Dante

The Militia

Even the Rikti are not safe from the Shadows it seems. Following leads provided by Vanguard, Karnac, Estoque, Mr Sandman, Bill Marcone and their stalwart ally Powerstone found the Rikti attempting to build a ‘dimensional stabiliser’ – a device that prevents breaches in reality. If they were attempting to locate components for the device peacefully, all would have been well but then, this is the Restructurists for you.

Foiling the Rikti’s assault, the Militia were able to establish that they were building the machine to try and repel attacks by the mysterious Shadows. It seemed that they were being attacked for being ‘not of this dimension’, a quality that appears to attract the Shadows’ ire. Following the defeat of their leader, the Rikti fell back, probably to lick their wounds and consider their next move.

Karnac (Stone/SS Tanker) is a scientist who was captured and turned into one of the Devoured Earth for a number of years. When his daughter saved him, a fortunate accident broke the mind link with the Hamidon and he was restored to human shape, if not size. Using an ingenious device to block the call of the Devoureds, he has discovered that he still retains certain earth manipulating abilities but now uses them to fight against them.

Anathema (AR/En Blaster) was a cybernetic surgeon who was tricked into giving her research away to Dr Vahzilok who used it to augment his zombie army. Once she discovered what he had done, she tried to escape but was caught and used as spare parts for his creations. He removed her right arm, left eye, her lower legs and several internal organs, all while she was conscious. Rescued before he could end her life, she was then able to use her own technology to rebuild herself whereupon she swore revenge on the Vahzilok. Unfortunately, the trauma of being used for spare parts had fractured her mind and she now flicks between sane and completely irrational, making it hard to work with her. (Her story is here: http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showt...ght=Absolution)

Revenant Star is a high up Council member who ran when she had an epiphany and fled Striga Isle with 30 Void Slayers on her tail. Unable to fight them all off, she fell to their hands and was left for dead in Independence Port. A young accountant found her dying body and while trying to save her, allowed the Nictus to pass into him. Waking several weeks later from the ordeal, the two merged and became Revenant Star, vowing to take down the Council or die trying.

As the crowds rushed by the Militia stand, Karnac stepped out and grabbed one fleeing attendee.

"Hold it Mr Spider," he said, "What're you carrying? Did you pick up anything while you were here?"

The Lord Recluse lookalike struggled slightly in the giant's hold but to no avail.

"No! I just came here, I hadn't even bought anything yet!"

Brian let go and the panicked citizen ran off, heading towards the crowded door.

"You think they must have been given something?" asked The Amber Banshee.

Her father nodded. "How else would he have managed to smuggle those bombs in here?"


At the stage, the iphone wielding fool realised that people were running. He turned to ask his friends only to find that they were gone.

"Hey, why'd everyone running?" he asked to no-one in particular. He wasn't about to run in this mass, not with his sack of merchandise that he'd spent all day collecting. And especially not in this costume which he'd been handed an unexpected prize for earlier in the day.

Thank you very much for posting here War Witch. Just by simply stating "I'm working on it" goes a long way to restoring my faith in our redname community. As a long time subscriber and player of the game, I want to carry on doing so but I, along with many other people, have become rather concerned over what the future holds for us in the EU.

So thanks again for posting, it's very much appreciated.

Amongst the crowd, three figures could be spotted, all wearing various versions of Lord Recluse's signature spider legs, one made out of cardboard tubes that were hanging limply from being crushed, the other two more professional in design.

The first was trying to get out of the main exit but the wall of civillians attempting to flee prevented him. Another was dashing around the auditorium, trying to find someone to help him. The third was near the stage, taping The Spoiler's antics on his iPhone.

"Wow, this is great YouTube material..." he muttered, oblivious to the panic around him.

Meanwhile, the signal continued to be broadcast to across the area, radiating from a device on The Spoiler's belt where a number of pouches hung. The sequence was encrypted but appeared to be cycling down. Within half an hour, it would peter out entirely. The Spoiler appeared to be unconcerned with it, instead choosing to continue on with his bizarre photoshoot.

The Spoiler was just finishing off his fourth hero, a rock like creature who he'd smacked in the gut with his staff, when a sharp buzz sounded from his gauntlet. He dismissed the hero, who was clearly disgruntled with being so humiliated and turned to his photographer.

"They all good so far?" he asked nervously.

"Good boss," replied the photographer. "You might want to tone the cheese down a little, allow yourself to look vulnerable. The punters always like a sensitive villain."

The Spoiler nodded and returned to address the stage, speaking into the end of his staff which appeared to double as a microphone for the showman.

"Greetings assembled heroes and PPD. By now you're probably beavering away, trying to tap into my frequencies and stop the bombs from going boom. That's cute but you know, very yesterday. All of my bombs require a constant signal from me that if interrupted, will cause them all to explode. So please don't try to jam them or things might get.... messy."

He grinned wickedly before continuing on. "But as you're so keen to see one in action, here is your first game. You have five minutes to locate and disarm my first bomb which will explode in... oh, four minutes fifty eight seconds now. But to give you a head start, here is a clue: What has four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, three in the evening and eight when it's been imbibing old gods!?" He laughed maniacally.

The reaction from the crowd was instant. Mass panic ensued as people began to try and run for the exits, others trying to find heroes who would surely save them. The Spoiler watched the chaos and smiled, turning back to his photographer.

The moment The Spoiler had made his entrace, Karnac had gone to stand up.

"Sit down dad," whispered Saffron, placing a hand on his massive arm. "You're not exactly the most subtle person in the world and if he's right about those bombs we could all end up incinerated.

With a growl, Brian sat down reluctantly. "Fine. But what about those bombs? If we could locate them, it'd just be a case of overpowering his troops."

"Without getting any bystanders hurt," finished his daughter. "Tricky. You know anything about this 'nano-thermite'?"

Brian shook his head. If it was genetics, he could have helped but bomb design wasn't his forte.

The Shocktrooper considered Cauter's words then listened as if it was taking some instruction over radio. Instead of demanding the suit, it took up position nearby, keeping its weapon trained on the hero.

On stage, The Spoiler indicated that he was ready. "Okay ladies and gents, let's get this show on the road. First up, let's deal with the real heroes rather than all of these wannabes."

A figure was led onto the stage by the Shocktroopers and at first glance, it appeared to be Positron himself. However, at closer inspection, it became clear that it was just a very well made fan suit. The man was reluctantly led to stand in front of one of the backdrops where the camera was set up. Having positioned him, The Spoiler then struck him beneath the chin with the end of his staff, sending the cosplayer flying. The camera shutter clicked furiously and the laptop nearby displayed several of the pictures, all looking epic in nature. To the casual eye, it almost looked like The Spoiler knocking out the real Positron in Atlas Park.

"Next!" called The Spoiler as the dazed fake Positron was dragged away. "Don't worry, you'll all get your turn!"

"A good question!" replied The Spoiler to Rushmore's enquiry. "Nothing for now is the answer but be good little boys and girls. Once the goodies are collected in, we can begin with the next stage of our little game! And aren't we in the right place for games!?" He laughed to himself, not stopping to listen for any answer.

Behind him, several of his assistants were setting up some form of elaborate staging. Hung on it were shots taken from around Paragon, in different locations. To one side, a Laura Croft cosplayer was retrieving an expensive looking camera from a bag and setting it up on a tripod. A further assistant, this one looking like a pirate was setting up a laptop wired into the network.

Before anyone could stop him, the Overlord leapt onto the stage, pushing the bemused comic book artist out of the way. Security reacted only to find themselves looking at 24 Shocktroopers with their weapons pointed at them. At close range, the weapons looked frighteningly real. Their surprise gave the Overlord enough time to slam the butt of his staff down onto the stage.

The shockpulse that radiated from it covered the auditorium in just under 0.3 seconds, stunning everyone within range. Even those who would normally resist such effects found themselves momentarily disorientated before regaining their bearings only to find that the Shocktroopers had taken up strategic positions around the room. Joining them were dozens of cosplayers, their weapons unsheathed, unholstered and ready. By the time anyone was fully aware, the Overlord had complete control of the auditorium.

Throwing off the cloak, he revealed a slim, dark haired man with a wicked grin, dressed in a decorated tailcoat. He gleefully took the microphone.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I am The Spoiler!” he announced. “And I now own you all for the next three hours. Please do not try to resist. I have planted four nano-thermite bombs on some of the assembled geeks and nerds in the crowd and I will not hesitate to explode them all if you don’t do exactly what I say. Needless to say, such an explosion would level this place and everyone in it. So be good boys and girls and play nicely.”

He allowed a few moments for his audience to react to his showmanship before continuing.

“For my first demand, I will need your items of power. Your rings, capes, helments, anything that gives you your powers, they now belong to me. My assistants will be round to collect your generous donations to my cause shortly. Don’t resist because…”

He mimed pressing a button on the end of his staff and then made a ‘boom’ noise into the microphone.

As I've wanted a fire sword set since the game begun, I would love to see this.

Add in some new procs that give you a chance for corresponding elemental damage and I could see it being a really popular idea.

However, as noted, there are other areas that are crying out for development first but this would be a lovely thing to add in time.

IIRC, before the last EU community rep left (sorry Avatea, I know you're still around ), Ghostraptor said something along the lines of "It's never going to happen, the technical difficulties would be too much."

However, how many times have we been told in the past that something is impossible and then NCSoft have impressed us with how they overcame it? I think it must be possible, it's just a question of whether the time and effort in overcoming the technical hurdles is worth it for them to merge the lists.

((Apologies for tardiness, illness and all that...))


Stygian Minx circulated through the crowds, blending in seamlessly with all of the other tattooed and pierced goths and geeks. She was having a whale of a time, collecting autographs and chatting up the famous and the semi-famous. She'd already buzzed the Militia's stand, just long enough to annoy Amber by calling her 'Fusewire' all of the time and flirting with her dad enough to make the giant blush as badly as his daughter. Now she was chatting to one of the stall owners who appeared to be selling knock-off versions of other team's action figures. She picked up one and pressed the talk button only for it to speak back to her in Spanish.

"You know many Spanish heroes in Paragon wideload?" she asked of the stall owner who wasn't impressed with her discovery.

"The kids still buy them," replied the owner.

"Fair 'nuff," she replied. "This whole convention's fake anyway. Enough geeks and fanbois to float a starship. What burns my tootsies though is the lack of attention to detail. I mean, get that guy." She pointed to a man in the crowd who'd come with a fake chainsaw attached to his left arm.

"I mean, come on! It's his right hand he cut off, not his left. Sheesh! And what about that bunch of Shocktroopers. They've got their Overlord with them but good giddy gumdrops where's his Overlord Guard? The guys in red with the big poiky sticks and the helmets that look like marital aids?"

The stall owner wasn't sure how to reply but he watched the troop of Shocktroopers as they headed towards the stage. In fact, they seemed pretty determined to get there, some of the troopers even pushing people out of the way to get to where an interview with a comic book artist was taking place on stage. The Overlord moved with speed, as if he had something on his mind. When they approached the security surrounding the main stage, it was obvious that their presence was not expected...

My Shield/Mace Tanker is only level 26 but he is by far the most damaging Tanker I've built so far. War Mace has some nice cones and AoEs, has nice secondaries such as knock up, knock down and stun and the set 'feels' really powerful.

However, as to how that will play out at higher levels as Smashing gets resisted more and more, I cannot comment. But if it's fun your looking for and you enjoy watching your foes fall around you as you whack them with a giant stone war hammer, I can recommend it.

I've taken up this idea recently as well. I'm currently levelling both a Spines/WP Scrapper and a Fire/Rad Controller to freeze them at level 33. They both seem pretty efficient so far.