Zereck_Goldmoon

Hey PVP boards, how are you all doing? I am just getting into PVP with my VG at times, and while I don't do badly in PVP with my PVE build, I am still pretty weak.

After playing around with Mids, lurking around here a while, and watching some Recluse's Victory battles, I devised the build below for my Fire/Cold. Not counting the Blessing of the Zephyrs, I pretty much have the recipes or at least the money to buy some of these cheaper IO sets that aren't in demand (I only have 300 million infamy).

As you can see, I focused on HP bonuses, tried slotting what hold procs I could, and put what KB protection I could spare. Also, the reason most of the IO sets are at 28 is because of zone PVP bonuses. Yeah, yeah, I know they're empty, but still.

Semi-unrelated, what is a good KB protection number? Why do I see people rushing to get to the 40's in KB protection?

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.621
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Firewinter: Level 50 Mutation Corruptor
Primary Power Set: Fire Blast
Secondary Power Set: Cold Domination
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Leviathan Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Flares -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg(A), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(5), Dev'n-Hold%(7), Entrpc-Acc/Dmg(9), Entrpc-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(13)
Level 1: Infrigidate -- Achilles-ResDeb%(A), Acc-I(11), Acc-I(11), LdyGrey-%Dam(19), LdyGrey-DefDeb/EndRdx(19)
Level 2: Fire Blast -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(5), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(7), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(9), Dev'n-Hold%(13)
Level 4: Ice Shield -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(43), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(46)
Level 6: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 8: Combat Jumping -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(23)
Level 10: Glacial Shield -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(27), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(43)
Level 12: Super Jump -- Zephyr-ResKB(A), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx(23), HO:Micro(37), ULeap-Stlth(43)
Level 14: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Numna-Heal(15), Numna-Heal/EndRdx(15), Mrcl-Rcvry+(48)
Level 16: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(17), RechRdx-I(17)
Level 18: Super Speed -- Zephyr-ResKB(A), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx(37), HO:Micro(37)
Level 20: Stamina -- P'Shift-EndMod(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(21), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(21), P'Shift-End%(48)
Level 22: Arctic Fog -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), Krma-ResKB(40), S'fstPrt-ResKB(42)
Level 24: Aim -- GSFC-ToHit/Rchg(A), GSFC-ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(25), GSFC-Rchg/EndRdx(25), Rec'dRet-Pcptn(27)
Level 26: Blaze -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg(A), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx(29), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(29), Decim-Acc/Dmg(31), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(36)
Level 28: Benumb -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31), Acc-I(33), Acc-I(33)
Level 30: Blazing Bolt -- Mantic-Dam%(A), Mantic-Acc/Dmg(33), Mantic-Dmg/EndRdx(34), Mantic-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), Mantic-Dmg/ActRdx/Rchg(34)
Level 32: Acrobatics -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 35: Sleet -- Achilles-ResDeb%(A), RechRdx-I(36), RechRdx-I(36), LdyGrey-%Dam(48), LdyGrey-DefDeb/Rchg/EndRdx(50)
Level 38: Heat Loss -- RechRdx-I(A), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg(39), Efficacy-Acc/Rchg(39), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(39), P'Shift-Acc/Rchg(40), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(40)
Level 41: Shark Skin -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/EndRdx(A), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(42), S'fstPrt-ResKB(42)
Level 44: Spirit Shark Jaws -- G'Wdw-Acc/Hold/Rchg(A), G'Wdw-Dam%(45), G'Wdw-Acc/Rchg(45), NrncSD-Dam%(45), NrncSD-Acc/Rchg(46), NrncSD-Acc/Hold/Rchg(46)
Level 47: Snow Storm -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 49: Hibernate -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(50), RechRdx-I(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Scourge
Level 4: Ninja Run

I recommend "Celebrity Kidnapping" (#1388) by @PW. Pokes good fun at Paris Hilton if she were a fire-blasting mutant and has enough backstabbing between all the villainous parties to brighten (darken?) any villain's day.

I'll plug "All in the Family" (#128109) because it's the better of my two arcs and I have to thank Venture for the accolades and nomination for Dev's Choice-ing. :P

"All in the Family" (# 128109) has two places with a loss.
* In mission one, there's a lieutenant-level custom ally to rescue at the back of the mission and take her to the door.
* In mission three, a boss-level Family Consigliere critter spawns in the front to help the player defeat a boss-level Martial Arts Longbow critter (in case the player sucks fighting MA Scrappers...).

Brokering the Brickers (# 37724) has no allies at all, so it's untouched by the patch.

I ought to make that third arc, now, but it seems I'll need to work around the need for allies.

Thanks for the detailed review, GlaziusF! I appreciate it. I'll just answer for the last few points...

Venture has re-reviewed "All in the Family" and gave it not only 5 stars, but a high recommendation! You can read his short review here.

As of this writing, the final mission bug to eliminate the bosses only in "All in the Family" is still around. Maybe I15 will change that. I also plan to alter and remove powers available to all of my custom critters once I15 hits.

Currently, the final mission of "All in the Family" is slightly bugged. The two bosses you are supposed to kill are under the "Boss Only Required to Complete" option, but all of their bodyguards need to go down to complete the objective.

More details can be found here.

I have updated All in the Family (ID 128109) after your review of it, and would appreciate a re-rate (or just opinions on the plot changes). Hopefully they don't come off as Wall Banger-ish.

The only downside is that the latest patch caused the "Only Boss needed to complete" detail on the elderly Raffaellis to get bugged, and all of their bodyguards need to perish with them. That's the MA's fault and not mine, though.

Perhaps you'll consider letting at least one go this time? They do run at 1/4 HP or if they're the only ones left standing.

Reviews by Venture.

Brokering the Brickers: 3 Stars
All in the Family: 4 Stars

Both arcs have been edited after these reviews, but All in the Family was revisited more heavily to avert the plot holes Venture brought up.

On one of my arcs, I have set all of my custom bosses to be defeated (and complete the objective) if the player only defeats them, without clearing the area around them.

However, on the final mission of this arc, the objectives are only completed if the two bosses AND their bodyguards are defeated, even though the entire point of the last mission is that these two bosses need only be defeated to complete the arc, story-wise.

The bosses are both minion-class, set to run at 25% health or if only 1 minion remains (i.e. they run if the minions around them are all defeated). They spawn an ambush at 25% but the ambush isn't necessary to complete the objective.

This final mission is timed and both bosses have their requirements at "Only Boss needed to complete", but nevertheless the entire group must be killed. I have repeatedly checked to see if the defeat condition didn't reverse to "entire encounter needed to complete", and it's still boss-only.

This is very annoying, considering the story implications of defeating those two weak bosses. Before the patch, everything was working well, but now the defeat condition isn't working 100%.

Thanks again, Venture! I'll give this review the same reply treatment...

[ QUOTE ]
The Boss calls one ambush, you get one when Hanna is sprung and another right on your heels as you hit the door.

[/ QUOTE ]
I thought I removed the PPD Grenadier's ambush from the arc... Damn you, Republish!

[ QUOTE ]
Hanna unfortunately doesn't have the information any more, her notes having been confiscated by an Inspector Rosa Hadley. You'd think someone in the information business would have a bit of a memory, but, moving on...

[/ QUOTE ]
Can you believe I didn't realize that? I'll change it so that she just got started on her work (and hence has little info), but was quickly interrupted by the PPD.

[ QUOTE ]
The witness turns out to be Giovanni “Lucky” Scalia, a Super Strength/Willpower (I think) Boss. His dialog indicates he knows Raffaelli is after him.

[/ QUOTE ]
Giovanni is Super Strength/Super Reflexes, to match his nickname.

[ QUOTE ]
Here, the plot pulls something of a Wall Banger. Raffaelli tells you that both men are ex-Family members. Corleone is said to have joined Longbow but Scalia was supposedly allowed to quit. No one quits organized crime. Ever. I might believe that someone defected to Longbow and was thus too well-protected to take out, but nobody just quits. They might be allowed to “retire” in some way but the only way out of cosa nostra is feet first. I'll chalk this up to Did Not Do The Research and move on...

[/ QUOTE ]
Did Not Do the Research it is. I figured that Scalia's promise to not rat on the cops and live a quiet little life would keep the mob off his back. Too naive of me, I guess. I'll edit that detail so that he seeks PPD protection after he realizes what the deal is.

[ QUOTE ]
There's the aforementioned bit about someone quitting the Family. The “anonymous tip” in the first act stands out as a seeming Chekhov's Gun violation. One obvious answer might seem to be that Raffaelli himself called it in, but that grinds up against the later reveal.

[/ QUOTE ]
I was hoping that wouldn't be a problem. Perhaps... Dirt Digger? DUN DUN DUNNNNNN! But no. I may just chalk it up to a random law-abiding citizen noticing a well-armed and ninja-like woman sneaking into an office building. Or previously unknown alarms go off.

[ QUOTE ]
Raffaelli's promotion rubs me the wrong way but that's largely because of the difference between what a consigliere is in real life and what one is in City.

[/ QUOTE ]
I have no idea how the Family promotes its members other than being really bloody and loyal. I was considering making Vincenzo an Underboss, but his dislike of killing would probably make him less excited about the promotion. Consiglieres may just do the easy stuff... something Vincenzo can hide behind.

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If it were me I'd put a note in the success debriefing that his body is found a few weeks later....

[/ QUOTE ]
I never quite liked "Epilogue"-style finishes in the debriefing, even though they may wrap up a good story. I left a little note in the souvenir (success or failure) about what sort of personal hell Vincenzo is going through.

[ QUOTE ]
There are a few references to what the mob used to be, an organization formed to protect powerless workers, but it hasn't been that for centuries and no one seriously tries to describe it that way any more.

[/ QUOTE ]
I needed to find some plausible way to make Marcello, a defector to Longbow to do good, be in the Family in the first place. I figured making the Family have good PR would be a nice step, but again my ignorance of organized crime shows. I'll have to reconsider Marcello's backstory a bit more.

[ QUOTE ]
Aside from these problems the writing, particularly the dialog, is excellent. If the plot issues were corrected this would be a stellar example of what the Architect system is capable of.

[/ QUOTE ]
Thank you for the compliment! I'll set off on making this arc be of the highest possible quality, and perhaps others will grant the poor elderly folks a chance to escape the mob's death grip, you evil villain.

First off, thanks again for reviewing my arc, Venture. I'll go into more detail regarding the points you raised here.

[ QUOTE ]
The first first lead sends you to an Arachnos base to take out an unnamed "special target" and retrive his or her notebook. If I don't know the name then how...oh, never mind.

[/ QUOTE ]
I've changed this now to include the target's name (and powers, considering Hanna's supposed to be good at espionage). Beforehand, I was aiming for the player's decision to play along and kill on Hanna's word to be a test of trust. As in, "Here's a gun, go kill the person in the other room". I realize that's bad form, but I played it straight. Plus, Hanna could be being watched, and she doesn't want people to track this to her.

[ QUOTE ]
The first thing I found that looked out of place was "Dirt Digger", an Earth Control/Stone Melee Boss that dropped me instantly. Adding to the inconvenience, she was in the huge Arachnos "reactor room", meaning on the rematch as soon as I hit her she went flying off into the wild black yonder. I managed to stay with her allllllll the way to the floor and finished her off.

[/ QUOTE ]
I blame this on the fact I left all maps for this arc on random. I didn't realize the green reactor room of death (isn't it like 40 stories high?) was in the roulette. I've changed it to a relatively straightforward map. I was hoping the patrol and NPC chatter would reveal the target, her powers, and purpose for being in the base.

[ QUOTE ]
Midas was a Super Strength/Invul EB, seeming to lack status protection (this may have been the PToD bug if he was intended as an AV).

[/ QUOTE ]
I was struggling with the decision to make him an EB or all-out AV (scaled to EB plus PToD) for soloists. I decided to leave him at EB level to save Dominators the pain of not being able to lay down control, but I may reconsider that when a larger team comes a-knockin'.

[ QUOTE ]
When you get out you peek at Hanna's data, despite her having told you not to. You are told (but not shown) that it contains ominous data on Operation Destiny and the "Destined Ones".

[/ QUOTE ]
I ran out of characters, hehe. I have altered the final mission's clue with actual examples of the "ominous data", hinting at some of the things the player may find in the game lore.

[ QUOTE ]
This is a decent arc, but it's really not much more than an extended newspaper run. There is no theme. It writes a lot of checks it really can't cash, tossing around references to big dark secrets that don't go anywhere because they can't. It's not bad, but it doesn't really stand out in any way.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is probably the biggest concern I had writing the arc. I knew JABOSTH was a very likely claim to come up when I asked this arc to be reviewed, but in the story I have written out, I can't really find any way to make the story be meaningful or challenging to the player's morality. Early on it was just a straight run from A to B, so I added the option of betraying Hanna and siding with the Gold Brickers.

It's funny, too, because this arc was the one I was most interested in fleshing out. Siding with a broker and getting a peek at the future stuff you'll see in your levels? Sounds fun. Too bad I can't go past that in level 20, and all the big conspiracies like Aeon's PST are addressed in Tarikoss's Strike Force.

A new arc has been made!

Arc Title: All in the Family
Arc ID: 128109
Synopsis: A Family capo has gotten a task from his bosses that could very well push him to consigliere. He has asked for you because of your reliability and loose morals, and he wishes for a number of unlucky witnesses to be put in the morgue. However, this isn't any old hit, and the capo may be well regretting ever entering into the mob...
Morality: Villanous
Level Range: 21-30 (one mission 21-29)
Estimated Difficulty: Moderate (two custom Bosses)
Number of Missions: 1 medium-sized map, 3 small-sized maps, no uniques
Arc Notes: This story arc is meant to be RP'ed as if you were in the 25-30 range, working around Sharkhead Isle and peeking at St. Martial. Your villain is respected in the Isles, and even the Family wants your unique talents to be put to good use. The question is, will you risk your humanity in the pursuit of power?

Because everyone and their dog is advertising their arcs here, I figure I'd add my arc to the list.

Arc Title: Brokering the Brickers
Arc ID: 37724
Synopsis: A coded message in the Rogue Isle Protector is calling for your expertise as a freelancer. Hanna the Ghost, a new broker in the Rogue Isles, is rising in the ranks thanks to her good work, but she has had her precious information stolen. She has called for you, but the job is on a need-to-know basis...
Morality: Villanous
Level Range: 8-20
Estimated Difficulty: Moderate (one custom Boss, one custom EB)
Number of Missions: 3 medium-sized maps, no uniques
Arc Notes: This story arc is meant to be RP'ed as if you were in the 15-20 range, working around Cap Au Diable. Your villain is getting the hang of how things work in the Rogue Isles and getting famous, but the deeper secrets and ominous facets of Arachnos and other groups is starting to make itself known.

If you happen to play it, let me know in-game what you thought, or write it out here! I've already gotten complaints to both make my clues more diverse (leading to what it is now, especially in mission 2), to making them smaller and more succinct. I'll try to strike a happy medium, but I really do wish you could mark some clues as non-essential so they'd disappear after talking to the contact.

Pains me to ask, but I'll take any criticism available before I use my other two arc slots. You don't pull any punches, so I could use your opinion.

Arc Name: Brokering the Brickers
ID: 37724
Synopsis: A rising star amongst Rogue Isles brokers has had her most precious commodity stolen: information. She has specifically contacted you to chase down the thieves and get her data back.

Be sure to read the clues/souvenir, and if you're up for some entertainment, mission 2's extra clues as well. Writing's my main concern here, although if you have some opinion on the EB and later AV, feel free to say so.

Arc Name: Brokering the Brickers
Arc ID: 37724
Faction: Villainous
Creator Global: @Zereck Goldmoon
Difficulty Level: Moderate for a duo, somewhat difficult for a soloer
Synopsis: A rising star amongst Rogue Isles brokers has had her most precious commodity stolen: information. She has contacted you specifically to chase down the thieves and get her data back.
Estimated Playtime: About 45 minutes, if you like to read clues, souvenirs, and even the contact's "why aren't you doing that mission" dialogue.

Vietnam - Jimmy Cliff

Cheekah Bow Bow (That Computer Song) - Vengaboys

III. The Young Prince and the Young Princess - Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov

You Wanna Get Me High - The Donnas

Mysterious Ways - U2

Show Me Love - t.A.T.u.

Live and Let Die - Guns N' Roses

Paradise City - Guns N' Roses

Heat of the Night - Aqua

Commotion - Creedence Clearwater Revival

I'm sorry for the double post (could not edit my original as time limit had expired), but I bring updated news regarding Leery's status with my Level 29 Dominator.

On the Test Server, looking to test out a potential build in part, I recalled what people had said here in the guide about using the Respecs and Leery's negatory answer. With that in mind, I used my Respec and quickly dropped by Leery, and the result? He told me to seek out either Sparcetriel or Trespaciel to "prove myself".

Here's what I am thinking. You know how the Respec badge, when not used yet, reads that you stole the nexus of the tree, but you have to use it to reform yourself? And after you use it, you gain the badge again with an updated description saying you used the nexus? Perhaps Leery wants to "see" a "shard" of the nexus, in the form of an unused Respec/badge, before he gives you his missions.

So, here's what I know so far.
1) Not using the Respec from Sparcetriel qualifies you for Leery.
2) Using the Respec from Sparcetriel has Leery tell you to prove yourself.

Regarding Arbiter Leery...

My Dominator is Level 29 (still plenty of time until he's unlockable), but I also have been worried about whether or not he would tell me to "seek the demons" or if I should go pester someone else.

I believe I got lucky. Arbiter Leery told me that he would have work for me on Level 35, that I should return then. I believe I am set for doing his missions, but I will only know when I reach 35.

Status regarding my Respecs
-I've participated only in the first Respec (Sparcetriel), and have only ever done it once.
-I was not the leader.
-I have not used my Respec yet; my accolade reads to "talk to Arbiter Lupin".

With such information, I am guessing that we need to do only one of the Respec trials and NOT use the Respec given.

Here's the screenshot. I took this on the Live server. You can even see me, newbie that I am, asking the global channel about how to turn on the User Interface in Screenshots.