BackFire

Way to go PW!!

I'll nominate an oldie but goodie:

#2595, The Extadine Lab
by @Vanden

For a 1 mission arc it accomplishes a whole lot and make very creative use of MA mechanics to play with your mind.

Actually, I was on that team with PW and I think the problem came from it being a large team. The Skulls' powers stack up pretty fast and what you think is a small map becomes HUGE when it spawns for a larger team.

Team wipes weren't limited to just mission 3, we had plenty of them from the get-go. Admittedly, our team was a bit on the squishy side, but we normally perform better than a random pug and a random pug would get eaten alive on this arc.

My thoughts on the arc were it's a good concept, but lacks execution.

Misison 1: the map is too big for a "filler" mission. When we rescued the "inside guy" he was dead before I even got a chance to see if he was wearing a 'no left turn' sign. I'm guessing an ambush took him out? I was still fighting my way thru the stacked mezzes when we got the big FAIL.

Mission 2: Hellion spawns were buggy. Some were at level 14 (5 levels below the group) and others were at the correct lvl: 19. There didn't seem to be a pattern as to why some groups were grey and others were right. Aside from that, this mish was fine.

Mission 3: As mentioned above, the custom Skulls hit really, really hard. The ambushes didn't help matters at all. I can't imagine a team of lowbies trying to take this misison on at all. I, personally, had extra insp slots and IOs since I was exemplared and still wound up sucking floor repeatedly. A single custom Bone Daddy was able to take me out with his alpha and we were facing groups with multiple bosses and LTs. Ick.


Also, as mentioned by PW, the map is too large for a defeat all, esp. considering you have more defeat alls to follow.

I was curious how the 'no clues' concept would play out and I found it was harder to follow the story without them. Often the dialogue happened off-screen so you have to keep an NPC Chat window open to follow it. And in the heat of battle you don't have time to read. Plus, we had PW join later and, without clues, was shut out of the story. I think it was a good experiment, but I don't think it works in a practical manner.

Finally, the contact needs some personality. The dialogue is very dry and expositionary. I understand it's neccessary, since you're not using clues, but Teardrop needs her own "voice." Is she a Jersey Girl? A valley girl? Emo? She didn't come off as street smart, sweet, or anything. Aside from her look (which was great BTW) she's completely forgettable.

Ocho arrived at his local comic shop to find that the Rikti: the Gathering tournament had already started.

If I am a winner, I permit NC Interactive, Inc. and NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown, and any comments that I may make about myself or this contest that I provide for advertising and promotional activities. I also certify that I am at least 13 years of age and am eligible to participate in this contest.

Man, I take one day off the forums and almost miss the big announcement. Grats S12!! And you were worried you'd lose to the 1 mission arc entry? Hah!

This sounds like a great concept and I love the thought process you've put into revamping the standard enemy groups. I'll be sure to suggest your arcs to the MA SuperTeam for this weekend's run.

Saturday was a fun time with a full team. Not sure where WN found 'em, but we ran 2 player-made TFs (or at least tried to.)

First up was:
The Hidden Agenda [Agent Six Task Force] by @Master Koga Arc ID: 356334

I was a bit wary before we even loaded up the arc due to the typo in the description and the warnings of extreme AVs, EBs and such. But I love Agent Six and was hopeful it'd be good.

Turns out, I was right to be wary. Agent Six sends you off to investigate "a secret group that apparently control the US government behind the curtains and have a mysterious hidden agenda for global control." (author's words, not mine.)

The setup never gives the player any motivation to do the missions, the briefings are chock full of bad spelling & grammar, and the premise was just not well thought out:

• Why didn't Agent 6 do this herself?
• Why is the secret contact we're meeting in Paragon City instead of New Mexico, where the secret group is?
• Why is he meeting on (not 'in', apparently) a warehouse in Atlas instead of just taking the tram to Founders & meeting with Agent 6? I mean, he's already come all the way from New Mexico! Why not travel the extra 5 minutes to Founders?
• What's the secret contact's connection to the super-secret group?
• How did the secret contact get the info on this super-secret group?
• Why did he contact Agent 6 instead of the hero of New Mexico?
• Why do I care?

Okay, so I could look past all the flaws in the setup but the missions are a mess, too.

• Custom enemies with stacking smoke grenades and stuns.
• Extreme AVs, & EBs for really no reason.
• Recolored enemies in a custom group, but with standard bios.
• Sappers in a recolored custom group, which means they will spawn in every group instead of a few random ones.
• Secret contact has 'hapless citizen' standard bio.
• Mission 2 requires us to sneak into a base...and defeat all. Isn't that pretty much the exact opposite of being stealthy?
• Oh, and the Defeat All is on a large map, ugh.

After many a defeat and one of the most untimely Zeus Titan ambushes ever, we all decided this story was going nowhere and quit.

I guess we'll never solve the mystery of the mysterious shadow group from New Mexico that secretly controls the secret government and has a secret plot to control the globe, secretly, but nobody's ever heard of them...except Agent 6 and some random hapless citizen with everything you need to know about the super-secret mystery shadow group in one convenient file that he got mysteriously, somehow...

But for some reason, I think we'll get over it.

** 2 Stars - 1 for each time the author spelled "once" as "ones," which I found extremely funny for some reason.

So, fresh off that train wreck, we load up:
Ares Strike Force by @Nylonus Arc ID: 356041

The concept of this one sounded interesting. Essentially it's a shorter remake of the RSF and the story of bickering Gods.

I liked that the dialogue was very tongue-in-cheek and that Ares spoke in a modern, colloquial manner, it's a nice twist, but it's strange that he still dresses in gladiator clothing. You'd think his wardrobe would reflect modern times as his speech pattern does.

The set up was good, except it lacked a proper motivation for the player. Just a simple edit like, saying he's chosen the player as his champion because his/her past deeds have drawn his attention would fix that right up. Also, that's something that could be developed in further missions and dangled like a carrot to give the player a reason to stick his/her neck out thru the arc.

I really enjoyed the map choices and the missions earned the 'challenging' rating, but didn't go over the top. A standard team should be able to handle them, but soloists beware.

The only thing that really stood out as needing attention was mission 4. There was no real set-up for it, it kind of felt thrown in...if it was deleted the story would probably be better for it.

It just felt 'rushed' or out of place.

• Why are PPD in Olympus?
• Why don't the other Gods talk in the same modern speech pattern as Ares?
• If it's this easy to storm Olympus and defeat the Gods, why haven't we done it before and what's stopping us from beating up Ares and taking his place as a God, ourselves?

Like I said, it was solid up until that point, and would have still had a satisfying ending if there wasn't a mission 4 at all.

**** 4 Stars -That last mission and the lack of player motive knocked it down a notch.

I missed Sunday's action, so someone else will have to post their thoughts on those arcs.

I'm hoping we get a giant monster this time! *fingers crossed*

This week on 'where are they now?'...90's pop-sensation: Milli-Vanilli!

If I am a winner, I permit NC Interactive, Inc. and NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown, and any comments that I may make about myself or this contest that I provide for advertising and promotional activities. I also certify that I am at least 13 years of age and am eligible to participate in this contest.

Sorry, this was just so poetic I had to share:

Player1: hello guys
Player2: hi
Player3: hey there
Player1: what are you guys up to?
Player3: im just acually reminising wit Player2 lol
Player2: lol good times
Player1: lol
Player3: we were talkin bout how the game was so much better without ae
Player1: yeah it ruined the game
Player2: alot better
Player1: for sure
Player1: it messed up the economy and got people spoiled to power lvling
Player1: its hard to find the balance between the two.
Player3: yea its like a drug
Player1: it sucks
Player1: well im off to power lvl my friend lol
Player3: lol wanna join ou tam
Player3: our*
Player3: team*
Player1: what are you farming?
Player3: 2012 - speed run but i can do somethin else
Player2: lol it would be nice if we could get enough people to petition i would love it gone
Player1: im doing robots
Player1: im kind of down to do a real farm
Player3: we should do smackdown
Player2: my fav
Player1: which one is that?
Player3: by princess
Player3: the one with the chicks
Player1: hows the xp?
Player3: boss chick
Player2: troopers mish
Player3: its a real farm
Player2: great exp
Player3: yea
Player2: but its really hard lol
Player1: okay can i lead?
Player2: sure
Player1: okay

(Actual names have been changed to protect the hypocritical.)

Sunday we had a small turnout so we played thru Sister Twelve's newest Dr. A challenge arc
ID #375420, Night Calls the Weaver, by @SisterTwelve.

S12 crafts a very deeply detailed story with a definite tone and voice of its own. The story is still in it's final proofing stages but looks like it will be a solid contender when it's all done.

I don't want to leave a review of it, as it's still being worked on, but it's definitely worth a run-thru for those story-driven players.

Be warned, this arc is very prose-heavy...it took us 2.5 hours to complete, reading & proofing every bit of dialogue, each clue and the very detailed (and I would contentend, 'vital') contact busy text. The time mostly came from reading, as the actual mission objectives were standard, quick, and appropriate for an arc at such a low level...nothing too difficult.

Due to the amount of reading, personal nature, and access to Busy text, I'd suggest this arc be played solo.

Cheers, WN!! May you be blessed with 5 stars

Maybe he meant the zombie invasion badges, I know I picked up a couple of those at the event, myself

BTW- these mini events just keep getting better and better. I know they're just silly fun, but adding in that tiny bit of background and motivation for the characters made it much more enjoyable.

I'd still like to see a Giant Monster spawn for the final wave...Adamastor or Caleb would have been great, or even some rarer AVs ala Envoy of Shadows, Lilitu, or the Blade Prince Tireses. But really, when you've got that many heroes in one place it just BEGS for a giant monster!

Thanks Ocko, keep 'em coming!

Great turnout today! We had to split up into 2 teams for a mish and had a full team for most of the day.

Today's game was "High Roller." High roll with the Dice emote got to pick the arc we played!

@Sumerian won the first roll and we loaded up an old Guest Author arc that he'd never played before (and surprisingly, a lot of others had missed, as well!)
Quest for Magic, arc ID: 337434 by Dr. Aeon (for Bill Willingham of Fables fame)

Next up Bubbawheat picked:
Old Time Fairy Tale Treasure Hunt, arc ID: 149250 by @Green Lama

And we rounded off the day with a 1 mission quickie chosen from my fav list:
C. Jenkins: Attorney at Law, arc ID: 204942 by @Jophiel

I doubt I'll be on Sunday as I'll be firmly planted in front of a big screen TV, rooting on my Saints. Have fun and catch ya'll next time!

If I had to guess...it's a farm.

The real reason Ocho has a headache every morning after clubbin'.

If I am a winner, I permit NC Interactive, Inc. and NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown, and any comments that I may make about myself or this contest that I provide for advertising and promotional activities. I also certify that I am at least 13 years of age and am eligible to participate in this contest.

I'll be there to pick up the slack on Saturday.

Muwahahahah!

Woohoo!! Love the 5pm start time; I don't have to ditch work for this one

Is there any Deth-kicking?

Saturday's run was another trip thru the new Guest Author arcs.

I had run these earlier in the week with Avatea and a group of other PUGsters on Justice. Running them with the MA Superteam was a totally different experience. The stories were easier to follow and we picked up on so many more details that were missed in the first run thrus.

First up was:
Mystery on the Boardwalk by Mercedes Lackey Arc ID: 369275
This wacky look at being a Hero Temp is full of rich details, fun dialogue, and characters with their own, distinct 'voices.'

At times the details are a bit overwhelming (it's tough to read long bios and follow all the dialogue when you're in the thick of a brawl) but if you're able to take it slow you'll find plenty of fun nuggets and a few XPs on the way.

The arc suffers from the same "good story/not-so-good gameplay" feel that most guest author arcs have, but the details mostly make up for it.

**** 4 Stars (and a blue drink with and umbrella in it)

Next up was:
A Little Night Music by Troy Hickman Arc ID: 369271
As I've said in other threads, this was probably the best of the bunch when it comes to feeling like a 'real' arc. It's filled with lots of details, humor and even a bit of tie-in to canon.

Unfortunately, it also has custom enemies that give no rewards, custom enemies with troublesome powers for certain ATs, and some of the groaniest puns you'll have the displeasure of reading (Blitzer, I'm looking at you.)

I was particularly impressed with the way Troy immediately involved the player and explained why he/she is uniquely qualified to run this arc. Most AE missions forget to give the player motivation or explain why the contact isn't doing it him/herself. This arc is a great example of how to set things up right.

**** 4 Stars (and a copy of "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep)

We only had time for a quickie after those, so we did a search for a random 5 star short arc with less than 20 plays and discovered:
Trouble in Amazonia by @jdubrich Arc ID: 344818

When a banished Amazon asks you to get to the bottom of the strange, violent actions of her former Queen you find hot warrior babes and lots of action in Amazonia.

Unfortunately, it seems the Trouble in Amazonia is that 3 of the custom enemies don't give rewards and the story is fairly predictable. On the plus side, it's only 2 missions long and it has tall, sexy Amazons!!

In the end, it felt more like a test arc or a first draft. The characters need to 'speak' like Amazons, all enemies need to give rewards, there needs to be a warning about the defeat all in the mission brief, and the story could use an original twist or something so it's not so cliche'.

*UNRATED* (I'd give it 3 stars if all the enemies were giving proper rewards)

The Xmas tree in 2nd place is pure win.

congrats, all!

It'd be nice to have a bit of a story behind the event.

Have Dr. A write up a small background for the invasion to explain why the Carnies are attacking. Then Carnie Ava could macro out a few lines here and there that give a bit more motivation beyond "I'm going to eat your souls."

I was kind of hoping she'd show up and give a dramatic "Gather round, one and all, for the greatest show on earth..." (kind of like a ringmaster at a circus) And once everyone had gathered, awestruck at the presence of a dev, she'd do a few tricks or read a few lines of a play before spawning hordes of death upon the unsuspectiong and enthralled hero crowd.

Thru the battle she could reveal that she's been tasked with defeating X nubmer of heroes before she can rightfully take her place as Ring Mistress or such. Then taunt us as the defeat toll rises.

Just a little bit of story would make it worth ditching work again, but it was still a good time