Charcoal_EU
-
Posts
242 -
Joined
-
Personally, I am hoping for the patron arcs being redone with the new mission tech and writing quality.
-
Quote:I like this idea. I would also suggest some shady/gray contacts that gave arcs to both sides. And the arcs have moral choices which count as alignment points.Originally Posted by kviri
Here's an idea... Don't make two instances of IP. Just move all of the hero contacts (who are far, far too geographically scattered anyway) to the east side of the zone. Redesignate the western shore as the "villain-controlled" section of the zone, and add villain contacts and RI transit points over there (there's already one in IP for Rogues and Vigilantes). That section of IP -- especially Valor Bridge -- is horribly underutilized, and the zone's size and natural geographical division would allow for it to be dual-faction while still feeling like two separate zones unless you go out of your way to peek in on the other side (especially if you ensure that mission doors remain in certain areas, as was done in the Hollows revamp).
If you want to get really ambitious, revamp Terra Volta with opposing arcs for both factions, as well. Talk about a zone that desperately needs any improvement it can get...
Back to the original topic:
Blue side: Boomtown. Rebuild. But have the rebuilding be done by the 5th Column. And to make it different from Striga, make it less 'military base' and more 'trench warfare' with PPD/Longbow pushing back. Level 20-30. Story arcs, perhaps a TF. Bonus points if the devs can reuse the control/phasing tech from pvp zones.
Red side: New zone. Level 15-25. Theme: tropical resort, with matching weather/environment. Low/minimal Arachnos presence, perhaps have the whole place owned by Crey or a different megacorp. Story themes: secrets, betrayal, spy games, heists. -
Quote:The universe owes us nothing. And it is the very height of arrogance to think otherwise.Originally Posted by Melancton
Liberty is an unalienable right endowed by the Creator. This Truth is self-evident.
There, we have both said our parts. And neither will convince the other. So let us speak of this no more. -
Alternate animations I would like to see:
* /salute, /evillaugn, /howl and /raisefist as alternates for /tarzan in regen, tough, etc
* cosmic burst - closed fist version
* eviscerate - something without the backflip, suggestion: stab both claws straight forward, rip out to the sides
* dual pistols - something less complex for the dual wield power
* electric blast - version of thunderous blast that finishes with character blasting lightning straight up, lightning rod hit FX on target(s)
* dual blades - version of one thousand cuts that has the whole body spinning, with a variety of differently angled slashes
* martial arts - version of crippling axe kick that does a hand edge chop
* non-weapon snipes - version with outstretched open hand, no recoil, for all
* broad sword - versions that are more precise/elegant, also add some stabbing action
* sonic powers - versions that originate from hands
* mental powers - versions with no movement, only FX
* energy blast - continuous beam versions
* <stuff> breath - versions that do not originate from mouth
* elemental melee sets - with weapon and no weapon versions for all powers
* elemental melee sets, again - add some kicks
* weapon melee sets - make the FX color tintable
* rain of <stuff> - versions with "blast <stuff> upwards"
* whirling <whatever>, Spin, etc - versions that actually look like the character is hitting things around it, the current animation only really works for fire/ice/maybe energy
* forcefield/sonic bubbles - different textures on the bubbles, suggestions: honeycomb, writing, symbols, etc -
Question: will there be a chance to change forum name, to go with the global name change ?
-
Got the EU Knives costume, don't need the rest. Apologies to those who wanted it.
-
I've deleted/rerolled many characters, but none above 30.
One part is that some powersets and concepts are not as fun for me as expected.
The other thing is that I try not to have more than one character with the same concept or powerset. At this time, with 25 characters, the only powerset I have more than one of is fire blast and I will probably reroll one of those when a new corruptor primary (not pistols, already have those) comes out. -
These already exist:
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/IR_Goggles_(Raid)
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Stealth_Suit_(Raid)
The pvp zones also have several versions of stealth. -
Existing characters will stay where they are, though some may move toward the middle. I have made two new characters, red and blue, with the plan that they will switch sides. And my future praetorians will probably not choose sides according to AT - not quite side switching but still.
-
Right now I have one character with a 'joke' name - Adjective Noun.
I used to have Rouge Angle and Very Dense Man (gravity dom; not that smart) but I play on one server and slots are precious. -
"Hey dad! You look different, is it the hair ?" -
Quote:Bushy tails were suggested/asked-for in one of the 'All things' threads. When mutant booster was placed on test there were complaints/suggestions that a 'mutant' pack should have animal costume parts. So the wolf/fox tail, which was done and planned for a later release, got added to the booster.Originally Posted by Syatfin
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Super_Booster_V
Scroll down to tails.
I have no clue *why* it is in the mutant pack, but hey, gives me an excuse to get it. -
While it is an 'unfulfilled promise' rather than 'lost costume piece', I think this is the best 'all things' thread for it.
The Halo costume auras (more info here) were originally supposed to be color tintable. They still have an active color picker in the costume editor (single color). But it does not work.
1. Please fix these costume pieces to work like they were supposed to.
2. It would also be nice if there was a way (recipe drop? merit vendors?) to get these at all times of the year. -
Quote:You may want to add the finalized version to the big power suggestion sticky. That way it won't get lost as new threads are posted and I assume the devs have an easier time picking up powerset ideas from one thread with (almost) no discussion/derailment.Originally Posted by Crim_the_Cold
Ya I doubt that it'll get much attention but it was neat idea and it was fun to make it.
-
Quote:Speaking of options, how about alternative animations for Bane spider Build up, Surveillance and Placate with the machine gun instead of the mace for use by Huntsmen?Originally Posted by Goblin_Queen
That would have to be an option. It'd be silly to take away something that has been accepted as part of the VEAT for so long. I actually picked a Crab BECAUSE of the animation. Different strokes for different folks. :P
And perhaps add alternate animations to some of the wolf spider attacks that use the Crab/Bane weapons, again, to reduce redraw?
I know the devs have said they are against power customization for EATs, but in this case it should not be a problem as the alternate animations/weapons are already a part of the AT. -
The part I do not like about Arachnos is that they are inconsistent. Arachnos is supposed to be an oppressive, totalitarian state but people with powers (including Natural origin) are allowed to do whatever. The player is a "destined one" but Arachnos troops still attack on sight, except in pvp zones where they act like they were always allies. Lord Recluse is stated to have a "hands off" and "survival of the fittest" approach to government but all the zones have a large Arachnos presence, keeping the order. And the contacts are all over the place in their attitudes, from "outside contractor" to "lackey of our great organization". Which is it already?
On a side note, we could really use a "All things writing" thread for discussions like this. Most GR content is probably locked in by now but there will be issues after it. And the storyline part of the new end game system is probably still up for change. Perhaps David Nakayama can bite the Story Lead to infect him/her with awesome ? -
Quote:You are fastOriginally Posted by David Nakayama
Friendly reminder: just because there's no specific post responding to a particular request doesn't mean that we're ignoring you. Quite the contrary, actually. Internally, this thread has been noted from top to bottom, put into a spreadsheet, and a number of things are in the pipeline as we speak.
However, new releases won't be announced until they're ready for Beta. You'll just have to stayed tuned.
About this particular request though: I like the idea, but it would be a massive undertaking. Not sure it's feasible because it might potentially require new animations across all categories of movement.
Regarding the "new animations across all categories of movement" - well, at least hoverjets/tracks would be relatively simple to animate: just put in some particle effects and/or animated textures and it is done, unlike the complicated, segmented geometry of legs.
New types of legs would be hard/costly but once the tech was in place they could be safely left until later.
That is why I am so interested in this: the sooner it is done the less effort it will require. The old powersets mostly reuse body animations. But the new powersets and the new custom animations that have been added generally do not. So the more new stuff is added the harder any major rework/tech upgrade becomes, until it turns outright unfeasible. -
Quote:If David says nothing then there probably is not anything he can say at this time. Probably because he does not yet know - if he knew that it is completely impossible he would have said so (see first post of this thread).Originally Posted by Bronze Knight
Hang on you post here but make no mention of this idea?
All were asking for is a feasibility check if this kind of thing is even possible with the game engen. (not the 4 arms or back mounted cannons just the tracks instead of legs. Or spider legs or wheels or centaurs or hovering.
Please look into it.
<cool picture snipped>
And yes I DO love this picture.
Also, we already have back/shoulder cannons - the crab spider backpack. Would take a lot of work to make something similar available to normal ATs: a pile of new custom animations + tech to tie custom animations to costume pieces.
Then again said tech could also be used to enable arm cannons, wands, etc so it would be a good investment, I think. -
I am a (mostly) redside player and I like Lord Recluse. And no, I do not consider him overused. The Arachnos as an organization is overused redside but that is different. The patron arcs should (at some point) be remade to use the new non-linear dialogue/mission system however.
As for GR content, I expect primal earth characters will have a low profile with most attention centered on Praetoria(ns). And the morality missions need to be (at least somewhat) generic and repeatable so probably no major-NPC-centered storylines there.
I do hope there is at least one mission where Arachnos are shown providing (deniable) cross-dimensional assistance to the Resistance. Lord Recluse will deal with anyone if he can profit from it and undermining someone as dangerous as Tyrant is well worth the cost. -
Quote:Haha whatOriginally Posted by Samuel_Tow
<snip> but again - there are no patterns, no reusable ones, at least. Each animation is unique unto itself, <snip>
Just for an example:
whirling mace
fire sword circle
whirling hands
spin
whirling axe
ice sword circle
whirling sword
All these powers use the same body animation with different effects/powers. And in fire blast there are two powers in the same powerset that use the same body animation - Fire ball and Blaze. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
I disagree. This has the potential to make the game's animations VERY ugly. Especially in melee attacks, as well as some ranged attacks, much of the power's "cool factor" comes from the feeling of force, which comes from proper footing and and body position. "Put your back into it," as it were. The last time I explained this, someone left a good example - a simple haymaker is a powerful punch, but try and imagine doing a haymaker while running backwards. You probably could, but it would look endlessly goofy.
Many games have tried this before. Rune is an easy example as probably the UGLIEST game in this regard, where your legs ferry you about like a dolly and your upper body pivots around like a structure-mounted turret. It is just that bad. A few others have tried it, most relevantly World of Warcraft and Champions Online. WoW skirts around the problem by simply not having many decent animations to look at, just the same repeated hand wave or bow shot, and Champions Online skirts around the problem by looking worse than my butt after a full day of sitting at the computer. The only game that I have ever seen (and that I can remember) which had decent attacks on the move was Oni, and that had special, unique attacks designed for each direction of movement (like a jump kick or a clothesline), and which locked you in motion for the duration of the attack.
I know I've gone on about not making a big deal about what we DON'T want and focusing on what we DO want, but this particular change has to potential to make things so bad, so... Horribly very much worse, that I just have to speak up. One of the big advantages City of Heroes has on other MMOs is its beautiful animations, and this has the potential to utterly remove that advantage.
You did not understand me. I am not asking for all the existing animations to be changed such that they do not involve lower body movement.
I am asking for them to be changed such that they assume the lower body will move as it needs to for the upper body animation to work. Most power seem to fit one of not (that) many patterns for the upper/lower body boundary: forward slightly, forward and down, down slightly, float upwards and down, float upwards while turning around, the slight up-down of the footstomp? in the heavy melee attacks like headplitter... (DP does not follow this pattern as much but that's a special case, for now).
So the powers would use their existing animations and the lower body itself would use an animation to fit the required pattern. And since there are a lot less patterns than powers it would become feasible to add and animate non-humanoid forms (like in my previous post in this thread) or "limited" humanoid forms like floor-length robes/skirts.
I understand this might require too much effort to be practical despite the potentially huge increases in customization that would result, so I am only asking David/other devs to look into this with a "can we do this?" check, as opposed to suggesting that it must be done. -
First, regarding the "organic armor with skin" variation that has been much requested here. You say you want to do it but can't. So let me guess: you put the stuff into testing but did not reserve art time to fix problems/complaints that would arise? Isn't that the point of testing, to find problems and fix them?
Yes, one costume part was added but that was already in the pipeline and it still took the personal intervention of the art lead. You may want to rethink your work process a little.
Second, organic swords but not organic claws. Why?
Third, the new pieces were added to monstrous thighs but NOT to monstrous feet. Again, why?
Those are serious questions, I would really like to learn the reasoning behind these two decisions. -
I understand what I am about to request probably isn't possible/practical but could you at least check that? After all, power customization was not-practical for years and we do have it now.
Current situation:
Some animated costume parts seem to animate independently of power animations. For example, wings (and tails) keep flapping (and.. swishing?) even when various powers are going off and I very much doubt that every power in the game has with-wings, with-tail and with-wings-and-tail versions.
Request:
Extend this modularity to other parts of the animation system. Most importantly decouple the upper and lower body animations - some powers (like kicks) would probably need new alternate animations that can be performed with the upper body but there aren't that many such powers.
Purpose:
Having this kind of tech in place would (I think) make it easier to add new power animations as only the relevant part would need to be modified.
And with this tech it would become more practical to implement various non-humanoid body types like these:
..and probably others -
Quote:Originally Posted by SilverAgeFan
ugh... can't believe in all these pages I totally forgot about this HUGE request that would make a HUGE HUGE difference to indoor maps:
So the basic lab tileset is used time and again, right? To represent secret labs, research facilities, underwater bases and orbital bases.
How can you differentiate between them though? Most of us, even those with good imaginations often feel it is the same darn blue lab map over and over. Why not create a couple rooms with windows looking out to a world geometry? It might just be a glass tube connecting two rooms of the lab/sub base/orbital platform. But depending upon context, we may see ourselves as moving through a glass tube bridging two skyscrapers in steel canyon or aeon city, or a tube connecting pods at the bottom of the sea as a shark or two swims by in the distance and kelp waves to and fro, or the moon and earth below as sections of a large space station spin at either end of the tube.
These are just windows... to non-reachable geometry, much like pocket D was for ages till the ski resort was opened. But it could make a WORLD of difference to refresh those maps and remind people where they are at any give point.
On a related note, the listing lab maps inside the new positron TF and the now aging faultline arc are wonderful. Have you ever considered putting us inside a listing ship or any other sort of map? It's a really effective gimmick.
Actually the "window to outside" is used in one unique lab-based map. The one mission that uses it is redside, in one of the patron arcs.
There is also an office-tileset map that uses a window/glass wall. That one is in the villain-only Ouroboros Arc/SF. Devs love villains?
Anyway, since there are existing examples of this approach, the tech is obviously there we just need the mapmakers to use it more often.
Hmm, this gives me an idea for a new request. Please make a pass over the existing tilesets and add some new, fancy tiles. Then do a pass over the existing mission maps themselves and make use of those tiles. This would take same/less effort then adding a brand new tileset and breathe new life into a huge pile of existing content. -
Quote:You are not understanding me correctly.Originally Posted by Basilisk
If I'm understanding you correctly, you want the time to be dependent on the player? I'm pretty sure that won't work, since I'm almost certain in game time is set to the server and not done client-side.
This is because the game changes spawning rules based on the day/night cycle. As noted above, Croatoa ghosts and Banished Pantheon in Talos only come out at night. This wouldn't work if the time were determined client-side or otherwise independently of the server time. After all, if it's night on your computer and day on your friend's, do the BP spawn in Talos, or not?
For an analogy, consider weeks and calendar months. The 13th may be a Friday in one month and Monday in the next. Similarly, a person who plays for a few hours every evening would be playing in (ingame) daylight on one day and during the (ingame) night on the next.
An advanced graphical setting to lower/increase environmental glare perhaps? The actual processing is done client side anyway, on the graphics card.Quote:Originally Posted by Decorum
I highly doubt that environmental things like that are ever going to be controlled individually.
Oh and if the day/night cycle is made longer, we could also use an (optional) gui element that tracks it.