So after discussing earlier, I have decided to experiment a bit like I like to do. I thought about monthly items, and how that was a cool aspect but not sustainable due to the dev time needed, then I had an idea - Monthly base weapons.
These are variants of existing weapons or completely new base weapons, only obtainable during select months (fairly rare). These will repeat each year automatically, and there's support for multiple bases a month rather than just always 1, there can be multiple for variety.
On top of this, I will be adding a new item (maybe a craftable) that acts like Rune of alter/greater alter, but has these monthly bases in the pool at a set rate (any month available within these, older ones being less likely than current ones), when I get time. This doesn't mean those bases are guaranteed with this rune, they are a set chance, the normal pool is still there.
I will also highlight a few things I think will be frequently asked below:
Do these replace the Bimonthly pass? Are these related to old monthly items at all?
No, and No. These are mini monthly frg updates. New weapon types to look forward to using. Not new items entirely, just new weapon BASES. Like MP7, Silenced M16, new laser based gun, etc. Things like that, that you can get on already existing FRG Tiers/uniques, such as Heroics.
How does this work?
Each monthly base defined has a list of weapon classes that it can "replace" (I use this term loosely here), that means, if I make a new AR, and define it to 'replace galils', any weapon that can roll with a galil will now have a chance to get this monthly base weapon on it, during the month. Note, this doesn't mean ALL galils will be this, it just means it looks for items that support galils as applicable items.
This is so certain tiers that have a limited pool of weapons can't go too far outside that realm, but is still possible if a similar monthly base is defined to look for one of its classes. (Such as those in the molten pool)
So once an item is dropped, it'll look through and see if that item can support a current monthly base, if so, it'll try to proc the monthly base on it. If it procs, congrats! You now have an item with a monthly base! These come with fancy new icon visuals to indicate what they are, as well as a description in the item tooltip.
How and where can I obtain these?
You don't need to do anything extra to obtain these. Any item obtained from pretty much anywhere has a chance to turn into one of these bases, given the item is supported by the current monthly base.
Can I craft weapons into these bases?
Yes if the item itself is applicable and supported by the defined monthly base.
Will you be using existing monthly items as bases?
Not planning on it. If I re-use anything, it'll likely be already existing base weapons from some seasonal items or maybe some forgotten prim uniques, but tweaked/changed to make them more in line with being a base on many things. (Such as silenced M16 - currently has been around for the entirety of FRG but only used recently in Mercurials)
Will I be able to view the available bases in !monthly?
Eventually. Currently I don't have them listed as I want to make a way to ensure they aren't leaked before they drop.
I forgot to mention:
There's setting per crafting tier to enable auto dismantling of monthly bases. Currently they are disabled by default!
These are variants of existing weapons or completely new base weapons, only obtainable during select months (fairly rare). These will repeat each year automatically, and there's support for multiple bases a month rather than just always 1, there can be multiple for variety.
On top of this, I will be adding a new item (maybe a craftable) that acts like Rune of alter/greater alter, but has these monthly bases in the pool at a set rate (any month available within these, older ones being less likely than current ones), when I get time. This doesn't mean those bases are guaranteed with this rune, they are a set chance, the normal pool is still there.
I will also highlight a few things I think will be frequently asked below:
Do these replace the Bimonthly pass? Are these related to old monthly items at all?
No, and No. These are mini monthly frg updates. New weapon types to look forward to using. Not new items entirely, just new weapon BASES. Like MP7, Silenced M16, new laser based gun, etc. Things like that, that you can get on already existing FRG Tiers/uniques, such as Heroics.
How does this work?
Each monthly base defined has a list of weapon classes that it can "replace" (I use this term loosely here), that means, if I make a new AR, and define it to 'replace galils', any weapon that can roll with a galil will now have a chance to get this monthly base weapon on it, during the month. Note, this doesn't mean ALL galils will be this, it just means it looks for items that support galils as applicable items.
This is so certain tiers that have a limited pool of weapons can't go too far outside that realm, but is still possible if a similar monthly base is defined to look for one of its classes. (Such as those in the molten pool)
So once an item is dropped, it'll look through and see if that item can support a current monthly base, if so, it'll try to proc the monthly base on it. If it procs, congrats! You now have an item with a monthly base! These come with fancy new icon visuals to indicate what they are, as well as a description in the item tooltip.
How and where can I obtain these?
You don't need to do anything extra to obtain these. Any item obtained from pretty much anywhere has a chance to turn into one of these bases, given the item is supported by the current monthly base.
Can I craft weapons into these bases?
Yes if the item itself is applicable and supported by the defined monthly base.
Will you be using existing monthly items as bases?
Not planning on it. If I re-use anything, it'll likely be already existing base weapons from some seasonal items or maybe some forgotten prim uniques, but tweaked/changed to make them more in line with being a base on many things. (Such as silenced M16 - currently has been around for the entirety of FRG but only used recently in Mercurials)
Will I be able to view the available bases in !monthly?
Eventually. Currently I don't have them listed as I want to make a way to ensure they aren't leaked before they drop.
I forgot to mention:
There's setting per crafting tier to enable auto dismantling of monthly bases. Currently they are disabled by default!
x2