So here's my queue:
The Galactic Protectorate Parts 2 and 3
Every Rose 17702
Hillbilly Cannibal Mayhem 21207 (didn't have banjo in the title, but it did have it in the description!)
Power Play 187269
Ctrl + Alt + Reset! 137561
In Pursuit Of Liberty - ID 221702
I've had a busy weekend, but hopefully i'll be able to get onto these this week.
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Glad to see you're still going strong, MCM.
That is all. 
I'm out of signature space! Arcs by Tubbius of Justice are HERE: http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=218177
I'll have a few arcs in my queue up and posted soon, but in the meantime I'd like some more to review. I seem to be having the most fun with low-to-middle level arcs, so if anyone has any they'd like me to run through and comment on, red or blue side, please feel free to suggest away. Another 5 arcs should be sufficient.
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Low level arcs you say? I got one that needs some feedback.
Arc Name: BE Prologue: Gangs United
Arc ID: 250480
Author: @Ozzie Arcane
Morality: Heroic
Length: 4 Missions
Level Range: 10-20
Enemy Groups: Hellions, Trolls, Vahzilok, Custom
Description: An evil organization plots to bring several gangs together under their banner. Introduces a villain group I intend to use in future story arcs.
You asked for it. You got it.
Two low-level arcs, one heroic, one villainous.
#195149, "The Horsemen Chronicles (Part 1)" -- Heroic, Lv10-14
#242869, "The Wolfpack Chronicles (Part 1)" -- Villainous, Lv10-14
Both are 5 missions long and will probably take 2 hours to complete. More if you're writing the review as you go.
Play my MA arcs!
Tracking Down Jack Ketch - ArcID #2701
Cat War! - ArcID #2788
You're one of the few "biggie" reviewers I haven't hit up, but since my arcs are both high level, I'll just sit back and watch your thread some more. Fair warning, expect me to pounce when the opportunity presents itself. 
The SOLUS Foundation - a Liberty and Pinnacle SG
"The Consequences of War" - Arcs # 227331 and 241496
I will throw my and my husband's low level arcs on the pile. They're both short arcs and intended to be lighthearted and humorous (we hope).
Title: Tailor Made
Arc ID: 258291
Creators Global Name: @anachrodragon
Faction: Villainous
Levels: 20-29
Mission Count: 2
Notes Designed for villains in the 20s or high teens (will AutoSK to 20). Intended to work both solo and teamed. There are only a couple objectives in the large second mission, but lots of optional stuff to smash, so it can be either quick or long depending on your own pace.
Title: Poi, Demonology, and Everything I Learned From Hellions
Arc ID: 164235
Creators Global Name: @londerwost
Faction: Heroic
Levels: 1-14
Mission Count: 2
Notes Designed for brand new heroes. This was play tested on a level 2 fresh out of Outbreak. It's intended to be something simple and fun for lowbies to get their feet wet with. Also, the second mission was supposed to be on a 45 minute timer, but timed hostage missions are bugged in I15, so it's untimed for now.
Also, if you have any lowbie arcs of your own, please feel free to add them to our review thread.
[ QUOTE ]
A Bad Hand From a Worse Dechs by @Dechs Kaison, Heroic Morality, Long (1 small, 2 medium, 1 unique map). Description tells of a fellow Hero, Kinetic Tut, wanting some help recovering an artifact, and hints at bitter rivalry ensuing. Systemm warns of possible EBs, Extreme EBs, and Extreme Bosses. 10 plays, 4 stars as I started it.
...
[/ QUOTE ]
First let me thank you for dredging yourself through that... I'm very sorry for how terribly it turned out.
I imagined the Seed could be a bit difficult, but I never realized how difficult. The Seed is supposed to be a surprise in the last mission. He is avoidable though and not required.
The bookshelves are optional defend objectives. If you were to complete all three, there's a PPD friendly ambush that will spawn to help you out (if they ever fix the bug).
I have no idea why Dechs didn't spawn. I do have him as a triggered spawn, only after the mainframe is completed. That should be spelled out in the mission intro/sendoff, and you said that you finished those, so I don't see why he shouldn't have been there... Perhaps it's something that was borked after I15 hit that I need to fix.
What I'm getting is a general feeling of dismay here, and that I should just take the arc down rather than try to fix it. I've got a sub-par plot that I'm using to show off custom mobs and my characters, rather than creating characters for a well developed and interesting plot. I just have to start fresh with something completely different.
But I will not publish without puns and obscure movie references!
Where to now?
Check out all my guides and fiction pieces on my blog.
The MFing Warshade | The Last Rule of Tanking | The Got Dam Mastermind
Everything Dark Armor | The Softcap
don'T attempt to read tHis mEssaGe, And believe Me, it is not a codE.
Dechs - I was a bit disappointed, yes. I tend to form preconceptions based on the titles and descriptions, and i thought i would be enjoying it. Egyptian-themed magic guy vs robot mastermind sounds ripe for a cool arc. If you put Tut and Dechs in another arc, ill be sure to check it out.
Eco
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
You don't know what a "Mu" is?
[ QUOTE ]
You don't know what a "Mu" is?
[/ QUOTE ]
thats some really bad lag youve got there
eco
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
The Galactic Protectorate Trilogy by @Unknown Hero, Arc Ids 47143, 117281, 174352
Its been a while since I played through GalProt 1, so I figured Id quickly do it again to refresh what the arc was about.
MrCaptainMan, my lvl 50 En/En Blaster, my main, and my first ever toon, will be doing this, as he did the first one and its a 40-54 level arc anyway.
MCM looks like this and heres his bio:
Orbiting Saturn in the year 9365AD, mild-mannered astronaut Hank Wanger was sleeping soundly when his space stations gyroscope failed without warning and the space stations rotation slowed to a stop over the course of the night. The very slow shift to zero gravity catapulted Hank back thousands of years into the past, and granted him the incredible powers he soon found himself manifesting. Dedicating his life to crimefighting was a no-brainer, really. Realizing that such an explanation of his origin and powers was tending on the ridiculous side, Hank wondered if he would ever find out the truth...
So, here we go again!
The Galactic Protectorate - 01 by @Unknown Hero, Arc ID 47143
Memorys a funny thing, isnt it? I remember my last night on the station, clear as day. I remember watching the game before doing my final check on the droids and turning in. I remember waking up reeaaal slow, not really sure what was wrong. I remember my nose lightly touching the bulkhead above my bunk. I remember thinking hm
gravitys failed. And then I remember waking up naked in Atlas Park. Why cant I remember what happened between the nose-touching and the naked waking?
And also, why cant I remember what the Galactic Protectorate is all about? Like I said, memorys a funny thing. Luckily, my power suits got a load of recording devices. Lets just rewind the thing
there we go
.right, lets see what happened
Im going to stealth through this as much as possible, to get an idea of the plot again. Ive read my earlier review, but maybe theres been changes, and I think its only fair to play it again so as to give the second and third parts a better shot at immersing me]
OK, so I was contacted whilst using the AE facilities for some
er
training purposes
yeah
what catgirls? I was contacted by a Synapse from an alternate dimension. He was a leader in the Human Resistance fighting against the forces of The Galactic Protectorate. He wanted me to rescue some important people for him, and used the AE array to zap me across the whatsits to his Atlas Park, which was in pretty poor shape. I quickly found the civilians I had to rescue, and made short whatsit of the guards holding them. I found a newspaper depicting a demolished Grandville, with the FP looking sad in front of it
[The rescues were clearly marked by the Captured Energy Field animation, and the various dialogues were either flavor text or hints at plot to come. There are quite a few names already, and I must admit Im not a giant fan of military-style stories, so I wasnt immediately yay! about this mission.]
So one of the hostages I rescued knew where a GalProt Comms Hub was, said Synapse, and I was off to sort its whatsit out and grab some info. Once inside the base, I attempted to stealth through and just extract the minimum info
[Nine objectives to do here, 3 computers to access, 3 more that are optional but identical so I have no way of knowing I can avoid them, basically making them non-optional until Ive done the three required ones, and 3 mainframes. I just encountered the first mainframes ambush, and I hated it. I like ambushes, but MMs and slows and the mix of your mobs powersets left me cold, Im afraid. That /storm is horrible]
I soldiered on, up a floor, and up another floor
[the second floor is completely pointless, unless you trigger a spawn here later]
I found a massive room with another computer
[I think this map is too big and your glowie times are too long]
And then, on the last room, I found another mainframe. Kaboom good. Ambush bad. Wow, those babes were tough in a gang.
[horrible experience. Im sorry, but when a gang of them arrive, it just seems like a mess. Not enjoying that at all. I dont mind my health bar and end bar going down, hell, I dont even mind dying, but being KBed and Slowed when theres no way to get away from it is just not fun at all.
And then I had to go back to find the mainframe Id missed
[gah.]
I found it a few floors down, and went Nova on its bottom. Before the ambush could arrive, I activated Synapses whatchamacallit and returned to be debriefed.
[That mission is far too big IMO. I came away with the location of another base, the access codes for it, and some sealed orders. The optional progress reports (progress reports on what, btw?) are a bit dry and, well, padded, it seems.]
Synapse took the info Id given him, but before we could act on it he told me I had to go rescue Manticore, whod been kidnapped by the GalProt and needed
rescuing
[Two objectives here, rescue Manti and create a false report of his execution. Id think that maybe someone in the base would notice that he hadnt been executed, but Im just thankful its not a Defeat All ]
I explored
[and find an apparent dead-end with no point to it even though its got a number of spawns en route.]
Up a floor I found a computer, and quickly typed up the false report
[this still seems a little silly to me. The system message says You've sent a false report to the other Galactic Protectorate bases!, but MCM hasnt got any knowledge of alternate dimension Galactic Protectorate email protocols when theyre applied to defunct alternate earth Arachnos computers. However, canons full of you hack the computer, and even my arc The Echo has a couple, I think, so
]
Up another floor
[you do know there are small maps available in the MA, right? ]
and round a few corners, and I found Statesman in the last room. After a brief but vicious fight, I freed him. Huzzah!
[I ate my entire tray of inspires and dropped every buff before going into that room, and Im afraid I did that mainly so I could get it over with as soon as possible. Anticipating those storms and the bubblers and whatnot just depressed me.
Back at the ranch, Synapse thanked me and bade me adieu, but warned me that the fight was not over, and that more was to come!
[Your customs look great, but I absolutely hate the way they fight. Have you altered their powersets since the first time I played it? Im going to implement a new rule to my thread, in fact, which is no storm, no MMs from now on. Sorry dude, but I can only say how I feel. I still think that the maps you use were too large, too. Ill play the other two arcs as quickly as I can, as I promised you I would, and who knows, they may be awesome, but probably if I was doing this incognito, Id not bother doing the other two based on this one.]
The Galactic Protectorate - 02 by @Unknown Hero, Arc ID117281
[Manticores the contact, and the first thing I notice is that he says Darn it, just like Synapse did in Part 1. Either hes a robot and so is Synapse, or youre using the same Voice for them.]
This time, its Manticore who needs my help. We have to locate the whereabouts of a GalProt general, and hes in one of three bases. Synapse and Manti are taking care of two, so its up to me to investigate the other one.
[Inside the lab, my objectives are to
find some info, destroy a mainframe and defeat a general. Havent I already found out like loads of info in the first part? Im sure I found out something about a base, with access codes, and one of the civilians also told me something?]
The bad guys are different this time
[Im now feeling snowed under the weight of bios, backstory, optional computer reports etc. Its sapping my ability to be immersed. Ive lost count of the number of different mobs in the Galactic Protectorate.]
I access some computers. The whatsits swim before my eyes. Too much information shorts out my suits circuitry
[this map has THREE elevators on the first floor. Id be ragequitting by now]
The first floor I try is empty apart from a load of GalProts in different costumes
ahh, my visors glazing over!
[totally pointless, that first elevator.]
I fly around for a bit with my visor open to clear the condensation thats built up from my labored breathing
[dude, what the hell possessed you to choose this map? Its AWFUL.]
Ah, theres a mainframe. KaBoom Good wait for it
.aha! No ambush! GREAT!
And then, eventually, I find the base commander, and kick him into next week. He isnt the general, unfortunately. She is in another castle. Sorry, base.
[Far too much stuff, not enough cool stuff, sums up that mission for me. The Generals not there. I wonder if the next mission will be go to Place X and find out some info']
Mantis next job for me was to go to a warehouse to rescue Synapse, who had gone on ahead to scout the situation out. Oh, and find some info if possible. I headed in, and soon-
[well, soon is relative. This is a giant warehouse map]
soon find the computer. It has details of a transfer of a prisoner to somewhere. The prisoner is Sister Psyche
[I just found a massive end room, the standard ones with the L-shaped raised walkway round the far corner. Nothing in it apart from groups of GalProt. Why? Whats the point?]
After another trawl around, I find the general. He rants a lot but I see to him. Then I have to find and defeat another General!
I turn to leave, and spot the general in the corner
[phew, Im glad he was spawned in the same room.]
He kills me with his arrows but I Rise from the Fiery Ashes of my conflagration and smack him in the chops. Now to find Synapse
[Your map makes me cry. I find Synapse right at the start. Lol I must have just run past him without seeing him. My bad, maybe? In any case, having him say Now lets see what theyre hiding in this base! makes me laugh like a drain. Im actually glad I didnt find him till the end/. Having to take him with me would have made me want to sit on a poker.]
Back on the porch, Mantis overjoyed to hear that weve found Sister Psyche, and he organizes a giant shindig in my honor. The entire Human Resistance is going on the attack for this one, in the form of , er, waiting on standby while I go in and rescue her myself. Mantis coming with me. Also, I have to defeat the general and every Galactic Protectorate officer in that area.
[what? I hope thats not
.]
Sister Psyche is easy to find. She seems to have gone to the synapse-Manticore School of Swearing too..
[Darn it!, says Sister Psyche lol]
Then, a little way away over the hill, I find General Guinevere. Me and Sister start our engines
[General Guiniveres dialogue is choking me Im sorry. Let the enemies of the Galactic Protectorate be vanquished this day! etc seems too much. I like a bit of overblown Gadzooks,By the bearded whores of Zeus, never before hath I been bested by mortal ken! stuff, but this stuffs too serious for me. The fight is moderately hard, Gs an EB. She kills me once, stays on a sliver of health for far too long, but we overcome. I dont need to go get Manti]
After the victory, its bunting and huzzahs all round, back at the gazebo, and the Human Resistance change their name to the MrCaptainMan Freedom Fighters!
[That middle mission did my head in. I feel quite bad for feeling like this, but for example with your mobs bios, it feels like theres no point reading them because next mission Im going to be meeting a whole new set of mobs from the same group. All the bios seem to be very long-winded too. How many different mobs are in the group in total? Seeing loads of different types makes the GalProt seem more like a crowd of people than a military organization.
This was more meh, Im afraid. Sorry.
The Galactic Protectorate 03 by @Unknown Hero, Arc ID 174352
OK, this time its Sister Psyche whos on the other end of the dimensional doodad. She can have some. She needs me to go rescue some doctors. Pff, darn it, why cant I go rescue some nurses instead? Preferably British nurses from the seventies that used to wear those sexy uniforms with the crossed over aprons sort of thing
where was I? Oh yea, doctors.
[Another map, more mobs. 3 doctors and a nurse (yay!) to rescue, base commander to defeat]
Inside, I feel myself starting to hallucinate
[Devices. Webnades. Marvelous]
I rescue a doctor, but the stupid woman doesnt know where the exit is
[Escort to door, PLUS ambush. Lovely. Are we going to get my first 2-star review here?]
I turn my suit autopilot on and go to sleep
[This is horrible. I hate my life. I just rescued a nurse by Novaing, and the ambush that arrived webnaded me into oblivion. There isnt a font large enough to describe how HORRIBLE it was. The GalProt part 3 has 1 play as I write, and I can quite imagine thats because of people getting to this hideous part and simply abandoning it. What fiendish mezz-proof toon have you tested it on? And whats with all the damn Masterminds?
I keep going, spotted by **&^%&ing devices masterminds and chased as I run through ^^%%$ing molasses. If I could by some esoteric means transform your arc into a flesh and blood creature, maybe by purchasing some kind of Arc-monculous from the NCSoft store and growing it in a vat for a few weeks, I would torture the little [censored] till it died.
Oh, its a huge map too.
Another 5 minutes goes past, and Im actually shrieking at the screen What the **&^((ing hell made him choose this [censored] map? Its GIGANTIC!@!!
And all the while, Ive got the escort Nurse Rosenmiden (even the bloody names are long-winded!), escort Doctor Regios, etc, to remind me Ive got to go all the way back through this awful gauntlet of misery.
I find the Base Commander, and hes an easy lieut, thank god, and then plod back through the map with my escorts, eating break frees like theyre crack-glazed M&Ms until we reach the entrance. The narrative of this mission reveals that maybe the MrCaptainMan Freedom Fighters arent completely the good guys
maybe? Im not sure, to be honest.]
Wassat? Hm? Not the humus? Mmbllmbll
snrrrkk
[Sister Synapse calls the rescued Doctors traitors for wanting to work with the GalProt, and then asks me to go and defeat another general. They started with 12, I think., so theres plenty left for the rest of this story, no doubt.
Oh, if the general isnt in the base, I have to
look for information
Typos in the entry popup I think Psyches spelled wrong.
Another large map, Fifth Column this time. I find Manitcore and free him without too much trouble. Ive sussed the GalProt Success Method by now. Juts eat loads of break frees, kill the MMs as quickly as possible, and desperately try to ignore any mobs you dont absolutely have to deal with. Each spawn seems to be a robotics mastermind with webnades, a soldiers MM with AR, and an emp to generally piss me off by healing them.
After some more caverns, I meet Col Gobi, and my rage escalates to unbelievable levels. Im mightily glad there arent random pockets of gamma radiation floating around in my flat, or Id literally have turned into the Hulk, Im sure. Force Field/Robotics mastermind, on either hard or extreme. With an emp to heal him too.
When I finally defeat him, I remember that Ive got another boss to defeat. This blows.
And then I Mapserver DC.
Are we all having fun, reading this? lol Im laughing right now in the manner of one who laughs up at the bright silvery round circle in the sky at night through the bars in the window at Belle Vue.
I take a few long deep breaths.
Thats not enough, so I stand up and do some stretching exercise.
Then I pour myself a glass of wine and log back in.
Here we go again.
Heres my plan. I
m going to eat a buttload of lucks, hope nothing hits me as IO attempt to zoom to the Bosses, and
thats it, really.
Good heavens, it worked. I rushed through, only suffering two or three angina attacks en route, and rescued Manticore. I took him with me to the bosses, and we did them.
The computer file mentions another gemneral and something about a counter-attack.
Im sorry that Im now quite vitriolic, but this is a case of the maps, mechanics and mobs being so hideous that its made me not give a monkeys about the story.
So the next mission is to defeat another general before she can attack the MrCaptianMan Freedom Fighters when theyre at home.
Righto. Im not looking forward to it, frankly. Its going to probably have Ninjitsu bloody MMs this time, and be on a giant fiddly map. Sister Psyche says shes coming with me
so Im a little confused as to why shes already captured when I arrive. At least the maps not a big cave or labyrinthine office complex. Its an outdoor, Boomtown I think. Thank heavens, I can fly and avoid the mobs.
I locate Sister Psyche easily. Shes quite close to the start and clearly marked by the Captured - Energy field animation.
Then, I find Ms Liberty too, and free her, again easilky.
And luckily, General Sahara is then within sight! Wow, hoefully Ill be over with this real soon!
Theres a slight hiccup with general Saharas Unaware dialogue. In the chat window, his last line is Troops, prepare to break through their perimeter!, but in his speech bubble, its Troops, prepare to break through their p ' this is presumably because the chat bubble isnt big enough for the full 300 characters. It does illustrate however that your dialogue needs trimming.
The General doesnt prove too much of a threat, but she sumnmons lots of ambushes.
Now all that other stuff, all the rest of my bi***ing and whining about your arc, thats just me being a dick, maybe. Im sure theres other players whod love everything that I hated. But this bit, this end fight and the ambushes, I really want to wag my finger at you. I love endboss ambushes. I think they add a load of exciting tension to an end boss fight. So the thought of an outdoor battle with Sister Psyche and Ms Liberty helping is great. But as I landed the killling blow to Gen Sahara and turned to see the hordes of Masterminds running towards me, ready to web and slow and probably bubble and bloody shotgun KB repeatedly too, I just went gah and exited. And that makes me sad.
Sister Psyche gives me another congratulations and thanks, the war isnt over, etc debriefing, and thats the GalProt part 3 done.
Forgive me, but I probably wont be playing part 4 or beyond. The customs look very nice, but your maps are too big, the missions are repetitive, seemingly reiterations of go find someone, discover a location, defeat a general and the mobs are teeth-grindingly unpleasant to fight.
Here's some hopefully positive suggestions. I think that you should avoid trying to make each part of the trilogy as long and standalone as it is, if thats what youre doing. Without the limitations of having to stay within 5 missions, you could experiment with all sorts. Mix it up a little. Try this, maybe: replace that Fifth Column map with one of the small Council Radio station maps from the Striga TF and see how much story you can fit into that. Having a short mission every now and again would give much more variety to the missions in your arc and stop players like me from entering yet another mission to see a tiny little section of map and /facepalming, then switching off while we rush to the end. If I know Ive only got a small amount of space to work in, as a Player Im more likely to appreciate whats been done in it, and as a writer its quite interesting to see what I can do with it. Policewomans arc Celebrity Kidnappings got one mission thats in the office map from the Blueside tutorial. Its minute. Its almost not necessary, that mission, but its just perfect that its in there. Check it out if you havent already for a really good example of less is more
Your arc has potential, certainly, but it currently makes me think of Henry David Thoreaus quote Simplify, Simplify.
3-stars for all 3 parts.]
Hey! Whats going on? Where am I? In the AE building? What happened to the Galactic Protectorate? I
hm
memorys a funny thing
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
So here's my queue:
Every Rose 17702
Hillbilly Cannibal Mayhem 21207 (didn't have banjo in the title, but it did have it in the description!)
ZAGMUK Act One: The Herald 266123 (replacing Power Play at request of Sumerian)
Ctrl + Alt + Reset! 137561
In Pursuit Of Liberty 221702
BE Prologue: Gangs United 250480
The Horsemen Chronicles (Part 1) 195149
The Wolfpack Chronicles (Part 1) 242869
Tailor Made 258291
Poi, Demonology, and Everything I Learned From Hellions 164235
I'm going to instigate a new rule after the Galactic Protectorate, I'm afraid.
NO MASTERMIND MOBS, NO WEBNADES. The odd one is ok, but if you've got armies of MMs, please don't ask me to play.
This of course adds to the 'no malta, no KoA' rule I've already got in place lol.
I''ve also decided to not strictly stick to the actual queue order, if I've only got an hour, rather than waiyt, i'll play a shorter one from further down, maybe.
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Here's one I prepared earlier
Ctrl + Alt + Reset! Aka Time Loop, by @Bubbawheat. Medium length (2 tihny, 1 small, 1 medium map). Neutral. The level range is 15-30, so Ill be taking my lvl 25 Inv/Superstrength tanker in. His name is Scoop Malloy, he looks like this and heres his bio:
Scoop Malloy, Paragon Times. Whats your view on recent rumors that the far-away look in Azurias eyes aint just down to contemplating the higher planes of existence? Some folks say that eye of newt aint all shes brewing up in her cauldron these days, you get my drift? Now I aint disparaging the old girl, but she does seem a tad lax in keeping hold of certain Magic Items locked in her vault, right? Just plain dumb luck, or is it that popping too many mystic mushrooms on top of a quart of hoodoo juice gets you a mite too otherworldly to be in a position of Ethereal Authority? So, whats the story? You can trust me, I know whats what in the Realms of the Arcane. See this, holding up my pants? I didnt win this at a coconut shy, thats a magic belt, that is. Its the Magic Belt of Arathapathathath. Gives me my magic powers. So, come on, spill the magic beans and Ill quote you as a source. Azurias hiding something, Id stake my Pulitzer on it!
The contact is Foreshadow, and the mission description suggests that the mission will involve being locked in a time loop. Scoop is on to the story!
Red? Its me, Scoop!
Yeah, I know, I owe ya dinner. Where? Chachis? OK, but never mind that now! Hold the front page! I got a doozy for ya! This is big, sweetness! Garfields gonna love it! Danger! Romance! Corruption! Heroics! Aliens! Time Travel! Giant robots! Vampires! Octop-what?
well no, possibly not all that, but Im sure therell be a lot of it
.yeah, I remember the last story I rang in
that wasnt my fault! The source swore blind there was a giant robot on Striga somewhere
yknow, I still think theres a giant robot on Striga somewhere, in fact, Id stake my
er, yeah, that. Look, just shaddup and type this down, OK? This is it, sweetlegs, this is the big one!
Ahem..Ace Reporter Scoop Malloy, 35, reports mysterious goings on amongst the cloistered ranks of Wyvern, the shadowy private security organization owned and run by Delia Huntley. Hollows Hero Foreshadow (age unknown) contacted Scoop Malloy with information that Wyvern was holding a strange temporal anomaly of some sort. Scoop bravely volunteered to retrieve the item
thats all for now, sweetlips, I gotta go check out the Wyvern base and grab the doohickey
yeah, sure. Ill check back with more later!
[The briefing from foreshadow is concise and clear. Wyvern have confiscated a temporal anomaly, and Foreshadow wants it. Scoops to go into the Wyvern base, retrieve it, and leave]
Mission 1: Check out the Wyvern base.
Wyvern, huh? Never liked Wyvern. Its the arrows. Law enforcement types generally try a low damage sort of approach, at least in theory theyre supposed to, right? Tazers, nightsticks, theyre for subduing criminals, yeah? Kinda hard to pull your punch with an arrow. Nah, theres something not right about Wyvern. Theyre hiding something, Id stake my Pulitzer on it!
[The map is a warehouse. All I have to do is to retrieve whatever is causing the temporal disturbance. Around the first corner I spy a computer terminal glowie. I figure its worth checking out, but it proves inconsequential. I go on, and deal with a few Wyvern. I meet Agent Marx, who talks about it, and when he goes down I take it from him. Its a weird sphere, according to the clue drop. The mission completes. Time to return it to Foreshadow. I exit]
Hallo, Red? Just checking in before I return to my source with the gizmo I was talkin about
What? Ya know, the doohickey I told you about like an hour ago
I did so!
I did, Im tellin ya! I told you to hold the front page!
Its not gone to print yet?
but
well, hold the front page, then! Something screwys happening, Id stake my Pulitzer on it!
yeah, I know, I owe ya dinner! Chachis, yeah, sure! Sheesh. Ill get back to you after I speak to Foreshadow.
[Foreshadow greets me with the exact same dialogue that he said in the initial briefing. I tell him Ive already done the job and have the artifact. He demands to see it, and its not what he wants, apparently. He thinks Im joking with him, and asks me to go get the artifact again.]
What did I tell ya? Screwy! I tell ya, if Im trapped in one of them time-travel loop hoop things, Im not going to be happy. My cousin Franks son, Elipsoid Lad, he got caught in a temporal whatsit one time, and ever since, hes had to eat lunch before he eats breakfast! It aint good, messin with time travel. Anyways, I figure I better go back
or maybe not back, if I havent been there yet
see, Im already gettin confused. Ill go check out the warehouse, maybe I can find out whats happening.
Mission 2: Find Information on the Artifact
when I get inside, the artifacts gone! I coulda sworn I put it in my pocket
damn, maybe that computer has some useful info
[I return to the computer I spotted last time I was here.]
Some files labeled T.Splitter and T.Shifter look interesting, but theyre encrypted. Maybe Marx has the codes
[I hunt for Marx. Hes in the same room as last time]
Agent Marx seemed like he didnt know me, he was spouting the same stuff as last time. He dropped the artifact again, only this time its like bigger and more complex. Also he gave up the codes
[Theres a new Nav instruction, which leads me back to the computer. A new glowie has spawned in the location of the computer, which is nice I didnt know we could do that now! Oh, nice password for the files, btw lol]
Hm. I think I just got zapped back in time again. My head hurts. Have I still got the artifact?
[whrrrclikclik]
Red? Yeah, its me, Scoop. You still holdin the front page?
Oh, I see. Yeah, yeah, I know, dinner. Yes, Chachis, check!
Shaddup, just hold the front page! Ill get right back to ya!
[Foreshadow starts his spiel again, and I interrupt him this time to tell him about the two artifacts. Im not sure if Ive actually still got the second artifact at this point. Me, I mean, not Scoop. Scoops even more confused lol]
And Foreshadows not helping, blabbing the same old lines again. He eventually tells me to go to the lab and get the two artifacts.
Mission 3: Get the Two Artifacts.
OK, this time, things are definitely screwy! The warehouse is cluttered with junk, this time. Someone needs to give me some answers. And where am I going to find the damn artifact in all this mess?
[there are 15 possible glowies to investigate. They all have near instant timers, so its not arduous. The clues are humorous nods to some sort of time travel reference or a science fiction or fantasy series. The Time Warp from Rocky Horror, Red Dwarfs Talkie Toaster, Harry potter, for instance. I didnt spot a Doctor Who reference, which I thought would have been a no-brainer lol. Eventually I find myself back at Marx, and this time around he tells me that Steve has the second artifact.]
I tell ya, I am more confused than a buzzard whos been given a keg of brandy for Christmas. Steve? Who the hells Steve?
[I exit}
Red? Its Scoop. I was just wonderin
when was the last time we spoke?
that long, huh? Yeah, dinner, Chachis
Look., hold the front page, ok?
Ill tell ya later
[Foreshadow starts again, and I cut him off almost immediately. Its time to go back in. Again, Im not sure if Im supposed to have the artifact with me now or not. Scoops utterly bamboozled]
Right. Im going to go in and start punchin heads till I either get outta this mess or go doolally.
Mission 4: Its finally time to break this loop!
The warehouse is different, this time. Shortly after I enter, I bump into Agent Steve. Hes babbling like a loon, but he tells me he has the Time Splitter and that something called the Time Shifter needs to be kept away from it. I go deeper, and then encounter a weird robot thing. Its like an advanced version of the artifacts I found. It talks! And it attacks me. I smash it to bits, which feels good, but it resets time, I think. I carry on, fighting off weird devolved Wyvern mutants. I find Agent Marx in the last room, harassed by the creatures who used to be his own men. I free him, and we head to the computer thats present. Its no help
[The last room
Destroy Time Shifter still in the Nav. I guessed it would respawn elsewhere, but I assumed it would not involve backtracking. Ill go back into the map.]
Back into the warehouse, I find the Time Shifter again. Its grown stronger. I frit my teeth and dive in
[Its now conning Orange, so I eat my tray and pile on. It falls, but its not the end
;( Just ate all my inspires and now Ive got another hunt the boss and hes probably going to be stronger this next time.]
After the Time Shifter falls this time, I hear it near the entrance to the warehouse. This time its shorting out or something. Maybe the Time Splitter I have is acting on it
[Id forgotten about the Time Splitter, tbh. Still, Im glad it wasnt an EB!]
I paste it easily, but something tells me its not over yet
[the nav now reads Destroy Time Shifter Once and for all!, so I guess this is the last time. However, I must say that all these multiple re-iterations of the Time Shifter and the need to destroy them arent really delivered to Scoop very clearly by the clues. Id suggest adding sth like as Time Shifter falls, you feel your innards twist as time warps around it or sth, and foreshadowing this earlier somehow. Theres a lot of backtracking here, too.]
I head back to the last room again, and theres the Time Shifter, now advanced into some kind of weird static object, guarded by holograms of its former selves. Me and Marx make wreckage out of it.
[The clue at the Time Shifter (destructible object now) end says its rusted as if much time has past typo here hundereds). I think that whats happened is that the artifact has been evolving, possibly by sucking time from the warehouse, and that the Time Splitter has acted like paraquat on it, forcing it to evolve too fast and thus destroying it. I think thats whats happened, but if so, Id make it much clearer if I were you.]
We exit, and report back to Foreshadow. That Time Shifter doodad was suckin all the time from around it and usin it ta evolve. I guess Marx time Splitter was too much for it. Still, alls well. Thisll make a great front pager!
[lol so the debriefing explains that yes, the Time Shifter was doing all that. Everything is explained, but I spent most of the arc being really confused, even about small things like whether or not I had the artifact with me at various points. Maybe you could state in the exit popups that its gone, if thats supposed to be the case every time. Theres a grammar hiccup in the debrief felt like they trapped should be felt like they had been trapped, and a typo hide it's presence should be just its with no apostrophe.
Overall, Its a lovely concept, and a fun arc. Bashing Wyvern is easy enough and satisfying. The combat versions of the Time Shifter are well-made and fun to fight. The mission with all the glowies (which I suspect are optional Im sure I didnt get all of them before the mission completed) seems a little too laff-riot for the tone of the rest of the arc, but the clues are funny.
My two biggest gripes are that its too confusing, and theres a lot of backtracking in that last mission. I actually liked the way the first few times the map was the exact same one, and would have liked to see that continue. If there was perhaps a set of two maps that were identical in layout but one was degraded in some way that would be good.
So, a little disappointed Im afraid. I like Time Travel stories, personally, but I do value clarity, and this could definitely be clearer. The rating is somewhere between 3 and 4 stars, and Im going to let the coin fall to the 4-star side because even with the confusion and the backtracking, I didnt die once, I wasnt mezzed, there was no Last Mission Giant Map Syndrome and it had a rickroll in it. ]
Red? Hold the front page! I gotta-what?
Already?
Ah, damn. Ah well, never mind
listen, you free for dinner tonight? I was thinkin about Chachis
Eco
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
I dunno, it seems that even though you weren't sure what was happening, you came to the right conclusions on your own based on the clues and information you were given. I can tell it's an earlier playthrough, as most of the typos have been fixed by now. The map choices have been a bit of a struggle, I tried using a CoV skin for the last one in an earlier version, but it was only slightly different lighting.
I might spend some time looking for a similar looking dilapidated warehouse map for the final mission and work on the spawns a bit more to try and get less backtracking, and more clarity at least on what's going on in that last mission.
Thanks for the review, it seems that today was my day to come up in everyone's queue.
[ QUOTE ]
Thanks for the review, it seems that today was my day to come up in everyone's queue.
[/ QUOTE ]
And I want to know exactly what that cost, and how they demanded payment!
Justice Blues, Tech/Tank, Inv/SS
----------------------
Fighting The Future Trilogy
----------------------
Every Rose, Arc ID 17702, by @Kitsune9tails Its Long (4 Small, 1 Unique Map), Villainous, 32 plays, 4-stars as I start.
This is marketed as an alternate starting arc for ultra low villains, 1-10. Cool. Ill take my seldom-used lvl 5 Ice Blast/Pain Dom Corruptor Szron in. Heres his bio:
Ice flow nowhere to go Ice flow nowhere to go Lost in the blinding whiteness of the tundra They call him the shrew, Arms in short, Then with the claw Whiteness, Nothingness, Endlessness Death The whiteness of the Pales in comparison Oh my god! Who the hell are you? Im little Johnny Frostbite moving around Freezin you up freezing you down Like an icicle Comin in your tent like a cold night scissor bite Arctic death Infinite night They call me tundra boy because I move like an arctic lizzard When the Blizzard strikes I disappear like a pipedream All thats left is the gleam Of a tent peg Boosh, Boosh, Stronger than a moose Dont lock your doors or well come through your roof top Stop look around take your mind off the floor Because The Boosh is loose and were a little bit RAW! Ice, flow, nowhere to go Ice, flow, nowhere to go Lost in the blinding whiteness of the tundraaaaaaa!
er, British forumgoers or those of our American Cousins who like British comedy might recognize that thats the Mighty Boosh song Ice Flow there.
Szron is Polish for Frost, hes sort of loosely fashioned after the Black Frost character from that show (very very loosely. So loosely hes basically untethered, in fact), and I have no freaking idea what his Voice will be like. Im a tad worried hell attempt to rap, in fact, and if he does, all I can offer is my apologies.
Off you go, Szron!
Every Rose, eh? What are you looking at, boy? Eh? I come in ere, I do, and I thinks youre looking at me funny, boy. I dont much like it when folks looks at me funny. Im a villain, see, Im a bad sort! If you keeps looking at me funny, Im going to do something painful with your eyes. Painful and rude. Ive got uuurges, boy! Dont make me sate my urges with your eyes, boy!
Cos Im a villain, see!
This little sort, shes a cute little thing and no mistake, shes got dirty eyes, looking at me
Little Pollyanna hardbody like a spanner
Winding me in winding me out
Give her a clout [slap!]
Shout!
Pollyanna Hawthorne likes
A bit of sore brawn
Szrons on the case
Boat race frowning
Drowning
Crowning for the Circle of Thorns
Case that I took
Get the book
COS IM A VILLAIN, SEE,
IM A CROOK!
[
Christ
sorry
]
Yes, you be sorry, boy. Ive got my eye on you, boy
[...anyway, Pollyantha Hawthorne, the contact, represents the CoT and has a job for Szron. A simple recovery of an ancient tome of some kind from a nearby warehouse. Theres a typo in the briefing: practicioners should be practitioners.]
Mission 1: Recover the Ancient Tome.
Oooh, I loves a good copper-beating, I does, boy! Oh, yes, Freezing a bobby and shattering him into thoouusands of sparkling red icy shards is fair music to my cockney ears, boy! I loves it, I does, I loves it! I tell you, boy, when I gets an opportunity to have some fun with the barkers, I tends to go a little crazy! I cant keep control of my uuurges, boy, I does things to them, terrible things, awful things, boy, things a man shouldnt do to another man, boy!
Out of walls hearing the call
Of the wild crack cold
Im old
Like a glacier
Face yer going to get it
Now, with the rozzers
All over
Im in clover
With the fight
And the cold of the night sit tight and listen
When their Froze face glistens
I smash it and the tinkle
Tinkle
Tinkle
Tinkle
Of the dead coppers tears
Is music to my ears!
I tell ya, boy, I has a right good old knees-up in that warehouse, boy! Aaall of em, boy, all of em! I DOES THEM ALL!!!
And I finds me not one, but TWO, magical books, boy! Two fer the price of one, see? Its cos Im a villain, boy! Im a bad sort!
[I had a total blast (Excuse the pun) in that mission. I Cleared it, in fact lol. Corruptors are great fun, arent they? The maps an Arachnos warehouse map, just the right size, nice and linear. The crates unfortunately have this bio This is a large cargo crate you used to sneak onto the Sky Raider ship. Blast your way out of here! which I think needs to be altered. The books I find confused me a little bit I thought I was only looking for one book. However, upon getting the last book there was an ambush of Tuatha, and I didnt catch what they said. I realized that Szron didnt have NPC chat enabled. Ive rectified that now. Its possible that whatever they said would have explained why two books. Good fun opener mission]
Ooh, this little Pollyanna, shes loving the Szron, she is! Shes positively DRIPPING with gratitude, she is! Why, I do believe if I was to show her my elbow, boy, shed fall to her knees and worship it, yes she would. And you would too, wouldnt you, boy?
Yes you would, boy, because if you didnt Id be forced to do something horrible to you
[Pollyantha is pleased (not as pleased as Szron makes out, I have to say) with the result, and offers me help with a spell of my choosing. Its quite nicely delivered, the actual spell being left up to the Players imagination. One of the ingredients however, a certain type of coral, is not available, and so I decide to go looking for it. The wording of the briefing puts the Player in the active role, too, which is nice.]
Mission 2: Find Magical Coral.
So its a ship Im heading to now, boy, to find this magical coral, this loverly jubberly magical crystal coral for my spell. Dyou know what my spell is, boy? Do you? Do you WANT to know what my spell is for, boy? Heh heh, I dont think you do, boy, oh no, cos if you knew, boy, youd most definitely fill your pretty pink knickers with about 8 pounds of brown
sticky
POO, boy, yess, that you would. Best you dont know, boy.
Inside this ship, theres a whole new lot of flatfoots for old Szron to dilly dally with, boy, and some youngsters too, oh, its like theyve put on a spread fer me. Im afraid I has another one of my little turns, boy. I shows em all my elbow, and you know, boy, that aint pleasant
for them, anyhow
[The ship has been out collecting coral for Dr Aeon, the popup tells me, a nice touch, and its populated with Private Security Guards and some customs which fit the setting well. Theyre young grunts, up and coming security guards, and they make a nice addition to the mission. There are a few destructible Crates dotted around (Standard bios) and half way down the map I find a glowie, and its my coral. Grabbing the coral spawns a Coralax ambush, which I deal with easily]
Oh, boy, Im feeling it now, oh yes
Im going to get my spell cast, boy, and its going to put a shine on the day for old Szron, dont you think otherwise!
Mission 3: Complete the Ritual.
[Pollyantha tells me that The Ritual Master needs protecting, but that more than one CoT spellcaster will be casting the spell. This mission is in an outdoor graveyard map. Theres vahzilok here. Theyre quite challenging at lvl 5 ]
In with the dead I said
Gather round the grave to rave at the sound
The ground
Is cold
And I like it like that
The fat fat earth
Gives birth to the cursed
But Im worse
And I sing, cos Im old and cold and Ive said it before
I aint nice, you want more?
IM A VILLAIN, SEE, BOY!!!
These stinking rotten corpses, they fancy theselves a bit, dont they? Id freeze their elbows off if they had any. I fair dont want to bother, boy, Im on a schedule, here, but I do em anyway. Cos Im a villain, see? Its in me blood!
[Im expecting to protect the Ritual Master, but as I creep round the map, it strikes me that maybe the waves of attackers (if thats whats going to happen) might be stocked from the spawns on the map. If so, maybe taking them out now might be a good idea. Luckily, Szron gets a bit arsey with them too.]
I go into a veritable FRENZY, boy, its an ORGY OF DELICIOUS VIOLENT DEPRAVITY!!! I put icicles where icicles have no right to be put, boy, if you catch my drift, and I think you do, I can tell by the loverly tasty look of terror on that young shiny boyish face of yours
[So Im running round the map gleefully blasting Vahzilok, for no other reason than it seems to be mindless fun. Clearing All on an outdoor map? Low levels are obviously where its at. Actually, I am definitely brought home by this how much great potential the MA has for showing new players some of the cool maps and mobs that they would otherwise have to wait a long while to see through canon arcs. This arc is a good example of this, so far.]
Biff, Baff
Piff, Paff
Fipp Fapp
Oh you naughty
Forty more
I even the score to nil
And then up on the hill
The magician
The mission is in
My cold dead fist
Shes kissed
And IM WELL INNN!
[I decide to have a look for the Magician, and
I cant find him lol. I clear the lower level, and then go up and around the top, clearing to the edge, and then I go back, and eventually find her! Its Pollyanna!]
Its little Pollyanna
With her magic an er
Hair all red
She said
Szrons gotta save her,
Dirty little raver
Get down, Polly
Shes a jolly little fighter
With the right to the bright rite all right
TSSSSSSSSS!!!
[Its an easy fight, and the mission completes]
Ah, that brought a lump ter me froat, boy, I tell you. Me and Pollyanna are going to make sweet sweet music, I can tell. She LOVES, me, boy, oh yes, she loves me! Ive a mind to collect her some presents as a show of my affection and desire ter make an honest woman out of her.
HAHAHAHA ahh, Old Szrons jokin with you, boy, of course. An honest woman? IM A VILLAIN, BOY, WHAT DO YOU TAKE ME FOR?
Anyway, she wants me to go and kidnap some poor little innocents. Me, Szron, kidnap? Oh, boy, she knows me only too well. Im a bad sort., you see, boy, Ill willingly steal away babies from their mothers and sisters from their fathers. Ill steal them away and do terrible things to them before I hand them over to her, boy, terrible, awfull, DESPICABLE things! Oooh yes, Im a bad sort
Here, suckle my elbow or else
Mission 4: Show up at the family reunion
[The text explains how I set up a family reunion for some civilians that are of the bloodline the CoT require. At the apartment building, however, the Legacy Chain and the RIP are here too to stop my fun]
Im in like a slick wick, slidin all about in the candlegrease, my boy, ooh, yeah, feel it, feel it, can you feel it, boy? Im in, right in the building, running around, slapping them down, boy, the rippers and the lovely little pansy legacy chainers waving their big choppers all about like woofsies, boy. I grab a pair of tarts and theyre right up for it, but I keep on looking for more. I finds me a grasper too, Ill slice him well up later as a naughty aperitif before my main course of twin bints on a bed of jellied eels doused in Spanish Fly sauce, eh boy, EH BOY, EH, WADDYA THINK? Go on, boy, tell me, dont be afraid
Am I not a bad sort?
[I have fun in the map, icing up rippers and legacy chains. I kidnap two women the dialogue is quite funny, at the expense of the Legacy Chain. Then I kidnap a Family man. I thought there were only three to kidnap, the Nav says 2 Citizens to hide away, one last citizen to kidnap! When I get all three to the exit, however, the mission completes. Outside, the Debriefing contains a typo will mak a should be will make a. The briefing for the next and final mission tells me that the CoT is so impressed with my work that they are going to make me a member. A covert member, so I wont get wossnamed by the Ritual of the Thorn.]
Mission 5: Join the Circle of Thorns.
Oh yes, boy, this place reminds me of the London Dungeon, only with less fat bludgers hanging around naggin me for a slurp of me peas n gravy. Im going to feel right at home in here, boy. I think ill go on a proper London bender, as a matter of fact. Here I go boy, watch out, look out, HERE I COME!!!
[This map is a little too large for my usual tastes, especially since its an Orenbega one, but Ill see how it goes.]
Theres my little Polyanna. Oh yes. I see off the Chainers giving my girl the eye and she lets me get me hands on her box
[Pollyantha is one of the three magicians I need to enspell me, and my ceremonial Thorn is also here, in a locked box near Pollyanthas spawn point. I take it. Pollyantha accompanies me as an Ally then]
I finds a magic type, all cosy with his books, and a few Legwarmers giving him some gyp. They soon sees the error of their ways, believe me, boy, oh yes. Then I run about like a muppet, boy, LIKE A FLAMING MUPPET, trying to find the last magician, and my mood, well, I tell you boy, It isnt pretty, oh no. OH, NO!!!
[Hm
I dont like this map. Its nothing hideous, theres no demon portals or massive tall annoying rooms, but its not very linear. Plus its got a few transport portals which leave Pollyantha behind.
The worst thing is, however, that I cant find the final ritual caster. I dont know what to do. I run around the entire map, and Clear every last Legacy Chainer. Theres only actually two rooms, one large one, where Pollyantha was, and the little one nearer to the entrance., there was a second ritual caster in there. The corridors are clear. I even lead Pollyantha to the exit, in case that works, but nope.
What a shame to end it this way.
I wont rate it, since I cant finish it. Overall, very enjoyable. I dont often Defeat All just for the hell of it, but it was great fun. Id like to have seen a bio for Pollyantha, she came across as a nice character (quite a pleasant individual, made a nice change from all the Pah! I am a mighty wizard, and you are a peasant! rantings of the Canon contacts). Her idle animation when she was an Ally was nice too. That last map its not as bad as I thought it was originally, but there is a little bit of backtracking. On the subject of maps, the graveyard map was a lot of fun, but if Id have been set on just finding Pollyantha, I might have gotten irritated, since she spawned right on top of the tallest hill and that was the very last place I looked.
A nice alternative to the canon stuff, certainly.
Incidentally,Szron was level pacted to a lvl 1 when he started this arc. My pact partner gained 4 levels, and then Szron gained 1 whilst doing it, showing how much XP it gives. ]
Out for the count
Szrons arsed out
The grouts no laff
When I open my caff
Therell be no tea
Time for me
Tea for two
Time me and Ill put a spell on
YOOOOOOUUUUU!!
Eco
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
My Queue is now
Hillbilly Cannibal Mayhem 21207 (didn't have banjo in the title, but it did have it in the description!)
ZAGMUK Act One: The Herald 266123 (replacing Power Play at request of Sumericon)
In Pursuit Of Liberty 221702
BE Prologue: Gangs United 250480
The Horsemen Chronicles (Part 1) 195149 or
The Wolfpack Chronicles (Part 1) 242869
Tailor Made 258291
Poi, Demonology, and Everything I Learned From Hellions 164235
Not neccessarily in that order.
When these are done, I'll be adding Quid Pro Quo to the wossname, but for the Audition only, on a mission-for-mission basis. The Audition is 6 missions long, so that'll get submissions 6 missions worth of review
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
BE Prologue: Gangs United, Arc ID 250480, by @Ozzie Arcane Medium length (4 small maps). Heroic, lvl range 10-20. An underground organization is attempting to unite several gangs into one.
Ill be using my lvl 9 Illusion/Sonic Resonance Controller, Vince Vector for this. Heres his bio:
Vince and his brother Phase fronted the mega-successful British 80s pop band Sinderella Sinphony, until discord in the form of Vince's growing love of glam-rock and insane hedonism drove an artistic wedge between them. Vince's second band The Artistic Difference proved a runaway success too, after a few lucrative years, Vince settled into a life of crazy parties, menage a neufs and Vimto and Whack cocktails. His brother Phase had become a superhero in the meantime, and Vince publicly scoffed at his siblings deeds of heroism whilst nursing a secret pride at his brothers selflessness. When Phase became frozen in time during the defense of a convent, the realisation hit Vince like a cold shower of pure morality that he'd better turn over a new leaf. He volunteered for some extreme experiments, had all sorts of zany science done to him, and never aged a day after that! One other thing that remains unchanged since those days...his love of Rock and his staunch opposition to False Metal!
Here we go.
Paragon City, The Big Pear, they call it
somewhere
maybe. We never cracked America back in the glory days, me and Vince. They never got us, y know? But now, well, now things are different. Now Im here. And so is Vince, I hear. Sfunny, I never seem to be able to meet up with him
Anyway, here I am, ready to rock. Some of the people in this city are right nutters, honestly. This bloke for example. Hes got conspiracy theorist written all over him. Says hes discovered some new organization thats on the up and up in Paragon, maybe the Illuminati, he says. Ha, get a load of this!
Anyway, it cant hurt to go have a look, eh? First off, he asks me to go stop a Hellion meeting. No problemo, mister weirdo!
[The contact is in fact called Conspiracy Theorist hes got a massive beard, and just the standard hologram bio. Illuminati is in red, Im not sure why yet.]
Mission 1: Stop Hellion Meeting
Once inside, I find a few Hellions loitering around, as you do. I give em a taste of the Vectors moves, and they get all confused, heh. Used to work wonders on the groupies, that. These guys dont do any of that sort of stuff of course, they just fight amongst themselves. Theres trolls in here too, which is pretty weird. I find the leader and take him down, then put the hurt on a horny devil in a cape. Turns out hes a robot.
[small map, just right, middling challenge for Vince. The custom President Evil is easy]
So my tinfoil hat guys found out a bit more. Big Evil Corporation, boo! The Man this time is based in the Rogue Isles, and the next thing for yours truly to do is stop a demonstration of something going down for some Trolls in a cave somewhere. Fine by me.
[The briefing for the next mission needs tweaking IMO. President Evil is head of a corporation called Evil Incorporated. The contact says Gee that sure is blatantly obvious. and then a sentence later calls it an underground organization. Ive noticed that your subtitles are very sparse. The first one was Hellions, and this one is Trolls. This may be intentional?]
Mission 2: Stop Troll Meeting
This cave is a fair size, full of goey drippy pod things, not pleasant. No hospitality baskets in sight either. I put me skates on for this one. After too much flying around for my taste, I find some Trolls giving it all the Ice Ice Baby rubbish,so I put the moves on em and slap em about a bit. Then I find a Lord Xuma bloke in a scary skull mask with a big hammer. He dont like it up him, either. When he drops, he goes bzzt click, so I guess hes a robot too
[Arachnoid map, and theres a little too much backtracking. The enhanced Trolls are a middling challenge, and Lord Xuma (impressive armor etc hes got) is less so. I was confused at the subsequent debriefing, which contains this: and yet another group of villains is involved in this... I must have missed something, because I didnt notice any new group. You might want to make some more overt reference to a new group being involved, same for Mission 1 TBH]
The next mission Mr Paranoids got for Vince involves the Family, whore about to get a kicking from reps from the Big Evil group. Ive gotta go save em. Dubious, this, but Im in for a penny already, eh? Besides, the contact wants me to destroy any Superadine stashes theyve got there
[Eh? Ive got to go rescue the Family?]
Mission 3: Stop Raid on Family Base
Theres all sorts of geezers inside this warehouse! First off, a dirty great Vahzilok tries to get nifty with me, then I spot a Goldbricker fiddling with the control box to some remote clockwork. Ive got a job to do though, so I keep focused. I motor on through, and find some barrels of superadine. Then I get jumped by a weird looking corpse geezer, shooting electricity at me. Theres Fifth Column in here, too. I free the family, one of them helps for a while. In the final room I meet a crazy Psycho Ninja character. Hes not another Big Evil robot, thankfully, so I get some satisfaction this time.
[The custom Vahz has a name Cadaverrific which strikes me as silly, Im afraid. Theres a typo in the Family dialogue why you're hear should be why you're here. This mission was more fun than the previous ones, because the objectives were more varied, but Im still getting a bit meh about it in general. The Bosses in the missions seem a bit random and unconnected. First the was president someone, then Lord someone, now a Psycho ninja, the first two were robots, this one wasnt
]
Mission 4: Shut Down Big Evil Base
So finally, its time to get it on with the Big Evil crew on their home turf. This dilapidated base is where the Boss, the human Succubus nice name
where she hangs out, along with various supplies I have to dismantle.
[Another small map. Im really glad you picked small maps for the most part for this.]
And once Im in, its a doddle to find the bits and deal with them. The Human Succubus is a tasty bit of skirt, unfortunately shes what we call FBM Fit But Mental. I have to put her down
[er..shes in a different villain group? Theres a typo in her clue she was defeat should be she was defeated. Shes another easy fight]
Well, thats that sorted. I think I did some good today.
[So, hm, this arc was a bit underwhelming, TBH. With the slow pace of low-level Controller combat, especially Ill, an arc needs some variety to keep my interest up, and this was a bit sparse in terms of story and/or objectives. The best missions were the ones with the extra smashy/collecty/rescuey things to do. There was only one clue in the entire arc, which was a shame. Id suggest beefing up the story a bit, and adding some more objectives. Well done for sticking to small maps. Id be careful with Defeat Boss encounters; the attendants can sometimes spawn far from the Bosses, leaving a Player wondering what hes missed. I rated this 3-stars.]
I feel like some bacon and eggs, now. Wheres me pan?
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Hillbilly Cannibal Mayhem!, Arc ID 21207, by @Wulfie
Medium Length (2 unique, 1 small map), Neutral. 55 plays, 4 stars as I start it. Im taking Scoop Malloy in again. Hes my lvl 25 Inv/Superstrength tanker.
He obviously smells a story
Red? Hold the front page! This storys a firecracker, sweetthighs!
what? Ill tell ya what CANNIBALS!!!
yeah, you heard me! I got a hot tip!
from who? From Billie heck. Whos he?
well, hes
a
er
well he works for the Family,
at least he says he does
sure, I trust him! Listen, he says his cousins a hero here in Paragon! Goe;s by the name of Hannah! Heck says shes been kidnapped by
look, just take the copy, OK?..ahem
heres the title
HILLBILLY CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST AVERTED!
what? well, no, not yet, but Im going to avert it, aint I?
Ace reporter Scoop Malloy has once again saved the City from-whaddayamean?
alright, alright, Ill go save the world and THEN come back and give you the story
but Hold the damn front page!
[Billie Hecks the contact, and hes speaking in a dialect straight out of a SNL Deliverance parody sketch. Its great. He wants me to go free Hannah from the McCarren clan, a redneck family that Hecks familys been feuding with for years.
The acceptance field is Git Er Done! Lol]
Mission 1: Rescue Hannah Heck
[Outdoor map, forest. The maps dotted with the McCarren; customs. Theres McCarren Gals, McCarren Gun Nuts, McCarren Yokels, McCarren Moonshiners, and more, all very much looking the part and with powerset combos to suit. Their bios are funny (The McCarren Gals reads This cannibalistic woman of the McCarren clan likes moonlit walks, romantic dinners, honky tonk music, and wanton acts of cannibalism!, for example). I have some fun beating on them a while, and then hunt for Hannah. There are a few patrols with humorous dialogue too. I find Hannah, free her, and she tells me that Ma and Pa McCarren should be around here somewhere, and they need taking care of. Sure enough, the Nav now has 2 new objectives, Jebediah and Annie Mae lol. We start looking for the McCarren Elders. We find Annie Mae first; her dialogue is great (egAh figger her bones'll make some good soup stock,). Shes a DB/something, and not too challenging. Jebediahs costume is brilliant, and he whips out a Blunderbuss! Awesome. As we fight, he calls for help from his family (These rednecks sure like to breed big families, eh? ). Im having so much fun I stay to finish off the ambush.
Incidentally, some of the McCarren customs have webnades, which I hate. I dont know why, though, but here Im not very bothered by them. Maybe its the tank, maybe its the synergy of your customs not being hideous, I dont know.
After the ambush, I exit]
Red? I told you, cannibals! In Paragon! Well, just outside of Paragon, anyway
I dont know if it falls under Paragons jurisdiction
does it matter? They were CANNIBALS! Heck was telling the truth! I rescued his cousin-what?
well, I guess so, I never thought about it
no, sweetlobes, of course she isnt prettier than you! No!
no, honest! Sheesh. So, you held the front page, right?
But
he did?
oh
well how about page two, then? No-page three! Nobody ever looks at page two. Hold page three! Ill go get some more story!
[Heck tells me now that I missed a few of the McCarren notables, namely the eldest son Junior, whos a big galoot whos soft on Hannah. Hes kidnapped her again and holed up in some coal mines. The mission accept is afgain, Git Er Done!]
Mission 2: Get Back Hannah Heck
[Inside the mine map, I run through into its depths looking for Hannah. The customs are here, I stop and fight a few en route. I find Hannah in a largish cave at the far end, and after freeing her, Junior spawns a ways back in the room. Hes a WM/SD type, big axe and manhole cover, and he calls for an ambush too. Its a lot of fun. His dialogue and bio are also funny. He drops a clue, some kind of Hex Talisman]
Hey Sweetcheeks, youre gonna love what I got for ya!-oh, Boss, er, no, I thought you were Red
oh, has she?
with who? Her mother?
right. Did she hold page three for me?
I see
yes, Im sure the annual speech of the chairman of the Save the Owls committee is of great importance. Well how about page four-no, five?
Seven?
nine? Really? Isnt that the recipe page? No no, I aint complaining, page nine is fine!
whats the story about? Cannibals!
gotta go, Boss
[Heck examines the talisman, and reveals that its obviously been made by Granny McCarren, a crazy witch who lives in a cave in the mountains. Of course. Perfect end, I think. The acceptance field is the same as the first two lmao]
Mission 3: Defeat Granny McCarren
[Its the witchs cave from the KHTF. The popup tells me I can her that Hannahs already here. I head in, and soon find Grannys Chest O Horrors its a chest to destroy. Its bio says The contents of this chest seem to be regenerating the health of the villains around you., though, which is its standard., maybe? In the first big room I find Hannah, and rescue her. We both move on into the cave. Granny McCarren is waiting for us at the far end. She cons orange but is still a boss. Its a nice fight. After defeating Granny, the mission ends and the arc is finished. Heck thanks you and thats that.
This is a simple, quick, middling difficulty arc that does exactly what it says on the tin. It kept me chuckling and nodding appreciatively all the way through. The bios, dialogue, and briefings are well-written and amusing and the gameplay is great fun. Top banana. I rated it 4-stars.]
hi?
Red? Red! Great! Im glad its you, sweetnose! Hows your mother? What? Whym I asking? I just thought, you know, since you just had lunch with her
well thats what Garfield said
oh yeah? Right! Sheesh, Red, your memorys terrible! Anyhow, nevermind that. Ive got the story! How about this as a headline
CANNIBAL CRONE CRUSHED IN CAVE!!! Ace Reporter, Scoop Malloy, The Daily Barnacles intrepid superhuman reporter, has once again saved the City, this time fro-what? WHAT?
Not again!
well how about page thirteen? Bu
wha
ah
yeah
OK. So, you busy later?
your mother? Again?
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Queue is now:
ZAGMUK Act One: The Herald 266123 (replacing Power Play at request of Sumericon)
In Pursuit Of Liberty 221702
The Horsemen Chronicles (Part 1) 195149 or
The Wolfpack Chronicles (Part 1) 242869
Tailor Made 258291
Poi, Demonology, and Everything I Learned From Hellions 164235
Eco
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
|
Thanks for the review and yeah I know this mission needs some fine tuning from another review I got as well.
[ QUOTE ]
So finally, its time to get it on with the Big Evil crew on their home turf. This dilapidated base is where the Boss, the human Succubus nice name
where she hangs out, along with various supplies I have to dismantle.
[Another small map. Im really glad you picked small maps for the most part for this.]
And once Im in, its a doddle to find the bits and deal with them. The Human Succubus is a tasty bit of skirt, unfortunately shes what we call FBM Fit But Mental. I have to put her down
[er..shes in a different villain group? Theres a typo in her clue she was defeat should be she was defeated. Shes another easy fight]
Well, thats that sorted. I think I did some good today.
[/ QUOTE ]
Just a little bit I wanted to comment on. She's part of a different group because it's a group within a group. She's part of their elite top 10 which she was hinting at in her clue saying "There are 9 others just like me". I guess I could make it list her as part of Big Evil anyhow but I was more thinking about how like the main signature heroes are Freedom Phalanx or Vindicaters rather then "Longbow".
I try to stick to small maps in most my arcs. Especially low level ones, because I know it's hard to get someone to sit through an entire arc that's 4 or 5 missions long. If it were only 1 or 2 missions I'd probably go with some huge maps.
I am in the process of trying to address some of the other issues you mentioned though.
Very glad you enjoyed Hillbilly Cannibal Mayhem! (and now that the system has changed a bit I can do something about those pesky web grenades. )
Hehe I had a lot of fun putting that romp together, and since I live and have lived in Oklahoma almost all my life I have heard my share of redneck and hillbilly humor.
Who knows, mebbe the McCarren's will return ta feud agin!
y'all come back now, hear?
[ZQ] ZAGMUK Act One: The Herald, Arc ID 266123, by @Sumerian Long (4 small, 1 medium map). Heroic, Ideal for Teams, Complex Mechanics, Magic say the Keywords, lvl 10-14. Ill be taking Robin Copperfield, my lvl 13 TA/Arch Defender, into this, as the description talks of a magical war and the CoT are involved. CoT are bread and butter to Robin
This is apparently the launch of a multi-arc maxi series!, which sounds rather epic. Im not sure why, as I havent had much luck so far with mutli-slot arcs, but Im looking forward to this one.
It has 2 plays, 5 stars as Robin starts.
Paco Sanchez from GC has been working with a hero called Sharru. The reason Pacos asked for my help is, I guess, cos of Sharrus connection with a mysterious artifact. Magics my bag. Sharrus gone missing
[Paco, a canon contact from galaxy, has the right bio. The Title of this mission is ZAGMUK Act One: The Herald, and the subtitle is Dogmatic Disturbance]
Sharru was last seen heading to a warehouse in KR, deep in Skull territory. Trouble is, the warehouse is a Hellion hideout. Nice
Mission 1: Check out the warehouse
[The Nav instruction header is in Orange, and only the first word is capitalized. The OCD in me grumbles at the lack of consistency across all arcs and missions in the MA here lol. Its ridiculous, but I kind of wish we had some standards that were accepted by all. I know that RED is often used for important points in a briefing, for example. Mayeb someone could write a guide for what should be orange, what should be red, what should be pink, etc? And the Captialization (or not) of words in the Nav, too. ]
Theres Skull logos all over the outside of the warehouse, but inside I find a couple of corpses and by the looks of the ceremonial wounding, its the Circle whos responsible. Those dress-wearing bastiches are following me round! In the first hall I find a Hellion being menaced by a few of the sods. I stretch, whip out my bow, and let em have it. The Hellion doesnt tell me anything when hes free, just runs off. I find a few bodies near; theyve been tortured. Im getting a grim feeling about this already
[See, already Im into it. Around the very first corner theres 2 CoT and an arsonist to fight, a Hellion in a non-standard captured pose, and some glowies to investigate with system messages. Nothing too epic, but its immersing me in the story from the off, and I havent even learned anything yet!. One very small gripe stems from my own personal dislike of the bodybags being used as bodies. I personally think its ludicrous that sensibilities dictate no dead body collectibles being in the game; I even think that bodybags are decidedly creepy and arguably more disturbing than some kind of generic corpse object. But this is just an aside; its no criticism of your using them here]
Deeper into the building, I stick some more hellions, and find a CoT altar. The earth and moss on its base tells me its come from Eastwood woods. Theres some weird new pictograms on it. I see some CoT up ahead. They dont offer much resistance when theyve got a few lengths of wood sticking through them
[I reach the end of the warehouse its a decent, smallish map without finding the Raid Leader mentioned in the Nav. I backtrack and find him near the start. Its my bad for not checking the little gantry bit above, but I was assuming hed be at the end of the Mission. I defeat him, and another instruction appears Defeat The Inquisitor Note the capitals. I scan back through my NPC chat, and see the Raid Leader talking about the Inquisitor at the start. I didnt notice because I was focused on the hostage etc.]
After decking the wizard, I head back into the building to look for this Inquisitor bloke. Im not in the mood for a chat, thats for sure. Hes spouting off about some Hellion called Tinderbox. I shut him up with an arrow in the throat.. Then I go looking for Tinderbox. I dont find him, but I do find one of his mates, who I leave in a net for the Rozzers. Sharrus been taken to meet a Circle leader, apparently, called the Master. So at least hes alive
[The Inquisitor and Burn-Out are nicely aligned challenges for Robin. A good opener for me. However, if Merakles consistently spawns up on the higher floor during your tests, Id think about putting him somewhere else or using another map, to avoid any instances of what happened to me. It wasnt much of a problem, and it was mainly caused by my erroneous assumption that there wouldnt be anything important up there, but it would have been perfect if Id have encountered the triggered bosses in the right order in consistent progression through the map without backtracking.]
Pacos got no leads on this Master bloke, but Sharrus girlfriend, another hero by the name of Helena Handbasket knows where he is. Helena Handbasket
honestly, some heroes think that just cos they can shoot radiation out of their eyes, or pick up fire engines with one hand, gives em the right to call themselves anything. Helena Handbasket
wonder what her mum thinks of that
[Paco.s briefing comes over as slightly unnatural. Id replace him under a doctor's care stat! with him into a doctors care, stat!, and I dont like change his tight-lipped ways at all. Nobody speaks like that, surely?]
Mission 2: Search and Rescue
The sewer where Sharru is being held is chock full of Circle. I see ghosts. I hate ghosts. They really get up my nose. Ive got to rendezvous with Helena, but I cant resist sticking some of the ectoplasmic buggers first.
Theyre quite a handful
[lol The Circle can be a bit dicey for Robin, when theyre in groups. They hit hard, the yellow-conning ones.]
After a quick trip to the hospital, I go back to the sewers and carefully clear my way to Helena, whos engaged in a fight in the first large room I come to. I help her finish them off, and she tells me theres more hostages down here, not just Sharru
[Helenas costume is a bit, er
well lets just say that I think the veils one step too far Her bio contains a redundant word, Though while she is not a doesnt need either though or while just one will do]
We start to search the maze of sewers, and after running down one branch, have to backtrack a ways. We run into a group of 4 ghosts. I hang back at first, but Helena rushes in like a berserker. Tch, its true what they say high heels, low IQ. The bimbos down in about a minute. Then they turn on me. I fall cursing the stupid tart
[This wasnt my fault. They were around a corner, she immediately aggroed, and they were all yellow. I died too, trying to grab some aggro from her. She conned as an orange lieutenant, btw. Downer, that, but sometimes Allies are idiots lol]
Another regroup, and in I go, alone. I delve into the sewers, and come to a branch. I hate branches. I pick the right fork, and eventually come across a room with some big spinny things sloshing the crap around. On his knees in the muck is a civilian and some archers. Hah, archers. They aint archers, theyre crossbowmen. The civilian seems confused by his ordeal; he mistakes me for Helena.
[The hostage says Is that Helena Handbasket? She's hot!, obviously referring to the Ally that could be still with me. It jars a little]
Sharru is also here, the centerpiece of some kind of Circle ritual./I break it up. Hes too groggy to fight, so I tell him to stay close and stay outn opf trouble. In wish his girlfriend had done the same
[Sharrus an escort. I have to say, his costume isnt hugely inspiring. His bio is ok. Just out of interest, are Sharru and Helena specially created for this, or are they your in-game toons?]
We make our way back to the fork in the sewer and take the other route
[I would have preferred not to backtrack, TBH, but its only a smallish map so far lol]
Those Energy Mages REALLY get on my bloody nerves. In the last room there are more Circle, and another hostage. I free her, after a bit of a slog, and then
hm, wheres the other one. Im pretty sure Ive searched the whole of this place
[Odd. I thought Id seen everywhere
]
I decide to get Sharru out of here first, and then come back for the last hostage. Luckily, we find him on the way, in the same room that I first found Helena in
[Im not sure if the hostages trigger off Helenas rescue. If they do, then this one spawned behind me, which was why I missed it. If not, and theyre already there, then I just didnt see him. On his knees in the muck, he doesnt stand out too much.]
I lead Sharru to the exit, and were out
[Pacos briefing for the next mission includes You'll be pleased to know that Sharru is alive. Thanks to you. And Helena, of course., which is a bit rich considering she didnt do anything to help, really lol]
So Sharrus taken to the hospital to join his bird. Paco wants me to go grab Tinderbox; his buddy fessed up where he is.
[Paco doesnt sound like a GC street medic, Im sorry. However, we can neither rely on the villain's willingness to talk nor the truth of his words. comes over as a bit too theatrical. I had a look on Paragonwiki for his canon dialogue, however, and its very bland writing, so just ignore me by all means]
Mission 3: Arrest Tinderbox
Tinderbox is holed up in an old office building. The first thing I see when entering is a strange geezer in a smoky cloud wearing a winged helmet of some kind. His name's Hanish, and hes well mysterious. He seems to recognize me. I give im the once over. His thighs look familiar, but that beard? Nah..
[Hanishs bio is about as mysterious as they come. I must have a minor nitpick at this part of his bio: he seems to have the power to appear and disappear at will from anywhere he chooses, leaving no trace of his ever having been there. Er, if he leaves no trace at all, how do we know hes been there? I could just say Bam! I just appeared in your flat, and then disappeared from it, but I left no trace!, so you just have to take my word for it!, sort of thing? I know this is part one of a maxi-series, but you might want to tone down all the not much is known about this NPC either! stuff. Im very glad hes here, at any rate; hes a healer ]
Hanish follows along as I move into the building. I discover an old safe. I fire an arrow into its lock at it opens! Thats lucky
[The system message tells me You crack the safe open Robin has NO safecracking skills at all, Im sure. Does the necklace thats inside have to be locked in a safe?]
Inside the safe is a pendant with a symbol like the ones on the Altar in the Hellion warehouse. Interesting
We move on, and on the next floor we find Tinderbox. Hes reading from some mystic book or other. He puts up a fight when I try to take him in, and rants about the magic artifact that Sharru was after. Hes put it up for sale on the black magic market. Great. One more strange thing
Tinderbox recognized me too. After I take him and his cronies down, I have a sift through his desk. Theres something odd about just one day a month this year, according to his desk calendar
[Nice mission, that. The debriefing contains Satanic as an adjective. It doesnt need to be capitalized]
With Tinderbox in custody, we still arent any nearer discovering what this is all about. Tinderbox seems to have gone bonkers. He just says Theyre coming. Whatever theyare, we dont know. The Master may be able to tell us
and Helena reckons hes back in that sewer I rescued Sharru from. Sounds like some good exercise. Time to quill up and get stuck in.
Mission 4: Defeat The Master and his Entourage
Helenas waiting for me a ways inside the sewer, beating on some Circle. I give her a hand and we join forces. Ill try to keep her calm this time. Easy does it, girl.
[Im expecting the Master to be difficult, so Ill need the help]
Sticking a few patrols on the way, we reach the fork. This time, I take the left turn first; to no avail. We turn back and go up the other branch. We carefully enter the other large chamber
and no Master. What gives?
[Right
this map has one largish chamber near the start, and then two separate curving corridors leading to the same croos-junction, with the branches leading to the other two large chambers. I found Helena in the first chamber, and then I checked out the two final ones. The only place left is the one initial branch I didnt check.]
We head back to the area near the entrance in some confusion
[and here he is. If youve intentionally placed him here, just a little way down the first right branch, then its a bad map to choose for it because, well, here I am. Ive just fought my way through the map to what would seem to be the end rooms, and no Big Bad. Its an anti-climax to trawl back to nearly the start and find him skulking in a side passage. On the other hand, if youve set his placement as random, then the maps not really to blame (although Id still prefer a more linear one), but you need to set him to back to avoid this kind of accident. Remembering the triggered spawns in Mission 1, of course, its possible that defeating the Master will add more objectives
lets see
]
Finally. We find him, skulking in a side passage like a ferret in a northerners trouserleg. Hes babbling about an apprentice, an Emissary, all sorts. I dont like him, to be honest. He tries giving me the evil eye. I poke him in it with a sharp stick. After he falls, I reckon Id better go check out this emissary bloke. Helenas still with me, thankfully. Shes doing an OK job this time, the silly bint.
[ah, there we go. Another objective. I thought so. See? IMO if youre going to use chained objectives (which I heartily approve of BTW), you must try your best to ensure that they are encountered by the player as he or she moves through the map. I know its not easy, Ive got them in my arcs too, but choosing a single path map is a good start. With maps where there are multiple routes, some people are going to go left, some right. Now Im going to be running up the (now empty) corridors for the third time]
We run back to that damn middle fork. Which to choose, this time? I head left. The chambers empty
[
]
Back to the fork, and to the final chamber
again. I was right about this being good exercise! In the chamber, theres the emissary No idea from where, but Im guessing its not Belgium. Hes all dark and smoky, hard to get to grips with. My magic arrows affect him, thankfully. Hes babbling in some strange alien language. I dont speak alien multidimensional magic lingo, but Im sure part of what he said translates as Ooh, pointy! Anyway, with him down, we leave to tell Paco what went down.
[Debriefing has Satanic again]
Paco has some interesting news, when I see him. A mate of his has realized where the symbols are from. 2000 years ago, it seems. No wonder I didnt recognize the lingo. Before we can talk more, though, a crisis springs. Sharrus escaped from the hospital, maybe possessed by something. He was spotted near an office. Id better get over there
[hmm
this is a bit out of left field. I was expecting something else, I dont know what. Maybe foreshadow Sharrus possession here a bit more with the first rescue mission make it more obvious that hes involved in some kind of ritual.]
Mission 5: Subdue Sharru
I find Helena already at the abandoned office. She seems a bit blasé about the possibility that well have to kill her boyfriend
[She says if possible, let's take him alive.! If possible? Lol ]
We fight our way through the halls, and then we meet that Hanish bloke again. He joins us, still rambling about mysterious things beyond d the ken of mortal man and all that
In a big room, we rescue a hostage, who tells us that the Circle are preparing another ritual
wed better put a stop to that, then.
[lol you love these chained objectives, eh? One thing to maybe avoid is Objective Fatigue Syndrome. This mission started as find Helena, subdue Sharru, and now Im half expecting, half dreading lots more objectives to spawn every time I complete one. Im not saying to ditch any of them. But perhaps you could find a way to let the Player know hes going to be doing lots more stuff before he gets in.]
One of the rituals is happening in the very same room, so thats one easily put down. We continue on, and in the next area we find poor possessed Sharru. Hes no match for the three of us. We put him down like a rabid cur
[which still leaves one ceremony to stop
I cant help feeling that the Sharru fight should have been the climax to this mission (and I guess, the arc?)
]
We backtrack for a while, and find the last magic-user and his skirted assistant. Twang, twang, ow, argh, they fall. Victory for the good guys again.
[The ritual caster spawned in the corridor just after the elevators in the last floor, before the room with the objective that triggered it.]
Sharru is taken away by the Midnight Squad. Theyre going to lock him up. Best place for him, I reckon. Pacos thankful, and Helena too. Another day, another quiver. I can sleep soundly tonight.
[End]
Right. Overall, very enjoyable. Tidy up the mechanics to avoid the backtracking and maybe do a bit more foreshadowing for us dense types, and youve got a solid arc there. Itd get me playing the rest of the series; depending on exactly how maxi it was
Good stuff. 4 Stars.
Eco.
MArcs:
The Echo, Arc ID 1688 (5mish, easy, drama)
The Audition, Arc ID 221240 (6 mish, complex mech, comedy)
Storming Citadel, Arc ID 379488 (lowbie, 1mish, 10-min timed)
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow
[The Incarnate System is] Jack Emmert all over again, only this time it's not "1 hero = 3 white minions" it's "1 hero = 3 white rocks."
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I would love it if you could play my arc and give me feedback when you get a chance.
It is In Pursuit Of Liberty - ID 221702.
I hope you enjoy it!
@Gypsy Rose
In Pursuit of Liberty - 344916
The Vigilante - 395861
Suppression - 374481 - Winner of The American Legion's February 2011 AE Author Contest