MagicFlyingHippy

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Actually, it means you can SKIP taking the first or second power in the Travel Power Pools and, at level 6, pick the travel power immediately. No pre-requisites.

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Speaking as someone who's pretty close to getting that reward, I'm not a fan. I really feel like vet rewards should be nice little bonuses, not build-changing things. And that's a build-changing thing.

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It'd require more than just walking animations. What'd happen if you were 'walking' and you got hit with Speed Boost? Siphon Speed? Were standing on Caltrops? Had Granite+Rooted activated? Super Jump? Intertial Reduction?

BaBs doesn't want to have you running at super speeds while using the walking animation, nor walking while slowed to the point where you're practically just standing in place. There's a lot of issues that made BaB say it's not so simple as just making new animations.

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To add walking into the game we're looking at anywhere from 15 to 75 animations. That would get us a single 'style' of walking for the male, female, and huge player models. Doubtful that we'd ever be able to create a single walk animation that would make everyone happy...based on the mixed feedback about flight poses and the new hover animations.

We're not opposed to adding walking into the game...it's just really hard to prioritize it over so many other things that require animation time.

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How does Prestige Power Slide work? Could Walk be a lot simpler if it were a toggle like that?

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Arcanaville, thanks for all that information.

Would it be possible to see what one of these curves actually looks like as an example? It would certainly help me.

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I'm working on something that normal humans might understand, but its a bit tricky because the DR curves change characteristics somewhat depending on what A and B are. In general, the DR curves start heading upward at some close to linear slope, but then at some characteristic point they start to level out. Depending on the A/B parameters, it sometimes continues ascending upward at increasingly slower rates, and with other A/B parameters it more closely resembles hitting a "soft" ceiling. It'll probably need pictures to illustrate more fully. My time to make them is a bit limited, but I should have some this week unless someone else trumps me in that regard (I wrote this mostly for the quants to get started cranking numbers, and they're equally likely to attempt to write explanations for what's going on in there before I get around to it).

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Okay, I had a friend of mine whip this up. It should allow you to input an A and B, and then hit Refresh to graph Arcana's formula given that A and B. Mouseover for the specific numbers.

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I forgot to add a correction I originally posted in the closed beta post: surround the ATAN() function with ABS: i.e. ABS(ATAN(stuff)). The function is symmetric about the origin.

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Should be fixed.

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It no work!

Flea angry!

Flea Smash Hippy!

Thanks to you and your friend for trying though.

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Seems to work for me, and line up with Arcana's examples. What part of it isn't working for you? You're putting in the As and Bs from her list and then hitting Refresh, like it says to, right?

Oh, and also you aren't blocking Javascript?

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Arcanaville, thanks for all that information.

Would it be possible to see what one of these curves actually looks like as an example? It would certainly help me.

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I'm working on something that normal humans might understand, but its a bit tricky because the DR curves change characteristics somewhat depending on what A and B are. In general, the DR curves start heading upward at some close to linear slope, but then at some characteristic point they start to level out. Depending on the A/B parameters, it sometimes continues ascending upward at increasingly slower rates, and with other A/B parameters it more closely resembles hitting a "soft" ceiling. It'll probably need pictures to illustrate more fully. My time to make them is a bit limited, but I should have some this week unless someone else trumps me in that regard (I wrote this mostly for the quants to get started cranking numbers, and they're equally likely to attempt to write explanations for what's going on in there before I get around to it).

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Okay, I had a friend of mine whip this up. It should allow you to input an A and B, and then hit Refresh to graph Arcana's formula given that A and B. Mouseover for the specific numbers.

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This is how Vet Rewards should work....

You get a choice between Sands of Mu or the Ax as normal, but then you get to choose from Nem staff, the wand OR which everpower you didn't pick the first time. That would mean at 54 months, you'd get to choose from two NEW powers or the remaining two you didn't pick before. What ever power you passed up should always be available the next time you unlock a vet power, but there should ALWAYS be two more new ones.

Did I explain that as horribly as I think?

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Whta I've suggested in the past is that the devs make a "veteran melee power pool" and a "veteran ranged power pool" and add powers to each as necessary. Make the veteran rewards grant one choice from the appropriate pool. So if they decide to add some new snazzy veteran attack, newer players will still have a shot at them before they grow old and die. The advantage older players will have is that they will have more *selections* but not necessarily a better set of selections which means there is less of a problem adding overly interesting veteran attacks.

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That's also how they should do costume pieces. A pool of costume options, and getting a veteran costume gives you a choice from that pool. If I don't want kilts on a character, but do want boxing gloves, and have only been in the game for a year or so? Should be able to get boxing gloves instead.

The hotlinks seem broken cross-coalition. Likewise, you can't click the name of someone who speaks in Coalition from another SG. And the colors in Coalitions are all kinds of screwy.

One thing my SG has always wanted was the ability to place, as a personal item, a version of you. Put it in a room, set it to do an emote, and it's just a little NPC version of whoever placed it, in the costume they were wearing when they placed it.

BUT, it's only there when that character isn't logged in.

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I'm guessing the numbers behind the Psi/Mind powers will be tweaked downward to balance this set.

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Fixed that for you.

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So unless you are talking like less than defender level damage I just dont see how. Damage will suck so bad no one will want to play it anyways?

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Psychic Shockwave for Dominators is an AOE power which does damage as it if it a single target power. For Blasters, this will not be the case -- the AOE divisor will be in place. In other words, divide damage by 4.75.

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... so, divide the 1.96 scalar by 4.75? So it's doing .41 scale, roughly? So about 25-26 damage at level 50?

That's ... that's atrocious. That can't mean what it sounds like, that would be a terrible power. What did you mean?

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I really hope this is not all the info we are getting today.

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As I stated in an earlier thread, we are still weeks out from closed beta and more weeks out from open beta and then launch. So, expect to get something on a weekly basis from now till then. If we just dumped it all out now, well we'd be sitting around going "that's nice, but when can I play it?" So, thanks for your patience and understanding that it won't all come at once.

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How about gradual stuff? One powerset from Powerset Proliferation per day, that'll buy a couple weeks, and then a sum-up article at the end explaining why choices were made as they are.

Oh. Well then. Derp.

No, I mean, how'd you get the Rickroll on the screen in the first place? Did you take a video and then edit it to include that? Or did you replace whatever file in the game .piggs that has Recluse's speech video with a the rickroll footage, so you actually see that on the screens in-game?

And if it was the latter, I need to know how you did it.

Okay, the question here is ... video editing? Or pigg diving and texture replacement? Because if it's the latter ... there needs to be a guide, like, now.

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Please. Considering all the various power set and EA things?
One. Tiny little. Major Gameplay Improvement.

More slots, please. Please! I don't care if they cost ten bucks a pop! Just give us a chance to add 'em!

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Yes, definitely /signed. New powersets for almost every AT? Two new ATs, with two branches to each? And I've already got a lot of existing characters on my chosen server? Please, more.

Someone get EvilGeko in here.

Can we just add any thread started by Ultimus to the list? It's guaranteed to be either off-topic or a redundant "Hey look what the latest Dev Digest post says!" thing.

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Yeah I missed the 'in real time', I think ym briain is addled today.

EG:
Sorry the win goes on. Did you not get the memo that suckage is no longer part of CoX ?

(aside from MOG) *ducks and runs*

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MoG continuing to suck is the only thing that grounds me in reality.

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You might want to avoid the Training Room in the near future, then.

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Does the MoG fix coming now have something to do with the shiny new recharge code used in Strength of Will?

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So, what's the strategy here? Web Grenades to keep the AV in your Poison Trap and Caltrops, Robots with the Assault Bot's -Regen just spamming their attacks from outside of melee range, and veteran attacks? With purple insps to try to keep you alive during this?

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easiest way i've found is to just place your pets out of AOE range, and just stand toe to toe with the A/V taunting them, and trapping.

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Well, at least as of the Back Alley Brawler fight there, all 18 of the 18 powers he'd have at level 33 are visible accounted for, and none of them taunts. So how to make sure the AV stays on him?

So, what's the strategy here? Web Grenades to keep the AV in your Poison Trap and Caltrops, Robots with the Assault Bot's -Regen just spamming their attacks from outside of melee range, and veteran attacks? With purple insps to try to keep you alive during this?

The Impervium Katana weapons, for Dual Blades, look very nice, but seem overlarge to dual-wield. Perhaps a smaller version of them should exist, the way the Tanto is a smaller Ninja Blade and the Wakizashi is a smaller Katana?

Additionally, if the Main Droite and Main Gauche could have second versions added, uncolorable and skinned so as to match the filigree on the Rapier, that would be excellent.

And perhaps smaller versions of the Rikti Broadsword for Dual Blades as well?

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Can we get a Dev list of who's around and who stayed with Cryptic?

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Jack Emmert remains in his position as Creative Director of Cryptic Studios, that he has been doing back since he transitioned off the day-to day CoH team and Positron took over as the Lead Designer.

As was mentioned by Brian Clayton in his Dev Corner, the previous Cryptic Team Leads all join us, consisting of:

Matt “Positron” Miller (lead designer)
Aaron Brady (lead engineer)
Ken Morse (lead artist)

With one exception, everyone who was presented with an offer to stay on the City of Heroes team under the NCsoft banner has accepted and is looking forward to working hard on the future of the franchise! While this includes a good number of people, it also includes many of the familiar “red names” from the forums, such as: Melissa “War Witch” Bianco, Floyd “_Castle_” Grubb, Back Alley Brawler, Ghost Widow and “Sexy” Jay Doherty.

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Who's the one exception?

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I like the idea in theory, but I do have a few thoughts.

First off, Posi mentions the original concern of the high cost 'gating' poorer users out of the process. Then at the end mentions how he thinks they might go for more than the Very Rare enhancements they're about to add even though they'll be not quite as rare as 'Very Rare'. Considering some people seem willing to pay 75 million for a 7.5% global recharge recipe this concerns me not just a little.

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The thing is though everyone can get one for free, or very close to it, by playing the game. He said it is in the drop tables at all levels so everyone can get one it just takes pacience.

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Not really, no.

There is something that is fundamentally important to any sort of choice theory, like would come up constantly in game design, called an opportunity cost. This means that while this choice does not explicitly cost something, it does cost you in that it precludes certain other choices. If you get a respec recipe, you can craft it, or you can sell it, and crafting it does essentially cost however much you could make by selling it.

For example, suppose respec recipes stabilize to a price of 100 million inf. That's probably what they're going to end up being, as Pool As, but that's an argument for another thread. Then your character gets one as a drop. You haven't just gotten a free respec, not really. You've gotten a free 100 million inf that you can spend on a respec, and you have to weigh whether you'd rather use the respec recipe or get what you can buy with the money it's selling for.

More important question! Will there be a repeatable source of respecs, possibly through the Flashback system, with the update?

I have a couple questions about the Flashback system, if a kindly dev would deign to respond. Can it be used multiple times on the same contact? Like, if I really enjoy beating the crap out of Mynx and tearing off her skin just as a pasttime, can I do Crimson Revenant over and over?

And secondly, can a 50 flashback to a 45-50 contact? Could my scrapper run through Maria Jenkins again, and maybe even again and again? How about the Patron arcs?

They aren't doable without someone of their natural levels to start it, though. They're the only content a group of 50s can't auto-exemp and do.