Clicking the "Mission Completed" message on the top display will transport you out of the mission.
Chief Hamster of the Fist of Justice / Shadows of Victory
Victory Server: Join Victory Forum for team forming and general game chat and IRC Chat: irc.hashmark.net #victory for offline chatting.
Rock, rock on Hamster.
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Clicking the "Mission Completed" message on the top display will transport you out of the mission.
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The first time I saw this in action at the end of a team mission I sent a message to the team saying "were did everyone go, you guys just disapeared". 
It makes geting out of those crazy maze caves so much easier.
Got a questions about enhancments...
Is it better to slot a dual enhancement that has a 15 or a generic 20??
I wish there was some indication of which is more beneficial! And whats better - a 15++ or a 16 (both generic)?
Is there a formula so i can figure these out?
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Got a questions about enhancments...
Is it better to slot a dual enhancement that has a 15 or a generic 20??
I wish there was some indication of which is more beneficial! And whats better - a 15++ or a 16 (both generic)?
Is there a formula so i can figure these out?
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Generics give you an 8% bonus. Duals a 16 and Singles a 30% some, a 20% others. Always choose a Double over a Generic and a Single over a double.
As stated everywhere, including the manual 
, any usable DO of ANY level is better then any usable trainer of any level.
A 15++ acts as a level 17, hence it's more effective then a level 16.
Chief Hamster of the Fist of Justice / Shadows of Victory
Victory Server: Join Victory Forum for team forming and general game chat and IRC Chat: irc.hashmark.net #victory for offline chatting.
Rock, rock on Hamster.
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Putting heal buff enhancements on heal is useless. RECHARGE TIME ENHANCEMENTS.
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Really? I don't get it, why would this be the case?
Some enhancement tips and selling tips.
My method of madness for selling and slotting is as follows:
Enhancements can be bought at level increments of 5.
An enhacement is optimal when its 3 levels above your current level. Its useable till its red or 3 levels below your level.
Training enhancements make very little different in your overall damage: (example)
At low levels 1-6, sell every enhancement you get to a freedom force trainer.
At level 7 go to the trainer and buy lvl 10 of everything you think you need.
8-11 sell everything, at 12 go buy 15s or 13 you can go buy 15s and + the 10s.
Follow this all the way up and you always have enhancements in your slots that are effective. At 22 you will want to have enough saved to buy all Single Origin enhancements.
Remember especially when you start getting DO and SO drops to sell them to the proper store, its a very nice price jump.
There used to be a nice site that explained % of each enhancement type and the forumula's but its not up anymore... from memory it was something like this:
Training is 8%, DO is 16%, SO is 33%
One + on a Training is 1%, DO 2%, SO 3%.
Ideally you would want your enhancements to be green to you.
The forumulas showed that enhancers that increase something are more effective vs ones that reduce something. Like... a damage increase of 8%, you actually got 8%. Where a recharge time 33% you may actually only get 15%.
In general I only + my powers that I use every fight and then only when I find the exact level that will work.
Some other things I wish I'd known:
Missions are terrible exp.
Debt is not a big deal, unless you only do missions.
Sidekicking penalizes the mentor and the sidekick in exp.
You can't change your super group colors or symbol.
A tanker is a better controller than a controller.
teleport is the worst travel power... ever.
Superspeed + Hurdle is very cool.
Staminia, if you don't think you'll need it your probably wrong.
There really are powers that are not worth taking...ever.
No matter what anyone tells you, you can make a gimp character, choose wisely.
The tutorial is still boring, even the 20th time through it.
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There really are powers that are not worth taking...ever.
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As a n00b, I'd love to see this discussed - what are total gimp powers?
That was the greatest thing I HAVE EVER LEARNED THANK YOU from the bottom of my tanker.
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There is an NPC Store next to the trainer in Skyway. That store pays full price for trainings (unlike the NPCs in GC and AP) and can be reach safely by low-level PCs. Just don't fall off the walkways. 
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Any more specific directions to this store? I haven't been able to find it ...
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Sidekicking penalizes the mentor and the sidekick in exp.
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I dont think this is correct.
As far as I know, sidekicking a lower lvl player does NOT affect your exp at all, the sidekick will be one level lower than you and they wont be penalised at all.
So if after sidekicking both of us were still solo.. then if I kill a same lvl minion I will get the exact same exp now as I would when Im not a mentor.
If the sidekick kills a same (new) lvl minion solo (i.e. one lvl below me) then he will get the exact same exp as he would if he was not sidekicked and killed a same lvl minion.
Now if you are grouped with people of different lvls then there will be exp benefits and penalties. But this has nothing to do with sidekicking.
If anyone knows any different then please say so.
Beck_,
I think he assumed that the mentor and sidekick were grouped.
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A tanker is a better controller than a controller.
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You DEFINATELY have not played post-level 30. I agree with all other points, but the controllers I have seen from 33-35 can beat minions down better than tankers by far. I went on two missions SK'd and noted the blaster just picking of fthe runners, and I (a scrapper) was just there for fluff. The controller could have easily solo'd purple bosses and minions.
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If the sidekick kills a same (new) lvl minion solo (i.e. one lvl below me) then he will get the exact same exp as he would if he was not sidekicked and killed a same lvl minion.
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...which is less than what he would have gotten for killing that same minion while not sidekicked. A level 25 hero taking down a level 25 minion gets more XP than a level 20 hero taking down a level 20 minion - and a level 20 hero defeating a level 25 minion gets substantially more than either of them.
I don't know what it did to the rest of the team's XP (if anything), but I do know that the second time I ran Sister Psyche's TF, I was sidekicked in the first mission, because I was 23 and didn't like the look of the 26s that greeted us. The second mission started with 25s, so I dropped the sk. Before long, we were back to 26s and I was getting more XP for them not sked than I had gotten in the first mission while sked (and nobody had dropped out of the team), so that looks pretty clear to me that being a sidekick reduces the XP you get for any given foe.
Don't forget to count the time to get this xp...
How long to take down the same mob while SK and while not SK ? (if ever you could take it down before him do to you while you're not SK)
As an answer to muuto's question.
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As a n00b, I'd love to see this discussed - what are total gimp powers?
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Gimped powers (If you have them, don't flame me...it's just my opinion)
Beanbag - Why? When you can take other offensive powers...why?
Taser - Don't recall anyone ever taking it...anyone ever see it?
Combustion - I guess if you six slot this bad boy...but honestly I've never seen it deal massive dmg...am I wrong?)
Air Superiority - nothing to add here....
Assault and Tactics - If you are not a defender or controller stay clear of these..the 7% buff is not worth it. Why does this power pool penalize you for your AT choice??? No other power pool does this !!
Flurry - Weak...just plain weak.
Resuscitate - Weak for a level 20 choice.....just keep Revive inspirations handy..save a power pool choice. If you wanted to be a healer...why did you not play an Empathy Defender or Controller?!?!
Hand Clap - Knockback, no damage dealt...slight chance of disorientation. R - E - S - P - E - C, find out what it means to me.
That's all, and really just an opinionated rant. If you have found these powers really work for you, kudos.
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Combustion - I guess if you six slot this bad boy...but honestly I've never seen it deal massive dmg...am I wrong?)
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Oh where were you when I started my Fire/fire blaster. I HATE that power...
Oh, and I guess that this is sort of a 'flame', but only in a good way
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If the sidekick kills a same (new) lvl minion solo (i.e. one lvl below me) then he will get the exact same exp as he would if he was not sidekicked and killed a same lvl minion.
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...which is less than what he would have gotten for killing that same minion while not sidekicked. A level 25 hero taking down a level 25 minion gets more XP than a level 20 hero taking down a level 20 minion - and a level 20 hero defeating a level 25 minion gets substantially more than either of them.
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This is just the way the sidekick system works. If you are lvl10 and kill a lvl10 minion, you get, lets say 100 exp (not accurate), if you are then sidekicked to be at combat lvl35 and kill a lvl35 minion, you get exactly the same, 100 exp.
Thats the way it is, otherwise if you were getting 1000 exp as a sidekick it would be a huge exploit for quick lvling. The exp scales down to your actual combat lvl.
If that same hero killed a villain 3 lvls above him (sked or not) he would get say 300exp either way.
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I don't know what it did to the rest of the team's XP (if anything), but I do know that the second time I ran Sister Psyche's TF, I was sidekicked in the first mission, because I was 23 and didn't like the look of the 26s that greeted us. The second mission started with 25s, so I dropped the sk. Before long, we were back to 26s and I was getting more XP for them not sked than I had gotten in the first mission while sked (and nobody had dropped out of the team), so that looks pretty clear to me that being a sidekick reduces the XP you get for any given foe.
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You are confusing the sidekick system with the general XP system. All the sidekick system does is artificially increase your combat lvl and all your powers etc to that lvl. It then scales th exp down to your actual combat lvl. In your example you are lvl23 killing lvl26s which is a +3. If you were sidekicked to be lvl25 then the enemys would only be +1 so you would be getting exp as if you are killing lvl24s (which is +1 to your actual combat lvl).
So yes in your example, you would get more exp to be a lvl23 killing +3 enemys, rather than a sidekicked lvl25 killing +1 enemys. But if you cant hit the bad guys then maybe you should take the XP hit for the team and be sidekicked.
So to try and summarise what happened in your missions...
In your first mission you were sidekicked to be lvl25 (I presume) and so was getting XP for enemy+1.
In your second mission you were not sidekicked and so was lvl23 and getting XP for enemy+2 (more than the first mission).
In your third mission you were not sidekicked and so was lvl23 and getting XP for enemy+3 (more than the second mission).
Anyway Im rambling. My point is that the XP you gain is relative to your actual combat lvl and the enemys lvl. Sidekicking is just a way to artificially increase your powers etc so that you can be usefull to higher lvl peeps.
And a final summary of the summary..
Sidekicking does not penalise your xp. But if you are killing enemy+3 unsidekicked, then start killing enemy+1 sidekicked, you will obviously get less XP. That is the way of the XP system.
Here's one that I just discovered (I may be slow). By clicking on the "I" in the yellow star in the mission window, you get an expanded text description of the mission status (might just be a rehash of what the contact told you when getting the mission initially). I was wondering what the big deal with Task Forces was, because as the non-party leader, I couldn't SEE any of the story arcs occuring. I finally got clued in to clicking on the Yellow "I" while doing the Synapse TF at lvl 20. It adds a fair amount of story "texture" to the game, if you care about that.
Oh yeah, another voice for not taking leadership pool unless defender or controller.
I'd like to dissent on Air Superiority's "uselessness". I think AS is a great melee attack for controllers (esp) not to mention having a huge knockdown chance (which is good damage mitigation).
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As an answer to muuto's question.
Gimped powers (If you have them, don't flame me...it's just my opinion)
Beanbag - Why? When you can take other offensive powers...why?
Taser - Don't recall anyone ever taking it...anyone ever see it?
Combustion - I guess if you six slot this bad boy...but honestly I've never seen it deal massive dmg...am I wrong?)
Air Superiority - nothing to add here....
Assault and Tactics - If you are not a defender or controller stay clear of these..the 7% buff is not worth it. Why does this power pool penalize you for your AT choice??? No other power pool does this !!
Flurry - Weak...just plain weak.
Resuscitate - Weak for a level 20 choice.....just keep Revive inspirations handy..save a power pool choice. If you wanted to be a healer...why did you not play an Empathy Defender or Controller?!?!
Hand Clap - Knockback, no damage dealt...slight chance of disorientation. R - E - S - P - E - C, find out what it means to me.
That's all, and really just an opinionated rant. If you have found these powers really work for you, kudos.
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Can't speak for all of them, but I do have characters with some.
Taser - As a low level blaster, being able to stun the mob that has reached melee so I can get my attacks recharged is a very good thing.
Air Superiority - great attack, good damage for reasonable end cost, and knockup is really useful. Plus it can get a flier to come down and join the party for a while.
Leadership Pool - it does not penalize some ATs, it gives a bonus to Defenders and Controllers. According to Poz (I think, maybe Gecko) all of the pools except travel work better for some ATs than others.
Hand Clap - Fun as all get out. And useful to stun porters or other mobs you are trying to catch.
See, nothing gimped here.
Justice Blues, Tech/Tank, Inv/SS
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Fighting The Future Trilogy
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That saving peds is boring.
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2. Don't chase runners. They'll come back. It's way too easy to aggro a second group or do as I did yesterday and run into a trio of lvl 35 Nemesis just hanging out in Steel Canyon while chasing a runner.
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An extension. If you have Radiation Infection or Enervating field or something similar on a runner, shut it off as the debuffs will aggro other groups too.
Beowulf -
Too many Alts, not enough 50's. Story of my life...
I like your enhancing strategy. My addition to it: when you hit 27, do not wait for 28 to buy your level 30 SOs so you can combine them. Start buying 30 SOs right away, and keep going until you fill up. If you hit 28 before you fill them all out, great.
Once you hit 32, again do not wait to get those 35 SOs -- start buying immediately.
On another note...
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Some other things I wish I'd known:
Missions are terrible exp.
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They can be... but they can also be nice consistent xp. A large well-formed group (6-8) can mow through the large crowds in a mission, producing good xp per unit of time. It's not as efficient as street hunting yellow/orange/red groups, but it's not terrible -- and it's fun.
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A tanker is a better controller than a controller.
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I disagree. I play with both, and like each of them for different reasons. But when it comes to crowd control, the controller is more reliable at higher levels.
//Playing since beta... and only two 50s!//
Thermocline, Fire/Ice blaster
Doctor Infernal, Fire/Rad controller
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You can combine two enhancements that are already locked in a power. this occasionally useful if you have two enhancements that just went from yellow to red. Combine them and you can squeeze the last bit of bonus out of them for another level.
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Just realized this as well.
Example:
That means a 15++ (effective lv17) can, at 18, be combined into a 20+ (effective lv21) with a 20 purchase.
Meaning that the time to slot lv20 enchancements for current 15++ ones isn't level 17, but level 18, as you'll get some benefit out of the current 15++.
If you have open slots, hit them with the new higher levels first. Once you hit 18, you can slot the 20s with 15++, making 21s.
Basically, don't replace "maxed" slots unless you don't have any free ones.
1. Maintain tactical awareness at all times and know what you're up against. It really matters if there is a Bone Daddy stuck in the middle of that group of Skulls.
2. Don't chase runners. They'll come back. It's way too easy to aggro a second group or do as I did yesterday and run into a trio of lvl 35 Nemesis just hanging out in Steel Canyon while chasing a runner.
3. Ignore the jerks. They can't ruin your fun unless you let them.
4. If you get in a bad group, quit! It's not likely to get any better.