View Full Version : Lack of xmas collectables ... again!
This is annoying because its happened now for the 3rd Xmas event in a row!
Like previous years the Xmas collectables are very low drops at the start of event, unlike Easter where u get 35-40 collectables the Xmas drops are max at 18-21 with only 5-6 of them the Xmas collies, not great when some of us only get 2 spawns per day, this was fixed within the 1st week the last 2 years, so when is the fix due BB?
The event has just started yesterday and you want to have all your collectables in one day?
Take your time and find all collectibles every time they show up and in the forth coming days all your xmass dreams will be fullfilled.
well i am averaging 9 clickable collies per spawn and you have to remember that they usually give 2/3 collies from each collie you click on, so in just 2 spawns I have total of 36 collies in storage, seems fine
lordloocan
13.12.17, 09:51
Like previous years the Xmas collectables are very low drops at the start of event, unlike Easter where u get 35-40 collectables the Xmas drops are max at 18-21 with only 5-6 of them the Xmas collies, not great when some of us only get 2 spawns per day, this was fixed within the 1st week the last 2 years, so when is the fix due BB?
You get 9 Christmas collectibles each spawn and each of those gives 2 of that item, so each spawn gives you a total of 18 bells etc.
If only getting 5/6 you need to look harder and find all the collectibles. We do this as whole guild process so no-one misses any.
You get 9 Christmas collectibles each spawn and each of those gives 2 of that item, so each spawn gives you a total of 18 bells etc.
If only getting 5/6 you need to look harder and find all the collectibles. We do this as whole guild process so no-one misses any.
That is my understanding also, 9 lots of Xmas Collectibles each giving 2 items. That is what I have had on every drop across 4 Servers
That is also what is stated in Dev Diary.
colls dropping at the rate posted in DEV Diary; 9 colls to collect per spawn each dropping 2 event resouces.
Balance between event resources not per spawn but during event
SSSecretSquirrel
13.12.17, 13:06
if you collect all collies 2 spawns each day you have ~100% chance to get enough to complete all achievements. at least that was the case last year. some might find this acceptable. i find it very odd that you have to do so much work for so little reward compared to other sources. i find it even more odd that one bell or gingerbread earns you more presents on TO than 25/25/25 used to make them in mayors house.
it is great for new players to build their entire island with a few clicks but as game balance its way way off.
No problems so far. Getting a pretty even spread of Christmas collectibles - some are slightly ahead of others but that's the way random is.
Takes tenacity.
I've only had one lot of collectables today. Nothing in the later afternoon when I usually get a 2nd.
Each spawn is 8 hours after you acknowledge the collectibles quest (e.g. you don't even have to get them all or any of them - the timer starts as soon as you click on the quest 'collectibles').
I got mine at 06:30. Therefore my next will appear at 14:30. The last at 22:30. It works down to the second and it doesn't matter if you stay logged in or not. Since I'm a creature of habit and have almost exactly the same life schedule each day, I can tell you that those times are the same for me every day. You can set a clock by it.
In order to "reset" the timer skip a phase. For example be logged out before they appear and don't log in until you want to acknowledge the quest and start the 8 hour timer. Note that having the quest pinned will count as activation, so if you don't want it to automatically start counting when they show up make sure the quest isn't pinned when you ended the last one.
Diwata discovered all of this and I rely on it each day.
I've just spent the last 45 minutes looking for collectables, found plenty of candy canes but not a single bell or gingerbread, collectables have always been a pain as half the time they land in a building, having to use a buff to move them is not a solution, it's bad enough having to look once let alone 3 or 4 times, this is why I don't normally bother, I've been looking since the start of the event and only have 14 bells and 16 gingerbread, think it's time to give up as the reward is just not worth it
It is not how many collies that is the problem. I dont remember BB ever confirming what we all experience. That the droprate seems to be 1:3:3 on Bells / canes /gb.
I know it is random- but there is still way too few bells compared, and lots of canes. If it is how it should be . I just want it confirmed that this is a feature not a bug.
Then I can go on wonder why, but at least know that someone think that is the way it should be.
When they introduced the collectibles as event items I think it was designed to be randomised to the player across the server. so each player had two items drop more than the third, which then encourages trade interaction. However, given BB's history , * cough new general stealing licence, and watching the trade and topics related to them, I do wonder if this code is working as intended. Its that word that haunts us as players from the `nerfovember' period of which we and BB devs don't have the same definition....`balance'.
When they introduced the collectibles as event items I think it was designed to be randomised to the player across the server. so each player had two items drop more than the third, which then encourages trade interaction. However, given BB's history , * cough new general stealing licence, and watching the trade and topics related to them, I do wonder if this code is working as intended. Its that word that haunts us as players from the `nerfovember' period of which we and BB devs don't have the same definition....`balance'.
Hmm, so basically artifically stimulate the dead TO in that way? Doesn't sound like a good idea. And yeah, it's absolutely obvious that they've messed up, and everyone has tonns of candy canes, but bells and gingers are rare as heck. Just give 33%/33%/33% chance for each collectible, for every player equally, and stop trying to do stuff that you never will be able to do right, BB - simple and clear, and everyone is happy.
SSSecretSquirrel
14.12.17, 19:36
in my experience over 5 accounts/servers ratio is always close to 2:5:2 bell:cane:bread.
Just completed the 1st set of prez & that's after buying several ginger & bells from trade, 2 ginger, 2 bell and a shedload of canes from 2day's spawn. That in my opinion is laughable.
Now last year BB did a fix after the 1st week to even out the drops of ginger, bell & cane. Hoping it comes again...
I don't understand why the event collies are so poor at Xmas, 25 of each makes a whopping 10 presents! It's the only event of the year where u cant play adv for event resource so surely BB should be flooding our isle like at Easter with 40 colls per spawn! Baffling.
Hussar1683
14.12.17, 20:30
3rd consecutive year, 3rd time x-mas collie ratios are messed exaclty the same way. 2 years ago I thought the reason might be the graphics - gingerbread are harder to spot. However, last year I was way more effective in finding them, this year, thx to the shuffle buff, I have 100% so far. 50 Canes and 18 Gingers. Excatly like in 2015 and 2016. And its not random, when majority of players suffers exaclty same thing. In trade ppl are offering 5-6 canes for one ginger. 1 gingerbread is valued up to 2,5k GC.
Same old story...
Ever have one of those days where you find heaps of food carts - way more than you usually do? Or the better banner day where banners seem to be everywhere but other times none are to be found for several drops?
Maybe canes are running a bit heavy - maybe not - it would take many years of collecting them before a pattern could truly be found. Regardless, it seems logical to me that since most people buy their candy canes but have to bake their cookies that it would be easier to find canes. They do hang nicely on the tree after all :)
Ever have one of those days where you find heaps of food carts - way more than you usually do? Or the better banner day where banners seem to be everywhere but other times none are to be found for several drops?
Maybe canes are running a bit heavy - maybe not - it would take many years of collecting them before a pattern could truly be found. Regardless, it seems logical to me that since most people buy their candy canes but have to bake their cookies that it would be easier to find canes. They do hang nicely on the tree after all :)
We don't need years to find the pattern, lol. Have you looked at the TO in the past 2 days?
We don't need years to find the pattern, lol. Have you looked at the TO in the past 2 days?
Ok, you are obviously right. They have intentionally and specifically stacked candy canes heavier than the other collectibles. The evidence of the trading activity is sure proof, since it's a clear result it must prove a clear cause, there can be no other (those people who don't trade because of what they have collected what they want are irrelevant).
Why they would possibly do that when it makes no cash-flow difference to them is a great mystery but I suspect a malicious programmer that decided to alter the random routines in that way because they either love candy canes or hate the other ones. I too have more canes than other ones. And I don't even like candy - so I think I'll take it personally too.
Three choices I guess: Stop collecting any of them because obviously no matter what you will primarily get canes, trade the best you can, or take what you get and make the best of it.
Hussar1683
14.12.17, 21:41
Of course, why would something work WRONG in a computer game? While (according to you) its obvious in was not intentional, then it must be working as intended, simple as that. Feel free to live happily and ignore our whines then ;)
To the topic - randomization is one of more difficult tasks in computer science. In fact, "random" is always a simulation, better or worse. And pure number proves that. Thats why we need patterns. But thing is, we DO have enough data to see them. One batch is nothing. One player may be unlucky. But we have planty of batches already, from many players (market is a best proof!) and many years. Combined, its at least tens of thousands of batches. Bigger the scale, the more equal the result shall be. They are not. Let me put this in other words - if u flip a coin 10 times and u get 8 heads and 2 tails - it statistically means nothing. But if you flip it 10,000 times and get 8,000 heads / 2,000 tails - then there is clearly somehting wrong with your coin. Or flipping method. Cos its not a random result anymore.
if u flip a coin 10 times and u get 8 heads and 2 tails - it statistically means nothing. But if you flip it 10,000 times and get 8,000 heads / 2,000 tails - then there is clearly somehting wrong with your coin. Or flipping method. Cos its not a random result anymore.
Sorry, each flip is 50-50 (balance of coin and method being equal).
What is the chance of flipping the 10,000th head after 9,999 heads in a row? 50-50. That's the way probabilities works.
(of course asking what is the chance of getting 10,000 heads in a row if I start now is a very different question). Weird that way...
At any rate, I think the subject has ran it's course. Canes appear to be coming up much more often than other collectibles for whatever reason - whether observation or flaw. Not much we can do I suppose except ask for a hot fix or see if it's better next Christmas.
Happy Holidays
Hussar1683
14.12.17, 22:05
Sorry, each flip is 50-50 (balance of coin and method being equal).
True, but it doesnt mean u will always get 50-50 results with small number of flips. If u toss it 4 times and get 3 heads / 1 tail, it doesnt mean coin is wrong, u just have a small sample. But in our case samlpe is big enough, and yet results are messed.
Not much we can do I suppose except ask for a hot fix or see if it's better next Christmas.
From my experience, only massive discussion about problem can encourage any1 to try and solve it. And thats my point here.
About waiting for next year... well, its my 3rd Christmas Event. 3rd time with the same problem with the same specific collectible. I hoped for it to be fixed in 2016, then for this year too. Im not sure if i can grow any more hope for 2018... ;)
TheVictorious
15.12.17, 13:15
from the first day until now I can't get my first 25 gingers, really silly spawn rate at all.
I remember even in old events the total collectives that we get during events about 29-35 but now always less than 27 even that we have 3 types.
BB always fall into same mistakes.
Areop-Enap
15.12.17, 17:22
now always 9 x 2 = 18.
...which is 378 for all days they spawn, if you catch the third timer as well it's 567 xmas colls in total. To make 5 baskets you just need 125 of each (375 total).
Teardrop46
15.12.17, 18:52
just for information i have done 2 sets collectibles each day since Tuesday = 3 days.except 1 day a single spawn
i have found every one each spawn =126 collectibles
i have found.
30 bells
76 candy canes
20 gingerbread....
We don't need years to find the pattern, lol. Have you looked at the TO in the past 2 days?
You dont need to wait at all to find the pastern - if it was just random- some would have too many bells - but all have plenty of canes and it was same on test server and the same last year and year before. As I said before- it would be nice to just get told if this is what they planned- or if it is not - then why don't they fix it. If it is the way it should be, then I would like to know why. We have been discussing this for at least 3 years now, would be nice to move on.
My collies this year so far Bells 26, canes 92, GB 44. It is not because some are hard to spot - I found very single one each time.
There is an achievement to make 5 'baskets of presents' - for that you need to find at least 125 of each type before end of event.
And if you do 2 sets every day ( which most players should be able do do ) you will probably find more.
So what is the problem ?
What most realy are complaining about it getting to many canes. If there only was 1/2 the actual amount of canes then noone probably would complain.
This is a game where at least a little work and patience is needed to get what you want.
Teardrop46
16.12.17, 18:08
day 4 ....i do 2 sets each day of collectibles i have so been able to do Just 1 " basket of presents " at this rate i will be lucky if i am able to do 3 let alone 5 !
As today i Only found candy canes and bells in Both sets of collectibles out of 9 i found 5 candy canes and 4 bells (1st) and 6 candy canes and 3 bells on 2nd spawn. :(
i do plenty of work and have loads of patience i also find Every collectible out of All spawns.
It is good we have a guarantied amount each spawn and i am not after half and half but really gingerbread is just a nightmare to find and far TOO expensive to buy !!
SSSecretSquirrel
16.12.17, 18:41
you can trade bells for gingerbreads 1:1 pretty easily ;)
if you keep at it 2 full spawns a day you are pretty much guaranteed 5 needed for the achievement.
...which is 378 for all days they spawn, if you catch the third timer as well it's 567 xmas colls in total. To make 5 baskets you just need 125 of each (375 total).
no, 9 collectables containing 2 items each = 18 items per spawn
18 items x 3 spawns/day = 54 items/day
x 21 days = 1134
378 if you can do only 1 spawn per day, 756 with 2 spawns
116 canes
58 bells
58 gingerbread
10 / 84 / 24, already made 2 baskets. This didn't help: click (http://prntscr.com/hpd4uk)
Thanks for the reports (especially collectable numbers)! We're investigating this!
managed to get 2 spawns/day giving me 54 bells, 160 candy, 74 ginger bread
lordloocan
19.12.17, 19:45
Thanks for the reports (especially collectable numbers)! We're investigating this!
It was repeatedly reported last year and nothing has changed. At the end of the 2016 Christmas event the guild sent me all their leftover collectibles so we could then make presents. What a shock, we had thousands and thousands of candy canes left.
Thanks for the reports (especially collectable numbers)! We're investigating this!
Really? For what reason? To keep "balancing" the flow of presents?
Why not just make it work as it used to do pre-2015?
This 28/44/28:ish-ratio is doing no good.
Thanks for the reports (especially collectable numbers)! We're investigating this!
Whilst I appreciate that someone is finally looking at this, with respect, why has this not been the subject of investigation long before now? This is not the first Christmas Event this has happened. I went into this event knowing full well that I would need to trade for Gingerbread and Christmas Bells and that I could leave the Candy Canes to take care of themselves. I surprised quite a few of my guild mates when I told them I had just started making my fifth basket of presents after only a few days of the event because I had put my knowledge of how collectibles spawned during the previous two Xmas events to good use.
Anyway, I have been keeping track of my numbers since the very first spawn of the event. I've managed to catch three spawns per day and the number of Candy Canes spawning has been roughly as much as the other two combined consistently through the event. My numbers to date are as follows:
122 x Christmas Bell
254 x Candy Cane
119 x Gingerbread
This is number of lots that have spawned on my island, with each lot putting two items into stores - as per the Dev Diary.
There is an achievement to make 5 'baskets of presents' - for that you need to find at least 125 of each type before end of event.
And if you do 2 sets every day ( which most players should be able do do ) you will probably find more.
So what is the problem ?
What most realy are complaining about it getting to many canes. If there only was 1/2 the actual amount of canes then noone probably would complain.
This is a game where at least a little work and patience is needed to get what you want.
My earlier posts are true within random definitions and overall I think that the game's random generator is good enough for general play. However there is no doubt that there are too many candy canes compared to the others. There must be some kind of weighting affecting one or the other.
Regardless I agree with the quoted post that there still should be enough to complete the achievements if that is the goal. It's unfortunate that it's not more balanced because that would allow for a few more lots of presents and also allow for some decent trading for players that are slightly ahead or behind on a particular item but there will be enough for the event completion.
Thanks for the reports (especially collectable numbers)! We're investigating this!
I have a report:
http://www.safeunderdark.com/img/TSO/TSO-204.jpg
Count em. Yup.
I have a report:
http://www.safeunderdark.com/img/TSO/TSO-204.jpg
Count em. Yup.
In a system where the three types of collectibles have a truly equal chance of spawning, the chances of all nine in a single spawn coming up the same are (1/3)^9 which is approximately 0.0051%. I have not personally seen all 9 come up as candy canes, but I have seen 5, 6 and 7 plenty of times and even one 8. By contrast, the highest number of gingerbreads or bells I have seen in a single spawn is 4.
lordloocan3
21.12.17, 19:12
All 9 found, 7 were canes 1 was bells and 1 was ginger, nice even spread, not.
BiggusBellius
22.12.17, 16:43
Echo the OP ... what's the point of this when you don't get enough event drops to even complete the quest chain?
11 days in, which is now half-way through the event & I'm still short of 11 Christmas bells (14/25) & 7 gingerbreads (18/25) to complete the Bells, Candy & Gingerbread quest
Ozzymandeus
22.12.17, 18:30
11 days in, which is now half-way through the event & I'm still short of 11 Christmas bells (14/25) & 7 gingerbreads (18/25) to complete the Bells, Candy & Gingerbread quest
A couple of days ago, I found myself helping a guildie to complete that initial quest, who was similarly short of Bells and Gingers (12 & 6 IIRC) and yet they had enough Candy for multiple baskets. For those of us who have been around for a while, it's easier to take in our stride, but it must be demoralising for newbies when, halfway through the event, they still can't seem to progress past a quest they got on day one!
Hilariously, this morning 7 instances of gingerbread, 2 of candy cane.
Second spawn of Christmas day and... not a single gingerbread in it... Way to kill the spirit :(
Edit: many thanks for the gifts! :D
every year we all get many more candy canes than anything else and BB r now investigating this, lol!
anyhoo, take ur time u got 3 weeks! i bet mutantkid got everything he wanted including achievments :)
You have to make an effort not to get everything you wanted at christmas event- There are plenty of presents and gifts from BB to make all achievements easy and buying all buildings and generals no problem at all
You have to make an effort not to get everything you wanted at christmas event- There are plenty of presents and gifts from BB to make all achievements easy and buying all buildings and generals no problem at all
I don't know that I can completely agree but I know what you are saying. And there are multiple things now rolled into this thread. It is true that something was off with the distribution of the Christmas collectibles (way too many candy canes) but if you got at least 2 drops each day you would have gotten enough of each to complete the achievements.
As far as getting "everything" that depends on what level you are, how many explorers you have, what means you have to trade with, etc. So some players would have needed to prioritize what they wanted first.
However generally I would say yes. By being active and doing the given quests, opening doors and so forth (plus some nice extras offered for nothing from the game itself) I would find it hard to believe that anyone that put in any effort at all would not be able to get at least a couple top goodies. I found the event very generous in general.
there has always been something off with the collectibles ) And every event somewhere during the event we get some collectibles from BB making that part partially irrelevant except the 100+ excess canes
But the achievements were not impacted by this - and yes the event was quite generous and because of the mechanics, not dominated by the high end hardcore adventuring crowd - Only big effect on the individual would have been amount of gems spent on getting the max explorers from shop ) All in all Xmas event is fairly relaxed as events goes- maybe even a bit too relaxed
Accomplice
10.01.18, 09:44
You have to make an effort not to get everything you wanted at christmas event- There are plenty of presents and gifts from BB to make all achievements easy and buying all buildings and generals no problem at all
... If you're level 50+ at the start of the event and have a gazillion explorers!
JohnTheDon1980
10.01.18, 09:45
Tbh i think the one thing ive noticed in Xmas events is this, collecting colls to make enough baskets to get the achievements is pointless on many levels.
Firstly, even if you dont complete a single basket of presents in the mayors house, you get 100% complete anyway, if you have done everything else.
This begs the question, why save up all of the colls to get such a low reward when its more profitable to simply trade them? especially when it has no bearing on your event completion percentage? Never seen the sense in it myself.
...Firstly, even if you dont complete a single basket of presents in the mayors house, you get 100% complete anyway, if you have done everything else...
If that is true, then it is very very wrong that it works that way.
...Firstly, even if you dont complete a single basket of presents in the mayors house, you get 100% complete anyway, if you have done everything else...
If that is true, then it is very very wrong that it works that way.
It's always worked that way, for every set of event achievements, not just the Christmas Baskets specifically. Even if you complete only a few, when the event is over you'll see "100%", this has been discussed before and the reasoning is that it keeps people from fretting over incomplete things they can never change.
It's always worked that way, for every set of event achievements, not just the Christmas Baskets specifically. Even if you complete only a few, when the event is over you'll see "100%", this has been discussed before and the reasoning is that it keeps people from fretting over incomplete things they can never change.
That's not the only reason, another is it allows them to use a simple piece of code to give the 100%. They could use more complex coding to give a level based percentage but it would come with a large time overhead on the down time at the end of the event.
Areop-Enap
11.01.18, 20:23
It's always worked that way, for every set of event achievements, not just the Christmas Baskets specifically. Even if you complete only a few, when the event is over you'll see "100%", this has been discussed before and the reasoning is that it keeps people from fretting over incomplete things they can never change.
Yeah, it's a superficial 100%
If you didn't do all event achievements you will see the achievements you are missing when using the compare achievements button with someone who did complete all of them.
Yeah, it's a superficial 100%
If you didn't do all event achievements you will see the achievements you are missing when using the compare achievements button with someone who did complete all of them.
That explains an Easter when because I was in a place with a horrible internet connection that I had to travel 1/2 hour to get to I couldn't finish everything but it still shows as 100%. I had wondered about that.
I can understand the thinking of making it appear 100% if you at least made the effort, but personally I'd rather see the truth on all screens. Either I did it all or I didn't and I don't want a "participation trophy" just for showing up. But perhaps that's just me...
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