Discussion: The Deadly Apocalypse is upon us!
By
Acemace,
Posted on: 2009-10-20 10:23 in News, Events and Announcement Discussion
I noticed that mob selection ToTing solo is very different from last year. This year you get bosses even solo where last year you didn't. Halloween mobs are not supposed to be based on difficulty level so it shouldn't be related to that.
From my experience you get a boss at least 3 times more often than you get 3 minion spawns. Probably worse than that as I got all the badges and in that time got 1 spawn of 3 zombies, never got a spawn of 3 witches (minions) and never got the 3 lemons (Streng). This makes getting non-minion badges MUCH easier and minion badge much harder.
At lower levels those bosses are killers though. They have holds, damage and HPs out of sync with players. Below 22 (SOs) healing is very slow and you do a lot less damage AND many won't have mez protection.
At higher levels all the bosses were actually fun and much more challenging (if you don't have mez protection especially). My 41 Warshade actually got killed once by a crone who came out of the gate swinging and killed me before I even figured out she was there. It also give you a use for all those worthless inspirations that drop, making breakfrees.
Never saw the event work myself. Every time I saw it even with a 4 teams they couldn't get even close to taking all the banners down (they got about 2 usually). If that is any indication no one will be finishing it once they get the system load down to a manageable level. lol
----------------------------
You can't please everyone, so lets concentrate on me.
Thanks for the post WW.
Actually, you could get bosses in previous years when Trick or Treating solo. It's just in previous years, getting a boss was very rare. But they did happen.
WW...I frikkin love you for this addition! There is no blame on my part about this event, it was implemented perfectly IMO!
I would even try to play this event inside Dark Astoria!
http://s305.photobucket.com/albums/n...stumes%202011/
Quote:
Actually happened to be playing when the new event went off in Nerva today (first time I hadn't been in the middle of something), so I jumped in. There were four teams (none of them full) running, and with a little coordination we brought down all four banners with about five minutes to spare. The GM got dropped in under five minutes, to boot. Great time.
|
Originally Posted by Ultra_Violence
Never saw the event work myself. Every time I saw it even with a 4 teams they couldn't get even close to taking all the banners down (they got about 2 usually). If that is any indication no one will be finishing it once they get the system load down to a manageable level. lol
|
Quote:
Current death count of players who foolishly intercepted my bosses as I led them to their police drone doom: 3.|
Originally Posted by Ultra_Violence
From my experience you get a boss at least 3 times more often than you get 3 minion spawns. Probably worse than that as I got all the badges and in that time got 1 spawn of 3 zombies, never got a spawn of 3 witches (minions) and never got the 3 lemons (Streng). This makes getting non-minion badges MUCH easier and minion badge much harder.
|
I try to be careful about that, but I'm not going to fight those bosses with certain characters, and some players just don't have much common sense.
I had hoped that my dominators would be more capable of dealing with the bosses, but they show up too frequently for my Domination cycle to handle. Of my mid level characters, only my masterminds have had consistent success with the bosses so far.
I'm a bit confused .. there's a damage threshold? Does that mean my emp .. who does virtually no damage won't get the badges?
Quote:
Only if you're trying to do it solo. If you're on a team, the damage output of the entire team counts. The problem in this case is that if there's more than one team, one or more of the teams could end up with insufficient damage to get the badges.
|
Originally Posted by Radiant Angel
I'm a bit confused .. there's a damage threshold? Does that mean my emp .. who does virtually no damage won't get the badges?
|
Thanks for the post, WW. Hopefully we have seen the last of the character rollbacks! 
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
The raid/open mission idea is a great addition to the game, War Witch.
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
Was ToT'ing this morning, got a few badges, but didn't really understand the banner thing. This weekend, I really want to get to get into some Monster Mashing!
Check out Paragonwiki - it has all the info on the banners.
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
Honestly I love this, however on Freedom there has been zero reports of Jack-in-Irons showing up at any given time (while I'm online, for the past two days thats been from 6am to 6pm Pacific Standard Time) and with Eochai, the Unseelie spirits don't show up when Eochai does half the time (Haven't seen Jack-in-Irons at all so I don't know about him).
Anyway, its off to bed for me and I'll be back tomorrow hoping I find Jack roaming around so I can stomp a mudhole in em.
Further problems with the Banner event.
The pause between the banners popping up is way too long. Three hours or more, approximately. I work for a living, I don't have the time to sit there and wait for an event to happen.
The damage percentage threshold on the banners is idiotic. They should be like Downed Saucer Rikti... you damage them, you get credit.
The hitpoints for the ending monster are too low, as people have already said.
"Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of liberty."
"Nothing is unchangeable but the inherent and unalienable rights of man."
- Thomas Jefferson
I just wanted to say that this was the best Halloween fun I had since being here.
We had the deadly pop up and then while we were ToTing...got smacked in tha kisser by a zombie from the invasion! It was total chaos and I loved every single minute of it.
My wife was amazed...to see so many in one area.Nonstop zombie bashing carnage!
Two thumbs and two big toes up devs,keep it coming!
Prometheus: ... so what I told you was true, from a certain point of view.
Me: From a certain point of view?
Prometheus: You're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on your point of view.
Me: You're right about that. Power Blast is very pretty from a certain point of view. But that point of view is not head-on. <Kaboom> - Arcanaville.
WW loved the minigame.
I was a little concerned at test (just rehash of old critters) and expected to see lots of Eochai's. I was very pleased to see that the Aspect was not only Eochai, but did turn into a big CoT Ghost aswell. (phew)
Now that I know the backstory then Good Job WarWitch (more more), just wonder what you can do with more of the team behind you... *wink*
The banner art looked very good, the badge art looked so good, that I did expect to fight new groups of enemies.
Still have got to read up on the info about the event (Been busy coordinating as many people to one banner at the time for more fun for everyone participating. But people are people (aka some thinks "lets not listen"))
But so far, its been a blast. Another comment though is that in EU time the Banners seems to spawn rarely until 6pm, then it can be several at one time.
Not sure anything should be done about that at the moment.
Still unsure on what triggers the banner event (heard it was giving halloween salvage to the witch, but that means both zombies and banners will be able to be possible to trigger outside halloween?)
Lady Arete on Unionhandbook
My Excel Badge tool
Quote:
Get someone to flog Jay, or whoever it is, and get them to produce some new models for next year.|
Originally Posted by War Witch
Hey everyone
I'm not sure if anyone is interested, but the Deadly Apocalypse was my inspiration (with the help from Art, Code, Audio, and Powers) so kudos/blame falls on my shoulders. So let me tell you what inspired the Deadly Apocalypse: I wanted to come up with something different. The Haunting Banners were a way to get people to spread out a bit, work together, and go looking for their adventure. We had a very small time frame in which to borrow the Art team since they're neck deep in Going Rogue so I had to get creative! I think they did a beautiful job on the Banners and FX and I am well pleased. The UI was put in to help you figure out what to do since this event is different from an invasion. This one involves simultaneous objectives and communication even though people aren't necessarily on the same team. During testing we had some good feedback, which was essentially one of a few things: a. Totally figured out what to do and it was awesome! b. Totally couldn't figure out what to do and it sucked! c. I really wish I knew the backstory on this. That, and, "You really need to show me how to find the GM. I can't find him." So we added information to the UI so that players could read the backstory and/or find out some strategy or how the event works and how to get to the GM at the end. I didn't want to give everything away (because what's the fun in that?), but I didn't want to overly frustrate players either with new sets of rules that no one but myself knows. (What do you mean, you can't read my mind?) and By the way, the ParagonWiki info is great, even though it says it's a work in progress. So, in reading the above posts about the event, I'll keep plugging through feedback and see what you liked and what you didn't and file it away for future reference (if they let me do this again). Ooo...Deadly War Witch Apocalypse...nevermind. And I know that the Code team is scanning the forums for issues about stability and crashes so they're on top of that. That's it from this end. Have a fantastic Halloween and for those of you attending HeroCon, I will see you in a few days! War Witch |
And a new server hamster.
That aside, it's very well done. It's also an example of how a 'Capture the Flag' idea could work in game, which I noticed people asking for a lot a while back.
Ace job WW, as always =]
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Zwillinger
GG, I would tell you that "I am killing you with my mind", but I couldn't find an emoticon to properly express my sentiment.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Captain_Photon
NOTE: The Incarnate System is basically farming for IOs on a larger scale, and with more obtrusive lore.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Mirai
Only if you're trying to do it solo. If you're on a team, the damage output of the entire team counts. The problem in this case is that if there's more than one team, one or more of the teams could end up with insufficient damage to get the badges.
|
Thank you
Oh, apart from the Lag from Heck, I liked it War Witch. It's a pity the mobs used to defend the banners are rehashed though. And that the Mystic Aspect is a rehashed GM. The banners are very nicely executed and an interesting mechanic which is only hampered by the fact you guys decided to add in a damage threshold. And then did it again for the GM. Still, I suppose it adds some longevity for the event as people won't likely get all the badges in one sitting.
Overall, good work and something somewhat new added. Kudos for that.
Rabbits & Hares:Blue (Mind/Emp Controller)Maroon (Rad/Thermal Corruptor)and one of each AT all at 50
MA Arcs: Apples of Contention - 3184; Zen & Relaxation - 35392; Tears of Leviathan - 121733 | All posts are rated "R" for "R-r-rrrrr, baby!"|Now, and this is very important... do you want a hug? COH Faces @Blue Rabbit
Quote:
Which info is that and how do we read it?|
Originally Posted by War Witch
So we added information to the UI so that players could read the backstory and/or find out some strategy or how the event works and how to get to the GM at the end.
|
I just noticed the enemy info text.
A game is not supposed to be some kind of... place where people enjoy themselves!
Things seem to be happening with a better frequency now. I got involved with the event twice this evening and things went smoothly as long as someone that understood the event could explain it to the team. The event was quite fun and reminded me of the flying all over the place that happens with the Winterlord hunts.
There were only two things that needed tweaked, imo: It would be nice if the Aspect was at least a recolor, if not a new model. Also, the Aspect is a bit squishy considering that at least two teams will be pounding on it.
Quote:
My own thoughts:|
Originally Posted by War Witch
Hey everyone
I'm not sure if anyone is interested, but the Deadly Apocalypse was my inspiration (with the help from Art, Code, Audio, and Powers) so kudos/blame falls on my shoulders. So let me tell you what inspired the Deadly Apocalypse: I wanted to come up with something different. The Haunting Banners were a way to get people to spread out a bit, work together, and go looking for their adventure. We had a very small time frame in which to borrow the Art team since they're neck deep in Going Rogue so I had to get creative! I think they did a beautiful job on the Banners and FX and I am well pleased. The UI was put in to help you figure out what to do since this event is different from an invasion. This one involves simultaneous objectives and communication even though people aren't necessarily on the same team. During testing we had some good feedback, which was essentially one of a few things: a. Totally figured out what to do and it was awesome! b. Totally couldn't figure out what to do and it sucked! c. I really wish I knew the backstory on this. That, and, "You really need to show me how to find the GM. I can't find him." So we added information to the UI so that players could read the backstory and/or find out some strategy or how the event works and how to get to the GM at the end. I didn't want to give everything away (because what's the fun in that?), but I didn't want to overly frustrate players either with new sets of rules that no one but myself knows. (What do you mean, you can't read my mind?) and By the way, the ParagonWiki info is great, even though it says it's a work in progress. So, in reading the above posts about the event, I'll keep plugging through feedback and see what you liked and what you didn't and file it away for future reference (if they let me do this again). Ooo...Deadly War Witch Apocalypse...nevermind. And I know that the Code team is scanning the forums for issues about stability and crashes so they're on top of that. That's it from this end. Have a fantastic Halloween and for those of you attending HeroCon, I will see you in a few days! War Witch |
1. I love the new Banner event
2. The spawn rate of the new event seems a bit low at times.
3. Talos last night got so lagged that basically the entire zone imploded upon itself causing everyone to mapserver and the zone to rollback a bit once people were able to log back in. We were GM hunting then the Zombie attack occurs which lasted a long time and lag began to grow exponentially, then after the Zombies were crushed a minute later comes the alert "Supernatural Activity detected in Talos" and then things got so bad that the implosion occurred.
Now granted the event only recently started and all the badgers are out in full force, but when a zone implodes causing everyone to mapserve and get rolled back after log in delays and thus lose any badges they may have gained before the zone failure then something needs to be done.
Here's an idea, and its going to be received with mixed reaction I'm certain, but if it keeps the above described implosion from occurring then that's fine.
All entrances to the zone, including warping in from an SG base, and in some zone cases the Ouroborus portals as well as Pocket D all shut down 5 minutes after the alert is announced. Think of it as Statesman or Recluse if you are on redside deciding that the risk of the mystic forces behind the event spreading to other zones is so great that they order the shutdown of all entrances to the zone that the event is occuring. Also the power of the forces behind the attack are so great that zones that Ouroborus are connected to can't be reached by traveling from Ouroborus, and even DJ Zero gets nervous and orders the doors from Pocket D to the zone under attack to be closed until the attack is over. Naturally shutting them down should take some time, thus players have 5 minutes to get to the zone or in some cases to evacuate the zone if they don't wish to be in the event. Now granted this may mean that some people will not be able to participate because they can't get to the zone, and it may mean that some zones that are under populated with players won't have much firepower to bring against the enemy, but which is the greater evil:
1. Some players not being able to make it to the event before all methods of getting into the zone are closed?
2. Some zones not having enough players to successfully fight the event?
3. The zone overloading and imploding thus causing everyone to Mapserver/disconnect and face a rollback to a previous state thus losing any badges they may have gained before the zone implosion?
For me it's number 3.
5 minutes should be enough time as the Banner event timer starts at 20 minutes, attacks begin at 16:00 on the timer, thus players can still get in up to 1 minute after the attacks start.
5 minutes should also be enough for things like Zombie attacks and Rikti Invasions.
So I'm not sure if anyone had already mentioned it, but I noticed a couple of previously patched issues (Shield Charge damage multiplier and Invincibility sound loop -- see http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=194230) appear to have been reverted.
Going off of the numbers I've seen with and without the Shield Charge fix, it does appear to me that this bit was backed out. I also heard, while standing near an Invulnerability Tanker, Invincibility looping its activation sound as more enemies got closer. I went ahead and /bugged them but I'm not sure if it's a known issue or not by now.
Additionally, during the first of the event tests, we noticed the Deadly Apocalypse event had kicked off in a hazard zone (The Hollows, specifically) and provided this in the feedback, as well as during the test itself. I think that's the only bug, other than the issues with powers, that I've noticed.
As far as the event itself, I've enjoyed it. However, it can be a bit disappointing when playing a character and being the only one on your team at one of the banners, not getting credit when the banner you've been attacking falls. My Illusion Control/Storm Summoning Controller is one such character, since the pets always go for the mobs and not the banner itself. With the way the pets react to the advancing mobs, there's no way I'd ever get the 10% damage for badge credit alone.
Aspect GM in Cap yesterday (EU Defiant Server Redside) fell through the map just north of the midnighters club, near the glowing rune.
Leaving him about 72ft away and invulnerable due to being out of sight.
We just had to watch the timer count down to zero.
Nuff Said...
Coolio Wolfus leader of Coolio�s Crusaders on Union.
Tekna Logik leader of Tekna�s Tormentors on Defiant.
Creator of: Coolio's Tech Beacon Replacements
AE arc 402506, 'The Rise and Demise or Otherwise of Tekna Logik...'.
Hey everyone
I'm not sure if anyone is interested, but the Deadly Apocalypse was my inspiration (with the help from Art, Code, Audio, and Powers) so kudos/blame falls on my shoulders. So let me tell you what inspired the Deadly Apocalypse:
I wanted to come up with something different. The Haunting Banners were a way to get people to spread out a bit, work together, and go looking for their adventure.
We had a very small time frame in which to borrow the Art team since they're neck deep in Going Rogue so I had to get creative! I think they did a beautiful job on the Banners and FX and I am well pleased.
The UI was put in to help you figure out what to do since this event is different from an invasion. This one involves simultaneous objectives and communication even though people aren't necessarily on the same team.
During testing we had some good feedback, which was essentially one of a few things:
a. Totally figured out what to do and it was awesome!
b. Totally couldn't figure out what to do and it sucked!
c. I really wish I knew the backstory on this.
That, and, "You really need to show me how to find the GM. I can't find him."
So we added information to the UI so that players could read the backstory and/or find out some strategy or how the event works and how to get to the GM at the end. I didn't want to give everything away (because what's the fun in that?), but I didn't want to overly frustrate players either with new sets of rules that no one but myself knows. (What do you mean, you can't read my mind?) and
By the way, the ParagonWiki info is great, even though it says it's a work in progress.
So, in reading the above posts about the event, I'll keep plugging through feedback and see what you liked and what you didn't and file it away for future reference (if they let me do this again). Ooo...Deadly War Witch Apocalypse...nevermind.
And I know that the Code team is scanning the forums for issues about stability and crashes so they're on top of that.
That's it from this end.
Have a fantastic Halloween and for those of you attending HeroCon, I will see you in a few days!
War Witch
"The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud, but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly."
(Jim Rohn)