New Galactic Challenges Reward Structure

A reply to my post yesterday made me wonder if I'd missed something, so I went over the reward structures for Galactic Challenges, as they stand now and as they are apparently going to be starting in Episode 2.

Doing the math on the current reward structure:

There are 2 feats which can be completed F2P - win the battle with a specific faction, and win the battle while completing a specific task in combat.

Additionally, the feat for winning the battle with a new marquee character at a specific star level can be completed for tiers 1 and 2.

Based on the in-game reward structure, the maximum number of Episode Points that can be earned from 1 Galactic Challenge by free-to-play players currently is 10175, equivalent to just over two levels on the Episode rewards track.

This may be reduced, however, if the "win while accomplishing a specific thing in combat" feat is unable to be completed, or the faction for the GC is something like Tuskens/Jawas/Rebel Fighters. For the purpose of comparison, let's make the assumption that we are comparing an otherwise identical GC in terms of feats and factions, with the only difference being the reward structure.

Note that this assumes the new reward structure is flat across all tiers, as implied by CG's statement "These EP rewards will be consistent across all tiers of the GC [...]".

Immediately, we see that there is a real-terms drop in total EP available of 275, bringing the total down from just over 2 tiers on the Episode track to just under the second reward tier. So if every feat is completed, players are still receiving fewer EP than before.

Let's now look at a statement made by CG in the announcement of this update. "A F2P player who completes their available feats in any tier will now always earn more EP than when they had completed that same tier before."

From the table above, there are exactly 4 tiers which this holds true for - tiers 1 through 4 do reward more points under the new structure, while tier 5 rewards an identical number of points. (Assuming all feats are completed in each tier.) However, that isn't what CG claimed. Their claim was that F2P would earn more EP from any tier in the new reward structure than the old one.

Now admittedly, I'm only a physicist, not a mathematician, but I seem to recall that 5 does not equal 10. But maybe I'm being unfair. After all, CG have stuck to their promise of making EP more front-loaded in this structure, despite it still being a reduction from the old total.

So let's find out at what point in the new structure the cumulative EP total is no longer better than the current structure. For the purposes of calculation, we're making the same assumptions as in the previous table, i.e. all feats are completed, and the bonus feat for a 3 star marquee is completed.

From the comparison, the new system gives a higher cumulative EP total until tier 9 - quite impressive! So despite the overall drop, F2P are better off until tier 10, at which point the old structure would reward more. Of course, this is assuming that all the available feats are completed. How does this change if, for example, the faction feat or combat achievement can't be done?

Again, players are still getting a better amount of EP under the new system even if they can't complete 1 feat. If anything, a GC in which 1 feat isn't able to be completed is made better in the new system as the cumulative rewards are higher at every tier. Sadly this doesn't hold true if every feat is completed. It comes close, but 2nd place never gets gold.

But despite the claim that the GC updates are "smoke and mirrors", it...doesn't seem to be the case. At a "perfect" completion, with every available feat completed, the rewards are ever so slightly lower. But at every level up to that point, they are better. And these numbers will only be valid for Episode 3 onwards - in Episode 2, we have 4 feats which can be completed F2P due to the lack of any new marquee units.

GCs in future episodes which also have the 4 feat structure will be an improvement at every tier, as CG claimed. A 3 feat structured GC is an improvement at every tier minus the last one. And while the F2P feats only give 300 EP vs 450 EP for paywalled feats, this turns out to have very little negative effect on F2P players in practice.

Frankly, all CG have to do is add 125 EP to tier 9 and 150 EP to tier 10 to make up the 275 EP deficit in the new structure. Or, if they want to be really nice and stick to their promise of helping F2P, add those points to tiers 1 and 2.

But! The changes to the GC rewards don't appear in a vacuum. Because an update has been made to the Episode Track too. A 10000 EP reduction in the first 4 reward milestones, so in a full month we need 10k fewer EP to complete the F2P track. Let's break that down in terms of the GC update:

2 GCs per week, with a reduction of 275 EP per GC = 550 less EP per week.

Each Episode Track lasts 4 weeks, so 4 x 550 = 2200 less EP per Episode.

We need 10000 less, we earn 2200 less, for a net gain of 7800 EP per Episode, roughly 1.5 milestones of the Episode Track. So in real terms, the update is an improvement, if the players complete every feat. The exact mathematics based on individual experience are vastly more difficult to calculate, not least because I'd need to be able to see the future and also tweak them based on player rosters and skill levels.

So, despite the instinctive (and if we're being honest, understandable) feeling of "Okay, CG, what's the catch here?", it appears there isn't one. For now. "Subject to change", and all that. But at least for now, unless there's a glaring error in my calculations, I think I'll stick with my hearty handshake and "Job well done, keep it up CG."

Hopefully the improvements to GC and the Episode Track are indicative of a big batch of bug fixes (Scythe...) and QoL updates (TW/GAC) being released in the new year.