I couldn't agree more. Other than the lag, I absolutely love the ITF. If only other TFs were as good.
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who doesn't like beating up on Nazis? But to me they're just Council in dress uniforms, and I've fought enough Council for 5 lifetimes.
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Ironic as 5th Column preceded the Council, who usurped most of their units and added just a few of their own (Galaxies and Ascendants).
I kinda like the Valley of Lag, it gives me a reason to recite my newest prayer.
"Yea, tho I walk into the Valley of Lag, I shall fear no Disconnect!"
Lag is the only issue, otherwise for the reasons you stated I couln'd agree with you more. The ITF is just the most fun in the game IMO
The maps and numbers of enemies are also a big draw to me. There's not many other places in the game where I actually can say I'm fighting an army. When you beat the ITF, you feel like Superman.
I'd also add:
* usually get good magical salvage drops
* good XP
I love ITFs. They're fun, and they're an excellent way to level.
...and now I want to run one. Too bad it's almost 11 pm Left Coast time and I'm on Pinnacle.
"No boom *today*. Boom tomorrow. There's always boom tomorrow."
--Lt. Commander Susan Ivanova
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When you beat the ITF, you feel like Superman.
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Except when Superman fights ancient Romans and Greeks, he doesn't need seven other heroes to defeat the AV. Just his dog.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_Centurion
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_(DC_Comics)
OT
Mission and gameplay-wise the ITF is fantastic with the exception of the finale to the 2nd last mission. I have no gripes about anything else.
The only general complaint is that many nuances of the story aren't clearly presented to the player unless they are team leader. This is a complaint about all TFs however, not just this one. If the story isn't told via cutscenes or in mission events, chances are it's not making it to all the players.
The i15 TF suffers from this much more because half of the events occur in text and in between missions. My first run on the i15 I had no clue what was going on. None. I had to read the text on paragonwiki to get filled in.
That's a failure in design IMO.
I personally don't want to read the story, I want to play it. The ITF does a better job at that. Not a 100% perfect job, but at least by my second ITF run I knew what was what. I still don't know what's going on with the Kahn TF, nor do I care to; it's fail content AFAIC.
Frankly, until the devs invest in tech to raise the bar of mission design, begin extensive use of scripted events, etc, you're not going to get much better than the ITF.
For me, currently the ITF is the pinnacle of TFs in the same way the Faultline arcs hold the title of best zone content for story and gameplay in the game.
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For me, currently the ITF is the pinnacle of TFs in the same way the Faultline arcs hold the title of best zone content for story and gameplay in the game.
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Agreed as to both. Can you imagine how often Posi would be run if it were shortened to 4 well designed missions? 
The City of Heroes Community is a special one and I will always look fondly on my times arguing, discussing and playing with you all. Thanks and thanks to the developers for a special experience.
Great points made. I agree - This is my favorite TF, second being LGTF and third STF.
Arc #6015 - Coming Unglued
"A good n00b-sauce is based on a good n00b-roux." - The Masque
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For me, currently the ITF is the pinnacle of TFs in the same way the Faultline arcs hold the title of best zone content for story and gameplay in the game.
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Agreed as to both. Can you imagine how often Posi would be run if it were shortened to 4 well designed missions?
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I think if it got an overhaul it would get a lot more play.
However, I'd rather see work put in to the STF, LGTF and the i15TF. I work hard on my characters, and I like to play them at their prime at level 50, and have teammates at their prime, not auto exempted down to level 10 or 20 when everyone is crap.
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For me, currently the ITF is the pinnacle of TFs in the same way the Faultline arcs hold the title of best zone content for story and gameplay in the game.
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Agreed as to both. Can you imagine how often Posi would be run if it were shortened to 4 well designed missions?
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I think if it got an overhaul it would get a lot more play.
However, I'd rather see work put in to the STF, LGTF and the i15TF. I work hard on my characters, and I like to play them at their prime at level 50, and have teammates at their prime, not auto exempted down to level 10 or 20 when everyone is crap.
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[/ QUOTE ]I'd rather the work go into the Posi TF first, so new players don't join their first TF and say "What the [censored] is this [censored]? Screw TFs!"
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Back Alley Brawler
Did you just use "casual gamer" and "purpled-out warshade" in the same sentence?
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Wow. You just encapsulated all of the reasons why the ITF is my least favorite task/strike force. (Although that being said, I haven't tried the Shard ones.)
1) Wide Range: Which means that just like regular missions and just like saucer raids, you get level 35s who feel entitled to have half the team be level 50s, because they feel entitled to be sidekicked. So recruiting for one, once you get the four level 35-45s, grinds to halt as you try to recruit more 50s.
2) Unique Enemies: Yes, but stupid ones. By level 35, I've gone toe to toe with demons, monsters, and renegade gods capable of threatening all life on earth with a stray thought. Now, I face the ultimate enemy: a primitive barbarian in scraps of leather, with a chunk of metal in each hand. The idea that Cimeroran Traitors are a level 35-50 villain group annoys the heck out of me. Sure, go ahead, invoke the supposed magic that they're using, that isn't referred to anywhere in-game. Go ahead, somehow convince me that Roman legionnaires were all trained to Batman-like levels of physical prowess. Uh, no.
3) Unlockable Costumes: Mean that if you play a character with that concept, you have to explain why you wore modern clothes from level 1-34. If they unlocked on an account-wide basis, I'd think this was the greatest reward ever. Having to be unlocked on a character by character basis, it's annoying.
4) Few Mezzers: But tons of mobs with AoE heals, and every lieutenant or above is immune to mez. Combine this with ...
5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
6) Enemies that are "just right"? Are you including that one spawn of 8 overlapping elite bosses? Or the long path going up the hill that tends to drop three spawns on you at a time (regular spawn, patrol from in front, patrol from somehow behind) right at the moment that the team lags out? No other TF or SF has ever produced so many consecutive team wipes for me, not even mission 3 of the Positron TF.
7) Co-Op: Is over-done. Holiday co-op missions were an interesting change of pace. The RWZ was an interesting idea that has gone on too long, and officially exhausted all of my interest in co-op content. The ITF is, in my opinion, already over the line, and all the more so because in this game, "co-op" seems to always mean "villains get to be heroes."
8) Painless Maps: Except, of course, for the one map that lags everybody out just as they're coming into the middle of a swarm of overlapping ambushes. Or that cave where every 3rd spawn is a team-wiping Nictus crystal.
9) Very Little Travel: We villains are spoiled; we take this for granted.
10) Ample Reward: And deserves it, because it's a pain-in-the-neck TF.
11) Time: About right when it goes well, but time to completion is wildly variable, since your estimate of one hour doesn't include any of the time to line up the right mix of levels, doesn't include waiting for people to come back from any possible team wipes due to massive simultaneous elite boss fights or overlapping ambushes, and doesn't include however long the team spends standing around arguing about how we want to take down Romulus this time. I've had ITFs wrap up in less than an hour. I've had two of them give up at above the 3 hour mark, counting from when recruiting started.
Even though I almost entirely play villains, these days, I'd rather run Positron again (and again) than ever run the ITF even one more time. And much rather run the LGTF, which has much more interesting enemies than either of the above and uses a much more interesting variety of combat tactics, like the cumulative Four Horsemen fight and the mini-Hamidon raid.
[QR]
Agreed all around OP, the ITF is a great one. Only things I hate are Lag Valley and convincing the teams I run with that bumrushing Rommie et al. at the end is a viable and fun tactic 
They all come around, though 
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Wow. You just encapsulated all of the reasons why the ITF is my least favorite task/strike force. (Although that being said, I haven't tried the Shard ones.)
1) Wide Range: Which means that just like regular missions and just like saucer raids, you get level 35s who feel entitled to have half the team be level 50s, because they feel entitled to be sidekicked. So recruiting for one, once you get the four level 35-45s, grinds to halt as you try to recruit more 50s.
2) Unique Enemies: Yes, but stupid ones. By level 35, I've gone toe to toe with demons, monsters, and renegade gods capable of threatening all life on earth with a stray thought. Now, I face the ultimate enemy: a primitive barbarian in scraps of leather, with a chunk of metal in each hand. The idea that Cimeroran Traitors are a level 35-50 villain group annoys the heck out of me. Sure, go ahead, invoke the supposed magic that they're using, that isn't referred to anywhere in-game. Go ahead, somehow convince me that Roman legionnaires were all trained to Batman-like levels of physical prowess. Uh, no.
3) Unlockable Costumes: Mean that if you play a character with that concept, you have to explain why you wore modern clothes from level 1-34. If they unlocked on an account-wide basis, I'd think this was the greatest reward ever. Having to be unlocked on a character by character basis, it's annoying.
4) Few Mezzers: But tons of mobs with AoE heals, and every lieutenant or above is immune to mez. Combine this with ...
5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
6) Enemies that are "just right"? Are you including that one spawn of 8 overlapping elite bosses? Or the long path going up the hill that tends to drop three spawns on you at a time (regular spawn, patrol from in front, patrol from somehow behind) right at the moment that the team lags out? No other TF or SF has ever produced so many consecutive team wipes for me, not even mission 3 of the Positron TF.
7) Co-Op: Is over-done. Holiday co-op missions were an interesting change of pace. The RWZ was an interesting idea that has gone on too long, and officially exhausted all of my interest in co-op content. The ITF is, in my opinion, already over the line, and all the more so because in this game, "co-op" seems to always mean "villains get to be heroes."
8) Painless Maps: Except, of course, for the one map that lags everybody out just as they're coming into the middle of a swarm of overlapping ambushes. Or that cave where every 3rd spawn is a team-wiping Nictus crystal.
9) Very Little Travel: We villains are spoiled; we take this for granted.
10) Ample Reward: And deserves it, because it's a pain-in-the-neck TF.
11) Time: About right when it goes well, but time to completion is wildly variable, since your estimate of one hour doesn't include any of the time to line up the right mix of levels, doesn't include waiting for people to come back from any possible team wipes due to massive simultaneous elite boss fights or overlapping ambushes, and doesn't include however long the team spends standing around arguing about how we want to take down Romulus this time. I've had ITFs wrap up in less than an hour. I've had two of them give up at above the 3 hour mark, counting from when recruiting started.
Even though I almost entirely play villains, these days, I'd rather run Positron again (and again) than ever run the ITF even one more time. And much rather run the LGTF, which has much more interesting enemies than either of the above and uses a much more interesting variety of combat tactics, like the cumulative Four Horsemen fight and the mini-Hamidon raid.
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QFT
Let me add some more reasons why I'd rather eat broken glass than run this TF.
- Because so many people love this one to pieces, the odds of getting stuck on a team with at least one jerk who thinks they know everything including how to play your character better than you is extremely high.
- When they made this TF, someone apparently thought that slagging your way through mindless gobs of mobs = fun. I beg to differ. For me, slagging my way through mindless gobs of mobs = tedious and boring even when they give me xp.
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- When they made this TF, someone apparently thought that slagging your way through mindless gobs of mobs = fun. I beg to differ. For me, slagging my way through mindless gobs of mobs = tedious and boring even when they give me xp.
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Different strokes for different folks.
I think it's great fun when a tank, my brute and a scrapper gather up 40+ romans. Other times, I like being my cold/ice defender and watching those 40+ romans die under my PB + BU + Sleet + Ice Storm + Blizzard madness.
I've only done it once, rarely on long enough to run a TF, and generally play 11pm-midnight anyhow.
We slogged through it on invincible, didn't know what we were doing. Ice tank, 2 scrappers, 2 khelds, Emp, Kin, 2 blasters. Took a quite a while but was a nice challenge. That big EB spawn got us the first try, but we pulled through the second after a real brawl and marched up the canyon. I'd be willing to do it again as it was interesting and a challenge, though not really interested in speeding through it.
Looking at InfameousBrad's comments, #6, the high level guys with swords bit made me wonder too. Just seems off. Perhaps if they had cast them as the troops guarding the halls of the gods or something, but those aren't standard legionaires.
As for #4, I wish there were more Lt's with debuff and mez resistance, they nicely complicate things.
As for #5, when the Ice tank wasn't there, my Claw/Regen tried "tanking"...ow they hit hard. Basically ran in circles and hit em with shockwave to keep aggro...it worked and kept folks standing.
Really do wish the costumes unlocked for the account.
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- When they made this TF, someone apparently thought that slagging your way through mindless gobs of mobs = fun. I beg to differ. For me, slagging my way through mindless gobs of mobs = tedious and boring even when they give me xp.
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But... the whole game is made like this...??? 
Are you sure it's not that you're just tired of playing CoH in general? Because it certainly sounds like that from here. Maybe you need a break!
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1) Wide Range: Which means that just like regular missions and just like saucer raids, you get level 35s who feel entitled to have half the team be level 50s, because they feel entitled to be sidekicked. So recruiting for one, once you get the four level 35-45s, grinds to halt as you try to recruit more 50s.
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Being *able* to invite down to level 35s is, to me, worth the price of having to take some care in building the team such that there are not too many lackeys. Other than the greater potential quantity of lackeys around, I don't find much difference in *quality* between a 35 and a 45-46 lackeyed up to 50 on a team. Unless it's a Kin corruptor/controller maybe.
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4) Few Mezzers: But tons of mobs with AoE heals, and every lieutenant or above is immune to mez. Combine this with ...
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Legitimate gripe. I tend to avoid this one on my controllers if they rely too heavily on hard controls. Soft controls and debuffs though... that's what works on these guys, and works pretty well.
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5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
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Don't know about him, but I have lost count of how many times my Nin/Nin *stalker* has run the ITF. And hands down the most fun run I've EVER had was the all-stalker ITF we did on Virtue. I love it. Admittedly, Ninja Blade's Divine Avalanche helps stay ahead of the -def in melee, but it can be a real problem if I get ganged up on by nictus (nictii?) in the 1st and 2nd missions. Still, it's fun and keeps me on my toes. Can't get tied up in a long animation too near a group of Cims or it can be lights out quick.
Overall, I think the ITF manages to be a decent challenge to the average team without being so difficult as to encourage specific team compositions or the idea there are "must haves" on the team roster.
I'll also agree with the notion that the 3rd mission desperately needs an overhaul. I just don't understand why it seems to be rocket science. Get rid of the bloody engineers on the walls (they almost never come into play and serve only to add more lag just by being there) and remove about half of the wandering patrols. There are more than enough spawned ambushes to fill the screen with Romans.
Villains: Annie Alias, Dr. Amperical, Shade Golem, Knight Marksman
Heroes: The Clockwork Mime, Soccerpunch, The Fissioneer, Samurai Houston, Oversteer
Join The X-Patriots on Virtue!
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5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
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Nope. When I bring a tank it's an Ice tank, pure defense but with strong debuff resists. My second-favorite characters to use have been my fire/kin corr and fire/kin controller, neither of which has much defense to speak of. My current fav is my elec/shield brute, again defense based and without nearly the debuff resists my icer has.
Freedom: Blazing Larb, Fiery Fulcrum, Sardan Reborn, Arctic-Frenzy, Wasabi Sam, Mr Smashtastic.
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5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
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Nope. When I bring a tank it's an Ice tank, pure defense but with strong debuff resists. My second-favorite characters to use have been my fire/kin corr and fire/kin controller, neither of which has much defense to speak of. My current fav is my elec/shield brute, again defense based and without nearly the debuff resists my icer has.
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My robots/traps MM has no problem with Cimororans either. One bot usually eats it every second mob or so, but as long as they die and not me, then that's the point! I just summon up a new one to replace it.
Lets see, Brad
you hate it
1) Because you have the choice of including people (or not) from a wide level range?
2) Because the enemies look like something different than you would otherwise expect?
3) Because you cant make a simpler substitution for a pseudo-cimeroran costume until level 34?
4) Because the enemies have heals, which allow you to continue to act, rather than mezzes, which, it is widely agreed, are very frustrating?
5) Because your VEAT, and your MM, cannot pwnzorr them in a single bound? Strategy much?
6) Because the mobs just keep coming? Again, Strategy much?
7) Because (see #1 again)
8) Because (most of the lag can be avoided or otherwise dealt with
and see #6 again)
9) Because it solves an often-complained-of problem Heroside?
10) Because it is a lucrative TF?
11) Because you are unable to form a team fast enough? Most TFs are open to much smaller ranges of levels
does that make it easier to make teams for those?? Any TF team will suffer from bad leadership/team dynamics. Pulling all the elite bosses at once, ignoring the Cyst ambushes, playing like your character wont take any damage
these are not advisable in ANY TF.
It sounds like many of your reasons for disliking the ITF are the same reasons you like the LGTF
and it sounds like you use tactics for the LGTF, but not for the ITF.
LOL, ITF vs Positron. I like the LGTF for its variety, the ITF for its mass combat and pacing (and the self-awareness needed), the STF for its tactical elements
but I like the ITF best of all.
Arc #6015 - Coming Unglued
"A good n00b-sauce is based on a good n00b-roux." - The Masque
The only negative comment I have about the ITF is there aren't enough Cimeroran's to put down...
Who do I have to *&^% around here to get more Targeted AoE recipes added?
Arc Name: Tsoo In Love
Arc ID: 413575
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Wow. You just encapsulated all of the reasons why the ITF is my least favorite task/strike force. (Although that being said, I haven't tried the Shard ones.)
1) Wide Range: Which means that just like regular missions and just like saucer raids, you get level 35s who feel entitled to have half the team be level 50s, because they feel entitled to be sidekicked. So recruiting for one, once you get the four level 35-45s, grinds to halt as you try to recruit more 50s.
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That's got more to do with how you choose to construct your team and the teams you choose to join than the TF itself.
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2) Unique Enemies: Yes, but stupid ones. By level 35, I've gone toe to toe with demons, monsters, and renegade gods capable of threatening all life on earth with a stray thought. Now, I face the ultimate enemy: a primitive barbarian in scraps of leather, with a chunk of metal in each hand. The idea that Cimeroran Traitors are a level 35-50 villain group annoys the heck out of me. Sure, go ahead, invoke the supposed magic that they're using, that isn't referred to anywhere in-game. Go ahead, somehow convince me that Roman legionnaires were all trained to Batman-like levels of physical prowess. Uh, no.
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I agree with you 100%. Unpowered, ancient Roman soldiers have no business being pitted against superheroes at level 50. 35-40? Yeah fine.
But for 40+ they should have fleshed their ranks out with more mythological creatures and magical threats. They could have done Satyrs and Harpies easily, but instead the devs wanted to riff on the 300 and try play up to the crowd they were losing to Conan at the time.
But again, to me that's an issue with the enemy group, not the TF.
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3) Unlockable Costumes: Mean that if you play a character with that concept, you have to explain why you wore modern clothes from level 1-34. If they unlocked on an account-wide basis, I'd think this was the greatest reward ever. Having to be unlocked on a character by character basis, it's annoying.
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That's just part of the greater trend of the devs shafting anyone with a concept. The same reason I can't fly for 14 levels despite having angel wings. It's a petty limitation imposed by petty designers, one they've demonstrated they'll make an exception to, but only for the right price. In this case, $900 worth of monthly subscription.
In my opinion, that's more a reflection of their greed and distain for concept than a reflection on the TF.
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5) Melee Centric: Did you know that Arachnos Soldiers are weak to melee? Cimerorans tear my Bane Spider character up, even on lowest difficulty settings. The stacking -def(all) from all those spammed Broadsword attacks makes Cimeroran Traitors just about the only enemies that threaten my bots/FF mastermind, too. Let me guess: you're a tank with a resistance-based primary?
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Different strokes. In my opinion, having a high level melee centric enemy group is a nice change. I missed the Tsoo. The -def causing cascade failures is nothing new though. The Vanguard Rangers, the 2nd most recent group addition to the game, crapped on everyone too. They both destroy anyone in melee range who's not paying attention. But again, that's a powers/enemy design issue.
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6) Enemies that are "just right"? Are you including that one spawn of 8 overlapping elite bosses? Or the long path going up the hill that tends to drop three spawns on you at a time (regular spawn, patrol from in front, patrol from somehow behind) right at the moment that the team lags out? No other TF or SF has ever produced so many consecutive team wipes for me, not even mission 3 of the Positron TF.
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I've had different experiences.
The EBs in question are some the most mild EBs I've ever encountered. I've tanked like 6 of them at a time without trying. And I've never had a team wipe on Lag Hill. If anything, it gives the people I've run with more time to react. The constant waves can be dealt with by playing smart. Not even having a good build, just being semi organized and not being AFK. It's the most non-stop, action oriented TF in my opinion. It almost borders on being twitch, which I wont complain about.
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7) Co-Op: Is over-done. Holiday co-op missions were an interesting change of pace. The RWZ was an interesting idea that has gone on too long, and officially exhausted all of my interest in co-op content. The ITF is, in my opinion, already over the line, and all the more so because in this game, "co-op" seems to always mean "villains get to be heroes."
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This is a moot point. Everyone is going to be playing on either side pretty soon.
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8) Painless Maps: Except, of course, for the one map that lags everybody out just as they're coming into the middle of a swarm of overlapping ambushes.
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Fail tech. The devs have made several attempts to find out what the problem is, they obviously have no clue how to fix it. I blame the 8 year old engine they're running and not having the coding manpower or knowhow to deal with it.
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I'm fairly certain lag valley could be fixed just by removing all the useless spawns up on the ramparts above it that no one ever attacks anyhow. Last team I was with actually slogged through rather than pulling, and the lag got progressively better once the ambushes stopped and we had killed off a good chunk of the troops. Might have just been a fluke though I suppose.
In any case the ITF is definitely one of if not the best TF in my book. Lots of fun to run, and probably one of the most challenging groups to fight for my main just because of how dangerous they become in large numbers with their defense debuffs.
Infatum on Virtueverse
I was mulling about why I like to do the ITF so much. What makes it so good? TL;DR version: they got a bunch of small factors right, and they all add up.
Here's my more detailed list:
1) Wide level range, capping at 50
The LGTF is pretty awesome but the earliest you can do it is 45. You can do the ITF as early as 35. A TF like Katie Hannon is super fun but I'd prefer not to exemp and lose half my powers and all my set bonuses, thanks. I can play the ITF with my character midway in his career at 35 and do it all the way through 50 replete with IO sets. By capping at 50, the ITF offers me unlimited replayability.
2) Unique enemies
Yes, many people are excited about the new Reichsman TF/SF, because who doesn't like beating up on Nazis? But to me they're just Council in dress uniforms, and I've fought enough Council for 5 lifetimes. The Cimerorans are unique, you don't find them elsewhere.
3) Unlockable costumes
The ITF unlocks the extremely cool looking roman armor, plus cool nictus versions of the swords and shield by doing the TF more than once. No other accomplishment in the game gets you such amazing costume bits (although the Rularuu and Vanguard unlockables are pretty cool).
4) Not an abundance of mezzers
On my squishies, the ITF is much more fun than the LGTF due to all the Rikti mezzers.
5) Enemies that like to get in your face
If you have big PBAoEs like Footstomp or buffs like Invincibility or Against All Odds, life is good fighting Cimerorans. Again comparing to the LGTF, some of the Rikti like to close to melee, but many don't. That's cool, but when I'm playing a brute, tank, or scrapper, the ITF has the edge in fun. Even my squishies like fighting the melee-oriented Cimerorans because staying at range actually provides meaningful damage mitigation.
6) Enemies that are juuuust right
Cimerorans aren't pushovers. A crit from a Praefectus Castrorum will get anyone's attention. I like that they're a threat yet not as difficult as groups like Carnies, Malta, or Vanguard. To me the balance is just right. If they were made weaker the TF would get boring. Stronger and they'd be overwhelming. Romulus is good too; occasionally teams fail to take him down nowadays, but he's not much trouble for most. Contrast that with Reichsman and even The Honoree, where the fights can really drag on. Any AV fight where it becomes de rigeur to use Shivans and Warburg nukes, I'm not interested in.
7) Co-op
It's just great having the extra variety of being able to mix-n-match heroes and villains
8) Painless maps
Caves that are easy to get around in and big, interesting outdoor maps. Very pleasant.
9) Very little travel
A big part of the tedium of older, larger TFs is all the zoning. The ITF is worlds better, with all mission entrances 30 seconds away from each other. Plus the mission entrances all make sense in the game world, unlike taking the train to a secret 5th Column base in Boomtown in the new Riechsman TF!
10) Ample rewards
A single ITF run always gives more than enough merits for a random roll. That's satisfying.
11) TIME
Being able to do it in roughly an hour with an average PuG team is the best. They could revamp Posi so it was one dream mission after another, but if it still took 3-5 hours it would be a pleasure that I could rarely experience.
For me, there's no other TF that comes close to the ITF in overall fun because of all these factors. Yes, the "canyon of lag" is horrible, but that's a minor speedbump in an otherwise fantastic ride.
Freedom: Blazing Larb, Fiery Fulcrum, Sardan Reborn, Arctic-Frenzy, Wasabi Sam, Mr Smashtastic.