It's obvious that none of you were around before the Arc and hyper leveling. If you had been, you would be able to see what I see. Which is a totally different game dynamic from then to now. And it affects every aspect of the game. But if you weren't around back then, it's hard to explain the fundamental change in a short post.
Jon - yes very true. There are major inflection points designed into the game now that have the same type of radical change to the game that we
can see.
The explosion of FP for example. We've discussed (and it's really hard for new players to even fathom this...) how a 5 FP/day Terrace farm was the brass ring of GE, or the Indian Palace Set was so coveted as a FP generator, too.
Today we (most veteran players...) yawn @ 5FP day... but the explosion of FP generation has pushed up ARC lifting because so much FP is in the game, people need to do someting with what they make. Why not cash in on that, and build an investment engine too, from time spent in the game?
The explosion of FP had many tributaries, too.I didn't even consider a BG back then (5 FP max per day, timeframe...), the reward for the expense of lifting that was only a chance to get a 5FP double. Hardly worth it.
Today? It's a no brainer to have a BG, and get doubles on the big deliverable (goods, diamonds, FP, etc) event buildings you've accumulated. These can turn up serious help on all those things - to 500 FP/day, or more (depending on what you choose to lift...)... and it's part of the new game design, too.
