The City Scoop! ~ Front Page ~ April 4, 2008
By
Ex_Libris,
Posted on: 2008-04-04 16:45 in Announcements
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Fan Art Community SpotlightApril Artist of the Month! Once more, we are going to be spotlighting some of the incredible fan artists involved in the City of Heroes community. Each month, we'll have an interview with one of the more prolific artists and spotlight some of their work throughout the rest of the month. This month, City Scoop is shining the Spotlight on The_Foo! So, The_Foo, what is your name? It's actually Foo! What is your quest? To seek the Holy Grail.  What is your favorite color? Red. No blu-aaaaaaaaugh! Okay, now that I got that out of my system - a few more serious questions...Did you go to school for art or are you self-trained? Self-trained (and it shows)! I took art classes in school, but I'm a better learner when I can go at my own pace. How long have you seriously been pursuing your art? I've been trying since I was a kid, and have applied myself to learning Photoshop in the past few years...the real answer is that I never do anything seriously. If you're not having fun, then you better at least be getting paid.  How would you define your style of art? Comic-booky? What is your preferred medium, and why? All digital. I used to do actual pencils, but when my scanner stopped working I was forced to improvise. I actually found this helped me break some old habits. Plus, erasers work a lot better digitally than on paper. Who or what first got you interested in art? I've been drawing as far back as I can remember. I also play guitar, sing, write, and am terrible at maths. I think I'm genetically programmed for the arts. What's your favorite thing about drawing superheroes/villains? Pretty much everything. Attractive women, interesting costumes, bright colours, cool poses... Honestly, what's not to like? Your least favorite thing? Hmm. Fishnet stockings?  Who are your top three favorite comic artists? Gosh, there are so many. Top two are Adam Hughes and Alex Ross. The third slot is rotating lineup including David Aja, Michael Lark and Alex Maleev. Any advice for upcoming artists? Hell, I'm an up and coming artist! My best advice is this: be your own worst critic. Never be satisfied, 'cos there's always something you can improve upon. Thanks, Foo! You can find more of Foo's artwork in the Screenshots and Fan Art Forum ! | Fan Fiction SpotlightOperation: Mayhem! by Corsage Ever wonder what's going through your characters' heads during the course of a Mayhem mission? How about one that's supposed to be quick and easy, but instead turns into a total catastrophe? Well, Corsage here has done just that. You'll notice that there isn't an included excerpt of this particular story. That's largely because this story is far too varied for any one excerpt from any particular section of it to do much good at giving you a general feel. Each section has its own central point, whether it's explaining a character or pushing a little more of the story. Frankly, I recommend this one because it's simply a fun read. You get the varying degrees of villainy and some pretty fun dialogue to boot. Hopefully, we'll get more works from this author very soon. ------------ On a side note, I'm aware that there are many authors who tend to post on their own servers' forums more often than elsewhere. There's a major drawback to this: the Forum Purges. Now, the reason I bring this up is to offer a little advice. Try to move your stories to the Roleplaying section. This section of the forums, like Screenshots and Fan Art, doesn't see the same cleansing as the rest. In fact, there are still threads here from the very beginning of City of Heroes rolling around in the deep recesses of the past. If you want your work to last, it should be placed somewhere that it will be preserved. |
Veil One Memorial EventMarch 31, 2008 - Over thirty players showed up on Test Server last Monday to commemorate Veil Ones memory with some Super heavyweight action. The event, hosted by Old School Legends and Meltdown, turned into some lively kickball events. The teams were sometimes lopsided (the first one I helped had three cagers, including myself), but that action was fast, furious and highly entertaining. We all gathered in Pocket D at 9:00 and quickly started trading good-natured barbs with each other. Ex Libris adorned us with Peace Veil One titles and held her own in the arena enclave as well. Im the gingerbread man, she exclaimed in arena chat surely our community mod had equal parts sugar and spice. She was piloting a Fire/Thermal Corruptor this night. While our team was sorely overmatched, dropping a 36-1 decision to lol ownages team (lol ownage with 15, Megido Weapon 9, Chaos Scorch 6, Hidden Prankster 5 and PvPness Pump 1 to Killobot-5000s 1 kill for our team) we all had a blast despite the lopsided score. A group picture was taken on Pocket Ds dance floor, with veteran and new PvPers using the holdtorch emote to signify solidarity with our fallen player. The solemnity of the moment contrasted sharply with the mercurial action of the previous matches. As the attendees wished a gg Mac in Arena chat, some dispersed while others remained to a few more 8 vs. 8 vs. 8s. Equal or uneven, players of all skill levels met on test server for one purpose: to have fun. In the end, Id like to think that Walter Padilla would have appreciated that. Hopefully some who were there will keep on PvPing, and newer players will try to improve their game. Thank you to Ex Libris, Meltdown, Old School and each and everyone one of you who helped make this a very fun night. | |
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Staff Spotlight
| What is your home server, and why did you end up picking it as your home server? My home server is now Pinnacle, and I ended up picking it as my home server after a parting of ways with my original SG on Triumph (where my original level 50 is). How were you drawn to this game? Well, I've always been a fan of superheroes, and my suite-mate in college introduced me to the game. Once I made my elec/elec blaster (I was an electrical engineering major), I was hooked. What is your favorite aspect of the game? The camaraderie and teamwork, no doubt. I love the explosions of light and color you get on a big team, and the thrill of taking down something huge. What was your biggest n00b moment in game? Going to Kings Row the first time, I tried to go in the exit at the tram. What was your favorite OMG moment in game? I was on a duo with my elec/elec blaster and my friend's emp/energy defender. We were on a Carnies/Rikti mission and accidentally aggroed two spawns including three bosses. When they were all down the rush was like nothing Id ever felt playing the game before. Who is your namesake character, and what are they? Well, there is no SpaceNut character, but a number of people still call me Lux, short for Electrilux, my original elec/elec blaster and my first level 50. Do you prefer Heroside or Villainside and why is that? I don't really have a preference, but I tend to come up with concepts for heroes more often, so I spend most of my time there. Which type of character would you say is your favorite to play and why? I like characters that are good at one thing, be it taking damage or dishing it out. Tanks, scrappers and blasters hero-side, and brutes and MMs villain-side. What would you say is your playstyle? Blast/shoot/hit it 'til it's dead or I am. Just keep me alive! Which zone is your favorite? The redesigned Rikti War Zone. I had fun following a column of tanks through the zone to see if they were going anywhere. What is your favorite storyline in the game? I love the new arcs in the War Zone. When I played through it with my Mastermind and found out that Last year saw three incredible issues to the game. Out of all that was added what would you say is your favorite new feature? I will admit I love generic IOs. It's nice to be able to slot everything early on and not have to think about it anymore. More time for saving/taking over the world! What advice do you have for any new players to the game? Take your time and don't be afraid to ask questions. Read the contact text, read the clues, and don't let the vets rush you. We were all new once. Any closing comments? I can has crab spider backpack nao? Plz? |
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Happy Belated Easter!Easter being in March this year threw me off again, but here are some things you can try for next year or if youre having a belated Easter like me!
Enjoy and see you all next week! ~Mistress Noire | ||||||||
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Here we are again, visiting the Bianco's and the Mottirelli's. Were at the world famous Paragon Pizza Pie this time. If you like northern New Jersey style pizza, there is no finer place in Paragon City. (I understand that in some Shards this is called New York style, but we all know what a little burb New York is.) Fresh hand-tossed crust, a tomato sauce with just the right balance to the oregano and basil and the choicest of ingredients make anyone of the twenty-seven locations a joy. My two favorite locations are Atlas Park and Skyway City, both of which are in strip malls that cater to foodies. In 2005, our sister publication, The Paragon Times, published an article about the amount of food it takes to keep a Super going. Gigantic portions, high in proteins and carbohydrates, along with the restaurants and food service providers that offer them. Paragon Pizza Pie is no exception to this rule. They serve only one size of pizza, a 24 inch diameter that you can pile high with up to seventeen toppings. Little Tony states that the pizza would never cook with more toppings than that. Wez have a commitment to quality herez, Little Tony said. Asidez, theyz all know, wez break theyz heads, if theyz don't comply. For those with smaller appetites, PPP also sells their pizza by the slice. | If you are not in the mood for pizza, the boys will be glad to help you. Salads, from antipasto to a killer chef salad, are available. Traditional hot and cold sandwiches, like the Connecticut Grinder, Philly cheese steak, and Italian Sausage and peppers also grace the menu. One of my favorite offerings at Paragon Pizza Pie is the Capo Calzone. This delectable dish is meats and vegetable stuffed inside a wonderful crust. A calzone, for those of you who don't know, is a folded pizza with all of the toppings inside the crust, kind of like an empanada or a pocket fruit pie. In PPP's Capo Calzone is everything but the kitchen sink. There is pepperoni, salami, cappacola (a spicy ham), mortadella (much like bologna but with pistachio chunks), mozzarella, provolone, sweet peppers, onions, olives, mushrooms, sweet sausage and tomato sauce all baked until the pizza dough surrounding it is golden brown. Certain members of the family have threatened to break my kneecaps if I asked for any recipes again. However, I have taken it upon myself to create a passable version of this wonderful Italian treat. The easiest way is to take store bought ingredients to cut the preparation time. I have also included recipes for homemade sauce and pizza dough, if you are so inclined. | |||||||
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Villain Costume Contest Liberty Server: Over 50 Million in prizes, April 5th @ 5pm EDT Pocket D. Contact Bubbawheat for more info. Do you have an event coming up? Are you going to attend an upcoming event? Do you want to see or even write an article for The City Scoop? Drop a line to LadyK a week in advance, and you too could be a guest writer for The City Scoop. Hiram Giovanni's Deli and Pizzeria Food, Fence and Forgery "Everything's Kosher" War Phoenix: LVL 28 TANK LFT WANTED: Fan Artist to draw my character. I cannot offer much compensation other than any of the wares I would otherwise sell on the Auction House. If you are interested, please contact Hakuro de Killer on the Virtue Server Rats for sale. Contact Richard Ellsworth That's a coded message from your broker. Some guy named Richard Ellsworth has been selling secrets to the Circle of Thorns, and there's a reward on his head. | Lost: Paradigm Shift Device. Contact Demented Cynic at Portal Corp. by Friday. Remember to bring Hawaiian shirt. All you can eat taco night at El Super Mexicano. Tuesday at the Atlas Park store. Lost: One Apex. If found, please return to the Ghost of War Witch. Lost: Hub of the Wheel of Destruction. If found, please contact Azuria. P.S. Please do not use to construct deadly wheel of Destruction. Thanks. -Azuria Help Wanted: Writers for The City Scoop. Please contact Snow_Globe, Pants_Stealer, or Marcian_Tobay for submission details. Need to sell something? Post it in The City Scoop Classifieds. Send PM to LadyK. o_o *poke* Buh! - Pepsiman |
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Edition 42 of "The City Scoop a publication for Supers by Supers!
There is lots of Community Flavor in this edition, also wed like to announce Lady_K and Teldon as the Assistant Editors in Chief to The City Scoop! If you enjoy this publication give them a shout out!
The Scoop is LFM (looking for moar!) So if you have a talent that would fit in nicely with this weekly publication please contact Snow_Globe or Pants_Stealer
If you have concerns regarding the content of the Scoop please direct your comments via PM to Lighthouse or Ex Libris.
If you would like to do a feature article, have an event covered, or join "The City Scoop" team please PMSnow_Globe or Pants_Stealer
If you or someone you know should be considered for Behind the Mask Teldon or Encounters please contact MrsAlphaOne
If you need some Advice contact Lady_Athyna or would like to Ask The X contact LiquidX
Finally if you have a Classified Ad you would like included please contact: Lady_K
Discussion of the latest edition of "The City Scoop" is located here.
The City Scoop
Fan Art Contest 2008
The
Clash of the Titans
By
StormyOne
Over the last few months, Juggertha has been stirring up the City's fan art
community, setting artist against artist in a vicious Battle Royale to see just
who is worthy of laying claim to the Title. It all began in January, when the
call went out seeking the Greatest of the Greats, artists who believed they had
the mettle to pit Pen against Photoshop, Paint against Painter! Each month,
these challengers would need to successfully complete a challenge and any who
could not complete the image by the deadline were automatically eliminated.
Twenty-two artists stepped up and answered the call!
1. Juggertha
2. DaosX
3. mistformsquirrel
4. Arctic_Innocence
5. Turkey_Lurkey
6. Aerones
7. Su_Lin
8. Crestent
9. milk_weasel
10. Larissa_Rasputin
11. Tacky_Tricky
12. LadyJudgement
13. Projectionist
14. Toledo
15. londerwost
16. Toxic_Shia
17. DracoExMachina (Spinomania)
18. Quickening
19. Lateris
20. Crimson_Jimson
21. The Foo
22. Yin
First challenge presented to the intrepid artists was "HEROES (The Television
Series)." The artists would have to present a work of art inspired by the
television show, highlighting their talent as a "Fan Artist." Almost
immediately, some of the initial artists had to drop out of the competition,
due to other commitments or obligations. DracoExMachina was replaced by
Spinomania, keeping the initial number at 22 entrants. By January 25th, only
fourteen of the twenty-two were able to complete the challenge successfully,
and of those fourteen (given
here), the one with the most votes in the thread would receive
"Immunity" from February's challenge. January's winner was
Tacky Tricky, with a sketch of the Heroes characters replacing the City
of Heroes Splash Screen!
The Fourteen:
1. Aerones
2. Arctic_Innocence
3. Crestent
4. Crimson_Jimson
5. Spinomania
6. Juggertha
7. LadyJudgement
8. Larissa_Rasputin
9. milk_weasel
10. Projectionist
11. Quickening
12. Tacky_Tricky
13. Toxic_Shia
14. Turkey_Lurkey
February's challenge was "The Gender Bender!" The determined artists were to
take any signature character from City of Heroes/Villains and to swap genders
on them, which could have lead to some very serious identity issues, but the
artists continued valiantly forward with their eye on the Grand Prize! There
was some chaos, lots of leather and lace, and more drag than the Indy 500, but
by the end of February, eleven contestants were able to present their entrants
for the competition (given
here).
1. Aerones
2. Arctic_Innocence
3. Crestent
4. Crimson_Jimson
5. Juggertha
6. Larissa_Rasputin
7. milk_weasel
8. Projectionist
9. Spinomania
10. Tacky_Tricky
11. Turkey_Lurkey
Tacky Tricky was immune to being voted off, but in addition to the three artists
unable to make it through to this round, the three artists with the lowest
voting in that round would be eliminated! Aerones won the round with his image
of
Brother Bellum & Scylla, but alas, Crestent, Larissa_Rasputin, and
milk_weasel received the fewest votes so were eliminated, leaving only eight
artists remaining for the next round!
1. Aerones
2. Arctic_Innocence
3. Crimson_Jimson
4. Juggertha
5. Projectionist
6. Spinomania
7. Tacky_Tricky
8. Turkey_Lurkey
The Battle of March was perhaps one of the most daunting of all the challenges
the contestants had yet to face: The Battle of the Background! The artists had
to present a background image, one that was clearly inspired by City of
Heroes/Villains, but one that could not include a hero or villain! They had
until the 22nd of March to present their entries, but of the Eight that
Entered, only two remained standing by the end of the month -
Aerones and
Projectionist!
Now, the final challenge stands before the Last Two Standing! The Grand Finale -
the CLASH OF THE TITANS! For this battle, the two artists will need to present
an image of their main character, Aerones's character
Phoebus and Projectionist's
Projectionist fighting one another! The artists have until May 4th to
present their finished pieces to the masses, at which point the vote will begin
to determine just who will claim the title as the 2008 Ultimate Fan Artist!
Over the next few weeks, we will track this Clash of the Titans, presenting
interviews with our Artistic Gladiators, some insight into their strategies,
and how they plan to knock out the competition! We'll also try to get some
commentary from those who have fallen and those watching from the sidelines, so
stay tuned to the Scoop!
Vol. 1, Issue 42
April 4th, 2008
This Issue:
Knockback is your Friend
The Top Ten
Spring into Fashion!
Community
Fan Art Community Spotlight
Fan Fiction Spotlight
Veil One Memorial Event
Food & Recipes
Happy Belated Easter!
Super Secret Dinner
Classifieds
Excelsior Messaging
Upcoming Events:
April 5th:
Triumph:
MasterMind Mondays
April 6th:
Infinity:
Ice Mistral Strike Force
Virtue:
Insanity Child's weekly party
Villain
Hami Raid
April 9th:
Test:
Casting
Call for I-12
April 11th:
Liberty
Greetings
Liberty
Justice
Greetings
Justice
April 12th:
Liberty:
HAMI
Raid, Heroside
Virtue:
The
Teen Hero Gathering!
April 13th:
Test:
PvPEC
Intro to Base Raids
Handbook - Sonnique by Juggertha
Knockback is your Friend
By
Hostile_V
My name is Hostile Vengeance, and I'm a Brute. Super Strength to boot. So
naturally, I'm no stranger to Knockback (KB). And KB is of course your friend.
Because everyone loves hitting someone so hard they fly away from you, and YOU
HAVE TO SPEND A LITTLE EXTRA TIME KILLING! Okay, I can't keep up the facade. I
hate it. I don't want to play kickball with some Hero's skull. I slotted one DO
and I just had to chase everything down. But KB does have it uses, and I don't
have enough room to complain about KB. So I'm gonna give some helpful uses and
scenarios for KB.
Movie Reenactments: Issue 12 is handing out Roman armor. Naturally, slot your
Brawl for KB and recreate the Pit of Death scene from 300. Make a good enough
leather costume or suit with pistols and you can redo the Falling Trinity scene
from The Matrix Reloaded. Heck, do every scene from The Matrix. And if you're a
Fire/Psychic Dominator, you can recreate every scene from Carrie. That's just
for starters, go and look at any movie you can find with epic KB.
Start a Soccer Team: Imagine a whole squad of super-powered soccer players,
using KB to kick an enemy's brain-case around the room like nobodys business.
Heck, there's not much more I can say. Just savor this image.
Ledges and Rooftops: Ledges and rooftops are abundant, no matter where you are.
Just get to the top of one, cheese off some enemy and KB 'em off the roof. Wait
until they get back up, lather, rinse, repeat. Take bets to see how many times
you can do it before he dies.
Annoy Everyone Around You: Look, if you choose Storm Summoning, make sure to
slot everything for KB. I'm not saying it'll be practical, useful, sane or
necessary, but it'll be funny. Watch the Tanker, Scrapper, Brute or Stalker run
around, chewing you out for making their jobs harder. Be totally detrimental to
your team. Heck, make your own solo play even harder when things bounce out of
reach. Do it all for the lulz.
These are just four ideas. So go out and enjoy the "happy wonder that is KB."
Mess around with it and form your own opinions. Make a YouTube video about it.
I'll watch it. Just remember to make your own opinions.
Paid for and Sponsored by The Knockback Lovers Of Paragon Anonymous.
The Top Ten
By
Rastafari_Man
Hi. Yeah, it's been a couple weeks. I know. Why? Well..
Number 10: I was lost in the depths of the hot stinking
Canadian jungle, until a friendly Yak by the name of Bernaldo lead me back to
civilization.
Number 9: I was stuck in a two week deadlock during jury duty
over a stolen package of Slim Jims.
Number 8: I was pre-occupied trying to convince Ashton Kutcher
that he's not as funny as he thinks he is.
Number 7: Tied up with March Madness, at least until my
brackets got wrecked (Thanks a lot Duke!).
Number 6: I was on a date.
Number 5: No, it wasn't with my mom.
Number 4: The economy isn't the only thing in a recession.
Number 3: Because the land of Hyrule isn't going to free
itself from the clutches of Ganondorf.
Number 2: Due to the declining value of the American dollar,
my foreign "Youth Activities Center," where all these quality jokes are
refined, have been having a hard time finding the motivation.
And the Number one excuse for why I haven't put out a top ten list in a few
weeks is...Three words: I. Am. Lazy.
Spring into Fashion!
By
Hex Girl
It's Spring! A time for renewal, not just for plants, but also for your
wardrobe! It's time to ditch those dark winter colors and step into something
brighter, something that makes you feel energized, a vivid color from one of
Springs many blooms!
I know, I know. Some of you are sitting there going, "But we don't have access
to floral patterns, Hex." or "But I'm a manly man, Hex, I don't do florals and
pinks."
Well good news! You don't need floral patterns or pinks to get into Spring
fashion. All you need is to move away from the left side of the color palette.
Come on, you can do it, leave that dark blue alone and try its brighter side.
There you go, I knew you could do it.
Now I'm sure some of you are wondering exactly what colors are "in" this year
for Spring. The experts at Pantone have unveiled this years Top 10 Spring
colors for women to be:
[*]
Snorkel Blue
[*]
Freesia
[*]
Daiquiri Green
[*]
Croissant
[*]
Rococco Red
[*]
Silver Gray
[*]
Spring Crocus
[*]
Cantaloupe
[*]
Pink Mist
[*]
Golden Olive[/list]
What does this mean in layman terms? Well...
Snorkel Blue: It's blue! That's it, no tricky involved, pick a
shade of regular blue and you'll be good.
Freesia: Goldish yellow. Easy right?
Daiquiri Green: You might call this more of a yellow-green.
It's very much on the light and muted side of green.
Croissant: It's tan or camel, take your pick. Its one of this
years neutrals.
Rococco Red: This red has a hint of pink to it.
Silver Gray: I think this one is pretty self explanatory.
Spring Crocus: Son't let the name fool you. This is really
nothing more than a purple with more red in it than blue.
Cantaloupe: Okay, this is a pretty common fruit, if you don't
know what color a cantaloupe is then you should probably check out the produce
section of the grocery store more often.
Pink Mist: A slightly brighter version of baby pink.
Golden Olive: This color is basically olive with more of a gold
tint to it.
Spring
Fashion for women 1
Spring Fashion for women 2
Guys, this year the fashion industry has deemed that, along with neutrals (tans,
browns, blacks and grays), you should add a punch of color by using neons.
Don't shoot the messenger! This isn't as bad as it sounds. Take a look at these
guys for a general idea.
Spring
Fashion for men 1
Spring Fashion for men 2
Don't be afraid, head on over to your local tailor and experiment with this
seasons colors!
You can check out the spring 2008 PANTONER color report
here