Arctic Sun

Several of the City of Heroes servers received an impromptu party celebrating St. Patrick’s Day last Friday, when community members Lighthouse, Ex Libris, and Arctic Sun dropped in. They broadcast news of their arrival on the official in-game channels, and welcomed Heroes and Villains alike to a mixer at the Pocket D nightclub.

Much fun was had by all, and Special Titles were awarded to players who took the time to dress up in their best green attire. These temporary titles included: Pot O’Gold, Lucky Charm, Luck of the Irish, Leprechaun, and more.

The event was covered in full detail by w00t Radio who was in-game and broadcasting. You can see their fantastic gallery of screenshots here (keep your eyes peeled for the full range of special titles):

w00t Radio Official Gallery

The community team is looking forward to visiting servers more often with similar, spontaneous events.

Click here to discuss it.

Like a diamond-bladed sword, the Knives of Artemis are incomparably beautiful and deadly. Bewitching tales of the Knives of Artemis are told by military pundits and war journalists in awed tones around the world. Heroes speak of them with equal parts enthrallment and dread, because they are renowned for their charms as much as for their mercilessness.

Read the full entry here -- and check out the Top Secret file for character testimonials!

Thanks again to everyone who submitted an in-character testimonial! They were great fun to read through.

Oh, I know. But this way the people who just skim for "red name" posts get a chance to see it.

cheers,
Arctic Sun

For those of us not at GDC, here's some goodies to tide us over!

Check out the action-packed preview movie for the next ish.

I9 Preview Movie

Also check out GameSpot's Cryptic/NCsoft report from the GDC show floor. They talk to Positron, aka Matt Miller, and he lets a few more tiny teasers slip.

GameSpot reports on Positron at the GDC

(And yes, the I9 Movie should be up on our site shortly).

- Arctic Sun

[ QUOTE ]
I take it to mean you shouldn't submit artwork of your Hulk clone, as an example

[/ QUOTE ]

Bingo.

You can submit drawings (if you are the artist) of any characters NCsoft/Cryptic owns, which means all the signature characters (Ms. Liberty, Ghost Widow, Statesman, Recluse, Blue Steel, etc.), or any of your characters.

But that character cannot look similar to an image/character/trademark held by another company.

Clear?

cheers,
Arctic Sun

My recent call for art was well-received, so I thought I would see if the people in the RPG forums might have some fiction squirreled away, just waiting to be published.

There will be two more issues of the Top Cow Comic (19 & 20) before the run ends.

Afterwards, well, we'll see how else we can showcase your work.

But I'm looking for some good, short, punchy tales to close the comic book with. Shorter really is better this time around (1500 words *max*, and 700 - 1000 is best).

Possible themes:
* Super Groups in action
* Fighting the signature villains
* Your Hero's (or Villain's) greatest triumph (or loss!)

* Be as creative as you want, but keep it PG-rated. Files must be in .doc, .txt, or .rtf format.

Full guidelines can be found here.

Please submit stories to me, at cohsubmissions@ncsoft.com

cheers,
Arctic Sun

[ QUOTE ]
Are you sure you have to be the original artist? there are quite a few of us who have plenty of art done...but...well..

[/ QUOTE ]

Sadly, yes. That's what the Scary Lawyers (like the sound of Death touching me!) tell me.

cheers,
Arctic Sun

We are thrilled to present a preview teaser on Issue 9’s upcoming Statesman’s Task Force, directly from the desk of Positron (Matt Miller).

Check out the preview here, along with a series of exclusive screenshots of the tremendous action that awaits you in "Breakthrough!"

Please discuss it here!

We are thrilled to present a preview teaser on Issue 9’s upcoming Statesman’s Task Force, directly from the desk of Positron (Matt Miller).

Check out the preview here, along with a series of exclusive screenshots of the tremendous action that awaits you in "Breakthrough!"

Arctic Sun is about to die...well, no. Heaven forbid.

But I am finding the cohsubmissions box quite empty of art submissions of a sudden.

There are two more issues of the Top Cow comic (19 & 20), and I need several pieces of fan art for both comics. If you have something you've been working on, send it to me at

cohsubmissions@ncsoft.com

Full guidelines can be found here, but in brief:

- You MUST be the original artist.
- keep it family-friendly
- tell me how you want to be credited (your real name, character name, both)
- images must not be trademark violations
- The full image should be between 100 x 100 and 2000 x 2000 pixels and be less than 380KB in size. Images should be in JPG format. We may also ask for a higher resolution (300dpi) image in .tiff format – so make sure you save a high-resolution version of your submission!

After the Top Cow comic run ends, we'll be looking at some other options to continue to highlight some of the amazing work (art and fiction) you guys come up with!

cheers,
Arctic Sun

MMORPG has the first look at the next City of Heroes update — Issue 9: Breakthrough. News Editor Garrett Fuller sits down with Matt "Positron" Miller, the Lead Designer for Cryptic Studios' City of Heroes / Villains, to discuss the game's next free expansion.

Read the interview here.

One year ago at Valentine’s Day, DJ Zero reopened Pocket D to great success! It was imagined as a space where heroes from Paragon City and villains from the Rogue Isles could share a drink, have a dance, and call a temporary truce. Not only could rival forces socialize and get down on the dance floor, but they could even team up for special missions! With a jump to the left and a step to the right, it’s time to do the time warp again!

Read the full announcement here!

The Knives of Artemis, the hardcore assassin wing of the Malta Group, are one of the most feared groups in Paragon City.

The Knives of Artemis, love ‘em or hate ‘em, everyone’s got a favorite story of an encounter with these femme fatales.

We want to hear your stories. Keep ‘em short, and keep ‘em in character.

Make sure you include:

- Your character’s name.
- Server.
- Names of any allies you were working with at the time.
- Brief description of the event / encounter.

NOTE: I’ll be looking for the best bits to incorporate into the official Knives of Artemis Backgrounder. No promises that we’ll necessarily use any, of course, and we reserve the right to edit the testimonials in any way necessary to suit our purposes.

To post an In-Character Testimonial, go to this thread.

The Sky Raiders are a criminal mercenary group that operates in at least a dozen countries around the globe. They claim to be a legitimate private military company, that provides a wide range of services to legitimate governments, such as conducting reconnaissance and surveillance, initiating clandestine military operations, and training soldiers in special forces techniques. In addition to working for governments, the Sky Raiders are also known to have been in the service of transnational corporations (in particular diamond and oil megacorporations).

Read the full backgrounder here.

Discuss the Sky Raiders here!

Winter is blowing in across the bay to Paragon City™, and settling on the Rogue Isles™ like an icy blanket. New presents and threats await both heroes and villains this holiday season.

By simply logging in and visiting Paragon City or the Rogue Isles between December 14th and January 2nd*, your character will receive the Cold Front badge and a Fuzzy Earmuffs costume piece, so you can look stylish and keep warm while patrolling the streets (or committing nefarious deeds!).

You’ll also receive the Holiday Spirit Temporary Power, which grants 24 hours of Debt Protection.

But there's more - read the whole Winter Event description here.

Faultline has undergone some pretty radical changes since its original state as a Trial zone. This guide describes some of the background fiction to the changes, and also includes an in-depth look at the zone by Cryptic’s own Melissa “War Witch” Bianco, game designer.

Read here for her perspective on the changes.

Click here to talk about this feature on the General Discussion Forum.

Faultline has undergone some pretty radical changes since its original state as a Trial zone. This guide describes some of the background fiction to the changes, and also includes an in-depth look at the zone by Cryptic’s own Melissa “War Witch” Bianco, game designer.

Read here for her perspective on the changes.

Aw shucks.

Thanks guys ... or "brothers and sisters" if I was to reply in character. I really appreciate it.

Thanks Samoa, for posting; and a secret northern handshake to Farwielder, as a brother Canuck; and hugs back to all the girls.

And of course thanks to everyone else who popped by this thread for well-wishes.

And also, Melancton said:

[ QUOTE ]

Handing out titles in Pocket D until everyone in line got one, even though it meant not finishing until WAY after the event was officially done in the wee hours is Uber Fantastic Tip-of-the-Hat People Skills.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, I did actually have to cut the line off at some point, or it would never have ended. But it was a helluva lot of fun ... maybe I'll pop around some of the servers tonight.

(I'm actually taking tonight as a quiet one, to work some more on my writing. The big party will have to happen back in Toronto soon).

You guys are really the best community.

cheers,
JS / Arctic Sun

That was great. You guys really made my day.

"Few villains understand the psychology of dealing with a patrolling Paragon hero. Your normal villain will panic and immediately surrender over to the side of the mayhem mission. This is wrong. It arouses contempt in the hero-heart. Make the punk chase you into a safe-guard mission. He will follow."

cheers,
JS / Arctic Sun

Ahem.

Nothing to see here...wiseguys.

Should be fixed now.

JS / Arctic Sun

Bathrobes, A3, escarole and cannoli couldn't all fit, but we included what we could to bring the story of Paragon's Mafia to light.

The Family Backgrounder

And please note the (long-awaited) winners of the Family player screenshot contest - Lektrik and Robin King. This is a long time coming, but those were great shots. (See them in the Classified File). Thanks to all who entered, and congrats to the winners!

cheers,
JS / Arctic Sun

Sometimes the answers are easy.

Halloween's shadow (read: the event duration) will stretch from October 18 until November 1st.

An official email will be sent out the day the event begins, and should include the specific time the event will conclude on the 1st.

cheers,
JS / Arctic Sun

Even in a city where many citizens dress in unique costumes to battle real mystical threats, Halloween is a special time of year. While Paragon City's Halloween holiday was dampened last year by renewed hostilities from the Rogue Isles, this year's October events look to be even more promising than before, with record numbers of citizens all over the city ready to welcome trick-or-treaters of all ages.

Read about the Halloween event here.

[ QUOTE ]
Totally not an attempt at being rude, Artic_sun! But, er, well.. if we are discouraged from creating Bizarro signature game personalities, AND nobody will understand a Praetorian of one of our own in-game characters.. what makes one of the submitted characters stand out as a Praetorian other than that..... he's from that dimension?

Isn't it a better thematic shock to see a familiar character behaving as his opposite?

[/ QUOTE ]

You're not discouraged from it at all. I'm trying to set out my expectations clearly, and to explain the obvious hurdles.

The story we are using for issue 16 involved a player's character, and her encounter with the Praetorian version of Atlas. It was very poignant in a short amount of space.

There are a lot of Praetorians already named - Tyrant, Chimera, Anti-Matter, Neuron, Dominatrix, etc. That's a large cast to work with and to select from. The guidelines are for when you want to go off course. (And as mentioned, the first story did that, and did it well).

And for those looking for more info on the Praetorians, check out Warcry's Information. It's a good starting place.

cheers,
Arctic Sun

Maybe...

cheers,
Arctic Sun