Vixen_Valor

Absolutely beautiful, even while rough.

Wow. I just looked up Nene Thomas.

Thanks for the massive compliment! Her stuff is gorgeous.

Sweet! I look forward to seeing it.

Plain pencils, no. Ink only, yes.

B&W Ruby

(Edit: Actually...let me scour the hard drive. There -should- be an original scan of the pencils here somewhere now that I think of it...)

(Edit 2: Strike that. In true Murphy's Law fashion, the only prelim pencil that I saved was an incomplete one without facial features or hair.)

Sadly, I have no photoshop or tablet or anything along those lines, so coloring the actual figure digitally is a no-go for me.

(Prismacolors for the win...and the actual piece is smoother than the scan - for some reason my scan picked up some weird texturing on the body that isn't evident on the actual piece.)

The filled-in background is an annoying pixel-by-pixel Paint fill.

Okay, so I finally got the color laid in on the piece I've been working on lately (which was like pulling teeth to get enough spare time...)...

...but now I have a problem. I'm conflicted over whether to fill in the background and make it dark, or leave it white, or anything in-between like a wider border, lines, etc... (Suggestions abound at home, but they all conflict also - family's no help!)

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Ruby Fusion

Incomplete test-run at a black background

So...motivated by everyone else's awesome artwork, I'm trying to resurrect my artistic capabilities (it's been a few years - okay, several - since I was actually "productive" at it).

I was going to wait until she was finished, but I'm in a bit of an unmotivated slump about tackling her suit (it's white, but needs shading and filling, and her SG emblem put in), and indecisive about how to fill in the background... so, um...motivate me!

Ruby Fusion (partly colored)

(the original Black & White prelim)

I suck at the whole digital-art thing too, so that's all real pen and real Prismacolors.

Dear sexy Jay -

I'm not sure if this is an actual bug or not, but it bugs me, so...

With the new Good vs. Evil goodies (which are awesome, by the way), the "Sinister" pattern is available with things other than just the matching Sinister armor.

The "Justice" pattern isn't available with anything -but- the matching Justice armor.

While the Sinister pattern is, by far, the cooler of the two, it just doesn't seem right to not be able to use the Justice pattern on things other than the clunky Justice armor (not every hero wears clunky armor, after all).

PS. Also, the detail on the Justice boots and gloves (without pads) seems to be missing the extra oomph that the chest has....on the gloves and boots the little "wing" details aren't contrasting colors like they are on the chest (shoulder area, specifically), and tend to blend in to the boots and gloves and just look a little "blah" compared to the chest piece.

((*claps and whistles* Nicely written, Heroid! *wanders off to find something fresh and forum-safe to contribute*))

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Enhance right after you level at 22. Feel free to go broke doing this. Then don't enhance again until you level at 27. When you hit 27, combine all the level 25 enhancements that you bought and slotted when you turned 22 into 25+ and 25++ enhancements. Buy enough level 30 SOs to fill the empty slots.

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I don't understand this part. What are you combining your slotted SOs with? DOs, Other lv 25 SOs? Ones you buy? Ones you find? This doesn't make sense.

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I believe the suggestion is to combine already-slotted lvl 25 SOs.

ie: if you have multiple damage SOs in a power, combine two (or more) together to bump that 25 up to a 25+ (or 25++) and then replace the empty slot(s) with freshly-purchased lvl 30s.

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these may have been covered, but what the heck. no screenshots,
but they're easy to see.

create a new toon. leave chest at "tights". set lower body to "skirts&shorts"
with the default "plain short skirt" (the flared one). add the "V" belt.

- the skirt selection ALLOWS you to select options: (stripes, spots,
etc) but does not display them.

- the V belt clips with the "tights" top. on an existing character with
this combination it also clips with the skirt: it didn't before. also,
didn't the "V" belt used to be straight across the back? it's not
any more. not a bug, but i personally don't care for the "v" across the
back.

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Actually, it used to have a slightly curved -slight- V dip in the back. Then it was changed to the pretty much universally despised straight back (for about two weeks). Then it went to the deep V that exists now.

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*Cry* my belt.... my belt....

So I read todays patch notes. It mentioned that there were changes to belts. I thought, "Hey, I wear a belt." So I logged in and I got an unpleasent surprize.

My character, The Black Mink has always worn the "Metallic Fanged Skull" belt. It looked cool, and it hugged my body very nicely. Tonight I logged in and found that it no longer sits properly on my character. Infact, it looks absolutely stupid.

Please put it back to the way it used to be. Otherwise you should change the name to "Metallic Bucktooth skull". Just look at how it protrudes now. PLEASE put it back to the way it used to be. None of the other belts have the look I need.

Bucktoothed!


Another belt problem I have is with another character. On one hand, I love the new V belt. On the other hand, I really want my old V belt back. The old V belt just "worked" better on her costume.

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Your belt casuality is due to the fix for clipping with the skirts and shorts i'm sure. Perhaps Jay can add in a second version that gets swapped in when skirts/shorts are not chosen?

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Seconded!

While you're at it, can we have both the new -and- old (original) versions of the V belt made available too? As ultra-sexy as the new one is, there are some scenarios where it just doesn't work as well as the old one.

Examples:
New V clips the back of tucked-in pants. Old V did not.
New V shows a sliver of skin between hip of pants/tights/skirt and -underside- of the belt sides. Old V did not.
New V shows a wedge of pants/tights/skirt at back -over- belt. Old V did not.

Using the new V belt with different colored tops/bottoms and/or cropped tops is impossible now. Please add both belts and let us choose which one works best with the outfit? (Ditto for the fanged belt mentioned above, and anything else drastically altered for skirt clipping.)

Thanks!

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Female combat boots seem to be missing.... and of course Jay is sexy.

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Just Checked and i'm seeing the female combat boot selection under all of the boots that have patterns to them. Smooth, Stilettos, Platform, Folded, Flat, Large, Banded, Finned, Spiked, Flared.

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I didn't look for combat boots specifically, but I -did- look for "wrapped" stillettos....and they no longer exist, at least not with Skirts and Short pants.

Please fix, Jay. I realize that the wrapped stillettos weren't the greatest boots ever, but the dainty foot just looks better on some characters that need that pattern.

Jay, I know the patch just went live but...

When selecting the skirts, any skirt, not just the new longer one...Bikini 2 and Bikini 3 are no longer available as under skirt options. Only Bikini 1 is available.

Please fix!

(Note: All three bikinis are available as "tights" patterns under skirts, but only Bikini 1 is available under the skirt by itself.)

Yay for sexy Jay! (and Ian!)

1. Kheldian Sashes (even if earned for something like the Moonfire TF)

2. V-neck tops in Tops with Skin.*

3. Scoop-neck tops in Tops with Skin.*

4. Square-neck tops in Tops with Skin.*

5. Off-the-shoulder tops in Tops with Skin.*

*Basically, tops that allow a bit of neck and/or shoulder to show without being strapless/sleeveless.

6. All of the above tops in short-sleeve options also. (Think v-neck Hanes t-shirts)

7. Full-length tank tops for females. (Like the "sports" bra top, only full-length.)

8. A "Strapless Sleeves" option, like "Bandeau Sleeves" that currently exists, but for the regular "Strapless" top.

9. Skirts with leather texture(s).

10. Skirts with the "Tights Sleek" texture.

11. Flat shoes ("Slip On 1") that can be used with full tights. (Add a "with tights" option to Slip On 1, like "with socks" on the Sneakers.)

12. Halter tops, both cropped and full-length.

13. Baggy tops with V-necks, Scoop-necks, and Square-necks.

14. Plain Baggy Tops (non-textured) for use like sweatshirts.

15. Ankle-height boots (of all sole types). (available with and without "tights" reaching down to the boot)

16. True bangs with ponytails. (Combine the front of the "Bangs" hairstyle with the back of the "Low Ponytail" and "High Ponytail".)

17. Shorter ponytails/pigtails.

18. Braided pigtails/ponytails.

19. Low pigtails. (Banded behind and below the ear, instead of on top of the head)

20. Long hair (like Glam) with varying front hairlines: Bangs, over one eye, etc.

21. The option to have "Makeup 1", "Makeup 2", "Makeup 3", and "Makeup 4" both with and without matching lip color. (Some colors don't look right on lips at times.)

22. Solid-color thigh-highs. ("Fishnets" pattern with a solid fill, instead of the fishnet texture)

I'll stop there, honest!

..and Jay's sexy.

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Positron said that badge junkies will hate him for one of the villain I7 contacts - There is a badge that you can only get if you complete all of a certain contact's missions. And every mission is timed and can be failed. He said that the times are not long, but not so short that it is impossible. Also, you can only get the badge by doing the missions yourself. joining someone else for them will not award it.

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Jury is still out with me on that. Hmm. Lot to think about and chew on. Has its good and bands, like the actual sense of some importance and challenge and uniqeness, but something with the potetnial to be very frustrating like that is not usually a good thing. Being able to fail sure... but not being able to get a change again via someone elses mission --- I don't like that.

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I don't like this either, although I suppose I could live with it if they removed the Spelunker requirement from the Atlas Medallion. It's never made sense why it was there to begin with, and it's an incredibly easy mission to miss, especially if you choose to do the content in the Hollows.

That, or if we finally see the flashback feature added, precisely so that we can go back and pick up important missions that were missed the first time around.

Simply missing the mission and being screwed for it because you were teaming up and playing the game, however, is most definitely NOT kosher.

(Which of course begs the question regarding that villain I7 contact: Will it count if you have the mission and choose to auto-complete it off someone else's run?)

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Anyway, the only ones you need to worry about reading your suggestions are the Devs, not us. If they saw your idea and think it's good, then great. If not, then bummer. Doesn't matter much what we think.

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There's a problem with that statement, and it's part of why so many good suggestions get completely lost on the devs.

Reading through 44 pages of bickering back and forth about ONE aspect of the set makes it really hard to pick out the -handful- of posts offering -suggestions- to fix the hole.

Hence, the bickering posts DO affect the devs' ability to read through this thread and find the suggestions and/or other issues that need to be addressed. Hell, if I were a dev, on about the 20th page of "ELA has no KB protection, this sucks!" I would probably have started skipping pages to skim to the end.

K. I. S. S. Keep It Simple, Stupid. The shorter and more concise a list of feedback and suggestions is, the more likely said feedback and suggestions are to be read, and actually given a fair chance.

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- JL seems to have a really long animation. Is that just me? I mean, it's not Shadow Maul long, but it seems noticeably lengthy. Argh, especially if it misses.

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You're not kidding. I actually catch myself wondering whether using JL might not actually be -hurting- my fury-building because of the animation length.

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- Man, I know (or hope) it's just perception, but the accuracy on the attacks (especially JL) really seems slack. And before anyone says I'm "used to" SOs, I'll note that the grand majority of my characters are still working with Trainings. However, I'll bow to HeroStats view of this.

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No. It's really crappy accuracy. As the folks I've been running with have been saying: "We couldn't hit the broadside of a friggin barn if our lives depended on it", and that's coming from a DM player, which I had always thought had the lowest base accuracy of any set. I honestly think ELM has managed to sink lower...

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I may be giving the devs more credit than they deserve, but isn't it pretty likely that they're aware of all these holes?

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Of course not, they created the set like they do everything else: Stabbed keys at random while drunk, blindfolded, and "engaged" with two hookers. Were it not for the dedicated and courageous posters in this thread, nobody might ever have found out. And thank god they're continuing to remind everybody because, ya know, when you're drunk and blindfolded and getting it on with multiple hookers, you have a lot going on in your mind and something as trivial as YOUR JOB can slip under your radar.

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*busts out laughing*

Thanks for the laugh of the night, F_L.

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*screams in frustration*

For the love of whatever deity you people hold dear, can we stop beating the "lack of KB protection" dead horse with the stick yet?

Lack of KB protection is -not-, I repeat NOT a major issue in a set with this much utility. Hell, there's a lot more utility here than /fire tanks get, and the lack of KB protection hasn't stopped them. Either way, however, you're beating a dead horse. The devs are fully aware that no KB protection is a hole in this set. Odds are, they intended it to be.

The entire argument is like receiving a free mansion to live in, and [censored] about the color of the tile in the bathroom. It's an excellent set, with good utility that makes it stand out above the other sets, who friggin' cares about one dinky hole that's easily filled with something else?

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Wow, it's good you're here to tell us what we're supposed to like or dislike about new powersets. Without that guidance, we'd all be lost.

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I guess so, considering that you were so lost that you read things I never said into my post. I could give a rat's heiney whether you like or dislike the powers, but the fact is: the KB argument has been thoroughly beaten into the ground over and over again already. There are other things to discuss.

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Lack of KB protection is -not-, I repeat NOT a major issue in a set with this much utility.

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I agree. The point I keep making is that it's lack of knockback protection AND lack of immobilization protection AND lack of a self heal. I can cover for any one of those easily enough.

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If I saw half as much complaints/suggestions regarding a self-heal, I'd agree with you. It seems, however, that 95% of the [censored] in this forum is over KB/Immob, to which I can only say 'get over it, and pick up SJ like everyone else that doesn't have KB/Immob Prot has to do if they want it.' ...and this is coming from someone who absolutely, positively HATES superjump as a travel power.

Now, for the self-heal argument. I would be all for ELA having a self-heal somewhere. Hell, I'd gladly give up Conserve Power for it (Conserve stinks, anyway...the duration:recharge ratio is just too skewed)...but I just don't see the justification for this much complaining about KB/Immob. There a ton of powersets available in this game, and only a scant handful offer those protections...

It's a tradeoff. The fact that ELA brutes can viably exist without having to spend 3 pool powers getting Stamina is the trade for having to spend 1-3 pool powers to prevent KB and/or Immob.

I'm going to withhold the majority of my opinion about Mayhem Missions, however, a few things need to change:

1. Mayhem missions need to be optional, not required to open contacts. We have been led to believe all along that these missions would be -optional-, when clearly they are not. Heists are difficult enough for some ATs to handle solo. Mayhem missions for the same ATs are completely out of the question. Having to "unlock" all your contacts is enough of a pain in the butt already, without Mayhem Missions replacing heists to make it even more difficult for the solo player.

2. Mobs. Should. Not. Spawn. In. The. Prisons. Seriously, this is just sadistic. Being sent to the mayhem prison with its super-reinforced doors (much harder than any prison doors I've encountered in any other mission, hands down) is hard enough without having to face 10-20 mobs waiting for you just outside the door the minute you break out.

3. Prison Dampening Field (anti-TP) should not interrupt Rest. This is part of #2. Breaking out of those doors is hard enough, due to their increased strength...having to do it in an incredibly short timed mission without the ability to rest for faster end-recovery is simply unacceptable....-especially- when you have to face the aforementioned 10-20 NPC mob outside the door.

4. Citizens should not be targettable if you can't damage them and get them to go away. I'm all for not dealing violence to civilians...but if I can target them, I expect to be able to kill them to remove them from my targetting window to reduce the amount of 'targettable item spam'.

5. Cardboard Boxes, Barrels, Crates, etc should have a chance of containing random inspirations. It's simply a better incentive for destroying these items, since they give no exp, and aren't as cool to watch get destroyed as vehicles and fire hydrants.

Overall? I don't care for them at all. They can be a fun lark on the side, but as a portion of the content that I am -required- to complete (if I hope to do anything other than run newspaper missions for 50 levels) I find them seriously lacking.

*screams in frustration*

For the love of whatever deity you people hold dear, can we stop beating the "lack of KB protection" dead horse with the stick yet?

Lack of KB protection is -not-, I repeat NOT a major issue in a set with this much utility. Hell, there's a lot more utility here than /fire tanks get, and the lack of KB protection hasn't stopped them. Either way, however, you're beating a dead horse. The devs are fully aware that no KB protection is a hole in this set. Odds are, they intended it to be.

The entire argument is like receiving a free mansion to live in, and [censored] about the color of the tile in the bathroom. It's an excellent set, with good utility that makes it stand out above the other sets, who friggin' cares about one dinky hole that's easily filled with something else?

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You might be able to get away with purple, depending on the shade. Maybe pink, but a pink brute running around would have to be one serious concept character; it wouldn't be suited for everyone.

Cool powersets or style: the choices we're forced to make.

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My Elec/Elec Brute wears green. And plant parts. So, uh... I don't feel limited.

It's not like the only colour that goes with red is red. White, black, and grey go with anything. With this red, I'd say most of the yellows would work, the oranges would probably generally work, some of the greens would work really well, certain purples would work really well... I would even venture to suggest this particular shade of red would work well with a dark blue.

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Oh, there are plenty of colors that go with the red, true. I was rather after a 'physical embodiment of the storm' concept, however...so it's just hard to work with the red lightning. Traditional 'stormy' colors (blues, greens, blue-greens) don't seem to look right, and matching the lightning itself (which was the original idea) pretty much limits one to red, black, and white.

On the other hand, for all those folks that wanted a Mu concept, the red lightning kicks butt.

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Yeah, nitpicking about power colors seems so...nitpicky, but the first elec brute I created was all in blue and the red charged armor just...clashed. Really now. The poor guy looked like he had no sense of style whatsoever. He ran up to a bunch of snakes and they all pointed and laughed. It was humiliating.

I had no choice but to kill him off. Sad, true, but such is the penalty for flagrant fashion faux pas.

That red just doesn't go with a lot of costume choices.

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It's true. *sniffles* The poor baby brute of mine that's been waiting to become an elec/elec for months now is all in shades of blue and white...and looks horrid in the red. She was supposed to match the lightning, but now...to do that means I have to go "generic red & black villain #3107".