Turgenev

Just sayin'.

But if it does, look me up on Freedom. For a place so damned by everyone else, you REALLY should see it yourself to see if it's true, eh?

Master badges don't discriminate. Players who go for Master badges discriminate. On Freedom, we run regular "Master" runs where the only requisite is that you know your stuff.

Drama popcorn aside, I'm wondering if this is related to his making comments on players using the "Player Notes" function (which is generally terrific, and how I keep track of saints and sinner on Freedom). However, there's a mechanical issue where if the name of the person has two words in it, and the first word matches that of another previously noted player, then it'll lump them in because of the similarity.

For instance, if I one-star "Lady Death" as a furry freak who convulses during every fight, and I meet someone called "Lady" who's a completely different player account, then "Lady" gets tacked on to "Lady Death"'s playernote.

Overly serious social paladins notwithstanding, you might be the victim of a bug. Still, normal people listen to both sides. Your being blocked might be better for you than for him in that regard.

Ah.

Well, you're welcome to be unhappy then. Thanks for explaining, it didn't make sense until you spelled it out.

Did no one download my demofile showing how pylons work to mitigate Hami aggro? =/ You people, I swear. I give, and I give, and I give....

*raises hand* Me.

Although there is a loss of suspense because I know where all the mobs in the dark are now.

But that goes away quickly.

I'm not understanding your POV even after you sorta explained it. Give an example? The only restriction on the previous "Master" formats (pre-Apex/Tin Mage) is that there are no deaths, and no temporary/veteran powers are permitted. There's no other requirement. All your core abilities (primary, secondary, pool powers, epic/ancillaries) remain in effect.

(I mean, I get ticked off that I lose my vet power "Reveal", but woo, big freakin' deal. It's not like I don't have the maps memorized by now!)

Heya Abbadon, and welcome to COH.

1. Leveling has come pretty fast over the years. Back in the days of the dinosaurs, there used to be "leveling gaps" where you outleveled the content gated for your level, and you'd be forced to redo content or hunt public targets to get over the edge. Since about four years ago, they've significantly improved the leveling slope to be smoother, with little risk of finishing your content before you've outleveled it - if anything, Dumple was right in that it's arguably TOO fast sometimes, where you'll end up missing story arcs on your quest of regular teaming.

However, there are plenty of stops in place to help you. Ouroboros is a "flashback" system where you can re-run previous content (in a time-travel story format). You can also disable XP earning if you're getting it too fast (because you're outleveling your wife... but you can level pact with her.. more on that later). One thing about the learning curve the Devs took over the years is that, seven years later, it led them here - a really competent system of gameplay and leveling structure that the dedicated community helped them to navigate.

2. As mentioned earlier, the game's generally not "loot" based; you're not doing the "Kill the Butcher of Azurewrath" instance 500 times on the off chance you'll get your Cloudsong Sword of a Thousand Truths. This game is more about the journey. The rare "loot" is typically in the form of recipes, which is dropped at random from certain classes of enemies. No one enemy is more likely to have the drop than another, so you're not stuck in a rut if you're jonesing for that special something you think you need.

Instances are capably done; a lot of in-game action has migrated to instances for quality control, vs the older format "open zone" combat scenarios of the original Hamidon raid, etc. The open zone scenarios now are more orchestrated and gated via time, so even if things get ridiculously laggy, it won't be that way for long. XD Instanced missions are solid and well built, with the newer content being several orders of magnitude improved over the originals (and in some cases, the older content has been rewritten to refresh and improve the experience - case in point, the Positron Task Force).

Inventions are where this system really comes into play, but it's not "required" like other MMO formats where reliance on the loot is a requisite to participation. In fact, out of all my many 50s, I only have one who's actually "slotted" with Inventions sets - everyone else just uses the common variant, which is more than good enough for my needs. It's less about you having that extra 3% of theoretical damage than it is you having 100% of the will and skill to play that toon.

The most recent breed of this is the "Incarnate" system, which I've found to be pretty well developed and paced for the "endgame" build scenario. For the first time, you're taking you're lvl 50 hero into uncharted territories of skill and ability that's being unveiled to you slowly over the coming months. The pace is terrific; it encourages teaming but doesn't require it, and the gaps it fills are noticeable but not overwhelmingly so. The method really does add a sense of evolution for my toons that have been level capped for over half a decade, so I'm pleased as punch. What's old is new and AWESOME again. A surprising thing to say for an MMO built in 2004!

Some additional points:

Make your own choices based on experience. There are certain personalities who'll steer you away from XYZ server based on their personal impression - which isn't yours. I'd recommend, as you enjoy the trial, to try out all the servers people love AND hate, and see for yourself. I'm a Freedom native, and for over half a decade we were the busiest server, but where you have more players, you have more troublemakers as well as more saints. (But no one talks about the saints. )

I dig a few other servers - Champion's a favorite of mine for personalities, and Infinity has some nice people that've come to Freedom for fights - but I'll be damned if I let haters color your viewpoint without offering commentary from the opposing side.

Ultimately, this game is about being a hero (or villain). That's one thing that everyone here loves, and it's the best reason to stay. So dive in, check out the various communities, and let us know how much you dig it after you buy your first annual subscription.

If you need anything, feel free to PM me here or look me up in game. I'll give you a tour around Freedom and intro you to some of the people who make it mighty, or point you in the right direction for some of the other servers out there.

But above all, cheers, and be excellent.

If we make this a focus, I think this is easily done. I've managed to save the whole PPD crew by dropping PA or Flash into the midst and redirecting the aggro, then healing the leftover PPD. The initial blast is the hardest part cuz you have to scramble around that corner to do it, but KEEPING them alive is harder with the subsequent ambushes and Walker hits. Still, I've had a few fights this week where 3 or 4 Awakened mobs were hanging around after the mish complete...

At least with Dr. Advance and Ms. Shock, they'd basically need a dedicated healer working them out. Their combat behavior is odd though; beyond the initial Champions blast, they're kinda ignored (and ignore the other mobs), except for the swords. I'll have to watch closer, but I DO remember Dr. Advance strutting past Battle Maiden with no cross-aggro...

1. Nice thread necro. You get a badge for that.

2. Leandro did some homework on the drop rates. The higher the rank, the higher the drop rate. His tests last month came to Minions at a drop ratio of 1:1100 or so, to the Hamidon-class AV where the drop rate was like 1:6. I tend to agree with this estimate, I have a better drop rate when doing lvl 50 TFs that have more EBs and AVs than the regular runs (say, the LGTF, vs the Ruladak TF).

Okay, go with it.

Wait, there are badges for that?

(goes to look for an old one to bump)

Silly newbie. Freedom doesn't read.

(This is figuratively true. Honest to Betsy, we're too busy playing to do forum stuff.)

Normally, I'll say "welcome, be sure to check out the various global channels, and start teaming with public crews to find out who you like before you join a SG", but you've already done all that. So what I WILL say is, "about time, get in the game, don't screw up, see you on the field".

Cheers, an' have fun.

Certainly takes the edge off, doesn't it?

Anyway, I stand ready to assist, just let me know.