Did they nerf the cape missions?
By
airy_,
Posted on: 2005-01-24 14:01 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
The mission scales up based upon your level...
Virtue: multiple characters.
CoH/V: Woot! Maybe Fun is to be had once again.
Ack! RUN! Regen is glowing mean & green!
If it reduces you, it's a nerf.
If it buffs the mobs, it's challenge.
They are not the same.
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i wish you guys would give up on the whole "solo" thing. you cant solo a LOT of this game, espically post lvl40. just say its a team game and make teaming more of a reward instead of less. dev's say you can solo and in the same sentence they say you HAVE to team to beat certain missions. at least with a game like EQ2 you know you have to team. keep telling people this is a solo game is not the truth. my uncle plays this game for 1-2 days a week, the people he teams with jump 3-5 lvls in the time he comes back. now he cant team with them, he finds a random team that either isnt very good or they just dont get along and he just quits for the day. he would rather just solo, but now he cant. he is lvl40 and hasnt logged in over 2 weeks and he is dropping this account because of this.
this game is not casual gamer or solo friendly anymore (mainly post lvl40), so just tell us that. dont lead people to believe that you can play for 10 hours a week and do just fine, because you cant. dont get me wrong, im a hardcore gamer and its fine for me, i know tons of people to team with, but for someone that doesnt spend every waking moment of spare time on this game... its just no fun 
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At the risk of semi-hijacking this thread, I really have to disagree with you. I work 50+ hours a week and can play about 5 to 20 hours a week depending on my schedule. I average around, 12 hours - four 3-hour blocks. I'm also married and have a fairly hectic social life with friends and family. I have a level 50 hero and several alts of varying levels. I have solo'ed about 80% of the time, usually because I'm fitting the game into the gap periods in between things in RL. Among MMORGs, its the most easily soloable game out there IMO.
I'm not stating this to try to show you up, but to make a a point that you can solo effectively in this game. Most casual players that have played consistently since the beginning of retail probably have at least one hero in his 40s, if not at least one 50. If anything, this game is harder on power gamers than the casual set because they go through the content so quickly - and then boredom sets in.
The AVs are a problem as are the disarm x missions, but you can elect not to do these. I'm on Guardian, and even with a low population count, I've been pretty pleased at the response I get from people when I broadcast a request to help with an AV. Plus, the majority of level 40+ people (the one's that haven't been powerleveled) really know their stuff, so pick up groups are usually full of strong players. You also find that a lot of people are stuck with these AV missions - you'd be surprised at the response you'd get if you broadcast for a team that cleared AVs together. I've formed two teams for this purpose, and I had to reject more players than go looking for them...everyone who doesn't have a regular SG or a good set of reliable in-game friends has the same problem, so they're relieved when someone else offers some leadership.
My $.02
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i wish you guys would give up on the whole "solo" thing.
[/ QUOTE ]I don't think you would like it if they did, because in short order the game would either be cancelled or become much more expensive. They are trying to correct where they've made it too difficult to solo, because they realize how essential that customer base it, while still providing incentives for players to team up.
Also not to hijack the thread, but EQ2 is getting a massive boost to the solo player side with a huge amount of content being added over the next few weeks making it soloable all the way to the highest level and even allowing solo players a chance for drops normally only seen by groups.
Now we know EQ2 is not a better game than CoH, just different in style, but I can't see the dev team here letting the solo player down. As a matter of fact I am sure they will not.
*shrug* I've never had a problem soloing with any of my characters, at any level, be they scrappers, defenders, controllers, or tanks. (I never played a blaster past level 14, so I can't really comment on them.) Your uncle who gave up because he can't solo and can't stand pickup groups must be a very poor player, that's all I can figure.
As for the nerfage of the cape mission... I'm going to guess that it was done for the soloing defenders mostly. Any other archetype could solo that mission easily, in my opinion.
... hm... thinking as I write... Ok, maybe I'm wrong. I'm judging the power of the ATs based on how I play. I recently introduced a friend to CoH, and despite everything I've tried to teach her, she's still amazingly inept. I can easily see her having trouble with the cape mission no matter what character she played, no matter how well-built - and we all know that many people gimp their characters with bad power and slot choices.
Ok, 2 things.
1) How was the cape mission ever hard? I soloed this mission a couple times before issue 3 and I saw nothing about it that made it anymore dificult than most other missions out there. My blaster died once in the very first room due to some unlucky misses against an anathma and my defender and SR scrapper tore through it no problem. Now if you're doing it with a full group, maybe it can be hard. There will be more Lost shooting at the capsule. Same kind of deal with the War Wall Defender badge mission. But soloing these missions is easy. You deal with less people. I'm really curious why so many people thought this missions was hard.
2) In response to the "CoH is mostly unsoloable" post...um, what?! Post-40, I can maybe agree. There's a lot of AVs there. But before that most people can solo at least their own missions. Some can't, such as many controllers, some defenders and maybe even some very, very defense-oriented tanks. But I would say the vast majority of players can solo the vast majority of the game, not other way around. I've done it with most of my characters. So has my wife. So have my other 2 roommates. The claim that this game is solo friendly is very much true and you can make progress even if you don't spend many hours of your day playing.
Gimping oneself in this game is much much harder then in any other rpg game or rpg type game.
Even the outdated manual and character select screens and power select screens give far more information about how to play effectively then other games do.
This game is ridicously easy to figure out.
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Heroes don't wear capes until at least level 20 as a memorial to Hero1, the leader of the group that bravely entered the Rikti Portals in an attempt to stop the invasion from the other side.
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Yeah, except we aren't given an option to honor this tradition or not. If you have a security level under 20, the snobs at the Icon store won't sell you a cape... and I can't even tie a bath towel or a bed sheet around my neck to fake it in the mean time. Memorial to Hero1? Bah! I know plenty of heroes who've entered the portals and come back... Hero1 isn't so special. In fact, he's less than special and I WANT to disregard his memory by wearing a cape at level 1.
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Once the war was over (debateable if you've ever seen FF or RCS zones,) Statesman declared all heroes, including himself, would remove their capes to honor the ultimate sacrifice made by so many compatriots. The moratorium ended just before the Shadow Shard was discovered, and now, once a hero has shown a certain level of respect and historical knowledge of his forebears, he is allowed to once again don a cape.
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Yeah... there it is right there... "allowed" to don a cape. I'm sorry, but some of my heroes are more anti-heroes than super-cheesy good guys. And unless Statesman shows up himself to personally punch my guy's lights out, I say who the [censored] is Statesman to dictate honoring lost heroes and other super hero behavior?? I didn't vote him in as chairman of all super hero activity, and I refuse to acknowledge him in game as anything more than an influential figurehead that never really does anything... aside dictate that a level 14 scrapper who got defeated a few times by Dr. Vahzilok before finally triumphing that, you're just not worthy to wear the cape yet.
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As for the city licensing capes, that's exactly what they do. Every hero, upon entering the city, whether of Magic origin, Technology, or any other, registers himself and his known powers. Part of the agreement the hero makes is that he won't don a cape until the city planner acknowledges he is ready for it.
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I didn't agree to that. I'm a vigilante and fight crime my way, city's blessing or not. What are they gonna do? Ask Statesman to lecture me about the right way to fight crime? Screw the city... I hope the mayor and Statesman both get abducted by Rikti and have their brains sucked out.
Oh wait... then we might never be allowed to wear helmets, and everyone will be asked not to run for the office of mayor in honor of their loss.
Its a B.S. way of explaining "you cannot have a cape until you are this tall (insert image of clown picture holding hand up 48 inches from ground)."
Hey, you know what? Hero1 wore a costume to... maybe we should all be restricted to wearing a generic hero uniform until we prove ourselves worthy to be individuals, too! How so? Oh, I dunno... reach level 10, read some more basic history (yawn), talk to contacts way out in the far end of hard to get to sections of town, and beat down some street thugs intent on defacing a memorial to Hero1 at a local museum.
"Congrats, newly unique hero! You have my blessing to go design your own original costume," says the pompous Statesman!
I remember doing the cape mission on my gravity controller and getting attacked by about 20 Rikti. After I changed my underwear and died a second time, I got a friend to help. It was some of the most fun I've had in CoH. It was pretty difficult. I don't mind dying at all, as long as I"m having fun. 
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Greetings heroes!
Yes, the cape mission has been adjusted in Issue 3. We wanted this particular mission to be enjoyed by all, but we found that in its previous iteration, it was much too difficult for the casual players and soloers. We want everyone to get a chance at the cape, and we want it to be fun. For more of a challenge, try grouping up with a large group, or contact your local Hero Corp Field Agent.
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Plus, one of the Issue 2 changes that went Live but was quickly rolled back was super increased damage from Rikti. Getting a cape was really tough right after I2.
The Cape is a carrot. It's a shiny present to look forward to at lvl 20, which otherwise gives nothing.
14-travel
15-title1
20-cape
22-SOs
25-title2
30-aura
32-got all your primary
38-all your secondary
41-ancilliary powers
It's something to look forward to. We get tons of options right off the bat. The cape is a status symbol in this game, no reason for anyone to cry about it.
Level 50 is a journey, not a destination.
▲Scrapper Issues List - Going Rogue Edition▲
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I didn't agree to that. I'm a vigilante and fight crime my way, city's blessing or not. What are they gonna do? Ask Statesman to lecture me about the right way to fight crime?
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1) Cancel Medical Transporter service. Welcome to "Hardcore mode". Better hope you don't fall while fighting crime "your way". Your next will be your last.
2) Revoke your crime-fighting license. From this point on, you are going to be the favorite vigilante of Chris Jenkins, Attorney at Law. Each and every villain you beat up and "arrest" from this point on will be contacting you as part of the lawsuit. And if you aren't arresting them? Be prepared to join those Archvillains in the wanted lists for mass murder.
3) Nullify all Influence earned. Your Influence is a measure of the respect you have from the populous. Do you really think they are going to respect a super-powered being who breaks the laws willy-nilly? Sounds like you are setting yourself up to be the next Nemesis. You better hope that you can get all the Enhancements you need off of the villains you are illegally attacking, as merchants will no longer give them to you. And I hope you like the outfit you are in, as ICON won't be changing it for you any more.
4) Sever ties with all of your Contacts. These people work with the other heroes, a network of informants, and the government of Paragon City. Do you think that they would jeopardize their standing with the many thousands of heroes that follow the rules, just to maintain contact with you, the one that insists on breaking them? Looks like you get to hunt (alleged) criminals in the alleys of the city, while the rest of the heroes get the hot tips on where to go.
5) Remove teaming opportunities with other heroes. These heroes have agreed to the rules and regulations associated with the licensed crimefighting. By teaming with unlicensed vigilantes, they lose certain protections under the law that are offered by the licenses, opening themselves to the lawsuits you will undoubtedly face.
Still think you can just ignore the rules? That is your choice, but remember that choices have consequences. And in this case, the consequences are quite clear.
Besides, to hear you talk, it sounds as though you are already a part of the City of Villains, waiting for the opportunity to truly "fall". And you are welcome to it, as you sound like no hero I know.
Consequences nothing... they don't exist because the option to ignore the rules doesn't exist. It is, as pointed out, a carrot on a stick to get people to level 20.
That's really what I object to; and the background story explaining the wait is turd icing on the B.S. cake. 
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Consequences nothing... they don't exist because the option to ignore the rules doesn't exist. It is, as pointed out, a carrot on a stick to get people to level 20.
That's really what I object to; and the background story explaining the wait is turd icing on the B.S. cake.
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Yes, the option to ignore the rules doesn't exist. Neither does the option to shoot the civilians in the head, but I don't see you whining about that. Your hero makes certain agreements when he enters the city, just as you do when you enter the game. If you don't like those agreements, then your options pretty much come down to dealing with it, or not playing.
I, for one, like the story of the game, and appreciate that they went to the trouble of adding a backstory to why we wait until level 20 for the capes, rather than saying "No in-game reason, we just want you to work for it."
If you don't like story content, there are a number of games out there for you.
I've soloed the cape mission several times pre-issue 3 and loved it. The mission was perfect that way and gave a real sense of accomplishment. I did it last night with a 20 scrapper and didn't know that it had been changed. I was looking forward to a tough, rewarding fight. I must have killed only about 10 guys. It was pitiful. I didn't even break a sweat. I was terribly, terribly disappointed.
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"What?! What "Hmmm?" Those are not "Hmmm" odds!" - Zeke, CAD
"Not only will a loss seal your fate, but also the fate of the one you are protecting as well." � Himura Kenshin, Rurouni Kenshin
I for one am glad they lowered the difficulty. It was a hard mission, and it was an exciting mission, but it was also time consuming to have to revisit the three people first before doing the mission over. My scrapper did just fine with it but my friend's blaster was getting mezzed by Anathemas and red bosses were crushing the memorial. It wasn't hard, it was just boring to see the memorial disintegrate before he knew what was happening.
The idea that capes are a carrot to goad people to level 20 is silly. Do you need a prize to hit level 20? Have you ever made a character and gotten to level 19 and decided that you are fine staying at that level? To me, a cape is nice distraction from the cycle of level, buy enhancements, talk to contacts. It's a short history lesson and a feeling of protecting the past when you are done. I wish there were more missions like it.
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I've soloed the cape mission several times pre-issue 3 and loved it. The mission was perfect that way and gave a real sense of accomplishment. I did it last night with a 20 scrapper and didn't know that it had been changed. I was looking forward to a tough, rewarding fight. I must have killed only about 10 guys. It was pitiful. I didn't even break a sweat. I was terribly, terribly disappointed.
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Now try soloing it with a Mind Controller, or a Dark Defender, and think about what that would have been like pre-Issue 3.
I posted this elsewhere cause I didn't see this thread but I wanted to post it here too...
I did the new easy cape mission at 5am (bout 6 hours ago) in the morning while falling asleep twice at the keyboard in mid combat. I still beat it easily. The mobs that are supposed to destroy the capsule just stood there in their cheering animation as I defeated them one at a time with a nap somewhere inbetween.
Made my ninja character feel so.... ninja-ey!
Thanks Ravenstorm!
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I've soloed the cape mission several times pre-issue 3 and loved it. The mission was perfect that way and gave a real sense of accomplishment. I did it last night with a 20 scrapper and didn't know that it had been changed. I was looking forward to a tough, rewarding fight. I must have killed only about 10 guys. It was pitiful. I didn't even break a sweat. I was terribly, terribly disappointed.
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Now try soloing it with a Mind Controller, or a Dark Defender, and think about what that would have been like pre-Issue 3.
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Point taken. I just feel that with my difficulty setting above Hard-Boiled the mission should have been a little harder.
Quick question: Can a Mind Controller or Dark Defender solo that mission as it is now with it on the lowest difficulty setting? If so, then it should stay as it is now for 1st and 2nd lowest difficulty settings, but the three higher settings should have the pre-I3 settings for those of us that liked it the way it was.
*Sigh.* Of course, it is far more complicated than that, and being by no means competant in game design, I can't think of all of the problems that would arise.
My deviantART gallery and commission info.
"What?! What "Hmmm?" Those are not "Hmmm" odds!" - Zeke, CAD
"Not only will a loss seal your fate, but also the fate of the one you are protecting as well." � Himura Kenshin, Rurouni Kenshin
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Quick question: Can a Mind Controller or Dark Defender solo that mission as it is now with it on the lowest difficulty setting? If so, then it should stay as it is now for 1st and 2nd lowest difficulty settings, but the three higher settings should have the pre-I3 settings for those of us that liked it the way it was.
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Dunno, but I personally agree with your statement. My highest toon is 15; I'm an altoholic. :-)
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Now try soloing it with a Mind Controller, or a Dark Defender, and think about what that would have been like pre-Issue 3.
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I did solo it with a Dark Defender before I3. It was fine.
I did it solo with an earth controller, an illusion controller, and a spines scrapper, all before I3. However, I'm a pretty competent and knowledgable player. Not everyone is.
I did solo it with a mind controller before i3, once on test then again live. On test I mez/dom way to the end. On live I used mass confuse but it took forever with no hasten.
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I, for one, like the story of the game, and appreciate that they went to the trouble of adding a backstory to why we wait until level 20 for the capes, rather than saying "No in-game reason, we just want you to work for it."
If you don't like story content, there are a number of games out there for you.
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I didn't say that I didn't like ALL the story content, just the crappy story content for explaining why we have to wait until level 20 for a cape... if this carrot on a stick had been at level 10 and something else was at level 20 (auras would be niec), maybe I wouldn't mind so much...
But no, I'm not going to quit the game just for this. I'll just stick to hating Statesman's face and badmouthing Hero1 until he returns from where ever and slaps me upside the head for it.
Hero1 is a wussy!
Edit: My bad... Hero1 WAS a wussy!
Well, the first time I did the cape mission was very shortly after I2 came out. It was when the swords were still bugged to do double damage, and the Lost actually attacked the capsure instead of just admiring it.
I soloed it with my L20 elec/elec blaster, with no mez protection short of running away a lot.
When a friend did it recently (hist first attempt), he was commenting on how easy it was. Well, I just got an alt to 20 so let's give thiis a go.
It's not a cape mission, anymore. It's a tutu mission: a fluffly pink tutu mission.
I have no real opinion about the change in difficulty. It will help out some players/ATs/builds. That's fine.
So we will have people who hit L20 is two hours fighting WLs, and get a cape by fighting a few Lost. More power to you. Enjoy.
But we, who earned our capes, know who we are.
Oh man , im SO impressed ... You soloed it with an Emp defender that was what level ??? Oh level 27 you said ??? No wonder why you found it easy . You had much outleveled the mission . You should have tried it at level 20 like most heroes.
( Sometimes people really make funny comments )
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