ShoeTattoo
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Posts
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Joined
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Thank you for your feedback. Based on your observations about Stalagmites and Fissure, I changed Hover to Super Speed. Also, full invisibility can be quite helpful, which was another reason to swap. I also took your advice about Stone Prison, swapping it out for Stone Cages (and putting a full set of Trap of the Hunter into Stone Cages). Your points about the lost time in using Stalagmites are valid and relevant, but I like the added defense enough to tolerate the lost few seconds. I also swapped in another slow/range into quicksand, giving up a small recovery bonus to improve its casting range further.
I'm unconcerned about endurance. The buffs from Heat Loss are less than 15 seconds away from perma (at least in theory) when Hasten is active; also, Hasten is less than 10 seconds from being perma and I'll probably just put Hasten on auto-fire.
For added durability, Earthquake adds 14.5% "to hit" debuff to the mix, which even after "purple patch" reductions will nicely complement the defense totals that have been put together. Also, Earth's Embrace can be effectively perma with Hasten on auto-fire, and it should help to take the edge off burst damage that finds its way through. With full invisibility, I can go to the other side of spawns and have them engage Stony first, preserving my controller's green bar. Finally, status resistance is only 12.5%+, but that is still helpful. Overall, my sense is that this would be a reasonably durable build.
The new data chunk, after these changes ...
Code:| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build | |-------------------------------------------------------------------| |MxDz;1419;709;1418;HEX;| |78DAA593594F135114C7EF74A1D085B6D0B22FA52D52A8AD34EEFA60221425526CC| |4F0A492B11DE8C43A5367864413175C1E7D720197F8057CF24DD1AFE116F523B8EB| |8B4FF52C5320F1D149FBFFDD39F3BFE79CB9F74EE1E2A45F889543420A4D5465D35| |C98D035CBD0AB55C57017E425B5D43AAB1B564531B4D8A4B1AC963D4288D8A6A761| |CFE6657035EE06B7180E2F2F2E6627F46A7961523FAF6AB2A5EA5A785A838C8A666| |51B037F51872453AAA529A6E9A59BB99AA29483349C51E4B2629815B5E6635F555D| |AA586DF99A5ACACE59BAA62C1464D3528C4B5DD0DD28FC2F4BC2BEEA2E917708911| |38E29C61182EB28639A702EB0C5EE700AD12FBC4E42C44DE873319A0857203B17A8| |BBA555093334AF311E10DA1E113A1E331E12AA50C4C9B31CCE28859A4284AE08E12| |AA89B0D92FB191B9E3260D53D54B12E3C2981A138845A3824B5A429E465AC40D467| |77E7BB46F3FD2B8CEB84D61B8C9B84D02D8207F205EC1281790A69D070D06E38C80| |D87B8D304F78DE9C26C7086D76925DB9E13065E12C65E109A2177BBDD6B7B8C9A8C| |306A5022CA4F9C512E31C0B9335C29D329E18A87214327FB1C9DD1AD8B96643BBE5| |2B7BD83DDAF1D38A7E70DE32D61E81DE33DE102D4ED65BBE8E5654B78F00197E8FF| |C46FF19190FC40C0E51AB4D775F01B85623F18DF193F0943BF09895F04032AC5EDC| |6E27CA6127C98927CB44624C2181F2D13ECC374B8EAEEE1FB9461DB3DC65DC61DC2| |C81A6395F019E6A6EC22A99D141ADDC5D8CDD8C3FBB197F007BEF8B46D4F8F50687| |B8A31C6481332A384AF903D6BDBB3B3B4DC3B0A8C638C2221779CF005ECE3F65E8D| |F326E578CB72BC577DAE8DAF0D7E7089997F2245D7C62726248AF46F7AFEEB5AF73| |7F2B49CF0829E44298248F3383A85721A6FCFE048C6D1599412DED65F6DCC0EEEC3| |86F6A31C403988721B4D1EFCFA7C287E94004A2B4A102584D28ED281D283F204A5F| |E17F64B03D1| |-------------------------------------------------------------------|
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I went for broke in putting together an Earth / Cold / Stone build, ignoring the budget and aiming for good recharge and good defense totals. I'd be happy to receive feedback about probable influence / merit costs and about overall effectiveness for PvE team and solo play, mostly for TFs and cooperative missions.
Here's the data chunk that can be copied into Mids, for review ...
Code:Thank you in advance for any help provided.| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build | |-------------------------------------------------------------------| |MxDz;1419;708;1416;HEX;| |78DAA593C76E13511486EFB8C4718B4B7A71E234ECC4C4C4A2C3028914888883455| |0568035C4936484993133130904825096ACA8ABD096F00010780D9A8047A0C38695| |39E53A89C49291FD7F778EFF7BCEF12DF9F3E32121560E08253A56566DBB38661A8| |E6596CB9AE5CDAB8BFA7CC38C69394B9A6524C7AD65BDE4134224373C357B764205| |57EDAD6793E1E0F2C24276CC2C978AE3E659DD501DDD3462530664D40C275B1B840| |A262499D41D43B3ED00BDCC5634AD14A1E1B4A69634CB5ED22B41F695F5C525273E| |51D1E7B3B38E6968C5BC6A3B9A75A10DBA1B82EF2545C8A7EA11132E2172C235C93| |844F01C664C11CE8437D95D6E211222E0263479095D1E461DE12264E70255AFB22A| |3043FD03C64342FC11A1E531E309A10C45DC3CCBE56E5630541725B435112E837AD| |9A0789FB1E1290356DD4715ABC297A66C7D10F27348F167281460AC403428BB0B5E| |A1F9A115C65542C335C67542F406C107F9C2B244788E4206341C910D47B8E12877D| |ACF7D63BA181BDCB1355AC9F87342F74BC2F00B423DE46E94BD3626A9C92646054A| |34F32FEE662ED1CDB947B8D248AB822B1E830CADEC73B5A22FC58B9612035102FEA| |576B983EDAF5D38A7E30DE32DA1F71DE33DE11CD4ED64BBE8E465F34389842C91F8| |C4FFE22361E0030197AB47AE6BCF370A257F30BE337E127A7F13FA7F112CA8D4271| |BEBE333D5CF8769808F564A210CF3D1B2C13E4887ABEA1DBC4B19B6DC61DC66DC22| |A4EE33EE113EC3DCB42C92DE4EA1A11D8C9D8C5DBC1FBB097FE0C667A43D93A2D0D| |634639891218C0C11BE42F6ACB46767685BB6E51947180542EE28E10BD847E5428E| |F22EE6786B73BCB55D9EF5DB061F78C4F43F918267FD8A098522890DCF7F3D6BA15| |A1EFFB100E8719402883287A3132827F1F5148E541C9D4699C7D7EAABF5D9913DD8| |D05E947D28FB516EA2C987B72F88124209A334A04450A2288D282D281D28AB28D5B| |FDF0403B7| |-------------------------------------------------------------------|
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Quote:I'd agree with Tripp on this point.Originally Posted by Tripp Hazzard
Well, the OP did make it clear that people were logging out, not just DCing, and implied that they weren't going to return.
If your team leader drops you for a simple DC with no other good reason, well, you're probably better off that way.
A good leader won't kick someone without good reason.
I'll go a little further to back Tripp's idea; when a teammate leaves the game during a TF/SF, you don't always know if they disconnected or if they quit the task force. Having each teammate's status always visible for TFs/SFs would be helpful, even if just for that purpose. The ability to easily and conveniently adjust spawn size if several teammates log out, but don't quit the task force, would also be helpful and appreciated.
Incidentally, its true that what my teammate and I did for Posi doesn't rise to the level of escalating commitment. That's a term typically used to describe important stuff, and not an afternoon and part of an evening spent putzing around with Vahz, Clocks, and COT. What we did was rather silly, I believe, but it was a day off and I was determined to finish this particular Posi; I was determined to finish because I had a few other aborted attempts at Posi after teammates logged but didn't quit, and spawn sizes had remained large.
As a (last) plug for Weick's work, anybody who would like can read about the Mann Gulch fire, and Weick's analysis of the incident. Weick's work about firefighters has made him well known and the article for which I'm providing a link captures some of Weick's thinking through the re-telling and analysis of a memorable (and tragic, and true) story; even though the article is about deadly errors made by firefighters, it is likely to be a worthwhile read for anybody in the software business. If you like Weick's article and want to learn more about his thinking, you can read his classic book “Sensemaking in Organizations.” -
Quote:Wow, if you only knew the irony of quoting that article to me.Originally Posted by BackAlleyBrawler
Reminds me of an article I read this weekend about "Escalation of Commitment"
Quite a few people (Staw included, of course) have done fine empirical work documenting the escalation of commitment. It happens in *lots* of different settings. Nobody is immune, and those who think they are tend to be especially vulnerable to it.
If you'd like something more "meaty", pick up just about anything by Karl Weick concerning "sensemaking" or "enactment." And if you'd like a logical follow-up to Staw's article and Weick's work, you can read one of Jeffrey Pfeffer's articles about "Evidence-based management" (he has multiple articles that say much the same thing, so one is enough).
That's enough to kill your spare time for a little while. It would be time well spent, though.
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I believe Empire is correct that a clear majority of the population in COX doesn't necessarily enjoy PvP, and quite likely never will. Design is a big part of the reason, though, why the percentage who enjoy PvP in this game is as miniscule as it is.
First impressions count, and COX PvP was designed from the ground up to make a poor first impression. A *lot* of players are likely to get their first taste of PvP in COX by entering a PvP zone for a PvE reward. Then they get ganked because they have no idea what they're doing, and perhaps they also trash-talked.
Its kind of like having somebody suggest that you can find some cash laying about if you take a long walk down a dark alley filled with well armed gang members who you have zero chance of fighting back against and who'll jump you any chance they get. And that its supposed to be fun to do that. Of those who even go at all--and a lot of people won't bother, just as I never have--what percentage of those who go will like that dark alley afterward? Plus, once a player has decided to cut PvP zones out of their travels, because of the impression that its a "dark alley" or some equivalent, they're unlikely to re-visit that decision.
If the devs had wanted to make PvP popular, trying to induce PvE players to offer up their characters as bait to PvPers was probably not one of their better choices. The results of such efforts should have been obvious. -
I'm also a "no" on the OP's idea.
For over 99% of the playerbase, development time spent on PvP has less than zero value. I say "less than zero" because that development time could have been spent on activities that the PvE portion of this community might enjoy, instead of creating another virtually empty zone, as the OP suggests.
As an alternative to the OP's suggestion, which could easily lead to confusion and irritation for PvE players who have no desire to participate in PvP, I have two suggestions:
1. Put all "Fed Ex" missions to visit PvP contacts out as OPTIONAL missions, when they come up, instead of forcing them onto every single alt a player rolls, as they level up. Don't bother the 99% of the playerbase that has opted out of PvP with reminders about an activity that they have already, and very plainly, rejected.
2. Make all badges and temp awards awarded in PvP zones available through other means.
That would allow the 99+% of the playerbase who has no desire to participate in PvP to leave it entirely behind, with no losses whatsoever from refusing to participate.
Bribing people with badges and temp powers to enter PvP zones with their PvE characters, so that they would end up offering their PvE characters as "bait" for PvPers, was never a good idea. It probably solidified the dislike of PvP for *many* players, instead of motivating them to freely participate in it. -
The simplest solution (although not cheap) would be to purchase the following IOs:
Pet Defense: Buy two +5% defense IOs (one in the Pet Damage: Edict of the Master set, and one in the Recharge Intensive Pets: Call to Arms set)
Pet Resistances: the two +10% resistance (except for psi) IOs (one in the Pet Damage: Sovereign Right set, the other in the Recharge Intensive Pets: Expedient Reinforcement set).
With the defense from Shadow Fall / Steamy Mist and the defense IOs, plus all that -to hit, plus boosted resists, and any damage reduction you get from Darkest Night, you'll notice a big difference in zombie survivability. You can also get maneuvers (and tactics, why not? ) to further boost your minions' toughness, if you like.
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http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=119929
The buffs to /psi make it a better single target set, and a better set from level 1 to 37. Still, there's a lot of good information in this guide. -
Quote:I also like Tripp's alternative better. Not only would it probably be easier to implement, its probably also easier for players to use.Originally Posted by Tripp Hazzard
Possible alternative that might be a little simpler to implement:
Team members who disconnect/log off don't drop from the team window. Their name just changes to indicate they are offline.
Leader can then still kick them if desired/needed.
/signed -
Today I ran a 10 hour, 20 minute Posi task force. I would say it was successful, but it was soooooooo slow that I'm not certain it was. The success (ie: finishing it) was really a matter of being extremely stubborn, mixed together with an initial misunderstanding about how spawns are set and poor luck in PUG teammates.
We began with a full team for Posi in the morning. Four teammates quit fairly soon into the task force, for different reasons. Two who left were fairly skilled, but they eventually gave up because of problems caused by our two unskilled soloists. The two soloists also eventually logged out. But, ... some or perhaps all of those who logged out didn't quit the task force first.
For a while we were down to four of us. Still, having the two soloists leave was so helpful that the larger spawn size couldn't prevent us from progressing more quickly than before. Missions went quite smoothly with the four of us, even if a bit slowly overall because of the oversized spawns. We continued that way for a while, until two of the four remaining players needed to leave.
For the last several hours, there were two of us; my ice/fire blaster and a new person playing a claws / super reflexes scrapper. He seemed like an experienced gamer, but brand new to COH. His build was that of a newer player (no stamina), although he had a good eye for picking a balance of offense and defense in his powers. He had either no enhancements at all, or very few. He did, thankfully, have practiced brawler. Even more helpful, he was willing to listen.
And so, we worked our way through the last several missions one oversized spawn at a time; 2 bosses, 3 lieutenants, and many minions were the norm. There were also, of course, special spawns with other combinations. The good news is that my partner went from level 11 to 21 during the task force, and I made it from 15 to 22. The bad news is, well, you read the threat title already.
QOL suggestion ...
If the devs would put a 'Task Force Members splashscreen into the GUI, usable for task forces, so that team leaders could access the list whether somebody was online or offline, and kick whoever had left, it would *really* be a nice QOL feature for task forces. -
/k charactername works. Thank you very much!
As a QOL improvement, TF leaders should be able to review who is on a TF/SF and kick whoever, whenever. Until we can do that, I'm writing down teammate names for each longer TF that I do (especially Posi). -
Thank you.
Can the TF leader kick those who have logged out, and aren't coming back? -
Is it sufficient for everybody on a Posi TF to log out of the game for 5 minutes to reset the spawn size for a smaller number of teammates?
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Thanks for your responses.
I'll go ahead and level then.
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If you talk to Karsis in the right level range (12-15) and then proceed to level up to 16, do you lose access to the Caverns of Transcendence Trial?
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I've played human-only from level 1 to the current level 38 on my human-only warshade, over 90% of the journey has been solo, and its been fun. I've also taken a tri-form shade to 50, so I have some hands-on experience at sorting out the difference between leveling up tri-form and leveling up human-only.
The difficulties of leveling up a human only warshade have been exaggerated. It may have been very difficult many issues in the past. But, it isn't anymore. -
My own necro/traps is quite young (only level 21 so far), so I can give only some suggestions.
First, slot your Lich for -to hit debuffs; the defense totals for your minions that you can set up, even with the 2 defense procs and maneuvers, won't be near the defense softcap. You'll need to hit debuffs to make your pets durable for longer fights against tough opponents. Second, even if you slot the Lich for to hit debuffs you'll probably have some degree of difficulty with EBs, AVs, and GMs that have PbAOEs (and to a lesser degree anything else that resists to hit debuffs). Zenflower, Woodsman, and a few other predictably difficult Heroes / AVs for MMs will still be difficult for you.
Third, seeker drones are a *really* valuable addition to your arsenal, as a necro/traps. You can reduce incoming damage more than the listed 40% by using seekers (when mobs are mezzed and the seekers' "to hit" debuffs cause mobs to whiff). Slot them up for accuracy, recharge, and to hit debuffs to get the most out of them.
Finally, everything other than "big fish" who are known for being difficult for MMs will probably be fodder. And, you'll get more use out of detonator than any other kind of /traps MM can. Making the Lich go "boom" and then using Soul Extraction should be good fun, and very effective.
Hopefully these random thoughts prove helpful. -
I really like that costume. Well done. The backstory fits nicely, as well.
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I have Wizard of Shadows back on Protector now, and I have no other khelds on Champion (and none on Freedom).
It was fun, and my thanks to AO for organizing this.
I think I need to go beat up some Cimerorans with another character, to exact some vengeance for the spanking my shade repeatedly received from their defense-cleaving swords.
PS: If we set a day and time, and the scheduling deities work out, I'd be happy to attend another all-kheld session. Hopefully I'll have hit at least 39 by then (WoS is very close now) so that eclipse spends more time up than down. -
Quote:This has also been my experience.Originally Posted by Scene_EU
try not to have pets pre-cast before entering missions, I've found this more often than not fixes the problem.
The odds of having pets go wild and run around seems to go waaaayyyy up after bringing pets that were summoned outside a mission, into a mission. At least, that's been my experience.
When I see the pets going buggy, I dismiss and re-summon. -
Slotting a lot of acc is a waste of time. Slotting a little (a third enhancement on a set IO that enhances three attributes) goes a long way, because of the high base value, toward helping to hit things with high defense totals. And, you give up practically nothing in other enhancement values to get it. It also acts as insurance for those odd occasions when both aim and build up are down, when you'd like to use your nuke.
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I've transferred over "Wizard of Shadows" to the Champion server. He's level 38 now, and with his first slot in Eclipse. I also went ahead and put the enhancers needed for the next couple of levels into storage at the market, so enhancing after leveling up will be simple and quick.
What time shall we meet tomorrow, for our first meeting? -
/traps would be very effective for controllers.
Illusion / traps would be thematic, and the thought of superior invisibility + trip mine / time bomb, and perma-PA, plus the -regen in poison trap, makes me wonder what an illusion / traps *wouldn't* be able to solo in the game. -
Quote:Even if you accept that there's no one best way to slot, 3 dam / 3 recharge is not optimal. That slotting might be a good choice for an SO build, but even that is debatable.Originally Posted by Mr_Connery
3 damage, 3 recharge, no questions asked.
You can, at least, frankenslot to get *more* enhancement value from 5 slots with recharge / damage set IOs than you can ever do with SOs or vanilla IOs. You can also add in a little more ACC and you can even, in some cases, slot for the secondary effect. -
I've used the fire nuke and the electric nuke extensively on teams. Both nukes are a lot of fun to use, but I find the electric nuke more useful than the fire nuke.
The fire nuke does more damage, on paper. But, both nukes kill minions and lieutenants, when teammates are contributing, and both nukes leave bosses injured and seriously angry at my blaster. And, there's no "extra dead" (or extra crispy) state for minions and lieutenants; they're dead or they're not, and "overkill" damage is wasted damage.
In my experience, the extra damage from inferno doesn't make much of a practical difference on teams, while the ability to use thunderous blast from range is sometimes helpful. Plus, the ability to frankenslot the electric nuke for endurance drain (which I do), when paired with a follow-up blue inspiration and short circuit or power sink, gives the electric blaster a better chance of surviving attempts at retribution by mobs not defeated by the nuke.