending this to only affect common breeds, but somehow I have a feeling that if TJ were to ever implement this, it wouldn't affect just commons, it'd affect all breeds which would also include uncommons and rares. Because TJ's the admin, he gets to decide what happens in the cave and what doesn't.

[HeatherMarie]

I don't see anyone biting your head off, I just see a lot of people who know how badly this will effect the game.

 

From what TJ said in this thread, it does seem that IF anything like this were to happen, it would have to happen to all breeds. Now, his post was made long ago, and of course he can change his mind, but I *very* much oppose anything of this sort if it means it would effect all breeds.

 

 

Also, you say that it would make a common breed more uncommon and make another "easier to obtain"... How? Why? To my knowledge one breed's ratios don't directly effect another's ratios. If Nebulas are more scarce in the biomes that doesn't mean that Daydreams will suddenly be more abundant (just an example). It may *seem* that way, a little, because you aren't seeing one breed as much so you may have a better chance of seeing the other breed, but if this is only supposed to work on "very, very common" breeds then I'm not really sure what the issue is there? Commons are going to be common no matter if other commons become rarer during a season or not. I get that it's a little difficult to hunt for a specific common when there are so many different common breeds, but I can't say I *want* a "very very common" breed to be even *more* common while others become less so.