The Lily Knight project - Anachronism in CoH
By
airhead,
Posted on: 2009-04-12 10:32 in Mission Architect
Alright, so I've decided to drop a couple reviews I've found of things in-game so others can check them out if they have similar interests >_<
I've decided not to give star ratings here for a number of reasons, the biggest of all is not wanting to have to justify them to anyone else, since what rates 5 to me might be only a 3 to you, or vice-versa; and frankly, just a quick look at a star number won't necessarily be an accurate metric for if you'll like it.
Arc ID 42241 - The Battle for Happily Ever After
Review:
This arc is pretty straightforward overall - you are asked by Prince Aled, who is apparently nobility in a "tiny speck of a country" to rescue his Princess Lilianna from some 'dwarfs', who are making her cook and clean for them.
Sounding familiar already? >.> It should. The arc is a take off of the Snow White story - several minor twists, but ultimately quite a bit of fun from my perspective.
The arc uses stock enemies, and I was able to solo it on Heroic at level 5; though the end EB was a challenge. I still managed to beat her after a couple trips to the hospital and some extra Inspirations. You do get help on the last mission, but the allies are Lts., so they aren't overwhelming.
It's also relatively short - only 3 missions long; so it's something you can work in before work or during another "I have to wait for something, but don't have a ton of time" periods.
<^_^> Ultimately I thought it was enjoyable, simple as it was.
Arc ID 36433 - Get Ye Flask
This is a single mission, and even at that it's rather short.
Ultimately, I took it for what it was: A fun homage to D&D and nights of drinking Mt. Dew and eating cheetos whilst killing imaginary critters for treasure.
The plot is... thin; but it never makes a pretense of being particularly plot heavy either.
Enemies include Orcs, Troglodytes, and a Red Dragon. Even the EB at the end was relatively easy on Heroic though - he killed me the first time, but some inspirations left him very dead. (Again at level 5).
Ultimately - I recommend this for when you just want to bash some heads and not think particularly hard; I also imagine it could be a great deal of fun with a team designed around D&D themed characters.
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Arc ID - 26173 - Dungeoneering I: Standard Action
This is an arc I consider myself lucky to have come across honestly - it was 4-stars and has been rated 31 times; which means that a casual observer might consider it crummy.
I took a chance though, because when you're looking for content within such a narrow spectrum for a character, you tend to have to take what you can get.
Me? I loved it. It's not that it's 'the most amazing thing ever' or anything - but if you've ever felt look a good old fashioned Dungeons and Dragons module in CoH? This is for you.
Pros - Familiar friends and enemies - A dwarf fighter, Elven ranger, and Halfling rogue; even without knowing much about them you 'get the gist'. Orcs and goblins are the enemies - and again, easy to figure out without too much thinking.
Also the writing style is very amusing - it actually plays out like a D&D session minus the usual BSing that goes on around the table. You have a narrator, who's text is always grey, and color coded text for the Party Member's lines. It's easy to get to reading and ignore that, technically you're still standing in front of the village elder who hired you, rather than being at the tavern before the next outing.
The story even opens with a Thank You for purchasing Dungeoneering I(TM) from RRR. The end asks you to buy Dungeoneering II(TM) to continue the adventure.
The end boss fight is also brilliant - I'm not going to give it away, but let me just say you might just find yourself incredibly impressed! I was at least, it gave me an idea I'd never even considered before; and will be stealing for certain.
Cons - Although most of the dialogue is fine, and occasionally quite funny, the Orcs seem... incredibly out of place frankly. They seem too smart compared to what we know of Orcs in traditional fantasy settings (which this very much appears to be).
The other problem is the party - they are... well they're far too powerful. If you let them, they'll kill everything once you pick them up.
This isn't a problem for mission 1 and the early half of Mission II - but once you've got 2 of the 3, or in the 3rd mission, all 3, you easily steamroll everything; including the final boss.
Now I normally don't mind bulldozing things, but I sent feedback suggesting toning the allies down a bit - they're set to EBs and I think Extreme/Extreme or at least Hard/Hard. Bosses at Hard/Hard or even lower can be useful allies.
This problem might have been alleviated if the mobs themselves were tougher, but they're actually quite easy overall - a fact I am grateful for.
Overall -
I highly recommend it. It has flaws without doubt, but it's brief, and if you want a little D&D style nostalgia, this is probably the best place to get it that I've seen!
As I find more swords and sorcery, I shall continue to post and review them here <@_@> probably not in as great a detail, but hey, if it strikes me, it strikes me right?
Also, feel free to submit your own fantasy themed arcs from any culture you like - even ones set in the modern day in which fantasy comes to Paragon. (Orcs rampaging through Kings Row for example would be a fine fit!) I'm always looking for something to play with Lily Knight, who is now level 10.
As always, if you leave an arc, please leave a bit of an idea of the difficulty of the arc as well - I won't mark you down for difficulty unless it's excessive for the level range it's designed for; but I won't know what it's designed for if you don't tell me!
<^_^> anyway, happy gaming!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Oi, forgot to update for a few days <@.@>
To be honest, there hasn't been much *to* update.
Lily Knight is now level 12 with a full suite of DOs; and a new costume (thanks to some old Halloween Salvage)
Doing *very* well on tickets having leveled from 2-12 almost entirely via architect.
Things I'm noticing:
1) - Leveling in Architect is slower than normal leveling at low levels; I think this is because custom enemies can be quite a bit more challenging (ie: more debt) - no 'end cap' xp - and due to the large number of arcs I end up quitting early due to annoyance; sometimes long periods between actual play, as opposed to just searching.
2) - Finding a good arc to run is tough. Finding a good arc when you're looking for something as narrow as Fantasy in a Superhero game is extremely tough! That's expected of course (I'd be lying if I said I believed this would be a walk in the park heh <@.@>
That said, I'm pressing on. Hopefully I'll have a new review soon - unfortunately with one exception (that I'm waiting to review for a couple reasons - it's quite good though) most of what I've played lately has been... things I would rather not a recommendation to. (I've decided that I will only post arcs that I recommend, even if it's only a mild recommendation.)
Since I don't have a review for you this time, I'll post a picture of Lily Knight's second costume, as I'm rather proud of it:
Second Costume 1
Second Costume 2
As always, looking for arcs to try! First post has the details of what I'm looking for, but as a loose reminder - anything fantasy based, be it Fantasy in Paragon with Orcs running loose in the city, or genuine "You're in a fantasy world with dragons" type fantasy; historical arcs are also welcome, and as always Eastern fantasy is just as welcome as Western fantasy.
Hopefully I'll have something new worth reviewing soon!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Hmm, I am working on an arc sort of in this vein - don't know if it will meet your specs but the gist is that a group of Live Action Roleplayers (LARPs) have gone a tad crazy and brought their gaming to a whole new level.
I am still in the creation stages, testing each level so far has been fun 
; I just don't know if it will fit in with what you want as it doesn't put you into an Medieval RP story more than it puts you in the middle of a bunch of RPG folks who got a little too into it.
If interested I'll post the Arc ID when I have it fleshed out some more and published.
That's actually perfect hehe <^_^> It's one of the mental definitions I have for "Fantasy in Paragon" (and one of the reasons I've been doing a fair few more generally Magic themed arcs of late)
To lay out the requirements for "Fantasy in Paragon" a bit better:
Does your arc involve -
Fantasy warriors displaced in time?
An ancient evil rising below Paragon City?
A hero from before firearms were the norm, returned to life and needing a hand learning the ropes of the modern hero business?
Fantasy races suddenly appearing within Paragon City? (This could be for all sorts of reasons - a splinter group of the Trolls that calls themselves "The Orcs" for example; or it could be multidimensional goblins, the undead rising in the streets, Elves, Dwarves of Fae requiring help with a problem in the city... etc...)
A reasonable level of swords and/or sorcery (the former is preferred to be a part, but not a requirement)?
A yes to any of the above pretty much meets my requirements. <^.^>m
I should have explained what I meant by Fantasy in Paragon a bit more thoroughly in the first post <~_~> my bad!
So yeah, when you get that arc done, let me know, I'll gladly give it a shot!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Thank you for this list! I've got similar interests, and it's proving to be a big help.
The Paladin
Steel Canyon, Virtue
Exalted
@Paladin
Well, Hrmm... it seems that the arcs I was about to review have all been pulled between my playing them earlier today, and now >< This is unfortunate!
I'll still review them here, but be aware that they may be majorly altered if they ever re-appear (and obviously, I can't very well give you arc numbers).
Still, they might show up again, and these were all worth the play imo!
First up - Dungeoncleaners!
Full disclosure - I know the author of this one; none other than Pep Cat >.> our mintiest forumite.
Nevertheless, I'm going to do my best to be completely impartial - I just want people to be aware that I might be a tad biased even if I'm trying not to be. (I'd rather admit it up front than try to pretend it doesn't exist - that would just be silly.)
Anyway - Dungeoncleaners has you working for one Evil Overlord, or more specifically, Cheef Dungun Refilla Bloodskul, who is said Evil Overlord's representative.
It appears that a band of adventurers has cleaned out one of the Overlord's dungeons, as expected and intended... but they've decided to make it home, rather than move on like good little adventurers.
Your job? Defeat the adventurers and re-fill the treasure chests! Yes, we seem to be going in reverse... but that's what makes the arc work imo; everything is backward, at least as much as it'll let you be.
All the adventurers have names like "Pointy Eerz" or "Stubbo" - basically what you'd imagine orcs calling your typical fantasy races. Their bios are similarly writtem from an orcish perspective. There are a few inconsitencies in language use; occassionally Bloodskul sounds a bit too smart for what he is.
Also a warning - although a comedy arc, this is surprisingly tough at times! Many of the mobs can and will hit you quite hard, particularly the halflings (aka Runteez) - those little bastards will give you a run for your money if you let them.
There are 5 missions, and each is rather straightforward - clear the adventurers, restock some chests, or do some other repair work. At one point you're even asked to rescue a painting crew who've been captured by the adventurers. (Apparently walls don't get brown and moldy by themselves!)
The Good - Very entertaining premise, and the Overlord (when you finally hear from him) is pretty amusing. The adventurers all look the part; and there are a few reference jokes that are amusing if you catch them. (They're obvious if you've played a certain popular Japanese RPG).
The Bad - Mobs can be quite tough for a lower/mid level character. I actually did this one on my 24 Archery blaster instead of Lily Knight; though when it comes back up I still intend to do it with her.
Overall, if you want a little humor and an amusing twist; it's a good diversion. Basically, think "Dungeon Runners", if you've ever played that game; that's roughly what you're looking at. Fun, nothing too complicated, just straightforward entertainment.
===
Next up -
Dungeoneering II: Move Silently
The sequel to Dungeoneering I: Standard Action; Dungeoneering II has you facing off against a band of thieves, largely to recover your own stolen gear!
The good is very much like Dungeoneering I - The characters remain recognizable and rather amusing; the enemies are similarly of the "I've seen these before..." type, and generally speaking; you've got yourself a good old dungeon crawl.
It also explicitly warns you to bring Yellow inspirations for the few stealthed mobs. This is a good warning, and even without it, they aren't too nasty. It's like what you'd expect fighting thieves really - they're quick, but generally fold over if you actually hit them.
The bad: Unfortunately this one has a couple ideas that don't quite 'work'. Namely there is a mission in which you have to search chests to find some gear - you don't have to search them all; but you do have to search until you find what you're looking for.
Unfortunately there are a LOT of chests - and there are no mobs. Now, initially this might sound simple "Well just go click the chests" - unfortunately that becomes immensely dull after just a few minutes. Unlike some other games, where a room full of boxes and chests might at least hold some loot, here it's literally just a timesink.
There is a surprise if you actually search *all* of the chests; but that's the only combat you'll see in that mission.
There's also the continued problem of the allied mobs being REALLY powerful. As Elite Bosses they just rip through your opponents incredibly fast. I highly recommend ditching them, because as nice to have as they can be; they'll rapidly overshadow you if you let them.
Ultimately, I don't think it's as good as the first one. It's worth a run, but you're going to occassionally find yourself slightly annoyed. Still, it's hardly *bad*; otherwise I wouldn't be posting about it here. So take it for what it is - a fun dungeon crawl with a few problems, much like many fantasy computer games.
====
Another post incoming for the final review.
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Finally - we have
The Tale of the Feywarden
Where do I even start with this? There's a lot of good and a lot of bad in this arc honestly.
The arc begins with an Elder mage asking you to search the woods because he senses a darkness encroaching.
Now right here at the getgo, we've already got something that's evenly divided between good and bad:
The elder is a CoT mage; the costume works very well, although he's supposed to be an elf and clearly isn't. Still that's easy enough to put aside.
The problem is in the writing - the briefing for the first mission feels so short; you aren't entirely sure who you're supposed to be or what you're supposed to do.
At this point I was quite on the fence about jumping in - when writing is so muddled at the start, often it leaves one wondering if the arc itself will be worth a go...
Still, I accepted and came to a forest clearing. There I fought Sauhagain (sp?) - an aquatic race from D&D; in this case played by the Coralax. Surprisingly this worked out rather well; though I think the author might have done a bit better naming them something else.
Still, the effect was nice, even if the actual mission intro left much to be desired. This mission also introduces you to one of the arc's most... questionable features.
There is a heavy use of linked objectives throughout: On the one hand, this adds tremendously to the atmosphere. On the other hand, it can have you backtracking relentlessly, re-re-re-checking the same area.
The first mission also introduces you to your two primary companions - Ciril and Cleyndil Morningmist, a pair of young elven maids. Ciril is a ranger-type; with Plant Control/Archery; and later on becomes extremely useful. Cleyndil is a melee'r with a Katana - she hits hard, but seems to be incredibly fragile.
On Heroic, both spawn as Lts. but they may be Bosses that are just dropped due to the difficulty setting.
The story starts to straighten itself around after you finish the first mission - the Elder reveals that he has had a dream about you - the player, and that he believes you may be very important to the future of the world.
He sends you to a cave filled with Trolls (in this case played by Tuatha de Dannon - a good choice). This mission is brief - go in, get the book (breakable object) - get out.
The book, and the elder upon your return, both reveal more of the story. Namely that the world has been largely taken over by an ancient evil - the Dusklords. Yes the name is quite cliche - but then that's how high Fantasy tends to go; so needless to say it didn't phase me much. (I mean we're talking about a genre that has produced a plane called the 'Shadowdark' if memory serves...)
Anyway, the Dusklords are in fact, our CoT. This is where you notice one of the author's odder decisions. I don't think it's a wrong decision by any stretch, but it's definitely different. There are only 4 Custom enemies in the entire arc - all of them bosses at the very end. Otherwise you are fighting mobs that are already in the game, just re-labeled.
Surprisingly? It seems to work pretty well. The CoT and their demonic compatriots are quite good at the "Generic Evil Enemy" role.
The third mission I should add, reveals yet more of the story - Apparently while the elves fled to the glade where you now reside from their former capitol, one of their greatest heroes, the Feywarden, remained behind to give them time.
You are sent to recover his sword - the Gladius Pax, or Sword of Peace.
The mission initially appears ridiculous: Search 128 chests!? WTH? I am so glad I didn't drop the mission right there, because I was very tempted to...
The fact is? You don't have to search them at all. They're all fakes. Instead as you cross the map
[[[[[[SPOILER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]]]]]]]
You find the Feywarden himself - alive and kicking; although sans his actual sword. (He's apparently using a more generic weapon for now).
Ciril also joins you here - she's recieved both a visual and power upgrade; part of why there are so few custom enemies is that the allies grow and change over time. A neat mechanic.
Rescue both of them, then fight the Baneknight that spawns after rescuing the Feywarden - you'll win the entire map with no chest searches at all.
You'll notice that Cleyndil is missing. She is quite literally - she's not on the map; instead she appears to have been kidnapped!
[[[[[End Spoilers!!!!!]]]]]]
When you return the elder, he's both delighted and surprised. Unfortunately as ever, his dialogue is a bit shoddy at times, and the story, although generally understandable, can get a twinge muddled.
The 4th mission is, imo, the worst of the l ot. The theme is great - you descend into the catacombs in order to recover the Feywarden's real sword, and hopefully find Cleyndil.
Unfortunately those damned pop-up objectives will leave you running all over this map; and probably quite thoroughly annoyed at the end.
Of particular trouble is the stalagmit, which only appears mildly out of place and you might easily pass it without ever thinking to click on it. This is, in fact, the hiding place of the Gladius Pax - if you see a slightly brighter than usual stalagmite, click it and kill it!
The boss here was also rather tough for a level 15; that however I will let slide for the obvious reason that I'm a level 15. I believe it's a Prince of Blades - one of those Ice Behemoth AVs that summons a ton of ice swords. Having Ciril and the Feywarden against him is crucial; but even with them I had to go get myself a ton of inspirations to take him out.
The final mission is also... frustrating. You must defeat the 4 Dusklords - which for reasons unexplained are all elementally aligned - Fire, Ice, Shadow, and Electricity. Their names are... questionable as well.
To be honest it's something of an anti-climax - not because they aren't tough; they are, but the Ruladak caves are such an irritating map, and the occassional need to backtrack to find a missed boss... can be aggravating.
That said, seeing the Feywarden with his true sword, and Ciril at her peak was nice on both counts. Both are tremendously powerful at this point - although unfortunately sometimes they appear to spawn toward the end of the map, requiring you to fight through the bosses to get to them.
All told - I'm not really sure what to say.
On the one, the story was pretty nice; I suspect the writer might have English as a second language, because it doesn't sound like the kind of writing that's from a poor English-speaking writer. It just seems awkward in places. Then again I could be wrong and the person in question just didn't proof-read.
But still, the story isn't bad; the characters, although a bit flat, are nice, and their outward growth is interesting. When the linked objectives fire off so that they're near you things can get very cool and atmospheric... but when they send you backward across half the map they can drive you nuts.
All told, I'm going to cautiously recommend it, with the stipulation that just like some older Fantasy MMOs, it has it's highs and lows, and it depends on what part is most pronounced to you as to if you enjoy it. For me, I think the annoying aspects slightly outrated the fun; but it felt good enough that I'm willing to write this review.
(This is about the closest you'll see to a negative review here btw - I won't be posting any of the many arcs I've quit out of headpounding "ohgodwhydidyoudothat?" nor will I be posting anything I think you should never try. Basically if it's here, I think it's worth a play, but in this case, with a caveat that it's got seriously tedius aspects that can detract from the good.)
Hopefully I'll get to review more soon - I've been lucky enough to run across more worthwhile content of late.
Also - slight update; Lily is now level 16, yay! Stamina is going to fundamentally alter what she can take I think.
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Addendum - I'm an idiot!
I had the "Haven't Voted on" thing checked, which was of course screwing up my search.
Here are the numbers of the above that are active:
Tale of the Feywarden - 98286
Dungeoneering II: 50500
Dungeoncleaners: 125715
>.< sorry about that error!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Neat thread idea!
Thanks for including the arc numbers.
You might enjoy my mission at some point:
Ye Old Faire
Arc #72945
It's about an anachronistic group that stumbles in to Paragon City accidentally from another dimension. However, it ranges at about level 45-50 for most missions due to my use of a (canon) AV, so you probably want to save it for later. I find it perfectly soloable with a Scrapper, though people have reported it's hard with other ATs due to the last mission.
dang it, can't remember the name. There was a japanese arc set in the Edo period. Costumes were great.
Thanks Jetpack! <^_^>m I'm enjoying running this kinda stuff, so I'm glad a few people are enjoying reading it and maybe running it themselves later!
@Gemma_Alpha - I'll definitely give that a shot, probably this evening!
@Dugfromtheearth - if you find out what that one is called, let me know! I love me some samurai action >.<m Especially if it's told with a nod toward history (even if it's a vague nod)
---
Also I have another review! The captstone of the Dungeoneering series!
Dungeoneering III: Animate Dead
Arc ID - 92041
Fresh from looting the thieves blind, the (now very rich!) party heads to an expensive inn to get some much deserved rest.
In the middle of the night however, the village alarm bell rings - something is happenning.
That something of course forms the foundation of the story - there's been a mass abduction - 17 citizens have been kidnapped. A band of wandering paladins is coordinating the search for them with local adventurers - obviously, your group gets involved post-haste.
The first mission is pretty normal - Go in, find some citizens. Unusurpisingly given the title, the enemies are undead... what is surprising is that these aren't your typical ghouls and skeletons. Rather, they're animate, semi-sentient undead; and their still-human masters.
These enemies provide a substantial challenge before you start getting the party together inside the mission - although they're probably easier if you're a higher level character. At 16 however, Lily regularly found herself having to run back aways to recover.
This is one thing the arc does surprisingly well though - although individually the mobs are quite tough; once you have the party together you can beat them fairly easily. For once, the EB-level allies don't feel like a detriment - instead they actually provide good backup for a tough fight. On small groups they'll still wail through them, but larger spawns can get hairy.
I also want to mention the choice of maps - the Arachnoid Caves are fantastically creepy; a good fit for this mission I think.
One of the negatives however, though one I can't fault the creator too much for, is the use of ordinary CoH citizens as hostages. They're rather out of place - but given the low space budget of arcs, I can understand the need to cut that corner. After all, for something that's on screen for only a few moments at a time, using up 6kb+ of your space would be a bad idea.
Anyway, the first mission is quite straightforward - you save the hostages and go meet the Paladin Lord again. Halvers, said lord, is both happy you have recovered the citizens you did; and also distressed. Between the 5 you found, and the other party's 9, 3 are still missing.
He sends you deeper to look for the rest, accompanying your party. Unfortunately the catacombs are huge, and the paladins set off down one side, while your party takes the other - coming to another fork, your elven ranger and dwarven fighter go one way, while you take Jimrael, the halfling rogue, down the other branch.
This mission is on a relatively small CoT map; and it's where the arc starts to go from 'eh' to 'oh...'.
First, it's just you and Jimrael - that means the fights are quite tough at times, but likewise are beatable. It's nice to be able to get a more accurate measure on just how tough these mobs are. They also clue you in to what exactly is being done with the citizens - hint - they aren't just becoming ordinary undead.
It's still pretty straightforward - find 3 citizens; you'll also face your first (and if solo, only) Boss level critter from the enemy group. The boss was put down fairly easily, thanks to Jimrael critting like a nut; but all those dark powers flying around make hitting a tricky proposition.
I want to mention - there are a LOT of dark powers in this arc; so I recommend bringing/hoarding yellows throughout, as often times the tricky part isn't hitting the enemy hard enough, but hitting them at all. Even your allies suffer from the massive -Acc.
The third mission is the finale; but it's also quite cool. There are battles between Paladins and undead throughout the underground complex, it feels almost more like a warzone than a typical dungeon crawl.
You'll get the entire party again, plus one (Paladin Lord Halvers) - and it's a good idea to keep them around. Things get really hairy here, although the final boss is pretty weak (himself - his ambushes on the other hand...). I actually had one of the allies die on me; which is a first.
Overall:
Good - This arc contains none of the frustrating elements from Dungeoneering II except the occassional "too much power from the allies" syndrome. Beyond that, it's probably the strongest in the series as far as gameplay goes. The story, while not especially deep, is certainly fun. The "Around the gametable" dialogue remains; a good staple of the series.
Paladin Lord Halvers is pretty flat... but then all of the characters are, and when you get him in the final mission, he's a solid help. He has healing abilities - something much desired!
It's also short - which given the low depth of the plot, is welcome.
Bad - As noted, the plot is a bit shallow. You're looking much more "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" level of writing than anything else. It's nto that its awful or anything; but likewise you're not going to be blown away by story; nor particularly surprised.
The other problem is that if you aren't with your allies, the mobs CAN be really quite tough; at least as a lowbie. The arc does warn you of this; but I still say that it would have been better to weaken the allies rather than buff the mobs.
Still - for a short, sweet, very classic feeling dungeoncrawl, I can't recommend it enough. It's not going to stun you, it's not going to make you think really hard - but it's a good D&D style romp, and there's nothing wrong with that at all.
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
I haven't played it, but someone I know is working on a big epic D&D style fantasy thing. His global is @WillT
#2409 - The Mystery of the MAGI vaults. Azuria has contacted you to help her stop the thefts from the MAGI vaults.
#68054 - Out of the gutters. Left for dead, you swore that you were through with being a victim (alt villain beginning story)
Cool Madcat_88! I'll check it out sometime if it's up!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
I think he's got parts 1 and 2 up and ready, part 3 is up but still under construction I think.
#2409 - The Mystery of the MAGI vaults. Azuria has contacted you to help her stop the thefts from the MAGI vaults.
#68054 - Out of the gutters. Left for dead, you swore that you were through with being a victim (alt villain beginning story)
[ QUOTE ]
You might enjoy my mission at some point:
Ye Old Faire
Arc #72945
It's about an anachronistic group that stumbles in to Paragon City accidentally from another dimension. However, it ranges at about level 45-50 for most missions due to my use of a (canon) AV, so you probably want to save it for later. I find it perfectly soloable with a Scrapper, though people have reported it's hard with other ATs due to the last mission.
[/ QUOTE ]
Ack, was going to give this a shot <;_;> but the Carnies are still bugged I'm afraid. I zone in at level 30, they're all level 40. Not your fault of course.
I'll probably give it a run th rough on my 50 at some point, though I can't guarantee when.
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Huzzah, another review! <@_@>
Arc ID 91044 -
War Against the Undying One, Part 1/3: Challenge of the Dwarfs
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Wow... I must say I am quite impressed here! <@_@>
This is Part 1 of the Epic series Madcat_88 mentioned a friend of his made.
Now normally, when I recieve such a recommendation, I'm a little leery... but in this case? Well worth it!
So down to the nitty gritty then:
You are on the world of Balt, the fictional world were everything takes place. There's no attempt to drag you from Paragon City to Balt; you're just presumed to be there. Surprisingly, the text is done well enough that you only feel disoriented for a moment.
It's pretty simple to get yourself into the correct frame of mind. Especially since the dwarf who is asking for your help gives you a fair bit of exposition; and there's also a nice hefty clue early in the first mission that helps you out a twinge.
The dwarf who hires you is an odd one - his name is Sidus, and to be quite honest he looks a fair bit like a shorter Emperor Palpatine when you first see him. However after getting used to his look, it becomes quite clear he's something else altogether.
He explains that the world is under dire threat from a creature known as the Undying One; and that this creature has a vast legion massing in the north to crush the unprepared South. You have no chance of standing against this tide alone of course - so your job is to marshal the southern forces.
Sound familiar? Pretty solid, well worn fantasy tropes - but used nicely here. You aren't going to see anything brand new that you say "Oh, never thought of that before..." - but likewise; they're well done.
It's like seeing a hand-crafted custom-made kitchen knife. There are billions of knives out there, and at it's core, that's what this one is too - but it's well made, consistent, and can get the imagination flowing enough to really transport you into itself.
This is something I like to see really - a familiar concept that's been well done. You know what to expect, yet it's still enjoyable. (Nothing against new material of course! But I think stuff like this has a charm all it's own.)
Anyway, Sidus sends you to the Dwarfs first, which is what this arc revolves around (I have yet to do the other two).
The first problem is that he's been banished from the Dwarf kingdom; and the dwarfs, thanks to countless betrayals by humanity and the unceasing assaults by Goblins and Trolls, have locked themselves away.
He needs someone to speak to them in his stead.
The first mission has you seeking a runestone, which will attune the key you are carrying and allow Sidus to guide you to the location of the nearest dwarfen King. (My understanding being that there are several dwarfen kingdoms, and we're just going after the nearest and hoping they'll spread the word, assuming I can convince him)
The first mission will already show you that you're in for something a cut above I think - the atmosphere is great. You take the basic brown caves, fill them with Thorn Tree Vines, then add roving patrols of "Underground Creatures" (Tuatha, Hydra, Devouring Earth Mushroom guys). Oh and Goblins*. All these creatures are hostile to each other - so you'll encounter Thorn Tree vines destroying poor goblins, or engaged by 'creatures' throughout.
It really gives you the feel of being in an environment where you arent' so much "The Enemy" of everything on the map, but rather "Just another critter"; which fits well.
I heard dwarven voices as well, but didn't find them before finding the runestone. I recommend looking out for the optional Clue btw, it fills you in on a little dwarf history. (It's another runestone looking thing)
Once you've attuned the Key, Sidus guides you to the Dwarf King's location - he's on an inspection tour. Here you have to disable dwarven guards on your way to the king, then capture him. Although ideally this would be a time for dialogue rather than brawling, CoH doesn't have that ability right now - so this works.
* I want to mention the designs for the Goblins and Dwarfs for a sec -
The Goblins are well designed, although they don't look like the goblins you might be used to. These look almost like miniature gnolls - feral wolf-heads, but very small. Hobogoblins, which you encounter later, wear a little armor and are larger, and Hobogoblin Chieftains wear pilfered dwarven Mithral and look particularly nasty.
There are also Kobolds, although I only saw two in my entire playthrough. Kobolds are similar to other goblins, but they use a flatter, blunter face; and tend to have non-weapon sets.
Dwarfs sadly... I find their design a bit lacking. Largely I think it's the boots - they're of the standard width, while the legs are of the Armored type. This leads to HUGE thighs, but tiny feet. Large boots would have probably helped much. Though I will say their Stone Wizards are nice looking.
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After 'convincing' the Dwarf King of the dire threat, he sends you on three tasks while he makes ready his army and spreads the word.
First - Reclaim the Armory from the Goblins. Very simple mission - go in, bash the gobbo leader, leave.
Second - Defeat the overall clan chieftan of the local goblins; then destroy his altar. Even though this is a remarkably simple mission, the characterization is good enough that it felt 'important' somehow. It's also the ONLY time you'll hear me say "I thought the use of Blue Caves actually worked here".
Finally - Defeat the Troll King, a mysterious figure who's essentially cut the dwarfs off from the outside world over the last couple decades. This mission, like the first, is a more general subteranian environment. Random goblins, trolls (Devouring Earth Boulder-guys), Vines and cave critters abound.
Obviously, this is just the beginning of the overall story - but I like what I'm seeing.
I also highly recommend reading the descriptions; although most are standard fare, a couple will give you a little insight into the world.
So then... summation:
The Good: Good atmosphere throughout, patrols keep you on your toes, Goblins have good designs; the story itself feels 'right' somehow.
The Bad: Dwarfen design is rather poor in most cases, the Stone Wizards being a specific exception. The first of the three tasks, although thankfully short, can be a bit bland.
As of right now, I definitely recommend this, but witht he caveat that I've only played this first part; and that I have no idea if the quality will continue through the other two. This arc also doesn't really have a particularly big 'close' because it's intended to be played with the other two parts - as such the review here is subject to some alteration after I play the other parts. (After all, if the first third of the movie is good, but the other two parts stink... conversely the other two parts could be even better!)
So - I like it, so far I think it's worth a play, but with the warning that I have no idea what lies ahead, good or ill!
Thanks for mentioning this Madcat_88!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
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I zone in at level 30, they're all level 40.
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Ah! I think someone else had reported this problem, but I didn't understand it was a bug with the Carnies in specific. Since that's the only mission with only Carnies, it was spawning wrong.
I fixed the problem by tossing in an optional boss that level locks the mission to 45+, which is as intended. Maybe that should solve the Carnies bug.
Thanks for giving me this feedback, this really helps me to figure out what was wrong with that mission!
No problem <^_^> I only know about it because I've run into it before! It's been around for awhile sadly (was known back when I14 was on test); hopefully it'll be fixed soon.
I'll give your arc another go before long; should be able to handle it now if the level lock works!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
I haven't looked into it, but I've had a similar problem with Snakes being several levels higher than other enemies in a mission.
'I don't like the look of it at all,' said the King: 'however, it may kiss my hand if it likes.'
'I'd rather not,' the Cat remarked.
'Don't be impertinent,' said the King, 'and don't look at me like that!' He got behind Alice as he spoke.
'A cat may look at a king,' said Alice.
the samurai arc is
Jidaigeki - 117204
Back to Valhalla
Story Arc ID: 146307
I quit this in mission 1 fighting the EB. I didn't care for it, but it is about kobolds, and knights and valhalla.
Thanks dugfromtheearth! I appreciate you finding those for me! I'll see what I think later (gotta take a break from the COH tonight or I'll burn myself out <T_T> tomorrow however...
<(III)> It is back to the depths of the nefarious dungeons of our superhero game!
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.
Okay, so I have an admission -
SuperHeroes have never been at the top of my list of geek enjoyment. In fact they're relatively far down - though I do still enjoy them.
Just the same, I'm more a fantasy/sci fi nerd in the end <~_~> what can I say? However most fantasy MMOs... to be blunt, stink on ice; and even those I do enjoy are quite restrictive compared to COH.
So, having played a couple very cool medieval themed missions; I figured "Ya know what? That Atlas Park Defender idea wasn't a bad one at all; and I've got a twist on the equation..."
So here's what I'm asking folks - <@_@> Post any and all medieval/fantasy creations you make with Architect here.
This includes alternate dimensions,
Fantasy-in-Paragon,
Intentionally "Game-in-a-Game" fantasy (Ie: stuff that only makes sense viewed through the lens of Architect as a VR system)
- Basically long story short, if it's got a strong fantasy flavor, with wizards and dragons, soldiers in plate, mystic artifacts and similar; let me know here! I don't exclude eastern fantasy either; even though my character who'll be doing all this is a western Knight type; Samurai and Ninja are perfectly welcome! Also anything designed to be semi-historical is perfectly cool too (so if you re-create the Battle of Agincourt, let me know!)
Same goes for other fantasy-esque themes, like Roman or Greek or Viking mythology. You get the idea by now right? >_<
I ask only one favor <'x'> Please let me know what level range it's designed for! The character I'm playing is currently level 5; and I want to go through Architect primarily. I'm willing to put up with significant difficulty; but at the same point - I'd like to be able to win!
I primarily solo as well; so make sure you mention if it's a Team oriented one - I'll probably try to do it with my SG eventually in that case.
The character in question:
Lily Knight, a Broadsword/Shield Scrapper.
Lily Knight 1
Lily Knight 2
I'll try to give relatively detailed reviews, but I won't promise it will be as detailed as what Venture is doing, as I'm not going to try to be a professional critic here hehe <@_@> (Much respect for Venture for doing that, but I don't have it in me frankly!)
I'll also occassionally drag her out into the real world for unlocks - especially the Roman gear once high enough. Otherwise though, it'll be all AE all the time! <@-@>m
Anyway - let the posting of arcs begin! <^_^>m
A Warrior's Friend: ID 335212 - Help Infernal save Valkyrie from Battle Maiden.
Above Mars Part 1: The Wellington: ID 159769 - Save Mars by destroying a monstrous battleship from the inside!
>.> My DA page, where I attempt to art.