More stupid Drive-By Buffers!

no, it is YOUR responsibility to take action to ensure your privacy if you want to play Solo

it is not Our responsibility to walk on eggshells every time we see someone fighting street mobs


the only relevant point is that if you are on the streets then you are NOT soloing, by definition, in an MMO

Like some others in this thread, the drive by buffing helped make me love heroes when I started. Getting IR'd as a lowbie and seeing what super jump was like was wild ^-^

Just thought I'd pop in; I myself, have no issue with drive-by buffing. Hell, I do it myself. I can understand why some people would dislike it for some of the reasons in this thread, and if asked not to do so politely (as some in this thread have said they do) then I would humbly apologise and be on my merry way.

However, I do think that this "You should ask everyone. All the time." mentality is a bit much to ask. Considering (at a guess) at least 90% of players actually appreciate and enjoy the buffs, I'm not going to stop and ask each person if they'd like a SB/AM/IR or any shields I have to offer. I'm just gonna buff 'em. But as I said, I am more than happy if asked politely not to. So I'm genuinely grateful of those that do and appreciate their thoughts.

Regardless, I do agree that the ability to remove any external buffs manually would really be a great QoL feature, and should really be looked into.

Hi everybody,

well I was going to ask where all this drive by buffing happens because after three years mostly soloing on blueside Virtue I have trouble remembering when it last happened to me but....!

just logged on my latest lowbie under Atlas and in an instance got buffed lol.

Stupid place to do it and pointless in an operational sense for me but hey ho such is life!

However this particular buff was the Force Field bubble with a duration of 4 minutes, again no biggie, except it was also the product of the castors artistic attempts to recolour his/hers powers.

The bubble was the most lurid lime/yellow you can imagine and very very intrusive whether zoomed in our out. I see no reason why I should alter my graphic settings for 4 minutes so just stood there till the buff wore off. This did interfere with my play time.

I run a Cold/Ice def and have colour changed my powers (shields) to make them as pale as I can to try and minimise the graphic effects of those buffs. This was overkill the other way. If I had been on a team with that player and in a cave with no visual escape I would have just had to quit the team.

So it is not just the buff power effects that affect us but also the player changes to them.

Was going to have a word with the player but immediately they buffed me they then logged out!

Cheers

I have been guilty of SBing someone on a team after being asked not to.

I didn't do it on purpose to bug them. I just had a habit of working my way down the list every so often and buffing everyone to avoid the "SB PLZ" spam. The person that didn't want it was in the middle of the list and my fingers were faster than my brain.

I don't think that makes me a griefer or an idiot, but I suppose SnowGlobe and others would disagree.

Oh I'd like to add something I neglected in my original post here. If you take a look at my signature you'll notice Taxibot Sara2.0 listed as one of my 50 levels. I have no idea how long the OP or anyone else opposed to help .. and I cant believe someone considers me buffing and healing them while they solo a huge mob as grieving... have been in game. But the Taxibots made a huge difference back in the days before radio missions and Raptor Packs existed. On every server we had a garage dedicated to "Helping Heroes get there faster" Our members took time away from leveling themselves to stand at the Atlas Park gate in the Hollows and teleport individuals and even whole teams to and from missions. Along with the Paragon Search and Rescue Team we healed and buffed countless players trying to do Dave Wincott's missions and take down 10 Outcast or 10 Trolls back when those mobs were huge. It was also before Patrol XP so if you were running missions there above level 10 debt meant something. And before a field hospital was in place so IF you died trying to get to that mission half way across the zone you rezzed in Atlas Park or Skyway depending on while gate you entered through. I don't recall a single player saying "Hey I don't need you to Rez me or teleport me I am soloing and you are interferring with my enjoyment of the game." Taxibots never openly asked for a thing in return for this and if anyone asked us how much do I owe you the answer was always "Not a thing.. have fun!". Now we did accept tips if someone wanted to give it but that was never the reason behind the Super Group .. I still I recall one day in the Hollows when a 50 level walked up an gave me a million in INF (this was back before Wentworths and the IO system so that was a huge amount) and I hadn't done a thing for him. I thanked him and asked why he was tipping me... His replay was "You guys saved my butt countless times when I was here as a 5 or 6 level.. just my way of saying thanks now since I couldn't afford to then."

To this day on ANY character I play, and I am still with the Taxibots, if I see someone with a sliver of life left desperately trying to battle a mob that I know will eventually send them to hospital I am headed in and will buff, debuff (as long as it doesn't steal kills), and heal to help that player survive and continue of their way. If you think that makes me a griever then go ahead and report me to NC Soft. I'm sure someone in charge of those reports will get a good laugh out of it before they delete the complaint with no action taken. Hey I met a 50 level that used to hang out at the tailor shop in IP to protect players that showed up there to make a new costume because there was almost always a mob of Family standing right there on the corner waiting to ambush player that got too close and aggroed. He was a Tanker and with 3 or 4 quick hits no more mob. Now was that grieving? Or helping some poor 20 level witha fresh outfit earned from Halloween Salvage get inside without potentially ending up in the hospital and in debt instead of creating a new outfit? Well in MY opinion it was helping... If you are on the way to the tailor you are not on an active mission, not street hunting, or doing anything else to earn XP and INF.. you are heading in to make yourself look better. If a 20 level Defender doesn't have to try to battle a Family Underboss to do that I'd call it HELP.

You don't want help then do like so many others and just head to the AE building at level 2 and stay in Atlas Park till level 50 running solo missions. Or after level 7 head to Perez Park and solo till your hearts content. Hit Boomtown above level 12 and then in the 20s I promise you will be pretty much alone most of the time in Terra Volta or Dark Astoria. Same thing in Eden and Crey's Folly when you hit the the 30s and you can probably even spend a long time seeing no one battling street mobs above 35 in the RWZ and Cimerora. Most of those zones are always empty unless someone is sent there by a contact or a Task Force/Trial. You can live or die on your own abilities with out the annoyance of people that may actually, out of the goodness of their hearts, want to try and help you.

As I said in my other post here hitting me with SB or any buff at Wentworth or a Trainer is pretty silly but dismissing or even accusing someone willing to try and help you of grieving is even sillier. I'm sorry if my wanting to help interferred with the fun of a trip to the hospital and maybe getting to work of debt because your patrol XP ran out has ruined the game for you. Get a BIG sign and paste it on the back of your cape saying "HEY LEAVE ME ALONE I CAN DO THIS MYSELF" and I will continue on my way while you expire. Otherwise if I see you in trouble I am coming to the rescue... Hmmm Gee that sounds like something a HERO would do doesn't it?

Okay I have got to stop reading through these posts or I will never stop responding. Snow Globe you want the Devs to take the time to create an ANTI-BUFF button you can use because your PC is at the minimum and certain buffs cause YOU to crash? With all the other issues they are working to maintain and fix how many people ut of close to over over 100,000 subscribers does this actually help?

Second what servers are some of you people playing on? And just exactly how often is this horrible Drive-by Buffing occurring? I play on Virtue and most people know it has the second highest number of players in game. Do I occasionally get buffed at WW or the trainer? YES But I am talking once is a while not 10 times in 2 or 3 hours of game play. Are you REALLY having this happen so frequently that it has ruined the entire game experience for you? or just looking for something, no so, new to complain about.

Third ... this is a game designed to be played on teams. Okay I have plenty of characters that can and do solo but I love teaming. It's more fun to have team mates to interact with, leveling is faster, and attacking a huge mob with 6-7 players is a lot more exciting than attacking a trio of minions or a minion and a lieutenant. So how is hitting you with the same buff a controller or defender would give you if you were on an instance mission on a team depriving you of learning the game if you happen to be soloing on the street? Buffs are a huge part of the game including SB.. ask any STone Tank how they feel about having a Kin on their team. If he or she is the team leader chances are they are searching for one.

Fourth .. Forbin thank you so much for adding fuel to the recent flame fire over Empathy. WHYwould you even bother to take the power set and not take all the good things it offers? Unlike so many other buffing sets one huge advantage of Empathy is there are at least 3 power that actually affect and help you solo or on a team. SO unless you don't feel the need to be able to recover End and heal faster alonng with being able to heal yourself at least takie all three of your auras. Oh and please don't team with that character EVER. When I join a team with an EMP/ Defender or a /EMP Controller, especially if I am specifically asked to join for my buffs, I use CM and Fort s fast as they recharge and have them slotted to do so quickly. Builds like the one you are describing are the reason EMP is considered the "HEALOR" powerset and so many bad ones exist these days it gives those of us that know how to use our powers a bad name. At high levels unless you are facing a heavy hitting AV healing is not what we do best. Hitting the team with CM so they don't spent half their time held, immobbed, asleep, or disoriented an FORT to buff their defense and ability to hit are. I also play Thermals and while the buffs are great not one of them affects me so solo my whole power set is pretty much useless aside from heal and on a team I am the only one I can't buff so if I am held or asleep or stunned no one is getting buffed. I don't know WHAT planner you are looking at but delete it and use what the powerset gives you to HELP your team.

Again what server are you people on? I don't know a single player that has ever created a BUFFING or any other type of character for the sole purpose of grieving other players. In 4 years I don't remember arriving once in Atlas Park at level 2 and hearing so 50 level Troller in broadcast shouting "Hey Noob watch out I have buffs and I'm coming to get you!" Recall Freind? Yeah I have seen a few that think its real cute to TP players to the top of some tall building and watch them plummet but BUFFS? Aside from the occasional SB in a cave where I gently tapped forward and found myself 100 yard from where I was and in the center of a huge mob becasue a BAD Kin had the attitude that if a little SB is a good thing a LOT must be better.. I can't think of a single time a BUFF got me killed. "I was gettng ready to snap a picture of myself and someone with a horrible color combo on their aura buffed me?" Well if your standing around taking pictures you aren't running a timed mission for sure so what is the huge deal with waiting 3-4 minutes before saying cheese?

As I said in my other post I healed and buffed in the Hollows for long time before a field hospital and raptor packs existed and kept a lot of heroes alive and helped them level. Not one ever complained I was depriving them of learning the game when I kept them from having to run, since they had no travel power or raptor pack, all the way back from the Hospital in Atlas to continue their mission. No one ever said I was depriving them of learning to navigate throw huge mobs that may have been 5, 6 or more levels higher than them to get to a mission by using Recall friend. This whole thread seems to revolve around a few instnaces people have had where someone Buffed them in a spot where it seemed silly. In Pocket D? okay DUH unles it's during the winter event or Valentine'd Day and there are missions running there pretty stupid. Then again if all you are doing is standing around RPing.. what difference does it make?

I have seen, and reported, players repeatedly using derogatory racial slurs in broadcast.. that is grieving. I've had players wait until I had a villain down to almost no health and run in and take the final shot that defeated him.. That is Kill stealing and is definately grieving. I have also had players show up out of no where while I was street hunting in Atlas and heal/buff me while I took on a +2 or +3 mob I accidentally attacked and keep me alive.. That's not Grieving That's being a nice guy.

Memphis Bill as usual on any thread I have found your posts on over the years I agree with your commom sense and game knowledge 100%.

Honestly even if someone was in an SG called "don't buff me" I probably wouldn't even notice. I have no issues not re-buffing someone if they ask me not to, but I think I've only ever had one person complain about a drive-by buff in the 39 months I've been playing.

If you ask nicely not to buff you that's one thing, but this whole "you should never buff anyone because it interferes with my playstyle" thing seems more like a one-man crusade to have everyone play your way. You can't expect everyone who comes by to not buff you, and yelling at them for it is just pointless instigation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PRAF68_EU Dispari has more than enough credability, and certainly doesn't need to borrow any from you.

My god. People get more and more ridiculous each day. I personally love it when someone cares enough to buff me when I am fighting mobs. So a big thanks to all my feature drive-by buffers, I lufs ya!

I find it interesting that you can boil down the whole argument to the basic concept of this: "You are wanting to force your preferred play style on me and that makes my game less enjoyable".

Funny thing, it applies to both sides of the discussion.

There are times I find the buffs appreciated and times I don't and buffs in WW pretty much a useless kind of thing. At times the drive by buffs can feel like someone is trying to "kill steal" even though they don't.

There are certainly times when I'd prefer be able to turn off external/non team buffs after I've leveled as I'm trying to sort out if the enhancements I've chosen help, or if I need to redo things slightly. Buffs slow down/hinder that process. Same for trying to see how sturdy the current build is after IOing by doing simple street sweeping instead of going into instanced missions. A small QoL toggle for "Team only buffs" wouldn't hurt my feelings. (Mind you with as many alts as I've got I'm likely to forget to turn it back off during Rikti/Zombie/Hami raids and will bite me in the ****... )

Look, the only reason I started this thread is as follows. I was playing a Level 4 character in Galaxy City, walking a few blocks to a mission that was in a Green-Colored Area on the map, when the character was hit with Speed Boost while I was still moving, and I not only overran the Mission Door, I accidentally ended up in the middle of 3 Red Name Hellions! INSTANT DEATH! Thats why I hate Drive-By Buffing!

Actually I think this boils down better to:

"OMG, why are there other people playing this game with me!"

The whole thing is full of QQ.

If you don't like buffs, suck it up people aren't mind readers and its not inherently wrong to help other people. Go street sweeping in empty zones instead of say, in Atlas or Steel. If you're REALLY concerned try joining one of the lesser populated servers and play during a lull period.

The world isn't going to end because someone ruined a couple minutes of your "fun". If you can't get past that you have some serious anger/emotional issues and probably shouldn't be playing a game to begin with.

I mean it would be like me throwing a hissy fit because a guy opened a door for me. Sure I can open the door myself, I may have even felt empowered by doing it on my own, but the world isn't going to end because it happened. I'll politely thank him, let him know it wasn't necessary I can do it myself and move on.

The crazy person would throw a hissy fit to the guy's face about how he's ruining her life and treating her like she can't do anything for herself. Quite a few people in this thread are throwing hissy fits and being crazy over something that really just doesn't matter.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AnimeWarrior252 Look, the only reason I started this thread is as follows. I was playing a Level 4 character in Galaxy City, walking a few blocks to a mission that was in a Green-Colored Area on the map, when the character was hit with Speed Boost while I was still moving, and I not only overran the Mission Door, I accidentally ended up in the middle of 3 Red Name Hellions! INSTANT DEATH! Thats why I hate Drive-By Buffing!

And the point? You don't even get debt at level 4, worst case scenario you had to hike again to the mission door. Oh the humanity.

This thread has lasted longer than any buffs applied by Drive By Buffing would. Most buffs are 1-3 mins long at max.

Of all the things in life one has to suffer through, a random buff within a game world is at the very bottom of the list of intolerable actions.