Hedge_NA

I completely agree with this as well. I haven't posted on the forum here in a couple of years, at least. I've never stopped playing completely but it's been a long while since I tried to squeeze in a little COH time whenever I could. But I'm very impressed by Going Rogue and it has really rejuvenated my love for the game.

It's not only a lot of shiny, it's very immersive. But I'm not only running Praetorians. I'm revisiting a lot of my old characters both blue-side and red-side, dusting them off and remembering why I have spent so many hours over the years playing this game. So I will add a big thank-you as well to the devs for their efforts. I can't wait to see what comes next!

It is early 1945. The end of the war in Europe is in sight. German soldiers fight a losing battle on two fronts. The survivors of the Nazi hero legion Storm Korps have holed up in their Black Forest stronghold to await the end.

Much of Berlin already lies in ruins from repeated bombings. In a secret laboratory redoubt deep beneath the city two men who have long worked together meet for the last time:


“What do you suppose became of him? The Oberleutnant, I mean?”

“Ach, who knows? What became of the other test subjects? Vaporized, sent too far forward or even backwards? Perhaps it even worked and he was run over by a bus as he appeared. All we know is that he has failed. Had he succeeded the Reich would even now be victorious and we would not be having this conversation.”

“It is strange to think about, nicht wahr? If we had succeeded we might not even know it. Only he would know things had been changed.”

“It is true. Well, no matter now. The last effort burned out the equipment and we do not have the time or the resources to try again.”

“What are your orders, Herr Oberst?”

“Destroy everything. The equipment, the records, all of it. The program is over. Perhaps it was just a dream.”

“Still, the theory…””

“Yes, yes, possibly the theory is sound. It doesn’t matter now. We have failed. But I will not let the cursed Allies scavenge the crumbs of my genius! Destroy it…no, wait.”

“Sir?”

“A submarine is departing in a few days for Japan. It will be carrying a number of documents. See that the blueprints and my notes are included. Deliver them to the submarine’s Kapitan yourself. Do not fail!”

“It shall be as you say, Herr Oberst.”

“Perhaps there is still a chance. Perhaps they can succeed where we have not…”

---

I have had trouble getting my arc played or reviewed, so I offer the preceding teaser in hopes of luring a few people into giving it a try. Reviews or comments would be appreciated, as I have played some really amazing arcs since AE was released and have feeble hopes of some day raising my work to that level.

Arc ID: 146290
Length: Long
Morality: Heroic
Factions: Council, Freakshow, custom
Difficulty: Moderate, final mission has a not-overpowered EB.
Description: A forgotten menace returns to threaten Paragon City. A “what if” sequel to a canon story arc.

Thanks, glad you liked it! I'm not sure our narrator is entirely innocent, but still he is a long way from evil. Clueless, certainly. I think how one might move from where he is, just wanting respect, to being truly evil is an interesting question. Perhaps the first time his squad is ordered to massacre everyone in some warehouse and his choice is suddenly to do it or to have some Archon put a bullet in his head.

At some point you cross a line from which there is no turning back.

Due process in Paragon City is another interesting question. I've wondered about that, too, but don't really know to what extent hero's activities are allowed to short-circuit the legal process.

I felt like writing something today and jotted this down. I am a newcomer to this part of the forum, so my apologies if this sort of thing has already been done to death.


Minion

Lying here in the infirmary has given me a lot of time to think about where I went wrong.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. And all I wanted was some respect, you know? I’d seen my old man drag himself off to work every day for twenty years and all he got to show for it in the end was a bad back.

My brother, Jeff, he wanted me to come and work with him. He had a pretty good job doing drywall for some outfit based over in Skyway. They were doing a lot of work in Faultline and always needed more guys, and he told me that with the plans for Baumton the work would stay steady. But I mean, so what? You work ten, twelve hours a day. When you get home you maybe grab a beer, watch some TV, and go to bed. You’re too tired to do much of anything else. Who needs that?

Like I said, it was about respect. So when I stopped to listen to the Council guy on the corner some of what he was saying made sense. You put on that uniform and all of a sudden you’re someone. Even those gang creeps like the Skulls think twice about hassling you then. And the training is free. I didn’t think about being like, you know, a bad guy. The way I looked at it, it wasn’t any different than joining one of those private security companies.

So I said sure, sign me up. And it wasn’t a bad gig. Good hours, good pay, and the training was first rate. Sure it was tough, and some of those officers thought they were like Patton or somebody, but if you did your job and kept your nose clean it was all right.

I can’t say I thought we were the Boy Scouts. The commanders, those Archon guys, some of them were really cold. And those vampire guys flat-out gave me the creeps. But I kind of liked the wolf guys. I’ve always liked dogs, though.

Once Nosferatu came to the base where I was stationed and we all had to stand in formation while he reviewed us. I went out and got drunk that night. It’s not like the guy did anything. He didn’t even talk to us. I just felt like ice was coating my bones the whole time he was around, you know? Creepy.

Mostly, though, it was just guard duty. A little dull but the other guys were okay and we got to yak a lot when there wasn’t an officer around. And I got to carry this big freakin’ gun. I wasn’t wrong about the uniform, either. It made it a lot easier to pick up girls and people got out of your way when you walked down the street. I liked that.

Then one day I’m at work and the alarm goes off. Me and the rest of my squad kind of stand around fiddling with our guns and wondering what to do and then we hear gunfire in the distance. Then we hear more and one of the guys says he thinks it’s getting closer. But we’re supposed to stay at our posts and so that’s what we do.

You’d think you’d know whether it was getting closer, right? One thing I haven’t mentioned is about those bases. They’re all underground. Ours was right below Brickstown and it was completely hidden. I thought that was cool. But it was laid out like it was designed by some architect guy who had flipped out and was having long conversations with his socks, you know? Really weird and the layout made the sound travel oddly up and down the tunnels.

Anyway, there we were when suddenly this hero guy comes around the corner. I could tell he was a hero because of the costume, I mean no one else would wear purple and white tights, no one outside a circus anyway. And he was big. He had fists as big as pot roasts and they kind of glowed. And right behind him is this chick wearing boots and a cape and this outfit that showed a lot of skin.

I kind of froze for a second. I’d never really shot anyone before, you know? Burt, though, he opened fire right away. But the bullets hit this guy’s chest and just bounce off. Then the chick raises her hand and Burt kind of rises into the air and stops moving.

On the other side of me Jimmy is just staring at the girl. I mean, sure she’s super hot and all that but there’s a time to keep your mind on your work, you know? So she smiles at Jimmy and makes this gesture and poor Jimmy just flies into the air like some kind of rag doll. He hits the ceiling on the way up as hard as he hits the ground on the way down.

So I know it’s up to me and I unfreeze and try to get my gun around. But I’m way too slow and the hero guy charges me and hits me right in the chest. Everything after that is kind of hazy. I could hear things break, ribs and stuff, and I hardly even felt hitting the opposite wall. I hit it upside down and fell down onto my head. I could hear things happening and I remember Jimmy screamed but the only other thing I really remember is that I was trying to stand up when the hero clobbers me again.

I woke up here in the Zig. And like I said at the start, I’ve been trying to figure out where I went wrong. I’ve had a lot of time to think, what with the concussion and the broken leg and the five broken ribs.

I think the problem is that I was thinking too small. The Council is an okay outfit, but there are other possibilities. I mean, I have all these weapon skills now and I can meet all kinds of contacts here.

Arachnos? Tempting, but those guys have way too many rules. Malta? Forget it. They’re way too sneaky, no way you can swagger around when you’re with them. Sky Raiders? Nice uniforms but I really don’t like heights.

Nope, I have it all figured out. The Nemesis Army, that’s the outfit for me. They’re tough, I mean no one messes with those guys. And best of all their uniforms are the coolest. I bet women practically swoon when they see you wearing one.

I can’t wait to get out of here. This time it’s going to be different. Just you wait and see.

Hm, sounds like this could be a very good thing for CoH. I wonder - what will happen to all of those "Cryptic Studios" store fronts scattered around Paragon City?

Sweetness indeed! Good article overall, but the inclusion of "kill skuls" fills me with happiness.