The City Scoop! July 13th, 2007


Ex_Libris

 

Posted






































The City Scoop



Call to Arms





This Issue:




Advice


IMHO, Ask
Athy
, By Popular Demand,
Advice From the X
, Horoscopes,
State of the AT




Arts


Rogue Island Repast,
Colour Me Excited
, Art Jam




Arena

So You Want to Be a PvPer,
Justice League Championship
, All Day PvP
Event




Encounters


Interviews with: Jennifer White and
Cyber Exeider /Ascended Exeider




Classifieds




Puzzles & Games

























































































The City Scoop Staff



Editors-in-Chief


Marcian
Tobay

Hertz

Lemur
Lad
- Assistant



Editors



Teldon
- Behind the Mask



LadyK
- Food and Restaurant, Classifieds



Protea
- Business and Market



Snow
Globe
- Puzzles



Advice


Lady
Athyna

LiquidX

Arts



Thors
Assassin



Dirtwolf



PvP Correspondents


Dumok
Excentric

Layout



Mantid


Frost

Additional Staff


Bowfling
Preternatural
Empress
Boudicia
Dark

Guy
Perfect

Captain
Amazing

TonyV
Evitron

The City Scoop is always seeking comments, suggestions, and
articles from our readers. Just send them to the corresponding department or
one of our Editors-in-Chief.





To be e-mailed a printer friendly copy of this edition, send a
blank e-mail to: CityScoop9@the-swarm.org


(This is an automated service, no emails will be read)




With the impending Issue 10: Invasion, the people of Paragon City,
the Rogue Isles and the world, need a leader! A shining beacon of hope, unity
and brotherhood. Do you think you have what it takes? The City Scoop is calling
all writers and natural leaders to motivate our Heroic and Villainous brethren.
Write a brief speech, explaining why we should all rise above our differences,
to fight. Submit your "Call to Arms" via PM to LadyK by midnight (PST) July
27th, 2007.


Rules and Legalities:



  1. Scoop staff, NCSoft/Cryptic employees, their families and pets are
    ineligible for entry.



  2. Only one (1) entry per global/forum account.



  3. Entries should be between 200 and 600 words. Entries that are too
    short or too long may be disqualified.



  4. Winners will be judged by the City Scoop staff without preference
    to names, supergroups, or servers.



  5. One (1) overall grand prize winner will receive a collectable
    Statesmen maquette (shown above). Two (2) first place winners, one (1) heroic
    and one (1) villainous will receive a City of Heroes/City of Villains cape.
    Honorable mention winners will receive City of * bumper stickers.



Special thanks to Combat , for
providing the idea
of this contest, as well as to NCSoft and Cryptic
for providing the prizes.


Contest details for The City Scoop "Call to Arms" writing contest.


Entries will be judged in three (3) categories:


Best over all

Best Heroic

Best Villainous



  1. Entries should be between 200 and 600 words long and contain no
    inappropriate language. If it will be censored by the profanity filter, please
    do not submit it. Entries should not contain any reference to personal
    characters or Supergroups. References to game specific groups and characters,
    i.e. Statesmen, The Longbow or Arachnos are allowed.



  2. Entry is open to legal residents of the United States (excluding
    Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and other Territories) and Canada.
    Participants must be thirteen (13) years of age or older. All Entries must be
    sent, by PM to LadyK, by no later than 11:59 (PDT) on the 27th of July, 2007.
    Entries must include:



  3. Full, legal name, First and Last



  4. Global chat handle (@players_name) as well as main forum handle



  5. Mailing address



  6. Entries will be judged on motivational merit, alone. The judges,
    The City Scoop Staffers with the exception of LadyK, will vote on best Entries
    without the knowledge of who sent them in.



  7. The winners of the "Call to Arms" contest will be announced in The
    City Scoop, on Friday August 10th, 2007. Prizes will be delivered within 4-6
    weeks of this date.




Featured Event:


July 13th-22nd:


All Servers




*PvPEC: Resistance!






Upcoming Events:


July 14th:


Champion




*PvP All Day


Protector




*Hamidon, Hamidon, I
love you


Test Server




*TIMEFORCE II






July 15th:


Champion




*Virgil Tarikoss is
DOOMed


Victory




*Summer Sunday
Nights - Warburg


Virtue




*The Eternal Party




July 20th:


Pinnacle




*The Impossibles
Rikti Event


Test Server



*The Impossibles
Rikti Event






July 28th:


Virtue




*SUPERFEST













Cruelty of the Week


In order to help combat the rising S.P.A.C.E. threat, Evitron has
traveled to Axterial VII to help the KOMPLEX ideal. As such, there will not be
a Cruelty of the Week this week.



Heroes in Pink



Last week, pink was in. From Galaxy City to Grandville, heroes and
villains everywhere proudly wore the color throughout the week. Then, climaxing
on Saturday, July 7th, Freedom's Atlas Park was flooded with pink.


The reason for this flood of color: Breast Cancer Awareness Week.
Headed by Melones, players of City of Heroes were invited to wear pink ribbons
and help raise support and awareness of the fight against a cancer that is
faced by 1 in 8 women during their lifetime. They did so with their usual
superhero flair. Capes, spandex, power armor, even flaming eyes and glowing
auras changed color in a show of support. When questioned on their newly dyed
costumes, many were happy to explain what they were representing.


Of course wearing pink isn’t enough to make breast cancer a thing
of the past, and participants were encouraged to make donations to the research
fund of their choice.


The City Scoop caught up with Melones for a quick interview about
these events:


City Scoop: What inspired you to put together this event
and raise awareness and support for the fight against breast cancer? Why did
you decide to have in the City of Heroes/Villains game?


Melones: What Inspired me? Well a few weeks ago. A very
close friend of mine got diagnosed with Breast Cancer. So I said I need to do
something to make her feel better. So I did this event. I showed her and she
was so embarrassed that people were doing this for her and many other women.


Why did I choose coh/cov? Because these days internet can spread
things very quickly.


CS: How do you feel the response was?


M: I feel the response was great. People were supportive. A
lot of them liked it. Many at the event (lvl 1's) died about 50 times just
trying to wear pink.


CS:Do you plan on hosting future event for this or other
real life issues in game?


M: In the future yes I plan on having an event in 2008.
Hopefully this time during the week and dev's can help out.


CS: Is there anyone you would like to thank for their
support in this event?


M:I would like to thank Lady Judgment, SG's: The First
Vengeance of Freedom, Zero Tolerance (On Pinnacle), Innocent Wrath's (On
Protector, The Corporation (On Justice, Freedom and Pinnacle), Warrens,
Evil/Eccentric Geniuses for a Better Tomorrow (Infinity), Anointed Brotherhood,
The Sapphite League (CoV), The Sapphite Institute (CoH), The Warhawks of
Paragon (Freedom), Angelic Blondes (Virtue CoH), Stiletto Heeled Enforcers
(Virtue), Justice Lords (Guardian), and the Steel 70. Those are Sg's that
participated.


CS: Anything else you would like to add?


M: I would just like to add, a big thanks to everyone who
showed up and supported the event!


For more information on breast cancer and how you can help find a
cure, check out:

The National Breast
Cancer Foundation


Susan G. Komen for the
Cure






Market Report


Top sellers on both markets as of the morning of 7/12:


































































































































WentWorth's



RHA


Pangean
Soil

4,300,000



-14%



RHA


Prophecy

3,680,000



+3%



RMA


Deific
Weapon

3,460,000



+2%



RHA


Magical
Conspiracy

3,000,000



+0%



RMA


Enchanted
Impervium

2,940,000



+15%



RHA


Essence
of the Furies

2,760,000



-6%



RHA


Hamidon
Goo

2,450,000



+6%



RMA


Empowered
Sigil

2,240,000



-7%



RMA


Soul
Trapped Gem

1,950,000



+4%



RMA


Mu
Vestment

1,860,000



+6%



Black Market



RHA


Pangean
Soil

2,520,000



+3%



RHA


Prophecy

2,460,000



+2%



RHA


Hamidon
Goo

1,940,000



+16%



RHA


Deific
Weapon

1,220,000



-34%



RHA


Essence
of the Furies

800,000



-1%



RMA


Empowered
Sigil

658,000



-9%



RMA


Soul
Trapped Gem

610,000



-19%



RHA


Magical
Conspiracy

420,000



+36%



RMA


Enchanted
Impervium

400,000



+41%



RMA


Mu
Vestment

347,000



-27%



Read the full report
here
.


~ Protea



Robot Rampage!




Last Sunday, as a part of the Protector Herolympics, Protector's
own Badge set forth yet another bizarre plan involving lots of gears, oil and
metal. In skyway, just before dusk in Paragon City, a total of 11 Babbages were
huddled into what Protector has affectionately dubbed 'the Pits' and rounded up
by some of our finest tanks (and me). Within 7 minutes, the metal monstrosities
were dismantled by over 70 heroes in attendance.




NO PLANS FOR CITY OF BILLBOARDS, YET




Advertising and entertainment became ever more intertwined this summer. In
addition to the release of the film “Transformers,” called “the world’s most
expensive toy commercial” by Josh Rottenburg of Entertainment Weekly, and Xbox
video game titles featuring the disturbing plasticine Burger King mascot,
coxwashington.com
reports that more MMOs are becoming interested in
selling advertising space in some of its multiplayer online games.


Bob Keefe of coxwashington.com
quotes Dorothy Ferguson
, vice president of sales and marketing for
NCsoft North America, as saying, "We're really intrigued by it. It has the
potential to increase (revenues), but it’s really also about enhancing the
game-playing experience."


In-game advertising, better known to many acronym-happy gamers as
IGA, has had a controversial past. Everquest II introduced a keyboard command
in February 2005 that allowed the player to place a delivery order through
Pizza Hut. Second Life, which bills itself as an online digital world, has
included virtual versions of the Nissan Sentra SE-R, the aloft Hotel, Apple
Computer stores, and American Apparel.


Some gamers see potential benefits to an influx of advertising
dollars. Additional revenue for the software company could translate into more
content on a quicker schedule, or reduced fees. The notion is tempting.


However, many players worry that yielding to advertising interests
gives marketers too much control over the gaming experience. In a lively
discussion, posters on the COH.com forums expressed concern that the
proliferation of advertising would harm the game-playing experience, not help
it. Detractors of product placement sometimes point to flops like “Batman and
Robin,” the fourth installment in the Batman series released in 1997, which was
lambasted for its highly conspicuous promotion of Taco Bell toys.


Lighthouse, community relations manager for NCsoft, was quick to
enter the discussion to put out the fire. He said, "First, let me say that
advertising companies who do in-game ads have been knocking on our door for
years, so really, this is nothing new. Second, to be clear, no deals have been
signed to do in game ads in City of Heroes or City of Villains."


Lighthouse added, “Should we pursue the implementation of in-game
advertisement in some future update, the concerns of our customers will always
outweigh any simple grab for additional revenue. We would include a way for
subscribers to have the option to not view ads, make sure the advertisement is
immersive and fits into the game world and that there are other tangible gains
for our subscribers, such as a resulting more rapid introduction of new
features and updates.”


Paragon City and the Rogue Isles are peppered with advertisements
for story-related products and services, such as ads for Crey Corporation,
recruiting posters for Arachnos, litigious attorney Chris Jenkins, Red Beast
energy drink, and minions for hire. There is no plan at this time to replace
them with real-life corporate logos.


For now it appears as if NCsoft’s pledge to explore in-game
advertising will apply only to some of its other titles, possibly including
Tabula Rasa, Lineage, or Guild Wars, although no official announcement has been
made. Another NCsoft title, Auto Assault, will be discontinued at the end of
the summer.


“We would be foolish to ultimately lose subscriptions by
alienating our valuable customers,” Lighthouse stressed. “To reiterate, there
is no current deal to place advertisements into the “City Of” games.”








School of Gentle Taps gets a Hard Knock



Under pressure from City officials, Katie Hannon may tighten
admissions requirements


Croatoa: the very outskirts of Paragon City, resplendent with
misty woods, calm freshwater, and shy (and not-so-shy) creatures. One of the
most recent zones to be repatriated, it remained for many months a quiet
suburb. Enter it today, however, and you’ll find a thriving zone, bustling with
heroic activity and bursting with chatter.


Ask anyone the reason, and consensus is clear: Katie Hannon.


For the last ten weeks, ever since the re-opening of the
University’s Croatoa campus, Katie Hannon has been teaching heroes everything
she knows about Inventions. Other sources of learning are readily available
through the Freedom Phalanx and other contacts throughout the City; but while
most other courses take several hours or more, under Ms. Hannon’s aegis a hero
can learn one Inventions recipe in fifteen minutes or less. As a result, the
“speed Hannon” or “Katie Express” has become a preferred way for many heroes to
improve.


“I try to run [Katie Hannon’s course] twice a day,” said Ella
Mentalist (35 controller, Freedom shard), “before and after work.” Was she
happy with the results? “The majority [of my recipes] have been decent other
than the occasional snipe.” Others rapidly agreed, claiming Ms. Hannon could
teach heroes the secrets of time and space, how to harness their own luck - in
some cases work miracles.


But the sheer celerity of her courses has not gone unnoticed. City
officials grew concerned that the coursework required for the rewards was too
light.


“How can she be sure her pupils are really ready to graduate?”
said Dr. Quaterfield, a peer stationed in the Shadow Shard. “As a man of
science, I demand proof of something before I'm willing to believe it.”


Faathim the Kind, another Shard contact, pointed out that the
ancient gifts Ms. Hannon dispensed could be dangerous in the wrong hands. “You
must remember that something learned cannot be unlearned,” he said in his usual
cryptic manner, “and nothing can ever be undone.”


How should the rewards be balanced? Statesman, by various accounts
either missing or standing on a battleship in IP, refused to comment, but
others were quick to offer opinions. “You can’t rush real learning,” Dr.
Quaterfield said. “Sometimes it proceeds in unbounded leaps, but sometimes it’s
the pacing of a turtle. Either way, the important thing is that it’s earned.
What burns me is this view of entitlement, as if these Inventions recipes are
some kind of sovereign right.”


The tempest over Katie Hannon continued to grow until finally,
earlier this week, she was served an ultimatum: Tighten up the coursework, or
lose her credentials.


“We’re preparing these heroes to save the world,” Positron blasted
her in an official statement. “We owe it to them to test their resolve.”


Devastated by the criticism, Ms. Hannon has tentatively agreed to
tighten her requirements. How? “I challenge all applicants to best our head
witch, Mary MacComber,” Ms. Hannon explained. “But right now, even if they fail
entirely I encourage them to continue working with me. We so badly need their
help against the Red Caps that I’ve been reluctant to impede their swiftness.”
After the change, however, that will no longer be possible. “Heroes will need
to face down our champion no less than ten times to prove their worth.”


While the change is not yet implemented, experts agree it is
likely to become official policy within a matter of weeks. Will it be the touch
of death for the “speedy Katie”? Some believe so. When that happens, “it dies,”
said CrueL Seeker (50 Blaster, Freedom shard) simply. He declined to elaborate,
choosing to focus on continuing his coursework.


Others were less concerned. “[There will be] probably less
interest and [team leaders] will need to take into account team build. Witches
sure drain end a lot,” said Searing Blaze (50 controller, Infinity shard), who
heads frequent runs. “But I find that well played toons regardless of makeup
can do well.”


Ella Mentalist agreed, saying she’d still do two runs a day “as
long as my work schedule doesn’t change. I think it will make it more fun, at
least having to fight Mary again.”


Searing Blaze echoed this sentiment. “It’s all good. The TF is fun
either way,” he said. “I also met so many good peeps running it.”


Want to join the discussion? See the thread in the Market Forum
here
.


(Editor's note: this article covers a proposed change being tested
in the Training Room server. If you wish to help test this change, see

this thread.)



Letter from the Editor





Q. I want to help! Can I join the City Scoop
staff?

A. The best way to audition for the City Scoop is to show us
how you can help. Cover an in-game event that's close to your heart and submit
it, to give us a sample of your writing ability.




Q. Can anybody submit a story to the Scoop?

A. Absolutely! Check our submission guidelines first. That’s
the best way to make sure your story gets the attention it deserves.


Q. Will you tell me what to write about?

A. You should choose a topic or an event you feel you can
cover well. See the submission guidelines, below.




Q. Who do I submit it to?

A. Just PM it to
Hertz
, Marcian_Tobay,
or Lemur_Lad.




Q. What if I have a great idea for a continuing
series of articles?

A. Write up the first story and send it in! We’ll take a look
at it and see if it fits.




Q. Can I submit an idea for a column that
somebody is already running?

A. We prefer that you have your own ideas, but if you want to
send in a suggestion, PM the person who writes that column. You’ll find the
name on the byline, or in the masthead.




Q. If my story isn’t chosen for this week’s
Scoop, do I have to re-submit it for the following week?

A. That shouldn’t be necessary, but we will let you know if it
is (for instance, if your article was about an upcoming event, but we couldn’t
publish it in time).




Q. If you don’t run my story, will you tell me
why?

A. Yes.




Q. What if I have an event that I want to
advertise, or if I want to recruit for my supergroup?

A. Send a classified ad in to Lady_K.




Q. What are the submission guidelines?

A. Here:



Submission Guidelines:




  • The City Scoop’s objective is to build a healthy gamer community
    by giving fair, balanced coverage of real game-related events, by players, for
    players. We would prefer that you submitted articles of a factual nature, such
    as an in-game event, and that you cover all sides of your story fairly.



  • If you wish to submit an opinion piece, we would prefer that you
    post your article on the regular forums. If a healthy discussion begins, send
    us the thread link and we’ll direct readers to it.



  • Proofread and edit your article well before submitting it. We may
    be able to help you edit it into shape, but you should polish up your own
    writing yourself as much as possible.



  • Our deadline for stories is the Wednesday prior to publication.
    Entries after Wednesday might not make it into Friday’s edition. Earlier is
    better, of course.



  • We encourage you to provide a link to any screenshots that
    accompany your article, but we can’t promise to use them.



  • Try to submit articles between 400 and 1000 words. If you have a
    longer submission, send us the first part and provide a link to the rest.



  • We reserve the right to edit all submissions for length, clarity,
    or factual error. We also reserve the right to reject your submission.



  • Since we post the City Scoop on NCSoft’s forums, your story must
    comply with the message board rules and guidelines. Forum moderators, including
    Ex Libris and Lighthouse, have the right to edit anything in the City Scoop
    (for instance, if it violates forum rules).



    [/list]



 

Posted






















Advice



Back to front page



IMHO Part 3



Reactions to the general question of “should there be a minimum
age for registered heroes,” were mixed. “Believe it or not,' said Questing
Eagle (level 50, Virtue), ” I do. [Think there should be a minimum age for
heroes] “I was surprised at the time I got accepted and figured it was because
the city needed help so bad after the War that they were taking anyone willing
to do the work. I think maybe I grew up a little faster than I could have…
several older heroes I know have told me so. I think a lot of other teen heroes
don’t really think what they’re doing through… I didn’t at first. But I got
good friends to help me and I think I turned out just fine. Eighteen’s too old
though. Make it fifteen or sixteen, when we’re allowed to get regular jobs.”
Ms. Questing Eagle received the title “Hero of the City” at the tender age of
16.


Several heroing parents suggested that their children should be
relegated to a secure location until their powers and hormones balance out.
Flairback (level 50, Justice) even suggested patenting and marketing protective
chutes to shuttle all children to and from secure locations.


Another vote for minimum age, with provisions came from Roland
Grey, a 22 year old defender (level 14 , Champion). "I agree that most kids
shouldn't be heroes. They're in an important physical development stage in
their lives, and the intrigues of hero work are not going to mesh well with out
of control hormones. Couple this with the fact that most of them have to
struggle with school, work, preparing for college or military... It's wiser to
leave the hero work to the people in the field or have been trained for it. If
you've got the powers, then great. Get trained up in them, graduate from a
super school, register, and -BAM- you're an official hero. But we can't be
having every overzealous little punk rushing into the "War on Crime" without
them knowing what they're doing. Look what happened to Frostfire!"


However the most common answer to this question was, no. Nestor
Druji, another 22 year old defender (level 27, Protector) stated, "I don't
understand why there should be such a law in effect. The Freakshow, the
Devouring Earth... These are criminal factions that have little to no concern
about the age of the people they threaten. I personally believe that if a youth
has the capability to defend him or her self, as well as any local bystanders,
then they should be able to do so without fear of reprisal. This bill, in
effect, will take away that right. A basic right. Everybody has the right to
defend themselves, using whatever force is necessary. Every citizen has the
right to make an arrest against anybody violating the law, using whatever force
is necessary. Why should we restrict just the youths who display extraordinary
talents?" His younger brother, Kip, age 21, (level 42, Protector) agreed
stating, "This smacks of 'Might for Right.' It feels like one more step toward
keeping us, all of us, from being able to do what we do best. And that is
protect the citizens of this fine city and the world abroad. You cut down our
numbers, you expose any of us, and we are all at risk. Take this to heart...
Children have fought in wars throughout history. From biblical times, to the
Crusades, to Vietnam to even our modern conflicts spanning the globe, children
are an ever-present threat to consider. If ours prove to be just as tough, who
are these fat-cats to tell them they can't fight?"


Dear
Athy,


Dear Athy,


Everywhere I go I get the response "Ahh it's an alien" and the people usually
flee. I'm on their side though so, how am I supposed to get them to understand
I'm not a threat to them?


- You're Friendly Neighborhood Alien, Zeh'Kahm


Considering past experiences with certain species, some of the
citizenry may be prone to err on the side of caution when first encountering an
alien. Take heart though friend, with time and good deeds, your name, and
others in similar circumstances, will became separate from the aggressiveness
associated with the previously mentioned certain species.

~Athy









By Popular Demand



This is the first in a series of By Popular Request articles,
which will review commonly requested player suggestions for which there is
strong positive support, and review the implications and considerations that
need to be accounted for if these suggestions were to be implemented.


This week’s subject – Server Transfers



Server transfers are the allowing of players to move all character information
associated with a character from one server to another. This option has been
requested by numerous posters on the forum, and has the support of Positron
himself, which was suggested in this Warcry interview you can read
here
. Server transfers have the benefit of allowing those players that
enjoy higher player volumes to move their favorite characters to a new server
where the teaming options seem brighter, while allowing those players that
prefer lower volumes to move to low volume servers. In this way, players can
maintain the characters they have spent a lot of time playing, while enjoying
the benefits of the type of server they may prefer.


Currently, players can copy a character from the live servers to
the test server, so the transfer technology exists. The only difference would
need to be the ability to delete the character from the old server, in order to
prevent duplication of characters. Characters will need to select a new name if
they transfer to a server where the name they had on their old server is taken.
How to handle supergroups is another challenge to be considered as well.
Finally, the question of whether or not there should be some nominal fee to use
this function needs to be answered. Once the framework for how to handle these
issues are worked out, it is likely that server transfers will be offered to
players as a way to help maintain the level of interactivity they are looking
for.



Advice From the X


Greetings boys, girls, and beings of indeterminate gender! It's
LiquidX here, back once again to give you the advice you've been craving. So,
without further ado...


"Dear LiquidX,




I find that I am spending more and more time in Paragon City and less time in
my real hometown. My visits to be with my virtual friends is a social need I
find myself addicted to. Is this normal behavior? Will I eventually disconnect
from my three dimensional world and become an actual participant in my virtual
home, ala Tron?




-Sincerely,

Green Eyed Lady
"


Dear Green Eyed Lady,

If I were you, I'd contact the folks over at DATA immedietly. You see, as much
fun as the Freedom Phalanx MMO's virtual representation of Paragon City
might be, this kind of obsession is unnatural. In fact, rumors have been
cropping up for the past couple of weeks that both Nemesis and the Countess
Crey (As well as several independant villains from the Rogue Islands) have been
attempting to kidnap the games developer, Jake Emmet, with the intention of
planting Mind Controll and Brainwashing subroutines into the programming.
Although there is no confirmation yet that they have been successful, I'd
suggest not taking the chance and get in touch with the people over at DATA
now.


"Dear LiquidX ,



What is the air speed velocity of an unladen swallow?




Sincerely,

Granmagus
"


Dear Granmagus,

Are you asking about the African Hero, or the European Hero?



And there you have it! Now, if you all will excuse me, I've got to get caught
up with the new batch of restraining orders that came in while I was away...





Horoscopes


Sun is in Cancer/Defender, Moon is in Cancer/Defender.

Julian Day 2454295.25


Heroscopes


Controller
– Moon conjunct Venus instills a heightened artistic inspiration which may
manifest itself in creative work or just the urge to experience the beauty of
nature.



Defender
– Sun conjunct Jupiter attracts good things to you today. Your experiences will
be out of the ordinary and you will likely feel generous.



Scrapper
– With Sun sextile Venus, the appreciation and deep feelings you have for
friends is heightened. Great things may happen if you take the time to express
your true feelings to them. Meeting new people is most favorable during this
transit.



Blaster
– Mercury trine Mercury marks increased influence over others and the need for
exciting experiences preferably when communing with nature.



Tanker
- Mars square Sun fills you with energy to tackle any problem involved with
work today. There may instances when you will have to give a full accounting of
your labors.



Peacebringer
– Mercury square Mercury raises issues that could be in direct conflict with
your beliefs or desires. Don't be afraid to stand your ground in discussions
with friends.



Warshade
– Jupiter sextile Neptune puts you in tune with both your own convictions and
beliefs and those of your friends. If you accept loved ones for who they truly
are, you will greatly enjoy their companionship in the future.


Villainscopes


Brute
– With Moon square Sun you may experience depression and anxiety about the work
you do and the state of your financial affairs. Use this time to take full
stock of your accounts and debts so as to find out "where you stand".



Mastermind
– Venus conjunct Mars confers ardent passion which manifests itself in art and
a physical desire.



Corrupter
– Jupiter conjunct Sun is a very fortunate transit which occurs once every
twelve years, often heralding the beginnings of major changes in life. This
transit fills you with optimism and good cheer; things will almost assuredly go
your way.



Dominator
– Mars conjunct Sun infuses great energy and confidence in you.

Avoid being confrontational as you may be overly aggressive today.



Stalker
– Saturn opposite Uranus accents your desire for self expression and
originality. If you are living true to your ideals, then this is a time of
satisfaction. If not then you will feel depressed and frustrated.


~Handwritten page found laying atop the Horoscope submission~


Hello pets. What does your future hold… and how can it be used
against you.


Villainscopes


Brute
– Oh my, what a surprise. You smash things. You manage to hit a few heroes in
the coming week. Congratulations.



Mastermind
– Darling, a successful world conqueror can’t succeed without properly trained
and happy troops. You might want to feed your minions occasionally else they’ll
leave you high and dry.



Corrupter
– You’ve heard the old adage ‘Look before you leap’, but if you spend too long
looking you’ll miss the opportunity. Jump already.



Dominator
– You should stop singing in the shower. Seriously. Your neighbor wants to kill
you.



Stalker
– Dear, I found your future far too easily this time. You might want to work on
that hide thing a little more. Trust me, it’s needed.


Heroes…


Controller
– I love the new aura.



Defender
– Relax dear. You’re so tense. Maybe a hot bath or a massage should be your
priority today.



Scrapper
– Have you considered new shoes?



Blaster
– You should start showering. Frequently.



Tanker
– How interesting… You seem to be hosting a gala event soon.



Peacebringer
– You should start singing in the shower. Loudly.



Warshade
– Dear, with all that dark energy around you, do you really need that
nightlight?


~Love and Kisses

~Scorn



The State of the AT


Scrappers



Scrappers have been the recipients of no small amount of developer
attention since City of Heroes launched three years ago. Plenty of posts have
been made, argued over, deleted, reposted, flamed, championed and applauded in
the last 3 years regarding those changes. There were some bad ones. There were
some good ones. There were some game-wide changes that were both good and bad.
The most recent addition to the game that has affected Scrappers is the
addition of Inventions in Issue 9. I could write a small book on the various
changes that the Scrapper Archetype has gone through but I'll try to avoid that
and stick to the main things. That will help us look at where Scrappers are
headed.


The first big change to the AT was the addition of the game's
first inherent power, Critical Hits. To be sure, Scrappers already had crits on
some attacks. A single attack with a 5% chance was in 4 of the 5 primaries;
Broadsword, Claws, Katana, Martial Arts and Spines. With the new change, all
the attacks in the various primaries were give 5% chance to crit against
targets ranked minions and lower. Against lieutenants and higher ranks, the
chance increases to 10%. Power Pool attacks and later Epic Attacks all have a
flat 5% chance against any target. The special attacks that already had a crit
chance were given a flat 15% chance to crit against any target. To this day
though, Dark Melee lacks an attack with a boosted Critical hit %. This is
something people have wanted for a while.


In terms of power sets and the number of possible character
combinations, Scrappers have the least variety of all the Archetypes in the
game and have always been that way. New power sets, any new power sets, have
been asked for with much enthusiasm. A recent poll on new power sets included
many ideas that hinted strongly that the next round of new sets would be made
available to Scrappers, among others. But despite that lack of set variety, the
ones that Scrappers do have access to have been shown lots of positive dev
attention.


Claws, Katana and Martial Arts have all received much need
animation changes. Martial Arts and Claws had some very long animations that
hampered the offensive ability of the sets. Both of those sets also had key
values in some powers changed to help their damage output as well. Katana got
the biggest cosmetic change. For quite some time, it had all the same
animations of Broadsword but with lower damage, recharge and endurance costs.
All the animations were changed and the powers were renamed to reflect the
Japanese origins of the weapon. People celebrated when each of these changes
were made by flooding the servers with new characters. These sets became more
fun to play and look at.


Scrapper secondaries have had a mixed bag of changes.
Invulnerability and Dark Armor suffered from the lack of stacking armors for a
few issues. When their toggles were allowed to stack, it readily improved the
quality of life for people that used those sets. Changes to the way the game
allowed critters to attack us have helped Super Reflexes out as much and the
many changes the Devs made to the powers in the set. Regeneration today has a
much smoother progression of power your character levels. Small buffs to powers
early in the set really helped this set.


I won't get too into the nerfs that have been meted out on the AT
as the bulk of the changes that lowered the defensive potential of Scrappers
are years old now. Issues 3 through 6 were not a happy time for lots of people
on the Scrapper forum. Nerfs, the global defense reduction, and enhancement
diversification all brought their own firestorm of comments and opinions. Say
what you will about the repeated nerfs to the various sets and powers but even
long time Scrappers will admit that the balance between the four secondaries
was seriously and unfairly skewed in the past and that today, there is much
greater parity between them. The Archetype is better off for them.


The net effect of all those changes placed the AT in a very good
position to take advantage of the newest addition to the game: the Invention
System. Inventions are letting Scrappers do some very good things. But there is
a need to step back from the sets in order to look at what is being done.
Remember, the set bonuses and special IOs are very attractive but that
shouldn't get in the way of enhancing the power's key effects. Some powers lend
themselves better to simply being a mule for unique IOs. Others, you should be
careful to make sure the power itself has the enhancement values it need to
function best.


Invulnerability is able to use them to close holes in its typed
resistances. Psionic damage may no longer be the threat it has been. Dark Armor
benefits simply because it has such of variety of powers that it can use so
many sets and stack the bonuses on top of its many layers of protection. Regen
gets to do more of what it does already: regen. Impressive amounts of passive
regen can be had. Super Reflexes unfortunately doesn't have quite the amount of
options that the others have. You have to work hard to assemble a further 10%
defense to each of the positional types. Since SR is all defense powers, it
doesn't get to buy some IO effects that could help it because they are bonuses
for sets that won't slot in its powers. It ends up having to take pool powers
like Tough and Health in order to get access to other sets. A better variety of
set bonuses in Defense power IO sets is called for. All of the sets can make
good use of the various recovery bonuses in the IOs. More than that though, all
of the sets benefit from set bonuses that give recharge buffs. All the sets
have long clicks that are already slotted with recharge. The tier 9 defenses,
dull pain, practiced brawler, dark regen, reconstruction, instant healing; all
these benefit from the plentiful recharge set bonuses.


The primaries can also make very good use of IOs. Common IO end
reduction enhancements after level 30 are worth more than an SO. All the
primaries make good use of that, particularly Broadsword. Sets also generally
have at least an SO worth of end reduction in them and you can really end up
using a lot less endurance while attacking due to this. You can stack some nice
damage buffs too. If you went all out for them, you could get about 37% damage,
more than a medium red inspiration. That's pretty nice. Claws would like that
the most of any of the sets. Accuracy bonuses also help all the primaries and
there are many of them. Stacking another 33% Accuracy is not difficult.


In terms of playing the game, Scrappers are still sitting pretty.
Soloing is still the Scrapper's forte' and anyone who is just getting into the
game would do well to create a Scrapper. Their defensive and offensive
strengths and mezz protection allow a much easier introduction to the mean
streets of Paragon City. Teaming is much the same as it has even been, with
Scrappers being sought after for their high damage output and their ability to
look after themselves, leaving Defenders and Controllers free to assist Tanks
and protect each other and Blasters. We have, however, seen a old problem crop
up in the last few months.


Statesman's Task Force has brought with it a problem that existed
to some extent in the beginning of the game, a problem that many high level
City of Villains players are no doubt familiar with. The problem is the
attitude that a team must be made of up certain Ats and specifically, certain
powersets in order to succeed. The Recluse Strike Force is encouraging this
mindset unfortunately and now so is the Statesman Task Force, to a lesser
extent. Scrappers are somewhat passed over as teams look for more control and
buffs from Controllers and Defenders. This happened before Issue 1 in the early
game when the holy trinity of damage, tank, healer was the team makeup to have.
To see it return is a bit disheartening but I feel it's a lesson the devs are
beginning to learn and something they will avoid.


All in all, I think it's a really good time to be a Scrapper. The
Invention system holds nothing but promise for the AT and the developers have
dropped what I would consider to be strong hints that new powersets are coming
to the AT. I, for one, can hardly wait.





 

Posted



















Arts & Entertainment





Rogue Isles Repast




Arrow Diner



Greeting Villains, Vigilantes, Heroes and other general pains in
the neck. Jenna Seidel here again with another riveting edition of the Rogue
Isle Repast. This week, my friend Thrill Kill Gill and I were hankering for
some main land cookin'. Wandering around Mercy, we saw a billboard for Arrow
Diner, advertising “Steaks, eggs, pancakes, sandwiches and coffee”. Gill said
it would hit the spot.


Now, Gill and me, we don't make the same entrance that me and the
boys do, so the place was still a bit crowded. Arrow looks like a diner from
out of the 50's, red, black, chrome and neon. And the food is about the same,
just as advertised. Steaks, burgers, chicken, fried fish, breakfast all day,
and other diner style comfort food. Gill decided to try the “Pop's Special
breakfast”, 16 ounce Porterhouse steak, Pittsburgh style, 3 eggs sunny side up,
home-fries and a full order of pancakes. I went with a little less food and
ordered the “Home-style Meatloaf dinner”, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, mushroom
gravy, and green beans. All dinner entrees come with a choice of breads,
buttered white bread, biscuit, or garlic toast and soup or salad. The soups are
your typical chicken noodle and clam chowder on Friday's, but the signature
house soup is, “Toots' Depression stew”.


Gill was getting antsy after my soup arrived. The man just eats, a
lot. I was afraid that I wasn't going to have room for my meal. A large bowl of
beef based vegetable soup was plopped in front of me. Corn, carrots, cabbage,
and that's just the “Cs”, I had to have the recipe and the story. When our
meals arrived, I found out that I WILL NEVER order a Pittsburghed steak. It
seams that to make a steak Pittsburgh, first you pound cracked black pepper
into the raw steak, then you freeze it. Then on a very hot griddle, you put on
the steak, pepper side down, until it is defrosted. Then you serve it. Yeah,
it's raw, like bloody raw. I like a little blood here and there, I'm a villain,
but not in my food!!!!! I can hardly watch Gill eat anyway, but watching him
shovel the raw steak, the raw eggs, potatoes, pancake, with syrup, all in one
bite was a bit much. I concentrated on my meatloaf. Three slices of fresh home
made meatloaf with yummy, mushroomy, gravy goodness, creamy white mashed
potatoes and green beans that are still green.


When we were done, I asked to talk to a manager or someone.
Marriann Smithson introduced herself as the owner. I asked her about the story
behind “Toots's Depression Stew”. “Toots, my great grandmother, “she said, “was
having a hard time feeding 6 growing boys and a husband, during the Depression
of the 1930's. This soup was on the stove every night, with whatever could be
gotten out of the garden, or meat, if it was available.” Marriann also
explained that hard work and “The New Deal” couldn't keep her family above
board. When President Marchand began to offer extradition immunity, the
Smithson's high tailed it out of town with their ill gotten gains. “Though,
it's really easier, to make an honest living here,” said Marriann, “some one of
each generation still carries on the family tradition of villainy.”

Marriann was kind enough to give us not only the recipe for the soup but her
meatloaf as well. Arrow Diner didn't join my security services, Marriann's
brother keeps out the local riff-raff, but they do offer a discount to all
registered villains. They also accept cash, checks, credit cards, travelers
checks, infamy, salvage and invention recipes as payment. The prices are very
reasonable, the most expensive menu item, “Pop's Breakfast” is only $16, USD.







Toots' Depression Stew, modern version


2 pounds of ground beef or turkey


1 medium onion coarse chop


1- 2 cloves of garlic


36 ounces of vegetable juice


2 10 ounce cans of beef broth


1 16 ounce bag of frozen mixed vegetables


1 10 ounce can of stewed tomatoes


2 tablespoons of oregano


1 tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce


1/2 teaspoon of Louisiana hot sauce


1 large head of cabbage, shredded


salt and pepper to taste


In a large stock pot, brown the meat over medium-high heat. Add
onion and garlic and saute until both are translucent. Add remaining
ingredients, including cabbage, simmer for a minimum of 30 minutes. Serve with
bread for a hearty meal.










Arrow Diner Meatloaf (serves 4)


2 pounds of ground beef


1 medium onion, minced


1 clove of garlic minced


1/2 cup of ketchup


1 egg


1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce


1 teaspoon of yellow mustard


salt and pepper to taste


1 dry pint of mushrooms


2 tablespoons of butter


2 teaspoons of flour


Pre-heat oven to 350 deg F. In a large bowl mix the beef, onion,
garlic, ketchup, egg, Worcestershire sauce and mustard. Place in a loaf pan,
meatloaf pan or on a grilling pan. Cook for 30-45 minutes or until the internal
temperature reaches 160 deg F. In a medium saute pan melt butter, saute
mushrooms until tender, sprinkle with flour. Add the pan drippings from the
meatloaf. Thin with water, beef broth, or any other clear liquid, if needed.




Colour Me Excited!



Hello Everyone! I'm Dirtwolf. I'm one of the newest additions to
City Scoop. I'm going to be putzing around with Arts and Entertainment with TA.
I've decided to add two (with a third alternating) more articles to the section
that are going to be interactive including a line-art that you can colour in
with crayons, digital methods, markers, or food condiments and send in. My
favorites will be posted in the following week's Scoop! I'm only going to have
two articles a week, and the second one will be alternated weekly with an art
jam, an art challenge, or something of the like. When you finish colouring the
lineart, PM it to me in a link via the forums. Hope to see some masterpieces
soon!


Our first line-art is from BattleWraith. It's an awesome
drawing of Positron.







The First Art Jam!



As I told TA upon being brought aboard the good ship City Scoop, I
wanted to bring more interactivity to the players. In turn, I've made my first
two additions to the paper completely interactive. The lineart, and this : The
Art Jam! Let me explain : The art jam is where I give you guys a subject and
you draw how you interpret it. The subject I've decided on for our first art
jam is "What do you think defines a hero?" Once again, draw up some pictures
and PM them to me and the favorites will be put up in the next issue!












 

Posted


















The
Arena


Back
to front page



So, you want to be a PvPer?!








Well let me just say congratulations for entering the world of
PvP. The guide I’m about to write can be applied to anyone entering PvP, or
with a desire to PvP, in Arena and Zones. Without further delay, here is my
first point:


The most important thing to understand when you are starting to
PvP is that you WILL die. If you walk into a zone expecting to kill and not be
killed you are in for a rude awakening. What most people forget when PvPing for
the first time is that you are fighting another player. You will hardly see the
same movements, actions, and tactics used from one person, being used by anyone
else which is what makes PvP a hard thing to get used to based on only fighting
enemies who do the same thing. Once you learn to accept your defeats, you can
truly improve.


Which leads us to our next subject. When you die, you must try and
figure out why you died. Having an open mind is what it comes down to, with an
open mind you can get fairly good in a short amount of time by just taking
advice from other players. Adding on to that point, joining a PvP SG is a great
way to learn a lot. Being a team member of people that are good at PvP would
allow you to see what they do, in comparison to you, to see what you’re doing
wrong.


If Arena PvP is what you want to do, your best bet is to go to the
Test server. Since City of Heroes/Villains lacks a true PvP Server, Test is
what all the serious PvPrs go. Once you get on Test, as I said before, the best
way to get better is to join a PvP SG. Most SGs on Test do practices twice a
week. To find a listing of some SGs on Test visit the PvP Arena forums.


In the making of this article, I asked some leaders of prominent
PvP SGs to list the most important thing someone new can do when first starting
out, here were the responses of Psypunk (Justice for All League) and EL_AJAX
(Freaks of Legend):




Psypunk,

The single most important thing a new player can do to get better in PvP is to
actually get out there and do it. PvP is best when done as part of a team, many
players realize very quickly when they jump in a PvP zone that all the
archetypes have weaknesses, so shore up those weaknesses with help from other
teammates. If you can't find a team, then you need a very good understanding of
what your hero/villain can and can't do...play to your strengths and avoid
situations that expose your weaknesses.


In PvP, there isn't as much room for mistakes as there is in the
PvE game and players who do not understand their archetype's strengths and
weaknesses will struggle. Examining highly successful teams and players,
individuals will find that these players know their roles within the team. You
do not see "offensive" empaths - an empath's job is to buff and heal, it is
what they do best and it is what makes an empath the foundation of every good
team.


PvP in COX is the "end game". Those fifty levels you have earned
hopefully gave you some insights into your archetype and have taught you the
basics, but there is so much more to learn if you want to compete and be
successful against real players. So, if you want to open the doors to an
entirely different level of play and challenge, don't discredit or disparage
PvP because you've had a few defeats. Learn WHY you were defeated. What could
you have done differently? You know how to defeat countless Freakshow, yet
you're going to have to do much better than that to defeat a real life
"Destined One" villain. Ask questions...ask the player who just defeated you
what you could have done differently. Just like in anything, you will run
across some jerks, but most will be helpful and take the time to give you some
pointers. Remember, for players who PvP, we understand that for us to have fun
we need players to PvP against! PvP opens up an entirely new level of challenge
and complexity for those of you brave enough to experience it. Open the
door...come on in...ask questions...research builds and tactics...work on
accolades, recipes, Hamidon enhancements, etc. - anything that will give you
that extra edge when you'll need it most...you're not fighting Malta or Longbow
anymore...you're fighting the best heroes and villains the game has to offer,
so you're going to need to take your game to the next level.


And most importantly, take your defeats with grace and your
success with humility!




Ajax,

Most important thing is attitude. Knowing that in PvP, there will be times when
things will not go your way. keeping a positive attitude is important. Its all
about fun.


More information about PvP can be found in this
guide to guides
.



Justice League Championship



On Monday, July 9th 2007 the Justice League Finals were held in
the Pocket D Arena. The time had finally come to see whether Team Bacon or Team
Awesome'ish would come out on top and be crowned this season's champions.

The matches got off to a slow start when 2 players from Team Awesomish didn't
show up for the night's matches. Team Awesome'ish decided to go ahead and
battle with only the 3 they had.


Match #1: The night's first battle took place on the gloomy
Graveyard arena map. Team Bacon fielded Feral Kat, Atomic Flea, Cool Nive and
Re-Assembled while Team Awesome'ish went with their only 3, hAArdvArk, Digital
Thunder and DC Bot.


The fighting erupted fast and furious from the start. Atomic Flea
was relentless in his pursuit of Digital Thunder and was rewarded with
defeating him 3 times by the end of the match. Feral Kat and hAArdvArk squared
off for much of the match but were unable to do much more than dent each other
until the rest of Team Bacon coordinated fire on hAArdvArk until he was brought
down.

DC Bot and Cool Nive faced off a few times but more often spent time trying to
assist their perspective teammates while Re-Assembled had his hands full
keeping his teamates alive.


The match ended prematurely as the Arena crashed with just over 1
minute left on the clock. By Justice League rules, the match was awarded to
Team Bacon who at the time of the crash led in kills 4-1.


Match #2: The second match was reset once due to drawing
the Monkey Cage arena map. After resetting, the Atlas Park map was the location
of the next battle.

Both teams found it difficult to force head to head confrontations on such a
wide open map. Combatants in danger of defeat were often able to keep just out
of their attackers reach buying time to heal lost health. The match ended with
Team Bacon's Atomic Flea earning 1 kill and Team Awesome'ish's DC Bot
countering with 1 kill to result in a tie for the second match.


Match #3: For the 3rd and final match, Atlas Park was again
the site of the battle. The same difficulties ensued for both teams as it had
in the second match. Near the end of the match it looked as if neither team
would score a kill until Team Awesome'ish either cunningly laid a trap or
simply siezed an opportunity. hAArdvArk and DC Bot combined attacks upon Team
Bacon's Atomic Flea and had him in danger of defeat. Re-Assembled quickly came
to the rescue healing his teammate only to find himself the target of both
attackers and was quickly overwhelmed. This led to the only kill for the entire
match ending it in Team Awesomish's favor 1-0.


With the match wins being tied between the teams, it went to
number of overall kills to determine the winner. Team Bacon achieved 5 kills to
Team Awesome'ish's 3 kills for the night.


Congratulations Team Bacon on your Justice League Championship
victory!


In next weeks Arena section, The City Scoop takes a closer look at
PvP on the Justice server.




All Day PvP Event!


The Dark Revolution is hosting an all day PVP Event on the
Champion Server, Saturday, July 14, 2007. Beginning at 11:00AM Central Standard
Time (CST), we will be PVPing the day away in multiple events sure to get the
blood flowing. I will go into details below as far as the schedule, but will be
begin by warming up a bit in Siren's Call. Second, we will see who the ultimate
team is in the Mixed 2v2 SHW Tournament. Third, we will have a Warburg Rocket
Challenge to see which team can launch the most rockets in Warburg in 1 hour.
Fourth, we will find out how well players can adapt to change in a 2v2 SHW
Lethal Lottery Tournament. Finally, we will cap the event off with a 1v1
Spectacular to see who the best of the best are on Champion.

Read
more here...




Classifieds


Established SG Looking for active players.


The Moonlight Kingdom is a light/RP friendly SG on Virtue. We have a
well-established base, and an active circle coalition. We also offer a free
dental plan! Please contact Moonlyte Shadow or Silver Tooth by
ingame email/tell for info.




WANTED, sidekick. Reclusive billionare seeks incredulous youth as
noctural vigilante, co-pilot, occasional hostage. Tights provided, must supply
own quips. Moody orphans preferred. Cover letter required. 555-KANE.




LOOK, there on the page, ITs small, ITs black and white, ITs
classifieds in the Scoop. Buy, sell, trade, find missing loved ones or
missions. Contact
LadyK
to advertise.




LANDSCAPING SERVICES. Do your neighbors complain that your hovel
isn't grimy enough? Not enough bottles on your stoop? Contact Rogue Island
Landscaping and convert that dream home into a squalorous tenement!




Puzzled? So are we. Seeking puzzles for the puzzle section. Please
contact Snow Globe
via PM.





SUPER SPEED DATING. Meet hundreds of available single heroes! Wednesday nights
at Paragon City Convention Center, 7:15pm - 7:18pm.





HELP WANTED :

The City Scoop is looking for well qualified individuals for positions as
Assistant Editor, Layout Artist, Columnists, and .... Self starters, literate
in HTML, Heroes preferred, Villains will be screened. Contact
Marcian_Tobay
or
Hertz
via PM.





 

Posted





















Encounters




Back to front page



Jennifer White


The girl who has a permenant unwanted guest


I was at the bar in Pocket D again. Not doing much else but
cooling my insides with a nice Cranberry Cocktail, made out of Cranberry juice,
Vodka and 7up. I'm a lush, I can't help it. When not beating on the Freedom
Phalanx, there's not much else to do for a gal like me. How DO they come back
from the dead so fast anyway? *sigh* I digress....While sitting at the bar,
sipping my cocktail, a smallish red-headed young lady sits next to me. She
looks of the "Heroic" pursuasion so I try not to give her much note, else I
wind up in the monkey cage for running my mouth. That's the last thing I need
on my rap sheet. Beating up some young kid. Isn't that considered child abuse?


She seems rather polite, asking for a pepsi, without ice. All of a
sudden this deep voice booms from her throat at me "WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT???
NEVER SEEN A GIRL ORDER PEPSI BEFORE????" I was kind of shaken, getting ready
to go all atomic blast her butt (Despite neutral ground rules...self defense is
self defense) when she apologized "I'm sorry, that's just my worse-er half
speaking" That statement intregued me, so, I proceeded to ask her a few
questions:


Kahlan
D'Rane:
So, what IS your name, and what do you do around here?


Jennifer: I'm Jennifer White and I have to
apologise for my um... friend. WE AREN'T FRIENDS ! Yeah.. okay.. Meet The
Darkness.


Kahlan D'Rane: Why did you pick the Guardian part
of Paragon City anyway?


Jennifer: According to my instructors at "The
Academy", there are several paralell universes and I just happen to be in this
one. Aparently, I probably exist in others, if not all of them, but I've never
met my other selves. THANK THE GREAT EVIL THERE'S ONLY ONE OF YOU HERE ! Quiet
and behave. This is Pocket D. You know the rules. RULES ARE FOR WIMPS ! *sigh*
You see.. being posessed is like having an annoying roomate who won't leave...
ever. THEN MOVE OUT !! This is MY body damn it !!!


Kahlan D'Rane: From the looks of things, you've
been through some tough times...care to talk about it? (jeez, I'm a villain not
a shrink..why oh why..oh yeah parole)


Jennifer: Well, I don't know a lot about when I
was really young. I do know that my parents were members of a "Holier than
thou" religious sect who lived in a compound separated from society. I think
they were "The Followers of Light" or something like that. Aparently, some
hostilities broke out between the members shortly after I was born and the
whole place was burned down to the ground. I was the only one rescued. I've
tried to get more information, but since the group was so "anti-establishment",
they didn't share a lot of reccords and those that were there went up with the
fire. I pretty much spent my early childhood hearing a certain voice that would
tell me to do bad things. So, after several foster homes, I ended up setting
fire to one because the voice had convinced me that my foster parents were out
to kill me. WOULD I MAKE UP SOMETHING LIKE THAT ? Quiet. I'm speaking. That
ended with me locked up in a mental hospital for quite a long time. It wasn't
until the hero Zoraks came into my life that I began to understand what was
going on.


Kahlan D'Rane: Ok it looks like you're supposed
to be in school instead of bringing in the likes of me, why aren't you? what
happened to it?


Jennifer: Nothing happened to the Academy. I
still live there. It used to be a base of operations for a golden age
supergroup called "The Justice Heroes" led by Zoraks himself. After the group
disbanded, Zoraks had noticed the rise in the number of superhuman youth in the
past several years so he had the base revamped as a school for training the
super powered youth who either needed more challenge than what other schools
were offering, or for students who were just to dangerous to put in other
schools. Mr. Zoraks was a hero from another world where magic was a way of
life. I was the first person he detected with his scrying stones and he rescued
me from the hospital. He's delat with stuff like this before back on his world
and knew demonic posession when he saw it. I AM NOT A DEMON ! THOSE GUYS ARE
USELESS, LAZY, COWARDLY, WIMPS ! He's my new foster father and he's trained me
to control my other half. The school is currently home to seven of us students
due to space constraints but there are plans for expansion as soon as more
teaching staff and resources become available. AND IF YOU BRING BOMBS, THE
SCHOOL IS LOCATED IN.... A secret location thank you very much. Mr. Zoraks
being a golden age hero has made a LOT of enemies and there's still a lot of
technology left in there so the location of the school is sworn to secrecy
among us students. As for why I'm not in school today ? It's Saturday ! No
classes. Clubbing isn't really my thing, but some of my fellow students dragged
me in here.


Kahlan D'Rane: How did you meet
your..um...Friend...In there?


Jennifer: I'm not really sure. I think it's been
with me since I was born. I HAD NO CHOICE ! MY FORTOLD HOST WAS MISSING WHEN I
ENTERED THIS WORLD. I WOULD HAVE FADED FROM EXISTANCE. JENNIFER WAS THE ONLY
HOST AVAILABLE AT THAT SPLIT SECCOND !


Kahlan D'Rane: So who else did you drag with you
other than Tall Dark and Ugly in there?


Jennifer:
WHO'S UGLY !?! Well the goofball over there dancing is Scott Erickson. He
likes to go by the code name Light Man. He love comic books, hehe. The giant
musclebound reptile creature dancing with him is his girlfriend, Stephanie
Logan (She's having a rough time with her mutation). That guy over there
muscleling in on Turndown Girl is Rick McGuire. The Welles sisters, Elenor and
Laura are over at the bar on the villain side. They're a little wierd. I
understand that they're Crey manufactured assasins. They like to hand out over
there to check out the competition in case they have to put one or two of them
down. Old habits are hard to break I guess. Oh.. and don't let that crazy,
bouncy girl dressed in pink with the heart on her shirt fool you. She's Rainbow
Argentine, a living fire breathing dragon. There's a war going on in her world
and Zoraks fought by her father's side. After her brothers were killed, her
father, the ruler of her faction, sent her here,in human form, under Zorak's
care to be safe away from the war, and to learn. So far, she's learned
everything about being a human girl from reading Teen Beat and Hearthrob, and
Cosmo magazines. Steph and I are STILL trying to reverse the damages. Anyway,
we've grown so close over the years that they're all like the brothers and
sisters I never had but always wanted.


Kahlan D'Rane: So who are your favorite bad guys
to beat up? You, if not...tall dark and ugly must have some?


Jennifer: I'm going to have to say that I don't
really have any favorite. I only go out to feed The Darkness when it's hunger
pains get so great that it won't leave me alone. I HUNGER ! It feeds on human
life force to exist. I never let it feed to the point where it kills. I let it
incapacitate it's food source and then I cut it off. The magical energy that
Zoraks feeds it daily holds it off some, but it really needs human life force
to sustain it. I decided to feed it the "bad people" and I guess that's what
tossed me unwillingly into the ranks of all the other heroes around here.
Really, I just want to do homework and be a normal 15 year old girl! I PREFER
THE CIRCLE OF THORNS ! THEY HAVE MULTIPLE SOULS WITHIN THEM !


Kahlan D'Rane: So who are your friends over
in Paragon city, you really dont do all this crimefighting on your own do you?
That's not really safe for a squishy little kid like yourself. Despite...umm
added company...


Jennifer:Well thankfully, being posessed means
that The Darkness here will do whatever it takes to survive and to do that, I
have to be alive, so I'm actually not very "Squishy". SEE ? YOU OWE ME JENN!!!
The first hero I ever met here was nammed Red Dwarf. Us, along with Dark
Living, Lori Kalamar and Pill of Death, all classified as Defenders, did as
much damage to the sinister elements of Paragon City as a team of tanks and
scrappers. Shortly after, We founded The D'Fender's Guild. Prototype Eve joined
us shortly after that. She was the best healer in the business and also turned
out to be the best base designer I personally have ever seen. She hand
deccorates The D'fender's Guld base on a constant basis.


Kahlan D'Rane: What do you do when you're NOT on
the beat? Other than sit and yack to undesirables like myself.


Jennifer: I'M TRYING TO MAKE CONNECTIONS FOR OUR
TRANSFER TO THE ROGUE ISLES ! Ahem.... Well Mr. Zoraks got me some working
papers and I was able to get a part time job cashiering at ICON in Steel Canyon
on the weekends. Durring the week, I'm usually studying for classes, reading
books, and on Friday nights, Light Man has these awesome movie nights where he
just rents classic old horror and sci-fi moviets that we watch. The only ones
I've refused to watch were "The Exorsist" and a couple others like it. The
Welles sisters pretty much refused to watch "Frankenstein". My personal
favorite movie that I can't get enough of is "THe Wizard Of Oz" I also enjoy
just going and sitting under the Atlas statue and just watching everyone there.
I love the creativity a lot of the heroes have.


Kahlan D'Rane: so um...Darkness...do you have
anything personally to add??? (you know it is kinda rude to leave you out n
all..)


Jennifer: THE WORLD WILL BE BURNED BY HELLFIRE.
THE DEAD WILL RISE AND THE WORLD WILL BE DEVOURED BY THE DARKNESS ! WAIT FOR
THE END TIMES HUMAN ! It keeps saying that but it never tells me what it means.
YOU WILL KNOW IN TIME !! MUAHAHAHAHAA !


Kahlan D'Rane: So, in conclusion: What do you
like best about Paragon city? What's so great about it?


Jennifer: ALL THE SOULS TO FEED UPON !! THERE ARE
SO MANY !!! Um... yeah... I really like the people I've met here. I've made
some very good friends and I'd like to make more ! AND I WILL FEED UPON THEM
ALL. No one is feeding on anyone ! Now Behave !!


Kahlan D'rane: Cool, thanks for your time, I'm
getting paged to go beat up the Freedom Phalanx again. They just wont stay
down..*sigh* Lord Recluse will skin me alive if I dont take this, so if you'll
excuse me...


Jennifer: IF YOU NEED SOME HELP, I'D BE WILLING
TO... We AREN'T helping !



CyberExeider / Ascended Exeider


Two halves, Same Whole


I was sitting in my usual spot at the Pocket D. Sipping away at my
vodka and cranberry juice, when, the unmistakable sound of an incoming VIP
member warping in went off. I looked and there was a man who looked somewhat
like Positron, but not quite. I was baffled at first, thinking Positron did
some cosmetic modifications to his suit...but I was wrong. The man walked up to
the bar and offered to buy me a drink.


Kahlan D'rane: So, what's up with the suit, and,
the random act of kindness towards a lady of ill repute such as myself?


CyberExeider: Oh, just being kind to a fellow
super, even if she is a supercvillain.


Kahlan D'rane: So, what are your powers? You
know, if I ever run into you in a dark alley in Warburg or something...a gal
likes to be prepared.


Cyber
Exeider:
Well, Kindness is one thing, giving out trade secrets is
another.


Kahlan D'rane: You look like you've been around
the block a few times, you probably have quite a few stories to tell. I just
want to know what brings you to Paragon City/Rogue Isles? There has to be
something more than "I want to fight crime wherever and whenever it may
manifest" *puffs out chest in immitation of some lamer hero I beat up in RV*


Cyber Exeider: Well it started a while ago, back
when I was working for Snark Enterprises under Tony Snark. My brother worked
for Tony and in fact thatfs how I got the job. Tony was approached by Freedom
Corp for a couple of projects. Tony brought me in and I got to work. The first
was a project to create a device called gThe Infinity Modulatorh which was a
device that can reformat energy. The idea was to be able to make normal people
into supers, and supers into wellc super Supers I guess. The second was a
project called gCyber Capeh, it was a project to create a android capable of
replacing a super in combat. It worked all to well, the android was quite
capable at destruction, but its ethics were questionable. I tried to upgrade it
with eEthics Programmingf but it went hay-wire, killing all the lab personnel
except me, It escaped to the Rogue Isles, and made a name for it self:
Technoform X. I took the Infinity Modulator and went after him. It was during
this time I encountered a fellow SuperHero by the name of Iron Avatar, and we
formed a super group eBrothers In Armsf. We worked together on stopping
villains and evil-doers. It wasnft until much time later that I found out that
Iron Avatar was my own brother, he was just as shocked when he figured out who
I was.


Kahlan D'rane: Wow talk about a small world.


In the time since I started, I paid a heavy price. My body had
started to change, becoming more energy as time went on. When I started to
become a danger to the city, I went to Positron. He helped me design the suit
that you see before you now.


Kahlan D'rane: Yeah I thought you were him for a
minute to be honest. You know the whole suit thing and all. Thought he did some
cosmetic mods.


Cyber Exeider: There was another super group
member, by the name of Little Raven, she wascimportant to me. Icc cared for
her a great deal. It was tough, loving someone but not ever being able to touch
them. Knowing that if you were to look upon them with your own eyes, you would
destroy the very thing you loved.


Kahlan D'rane: Yeah that would be rather
difficult, yes


Cyber Exeider: Can we change the subject please?


Kahlan D'rane: Sure not a problem


Cyber Exeider: My SuperGroup is called:
eBrothers In Armsf and Yes we have a base, It was a gift from DJ Zero for
protecting Pocket D last year from Snap Tooth.


Kahlan D'rane: Wow, that's quite a reward.


Cyber Exeider: Thank you, yes, our greatest enemy
was Technoform X, who by this time was on his way to destroy Paragon City. He
is what your villains call a fRobot/Traps Mastermindf He made a raid at our
base, destroying much of it, and kidnapping super group member Little Raven. We
followed him back to his base, and in the final battle. I gave my life to
protect Raven and the other Brothers, and destroy Technoform X.


Kahlan D'rane: But but but..you're still
here..you're not dead...Unless well you made a pact with some being or
whatever..


Cyber Exeider: You look confused, I bet your
wondering how can I say, I GAVE my life when Ifm sitting here right now. Well
I didnft edief exactly, I Ascended, became a being of pure light much like a
Kheldian, in fact Ifm confused for one all the time.


Kahlan D'rane: Aah. Yes, you do have some
Kheld-like qualities...


Cyber
Exeider:
Oh, well I traveled the Multi-verse seeing much, in fact
if I was to add that time together it would span 40,000 years of time for you.
However when I returned only a year had passed. Unfortunately, when I returned,
things were different. Raven had left citing she couldnft take the job
anymore, but I suspect its something different entirely. Technoform X had
somehow ascended as well, somehow becoming something called an eIncarnatef I
donft know much more then that Ifm afraid. But like me he can retake his
original form


Kahlan D'rane: So those bots I run into during
those Mayhem Missions Lord Recluse sends me on, are they your design? If
so...*grumbles*


Cyber Exeider: No, they arenft, thatfs Freedom
Corpfs original design.


Kahlan D'rane: Ah Ok. So, after travelling the
cosmos for all that time, what is the most interesting alien race you've
encountered?


Cyber Exeider: Well I have been to the Rikti
Homeworld, the Deepest Depths of the Shadow Shard. I would say humans, because
in all those parallel realities we have made some interesting choices.


Kahlan D'rane: Heheh. Ok, Who's your favorite all
time villain group to beat up on and why? You have to have one. Everyone does.


Cyber Exeider: The council, because they like me,
have some very advanced technology. As much as they are villains I admire their
thirst for knowledge, but I find their methods, dubious and despicable.


Kahlan D'Rane: Oh crud, my pager is going off
again. ACK It's Scirocco *sigh* He's so demanding, I have to jet. I dont feel
like getting blasted with a sandstorm next time I go to him with a report. Nice
talking to you. Mabe I'll see ya around sometime.


Cyber Exeider: Thank you for listening to my
story, its not often I get a chance to tell it.
















 

Posted





















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Herodoku







Answers to last weeks puzzle:


Upper Left: Galaxy City: Orion Beltway


Upper Right: Galaxy City: Gemini Park


Lower Left: Sewer Trial entrance


Lower Right: Boomtown





 

Posted

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