Memphis_Bill

OK, this is... weird.

Figured I'd bring my (admittedly rarely played) Ill/Sonic into New DA. (And apparently Ephrem Sha or whatever his name is doesn't show up unless you go through the "ooh, look, weird apartment" bit.)

Went street sweeping. PA, Phantasm, etc. And ran across something odd.

Find a group of COT and *whatever.* First group, summon PA, summon Phantasm, summon spectral - the usual. Everything's both hunky and dory. Swing over to another group with COT and... the Phantasm won't attack them. At all. Even when IT'S attacked. Its decoy will, PA's just fine smacking whatever's around, but Phantasm... nope, one group of COT is its limit, and it's not attacking more (unless resummoned.)

Other groups don't have this problem - COT/Knives? Dead knives. COT/BP? Dead BP... just no dead COT via Phant. unless I resummon it.

Haven't tried non-DA COT. Needless to say this *could* be an issue. Did I miss a bug mention somewhere about this?

Man, here you go, telling people how to speed through, getting farming going, it's the end of the game, you're going to ruin it all....


... just kidding. Nice little reference. Thanks.

Hmmm. I can give you two.. fairly different ones.

And I'll try not to type up a novel. Some of this plays a bit... fast and loose with potential lore (yeah, from the person who compiled the backstory guide,) but there wasn't really any info in a spot or two, so... *shrug*

Warshade: Violet Flame
Host: Violet.
Personality: Outgoing, generally friendly, helpful sort, tends to be that way to the point where she's underestimated (think "stereotypical blonde" without the hair) - until she comes up with some oddball bit of information someone needs. Big Prince fan, to the irritation of some, worse when she starts making up lyrics. (Had one person with "Raspberry Parfait" stuck in his head for a week. And yes, does own a raspberry colored beret.)
... no, didn't do that in game to anyone at *all.* *cough*
History - reader's digest version.
Vi (as she's generally called by her closest friends) started getting underestimated in high school thanks to her personality. Didn't matter how high her grades were (graduated fifth in her class,) most of her class would probably have called her a bit "spacy." (Until they had her tutoriing them, at least.) She pretty much got into anything that got her curious - cheerleading one year, softball the next, buried in the library in between.

She kept this up in college - including, to her annoyance, the underestimation from her peers. But that, as well as her knack for ferreting out information - and a strong dislike for the Council recruiters that started showing up on campus - brought her to the attention of another group.

Which is how, two years later, she found herself in a Council base. Regardless of rank, she still felt like a glorified secretary, but the base commander - himself a longtime veteran - protected her, treating her like the daughter he'd lost years ago. For her part, she ran files, got coffee, greeted dignitaries - and fed information out to her handlers about the projects in the base.

Which is how she met Cat. She'd managed to attract the wrong sort of attention with her activities, and found herself trapped and caught. Normally this would mean a few rounds of torture, then execution - but as disappointed as the base commander was, he opted for the more 'merciful' path of implanting her with a Nictus and turning her into a double agent.

Cat, meanwhile - the only bit of his name she caught was shortened to this - was an old Nictus, one who had sought to redeem himself by feeding information to the Peacebringers. He knew he was starting to draw attention himself, and so (after learning about Vi) allowed himself to "be volunteered" for this project. It was pretty much the only way out for both of them.

He used the few moments before they were joined to quickly explain and gain her trust. Vi, going on her instincts, didn't fight him. That evening - with a relaxed guard on the "new Nictus," they escaped. (Vi losing her lunch at the first teleport, but finding it "a rush" by the fifth or sixth.) They made their way to Sunstorm and his Peacebringers, Council hot on their heels - and found themselves in the care of a friend of Vi's, who'd managed - via the military - to join with a Kheldian and become a Peacebringer herself.

They broke off and started their own, small Kheldian group, attached to one of the established supergroups in the area. They ran it successfully, getting a good reputation - good enough to be given one of the Peacebringers' problem children to reform, Voidbane.

(Aren't you glad I gave the short version? WIll go into Voidbane in a moment.)

Vi refs:
The "dunno" pic I've been using.
Older set of character refs.
Vi by Sorah Suhng.
Vi and two other Khelds (including the PB mentioned above, Illume, on the right) from the group.
Vi and an annoyed Voidbane.


Voidbane
Peacebringer
Host: Diana
Personality - Headstrong, fairly aggressive, tends to be very driven towards fighting the Nictus and their creations, but accepting of Warshades. Tends to prefer to take care of things herself instead of taking care of a group. (She tends to feel far too responsible for those under her if she does.)

Voidbane's Kheldian has been active against the Nictus for a long time - since her home world was destroyed "for the advancement of science." It wasn't even the destruction that drove her on her crusade, though it would have been enough - it was the blatantly pointless destruction and death that really pushed her to fight. And fight she did, especially when she'd learn of Nictus "research centers."

It was one of these that led her on the trail to what would become the Void Hunter mercenaries on Earth. For once, she brought the information to her superiors first - who essentially told her to settle down and not worry about it. Furious at this dismissal, she went off on her own.

Arriving on Earth, she knew she'd need a host and found her - a cop who was just as headstrong and tired of being put down (in her case for being one of the only female officers in the precinct, and young at that) as Voidbane was. Explaining she could be part of something greater, a bigger fight than what she wasn't being allowed to see on the streets.

Her willingness to stand up to her superiors and the Nictus both gained her a small following of younger Peacebringers and Warshades who wanted to fight, *now.* She tried to dissuade them from joining "her" fight, not wanting to feel responsible for them, but eventually forged them (along with other allies) into a fast hitting strike group.

Her stubbornness was what finally brought her down. Knowing she was on their trail, a group of Council and Nictus laid a trap to kill - or if she somehow managed to survive, highly discredit her. It worked extremely well. Planting information, they led Voidbane to a labyrinthine, "secret" base complex where she discovered what looked like hundreds of Cysts. Had she investigated, waited even, she may have picked up something odd about them. Instead, she started to attack.

Had she done so less than an hour later, the school and public buildings above would have been full of people. As it was, the ground caved in and destroyed the buildings, sending twenty people (including two kids dropped off at school early) to the hospital.

It was a sick, quiet Voidbane brought to the tribunal. Stripped of her rank, the supergroup formed around her forcibly dissolved, the Kheldians of her group sent elsewhere (under a close eye,) she was given one last chance. Her powers restrained, essentially a criminal, she was handed over to Violet Flame and her group for retraining, after which she would either have learned to work with a group - or be locked up for the duration.

She felt she was lucky to get just that.

Voidbane - (Vigilante really suits her.)



... and those are the really, *really* short versions. >.>

Blaster with Leaping/Acrobatics and the Fighting Pool.

Acrobatics: Mild mez (well, hold) resist and KB protection.
Combat jumping: Small bit of defense, with immob protection
Fighting: Little bit of defense and resistance.
Inherent: Defiance, lets you keep fighting somewhat even while mezzed.

Add APP as needed. Granted we're not talking HUGE numbers here.

I do.
The obvious:
Envenomed dagger, obviously.
Backup radio on a few characters.
Recovery Serum and Etherial Shift, not quite as much, but sometimes.

After that, it's flavor. I've got several who enjoy using the hammer and the bat on stuff - the Emp/Psi I was working on for a while would run into melee and finish stuff off with a good smack. A few use the pistol as well. Melee, with something with a sliver of health running off? *Bang.* Dead.

Others like grenades, if I get them, I'll craft them - but might nto use them (usually from having a power window full of powers, so they get lost.)

Costumes? Did someone say costumes?

The casual look from Violet Flame:


PB - Therra Paladina - on the right:



(Also visible floating around in Pocket D in the Kheld Keyes video in that.)


... hmmm. OK, now you have me curious. Costume survey of my Khelds, both accounts:



Top:
Violet Flame (vict) - Voidbane (Vict) - Voidbane alt (vict) - Turisia Lightfoot (union) - Ammo of ACG (guardian) - Common Cause (Champ) - Sunhaven (pinn) - Cassius Lumens (pinn) - One of Therra Paladina's (pinn)
Middle:
Memphis Bill (Inf) - Mabsuthat (inf) - Cassius Lumens (Lib) - Umbral Flare (Just) - Gregor Malkov (Virt) - Voidbane (original - virt) - Aria Hightalon (Virt) - Satoria (champ)
Bottom:
Lady Alban (Triumph) - Sirian Shade (Protect.) - Nictus Invictus (Prot.) - Stellar Windwalker (Guard) - Penitent Shadow (Pinn) - Unnumbered Sorrows (pinn) - Marj. Carinae (Lib) - Sternteufel (just) - Chicago Cat (Free) - Machaseren (Free)

(OK, more a general survey. If I did all the costumes some of these have....)

Hmmmm....

I have that old, old trial account I used to use to see if names were being freed. Think I know the PW for it still...

... and yes, it's checked when I hit the tailor for the first time.

So. Minor advantage to being a raging altaholic is being able to scrounge stuff across the alts. If I focus on recharge, and just fill in a couple of sets, I think I should be able to do this:

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.954
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Violet Flame: Level 50 Science Warshade
Primary Power Set: Umbral Blast
Secondary Power Set: Umbral Aura
Power Pool: Speed

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Shadow Bolt -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(29), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(31), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), Decim-Build%(34)
Level 1: Absorption -- ResDam-I(A)
Level 2: Gravimetric Snare -- TotHntr-Acc/Immob/Rchg(A)
Level 4: Gravity Shield -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 6: Dark Nova -- P'Shift-End%(A)
Level 8: Starless Step -- Acc-I(A)
Level 10: Shadow Blast -- KheldiansG-Acc/Dmg(A), KheldiansG-Dmg/Rchg(31), KheldiansG-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), KheldiansG-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), KheldiansG-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(36), KheldiansG-Rchg/FormBuff(36)
Level 12: Sunless Mire -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(33), RechRdx-I(36)
Level 14: Shadow Cloak -- Krma-ResKB(A)
Level 16: Twilight Shield -- ResDam-I(A)
Level 18: Gravity Well -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(37), Dmg-I(37), Dmg-I(37), HO:Perox(39)
Level 20: Black Dwarf -- Winter-ResSlow(A), ResDam-I(39), ResDam-I(39), ResDam-I(40)
Level 22: Stygian Circle -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(40), EndMod-I(45)
Level 24: Essence Drain -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(33), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(40), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(42)
Level 26: Gravitic Emanation -- Stpfy-Acc/Rchg(A), Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun(42), Stpfy-Acc/EndRdx(43), Stpfy-Stun/Rng(43), Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg(43)
Level 28: Inky Aspect -- Acc-I(A), Dsrnt-I(45)
Level 30: Nebulous Form -- EndRdx(A)
Level 32: Dark Extraction -- ExRmnt-Acc/Rchg(A), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg(45), ExRmnt-Dmg/EndRdx(46), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(46), ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(46)
Level 35: Stygian Return -- Empty(A)
Level 38: Eclipse -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(48), RechRdx-I(48), ResDam-I(48)
Level 41: Quasar -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(50), Dmg-I(50), Dmg-I(50)
Level 44: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 47: Orbiting Death -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 49: Unchain Essence -- Dmg-I(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Mako-Acc/Dmg(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- QckFt-EndRdx/RunSpd(A)
Level 1: Shadow Step -- Jnt-EndRdx(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 10: Shadow Recall -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Health -- RgnTis-Regen+(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(34)
Level 1: Dark Sustenance
Level 4: Ninja Run
------------
Level 1: Dark Nova Bolt -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Dark Nova Blast -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(3), Dmg-I(3), Dmg-I(5), Dmg-I(5)
Level 1: Dark Nova Emanation -- Posi-Dmg/Rng(A), Posi-Acc/Dmg(7), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(7), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(9), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(9)
Level 1: Dark Nova Detonation -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(11), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(11), Posi-Dmg/Rng(13), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(13)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Strike -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(15), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(15), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(17)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Smite -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(19), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(19), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(21), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(21)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Drain -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(23), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(23), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(25), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(25)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Mire -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(27), Dmg-I(27), Dmg-I(29)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Step -- Jnt-EndRdx/Rng(A)
Level 1: Black Dwarf Antagonize -- Taunt-I(A)

... fairly cheaply.

(Yes, had a Kheld ATO drop from the cards. I'm going to send myself INF for the set.)

Comments?

Ahh, mornings. At least I have being half asleep still to blame for my "Huh?" You're looking at the second, SO build... (and yes, I tend to double-acc by default. It's a habit, partly from PVPing on SOs way back when.) It's the first one that'll have you going "Er... yeah, don't drink that again."

However, that will be tweaked - as I tend to like to see just what can be done on SOs (or mostly-SOs) when possible.

Edit: But I think I do recall why I have some weird slotting on the SO build (like a single Posi blast here or there.) Some are just "only one slot needed" items (+stealth, f'rinstance.) Others are kind of "build plan cliff notes." And others... still make no sense. *shrug*

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The question?

"What was I doing, and what was I drinking at the time?" (OK, that's two questions.)