Paragon Times: Outbreak Plague Rampant for 4 Years
By
0th_Power,
Posted on: 2007-09-20 24:28 in News, Events and Announcement Discussion
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Didn't the article mention that the virus/drug was stolen from the Crey? Did this happen in our version of events too?
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Yes, it did. Outbreak was stolen from Crey Industries, but was rumored to be "Rikti mutagens."
We should also keep in mind that it's been stated that issue 10 was the beginning of a multiple-issue storyline, so there are undoubtedly seeds planted in issue 10 that will shed light on issue 11 (like the Nemesis/Rikti connection, maybe?)...
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I think the key differences between the outbreak of our world and tha of the alternate timeline is that 1.It's Crey, not Rikti and 2.It's contagious
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Apocalypse86 50 Fire/energy blaster Triumph
Menace Mech (FKA Burning Gundam) 50 Bots/FF Mastermind Protector
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Obsidian Assassin 30 Night Widow Protector
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I think this was covered Felderburg, But if you include the closed-Beta Testing, and Open and Preview. We are looking at about 4 years of Outbreak by now.
If not included, then it begs the question of if the "four years ago" is a hint that we won't be expecting this issue until at least next year so that it is closer the the 4th Anniversary Live event.a
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Nah; there was a post from lighthouse recently (I can't find it now...) in response to someone saying that the game was ending, and that I11 would be the last update ever for CoX. His response was that I11 would indeed be the last major update for CoX. This year.
Plus, the devs have said since January that they were planning 3 issues this year, and they've continuingly said that they're on track to deliver that.
I'm fairly certain that we'll get I11 some time after the Halloween event, and some time before the Winter event.
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I'm afraid that this may be the signal to the start of the end times of CoH/CoV. It's the only explanation for such contradictory and complete revisionist storyline.
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Not exactly...
I sense Flashback missions to save those "dead people".
But yeah, it could also be a clear sign. But I doubt they wouldn't want to go out with a bang, and right now, this looks like a wet firework.
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Oh, this is clever. This is so so clever.
That reference to the 'widow of Doctor Greg Miller'? Well, Dr. Miller is the second person you talk to in the Outbreak mission. He's the one who sends you off on the rest of the missions.
This whole paper story is about how different history would be if one single detail was changed. Remove Greg Miller, and the Outbreak Plague is still raging after four years, because WE haven't been containing it. In this alternate history, the heroes haven't been able to do the Outbreak mission, so the plague has been rampant.
The whole flow of history works out differently because of that ONE detail - whether Greg Miller lives or dies.
It's all very Ubelmann. 
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That reference to the 'widow of Doctor Greg Miller'? Well, Dr. Miller is the second person you talk to in the Outbreak mission. He's the one who sends you off on the rest of the missions.
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You're right. And on the villain side, Hard Time is the first contact you talk to and Angel Lopez is one of the second ones. They're also the only two villains who are mentioned as dying in the raid. Jimmy Dortz, the other of the two you're directed to, is oddly enough listed in the "We Remember" section.
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In addition, Jimmy Dortz' text after completing his mission and he explains tutorialistic stuff said the same thing as Angel Lopez's, except that it didn't make sense since it referred Superadine. He was but an afterthought in the devs' minds.
after reading up and learning on all this new and awesome teaser/info
predicitions:
All these contacts dying being a reference to Ragnorok
talos island becoming a hazard zone
snake/seprent symbol possibly reffering to the leviathan?
finally, possible villain epic ATs with magic and/or tech origin
new intro tutorials
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Blood of the Blade lvl50 katana/regen scrapper
Stone of the Earth lvl50 stone/stone tank
Catalepsy lvl50 SS/Invul Brute
Despised-Icon lvl50 dark/dark defender
Hope Conspiracy lvl28 Ice/Kin Corruptor
Rambling thoughts on 24 pages of info.
1. Yes, it's definitely a world without you.
2. I don't have a 48 month badge, so how could it be a 48 month anniversary already?
3. How many people perished in the Rikti War, for it to be overshadowed by the Outbreak plague means to me it didn't happen in the current time line.
4. Don't we find Crey using portal technology in the Shadow Shard? Technically, Diviner Moros could cook up such a convoluted plan. Time travel/portal users: Rikti, Arachnos, Portal Corp, Crey Industries, 5th Column, and Nemesis
5. Spoiler
.... if Nemesis said he uploaded his intellect, perhaps he already had before the encounter in the RWZ as a backup plan?
6. If there had been no war with the Rikti, then the Crey could have pilfered the technology from the Rikti and claimed it as their own in this altered future. This is based on the open access by anybody to the Rikti world theory. Also, for there to be no war with the Rikti, you have to have some sort of change in how Nemesis interacted with the Rikti - a BIG change!
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Psylenz FF/Psi, ArticQuark Storm/Rad, Symon BarSisyphus Bots/psn, Max VanSydow Thugs/Dk, Cyclone Symon Bots/stm, Blue Loki Ice/Cd, Widow 46526
HelinCarnate:OMG it is so terrible. I have the option to take 3 more powers but no additional slots. Boo F'ing hoo.
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[ QUOTE ][*] He's got a hate on for both heroes and villains for "kidnapping" Penny in the LGTF.
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He hates you (the hero you) becaues you remind him of the hero that beat him into a brain in a jar.
It's mentioned in an early mission.
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But I look nothing like Blue Steel!
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He's a brain in a jar. You should marvel that he sees at all.
That blue thing running around saying "Cookies are sometimes food" is Praetorian Cookie Monster!
Shoot on sight, please.
The part of the article that got me was this quote:
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We must continue to be vigilante, Coyote said
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Last I heard, Kiyotee was not a vigilante. The conspiracy theory that this leads me to conclude is not so much that maybe new tutorial zones are coming or anything like that, but instead that something evil has taken over or is taking hold of Arctic Sun.
Try to fight it, AS. Help should be coming soon.
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Indeed. It states clearly that Jenkins was captured, and that no cure was found for the plague. You get the cure in the last mission in Outbreak, and you rescue Jenkins in the last mission in Breakout.
This is Paragon... without _you_.
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So this is what happens when you keep dropping the missions from Coyote and the Arachnos Pilot to get through the tutorial faster. 
I know I haven't rescued Jenkins *or* found the cure for the Outbreak virus since that feature went live. 
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1. Yes, it's definitely a world without you.
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Actually, much though I love that interpretation, I have to contest it. It's a world specifically without Doctor Miller.
'Coyote has said in the past that he regrets bringing new heroes into a plague-zone, and wishes he could recover all of those who have been lost.'
So, new heroes HAVE been sent into the Outbreak area. They've just all died. Presumably, in this alternate world, 'you' were one of the heroes who tried and failed to combat the virus. Similarly, because the villain contacts died of the plague, 'you' the villain are still locked up in the Zig.
I really think this is all about changing the whole course of history by changing one thing.
Or maybe Doctor Miller died because you never cured the plauge and it got so bad it eventually killed him.
That blue thing running around saying "Cookies are sometimes food" is Praetorian Cookie Monster!
Shoot on sight, please.
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Or maybe Doctor Miller died because you never cured the plauge and it got so bad it eventually killed him.
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Good point. That works.
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Also, the issue of the newspaper is Issue 11. Nice.
I am further venturing that there is something to taking a level 50 character and being able to play the game all over again with that character.
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People have been asking for a "Flashback" system in the game to replay levels for badges and such. I think that is what Posi is referring to in his i11 comments. Also, I think the "Classic Costume" temp powers in the Halloween event are further evidence that supports this idea. Time for everyone to start tracking with the Titan Network.
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1. Yes, it's definitely a world without you.
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Actually, much though I love that interpretation, I have to contest it. It's a world specifically without Doctor Miller.
'Coyote has said in the past that he regrets bringing new heroes into a plague-zone, and wishes he could recover all of those who have been lost.'
So, new heroes HAVE been sent into the Outbreak area. They've just all died. Presumably, in this alternate world, 'you' were one of the heroes who tried and failed to combat the virus. Similarly, because the villain contacts died of the plague, 'you' the villain are still locked up in the Zig.
I really think this is all about changing the whole course of history by changing one thing.
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This appeals to me. It's easy enough to see how history could be different if a superhero who's supposedly helped people all over the city were gone; or if a supervillain who'd repeatedly caused mayhem and destruction never got the chance. But what if it was someone (seemingly) insignificant? Someone often overlooked? Someone like Dr. Miller or Jenkins.
It's sort of like the old nursery rhyme (quoted in Poor Richard's Almanac):
For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.
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Or maybe Doctor Miller died because you never cured the plauge and it got so bad it eventually killed him.
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I don't buy that. Outbreak is already contained and controlled when a new enters the game. So, you couldn't have been the one thing that led Dr. Miller to develop his cure.
After reading the article again, and the Paragonwiki page on Outbreak, the one thing that's missing is the Rikti. Dr. Miller identified Outbreak as a Rikti mutation drug. If the Rikti never invaded, then he'd have no sample to compare the drug to, and wouldn't be able to identify the Rikti component.
Now, without getting into spoilers... Why did the Rikti invade in the first place? Who set that up? No, don't answer. I know, others do, but I don't want to spoil it for those that haven't run that mission.
I'm still examining the Ish. 11 wallpaper for clues:
-The Ouroboros is a big one, definately... but it may hint at self-destruction as well as renewal. Perhaps a villain group carries out a plot that results in its own undoing?
(Personally, I'd love to see the Tsoo get licked, and the dragon is styled more in Chinese than European; just a theory of course).
-The infinity shape of the ouroboros.
-The nebula-like cloud that makes the background. I don't think it's there just for decoration...
Both Stories have to do with players failing in the tuturial zones.
Heroes dont contain outbreak. This is what happens.
Villians dont rescue Jenkins and sucessfully escape. This is what happens.
My guess.... We are going to get a contact that says something like this....
"Hero/Villian, someone screwed up our timeline. Go back and fix it."
BAMPF you are warped to the tuturial zone and get a chance to make things right (ie get the badges we've been b*#ch ing about)
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Or maybe Doctor Miller died because you never cured the plauge and it got so bad it eventually killed him.
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No because he saw other NPCs smoking cigarettes and then decided to do that as well.
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Another thing to consider. Yes there are speculations of Nemesis and 5th Column. However didn't the devs promise us a new villain group to fight? I think they were called Battalion. I read that in an article somewhere months ago.
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Entirely possible.. there are already in-game references to the existence of the Battalion, during Serpent Drummer's missions. However, I'd personally prefer it if an existing high-profile villain is behind the reality discombobulation, if only because villain-out-of-nowhere gimmicks for major storylines in comics kind of annoy me. I mean, when we already have at least 3 or 4 big badguys who are capable of doing this, why would they put up with some newbie stealing their thunder?
So yes, give us new aliens to fight (real Battalion aliens, not alternate-dimension earthlings like Rikti)! But let it be a race between Nemesis and Reichsman to see who can kidney punch causality faster
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Another thing to consider. Yes there are speculations of Nemesis and 5th Column. However didn't the devs promise us a new villain group to fight? I think they were called Battalion. I read that in an article somewhere months ago.
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Entirely possible.. there are already in-game references to the existence of the Battalion, during Serpent Drummer's missions. However, I'd personally prefer it if an existing high-profile villain is behind the reality discombobulation, if only because villain-out-of-nowhere gimmicks for major storylines in comics kind of annoy me. I mean, when we already have at least 3 or 4 big badguys who are capable of doing this, why would they put up with some newbie stealing their thunder?
So yes, give us new aliens to fight (real Battalion aliens, not alternate-dimension earthlings like Rikti)! But let it be a race between Nemesis and Reichsman to see who can kidney punch causality faster
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this is true!
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/index.php/Serpent_Drummer
also the SERPENT looking thing in the ouroboros symbol. Will serpent drummer be playing a bigger role in i11?
++++FREEDOM+++++
Funeral Thirst lvl50 claws/SR stalker
Blood of the Blade lvl50 katana/regen scrapper
Stone of the Earth lvl50 stone/stone tank
Catalepsy lvl50 SS/Invul Brute
Despised-Icon lvl50 dark/dark defender
Hope Conspiracy lvl28 Ice/Kin Corruptor
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1. Yes, it's definitely a world without you.
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Actually, much though I love that interpretation, I have to contest it. It's a world specifically without Doctor Miller.
'Coyote has said in the past that he regrets bringing new heroes into a plague-zone, and wishes he could recover all of those who have been lost.'
So, new heroes HAVE been sent into the Outbreak area. They've just all died. Presumably, in this alternate world, 'you' were one of the heroes who tried and failed to combat the virus. Similarly, because the villain contacts died of the plague, 'you' the villain are still locked up in the Zig.
I really think this is all about changing the whole course of history by changing one thing.
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This appeals to me. It's easy enough to see how history could be different if a superhero who's supposedly helped people all over the city were gone; or if a supervillain who'd repeatedly caused mayhem and destruction never got the chance. But what if it was someone (seemingly) insignificant? Someone often overlooked? Someone like Dr. Miller or Jenkins.
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Great point....
But what if Recluse went back in time and killed Nemesis?
At least now all of my characters can finally get that damn Isolator badge. Especially the ones that were created in Issue 1.