6-Year Anniversary Address from War Witch

So many things in the last two years. I know many are saying such a short time in but in two years I have really taken the game apart with just one phrase. " what am I going to do today?" radio missions, flashback arcs, street sweeping, snatch and grab badge dash,or just spend a 4 hours in icon making costumes and not buying them just saving them for use in some toon that I may make when ever. So many mini games to cook up and that is with out using AE.

One moment i will always remember fondly actually attempting to take jack on solo and getting noticeable damage on him with my stone tank knew I couldn't kill him but seeing actual damage on a solo attempt showed me that tanks may have something.

the first gm i saw and the tell i sent Steele about it " they put the giant octopus from 20,000 leagues under the sea in the game." and then an hour later running in to eochai in croatoa and screaming at my sister " Samhain is chasing me"

Favorite memories surrounding my favorite MMO.

1. Finding this "Mids Hero Planner" doohickey and getting quite addicted to making character builds. This is one of the main pillars holding the game so high for me. The fact that it is player made and player maintained just goes to show how wonderful our community is. I don't think I can ever thank them enough, and have even donated money in the past.
2. Seeing a person using Hover for the first time. For get Flight, this robotic character that my friend and I were seeing hovering around put our jaws on the ground. It was awesome. That person can go anywhere they want! They're flying in an MMO!
3. The threads in these very forums. The silly ones, the serious ones, the ones asking about character build help, the one demanding the flag atop City Hall in Atlas Park be lit at night time, the Unique Dragons, the Sister Flames, the Kill Skulls, the Pretty and Strong. Even without stepping a foot into the game world there is just so much good fun to be had, and that is simply amazing.
4. The Scrapper subforum. We are the brotherhood and sisterhood of destruction. What an incredibly involved, well thought out, and talented bunch of people they are. Over the past six years the Scrapper subforum has been my home, as it were, in this entire community. I've posted advice, asked for it, got well wishes on a birthday thread I posted in it last year, shared my builds, congratulated other Scrappers that have soloed one or more AVs at the same time, and so forth and so on.
5. The interaction I've had with developers and community managers over the years. They're all excited and dedicated to their product and it shows! However, the most exciting for me as far as the team at Paragon Studios has yet to come. Their premier expansion is soon to be released and I am already full of thoughts on where else they can expand The City of games!

Hmm, let's see... favorite memory...

I think that must be my first time doing Seer Marino's arc. Wretch immediately became my favorite character in the game. Sure, he's a villain... but he's such a nice guy! Ditto Becky, though I ran into her much later.

No. Scratch that. It was my first task force... strike force, rather. I was a level 45 or so Dominator, on Triumph, and had honest-to-god never done one before. It was a Barracuda. The cutscene was amazing, like nothing I'd ever seen in this game. Took about four hours, lots and lots of teamwipes due to the tunnels being utterly clogged with 5th Column, but we did it, and boy did it feel like an accomplishment. This character later went on to become my first 50.

Hm...

Well, as for memorable events...

First 50 - Ice/Rad Corruptor, who dinged 50 on the last mission of the LRSF.

Gleeful destruction - Getting Sentry and Chief, while solo, in the first 15 seconds of my Ice/Kin Corruptor's first Rikti Invasion - prior to them being unaffected while teleporting in. The chain? Aim + Fulcrum Shift + Ice Storm + Blizzard + (this is important) cackle maniacally.

The ski slopes. Many times during the winter event, I find them more entertaining than anything else in the game.

Roof- and ledge-hopping. It doesn't matter what zone, or whom. I like to see how far I can go without touching the ground, preferably with just Hurdle and Combat Jumping. And they say platform games are dead...

But most of all, the many friends and acquaintances met here - the game has moments, but without sharing them with someone I'd rather be reading.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle it has gone from unconscionable to downright appalling that we have no way of measuring our characters' wetness.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brillig It's hard to beat the entertainment value of Whackjob Wednesdays.

I've only been here 18 months but I have lots of great memories. Most of which I can't remember right now.

I still love hearing the Atlas plaza music, it reminds me of the first time I entered Atlas during the trial.

Speaking of which, I started playing on Oct 18, the first day of the halloween event. It took me a week to realize that the perpetual night wasn't normal. It was two weeks and the end of the trial before I saw daylight in game.

As everyone else has said, the best thing is the community here. I didn't even team for the first few months, but since then I've learned to love the social aspect of this game, and the people here are great.

I love taking off with flight on my main scrapper. Move forward a few steps hit jump and then fly off, it's just so natural and super.

I also like doing parkour with hurdle, combat jump and now ninja run. I love going from building to building.

And lots more I can't think of right now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zekiran_Immortal And then as I'm going to snipe and pull another, I hit AUTORUN and run directly into the main mob! Everyone appears to misunderstand my lack of typing (and presumably the wwwwwwaaaaaaanooo no no no aaaaieee! after) and jumps in. We faceplant, but still, it was the most hilarious oops moment - we did eventually get our AV, after a bit of collecting ourselves.

I've done that, that's why these days I have autorun bound to shift+e. It's pretty much impossible to accidentally hit it now.

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Originally Posted by Dark_Respite Oh, wow... favorite memory? It sounds stupid, but I'd say the support of the players I've gotten in the almost-four-years I've been making fan videos for this game (and even from some of the rednames, past and present). The CoH community has some of the most awesomest people. Michelle aka Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

You deserve it, your videos are awesome.

6 years...wow. I've been around for only 4 and a Half, so I missed some of the original goodies. But here is what I remember,

- Managing to pull together a team to fight Lusca, and then that team expanding into about 50+ members on virtue. (Don't ask me why a bunch of veteran 50's at the time would listen to a 23 Stone tanker...=P)

- Test Server some time ago (Don't remember when...) when "Lord Recluse" popped into the D and spawned about 100 Giant Snow Beasts in the Chalet.

- My run with the Shadow Force (Old vg that's gone now, was on Victory) during the first year of CoV.

Good job Dev's! Let's see 6 more years!

Let the good times keep rollin'.

Let's see... Memorable Things.

The Character Creator. This is what sold the game to me, this is what made me love the game, this is what keeps me here. This and this alone is the cornerstone of my gaming experience in City of Heroes. From the very first moment I stepped into the creator, even as limited as it was back in 2004 as compared to now, I knew I'd found a game for life.

Sensei Lee, a curt powergamer who died a lot and only really seemed to care about doing Task Forces and levelling up fast, but he did end up introducing me to the very first good friend I met in City of Heroes, a kind Gravity/Bubble Controller who saved my *** from a bunch of irate Clockwork. He's still a good friend of mine, though he plays City of Heroes for about five hours out of each year

First time I met the great bunch of people who became my friends later on. I invited an Empath to a Manti TF, who offered to put a team together for me and eventually introduced me to a few more of his friends, whom I got along with. Most of them have moved on, but we still keep in touch.

Adversity, who asked me if I could pad their TF for them which I ended up staying for an apparently impressing them enough to be invited into their SG and forums. I keep wondering if they're not regretting their decision now

First time in Kings Row, where stepping out of the train station caused me to keep looking over my shoulder. People rag on the zone now, but it was such a whiplash mood shift from the gleaming and beautiful Galaxy City that it actually scared me. First time in Boomtown, when my initial reaction was "This is not a good place. I do NOT want to be here!" People are cynical about this today, but the zone's theme really did a lot to enhance the mood.

The first orphaned Forcefield Generator I found in Kings Row, about 20 levels higher than me, broadcasting a huge scary field. As soon as I saw its level, I ran away like a little schoolgirl, even though I had no idea what that was. The first time I saw an orphaned Tree of Life, more than 20 levels above me. My team and I approached it like cautious cats and proceeded to try and kill it, to no effect (couldn't hit or damage it). A passer-by level 20 Scrapper helped us out, taking out the tree which was +4 to even him, telling us heroes of our level shouldn't be facing off against the Devouring Earth. "Huh? The what?"

First and last time I had my *** handed to me by an orphaned Dark Servant about 30 levels higher than me. Back when pets still TRIED to zone with you, some Dark Defender had lost control of his fluffy and left, and it was murdering lowbies in Kings Row to shame the Elder Snakes. It scared the living daylight out of me, too, since it didn't insta-kill me. Dark Servants don't have a lot of damage, even at +30.

First time I saw another hero fly and another hero jump. That was the coolest thing ever. First time I learned to super jump. That was even cooler! First time I realised that my flying Blaster hadn't landed on the ground in over half an hour. That opened a whole new world for me.

First time in the old Faultline. Climbing the crane over the pit by the dam and looking down a drop HALF A MILE HIGH is an experience no other place in the game can replicate. Pity they flooded the place. We need more "big stuff" here. Speaking of which, first time in the Shard. That place is just breathtaking even five years down the line.

My first 50. It was a psychological experience, suddenly realising that there is no reason to rush through content for levels any more, and that it was more important to enjoy my time in-game. I'd seen the end, now it was time to do it all over again at my pace. And it's only been getting better.

My giant green swordswoman, done in a homage to a Lineage 2 character I had, a female Orc swordswoman. Thank the Lord for the Legacy Broadsword being so BIG on female models, and thank my epiphany for finding an outfit that looked even bigger than just the frame of the model. Also thank heavens for the Super Science Booster Pack for allowing me to change her height from above average to MAX GIGANTIC. It really fit the concept a lot better.

That's about all I can think of.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Single best moment?

Very tough call - maybe winning the award for a bit of writing, or having a huge compliment from WW herself on one of my other written pieces.

Dinging 50 on Scarlet - there were like some 24 people in the mission with us - that was a rush - it was an open air map and people kept joining the team, coming in mish and then quitting to form another team. That was fun.

The party in Shock Tactics' base when I DJ'd for Evo Radio back in the day.

And...

And...

And...

Seriously, so many good memories - but after 4 years I still get that rush that I did on day one, when I first ran through the streets of Paragon and I defeated some Hellions and I thought to myself "I'm living a comic book. This is how it is to be a superhero!" - that feeling is still with me and I love it

"You got to dig it to dig it, you dig?"
Thelonious Monk

Mine would have to be my in game wedding to my lovely wife.

Was a week before our real life one, and Founders was packed.
Pohsyb and CuppaJo attended 'in person' I do wonder occasionally if another dev or two were there incognito.

Sense of community, I played Anarchy Online for about 6 months before I started CoH in June of '05 and it (A.O.) was a vast wasteland. I could go days without teaming, in the cities there would be lots of people, but no one teamed. First night in CoH, on a 10 day free trial, I was on a team w/i minutes.

They must have known that I was new, they told me where to stand, what to click, etc. I was hooked and got the retail copy and installed it on the last day, and been playing ever since. For me, CoH is my social life...ALL of it. No, I'm not living in my parents basement, I'm married w/ children, but this is my recreation for a few hours a day and as my wife says, "You could be out in the bars, at least this way, I know you're in the next room..."

There are many, many epic moments but 2 that stand out in my mind:

First time soloing and not knowing that you had to click ON the elevator to get to the next floor of the mission...

Finishing the "Cavern of Transcendance" trial with literally seconds to spare. Everyone stood around afterwards, stunned that we had made it, and more than a few of us compared it to an episode (or the movie) of "Mission Impossible"...

Here's to 6 more years of memories and teamage...

I had never played an MMO before when I picked up a free trial of CoV. When it expired, I expressed some mild disappointment to my wife about not being able to play anymore. Shortly thereafter, she made up an excuse about needing to go the store. I was shocked when she came home with the CoV box and said, "eh...what's $15 a month for a bit of fun."

My favorite memories:

- The first time I entered The Hollows and thinking, "I have no business playing this game".
- My first TF. It was Ernesto Hess and admittedly, I had no idea I had actually joined a TF. It wasn't until a few months ago when I ran a Hess TF that I realized what I had joined so many years ago. BTW - yes, I'm an idiot.
- Very early in my CoH experience, I was invited to a PuG on Triumph by a character with "Tea" in her name (I later came to find out that all of her toons had "Tea" in the name). She friended me and invited me to my first SG. She was the most helpful person I've ever met in game and was an absolute pleasure to team with. I probably haven't seen her in a couple of years, but if you're still out there - thanks for everything. I'm a better player because of your help.
- Getting my best friend to join the game and simultaneously hitting 50 (his first, my second).
- Screaming every obscene word known to man at the top of my lungs as I tried to manuever through the Shadow Shard for the first time without flight or any sort of jet pack. I'd like to think a few new obscenities exist because of that evening.

Considering I've played for 5 years and have still never done a STF, ITF, Hami, or Mothership Raid, I'm pretty sure there are a few more great memories still to come.

Thanks for a great game and especially, a great community.

Wow, so many memories to choose from!

* The massive parties that heralded the opening of Icon, and teleportation services being organized to and from it for the low level characters.

* TAXIBOTS

* The first time that I beat down a 5th Columnist in Independence Port and he 'Wolfed Out' on me - I was like 'WHOA!!!'

* The first 50, having members from my SG there beside me.

* Numerous friendships both in and out of character, and great roleplaying times. My friends in the Guardian Force, Maggie's Rock, and the Dauntless Reverie of the Virtue Server, Ascendant, and others who i'll probably leave out if I even attempt to name them all here. Much <3 to you all.

* The Community: In all the years and all the MMOs and other games that I have played, the CoX community has proved over and over again to be dedicated, friendly, and fun.

* The Devs: To you all I raise a toast, the dev team of CoX has hung tough through some rough times and have done their best to keep finding ways to make this game exciting. As a result, IMO, CoX has stood the test of time and here we are six years later with new vistas to explore and a community that is as great as when the first day that my character Wulfen stepped into Galaxy City (yeah. I started there instead of Atlas cos my comp couldnt handle the Atlas Crowd.)

* This game has provided me the opportunity to play a lot of characters, and not once have I ever felt my efforts have gone unrewarded - from Wulfen to the nefarious and polite Mister Scratch.

I look forward to six more years fighting the good fight in the City of Heroes!

Favourite moments...

First time ever Hamidon raid. Before that I had only memories of being a low blaster on a trial account and seeing heroes flying towards the Hive and muttering about Hamidon...
Now that first Hamidon Raid I was in was Unions first Issue 9 Raid. Even though it took us 7 hours from start to finish and it was max debt I still have fond memories of it. I remember specially my most used power... Recall Friend. ;P

Another fond memory is getting all badges that a 39 month could hope to get... before Issue 17. (horray.. new badges I can collect)

How Ultra Mode made everything look more beautiful.

All the times when I have led new recruits or visitors around the New Heroes Union (sg) base, all the times I've heard references of needing breadcrumbs or a map. Yes, the group have unofficially dubbed the base... "The Maze". One thing that even made it sweeter was that there actually was a person that got lost in there (Ok I was quick to get her out... but hey )

During the Rikti invasion, rushing towards Talos Hill and do battle with Rikti (and later Zombies).

Having a GM visit the base and being temporary member of said sg (no... we did not team in battle). Aswell as almost having a stageshow in a opera/concert house room with the GM taking the shape of some other... things.

Meeting War Witch on test on my old outfit and she loved it
And several other moments.

Way back in CoH beta, how excited I was to get Hover...took me 5 min to get to a top of building but wow did I feel special

I've had a lot of great experiences, and met a lot of great people in CoH. There is only one thing though that stands out in my mind more than anything else in the 5+ years I have been here.

Hearing that Kiyotee had been added to the game, and then seeing him in the tutorial for the first time. Actually, even to this day, seeing him at the end of the tutorial is pretty emotional. That one thing is what made me a loyal fan of this game, and keeps me here, even when I don't play as often. The devs have my eternal thanks.

My favourite memory was about 2 months after I started playing CoV. Myself and a few of the gaming clan I was in got into not long after launch, and we built up a small VG (about 10 members iirc).

We did the Silver Mantis SF as soon as we got the base mission computer, and it took forever to the point there were only 3 of us left right at the end mission. We died so many times, but in the end down to shear bloodymindedness, an awesome tank and shed loads of insps, we prevailed and defeated Duray, got a big shiny badge and all importantly an SO!!

Best memories: Making actual RL friends from the game, getting my account back after it was accidentally blocked, and Dinging my first 50... then my second... well, all of them actually.

Too many to count.
Although getting Posi's gall last night was quite fun You know I ain't gonna quit on the fact the old content is old! I'll have a job at PS one day, then you'll never get away from me!

Oh, and first time meeting Devs. Last year I think that was, back when WW was in her old job. Even then she was really cool. Viva le EU! ^^

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.

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Originally Posted by Captain_Photon NOTE: The Incarnate System is basically farming for IOs on a larger scale, and with more obtrusive lore.

Having the opportunity to be involved in community led activities.

• The Praesidium coalition taking up the mantle of running the Herolympics (later Superolympics) from the Defenders of the Night and Kids in the Hall... of Justice SGs on Protector. Our first run being dedicated to a friend, Storm Angyl, who'd lost her battle to illness.
• Being involved in W00t Radio's first steps with my former SG, Phantoms of War on Protector, donating millions in influence for prizes and seeing one of our own join the staff.
• Participating in P.E.R.C. and the Superolympics Committee.
• Having the chance to participate, then lead, the New Player Welcoming Night on Protector, then seeing other servers do the same.
• Seeing the NPWN morph into the New Player Council / New Player Channel and become a cross-server group of altruistic volunteers called the Mentor Project.

There are so many... but one I've always remembered from the very early days of the game, one day I was on my first blaster (La Flamme - fire blaster!) and only the second character I'd ever made. She was level 22, minding her own business flying from Talos to Founder's Falls when I got a tell:

"Wow you're lvl 22! I hope I get to be that high a level some day!"

That was soooo cute.

I have a lot of memories from this game, from my wife hitting level 50 (she actually got there before I did, as she was a full-time student at the time), fighting The Honoree, the first time I saw a Kronos Titan (Look at the size of that thing...), skiing at the chalet... I could go on and on.

Certainly, however, the memory that sticks out the most was the first Hero Con. Not only just being there and seeing so many fellow players (like Killbot5000, Samurai_Ko, TheFrog, Texas_Justice, Nuclear Toast, and many others), but also being lucky enough to have a good team for the first ever Live Mission. With a team number like 13, we didn't think we'd win, but we did I've still got that Killer Necklace hanging up on the wall, along with some nice peripherals that were won at other contests. Hanging out with Sexy Jay and Ex Libris, like the previous year with the M&G at Milpitas, was just a bonus

The supergroup sort of declined after that, but I17 gives me hopes that this old piano of a game still has some play in it. And on that note, queue the music and shake a tail feather.

Here's to you CoH