StyrofoamKing

I'm a new player that has (already) made three AE stories... and while they're hardly perfect, I'm quite proud of each of them.

The flaw is, I STILL want to make more missions, as I enjoy the process so very much. I suppose I could just make them on local and merely test them, but I'm not sure what to do next:

1. Wait to see if on is "promoted" to a choice arc, freeing up a slot (given the number of missions out there, not too likely.)

2. Delete one from the "published" side, and add one of my new ones.

3. Unpublish one of the stories to promote a new one. All of my stories have been played 1-2 times, but that's it. If you unpublish, what are the consequences? Is the worst that happens is that I "lose my stars"? Or is there a major penalty for republishing the same story over and over?

Thoughts?

Hey, a question real quick... I wanted to have a custom villain working WITH Arachnos, but have her own Henchmen. Are there Arachnos armor pieces available in the custom character set? If not, what pieces have people found to be closest?

(Before you say, "just add the standard Arachnos units into the custom group", I intend to do that, but I don't want the custom guys to stand out too much from the Arachnos in the same group.)

A small compromise is to make a custom group, and add 1 or 2 pre-existing baddies into it, when appropriate. For example, when making a group of custom Barbarian/Vandals, I stuck 2 Circle of Thorns lieutenants as 'druids'. I picked the ones that were green, so they fit the color scheme.

Well, perhaps they had the names in their description, but the scroll bar just said 'scientists'... I didn't even think to look at their description until after the mission debriefing.

Hiroshima: Well, I agree with the 'no enemy' in the final level. It really works in afterthought, so the initial reaction is the only jarring part. If you were fighting baddies from the get go and hitting the bomb killed them all, the reaction would be a joyous one. Because there are only civilians at the moment, it's more tragic when it finally goes. Again, the only three suggestions I have for the end are:

1. Really BIG battle on the airstrip... partially for tension, and also so the player has a big bang before the... well, big bang. Also, if you squeeze all of the fight out of 'em, a run through the empty streets will be a welcome relief.

2. Add a timer to mission 4. If the clock is ticking, they'll have less time to observe the innocent bystanders, but at least it gives the urgency "We must trigger it now or never!"

3. Merely warn the player in the mission briefing. "The Japanese defenses are occupied elsewhere, so there should be no interference. All you need to do-" etc. If they know there won't be a fight, they're less likely to be startled by the empty streets.

I tried out Destroyer of Worlds, and had a blast playing it. (If you still want me to review a newer one of yours, I'd be delighted... you write a great mission.)

Mission 1: A dynamic way to start off the arc, and a fantastic choice of mission map. It was hard to prevent the Indiana Jones theme music from sweeping into my head as my Tank tip-toed around the U-Boat dock. Not to mention that I had to laugh out loud at the great character name, Schadenfraude.

I particularly like the clues you added to each of the 'secret weapons'. I was expecting over the top 'comic book' weapons, but the use of realistic plans from the Axis grounded the story some... a foreshadowing of the "reality" that was to come later. Also, the Yellow Cake was a great segway to the next section.

Mission 2: Again, the mix of real life history with the fancficul sci fi was an intersting touch. Personally, I wouldn't mind actually have the Scientists named after Oppenheimer and another scientist (I don't know... Fermi?) rather than just scientist 1 & 2. Also, I generally found the level a tad easy (not a normal reaction), so I easily think that a boss or an ambush linked to the meteorite wouldn't be out of the question.

Mission 3: The return of Schadenfraude (just like she promised). The use of Arachnos coptors as an american airfield is not quite ideal, but I know what we have to work with, so good job none the less. As with mission 3, I felt it a little easy. Perhaps have a second version of Schaden (same model as last time, but stronger power set?) A time limit might also work, but I've never tested with a 'failable' mission 3/4 through an arc... I'm assuming it lets you retry if you fail, no?

Mission 4: A clever and unconventional level, that sends the arc way into the drama category. After playing, I really enjoyed the bittersweet feeling of it, but my initial reaction when going in was to look around for baddies. Finding known lead to initial confusion... I don't know if a line about that in the briefing would help clear it up, but it was unexpected at first. The only flaw is that the lack of "action" made it slightly anticlimatic... nothing against a wonderfully written story, but we're just naturally trained as story readers to expect the big action at the end. I suppose you could add a timer to the last mission ("detonate it within X time"), but I like the fact that was the hero is running around, they stumble upon the very citizens that are about to die. Rather than ruin the final mission, I recommend that you up the Baddy from Mission 3, thus giving a final, teeth-clenching battle. This way, their hearts are racing with the falling climax of 3, and 4 is almost a tragic epilogue.

As you can probably tell, I gave it a 5! Marvy work!

No, that is absolutely fair. I didn't realize until after I posted the first time that I was hijacking your personal thread, and I apologize.

I'm itching to try one of your WWII threads mentioned in the "Golden Age" thread... I love a classic story! Unless, of course, you have a newer one you want opinions on.

And of course, I don't ask for a 5 star rating... constructive feedback is the best I could hope for.

Didn't think so, but I thought I'd ask. Danke!

I've noticed several enemy groups armed with crossbows... is there a way to give them to custom enemies? I can't seem to find it in the power sets.

Ah. My apologies.

That being said, my offer is to anyone... PoliceWoman, as detailed and constructive as her reviews are, is only one person. I am extending a similar offer to anyone, whether it is policewoman or not. As I'm sure you have guessed, I'm a bit wet behind the ears, but that doesn't mean that I don't enjoy a good story, nor am unable to recognize a good one when I see it.

Again, if a player would prefer to have me test theirs first before they test mine, I am completely willing and trusting.

Not sure exactly how this thread works, but I'd love to play anyone's mission (especially if they can give me feedback on mine ^_^ )

Here's a quick Description, to see if anyone's interested.

'Save the Villain'- Comedy - Hero or Villain - Short - The dangerous-in-his-own-mind villain Lord Kill Them All has built an army of robot minions to take over the city... only to have them go haywire and take him hostage. Rescue the inept lord, and his two henchmen on the way. Custom Robot Villains.

"Shadow of the Red Death" - Pulp/30s - Hero - Short - A gritty Golden Age story. Can you save the District Attorney and his family from the untouchable mobster, Don Prospero? All the while, be careful to avoid the deadly avenger, the Red Death! Family Villians w/ Custom Bosses.

"Betrayal in Rome" - Roman/Barbarian - Villain - Very Long - A three part/story mission, involving you double-crossing the roman guard even as Rome is sacked around you. (Inspired by a new Super Villain Group I joined, with a Roman theme.) Custom 'Vandal' Villians in Mission 1 & 2, with Cimareon villians in Mission 3.

(I'm a little new, so if any of these repeat, I apologize)

~Access to the 'Hellion' Fire enemy. I'd love to have a 'Fire Fighting' mission. (Or, include an 'ambush' of fire, triggered with a collection item, and you have a fire bomb!)

~A optional "Ghost Mode" when testing a level. I don't know if this would work like a stalker or make you completely invisible/intangible, but sometimes it's a pain fighting every single minion in the level, when all you want to do sometimes is see the layout of where stuff spawns.

~The ability to attack henchmen groups around Collection items, just like you can with Destructible (that may be harder, I understand.)

~A way to make Destructibles 'fade in' (like collectables) or simple be able to turn off the glow for Destructs & Collections... personally, I like adding them in for visual flavor, when destroying them has absolutely nothing to do with the mission.

One of mine, too, 'Shadow of the Red Death' (see ID# below). It's a gritty 30s pulp starring my own Pulp Hero, the Red Death (kinda the Shadow & Batman in one.)

Enemy is the Family, with a few custom bosses. Not too long, I'm afraid.