Leif_Roar

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I too have concerns regarding I13... I got the feeling with I12 there was a distinct move away from the classic superhero comicbook game with Cimerora, clearly trying to cash in on Frank Miller's 300 and the subsequent movie.

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Uh? What similarities do you see between Cimerora and 300? I'm hard pressed to find any.

We all get our very own Whack-a-Skull game, complete with hammer-modification?

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I'd still be surprised if it was CPU bound though -- I'd expect a more even degradation then.

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Leif, I'm dissapointed. Most performance curves due to almost anything to do with computers tank at some point, generally catastrophically, and quite often with no sign of degredation until the failure point. It also need not be actually CPU, but physical RAM. Use up all of that and start paging and you get a sudden drop in performance.

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Oh, not what I meant. "Even" as in "evenly distributed" -- as far as I can gather the lag in CoX flickers and clusters in ways that don't seem consistent with CPU limitation. You'd expect stuff to bunch up more, and then harden. (Kinda like a plane with rounded nose approaching the speed of sound.)

Besides, server applications of this type are almost always pipeline bound rather than CPU bound, too, and then to external pipes such as network or DB.

That's if the problem actually is a resource constraint, of course, and not a scheduling or routing issue.

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Was the holdup during the actual loading process, or at the very start before the bar was moving? If it's the latter, it's usually (AFAIK) because the shard is unable to find a mapserver for you.

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It was the latter type, so yes, that sounds like a reasonable explanation.

(On that note, I'm still annoyed at the stupid decision to overlay loading screens over everything, including the chat window.)

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It's as if the requests aren't handles fast enough. Click powers taking a long time to fire off, but chat and such work fine.

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Well, that would suggest it's not network lag (at least not network lag outside of the server park -- and network lag internal to the server park should be fixable.) I'd still be surprised if it was CPU bound though -- I'd expect a more even degradation then.

One type of lag I did notice a couple of time during the weekend was loading screen lag; that usually zips by in a few seconds for me, even for large zones, but there were a couple of instances on Saturday where it took several minutes just to enter a misson. It did seem to hit the whole team, although some more than others.

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Everyone's powers are 4-5 sec delayed, the game can run smoothly graphic like, but the servers is so overheating you can go make a sandwich and come back just in time for your next attack.

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I'd say that sounds more like network lag than server lag, and network lag can't be solved by upgrading the hardware.

Orbital batteries. It's the only way to be sure.

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Applying the principle of Occam's Razor I'd say this has to be a "rested" bonus to xp, just like WoW and EQ2 have

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I really don't think that makes any sense at all; what with level being so unimportant in CoX and alting being so widespread. Sure, it's possible that NCSoft has made a stupid decision, but I believe they have a better understading of the game than to make a mistake like that.

I'd be surprised if that's what they've got in mind. CoX is a splendid casual game and doesn't need anything to make it more so.

Hmm, now, if offline characters received salvage or receipes with time, it might be a hook to get people to log in and check their less frequent characters from time to time. But that too doesn't really feel like something NCSoft would do.

What's that Skippy? Vanessa DeVore's fallen down a mime shaft? Strewth!

As a side note, let me just state, for the record, that if there's anything that could have me cancel my CoH subscription in protest a blond or clever Thor would be pretty high up on the list.

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It occurs to me that any possible version of the nemesis system might not work if you didn't have access to both games.

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*cough*Going rogue*cough*

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Congradulations, you've finally achieved the rank of most evil person on these forums.

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Ravenswing is back, you know.

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So, onwards to the speculation!

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Screensaver celebrating your characters' achievements, badges and PvP victories?

Merchandise with your characters on them?

Being given a complimentary cape upon getting an epic AT to level 50?

Two pounds of Hamidon yello given to all players with the 54 months badge?

"Best of CoH FanFiction" book given to all players?

Custom-made cards for a new CoH collectible card game can be created for any character that completes the new 'Littoral Mage' taskforce.

NCSoft has bought a brewery and starts rewarding every 50-ding with a keg of beer.

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No, Leif, that's missions for Luddites.

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No, no. Those use the Chainmail rules.

"Justice through superior firepower!"
"Ever Defiant"
"I defeated Lusca and all I got was this stupid *-shirt"


And, one for stalkers: "Paragon City Pizza"

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Are there any arcs / missions with Luddites in?

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Yes, but they're all 32 page pen & paper tabletop modules with two-colour printed covers and use the original three-booklet D&D rules.

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based on mission owner's AT, body type, powersets and origin

[/ QUOTE ]Definitely don't want. Content like that will either assume too much (For example, see origin of power arc), or not be noticeable at all.

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On the other hand, most mission texts written by the players will assume too much anyway, even without dialogue branching. Why not put the subtler tools in for the people who'll use them with care?

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I don't recall there being anything in-game saying Golden Roller is Midas.

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I think it's pretty heavily implied, but it's never stated as a fact.

I'd like to see the ability to branch dialogue (and story arch progression) based on mission owner's AT, body type, powersets and origin, badges and souvenirs earnt ("You might have defeated the Clockwork King, $Name, but you'll find me a harder brain-in-a-jar to crack!"), team size and whether or not the team is all heroes, all villains or mixed.

I'd like the ability to collaborate on missions.

I'd like the ability to assign custom-made missions to the SuperGroup through the SG Computer.

I'd like the ability to define and grant souvenirs. (Although I suppose they'd have to make them deletable then, to prevent people's souvenir tab filling up with more or less funny gag items.)

I'd like the ability to define story archs, rather than just single missions.

I'd like the ability to trigger ambushes after a mission, with dialogue. (Although I can see good reasons to disallow custom missions for being allowed to write /local chat in city zones)

I'd like a system for selected custom-made missions to "earn their way" into the game proper.

I'd like the ability to use all NPCs and doors, including those in PvP zones.

I'd like the ability to fill mission maps with Dark Astoria type fog.

Full use of sound effects.

A system for receiving feedback and comments on missions.

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Did he get promoted or something?

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Nah, he got an early parole for good behaviour.

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Other Pantheons other than the Banished?

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Sure. I'm particularly fond of the We-don't-like-to-talk-about-them Pantheon and the They're-around-here-somewhere Pantheon.

"Wyvern -- putting the 'widow' into 'blood widow' since 2006"

"Striga Isle yacht club"

"Kings Row hunting association"

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BP get arcs in Striga IIRC, at least one of which gives a temp power to help combat them (Holy Shotgun).

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Yes, but where's the chainsaw?