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You might try VirtualDub, or VirtualDubMod, Sam. I've taken to using SOny Vegas as of late.. but I used VDub before that.
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Have you taken a look at WeGame?
I'm not sure how it compares with quality, but I didn't notice much of a difference between that and other programs while using it. It also allows you to upload directly to the Wegame site after recording; from the program, even. You can also take the videos and upload them to Youtube or wherever you wish using the usual means. -
Quite frankly, I find it a miracle that the Devs can manage to tweak anything at all in the game anymore. If it's changed, it WILL be complained about. They could go so far as to double the amount of speed gained from toggling on Sprint, or halving the recharge on Rest for no particular reason - with no drawback whatsoever - and folk would raise a stink simply because it made things easier, or because they now move too quickly, or because their frail, old man/woman concept relied on Rest being available at precisely a certain interval so that they could 'fall asleep' a precise number of times per mission.
In this case, though, I wouldn't mind if the prompt were brought back with an option to turn it off (but I'm not certain it could be done without bringing back the exploit, given the nature of how it worked)... I'd simply turn it off, and curse all the fist-shakers in this thread every time I had to go out of my way to click that darn little option.
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The only thing that could have made this arc better, for me, is if I had been able to keep the base as my own personal staging grounds - a base-type area I can visit at any time, complete with buyable 'upgrades' that expand the map/fill in room and give access to a variety of mini-games that I can use to earn some sort of non-game-breaking reward or another. (For example, beating up varities of suped-up clones. Guessing games. Things like that.)
Also. Last mission + Walk = most satisfying moment I have experienced in either game to date. I also rather liked how my Villain actually showed some intelligence and restraint while dealing with the teller. -
Quote:Hear, hear! Or is it "here, here"? I was never certain. Anyhow! I would like to second Sam's suggestion, and throw in one of my own.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
Well, given that my mysterious benefactor decided to drop another sample image in my mailbox of a character that I don't even have, I thought I'd bring that discussion here:
I would like to request the addition of a more muscular, more ripped skin texture set for the female model, including upper and lower body, hands and feet. David has expressed some reluctance to go that route, citing legitimate concerns that it might not look good, which seems to have irked some unnamed person who's been flooding my e-mail with sample screenshots of my characters with more muscular textures like these:
I do not know who this person is or how he makes these probably illegal screenshots, but you his point, as I understand it, is that even reusing the current game's textures, we can create looks that, while they may not be everyone's idea of aesthetic beauty, still do work sufficiently well to pass off for intentional. He didn't explain the mechanics to me, but I believe what we are looking at is female models using the male skin textures with the male muscle definition. And I'd say they're not half bad, considering that's not what these textures are intended to be used for.
I believe my mysterious benefactor has a point, however - if the game right as it is now is capable of producing images like these with ZERO additional artwork (or so he tells me), then I'm sure that the awesome, cool, gifted people that are David, Jay, BABs and the rest of the art team, can do so much better and make this both work to the same effect and look SO MUCH BETTER!
As I've always suggested it, I'd like to see a selection of base skin textures for the female model featuring at least two options - Smooth and Muscular, just the same way men can choose between these options. Now, I know from my own personal observations of how the game handles "With Skin" items that ONLY HUMAN SKIN will really apply without massive system re-writes, so I'm restricting my request to just two skin options - Smooth and Muscular human skin. That all. Nothing more.
*additional note, skip if you don't care*
See, one of the things I've always always complained about concerning muscular female characters is that their waists and their arms are far too skinny for a truly stout fighter. The solution I used to suggest to this was to just extend the sliders to make them thicker, but David shot that out of the sky with a AAA cannon. And I agree - it's isn't needed. As my anonymous benefactor has shown me with his pics, making the female body texture more muscular makes the actual frame of the female look a LOT thicker than it actually is. Just look at those pictures and tell me - don't those girls look bigger than anything we can make in-game? Because they do to me, and my benefactor insists their models have not been altered, only their textures.
I say we don't need a "huge female" model, we don't need new meshes, we don't need larger arms or different physiques. JUST a more muscular texture for females, created by our awesome artists, would put a stop to practically all the requests for bigger females. And you can take that to the bank!
What about livening up the 'with skin' options with some textures? Perhaps they could be alternate pieces.. but I wonder if it might be possible to apply the 'with skin' pieces as masks to the 'tights' options? Such that it essentially crops the chosen 'tights' piece into the confines of the 'with skin' pieces? Now, I will concede that the following images are not only not the best examples, most likely - but are also quick-and-dirty photoshops I did at 6 AM. Still, hopefully it's enough to offer the general idea. Like so:
Patent Leather Bandeau
Athletic Armor Plate
Oh, one more for fanservice's sake.
Metal Bikini
Obviously, these crude renditions are nowhere near the kind of refinement we'd expect from the professional art team in charge of things here - but just as a baseline...
However it might work, it just seems as though having some texture options for one of Female's largest categories would go a long way towards giving the CoX creator the kind of boost it needs. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
She does have a big honking sword, which I actually believe you've seen. It's the basic Legacy Broadsword, which ends up being the biggest sword a female has access to, and by a fair margin.
Err... I can't post pictures of it because the mysterious stranger didn't include the sword in. If I had to guess, I'd say it wouldn't have made for as good a demonstration of the texture, but I wouldn't really know. I don't know this person, so I'm just guessing. He or she did send me an angry letter lamenting about how he or she wanted to put on the male upper legs texture on the picture, as well, but was unable to for reasons that weren't explained. I would guess technical ones, but I wouldn't know. I would never dream of doing any of this, myself, but I'm kind of sorry that my mysterious benefactor came up short. Oh, well
Here's hoping for the future, though. I honestly feel there is at least SOME leeway that can be had with this line of artwork.
I certainly hope so - goodness knows I have a truckload of concepts that would look even better with something like that; and a hundred truckloads of concepts I had to scrap because it isn't available. -
Quote:Ah, Xanta looks complete! Well, almost. Give her a big, horkin' sword and I think she'd be about as close to your original idea as the game could come. She looks much better with that kind of definition.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
You know, some anonymous person who I know absolutely nothing about and have never met before dropped this unusual, probably illegally-created image in my inbox. Apparently some kind stranger took pity on my poor argument and decided to something that I don't understand and know nothing about and apparently create a female model with what looks like a fairly muscular torso. I'm sure that whoever this person is could get in trouble, so it's a good thing he remained anonymous.
Let's look at the image, though. One of my bigger complaints with the female models in this game is that their waists are always too narrow and their arms always too skinny, but look at this. Even though the model geometry is exactly the same, both the waist and the arms look rather a lot more solid. It's an optical illusion, really, but being that this is a make-pretend game, do we really care? I understand this is probably not to everyone's tastes, but can you honestly tell me that this looks UGLY? Because I seriously doubt it.
Now, one would probably theorise that the breasts on the model may look really awkward with this texture, and I would guess that might be the case, but since whoever it was that made this pic didn't show me the model piece-by-piece, I wouldn't know. As you can tell, we can't see the chest area in this screenshot because my anonymous benefactor seems to have hidden it under the Enforcer chest piece. I have no idea why, but he probably had a reason. But even if there were a problem with it, one would assume that a graphic artist could probably fix it if there were an actual, supported, legal version of that texture.
I'm sure whoever it was that made this picture is very sorry for doing it, but we can't let his or her wrongdoing go to waste, so let's try and use this as a very rough example of what COULD be possible if ever there were a time when the art team weren't too busy with redacted work -
Quote:All stuff coming up with the next revision, I promise! Actually, half of it is already typed out, but I wanted to go back and re-confirm a few observations before I put them out there.Originally Posted by Eek a Mouse
You corrected the Bodyguard definition, but not the example you used.
"if you have one pet summoned and you and your pet get smacked with a 100-point AoE, you take 50 damage. Your poor pet takes 150!"
In actuality, you would take 67 and your pet would take 133
Otherwise, it's a good start to a comprehensive guide. The formatting is great and easy to read, and it is well organized and structured.
I'd think that you could flesh out the secondary section a bit even without having played them all -- especially if you have played other Masterminds in the past. What types of powers did you find yourself wishing you had? Did you find yourself using your heal frequently, or would a non-healing secondary (FF, Sonic, TA) do OK?
Also, can you describe the Demons' AI? Do they tend to favor Melee or Ranged? I think that Demons are the only MM set with significant cone attacks. Do you have to micromanage their positions a lot because of them?
Thanks!
Barring the Bodyguard example, which I completely missed yet again. Thanks! I'll make sure that gets corrected, too.
For the curious, the reason a lot was left out in the first run was due to PC complications causing me to lose all of my progress sporadically while attempting to do the full shebang. Frusteration had me put out what I had before I wound up having to type up everything you see posted for the fourth time in a row.
I don't suppose anyone knows a better way of formatting/typing these things than using Notepad? It did allow me to save my progress.. but it made for a -ton- of formatting for forum use. -
Quote:I would just like to stand with Sam on these suggestions, even though he knows I already do - lord knows we've had some rather lengthy conversations on the subject many times over.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
See, the reason I ask is that I've actually seen this in various ways in-game. Currently, the female Icon mannequins use the Male upper body texture (Tights Muscular, to be precise), and while opinions on how appropriate this is vary, I don't believe many have said that it looks BAD so much as that it looks odd. And mind you, this is a texture that I don't think was ever designed for the female torso. If that works well enough to pass...
Additionally, a curious bug a couple of years ago introduced arms on the female model that used the male upper arms texture (again, Tights Muscular). They Shirt and Uniform Shirt sleeves for Jackets did this, and when I tried it, it didn't look half bad. Obviously not as good as it could have if it were intentional, but it wasn't too bad for a bug.
Finally, CURRENTLY ON LIVE female lower arms that use anything "with skin," such as the Fingerless Gloves texture for Smooth Gloves or the Pointed Glove and Flared Glove 3D model options will have the MALE lower arm texture, with all the heavy muscle striations and tendons popping up, which actually creates a sort of "line" between the smooth-skin upper arm and them muscular lower arm. I've bugged this several times, going as far back as 2004 and that still remains the same. I agree with you that it doesn't exactly look spectacular, but again - it's a texture that was intended for a much broader forearm.
All of that is to say that this may not look as badly as you fear if done properly and not over-the-top. Certainly, it's a matter of taste, and you clearly outrank me in terms of decision weight But I would still suggest that you guys at least look into this and see if there might not be something to it. It'd certainly make me personally VERY happy, and even if nothing comes out of it, at least I know SOMEONE heard my suggestions after all these years
To put it in another way, though... Unless there are some very tricky plans for the future, CoH is no longer the forefront of customization - and for as long as these old, awkward (comparatively) models are limited to the sorts of categories we currently have (IE: Adding more pieces and more hairstyles), it's unlikely that it will catch up as it deserves to. Worse, characters will simply become 'stale' and no longer as interesting to play with. Or perhaps that's just me, as I tend to run through every piece ten times over between issues, and wind up not playing for a while simply because I've run out of good ideas. Occasionally, a good piece comes along that helps, and it brings the fun back into creation.
If it can't (or shouldn't) be done, then it can't be done, I suppose. Still, I'm all behind a player-model equivalent of an 'Ultra-Mode' level overhaul.
Also, the 'male lower arms on a female toon with gloves the contain skin' issue? Bothers the bugger out of me, too. SOmetimes to the point where I'll avoid using them whenever possible.
Note: Everything above was strictly my own opinion. I claim in no way to be an expert on the matter, and would simply like to throw my thoughts out on the table. -
Whee, knockback. The first thing I did when I got my first 50 (Martial ARts Scrapper)? Six-slotted Crane Kick for KB, respecced into Teleport Foe, and spent the next hour teleporting Hellions on top of the Atlas Globe to see how far I could punt them.
... Until I discovered that I could, in fact, punt them from the edge of the fence into the square where everyone hangs out. The reactions seen as lifeless Hellion ragdolls came sailing into the dance parties and costume contests were completely priceless.
These days? Watching a risky plan produce spectacular results. Before I deleted it, my Fire/Dark Corruptor offered two sources of this: 1) Run through a Mayhem Mission and trigger every ambush on the map, and then go hide behind the bank door with a tar patch waiting - or 2) Superspeed to the end of a mission. Toggle Darkest Night onto the boss, and then run all the way back to the first corner of a mission and wait. The end results were the same: Tar patch + Rain of Fire + Fire Breath + Fire Ball = 30 or 40 dead mobs with one setup. There's the aggro cap, sure, but it happened so quickly that the mobs that didn't come running still had enough 'hate' to come running once the first batch died.. and into the same trap! -
I actually don't use any three of them very much. I used to PvP from time to time, but only as a 'there's nothing else to do, let's hit the zone and see what's going on' kind of deal. I collected badges all of once: on my first toon. I tried writing an MA arc, once, but I didn't really have the patience to sit down and finish it when there were things to go beat up and levels to gain; and I tend to prefer the built-in story-arcs to the MA content anywho. I was never much of a Roleplayer, either. I have a specific medium I use for that; CoH's interface just never lent itself comfortably to it (Read: Text limit is far too short) for me.
So, instead, I build characters. If I'm not in a mission, I'm either in the tailor or in the creation screen looking for new and unusual combinations of powersets to try. Costume creation is one of my favorite things to do - followed by seeing an odd build work better than I'd hoped it would. -
Quote:Oh hey, thanks! I'll clean that up right away.Originally Posted by Spectreblade
Just a small correction to what you said about Bodyguard. It's not an even split between the Mastermind and henchmen.
To quote ParagonWiki
Everything else about what you said is accurate, though, and it's still a good guide. -
May have been mentioned already but I would pay double, even if I'm the only one desperate enough to do so, for a 'Makeover' pack featuring nothing but a dozen or so hairstyles and faces for each gender.
And maybe a summonable Icon phone booth that allows me to tailor my costume wherever I am. -
Table of Contents
I. A Fine How-Do-You-Do (Intro)
II. Beginnings and Ramblings (Getting Started)
III. Understanding the Demonic (Primary Powers)
IV. Care and Feeding for Your Unholy Minions (Secondaries)
V. Taking Command (Strategies)
I. A Fine How-Do-You-Do
Welcome! Whether you're a Test Server veteran looking for someone else's perspective on the latest addition to a Mastermind's repertoire, or someone simply looking to get a leg up on Demon Summoning's releases (more on that in a moment), it is my hope that you'll find everything you wish to know by the time you're finished with this guide. The purpose of this guide is three-fold: The first purpose I have just mentioned - Education. Demon Summoning has quickly become one of my favorite Mastermind primaries, and I'd like to share my experiences with others to save them a bit of hardship in the future.
Secondly, I do this for fun. As I said before, I've taken quite a liking to the set - and this is a way for me to show my enthusiasm in a productive manner. Finally, this is a learning experience for me, too. I've always wanted to try my hand at writing guides... and now I have an excuse to give such a daunting task a whirl.
As my first attempt at a guide, it's liable to get a bit messy here and there. Expect a few revisions as time goes along as I try and make this as easy to read and fun to browse as possible. With that said, let's get started! Shall we?
II. Beginnings and Ramblings
At this point, you may have one of two questions (among many others I hope to address as we go along). If you're asking "What's a Mastermind?", then the following paragraph is for you. If, instead, you're asking "Demon Summoning?", then the paragraph after that is for you.
First, a few notes on Masterminds. If you've never played a Mastermind before, then allow me to explain: A Mastermind is a Villains-exclusive Archetype (this will change with Going Rogue and Side-Switching) based around the care and command of AI and player-commanded "pets" who serve to do the majority of your dirty work. It's a play experience like no other in the game, and calls for an attentive eye and a bit of brainpower to work at it's best. Sounds daunting, doesn't it? It's actually not so bad once you familiarize yourself with the basics. On that note, I would suggest reading Master Zaprobo's Guide tot he Modern Mastermind and Sandolphan's Revised Mastermind Numpad Controls as a brief primer to the Archetype. I'll be covering some of the basics in the 'Strategies' section - but these two go into much better detail than I could ever hope to.
Demon Summoning, you say? As I mentioned before, this is the latest Primary available to the Mastermind Archetype. Currently, it's still in the Open Beta stages. When Issue 17 hits the Live servers, this set will become available to anyone who pre-purchased the Going Rogue expansion. With Going Rogue, the set will then become available to, I believe, everyone. Given the nature of the two-stage release, I feel it's fair to say that the set may see some changes between now and it's official release with Going Rogue. Thus, the content of this guide will change as necessary to reflect any heavy changes made to the set.
Compared to other Mastermind Primaries, Demon Summoning stands out as a mixed bag; and unique in the fact that no two pets are precisely the same. I'll go more into detail in the next section, but as a general statement you'll find that this powerset covers a lot of ground. It buffs. It debuffs. It heals. It controls. It damages in Single-Target and Area of Effect attacks. I have yet to figure out how to make it cook dinner or do the laundry, but rest assured; you folk will be the first to know once I discover the secret. It's a set designed as a true jack-of-all - fitting handily into almost any situation you can throw at it. Eager to know more, yet? Let's continue.
III. Understanding the Demonic
Here we are! This section will be as simple as I can make it. Finally, less rambling and more informing. Ah, but one note before you take off! I will suggest several slottings that I've found useful for each power - but these are by no means the end-all, be-all ways to slot your powers. They are simply the ones I have personally found most useful to my own playstyle, and as such, they all assume standard SOs as the enhancement type used. Fair enough?
Corruption
Available At: Level 1
Power Type: Ranged Attack (80 Ft.)
Power Limit: Single-Target
Damage Type: Fire (Initial) / Toxic (DoT)
Special Effect: -9.38% Resistance
Recharge Time: 4 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 1 Endurance Reduction
Notes: Ah, Mastermind attacks. Quite the divisive topic! The Demon Summoning variations of these certainly aren't any help in the debate. Simply put: If you have room for them, you can't go wrong by taking them. They keep you busy in battle if you're using a 'fire and forget' secondary such as Force Field, and they add a bit of damage comparable to your first-tier pets (second tier as well, in some cases). With Demon Summoning, the -resistance makes this even more lucrative. It stacks well with the -resistance your Hellfire pets already throw out. However, if you have a tight build and just don't think you'll be able to squeeze them in - or if you just plain don't want to have personal attacks: then by all means, don't take them. If you only take one, however, then Corruption will be the most flexible. It's the only Ranged attack of the three Whip powers.
Summon Demonlings
Available At: Level 1
Power Type: Summon Tier 1 Henchmen
Recharge Time: 60 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 2 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 1 Endurance Reduction
Alternate Slotting: 3 Accuracy, 3 DamageFiery Demonling
Notes: Ah, the little guys. As you can see from the notes above, all three of them have different 'specialties', offering a variety of damage types and effects. Other than that, these little boogers are fairly straight-forward. They do damage, and a fair amount of it to boot.
Available At: Level 1
Damage Type: Fire
Special Effect: None
Powers: Flares, Claw Rake, Fire Blast (Enchant), Fire Breath (Empowerment)
Cold Demonling
Available At: Level 6
Damage Type: Cold
Special Effect: -15% Speed, Recharge
Powers: Ice Bolt, Claw Rake, Ice Blast (Enchant), Ice Breath (Empowerment)
Hellfire Demonling
Available At: Level 18
Damage Type: Fire / Toxic
Special Effect: -15% Resistance
Powers: Corruption, Hellfire (Enchant), Hellfire Breath (Empowerment)
Lash
Available At: Level 2
Power Type: Melee Attack (20 Ft.)
Power Limit: Single-Target
Damage Type: Fire (Initial) / Toxic (DoT)
Special Effect: -9.38% Resistance, 40% Chance of Knockdown
Recharge Time: 8 Seconds
Recomended Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 1 Endurance Reduction
Notes: I've said more or less all I could say here up there with Corruption. It hits harder than Corruption, and the Knockdown is especially nice when it happens.
Enchant Demon
Available At: Level 6
Power Type: Pet Upgrade
Power Limit: AoE (50 Ft. Range, 30 Ft. Radius)
Recharge Time: 6 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 1 Endurance Reduction
Notes: Ah, your first upgrade. Now you truly begin to see the power of a Mastermind: though your road is just beginning! This handy little doodad upgrades all of your pets within it's radius with a single click! It does eat a fair chunk of your endurance - but gone are the days of individually upgrading every summoned pet, and thus spending several minutes at the start of each mission 'setting up'. For specific powers, please see the comments on each 'grade' of pet.
Crack Whip
Available At: Level 8
Power Type: Melee Cone (30 Ft. Range, 30 Degree Arc)
Power Limit: Cone
Damage Type: Fire (Initial) / Toxic (DoT)
Special Effect: -9.38% Resistance, 25% Chance of Knockdown
Recharge Time: 15 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 1 Endurance Reduction
Notes: Unlike the other two attacks, this one can hit multiple enemies at once! It's also your highest damage personal attack. With that said, you can skip this one even if you're taking personal attacks. It's not a bad power, but I really didn't find myself in many situations where I found myself wanting any extra AoE damage. Your mileage may, of course, vary.
Summon Demons
Available At: Level 12
Power Type: Summon Tier 2 Henchmen
Recharge Time: 1 Minute, 30 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 2 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 1 Endurance ReductionEmber Demon
Notes: Beautiful, isn't it? Just look at that variety of powers! This is when you truly begin to understand the power behind Demon Summoning - ah, but it only gets better from here. As you can tell, your Hellfire Gargoyle is purely a combat type. He gets into melee and wreaks havoc. Make sure to keep him topped up, because he will draw lots and lots of aggro - and use lots and lots of endurance. Your Ember Demon will also use an ungainly amount of Endurance. With the End Reduc slotted, they'll both be fine. (Contrary to belief, putting an End Reduc into your summon does, in fact, reduce the cost of the pet's own powers as well.) After all, he does run an AoE shield for your entire team (Ember Shield), keep your pets somewhat topped up with a single-target and an AoE heal (Abyssal Mending and Reconstruction) - just don't expect him to keep everything alive by himself. Both healing powers have fairly hefty recharge times.
Available At: Level 12
Damage Type: Fire
Special Effect: +Resistance, Heal
Powers: Fire Blast, Ember Shield, Fire Breath (Enchant), Abyssal Mending (Enchant), Fire Ball (Empowerment), Abyssal Reconstruction (Empowerment)
Hellfire Gargoyle
Available At: Level 24
Damage Type: Fire / Toxic / Lethal
Special Effect: -20% Resistance
Powers: Claw Rake, Claw Slash, Corruption, Breath of Hellfire (Enchant), Hellfire Aura (Enchant), Hellfire Smash (Empowerment), Hellfire Burst (Empowerment)
Hell on Earth
Available At: Level 18
Power Type: Ranged Pet Buff, Special (60 Ft.)
Power Limit: Single-Target
Damage Type: Lethal, Toxic (See Notes)
Special Effect: +7.50% To-Hit and +37.50% Damage for 1 Minute, 30 Seconds / Chance to Summon 'Living Hellfire'
Recharge Time: 10 Minutes
Recommended Slotting: 2 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 2 Recharge
Notes: This is an interesting little buff. The +To-Hit and +Damage are nice, for certain, but it's the 'Chance to Summon' that really makes this power shine. Every 15 seconds this buff is active, is has a chance to summon a little Hellfire Imp (Living Hellfire) at the affected pet's location. These little guys don't do much on their own, but if you get 5-8 of them running around - well, it adds up awfully fast. Note: Unlike Gang War, the Hellfires do not have an inherent taunt that will draw aggro away from you.
Summon Demon Prince
Available At: Level 26
Power Type: Summon Tier 3 Henchman
Recharge Time: 2 Minutes
Recommended Slotting: 2 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 1 Endurance ReductionDemon Prince
Notes: Now you've reached the pinnacle of pets! Not only are his attacks powerful, but so are his controls. Like your Hellfire Gargoyle, this is a pet that craves Melee - but his control powers tend to keep him at arm's length more often than the former. Like your Ember Demon, however, he is an endurance-hungry pet. Thus, a single Endurance Reduction will go a long way towards keeping his blue-bar manageable. And, finally, we may see the cumulative effects of all six of your pets. Paired with a set that specializes in enemy debuffs, you'll be a force to be reckoned with in any situation. I've heard that Buff secondaries are also quite popular... Ah, but that's for another section, now isn't it?
Available At: Level 26
Damage Type: Cold
Special Effect: -Recharge, -Speed, Hold, Sleep
Powers: Ice Blast, Shiver, Ice Sword (Enchant), Block of Ice (Enchant), Ice Slash (Empowerment), Frozen Aura (Empowerment)
Abyssal Empowerment
Available At: Level 32
Power Type: Pet Upgrade
Power Limit: AoE (30 Ft. Range, 30 Ft. Radius)
Recharge Time: 10 Seconds
Recommended Slotting: 1 Endurance Reduction
Notes: The last piece of the puzzle. Once you have this, you've reached the pinnacle of Demon Summoning: and what a pinnacle it is! There isn't much to say here that wasn't mentioned with 'Enchant Demon', unfortunately. Just take it and revel in your new-found glory.
IV. Care and Feeding for Your Unholy Minions
Ah, secondaries. The make-or-break when it comes to enjoyment and performance. Take any Primary you like, but the Secondary is what truly refines how something is going to play for you. Unfortunately, this section shan't be nearly as detailed as the Primary section was. The reasons are two-fold: First, I have only played Demon Summoning with Dark Miasma as a Secondary. It's my intent to try one of each type, eventually - but that shall take quite a bit of time. This brings me to the second reason: I doubt I'm the only one itching to write out a guide for our latest powerset - and I'd like to leave this space available for others to fill in the blanks. Thus, if you write a Demon Summoning guide with any particular Secondary, just shoot me a PM, if you like, and I can link to that guide here under the proper heading. With that said, I'll write what I know so far.
A small note on 'Synergy' before I begin: Synergy is not a measure of how well a set is going to perform in combination with Demon Summoning. Despite having listed Force Field as 'low', for example, a Demon/FF Mastermind is still going to kick lots and lots of tail. For the most part, Synergy is just a measure of how well a secondary capitalizes on the strengths of a particular Primary. Dark Miasma is 'High' with demons, for example, because it's largely an AoE Debuff set - which lends itself very well to the Demons' AoE damage; while its controls stack and complement the Prince's own controls very nicely.
Dark MiasmaPros: Strong PBAoE Heal, Strong Debuffs, Seventh Pet
Cons: Heal has a tiny radius, and requires a to-hit check; very little buff capability. Lack of -defense.
Synergy: High
Powers of Interest: Darkest Night, Tar Patch, Petrifying Gaze, Dark Servant.
This was my first choice for secondary, and I have very rarely regretted it or wished for another. To be truthful, the only reason I picked Dark Miasma intially was due to the embrassing fact that in the several years I've been playing the game, I had yet to take a Dark Miasma character beyond the early twenties. I'll be getting more into specific powers later, but for now... What a wonderful combination. You have heals, to-hit debuffs galore, and all sorts of status effects (Stun, Hold, Fear, Intangibility) to allow you to dominate the flow of any given fight. The only thing this set truly lacks is +to-hit or -defense - making defense-heavy enemies quite a bother. Did I mention that many of these powers are two-fold, thanks to the Dark Servant pet? Very good times indeed. (Note: Specific Power summaries are pending for this section. I'll add them as soon as I get a bit more time in with Dark Servant.)
Force Field
Pros: High +Defense, Mez Protection, Self +Defense, Very 'Fire and Forget' secondary.
Cons: It does what it does very well - but it does very little else. No Self or Ally Heal.
Synergy: Low
Powers of Interest: Deflection Shield, Insulation Shield, Dispersion Bubble, Force Bubble, Personal Force Field
Force Field will make you and your pets dramatically tougher, but it won't really do much else. Buff up your demons and turn them loose on whatever you like. Dispersion Bubble is extra nice for those of us who don't like getting Held, Stunned, or Immobilized - and Force Bubble provides an interesting layer of protection to you and your ranged pets through area-denial. Unfortunately, the set really doesn't do much else - but for most situations, that's all you'll need anyhow.
Pain Domination
Pros: Strong Healing, Strong Buffing, Some Debuffing.
Cons: Debuffing is present, but not very strong. Many powers are pointless to the solo player (This could also be a Pro, for some of you.)
Synergy: Medium
Powers of Interest: Suppress Pain, World of Pain, Anguishing Cry, Painbringer.
Pain Domination is, more or less, the Villains' equivalent to Empathy. Well, that's what it was stated to be, but it's really more like a combination between Empathy and Thermal. If you're a solo player, then you can get by without Share Pain, Conduit of Pain, or Enforce Morale if you find yourself wanting more room. If you're a team player, however, then this set really begins to shine. As it stands, watching a Painbringer-buffed Demon Prince or Hellfire Gargoyle run around causing havok is a beautiful thing indeed. Anguishing Cry gives you a little debuff to make your pets hit that much harder; particularly in combination with the World of Pain buff.
Poison
Pros: Extreme Debuffing, Limited Crowd Control, Single-target Ally Heal
Cons: Heal eats a TON of endurance. Mainly a Single-Target-based set until 38. Little in the way of buffing.
Synergy: Medium
Powers of Interest: Envenom, Weaken, Noxious Gas
This is the set that Arch-Villains and Giant Monsters have nightmares about. Pre-Noxious Gas, you'll be the undisputed King/Queen/Other of taking down tough individual targets - by debuffing them into wet noodles! Post-38, you can throw Noxious Gas on your Prince or Gargoyle and watch the enemies choke on your awesomeness; adding even more debuff to the solid repertoire you developed with Envenom and Weaken. The main catch with this set is that it really is more solo-friendly than team-friendly until the later levels, when tough targets become more commonplace. The exception lies with Elixir of Life and Antidote - an ally revive and mez protection, respectively. Your heal is also rather weak for it's endurance cost - so you'd do well not to rely heavily on it until it's been well slotted with healing and endurance reduction.
Storm Summoning
This one will be coming eventually. I honestly have had very little experience with Storm, personally, so I'll be doing some research and getting some input from others more knowledgable before I attempt to write on it here.
Thermal Radiation
Pros: Good Healing Capability, Good Buffing Capability, Good Debuffing Capability.
Cons: Very Active Secondary, No Crowd Control.
Synergy: High
Power of Interest: Fire Shield, Plasma Shield, Forge, Heat Exhaustion, Melt Armor
Ah, Thermal. This was a very popular secondary throughout the Test phases - and for good reason! The shields stack very nicely with your pets' own shields and innate resistances - giving you an entire posse of miniature Tanks to roll around with. THrow in the fact that you have a fair AoE Heal and some strong +Damage through Forge, and you have a very potent combination. Heat Exhaustion is best saved for EBs/AVs, and it goes a long ways towards softening them up for Demon fodder. The only thing that holds this set back at all is it's lack of Crowd Control. You can roll right through almost anything the game that throw at you - but you'll be wishing you could just hold the enemy still at least once in your career. It's also a good thematic match!
Demon Summoning/Traps
Coming Soon!
Demon Summoning/Trick Arrow
Coming Soon!
V. Taking Command
1. Bodyguard Mode! What is it? It's quite simple. Under "Advanced Pet Controls", if your pets are in the Follow/Defensive stance, then you are in Bodyguard Mode. Please disregard what I had written here before. Here's the correct information from Paragon Wiki: (Thanks to Spectreblade for pointing this out!)
2. AoEs: Avoid them! These are the bane of your pets' existence; especially while you're in Bodyguard Mode. Not only will they take damage from the AoE itself - but if you get hit by it, they'll also take a portion of your damage in addition! This will chew threw your pets in no time at all. Your best option, in this case, is to send in your toughest pet and let him take the brunt of the AoE - keepign the rest of them safe from harm before you proceed as normal. Alternatively, you can send all of your pets to attack while you hang back; focusing fire upon any AoE-heavy enemies in order to remove them from the fight more quickly.Quote:Bodyguard Damage Mitigation: When set to Bodyguard mode, the Mastermind and his pets share damage from any attack that the Mastermind takes damage from. Each pet takes one 'share' of the damage, and the Mastermind himself takes two 'shares'. This is in addition to any damage that the pets themselves might incur from Area attacks.
Example: If a Mastermind has 3 pets set to Def/Fol, and he gets hit with a 100 point attack, each pet will take 20 points of the damage, and he himself will take 40 points.
Example 2: If a Mastermind has 3 pets set to Def/Fol, and he gets hit with an Area Effect attack for 10 points of damage, then each pet will take 2 points of damage, and he himself will take 4 points. Pets that were also in the Area of Effect will take an additional 10 points each, as normal.
3. Bosses/EBs/AVs: You have two main choices here, and it's going to depend largely upon what type of boss you're fighting. Is it heavy in AoE damage? If you have any debuffs available, then stay in Bodyguard mode and throw those down. At least you can soften the blow - your pets probably wouldn't survive an attack on their own to begin with. Is it more single-target based? I'd recommend the same tactic - unless the enemy has access to Holds, Stuns, or other status effects to which you have no resistance to. In this case, you might want to send the pets in and time your debuffs, if available, so that they land just as your pets draw aggro - thus softening the blow and keeping you in the fight.
4. Keybinds for the Single-Handed: If you're like me - and that seems to be a minority - then you might play with only your left hand on the keyboard, while your right remains on the mouse at all times in order to control the camera at any given moment. This makes Numpad binds awfully difficult to work with - but there is a solution. Cheap, dirty, and simple; there are three 'main' keybinds that I find myself using almost exclusively, which led me to bind the 'Attack Aggressive', 'Follow Defensive', and 'Goto Defensive' commands to keys that my left hand can easily reach. Your mileage may vary concerning the specific keys, but as an example... Here's what I use:
/bind Q "petcom_all Att Agg"
/Bind E "petcom_all Follow Def"
/Bind T "petcom_all Goto Def"
5. Power Pools. Depending on your Secondary, some of these are going to be irreplacable - others, useless. In general, you can't go wrong with Fitness if you have a more active Secondary - or any secondary with plenty of toggles in it. Medicine will also be highly useful if you play a set like Force Field, which has no inherent Heal power of it's own. Leadership isn't a must, but there's isn't a Mastermind of any combination who won't benefit from having the pets hit a little harder and more accurately. Stealth has some interesting connotations, with the ability to grant you and your pets some form of invisibility, though such uses are more just for fun than anything else. Leaping is another pool to consider, if only for Acrobatics. It's the only form of Hold protection you can give yourself access to (that I'm aware of.) Barring inspirations, of course.
More to come as I think of it.
Questions? Comments? Suggestions? I'll take them all and respond as best I can. -
Quote:Thank you! That works far better than anything I had attempted with VDub. May I ask what rendering settings you use to fit the video onto Youtube? I think I've got the jist of it, but I havn't quite figured out how to take my 16:10 aspect ratio recording and fit it into a 16:9 HD resolution without stretching or otherwise harming the quality of the video. (Letterboxing keeps the aspect ratio, but seems to hurt the quality.) - Or at least some way to upload a 16:10 to Youtube and have it look good.Originally Posted by Dark_Respite
Thanks very much.
Yeah, I record on FRAPS at full-size, approx 30FPS, on my 1680x1050 screen, then import the files into Sony Vegas Movie Studio and save it as a high quality WMV (I customized my settings). This then allows me to upload to YouTube and STILL get decent resolution on there.
Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite -
And here I'd been told that using more than one program was bad for quality; but then again, I did say it was all rather out of date.
Thanks! I'll take a look into this. On a coincidental note - it was actually your videos I was using as a measure for the kind of video quality I wanted to aim for. This latest one especially.
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Avi, since that's what Fraps and VDub seem to put out. I've got 14 Gigs (5 minutes' worth) of raw video that I'm trying to make a bit more wieldly. Unfortunately, any information I can actually find on the whole recording/compression process tends to be several years out of date!
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For those of you CoX filmers out there... Are any of you folk familiar with Virtual Dub? If so, what compression settings do you generally use to get the best balance between high quality and file size? I've been tinkering around with this with the intent of uploading to Youtube, but I either get files that are far too large (1G+) or too poor quality... or both. That's tinkering with Xvid and DivX compressions.
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The DS/Dark I've been running on Test has been fantastic - so, I'll be recreating that one when it goes Live.
In the end, though, I'd like to have one with each of the secondaries, as I've done with Mercs. -
Makes me think of the 'Chilly Desperado' - an Ice/Ice Tanker I made back in 2004-2005 who ran around in his briefs and a cowboy hat.
... What? -
Is shooting Warwolves not cool enough for you? Buy some Incendiary and light some people on fire!
Points to whoever gets that... But really. When I first heard about ammo-swapping, silver bullets were one of the first things that came to mind. I suppose I can settle for toxic ammunition... for now. -
Quote:It sure is! Especially with the advent of build-swapping. You could have your ally Rez in a second build, if you really, really wanted that peace of mind for rare teaming events - and leave it out in the other.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
This is going to be a fairly simple question of opinion. Well... It COULD be simple, but I'm sure I'll find some way to complicate it.
To point: How do you feel about people who could have taken an ally resurrect power - as in, it was in their powerset - but chose not to? I realise the easy answer to that is "their build, their call," but can you be certain you will feel the same way when things go bad, you're lying there dead and the guy is shrugging his shoulders, going "Well, I didn't really build for team support?" Because that's what I'm looking at right now.
Let me explain.
I'm not a team player, and as such would not really have access to ally-only power, but I'm a fan of Masterminds nonetheless. Over the years, I've done what I can to avoid sets like Poison which had ally-only powers I couldn't use on my henchmen (WHY?!?), but with the advent of Demon Summoning in the very near future, I really HAVE to start thinking about using sets like these - namely Thermal, which even for Masterminds comes with an ally-only resurrect power.
Now, I don't WANT this power, because I don't intend to play on a team, and as such it will constitute an empty pick, something I'm not a big fan of. Considering I might end up with other things I want to take, it seems only fare to skip powers I don't feel I'll almost ever need. On the other hand, I worry that this will turn me into some kind of pariah in the eyes of my fellow heroes and villains, like the oft-discussed people who didn't take "key" powers from their sets.
Basically, unless I end up with a power pick and NOTHING to take, I don't want to take an ally-only resurrect power. Is that an acceptable move to make?
Personally? If I don't intend to team, I don't take it. Anyone who wants to raise stink about it isn't someone I'd want to team with in the first place. -
I've been playing on Server 02 since this thread went up with no trouble so far. I've gone from Level 1 to Level 28, and the only oddity I've noticed is that I'm unable to buy a transfer back to Server 01 - getting a message, instead, that the 'transfer service' is down. That might be true for 01, too, for all I know.
Also, it's horribly lonely over here.
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Warning: The following reference falls under the 'PC nostalgia' category, and may not be understood by all.
I have but one word on the thought of side-switching (at least at 7 AM): Wololo! (Save your eyeballs; just the first couple of seconds are necessary.) -
I'm already intending to pick up the retail version of the Windows 7 RC within the next couple of months or so, so that's good and covered...
Heatsink... I'm actually using a Zalman CNPS9500 AT 2 Ball Fan/Heatsink at the moment. ... Which doesn't appear to be compatible with Socket 1156. Cooler Master iti s, then.