The Problem with Raid Apexes

So when it comes to obtaining DNA, there used to be 3 ways of doing that. First, you could receive it through incubators via purchases or battling. Next, you could go outside and dart creatures, and 3rd, you could use the DNA you got from the first 2 methods and fuse it into hybrids. Apexes introduced a 4th way of obtaining DNA: raids. Raids aren't bad. Can they be tedious and annoying? Yes. But are they bad, not really. However, the Apex raids can be a bit controversial. This is because Arctovasilis introduced the fusible Apex. This causes a bit of controversy as while many people want balance for all rarities, Apexes may be the one rarity where imbalance is a good thing.

Now am I saying that raid apexes should be worse than fusible apexes? Yes. I don't want to beat around the bush this time. I believe raid apexes should be worse than their fusible counterparts. Now why is that? Well, let's look at some raid strategies and you'll see why this is an issue.

Now, I won't be diving into the apexes that suck like Ceramagnus because, well, it's just a lousy apex. However there are 3 main culprits I want to look at. Let's start off with the 3rd most problematic apex: Refrenantem. Now this apex is one of the few creatures to receive a nerf within the past few patches, but, despite that, it's still a very solid pick. Super Distraction is one of the strongest moves in the game, and with all it's distraction and resistances, it's a pain to break through without any sort of resilient. And while it's dropping off in the shores, the same cannot be said about the lower arenas like the Library. I'm personally in the Library, and Refrenantem is a very common sight. And how low down in the arena can you be while still obtaining Refrenantem? Well, pretty low.

However, while it's the weakest of the 3, it's raid carry strategy has possibly the lowest bound of entry as you only need a level 13 Irritator. That's right, if you're a bit of a night owl for a week, and level 18 (however if you're at level 18 you should already have irritator at that level), you can start working towards an apex while you're still using level 20 legendaries. Yay!!

Next up is a titan that has really fallen off in the last couple of patches. Imperatosuchus is still a solid creature, but it struggles vs a lot of the biggest new comers like the new wolves, Panthera B, Pyrorixis, Tyrannometrodon, Dsungascorpios, and so on. However, pretty much all of those creatures are not at a similar level in arenas like the Lockwood Library or Aviary, where I personally have seen people with Imperatosuchus. Now, you do need something much stronger than a level 15 Irritator that is true, but a level 19 Diloranosaurus is a pretty obtainable goal. So now you have a creature that you can slowly, but easily level up that will dominate an arena where creatures like Thor and the unique Sauropods roam. So if you find yourself a couple of friends with high-powered Mortems and you get to have something that'll slaughter all those Scorpios gen 3s and Thors you come across. 

Finally, this is the biggest offender by far. Now Imperatosuchus and Refrenantem have definitely fallen off in the overall meta, but Pteranokyrie is literally competing for the #1 spot in the game. It is harder to prove that Pteranokyrie isn't a top 3 creature than to prove it is in the top 3. You have a swap in, an on escape, an ability to force others to swap, stupidly good resistances and immunities, an insanely strong kit, and really good stats as well as a counter. And how can you get Pteranokyrie? Well, if you spent a bit of time in a park and zone 2 to just get Andrewtherium to level 12, now you have access to one of the best creatures in the game!

Now, is this true in practice? This is all a bunch of theory, but do players actually exist. Yes, yes they do. In fact while starting to write this very article, I was doing a bit of battling in the arena and came across this team:

Everything was fully boosted except for the Erlidominus, which was completely unboosted. This shows that this player’s 8th best option was a level 23 unique, meaning the rest of their team is probably around that level. Again, it goes back to the whole apex controversy that happened before the locking of raids with people getting these really strong creatures when they shouldn’t. And while a level 27 Pteranokyrie may not seem that bad, it still packs a punch and can slaughter any popular level 30 unique in the library and gyrosphere or just force them to swap. 

First up, we should NOT make these raids harder. Why? Because no matter how hard people try, there always seems to be some sort of carry strategy that'll eventually pop up. The community is smart and they'll find a way to allow this. So the only real option is toning these powerful raid apexes down. So, where should these raid apexes fall in terms of strength? Well, I think that some overlap between the fusible apexes and the raid apexes are fine with maybe something like Arctovasilas being worse than 2 or 3 fusible apexes, but it should still be better than the majority of raid apexes. So, in my opinion, these raid apexes should cap out in strength to where about Hydra Boa is about now. It’s still a very solid creature in the lower arenas, but it’s not a big fish in a small pond either. And I mean some apexes like Ceramagnus and Gorgotrebax should even get a slight buff, but nothing that catapults them to be as good as Indolycan.

Well, that's my little rant on that topic. Do I want to see these creatures nerfed to the ground? No. Should they be as good as they are? Also no. I mean while some are falling off in the shores, there are other arenas that do exist where this is an issue. And this is also just my stance on this topic. However, I thank you for reading and make sure you dart your legendaries today! Happy Playing!