Syra

Hmm, good points; guess you've kinda nailed it for me there.

I'll tinker with things, coming up with something I feel is decent, then post it again.

What NPC starts the second respec, anyway?

Alrightey, thanks for the advice so far guys. I'll tweak the build then post it up when it's done.

However, to address a couple of things:

Fitness. I know this isn't vital, per se, but I have a very proactive approach with my Mastermind in combat; namely as the Minions and other team members have tied the enemy up, and have their aggro, I'll be nipping in the back slapping down traps, caltrops....etc all over the place. This can quickly add up in terms of Endurance, heh. Another reason I took Fitness is the endurance cost when it comes to equipping and upgrading the Mercs; it adds up, and I hate slowing everyone down by running on empty half the time.

If anyone can suggest ways I could overcome this, that'd be hugely appreciated.

As for Seeker Drones....

Well, the original reason I took them was for a little extra assurance when it came to nullifying alpha strikes. Summon the Drones on top of the enemy, and not only do they get the aggro for a moment - giving everyone else time to launch a volley - but when they explode, they always seem to annihilate the mobs' chance of hitting anything with their counter-attacks.

This might just be me, however, so there's still plenty of time to convince me out of taking them. If I do get rid of them, I'll replace them with Acid Mortar going by the advice above.

Alright, as I'm rapidly approaching level 40, I've decided to arrange the second respec trial within the next few days. It's with that I'll be perfecting my build up to level 37 - my current level - as well as fleshing out those final few key moments. So here it is, my build:

---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.5.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name:
Level: 41
Archetype: Mastermind
Primary: Mercenaries
Secondary: Traps
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Soldiers

2. Damage(1)
3. Damage(3)
4. Damage(3)
5. Accuracy(5)
6. Accuracy(5)
7. Accuracy(7)

01) --> Web Grenade

2. Accuracy(1)
3. Accuracy(40)

02) --> Caltrops

2. Slow(2)
3. Slow(19)

04) --> Triage Beacon

2. Healing(4)

06) --> Equip Mercenary

2. Recharge Reduction(6)
3. Recharge Reduction(7)
4. Recharge Reduction(9)
5. End Reduction(9)

08) --> Hasten

2. Recharge Reduction(8)
3. Recharge Reduction(11)
4. Recharge Reduction(11)

10) --> Swift

2. Run Speed(10)

12) --> Spec Ops

2. To Hit DeBuff(12)
3. To Hit DeBuff(13)
4. Hold Duration(13)
5. Hold Duration(15)
6. Accuracy(15)
7. Accuracy(17)

14) --> Super Speed

2. Run Speed(14)

16) --> Force Field Generator

2. Defense Buff(16)
3. Defense Buff(17)
4. Defense Buff(19)

18) --> Hurdle

2. Jump(18)

20) --> Stamina

2. Endurance Modification(20)
3. Endurance Modification(21)
4. Endurance Modification(21)

22) --> Poison Trap

2. Hold Duration(22)
3. Hold Duration(23)
4. Hold Duration(23)
5. Slow(25)
6. Slow(25)
7. Slow(27)

24) --> Assault

2. End Reduction(24)

26) --> Commando

2. Damage(26)
3. Damage(27)
4. Damage(29)
5. Accuracy(29)
6. Accuracy(31)
7. Accuracy(31)

28) --> Seeker Drones

2. To Hit DeBuff(28)
3. To Hit DeBuff(34)
4. To Hit DeBuff(34)
5. Accuracy(36)
6. Accuracy(36)
7. Accuracy(36)

30) --> Tactics

2. To Hit Buff(30)
3. To Hit Buff(31)
4. To Hit Buff(34)
5. End Reduction(39)

32) --> Tactical Upgrade

2. Recharge Reduction(33)
3. Recharge Reduction(33)
4. End Reduction(33)

35) --> Trip Mine

2. Damage(35)
3. Damage(37)
4. Damage(37)
5. Accuracy(37)
6. Accuracy(39)
7. Accuracy(39)

38) --> Hover

2. Flight Speed(38)
3. Flight Speed(40)
4. Flight Speed(40)

---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint

2. Run Speed(1)

01) --> Brawl

2. Accuracy(1)

01) --> Supremacy

2. Empty Enhancement(1)

02) --> Rest

2. Recharge Reduction(2)

---------------------------------------------


A few comments:

I've skipped Acid Mortar because, in my experience, it wasn't worth the power selection and slots for my Mercs. The DefDeBuff isn't really noticed, as my Mercs hit all the time anyway, and the -res - while nice - isn't enhanceable, and I've done without it for this long.

I skipped Detonator because, to me, sacrificing sustainable damage for a quick burst isn't worth the loss of a unit, the activation time or the luck involved. If I was using Zombies or Robots, I would probably have taken this.

I've taken Hover because I needed something to get over the lack of vertical travel I have.

So....any comments or criticism?

[ QUOTE ]
Hmm.. not sure to agree totally with that.. I have to think a bit about how I'm going to use my traps in teamplay if I don't want to see the mobs in a corner and my traps in another

[/ QUOTE ]

I think she means is that there's a greater margin of error for Masterminds than other ATs. I mean, me for example; my original build was pretty much ignoring the secondary powerset - Traps - in favour of skills like Slug, Burst...etc.

While I didn't kill anything particuarly fast, I was still killing things quite well and my faceplant rate was relatively low.

By comparion, a Dominator or Brute who ignored their secondary would likely drop dead in seconds if they made a mistake.

[ QUOTE ]
I'll admit I've not been inside the casino, but if it's anything like the casino mission maps--wouldn't it be a bit dark?

[/ QUOTE ]

It's surprisingly well lit, and there's more than just a casino area; there's bars, dance floors...etc. It's big, but small enough so you can mingle and mix easily.

[ QUOTE ]
I'd suggest somewhere outdoors, and preferably not such a high-level zone.

[/ QUOTE ]

We could probably say that about almost any zone that isn't Port Oakes or Mercy Island though; given the design of St.Martial, a travel power would make it incredibly easy to get there. From the ferry, just travel East - over some water - and you're there. Might have to avoid a few Arachnos at the docks, but that's about it.

CoH players have the Galaxy Girl statue, but what do Villains have?

I realised this, and it only struck me after being there for about three hours.

The Golden Giza Casino in St.Martial!

It's spacious, there are bars, there's security, there's an escort company doing business, it's a casino of course and it's in the heart of one of Arachnos' more lucrative "business" districts. Sure, it's a little difficult for the pre-14 crowd to get to, but wouldn't be a problem with a little outside assistance.

Anyone have any other ideas?

o.o

Or are you all hidden away on the forum, refusing to come in-game?

This is probably just me, but I think I've seen maybe four Brutes running around in-game, and have only teamed with two in the past. Are Brutes really that unpopular? Or am I just not seeing them?

Just comes across a little odd to me; they seem pretty popular on the forums. o_O

Web Grenade: Meh....I just use it for a bit of added heat in a fight. Haven't slotted it.

Caltrops: Useful for slowing down runners or buying a little extra time when mobs are closing in on melee, but it does just fine with only two slots.

Triage Beacon: Awful. I plonk it down to make it look as if I'm actually doing something in combat, but that's about it. Slightly more useful than Slug though, I suppose. o.O

Acid Mortar: Removed this with the level 24 respec. Just didn't seem to have that big an impact on battles, despite it being slotted up. People sing it's praises though, so your mileage might vary.

Force Field Generator: Three slotted, you're looking at about a 20% bonus to DEF against almost everything. Incredibly useful I find, and doesn't seem to get attacked that often.

Poison Trap: I use it as crowd control and breathing space. Helpful against Elite Bosses and Heroes as well, because of the -regen. Six slotted this baby.

Seeker Drones: Once slotted with ToHit Debuffs and Accuracies, these'll ruin anyone's alpha strike. Love the little things.

Trip Mine: Beautiful, just...beautiful. Recharges quite rapidly - even more so with Hasten - and can lay the smackdown on even the toughest mofos.

Detonator: Didn't take this. Seems a bit pointless for a ranged powerset - AT - needing to go into melee for a short blast of damage.

[ QUOTE ]
Unlike everyone claimed, downing 96 vines and a tree wasn't really that hard.

[/ QUOTE ]

You had three level 28+ Masterminds. Of course it is going to be that hard. o.O

Congratulations either way; now look forward to doing the exact same thing for the next respec.

You're an utter nerd, sweety.

[ QUOTE ]
What Ravenswing and Gideon are to men playing women, Z is to women playing men. She can do it all!

[/ QUOTE ]

Saucy.

But anyway....is there anyone out there who objects to crossing gender and sexuality barriers in Roleplay? Would be nice to see the "other side" of this (As long as you're not of the "[censored], you're a [censored]/[censored]" crowd I saw so often in other games).

Yup, that old chestnut. Can't recall seeing it discussed here before, though, so here goes...

Basically, what's your view on Roleplaying a character that has a different gender/orientation to you? Personally, I could never play a male, let alone a straight one, without conforming to the "big, butch and so very manly" stereotype....although, to be honest, I might just go roll up a character like that anyway.

Discuss!

Thanks for the feedback, folks. It's nice to see critique beyond "YOU RAWK/SUX".

>.>

I'm quite glad there's little sympathy for the character, to be honest. While I do intend to reveal more of her backstory in the future, probably sooner than I expect actually, I want to have a go at making someone that isn't forced into what they're doing; that the villainy and acts of evil she commits are done so willingly and actually enjoyed.

While I consider her past and "fall" to be tragic to a certain degree, this is one character I don't want to end up as angsty once the surface of her personality is broken.

It should be noted that even the police don't like using the Drones; they have a lot of worries about them, and the "accidents" they've had are the exact reason the Drones haven't been deployed in a city-wide enviroment.

Also remember that from a Roleplay viewpoint, stats and the likes aren't "real"; as evidenced in CoV's Breakout level, the police drones are quite easily over-whelmed and destroyed under certain circumstances.

It's time travel, ffs.

Stop being such nerds or I'll smack you.

I work with the world personally, rather than trying to snip things out just because I don't like them (People who played "Villain" characters in CoH, for example....gah, I could have throttled them).

At the end of the day, people need to realise MMORPGs are still a long way from being able to have the freedom and depth of Pen and Paper Roleplay, so I think calling the concepts "half-baked" is a little unfair; especially when you need to consider that Roleplayers will never be in the majority, so of course other parts of the game are going to take priority.

On a similar note, and with all due respect, I think it's just people actively looking for something to complain about when it comes to a "static world". I don't ever recall MMORPGs having a multi-server world (i.e. A game with many different servers, and not just on a single one ala EvE) that remains adaptable to the actions of players. I'm not particuarly bothered with things such as Dr.V's defeat coming up in conversation; I just don't deal with it in "casual" settings, it's something that would merely be discussed with those I fought alongside.

You also need to factor in the logistics; you'd make entire streams of content redundant just because someone got to the AV before everyone else, and so on.

Finally, I'd hardly say Paragon city was a "police state"; given the attitude towards mutants and metahumans when it comes to a Hero license is the exact same one as "regular" humans, coupled with what NPCs say, it seems as if equality is pretty much accepted within Paragon City.

Now if you'll excuse me, I can feel the sleeping tablets taking effect.

Nobody has any feedback to give?

[ QUOTE ]
When I start playing CoV at all again (I haven't played it since about mid-November) I would like to look in on some of the RP 'events', groups, whatever happening in that server. At no point did I say I did not wish to do so. Currently, however, I'm actually levelling my highest level hero (who got no attention through the whole of I5) and I'd rather do that than play my neglected Stalker.

[/ QUOTE ]

Alright, I apologise. I'll PM you a more thorough apology, but for the time being I will remove my posts.

Sorry for hijacking the thread.

Post removed for excessive snarkiness.

Post removed for excessive snarkiness.

Post removed for excessive snarkiness.

Recently I was reading through a few of my stories I wrote during my time playing World of Warcraft; the first one, Chronicles of Blood was fairly "generic" in the way I told it; third person and I took a fair few liberties with the writing, as it was largely comprised of things that didn't happen in-game. However, my second piece - Confessions of a Lunatic - was written from a first person view. Finally, Twilight Requiem was a piece I wrote for a short story competition. I left the community before the results were given out, so I'm unsure how well it was taken by others.

I think the first one was much closer to my heart, but they were both relatively well received, even if Confessions was never finished and a couple of people got offended over the homosexual undertones present (But not the scenes of violence, go figure). Anyway, going back through them made me come over all nostalgic (Even if the damn things WERE written less than a few months ago), and I've felt the need to write again. This is where City of Villains comes in.

I haven't been able to Roleplay an awful lot in the game, but I have been able to scrabble enough material together for something - I hope - will be at least partly enjoyed by the people here. It's a similar style to Confessions, namely "journal" entries, and written from the view of my one and only character, Eressos.

It's short, I tend to write in short bursts more than anything, but any feedback and criticism - preferably constructive - would be enormously appreciated.

/edit - Just to clarify: I do intend to add additional pieces as time goes on, but due to the relatively small amount of established Roleplay on the Villain side, I'm unsure when I'll have material to work with again.

-------

I think it has been approximately a week or so since I was able to assert my true place in the world. It took me many, many years to even get near this level of satisfaction when I was registered within Paragon City as a Cape; but a mere seven days under my Lord's - admittedly indirect - command and I feel life has begun once again. While not officially welcomed into the ranks of His organisation, I am proving myself on a daily basis; whether this is by purifying his soldiers - survival of the fittest after all, and by no means am I setting his plans back - or by "merely" carrying out offensive operations against the likes of Longbow, I feel that something great awaits me in the future. Indeed, my limbs have been upgraded with some of the finest technology that can be mustered; no more am I forced to contend with cheap prosthetics.

For as long my Lord continues to provide that which restores and strengthens me, I will continue to be one of His "Destined".

My rise, or fall, to Infamy has not been entirely smooth. There was a nasty incident involving false accusations, an Arbiter and the Dead [censored] within her ivory tower, but it was quickly resolved. The whole affair was brushed over shortly after its climax, and I suppose I must get around to thanking the woman who assisted me during the ordeal. Her name is Augury, a pseudonym I believe, who appears to have quite a developed grip on psionics; I confess it's quite terrifying to see her launch into a frenzy, the very air around her becoming a buzzing anarchy as metal and flesh all around her is torn and bent to her whims. The sight of a forklift truck being plucked from sub-reality and hurled into a mass of Thorn "Defenders", or one of the Freakshow's "Tanks" being pulled into the air sharply and completely paralyzed is something that I will not be forgetting in a hurry.

With her power comes a deeper personality I've yet to uncover fully. On one hand, she appears quite callous when it comes to dealing with human life; terminating it with a disregard for any moral or ethical influences that might be involved, but - at the same time - I have seen her become increasingly defensive when the matter of that "Wretch" and his Dead [censored] arises. I believe the Dead [censored] was abusing the trust and faith Wretch had placed within her, twisting him into a shadow of his former self just so that she may have a puppet; when I raised this with "Augury", she became quite angered, demanding I withdraw my comment and tried to make me believe there is a genuine emotional connection between the two. I find that hard to take seriously, but I didn't push it any further.

While I'm on the subject of others I have met, I must confess I have become quite attached to the mercenaries under my command. While they are certainly not up to the same powerful standards as those Heroes I led back in Paragon - that just makes them significantly more appealing though, when I think about it - they are deeply loyal to me, and I am pleased with their performance in the field. While I would not give my life for them - as they would for me - they are something to be treasured in the coming months; my own, personal, degree of physical power is not that great and I will need them in order to defend myself. It is fortunate my particular line of work covers any benefits and rewards they desire; their needs are easily fulfilled, above and beyond what they might expect on occasion, and so there's no risk of them going turncoat. Yet. Sometimes I wish I had the mental capacity - or at least the contacts - to field an entire squadron of the combat androids I've seen strutting about, but then again they are a little too cold and impersonal, even for my tastes.

When all has been said and done, I am more than happy with my lot in my life. There are issues of course, but they are relatively minor ones in the grand scheme of things. In time, I hope to become officially accepted within the ranks of Arachnos. I am beginning to tire of the endless skirmishes I must endure with his errant troops, just so that I may rise above the label of "meat". It is most frustrating, and if I have to annihilate yet another Crab Soldier before the day is done, I shall be driven positively insane.

We will see where life takes me from here. Despite the Seer's warning of Recluse's inevitable victory not being "my own", I am not scared or frightened in any conceivable way. The man was quite mad anyway; it would not surprise me if he had been exposed to the Excelsior drug.

-E

[ QUOTE ]
If he'd done this for something else where people were killed, yes, that would be tasteless. This is just a lickle iffy

[/ QUOTE ]

Over forty people injured with at least two of them in critical condition.

Shall we all point and laugh at one of your family members when he or she gets hit by a truck, but isn't killed?

That's pretty tasteless, isn't it?