*Considers what exactly that did to EvE Online* *shakes his head*

There have been many suggestions about changing the 1EP/Min, and typically it is from new players wanting to 'catch up' like levels in themeparks.

Balance and other issues aside, just from a playablity stand point, if you could simply buy your way to the end of the extension setup, your game experience would be over. Unlike themeparks, there's not going to be an expansion of content every 6 to 18 months to entice you to come back and buy more EP. (the same applies to in-game grinding for additional EP instead of buying it).

It's just a fundamental difference between a persistent sandbox and something like WoW or a F2P online shooter.

Basically, it's not in the game's best interest to provide a way to bypass the EP progression. Modifying the cost of extensions, and adding new ones or refunding EP for changes yes, but 1 EP / Min is like the cornerstone of the whole system.

The thing is Perpetuum was never planned to be a f2p game, and hopefully never will. A new guy shouldn't wtfbbq a veteran that has played for 1 year just because his/her real life purse is flooding. That would ruin the game.

Real life money beyond subscriptions, if the game is a subscription-based game from the outset, should not be used to purchase an advantage.  While this thread is full of "older" players/alts who are trying to protect the e-peens that are threatened by the mere idea, I still think that the obviously biased opinions are perfectly valid.

On a side note, I'm all about trinkets like arkhe keychains and Sequer tee shirts to wear in real life and Hello Kitty pink Kains that are simmering with rainbow anger in the game pending it runs at a profit for AC's coffers and helps them buy more crossiants to misplace.

I sympathize with your position on this.  Harvesting is an exceptionally inefficient process given the state of my current skills.  On the other end of it, I'm willing and able to wait for EP to accrue over time at its own rate and I'm not really concerned if someone else happens to have more of something than I do.  I don't care if I keep up with the Jones' next door because, to be honest, I don't really care what they're doing.  I'm not competing with them, I'm just out to have fun and relax for a few hours here and there.

That said, as Arga mentioned, EP over time is one of the cornerstones of the game.  While I'm not here to defend the design decision to essentially follow in EVE Online's footsteps regarding character advancement, there is something to be said about it being a rather fixed entity at this point.

Perhaps there could be a "bonus point" system for players that are active in the game that will marginally increase their EP pool, but that may open Perp to exploitation activities from unsavory types that place being better relative to others on a high pedestal.

I'm going to use a variant of the cargo expansion and lightweight frame argument here.  Though I don't like it, it's relevant.  If AC decided to allow players to purchase a certain number of EP, then nearly everyone will purchase the absolute maximum amount.  The relative position of players among each other probably won't change and the move may serve to upset segments of the population that feel the whole effort was a waste of developers' time.

The short of it is I don't think there's a way to change it without either killing the basis of character progression, opening the world to exploitation, or doing something that changes nothing at all.  My best advice is to relax.  Go out there and have fun.  Nevermind that things aren't as optimal as they could be because its a game and it doesn't matter.  If you earn NIC or accomplish something great, kudos.  Don't force it to happen by glaring at the clock, watching time drag by like a crippled insect.  You'll rapidly turn fun into work.  Don't pay someone else for the right to go to pretend work after you're done with real life work.

Of course it isn't, so why not sell it? Actually they are already selling it, 1EP per minute in monthly packages...

wow. another misguided request :-)

1. there are only so many EP needed to master a certain bot/area of the game. no matter how long the veteran played, you will catch up eventualy.
2. the EP trickle allows you one thing: learn the game without concentrating on the grind.
3. experience goes over EP

The second point is the most important in my view.