The City Scoop ~Front Page~ January 23rd 2009
By
Niviene,
Posted on: 2009-01-23 15:15 in Announcements
Pacted and Loving ItI will say right now that this is probably one of the greatest additions in Issue 13. I was excited about it before the issue came out, and the more I use it, the more I enjoy it. However, in the forums, I see many people having trouble with the feature or difficulty making use of it. I will cover the basics of using the level pact and show how I've used it to expand my gaming. Two characters level 5 or less can start a leveling pact. They have to be on the same server and the same side of the game (2 heroes, 2 villains, no mixing). It is a good idea to have a rough plan for the characters. "Hey let's have a level pact" works about as well as "I've never seen Hamidon, lets go do a raid." You don't need to be iron clad, sign contracts or schedule every session from 1-50 but agree on what you want. Remember, if you're not a couple who lives together or talks every day, it helps to have a rough plan for getting to 50. That's the hook for leveling pacts - you're doing it together. Pacting with the intent to make the other person do all the work is unfair unless you both agree ahead of time. The biggest issue people seem to have with the pact is the experience delay. I will say it is most noticeable in the early levels and bothers people because they feel like they're losing the level-up bonus. To my knowledge, the issue with XP delay is something they're working on improving. In my experience, it's intermittent, unpredictable, and has a lot to do with how long the servers have been up since last maintenance (but even that isn't a hard rule). Two things to remember about the delay: First, while under an experience delay, you get experience as if you were that level, even if you've "leveled up" but don't actually have the experience yet. So while leveling up mid-mission can be nice, you get more experience playing through without leveling. Secondly, regular enhancers can fade when you level and leave you less powerful. Not leveling until the end avoids that. I'm not trying to say the delay is a good thing and I hope they get it fixed too. However, I played for over two years without level up bonuses and can live without them. A little practice has made it easy to judge experience even without the bar moving. For me, the added experience and the lack of fading are both worth losing the 60 seconds of awesome. Playing without your pact mate can feel slow and frustrates some players. One way I get around that is by playing on teams or playing with several bars of Patrol Experience. Even with that, I have to remind myself that two characters are advancing when I'm soloing. I get as much pleasure out of being there when my pact mate logs in and has "present levels" as I do leveling up myself. Leveling up together is where it's at though. It's just as fast as or faster than playing unpacted. Keeping the same level without having to think or plan for it is a constant comfort. No need to stay within regular experience range. No worrying about someone getting to the mission first. No worrying about getting into debt. No need to die just because your partner died. No worrying if one partner has to go to bed early for work or just wants to get something done solo when the other person is busy. It eliminates so many little frustrations that I never even consciously noticed before. So now to the meat of the matter. Here are several ways that my favorite partner, my friends, and I have been using the Level Pact feature. Two for the price of one- The early levels fly by, even if you're playing without your pact partner. Many people get bored leveling up character after character through the same content. My girlfriend and I avoid that by making two pact pairs with different concepts then choosing a character from each pair to play together so that we level 4 characters through the early level content at the same time. (A-A are in a pact and B-B are in a pact, then we play A-B, in case I didn't explain that well). We've been basically playing whichever character we feel like, switching back and forth as we wish, and knowing they're all going to be close to the same levels. Sixteen for the price of Eight- I'm sure folks have been doing this across the servers but I heard the idea first from my friends in BSOD chat on Pinnacle and we've been enjoying it. Take your typical Superteam (ours is mixed Rad Controller/Defender). Have everyone in the team make their team character and then another character they've always wanted to try but have had trouble leveling or don't enjoy in the early levels. Experience and levels flow like water on a superteam. Even pacting hasn't slowed us down. We've played one night a week for the last 4 weeks and everyone is level 20 or so. That's 24 or more characters all leveled up to 20 in under twenty hours. Friends with benefits - She made a Mastermind, which she had never tried. I have a Mastermind in the mid forties. I made a new Mace/Shield Brute but wasn't pumped about doing low levels since I had done so on Test during closed beta. It's far easier to teach someone to use an MM when you have an MM's controls in front of you. So I play my MM and she lackies. Both her MM and my Brute get levels. My MM gets levels. Her MM gets bonus pets as my lackey. Sometimes she goes back to normal zones and plays the MM with my Brute. On the whole, it works out very smoothly. I freely admit that each of these plans are somewhat the same when you get down to brass tacks. However, the differences in effect for the players involved are all different than most of the ways I've heard people using the pact so far. With a little thinking outside the box, more people will come up with ways to use and enjoy the pact beyond "how can I get someone to level for me." I don't use the pact to skip large chunks of the game, I use them to expand my choices at any level. |
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Fan Fiction SpotlightRose  In the light of day, the line between the reality of my life and the nightmare is unclear. At night, it vanishes entirely. Things I wish forgotten are remembered, experiences relived, feelings endured over and over. I turn off the light, and it begins. The girl that was Bonnie lay in the dim light of what could charitably be called a hospital. The door to her room was locked, of course, but on that day, Bonnie was too hurt to even try leaving. On this day, all she could do was stare at the swollen, suppurative mass that was her left arm. This Bonnie couldnt even remember the life that had been stolen from her. She could only feel her own flesh dying, and could only remember what they had done. The girl that was Bonnie, the girl that still had her life, waited offstage, while the Dean of the College of Engineering of Paragon City University introduced her. She nervously clutched her papers, and determinedly did not look at the audience. Who would have dreamed that so many people would be interested in the theory of robotics engineering? That girl, that Bonnie, had no plans for her life beyond living forever in her academic ivory tower and playing with robotic design. She had hopes of creating new and sophisticated prosthetics that would help people live better lives. She even dreamed, quietly, of creating prosthetic organs. There would be no need for organ donation, she thought, if she could build a robot heart that would never fail, and never be rejected.  is nearly over, and she stands there dreaming of prosthetic hearts. But Bonnie-that-was never hears me. She only hears the Dean, "And now, please welcome Bonnie Rose."> Sooner spins an excellent yarn here about a woman pushed over the edge the steps she takes for her revenge. She works with some of the most unsavory individuals and bargains with heroes she feels have wronged her, all in the aim of achieving her own personal vendetta. A capable woman with a devious mind, it's sad to think that at one point she could have been called a heroine in another life. This is but a part in a series of Sooner's stories. Each one takes place at different times or focuses on different characters, telling us the motivations of the most virtuous and the most heinous of her gallery. Numerous characters throughout the story are also the in-game avatars of some of Sooner's friends, with their mentalities skillfully translated into the story with no compromise of the original concepts. It's a satisfying read, and I look forward to more. Hopefully, you'll feel the same way.
| The Players of PvPThough things have quieted down considerably on the Arena front, I've been lucky enough to track down the legendary ELF STALKER from Champion Server. He agreed to take a few minutes of his time for this interview. What can you tell us about yourself? Natural Habitat, age, job, etc. I'm 26 and I live in Sacramento, California. My jobs include being a business owner and law enforcement. What is your favorite movie or music? Many, but when I was kid it had to be Ghostbusters. Hip Hop/ R&B and any other music that sounds good. When did you find out about City of Heroes/PvP in City of Heroes? I was looking for an online game. The only online game I can remember playing before COH was the Diablo series. I first went to EB games in mind of buying Matrix Online but I decided to ask the guy at the counter what good online game were out and he suggested City Of Heroes. I bought the game and have enjoyed it since. As for my PvP experience, I can say it's very high. I was PvPing Bloody Bay when it was real active... I miss defending the beach. The good Siren's days...and even Warburg days. Are you involved in any PvP or other SGs? Well, when I first got COV I joined this SG...can't recall their name. I earned a lot prestige and recruited new members and the guys there didn't want to promote me. I made my VG called ELITE LEGENDS. I took some of his members with me and surpassed him in Prestige rank which was real joyful. Hero side I joined Protectors of Neverland, Scott's Heroes and Sons of Atlas, which is now my SG. As for PVP SG...I was in Team Tanzie which was fun. We became champions. I am also the creator and leader of EXILE which never went through due to i13. ELITE LEGENDS' rivalries include the Blackguards, VORI, Shadow Kings, Stryke-Force, Protectors of Neverland, and many more. What are your impressions of I13 PvP? I was hoping for the new pvp options...such as more zones for PvP. They should have kept the I12 content but with some little changes. What are some of your most memorable PvP Moments? Great moment for 2008 was when that dude from Freedom challenged me to an Arena match on the forums. He transferred this toon over to Champions and got slaughtered. Poor guy didn't even want a rematch. It was a big win for Champion... Author's note: Having had the pleasure to compete with and against Elf in the Arena, he is nothing if not a ton of fun. Make sure to say "hi" if you're on Champion server! PvPEC Note: Make sure to check your server forums for the Throwdown to Issue 13! Massive free-for-all at your local Arena terminals, capped at level 40. Check with your server's PvPEC rep for more information. |
Fan FictionThe Redeemers"What happened to you?" Mider Caid asked Redshadow as the scrapper lurched past him into the base, "You look like you got hit by a train car!" "Thats a good guess," Thomas rasped, "Is Mortiganen in? Or Wait You know how to heal, right?" "Some," the wizard replied, extending his finger and emitting some green flames to mystically seal the wounds shut, "But you might want to see Olive I think she can do a better job of making you look hale and healthy Olive!" The green girl looked up from where she was sitting next to McBains van and her eyes widened once she realized the man her team leader was talking to was grievously injured. In an instant, she was up and running over to them. "I ran into some Protectors," Tom explained, "They They seemed to know me. It didnt end well. I got the civilian to a hospital after the train we wrecked was jettisoned into the wastes between Steel Canyon and Baumton." "How is she?" Olive asked as small vines started extending from her fingertips and wrists to wrap about the injured man, "These will squeeze your injuries shut and Ill start delivering a serum that will spur your body to regenerate itself." The blade wielder looked intently at her for a moment, and she seemed to wilt a little. "Look, I dont know how the process works, I can just do it, okay? I can use the tendrils to set bones, even thighbones, and the serum does the rest. I dont know how I make it, but Its in my tears, too, so " "I was just wondering how long this would take," Thomas chuckled, "I kind of want to take a shower and get to sleep." "That second one might not be an option," Mortiganen announced as he seemingly appeared from the shadow of a nearby girder. "Dont do that!" Mider Caid shouted, "Im too young to be having a heart attack " The elder wizard seemed to ignore the younger and focused intently on the scrapper. "Somethings come up," Morts mouth quirked a little into a grin, "I need you to suspend your investigation. I need every able-bodied Redeemer on hand to scour this city for a monstrosity unlike anything weve ever seen. The team leaders know what to look for; Ill brief you after youre refreshed." Mider looked worriedly to Thomas and shook his head. The former Paragon Protector would be searching alone while the rest of the Redeemers were in groups. It struck him as a dangerous plan, but there was the possibility that whatever the thing was, it would go after a lone hero quicker than a team. "Thats what it looks like," Garm explained to the spandex-clad, ridiculously tall and muscled man that snorted back at him in derision. "Trolls askin for help fightin trolls. I guess thats ironing for you." "The word youre looking for is irony," Ashen growled, "And its not a troll thats asking for help, but a fellow hero in service to this city!" "Youre just a pack o punks that got tired of us knockin you around." Another hero, one in a black trench coat with a sword resting lazily on his shoulders, casually lit his cigarette on Ashens aura as he walked past and took his place resting against the wall of the apartment building they were standing outside. The big man smiled to his friend before turning back to Garm and jabbing him hard in the shoulder with his sausage-like finger. |
"I aint goin on no wild goose chase just cause some sissy green man is too scared to look for himself," he growled, "Now get out o my sight fore I start thinkin my radios tellin me youre a friend cause its busted." The former Caliban shook his head sadly and walked back to the van. Ashen followed and entered through the back hatch, using hushed whispers to the rest of the team to explain what happened. Briggs was mangling the wheel in his hands as he shook with rage and Garm squeezed the burly mans shoulder to calm him down. "Get us out of here," he muttered grimly, "These morons arent here to help people. Theyre just thugs on the blue side." Radio reports flooded in and the other teams were having varying degrees of success. Some, with mostly human-appearing heroes, were having success getting the message across about the thing the Trolls called Grendel. Others, especially the ones with heavily mixed groups, predominately aggressive attitudes, or still utilized outfits from their old days as criminals, were getting laughed at or into fights. Most wondered if Freedom Corps or the Surviving Eight had anything to do with the request, and others thought it was some kind of joke, but there were more than just the one hundred and five former criminals and low-class heroes on the lookout. "Well, its better than we expected," Garm grunted as he shut the radio down after reporting in, "At least some people out there are looking. Im a little more concerned with the inquiries about whether or not the Phalanx know about this. Do you think theyll put in an effort if they find out?" "I dont care," Briggs growled as he pulled the van into the main overpass through Skyway City, "One pass through the city and call it a day?" "Sounds good," his friend muttered before settling into the passenger seat and trying to pass out, "God, this whole Grendel thing has me in knots. What if it really is him?" "Doubtful. He died in the Hollowing, thats all there is to it." They passed over a bright flash and Briggs glanced into the mirror. Garm remained unconvinced, though, and sat up straight again to continue the debate. "Maybe he was just wrecking Attas crew, you know? If it really is him, hes probably just trying to take over again." "If it really is him," McBains face screwed up into a mask of worry and he started applying the brakes, "Youre gonna wind up being on the opposite side of the fence from your friend. You tellin me you might think of goin back if Grendel takes control?" "No " "Alright, then." Briggs brought the van to a stop at the edge of the road and turned to look intensely at his team leader. When Garm looked at him in confusion, he spoke. "Get out." "What?" "NOW!" |
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Because I have to look at you..Sorry Poodles if this seems a bit lackluster compared to most, but you see for this week and next I'm going to be in Monte Carlo at a Fashion Premiere! However, I realized that with the turning of the new year, in the middle of winter and Spring fast approaching, fashion weeks will be soon upon us, but what is it that you, the riff raff that I design for, want.. ? For this journey, I did the unthinkable and actually left my cozy condo to mingle among the grubby denizens who nibble at the scraps I throw them. I was joined in a little soiree at the Jolly Roger bar in Pocket D by some very dear friends, as well as a few members of a secondary Arachnos group that I am affiliated with, the Wraith Spiders. The Wraith Spiders are a lovely group who answer only to the beck and call of Ghost Widow - we're kind of like GHOST WIDOW'S PERSONAL CHEERLEADERS!!! It's so wonderful to assist them whenever I can! Alas, as discussions go I was not able to capture EVERYTHING I wanted to, but I grabbed what I could and got it out there for you all, my little poodles! Here are bits of our transcript... Arbiter Fabulous: Well hello, welcome to this little coffee talk about Winter Fashion! Clinique: Oh Coffee Talk! I love that show, its on Cable right? Arbiter Fabulous: I applaud you ALL.. especially Clinique.. I mean.. if *I* had to be dressed by Filthy Serge every day, I'd not even GO in public.. Seriously, are you the only Paragonian willing to discuss this topic? If so KUDOS on YOU! Clinique: Thanks! Uhhh.. Who's Serge? Arbiter Fabulous: I *KNEW* I'd like you! Arbiter Fabulous: I've summoned you all here because, frankly.. I'm seeing a lot of suits about these days.. and rumors of a new line of Valkyrie inspired things coming down the runways.. ((SIDENOTE: I love being right!)) Rhk'Zhsi: .....Ssoundsss... odd. Arbiter Fabulous: So.. I want to know, what do YOU all want to see? Rhk'Zhsi: Winter-isssh, or in general? Arbiter Fabulous: Both, I mean, with the winter, one should try and.. accommodate it.. but still, we are coming into spring.. Galeocerdo: Something that would improve my power armor's functionality... The wings are not doing it. I need something like a permanent rocket booster, like those Sky Raiders wear... Dark Erudin: For costumes,...I wouldnt mind some Kheldian robes for Peacebringers and Warshades. Fortunata Plague: Definitely, definitely clothing designed with people with tendrils in mind.((Tentacles/tendrils as a wing set. )) Clovie: And fish people too! ((Fish parts!)) Rhk'Zhsi: Well, for the Winter theme... perhapsss those blinking lightsss adorned on trees wrapped around your chessst.. like the barbed wire ssstuff... Clovie: ...I would wear that /all/ the time... Arbiter Fabulous: Those are very interesting ideas.. so, mainly.. to branch out on what COSTUMES should tailor to.. the box needs to be redesigned? Clinique: Oh Sweet Mary Yes I would love to see some eveningwear! I mean dont you think its a travesty that in both the city and the isles no one can get a decent prom dress? And why is it that only girls get Kittens? Dark Erudin: Something that players would love to wear when they get rewarded from task forces like in Imperious' Task Force! Arbiter Fabulous: All right.. what THEMES do you see happening in the future... ? Rhk'Zhsi: Themes... Clinique: Carnival! Rhk'Zhsi: Being able to dress like some of the tougher villain groups would be nice! Arbiter Fabulous: But surely the Jester Set.. are you suggesting parts for say.. badges you've attained? Clovie: That would be awesome!! Rhk'Zhsi: And tailsss and beltsss separate... Dark Erudin: Something like that yeah Arbiter Fabulous: Now.. with the technological advancements allowing for Combat Auras, what kind would you like to see.. or other Auras.. I mean all that energy is showing itself in new ways everyday! Rhk'Zhsi: Inssstead of Body Aurassss only... like on the Tendrilsss ssset Galeocerdo: Hmmm... Clovie: Leafy! Like the flies...but leafs. Clinique: Hats with Hair, Corsets, Carnival, Kitties for male people, a Nurses Cap for my Boss Nurse White, and Dresses or Robes. Galeocerdo: A dripping would be nice, too. Like the rock crumble, for slimy and wet creatures. Xilla.: well, like maybe different kind of auras for different parts of the body - flaming hands and electrical eyes or the like at the same time! Rhk'Zhsi: Have Aurasss ssset to the entire body, asssss well asss sspecific partssss. Rhk'Zhsi: Yesss, watery Aurasss. Clovie: Yes! Rhk'Zhsi: Two Aurassss at once! Clovie: The Plant controller/dominatorsss need leafy effectssss. Galeocerdo: Leaves, or rose petals... for the dramatic samurai types. It was at this point I brought out my mother's famed Cheesecake a la Ambrosia. Arbiter Fabulous: Now then.. Emblems have always been a part of our collective culture, what do you see for that.. chest and lapel.. shields now as well.. where next.. and what sort of symbols say the new year? Rhk'Zhsi: How about Emblemsss placed upon the back of a jacket? Fortunata Plague: Oh, that'd rock. I'd so have an Arachnos leather jacket like that. Rhk'Zhsi: Ahh, that isss interesssting. Clovie: Back emblems would be great! My friends and I could have matching jackets! Paenitia: Oh yes, or if you could put the badges as emblems. Arbiter Fabulous: Personally, I want to see more than just LEATHER for trench coats myself.. Rhk'Zhsi: Jacketsss and trenchcoatsss sseeem to be very bare on the backsss... Galeocerdo: What about emblems for everything? Then like, cape emblems? Rhk'Zhsi: Cape emblemsss! Fortunata Plague: Cape emblems! Galeocerdo: Yes, Leather is not good... there should be more on the fabric of trench coats. Capes should have a texture, though, I think. Rhk'Zhsi: Not jussst leather jacketsss, too. Sssome varying materialsss. Galeocerdo: So you can have a furry cape, or a leather cape. Rhk'Zhsi: Yesss. Xilla.: I'd also love to see more types of trench coats.....and some that can accommodate wings....that'd be sweet Rhk'Zhsi: Wingsss ssshould be worn with trench coatsss Paenitia: I was thinking it'd be nice if there was an 'earless' option, for ears, so it wouldn't interfere with the cat/bunny pieces. Also more monster heads, something canine/wolf/fox/muzzle would be great. | Galeocerdo: Jetpacks as permanent pieces... Thrusters of some sort for hands and feet. So flying characters don't have to be just flying magically or using wings. Rhk'Zhsi: They have sssemi-canine headssss, but various thingsss work. Rhk'Zhsi: Aye, Jetpacks for 'wings' Fortunata Plague: A more dinosaur like monster head would be good. Clovie: More realistic animal heads would be awesome. Alligator and Lion and like... Birds. Paenitia: Random 'techy' backpacks, yes. Clovie: Dinosaur head would be the best thing ever! But on Emblems... still trying to come up with ideas. Galeocerdo: The Raptor Packs as a permanent piece, for example. Perhaps for getting the Sky Raiders badge. Rhk'Zhsi: Don't forget the tailsss! Fortunata Plague: ...Scorpion tails. Clovie: Bigger tails that aren't belts! Paenitia: I would love a moving tail that was a costume recipe. Rhk'Zhsi: Yes, larger, more realisstic, doesssn't look oddd on usss giant people. As for emblem desssignsss... Archetype emblemsss do sssound nice, and Elemental emblemsss Fortunata Plague: Yeah! I know someone who's /love/ to wear that sweet crosshairs. Paenitia: Oh! And a bandaged/half bandaged that shows skin, set. For making mummies. Galeocerdo: I think Legs should have as many options as Arms. Rhk'Zhsi: OH! Designssss for Monssstrousss legsss! Like the ssstripesss and ssspotsss and sssuch. Arbiter Fabulous: Helmet Designs.. Ever since the Midnighters, there has been this retro look for the Roman period.. what ELSE do you want to see? Paenitia: I want a hat with a feather in it, like a musketeer's hat. Xilla.: .. Paenitia: And proper hair. Rhk'Zhsi: More technological ssstuff. The Full Helmetsss don't have many Accesssoriesss optionssss. Xilla.: More tech stuff Defiler Rohesia: hrmm... Rhk'Zhsi: I couldn't put the Enforcer ssset on thisss helmet.. Or any helmet. Paenitia: a 50's sci-fi bubble helmet would be neat. Fortunata Plague: VERY neat. Rhk'Zhsi: Indeed. Arbiter Fabulous: Now then.. one thing I want to put out there and it's just myself.. but I remember when the Rikti re-invaded they did so with a WHOLE new look! Amazing, terrifying, but amazing.. what other groups and factions do you think could do with a similar makeover? Rhk'Zhsi: Nemesssisss, possibly.. Clovie: Vahzilok! Paenitia: Nemesis is pretty awesome I think. Rhk'Zhsi: They look a bit drab, but perhapsss that'ss jussst their sstyle. Xilla.: Yeah......Nemi has a lot of potential but its just not living up to it right now.. Paenitia: Actually, a Rikti head, or semi-rikti head would be cool for people that want to be partial ones. Rhk'Zhsi: Aye Xilla.: Vahz also has a lot of potential but they just arent seen enough... Arbiter Fabulous: So.. Dr. Vahzilok you think should get inspired and start creating his creatures in new ways.. and Nemesis should upgrade his automatons? Dark Erudin: yeah Rhk'Zhsi: Yessss. Arbiter Fabulous: Now then.. gossip time.. who is the WORST dressed in Paragon and the Rogue Isles? Paenitia: Ohhhh..... Defiler Rohesia: thats a long list. Rhk'Zhsi: Black Sssscorpion.... Arbiter Fabulous: Above and beyond anyone else though.. Rhk'Zhsi: Ssssuch plain armor. Arbiter Fabulous: *giggles!* Defiler Rohesia: Blue Steel... Xilla.: I'd say the Gold Brickers. Defiler Rohesia: simply awful. Paenitia: Technician Naylor looks pretty bad, but then the dorky scientist look is necessary for him. Clovie: ...The Lost?...all of them. Defiler Rohesia: that goes without question. Rhk'Zhsi: They're sssuposssed to look like hoboss. Arbiter Fabulous: Luddites.. I mean.. they look like the afterbirth of an Amish man and a Hot Topic clerk. Xilla.: ....yeah.. Clovie: Ewwww. Fortunata Plague: ...Re-Arm the Homeless. Rhk'Zhsi: Now, the Ludditesss... yesss... ew. Paenitia: Yess... it would be hard to do worse... Arbiter Fabulous: Now.. Best Dressed? Rhk'Zhsi: Alsssso, on a ssside note.. sssome charactersss may be left-handed.... Clovie: ARACHNOS! Paenitia: Maybe Warriors or Tsoo... but yeah, even Puritans would get a better look. Defiler Rohesia: I think the widows have style. Rhk'Zhsi: Rikti! Fortunata Plague: ARACHNOS! Xilla.: Fir Bolg are up there Rhk'Zhsi: Fir Bolg don't wear clothing. Clovie: ...I love the pumpkinheads too. Xilla.: ...they still look awesome... Defiler Rohesia: the Knives of Artemis too... Arbiter Fabulous: Well.. I think I have more than enough for this party! Paenitia: Awesome! Clovie: Yay! Dark Erudin: Cool Rhk'Zhsi: Glad to be of ssservice. Arbiter Fabulous: I would like this time to simply thank you *looks over at the dance floor, seeing DJ Zero talking with a few well-to-do types* Oh look! Better people! *runs off!* If you have any questions on fashion, needing tips or what have you, write to me at Equation on the COH forums! See you on the Runway! Next Week: THE RETURN OF LETTERS TO ARBITER FABULOUS, including a special one from his very own Villain Group leader! |
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Q) Who is your base designer and who are your super group leaders? A) I am the designer (@Dr. Feedback) and co-leader. The other leaders are @Flamerator and @Lady Cleo. We have a large base but few members. It is mostly mine and Flamerator's many alts. Q) What server is your base on? A) Freedom hero side Q) When was your super group established? A) We started at the beginning of June 2005 as a "play once a week only together on these toons" experiment. Once bases went live, I moved my alts into the group so I could work on prestige earning fulltime. Q) What is the approximate value of your base? A) Close to 42 million prestige. Q) How much time do you spend working on your base? A) After Issue 13 went live, I spent probably 50 hours updating it. We went from the 20x20 hidden plot to the 24x28 secure plot and added several rooms. The bulk of that time was spent on my "Temple" room that contains several floors. Q) How much time have you invested in your base so far? A) Since 2005, I would say probably 150-200 hours. Maybe more. I don't know really, but it has been a lot of time. Q) What is your favorite base item? Least favorite? A) I love the Auto-Doc/Tree of Wonders. It is great for selling recipes and salvage when I get overloaded. I really wish it sold the other inspirations besides Respites and CABs. Least favorite would be some of those huge arcane items that are almost unusable. I also really hate the look of the large vertical files that everyone uses for walls out of necessity. They look nothing like their name and the coloring is so weird. Q) What is your favorite thing about base editing? Least favorite? A) Lately the ability to merge items has been great for creating some interesting items. I like that we are able to stack and make additional floors despite the clunky means by which we have to do it. Hopefully future base editor improvements will make such things better. I hate that we have no "undo" button or means to place items in a "clipboard" sort of area. I also dislike the spacing between rooms, the 1x1 doorways, and the lack of thinner dividing walls. The editor is not the most user-friendly interface I have used, and would benefit greatly from some attention. Q) If you could give just one piece of advice to a new base editor, what would it be? A) The best way to learn is to visit the Base Construction forum and to join BaseBuildersInc. global channel in-game. Both contain great, helpful folks that will bend over backwards to help people get up to speed. Once you have the basics down, the best way to learn is just to experiment with the editor and see what it will do and not do. It can be frustrating at times, but it is one of those things that will give back what you put into it. If you are willing to spend the time, you can create some really interesting bases. |
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Under the Hood: Attack SlottingIt's time for the next article on slotting powers. Last week I did Pets, so this week I'll do general attack powers. I'll go over the basics of what you want to slot, add some extra info about what you can slot, and sprinkle with a few examples. What do you want to slot? Before Inventions, the "gold standard" for slotting was 1 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 1 END Reduction, and 1 Recharge. Of course attack powers often have secondary effects, and some of those are worth slotting for effect. So time to break it down... Everyone wants to hit, and you need Accuracy to do that. Base ToHit is 75%, and you multiply that by (1+Accuracy Enhancements) to get your final ToHit (ignoring level and lots of other things). Since the maximum chance ToHit is 95%, you really only need a 27% Accuracy bonus to hit even level mobs as often as possible. 75*(1+0.27)=95.25 But usually people want more. When fighting higher-level mobs, mobs with ToHit debuffs (most things with Dark powers), or mobs with Defense buffs, more Accuracy is always better. So it's always worthwhile to slot 1 Accuracy SO or equivalent, and you may want more. Note that if you're really into slotting set IOs, you can get decent Accuracy just from set bonuses. Damage is usually the big thing you want to slot, so slot a lot. Due to Enhancement Diversification (ED), you'll want to slot about 100% worth of Damage (3 Damage SOs), but you'll end up getting about 95%. That nearly doubles the amount of damage that an attack can do. Slotting more that that will have very little effect. Next is Endurance. The END cost of a power is divided by (1+END Reduction Enhancements), which means you get diminishing returns. A single END Reduction SO will significantly reduce the END cost of an attack, and is always a good idea. A second one will have a lesser effect, so you'll have to decide if it's worthwhile. A third will have little effect so don't bother. You may want Recharge Reduction in your attacks as well. Hopefully you've read some of my previous articles on attack chains. Try to figure out what your better attacks are, then slot as much Recharge Reduction as you need to get a decent chain. If that's too much work, then just look at the in-game stats for your attacks, and slot Recharge Reduction at the ones with the highest Damage per Activation Time. Most attacks have some sort of secondary effect. Lethal attacks often have Defense debuffs, Energy attacks can stun, Dark attacks have ToHit debuffs, and strong attacks can do knockback. As a general rule, I only slot for Healing (Siphon Life), Defense (Parry or equivalent), and 100% chance Mezz effects (Total Focus). Your AT also makes a difference. Brutes can get a large Damage bonus from Fury, enough that slotting for damage at lower levels isn't very important. Slot for Accuracy and plenty of END Reduction instead. Tankers can survive combat with large groups, so they're usually better off slotting their AoE attacks. Stalkers are all about front loaded damage, so they should heavily slot their 2 best attacks before significantly slotting other attacks. The advice for Stalkers applies to most everyone; concentrate your slots. If you lightly slot all of your attacks, on average you will do slightly better than base damage for slightly less than full END. If you concentrate your slots on your best attacks, you can do roughly double damage for less END, and you'll be using those attacks frequently. With lightly slotted attacks, it may take 10 attacks and 60 END to take out a Lieutenant, and he'll be hitting you during that time. With concentrated slotting, it may take 7 attacks and 35 END, and he won't have as much time to attack. That's a REALLY BIG DIFFERENCE!!! Blasters can heavily slot their level 1 powers and have a solid attack chain even while mezzed. That's the basics of what you want to slot. Now let's look at what you can slot. Obviously there are TOs, DO, SOs, and common IOs. You can certainly start with those, but eventually you'll want to work up to IO sets because they provide higher total Enhancement bonuses. These include various combinations of Accuracy, Damage, Endurance, and Recharge. There are also "proc" IOs in these sets that have a chance to do extra damage or other effects. I recommend you start with "frankenslotting", which means just taking the highest combined bonuses you can find. With SOs you can slot about 200% worth of bonuses total. With set IOs, you can get over 300%. Once you've got enough slots to play with, start considering Set bonuses or procs. For the wealthy high-level char, Hamidon Origin Enhancements are worth considering. Nucleolus (Acc/Dam) Enhancements improve Accuracy and Damage by 33% for a single slot. You can improve a Mezz effect by using Endoplasm (Acc/Mezz) or Peroxisome (Dam/Mezz) HOs. Membranes (Defense and ToHit Buff/Rech) and Cytoplasms (Defense and ToHit Buff/End) can be used in Follow Up and Parry attacks. Lysomes (Acc/ToHit & Defense Debuff) and Enzymes (ToHit and Defense Debuff/END) are fairly cheap and easy to get, and are useful in most Dark Melee or Lethal attacks. But there aren't many cases where HOs beat IO Sets. Filthy rich level 50 chars can slot ultra-rare purple IO sets. They're expensive if you want to get them at the Market, but you get what you pay for. They have nice set bonuses which work even when you exemp, and high Enhancement values. Time for a few more examples... Total Focus does great damage but also has a solid mezz. I like to use HOs in it to improve both aspects (one Nuc, one Endo, and two Peros), plus one each END and Recharge IO. The same applies to Cosmic Burst, Seismic Smash, and similar attacks. If you like to solo hard targets (bosses, Elite Bosses, or even Arch-Villains), I recommend the Achilles Heel: Chance for Resistance Debuff in every power than can take it (Defense Debuff). I slot Siphon Life with 3 Crushing Impacts (Acc/Dam/Rech, Acc/Dam/End, and Dam/End/Rech), a Nuc HO (Acc/Dam), and 2 Healing IOs. Parry gets the same, but with Defense IOs rather than Healing IOs. What have I missed? Nothing! Everything you need to know about slotting melee powers is right here! And if you believe that, I'm selling that big long bridge in Independence Port. Cheap. Next week, more and more examples! | Vol. 2, Issue 30 |
Get Involved! By Becoming an ExpertThis is one of the most difficult ways to get involved, and I will tell you why: it takes a lot of guts to call yourself an expert, and you have to have the knowledge to back it up. "Wait, wait, wait," you may be saying right now. "What do you mean by expert, exactly? And what does that have to do with getting involved?" Well, what I mean by expert is a person who knows absolutely everything there is to know about one particular aspect of the game, or else comes extremely close to that. For example, if you really love the PvP content or the Maria Jenkins arc or the Positron Task Force, become an expert! Learn everything you can-how long does it take? What level? What are the best (and worst!) builds and IO sets? What's the best team build? Are there any shortcuts? Do you get any badges or accolades from it? Find out the answer to every question that could possibly be asked about that aspect of the game and you will be considered an expert. Now, what does that have to do with getting involved? Well, what gave me the idea for this article was a thread on the Protector forums wherein veteran players who are familiar with the Lord Recluse Strike Force do a Master run every week or so and teach players who are not as familiar with that particular strike force the ins and outs of it. I've also seen it done with the Positron Task Force, the Imperious Task Force, and other task forces. One of the most interesting ideas I've seen was a player who was a die-hard "badger" showing other players where to get the badges in each zone and helping them increase their collections. PvP experts get involved in the PvPEC to share their knowledge, and people who know everything there is to know about running events join PERC. People who love to write and are expert researchers and interviewers help out with the Scoop. Once you become an expert, the people you will meet and help become limitless. Join the forums and offer to start a weekly task force or badge run or monster hunt, or join a global channel and offer your knowledge when people ask questions. It's a badge of honor to have someone come to you and ask you questions about the thing you are an expert at-so yes, this is the way to get involved if you consider yourself to be just a touch self-centered (not that that's a bad thing!). Of course, it's not easy to become an expert. You may have to repeat the same missions over and over and over again, do extensive reading on ParagonWiki and on the guide threads in the forums, and question veteran players until they're sick of hearing from you. It takes a lot of time, and sometimes people end up disliking you for being an expert. If you show off your knowledge too much when it isn't asked for, you may become known as a know-it-all. Like I said, it's not easy to become an expert, and it isn't always fun to be an expert either! How do you know when you've become an expert? Well, if you've noticed that people seem to gravitate towards you with questions about one specific topic, that's probably your best sign right there. For example, everyone knows to look to the Scoop's own Crime of Fashion and Equation for fashion advice! If people ask you a lot of questions about how to slot IOs in a Trick Arrow Defender or what the job of a scrapper is or how to takedown Lusca, you're probably an expert! | "Why do I want to be an expert? If it's so much work, why bother? I mean, what's the point?" I know. You're asking yourself this right now. You want the reward, the reason behind this method of getting involved. Here it is: pride. It is all about pride-the pride you feel in yourself for having mastered part of the game, the pride you feel in the people you teach about that aspect, and the pride you inspire in them when they learn. You can become an inspiration to others, a legend! And yes, this goes back to the "self-centered" bit I mentioned before. Come on, who among us isn't just a wee bit self-centered? This may be one of the most difficult ways to get involved, but it's also one of the most rewarding on a personal level-and hey, in the end, you might learn some stuff! As long as you're doing something you really love anyhow, you're not losing a thing-so go on, become an expert, and get involved! A Note From The Author: I'm not running out of ways to get involved yet, but I might be soon, so let me know how you get involved by sending me a tell @ Kyo-chan or PMing me here on the forums! Thanks in advance! Guardian's Christmas Costume ContestHey folks, came to give you a update on the Christmas costume contest on Guardian over the holidays, I wanna give a BIG GRATZ to........
Gratz again to the winners!
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Freaks and Geeks 2008 Winter Costume ContestOn December 27th, Freaks and Geeks held their annual Winter Costume Contest in Pinnacle's Pocket D. The event was a great success, with over 50 heroes and villains attending and competing for over 100 million influence/infamy. With the festivities of the chalet as a backdrop, the first contest was for Best Hero/Villain Costume. From the 9 finalists, the winners were:
1st place: Olaf 2nd place: Double Dam 3rd place: Holy Panties After prizes were awarded, the second contest, for Best Winter Costume, got rolling. Once everyone changed into their winter best, 9 finalists were again chosen. The winners were:
1st place: Huggles of Death 2nd place: Gorilla Jack 3rd place: Lil Miss Jingle After the awarding of all the prizes, I sat down with one of the organizers, Ruby Deathstrike.
How long has Freaks and Geeks been established? Our Super Group has been open for 2 years now. In that time we have climbed up to the #8 spot in the top 100 Super Groups on the Pinnacle server. Who from your Super Group was in charge of the contest? Our fearless leader, Kira's Son, and myself were in charge of the event. We did have assistance during the event from within our Super Group, so thanks again guys! Is this a regular event? If not, it is going to be? Yes, this will be a regular event for our server, along with an event in the Spring and something for the end of Summer. |
How long were you planning for this event? We began planning this event about a month prior to it. We are already planning our next event for this Spring. What was your favorite part of the event? Our favorite part of the event was seeing all the happy smiling faces of all the good little heroes and evil little villains, and being able to give back to all those that have helped us get to where we are today. (click picture for large view) P.E.R.C. Presents Dress Your Badge Contest! Saturday, January 31st, 2009 Pockt D @ 9:00PM EST. Hosted By Miz Nibbles & Dazz Marvelous Details: Take one of the over 600 badges available in CoX and use it as inspiration for a costume. Pick the badge and dress the part! A male winner and a female winner will be chosen based on whichever hero / villain the judging panel believes makes the best attempt to dress / interpret the selected badge. Time Schedule: Please begin gathering @ 9:00PM EST. Male judging will begin @ 9:15PM EST. Female judging will begin @ 9:45PM EST. Rules: -Only One Badge May Be Selected. That Badge Must Be On Display During Judging. -Costume Must Match Badge Title In Order To Be Judged. -One Entry Per Global. -Heroes & Villains Welcome. -No late entries accepted. Examples: -Toothbreaker: Dress as a boxer. -Superstar: Dress like a movie star. -Restrained: Dress in chains. -Faithful: Dress like a nun or worshiper. -Man In Black: Well that's quite obvious. Judging Details: A panel of players will be compiled to judge this event. Judges will be voting on how best the badge is interpreted into costume. All costume parts should relate to the chosen badge. Prizes: 1st Place Male: 10 Million & Respec Recipe 2nd Place Male: 5 Million 3rd Place Male: 2 Million 1st Place Female: 10 Million & Respec Recipe 2nd Place Female: 5 Million 3rd Place Female: 2 Million |
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Fan Fiction SpotlightJustice | Writer's BlockHey all! Last week we talked about dialogue and how, as a writer, you can fit the speech to character and add accents. It was rather short compared to other Writer's Blocks, but that is because I plan on doing one, if not two, more of these dialogue articles over the course of the next few weeks. Why? Well if you read the last article I said that I pride myself on my dialogue and I feel that I have a pretty good handle on how to write it. However, I am by no means calling myself a master. If any of you prose-paragons out there feel the need to share your technique with us then by all means contact me in game at @Human Miracle or here on the forums. This week we're going to look at making speech natural. For those who don't know what that means or have heard the phrase vaguely, I will explain. Natural speech is a term used to describe speech that sounds more like human conversation rather than dialogue. The subtle addition or subtraction of certain punctuation marks, the pacing of the words, and the overall syntax are taken into account to make natural speech. This is the spell-checking program's worst nightmare so be sure to watch it. If you want to make natural speech you will need to get used to seeing a lot of green underlines and a lot of red. Let's look at how we talk to other people face to face. It is clear that some people don't use complete sentences or full words. Due to cultural and social evolution, words have been shortened, created, or given different meanings. "Sick" no longer refers to someone who is stricken with a sickness or disease; it now can be used to describe something cool. With that in mind, let's get an example to see. "Nah. I was gonna go to the store. Why? Did you need something?" First try an pick out all the imperfections in the speech. All you grammar-gurus, I'm looking at you for this. The first sentence is a fragment, one word. Frankly, people do that all the time. They respond "No," or "Yes," or "Why," but here we are continuing on after that initial sentence. Obviously that means the person is still talking and there could have been a pause in the conversation or the person is speaking rapidly. "Gonna" is not a word but we sure as heck use it a lot don't we? The last two sentences could technically be combined to make one through "Why, did you need something?" But since we are making this natural we can separate them to make it appear the person is again speaking fast or there is a break after he or she speaks. Sadly, bad grammar is almost the key to making your dialogue sound "natural." But you don't need to omit grammar rules and regulations to have natural writing necessarily. By using common words or phrases, like "gonna" and such, you can still make the sentence correct grammatically but make the spelling more akin to speech today. The sentence above could be changed into: "Nah, I was gonna go to the store. Why, did you need something?" No green lines this time, but we left in "gonna." It has the same affect really but it makes your writing look more professional. That is not to say that making natural writing is unprofessional. If you make a habit of presenting your dialogue as natural, your readers and will understand and pick it up as your style. For those who want to write professionally, you may have to tell your editor and readers that before hand or after the critics get you. Well that wraps this section up for now. I will be coming back with more my friends so if you are eagerly waiting on baited breath, please, breathe normally. Once again, please PM me if you have any suggestions or topics you want covered here. If you want to share your techniques with all of us here, feel free to PM me as well. Keep up the creativity people and write on! |
The RedeemersUpon hitting the ground, Redshadow rolled, keeping his arms wrapped around the poor young woman in a desperate attempt to take the brunt of the impact. They tumbled across the debris for a few seconds before finally coming to a stop, the girl rolling away just a few feet from the hero due to the last bits of momentum left. They lied there, breathing heavily as their bodies and minds attempted to fight through the shock of what they'd just survived. The sound of the car crashing into a pile of debris further away brought Thomas to his senses and he sat up. Looking to the north, he could see the twisted machine smoldering in the pile of cinder blocks, rebar and support beams at the base of the War Wall. Clockwork robots were already converging on the mess to recover salvageable parts for their ramshackle horde. A group of Outcasts were watching from a safe distance away. "Please don't look this way," the scrapper grunted as he started checking himself for injuries, "Please don't look this way..." "What is it?" the girl asked as she cradled her arm, "Where are we?" "We're not far from Steel Canyon. Are you hurt?" "It doesn't feel broken, but it really hurts to move my arm..." The woman looked to her would-be savior and grinned weakly. With her free hand, she brushed her brown hair out of her eyes and Redshadow winced. She had some nasty cuts and scrapes from the fall. "I'm so sorry," he said, "We should get you out of here and to a doctor immediately!" Placing an arm around her protectively, he started guiding her to the south. Gingerly, they picked their way through the debris that used to be Baumton. Taking stock, Redshadow realized they weren't actually in the region known as Boomtown, but really the area between Steel Canyon and the blasted city zone. To the north and south, the monolithic War Walls loomed, barring passage to all unless you were allowed through the select few access points or somehow knew the few methods to shut the massive energy fields down. Thomas didn't know the methods, but hoped that he and this young woman would be able to access the secure tunnel that linked the ruins with Steel Canyon. As he pondered this, he realized he didn't know the girl's name. "Claire," she replied when he asked, "What's yours?" "Tom," he replied. "That's an odd name for a hero... I was expecting Red Blade or something..." "My last name's close enough to that. Redshadow." "You should stick with that," she chirped before stepping wrong and jostling her injured arm. "Don't worry," the scrapper comforted, "We'll get you to a hospital and get you all fixed up in no time..." "I know, it still hurts, though." | They reached the secure tunnel and found a side access hatch. It was fortified in much the same way as the gates in Steel Canyon and Boomtown, only with more police guarding them. The officer in charge, one Captain Rafferty, balked as they approached. "What are a pair of civilians doing out here?" he asked as Thomas fished for his identification, "I'm afraid you'll have to wait here until-" "FBSA, Freedom Corps, and all that jazz," the scrapper wheezed, "I must insist that you provide us with some way to get to Steel Canyon... This woman needs medical attention!" "Okay, okay," the captain replied as he started waving to a nearby tent, "No need to get in a panic. Douglas! Get over here! Ma'am, this officer is our examiner. She'll be able to check on you and provide assistance until the ambulance arrives." As the officer escorted Claire to the tent, Rafferty sized up Redshadow and examined the identification. "This area's a little low for your security level. What happened out there?" "It was a railcar accident," the scrapper replied, "Some criminals assaulted me, and the young lady was caught in the crossfire. The ensuing damage to the train caused an automated security system unlike any I've ever heard of that just jettisoned the wreck into the ruins back there." The cop's eyes widened at that. Returning the ID, he took a stack of papers from another officer and handed them to Redshadow. "I'm afraid you'll have to fill out a report..." "So, that is what I've learned," Mortiganen declared after informing the leaders of the various teams of his experiences in the Hollows, "Whatever this thing that wiped out Atta's base is, it's big, bigger than a Supa Troll, and its skin has metallic properties." "Well, Garm," a former Family hitman named Harold Danesti growled, "Looks like your buddies have-" "They're not my buddies," the Caliban retorted, "And this is as much the fault of your old friends, if not more." "I say we let the thing wipe out the Hollows," the former Tsoo Swift Steel practitioner, Steel Blaze, rasped, "Let an army of heroes deal with it afterward." "Which heroes?" Mortiganen countered, "The fresh faces that wander in there every other day? Yes, I'm sure they, with their novice skills and comparatively weak powers will be able to succeed where Atta and almost an army of Trolls failed." Sensing the sarcasm, Steel Blaze was about to say something when Garm spoke up again. "Listen, guys, the fact remains that we know something's out there. Something the rest of the city isn't aware of yet. Our purpose in this matter is to inform the rest of the heroic populace about this new threat and try to amass a force to take it down." "Yeah, a lot of people are gonna listen to a bunch of ex-cons like us," Harold grumbled into his collar, "And I might magically sprout bat wings and fly around to drink the blood of the wicked..." "Be careful with words like that," Mortiganen growled as he gestured to the Italian, "It might come true..." Danesti looked back in shock, thinking the old man had cast some kind of curse on him. Instead, what he found was a pair of glowing bat wings imprinted on his chair. "Cute." "We've got a plan," the leader of the group growled, "It's the best we can do with what we know. Martin, I trust you and Agent Wild will be able to help us with this?" "I'll see what I can do," the gruff man replied. |
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At what point did you imagine a room in your base could be used as a Clue game board? -It's not the entire base really, just a single room. I thought about the idea of using the entire base, but quickly dismissed it, because you would have walls in between rooms and you couldn't see other players. Wouldn't be as fun in my opinion. But I think I was talking in the Victory Badges Channel and for some reason I asked what some good board games were. I realized we have a dice emote, and that would be perfect for most games. Someone replied with clue, and that's the one that stuck. I love clue. How long did it take to set up? How much prestige? -It took me about 7 hours to make the room. I went online looking for a picture of the game board, and counted the number of squares for length and width. It was 24x25. I initially planned on using the tiles with sg symbols to represent the moving area. Then I quickly found out I didn't have enough spare prestige to do that. So I looked at the floor patterns and one was perfect, it made each floor sector "divide" into 4 squares. So a 6x6 room would be 24x24 squares, one off from clue. As for the amount of prestige I don't think it costs more than 400k. I'd recommend having 500k prestige available, in case alterations want to be made. How many successful games have you played? -We have played one game so far, and it was a success. The players enjoyed it, even thought it was last minute. I gathered the suggestions from them, and will work on improving it. Overall the only real suggestions were to use vent to communicate, and a better checklist for the players. Luckily one of the players is a Graphic Communications Artist and has agreed to do the checklist for me. How long does a typical play session last? -The session lasted about 2 hours if I'm correct. Again that was using typing based communication and having to go over the rules, to ensure everyone understood. I'm sure with vent being used. Players will be able to go about the same thing in a more timely manner. Overall the game was a success and I think once I get it set up perfectly, I might try to make another game into a room, or possibly try to conjure up my own little game. @Tife the Gilded My SG, The Brothers of Agincourt, on Victory Server has made the very first City of Heroes Clue Board in their SG Base. At short notice we held a game to get some playing in  and to see how to make this better. I've determined that we'll attempt to get a Vent Server Set Up that can be used for this purpose, to make the game seem more like Clue, and allow players to interact better with each other while playing. Its not amazingly decorative, but it serves its Purpose for the moment. As we earn more prestige, we will attempt to make the clue board a lot better than it currently is. We would love to have others come and visit and see what the game board is like; as well our sg base is like. Hopefully we will start hosting games every week or every other week and share the fun. The story! -A Murder has taken place! Its Up to you to solve the crime! -Who did it? -Where did it happen? -What was used as a weapon? These are the things you are left to find out. The Unknown Suspects -The Arachnoid (Red) -The Mutant (Yellow) -The Human (White) -The Hydra (Green) -The Demon (Blue) -The Alien (Purple) The Possibly Weapons of Choice -An Ancient Bone -A Circuit Board -A Clockwork Winder (I know, I know. What dastardly person would use a clockwork winder as a weapon  ) -A Hydraulic Piston -A Kinetic Weapon -A Spirit Thorn Rooms (Marked in Base by raised area with 2 banners with First Letters of First 2 words of "Room" Name) -Arcane Essence Room (ex. labelled as AE) -Arcane Glyph Room (ex. labelled as AG) -Magical Artifact Room -Magical Ward Room -Mystic Foci Room -Tech Material Room -Tech Hardware Room -Tech Power Room -Tech Software Room All of these were chosen, because there is a salvage piece that can be used to represent each one, semi-accurately. A Blood or DNA sample salvage represents all suspects. -Arachnoid (Arachnoid Blood) -Mutant (Mutant blood Sample) -Human (Human Blood Sample) -Hydra (Hydra DNA Sample) -Demon (Demon Blood Sample) -Alien (Alien Blood Sample) Weapons are named after the salvage representing them. Scene of Crime is Recognized by Base Component Salvage. Room names are all named after the base component that represents them. | Rules: In All cases, you'll need a unbiased person to be your "Envelope". The "Envelope" should take one of each salvage randomly (A Suspect, a Weapon, and a Room), and keep it on them, then they will randomly distribute salvage to all players equally, and are not to speak of who has what. Since the number of players determines how many salvage each person gets, here is a list of how many salvage a player needs to be able to hold, in order to participate with the given number of players. 6 Players = All Players get 3 salvage (Any Six players can play) 5 Players = 3 Players get 4 Salvage and 2 Players get 3 (Any 2 players and 3 that can hold 4 salvage) 4 Players = 2 Players get 5 Salvage and 2 Players get 4 3 Players = 3 Players get 6 Salvage 2 Players = Both Players get 9 Salvage All players should start the game off with no salvage on their character, to help ensure there is no confusion. The purpose of the game is to deduct who did it, where it was done, and what was used. Players do this by making suggestions like, "It was the Arachnoid, in the Arcane Glyph Room with the Ancient Bone!" Players can only make suggestions while they are in a room. Each player has a designated starting location in the room, depending on the role they are taking. Each location is color-coded. The Arachnoid (Red) player will always begin the game first. And turns continue in clockwise order, based on Banner position in the room. Order of Turns: Red, Yellow, White, Green, Blue, and Purple 1) A player's turn consists of "Rolling" a dice 2 times and totaling those rolls (/emote dice) ---If the rolling player interrupts a dice roll, that roll is considered a 1. ---If a player is in the tech hardware room, they may opt out of rolling and take a "secret passage" to the magical ward room and vice versa. ---The same goes for the tech material room and the mystic foci room. 2) Then moving a number of squares equal to that number of rolls. Players can't move diagonal, only to adjacent squares. ---Players can only enter rooms through "doors" designated by Stone Steps, which leads to the elevated area (room). 3) Once in a room a player can make a suggestion. ---Players can only make a suggestion about a room they are in. 4) After a player makes a suggestion, In turn Order starting with the person after the current player, other players attempt to disprove that suggestion, until it either can't be or, it is. ---If a player's "role" is named in a Suggestion. That player automatically goes to the suggested Room. And continues their turn from the new room. ---If a player before you disproves a suggestion then you do not have to disprove anything, and it is the next person's turn. ---To Disprove a suggestion, a player reveals in trade window or through tells, what salvage they have that disproves that the "Envelope" is not containing that piece. ---Most of us are mature enough to be able to play with tells and not have to worry about trade windows. If we aren't, its the "Envelope's" job to hold the current position of the disproving player, so they don't forget where they were before they went to real the salvage in trade window. 5) After the suggestion is Disproved (players must disprove a suggestion if they can), or if it cannot be disproved its the next person's turn. 6) A Player may also use their turn to make an accusation. In order to make an accusation a player can't move or roll. When a player makes an accusation, the "Envelope" is to say whether or not that player was right. If they are, that player wins the game. If not they lose, but must stay in the game, to be able to disprove other players, as is needed. All Salvage is to be turned back into the sg administrator at the end of the game, so we can continue this run. This game does not require players to join an sg, just a team. Players are welcome to make temporary characters on victory server to join the super group to see the base and the CLUE Board. And can quit whenever they please. The team option is only available to players of the CLUE game itself. Players can contact our SG Leader at @Tife the Gilded Below is the CoH Clue Checklist (temporary one now, a new one will be available shortly), which can be printed out as well as some pictures for players to look at. We hope many of you come and see what its like, even if its just to glance.
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Vol. 2, Issues 31 and 30
January 23, 2009
A double issue for the Double XP Weekend!
The City Scoop a publication for Supers by Supers! Read the latest 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 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 have a Classified Ad you would like included or join "The City Scoop" team please contact: Marcian Tobay
If you have an interview please contact: EmperorSteele or HumanMiracle
If you need some Advice contact Lady_Athyna or would like to Ask The X contact LiquidX
If you have a base you would like featured, please contact EnnVee
Finally if you have a Recipe you would like included please contact: MistressNoire
The City Scoop
Behind the Walls
With GM Lloyd
4. Disciplinary Measures
I sometimes tell non-gamers that I ban online players for a living, but thats
not really true. Im less concerned about what those folks think about my job
than what City of Heroes players think, but still
Id rather players not think all GMs do is ban people!
This is a broad subject, and Ill be leaving out a lot this time. Some things I
might get back to in another entry, but a few things seem important enough to
clarify early on, so please bear with me on this one.
First of all, account terminations are rare. Account suspensions, which arent
really "bans" but are referred to as such, are more common. Most common are
warnings, including explanations of what happened, an excerpt of the User
Agreement terms, and stern language warning said user not to do what they did,
again, or else stricter action could be taken.
Usually thats all we send. Sometimes well get a reply asking us in so many
words to explain something, maybe why such an action was bad or to ask if we
didnt have anything better to do at that moment. Sometimes the reply will be
an explanation for what happened, often with embarrassment attached, sometimes
with anger attached. While we always reserve the right to go further, we
usually dont have to, as players involved heed the warning.
At least, thats what we think happens. Many will act up again, but usually much
later in their City of Heroes careers, and earn another warning. Some will miss
the point of the warning, and decide that nothing worse than the warning will
come their way. Sometimes theyre proven wrong when they try to log in and
cant.
Account suspensions are 72 hours long and are known internally as "penalty
boxes." Generally, these are the most severe penalty we will administer. Might
ruin someones weekend plans, if we take action on a Friday, but we never
schedule them out of spite. There are some circumstances where a "PB" is
immediate the most common of these is racism, followed by intentional
griefing (I will definitely have to come back to that subject.)
Some players already know about this. Often Ill read some variation of, "Enjoy
your three-day ban!" in the logs. We wish players wouldnt do that. Actually,
Id rather players didnt announce that a petition had been made at all. (Ill
have to get back to that idea in a later note, too, because its a big one.)
There are many chances to become frustrated when playing City of Heroes. Its
not always clear whether a misunderstanding is intentional. Well do our
absolute best to gather and understand the context of the argument before we
take any sort of action.
There are also is a prevailing attitude amongst some players that disrespectful,
inflammatory, racist or obscene comments or behavior are "OK" in City of Heroes
in certain circumstances, or in certain areas of the game world.
They are not, and not ever.
Any such comment or behavior could result in action by Game Services, up to and
including termination in the most severe circumstances.
Of course, while we reserve the right to take whatever action we think is
proper, we never do more than we think we have to. We still operate under the
notion that most players just want to have fun and are able to respect and be
civil to one another.
We dont want players to behave because theyre afraid of what the GMs will do.
Wed rather they "play nice" (and some veteran MMO players might wince to read
those words together) because its better for City of Heroes and everyone
playing in it.
Its pretty close to that, believe it or not. Just be on your guard, but be
courteous, and if something goes wrong, let us know. Well take care of it, or
at least we'll try.
Oh, and one other thing. If you wonder what youre not supposed to do, take a
minute to read the User Agreement terms again. Its right there on the
launcher, every time you start City of Heroes (or you can read the online
End-User Agreement and the
City of Heroes Rules of Conduct).
Take a look, but dont dwell on it too much. Wed rather you just enjoy
yourselves.
Vol. 2, Issue 31
January 23rd, 2009
This Issue:
Pacted and Loving It
The Players of PvP
Fan Fiction Spotlight
Get Involved! Form a Supergroup
The Redeemers
Fashion
Base Showcase
Masthead
Jan 16th Issue
Upcoming Events:
January 24th
Guardian
Sara
Moore Task Force
Infinity
Aiming
to Misbehave
January 26th
Virtue
Golden
Age Festival
January 29th
Virtue
The Official J-Force Ouroborus Costume Contest
January 31st
Champion
P.E.R.C.
Dress Your Badge Contest
Justice
PvPEC
Throwdown to Issue 13!
Virtue
The
Supergroup Recruiting Fair '09
February 1st
Freedom
P.E.R.C. Presents - The Body Drop
February 7th
Infinity
Rikti
Ship Raid