MrNoj

I just wanted to say thanks to 4 for this wonderful guide.

Using just the level 45 and 50 recipes I was able to fund three crafting badges and still come out 10 mil in the black. In under 3 hours. It's like free money. The reason I stuck with 45 and 50 is because I'm not that great at math and didn't want to break out a calculator... with 45-50, you just have to take the crafting price, round it down, divide by 4, and don't bid higher than that.

This method will never be completely defunct due to the simple fact that it's easier to just dump stuff in the market than it is to vendor it, especially if you are trying to get the market badges or you're going to the market to make a purchase anyways.

This works for everyone involved. The person dumping the recipes gets rid of junk that they'd probably just delete otherwise and the buyer gets a nice little chunk of money. I don't see anyone becoming an "Ebil Marketeer" off of just this method, but if you need some inf to get a couple enhancers, this is a great way to do it.

I had an ultra version of that card and found that it was barely enough to run this game (or was it the 5600... can't remember).

In any case IIRC that card is AGP, you won't be able to find an AGP card that can do much more than that one. If you happen to have a PCI express version, you may be in luck.

Anything in this search will be an improvement if you're running PCI Express; http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...0Express%20x16

Yeah, I just want to not see the motd every time I log in. It's quite irritating.

Thanks!

I have a global chat channel which was related to my previous SG which is now defunct. How do I delete it?

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the input.

So recap;

-Perma-hasten is actually possible now (it was briefly during beta, but they smacked that down quickly)

-Architect missions are mostly crap, but can be entertaining if done right.

-Day Jobs (WEWT!)

-Lots of new power sets and power sets available to different archetypes than they were previously.

-Invention tutorial and architect tutorial should be done.

-Auction house UI is getting fixed.

-This; There's also Super Sidekicking, no more having to find a mentor on the team. Team members automatically adjusts (sk up or exemplar down) to the team leader or whoever has the active mission. In addition, XP all the time, even when exemplared. There was a post of someone wanting to try to level a new character to 50 only by joining lowbie Sewer teams in Atlas. The world has gone crazy!

To the last one; awesome.

I've recently delved back in to the City Of universe and I find that things are quite different than I left it. I quit playing right around Issue 9 (invention system), and after looking around I find that I'm quite lost. I've briefly glanced at the summary information about the issues since then, but I'm curious if there's anything in particular that I should be warned about or informed of in order to make my gameplay experience the best it can be.

Thanks.

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I'm still unable to silence Arctic Fog and now find myself not turning it on as it's such an unacceptable sound - please please please, has anyone any idea how to turn it off?

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Powersfog.ogg
Powersfog_loop.ogg
Powersfog2.ogg

One of these perhaps? (haven't tested at all, just went through the list)

Thanks Bill, there's some good stuff in there.

I agree with a lot of it, have done most of it, and don't think that some of it is really relevant. Everyone needs some kind of antivirus and firewall. If you don't have a hardware firewall, pick up zonealarm, it has low overhead and it's free. AVG is a good antivirus program if you don't want to go unprotected while gaming... and the only reason you would want to have that kind of protection while gaming is if you surf message boards or look up junk on the net while playing like I do.

As far as section 3 goes, be REALLY careful tooling around in the registry, even if you are only messing with stuff in those 5 keys, you can hose your antivirus software or any software based firewall.

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As far as I know, you can only use western characters and no fancy things. Although someone mentioned somehwere that it may possible by using the charachter map on windows explorer.

also /bump for not wanting this handy thread to go away

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Wow, haven't seen this one in a LONG time...

Long story short, no, you can't use non-standard characters in the batch file or text, at least there's no way that I know of to do so, if someone else is a little more familiar with batch files than I am, I'd like to see how that would be done.

There's one that I haven't seen here. During the 5th column event, I suggested on the boards that they put in event specific badges... shortly thereafter the first halloween event occurred, badges and all.

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While your playing and running at top speed you remind yourself of that chick from the Thunder Cats Thunder...Thunder...ThunderCats... Hooooo

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Cheetara.

Ok, I'll just go back to lurking now.

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"The Jaunt" was also a Steven King short story, I think it was part of the "Night Shift" collection. It had a pretty nasty punch at the end - ever wonder what happens in that microsecond 'tween ports?

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Skeleton Crew.

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You ask in broadcast if someone can jaunt you to the gate.
5 pts to whoever remembers what jaunting is from!

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Jaunting was either from a Heinlen or a Aisimov story (can't remember which, read it in middle school).

Edit: Found a Stephen King short story by the name the Jaunt, written in 1985, I'm pretty sure this is NOT the one that I read in middle school.

Edit again: It must be the story that I read, I could not find an older story... Not really King's style though.

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You still have screenshots of the original Rikti attack at the end of CoH Beta and you can't bring yourself to delete them...

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I had a few that got deleted on accident... I was mad. I still have the 'end of the world' video that someone composed from the beta ending on either my computer or my wifes.

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Someone once told me that the destruction of the Challenger is a generational hallmark. If you were old enough to remember it, you were on one side of a generational divide, and if you couldn't, you were on the other side. Dunno if that's true, but I can sure tell you where I was when it got destroyed.

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I remember where I was, I was in 5th grade, they brought a TV into the classroom for us to watch the launch. Right after it blew up the teacher walked calmly up to the TV and turned it off, everyone else was completely speachless. I remember the teacher's voice shaking slightly when she said 'Well, I guess we should get back to work'

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you can also hit ; and type what you want like

;thinks your the hottest tanker ever

and it will show up in a thought bubble as such... some times when you type /e itll do a real emote and not a thought bubble...

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I use ; to type out emotes all the time. It's just as likely to do a real emote as /e.

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I keep a breakfree with my emergency Awaken. Some folks don't realize you can move at full speed immediately after Awakening if you Breakfree.


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To ammend... I keep a row with an awaken, breakfree above it, and health above that. The next row over has a couple of catch a breaths. If the health inspire is a tiny heal, I keep another in the second row. That'll get you to the point where you can jump back into the fight.

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DO NOT...
...refuse to use a rez just so you can soak up 'no-risk' XP's. I hate debt- who doesn't? But if you just bought the farm, chances are some or all of us are pretty close to dyin' too and we NEED you!
(some guy actually said this was the ultimate technique for xps- he said his SG had been tporting a dead body around for a month. Please- say it ain't so...)

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Now that sounds like an Urban Myth if I ever heard one. You can only TP someone to the same zone you are in. That being said, you could not TP the corpse into a mission or another zone. Not only that, but once outside, you would have to keep the corpse somehat close by. So in conlclusion, even though that was an absolutely hillarious idea, it would be too impractical and limited to be true.

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Prior to I4 or I5 it was possible to enter and exit missions while dead. If I remember right it was even possible to use the train while dead. Even though it was once possible does not mean that it happened.

My contribution:

Just because someone doesn't have a level 50 character doesn't neccessarily mean that they know less about the game than you do. (I have been playing since the second round of pre-order beta invites and have yet to make it to level 50... I have pointed out some helpful information to people in my SG who have multiple level 50 characters)

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Maybe this one is just me but if you have a name like "Evil God of Satan's Womb", don't expect me to even talk to you or give you the time of day. Hey, I'm a hero and I have my personal beliefs. I have the option to ignore you over just your name.

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On the flip side of this, if you don't like a persons name, ignore them... I don't mean /ignore them, but just don't acknowledge them. If you're on a team with them, I can understand, but if, say, I'm running around with my fire tanker 'Burning Hobo', I don't want to hear about how I'm a disturbed individual... I already know that.

There are several ways to play an Ice/Ice blaster in City of Heroes. The way that I play it is pretty much 3/4 Blaster, 1/4 Controller. This allows for a lot of versitility based on the situation that you find yourself in. Another common way to play an Ice/Ice blaster is Blast only, which causes massive amounts of damage, but is a lot more risky for a solo player. The third common way is the Blapper type, which bases a lot of its damage on melee range and short range attacks. Ice is not the most effective powerset for this style of play, so my information on this method will be fairly minimal.



Primary Powers:

The three main primary powers are fairly similar single target range attacks. All of these three powers should be taken, allowing for a three attack run which will quickly take down almost any even or +1 minion, and will take down many +2 minions. Two runs through the three powers will take down most even con Lts and some +1 Lts. They are;

Ice Bolt

Ice Blast

Bitter Ice Blast

The order that I usually take these powers is Ice blast, Ice bolt, Bitter Ice blast, and I take them as soon as possible.

Ice bolt and Ice blast are both fairly long range attacks, and Bitter Ice blast is a medium range attack. Since ED hit, I avoid stamina and hasten, and instead slot these three powers as follows; three Damage, one Recharge, one Accuracy, and one Endurance Reduction. With these powers slotted this way it is possible to do massive amounts of damage with very little endurance and a recharge time that is a little longer than pre-ED perma-hasten.

The third attack in the set is Frost Breath, a medium range AOE cone attack which does about the same damage per target as Ice bolt. It also causes a good amount of slow, and until Shiver is available from the secondary, it is usually wise to slot it for slow.

Aim is the fifth power in the set, like most blaster primaries. Many people swear by this power, I tend to avoid it. What Aim does is it is a short term to-hit and damage buff. Since Ice really has no snipe, this power has limited utility.

After Aim is Freeze Ray, a mid to long range hold. This power is extremely useful to a solo blaster, and is fairly useful to any blaster. I usually don't slot this attack heavily and tend to concentrate on accuracy, as it gets used in tight situations very frequently. This attack can hold any minion or lt that it can hit, duration is shorter when the enemy is higher level than the attacker.

Ice Storm is the seventh power in the set, it is a ranged AOE attack, and it does minor DoT. The damage on this attack increases based on how many enemies are in it's radius, and how long they stay there. When used with Ice Patch from the Ice secondary, it can be a very effective tool to thin out larger groups.

The eighth power in the set is bitter freeze ray, a single target hold, much like freeze ray, but it takes time to activate, and deals quite a bit more damage. The best use for this power is as an opening attack against a boss, followed quickly by Freeze Ray, effectively holding the boss for a short period of time. Accuracy enhancements in this power are a must, allowing you to hit with little error.

Blizzard is the final attack, similar to ice storm, only a lot more powerful, and with a knockdown effect added to it. This basically works like a large Ice Patch and a heavy damage version of Ice Storm, all rolled into one. Because of its end drain which takes your endurance to zero and prevents you from regenerating end for the duration of the power, it is wise to use this as either a emergency escape power, or carry endurance inspirations to allow you to attack the slowed and knocked down opponents. I like to use this in conjunction with shiver and Ice Storm, stacking the damage and slow from those two powers on top of its effects.



Secondary Powers:

The Ice Manipulation secondary has a few really nice powers, some powers that are OK, and one that I would suggest skipping, if it were possible.

Chilblain is arguably the most useless power in this set, but you can't skip it. What it does is immobilizes a single target and deals some moderate damage. I usually slot this for either damage or accuracy, using the default slot, and it is almost always removed from my power tray by the time I reach level 10.

Frozen fists is the second power available in this set, and is a rather nice melee attack, it slows the target as well as dealing minor damage. I don't usually take this power, as I prefer the higher damaging Ice sword.

After Frozen Fists comes Ice Sword, I would suggest getting this power if you need any melee damage other than brawl, and you don't want to take the attacks from your pools. The attack deals moderate damage, and has a chance to slow.

Chilling embrace is a nice power to pick up after you get your travel power, it slows all nearby enemies, and is auto-hit. The reason that I like this power is because it has a chance to de-cloak Stalkers in PvP

The fifth power in the set is Build Up. It is similar to Aim in almost every way, but it buffs damage more than accuracy, where Aim buffs accuracy over damage. This is another power that I don't normally pick up, due to the fact that there is no real snipe in the Ice Blast powerset.

Ice patch is a must have power for almost any Ice/Ice blaster, it creates a small patch of ice that knocks down enemies and significantly slows their attack rate and movement. The best way to use this power is by laying the patch in a doorway or hallway that is no wider than its radius, then attacking and pulling enemies through the patch by ducking around a corner on the other side of the patch.

Shiver is the second must have power in the set in my opinion. Shiver is a medium range, cone AOE slow, significantly reducing the movement speed and attack rate of all enemies that it hits.

The eighth power in the set is freezing touch, a melee range hold. I really don't suggest getting this power unless you plan on becoming a half-troller instead of the quarter-troller that I usually play.

Finally comes Frozen Aura, a PBAOE sleep which affects a radius based on the location of your hero. This power has limited real utility, and should be used as an escape power, as any attacks break the sleep that you initiated.



Build:

Since this guide is about the Ice primary and secondary for blasters, I will stick mainly to talking about how to pick and slot those powers, based on my two ice/ice blasters that I have leveled to 40. I will not go into the Ice Mastery powerset, as I have very limited experience with it at this point in time.

1: When you create the character, you are forced to take Chilblain (you already know my irritation with this power, so I won't go into this any further), and are given the choice between Ice Bolts and Ice Blast. I always choose Ice Blast for the higher damage early on.

2, 4: The next two powers that I get are Ice bolts and Frost Breath. Slot these first three attacks early. With ED in place, slotting more than three of one kind of single origin enhancement is pointless, so when I initially slot these powers, I slot them the same way I will have them slotted with SOs. Three damage enhancements will yield the best results, followed by one or two accuracy and a recharge reduction enhancement. If you choose to slot one accuracy, a good idea is to slot endurance reduction, especially if you don't plan on taking stamina later on.

6: Next I choose the first power in my travel pool, this is a personal choice, but I tend to pick either jump kick or air superiority, negating the need for a melee attack from my secondary, and taking out the need for a power with a negligible defense buff.

8: I like to pick teleport friend or chilling embrace at this point, depending on how often I think I will have a SideKick.

10: Freeze ray is next. I usually give this power three or four slots over the course of my character's life, concentrating on accuracy for two of them, and the remaining slot or two get hold duration.

12: Ice storm is next, and it should be slotted heavily for damage and accuracy, three of each. This means that you will hit more often for more damage. Slow is also a good use for one of the slots in this power, replacing one of the damage enhancements.

14: After Ice Storm, you should be level 14. It's in your best interests to get you travel power at this point, making it much easier for you to get around.

16: For your next power, it's really a matter of preference, once again, either choosing chilling embrace (if you didn't already get it), Aim, Build Up, or a pool power. Since I usually get Teleport friend at level 8, I like to pick up Chilling Embrace.

18: Finally Bitter Ice Blast is available, rounding out your three attack combo. This power should be slotted as soon as possible, in the same method as Ice Bolts and Ice Blast.

20: Ah, capes... and just as importantly, Ice Patch is now available. I don't normally add any slots to this power, and fill the one slot it comes with with slow.

22, 24: This is a chance to diversify your power pools, either that or pick up Aim and Build Up if you haven't yet.

26: Bitter Freeze Ray is now available to you, giving you the power to hold bosses for a short time when used in conjuntion with Freeze Ray. This power should be slotted the same way as Freeze Ray.

28: It just gets better and better, doesn't it? Now you should pick up Shiver, slot this power with slow, cone range, and accuracy to taste. Two accuracy enhancements are really nice in this power, meaning that you will almost always hit all enemies in it's cone.

30: Another chance for you to diversify your power pools, picking up anything that you think might come in handy later on down the road.

32: Your final power from the Ice Blast primary is now available, Blizzard. This power should be slotted with accuracy and damage almost exclusively. Endurance reduction is fairly pointless, as the power takes all of your end anyways. Slow is of little use, because the knockdown effect makes the enemies seem like they are much slower than they are.

35: This is your final chance to finish up your pools before all of your primary and secondary powers are available.

38: Your last Ice power is now available (provided that you don't choose to continue with the theme and get Cold Mastery), Frozen Aura. I have limited experience with this power, so I will refrain from commenting on how to slot it.

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I've noticed that nobody really seems to like the death-timer, even though under the present rules it only applies in zones, not in missions. The biggest concern, if I'm assessing things correctly, is that in fighting giant monsters like Babbage or Kronos, the possibility that a person could be shorted XP on account of an expired death-timer is significant enough to discourage fighting such monsters if and when they appear. After all, why fight Babbage during the Synapse TF if you don't have to and if there's a chance you might not get XP for it anyway? Why fight Lusca if you might not get the XP for it?

SUGGESTION 1 -- Implement the death-timer as planned with one additional rule: an expired death-timer doesn't affect XP gained from a team's fighting Giant Monsters.

SUGGESTION 2 -- Do not implement the death-timer at all in Issue 4; instead implement a "death exemp" solution with Issue 5 in which, from now on, the normal XP dead heroes would receive goes toward debt instead (and when a dead hero's debt is gone, the hero receives no XP or influence, period).

Thoughts?

NewScrapper

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I like. Or they could make the death timer something like 10 minutes. And if you are in the zone, even if you have died and rezed, and you do damge, you get xp... that would solve the TF monsters. The 10 minutes should be combined with the debt thing too. That way you couldn't work off all of your debt.