Ex_Libris

Just wanted to thank Gnarly for a great utility.. been reading about it for a while and finally last night configured it for my blaster with fly.. very very nice indeed.. 3 Cheers

Name:Consortium of Heroes
Motto:Live Protecting Your Friends, Die trying
Leadersarkstealth, Arthos
Player Type:Whatever your style is we can handle it.
Player Level:17-26
Play Time:Every hour
We Are Recruiting.
We just want to have some people that we can play with that we know a little more than just random people and people we can do missions all day long with.

If you want to join send a tell to Arthos or Darkstealth.

Wow, I'm tagging this because this is just simply amazing. This is going to help make some seriously cool animations. Now if they only allowed for things like "Show UI" mode with -NoConversations so you can't see what people type, you do get chat bubbles but everything else is safe.

This is great, Oh my god, this is the coolest thing I've seen added to a MMOG in forever.

Hexadecimal

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Let me guess... you chose not to use Unqueue, the command that puts away a drawn weapon? As soon as I saw your post, I realized that it would cause your problem.


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Gnarly, I am having the same problem; I am choosing not to unqueue, but i do not have superspeed or a prestige power. I don't have fly either yet. I basically hit enter to default everything EXCEPT unqueue, where i type 'N' and hit enter. I've tried resetting the binds in all manners conceivable, to no avail

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So what exactly is your problem? Sprint turns on ok, but does not turn off? And you're not using Super Speed, or any other power like the other poster, but just not using unqueue. And you've tried Ctrl-R, and Ctrl-M until you tell yourself that you're in SoD mode? Hmm...

Could you perhaps reply with the bind lines for your forward key (W if you hit enter) from these two files?

c:\coh\r\r.txt
c:\coh\r\re.txt

Just the two lines, please, no need for the whole setup.

If you tell us that, we should be able to figure out what's going wrong.

Gnarly

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Seriously all defaults. Everything is default. Is there a way to make sure my keybinds are truely reset. Perhaps that is the problem.

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Well Geez, I don't know what to say, man. I'd LIKE to fix it for you, but it's sounding like it's a computer or operating system type thing. The defaults work on my machine, most people's machine, even your Mom's, but not yours. And there are a few more people out there who have the same problem.

What OS is your computer using? Windows XP, 2000, DOS?

And what is your Mom's running? This probably something more complicated than that, but I don't even know where to start.

Other binds work, right? You say you're ok in "normal" mode, and then crash as soon as you hit CTRL-M to switch to SoD? And if you got to that point, then the /bind_load_file command must work from the chat window.

Gnarly

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Okay perhaps I need to do something different but this is what happens. Whenever I push LCTRL+M it crashes to desktop. I have tried resetting my binds to default (by just hitting reset binds under menu,options) and then reload the file but still crash CoH. Using version 2.7 of SOD

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I've heard of this happening from a few different people, but have yet to track it down. Can you please list the options you use? Specifically:

What options do you use for your Ground movement powers, Sprint, Super Speed, etc?

What directory did you install to?

Any other keys that are not 'normal' would be appreciated.
Right now, I'm thinking that the binds are too long from a combination of long powernames and long pathnames. I don't have any ideas, but maybe your replies will clue me in.

Gnarly

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I play a blaster and use the fly hover binds all the time. Is there anyway to not fall from the sky if you hit an attack while flying?

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Don't hit an attack while pressing or releasing a key. Fly methodically. Just because you can now switch to fly quickly and back again doesn't mean you want to be darting all around the battlefield just for better positioning. Don't remove your defense bonus from hover and get an accuracy penalty from Fly unless you NEED to move. If you do need to move, then move, stop, and attack.

Can the binds be "fixed"? No, because it's the GAME that only allows 1 queued power at a time, NOT the binds. If you could somehow do this all manually as quick as the binds do, you'd still fall if you chose an attack right in the middle of changing from hover to fly.

Train your fingers to fly methodically, or turn off SoD (CTRL-M) and hover around.

Gnarly

All of the clcokworks turned to look at the source of the explosion. The wall had crumbled under the force of the blast, leaving a pile of bricks and mortar. The pile moved. In a second flurry of motion the pile of rubble exploded, revealing a tall, red, horned figure.

Helloween surveyed his quarry. These clockworks were responsible for the deaths of two innocents and his preternatural senses had lead him here. Without a word he launched himself through the air at the nearest of the large, smoke-belching princes.

The newborn backpedaled away from the fray. Lightning, metal, and brimstone was flying left and right as the demonoid Hero pummelled the Newborns treacherous bretheren. The Newborn, confused and terrified, found a niche to hide in as the explosions and crackling of energy raged throghout the compound...

The Lord of Entropy storms into the middle of the thread, wielding 28 inches of dental floss, a secretary named Lola, a box of Ginger Snaps cookies (contents settled during shipping), a cordless mouse and 2 Gin and Tonics.

His eyes are lit like the fires of hell. Lola is taking a letter (in shorthand!).

Suddenly, The Lord of Entropy's hand drops, and he steps on the dental floss. Falling forward, he is forced to drop Lola, who screams and grabs at the cord of the mouse.

Sadly, the mouse is cordless, and her hands flail at empty air. She knocks one of the Gin and Tonics flying.

In horror at seeing his favorite cocktail sent to a certain doom, the Lord of Entropy quickly downs the other one and leaps, graceful as a cat, for the second.

Sadly, he has forgotten that he was already tumbling forward having tripped on the dental floss, and his cat-graceful leap turns into a water buffalo falling off a cliff.

He falls head first into the 2nd glass of Gin and Tonic, which becomes lodged on his head, drowning him.

As he dies, he throttles Lola for her clumsiness, killing her.

The box of settled Ginger Snaps sits on the curb, undistrubed.

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Might interest you to know that you don't have to take health to get stamina. You could take both swift and hurdle instead. It's not like a technology tree in other games, you just need 2 of the lower 3. Personally, knowing how much Health helps, I don't understand why anyone would do this, but hey... it's an option.

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Yep, you're right. I tend to forget as I usually take Health. I don't usually plan on hurdle.

Hmm... food for thought on using SS NOT on demand. I'll have to see how it works when I get SS.... tonight hopefully?

Here's a suggesting for you, though... you can run my program twice, and create 2 different configurations, in 2 different Subdirectories, say C:\CoH\SS and C:\CoH\Sprint. The first with SS on Demand, and the other with just sprint on demand. Then go in and manually ADD these lines to the files specified.

add this line in c:\coh\ss\r\r.txt:
K "bind_load_file c:\coh\sprint\r\r.txt

add this line in c:\coh\sprint\r\r.txt:
K "bind_load_file c:\coh\ss\r\r.txt

This will then allow you to hit 'K' to toggle between your two setups. Only do this when standing still. You can do this for any 2 configurations.

But, if the endurance drain isn't bad, then maybe I'll end up just keeping SS on and having sprint on demand.

Gnarly

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If he had super speed, super jump, or teleport, he wouldn't even have to worry about that salvo of grenades, and thus the regen from health would be irrelevant.

Also, if he had any of those powers, he would have reached his next group long before health's regen would have mattered.

As noted, it is the lameness of hover/fly that are the only thing making him even notice the benefits. With any of the other 3 travel powers (that don't suck), he'd be avoiding that salvo of grenades *AND* reaching his next group to fight a ton faster.

Understand my post now?

Thanks.

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No. You are invalidating the effects of Health because you think Fly sucks as a travel power and is too slow. That has no bearing on whether Health is useful for him. He likes to hover over mobs and takes some damage. He likes Fly. Telling him Health sucks and the only reason he thinks it's good is because he uses another sucky travel power, Fly, certainly doesn't bolster your argument. If Health sucked as bad as you claim, then he, of all people would back up your claim since he, supposedly, takes more damage using Hover/Fly when fighting mobs, as opposed to the other travel powers, as you claim, and Health would have no noticeable effect in his health recovery.
And also, any of the other travel powers would not help him from receiving return fire. If he is in range when he attacks, unless the mobs have their attack range debuffed, they will always return fire. So, having the "sucky" Fly power has even less bearing on your "proof".

Again, if YOU don't like Health and think it's useless to slot, fine. Don't slot it (unfortunately for you and those who don't like Health, you cannot choose not to take it if you want Stamina). If he likes it and wants to slot it, let him. If you have the right to say that, in your opinion, it sucks and is useless, he has the right to disagree. It's extremely rude to tell people to ignore him just because you think he is wrong, especially when you claim their only reason they defend the usefulness of the power is because they've made a mistake and can't admit it.

If you want to give facts, then post the actual values - like the calculator spreadsheet. Let people decide for themselves whether Health garners enough of a benefit for them to slot.

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I did the whole damn auto toggle thing posted it on this forum and was shunned for it... oh its to complicated, so n' so has a better on, but it was not a hover/fly auto toggle,bla bla bla... but it worked and it worked well.

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Hi AutomatonX,

I didn't follow your post here, until I saw your other thread on the boards.

Let me be the first to commend you on your binds posted over there. The logical thinking and problem solving that creating binds of this complexity requires will take you far.

As for people telling you that my binds are better... first off, I call them "Gnarly's SoD Binds" to distinguish them from other versions along the way. They are NOT my binds alone, but the collective effort of a LOT of people in this thread. And a lot of time... this thread started more than 2 months ago.

So don't beat yourself up if you can not compete with 1000 people and months of effort By making your own binds that work for you, you not only had the puzzle-solving fun of doing it, but have the satisfaction that you did them yourself.

Well Done!

Gnarly

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Another problem: I have an En/En blaster superspeeder. I'd really like to have superspeed on demand to be able to deliver close range attacks and then move backwards quicly out of melee range.
In order to do this, it's very usefull to queue the attack, and come close so that attack automatically launches when range is good. But when I move, it cancels the queued attack.
Is there any solution to this?

Another thing: i use autorun and follow mostly for long distance travels. How should i do so that it auto toggles superspeed AND sprint? Not a crucial point, but eh, if there's a simple answer to this...


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Yes, just queue the attack AFTER you start running... doesn't have be long after, just hit forward, hit attack, and boom. I do it all the time, but with Super Speed, you might move too fast? Try it out. There's really no way to fix this, as you're activating SS, which cancels out your queued power... maybe set it on Auto Attack (hold control and click power) then zoom in and out? I'm about to get SS on one of my characters, so soon I'll be able to see how SS on demand works

As far as turning on Sprint AND SS, it can't be done :/ This is the limit on binds, such that 2 powers can't be activated in the same bind. If you follow my suggestions from my previous post for Super Speed (set it as Secondary, and have nothing primary) then Sprint is never messed with by my binds, and you can toggle it manually once you're autorunning. I can't think of any trick to improve on that.

Glad it's working for you otherwise

Gnarly

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Your assessment is based on copying to test server, slotting up to 4 SO's, and "not really noticing a difference", so your opinion is better? srmalloy posted his experience with Health and found it useful but your "test" is better proof and people shouldn't listen to him but they should listen to you?


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If he had super speed, super jump, or teleport, he wouldn't even have to worry about that salvo of grenades, and thus the regen from health would be irrelevant.

Also, if he had any of those powers, he would have reached his next group long before health's regen would have mattered.

As noted, it is the lameness of hover/fly that are the only thing making him even notice the benefits. With any of the other 3 travel powers (that don't suck), he'd be avoiding that salvo of grenades *AND* reaching his next group to fight a ton faster.

Understand my post now?

Thanks.

I've only seen Big Lou in person once.

Wouldn't know. No one's ever tried to cyber me.
Err, that is, those filthy perverts! A pox on them!

Character name: The Encharger.
Server: Virtue.
Archetype: Martial Arts/Regeneration Scrapper.
Inspiration: Um, none really, but I've been told I remind people of the Flash.

Origin: Read me, view me, love me!

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The thought of a strong, dominating women is usually enough for them to back off REAL quick.

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The hell you say!
This problem can easily be solved with five simple words: "I weigh four hundred pounds."

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I copied my character over to the test server to go from health with a red training enhancement in it to 4 health SOs.
I really couldn't even notice a difference.

Health blows. Slot it at your own risk.

There are people out there who make a mistake and then want to convince themselves that it wasn't a mistake by getting other people to do the same thing.

Don't listen to them.

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Your assessment is based on copying to test server, slotting up to 4 SO's, and "not really noticing a difference", so your opinion is better? srmalloy posted his experience with Health and found it useful but your "test" is better proof and people shouldn't listen to him but they should listen to you?

Why not just post facts and let people decide if health is for them? In this thread there is a discussion about the Fitness Pool and in one of the posts, someone links to a spreadsheet that gives you an idea of how Health, Stamina, Fast Healing and Quick Recovery perform with and without enhancements. Assuming the values are correct, it shows that 6 slotting Health reduces time required to heal to full to around 52.63% of normal or in other words, gives you 0.791666667% Health Per Second as opposed to 0.416666667% Health per second.

Is that useful? You decide for yourself.

very informative, was doing most of this naturally w/o a clue of this kind of scheme w/ a fire/fire blaster. going def now. thx!

Love it. Feel free to read my origin story ("Beginnings..." just posted it today).

Character Name: The Lord of Entropy
Server: Virtue
Archetype: Energy/Energy blaster
Inspiration: When I was in high school, my chemistry teacher was talking about entropy and he said "If you think about it, the force of chaos is so strong it's actually science's greatest marvel that we don't all instantly burst into flames right this second."

High school was a long time ago, but that quote has always stuck in my head. So when I was making a new character, I got to thinking. I never was much for science, but I've always enjoyed poking holes in convention, so to me the challenge of making someone that sounded "evil" (and really, who ever thinks of chaos as "good"?) and coming up with a story that justifies them acting in a positive matter was a fun challenge. He even looks like a bad guy (red, glowing eyes, lots of leather and buckles, etc...). But he's actually a good guy with a different set of values and beliefs.

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I could hover over one of the groups of 6-12 5th Column, from white to orange minions

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Aha. No wonder you need health.

Hover blasters suck. I know that early on everyone thought blasters needed hover.

A few months into the game, it is obvious that hover/fly are absolute garbage. They are slow as crap and there are far better ways to stay out of melee range (and sometimes even out of ranged weapon range).

I copied my character over to the test server to go from health with a red training enhancement in it to 4 health SOs.

I really couldn't even notice a difference.

Health blows. Slot it at your own risk.

There are people out there who make a mistake and then want to convince themselves that it wasn't a mistake by getting other people to do the same thing.

Don't listen to them.

Chaos is reigning down all around him, and he loves it.

Overhead, the clear dome protecting his palace from the destructive atmosphere of his home world is refracting the light from the three suns. The refraction creates a cascade of spidery rainbows that gives an angelic sense to the surroundings. Generators powered by mystic energy sources work silently, purifying the poisonous air outside the dome, cooling the domed city, keeping its inhabitants safe from the destructive powers outside.

With a grin on his face that his enemies have called “the pure embodiment of chaos” Grand Monarch Mishak Nallesh, ruler of this world and the entire Plane of Entropy, once again surveys the scene around him.

The battered bodies of four Rikti spies lay, prostrate, at his feet. One of them is dead already, the rest will be shortly. Grand Monarch Nallesh only hopes that they will reveal their plan before their bonds with this life are broken. But not too quickly. These invaders threatened his children, something he does not take kindly to. He steps forward to the nearest spy and flips him over with vicious kick.

“What happened to the nanny of my children, invader?” he asks, his glowing red eyes narrowing in anger. Few have witnessed his anger and survived. Even the fierce Rikti cowers briefly from this visage before collecting himself.

“Dead. As you all soon will be. This plane is but a waypoint for us, but your pathetic excuse for a “kingdom” stands in our way. Already we are massing for a brief assault that will wipe away any memory of your people. Surrender now and perhaps you can be spared.”

Never in 1,347 years of rule has anyone ever spoken to a member of the Royal Family with such insolence. Mishak Nallesh, 45th generation of the Nallesh family, the eternal rulers of the Plane of Entropy, says nothing for several long moments. Every eye in the chamber is cast down, none daring to risk meeting his eyes lest they bear the brunt of his anger. Only the Rikti invader glares back, defiantly.

And then, Grand Monarch Mishak Nallesh, self proclaimed and long worshipped Lord of Entropy, begins to laugh. It is an alien sound, coming from this man who many worship as a God. Even his closest advisors have not heard his laughter since he was a small boy, and even then it was heard only rarely. But now it cascades out like a tremendous waterfall, a deep, booming sound that rings throughout the room.

“Surrender? To you?” Again, laughter. “Indeed, we should surrender, thank you for the offer. Tell me, to whom should I offer my terms of surrender? I assume it will be unconditional, but considering this generous offer, perhaps you will allow me to keep some small slice of my kingdom?”

He is laughing again, and now his ministers and advisors are joining him. A couple of them shout out jeers of their own. “Yes, spare us!” and “Please, we give up!” cause a redoubling of merriment in the room. Only the Rikti captive is silent, and his eyes have not left those of Grand Monarch Nallesh. Eventually, the Lord of Entropy calls for silence with a wave of his hands, so that he can continue his parley with his captive. He is no longer smiling.

“Listen to me, slave – for that is what you will be for the rest of your days. Your plot has been uncovered. Your attempt on my life has been unsuccessful. If you had the power to invade us, you would have done so already. Only a weak foe seeks to assassinate his enemies. I suspect that when your attack comes, it will be short lived and feeble, as you are. I truly hope that you enjoy the rest of your days in our mines. I trust that you will not find them accommodating. Guards, take this slave away.”

Two burly guards move in from the door, chains in hand. The Rikti struggles to his feet, an impressive feat of will considering at least one of his legs is broken. He turns an icy glare on all those around him, finally bringing it to rest on the Lord of Entropy.

“Fool.” He hisses. “You will not be laughing when the invasion force comes. My job here was not to assassinate you. My task was merely to distract you so that our saboteurs could access your generators. I suspect you have only a very short time to live now. More than me, however.”

With those words, the Rikti takes his hand and slams it into his chest with enough force to crack ribs. Grand Monarch Nallesh turns toward him, eldritch energies crackling on his fingertips. He points at two of the other Rikti who have been silent witnesses to this event and they are enveloped in sizzling energy which quickly incapacitates them. Now, it is only the final Rikti spy and the Lord of Entropy, glowing eye to glowing eye.

Glowing eye?

Grand Monarch Mishak Nallesh has had red glowing eyes like two embers since birth, the evolutionary result of living under the harsh glare of three blinding suns. However, until now the Rikti’s eyes were merely two white orbs with small black pupils in the center. Now, they are glowing with a pale green light that is quickly intensifying. The Rikti is smiling a pained smile, tinged with madness and a touch of glee.

One of Grand Monarch Nallesh’ royal guardsmen leaps forward, and with a single swipe of his entropic blade swipes the Rikti’s head off it’s body. Oddly though, there is no blood. A flash of light and the smell of burned ozone assails the bystanders. Wires poke from the bottom of the head and the top of the neck. Still, the green light grows. The flesh begins to melt from the head of the invader, peeling back to reveal a dark, metallic shell.

Suddenly, Grand Monarch Nallesh’ most trusted advisor, T’neth Agdur, leaps forward and with a wave of his hand creates a powerful force field around the Lord of Entropy and all those nearby. “Get down!” he yells, leaping towards his closes friend in a diving tackle, covering him with his own body.

Now, chaos comes to the plane of entropy, truly.

The explosion instantly incinerates every living person in the royal palace; wives, children, brothers, sisters, and friends, all gone in one blazing moment. The generators that protected the inhabitants of the city are gone in a flash, and the poisonous atmosphere of the outside comes rushing in. Anyone caught outside of their homes and the safety zone of their own atmospheric generators is killed within minutes, horribly asphyxiated. The explosion creates a crater almost a half-mile wide around the palace, a zone where not one living being survives.

Except for one tiny bubble in the middle of the crater, shimmering softly, protected from the atmosphere and the explosion, if only briefly. Inside, the Grand Monarch and his most trusted advisors and ministers lay prone, stunned and disoriented by the force of the explosion. The effects of that destruction are only now beginning to dawn on them.

But this is only the beginning, for as the Lord of Entropy helps his friends and allies to their feet, the Rikti invasion begins in earnest. Huge mother ships land amongst the building of the city, dispensing vast battalions of invaders who quickly sweep aside the reeling defenses of the city. Pockets of resistance fight valiantly, but they are overwhelmed by both the loss of their leadership and the sheer numbers of their invaders. Even an observer unskilled in the art of warfare can tell it will all be over shortly. Victory for the Rikti is assured.

Inside that small bubble of force, T’neth Agdur turns to his Lord, his King, and his lifelong friend, sadness tinged with determination in his eyes.

“My Lord, we must flee. I can open a gateway to another dimension that will be impossible for the Rikti to follow through. But we must go now.”

Grand Monarch Mishak Nalleth, Lord of Entropy, emperor and God to a conquered world, stands resolute.

“Never. I will never abandon my people to these invaders. I would rather die fighting than abandon them.”

“But Mishak, the fighting is already over, or nearly so. Your being captured benefits no one. If we flee, we can regroup, gain allies, and return with a conquering force of our own. But we must act now, before these invaders realize we survived the explosion. Mishak, my friend, my emperor, I beg you. Please.”

For a long moment, no one dared to speak. Mishak Nalleth, a fallen king, stands in the middle of a giant crater, the smoking ruins of his former life all around him. His fists clench and unclench. For the first time in his life, he is uncertain.

“Mishak, we have no time. My force field won’t last much longer, and if it fails, we will all die for nothing. Fighting at this point is pure folly. Hold that anger and hatred in your heart, and we will one day return to this plane, triumphant. But we MUST go now, or never.”
----------------------------------------------------------------------

It is night in Paragon city. The neon glow from a small tavern and the dim spotlight of a street light are the only disruptions to the shadow pooling in the street. Down an alley between two dilapidated apartment buildings, the sounds of a struggle can be heard as a small gang of thugs mugs an elderly man.

In front of a small, darkened store bearing a sign which proclaims “It’s 2 for 1 Month at Vanderberg’s Grocery!” the night is split in two, a vertical line 8 feet tall hovers two feet above the ground, then slowly separates, growing into a portal 6 feet wide. Out of this portal several tall beings begin to appear. The first two beings take up positions flanking the portal, followed by several more who step out into the darkness. As quickly as it appears, the portal snaps shut with a brief crackling sound. Again, the night is quiet save for the sounds of the mugging, less than 20 feet away.

“My God, it smells foul here. Where are we?” asks Mishak, wrinkling his nose at the alien smells.

“Truth be told, I’m not exactly sure. Portals are still a new field of study for us. I was focusing more on breathable atmosphere and acceptable levels of gravity than anything else,” T’neth does a few small leaps into the air and takes a deep breath, “it seems acceptable.”

“Indeed, you did well, given the circumstances. I only hope that we can find allies here.”

Just then, the crack of a gunshot is heard, along with a voice yelling “Give it over, old man, or the next one goes in ya!”

Mishak immediately turns to the sound, moving quietly down the alley, towards the sound of a scuffle. What he sees appalls him: 4 young men standing over the crumpled figure of an old man, his hands cast up in front of him in a gesture of submission and fear. One of the young men is brandishing a small gun in a threatening manner.

“B-b-b-ut, this is my rent money. You’ll put me out on the street! What will I eat?” asks the old man pleadingly.

“Awww, you musta mistaken me for somebody who cares. Now GIVE IT!” says the young thug with the gun, leveling it at the old man.

Just then, a blast of energy envelops the young man, sending him to the ground clutching his head in pain.

“What the?” says one of the others, turning towards their new foe.

“That is no way to treat your elders, boys. Do they have no concept of respect on this plane?” Grand Monarch Mishak Nalleth’s hands are crackling with a pale blue energy. Behind the young men, their friend is trying, feebly, to rise to his feet.

“Plane? What the hell are you talking about, freak?” asks one of the gang members, quizzically.

“Freak?” asks Mishak Nalleth with a raised eyebrow. “Since you do not know me, I will overlook the insult. Next time, you will address me by my proper title: I am Grand Monarch Mishak Nalleth, Emperor of my people and The Lord of Entropy.”

“Lord of wha? Grand what? Hey, you guys getting’ a load of this guy?” asks the thug, mirth dancing across his drug-addled features. “Allow me to introduce you to my very good friend, Smith and Wesson!”

As he pulls his gun from his waistband, The Lord of Entropy sends out another sizzling bolt of mystic energy, knocking him flying backwards. The other two thugs rush him, one with a small blade, the other with a baseball bat. The Lord of Entropy steps forward and meets the knife wielding thug with a vicious punch, sending him flying backwards to land in a pile atop his friend. The bat wielding thug, seeing that his three friends have quickly been dispatched, drops his bat and flees the other direction as fast as his legs can take him.

T’neth Agdur rushes over to the old man, helping him to his feet and brushing him off. “Who were those thieves?” he asks.

“Hellions? Skulls? I can never keep em straight these days. Regardless, thank you for saving me. I’ve always heard that heroes didn’t care about the little people, but you sure proved me wrong.” The old man says, gratefully.

Mishak turns towards the old man quizzically. “Heroes? What exactly do you mean?”

“Oh, you know, the usual. Ever since the Rikti invasion, Paragon City’s been full of them. Some of em shoot fire out of their fingertips, some of them control what people think or do, that kinda stuff. Never met many myself, until now.”

T’neth Agdur turns toward Mishak. “Perhaps this plane will prove a good choice, after all. If this city is truly filled with people with powers as this man says, heroes who repulsed a Rikti invasion, we may be able to find allies here.”

“Indeed we may, T’neth. Indeed we may.”

I’m alive…But what does that really mean? I lie here, incapacitated as I did not twenty minutes prior, yet fully aware of the new life I have been given; a precious gift. There’s a saying that goes “there are no second chances.” Up until today I would have been inclined to agree. Ironic how in the blink of an eye one’s entire philosophy on life can change. Now, there is no doubt in my mind what I must do. I must finish what I’ve started. Some say “vengeance is a dish best served cold.” I suppose I will find out soon enough. Yet even with a goal so apparent before me, the future is clouded in mystery. I only know one thing for sure. I have to get up. No rest for the weary.

Mark stirred then let out a loud groan. Getting up was going to be easier said than done. It was then he realized that he wasn’t on the ground at all. He wasn’t even outside any longer. Mark shot up painfully from the bed he had been lying in, and nearly fell right back down. He didn’t, however. He was now fully alert.

“Easy there son. Perhaps you should lie back down and rest?” came a voice from the corner. Mark followed the voice and saw a gnarled old man sitting in the corner of what Mark noticed, for the first time, to be a small but tidy old shack.
“W-wh-?” Mark began, but the old man continued to speak; either not hearing or ignoring Mark’s attempt at a question. Mark had a sneaky suspicion it was the latter.

“I am Fredrick Peters the third, but you can call me Fred. And yes, this is my house and I am the caretaker of the cemetery.” The old man added with a wry smile as he answered every question that seemed to be running through Mark’s head. “No. I am not a psychic. I’ve just been around long enough and have seen enough things to know,” he continued as he shot down another one of Mr. Cannons’ questions before it was even audibly voiced.

“How did a little old man like you manage to lift me up from the ground? I must weigh a good 280 pounds,” Mark finally managed to ask as he slumped back against the heavy headboard of his bed.

“Perhaps I’m stronger than I look!” the old man cackled gleefully. “And perhaps there are more things to me than meet the eye,” he added, winking. Mark seemed content to leave it at that, at least for now.

“Now, if you don’t mind, there are a few questions that I would like to ask you.” He continued. “It’s not everyday a dead man winds up exploding through his casket and up through the earth from six feet under.”

“No. No I suppose it’s not.” Mark mused. “But then again, why should I tell you anything? If there is one thing I’ve learned it’s to trust no one.”

“Yes, I suppose that’s a painful lesson many dead men learn the hard way. Other than that, I only provided you with food and shelter, and more than likely saved your life after you collapsed out there,” Fred pondered, motioning toward the door and Mark’s grave beyond. “Besides that, I’m just a curious old man. Some even call me benevolent.” Fred quipped, intending to make Mark felt guilty. It didn’t work.

“Curious indeed,” Mark thought to himself. However, as much as he hated to admit it, he was beginning to like the strangely charismatic old man. Even trust him, slightly, despite his earlier comment.

Mark stood shakily to his feet, his powerful form no less impressive than the night before when he “conquered death.” He made his way to a small table in the center of the shack and took a seat. “Put on some coffee.” He told Fred. “I’ve got a story for you after all.”

“Oh really?” Fred answered, seemingly surprised for the first time throughout their entire encounter. “I thought you trusted no one?”

“I don’t.” Mark replied curtly. “But I need someone to hear my story. I might not be around to tell it for much longer.”

“How can I refuse a story with a beginning like that?” the old man chuckled as he came and took a seat across from Mark. “Do begin.”

“Well, it all started out like this…”