SilverAgeFan

ooh ooh, another question, can we make objects that spawn critters? Think the updated "box of gears" heroside that you need to attack and destroy. It keeps spitting out lil' guys that attack you. And if we can do this, can we customize what which destructable object model is used, the name of the object and what it spawns--even if it is a custom critter?

(There are also several different portal models that do this throughout the game already...)

Edit: Already getting corny ideas for a dumpster that spits out hydra minions...

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* On the critter creator: can we apply nifty back items like Goldbricker jetpacks and Malta gear to our custom critters?

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That one was answered earlier in the thread- custom critters (... cursed childhood habits, I keep wanting to write that 'kustom kritters') are made with exactly the same pieces as player characters.

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Thanks for answering. Having trouble keeping up with this flood of information...

...I wonder if this means an extended palette of back details is on the to do list at this point? *ponder*

A few questions:

* On the critter creator: can we apply nifty back items like Goldbricker jetpacks and Malta gear to our custom critters?

* Patrols? Can we do this? And if so can we adjust how many spawns will become patrols. i.e. there is a Striga map filled only with Council Mech Men and a majority of them are on patrol. Meanwhile, on most maps with patrols, it usually seems to be only two or three spawns roaming. And can we set Patrol dialogue?

* Ice maps? Will there be a way to use, unlock or purchase any wintery maps, i.e. the Snaptooth holiday map.

* Compound maps? One Faultline mission takes us through the sewers and continues on an exterior instance in Faultline. Will we have the ability to string together maps like this with interior doors? Is there a plan or hope for this feature in the future if it doesn't currently exist?

* New maps? Any new maps or tile sets coming with this issue specifically for telling new and unique stories? i.e. something to fill a few holes in what is available--like a generic jungle, desert or arctic map with the option to have either an Arachnos Flyer or Longbow Helicopter as the door in and out of the map? (thinking about this for storytelling: i.e. "You've tracked Jungle Scorpion Evildude to his layer in the Panamanian jungle. We've chartered a special flight with Longbow to get you there. Hurry before he escapes!" or an arc that could begin with an innocent jungle recon mission, sort of like something out of the Predator movies...)

And a bit of feedback:

Getting more and more excited about this reading Pohsyb's comments here.

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Just returned to playing after a three month recess. Was struck by how often I had to /sync. At least half a dozen times in about 2.5 hours of play.

Prior to that, I'd used the /sync command a total of three times.

Late entry, but here's an alternative sketch for you. cheers.

Bon voyage, Lighthouse. And safe travels.

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...Weatherman has to be a job.

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Already an achievement badge. Outcast bosses...

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must have for costume parts:

culinary day job that unlocks at the very least a small suite of chef's hats.

no brainer additions due to existing locations and classic comic fare:

construction or iron workers (construction sites)
dockworkers (docks)

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Dev's --- PLEASE PLEASE while you are working this out, please do not forget to tag these auras for SG mode color settings. Often, the other special costume pieces available at level one including shoulder capes and angel and demon wings default to SG colors when in SG mode. Most of the time, until you unlock capes and have a costume with a cape, you cannot correct this and can get forced to play with a miscolored back piece. I'd hate to see the same happen for these special auras.

This must mean that through the mission creator, they have found a way to finally include back details for costumes, full power customization, blue layer cake caves for bases and dual dueling pistol-fu for scrappers.

And I must say Positron, it's about time. My gaming experience has suffered severely due to lack of these features!

In all seriousness, g'luck team with the i13 pre-beta crunch. See you on the other side!

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/Poison is also a set that makes Corruptors cry with their sheer number of ST debuffs. With just Evenom and Weaken alone, you're able to neuter an AV's EVERYTHING. A */Poison MM? YES PLEASE! Against AV's, I would argue that /Poison is just as good as a /Rad. Especially on a team.

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For about two months on Triumph there was a /poison MM that was regularly leading very successful Cap SF's. She'd get very excited when I brought my bots/poison along considering that we both had a res at that level and the nasty debuffs. I recall running a number of :50 to 1:10 SF's on teams of 8 with her with this combo. The fastest in the world? No. But I sure had fun, got some great recipes (including two celerity +stealths that were <25) and learned how to lead this particular SF.

Also, for time sake with this combo, we'd often just steamroll Infernal and then take Batz. Saved us time instead of monkeying around with the "pull Batz dance."

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Another point counter to the OP: What if you want to run the Speed Cap at level 20? You don't have an Oportal to fill up on inspirations and you don't have 20 inspiration slots. The OP's Speed Cap is heavily dependent on inspirations to power your way through... that's not helpful for someone who's not 25 yet.

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One thing that is helpful though: my level 21 fire/fire dom with grant invisibility. I've yet to run a speedie Cap with her that hasn't been completed in less than 55 minutes. Lately, 45 minutes is the average time PuG Cap SF for her.

Using grant invis to permit all team members to hunt for goals on glowie maps makes a time difference. Getting the full team to run up to the computer on the longbow map to fight backwards while one lone member of the team searches for the tech also really helps the time. Holding Batz and/or Infernal still allowing everyone else to focus all their limited malefactored endurance on offense makes that final battle rush by much more quickly. Invis'ing a Mastermind new to the SF and all his or her henchmen? Suddenly they become an extremely valuable asset on most missions as long as they are mindful about toggling their henchmen from assault to follow quickly and back again.

But you know what helps the most regarding keeping any SF or even just a PuG mission team flowing smoothly? Flexibility, improvisation, creativity, intelligence and a willingness to communicate with and listen to all the players on your team. Plan A starts to crumble? Then roll into a feasible Plan B. This style of play also has the uncanny ability of turning a recipe farm you can sleepwalk through into a fun challenging hour of play. I'm sure I'm not alone in preferring the latter over the prior. And besides, the one thing I've seen sink a Cap SF's time more quickly than anything else is stubbornness on the part of a player that refuses to adapt their strategies to the situation at hand.

Short of it: I agree with several other critiques of this guide as shortsighted and restrictively narrow. But I'm appreciating the anecdotes of creative strategies that break the Cap SF stereotype of Brute/Stalker/Corruptor. All good things to keep in mind next time I'm running the SF with a useless MM.

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Chew on that for a while. We've announced player created missions. What do you think we might be working on that we didn't feel comfortable announcing yet?

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Without turning this into a discussion about the competition, but taking some cues from touted features elsewhere:

* Archnemesis and rogues gallery systems.
* Weaponized environments.
* Full power customization.
* Character stance setting. i.e. beastly, heroic, lurking run and attack animations
* A system for vehicles
* War wall removal and graphic revamp of older city zones

additional frequently requested features and systems:
* Animal and beastly animation sets for new enemy types and future MM pets
* A proper revamp of bases so they can live up to the promise of The Sims meets the CoH character creator with fun PvP at the other end
* Underwater and low to zero gravity playspaces
* Global location maps similar to Cimemora that add a truly extended feel to where we can go. Who doesn't want to duke it out amongst the girders of the Eiffel Tower?
* Specific classes of costume items including robes, dresses, high collars, back items and animated hair.
* More Epic Archetypes
* Powersets galore including some really challenges such as Growth as a defensive set. (I'm working from the assumption that shields are a given for i13.)

And one more just from me:
* Audio costuming: footsteps, grunts and falling sound effects can be selected from a list of options to give each of our characters an even more unique sense of being.

Maybe I'm missing a few major systems and asset intensive features, but that seems to be it for BIG items off the top of my head. And frankly, I'd be tickled to get any of the above (except for more epic archetypes to be honest!) in the next three issues.

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If you've really blown through every bit of content this game has to offer, on both sides, in 7 months...I think I can safely say you can forget about us ever being able to keep your appetite for new content sated.

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I sometimes wonder if I'm in the minority of those who read and post on the forums. Since about i11, I've actually felt a bit overwhelmed by the amount of content I still have not seen in game. Between alting and a herky-jerky real life schedule that constantly oscillates between allowing serious to nil gaming time, I'd estimate that I've only seen about 35-50% of the existing content the game has to offer. And I've been playing since the first month of release and have subscribed enough over the years to be coming up on my 39 month badge! Mind you some of the content I've seen many times over, but I still enjoy much of that.

Anyways, I see an intersection between these thoughts and the "You're Wrong" article and thread in the general forum...

Most fun thing to do with a Bubbler:

Go to the hollows to the rim of the sink hole, switch force bubble on and begin a troll and outcast launching session. Continue this session till insupressable giggling subsides.

Just make sure you do this during off hours when you least risk throwing baddies into some poor lowbies lap. They will fly for nearly a quarter mile in some cases.

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Anything can be made Flashback, but the "completed" star checks for A) Souvenir clue or B) the Badge. If we did missions that were not Story Arcs and not Badged, then they would never show complete.

That said, I have no problem doing this if you guys don't. Just let me know what missions you want on Ouroboros and I will do my best to get them there.

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As a rule of thumb, I would like to be able flashback to any mission with custom map graphics, EB or AV encounters, or temporary power rewards.

Partially because these are usually some of the cooler missions in game, partially because they are more theme appropriate for certain characters or supergroup team-up events, and partially because with a faster leveling curve a few of these gems will now be easier to miss!

I'd like to enjoy the new accelerated curve without stressing about ever missing anything cool like this and also with the full knowledge if the dev team ever does any future mission customization passes, I'll be able to go back with whatever character to see the cool new details and get screenshots of my 'toons in these fun, unique environments.

Thanks!

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Hmm. I just realized that Statesman's assurance that we'd be getting Street Fighting likely no longer holds any water.

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Yeah, but you should see the "Fisticuffs" powerset in MUO! ZOMG its teh sweetest!

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There are 19 positions that were just announced.

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Teasing out and consolidating those positions:

World Designer
Win PC Tech/Admin
VFX Artist
UI Artist
Technical Artist
Systems Designer
Software Engineer
Server Engineer
Powers Designer
Office Manager
Mission Designer
Jr. Software Engineer
Game Engineer
Environment Artist
Concept/2d Artist
Concept Artist
Character Artist
Animator

From the flavor of that list, looks like either:

a) The team will finally be getting a boost to resources to do some of those long put off "too resource intensive" features that we've requested and many on the dev team have acknowledged they would love to see implemented.

b) They are gearing up for pre-alpha work on a proper expansion or third City of game.

c) More new or revamped zones in the upcoming free issues. Perhaps I11 will become a model for each issue for 2008, with zone content and two new power sets being the bulk of free issue content?

The position that intrigues me most is the list: Technical Artist. Looks like they will be working on some new backend tools--perhaps content generation and editing tools that will really streamline some aspects of issue development so more time can actually be spent on the quality of the content itself?

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Oh, oh wait, i'm sorry..... I admit it the REVAMPED rikti zone is an addition. sort of. With more of that new RAID content as a focal point.

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Oh, those four new arcs in there are a figment of my imagination? Not to mention the repeatable missions? Not to mentiont he arcs in Faultline?

Shame on them for actually making *completely unutilized* zones useful! They should jsut add more and more, ignoring the completely dead zones!

Get serious. It's not PVP stuff. Not even 1/3 PVP, no matter how much you want to *whine* about it.

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And you had better not mention the new TF in Issue 11 that requires a team of 1 to start... because that is definitely, most definitely NOT soloable, high level PvE content. It's yet more catering to the loot, PvP, lowbie altaholic crew.

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I don't think anything will get rid of my fear of the game going the way of SWG or Matrix Online. I suspect this will be NCSoft's true test to see if they can keep the game the way it has been or make it better. Making it better obviously is pure win. But even if they kept the status quo, I wouldn't complain.

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Time.

Many of us have some degree of trepidation. Anyone who has been disappointed when their favorite __________ (fill in the blank: restaurant, bookstore, comic book title, movie franchise) has come under new ______________ (fill in the blank: management, writers, director and studio) knows that sometimes these changes are clouded by capitalistic motives and hinder good judgement on the part of the new stewards.

Only time and a track record from today forward will asuage those nagging doubts, no matter how small they may be.

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All PS3 have HDDs and can use a keyboard and mouse out the box.

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I thought those were BluRays... which are better media IMO anyways.

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I personally think Cryptic shot themselves in the foot with this one.

I mean, with CoX 2 possible coming down the pipe, a movie(maybe), and other things planned. Why would I play MUO? The only thing that would push me to play MUO is because they created CoX, breaking that bond was not a good move.

But I am Extremely pleased that CoX2 is on the table.

TA

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Whether MUO or CoX2--a superhero/villain MMO game that assumed as a baseline that all players had physics acceleration and built that into the core gameplay would have me at hello. The one thing that has long been missing in CoX for me is the "holding up the collapsing bridge" or "wrestling the spiraling out of control plane to the ground" or "saving the baby from the precariously tetering car atop a cliff." Truthfully, the only way to ever execute these narrative turns in gripping and challenging gameplay (i.e. some non-glowie manner) requires a fairly robust physics engine at the game's core.

Likewise, PvP that was less about punching and blasting the boogers out of each other and more about one group trying to sabotage X (using the games robust physics) while another group tries to prevent said sabotage opens up exciting new venues and strategies of direct and indirect engagement. THAT might really turn me on to some sort of PvP play!

CoX2, should it include this, may just be for me!

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We are here to field any questions you may have about this wonderful news.

Ex

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One last burning question:

In this deal, who ends up with the rights to Soon(tm)?

Edit: First post before and after a red name. That's a big sign that I should get back to work.

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The players should be seeing more resources and development for the title they love and support.

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When should we start seeing this? Is this something we'll notice right away or is this a soon(tm) kind of deal? Thanks!

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Considering the whole team signed on, that only helps the sooner than later because we don't have to find replacements for any of the core members.

We will be in transition while we settle in the new offices, so I'm not sure when we will be seeing the noticeable difference but I imagine within 6 months you will be seeing some great results.

Ex

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Big question not yet seen asked: will this physical transition and settling in delay the release of Issue 11 in any way? Or are you all anticipating the big shift to occur between I11 and I12?

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You know, I really don't understand this whole "free month" thing. The first month isn't free, it's $49.99. Without being able to play online that disc you bought is just an expensive coaster.

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It's also a great tool for chopping herbs. And not bad for playing catch with. And it quadruples as a mirror when you've forgotten your compact.

When was the last time you saw a device that could do all that? By my estimates, you've paid only $3.99 per tool. Absolutely worth it. On top of that, if you acted now(TM): they included two--and for a very limited time only(TM): four. Four of those incredible devices for the price of one!

I don't feel ripped off one bit.