GGG could think about the introduction of an Item Tree

Dear,

I wrote this proposal shortly after the release of Poe 2, but I did not post it because trade, the market, the economy seemed sacred to GGG. But in the 0.2.0g Patch Notes GGG wrote among other things “The modifiers of Tiered Rares have also been improved by cutting out more low level modifiers making them better on average than before” and “The low level modifier culling of Tiered Magics has been significantly improved with Tier 2 now culling 50% of the modifier range, and improving from there“. To me these changes indicate that GGG wants that monsters drop items with better modifiers.

Usually GGG raises just the quantity of something but not the quality, for example monsters drop more items but not better/useable items most of the time. If a player finds a useable item then it fits most likely not in his build so that he is inclined to trade it with another player for currency, and with the currency he trades again with another player to get the item he wants.

We all know this, sorry for repeating it. Item distribution and item generation are both calculated/designed for the trade site, for the mass of players, not for a single player. The item tree should put a player in the position to find as a drop from a monster the items he wants to use in his build.

1) What is the goal of the item tree?
That monsters will drop items with higher and desired modifiers during maps.

2) How does the item tree achieve this goal?
It changes the item distribution and item generation from items that drop in maps.

3) How does the item tree do this?
It reuses the ideas of grave crafting to some extend which was available in the necropolis league. There is a short explanation of grave crafting at the end of this post, some information can also be found in the wiki for Poe 1. The item tree is not a 1:1 copy of grave crafting. The ideas of grave crafting should be transferred into an item tree. The effects of the item tree (of the crafting materials, of the filled coffins in the necropolis league) must be adjusted because the item tree will be always active in maps.

4) How could the item tree look like?
In the middle of the item tree is the start location from where points can be allocated to nodes that spread in several directions.
The nodes lead to all the different item categories: one handed weapons (claw, wand), two handed weapons (bow, staff), helmets, gloves, etc.
- Some of the nodes of the item tree are a replacement of the filled coffins from grave crafting. They change the item generation, like x% increased chance of Physical Modifiers.
- Some other nodes will increase the drop rate of specific items of the different item categories. They change the item distribution, like x% increased chance that monsters drop bows.
- Some other nodes are travel nodes. They could give nothing, or 1% increased Rarity of Items found, or something else.

5) Which items should be affected by the item tree?
It could affect the Tiered Rare and the Tiered Magic items.
Or the item tree could be a replacement of Tiered Rares and the Tiered Magics, and affect all rare and magic items that drop from monsters.

6) Which values will the nodes have that change the item generation and item distribution?
A sane calculation of these values would be a task for GGG, I cannot provide it. There are many variables like increased item rarity of the character and the map, the number of monsters, and maybe constants in the calculations of drops from monsters that I do not know.
If an item skill tree like this is introduced the drop rates of rare (and magic) items must be adjusted/reduced because the items that drop will have higher and desired modifiers.
The item tree could be constraint to some monsters: rare monsters, map bosses, pinnacle bosses.

7) Which item tree is used when there are several players in a map?
The item tree of the map owner could be used for slain monsters.
Or it could be the item tree of the player who defeated the monster.
Or the player could be selected in the Options Menu.

8) It could be said that the item skill tree will make trade obsolete for rare (and magic) items. This could be the case and depends on the values of the nodes of the item tree that change the item distribution and item generation.

9) The item tree could be extended to affect the drop rates of unique items too.


- A short grave crafting explanation of the necropolis league:
During the necropolis league filled coffins dropped (a kind of crafting material). Up to 88 filled coffins could be combined to craft exactly one item.
The filled coffins were consumed when an item was created with them.
Filled coffins had effects like “500% increased chance of Physical Modifiers”, “Mana Modifiers are 300% scarcer”, “+50 Modifier Tier Rating”, and many more. The “+50 Modifier Tier Rating” effect was very strong because it removed the lower tier modifiers of an item. In addition the player was able to select an item category (for example bows), and the type of the bow (for example spine) and the filled coffins changed the weight of some modifiers (for example physical, mana etc.) and the tier rating of all the modifiers (so that the better/higher modifiers were more common).

With kind regards