Virt13

I've recently got back into the game after a very long abscence for most of my characters, so I am dusting off some of the older ones. One of them I used to play alot is an AR/Dev blaster which is sitting at level 32.

Things are way different now than when I last played this character( which was pre ED and pre CoV, really, though I did play villains for a while when COV came out) I've respecced to a more updated spec but I've not been very impressed. Maybe I am spoiled a bit by playing mostly melee based characters, but I do not recall blasters being quite so squishy.

In any case, I've been interested in an ice blaster for a long time so I am wondering, how much difference is there between the survivability of a AR/Dev blaster and an ice/ice blaster?
I've also noticed how I am not too happy with the 'set up' time Devices requires, setting up a trip mine or two, laying out caltrops, pulling, etc.

I'm leaning towards ice because it seems much more controller is and you can control the flow much more reactively than having to set up before hand and hope for the best.

So I guess my question is how big of a difference is there in survivability between these two and how different is the playstyle? How safe do you feel as a ice blaster and is it very controller-ish?

Would it be bad RP if the person who takes sloth starts a leveling pact but doesnt really log in till his buddy hits 50??
Or asks for powerlevling all the time then puts you on auto follow and " goes to make a sandwich" ALOT?

I've been enjoying BS/Shield alot, but if you've narrowed it down to regen and WP, id favor WP

Ok, so I am a long time follower of the game but have had to cancel subscription a few times for numerous reasons. Recently I returned after a long absence and have experienced the new Mission Architect stuff, which I beleive is revolutionary and certainly innovative to MMO's.

Luckily for me, I am one of those players that likes to be superinformed about stuff, so I read threads about AT's/builds before I start one, etc. I like to be knowledgeable about what I am doing.

However, I have yet to experience anything IN_GAME that would tell me whether I am doing something wrong or not when it comes to AE content and farming. Most players never touch the forums, so I am wondering what the criteria is for farming/banning??

FOr example, I'd been leveling a scrapper and had gotten a bit bored of the usual mission/questing so I decided to try out some of the lowbie AE content. I found an arc that once you rescue an ally, they cast Accelerate Metanolism on you. For a low level character, this is a huge benefit, especially for a scrapper that has longer recharge times like mine does ( BS/SD ). This arc, while semi-boring, definitely upped the pace of lowbie leveling. by having an ally that buffs and helps a bit.

So, i enjoyed this arc because it's helping me tolerate some of those painful dull early levels where half of your time is spent smacking someone with a single slotted brawl... I enjoyed it so much that I played it several times.

Now I finally get to my question: is this farming? Is it any worse than farming a sewer mission over and over? And is this the sort of thing that will get you banned?

I didn't find anything blatantly wrong with the arc, there was always the risk of me dying if I pulled to many, etc. ( low risk, but still a risk). It was just much more convenient that lowbie leveling normally is. Is that wrong?

Some one asked what playstyle I prefer. Well, I DO like stealthy classes alot, but I dont like who fragile they can be in some games. I like to be proactive in combat, but I do not like to micro manage stuff like toggles, etc. I tried a Mastermind up to 20 or 21 about a year ago. It was ok, but the constant attention to some things kind of made it get old for me.

I like pretty fast & active combat, and now on second thought, Stalker may not be for me. I always tend towards the stealth classes, but running off to hide andreturn to assassinate again would probably get old for me.

Sounds like brute would probably be more my speed. I have played one up to around 10 or so, but this was a while back.

I do like AoE alot, but not if you cant handle the attention you get from it. My brute is Energy/Energy, is there a more suitable one that is tough but can still AoE a bit? Back when I chose it, there werent as many powerset choices as there are now.

I'm a very casual play returning from a long break. I'd like to give melee a try on the villain side. I've been trying out some different toons, but there are so many choices now that I can't seem to settle on one

What I would like is a toon that is solo friendly, and would also be ok in groups ( mostly solo, I rarely have time for a TF ). I'd prefer if it were also somewhat desired by groups rather on the opposite end of the spectrum, if you get what I mean. I like both play styles of scrapper and brute, but I have never played either past the mid teens, so I have no idea what to expect long term.

Also, suggestions for what powersets to check out would be great, i've spent the last two days trying several combo to see which I like, and which I dont. I'm pretty open to ideas. Ideally I'd like to find something that I can stick with to 50 for a change

Thanks for the help

deal.

[ QUOTE ]
[
An interesting straw man, here. It ISN'T the same three mininons. They're level 50 - not level 10 minions. Different art, different powers.

The "super" in "super hero" comes as one levels - what was once hard (i.e. red) becomes orange, yellow, then white, etc. What was once really hard is now easier.

That's how it is in levels 1 to 22ish. It works there.

[/ QUOTE ]

man, I really dont get that way of thinking. i understand you want to ramp up the difficulty, but this being based on comic books, i dont really recall many heroes having difficulty with minions. Im really afraid it will make the grind all the more obvious. while the xp rate MIGHT remain the same ( doubt it, it sure wont go up), it wont feel very spectacular. I bet most of your customer base doenst give a crap about all this, so long as it still feels like your a superhero.

im horrified thinking i will only be able to take on a few minions at level 50, just like i did at levels 7 or 10 or 15. I would think that by the time i had put in enough time to achieve the highest security level possible, id be a well respected and feared hero, from the villains standpoint. The games pace ( not necessarily the XP ) ramps up in the later levels, and why shouldnt it? your growing as a superhero, gaining INFLUENCE and reputation. you should strike fear into the hearts of your enemies, so to speak, not be ought of breath or on the verge of dying after facing a few white cons.

I would hate for COH to become the butt of numerous jokes and get bashed like, Star Wars Galaxies, for example. This is a major change, so i'd way all sides of it carefully.

I just hope any changes liek this are considered carefully. Honestly, it scares me to hear that a +2 minion should be REALLY hard. That doesnt sound heroic at all to me. What it does sound like is falling onto the standard RPG trap of only being able to face certain challenges, and needing a specific makeup to do it. The best part of this game is who it deviates from all the other RPGs, in that you actually ARE powerful ( eventually). Noone likes to have thierass kicked by a rat or a lowly skeleton, so when you translate that to Superhero or comic book genre, it sounds like various RPGs in disguise, where the minion is takig the place fo the rat in the dungeon kicking your ***. All we need now is a system requiring people to eat and drink regulary. Bleh. I liek the fact that minions within 2 levels of you are somewhat easy. hell, they are MINIONS. the more you compress the range at which peopel can be effective, the harder it is to find groups, and the harder it is to find targets appropriate to that group. Not to mention this will only slow down leveling even more in the upper levels. I dont think anyone wants that, except for cryptic, who will make more money off of it. This is the best game ive ever played, id hate to see it turn into something it shouldnt be, which is just another fantasy RPG/grind/torture fest in tights and a cape. it appeals much more to the casual player, as it should, and I hope it stays that way.