[EMS] 10 years of Ribgol!

"It's not about the numbers; it's about sending a message."

Hi guys! Today I've been using my Ribgol Sword for ten years!

For those who are unfamiliar with its story, here's a summary. In 2008, I made the decision to use Ribgol as my main weapon. It took an arduous three-year journey before I could obtain one. At the time, Ribgol was the meta. Hundreds of updates have come and gone since, but I still continue on EMS with it. Ribgol is part of my identity.

Now, here's an honest question. How playable is modern EMS with it?

Surprisingly, it's still very much playable. Old meta items such as Ribgol Sword and the Elemental Staves have aged remarkably well. The beauty of Maple's powercreep is that it's all about the upgrades. The bigger picture, if you will.

Base stats on equipment and item sets do not necessarily matter all that much compared to what is available for upgrades on each item. Scrolling is now a luxury, as the sum of Potential and Additional Potential matters far more. Even upgrades such as Additional Options and Enhancements don't add that much when you try to min/max - as long as you have a sufficient amount of it, it'll do the job. In a way, I believe that the general community underestimates how little is required to do any content in this game, and that it's all about having enough of everything. One item choice does not make or break a run; the individual behind the wheel does. 

A common analogy I use when teaching newer Maplers is one of a catapult. Maple's upgrading system is very much like that. Let's say if you have a lot of Potential but nothing elsewhere, it's like building a huge catapult that will only throw a pebble. Conversely, if you had lots of Star Force but fall short in the cubing department, it would be trying to fling a huge rock on a small-scaled catapult. The right way to upgrade in Maple is to have a good balance.

That said, what upsets me the most about Maple's way of upgrading items is how the game encourages equipment selection based on arbitrary rules, and this has always been a problem with the game's design. MapleStory has a great and diverse selection of items, but almost none of that matters since only a handful of these will get the most out of Potential, Additional Options and Enhancements. To make matters worse, the introduction of Star Force redefined how Enhancements work. So while it was possible to have up to 15 Enhancements legally on an item like Ribgol, that no longer is the case as I'm limited to up to 8. Even using the traditional method of warding items with Enhancement scrolls are overruled by Star Force. That and there's also the Supreme transferring meta, which is no longer available.

But does any of that matter when it comes down to it? No, of course not. The reason why it upsets me is because Nexon shoots themselves in the foot with this. You have all of these fascinating methods of upgrading but none of it is used to its fullest potential as everyone is thrown into the same stale ideology of "the most optimal build". And for a game that invented the modern gaming monetization industry, it is baffling that Nexon somehow hasn't decided to capitalize on removing these restrictions on any item of choice, allowing one to upgrade items to their fullest potential.

I believe that the game would be more fun if it was possible to make any item "viable" again. Most people forget that there used to be a sense of build diversity where no matter what class you played, everyone had their own layout and it all worked. Now, while there's more diversity in class choices, there's less difference between players. That's just a shame. Ironically, given the current direction of Maple's storyline (both its main story and the World Tour-related content around it), it would be fitting within its own narrative to overcome these restrictions as the player's side of the story are opposing the concept of a predetermined destiny dictated by a group of control freaks who limits everything.

Anyway, let's see if I can get my Ribgol ranked to Legendary Additional Potential this year. With the generous amount of Additional Potential Cubes given out with each major update, it shouldn't take too long for me to obtain my first. And what better way to achieve that, by unlocking it on the item that personally matters the most?

That's it for today - I'll see you guys again next post!