Discussion: Issue 14: Mission Architect - FAQ
By
8_Ball,
Posted on: 2009-02-26 13:02 in Developers' Corner
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Will there be a SG-base interface?
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Not initially.
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So a future update feature? That's good to hear. Thanks!
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Was I completely mistaken in remembering that we were going to be able to create our own contacts for our arcs? This seemed like an ambitious idea, but one I really had hoped to see.
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Take a look at the main page for I14. The third pic looks like the Contact creation. From my rough look, it seems you can call the contact anything you want, give them a new identity basically, but the model has to be in the list of current in-game contacts. Dean John-Yu becomes Mr. Lewdal, but he looks the same and is still in the University. I think that's what that shot is portraying.
Are there any context sensitive dialogue options available to us (different dialogue based on character gender, origin, badges, souvys, mission progress etc...)? Or if not, is it a possibility for later on?
Thanks.
Always remember, we were Heroes.
According to the interview on Massively, with regards to contacts:
We can choose any of the existing contacts (or enemies!) in the game OR we can create our own.
Man, the box is _open_ and the pohsyb is running _wild_.
PERC Supporter
La Pucelle (BS/SR)
Miseria Bella (Sonic/Dark)
Wrangler Annie (SS/Elec)
Coldsmoke (Ice/Dark)
Saber Maid (BS/Regen)
and others...
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Take a look at the main page for I14. The third pic looks like the Contact creation. From my rough look, it seems you can call the contact anything you want, give them a new identity basically, but the model has to be in the list of current in-game contacts. Dean John-Yu becomes Mr. Lewdal, but he looks the same and is still in the University. I think that's what that shot is portraying.
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The Audio file said that you could choose characters that aren't already contacts, i.e. members of enemy groups (Battle Miaden was given as an example, I think), including a variety of objects. Whats not clear is if custom enemy groups will be amongst the options you have for your custom contacts.
Always remember, we were Heroes.
Can you make av level bosses?
pohsyb, if we already have unlocked booster or unlockable content for our characters (Cyborg pack, talsorian weapons, Roman costume pieces, etc.) do we have to "buy" those items for the custom critter maker with tickets, or will they already be considered unlocked?
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Are there any context sensitive dialogue options available to us (different dialogue based on character gender, origin, badges, souvys, mission progress etc...)? Or if not, is it a possibility for later on?
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It will be somehting like this:
$name
$class
$origin
$supergroup
$level
$himher
$heshe
$hisher
Example:
Oh no! its the mighty $class $name! Get $himher before $heshe can stop us with $hisher powerful $origin abilities!
"We all lose in the end, that is the intention" --Emanuel Lasker
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Can you make av level bosses?
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Yes
"We all lose in the end, that is the intention" --Emanuel Lasker
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Was I completely mistaken in remembering that we were going to be able to create our own contacts for our arcs? This seemed like an ambitious idea, but one I really had hoped to see.
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Take a look at the main page for I14. The third pic looks like the Contact creation. From my rough look, it seems you can call the contact anything you want, give them a new identity basically, but the model has to be in the list of current in-game contacts. Dean John-Yu becomes Mr. Lewdal, but he looks the same and is still in the University. I think that's what that shot is portraying.
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I think that's because they had selected "Standard Contact" under Contact Type. I assume Standard refers to contacts already in the game and that it will have a "Custom Contact" option where we can create our own.
By the look of that picture, it seems we'll be able to select an existing contact and change its name if we want. That's good to know. So if you want your contact to be from an existing enemy group, you can give him a name instead of "Outcast Chopper."
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Can you make av level bosses?
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Yes, and EBs as well. If the player has his difficulty set to low (Heroic or Villainous) then your custom AV will become an EB instead (as all AVs/Heroes do at that difficulty level)
Ah, I'd forgotten about that particular screen shot. I was curious what the "contact type" and "contact category" meant. If we can create our own contacts, how will we place them, I wonder?
Somewhere (I wish I could find it now, but it was in today's release) I saw something that implied you got a reward whenever someone completed your arc and that this reward could be in EXP? Did I misread something or is this something that's actually going to happen?
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Ah, I'd forgotten about that particular screen shot. I was curious what the "contact type" and "contact category" meant. If we can create our own contacts, how will we place them, I wonder?
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According to the audio presentation on Massively, your custom contacts will appear on a holographic dais in the Architect building, sort of like Zordon from Power Rangers :P
All Architect missions will be launched from, and played inside, the Architect Entertainment building. There's a "datastream" that basically acts as the "door" to your custom missions.
Can we save costumes from this editor? And how about saving whole villain groups for convenient swappage between, oh lets say SG mates for thematic nemesis groups?
I've got my stalker Artimis Setelana. She has 317 badges last I checked. Yay!
Also 2 servers worth of alts, 3 of which aren't catgirls. Mew.
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Somewhere (I wish I could find it now, but it was in today's release) I saw something that implied you got a reward whenever someone completed your arc and that this reward could be in EXP? Did I misread something or is this something that's actually going to happen?
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When someone completes and rates one of your missions, you get Architect Tickets (a special kind of reward similar to, but different from, Merit Rewards)
Architect Tickets can be used to purchase Enhancements, Recipes, and Salvage OR you can use them to purchase special content for Architect itself (special maps, unlockable costume pieces for the critter creator, special versions of existing characters, etc.)
So even if all you like doing is creating Architect missions, you can still earn Tickets from people rating your stuff.
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pohsyb, if we already have unlocked booster or unlockable content for our characters (Cyborg pack, talsorian weapons, Roman costume pieces, etc.) do we have to "buy" those items for the custom critter maker with tickets, or will they already be considered unlocked?
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Unlocking costume parts for the Architect will be mostly independent from unlocking parts for your characters.
Some things that are already account wide rewards like the Cyborg pack you will may not need to buy from the architect vendor, but having a Talsorian weapon unlocked on your character will not allow you to use that part in the Architect.
There are two main reasons for this, one is to make what you are able to in the architect consistent from character to character (there was much pain and confusion when unlocked parts were per character).
Second, its required for some parts which are mutally exclusive. Talsorian weapons are a good example, because one character cannot unlock all the different weapon types. But if you buy the "Talsorian Weapon Pack" you can now create a custom villain gorup which utilizes every weapon.
"We all lose in the end, that is the intention" --Emanuel Lasker
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Can we save costumes from this editor? And how about saving whole villain groups for convenient swappage between, oh lets say SG mates for thematic nemesis groups?
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You can save and load costumes in the character creator the exact same way you can now. They even use the same kind of text file, so you can easily swap them around and stuff.
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Can we save costumes from this editor? And how about saving whole villain groups for convenient swappage between, oh lets say SG mates for thematic nemesis groups?
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Yes
"We all lose in the end, that is the intention" --Emanuel Lasker
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Can we save costumes from this editor? And how about saving whole villain groups for convenient swappage between, oh lets say SG mates for thematic nemesis groups?
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Yes
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Cool!
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pohsyb, if we already have unlocked booster or unlockable content for our characters (Cyborg pack, talsorian weapons, Roman costume pieces, etc.) do we have to "buy" those items for the custom critter maker with tickets, or will they already be considered unlocked?
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Unlocking costume parts for the Architect will be mostly independent from unlocking parts for your characters.
Some things that are already account wide rewards like the Cyborg pack you will may not need to buy from the architect vendor, but having a Talsorian weapon unlocked on your character will not allow you to use that part in the Architect.
There are two main reasons for this, one is to make what you are able to in the architect consistent from character to character (there was much pain and confusion when unlocked parts were per character).
Second, its required for some parts which are mutally exclusive. Talsorian weapons are a good example, because one character cannot unlock all the different weapon types. But if you buy the "Talsorian Weapon Pack" you can now create a custom villain gorup which utilizes every weapon.
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Are costume pieces gained from Veteran Rewards considered "account-wide", so for example if I have unlocked wings, trenchcoats, or the Tech Sleek costume parts, can I use those on my Architect creations without purchasing them with tickets?
Related: will people who don't have those Vet Rewards yet be able to buy with Tickets those costume pieces for use in Architect?
My turn for a question or two.
Are there any enemy factions that people would need to unlock to be able to use?
Is there a limit to how many AVs/EBs can be in a mission?
http://www.seventhsanctum.com/index-anim.php
Can't come up with a name? Click the link!
Can't come up with a name? Click the link!
Is there a Translucency option in case we wish to expand upon the Shadow Shard Reflections?
-= idspispopd =-
[size=1]Arc ID: 3155 - Project Prometheus (Seeking Feedback, now with less invalidation)[/size]
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1) Do you earn an end of mission and end of story arc bonus (exp and inf) like you do with normal story arc? Or do you only earn tickets?
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Using the mission arcitect its possible to make missions that complete or can be completed almost instantly so having rewards for mission complete is an automatic exploit. However, there is only a ticket bonus at the end of mission which is proportional to the amount of tickets earned during the mission. If you don't earn any tickets, you don't get a bonus.
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2) It appears that you don't drop salvage or common IOs or regular enhancements from enemy defeats. Should this system come to be very popular and start to drain away supply from the markets, do you have a system in place to correct?
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I think you will like whats in store! Ha! I kill me ^^;
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3) Likewise, have you considered how this system will interact with the merit system you added in the very last issue? It seems you're adding a new form of reward system on top of the several we have right now? I fear that characters will wind up with multiple streams of rewards none of which would add up to as much as having a unified reward system.
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Each system has its own strengths and weaknesses, but the ticket drop rates and prices were carefully calculated to be equivilent to playing the game proper.
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Sorry for the full quote, but I really appreciate a straight (and not so straight for #2) answer!
THANKS BYSHOP!!
The City of Heroes Community is a special one and I will always look fondly on my times arguing, discussing and playing with you all. Thanks and thanks to the developers for a special experience.