The City Scoop! ~ Front Page ~ Sept. 26, 2008
By
Lighthouse_NA,
Posted on: 2008-09-26 17:56 in Announcements
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Fan Fiction SpotlightThe Justice Knights By Sin_Stalker Once again I present Sin Stalker's Justice Knights. Here, the story takes a bit of a side track as the main character, Sin Stalker, converses with his sidekick. Here, the two debate their lives as heroes and what it costs to those closest to them. It's a concept that you see often in comics, but what you normally see is when the villain captures or torments "The Girlfriend" after the hero has spent most of the arc keeping his/her significant other in the dark about their heroism. Here, the characters' "Lois Lanes" know of their super-powered lives, and the heroes discuss what it's been like for them. One has had a bad time of it, the other hasn't come that close... yet. And that becomes the central question for the heroes. Are you willing to give your all for the cape, and sacrifice your human identity, or will you attempt the increasingly difficult road of keeping your family and loved ones a part of your life while your super powers prompt your responsibility to engage in world-shaking events? The answer is usually answered with the former option, and the character runs the serious risk of becoming a brooding psychotic. Very rarely do the heroes choose to maintain their relationships, and the worlds they live in do not make that choice an easy one to live with. At the end of the story, we're also presented with what looks to be a preview for Sin_Stalker's next comic. It's a bit of a shock, to be honest, as it seems he's starting to push into the realm of the game world's "Big Players," in this case, Sister Psyche and Manticore (seriously who doesn't want to play with writing for these two? It's so rare to have costumed marriages that look like they'll work). However, it looks to be shaping up as something of a standalone adventure, so it has room to move around without stepping on any toes. It should prove to be interesting. | Hey Folks!Just a quick note I have returned! Do you have a favorite recipe you want to share? If so send it my way! Or do you have a favorate food that you don't know what to do with it? Example... I like chicken but I am tired of the same dishes over and over again with it... Send me a PM and Ill see what I can do to help you! How I will work it is, you send me what you want, Ill dig around and experiment in my kitchen, see what I can come up with off the top of my head Ill write down the recipe and send it to you, then Ill post it in the scoop, Ill pick 2 each week and the ones that don't get published that week will get published the following week, hope to hear from you soon! Feedback is always welcome! Mistress Noire's kitchen is now open!! ps... that goes for any food, if you need help with desserts, dinners, quick lunches, breakfasts, let me know
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Lighthouse
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City FictionThe Redeemers"Now, just so we have this straight," the wizard, Mortiganen, whispered hoarsely as he looked over the report, "You engaged in a high-speed chase on a busy freeway, caused a small pile-up, and then proceeded to run the leader of the criminals over with your van... The witnesses were not pleased." "Hey, it's not my fault he reverted back to human form right before I hit him..." Garm chuckled back, "But it was funny watching him scream obscenities right before I did..." The two leaders of the Redeemers stared at each other for a few minutes. Garm could swear the room had gotten darker and colder. Mortiganen used to be a bona fide super villain, with such a magnitude of power that no crew was necessary. However, the market for freelance dark wizards dried up in recent years. Also, with the Mu and the Circle of Thorns aggressively expanding (he noted this, it looked like they might be gearing up for another war) and groups like the Legacy Chain and Midnight Squad becoming more prominent and with such elements working against him, Mort figured it was a good idea to look into more legitimate employment, and there were few markets open for one of his skills. Fortunately, the dark wizard took his job very seriously. He was employed to uphold the law, so he was going to uphold the law. Since most of the world didn't really know him (a fact that irked him something fierce; he used to do battle with and work alongside the Midnight Squad before the Rikti War for goodness' sake!), he didn't have to worry about angry reprisals from old compatriots that were afraid he'd sell their secrets or old foes looking to settle a grudge. His knowledge of the world and his capabilities as a natural leader was what led to the former criminals electing him leader of this unusual experiment. Now if only the loser of that competition would be more compliant. Of course, he knew Garm only thought he should learn to lighten up. He wondered why the Trolls held so strongly to their ambivalent view of the world, even when they were supposedly cured of their Superadine addictions. "Well, Agent Wild wasn't pleased," the wizard finally intoned, "As our liaison, he caught a lot of heat for your little stunt. As it stands, you and your crew are suspended for a week. Barring emergencies, of course." Garm smiled and nodded. He was expecting something, anything, and in fact had prepared for worse. The fact that Mort was being lenient showed that he was probably rubbing off on the guy. Mortiganen twirled his mustache and narrowed his eyes at his second-in-command.
| "Suffice it to say, Garm, it is not alright to run criminals over with your van." "Got it," the Caliban chortled, "So, what did D.A.T.A. have to say about that gear we recovered?" "Just interdimensional monitoring equipment..." the wizard shrugged, "Nothing incredible. Well, incredible in our point of view..." The Redeemers were not a premier super group. They werent the Freedom Phalanx, they werent the Vindicators, heck, they were barely affiliated with Freedom Corps. However, with the influx of heroes in the city, there were a fair number of criminals that were looking for an easy way to avoid getting their heads punched clean through their butt cheeks. Most of them went solo, joined up with the various disparate hero groups, or just tried to go back to normal lives. Along with information on their former compatriots, they brought equal parts hope and contempt to the groups. Many civilians recognized former Trolls or Outcasts for what they were, and the crisp demeanor of former Council or Fifth Column troops often revealed the former allegiances of some heroes much too quickly. Many civilians simply didnt trust that villains could be rehabilitated. However, somebody in the ranks of the F.C. decided it was time to pull off the same concept as a public relations stunt, and some freelance reformed criminals were brought into Freedom Corps Redeemers super group, or Vindicators Lite as the media called the project. After his debriefing, Garm mulled over the days events and some of the brief history hed had with the group. More often than not, his compatriots had dealt with angry mobs hurling produce at them (rotten and not) after successful missions against bank robbers or terrorists. He knew that it was going to be a long road, but sometimes he really wished more people would just live with the moment and realize theyd just been saved by a slightly unorthodox group of heroes. For now, however, he wanted to relax with his partners and friends. It was surprising how easily his old crew, Briggs McBain and Doug the Ogre, had settled into working with the former Tsoo sorcerer, Genji Lucas, and the Outcasts, Ashen Roast and Blizzard Front. He thought it was funny that Briggs, of all people, had helped settle the fire tankers issues with his best friends homosexuality. Is he trying to date you? he murmured to himself in a half chuckle as he walked into the impromptu cafeteria of their converted warehouse base, No. Then whats the problem? Whatre you muttering? Garm looked up and took note of the red and white uniform of a man who worked as their liaison to Freedom Corps. They had a few, for accountability purposes, but this was their in-house man, Martin Sanders. Martin normally wore street clothes, so his being in uniform probably meant he was about to go out on patrol. The capes-and-spandex look really didnt suit him, though. Just musing about my crew, the Troll Caliban answered, Whats up? A couple crews got pinned down in Brickstown, the former bum grunted, Im about to grab my team and attempt a rescue. Want in? Sure. Were still amped from our tumble this morning Garm stopped, and then bit his lower lip. What? Well, we just got suspended by your partner, Wild, and Mort was all too happy to comply. Sanders chuckled. You think Im gonna let that stop you? Weve got friends in trouble! Come on! |
Lighthouse
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JimmayDeanCan you tell us a little about yourself? Age, occupation and your natural habitat? *I am 29 and I work in the Information Technology field. I live on the shores of Lake Erie. Go Browns! Have a favorite movie? *I can watch the Kill Bill vol 1 and 2 fight scenes over and over. How about musical tastes? *My tastes vary a lot, right now I am listening to a Canadian band called Dragonette. Any PvP experience outside this game and when did you discover PvP in the City of Heroes? *I played Quake III Arena till my fingers bled, this is my first MMO. Which Test PvP groups have you been a member of, could you tell us about them? *I started off in JAL. That was my first time in a SG, doing Test PVP, being on Vent and emping in an 8v8 on Test. A little before the ladder started things changed in JAL and it got kind of big. I was talking to Unbalanced on test who was in Old School at the time and asked if they were looking. Next thing you know they said I was in if I wanted in. It took about 1 minute being on Vent with them and I knew I wanted to stay. Your favorite role in the Arena and most challenging? *I play Emp and so far it's been the most fun to play. I have a ton of other toons but I enjoy playing Emp. I cannot find a target to save my life (how Blasters and Sonics do it I will never know) so the most challenging is any role where I have to tab through targets LOL. What is your most memorable Arena moment, team or otherwise? *My most memorable would be the initial ladder tournament. I had just joined OS and didn't expect to play but Shocker and Strike put me in half of the matches. If not for a technicality OS would have been #1 ranked. |
*Outside of the ladder it would be the Test PVP League. I am in the PVPEC and was looking for an event to sponsor. I knew Kitten of Chaos was running a league on Infinity so I suggested one on Freedom. Moe was the one who suggested I do it on Test and it grew from there. We were ambitious for the first season wanting to do 8v8's and had two divisions. We lost a lot of people between sign ups and start dates and a lot of late comers forced us to do fillers, which did not sit well with some captians. The goal was to get new people to test and we accomplished that with Paragon Elite joining the ladder soon after and some sg's picking up members. This time we paired it down to 5v5, 9 captains and no fillers. I think it went much smoother this time and people got new test sg members out of it so we are achieving our goal. We know you love Aquaman. If Aquaman were to fight a mighty kraken, who would come out on top? *Aquaman pwns All!! PvPEC EventsTonight on Pinnacle, check out the Duck Hunt in the Bloody Bay PvP zone! Some players will be labelled 'Ducks' while others chase them for their feathers. The Pinnacle forums have more info. Also, make sure to check out any Level 4 Arena events going on around you, they're great fun! |
Lighthouse
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Crew of the lost starshipPeregrine Falcon | |
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I started this SG on December 16th, 2006 with a few real life friends of mine. We wanted to have a starship themed SG for those science-fiction themed characters that many of us have always wanted to make. The background is that High Command sent the scout ship ISS Far Traveler to investigate rumors that the Rikti had invaded Earth. They got into a fight with Rikti ships in Earth orbit. The crew is stranded here in the Earth system until they can take enough hardware from the Rikti to repair the ships Hyperdrive. Who is your base designer and who are your supergroup leaders? I am the base designer and the SG leader, in the form of my Willpower/Super Strength Tanker: Captain Pelle Viktor. A RL friend of mine is the Executive Officer. So far the group consists almost entirely of people I know and am friends with in real life. What server is your base on? Protector, hero side. When was your supergroup established? December 16th, 2006. So about 8 months before Issue 10 and the second Rikti invasion. I personally had a lot of fun with the Rikti invasion as it fit right in to our SGs background. How many players are in your supergroup? 9 players, with 62 various characters. So it's not a big SG, but that's ok. We're a small scout ship with a tight-knit crew. What is the approximate value of your base? Just a little over 7.8 million prestige. How much time do you spend working on your base? How much time have you invested so far? Oh geez. I've spent at least 50 hours working on just this base alone. I've reworked it several times. Most recently after the December 2007 prestige grant. Thank you for that by the way NCSoft. The ISS Far Traveler wouldn't be the great ship she is without that prestige grant. | What is your favorite base item? Least favorite? I'd say the answer to both questions has to be the Mission Computer. It looks great. I have one in almost every one of my SG bases. It's also my least favorite because it takes control and energy but gives nothing in return. I'll restrain myself from adding a joke there. What is your favorite thing about base editing? Least favorite? My favorite thing about base editing is trying to use the limited selection of base objects to create what I really want. During base tours I've seen cabinets retasked to make large beds. I myself have used wall cabinets to create large icons on base walls. In the starship I used a wall battery as a missile tube, air tanks as missiles and X-Ray machines as automatic loaders. It's fun to see just how close I can get my base to looking the way it should look or would look if I had unlimited options. Least favorite has got to be the clumsy base user interface. Can't copy and paste, can't apply options from one room to another without resetting the whole base, etc. I often end up spending hours just moving back and forth between two rooms just checking to make sure that I have all of the options on them the same. Trim, walls, ceilings, lighting, etc. What is the highest thing on your wish-list for new base items? I know that you only want one item, but I'm torn between two and I can't decide which I want more. An advanced teleporter or aux teleporter object that allows a teleporter to have more that 2 destinations. The second being NPCs that you can place in your base so that the bases won't always seem so lifeless and abandoned. If you could give just one piece of advice to a new base editor, what would it be? Join the in game channel Base Builders Inc. If you can't find the answer, there's almost always someone on that channel that will come over to your server and show you or help you to figure out how to do whatever you're trying to do. If it can be done that is. |
Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.
HERO DEPOTTriumph Server | |
Leader and Base architect: HellguardWho is your base designer and who are your supergroup leaders? **I'm the base designer and primary leader of the supergroup. Other leaders are Lirit LeFey and Radiac. What server is your base on? **Triumph, the "first server I clicked on." It's been a really nice place to hang out and play the game, despite its small size. When was your supergroup established? **June 2004, shortly after I started playing the game. It started out as just something for me and my wife and a real-life co-worker. Along the way, we've picked up a few friends that we've met in game, but we're still a really small supergroup. How many players are in your supergroup? **Around fifteen individual players. Most of them are inactive at the moment (I'm not even playing the game that much lately). We have about five or six people that log in at least a couple times a week, so we're pretty small. What is the approximate value of your base? **Almost 10 million prestige. We've really taken advantage of the very generous prestige gifts given out by NCSoft. If not for them, I wouldn't have been able to go crazy with the teleporter room and "Club Lirit." How much time do you spend working on your base? How much time have you invested so far? **I have no idea how much time I've invested so far. Every few months I get the idea to completely scrap everything and start over. Lately I haven't really done much, though. I tend to try to keep things as functional as possible, so there's not a lot of extra stuff in the base. Club Lirit was a special bar/dance floor I made for my wife (My friend Radiac has his own corner of the bar -- Rad's Pad, completely with stripper pole for his viewing pleasure), so that's an example of where I let myself get a little crazy with the design. What is your favorite base item? Least favorite? **My favorite functional item is the telepad. Even though we have some more ways to get around the City now (Ouroboros, Pocket D teleporter, Consignment House teleporter), it still feels nice to know that we can get to just about anywhere by just popping into the base. My favorite non-functional items are the big round sg meeting table (even though we rarely have enough members online to use it!) and the flyers (both Arachnos and Longbow). **I'm not sure I have a "least favorite," to be honest. What is your favorite thing about base editing? Least favorite? **Favorite thing would be expressing creativity. Least favorite would be the strange pathing rules and limitations of the current base system. What is the highest thing on your wish-list for new base items? **Personal storage. Either that, or making current storage more secure. If I could change an existing base item, it'd be nice if the Supergroup Mission Computer actually did something hero-side. If you could give just one piece of advice to a new base editor, what would it be? **Don't be afraid to try out new things. You can't lose prestige by experimenting. Also, check the Base forum on the boards for lots of invaluable advice. |
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Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.
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Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.
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Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.
Vol. 2, Issue 16
September 26, 2008
The City Scoop a publication for Supers by Supers!
Read the latest player made publication and then join in on the community discussion!
- [*] 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 PM Snow_Globe.
[*] If you need some Advice contact Lady_Athyna or would like to Ask The X contact LiquidX
[*] Finally if you have a Classified Ad or Recipe you would like included please contact: LadyK or MistressNoire[/list]Join The Discussion!
Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.
The City Scoop
The People On
Port Oakes
By
HumanMiracle
Hello again my wonderful readers. I have ventured into unknown and dangerous
territory this week just for you. I have gone to the Rogue Isles. I know I
know, why would Scoop Man risk his own valuable personal safety? I will tell
you why, for a scoop. If you didnt see that coming you probably havent gotten
half of the witty things I have said over the past weeks and I thank you for
reading anyway and giving me the circulation. Now, there are really only a few
things in this world that I hate: desserts that are only comprised of fruits,
soy milk, purse-pooches, midget wrestlers, and the mob. An eclectic list I
know, but I have my reasons. Sadly, I had to interview someone who happens to
fall in one of the groups I mentioned. No, I did not go to Mauries Midget
Wrestling Bungalow, although I did pass it on my way to my destination in Port
Oakes; I stopped at the infamous Caged Bird. If you havent heard of the Caged
Bird, then you dont know the Rogue Isles as well as you ought to. It is quite
possibly one of the seediest, most mob infested bars I have ever been into, and
Ive been in a lot of them. This particular dive was owned by one, Raphiel
Gambino, the Don of the Gambino Family Mafia in Port Oakes
Scoop Man: *coughs* Uh Don Gambino?
Raphiel Gambino: Wha? Who are you?
SM: Uh, Im Scoop Man. I work for the paper back in Paragon.
RG: Ooh yeah, I know you. Read your stuff on Dr. Crom. Nice
job.
SM: Oh! Thank you Don.
RG: Fuggetaboutit. What can I do for you?
SM: I was wondering if I could ask you some questions regarding
Port Oakes. You seem like the ideal man to ask since I have heard you have been
called The King of Port Oakes.
RG: Right you are sir. Ask away.
SM: First off, since we are in the Rogue Isles it is clear that
the crime rate here is substantial. That being the case, do you think that
R.I.P., the Rogue Isles Police, isnt doing its job when it comes to stopping
crime.
RG: Well thats a matter for debate really. When you get to
places like this, like Port Oakes, the justice really comes in to the hands of
the well I guess your readers would call them criminals huh? We really start to
police ourselves. Honor among thieves and all that. Thats been disappearing
though these days. Plus Arachnos really beats out the cops as a universal
police agency itself anyways.
SM: Why do you think that is?
RG: A bunch of guys trained like the military wielding
automatic weapons with body armor versus guys in slacks and button-up shirts
with pistols and pepper spray. You do the math.
SM: Im sorry, let me rephrase the question. Why do you think
Arachnos polices the criminals here in Port Oakes?
RG: Oh. Well many of these kids are trying to get in Arachnos
arent they? Theyre not going to piss of their future employers are they? The
stay in the lines just enough but the crime here is still worse than Kings Row.
The mobs, Arachnos, Coraxians, you name it we got it.
SM: So all in all you believe that Port Oakes is worse off than
Kings Row?
RG: Definitely. You have all those punks coming here thinking
they can take it by storm and start purse snatching and bank robbing. Its like
the bank should keep the vault open just to save money from buying a new vault
door each time it gets busted. Just spend a night here and all you will hear is
police sirens and gun fire from gangs. Arachnos is in constant battle with
those fish things down by Oil Spill and you have that freaky Radio thing giving
out jobs to anybody tuned in. I cant think of any reason why people who dont
commit crimes live here.
SM: So you are for the idea of cleaning up the streets? Isnt
that counterproductive for you?
RG: Well, at least get the trash off you know? Get the petty
thieves and the small time gangs with no regard for civilians. Those are the
ones doing the most harm. Take the Vendetti for example. You never see them
vandalizing a car or tagging a wall cause they think it will boost their rep or
something.
SM: Youre right, they just commit white collar crimes and
murder and black mail.
RG: Alright touché. But who do they murder? Other mobsters, not
civilians like those wackos out there with the super strength who bust heads on
a regular basis.
SM: So youre saying your crime is better than OTHER crime? Am
I getting that right?
RG: I know its confusing but when you live out here and not in
Paragon it does make sense. Believe me.
SM: How would you get rid of this petty crime?
RG: At least give R.I.P. some new recruits you know? Its like
its the same people arresting the same criminals out there. Ive seen the same
cop stand on the corner across from this bar for the last year and he says hes
been standing there for a lot longer than that. Some decent weapons for them
wouldnt hurt since theyre fighting people with super powers.
SM: Do you think that other more prominent villains should
help clean the streets of lowly crime?
RG: Heck Ive been trying to do that for a while now. Youll
never see people like Dr. Crom or Strawberry Poundcake walking around Port
Oakes teaching a lesson to the newbies though do you? I guess that means that
people who are here already, should start doing that because the big guys never
will. What I mean is, the people who are willing to play ball and recognize the
petty crimes from the actually decent crime. If those people would just get rid
of the trash as they go about their business it would make my job easier and we
may see this place evolve into something resembling Skyway you know?
SM: So you advocate villain civil war in Port Oakes?
RG: Sure why not. I wouldnt call it war so much as a civil
service, you know what I mean?
SM: I see, thank you for your time Don.
RG: No no thank you. Always a pleasure to meet a member of the
press.
I know this isnt as in depth as most of my stuff but come on, the man is a mob
boss. Hes a smart cookie and isnt about to give up much to the press that we
dont already know right? However I found the idea of criminals cleaning up the
streets to make way for more sophisticated crime interesting. I suppose the
saying The enemy of my enemy is my friend may apply there but then again the
friend is committing crimes as well. So who is to say that Mr. Gambino has the
right idea, or the wrong one? Im certainly not one to judge. This was an
interesting look at Pork Oakes though if you think about it. I would never have
been able to interview a Skull or a witch in Croatoa to ask their opinion of
the place, but I was able to approach a known criminal and find he had some of
the ideals that many of the citizens have in the Rogue Isles. Perhaps there is
more humanity to these villains than we can see in comparison to Doctor Crom.
Well fans this is goodbye for now. Join me next time when I GET THE SCOOP!
Vol. 2, Issue 16
Spetember 26th, 2008
This Issue:
Community
The Redeemers
Justice Knights
Hey Folks!
Base Showcase
Crew of the Lost Starship
Hero Depot
Classifieds
Comic
Upcoming Events:
September 26th
Freedom
Get
Your Freak On! PvPEC Level 4 Fights
Sara
Moore TF
Imperious
Task Force
Liberty
Get
Your Freak On! PvPEC Level 4 Fights
Pinnacle
Get
Your Freak On! PvPEC Level 4 Fights
Lowbie
death race
Protector
Get
Your Freak On! PvPEC Level 4 Fights
Triumph
Fight
Night 2 vs 2 Tournament, 200 Million Inf. Reward
Test Server
Casting
Call for Dark_Respite's latest video!
Virtue
Blood
Artists duck races (redside)
September 27th
Virtue
Insanity
Child's PIZZA party! (Blueside)
September 30th
Liberty
Arena
Event: 2+1 FTW
October Weekends
Champion
Shardtober
'08
October 4th
Vitue
Return
of the Giant Giant-Monster Hunt!
Hericane by Russ Platt
Lighthouse
Community Relations Manager
If you have a specific in game, account, tech or billing problem please contact our Customer Support team via The Knowledge Base "Ask A Question" page.