Rush_Bolt

Radiation, Dark Miasma, Trick Arrow and Traps Defenders exist to debuff foes. Controllers exist to control foes.

ALL AVs limit their full potential. And what do they do? They work around it. Why should Melee ATs not have to do so for one specific fight?


So it's perfectly fine to have squishies be dependent on Melee ATs, but Melee ATs should not be dependent on squishies?


[Snark] So you don't like anything that takes you out of the limelight? Anything that gives preference to other players is bad? [/Snark]

Now, I know you didn't say that, but that's honestly how it kinda reads.

Does in my book!

/i Fleeting Whisper

The new power set for the ATs is as follows:
Blasters - Dual Pistols
Brutes - Kinetic Melee
Controllers - Electric Control
Corruptors - Dual Pistols
Defenders - Dual Pistols
Dominators - Electric Control
Masterminds - Demon Summoning
Scrappers - Kinetic Melee
Stalkers - Kinetic Melee
Tankers - Kinetic Melee

Thus, all 10 base ATs will be getting a new power set.

EDIT: Just saw I had put Electric Melee as the new Dom set. Gah. Must've been half asleep.

My lying what?

Think on it like this: If those enemies can make it so that it even seems like your melee AT's self-protection powers are nonexistent, what is it like for the ATs that don't have those powers?


The thing is, I personally believe a player should always stop every now and then to ask themselves, "Do I need to change my tactics?" Generally this question gets brought up after a team wipe or something, but whatever.

But this entire thread has seemed like your assertion that, "Melee ATs should never have to change tactics." That since the question you should be asking yourself has often come up as "No," then it should always be "No."

And I think that's probably the worst possible way to look at and work with any AT, be they melee or not.

IMO, the more this game presents "Do I need to change my tactics?" situations, the better.

Yes.


Yes and no.
Ranged damage has an advantage over melee damage because it is ranged.
Melee damage has an advantage over ranged because it tends to:
A) Be stronger, single-target-wise
and
B) Come paired with another powerset that gives self protection


NO. I bolded the very, very, very, very relevant portions.

You keep dealing in absolutes. Stop it. As it is, your premises kinda go on a nice little slope of Not Wrong to Wrong.

If they stick to what their proposed launch date (July, 2010) is...

14 months =/= 1.5 years

No, they don't buff their allies' Perception.

But with the way shared aggro works in this game, when one NPC sees and starts attacking, they put out an "I'm fighting!" call to their spawn. This causes everyone else to respond.

You'll see gluts no matter when the new shiny comes out. Personally, I'd much rather have people get their "ZOMG new set must play!" cravings out of the way before Going Rogue hits.

At least this means Praetoria won't be completely full of Pistoleers and Demons... just Kineticists and Electrics.

But eet iz onlee wah-fair theen.

Because your observations are faulty and do not reflect the actual in-game experience of many other players?


I suspect you're just unwilling to change tactics. If I can solo the Vanguard content, with bosses, on a non-IOed, pre-Dwarf damage buff, Human/Dwarf biform Peacebringer, you can certainly solo it on any Tanker at the default difficulty.

Are Vanguard intended to be mean to melees? YES.
Are they "not meant to be played by melee ATs"? NO.

The $29.99 Pre-Purchase amount is baseline Going Rogue. You will have access to all the GR stuff.

Once GR goes Live, an add-on pack will be made available. It will contain a few costumes, emotes, and a bonus power. The price of this pack is unknown at present.

Once GR goes Live, a collector's edition physical box will also be made available to retailers. This costs $39.99 and will include the baseline GR, all the add-on pack items and a month of game time.


EDIT: This is why they made a point of calling it a "pre-purchase" instead of a "pre-order." If you bought the $29.99 item, you've bought GR. You don't need to buy anything else if you don't want to. At this point, you're just waiting for the Devs to put it all out the door.

1: The Going Rogue info that was presented at Hero Con 2009 that you love to refer to listed GR's scheduled release as the second quarter of 2010. Tomorrow, April 1, is the first day of the second quarter of 2010. They are right on schedule.

2: What setbacks? What delays?

I like how you left off "but the developers stated early on that if they finished it early, they would release it early."


Your tough question boils down to, "Why am I getting something I knew wasn't included, but paid for anyway, early?"

The simple answer is, "The Devs' work on Ultra Mode went faster than expected and they want to give it to ALL of their paying customers as soon as possible."



Because pre-purchasing only works with the "pre-" part.
Also, because it's good buzz in the news outlets who are oft very quick to overlook the reigning king in favor of the new upstart.
Also, because Marketing hates us.


A) This assumes there was no end game content in GR to begin with.
B) This assumes inclusion of the Incarnate System was always intended.

Would this be as much an issue if they had not included the first level of the Incarnate System in GR and instead saved it all for Issue 19?


Dual Pistols and Demon Summoning got split off because it's good PR and generates buzz about an aging game. Since the sets were done and ready to go, they went out to the masses to also serve as a "pre-order perk" thus saving the Devs from having to make completely new pre-order perks.

Ultra Mode got spun off because it's a new shiny that everyone's excited for and the Devs wanted to get it out ASAP. It wasn't integral to GR, so it went out early.


May I help you pack? On a less snarky note, it is. What the company does will always be aimed at making the company's bottom line look better. That's why companies exist.

Characters. Period.

Let me elaborate a little. When I build my teams, I state the following in the relevant channels: "level XX team: X spaces"

I don't ask for ATs. I don't ask for Powersets. I don't ask for anyone to even be in that level span (thank you SSK). I just ask that they join in and play.

The bolded word is the sticking point.

You're saying "everyone's equal."
We're saying "everyone can help."
These are not the same.

3/02/2010, according to Niv's announcement.

EDIT: Also, Ultra Mode's existence wasn't even mentioned in the 05/11/2009 Going Rogue promo email.

I seriously LOLed at this. I blame you for the funny looks I ended up getting.

Oh wow. Great thread, Hera. Would read again.

8 Fire/Ice Tanks? No problem.
Step 1: Make sure everyone has Maneuvers. Three-slotted, that gives everyone 28.4% DEF all. If everyone also has CJ (default slot with a DEF SO), that'll mean everyone has 31.4% DEF all.

Step 2: Make sure everyone has an Immobilize from the APPs. I chose Chillblain just because.

Step 3: Get some purple Insps for just in case. Yes, I said purple. I didn't say large, medium or small. Small's fine at just 12.5% DEF. That'll put you within spitting distance of the softcap which is more than enough considering you're backing it up with Fire's RES and healing.

Step 4: Spam Immob, Burn, attacks and heals as necessary. Chew on the purples as needed. A full tray (20) is more than enough.

Step 5: Break out the hotdogs. Win.


For Mind/Emps? Even easier.
Step 1: Maneuvers again. Notice a trend? 4.1% DEF each, so that's 32.8 DEF all.

Step 2: Fortitude the two players next to your name. Three-slotted Fort is 17.6% DEF. It recharges in 30s and lasts 120. Keeping it up on two others is easy and nets everyone another 35.2% DEF. That's 68% DEF all in total.

Step 3: Spam Confuse to approach.

Step 4: Once GW is confused, move in and hit the player below with Adrenaline Boost. Start chain firing Regen and Recov Auras.

Step 5: Spam Dominate and Levitate.

Step 6: Win.

My experience in running many STFs, LRSFs, LGTFs, and ITFs are that "adequate preparation" is "show up."
I have never had to stock up on Inspirations. A few teammates now and then have, but that consisted of going to a contact/Arena and grabbing what they have. If a few 50INF Insps will break your bank, you're doing something wrong.

I have never had to farm INF to buy said Inspirations. Nobody I have teamed with has had to either as by the high-game, everyone is practically swimming in money.


Perhaps you should run it in the way you want to run it?


Tools that help but are not needed are problems? I don't follow. Please explain?


Nor have I... since I never really needed them.


"Several toggles"? Several? Exactly how many "toggles with a minor offensive output" do you have on a single character? At most... A Spines/Dark would be 4? But you pull up Willpower and Shields as examples? When at most they have two?


You're in luck. They don't exist. The STF and LRSF which are both touted as some of the most difficult tasks in the game don't require them. Unless the new Incarnate stuff is a magnitude in difficulty greater, it won't either.


Or perhaps "most scrappers" are unwilling to compromise and take a backseat in one fight? Or that the demand for force multiplication is more prevalent thus giving the impression that scrappers are not wanted?


I and my teams must be doing it wrong then.


Min/Maxers will always do things they think necessary to achieve success, even if doing otherwise will still achieve success.

All these things you say aren't done? Have been done, can be done, will be done. Will it be as easy as if you min/maxed your team? No, but that's the point of min/maxing it.


No, it's not, not, not, not.


If you depend upon the min/maxers to run your teams, don't be surprised when they min/max it. Run your own.


Enhancements didn't drop in Issue 0? Huh... funny.


I'm at a loss for words as I'm not sure what you're saying here.

Are you saying you don't want something we're unlikely to get (the loot drops and various loot dispersion mechanics)? I just don't know.

Personally, I prefer picking up Web Grenade before Caltrops. In the early levels, plop Webnade on a shotgunner and you can just step back and have that foe be completely neutralized. 'Trops' longer recharge early on means it won't be used as often. Save it for post-SOs when you can drop its Rech to something better or respec into it later.


Not really. A decent team moving at anything approaching normal speed would be done and gone from Triage's range rather quickly. So it'll really only come into play when facing EBs, AVs or GMs. And generally a single 300% +Regen may not be all that hot. Stack 'em though and it'll be pretty nice.


Take, Slot, Love. Seekers are very, very, very, very good.
A) They'll absorb the alpha. Summon them up near the target, they take the hits and you can sweep in.
B) HUGE debuff. 26.6% -DMG. EACH. And 6.67% -ToHit. Again, each.
C) Decent chance to Stun. 25% chance. Each.


Yes, it'll work. Good soloing idea, but the set up time is more than what most teams would likely put up with.

They also said the game's had 6 paid expansions. It's pretty clear they're just using their own terminology.

"Staff use" is almost certainly a Staff melee power set.