Neogumbercules

steveb is right about SLI 460s being a great set-up. These cards scale -incredibly- well when you SLI them. It might be worth looking at getting the 768mb 460s if you're gonna do SLI, though. You'll save a lot of money and you'll get much better performance than a single GTX 480. The problem I'm thinking about, though, is that CoH ultra mode is incredibly poorly optimized. You'll be spending so much more money to max out the graphics in a game that is only difficult to max out because the graphics engine is poorly optimized. That stings a little.

For example, I can pretty much max out Crysis with my single 460 at 1680x1050, whereas CoH still causes it to chug when I crank up Ultra Mode in zones like Cap and Grandville. I'm sure you're aware that Crysis is a bajillion times prettier than CoH. Also worth keeping in mind is that the second you go into a mission map, all of those pretty ultramode graphics go away and all of your extra horsepower goes to waste.

The good news is with sli 460s you'll be able to absolutely max out every other game you might be playing.

*is still surprised no monitor snobs showed up yet to tell you to buy a $750 monitor*

Your settings should be fine if all you're doing is taking it out, putting on a better cooler, and sticking it back in there. Make sure whatever cooler you get comes with thermal paste on it, or you're gonna have to pick some up.

When you take off the cooler you'll find pasty crud all over the GPU. Clean it off using a towel that won't leave lint behind (i find paper towels to be fine) with a little bit of rubbing alcohol applied to the towel, not the card. Clean off all the goop before putting the new cooler on.

1 460 or 5770 could easily max out this game at that resolution.

TRIM support is a Windows 7 function that allows the operating system to clean junk data out of a solid state drive. Without this, a solid state hard drive's speed will begin to degrade. TRIM does not work in Windows XP or Vista AFAIK.

I don't think you can split an HDMI connection, but there is no difference between DVI and HDMI in terms of image so you can go with DVI on one of your displays as long as you don't need to have it sending out audio as well. If you really need two HDMI outputs you can get an HDMI/DVI adapter. Slap that onto one of the DVI ports and you'll be able to send two HDMI cables to two different displays.

The difference between i5 and i7 for Intel CPUs is basically whether or not the CPU supports hyperthreading. Hyperthreading is a technology that allows a CPU to theoretically double the amount of threads (workloads) it can process. The actual benefit of this technology is much less than it sounds, and has practically no effect on gaming.

Intel likes to try and confuse buyers by coming up with stupid naming schemes. Here's what you need to know:

Socket 1156 CPUs are considered the "mainstream" class
i5 -does not have hyper threading
i7 -does have hyper threading

Socket 1366 CPUs are considered their high end class
i7 -all of these CPUs come clocked higher and are all called i7

I strongly recommend going for an i5-750 build. AMD CPUs, even the 6 cores, simply can not compete with Intel at this stage. When it comes to gaming, Intel blows AMD out of the water. The I5-750 is not only cheaper than the 6 core AMD previously posted, but faster where it matters, as well.

As you can see in this review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3674/a...55t-reviewed/9 the Core i5-750, even at 2 cores and 500mhz less than the AMD, still outperforms it handily in most game benchmarks. As you can see by the Dawn of War and Dragon Age benchmark (two very CPU hungry games) the 4 core 750 crushes the 6 core AMD. To put it another way, the AMD needs 2 extra cores and 500mhz extra just to make it fair. At close to $50 more expensive than the i5, there is pretty much no value there. In the rest of the benchmarks, using heavily multi-threaded programs, the AMD matches the i5 in some tests, and in test where it outperforms the i5, it's only by a slight margin. Only programs that are specifically designed to make use of as many CPU cores as possible, does the AMD represent good value.

So unless you plan on constantly running heavily multi-threaded applications (video rendering, encoding and such), there is absolutely no reason to go with the AMD X6. Those extra cores have very little "real world" benefit. Keep in mind ALL of these benchmarks leave the i5 at it's stock speed of 2.66ghz. A little bit of overclocking and you can have that thing running at 3+ ghz. Speaking of multi-threaded applications, you might be wondering if gaming will make use of those extra cores. The answer is no.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpu...o-games-need/1

As this article points out, even the most modern games are basically maxing out their CPU use at 2 cores. This makes the extra cost premium of the AMD for gaming even more pointless. Save that money and put it towards a new monitor.

All it takes to turn the i5 into a monster that kills the AMD in every possible way is hitting the delete key when you boot up your PC, go into the bios menu, and change 1 number from 140 to 170 and you end up with your core i5 operating at 3.4ghz for free. That will further stomp the AMD into the ground. If you want more info on overclocking, feel free to ask me.

For a video card, I recommend waiting a couple of weeks. AMD is set to announce their new line-up on Oct. 12th. Their new mainstream card, the HD6770, is rumored to be faster than the nvidia GTX460 and launch at a similar price. While AMD may be lagging behind Intel in CPU power, they definitely have nvidia by the balls when it comes to video cards. Other than the GTX460 (nvidia's latest, and a true gem) this generation of AMD video cards have been just as fast, use less power, generate less heat, and cost less.

I would suspect the newest AMD cards will be available by November, but if you can't wait that long, go with the GTX 460.

So my final recommendations:

CPU: Intel Core i5-750

Mobo: Asus P7P55D Pro socket 1156

RAM: At least 4gb of DDR3 10666 rated memory. I prefer Corsair or G.Skill brand.

Video Card: Nvidia GTX460 1Gb OR wait for the Radeon 6770. Either way, you're gonna be able to totally max out this game at the resolution yous said you were playing at. You absolutely do NOT need SLI for 1280x1024 gaming. Total overkill.

Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W. A good PSU is important. This one has enough juice to power this system.

HDD: Whatever you need. 2Tb drives are pretty cheap these days.

SDD: If you want a solid state drive for loading Windows/games on, the Corsair C300 is the fastest one money can buy. You will -need- Windows 7 for TRIM support. I don't really see this as a worthwhile purchase, though. You'll shave a few seconds off your load times, but this thing could easily be the single most expensive item in your build, and unless you are constantly moving around huge files, it's not really a value driven purchase.

CPU Cooler: Coolermaster 212 Plus. You need the "plus" edition to fit on this motherboard. You COULD go for the Thermaltake Frio if you want better cooling and are prepared to spend a little bit more. This is only really necessary if you plan on doing lots of overclocking on your CPU though.

Case: HAF 932. The HAF 912 recommended by the poster before me is a good alternative, but if you're gonna have all this high end gear, you might as well put it in a bigger case with better cooling ability.

Finally, I would suggest getting a new monitor. If you're gonna get all this high end gear, get yourself a nice big 1920x1080 widescreen monitor and push that videocard to where it was meant to perform.

I've been using a Razer Deathadder for a couple of years now and it's really, really nice. It's comfortable, responsive, has two extra thumb buttons, and lots of customization options in the software.

IIRC, the GX2 is basically two GPUs on one card? The 9800GT will be slower than what you had, but more than enough to handle CoH. The 9800GT is a legendary card, and can still hold it's own, even today, years after it was released.

I liked SS a lot on my /shield and /fire, but lately I've been getting extremely annoyed at having to constantly stop for the rage crash. I'm currently leveling a Brute that has superb survivability, good AoE, and NEVER, EVER, EVER has to stop. Claws/WP. I'm looking forward to the "toggle and kill" playstyle. Claws is fast enough to keep it from getting boring and has enough AoE damage to make up for the lack of shield charge or burn/fiery embrace. Won't do quite as much damage, but it'll be a load of fun to play.

Yes it is. You can buy replacement coolers for your card that are not only quieter, but better at cooling as well. I like Arctic Cooling, personally.

http://www.arcticcooling.com/catalog...ath=2_&mID=101

Just from what I read it seems KM will shine in ST DPS. You'll be the guy picking out the biggest, meanest, baddest muthereffer and knocking him silly. For that, a Scrapper or Brute would do ya.

I love it (hate it) when people come into an X is better than Y thread and say "Well if it's being played by a good player I'll take it any day, blah blah." I'd rather get in the Ford Maverick being driven by a professional driver than an E class Mercedes being driven by a 16 year old straight outta driver's ed, but that's not the fracking point.

More to the point, Cold is better than FF in pretty much every way. Sleet adds toooons of mitigation. Enough that FFs better defense numbers mean nothing.

(yes I am aware how late to the thread I am )

My suggestion for a self-build.

Mobo: Gigabyte-P55M-UD2 ~$100
CPU: Intel Core I5-750 ~$190
Memory: 4GB DDR3 10666 ~ $90(everyone seems to have their favorite brand. I like Corsair and G.Skill)
Videocard: Nvidia GTX460 768mb ~$160
PSU: Something decent from Corsair or Antec ~$100
Case: (if you need one)HAF 932 ~$130 you can save all that money if you re-use what you have.
HDD: Largely based on what you need, but expect to spend anywhere between $60-$100

That should be able to play pretty much any game out there pretty dang well and it's a bit cheaper than your pre-builts. More fun to build, too! I'm assuming you can cannibalize your monitor, mouse, keyboard, optical drives, etc.

The 768mb version of the 460, as the name suggests, not only has less memory, it has lower memory bandwidth as well. On average it's 5-10 FPS slower than the 1gb version depending on what you're doing.

See this for a comprehensive review of the 460. Benchmarks include several GPUs, including the 1gb version. That should give you a good idea of the performance difference between them.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/gra...b-gpu-review/1

Anything in orenbega or the coal mine maps. Avoid those like the plague.

Gotta say Claws/. Awesome ST, great AoE, fun animations. Very fast and cool powerset for a brute.

Fast AE farming can get you 1500 tickets every 10 minutes. At that rate you can generate a TON of influence from gold, silver and bronze rolls, as well as influence from the defeats. You can make hundreds of millions of influence in just a couple of days from a little bit of playing.

Perfect for people who don't want to play the market for whatever reason and it also works out nicely if you do a little of both. Probably better over time than trying for purples, as well.

Marketing it probably faster than farming for influence earning if you know what you're doing.

I like your idea, Umbral, though without knowing how you tweaked the endurance use in the rest of your SS rebalance idea, it makes it sound impossible to sustain with current SS. I'd gladly take that over the current rage.

I'm at the point now that I'm willing to accept pretty much any change to this power so long as it doesn't bring me to a screeching halt every (what feels like) 5 seconds. UUUGGHHH

/rant.

So how would you all suggest altering Rage to make it more... fun? Personally I would remove the damage crash and replace it with a -recharge crash with the same duration. At least then I could still do something worthwhile with the powers I have available. At least then powers that I activate RIGHT at the moment rage is crashing would still be effective. At least then I wouldn't waste my delicious fiery embrace :0

I know, I know, you can see it flashing when it's gonna run out, but it's easy to miss it, and I'm sure anyone here who plays SS knows how often and easy it is to miss that thing.

First thread I clicked on.

I'm using a Gigabyte P55M UD2 with a Core I5-750. My memory is G. Skill 4GB DDR3 10666.

The board may look cheap, but it's actually very widely lauded as a monster overclocker and rock solid quality. I can tell you from experience that it is. I'm currently running my 750 @ 3.4ghz. It idles at in the 30s and gets up to the mid-high 50s when it's under load. If I was looking to spend more on cooling then I could push it even further.

If you're not interested in SLI and don't mind having a micro ATX board you can consider this option.

IMO hyper threading and the 1366 socket CPUs in general aren't worth the price premium unless you plan on spending a lot of time on heavily multi-threaded applications. Spend half as much, do a little overclocking, and get performance that beats the more expensive options.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpu...d-cpu-review/1

This review gives a ton of info on the range of CPUs you should be looking at. There's a page in the review detailing the qualities/value of hyper threading. As you can see, it does practically nothing for gaming.

The best videocard you can buy in terms of value/performance right now is the 1gb Nvidia GTX 460. It'll only set you back about $230 and at (I'm assuming 1680x1050) you'll be able to max out this game and most other PC games out there right now. If you buy the latest EVGA branded revision it will come with higher than standard clock rates (performance).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130570

Don't be fooled by the GTX465. It's totally different.

If you can't afford that, then the AMD 5770 should do you well. It'll lag some in zones with all the pretties turned on, but it runs like a champ (well above 60FPS if you don't have vsync on) when you're in missions.

You can use a program to map your controller to your keyboard and mouse, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was. Basically I hot keyed the common buttons like jump, targeting stuff, and the like to the buttons, and mapped the right analog stick on my 360 controller to control the mouse cursor. It worked, but it was a little slow. The hardest part was camera movement.

EDIT: Oh yeah! It was called Pinnacle Game Profiler.

If you're planning on a TF, team-friendly character, and you're choosing between blaster and corr, I'd go with corr. The secondaries bring so much more to the table than a blaster. As for which is better between AR and DP... well DP has cooler animations and a fun little gameplay mechanic. AR is a legacy set that has possibly the most boring animations ever conceived in a videogame.

IME, playing a DP makes you feel like you're always doing something. Jumping, flipping, shooting. Very dynamic. AR plants you down and basically has you stand there in a boring "shootin' mah gun" pose.

A /Rad corr would be a great choice for someone looking to maximize their contribution to TFs. The toggles you get along with LR make you an AV killing machine.

I've been wondering what the alpha slot was, or what it was supposed to do, as well. A ton of people were angry about it not being in I19, but as far as I know, pretty much no one had any idea what it's purpose was.

What is the incarnate system?

What do incarnate slots do?

Of course, the reason they delayed it was because they weren't satisfied with it. Maybe someone can tell us what is was, since we're not gonna see it anyway. :P

If mines are psuedo-pets then you will never get the proc to affect you. As for stacking, that proc can't stack as far as I know, and it has a global cooldown of 10 seconds. That means that it can't proc for you twice in the same ten second period. So assuming it can proc for you, and not on the psuedopet that the mine uses, you'll only ever get 1 to work on you.

I am not 100% sure of this, but it stands to reason that if they just took the utterly worthless brawl attacks out of the ranged henchmen, they wouldn't run up into melee anymore and get smoked. That would fix a lot of the AI stupidity that MMs have to deal with. Of course they may have tried this and it didn't work. I don't know, and neither does anyone else because they don't communicate these things with players.

The most annoying thing is when the bot shoots, runs into melee range to attack, but then get a ranged attack recharged by the time they get there, and start shooting again...

And we still never got a fix (AFAIK) to the Assault Bot fire swarm missiles that they broke when they changed burn. How many months of beta and they didn't find this? Hope they fix it soon...

EDIT: An easier (harder?) fix to going through every individual pet and changing their powers would be to come up with a command that orders your pets to not move under any circumstances, yet remain aggressive or defensive. They can call it hold ground or something. When ordered to attack, they will attack anything that comes in range, but won't leave their location to chase runners or use melee attacks.