MaxXavier
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Posts
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Joined
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Picked up Musculature Radial for my Mercs/Poison and I do think there's a noticeable difference, and as they say...every little bit helps. I did figure the -Def would be nice given just how many itty bitty defense debuffs my minions are tossing around.
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Quote:That doesn't mean much. Batman probably wouldn't be a Vigilante according to the alignment system, he'd be a Hero who did a combination of Vigilante and Hero tips. One of the central things I've noticed in Vigilante missions is that it's a much more brutal attempt at heroism. Killing criminals is much more common, going above the law or even against it in the pursuit of 'justice', and shying away from saving individuals to defeat the 'greater menace' all seem to be what the Vigilante is in Primal Earth. It's a thin line for somebody to walk for certain, staying a Vigilante without falling into villainy being a very difficult thing.Originally Posted by Lurker Hunter
At the very least I got that vibe too, a step in the right direction. But some of the choices are a bit extreme for a Vigilante. Batman would NEVER rig a group's weaponry to misfire and potentially kill civilians. He would sooner rig them with blanks and use it as an excuse to arrest them.
The new Vigilante-to-Villain tips in the Isles are all very much an extension of those things taken to their dark conclusions, a Vigilante's mindset with a Villain's morals. Why we haven't gotten Vigilante and Rogue options in the opposing side? Could be that the general cultures of the two regions tend to lead Vigilantes and Rogues to Villainy and Heroism if they spend too much time there -- a form of descending (or ascending in the latter) to their "enemy's" level? Maybe they don't want there to be any "Villain" or "Hero" content on the opposing side? Maybe this was just the best they could do given everything else going on with I19 and I20? -
Quote:Yeah, this is pretty much my thought on the matter. I am a little disappointed that there wasn't truly a way to stay vigilante in the Red or a rogue in the Blue, but I get what they were going for and am quite happy with the new stuff. The Vigilante-going-Villain missions in particular make me feel pretty awful, which is how I think the plot of the Fallen Hero should make somebody feel. It's brutally awesome from a storytelling standpoint.Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
Actually, this fixes my one BIGGEST complaint about alignment switches, by far - cross-faction missions weren't very well written. The unique "vigilante on CoV" and "rogue on CoH" sections were interesting, but they felt rushed and underdeveloped, lacking much of the refinement that these missions had on their own side.
Furthermore, these missions were just the same heroes and villains got, respectively, so after the unique "intro," you were back to the same old ill-fitting content. Things like how "You can't escape justice!" from my frikkin' rogue just don't fit.
This is basically plugging up a hole. -
I tend to base Origin based on what ability started the character down their path, rather than what necessarily gave them their abilities. So my Mercs/Poison is Natural origin even though his Poison secondary is delivered via grenades and needle ammunition (well, I can imagine it is anyway) and was initially concocted by him. Why is he Natural then? Because he became a Villain through his natural-born talent for leadership and the military training he received earlier in life. The /Poison secondary is something he picked up consciously to support his other abilities.
My Thugs/Traps is a Tech origin because he only became ambitious and notable when he acquired a suit of powered armor, manifested in the form of Traps. Prior to that he would've been on par with one of the unupgraded Punks. The suit is what gave him the abilities and confidence to become a leader.
Then there's my Bots/Traps, who is a Science origin because he was genetically engineered to have a 'superior' brain, at least in matters of mathematics. It was a success and he's used those abilities to craft robots and technological marvels worthy of any supervillain (or hero, in this case). Sure, he'd be completely useless in a fight without his technology but he would've never built it in the first place without the scientific process that gave birth to him.
But Origins do tend to be a tricky thing and there can very easily be more than one origin that a character qualifies for. -
Having a level 50 Mercs/Poison, let me tell you that it is indeed a challenge. Was it rewarding? I can't really say, though he's my main villain if that says anything. I admittedly would like to see you take one to 50, I see so few Mercs MMs in that range. And I don't think I've ever seen another Mercs/Poison at that level. So if uniqueness counts for you, there's that.
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Quote:That's an interesting way to look at it. Actually, put that way? The Spider AT does thus somewhat resemble the old idea that was mentioned in another thread about starting as a simple mook and then gaining superpowers.Originally Posted by Adeon Hawkwood
Actually I pretty much agree with that classification (although I word it differently). It's just that for the SoAs I consider level 24 to be level 1. Level 24 is when they actually become "supers", the bits before that are their origin story
. This also explains why the respec at level 24 allows them to change powers. They were a wolf spider relying on natural training and basic gear but now they hit "level 1" and get promoted to Crab Spider at which point they are officially super.
I think both interpretations might be valid depending on what you did with the characters. A Crab Spider who was a top-tier Commando-esque Wolf Spider vs. an average Wolf Spider who survives long enough to become a Crab Spider, for one example. -
Quote:I would disagree, but I think this is more a fundamental difference in what we see Origin as. For me personally? I see Origin as just that: the -origin- of your abilities, what got you started, everything you had at your disposal at level 1 (which I admit can be tricky to decide for many characters). To me this makes a Crab Spider as natural as, say, an AR/Dev Blaster. Do they have a big backpack with robot arms with guns and claws attached to them surgically? Oh, yes. Definitely.Originally Posted by Adeon Hawkwood
The Crab Spider skills are based around the Crab Backpack which due to the tech level and the need to surgically attach it I think counts as Tech origin.
But they started off as a Wolf Spider, where they gained all their skills in tactics and combat and such. They only get access to the big guns AFTER proving themselves worthwhile. And in my view the Crab backpack isn't anything more than a really advanced, really cool looking assault rifle. Or four assault rifles I guess. It would be nearly worthless in their hands (on their backs?) without the skills gained previously.
A lot of my characters are Natural Origin, including my main villain (whose ultimate goal was to become an Incarnate). They've gained quite a few abilities that are from sources outside of themselves, but their origin does not change because their origin is where they started. My Mercs/Poison MM would not be anywhere if he had not harnasses his own Natural abilities; neither would my MA/WP Scrapper, nor would my DP/Rad Corruptor. Nothing can change where they started from, no matter how many super serums are injected into them or what magical artifacts of ability enhancement they carry.
I suppose you could argue against my view with "but Statesman and Recluse were natural at the beginning", but this is about the origin of their superpowers right? They both only became special through the Well, thus they are Incarnate origin. My MA/WP scrapper only became special through hard work and physical training. I could go on and on and on with this, honestly.
And that's really all the Incarnate system is for me. Unless they explicitly relabel your origin as "Incarnate", which from what I've read is not the case, then you're just an enhancing the abilities which stem from your origin. Or your origins, if you're playing something which blends them like some of my characters. -
I agree with War Witch's reasoning for the most part, but I do think there's one place where a little weathery variation would add a great deal to. And it doesn't even have to be rain or anything, either. I'd just like one sunny day in the Rogue Isles, okay?
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Quote:Power Proliferation is the only one I really have an -issue- with, as I quite like meta-origins and don't find them quite so unnecessary or constraining to creativity. If anything, being a bit constrained makes me more creative personally -- I can't speak for others of course. Power Prolif having a "story" to it was just kind of dumb, though. And it's not like they really went anywhere with it, it was just kind of mentioned the first round of prolif and then forgotten.Originally Posted by Ironik
My issue with these things -- especially Origin of Power & Power Proliferation -- is that they are completely and utterly unnecessary. There's just no need to constrain players in that fashion in order to explain game mechanics. That's like having a special story arc to tell you why animations are shared across different powersets. We all know it's because there are time and budget constraints on the Devs, but there's zero reason to tell us *in-game* that we were all trained by the exact same person. That bit would just dampen our creativity. THAT'S what I'm annoyed by. I can ignore and rationalize with the best of them, that's not the issue; the issue is we shouldn't *have to*.
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The only thing this really affects in my primary villain's backstory is that becoming Incarnate, with all the power and potential immortality that goes with it, was his entire goal from the start. He's an ex-military-gone-mercenary commander and who is quite capable of whipping up chemical weapons midbattle -- basically, a Natural Mercs/Poison MM. Several other characters of mine will probably jump at the opportunity to become an Incarnate, my Praetorians being the most notable.
It doesn't fit every one of my characters, so if it's inconvenient I'll ignore it and just chalk it up to them becoming stronger or something. I really have no issue both ignoring -and- integrating concepts like the Incarnate or Origin of Power as I see fit. Along with a healthy helping of what Chase_Arcanum is saying, too, for the most part anyway. Though I would have no issue ignoring (but still using) future power-based things they might gain if I felt it inconvenient to a character. -
Quote:Well drat, the Slenderman has infiltrated Ouroboros. This will not end well.Originally Posted by Flarstux
I'm So Slender
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Or the zombies could just be reanimated corpses without a soul or mind in them. That's how the Necro/Pain I'm taking through Praetoria does it, anyway.
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Quote:I think it ultimately depends upon the situation. In a world like the one today I don't think there's a particular need to relinquish any of the freedoms currently available. We have a gigantic base population, we've got incredible amounts of information at our fingertips, and our infrastructure is fairly well developed (in some areas anyway).Originally Posted by Dementor_NA
I don't disagree with you, but where do we draw that line? How much freedom is enough? Is the state of Texas evil because it limits a citizen's freedom to exceed 75 mph on the highway? Is the city of Chicago evil because it's citizens are not free to throw their waste onto the streets? Is the federal government evil because it bans the possession of child pornography?
As long as we have some form of government, we will be giving up some freedom for safety. Unless you think the above examples are "evil" you agree with this. The debate is where to draw the line. It's a debate that's going on in the United States right now in fact: should the government have the right to compel a citizen to purchase health insurance? Some people don't care, some people think they should, while others think it's 'evil.' The world isn't as black and white as people would like to believe.
On the other hand, let's say there's a colony on the moon. Just how much freedom can you have in an environment where there is limited everything? In order to keep the colony from falling apart you would need to strictly control a LOT, from food rations to population growth. In a situation like that, how much dissent can you allow before it becomes a danger to everyone's very survival?
And then you have Praetoria, which is from all details supposedly an oasis of civilization amidst a post-apocalyptic wasteland -- albeit a lush, green, verdant abomination of a wasteland. Humanity has been bumped down in population from several billion to...at best I'd say 75 million globally? With MAYBE 5 to 10 in Praetoria proper? It's easy to talk about how there's "no threat anymore" when neither side gets any real information on the status of the Devouring Earth outside the barrier, and of course the same is true for statements of "the threat is still out there." However, when your race is completely wrecked and taken from the dominant species on the planet to potentially second-fiddle to a bunch of environment-nutcase mutants...I'm not sure the former statement would be useful, especially with no information to go on. Especially if it turns out you're wrong.
To make my point more succinct (tl;dr as it were), freedom evaporates in survival (and even just hard) situations because freedom is a privilege that developed because of relatively abundant prosperity. History's replete with examples of this type of stuff. Not that I think Praetoria is the BESTEST BEST PLACE EVEEER to live, but I understand how a society could become that way, why it's so morally ambiguous, and how the Resistance could in fact be (but isn't necessarily) the greater of the two "evils". It's actually pretty realistic all things considered, I commend the writers for it. -
Quote:I don't believe in the simplistic concepts of "Good" or "Evil". They are terms left over from the ages where we understood little about the world, the universe, and ourselves as a species. Today, they are used by those who cannot or will not understand any point of view other than their own -- anything that is against their own personal values is EVIL. It is in fact the exact same viewpoint that Tyrant has, and it makes the two of you exactly the same at the foundation. Both utterly convinced in their superior, correct opinions -- both willing to condone crimes against humanity to execute their "good" and "morally just" ideals. The only difference is in the amount of power possessed by the individuals and the specific ideals espoused.Originally Posted by Golden Girl
No, those two things are inherently evil - there is no justicifation for reducing humans to a subhuman state the way Tyrant has done by denying them the free will and freedom of thought that are basic parts of human existence.
Furthermore, neither freedom nor free will are particularly basic concepts for us. Freedom, for our species, has always meant "freedom for OUR tribe". We will fight to defend our freedom to oppress those who think differently! We will fight to defend our lands so that our god-kings can keep us laboring in the fields! Even my own mother thinks "freedom" means "you're free, stop being a child and shut up with your opinions that I don't like". Given that 1) the vast majority of human societies have been (and still are) authoritarian in nature and 2) even our freest of societies still sticks strict gender and social roles onto children from an early age, it is strange that so many call it a basic part of us.
Free will I don't even want to try to go into -- there are a lot of fundamental problems with it, philosophically and potentially even scientifically. I'm not well versed enough to go in-depth, but we are probably not as "free willed" as we like to believe. Uncomfortable thought for some, I'm sure.
To put it simply (and bring this post to a close), Golden Girl, you have an extremely whitewashed view of history and your own species. It's causing a great deal of cognitive dissonance. Personally, I'd recommend taking some good, unbiased non-western history and anthropology courses. They're really very enlightening. And quite fun, too.
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This is a much more reasonable definition of evil, since it's actually useful. Good show!Quote:Originally Posted by Dementor_NA
Evil requires intent to harm; Cole believes he is helping people by eliminating harmful thoughts from them. He rules over them because he really truly believes he's the best man for the job. He's just too willing to believe the government should control every aspect of life for the good of everyone; that isn't evil, that's just a philosophy you disagree with. -
Quote:So Cole is actually Nemesis?Originally Posted by Divus
Cole's probably funding the Resistance. It's just one big Cole-Plot. He's just one upping White and Duncan.
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But will the end result be BETTER than if you don't? Will the amount of people who get sick and die from it ultimately lead to a better end result? That's the ambiguity of it. Some will believe that, yes, it is. Others won't.
For me personally, I just think the Resistance would be shooting themselves in the foot. I don't believe there would be any wake-up against Cole, but instead against the Resistance. Indeed, I believe ending Enriche would ultimately cause the average citizen to become more fervently AGAINST the Resistance. They wouldn't see the oppression of the Seers nor the lack of freedom, especially those who grew up in Praetoria -- they would see the Resistance poisoning their water and trying to kill them. I know I would if I were an average Praetorian.
Given some people's statements in these threads, I might very well be right. -
Quote:Uhm, historically speaking no. We got around impure water through a variety of ways, one of the more prominent being alcohol -- which was much safer to drink than regular water. I don't think making the entire population of Praetoria constantly drunk would help much, though.Originally Posted by Divus
And given that people have survived with out absolutely pure water by modern standards...or Mississippi and Louisiana standards (sorry couldn't resist. I was stick of getting "oh your water was unsafe for consumption last week because of bacteria blooms" messages. It is a running joke among folks in Natchitoches, LA) there is not going to be some kind of mass die off of the population.
Incidentally, you can't just boil your water. Boiling isn't going to get rid of the human feces, and such. Boiling helps, but is hardly a solution. -
I would just like to say that all you people are making the many demonic citizens out there in our fair country cry. Demons are people too! They have the right to not be bullied by you antidemonists! See that "hideous abomination" which was just summoned forth from the abyss? Her name is Hilda and she has three demonlings at home, and she's here fighting in our dimension to try and change the opinions of people like YOU. She just wants to see her little demonlings grow up to have opportunities to get good, well-paying jobs in the mortal realm. Opportunities she never had!
In all seriousness, I don't see how it'd be hard to justify even Demons or Necromancy. Not any more than the many Dark-themed power sets. Sure, the average citizen of Paragon may tremble in fear when a couple of zombies pull a Hellion off her and puke all over the thug...but that doesn't make the necromancer evil. Sure, they're reanimating corpses...but that's just a taboo in our (by which I mean Western) culture. But if nobody's soul is getting tormented (and the necromancer isn't tossing leftover corpses into the drinking water), I don't think it would be a big deal.
Not to say people wouldn't get creeped the heck out by a heroic Necromancer...not much good publicity would come of it, admittedly. But it wouldn't really be any more evil than the myriad vampires, demons, and other such beings that are considered traditionally evil but have been serving as heroes. -
I feel that when making alternate animations for powers, the top priority should be on those that re-use very common animations. Next should be adding those things that really feel like they should be common, but aren't at all.
1) Many of the earlier Blast sets share similar animations. I'm 99% positive I've a ton of similar animations between Fire, Ice, and Electric Blast -- and probably in a few others, too. I don't have any particular preference for the type of new animations you create for them, but older blast sets really do need some new flavor-filled animations.
2) Broadsword, War Mace, and Battle Axe have already been mentioned several times. I concur with the Two-Handed animations for Broadsword (for that "Claymore sword" feel) and I believe that anything new for War Mace should look pretty brutal. Maces are extremely brutal weapons, so something very barbaric-looking might be in order for it. I have no ideas for Battle Axe, but new animations would be nice for it too.
3) Eye Beams are a very good idea. On the surface they do seem kind of limited, but I don't think that's the case. For a weaker attack, perhaps a very small, short eye blast; for a cone AoE, perhaps an eye beam sweep?
4) Arcane/Magic versions of Traps and Devices. I don't think Caltrops should fall under this really, seeing as how caltrops have been used for millennia to great effect. But a lot of the other powers could, especially those that create pets. Like Acid Mortar, Gun Drone, and the Force Field Generator. -
Over nine thousand home care routines? There's no way that wasn't intentional. Especially not in all caps like that.
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Quote:Ah, so you did. I apologize for misreading you. My point stands, though: I've absolutely no issues soloing mine, in fact I find it to be highly effective. It's not been my easiest character but I've certainly played combinations just within the archetype that were vastly more painful solo (Mercs/Poison and Necro/TA come to mind). You may have just been using one of them wrong, or both of them wrong, or...well, maybe it just didn't click for you? I know I've had that happen with certain things.Originally Posted by DKellis
I said it soloed worse than most other characters I've played except for Kheldians. Certainly they solo worse than other MMs I have.
Then again, I'm not happy with knockback in general, since I have terrible luck with enemies getting stuck in map geometry. Happens a lot in caves. My Ninja/Storm hit 38 and I just kind of... left her there. -
Quote:I, uh, I don't mean any offense by this but it might just be your handling of Ninja. My Ninja/Storm is pretty amazing and I haven't even hit 32 yet, so the idea of it being worse solo than a Kheld is pretty abhorrent to me. Indeed, it's completely backwards to me as he blows my PB out of the water solo.Originally Posted by DKellis
but my Ninja/Storm has some of the most shameful performance I've ever seen on a non-Kheldian. I suspect it's the Ninja aspect, since every time I try to suggest it could be Storm, or perhaps a combination of Ninja and Storm, I get so many retorts to the contrary I am forced to retract my guess.
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I would expect a Seismic Attack set before something like "Earth Blast". There are only so many ways you can throw rocks, but extending the concept to the ground in general could -- with a little creativity -- fill a ranged set. But I digress. I've had no issues with Stone Spears, personally. I really like it, actually, due to its knock up. I've survived some sticky early level situations thanks to it.
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Hi! My handle in game is Martin Xavier and I made the Birth of a Villain Group arc. I, uh, had considered posting before the review but I'm kind of a lurker and kinda shy. I'm sorry that Rasta (it was Rasta, right?) didn't have the best time with it, I really should've noted that it was designed to be solo'd or duo'd and I've never tested it on a large team. I didn't think of it until, well, he noted the amazing time he had in that eight man high-difficulty run of it. I do apologize.
I'm definitely very happy that you reviewed it, I've not really had any in-depth reviews before. I do take criticism very seriously and you've given me some ideas for tweaking it, like you offered the complaint about my usage of colors -- I'll tone it down. I've run the arc so many times I'm no longer affected by it and the few commentors I've gotten . (though let me note that the only purple text is the title of the arc) Also your idea about the contact being an inanimate object like a phone or something is great and I'll look into retooling it around that concept in the future. I hadn't considered that and it really makes more sense than "contact leaves after mission 3, but he's still standing right in front of you". Thanks a lot!
Also, there was one custom enemy: the heroine at the end, a Sonic/Sonic Boss. Not particularly tough or memorable, but I wanted her to be a heroine like one of those you'd find at the end of like...an early or solo Mayhem. There were originally only Snakes in the first mission, but I received some complaints about that so I retooled it and added the Infected. I may add MORE Infected in the future. My goal in the end was to have it introduce many aspects of Mercy and the Rogue Isles in general: the Snakes are infesting everything, but the arc isn't about them; there's constant gang conflicts; and that there are heroes with a foothold in the Isles. Like the other arcs, only with less "let's see how many times we can cram you into Snake caves in one arc".
So, uhm, thank you again. Sorry for the novel here. Outside of my own arc, I'll probably be trying out Death to Disco -- because what isn't satisfying about destroying disco all over again? -
Maybe it's because you're not just one more grunt in the organization, you're the grunt that had personality in chapter 17 and who reappears constantly, becoming stronger and stronger and less grunt-like until you're a full fledged archvillain planning to conquer the world in chapter 50. You're the minion who stops being a minion, who struggles and succeeds against all odds in a world of villains and heroes who are cosmically powerful and should be able to beat you easily and yet...they don't. How ISN'T that epic?
EDIT: ...Jade Dragon said everything I wanted to say, but did it better. Maybe next time I won't take an hour trying to post.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph.../MookPromotion -- here, have a TV Tropes link that pretty much describes the SoAs. At least I can offer something unique.