Live Feedback: Issue 12: Cimerora (Roman Zone)
By
Airhammer,
Posted on: 2008-05-20 24:21 in Developers' Corner
I have done the TF once and I doubt I will do it again. For the most part it is fun and doable, but with a Great group we spent and hour and a half with the last fight. Wipe after wipe. We finally managed to separate and pinpoint one Nictus at a time, but it is just too agrivating to go through it again. I really like the costume pieces, but the fun factor is not in that last fight. And for the record we plowed through the rest of the TF in record time. When Rommie finally took his curtain call there wasn't a member of my group that was pleased with the frustration involved. I say make the Nictus EBs and give Rommie a slow build self heal in addition to the heal Nictus, but unless something changes my one character that needed it has done it and I will be avoiding this TF like a few others out there.
The lag in the Cimerora TF is just discusting. The 3rd mish on the sand is not only blinding but the lag is so bad you can't hardly move. I did it last night on a team of 8 on relentless and we could hardly move. I send a petition I was so mad at the poorly developed map. (I've never sent a petition from lag or anything like that. I just send petitions when I'm stuck) In over 3 years of playing that was the most annoying TF I've ever done because of lag. Hami wasn't even that laggy. 
Well I will post this since I haven't seen it anywhere else, although I didn't look very hard I admit. While doing the new TF make sure that you don't leave the zone for any reason or you will get kicked from the team and can't be reinvited.
I was doing it last week, before the last mission I figured I would run to the arena and pick up some inspirations. Upon leaving the Midnight Club, wham gone from team. Nothing I can do at that point but shop, go back, and hope to get a reinvite. Got back, but the leader couldn't invite me back. I filed a ticket with support but was told it was working as intended, that if you left the zone you would be dropped from the team.
The ironic thing is upon entering the previous mission the new player tip I got when entering stated that "You can not buy inspirations from contacts during a Task Force but you can purchase them during a Task Force form arena's and the consignment house". Oh well, so much for that being accurate.
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The lag in the Cimerora TF is just discusting. The 3rd mish on the sand is not only blinding but the lag is so bad you can't hardly move. I did it last night on a team of 8 on relentless and we could hardly move. I send a petition I was so mad at the poorly developed map. (I've never sent a petition from lag or anything like that. I just send petitions when I'm stuck) In over 3 years of playing that was the most annoying TF I've ever done because of lag. Hami wasn't even that laggy.
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At least now i know I'm not the only person having the issue with the blinding sand. Did you get the same effect on the AV platform at the end of the mission (above & between the mechs)?
I also noticed this effect near the right-most Wentworth's representative in the Atlas WW, though it was much smaller. It's like a lighting effect that's set way too high or something. I haven't been able to eliminate the effect on any graphics setting on live
Dear NCsoft, if you go through with this shutdown you've guaranteed you'll not see another dime from me on any project you put out, ever.
http://xx-starhammer-xx.deviantart.com/
[ QUOTE ]
Well I will post this since I haven't seen it anywhere else, although I didn't look very hard I admit. While doing the new TF make sure that you don't leave the zone for any reason or you will get kicked from the team and can't be reinvited.
I was doing it last week, before the last mission I figured I would run to the arena and pick up some inspirations. Upon leaving the Midnight Club, wham gone from team. Nothing I can do at that point but shop, go back, and hope to get a reinvite. Got back, but the leader couldn't invite me back. I filed a ticket with support but was told it was working as intended, that if you left the zone you would be dropped from the team.
The ironic thing is upon entering the previous mission the new player tip I got when entering stated that "You can not buy inspirations from contacts during a Task Force but you can purchase them during a Task Force form arena's and the consignment house". Oh well, so much for that being accurate.
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This is a good example of how much more annoying it is that Heroes & Villains are still kept on separate influence/infamy, and can't trade/give each other anything. Cooperative zones & missions would feel alot more cooperative if we could give each other inspirations. Really sucks to be the only hero or villain on a "cooperative" task force.
Dear NCsoft, if you go through with this shutdown you've guaranteed you'll not see another dime from me on any project you put out, ever.
http://xx-starhammer-xx.deviantart.com/
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I have done the TF once and I doubt I will do it again. For the most part it is fun and doable, but with a Great group we spent and hour and a half with the last fight. Wipe after wipe. We finally managed to separate and pinpoint one Nictus at a time, but it is just too agrivating to go through it again. I really like the costume pieces, but the fun factor is not in that last fight. And for the record we plowed through the rest of the TF in record time. When Rommie finally took his curtain call there wasn't a member of my group that was pleased with the frustration involved. I say make the Nictus EBs and give Rommie a slow build self heal in addition to the heal Nictus, but unless something changes my one character that needed it has done it and I will be avoiding this TF like a few others out there.
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You guys were doing it wrong, you'll find it much easier if you ignore the nictus essences entirely and focus on killing romulus 4 times.
The key is killing the left Nictus first. That's the healer. Use ranged attack with more than 80' range (Blasters shine here). It won't fight back and Rom and the other puffballs won't notice. They will notice once it dies, however. Then just dogpile on Rommy. It was a piece of cake.
**Post Moved**
umm.... is there a place in the new zone to buy inspirations? it doesnt seem like it.
i had an awsome team 2 nights ago, we just went straight at Romulus. We defeated him 3 or 4 times and won.
The team was 2 brutes, 1 blaster, 2 rads, 1 MM(me), 1 kinetics, and a soldier.
" I don't let me kids play on the Freedom Server" -Oya
The AV with his healers are quite aggravating, however, not unkillable. I like it that the last AV in that TF was a good challenge, my sg loves a good challenge, we thrive on aggravating, extremely difficult missions. I'm sure there will be more efficient ways to kill that last AV with less aggravation, but for now killing his healers one at a time from far enough away to keep from being used to heal has been effective--just takes time, can do in about 2 hours. BTW, I love the hot chicks in the new TF O.o (especially the red head)
I have done the Imperious Task/Strike Force 16 times now -- 5 on Training Room in Open Beta and 11 times on the live servers. Only twice could we not finish the last mission:
<ul type="square">[*]Server: [u]Training Room[u], started with 6 and our [only] Tanker dropped and then, later, our only Scrapper dropped -- down to 2 Controllers and 2 Defenders = NEWP.[*]Server: [u]Live Servers[u] when our Task/Strike Force Leader was on Invincible/Relentless and the final mission AVs were Level 53 Nictus Essences. We were able to get the other 3 (Nictus[Summoner], Nictus[Sunless Mire] and Romulus), but we were left with the Nictus[Healer] -- which we couldn't take down as it was healing itself for 247 points per target in the AoE every 5 seconds (which averaged about 1200-1400 pts) on top of the level 53 AV HP regeneration stats. How did we end up with only the Nictus[Healer]? If Romulus's corpse isn't in Line of Sight, the Nictus' Death Throw doesn't go off to resurrect Romulus. Oops.[/list]
Hint: Get the Tier-3 Break Free-class Inspiration ("Escape") -- or combine 3-of-a-kind Tier-3 to make them along the way -- to break the Stun/Disorient effect of the Nictus Essences' Death Throw.
[u]Comments on Issue 12[u]
Although the Cimerora zone doesn't have any real contacts other than Imperious (Task/Strike Force) and Marcus (repeatable timed missions), there's something there that leads me to believe that more is coming.
Another cooperative zone where the Heroes and Villains can team up and do missions or the Task/Strike Force -- YAY!
Imperious's Task/Strike Force is only four missions (last 2 being filled with epic battle goodness) and can be completed in a reasonable time (~90 minutes or less). Also: there is a reward table and, of course, the unlockable costume set. City of Super-Powered Romans!
The story arc to get into the Midnighter Club (which grants access to Cimerora) is relatively short and interesting and filled with clues.
Powerset Proliferation is making some new and exciting builds for characters and teams. I was looking for some new powers and new effects (sound & visual), but this proliferation mixes it up a little. I've teamed with Plant Controllers, Cold Domination Defenders, Dark Armor Tankers, Super Reflex Axe- or Mace-wielding Brutes, Storm Summoning Masterminds and Corruptors.
And, let's not forget the Villain Epic Archetype (VEAT). Although not significantly high level, I'm having fun with mine. I have joined a team where I was the only non-VEAT and must say that "Wow." Teamwork is where it's at. When you get 6-8 together, talk about chaos and destruction!
Aeon vs. Television?
Uhm, okay | Get Mashed!I'm Tanking / Bruting so get familiar with my hand signals.
So they toned down the blinding sand but the horrific lag is still there.
The platform where Rom and Req are is still pretty bright...and laggy....
It's so cool to team mapserve while fighting 2 av's at the same time.
For a good time, use nova on a big mob in the sand. (No don't really...you'll crash)
In my opinion (for what its worth) i think i12 is a joke.
New vill epics are nice but again i think that was a little to late.
New zone lacks content and looks nowhere near as good as faultline or croa.
TF Laggy as all heck.
Since i12 the horrible disconnect while zoning is annoying.
I think the whole issue was released to early because they wanted to release the same day Conan went live. Out of fear i bet.
How about an issue with 5 new contacts per zone with 10-15 missions each. Give us something to do that wont be completed in 5 hrs.
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How about an issue with 5 new contacts per zone with 10-15 missions each. Give us something to do that wont be completed in 5 hrs.
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...You want a single issue with 400-600 new missions? What ARE you smoking? Complaints about I12 aside, that's an insane suggestion.
I agree with Epic, the TF is just way too laggy. Not to mention that there seems to be way too many baddies for a team that size.
I for one am ready to call for a boycott of ALL task forces until the devs do something about:
-The third mish, with the 'field-o-death' (literally) near the end, that seems to lead to massive death-lag.
-Those damn surgeons, who seem to heal at a rate that defenders can only dream about.
-Make a way we can tell which Nictus is which; not to mention have a way we *CAN* pull one of them or Rommie apart.
I'm rather ticked off that I apparently wasted an entire evening trying to do this, only to end up with one level - I was near to it anyways - and over 30K in debt. Not to mention that at one point on a second try, I nearly suffered a one-shot death in the first mish.
And you say they rushed it to compete with a new game? It'll look real good on their faces if that one tanks on its own anyways.
Global: @All-American Teen
70 toons across 11 servers.
Top hero -All-American Teen lvl 50 eng/invul Tanker (01:10 EST; 1/24/09)
Top villian -Poisoned Plum lvl 30 robots/devices Mastermind
The zone is beautiful, and very immersive. I love the attention to small details, and the use of the contextual dialog thing to make the NPCs talk different based on your gender adds a little extra flair. I hope that is used a lot more. My only criticism is that roman female names feminized the family name as well, so Sexta Leonitus would be Sexta Leonita, wife of Mr. Leonitus. Naturally this is an extremely minor criticism and probably way too much trouble vs. reward to change. I REALLY love the zone.
*Possible spoilers*
The TF is epic. Freakin' awesome. I have never been on a TF that felt that epic, including STF and the like. You're tied in, the action is fluid and nonstop yet not overwhelming. The challenges are difficult and require careful planning rather than the typical rush-in-and-win-because-we-spam-healing-aura mentality. The view distance and number of enemies is just freakin awesome. I can't say enough how much I love this TF, just as it is now. Seeing the transformation at the end surprised me and made me start thinking about the nature of things, which is extremely cool. Love it love it love it.
<QR>
Skipped mostly to the end. My comments echo some of the very early ones.
Beautiful new zone. Very fun TF (end fight is too hard? seriously, ppl?). Content is majorly lacking. First time I went through the Midnight Squad arc to get access into Cimerora, I was like, 'that's it?' One short backstory arc and an endless mission generator. And the TF. Seems like a ton of work for very little content. I really hope they "revisit" it and soon.
BTW, the last time I ran the ITF--1:30-ish, zero defeats, Rom went down w/o a hitch. We didn't even bother pulling or separating. Very good team, it wasn't a PuG, but it also wasn't some MoSTF-specialized supergroup either (of course the players were all very experienced). Just bring a good mix of tanking, damage & support (you know, like you're supposed to), and you won't have too many problems. Hell, an all tanker team has finished it, so you really don't have any excuses.
An Offensive Guide to Ice Melee
The only problems I'd really to see fixed now, however minor, is like in many other cave missions, there's still too many holes in the walls. In the very first mission last night, we had to restart (yeah, 1st mish, but still annoying.) because one of the baddies guarding a hostage fell through the wall and we couldn't kill it and get the hostage to leave.
On the SF... the last mission. As you are moving up the slope the lag gets worse and worse. My power fx get to be about 2 animations behind my keyboard activation with a lot of time in between of them just standing there as if I am about to dc. It has been like this on 4 out of 4 occassions that I have run the SF.
Visually, it's... well, let's call it impressive. Definitely a welcome stylistic break from the endless caves, warehouses and buildings of Paragon, and even though a lot of it is simply for show, the show is by all means worth the price of admission. The Task Force literally made me go "Wait, what?" and though the roman soldiers, especially the Emasculators are a little tough on my hold-focused mind troll, they make me work a bit more than the usual "pop domination, let the blasters mop up" technique and have to occasionally use levitation to stop the determined ones for making a beeline for the squishies.
So, very pretty, content slim but enjoyable. Has its share of bugs, needs a few "mind the gap" signs, but that's probably fodder for another thread.
I did the TF for the 1st time -and really did enjoy it, I was on a great team of 50, we did loose 1 who left the zone when she got stuck and could not get untrapped -she hit pocket D and was gone. The sand on the beach run brightness and lag there was horrible. I confess I didn't understand the robots and the generator to begin with -if someone who had played before was not present i may not have caught on as quickly. We also had major lag running up the stairs as the mobs came down, in force. I really thought that the lag was going to kill us but we made it...barely. Other than those issues I thought it was great.
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I agree with Epic, the TF is just way too laggy. Not to mention that there seems to be way too many baddies for a team that size.
I for one am ready to call for a boycott of ALL task forces until the devs do something about:
-The third mish, with the 'field-o-death' (literally) near the end, that seems to lead to massive death-lag.
-Those damn surgeons, who seem to heal at a rate that defenders can only dream about.
-Make a way we can tell which Nictus is which; not to mention have a way we *CAN* pull one of them or Rommie apart.
I'm rather ticked off that I apparently wasted an entire evening trying to do this, only to end up with one level - I was near to it anyways - and over 30K in debt. Not to mention that at one point on a second try, I nearly suffered a one-shot death in the first mish.
And you say they rushed it to compete with a new game? It'll look real good on their faces if that one tanks on its own anyways.
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Couple of things.
Maybe wait till your lvl 50? For a lvl 35-50 TF, what was your teams makeup in lvls?
"Field-o-death"? I've done this TF with 3 of my 50's. Yes there's lag, but if you stayed near the team, even with the little bit of lag (usually I just suffer with abit of combat lag...more than straight lag).
Always take out the surgeons first. When I go into a group, no matter what AT I use. That's my target. If you can't supply the dmg (maybe your using a support AT), tell the dmg dealers to go for them first.
Hmmm...I've pulled the Nictus and Rommie apart. It takes just a little bit of teamwork. Nothing more.
And it's easy.
This is with me using PuGs for the TF (tho I have also ran the TF with just a few who PuGs).
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
The BrandX Collection
Okay,
I've run the ITF around 20 or so times. I think I have not won it two times, both because people had to bail for RL time constraint issues (insert the "if-you-can't-finish-it-don't-start-it sign here). It's not hard, and can be done in 75-90 mins if you work together and play smart.
I'm not so worried about the lag, which can be epic at times, as I've been on many a'hami raid. The worry I have is the stinkin' canvas, or maybe it's the construct it's sitting on. The white beach area and path up the road glitches badly. I run a NVIDIA GeForce and always blow through things, but this TF, and zone honestly, is killing my gfx. I don't know what to call it, but imagine someone grabbing your hero/villain's top and pulling it across the zone --- seeing triangles instead of a shirt, seeing through the map to the water below three or four layers of map, this is my experience in the zone. I've loaded the newest drivers, tried to fix, nothing. There are still holes in there my red-named friends, plz fix!
Problem I'd like to chat about: Did the ITF with an all-sg group of experienced folks in a coalition race hero and villain side on Victory server and the ILL/Storm troller was causing all the baddies to fear and run, including the EBs and AVs, which caused this event to last over two hours. What the Kung Fu Panda is up with that? I had two trolls on the team and made them turn off any toggle powers they had, which added significant time and trial to our efforts...not to mention adding to their sadness and overall team morale lowering.
I like:
**The new zone...great concept and fun ideas.
**The ITF is good.
**New Badge designs are always fun.
**Co-Oping is nice, though rather unrealistic for a game that wants to be more "comic book like". Batman just would not work with the Riddler, but can be fun to mix some toons.
**New costume..nice (when am I going to get my dang overalls? I want to be...a LUMBERJACK!!!)
**VEATS -- about 300% better than Kheldians...there is something to fix.
I don't like:
**Not having some mission arcs. Why just un-ending timers? I know you want to stop PLers from PLing, but they pay their monthly fees too.
**The Lag and GFX issues.
**Minions with MEZ protect...sheesh!
**Not being able to search for villains in co-op zones...make that more workable please.
**Paying a percentage to WW for buying/selling. It isn't real money and the goods are unending...it's not helping the game in any way.
**Aggro cap...yep, still against it!
**Having to open Cimerora on EVERY LAST TOON...make it global.
Alright...done for now.
Red
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You guys put so much work into Issue 12, So much awesome and exciting new content, such beautiful art and architecture (the artists really outdid themselves on the new caves/ city) everything... wasted.
Completely wasted. My great big baloon of happiness is completely deflated. Know why?
All the fantastic stuff in issue 12 has been COMPLETELY overshadowed by my irritation at your decision to make the new maps, and more importantly the COSTUMES, exclusive to minimum of level 35. Seriously?
I've been a customer of yours and playing these games for 3 1/2 years and I have ONLY 1 character that can access the new content. Sorry, I'm not a powergamer anymore, I have a real life and I just like to mess around with my many lowbies a few times a week. Alt-itis + casual play...
The new characters I was all set to roll up once the issue hit, can't do it.
I really think ya blew it.
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*Translation* Those darned devs are so evil for creating stuff that I can't use because I can't stick to one charactor for more than 10 levels.
I don't think its a waste when they create something fun and exciting for the MAJORITY of the playerbase who can actually play the content.
If EVERYONE had altitis and didn't have a high enough lvl character then maybe you have a valid point.
Welcome to the boards....
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