Memphis_Bill
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Posts
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Joined
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Quote:Just you, I think.Originally Posted by Techbot Alpha
Defiance for Blasters seems to be bugged since the last patch. I was just on a mission with friend using my AR/Energy Blaster. Being held by a Carnie Master Illusionist (one application, I checked) niether Burst or Slug were firing, despite repeated clicking and attempts.
Has anyone else noticed anything untoward? I'll be running a few tests later on when I get back in game. I'm hoping it was just me...
Pulled out my 24 AR/Dev, annoyed some ink men, got stunned - could still fire just fine. Same with getting held by one of the sorcs. -
Quote:/this.Originally Posted by Dispari
Now FF not being "exciting" is a different issue entirely. One I tend to agree with which is why I don't play the set. But as far as actual contribution to a team, it would be very hard for it to not be useful to a league. However, if you're just looking for justification to delete a character, then go for it. If you don't like the character, it can't be helped.
The two (usability and interest) are two separate issues completely. I like (for instance) my Earth/FF controller. My Bots/FF MM? Almost put me off the AT entirely. (Sitting at 36, I'll log them in every once in a while and do a little work on them, but I doubt they'll hit 50.) Nothing to do with FF in and of itself - more like the combination gives *me* little to do -
Quote:Ahh, look, the "Waaah, I want to pretend post count means something becaues I can't think of a good argument!" argument.Originally Posted by Nihilii
So guess what the so-called soloer, low-pop loving crowd does to fulfill their social needs? They come on the boards and post thousands of times, including in topics against server merges. Meanwhile, people who socialize more ingame don't need more interaction and post less if at all, including of course in these topics.
Small problem with that, bucky. I socialize plenty in game, with teams, pickup groups, *actual* friends who also play the game, global channels and more. (Unless your definition of "socialize" is "get spammed with 'AE Farm 54x8 lfm!' broadcasts.")
And yet it's my post that keeps getting quoted. And which people can't seem to find good arguments against. No, "I don't care if people lose characters/sgs/get scattered" is not a good argument. -
Quote:/optionset buffsettings 2110240Originally Posted by CommunistPenguin
Just to toss this out there... Is kinda hard to tell when the buffs wear off. In the early levels theres not much goin on, so its pretty obvious. In the later levels i can barely see MY character through all the differnt power animations going on much less watch to see when a specific buff starts to drop. I also have my buff Icons turned off, cause otherwise they take up the whole screen.
add up all the options you want and use that with /optionset Buffsettings command.
Code:
1 status window hide auto
2 status window hide toggles
4 status window no blinking
8 status window no stacking
16 status window numeric stacking
32 status hide buff numbers
64 status stop sending buffs
128 --
256 group window hide auto
512 group window hide toggles?
1024 group window no blinking
2048 group window no stacking
4096 group window numeric stacking
8192 group window hide buff numbers
16384 group window stop sending buffs
32768 --
65536 pet window hide auto
131072 pet window hide toggles?
262144 pet window no blink
524288 pet window no stacking
1048576 pet window numeric stacking
2097152 pet window hide buff numbers
4194304 pet window stop sending buffs -
Quote:Fixed.Originally Posted by plainguy
Today all players benefit from Force Field, but nobody benefits from the "waaah, IO, Incarnate, that powerset is worthless" attitude.
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I'm finding myself echoing Eva somewhat - at the very least in attitude about some things.
I've gone, personally, from a huge proponent of AE (after all, I wrote up HOW many guides as a "tutorial" for it at AE launch?) to... well, I use it for inspirations. I just can't be bothered to write something, test it, and have it sink down underneath the next thousand "farm4xp" "gudxp" and whatnot. It's like being a trained chef, making an exquisite meal, and having people walk by and say "ooh, mcdonalds! Let's go there!"
The devs have lost interest.
It's also something I've said about *many* things. For most devs I still think my description of them as "Hyper little dog in a room full of bouncing balls" fits. "Ooh, look, over there, the AE ball, ooh, PVP change, ooh, Incarnate system, ooh, look, IO sets, ooh, new, chasedaball, ooh shiny!" Meanwhile the balls they touched are rolling off to the corner somewhere, slow, no longer interesting but covered in slobber and picking up dirt.
Or, to quote (I'll say paraphrase, as it's from memory, and while it's showing a bit of "missing the point" on revisiting old zones, I think it's a telling statement,) "We don't want to redo old, we want to give you new." Not "We don't JUST want to," but a flat "We don't want to." With an attitude like that *at the top,* what are the chances of getting them to look at "old" systems?
Bigger picture -
I need to see an attitude change OVERALL in the dev team before I can really let myself get excited over AE (or, well, most any other new system) again. I need to see them really COMMIT more than a few months lip service, at best, to a system. I need to see them say "We've heard the problems with PVP, we have datamined, we're taking these steps over the next 6 months as phase one to recitfy this, after which we data mine and take phase 2...." I need to see "Yes, the base editor is getting an overhaul. New items are getting added, and we're going to adjust scale of both size and price." I need to see "We're giving Dev Choice and Players Choice their own tabs, giving people more slots, actually paying attention to farms and promoting arcs regularly." I need to see "We're retiring old IO sets to vendors and updating new ones with what we've learned."
If I see sudden dev interest in AE, the way I see it now, I assume one of two things: One, there's an exploit they're about to smack everyone for, or two, that interest won't last out the month.
One side note, you mention earlier you doubt they have the manpower.
I almost think the studio should be trimmed more. They seemed to have more drive and energy at 15 people than they do at 60+. Maybe it's more meetings dragging things down, I don't know.
Yes, I'm cynical. It's because I was such a booster of this at launch, backed the devs even with the Posinerfs, and had such high hopes - just to see this fall into such an incredibly sad state. I don't post in here much. It's ... rough, to do so, and realize all the broken promises and wasted potential. -
Quote:I think if they let you put it on anyone, they'd definitely remove the "depends on level" anyway.Originally Posted by Dromio
<shrug>
I don't think they would take all of my suggestions. I meant them to be taken separately really. But I think the best thing to do would be to take the last two and apply them to NG, which wouldn't offend your sensibilities (I don't think) but would make the power immensely more useful.
What would you suggest if they wouldn't/couldn't let NG get put on anyone?
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Quote:Details, please - they can't help without it.Originally Posted by doyler_
I was sent here about the Sonic Resonance changes that fell through.
Any update on when they will be fixed again for the people that now have nausea/migraines from the new graphics?
Which graphics, what situation, what happens, etc. As best you can. Thanks. -
Just as a side note - comparing range is rather pointless there. It doesn't affect the power's effectiveness. Just how close someone has to be to have it applied to it. And since t's set to be applied to pets... *shrug*
Also, it looks like you're ignoring what Noxious Gas actually does:
-Defense - in an AOE around the pet. So EVERYONE has a better chance to hit.
-Resistance - So, not only does everyone have a better chance to hit, they hit harder.
-Damage - so if that pet gets hit, they're hit for less.
-Tohit - so there's *less* of a chance they'll get hit.
Chance for hold - and being a "vomit" animation, well...
Recharge isn't as useful for a pet. Noxious Gas does quite a bit, and does it in a Pet-based AOE.
Versus Painbringer:
+Recharge - again, not as useful for a pet.
+Damage - Are we looking at a single target or a pet that uses AOE? And this doesn't help the REST of the pets, and the rest of the TEAM, hit harder (as the AOE -Resist (all) does.)
+Regen - meh.
About the only thing that could really be said is "Let me put NG on anyone." -
Quote:That confirms nothing except "People with a bunch of incarnate powers overpower regular content." Not exactly news.Originally Posted by Celestial_Lord
Now that it is confirmed that bubblers are pretty much useless even on Rikti mothership raids,
You want an *excuse* to move/retire a character for whatever reason. Just do it. Or, as said before:
Quote:FF Shields are useful, especially in iTrials. If you aren't happy with how useful you feel on Ship raids, then maybe it makes sense to not play the character. -
*points to the "Issues with incarnate powers" thread*
Post there. Tunnel Rat's following it. It's become sort of a general (medical) issues with powers thread.
Though I've heard exactly one person mention it, and that's right after it was changed - so I'm rather disappointed nobody bothered speaking up in the last ten issues. It's the sort of thing I watch for. -
Quote:Fixed back in issue 10.Originally Posted by doyler_
Has there been any word at all recently on fixing the graphics for Sonic so they no longer cause migraines/nausea etc.?
Current issues are more with the Barrier graphics among others. -
Quote:If this were set up like Aion (you may have a bunch of slots on each server, but can only make a total of 8 characters for the entire account,) that "can't leave their server" line may have merit.Originally Posted by Pebblebrook
We can't really declare that a big population likes low pop servers, we don't have that data. It's even possible that there's as many people liking low pop servers as there are people who can't leave their low pop because they still have friends there or they have personal bases they're fond of or they just got complacent and haven't really thought about moving.
However, we're not. And it doesn't.
If you want to start on a new server, do so. Grab friends. Create an SG, get 20k Prestige per person for up to the first 15 characters. Add some praetorians for a Prestige bonus (100 prestige, was it?) Take advantage of Gleemail to send stuff over. Play with other people and invite them in.
There's nothing but *you* "tying" you to a server. -
Quote:And whenever I hear that, i have to wonder just what it is that you're doing wrong. No problem getting teams, yes I do play on Victory (my "second home" after Pinnacle, and where I have the most (50 - and I don't mean level 50) characters,) no I don't play prime time 99% of the time (I work second shift,) and no it's not "name recognition" or whatnot (while I have a character named "Memphis Bill" there, it's rarely taken out - yet I still manage to get teams regularly. And my friends tend to be logging off for the day within about an hour of when I get done with work.)Originally Posted by ChaosAngelGeno
It's that line between finding other people to game with on a frequent basis; versus server stability and lag. I started playing this game on Victory server, unable to find teams for what I would a consistent basis, even after joining channels.
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Quote:Perhaps one of the voices in his head has learned to type.Originally Posted by Forbin_Project
The odd thing about that is that no one made that post in either of the two threads the OP started on this topic.
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=261321
Sounds like he's just agreeing with himself. -
Quote:I *do* hope you're not trying to make a statement that I'm generally "resistant to change." If so, (a) you don't know me and (b) you haven't been paying attention.Originally Posted by Zemblanity
I really don't understand your resistance to the idea of change, Bill,
Good changes? No resistance.
Bad changes like this? Damn right I'm resisting. And if you don't "understand" that, go re-read. I've got a fair number of shielding characters (thermal, cold, FF, sonic.) Just off the top of my head, I could probably pull out 15-20 of them. More if we start throwing Empathy, Pain and/or Kin into the count. This change *would not be an improvement.* -
Quote:I know mine have gone from 500+ hours (first 50, Elec/Elec blaster, Issue... think it's 4 at that time) to (generally) between 80-130 these days.Originally Posted by Biowraith
(for reference, Biowraith was sitting at somewhere between 150 and 300 hours played when he hit 50, not including a complete reroll at level 30 because I didn't like the choices I'd made for his build when respecs weren't in yet)
(Last one I got to 50 was a Shield/Stone, part of a 4 person dual-pacted group. Three of them showed around 77 hours. Mine, for whatever reason, insisted it was 380 or something.... not sure why.) -
Quote:It's not even just ebook formats, though. I get wanting some sort of DRM - but there needs to be some universal format for it.Originally Posted by Samothrake
E-books, on the other hand come in apparently 28 different formats. And most readers out there only support perhaps 3 of those formats. And each format has its own way to encrypt with DRM. It's a mess, and at the moment there's nobody selling them talking to anybody else that's selling them about any form of compatability. Luckily, there's Calibre and some wonderful plug-ins that can solve the problems for a person.
Part of what keeps me from buying a reader is the *non-ebook* formats that they support (or don't.) I seem to remember a break like:
Reader 1:
Proprietary ebook format
Text
Word
OpenDocument
Reader2:
Proprietary ebook format 2
PDF
text
ePub
... y'know, I *do* want those other formats supported in both. (Yes, one *didn't* read PDF, the other didn't support the regular epub format - and I don't really want to have to do mass conversions.) -
Quote:Also - as much as I appreciated the Taxibots way back when, they just arent' as needed now.Originally Posted by Oldeb
So make a group like the Taxibots and do this. There is nothing stopping you or anyone else except a lack of interest. This is another idea that has nothing to do with a server merge, just a complaint about how people aren't playing like you want them to.
Compare getting around NOW to getting around - say, when I started, issue 3.
- We have SG teleporters that drop you right into zone, usually with a shorter distance to most missions.
- Vet powers - Mission teleporter.
- No debt until level 10.
- Spawns have generally been moved around, so you're not going from a group of level 7 Outcasts into a group of level 15 Trolls.
- Jetpacks are available free at level 5 (ok, you're usually worked up to level 7 just through doing missions) via Safeguard/Mayhem, or from recipes, or day jobs, or buying flat out for 10k inf (which is trivial to get.)
- SSKing means one higher level can bump a whole GROUP up past the level where anything is a threat.
- Team Recall vet power is fairly widely available.
Basically, other than their (still fun) tours, the Taxibots purpose is widely obsolete. Complaining about their lack as proof of anything is like complaining about the lack of horse watering stations.
As far as a mission beign "too hard" or "too easy," no need generally to call in more than one other person - we've got difficulty sliders now, very finely grained, so you can run at -1/x0 to +4/x8. -
Quote:Yes, but I know you're wrong and/or deluded here, so that's ok.Originally Posted by Wicked_Wendy
Now to be perfectly honest Bill this is one area where you and disagree and you are entitled to your opinion. I know a lot of players that love them but frankly Khelds never thrilled me.
(Note for the humor impaired: yes, I know it's her opinion. Yes, I've talked to her. Yes, I'm teasing her. She knows it (and knows me well enough to know it,) and is a big girl and can take it as intended.)
I just think it's pathetic that the only way I can actually enjoy a story-driven or story-centered (IE, Epic) AT is to ignore the story as a first step. It's like going to a movie, just to put on dark sunglasses and earphones so you only see the brightest explosions. (And the only way I *can* stand playing these is Huntsman or Crab. Have yet to run a Widow/Fort and like it. And yes, I have gotten one of each to 50 - Fort and Bane - and have others sitting around. I have this thing about trying to find out WHY I don't like something, especially if there's choices in play... thus making more MMs after getting bored to death on my Bots/FF.) -
Quote:Ahh, but they're set as separate spawns (or rather as a "battle," if you look at AE's controls." I don't know that it's possible to (intentionally) aggro just to a mob type that gets added.Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
I'm guessing someone did not set up those mobs appropriately: the ability is clearly there, from Longbow's behavior (and Vanguard, I think).
Then again, so many of these things are broken in game, I don't think the devs know what's happening. Ambushes attack their own side, the Vanguard only attack the Rikti spawned in at the beginning of the mission they're "set" to attack and ignore the ten groups that just wander by... yeah. Just one thing on the long list of "Broken game items." -
The ONLY thing I agree with is fixing or replacing poison trap. The only thing it's good for is skipping. It's worthless as it sits now.
The heal needs to be sped up a bit and/or increased for its END cost. -
Quote:Right. Nobody plays it. My characters have just been automatically and randomly coating themselves in ice, bubbles or flames. Just walking along inside a mission and *poof* I'm in an icy suit. The only way I can get away from it is to solo, and even then I'll find it's happened as I'm going down the street, or in wentworths, or paying SG base rent.Originally Posted by Vel_Overload
I don't mind the buffing part but I can't help but feel like they should just merge the typical 'two shields' into 'one shield'. Such as Insulation and Deflection Shield should just be merged so that a new power can be made for FF to help out soloers and make the set as a whole more appealing. But whatever, the sets aren't fun, and the lack of people playing them is proof of that.
Can't be from people actually playing the sets, nope. -
No.
And yes, it has been talked about before.
Let's see if I have a copy of my own copypasta.... trimming out the how to search, which changed some in this version of the forum software...
Quote:And adding one other reason, relevant to recent events:Why server consolidation is not a good idea.
Welcome to the forum. You have posted one of the oft repeated suggestions, "Consolidate the servers."
Disclaimer
Yes. This is a cut and paste reply that I keep handy. It isn't meant to cause fights or to be insulting.
The body of the cut and paste reply is the way it is because we've seen these arguments numerous times before. They're a summary of the salient points that come up each time. They are not here to insult you, make you feel stupid or otherwise "bring you down a peg." Instead, they are meant as instruction and information. Please read through the points and the explanation behind them to see the issues that are commonly brought up in response. They may not always match your suggestion 100% - in fact, you may have explained around one or two of them - but they're there for consideration and refinement of your idea.
Yes, I do look forward to the time, with some of these suggestions, that someone not only addresses all the points, but does so exceptionally well. It'll probably be added to the end of the cut/paste reply, with credit. For now, though, read and consider the points. They really are just there to help you, and move discussion along to help ideas evolve.
If you're going to see this and say an "evil forum vet is just shooting down your idea," or "You think you're the last word because of your post count," you're wrong. Heck, if you say the second, you've just worried more about my post count than I have in the last four plus years. Tongue-in-cheek comments in here are meant as hummor, not put downs.
TL,DR section.
First, my stock answer, one which I stand by and repeat with all due fervor. HELL NO.
Now, why:
1. Just because YOU like living in New York City doesn't mean I can't like Kansas.
Yay, you love having huge lag spikes as you get near the black market/wentworths and a busy broadcast. Congrats. Enjoy Freedom. Some of us - many of which you will get replies from with this subject - like *low population* servers. If we *wanted* to be on Freedom, we'd *be* on Freedom.
I have characters on Freedom. I rarely play them (and actually moved a character OFF of Freedom to finish leveling it to 50) because *I DON'T LIKE FREEDOM.* I dislike the banality of broadcast, the high percentage of *horrid* teams I've come across there, the lag around any gathering point- and I've got a decent connection and system. For much the same reason, I typically startin Galaxy City instead of Atlas Park - I don't *want* to log in to a costume contest with several 50s spamming powers and nonsense arguments in broadcast.
Some of us *like* nice, quiet servers.
2, Kansas, part 2.
In addition, servers have their own personalities. No, I don't mean that literally, there's no AI to worry about if you start hearing "Daisy, Daisy" over your speakers or headset. Freedom's a crowded mess. Virtue is the RP server. Pinnacle is the "Drunk" server. Others have specific communities, such as those from Australia/NZ, Europe, etc.
3. "I only saw one other person. World of Conancraft has eleventy billion!"
So what?
We don't run around camping spawn points in this game. People are in missions. People are spread across many zones. Search on a map or do a /whoall and you'll miss those in missions, as well as those who are, for whatever reason, on /hide. Your "search" there didn't give you a full picture, not in the least.
I understand the "feel" of things being "not very populated," but take a good look around when you're in game. Typically, you don't really have a lot of visibility. Standing in steel canyon, there could be multiple, full 8 person groups surrounding you, and it's likely you'd never see them. We have buildings, walls, architecture, trees and more limiting our visibility. Yes, it can make you feel more alone... but that's rarely the case. Add to that that the population is spread between many, MANY zones, most quite large, and among two sides... well...
4. "I put up my LFT flag and nothing happened!"
Learn to search. Don't just wait. Form a team yourself.
5. "I AM SPARTACUS!" No, not any more.
Remember logging in and seeing all those slots? Everyone has those - some buy more than the base 12, you get an extra one each year, you could have a total of 36 on any server. Everyone does. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one.
Now merge servers. Suddenly, CoolBlasterDude from server 1 is getting merged with CoolBlasterDude from Server 2. Who gets to keep their name? Nobody has been able to answer this with any degree of satisfaction. Add a number? But I am NOT CoolBlasterGuy1. And what if the name's too long? Does the older character keep it? What if they're not as active?
People are *VERY* attached to their names. They are, quite obviously, part of their character.
6. "This Is SPARTA!" Sorry, Sparta exists already. You are GenericSG 8734 287 9798.
What else has a name? Supergroups. And I can *guarandamntee* that the same name is in use on multiple servers. Sometimes it's 'branches' of the same SG, sometimes it's coincidence. But with *everything* involved in an SG - from its identity and reputation on the server, to everything stored in the database about what it owns, what its base is like and such, this would be a disaster in the making. And no, auto merging them when the servers merge, even if they have room to, is not an option.
This, of course, assumes that they *CAN* move supergroups as a unit. More than likely, it'd just be a mass character move, with bases, prestige, anything stored in bases and all SG affiliations just gone forever.
7. "I am... where'd Spartacus go?"
Remember all those slots? Well, you start with 1/3 of the available ones. You can buy up to 36 total (24 on top of the ones you get initially.) Now, what do you suppose would happen if you merged two servers, and someone has, say, 20 characters on each? Not unusual. In fact, before those extra slots, I had *filled up* several servers. Do those characters just disappear? Do they move? Free move to another server sounds great, right... well, except you now kick them from their supergroup, remove them from their friends lists and more. This makes for angry and unhappy customers. Or rather, ex customers.
8. I will play where I damn well want to. And you can too.
And that should be blunt enough. If I want a crowded server, I'll go to Freedom. If I want an RP server, I'll go to Virtue. I do NOT want to be shoved onto another server I *don't* like. If I wanted to go there, *I'd be there.*
If the server you're on isn't "busy" enough for you, you have two options that won't bother anyone else.
(A) If it's low enough, reroll. You have a ton of character slots for a reason.
(B) If you don't want to reroll, server transfers are available, and relatively cheap. They also finish fast - you should be up and running and being spammed to join someone's SG on the new server in a few minutes, in most instances. So YOU can go to the server of YOUR choice without screwing ME over.
9. "It'll free up server hardware for Freedom!" No, no it won't.
Freedom, because of the load it tends to have, already has more resources dedicated to it than other servers. And ALL of the servers have been upgraded multiple times. The servers are not allocated exactly the same. The servers that handle less of a load have less dedicated to them. So this argument doesn't fly.
10. DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Last but not least (at least until better points come along to be added,) server consolidation is widely viewed in the industry as an MMO going on life support. No, we don't have WoWs numbers (and you should actually pay attention to when and how they got those.) They're an abberation in the MMO industry. COH has had and does have a very successful, sustainable population even at its lowest points, so there's no economic need to combine anything. The flip side of that, of course, has been suggested above - you crowd people together, break up their SGs and friends lists, cause characters to go missing and poeple definitely *will* quit, both out of annoyance and a sense of "The game is almost dead!"
In conclusion....
As stated before, when it comes to server consolidation... HELL NO.
Yes, the low levels feel bare. Now go search and see how many people are clustered on 50s in PocketD/RWZ. Welcome to the Incarnate years.
Also, we just had a server LIST merge, allowing access (that has been asked for for some time from our fellow European players) to a bunch of new servers. So put yourself in their place - "Hey, I just got to make new characters/shuffle some of mine over! Wait, the server's being closed?" /quit. -
Quote:Yeah. These need to be revisited. I also remember 2-3 teams (I suppose I should use the now in-vogue "league") tackling it. (The toxic also does, or did, a -fly, which could be a pain.)Originally Posted by Mandu
And Necro. I don't think that it was the IOs that made people stop fighting them. Once upon a time GMs gave out a significant xp reward. If you were of the appropriate level for the zone they could give you one or two bars. If you were a low level in a high level group they could give you an entire level. Then the devs hit them with a double whammy, both intended to solve the powerleveling problem. They reduced the huge experience reward to almost nothing and they implemented GM scaling. Either one would have solved the problem but it is the lowered xp that stops people from taking them down.
Once the novelty of facing Lusca (or any other GM) for the first time is done there is really no point in doing it again unless you are helping out somebody else who is new to the experience. A GM now gives out experience roughly equivalent to defeating an ordinary boss of your level. It's an epic (well, was epic) battle with a snickers bar as a reward.
Now? Debt (or loss of patrol XP, whichever bothers you more) with piddly payback and 2 reward merits... total. It's just not worth anyone's time to do, except for the novelty. (And badge, if you want that.) I *want* to say that was done before IOs even came into the game, but I'm not 100% on that. It's been a while, anyway.
Used to be, as well, that we'd have three at a time up and people would go after all three. I could count on tackling Lusca at least once a week. I think we've gone after it... oh... twice in the last few years. MAYBE three times. (The encounter itself hasn't changed - find the one tentacle that's somewhat isolated, tackle that,t hen work your way around, eventually going after - or fighting from inside - the head.)