Mark pm

Hey Mark!

Please correct me if I'm wrong at something but the main questions I have will be [b]bolded[/b]. I try to be as precise as possible giving the background for the questions so that there should be no confusing on your part what I mean.

In an earlier question I asked if it was made on purpose that you can obtain memory fragments from other shaped maps (atleast the first 10), and you responded that it's working as intented. You can also obtain them from another person's Atlas if they're doing Elder influenced maps.

I don't remember if at that time the last 5 fragments we're obtainable through shaped maps (so Shaped T14 Scriptorium Guardian could give you the 2nd T8 or 2nd T9 fragment), but they aren't anymore due to Guardians/Elder being the level of the base map.

In the wiki about memory fragments I can read the following:

Fragment #11 (2nd T8 orb) is obtained by doing a map occupied by Elder Guardian or Elder in a T13+
Fragment #12 (2nd T9 orb) is obtained by doing a map occupied by Elder Guardian or Elder in a T14+
Fragment #13 (2nd T10 orb) is obtained by doing a map occupied by Elder Guardian or Elder in a T15
Fragment #14 (3rd T9 orb) is obtained by doing a map occupied by Elder in a T14+
Fragment #15 (3rd T10 orb) is obtained by doing a map occupied by Elder in a T15

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They also drop in sequence so doing a T14 Elder while not having #12 would downgrade the fragment to that.

These rules create an interesting case:

I have not yet received #13, but I have Elder occupying a T14 map. Does the orb now downgrade to #13, because this map meets the requirements of #14 but I don't yet have it. The reason this is a bit weird is the fact that you need to kill Guardian or Elder in an actual T15 map for the #13. So I guess this is the first question:

[b]1) Do memory fragments downgrade based on the [i]potential[/i] the map/guardian/elder can drop or based on the restrictions of the actual fragment?[/b]

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Now, at 3.1.1c Patch Notes there is a line: [i]Fixed a bug where Elder Guardian areas could be created at the wrong level.[/i]

This changed the level of the Guardians to always be the same as Elder. So if Elder spawns in a T8, but all guardians are in higher maps, they get downgraded to T8. Same way if Elder spawns in a higher map, they get upgraded to that level.

It's uncertain to me how this affects obtaining memory fragments. I have not been able to test it properly, and a lot of people (even those who are experts at the game) have had issues with it for various reasons. Usually they already have the fragments so they can't test it or they can't get Elder to spawn on high enough maps.

[b]2) Guardian spawns on a T15 Lava Lake, but Elder spawned at T13 Arsenal; is that Guardian now considered a T13 guardian in terms of memory fragments as the fight happens in a T13 area?[/b]

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Partying. One can obtain the first 10 fragments from someone else's Atlas, however the last 5 have to be Guardians/Elder occupying maps in your own Atlas. We tested this recently.

[b]3) Is it intented that only the last 5 are unobtainable through someone else's Atlas, or is it just a result of some other mechanics in place for the last 5, or is it unintented and will change?
4) Or will there be changes so that the even the first 10 fragments have to be obtained from your own Atlas?[/b]

I can see a good reason for either of them to be:

a) If you can get them from other people, you can potentially sell a service for fragments for other people
b) If you can't, you have to to progress your own Atlas (of course you can get help from others), but it will severely slow the progress of obtaining all 15 fragments in practice due to assumed RNG of the Elder spawns.

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Randomness of Elder occupying maps. People that try to farm for the last fragments and red Elder in general are often frustrated that when you have 18 red maps and 2 yellow (the maximum red maps you can influence with the lowest yellows, Hydra/Chimera side) Elder randomly spawns on the lower maps despite the majority of the maps being reds. It is especially frustrating when trying to spawn him on T15 for the 15th fragment, as you can only have 3 T15 maps influenced at once before the spawn

[b]4) Does Elder occupy maps randomly from or near the influence (I have seen him occupy maps that he took on the exact same Atlas tick as he spawned, and I didnt complete those maps myself, they were random takeovers from Shaper influence), or is there a way to increase the chances of forcing him to spawn on certain area or tier of maps apart from just trying to have as many maps of that area/tier ?[/b]

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And lastly a bit off topic from the memory fragments; Currently upgrading a shaped T15 map will trade to a adjacent T11 of the base shaped map. When corrupting the shaped maps, they can either turn to T16 Vaal Temple or T11 adjacent map, which is very discouraging. I know this was a fix to disable people from obtaining higher than T16 maps. I also understand the reason why they don't upgrade to Guardian maps, as you'd skip the whole progression of that quadrant in the red maps while getting access to Guardian maps. But you can already also do this by trading or divination cards, and we're able to obtain the first 10 fragments without doing native red maps either.

[b]5) Is there a fix or change coming to shaped T15 maps' upgrade recipes or corrupted outcomes?[/b]