JollyRoger

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It's not a balance issue or anything, but more of a "make things easier" issue

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That, and it solves the situation of "Didn't we just arrest this guy...?!"

Ahoy, mateys! Here be ol' Jolly-Roger, checkin' The Seekers in for the lineup 'ere! Couldn't update the old post, so had to put a new one up.

Supergroup: The Seekers

Website: http://www.seekers-hq.com

Officers: Jolly-Roger (@Jolly-Roger), Stone Griffon (@Adavar), Stonehendge (@Solarfox)

Preferred Method of Contact: The website!

Guild Description: The Seekers are a light-roleplaying group of mature gamers, who've got branches in both CoH and WoW. We also realize that Real Life (tm) comes first, and don't expect anyone to play a certain amount, or at certain times. Stop by the website, and check out our Charter to see if you'd fit in!

Ahoy, matey Arctic_Sun! Now we get to see how many people call you "Artic Sun" or the like...

An' remember, like any good reporter knows, pirates be good, an' ninjas be evil, untrustworthy bilge rats... . Arrgh!

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It's great that you fixed that, Positron.

But can you check to make sure the spawn rates of all the other zone monsters are in line with what they should be too? It's darned near impossible to get the badges for these monsters that show up only once a in blue moon and will only award their badges to the team that did the most damage when they do.

And if the spawn rates are what they should be, can you tell us what they are?

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I agree. Consider it from the casual gamer's perspective - would you want to wait around an hour to try and find such rare beasts? Of course, I understand that Zone Events should be relatively rare - that's what makes them special, after all! However, I'm sure most players aren't keen on waiting around to catch the rare spawns of these things. I, for one, have never seen Jurassik spawn in Crey's Folly. As much as I'd love to fight it, I don't want to sit there for a half-hour (much less an hour or more) jumping around, doing nothing else - especially when I have no guarantee that it'll even show up. And with the current setup, even if it does show up, there's no guarantee I'll get a badge for helping to fight it, if someone else is there as well.

Is it possible for there to be a maximum timer set for rare spawns? That is, if the event has not happened in X amount of time, it is automatically triggered? After all, if (for example) the Babbage is supposed to patrol Boomtown, shouldn't it be there most of the time? Granted, I'm sure the Clockwork King pulls him away to run an errand from time to time, but lore-wise, it makes sense for the Babbage to be one of the reasons Boomtown hasn't been reclaimed... . Likewise with the other events - it'd be nice for them to be rare, but not that rare.

Another note on zone events - some are more noticeable than others. For example, the ghost ship is pretty obvious if you're anywhere near it, as is Lusca. But something like the Kraken in Perez Park or Jurassik in Crey's Folly (with the mass of pipes & gantries all over the place) are much harder to find, particularly for people who don't know the area it's supposed to spawn. Obviously, it's important that the spawn-points make sense (eg, the Kraken near the sewer entrances in Perez), but also consider some sort of zone-wide broadcast when such beasts are active. For example, perhaps the massive whirring gears and thudding metallic steps of the Babbage in Boomtown would clue heroes in that there's something big out there. This gives players the knowledge of the event, and lets them choose whether or not to pursue it.

Summary:

1) Keep the casual gamer in mind - no-one likes waiting forever for rare zone events.

2) Consider a maximum timer for zone events - if it hasn't spawned within X amount of time, initiate the spawn.

3) Announce zone events in the zone. Some zone events are harder to notice than others, and a zone-wide announcement would at least alert players to the event.

I think there's two important "halves" to a good TF - the storyline and the gameplay.

Sure, destroying the three different robot factories trying to make copies of Bastion...er, Citadel, makes sense from a storyline perspective, the gameplay suffers by being repetitive. Task Forces are like Story Arcs on crack - they usually have at least one AV, so you need a large team, which in turn cranks up the number of villains in the missions. This is good, as big fights make the TF seem "important". Two major points are 1) there definitely needs to be variety in the missions, and 2) Task Forces don't have to be really long to feel epic. As has been mentioned, alot of casual players have trouble setting aside 3-6 hours for a Task Force or Trial.

As long as we are able to Auto-Exemplar back to TFs, Trials, and whatever else we may have missed, I'll be happy. For a moment, I thought Positron was going to say they'd removed that option or something... . I would have been Not-So-Jolly-Roger! Seriously, I enjoy Auto-Exemplaring down to stuff, as you don't even have to worry about experience, finding someone to RSK you, and the like. I'm sure I'm in the minority, in regards to being largely unconcerned with xp (or even trying to minimize xp gain at times). Still, it's fun to just sort-of "jump in and play".

Finally, I'd really like to see TF (and maybe even Trial) Souvenirs, as would many others. It's always nice to go back through your pile o' souvenirs, and reflect on what all you've done.

Is it possible that we could get some system or game mechanic to learn more about the various villain factions, and how they relate? Learning about their background and focus, and how these interplay with the other villain groups is one of the most interesting parts of the game for me. For example, exactly what roles do the Hellions and Outcasts play to the Warriors? At what point did the Outcasts decide they would join with the Warriors, or were they forced into service? Etc...

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Now we just need mini-events for arresting all the car thieves, purse snatchers and break-in attempts in AP and GC.

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Forget the car thieves - what about the drivers in Paragon City? I'm sure you can draw up a huge list of common traffic violations, like Refusing to Yield the Right-of-Way, Hit-and-Run, Failure to Use a Turn Signal...

At least they modelled New England driving accurately... (j/k - sort-of )

Alright, I've played around some on the Shadow Shard, so I'll toss my two cents in here. I really like the zone, and it's potential, but at the same time, some tweaking wouldn't hurt.

First, I have to agree with others that the portals to further sections of the Shadow Shard just don't make sense, with the concept of "Mole Points" already existing. If humanity is having to fight to keep a foothold in the Shard (as the large number of military troops indicates), I don't think they'd have the luxury of opening portals to heavily-contested areas. Building a secret base in a mountain, however...

I've poked a few monsters with my SL 50 Scrapper, and I like how the balance feels. A group of SL 47 foes (Noble Brute, a couple LTs, and a few minions, plus an Observer) was difficult to fight, but that seems about right. The only thing that I have a question about is the Optic Blast from the Observers/Overseers (the eye blast that debuffs defense). When my SR Scrapper is hit with this, almost all of the eye-guy's subesquent attacks will land, including further Optic Blasts. Is this level of Defense debuff intentional? Currently on Live, I know Overseers' Optic Blasts can hit and debuff my defense enough to allow regular hits by SL 45-46 foes. Whatever changes to the monsters in the Shadow Shard seem to have been for the better, at least.

I haven't had the opportunity to run any of the Shadow Shard Trials, so forgive me if this is already revealed. But is there some way to learn why the different villain groups, like Crey, the Circle of Thorns, and the Nemesis Army are in the Shadow Shard? I'm sure they all have their ways of getting there, but to what purpose? It would be nice to explore this, and not just see Crey or Nemesis troops standing around on a rock in an alien dimension...

At any rate, I'm glad that the Shadow Shard hasn't been forgotten! Like I said, it has alot of potential, as it's a very original setting.

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Planescape Torment was one of the best RPG computer games ever. Great storyline and interesting, fun characters.

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Definitely. It's one of the few games I've ever played through twice. It did an awesome job of taking a piece of the Planescape setting, and protraying it really, really well.

And on Planescape (the PnP setting as a whole), I always thought it was masterfully done. I mean, when you consider how many planes & powers are there, and have to be designed to fit together, as well as within the existing D&D mythos, it was an amazing job. I've still got all the Planescape stuff sitting on my shelf (sans Planes of Conflict, which is really hard to find ). I don't play D&D hardly ever, but I like to read through the Planescape stuff from time to time. It makes great source material, too!

I'm curious just how nasty the plot twists and interaction between CoH and CoV are going to get, once things are going smoothly and everything's starting to fall into place. It's going to be good times, I tell you now!

Ahoy, mateys! Here be ol' Jolly-Roger, checkin' The Seekers in for the lineup 'ere!

Supergroup: The Seekers

Website: http://www.seekers-hq.com

Officers: Jolly-Roger (Commander), Shock Sniper, Abenedar

Preferred Method of Contact: The website!

Guild Description: The Seekers are a light-roleplaying group of mature gamers, who've got branches in both CoH and WoW. We also realize that Real Life (tm) comes first, and don't expect anyone to play a certain amount, or at certain times. Stop by the website, and check out our Charter to see if you'd fit in!

I want to add my praise, as well! I especially like the active fighting between the 5th Column and Council forces throughout the city. I never cared much for the "two enemy groups fighting, but neither doing damage", but understood it was necessary to give atmosphere, and the players still get a challenge. But this active fighting between 5th & Council is great to watch! I love when several squads all come together in a massive firefight. WEEE!

Also, the immersion on Striga Isle is definitely a great step forward. Roaming patrols, Council troops with radios and binoculars, Sky Raider mercs, etc. It all blends together and helps bring the place to life, and (perhaps most importantly), makes sense with the storyline/background.

If there's one thing I'd say to the Devs (besides keep up the great work ), it's to take all the whining with a grain of salt. Even better, ignore the whiners, so you have more time to devote to those who present their ideas and concerns in a clear and concise manner...

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As long as it makes sense and a story anywhere near good, I’ll be fine.

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Right on, FusionForce! This is the only good point to be made from this mess! I can only hope this horridly retarded mess won't deter the devs and any future content to come. While I certainly like the idea of trying to make sure the badges fit all kinds of character origins & backgrounds, I'd hate to see the game suffer for it.

I can see the devs now: "Well, we thought about this neat new idea, but then we remembered... the Patriot Incident."

As others have stated, from what I've read about the "granted citizenship to all nations" version of the Patriot badge... um, can we get a less cheesy description for it? I mean, c'mon - even with impending doom, some nations are always going to be at each others' throats...

Maybe something like the "Being patriotic towards the human race - not merely one nation or people." That has a nice forward-thinking and positive light...

I have to say, though I certainly don't regret taking Reflexes, I'm glad the devs are going to consider looking at it (even if long-term). As others have pointed out, it's great until you get walloped for half your life, and then you have to hope you can get your health back up before the next blow lands. It's like gambling - but with your bodily health...

An interesting point, as I had thought similar things as well. I wish the 5th Column acted more in-tune with their Nazi roots, unless (lore-wise) Requiem has moved them away from that and they're essentially his personal gang. Now, I'm not saying they should be yelling offensive things, but more stuff about the "power of the Ubermenschen" and maybe bashing "subhuman mutants". Speaking of, where's the hatred of mutants humanity often gets in comics? Personally, I think the 5th Column was well done as a villain group, and I applaud the devs for their inclusion.

Something to remember - this is City of Heroes. Roleplaying Nazis is something that simply doesn't fit. Well, I suppose you could view them as heroes, and agree with their ideals. Still, the majority of the world is against you, so they count as Villains.

Finally, Nazis get really bad reactions almost instantly, moreso than other idealists (or whatever you want to call them). You don't see people react so harshly against pro-Communists, for example (c'mon - when was the last time you heard someone say, "Ugh! I can't believe you're playing a Soviet!"). For that matter, you could play an anti-American group (and have justification). However, don't expect it to be taken well (or lightly) by other players. The roleplaying may be justifiable, but that doesn't mean it'll be well received. And at it's base, CoH is still an MMO and has a community attached to it. It's the responsibility of the players to make sure that what they bring to that community is acceptable (or at least tolerable) to others. Otherwise, you're just asking for a backlash...

Remember, friends - roleplaying is an opportunity to bring depth to your characters; not an excuse for bad behavior!

I've no idea what level is required for Agent Six. She's in the middle of the Gaspee, in Founders' Falls. And that place is still deadly for me. You have to perform a stealth insertion to get to her, I swear...

But yes, I got her mission at SL 32. That's all I can say.

So, how exactly are you supposed to learn about the NPC stores in Founders' Falls and Brickstown? Jolly-Roger is currently SL 32, and I don't recall any of his contacts saying, "Hey! Go find Agent Six in Founders' Falls. She has enhancements you can use!" And when I talked to her, she mentioned Omega Watch. I've no idea who/what that is, either. I definitely feel like I'm missing a link here...

Is this a case of players accidentally finding the NPC stores, and getting word out? Or is there an existing in-game mechanic, that gets your character introduced (and helps them find) these individuals?