Black_Scourge

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N'arlolth - Invited me into my first real SG, Underworld, and taught me to scrap (which I had previously *thought* I knew how to do...). Taught me to pay attention to not just my powers, but everyone else's on the team. "Turn off that fear thing, it's making them all run!" "Errr....Sable, Cloak of Fear is the only thing keeping us alive right now, lol."

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You sure know how to make a boy blush, SS.

With the prevailance of -fly powers compared to -jump powers in pvp, flight pool really needs this boost.

Just a comparison between flight and jump for pvp and pvp zones:

Jump:
-CJ: cheap end, fast, Immob. prot.
-SJ: Reasonable end cost, fast, GREAT escape power, barely effected by slows
-Acrob: Hold and KB prot., cheap end

Fly:
-Hover: cheap end, Def buff, slow as hell, cant keep up with opponent with any other travel power, Horrible power to use as an escape
-Fly: High end cost, Still slower than all other travel powers, bad at catching or escaping
-GF: ok if your a MM, otherwise......blah

My point is this: For pvp, someone with Jump is in a much better posistion than a flyer currently. My toons with Jump can run both SJ AND SS without it being a problem with endurance. My SJer can catch 90% of my targets in a open PVP zone, and can escape from death if need be. My flyers are sitting ducks who cant seal the contract. Fly has less mezz prot, and more counterbalances. It needs a fix fast.

Double Hover speed at a minimum.

Cut end cost for flight in half bare minimum.

All of my toons had fly pool, but since ED I'm now disgusted with it, especially for PVP. Hover is so unreasonable at its current speed. To compound this, there is like double the amount of -fly powers out there, compared to -jump, to clip our wings even further. This is another example of the devs backing us into particular pools, like they did pre ED with Hasten, and Stamina. Jump pool FTW........

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We're tweaking with toggle dropping...mostly decreasing its overall effect.

We just received tech that will allow players to pass buffs onto certain powers (such as Blizzard).

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Thats great news for my toggle-heavy DA scrapper. I spend more time reactivating toggles than attacking some blastrs/Tanks. And mezzing someone thru a toogle while its in the process of being dropped was bad game design.

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/sign brother.

Nevermind enjoying the ride - how about work, quality time with the person you rub naughty bits with, social obligations, that stack of unread books on the shelf, and all the stuff on the Tivo?

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Clint, I have a very fruitful life. But I enjoy my MMOs alot. Dont be so pressumptious.

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It doesnt take more than a month to hit 40 for most ppl,

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Spews milk and cookies out of nose.

A month! Maybe if you play every waking hour in 8 man teams set to the highest difficulty. What about story arcs? Badge collecting? Exploring zones? I've been playing this game since Aug 04. I have one toon in the low 40s, one in the low 30s, one in the mid 20s and a dozen or so below 20. Only able to play 3 or so hours a night. 4 - 8 hours if involved in a trial or TF. Some days not at all. A month! Do you watch dvds in FF to avoid all that annoying dialog and plot just to get to the sex and violence? Bet you complain about lack of content too. A month! HA!

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CoV has a different lvling curve. Its faster. I also am NOT an alt-aholic. When I decide on a toon to play, I play it to the end. Collecting badges to me are meaningless, unless its for the sg or an accolade power.

B/c its all about trying to keep the momentum. Already with this news, I have sg mates looking to play other games to keep them busy. It doesnt take more than a month to hit 40 for most ppl, and ,many of us have two 40 villains. But when ppl look to other new games to occupy their time, you unfortunately lose membership, and accounts get deactivated. I just really he this Issue comes out before DDO.

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After all the problems with the winter events, perhaps a little more internal testing will be a good thing.

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That's why I wish the Winter event never happened. The devs wasted good programming time towards I7 for temporary content and all the bugs that came with it.

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Another month? I guess what they said about spacing Issues out more after CoV launches was true. It'll be nearly 4 months since our last Issue by that time. Hopefully this means it'll be a lot bigger though.

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Man, if we gotta wait til Mid/end March til I7 goes live, that will be a huge stink bomb.

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CuppaJo is still on her vacation. Unless she's just hiding from me. Which would be hard because I'm such a rabid-fanboy-stalker.

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I went on vacation to hide from you A-Cat.

Yes - I was busy scaring myself half to death playing F.E.A.R. and The Movies for a week after the regular holiday. So if you sent a PM and haven't heard back yet - give me a few days.

Issue 7 - Tentative plan for releasing the "Feature Update" to the website is mid February - so you might as well settle in for about a month of waiting unless a dev decides to drop some hints.

Of course you already know I7 includes 40-50 content for CoV, and as with every update more art updates, missions, and quality of life features. The other items in I7 will be revealed when we get the Feature Update.

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When you guys say mid February, do you mean I7 hitting test or going live, tentatively speaking of course?

Then maybe YOU arent too good at pvp. I run a very active pvp VG with alot of stalkers, its a rare occassion when they die. Pull your bs story with someone else bud. Oh and they all have a 400 rep.

You know there is something wrong when the average stalker can hit the pvp rep cap in less than a week of play. Thats a BAD curve. That fact alone screams to me that they need fixing.

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I'll take a look at those badges for the contacts mentioned.

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Heya States the REAL contact that needs to be looked into actually aside of this is the Doc Buzzsaw. Getting a million infamy before 29 is alittle extreme. Anyhow, thanks.

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almost exactly what I am trying to say, Stalkers without AS is as effective as a blaster trying to tank. The AT is balanced and a nerf would in fact Break the AT

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Break the AT? Wow, are we being a little over dramatic here? So your saying if AS+ BU only left ppl in PVP with a sliver of hps which required you to follow up with a second fast attack to finish your oppenent off, this would break the AT? Come on give me a break.

There's a few lvl 40 stalkers in my sg that pvp consistantly. You know what they do when they cant AS? They sneak up on someone, hit BU, TF, ET, and BS. Guess what most ppl are dead after that chain of attacks anyhow. The disorients combined with the extreme dmg, combined with the toggle dropping wipe most toons. Some cry me a river with your broken AT.

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Ok, so I've been browsing some of the threads out there with the concern to stalkers and found/came-up with some interesting options. First off, like the devs have done it the past add facets to current powers, i.e. add +perception to thing that would make sense like possibly Super speed, Accelerate metabolism, Speed boost, or anything in the realm of adding alertness as a side-effect. It was done with certain mezz powers in I5, it can be done with perception too.

Another idea is taking current +perception powers, (diclaimer....not my original idea), adding +perception enhancements to current percption powers, Tactic in particular. If you can invest 3 +perception enhancements to a perception power and it would allow you to see thru stealth/hide, it would be more bearable to some folks. This is a raw concept, but a start to a solution.

A few more things I'd like to add. EVERY AT has been tweeked/nerfed for balance. You guys remember I5/6? So why is it such a outlandish idea to adjust a brand-new AT?

Second, many ppl aren't looking at the big picture. Ok, fine so if you wanna be viable in pvp you must take +perception and/or a AOE toggle. That's how stalker critics will tell you to "smarten up". Even when as mentioned by the devs, they dont want any person to be compelled to pick-up a specific pool power (e.g. Hasten/stamina). The temporary satisfaction of one-shotting all these so-called uber pvp builds, will fade just as that estatic feeling of breezing thru invincible solo missions at 50 or soloing AVs. I did it in another MMO, where challenge was non-existant, and I quit shortly after. Its not worth it in the long run, to ward-off solo/noob pvpers just for a short lived, cheap satisfaction. I dont want to see an environmet where all potention pvper are forced into picking up the Leadership pool, or forced to team ALL the time b/c of the allure of the stalker. I guarrantee the stalker population will rise if unchecked, just as all the other arena cookie-cutter builds have.

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Why are you worried about the marketing of the game and the newbies that are coming into the game? It's not your place to do that. You're a player. You're setting off a bad example to the newcomers right in this very post. You're giving them negativity. If the newcomers should feel discouraged, it wouldn't be the Stalkers gimping them, it would be the people who are reacting negatively towards the certain situation instead of giving out several solutions to help them improve their gameplay.

And besides, not every single person is gonna feel the way that you do. You shouldn't base every newcomers feelings on your own because for all you know, 90% of the newcomers probably disagrees with your personal opinions. I'm all up for having a good gameplay environment, but you're making it worse with your "I hate Stalkers" rant.

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Yo buddy, what makes you think the greater populus of players or noobs read these boards? And two, I personally dont give a damn per se about the individual new-comers, I care for the PVP environment as a whole, which in reality, isnt made up of well-oiled, pvp machines and highly organized sgs. I dont wanna see pvp zone turn into graveyards because the zone turned into CounterStrike.

And who are you to tell me what MY job is? I'll tackle any task I choose to without getting permission for ppl like you. Thank you. If my arguement is weak against stalkers, then the devs will be the final judge of that.

Ok, so I've been browsing some of the threads out there with the concern to stalkers and found/came-up with some interesting options. First off, like the devs have done it the past add facets to current powers, i.e. add +perception to thing that would make sense like possibly Super speed, Accelerate metabolism, Speed boost, or anything in the realm of adding alertness as a side-effect. It was done with certain mezz powers in I5, it can be done with perception too.

Another idea is taking current +perception powers, (diclaimer....not my original idea), adding +perception enhancements to current percption powers, Tactic in particular. If you can invest 3 +perception enhancements to a perception power and it would allow you to see thru stealth/hide, it would be more bearable to some folks. This is a raw concept, but a start to a solution.

A few more things I'd like to add. EVERY AT has been tweeked/nerfed for balance. You guys remember I5/6? So why is it such a outlandish idea to adjust a brand-new AT?

Second, many ppl aren't looking at the big picture. Ok, fine so if you wanna be viable in pvp you must take +perception and/or a AOE toggle. That's how stalker critics will tell you to "smarten up". Even when as mentioned by the devs, they dont want any person to be compelled to pick-up a specific pool power (e.g. Hasten/stamina). The temporary satisfaction of one-shotting all these so-called uber pvp builds, will fade just as that estatic feeling of breezing thru invincible solo missions at 50 or soloing AVs. I did it in another MMO, where challenge was non-existant, and I quit shortly after. Its not worth it in the long run, to ward-off solo/noob pvpers just for a short lived, cheap satisfaction. I dont want to see an environmet where all potention pvper are forced into picking up the Leadership pool, or forced to team ALL the time b/c of the allure of the stalker. I guarrantee the stalker population will rise if unchecked, just as all the other arena cookie-cutter builds have.

Ok,the relavance of a stalkers hp is bs. My controller's hps is at the bottom of the rack. In WB, I have no epic pools for dmg resistance. My only defences are a self heal, debuffs, and my travel powers. EVERYONE carries BFs in WB. So mezzes for dmg mitigation arent a factor early fight. I still whoop 99.9% of everyones keyster in that zone, including stalkers. So please, dont bring hp into this debate.

The principle of this debate, at this point is, the environment it has currently created and the direction its going in. And I am not neccessaily speaking for myself when I debate stalker issues. I have an active sg that constantly pvps and run multiple perception and -stealth powers. I am conserned with the casual or new player who wants to scratch the surface with pvp and the pvp zones. Its nice to have an environment that is still in its infancy, that wont discourage and ultimately revolt these folks. Arena scared off a bunch of ppl for certain reasons. Pvp zones have so much more potential to stimulate more active pvp. I dont want to see a good thing ruined b/c a bunch of adolescent, power-hungry, gamers want to PWND unsuspecting noobs.

I think your the one talking in circles if you keep comparing 2 shotting to one shotting. That has been covered and buried already. 2 shot=chance to respond, 1 shot=no chance to respond. I'm not sure what the solution for fixing stalkers is but I think if the dmg isnt gonna change and the 1 shotting isnt going to end, then I think stalkers need to be MORE vunerable then just hide dropping for 8 seconds. Maybe all their toggles need to drop too.

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I'll be damned if I know. As I said, I'm no more happy with one-shotting as a Stalker than I'm sure anyone that I do it to is. However, as I think we've established here, Stalkers aren't the only ones guilty of this.

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Come on Quason, we know it exists with other rare builds that have elaborately combinations of power to produce this effect, like the */Dev blaster ppl keep mentioning.

Yeah fine if I set up 3 mines, some caltrops, and then find a target close enough to my little trap to tp foe, then yes the potential to die lies there, after a series of to hit checks. But thats ONE variation of an AT.

ALL stalkers can one-shot, all. And with a less elaborate set up. So basically your comparing Typhoid as a risk to die these days, to say Cancer. Which one is an American most likely to die from?

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Kudos though, I still keep snickering everytime I think about "Anne Coulter 2008"

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Hey, she'd at least simplify matters by nuking every other country on the planet. *shrug* A lot less complicated than this whole "invasion" BS we're trying now.

Personally, I think a full scale nuclear war would be GOOD for humanity. Take us down a peg or two.

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Yeah, GOD forbid we take the non-simple way and actually learn something!!! Nah, just f-ck it and nuke EVERYONE!!!

We'll show them, especially the OTHER countries with nukes!! Well, we'll show everybody who is left......YOU GOT THAT COCKROACHES?!!

War is the greatest failure of man.

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Comparing a nuke to a nerf, that's a first! No no no, nuking a stalker would be totally doing away with the AT altogether. All ppl are asking for with stalkers is some fine-tuning so we can all get along. Strange how nobody else is complaining about any of the other new CoV AT? Coincedience huh?

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I maintain that there are numerous counters to stalkers, built into the AT and into the game, IR goggles, travel powers, etc..

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Wow, that's a grand idea. Let me run to Siren's call every half hour to spend 10k inf. to buy goggles just so I dont repeatidly one shotted by a solo stalker all night in WB. That give me GREAT motivation to pvp. /sarcasim off.

The truth is all these stalkers are LOVING their new trump power, come out of nowhere, kill someone instantly, pissing ppl off endlessly. It quenches that sadistic side in all of them. But the party has to end.

Hey when I had 3 phantasm running around, tearing everything up, I was living it up too. But I also knew it was way overpowered, and so did most 'trollers. I remember following the nerf on the forums advidly. 99% of the 'troller agreed with the nerf. But sadly 'trollers attract a different breed of player than stalkers. I would think the 'troller types are the more cerebral, while the stalkers would attract more of the ego-maniac children. Thats why stalkers cant admit or in some cases even see the problem with their toons.

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I feel that there are counters to everything, and a way to overcome just about every thing out there....I still haven't figured out how to overcome hurricane used by storm controllers/def. Or repel used by kinetics.

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Then why are you even weighing in on this discussion to begin with? Give me a sheet of paper and a calculator and I could tell you exactly how to beat both of them with any build down to the exact attack-chain and # of slots. Oddly enough, this is the only reason I go into a PvP zone when there's Stalkers in it. Do you LIKE this dangerous precedent that's being set? Are you fully contemplating the results of PvP where only the Elite can have fun? ...For Starters, YOU wouldn't be having any fun there because you'd be dead after every fight.

As a fellow fan of Clan Wolf (I even named one of my heroes after a Kerensky), I have to say, you're acting more like a Jade Falcon. You might *feel* that things are balanced but you're leaping in with assumptions instead of veteran experience.


So let's address the 5 most common myths about Stalking:
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#1: "Keep moving and you won't get AS'd "[*] FALSE! As long as AS is started while your target is in melee range, it WILL hit nomatter how quickly the target leaves melee range during the Interruption window(line of Sight pending)

#2: "Stalkers only do good damage when Critting/AS'ing "[*] FALSE! Stalkers' attacks are still a Primary and all of them including Claws have higher single-target DPS than ALL defender Secondaries, ALL-but-1 Dominator Secondary, 4/6 Controller Primaries, ALL Tanker Secondaries, ALL MM's, and almost half of Corruptor Primaries. The only reason Blasters and Scrappers edge them out, is that they recieve 125% to the Stalkers 100% +DMG from Buidup, but that doesn't take into account the Stalker's higher Damage-Cap that allows AS to function as it does.

#3: "2 Perception powers can see Double-Stealth "[*] FALSE! For ~83% of all possible powerset-combos, it takes 3 or more. Meanwhile most builds can only achieve 1 or 2 perception powers...and one of them depends on winning the battles in Siren's...a zone festering with Stalkers. That's what's known as a Catch22.

#4: "AoE always interrupts my AS! "[*] FALSE! Even a /Regen can pop a Luck and hit the AoE defense-cap(5% chance to be hit) against all slow-ticking or PvP Non-Autohit AoE's that A)Don't have ACC slotting as an Option, B)Have an inherrant ACC Penalty, or C)Are poorely slotted for ACC because the 7 other enhancement options on them take much higher priority in day-to-day combat or may even be required to attack a Stalker effectively once one is finally spotted. And to top this all off, the devs will be changing as many Auto-hit AoE's into To_Hit--checking AoE's as they can get away with, SOON

#5: "I HAVE TO stay hidden for a long time and watch/follow carefully before I can defeat anyone "[*] FALSE, you lurk unseen and pick your fights carefully because it's a Luxury afforded to you. Just like it was a Luxory afforded to Illusionists in Issue#4. But the only thing you need to "watch carefully" is your mouse pointer as you put it over the players in front of you so you can look for +PER powers(Here's a tip: just toggle your targeting button to get him, and press whatever button is bound to /info, it's much faster). ANY player with Stealth and Invis powers has this luxory and always has to follow their target around for a random-to-extended duration of time in order to stack the odds of snagging themselves an easy kill--even against a team of players** There is no need for a Gamble on your part, a Monkey who is taught to use a calculator could do the same thing. Meanwhile players without superior -PER cloaking powers, especially squishies, are at the Mercy of anything they get within visible range of, including gank-squads and Scissors-to-their-Paper. THAT takes REAL self-confidence and skill to shine when you're that guy!



**A couple days ago my Ill/Kin "Stalktroller" killed 3 Masterminds in 15 seconds that were clumped together camping our BB-Base with 2 other Masterminds, and I escaped the fight with 30% health simply by visualizing my target(s)/DPS ahead of time without them knowing I was there. 10 seconds later after resting a few feet out of their perception, I came back for the last one while a rather lame Scrapper distracted and slowly defeated the 2nd of the remaining MM's... BTW, 2 of them were */FF. I don't even want to think about about the size of the groups my Spines/Ninjitsu Stalker will be capeable of soloing in PvP considering I'll have Slow/Fear/Mez protection.

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5 stars for joo!

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I agree, the only difference is that these AT's have far more defense than a stalker.. Stalkers are one of the squishest. As for the squishy AT's on the hero side, they also have high damage ranged attacks or controlling powers.. If you're an AT that is notorious for being one-shotted, mainly controllers and defenders, pick up an ability that negates melee attacks like that hurricane stormy thing I see you guys with. If you're gonna PvP and whine about being killed in one hit, then go to the effort to pick up the powers needed and build your AT for PvP, if you refuse to do that, stay out of the PvP zones or keep on the move.

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Stop saying Stalkers are squishy. Stalkers have low hit point, but they are not squishy. Squishy would be no defense buff powers, including dmg resistance powers, and no mez protection. Not only do stalkers have both, but alot of them have self heals and debuffs. And all of them have placate. That doesnt seem squishy to me.

Well I did try there, but they dont seem as preveilant out there compared to ST. M.

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My Ice/EM blaster can use AIM + Buildup + Power Boost + Boost Range and 1 shot a Controller or Defender from so far away they had no chance to escape or respond. Add in the boosts I can get through Accolade powers, and I can nearly 1 shot a scrapper or tank. No inspirations or outside buffs required. I guess Blasters should get nerfed too.

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You gotta love these comparisions. Your talking about hitting FOUR buffs to pull off that one-shotting. HELLO! Four powers that have long recharge times. And you wanna know the TITANIC difference? YOU CANNOT STACK YOUR STEALTH POWERS TO MAKE YOU ABSOLUTELY INVISIBLE! Do you understand the difference? Stalker need just one buff to one shot, BU. Even if you got stealth/SS on most ppl's tactic will see you coming and have a chance to react. So do me a favor, all of you blaster who keep comparing their attacks to stalkers......stop now, please.