Rodion

Agreed. Any buff to defenders needs to be in conjunction with a team. They could stand to have their damage increased a bit, but the defender inherent needs to be made useful. Right now it will never come into play when a defender is doing her job.

The "Vigilance" inherent should be taken literally: defenders should not be falling asleep on the job. One way of doing this would be to give a defender a mez protection/resistance buff for each team member, similar to Khelds getting mez resistance for each controller or dominator on the team. Or they could build up a "Vigilance" power similar to Domination that provides two minutes of mez pro/res and end reduction when clicked, and is charged by the Defender primary powers (something like Domination and Defiance).

The latter would be more useful in general, but I'd be happy enough with the former.

Yeah, I can see why this would be a problem. Unless one of the kins was Earth/Kin, you're going to have some trouble hitting Roman shields. I've found that a broad variety of controller and defender sets usually steamrolls mobs the fastest.

As mentioned, the timing on Fulcrum Shifts can be tricky if the mobs aren't debuffed. My dream team would include a Kin and then some Earth, Trick Arrow, Storm, Rad or Dark thrown in there. Earth/Storm can be particularly nasty, with some fairly extreme defense debuffing, and pretty decent to-hit and damage resist debuffing.

Your questions prompted me to write an arc that had been bouncing around in my head in a style that assumes nothing about the character's motivations and offers the player no stage directions. The actions merely happen as we watch.

Check out Arc ID: 300114, "The Coming of the Morlocks."

Edit the character you want to delete from the group. Go to the last screen of the custom character creator and set the character's group to some other name.

I usually put my characters in a group called "Overflow" which is never used by any of my missions.

Of course, you can still fight +5 enemies and get the experience that you got before. It's just that the highest-level players on the team will be fighting +4 enemies instead of steamrollling even-cons.

As others have said, this won't stop PLing: the devs are also adding features that will actually help farmers and PLers (the ability to select your team size and apparently some new difficulty options that haven't been announced yet). It'll just make it a lot more interesting.

The real problem is that experienced players don't need that learning step, but they still have to "suffer" through the first 20 levels.

Here's an idea: give a player's sub-20 characters an XP buff that's equal to the sum of the total number of levels of all the characters on the account (or server, if account is too hard). Limit it to, say, 200% (double what you get from double XP weekend).

If you have 4 level 50s or 8 level 25s you'd cap your lowbie XP buff.

Actually, it's easy to say. They put a huge portion of their development staff to work on the Marvel/Microsoft project and were running CoH in "maintenance mode."

Cryptic was essentially selling the same software to two different publishers. Doesn't that seem like a conflict of interest? Then the way the whole thing played out after the Marvel/Microsoft contract cancellation was announced -- it seemed like a week later the Champions deal was announced.

I don't know any details, but Cryptic's business dealings seem . . . off.

They are telling us stuff that they either know will make the cut and be released, or are willing to take the heat on if they change their minds about it. If players leak stuff that the devs are just trying out, they don't want to constantly fight PR battles with disappointed players in the forums.

Additionally, there are questions of competition as well. The less other companies know about your internal status, the better. Sneaking your employees into another company's closed beta is ethically questionable and potentially actionable in court. Reading leaks posted by closed beta participants on the internet is research.

Ultimately, the closed beta is based on an honor system: if you ain't got no honor, you shouldn't be in the system.

The kinds of players who are most useful in the closed beta are those who will organize with other players to exhaustively test various subsystems, spending a lot of time and effort to find bugs and then cogently report them. It's really quite tedious and painful being a tester.

Most of us don't want to do that. We just want a sneak peak at the new features. We're not interested in running the new TF 15 or 20 times, or running through the costume creator 500 times to check out how trench coats clip with the new belts and bottoms, or assembling a team 42 different ways based on all combinations of mission holder level, auto-SK levels, auto-exemp levels, mission levels, etc.

Not that I'm in the closed beta -- I'm not. But that's just the sort of help that seems most useful for software developers to have: a bunch of trained monkeys to wring out the infinite number of ways to break things.

That's my impression as well.

However, you can test that proposition by writing some AE missions and then running your scrapper against those same EBs. Then you can run your villains against the Praetorians to check that out as well.

Unexpected empty missions usually have to do with running the mission with a character whose level doesn't match any of the provided level ranges for the selected enemy group.

One way to fix this is to find the highest level range for the enemy group (Family has 45-50, I think), and force the minimum level for the mission to be the lower end of the group's level range.

This will still happen, albeit at a slightly slower pace. Lower level characters make their levels more quickly, so if you're the lowest level character you'll still be leveling faster than everyone else and will eventually catch up.

The only XP table I can find on the net is from 2004, but it shows the number of even-con minions required to level. This number generally increases with level. My supposition is that this relationship still holds despite the recent XP buffs. Which means that you'll need even fewer yellow minions to level than anyone higher level than you. Which means you'll catch up.

Does anyone know where a current XP/level table is so I can validate that assumption?

When you do level 50 content in Ouroboros you remain level 50. So if you want to do some of the level 50 content again there's no penalty at all, except you can't take someone along who's less than level 45.

Guys, you can already get a jetpack to fly around with at level 5. Just go to Kings Row and do three radio missions, and the Atlas Park safeguard mission. Of course, you'll probably be level 7 by then...

Yeah, this is how it works. I've seen it happen.

When you ding you get a some of the benefits of being that level before you talk to the trainer. Your exemplar gets the powers of the new level as soon as you ding. Note that your exemplar doesn't ever lose certain things like inspiration slots or salvage slots. When you ding, you get the level-based advantages of to-hit, extra damage and hit points.

You don't get the power/slots, inspiration slots, market slots, salvage slots, "official" security level (which means you can't get into restricted zones), etc., until you level with the trainer.

When you level up they tell what the extra benefits are going to be.

I'd recommend the Bronze reward roll for tickets in AE. For 60-75 tickets you get a random uncommon recipe. A lot of these can be sold on the market for millions, and a lot of them you'll be able to use yourself -- if not for the current character, then maybe one of your alts. A lot you'll have to throw out.

The thing about the market is that you have to have patience. I don't intentionally do any market flipping, but I get pretty much anything I want by putting in a reasonable bid and waiting. Sometimes I have to increase the bid, or bid on the same item over three or four levels and then cancel the others when I get it. When I happen to get an extra one, I post it for what I paid plus 10%. I usually double my money.

You don't want to bid too much, and you don't want to bid too little. That's why waiting is key. It lets you get a feeling for the actual going price for things.

Of couse, I don't "want" purples or the really rare things like Numinas and LotG: +Recharge. As long as you're just looking to kit out your character with decent (not too flashy) IO sets, this strategy works and is sustainable for all your characters.

The problem with base raids is that you're inviting someone into your house to trash all your stuff. Not something I'd want to do after spending millions of prestige adding stuff to my base.

If they eliminate that aspect of base raids I'd be fine with them. But base raids are only one aspect of PvP.

PvP in AE-like missions (I'd have them be accessed via the arena, which already has the appropriate interface) would have very wide-reaching consequences. It could be the basis of an online version of tabletop RPGs. In addition to having both herores and villains in the game, the person who sets up the event could be the gamemaster, and could control the PvE NPCs like a mastermind. It would also be cool to allow any number of players into these missions.

This would allow RP groups to do almost any kind of story-telling mission, and do things like hold weddings or other events for their whole supergroup.

As far as the PvP rules go -- the way the devs talk it seems they don't consider PvP to be "done." They seem to acknowledge its problems, but if you think about it, there's an inherent tension between the way PvE and PvP should work.

In PvE you want the fights to be short and one-sided in favor of the players, with an occasional boss who makes things interesting. That just doesn't work for PvP. So they've tried to make things more even and drawn out, and that has its own problems.

I think the problem with PvP is that the perceived consequences of failure are too great. Getting defeated doesn't really cost you anything but time and the inconvenience of getting rezzed. People also don't like getting ganked in two seconds. That's not how it works in the comics when heroes fight the big-name villains: it's always a long knock-down-drag-out. I think that's the flavor the devs want to capture, and it's very hard to balance that with the PvE style.

We should think of PvP more as a basketball game or wrestling match, rather than a gladiatorial combat to the death. The arena tries to go for that.

Finally, defeats in PvP should give you experience and influence, just like PvE. Just how much is up in the air. It should be on par with or a little less than what you'd get doing regular missions, as you wouldn't be getting any debt. That way PvP players can level up doing what they want to do, rather than doing things they're not interested in. And you might consider giving a small amount of XP (no influence) for getting defeated -- we all learn from our mistakes.

That would also be another bit of encouragement for PvE players to try it out -- at least they're getting something.

a. I can certainly agree with. And it should work with AE as well.

b. You can already mutiny by quitting the team. The only time this isn't a very good option is during a TF/SF. I think better solutions would be

• The system passes the star automatically if the leader is AFK for more than five minutes.
  
• Promote self button: clicking this brings up a yes/no dialog with a one-minute timer on the leader's screen saying, "Lord Mayhem has requested to become team leader. Do you wish to promote Lord Mayhem to leader?" If the leader clicks No nothing happens. If the dialog times out you become leader.

There's no need for a complex voting system, or other restrictions. If players abuse the button the leader can just kick them.

They'll be bannable, but I doubt it will significantly reduce their numbers. My guess is that they're using accounts paid for by stolen credit cards, which means they don't care if they're banned.

But these changes will democratize the whole leveling process to a certain extent. People with two or three accounts won't be able to use perma-46s to level characters any faster than players with single accounts playing with friends. Which means RMTers will lose an important advantage.

This along with the ability to set team sizes will encourage players to run regular missions instead of AE, which will increase the supply of salvage and purple recipes. The removal of exploitative influence rewards from AE should also ease inflation on the market.

This Super Sidekick/Exemp feature is another step in the long road to eliminating the importance of levels in the game.

It started with the SK system, continued with GMs, the Rikti and Zombie invasions, and AE. The next logical step was Super Sidekick.

Following that train of thought, the logical answer to Exemplaring down is to allow the character to retain all powers, albeit with reduced enhancement values, damage, etc., as for the target level.

Yes, it makes a hash of the whole exemping conceit, especially when applied to Ouroboros. For that reason the best compromise is to retain the current exemp system for Ouroboros TFs (where the conceit is that you're going back to a previous you) and PvP zones (where there's a question of fairness), and allow power retention in all other content.

The downside of power retention is that lower-level content can be easily steamrolled with the large variety of powers that higher level characters possess. One solution would be for exemped characters to earn XP at a sliding rate based on the level difference. This could also be controlled by a "Tie One Hand Behind Your Back" option. When exemped you can choose to either earn reduced XP and retain all powers, or lose your powers and gain full XP.

Super Sidekick is a great change to the game. In a single stroke one of the greatest inconveniences and the most exploitative abuses have been eliminated.

It's helpful because you don't have to worry about SKs and Mentors and levels anymore. You just invite whoever you want, to whatever mission you have, and everyone gets XP. It's a drastic simplification.

It actually slows PLers down because they can't play the level difference games with SKs anymore.

Aren't the signature TFs automatically set to the max level? I remember running Positron with two friends at level 10. We walked into the first mission and saw a bunch of purple level 15 zombies. "Well, let's go make a few levels first," I said. And we all left.

At level 34 I'd be slotting IO sets. For melee attacks something like five-slotted Crushing Impact (level 30s) can give you 57% accuracy, 95% damage, 39% recharge and 39% endurance reduction. That's almost like slotting seven enhancements in five slots. It also gives you a global 7% accuracy buff and a 5% recharge buff.

If you don't have the cash for CI, something like Focused Smite is cheap and gives 57% acc, 81% damage, 39% end reduction and 57% recharge. Its bonuses are pretty mediocre, however.

If you're worried about efficiency you should be using IOs, especially if you want to avoid having to get Stamina. There are a lot of IO sets that give recovery and endurance buffs -- you should check those out.

Because of ED you won't need to replace IO sets at higher levels unless you want different bonuses, or to eke out that last few percentage points on end red or recharge.

You should also pick up the Atlas Medallion if you don't already have it -- it's an extra 5% end that only takes a couple of hours of running around to get. Less if you happened to have done the Striga missions for vampires and warwolves.

This is such a common misconception. All defenders do not buff. In fact, most defenders do not primarily buff.

Trick Arrow has no buffs, and one of the biggest area holds in the game. Storm Summoning has one heal, one buff and seven debuffs/attacks, two of which are pets. Dark Miasma is similar to Storm Summoning, but is almost a controller set with its hold, fear, immobilize and pet. It has a rez that doubles as stun. Radiation Emission has a few buffs, but the rest are debuffs or damage or hold powers.

Really, the only defender buff set is Empathy. The rest of the defender sets have the majority of their powers in the debuff, combination buff/debuff or attack categories.

This idea that defenders should buff and do nothing else is misguided. If you want to be on a team that totally steamrolls the opposition get a Trick Arrow and Rad defender. You don't need buffing or healing when all your enemies are dead, or held, or can't move, or can't hit you, or are bouncing up and down on fire, or do no damage when they do hit.

This misapprehension about the role of defenders is why so many people are hesitant to play them. They think a defender stands around spamming Healing Aura and yelling "Gather for AM!"

A good defender uses all her powers to defend team mates. Just about any set can be used for this -- you don't even need a heal or a buff. If a Force Field defender sees a controller stunned and getting clobbered by a Freakshow LT, she uses Force Bolt to knock it away. The Storm/Electrical would use Tesla Cage to hold the freak. The /Psychic Blast defender would use Telekinetic Blast or Will Domination or Scramble Thoughts. The /Energy defender would use Power Push or any of the other blasts, and odds are one of them will knock the Freak back or at least draw his attention.

There are lots of ways to defend your team, not just passively standing around buffing and healing the other players. The protective mindset is what makes a defender a good defender. That's what makes any team mate a good team mate -- they've got your back and help you out when you're in trouble. The worst players are those that concentrate solely on getting the enemy and ignore what's happening around them.

Tanks, controllers and blasters should be thinking the same way as defenders. The only exception is scrappers. By the time most scrappers get over to help an ally in trouble, some ranged character or the tanker's taunt will have dealt with the problem.

Finally, it's critical that a defender knows how defend herself. This is why all defenders should be able to solo and do decent damage. On a team, you should want your team mate to be able to do more damage to defend themselves and, incidentally, contribute more to the team.

The defender primaries have some of the coolest powers. There's only so many different ways to hit or blast something. But the profusion of fun and interesting effects in the defender primaries are what attract me to them.

There's talk of Dual Pistols being a new set in Going Rogue. You might wait a bit and see what announcements come out about that.