DesolateJoker

I'm not sure if this has been said, but I would like for both the mayhem and safeguard mission complete temporary powers to be obtainable more then once. The ones that have a 'logged in time' end up going away before you can use them more then a few times, especially if you're on a RP server and aren't spending all of your time grinding levels.

I know being able to get them any time is a bit much, but why not have a timer that is something like 'once the temp has been used up, x number of hours later you can earn a new one'. I love the jetpack and jump pack and such, but I'd love to be able to keep them permenantly as well.(maybe via the invention system?)

I'm confused. What happens when multiple To Hit Debuffs apply or when a To Hit is there WITH a character with defense? Is that where the caps apply or do the caps apply at all stages?

Example using what you've provided:

Base To Hit + To Hit Buffs - To Hit Debuffs – Defense capped at 5% or 95% * Accuracy (capped at 5% or 95%, again

(.5 + 0 - .4372 - .2) * 1.3 = X
(-.1372) * 1.3 = -1.7836

Now, is the cap applied at the end thus resulting in a .05 or 5% chance or is it applied to each stage before moving forward like so?

(.5 + 0 - .4372 -.2) * 1.3 = X
(-.1372) * 1.3 = [APPLY CAP]
.05 * 1.3 = .065 or 6.5%

I'm gathering that it's the one that gives 6.5% for a boss, but I'd just like to be sure. This helps us number crunchers so we know how many lucks are need(assuming the numbers on those get fixed )

Ugh, that cover hurts my eyes. As an aside, any chance of them using standard softcover novel card stock for the covers on this one? The first one's cover didn't 'feel' right. It seemed almost cheap.

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For a solo player:

At difficulty level 1. it's a Boss.
At difficulty level 2, it's a Boss+1
At difficulty level 3, it's a Boss+2
At difficulty level 4, it's an Elite Boss
At difficulty level 5, it's an Elite Boss+1
At difficulty level 6, it's an Hero
At difficulty level 7, it's a Hero+1
At difficulty level 8, it's a Hero+2

[Of course, only difficulty levels 1-5 can be chosen by the player as the starting level.]

For each two side missions done, the level difficulty of the final boss goes up one.

For 4 players, the difficulty level goes up one.
For 6 players, the difficulty level goes up two.
For 8 players, the difficulty level goes up three.


This would mean that a solo player on level 1 who does just the bank job, will get a Boss. If that player does 4 side missions, he or she would get a Boss+2.

A solo player on level 5 who does just the bank job will get an Elite Boss+1. (This allows soloists who run at highest difficulty level to avoid a Hero fight.)

A team of 8 that's starts at difficulty level 1 will get always get at least an Elite Boss. If they do four side missions, they get a Hero. If a team of 8 starts at difficulty level 5 they will always get a Hero+2.

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Umm, I hate to say this, but a boss at the lowest level is what they've been trying to avoid for a LONG time now. It's the lowest difficulty so that weaker ATs and weaker builds can actually solo a mission.

Also, guessing based on what States said about eventually moving these to the hero side(all be it the opposite of this in some fashion), using this scale would make the lowest levels nearly impossible for some builds. Imagine an Empathy or Forcefield defender that's focused on team buffs and heals trying to complete these solo. Just because long term players know that's gonna be difficult doesn't mean that a new one will.

Why not just make it such that when taunted you auto target the person taunting you. If you tab off then you can target others, but your target instantly becomes the tank/scrapper/brute/whatever whenever taunt is applied.

Either that, or perhaps you become immune to taunt effects for several seconds to avoid a couple tanks ping ponging you back and forth.

I ran through a couple of mayhem missions and noticed something that I've been asking for since the early days. When you go into the bank the civilians are cowering and more importantly NOT MOVING AROUND!! Can we PLEASE have this for all bank heists and casino robberies at the very least? I can deal with the civilians in offices, but with 20 civvies in those micro sized casinoes pushing you all over it's hard to get anything done.

I also had what was a hostage recue or something at one point, but he would not leave the building. I'd walk outside and he'd come outside and go back in. I had already freed the guy from the jail, but I don't know if that has anything to do with it.

As an aside, I looked(but probably not well enough) and didn't see an Archery Official thread. I spent some time comparing and couldn't find any difference in the animations. Rain still takes a while and the snipe still has that pause at the end where you just stand there. The pause for aim and snap still seem present also.

My biggest complaints have already been addressed here, but I think I'll reiterate them. The set has VERY lack lustre buff/debuff characteristics. By trying to be a jack of all trades, we're a master of none.

- I respeced out of Poisen Gas because a weak AoE sleep is crap once you start applying things like oil slick, glue, rain of arrows and so forth.
- The acid arrow needs a MUCH larger AoE AND debuff to be worthwhile against more then just AVs and EBs.
- Flash is a joke as it stands, and serves me simply as a way of managing aggro for the group to keep from pulling multiple groups accidentally.
- Net arrow is far too slow to take effect, and an Immob does almost nothing against high level mobs that tend to shoot first anyways.
- Oil slick I'm happy with, though the knockdown component is a tad weak. I can live with that due to the slow AND the damage that once slotted becomes a very devestating form of offense.
- EMP is a wonderful power that I wish I could use all the time.
- Glue arrow is nice, but it needs either a minus fly or the ability to hit flying mobs, preferably both. Plus, things like Carnie Strongmen and Crey Tanks of all forms just ignore it. Considering a single one of either can be VERY devestating to a defender, this is not good. I even have mine slotted with 3 slows and they just plow through like it isn't there.
- Ice seems fine to me, though I'd love a shorter animation.

In general, the only 2 powers that combine effects as far as I can tell are the Def Debuff on both Acid and Oil arrows.

One other thought I had that might help the set is to perhaps give it maybe 50% more range to start with. At least then we'd have a couple extra shots to maybe even the odds with other sets.

Considering I have zero clue how the game even works, and couldn't even begin to guess who is best in a duel, I'll be working by the coolest costume concept favored by so many of the people in my work's Bball pool.

I'm glad for the love, and my TA/Arch defender will welcome these fixes. However, there are a few other things I've noticed.

-- Any radiation debuff that is contacting the Oil Slick makes it untargetable quicker then normal
-- I almost never use flash arrow or net arrow anymore due to their overall worthless nature. Either giving the net a longer duration and/or a one time knockdown component WITH the immobilize(to show that it entangled the target as they moved) would help. The flash needs to either be stackable or have a bigger debuff.
-- Acid arrow either needs a bigger radius, as already suggested, or a bigger debuff. I'd rather you take out the damage which is laughable and give me another 5 or 10% debuff.

Right now at the higher levels my toon feels almost useless on large teams. I draw more aggro with the AoEs then I can handle, so either I stick to single target attacks that do VERY little damage or I just hope not to die in every fight. Most things die so fast in large groups that the debuffs are almost worthless, and you end up being relegated to a glue and oil machine.

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Will there ever be a way for toons that have outleveled the PVP zone contacts to be able to run the missions? If they are rewarding badges, then you are arbitrarily limiting those of us that have already outleveled them. I believe Statesman said that ONLY the tutorial badges would be unattainable once you've missed them. As it stands, there is no way to get the patrol badges that I can find. I've gotten the others via teams, but only the mission holder gets the patrol mission badges.

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Exemplar/Malefactor to someone doing the mission and you will get the badge when they do.

We do not want to make the missions in the PvP zones go all the way to 50, because then a character could literally spend all his time in that zone, never needing to leave except to visit stores, and that is gameplay we dont want to encourage.

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So right now I can be on a team with someone and run the missions as usual to get all the pvp badges EXCEPT the patrol ones, whereby I have to EX/MF SPECIFICALLY to the mission holder? And how were we supposed to know this without ever visiting the boards.

Also, just an aside; people already DO spend all of their time with their level 50s in the PVP zones. What else are they supposed to do? At least by allowing them to run the missions they can actually help to participate in the zones as they were intended by helping with the buff/debuffs of the zone.

Will there ever be a way for toons that have outleveled the PVP zone contacts to be able to run the missions? If they are rewarding badges, then you are arbitrarily limiting those of us that have already outleveled them. I believe Statesman said that ONLY the tutorial badges would be unattainable once you've missed them. As it stands, there is no way to get the patrol badges that I can find. I've gotten the others via teams, but only the mission holder gets the patrol mission badges.

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I"ve never understood why people waste their money on these guides. The forums and various other websites always have all this info for free and are 99.9% of the time more accurate/up-to-date than any published guide. Sure they're greate for console games that never change, but for an MMO? What a waste, if you need badge info go to vidiotmaps, the rest has better guides right on these forums than anywhere else I've ever seen, even a poor game community has better guides than a printed book and coh has a fantastic community.

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I got them because they make it easier for me to find the information than on websites. Often these websites have laborious search methods for finding badge information, and it's MUCH easier to have a book handy so that I don't have to alt-tab back and forth to find things. Second, they give information that is EXACT because it's from the devs themselves. I'm not working with information 'hacked'(illegally mind you) from the game's source code, and I'm not working with numbers guessitmated through trial and error.

I never bothered with the first guide because it KNEW that it would be a waste since ALL MMO guides release along side the game itself are a waste within a month or two. However, these guides are going to be constantly updated with new information. Besides, I've played this game since launch and have no plans to leave for another. Why NOT spend a few extra bucks on something that garners so much of my free time?

I happen to have picked both of these binders up and I DO like them, but there are a couple things that I'd like to see either added or fixed.

- The zone pages for CoH don't have a history section like the ones for CoV. I happen to enjoy reading up on the background of the zones, and I really hope these are added in future updates.

- The zone maps in CoV don't have any badge locations while the CoH has the badges marked AND an index of badge locations and requirements. Hopefully this will also be updated.

- LOTS of typos and grammatical errors. I'm clearly not a master of this, but some the errors are VERY obvious.

- I don't recall seeing a 'world' map in either binder with zone connection information. This seems to be a HUGE oversight, especially if these are meant to be a one stop source.

- The Perez Park map does NOT have the forest paths marked on them. Considering that 3rd party maps exist WITH these in place, I think these should be added.

- A Task Force/Strike Force section should be added to both binders with mission details, contacts, minimum group numbers, and how long the Dev's think each should take an average group to complete.

- I don't recall seeing a Binds section in either book(IIRC), and it would be VERY helpful, in light of the Mastermind AT especially, to have some simple binds and macros for controlling everything from pets to chat(like the afk bind some of us use).

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Hey gang,



We are going to implement a couple changes to make this better. The early brokers will only require 3 missions and 1 heist to introduce a new contact. In addition, if a group completes a broker mission everyone on the team will get credit toward a heist that will lead to a new contact introduction. This should help keep you from leveling out of content. Just like in City of Heroes, if you start a Story Arc in City of Villains you will always be allowed to finish it—even if you outlevel it. If you miss a contact entirely, you can still Exemplar with a less experienced hero who has the correct Story Arc assigned to him or her in order to hunt down any pesky badges you may have missed.



Cheers,

Sean

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It is still INCREDIBLY difficult NOT to outlevel content in the lower levels. I ran my stalker solo and finished all of the content given to me in Mercy(Kalinda, Mongoose) and Port Oakes(Drea, Bocor, Vendetti, Heck, Radio) including their badge and Temp item missions but I was level 10.8 and purposefully maxed my debt out between missions once I hit level 10. I also only ever defeated exactly what was required to finish the missions, going so far as escorting hostages out WITHOUT fighting the ambushes and mobs between them and the door(go Respites ). Even with that very miniscule amount of xp I almost outleveled The Radio's stuff.

Now that I'm in CAP I'm repeating this method to insure I don't miss anything. What I need is to know if you can still get Lunata(sp?) if you've gotten the Radio or is it an either or type deal.

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I wonder if ol' Emmert will actually be in front of the computer or if Statesman will just be an NPC. WOW that would be cool to open unlimited bottles of kick butt on the lead designer of CoH.


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You'll have your chance - I'll be playing the one and only Statesman!

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This really IS like the Rikti invasion...

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EXACTLY like it because I'll be working YET AGAIN!! Why can't they ever do these on weekends? Would it have been too much to ask that they do the event this past Saturday instead of during the week when most people have less time? It wouldn't be so bad if they ever redid these things, but I feel like I'm being robbed of the BEST events in CoH yet again. Compared to these, everything else has sucked.

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I do have one question: why were only the Freedom Phalanx Task Forces given badges in Issue 2, and not the new Task Forces that had been added? This is just a question, not some kind of slam. If it was because you didn't think badges would be so well received, that's understandable. If it's because of the difficulty of adding a badge to a Task Force, I'm hoping you might explain that difficulty so that more of us might understand.

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Ok, here's some insight into the design process.

When badges were created for Issue 2, an Accolade was ordered that required several pieces outside of Design in order to happen. That Accolade was called the Task Force Commander badge. It was to grant you a costume piece as it's "special thing", much like the Croatoa Witches' Hat.

The requirements for this Accolade were to be the Freedom Phalanx Task Force Badges. Other Task Forces would not be required, even though they were being released parallel to the badge system. So as not to confuse the players, the other TF's were intentionally not given badges.

So we got the Freedom Phalanx Task Force badges, but the Accolade needed Tech (rewarding costume piece) and 3D Art (the new costume piece itself). It didn't get either so the Accolade never happened.

Time moves forward. We eventually get the abilit to reward costume pieces, but when it came time to revisit the badge it just seemed like a bad idea in retrospect (especially with all the badge-giving TF's now), so the 3D art was never ordered.

Hope that clears that up.

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Umm, can we still have a neato costume piece for doing them?

I don't mind the long TFs so much now that exemplars can do them over multiple sessions. What I'm worried about is the loss of content that shortening these TFs might require. I personally don't mind a long TF if the story is engaging and the missions aren't repetitive. Cut out 90% of the mind numbing hunt x mission in Shard #3(IIRC) add a REAL AV to the end and that TF is fine. Shard #2 and #4 are great as is(though some of the missions ARE repetitive and DO need a bit more explanation onf their objectives). Shard #1 is the ultimate brain freeze and probably needs the most work. Unfortunately I have no suggestions.

I just hope that DJ can make it through these TFs now that Regen isn't the same.

Ok let's see what I've got. I'll bold the questions to make life a tad easier.

#1 - It's been mentioned on the boards and in a couple of industry mags that the upcoming CCG will include tie-ins to CoH itself through the use of 'chase' cards and items. Simply put, rare cards in the CCG will allow players to unlock unique items/stuff in CoH. First off is this in fact true, and if so can you give us a few examples of not only how this will work but WHAT would be unlocked?

#2 - Statesman said quite a while back that we wouldn't be seeing the 5th Column again now that they have been overrun, but it stands to reason to me(and others I hope) that no organization as widely diversified and 'dug-in' as the 5th were could be removed entirely. Specifically, since the 5th were ideology based(ie they are united by a common vision) and the Council is simply power based(ie they are united by a common thirst for domination), it makes sense that not all of the Council converts are truly in-line and that ALL of the 5th were even converted/removed. So, is there a chance that the 5th Column WILL return in some way shape or form, even if it's limited simply to mission contacts and/or TFs telling the story of the overthrow and/or their current attempts to regain control through double-agents?

#3 - There is a WEALTH of fan-created fiction on these boards and other sites that use the world of CoH as a backdrop. Some is good, some is not so good, but it's all motivated and centered around the world yall've created. Considering that these are works of love and admiration for CoH, is it possible that we might see, at some future date, a compliation book of these stories? I, for one, would LOVE to see my story(as seen in the World 3817 section of my Website ) along side all of the other wonderful works in a nice book available to the public.

#4 and #5 - The 'CoH Bible' has been mentioned on numerous occasions, most notably to explain the downfall of the 5th, and we can only assume that it is still being used as a basis for the addition of zones and such in each issue. Simple question here, does the fact that this 'bible' exists mean that you are unable to alter the release schedule? Basically I know a number of people were hoping for a lower level female villain group to mirror the Carnival of Shadows, but we were told quite some time back that we wouldn't see any. However, the release of Issue 5 brings us just that via the Cabal, hinting that the bible IS in fact a work-in-progress. If this is true, is there any chance that we, the players, will ever get an opportunity to mold the world in some way?

#6 - Final question I promise. I REALLY want to have my main character (Desolate Joker) in the comic AND the CCG, but I seem to have no artistic talent as it pertains to making a costume, videos, music etc. Will there ever be a way for some of us longer standing citizens of this game to grab one of those precious spots despite having no talent for contests? I tried and failed on the Heroic Moment contest, and my video editing skills are no where close to what's needed to win versus some of the others on here. Although any type of appearance would be cool, I'd rather not be that unfortunate bloke that got skewered in Issue #1.

Sorry for the long post. Keep up the good work. I know I REALLY enjoy the stories, and I've so far done EVERY arc in the game except the Kheldian ones(not a big fan of those ATs).

I'm not really so worried about these changes to Stealth powers since it does make sense in my mind. What I WOULD like to see is a form of 'first strike' ability granted as a replacement(since it also makes sense). How about a similar To Hit buff(enhanceable or not) added that is suppressed just like the Defense Buff? It seems to makes sense that if the baddies can't see you they can't dodge your attack as easily.

Sorry for the massive cliff hanger and long absence, but I've decided to move this story off-site. This allows me to update when I wish and keep the chapters together. I've had a few people complain that the broken format I've used in this thread causes them to have trouble following it, so this should help. My website is linked in my signature below this and all of my posts, and there is a section on the site devoted entirely to this story. Please feel free to stop by, have a look, and shoot me an email or pm if you find the need.

Thanks

ooooOOOOoooOOooOoOOO

DoooOOonnnNN'ttTT BbbBeeEEEee SsooO SSsuuuUUuuUrreee!!

I've met quite a few of the individuals named in this thread though many don't realize it. I'm a ghost and don't often announce my presence, so you probably won't remember.

I hate 'shout outs' because I always forget someone. Therefore I will simply say that you know who you are. If you don't, then chances are I don't know you.

After having spent quite some time in the shard both before and after these changes, I've come to a couple conclusions.

#1 - Inherent abilities that increase jump height and distance(Hurdle is a BIG one) often cause the geysers to miss their intended landing pads. Since these powers CAN'T be shut off like Super Speed and Super Jump, it makes life very difficult for people with no other means of travel.

#2 - Some of the landing pads are FAR too small, and when combined with #1 make it incredibly tedious to move around with any amount of assurance that you will not get sent back to the door to start over.

To this end, I feel that these could easily be solved simply by aiming the geysers a nice large drop zones. This will alleviate the problems listed above, as well as those nasty moments when you didn't enter the geyers at the 'right' angle.

Okay, word of warning. I haven't really gone back and fixed the things that need fixing. For starters, the discussion with Braonan should actually be quite a bit longer, and there are a few things I've missed. I plan to get back to it at some point unless I'm able to work a few things differently from the original plan. As such, everything from this point forward may become a bit confusing. Simply put it's revelation time for a large amount of the hanging plot lines, and I haven't double-checked to ensure I haven't missed one. Also, there isn't much more written at this point, so the posts won't be anywhere near as frequent.

Keep voicing your opinions and theories and such. I find it highly interesting to see what people think, and to see how far off and how close some are.


Chapter 8: The Addison Prophecy

“It’s only after you lose everything that you’re free to do anything.”

An uneasy silence pervaded the elevator as we made our ascent back to the Ziggurat’s main level. I sensed that it had a lot more to do with Braonan’s final words than it did with our discussion of the inner workings of dimensional travel. Dusk’s normally vibrant self seemed almost somber and restrained, and though Cinaed’s face was perpetually hidden in shadow, his sorrow was unmistakable.

The silence persisted as we made our way out and through the security, and back onto the streets of Brickstown. At the final checkpoint, Cinaed stopped for a discussion with one of the gate keepers, and Dusk and I were momentarily left alone with our thoughts. I could sense that she was dying to know the truth, and perhaps I too was looking to finally have someone to tell it to. Before I could speak, however, Cinaed’s gruff voice broke the stillness. As always, Cinaed seemed to be way ahead of the ballgame.

“Perhaps we should discuss what we have just learned.”
“I agree, with him Joker. I skipped breakfast, so why don’t we head back to my place for a bit to talk things over.”
“That is a grand idea Dusk. I sense that Joker has much to tell us.”

Apparently Dusk wasn’t kidding about being familiar with the park. Her apartment was set high above its solid green canopy, above the noise and cries of the streets below. Unlike my own apartment, however, hers was loaded down with the weight of years worth of life. From framed newspapers of her at award ceremonies, to a rather robust looking set of exercise equipment, you could tell that this place held many memories.

Stepping into her apartment was like stepping back in time to a place I scarcely remember and have longed to see again before I die. It had taken her months to convince me that a place together would help strengthen our relationship. She had been right, of course, and looking back I can’t help but wonder why it had taken me so long to see it her way. Like they say, hindsight is twenty-twenty.

In those days, dreams of other worlds were just that, dreams. Their existence was little more than the theoretical ramblings of a supposed mad doctor. Little did any of us know how much truth was hidden in his words. However, he wasn’t the only person to speak of such things. Though alternate dimensions had always been a staple of science fiction novels and television programs, few actually believed that such things existed. So, when a young graduate student by the name of George Addison published his thesis on the subject, many in the scientific community laughed it off as pure science fiction.

Despite the ridicule, Addison held firm to his beliefs, and continued his research into the possibility of alternate earths. After years of study and research, Addison brought news of a miraculous finding to the scientific world. He had found evidence of a gateway connecting worlds, but lacked the ability to open it. He did not, however, relinquish the location of his supposed gateway, and was therefore mocked and shunned by his scientific brothers and sisters.

It wasn’t until the findings of Dr. Brantiff were made public that Addison’s news of a gateway was taken seriously. Even if many believed Brantiff to be as mad as Addison, the fact that 2 completely separate individuals had found evidence pointing to a similar possibility was difficult to dismiss. Suddenly people were willing to listen to what Addison had to say, but it had been nearly a decade since anyone had seen or heard from him.

The day following our removal of Dr. Brantiff from the conference brought stunning news from Addison’s corner. An old friend had paid a visit to his home, and had found it abandoned. According to the friend, the place looked as if it had been empty for years, and a thorough investigation was performed in an attempt to locate the missing scientist. Though no notebooks or documents related to his work were found, the investigation was not a total loss.

During a search of the home, a diary was found amidst the dust and cobwebs of Addison’s attic. The story it told seemed to confirm the beliefs of many that Addison had long since lost his mind, but there were those who weren’t so sure. Its pages contained little of scientific value, but Addison’s descriptions of his dreams were very enlightening. One passage stood out amongst them all, and it quickly became known to the world as Addison’s Prophecy. For one who has seen the near infinite, his words are hard to forget.