Dethos_Zahrim

Well like his set, Casey Schreiner appears to have chucked off CoH. I'd be mad at him, but with all the epic zings he has given Eve online over the years that made me laugh so hard, its difficult to stay mad at him.

http://www.g4tv.com/videos/60682/the...september-6th/

Just logged off for the last time, first time I have logged on in a week and it was just too depressing. No chatter on the usual channels to smile and laugh at, even the epic smart alecs of Help were mostly silent, and Cape Radio also was quiet. The streets were near empty, as well as every place I went, The D, the Ski Chalet, a lot of others with fun memories.

I'm going to miss Virtue, CoH, the community, and Paragon staff a lot. But logging in now, going to play, I feel like I am in some strange other MMO. The spirit of CoH isn't dead or gone, but it just doesn't feel like it resides in this game that is left anymore. And that just doesn't a City of Heroes make.

Even if I never met you in game, pointlessly argued with you in chat, or enjoyed a moment of mutual laughing from some smart *** commentary or video bombing during Zwill's community coffee talk, I'm gonna miss you. Cause all of us together, that is what made this place the MMO for me. Goodbye, and good luck to all of you.

P.S., I've decided to punish myself by going back to the land of spreadsheets and internet spaceships being serious business till I find a new game I actually enjoyed as much as here. So hopefully I might gank, or be ganked, by some of you there.

Vin Diesel is a celebrity I'd suggest also trying to get word to. He is a big RPer, particularly for D&D. He also owns a games development studio, Tigon Studios, so he I am assuming has business area experience. Don't know if he plays CoH, but think he would make an awesome angel investor for buying the I.P. and re-launching a Paragon Studios in some form.

Positron, is there any chance you might crank up a NWN 1 or 2 RP server, if you have the time or inclination? Or that you may join Neverwinter and create story arcs on it's Forge system? I'd love being able to play in D&D some of the amazingly creative stuff you can do.

Honestly, I always look for ways to leave her to die when I can. But that isn't as harsh a criticism as it seems. Somewhat in Faultline, but completely in RWZ, it is the feeling of immersion the areas have. RWZ does feel like a war, and war doesn't tolerate fools, or those foolish enough to try and save one. So the fact that the character, along with the setting, gives me an emotional reaction like that is a testament to how well done it all is.

Yeah, would be great to see a CoH+ (whether a sequel to or evolution of what there is now). Sort of is the obvious desire to see a Paragon Studios working on that. But it was the studio/staff and the community that has made CoH so great. I don't think you could possibly hope to re-capture what that has been.

I've been reading all the post on saving the studio, and buying the IP, and such. So it got me curious, how would I write and pitch a business plan for a new Paragon Studio to a VC.

I basically went back to Neverwinter Nights, a game that makes a great platform for RP possible, has a fun and functional game underneath, and both exist with synergy. What I'd love to see the former staff of Paragon Studios working on would be a new type of multiplayer game platform built on there being players and game masters, focused on giving tools to support immersion. It basically is trying to design and build a digital table top (in the PnP RPG sense) taken to its full potential. The hard part has been finding the right business model that generates revenue from a mixture of purchasable content (for both players and GMs) and being a service provider that offers a platform to build a persistent game world on. (Basically a lot of what Linden Labs has not yet gotten figured out with Second Life.)

I am really curious though what others here would want to see the talent that gave us CoH go onto now.

If any help is needed putting together a business plan I'm available. And if a business plan is put together in the future, I'd be happy to shop it around to the various angel investors and VCs I have contacts with.

Pretty 'blah' with CoH going still, so maybe not thinking to clear on my next MMO. But I see my choices as one of the following three.

1. CO, which I all ready downloaded, installed, and couldn't even get past the character creator because I just didn't like it. I tried it once before, and it was a grindy Hell for me. Will try to push past it though.

2. EVE Online, back to being a pirating dick whom is forced to do everything in game for the L0Lz because it is completely boring otherwise. I hate myself for being good with spreadsheets, and doing well in EVE's markets. What I hate more though is the average player I eventually end up with in an EVE corp, whom thinks their three years or more advantage over new players in EVE is proof of uber-skillz.

3. Neverwinter... I really just want to get a rep as DM ******* by using the Forge to make impossible story arcs, that leave everyone pissed whom is foolish enough to try them. Loved making NWN1 & 2 content, and being on a RP server's staff. So I know I'll hate this PoS sawed off NW from the start, and all there will be for me is griefing my fellow player in boredom.

My two cents, choice to axe Paragon Studios and City of Heroes had nothing to do with either ones performance, success, or sales numbers.

1) A sudden labor cost spike of 27% for severance packages. An OpEx hit that hard would kill even a Fortune 500 company sitting on a horde of cash in most business sectors. It is rather astounding that the doors of NCSoft are even still open. If I was a stock analyst, their's would be on death watch just for that. (Remember, this isn't an issue of wealth, it is cash flow, the unseen killer in business.)

2) Aion and Soul & Blade.... Both were multi-year development efforts. Both were specifically geared to the Asian market space, and cyber cafes. Both started to see sales slips within three months of launch, followed by exodus. Neither one despite there initial and current sales numbers I would guess is anywhere near paying back initial CapEx. (Edit: Note, I am assuming this based on them applying Net Present Value with a fairly aggressive coupon to the IPs initial development cost.)

3) Paranoia over world economy slowdown. Quite literally could have been a 'Lose it, or lose it' scenario with NCSoft's analyst team. Either shutdown Paragon and CoH now and try to recoup something, while they have means to do so. Or have a complete loss as it was liquidated along with the rest of the company as it continues to be hammered. When the world wide economy is in depression (no not recession, it is a depression) everything looks like a 'sky is falling' scenario, where all your choices are matter of attrition not value. Not saying it is good, or right, just how humans are. Great businesses don't lose their nerve at these times and get through on value. Everyone else? They do the theoretical nonsense many MBAs learn at university, or follow the executive who got an idea while reading 'Some guy's blog', and some slip by on luck, most go the way of the Dodo.

A flier left up on the student announcements board of the Paragon University at Salamanca Campus.

The Salamanca Amateur Detective Club, established 2012 Salamanca, RI.

“Suos cultores scientia coronat”

Are you a student at Paragon University's Salamanca campus?

Do you have an interest in matters of criminology, mysticism, and Lovecraftian lore?

Do you like working with others in attempts to answer the seemingly unexplainable?

Do you enjoy Victorian era detective LARPing? (Not required, just curious.)

If so, please feel free to get in touch with Mortis Thorn at,

My cell, 401-777-6543

Or leave a message for me at the O.T.N. House,
780 W. New Connaught Ct
Salamanca, RI 02882

We are always looking for like minded peers to have fun with as we share the challenges of confronting the mysteries of the supernatural.

OOC info: The Salamanca Amateur Detective Club is a new Blueside/Hero RPSG on Virtue. The SG's concept centers on magic origin characters attending the Salamanca campus of Paragon University in Croatoa, and dabbling in the investigation of supernatural forces.

Feel free to reach me at @Dethos Zahrim, if interested.

I would think a good place to focus Hero missions would be on protecting and warning the usual civilian / innocent victims of a war, like the common people of Oranbega. Vigilante missions could be geared toward 'offing' Mu agents in Oranbega before the surprise attack, than take on the tone of the CoT getting darker as they fight the desperate war. Rogue arc would have great potential if maybe it was about pushing the Circle of Thorns council to take the demon's deal in the first place. And the Villain arc could be about aiding the Mu from pre too post attack.

I would love to see content where your character could go back in time to around the Mu'Rhakmet Rebellion or later. Maybe even a mission set on the day when Mu surprise attacked Oranbega with sky ships. A mission arc that would take your character back through the major events around the Oranbega rise and fall seems like it make a great basis for a signature story arc. Especially if it contained the possibility for earning some CoT themed costume parts, auras, pets, etc.

I gave up on it, after going back and looking at it again. My view, the thing is a wart on the face of playing through the Night Ward segment. Just totally took me out of all feeling of immersion and having to focus on every little stat, power use, inspiration rationing, etc, etc. Doesn't add a single thing to the experience of Night Ward at all. It is just a long grind fest, unable to auto-complete, dealing with that hedge maze's numerous impacts on moving, the zerging mob spawns, and ends in a overpowered encounter with EBs. It isn't a challenge in a recreational game at that point, it is pointless and aggravating over done filler content of an overly ambitious mission design. Maybe if I one day find a group with an hour and a half to kill, I'll try it again just to get the Ward story arc done.

The 'Defend the Midnight Club' mission in the Night Ward.....

Yeah, it is a big pile of steaming, developer over kill, zerging nonsense.

After getting through everything solo (including the whole stupid escort Clarity bit, where a zerg mob is dropped right on top of you), and than having to deal with the Ravenwing Sorceress elite boss...

Three words when you guys go to test play and develop a mission and feel like making things all epic, 'LESS IS MORE!' If the mission is designed to force me to team, than mark it as team only, and don't make it part of a larger story arc but put it off by itself like a task force, or fighting a giant monster. The suggestion to bring a team mate at the beginning of the mission really didn't cut it here. The Ravenwing Sorceress clearly was not meant to be possible solo (Well maybe for a specific build) at an equal level to a C after getting through all the other waves in one go. This end mission has pretty much soured the whole Night Ward experience and story line for me. I'm not gonna go back and retry this mission either.

Also, the whole go to hospital just dropping me off to die, try again, and get more debt was poorly thought it. So was the utter weakness of ward, and other NPCs meant to aid you in comparing to the sorceress.

Hi all,

I'm working on using AE/MA as a way to tell stories in line with CoH canon. In particular I want to focus on stories involving the magic and horror elements of CoH. And I'd like to hear what methods for telling a story in AE that RPers have experienced to work, or liked, for creating immersion.

What has always driven me nuts and made me ask why, the really limited color palette. Let me play with RGB values to my heart's content.

I think it be a worthwhile addition to MA if the ability to play, and design missions for common NPCs was put in place. For example, I've always wanted to step into the shoes of a common Circle of Thorns follower, or even better write and design a story arc for them. It also be an entirely different way to play the game if you stepped into the role of a common thug, PPD cop, etc, etc. How do you measure success for the common NPC? Getting away with the crime while avoiding the hero, successfully running away and living, leading a street gang to beating down the hero or villain. The focus would shift from playing a character meant to progress toward greater power as he levels, toward playing a role with static abilities and potential and finding a way to overcome much more capable enemies. I'm not saying make a whole new expansion, or game out of it, it just be a pretty rich user experience to add to MA.