Dsarvess Rientel

Agreed and signed.

I just played through Papers and Paychecks with my Dominator. I quite liked it, but I had a few quibbles that I mentioned in the review comments I sent to you.

I'd appreciate it if you could review my (@Dsarvess Rientel) arc, Serpent's Scheme (Arc I.D. #363206)

As much as I would like to play through the previous poster's Arc, I am a lowly newbie who can only dream of being able to take on Elites and AVs solo. I was able to get through some of it before getting stuck though, and here are my thoughts:

Get someone to proofread your story! This is badly in need of proofreading and editing.

The mission 1 map is far too big and open for my liking. Although I didn't mark you down for the vast map; having so many people to save over such a large area can make hunting pretty tedious. By the time I got to mission 2, I was very cross to see that there were two such maps in rapid succession, with less goodies to find. At least on the first map it fealt like I was making progress. On the second, it felt like I was aimlessly wandering, looking for a missing glowie.

And on the subject of saving, when I saved some citizens, they just sat there, continuing to cower... It's a little odd. Others followed me around, doing nothing but drawing enemy fire.

Some of the enemies are kind of ridiculous. The Sturmmanns, for example, summoned mercenaries who were higher level than they were, which was kind of bizarre. The Axis America troops also felt significantly easier than the Germans in map one. And the description on the Axis America and Council Empire troops looked copy and pasted from one to the other, which was disappointing after having such detailed descriptions on the Germans in mission 1.

I got stuck on the Axis Synapse. No doubt due to my newbie status. I'd take a look at the things I mentioned, but by no means consider this a comprehensive critique. I did like what I had seen of the story, but the pervasiveness of grammatical errors limited my ability to comprehend dialogue.


If someone could take a look at my own arc, I'd much appreciate it. I am, as I said, a newbie, and as such am not able to judge difficulty that well, although I am not worried about the "too easy" side of the spectrum. I'm also looking for comments on the enemies, storytelling, and in general, what I could change to get you to like my story more. The arc is Serpent's Scheme, Arc ID #335170

Joined the game earlier this week. The MA intrigued me, so I thought I'd give it a try. I'm mainly just looking for feedback on how to improve it.

Name: Serpent's Scheme
ARC ID: 355170
Synopsis: Stop a mad scientist from infecting the city with a mutagenic serum!
No Archvillains or Elite Bosses.

Any feed back is, as I said, quite welcome.

My map for outdoor areas, in particular, Atlas Park, is acting like it's a mission map, which is to say, covered with impenetrable blackness on all the areas I haven't explored, rather than the standard "Fog of War". This started after I completed a safeguard mission, and I have found no way to change it back. Is there an option or some such that I am missing?

EDIT: And after Justice, my server, went down, it was fixed. Odd.

Ah. I've used the Info window on other people before, but hadn't ever seen background in it. I guess that's because they hadn't written one.

Thanks for your help!

I've been very impressed with the minimal amount of experience I have in this game, but one thing has been nagging at me... Is it possible to view someone else's Hero Registration Card or Threat Assessment?

In particular, can you see the background other people put on their character, or is that for your eyes only?

Thanks for all the advice. Fiddling with Avast, turning off compatability mode, and lowering the graphics make it run quite well.

I've just downloaded the game, but whenever I try to start it up on my computer, it goes through the downloader, the blue "Loading" bar, then gets to the big blue splash screen with "Loading" on the right half and the game logo on the right.... and never goes any farther. I've gone through the solutions given by NCsoft in their support center, and none of them seem to be working, so I'm hoping that someone here will be able to help.

I've got the data that City of Heroes Helper collected here:
---System information gathered by CoH Helper version 0.1.1.8---

DxDiag gathered at December 14, 2009 14:43 (-08:00)
Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium (6.0, Build 6002) Service Pack 2 (6002.lh_sp2rtm.090410-1830)
System Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
System Model: HP Pavilion dv4 Notebook PC
BIOS: Default System BIOS
Central Processor: AMD Turion(tm) X2 Dual-Core Mobile RM-72 (2 CPUs), ~2.1GHz
Memory: 3836MB
.Net Memory Report: 2510MB out of 3836MB available
Page File: 6191MB (1723MB currently in use)
C Drive: (Hitachi HTS543225L9A300 ATA Device) 136530MB out of 225246MB (60%) free
D Drive: (Hitachi HTS543225L9A300 ATA Device) 2068MB out of 13223MB (15%) free
E Drive: (Optiarc DVD RW AD-7561S ATA Device) zero-size drive
Windows directory location: C:\Windows
DirectX: DirectX 10
DirectX Diag version: 6.00.6001.18000 (64-bit version)

Display Notes: No problems found.
Sound Notes: No problems found.

No problems found.

No problems found.

No problems found.
Input Notes: No problems found.

Monitor: Generic PnP Monitor
Monitor's Max Resolution: (blank)
Video Device Name: ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics
Manufacturer / Chip: ATI Technologies Inc. / ATI display adapter (0x9612)
Video Memory: 1916 MB
Driver Version: 8.14.0010.0678
Driver Date: 7/2/2009 8:54:53 AM
Driver Language: English

Sound Device Description: Speakers and Dual Headphones (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Driver File: stwrt64.sys
Driver Version: 6.10.6209.0000
Driver Date: 6/3/2009 8:43:18 PM

Sound Device Description: SPDIF (Digital Out via HP Dock) (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Driver File: stwrt64.sys
Driver Version: 6.10.6209.0000
Driver Date: 6/3/2009 8:43:18 PM

Sound Device Description: Digital Output Device (HDMI) (High Definition Audio Device)
Driver File: HdAudio.sys
Driver Version: 6.00.6002.18005
Driver Date: 4/10/2009 10:39:52 PM

Sound Device Description: Independent Dual Headphones (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Driver File: stwrt64.sys
Driver Version: 6.10.6209.0000
Driver Date: 6/3/2009 8:43:18 PM


WMI Information
Motherboard Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
Motherboard Model: (empty)
Motherboard Product: 30FB
Motherboard Version: 01.82
BIOS Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
BIOS Name: Default System BIOS
BIOS Version: HPQOEM - 1
BIOS Release: 20081102000000.000000+000

Registry Information for Current User
Resolution: 1024x768
3D Resolution: 1024x768 (Not using renderscale)
Full Screen: Yes
Maximized: No
Screen Position: 0, 0
Refresh Rate: 60Hz
Vertical Sync Enabled: Yes

Physics Quality: Medium
Maximum Particles: 50000
Max Particle Fill? 10.000
Physics Card Enabled: No

Anti-aliasing: None
Anisotropic Filtering: 4x
Texture LOD Bias: Smooth
Water Effects: High Quality
Bloom: 1.000 (turned on)
Depth of Field Enabled: Yes
Desaturation Effects (Sepia) Enabled: Yes
Shader Detail: Low (with world bumpmaps)

World Texture Level: Very High
Character Texture Level: Very High
World Detail Level (Vis_Scale): 1.000
Entity Detail Level: 1.000
Shadows Enabled: Yes
Gamma Correction: 1.000
Geometry Buffers (VBOs) Enabled: Yes
Suppression of Extra Player FX Enabled: No
Suppression of FX When Camera Close Enabled: No
Close Suppression Range: 3.000
Show Advertisements: Yes

Audio Mode: Performance
3D Audio: No
FX Sound Volume: 1.000
Music Sound Volume: 0.600

Show Advanced Graphics Options: No
Overall Graphics Quality: 0.600
Reverse Mouse Buttons: No
Save Login Username: Yes
Transfer Rate: Unknown bytes/second
Current Game Version: 1600.20091102.8T3
Installation Directory: C:\Games\City of Heroes

Mod files in the Data directory
No modifications found


I've also got a Hijackthis log, starting here:
Logfile of Trend Micro HijackThis v2.0.2
Scan saved at 2:48:14 PM, on 12/14/2009
Platform: Windows Vista SP2 (WinNT 6.00.1906)
MSIE: Internet Explorer v7.00 (7.00.6002.18005)
Boot mode: Normal

Running processes:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Lexmark 2400 Series\ezprint.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\DVD\DVDAgent.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\TouchSmart\Media\Kernel\CLML\CLMLSvc.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\HP Quick Launch Buttons\QLBCTRL.exe
C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashDisp.exe
C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe
C:\Users\Dsarvess Rientel\Downloads\HijackThis.exe

R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Page_URL = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TY...vilion&pf=cnnb
R1 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Search Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TY...vilion&pf=cnnb
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Page_URL = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TY...vilion&pf=cnnb
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Default_Search_URL = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R1 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Search Page = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=54896
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main,Start Page = http://ie.redirect.hp.com/svs/rdr?TY...vilion&pf=cnnb
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,SearchAssistant =
R0 - HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search,CustomizeSearch =
R0 - HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Toolbar,LinksFolderName =
R3 - URLSearchHook: (no name) - {ecdee021-0d17-467f-a1ff-c7a115230949} - (no file)
F2 - REG:system.ini: UserInit=userinit.exe
O1 - Hosts: ::1 localhost
O2 - BHO: Microsoft Live Search Toolbar Helper - {d2ce3e00-f94a-4740-988e-03dc2f38c34f} - c:\Program Files (x86)\MSN\Toolbar\3.0.0541.0\msneshellx.dll
O2 - BHO: Java(tm) Plug-In 2 SSV Helper - {DBC80044-A445-435b-BC74-9C25C1C588A9} - C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre6\bin\jp2ssv.dll
O2 - BHO: (no name) - {ecdee021-0d17-467f-a1ff-c7a115230949} - (no file)
O3 - Toolbar: Microsoft Live Search Toolbar - {1E61ED7C-7CB8-49d6-B9E9-AB4C880C8414} - c:\Program Files (x86)\MSN\Toolbar\3.0.0541.0\msneshellx.dll
O3 - Toolbar: (no name) - {ecdee021-0d17-467f-a1ff-c7a115230949} - (no file)
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [StartCCC] "C:\Program Files (x86)\ATI Technologies\ATI.ACE\Core-Static\CLIStart.exe" MSRun
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [DVDAgent] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\DVD\DVDAgent.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [CLMLServer for HP TouchSmart] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\TouchSmart\Media\Kernel\CLML\CLMLSvc.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UCam_Menu] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\Webcam\MUITransfer\MUIStartMenu.exe" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\Media\Webcam" update "Software\Hewlett-Packard\Media\Webcam"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UpdateLBPShortCut] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\LabelPrint\MUITransfer\MUIStartMen u.exe" "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\LabelPrint" UpdateWithCreateOnce "Software\CyberLink\LabelPrint\2.5"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UpdatePSTShortCut] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\DVD Suite\MUITransfer\MUIStartMenu.exe" "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\DVD Suite" UpdateWithCreateOnce "Software\CyberLink\PowerStarter"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [QlbCtrl.exe] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\HP Quick Launch Buttons\QlbCtrl.exe" /Start
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UpdateP2GoShortCut] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\Power2Go\MUITransfer\MUIStartMenu. exe" "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\Power2Go" UpdateWithCreateOnce "SOFTWARE\CyberLink\Power2Go\6.0"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [UpdatePDIRShortCut] "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\PowerDirector\MUITransfer\MUIStart Menu.exe" "C:\Program Files (x86)\CyberLink\PowerDirector" UpdateWithCreateOnce "SOFTWARE\CyberLink\PowerDirector\7.0"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HP Health Check Scheduler] c:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\HP Health Check\HPHC_Scheduler.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [hpWirelessAssistant] C:\Program Files (x86)\Hewlett-Packard\HP Wireless Assistant\HPWAMain.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [avast!] C:\PROGRA~1\ALWILS~1\Avast4\ashDisp.exe
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [ehTray.exe] C:\Windows\ehome\ehTray.exe
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [Sidebar] %ProgramFiles%\Windows Sidebar\Sidebar.exe /detectMem (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-19\..\Run: [WindowsWelcomeCenter] rundll32.exe oobefldr.dll,ShowWelcomeCenter (User 'LOCAL SERVICE')
O4 - HKUS\S-1-5-20\..\Run: [Sidebar] %ProgramFiles%\Windows Sidebar\Sidebar.exe /detectMem (User 'NETWORK SERVICE')
O8 - Extra context menu item: E&xport to Microsoft Excel - res://C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~2\Office12\EXCEL.EXE/3000
O9 - Extra button: Send to OneNote - {2670000A-7350-4f3c-8081-5663EE0C6C49} - C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~2\Office12\ONBttnIE.dll
O9 - Extra 'Tools' menuitem: S&end to OneNote - {2670000A-7350-4f3c-8081-5663EE0C6C49} - C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~2\Office12\ONBttnIE.dll
O9 - Extra button: Research - {92780B25-18CC-41C8-B9BE-3C9C571A8263} - C:\PROGRA~2\MICROS~2\Office12\REFIEBAR.DLL
O13 - Gopher Prefix:
O17 - HKLM\System\CCS\Services\Tcpip\..\{668CB74B-D80B-4C68-8B74-633DDC5C6B4D}: NameServer = 192.168.1.1
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\Alg.exe,-112 (ALG) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\alg.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: avast! iAVS4 Control Service (aswUpdSv) - ALWIL Software - C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\aswUpdSv.exe
O23 - Service: avast! Antivirus - ALWIL Software - C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashServ.exe
O23 - Service: avast! Mail Scanner - ALWIL Software - C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashMaiSv.exe
O23 - Service: avast! Web Scanner - ALWIL Software - C:\Program Files\Alwil Software\Avast4\ashWebSv.exe
O23 - Service: @dfsrres.dll,-101 (DFSR) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\DFSR.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @keyiso.dll,-100 (KeyIso) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @comres.dll,-2797 (MSDTC) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\msdtc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\System32\netlogon.dll,-102 (Netlogon) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\psbase.dll,-300 (ProtectedStorage) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\Locator.exe,-2 (RpcLocator) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\locator.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\samsrv.dll,-1 (SamSs) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\lsass.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\SLsvc.exe,-101 (slsvc) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\SLsvc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\snmptrap.exe,-3 (SNMPTRAP) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\snmptrap.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\spoolsv.exe,-1 (Spooler) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\spoolsv.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: Audio Service (STacSV) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\stw rt64.inf_6ef279c8\STacSV64.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\ui0detect.exe,-101 (UI0Detect) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\UI0Detect.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%SystemRoot%\system32\vds.exe,-100 (vds) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\System32\vds.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%systemroot%\system32\vssvc.exe,-102 (VSS) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\vssvc.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%Systemroot%\system32\wbem\wmiapsrv.exe,-110 (wmiApSrv) - Unknown owner - C:\Windows\system32\wbem\WmiApSrv.exe (file missing)
O23 - Service: @%ProgramFiles%\Windows Media Player\wmpnetwk.exe,-101 (WMPNetworkSvc) - Unknown owner - C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Media Player\wmpnetwk.exe (file missing)

--
End of file - 8117 bytes

EDIT: It seems to be working now, after a reboot. It's taking a while to load the login screen, but otherwise it works as well as it does on my brother's computer. How odd... If there's any reason why it wasn't working when I put up this info, though, that would be helpful knowledge to have.