CanaDixieMan

I did read "On Writing", and it helped me a great deal. Steelclaw--well, let me just say that I'm as big a mark as you!

Wow. I got a lot of response and good advice. So I will say first that "toon" is only a convenient thing to say to other CoX players. But my "toons" are real to me; I'm a writer, so I have to consider my characters real people. It works for Stephen King, and he seems to have had an OK career by sometimes "just not knowing what will happen to that person." I was luky enough to meet him once at an SF con before he got too well-known to do that kind of thing, and another journalist asked Mr. King "Why did you kill that kid in 'Cujo'?" Steve was drinking a lot then, 3 to 1 for me at least, so he finished his beer, reached for a new one, and said "I didn't kill him. He just died. Sometimes little kids die."

I know Mr. King doesn't make detailed outlines, and likes to surprise himself with what happens. He says "I feel as if I'm like a sculptor, just chopping away til what's already in the stone block, til the figure appears." In his Dark Tower series, he even wrote a really funny and realistic account of several of his characters showing up at his house in Maine to confront him for their lousy lives and troubles. The fictional Steve King knew who they were immediately, but in his fear and confusion, he ran into the lake in his backyard. I think that's realistic enough. I play with the same kind of concepts myself, and am getting ready to write an "adult hero" novel called "Renaissance Comics". I know it won't hold a candle to "The Adventures of Kavalier & Clay", but hey, it's for fun first, right?

To Mr. King's regard for his characters, I think we can add Frank Miller, Brubaker, Garth Ennis, and many more. They have a certain compassion for their characters, but to them, they have to become real enough to entertain and absorb the attention of their readers. If "Daredevil" had stayed like it was when Stan Lee was writing, and Gene Colan was pencilling, I would have probably only kept reading it for Colan's art. His version of DD was so lithe and realistic that I overlooked Mr. Lee's sometimes purple prose.

But lo and behold, we got Frank Miller. Then Brubaker. DD is always going to be a character I'm willing to wait and buy the full-arc graphic novel for, and if I am disappopinted, the character is now so strong and complicated, ol' Hornhead would be hard for any good writer to ruin. DD is someone who is like many of us--he tried to keep all his promises, but he failed, and recently he crossed the line. He's a murderer now. That doesn't necessarily make him a villain, but he's not your Older Brother's DD anymore.

In the case of my character Julie Johnson, aka the Campus Crusader, she may be having a crisis of personal faith now (much like Matt Murdock has had in the past), and also a crisis of self-doubt in her ability as a Hero. I've decided that, since she has free will, and only one real choice now, she'll be hitting the streets. All her missions will be "take it slow, don't aggro that other guy, take this one out first", etc. In other words, I'm not going to grind through missions just to get her to the next level, but I want to get her to Incarnate level someday. Even I don't fully understand the Incarnate system yet. So I'm happy with my more "mortal" heroes as they stand, and when I do play, I play like someone who has both all the time in the world, but in Julie's case, also someone who has to teach a class at University in the morning. She's a Graduae Student, a TA, and so even her "codename" reflects her Campus hangaround status.

As a real person, and a man with a wife and two 10 month old twin sons, I have to be ready to just leave Julie, or any other character, hanging for a while. If I have to re-start the mission, I will. But this is also the reason that, though I like teamups, I hesitate to play that way most of the time. I know if I do team up, others are relying on me, and even as a player, I don't want a rep as a "guy who'll leave you in the lurch". I don't even like being a "doorsitter", much less a "famer", but I make no judgements on anyone who likes to play that way. Like i say, it's your dime, so it's your game.

So yes, Campus Crusader will happily use inspirations, accept heals, resurrections, buffs, and the like. She feels that "everyone needs to pitch in", and she's grateful to keep fighting the good fight. If she goes to the hospital during a team mission, she'll hurry back to help. But if she goes down in a solo mission, she's still insecure enough to think "I better rest. I been beaten before cause I ran in like some silly girl, and I'm a HERO. I should know better." Like me, she hates lying in a hospital bed, but sometimes, it's the best thing you can do under the circumstances.

I know there were lots of good observations and questions on this topic, and I'm going to read them at my liesure now. Thank you all very much for responding. I do want to become a good roleplayer with other roleplayers eventually, but I have to start out very simply.

Let's wish Julie good luck, because I think the Crusader's going to be on the street tonight!

You sign into the Server of your choice, pick one toon (it works especially well if it's a toon you would just as soon delete) and say "OK, what is this (in my case) girl doing now? She's in her bedroom in her apartment, and she is wondering what all Heroes eventually wonder, especially Spider-Man--"Am I doing anything to help, really? Am I even the *person* I want to be?"

In my case, i was sort of mean, because I put poor old Julie Johnson, aka The Campus Crusader, in a terrible fix. In other words I did what Brubaker did to Daredevil, & Stan lee did to The Thing. I made it more *interesting* for my readers, and as I am my only real reader, I didn't care if it made them cry or suffer or say "I'm an ugly monster no one could ever love, plus Stretcho ain't even *tryin'* to turn me back into a normal guy, and I'm right to be mad."

Julie is a good Christian girl who wanted to be a Baptist preacher. Baptist bylaws don't allow this. I'm not making a judgement, I'm just using what I know to be true. Good writers let the reader make the judgements. (See "Civil War"; did you think the result was fair? Good, whatever you think, it's the right choice for you. But you did get entertained and you learned some things about how the "real world" worked. Someone had to bust butt to write that story; I'm glad it wasn't me.)

Instead, Julie got a big old shiny glowing sword she believes that God Himself gave to her to become a hero with. A magic tanker, to be precise. I know that it's simply leftover unacceptable Rikti tech someone tossed away when they got something better, but it's hot stuff for a mere human.

Julie has done everything right by her own standards. She's low level, has kicked some villain butt, but she still wonders if she's serving the Lord. I just stayed there looking at her and played a whole game in my head about what she was doing. I decided she wanted to pray, but couldn't. She wanted to pick up the sword and ka-zammm on her armor and wings, and go out crusading, but she couldn't get into that, either.

So she cried herself to sleep, saying "I guess I'm going to Hell, I asked for too much."

However, I gave her a really nice dream, one she won't wake up from til I'm ready to take her into Paragon City. In that dream, she will know enough to realise that when she hits the street as The Campus Crusader, she's doing the right thing, no matter her doubts.

I played CoH that night without even taking my toon into "the real world". And since then, I've been reluctant to play Julie again, til I feel like using her. She is not my highest level toon or my best designed one, but she is a real person to me now.

Yet I am not a schizo; I know I'm playing a game. Who could ask for more? I get more than I pay for every month. Not all of my dozens of toons will get the "royal treatment", but I can RP to my heart's content without learning all the "etiquette" of being a hardcore role player. I like to solo, and I like to team sometimes. Now I know this game can be even more fun that I knew.

I am "hardcore" now in a way that I find satisfying: if I pick a toon to run, and he or she gets hospitalised, well--so sorry, but you are done for the night. I won't delete a toon I put a lot of effort & time into, but we all know you don't get nearly really killed, and then jump up eager to rush right out again. You would probably be kept for observation. If you objected, they would bring in someone who could enforce the medical decision. And there's always someone who can make you stay, no matter your level.

This is all only for me, of course. I get to make my own rules, like anyone who pays their dime to play CoX. I just found out a way to get more than a dime's worth. If this is of use to anyone else, great. I like to give back to the community. But I'm not so vain to think it will cause a big change.

Enjoy yourselves out there.

Amen. That is the most glorious sight.

Because, especially I've learned to do "inner roleplay" and now i don't even care if my Lvl 43 Blaster knows about Incarnate type stuff. She will learn when she needs to know. In the meantime, she's just taking it a mission at a time, which means she moves slowly. She can take out anyone she needs to, if she works like a Blaster and not a Tank.

She just got hospitalized, and as a "soft-hardcore" player, that means to me that she's done for the night. She could go back and beat the crud out of Winston Phelps now, but just the fact she got hurt shows me she needs to spend the night at the hospital. Tomorrow is another day.

So I can create a new toon if I want to, or I can use a toon who's saying "Put me in, coach." Not knowing exactly what I'm gonna do is part of the fun of this very special game.

And I am here to have fun, right? I paid my dime. So did all of you.

Let's have fun!

Hard to pick a favourite, but I suppose one of the things I really like is that you can solo and still have a great time, though levelling is slower. And this is despite the fact that CoX is a team-oriented game by nature. (If it were not, the Devs would have given us the ability to "multi-class" our toons to the point we might never even *need* teammates. Then again, even Thor & Superman still choose to team with the Avengers & JLA when not working solo. There is an intrinsic desire, it seems, for adventurers to band together. It's good drama as well as good strategy).

I used to team much more often before my twins were born, but now if I need to drop out because one or both are yelling for a bottle / attention, the other players are invariably good sports about it. So let's add to my list of likes: great players. Mature, helpful, generous, and easy to chat with. If I want a team, it's easy to find one, & I know most players will be acting for the good of the team rather than showboating.

I love the costume creator (though of course, like everyone, I have suggestions for plenty of additional parts); I love the intuitional combat system, which doesn't require me to have the reflexes of an 18-yr-old fighter pilot, but allows strategy, stealth, & cunning to take me to victory.

The graphics are actually better than they need to be, and getting better all the time.

Storylines make comic-universe sense, and even if you're not a long-underwear type comics afficianado, you can create hardcore mercs, soldiers of fortune, vampire hunters, starship troopers, crime noir detectives, etc.

As a writer myself, I'm satisified with plot & narrative, and get some chuckles from the NPCs, who do seem to have definite personalties. I also enjoy being able to team with NPCs when I'm soloing.

I could say much more, but #1 on the list: good players who communicate & interact. A good *community*, really. I've tried the other superhero MMOs, & perhaps I didn't give them a fair chance, but really, anything else falls short of CoX.

Hard to pick a favourite, but I suppose one of the things I really like is that you can solo and still have a great time, though levelling is slower. And this is despite the fact that CoX is a team-oriented game by nature. (If it were not, the Devs would have given us the ability to "multi-class" our toons to the point we might never even *need* teammates. Then again, even Thor & Superman still choose to team with the Avengers & JLA when not working solo. There is an intrinsic desire, it seems, for adventurers to band together. It's good drama as well as good strategy).

I used to team much more often before my twins were born, but now if I need to drop out because one or both are yelling for a bottle / attention, the other players are invariably good sports about it. So let's add to my list of likes: great players. Mature, helpful, generous, and easy to chat with. If I want a team, it's easy to find one, & I know most players will be acting for the good of the team rather than showboating.

I love the costume creator (though of course, like everyone, I have suggestions for plenty of additional parts); I love the intuitional combat system, which doesn't require me to have the reflexes of an 18-yr-old fighter pilot, but allows strategy, stealth, & cunning to take me to victory.

The graphics are actually better than they need to be, and getting better all the time.

Storylines make comic-universe sense, and even if you're not a long-underwear type comics afficianado, you can create hardcore mercs, soldiers of fortune, vampire hunters, starship troopers, crime noir detectives, etc.

As a writer myself, I'm satisified with plot & narrative, and get some chuckles from the NPCs, who do seem to have definite personalties. I also enjoy being able to team with NPCs when I'm soloing.

I could say much more, but #1 on the list: good players who communicate & interact. A good *community*, really. I've tried the other superhero MMOs, & perhaps I didn't give them a fair chance, but really, anything else falls short of CoX.

As I expected, some very interesting responses here. Superman is a unique but iconic case: we know that Science was almost a religion on Krypton. Kal-El has been seen to turn to Science or Technology when his red-sun-induced powers fail. He can and will use Tech; he is even a Robotic Mastermind as well as a Tanker with both Invulnerabilty and incredible personal Willpower), but Supes at base is Naturally a living solar battery. Kal has never used Magic (that I know of!), & in fact, Magic (along with Kryptonite) is one of his Achilles heels. (Hmmm, why no weaknesses in trade for bonus powers in CoX? This is a convention of dozens of fantasy RPGs.) Kal-El is also a Blaster who can employ heat vision & cold breath. His abilities include Acute Senses, but of course, no one thinks of him as a Mutant.

"At the end of the day", Logan is indeed a Mutant, but it's semantics to say that Spider-Man is "the non-Mutant superhero". The Canucklehead was born with altered genetics, but Mr. Parker's genetics were altered after birth. He may not have been a Mutant to begin with, but is certainly one now, as well as being a Tank/Science-Tech user.

Comics are a difficult medium to adapt to PC game play, and ultimately, I'm obviously very pleased with CoX, because I play every day. Like the rest of you, I attempt to create unique toons within the official framework. I do sort of miss the idea of Aquatic-based toons, or even toons who can Transform into water, sand, and the like, but let's face it--developing such abilities would also require the Devs to create underwater settings and missions, invasions from Atlantis or Mu, etc.

That we all derive our abilities from the "Furious Well" puts an interesting light on things. It could explain how my otherwise natural pistol-blaster, The Creeping Skull, a homicide dick with few Science skills, came up with his various Tricks & Traps, as well as some sort of hologrammatic device to make it appear that his head is on fire. The Well obviously gave him a nudge, rather like Jean Paul Valley / Azrael, basically a Scrapper, was given his ability to construct high tech armour by the "System".

As I've said before, CoX toons are like snowflakes--no two alike, especially in concept. many times, a toon's "personal bio" shows just the tip of the iceberg, so far as motivation, personal life, & derivations of power. I assume that "hit points" in this game are like hit points in early D&D--they might represent "rolling with the punch" or "damage blocked by a kevlar vest", etc., rather than simply how much raw physical damage a toon can take. Otherwise, one accurate pistol shot to the head, or martial arts kick in the throat, would take out your average Hellion Lieutenant. Or YOU, if you're a Blaster with little personal defense due to game mechanics.

Still, it's fun to discuss this kind of thing. I always learn something. If nothing else, I learn to look at the game from a different angle, which increases my enjoyment in playing it. I expect changes will keep occuring, & no one will be totally satisfied, but then, very few will be totally dissatisifed, either.

"mad well zombies" LOL...

OK, I understand that having the various Origins--Mutant, Science, etc.--is part of the "chrome" & "flash" of the game, but do they make any real difference in game play? True, you must get comfortable with having to buy the various colourfully-named Enhancements for each Origin, & learning to quickly identify & slot those could be considered a part of "gameplay". Additionally, recognizing which Enhancements have no value to you aside from being items to sell or trade is a part of understanding how to play CoX.

Yet, I understand that more than a few players always choose "Natural" for their Origin, in order to (for instance) get such bonuses as both Blackwand and Nemesis Staff; simply to avoid being pigeonholed; or because there's no real reason not to do so, & no compelling reason to choose otherwise. After 3 years of play, I myself am beginning to lean that way.

"Realistically", your character concept & bio seem to determine your actual "Origin". Looking at each of my 40+ toons, I can easily see how I could have created backstories allowing each of them to have been Natural in Origin. My Magic Controller Elf is from Faerie; his powers are Natural in that environment. My Mutant Blaster comes from another planet, & everyone there can shoot energy, etc, ad infinitum. I have seen many really clever & well-thought out bios by other players which sort of transcend the "Origin" requirement.

I use Bonus Powers such as "Secondary Mutation", "Fortune", "Ninja Run", etc., to fine-tune my concepts. I enjoy being able to do this, but if "Origin" actually meant anything to balanced gameplay, it seems to me that we simply would not be allowed to assign "Self-Destruction" to a non-Tech/Science toon, "Secondary Mutation" to a non-Mutant, or "Fortune" to a non-Magic toon. (I'm not saying I *want* such restrictions!)

In my opinion, the "Origins" are only there to help orient new players, or players without a background in comics mythology knowledge. If arbitrary Origins all vanished tomorrow, & it was up to you to decide how your toon got his or her powers, I think the average vet of CoX would very quickly come up with a detailed reason--or no reason, since some folks don't get into a background bio. (I must admit that it disconcerts me a little to see a lvl 50 toon without even a sketchy bio, but hey, that's only my take--the player, having paid his or her dime to NCSoft, has no obligation to tell me or anyone else how he / she became a minor demigod.)

As things stand, a character like Wolverine could not exist in CoX. He is a "multiclass" character--a Mutant / Science-Tech / Natural Scrapper with at least 3 Primary Powers--Martial Arts, Claws, & Katana. Perhaps even FIVE Primary Powers, since Logan is a seasoned soldier who has been shown to be familiar with both longarms & pistols. Nor could The Punisher be a CoX toon--his origin has been shown to be primarily Natural, with an intimation of supernatural (Magic) influence (he chose Death, eh?), and Frank Castle is not one to say "I only work with dual pistols; I will never pick up a machine gun or an RPG, because after all, I can have only one kind of expertise with firearms."

This is a pretty big can of worms to open, I realise, & if the Devs took my outlook to heart, it could easily lead to a "D&D 2.0" type revision in game rules, which is hardly likely. I just wanted to point out the absolutely arbitrary nature of the Origins, as well as suggesting that multi-class toons would not necessarily unbalance the game.

I am sure that someone more knowedgeable than me will quickly explain why my outlook on Origins (& multi-classing) is intrinsically faulty, but that's part of the fun of posting here. If people disagree with you, the retort is always bound to be thoughtful & interesting.

Is it just me, or do Praetorian toons present us with more interesting, and frequently 3/4ths or face-on camera angles, even after the toon has moved to Primal Earth?

If so, I can't imagine ever creating a toon on Primal Earth again. I would just consider Praetoria to be my "training ground". Especially considering that eventually, toons who have "moved on" will probably be able to go back and still be recognised by old contacts, get new mission content, etc.

Starting in Praetoria also allows the full spectrum of hero & villain archetypes, without having to deal with the red or blue side in the beginning. I prefer blue side; red side is a bit cutthroat for my skill level. But I do enjoy playing villains. So if the improved camera angles for Praetorians is not simply in my imagination, most of my new toons will be originating there in future.

I have all the various bonus packs, and of course, I or anyone else could make a toon of any origin who had *every* small bonus--Secondary Mutation, Mystic Fortune, Self-Destruction, Ninja Run, Beast Run, et al. But I'm what I think of as an "interior role player", so I try not to "cheat". I won't give a Natural Blaster a Secondary Mutation, or a Mutant Troller the Mystic Fortune power, if it doesn't fit their conceptual bio. None of my toons have "the full Monty Haul", but some have "extras" which a more purist player might argue don't really belong to their classes.

For instance, I have an Elven Plant / Weather troller who's a genuine citizen of Faerie on a sightseeing tour to Praetorian Earth. As a magical being, he of course has Mystic Fortune, but my conception of this toon is that, like most Faeries, he can do some minor magical "cantrips", that is, small temporary spells of protection and improvement. So Jobriath Windwood gets "Secondary Mutation", not as a mutant would have it, but as a form of intrinsic Faerie magic.

Laughing Justice is a Natural Blaster (rifle-toting type) who, in my conception, *doesn't* actually possess his Secondary Power, Mental Manipulation, as a "real" psionic power. The guy just has a lot of charisma, and is able to stupefy his foes with screams, threats and crazed wisecracks. It would help if I could make his "mental powers" FX-invisible, but no go, so I just think of the colours & FX as a comics convention, like speed lines. He's not a cyborg or robot, but there's no rule that a total Natural can't put a grenade in his pocket and pull the pin when he's overwhelmed, so L.J. gets "Self-Destruction" as part of his package.

I could go on, but you get the idea. Since we can't muliti-class, and create an armored Tanker who can fire energy blasts (a very common concept in comics, but unattainable by any technology known to Human or Rikti, somehow), or a pistolero who wears Kevlar & thus could profit from Defense enhancements (apparently nobody will sell flak jackets or bulletproof vests to Blasters), those of us who want to individualise our toons have to be creative. A great deal of "interior role-playing" (for me, anyhow; I speak only for myself) is:

Can I "realistically" justify giving a toon a small ability which seems to belong to another Origin? If so, even if I can't make it fit in his/her bio, then I don't feel I am cheating myself or being a greedhead. It's more like legitimately winning a "No-Prize".

I know many of us use "Ninja Run" to get around at lower levels, but once I earn a faster way to travel, I take "Ninja Run" off the board, unless I have an actual Ninja or Martial Arts type. I do have a Demonic MM with "Beast Run", but she *is* named Unholy Desire, & a beast at heart if not in body. UD does have "Fortune", but tends to be miserly about using it. She's another who has "Secondary Mutation" as a set of cantrips. Anyone who can summon demons surely knows enough Magick to heighten her senses or cast a modest self-protection spell.

Some spells in CoX seem easy to teach to "muggles", such as Sands of Mu, and Ghost Slaying Axes must be available in bargain barrels throughout the city, along with Blackwands and Nemesis Staffs. I don't like getting beat down any more than the rest of you, so most of my working toons have these. But I assume they come from friends, mentors, or relic-dealers.

The "inner" game is different for all of us, at least those who want more than a generic toon to go farming with. Any comments?

Just before I posted, I thought for about a millisecond that "Cigar Trick" as a subject title might bring a swarm of Mods, but genuinely, if it had been info about making a sword or gun more interesting using an aura, it would have been called "Gun Trick". So the subject line could have easily been "Cigar Gimmick", or "Of Interest To Smokers". I suppose that since the Clinton-Lewinski debacle, the simple word "cigar" will always bring a "nudge nudge wink wink" in North America & elsewhere.

But, as Freud once said, after a long lecture to a class re: phallic projection etc., when he saw them all staring at the smoldering stogie in his hand:

"Sometimes, gentlemen, a cigar is just a cigar." ; )

PS: How about adding a "cigarette holder" costume part for languid masterminds and femme fatales?

If you have a rough, tough, grizzled toon who likes to chomp a cigar as he or she goes into battle, here's a nice bit of chrome to liven things up: at the Tailor or Facemaker, choose "Animal Fury" for your toon's aura, and restrict it to "breath", making the breath a golden brown or similar smoky colour.

This will give you a true-puffin' stogie-fied animated smoker. I got a great kick out of giving this look to both my Comedian homage, Laughing Justice, and my were-canine Cadaver Dog.

The only drawback is that you can't have a more impressive aura, but cigar-chompers tend to be Naturals, anyway, and rarely sport bioplasm or hellfire.

The best part is that the smoke is non-addictive, nontoxic, and the Animal Pack which this trick requires is cheaper than a good stogie.

Enjoy!

I see that the Distinguished Competition has been offering this, but I don't really think I want it. I WOULD take advantage of a "lifetime" sub to CoX, as it's proven itself to be the source of thousands of hours of creative recreation. Yet I don't find an option for this in account management.

Who else would shell out for a "lifetime" sub?

[QUOTE=Satanic_Hamster;3448725]Let's face it; he's a step above Aquaman. And that's not saying much.

We have seen Namor the Submariner beat down the FF, yet somehow Aquaman took him out in the big Marvel vs DC Crossover. As a fan of both characters, I was still somewhat sceptical; Arthur Curry just doesn't have the raw power or invulnerabilty of Namor. But in comics, there are skill sets we don't have access to in CoX. For instance, there's no "cause a giant whale to leap out of the ocean and land on your opponent" power... ; )

Oliver Queen has teamed with Batman to defeat Superman. Knowing Bruce, if he hadn't absolutely needed someone else for his plan to work, Green Arrow wouldn't have been there. Yet he managed to sneak up on a guy with X-Ray vision, super-hearintg, etc., & put a Kryptonite arrow in Kal-El's personal space, literally with one arm.

To speak seriously for a moment, I agree with a previous poster that some of us might have toons who are mere mortals with highly honed skills, but that ain't a bad thing, if that's the kind of character you want to run. Silver Surfer vs. Batman is a no-contest in terms of actual power, but both characters are interesting in their own way. My 10th Level pure archer is in what I think of as "Year One" of his career; there is plenty of room to improve him to what I think of as Green Arrow or Hawkeye level.

Hmmm. Looking around, perhaps I should have called this thread "Why No Bios On Major NPCs And Do Bow Defenders Suck?" ; )

My twin boys are very young (6 months), but it's my fond hope that CoH is still going strong in a few years, when they can sit beside me and begin to learn to play the game. Someone in the community recently posted to say that his 6-yr old daughter learned to read at an early age due to his involving her in CoH--"That says 'Steel Canyon', right, Daddy?' I can see myself doing the same, and also using age-appropriate graphic lit. Words with pictures (or toons) make it easier for a new brain to make synaptic connections.

The game itself is also very intuitive, and easy to learn to play. Like the rest of you, I've found the Commnunity to be vastly helpful, with very few snarky-folk. Why learn if you can't teach? I will always help anyone with a question if I know the answer, because in my opinion, I myself am still a "newb" after 3 years of more or less constant play.

After all, this was my first (& presently only MMO, though I did sub to "that other shiny new game"), but the content is so deep that I could never feel superior to even a first-day player. For instance, I've been in only one PvP battle, got creamed plus taunted, & went off to work on my builds some more. I can't do all the cool binds, base-building, or graphic capture collages that many of you seem to be so good at pulling off. But it's no fun, really, to totally pwn a game. As in real life, we are all ignorant of something, and thus can enjoy a new challenge.

So I consider myself a "newb" but not a "nOOb", and can't imagine flaming someone, even for asking "Where is Miss Liberty?" while we're both standing on the City Hall steps in Atlas. I just don't see myself being contemptuous of anyone here, actually--if another player says something really nasty or truly stupid to me, I will simply ignore them. In the CoH environment, you can actually live by the old saw "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

As for the "other shiny new game", I'm still struggling with the rather unforgiving combat engine in the tutorial. The Distinguished Competition's offering seems more of a "first-person fighter" for fast young hands & eyes rather than a game like CoH, which even an old man like myself can play without snuffing it every 60 feet. In hearing about the snarky Community there, I am even more tempted to think "I'll get back to this later", & play CoH instead.

Yet possibly, even in the "other game", the intial "IQs smaller than their shoe sizes" people will get bored quickly and find other ways of dropping verbal napalm on hapless Netizens. I agree that we in the CoH Communty are the role models for MMO players everywhere, or should strive to be.

My thanks go out to everyone (and you are legion) who has helped and supported me in my 33 months of newbness!

Thanks very much, Razoras. I knew bits & pieces of this info, but it was nice to see full mini-bios on all the trainers.

This may have been discussed previously, but I haven't seen it. NPCs in mission arcs have deep background bios, but characters like Miss Liberty, Blue Steel, Manticore, et al--that is, iconic characters to whom one goes to level up--have none.

I would think that the Devs already have a fairly complete notion of who these heroes are, how they got their powers, & what they are known for having done. So it seems to me it would not be difficult to add bios for these very prominent pillars of the heroic community.

The added realism & feeling of interaction is obvious in such a case. We can't really get away with saying "Everyone knows", because many new players probably *don't* know. I realise the Origin of Power storyline gives some basic info, but I still feel each "trainer" should have a reasonably detailed bio.

Thoughts, anyone?

[QUOTE=ClawsandEffect;3436543]Interesting responses.

I work at a job I dislike because I need the reward from it (my paycheck) in order to simply survive. I don't want to spend what little free time I have feeling like I need to earn rewards in a video game to make it worth my time. I play the game and accept whatever rewards happen to come my way, but I don't do things I find unenjoyable in order to maximize them.

Exactly. In the "meat world", rewards are scanty for the amount of personal energy you put in; in CoX, it behooves one to accept & enjoy the reward that comes your way because you strayed into an alcove & knocked out a minion who just happened to have a rare piece of salvage.

It seems to me that most players who have contributed to this discussion understand that there must be some amount of striving in order to feel a genuine sense of pleasure in playing the game. Otherwise, everyone would start as a level 1000 Incarnate, with all powers maxed out.

Part of what makes the game so enjoyable for me is knowing that each and every toon, no matter how similar in outward appearance power-wise, is a unique creation. Some of their abilty is luck, some is skill, some is determination, some is simple longevity. But in the end, all C0X toons are like snowflakes--none are identical.

Thank G-d!!!