Couple of questions if I may please?


Adeon Hawkwood

 

Posted

Hi guys, brand new player playing since yesterday. Just got a couple of quick questions that I thought someone may be able to help me with if that's ok?

Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?

Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)

Mastermind: From what I have read I only get three pets at different level tiers, (got two at the moment) and was wondering why i see videos of people with like ten or more pets? Is this a third blonde experience I am having or am I yet to discover what goes on here regarding pets? (MM Necro in case anyone is wondering)

Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?

Lastly: What a great game! Why didn't I pick this up ages ago? Blonde moment again perhaps hehe? Just hoping some of you folks may be able to help here as I have to admit that this is one damn fine game and I really want to be as competent as I can and enjoy teaming up with some of you at some point. Any help appreciated guys and a big ol' thanks in advance to anyone who can help me in my quest to become "not so blonde'.
Oh and no offense to anyone who is blonde, I just have a sick sense of humor.


 

Posted

Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?

Sometimes missions can be like that - click the expanded description if that doesnt help then type /hc "message". Your message will be displayed in the help channel for whatever server you're on. Most servers have a global channel. See if you can join that.


Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)

Sounds like you're buying Level 5s not 5 of something.


Mastermind: From what I have read I only get three pets at different level tiers, (got two at the moment) and was wondering why i see videos of people with like ten or more pets? Is this a third blonde experience I am having or am I yet to discover what goes on here regarding pets? (MM Necro in case anyone is wondering)

You get more pets in your primary and secondary depending upon the set as you level up.


Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?

It's designed that way


Lastly: What a great game! Why didn't I pick this up ages ago? Blonde moment again perhaps hehe? Just hoping some of you folks may be able to help here as I have to admit that this is one damn fine game and I really want to be as competent as I can and enjoy teaming up with some of you at some point. Any help appreciated guys and a big ol' thanks in advance to anyone who can help me in my quest to become "not so blonde'.

1. Read over the player guides and also read over the Mastermind guides. This should give a good understanding of the game as well as different perspectives and playstyles.


@Deadboy

 

Posted

Hi Evil,
Regarding your Mastermind Question... You can have up to 6 pets. There are three tiers of pets. The first one have 3 pets, the second one have 2 pets and the last one with one big pet in it.


 

Posted

Welcome to the game

A great way to get quick answers to questions that may seem "blonde" at the time is join a good SuperGroup.

An active and freindly sg will get you throught the first couple of weeks when you are finding your feet

I run an SG on defiant in the EU and contact me (if the right server/region) with a message to @Major Control

PS After 3 years of playing I get "blonde moments" in-game about every 10 minutes


 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)
Let me take a crack at this one. The number next to the enhancement is the Level of the enhancement. They are good from three levels below to three levels above that range. So a level 15 enhancement can first be slotted when the character is level 12 and will "go bad (turn red)" at level 19. The exception to this are invention origin enhancements which never go bad but their relative strength is based on it's level.

For further reading check out ParagonWiki. Remember ParagonWiki is your friend.

In particular you should read the following articles.
Enhancement which is a general overview with links to more specific information.
Enhancement Diversification which deals with the diminishing returns aspect.


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Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Hi guys, brand new player playing since yesterday. Just got a couple of quick questions that I thought someone may be able to help me with if that's ok?
Welcome to the game!

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?
I'm not quite sure what you mean with this. Initially I thought you had trouble with finding clickable or destroyable objectives within missions, but the "underground or up top" part doesn't fit with that. Can you be more specific please? Also, you'll never get precise directions for finding stuff in the mission text, since for most missions the maps are randomly chosen. The only specific instructions/directions you get are the objectives that are written on your nav tab in game, and the mission entrance marker on the map.

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)
AFAIK you cannot buy enhancements in stacks at all. Enhancements bought in stores come at levels that are multiples of 5, but that's about the only connection that number has with enhancements I can remember (besides a certain rule that comes into play in the endgame, but that's nothing you should be worried about now). Anyway, the number written on the enhancement is its level, not the quantity of enhancements on the stack, if that's what's confusing you.

The diminishing returns you read about come into play with SOs, or Single Origin enhancements that you can slot from level 22 onwards. Basically, if the total enhancement value of a single property of a power would exceed the amount gained by three SOs, the gains beyond that are sharply diminished so it really doesn't pay to slot more than 3 SOs of a certain type into a power. But before SOs, you will not experience this.

Btw, there are several types of enhancements, the most important of which are: Training, Dual Origin (DOs), Single Origin (SOs) and Inventions which are also called Invention Origin (IOs). Training enhancements are pretty much crap, but it's not bad to slot the ones you get and can use. DOs you can start slotting at level 12 and with them you'll actually notice a difference, while SOs you can start slotting at lvl 22 and they are the strongest of those three types, and pretty much the standard type of enhancement in the game.

Inventions... are completely optional, but if you decide to use them you will see a marked increase in your character's power. There are two types of IOs: common IOs and set IOs. Common IOs are just like Trainings/DOs/SOs except they do not expire (meaning that once you slot them you don't have to renew them every 5 levels), and at about level 30 start being stronger than SOs. Set IOs may increase more than one property of a power, and they also give you additional set bonuses if you have more than one IO from a certain set within the same power - the endgame mostly revolves around those at the moment.

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Mastermind: From what I have read I only get three pets at different level tiers, (got two at the moment) and was wondering why i see videos of people with like ten or more pets? Is this a third blonde experience I am having or am I yet to discover what goes on here regarding pets? (MM Necro in case anyone is wondering)
You get three pet powers (you can get a couple additional powers that grant you pets, but you cannot directly control those pets and they have a limited duration). The first pet power gives you up to three pets (depending on your level), the second one gives you up to two pets while the last one gives you one pet. The less pets in a power, the more powerful those pets are.

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?
Well the in-game explanation is that you're doing undercover (and even double-agent) work and to do that you need to maintain credibility with the side you're actually working against, so you can beat on your own guys because of that.

I don't know for the resistance guys, but the PPD cops topside won't attack you unless you attack them - that's the behavior of any mobs that have yellow brackets when you select them.

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Lastly: What a great game! Why didn't I pick this up ages ago? Blonde moment again perhaps hehe? Just hoping some of you folks may be able to help here as I have to admit that this is one damn fine game and I really want to be as competent as I can and enjoy teaming up with some of you at some point. Any help appreciated guys and a big ol' thanks in advance to anyone who can help me in my quest to become "not so blonde'.
Oh and no offense to anyone who is blonde, I just have a sick sense of humor.
Well, usually when a new player pokes his head in here he's swarmed with helpful folks, since we all want the new players to stay

EDIT: See, I started writing this when there were still no replies


 

Posted

Btw, on which server are you playing?


 

Posted

I can't believe no one mentioned the Mentor Project yet.
And the Help global channel is also good for asking questions, make sure you are looking at one of your tabs that monitors the Help channel when you're asking questions in it
Its already been mentioned, but I'll repeat, to send a message to the Help channel you type /hc <message>


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Posted

Welcome to the game, EvilDonald!


Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"I was just the one with the most unsolicited sombrero." - Traegus

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Hi guys, brand new player playing since yesterday. Just got a couple of quick questions that I thought someone may be able to help me with if that's ok?
Absolutely, and welcome to the game!

Quote:
Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?
I'll throw out another possibility in addition to what people have already said. If you accept a mission, but it's located in a different zone, you won't get a marker for it (like if you accept the mission in Atlas Park, but it's located in King's Row, for example). However, the mission's zone should be listed in your navigation bar (the compass-like thing at the top of your screen). Once you enter that zone, the marker should show up normally.

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Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?
In character explanation: The Resistance is a loosely organized group of people whose only common goal is taking down Cole - beyond that, they have different ideas about how things should be done, and more than a few of them are just in it for the explosions. So some of the Resistance folks don't like you for ideological reasons, or see you as a threat to their own ambitions, or just want to pick a fight.

Works for Loyalists, too - even though the PPD are officially on your side, they resent being seen as nothing more than "grunts" of Cole's Empire and really don't like being shown up by some upstart punk. So they might be tempted to drop you in some back alley and blame the Resistance.

Out of character reason: There really are no "alliances" in this game.


 

Posted

Welcome to the game and the forums!

Missions: The nav bar text for a mission gives a fair amount of detail about the mission, depending on where you are compared to the mission.

If you are in the mission map (whether an instanced mission map or the zone for an outdoor mission) the nav bar will give you a description of the mission objective(s), and the number you have yet to complete. Some objectives may have a map marker waypoint (open up your map, and at the bottom-right is an "Options" drop-down box - I tend to play with everything selected except Names). However, if you are not yet on the mission map itself, the text on the nav bar will give extremely limited information - typically the name of the mission and the zone in which you can find the mission door (if there is one).

Enhancements: You are mistaking the level of the enhancement for the number of them that you have. Every enhancement has a level that determines what level character can slot them - you can slot an enhancement up to 3 levels higher than your own level. Normal enhancements also cease to have any effect if they are more than three levels below your level.

Mastermind: There are indeed 3 tiers of pets, and you will get access to all of them, but you will also get different numbers of pets within each tier. You will eventually have 3 Tier 1 pets, 2 Tier 2 pets and 1 Tier 3 pet.

Alliances: The original game only had three types of targetable NPC entities: Friend (Blue target reticle), Foe (Red target reticle), and non-combatant (White target reticle). With the recent expansion (Going Rogue) a fourth type has been introduced: Neutral combatant, but these only occur in limited numbers outdoors (these are the ones with a yellow target reticle, and will turn into Foes if you attack them). Every other NPC you meet will be one of the original three types, so the fact that you are (for example) Resistance will make absolutely no difference to most NPC's you meet in missions.

I hope this helps, and I'll bet someone has beaten me to the response, because this was written at work and I've been a little busy...


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Posted

The videos of the MasterMinds with ten or so pets is easy enough to explain.

Along with the 6 pets you get from your set it is also possible to get temporary pets. Not sure how many there are but they vary from a giant robot, a buff granting witch, wolves, big shimmery monsters of plasma, and an almost efficient police officer.

I'm sure there are more but those popped into my brain.


Enjoy your day please.

 

Posted

There's also a couple other powers a Mastermind can have that gives you more pets, though they don't count as henchmen and are therefore not controllable like henchmen are.

Hell On Earth in Demon Summoning for example summons a few Living Hellfires while Gang War in Thugs summons ten weak thug posse members. The MM secondary Dark Miasma also lets you summon a Dark Servant as its last power.

So if you're a Thugs/Dark MM, you can have your six henchmen, a thug posse of ten weak thugs and a Dark Servant.


 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Hi guys, brand new player playing since yesterday. Just got a couple of quick questions that I thought someone may be able to help me with if that's ok?
This is a very friendly community and we like to encourage new players. We see them as soon-to-be friends. You will run into an occasional bonehead, however. Feel free to come to the forums with questions, and most of the answers will be helpful. If you have questions about a specific Archtype, you may want to put that question into the AT-specific forum. In addition to the wonderful Paragonwiki and Mentor project that have already been mentioned, there are a lot of good guides in the Player Guides section. Some of the older ones are out of date, however.

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Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?
Praetoria actually makes this kind of confusing because there are really six zones -- the surface and the underground for each area. As far as Accepting a Mission, you can do that anytime that you are not actually IN a mission. Read the text to see if it is underground or above ground, and to see which zone your mission may be located in.

Quote:
Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)
As others have said, the number on the enhancement is its LEVEL, and not a stack of single enhancements. Enhancements are one of the more complex subjects in this game, so it is OK to get confused. Most experienced players don't buy Training Origin enhancements (TOs) -- the value is so low that they may slot some that randomly drop, and sell the rest at the Vendor. I mostly slot Accuracy in low levels.

There is also a way to combine enhancements of the same type to extend their life. However, most of the time, it is better to sell than combine.

Dual Origin Enhancements (DOs) are twice the value of TOs, so they are often worth buying, starting at level 12. If you get short on Inf. (money), you can go to the market and "play the market" to get easy money -- You can buy salvage and some recipes for far less than they sell for at the vendor. It takes some running back and forth, but it is a no-risk way to make some Inf.

Hitting Level 22 means a huge improvement to your character because you can slot Single Origin enhancments (SOs). This is where the "no more than three" comes into effect. SOs are twice the value of DOs. You can only slot the type of SO that matches your origin (Magic, Mutant, Natural, Science or Tech), so you have to locate the vendor/store selling your type. Read up on some of the guides for recommendations on how to slot your powers -- or ask questions here.

Invention Origin enhancements (IOs) are pretty complex -- you can read up on them in Paragonwiki and the guides. It is a good idea to get to understand how the common types of enhancements work before messing with IOs. You can easily wait on IOs until level 32, and using them is entirely optional.

Quote:
Mastermind: From what I have read I only get three pets at different level tiers, (got two at the moment) and was wondering why i see videos of people with like ten or more pets? Is this a third blonde experience I am having or am I yet to discover what goes on here regarding pets? (MM Necro in case anyone is wondering)
As others have said, in addition to the up-to-six MM pets you get (that you can control with commands), there are a lot of other pets in the game. Some primaries have additional pets, and some secondaries have them. Plus, there are temporary powers that have pets, from giant glowing radioactive jello monsters to werewolves to zombies to small robots. My Thugs/Dark Miama has his 6 Thugs, plus a fluffy Dark Servant, and can call a "gang" of 10 other temporary pets with a power called "Gang War."

Quote:
Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?
Don't worry much about alliances. Pretty much avoid anybody on the street other than civilians and other players. Just imagine that you are like a lawyer -- everybody hates you.

Quote:
Lastly: What a great game! Why didn't I pick this up ages ago? Blonde moment again perhaps hehe? Just hoping some of you folks may be able to help here as I have to admit that this is one damn fine game and I really want to be as competent as I can and enjoy teaming up with some of you at some point. Any help appreciated guys and a big ol' thanks in advance to anyone who can help me in my quest to become "not so blonde'.
Oh and no offense to anyone who is blonde, I just have a sick sense of humor.
Some of us have been in this game for a long time. We have seen a lot of changes -- most of the changes have made the game better and better. The Developers listen to the players and try to give them what they want, within game-play and financial reason.

Oh, and in this game, instead of saying "not so blonde," you can say "not so Fusionette." She is an NPC who is famous for not being very bright. (If you start a character in Paragon City, you should run the missions in Faultline starting at level 15 to get an introduction to Fusionette. She shows up again later on.)


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Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?
First question: do you have the map part of the GUI open?

If yes, good! If no, then open the Menu dropdown, and select the Map option.

You currently selected mission will be displayed in the compass area at the top of the map. This will also tell you which zone you need to be in. If you have an outdoor mission objective (there's one to gather roses, for example), the objectives will show up on the map IF you have the correct option selected. Rather annoyingly, this is sometimes switched off be default for new toons. Open the Options menu (bottom right of the map) and make sure you have everything you need selected.

When you have a mission, you might sometimes lose the mission marker for some reason (commonly, you've selected something else, like a shop). To get it back, either:
- Click the white star on the map which is showing you the mission location, or.
- Go to the mission tab, click on the mission, and then click the 'Select Task' button. This should now give you a red mission marker, which will guide you to the mission.

Hope this is helpful!


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Death is part of my attack chain.

 

Posted

If you click the blue dot on the border of the Map, you can detach it. Once detached, you can grab a corner to shrink or stretch the Map window. I find it convenient to have my Map always open. I make it small and shove it into a corner at the top of my screen. You may need to move the other status windows aside. Here's an example of my UI layout.


Teams are the number one killer of soloists.

 

Posted

Just wanted to add my voice to the chorus of "Welcome to the game."

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite


Dark_Respite's Farewell Video: "One Last Day"
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Posted

Wow! Thank you so much for the replies there guys as they have been extremely helpful. I now have some guides to oggle over and all my questions have been answered. I play on the "virtue" server and my name in game is "Badmethod". Would be nice to join a super group but yet to work out how that works so i will look into it after i have a shower this morning.

Thank you so much for the warm welcome too! I really was expecting to be called things like 'nubsauce, noob' casual, scrub' and whatever so this has been a refreshing change indeed.
Man, you guys have really blown me away here and i do mean in a positive way. I will try not to be so "Fusionette" from here on in as well hehe.
Thank you all again and hopefully i will see some of you in game.


 

Posted

Welcoem to the game and the forums

But I suggest you find a better phrase than "blonde moment" to describe those kinds of problems


@Golden Girl

City of Heroes comics and artwork

 

Posted

lol, sorry Golden girl. no offense intended hehe and I have changed that phrase to "Fusionette" as suggested above.


 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
I play on the "virtue" server and my name in game is "Badmethod". Would be nice to join a super group but yet to work out how that works so i will look into it after i have a shower this morning.
Cool, Virtue is the best sever . If you're interested in teaming I recommend joining the global channels "Virtue LFG Alpha" and "Virtue TFs" both are a good source for teams (the former covers all team types but the latter is mostly for Task Forces).

Regarding SGs, you can check the Virtue Forums but a lot of the ones recruiting there are RP SGs which may or may not be to your liking.

EDIT: Probably should have mentioned HOW to join global channels. If you click on the word "Tab" at the top of your chat window that has a number of options for joining chat channels (you can either type in the name or search for it if you tend to spell it wrong like I do). Alternatively you can use the command /chan_join <channel name>.

Quote:
Thank you so much for the warm welcome too! I really was expecting to be called things like 'nubsauce, noob' casual, scrub' and whatever so this has been a refreshing change indeed.
Unlike other MMOs that shall not be named this game is not focused on endgame content. As such a lot of players spend their time leveling up alts rather than focusing on a single max level character. This tends to counteract the "elitism" common in other MMOs. It also helps that the game is pretty easy so min-maxing is not required unless you want to do stupidly insane things like solo group content. Or at least that's my theory .


 

Posted

I'll add my welcome to the game too, and add that paragon wiki, supergroups and global channels are great tools for learning more about how to enjoy playing.


I don't suffer from altitis, I enjoy every minute of it.

Thank you Devs & Community people for a great game.

So sad to be ending ):

 

Posted

Quote:
Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post

Missions: Sometimes the locations of objectives seem very vague at best, not sure if i need to be in the underground or up top when I accept some of them and often don't have a marker or anything I can identify. Mission text doesn't seem to help much and I am just wondering if I am experiencing "Blonde" moments or is this the norm?
There is often a pointer in your compass that will lead you to the next door or contact. However, I have noticed that some of the Praetorian missions don't have this, or it doesn't seem to work properly. If that is the case, you'll just have to read the mission briefing and see if you can puzzle it out. You can also bring up your map - in some cases the outdoor object that you need to click on (the roses for Cleopatra, for example) will have markers on the map, even though you don't get an objective pointer in your compass.


Quote:
Enhancements: Seem to buy them in stacks of five. Are these splittable into smaller stacks or do I just put five into a slot and then move to the next slot for others? I recall reading somewhere on here that any more than three of any particular enhancement eventuates in diminishing returns and I don't want to waste them if possible. (again, this could be another blonde moment, not sure)
Enhancements don't stack. You can combine them. I think you might be seeing the level tag (Damage enhancement, level 5) as a quantity. Enhancements have a specific level. For the storebought ones, this is the level where they will be at "standard" effectiveness. If you are lower than that level, they will be slightly stronger than normal. If you are above that level, they get progressively weaker, and eventually stop doing anything. That's where combining comes in - combining two of the same enhancement will add one level to whichever is stronger. IE, adding a level 10 enhancement to a level 7 will give you a 10+, which is effectively a level 11 enhancement. There are limits to this. You can't increase one by more than two levels, so a 10 could become 10++, or level 12, but not 13. You simply can't combine them past that point. Also, you can't push one more than three levels higher than yourself. At level 7, you can use level 10 enhancements. Since they're already three levels higher than you are, they'll simply replace anything you try to combine them with. You can increase them to 10+ once you are level 8, however. And if you're level 13, you could combine a level 10++ with a level 15 to get a 15+. (Which might sound complicated, but you're essentially just adding one level to the stronger enhancement, which is the level 15.) There are other complications, like Dual and Single Origin enhancments, and Invention Enhancements, but those can all be safely ignored until later, and most have tutorials in the game that at least attempt to explain what's going on.

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Mastermind: From what I have read I only get three pets at different level tiers, (got two at the moment) and was wondering why i see videos of people with like ten or more pets? Is this a third blonde experience I am having or am I yet to discover what goes on here regarding pets? (MM Necro in case anyone is wondering)
Masterminds get three different pet powers, which each summon a different number of pets. And the number increases as you go up in levels. The basic pet power is available at character creation, and eventually summons up to three pets. At level 1-5, you get one pet that is equal to you in level. At level 6-17, you get two pets that are one level lower than you. At level 18 and up, you get three pets that are two levels lower than you. The second pet power summons up to two pets, and becomes available from level 12. The third power summons only a single pet, and does not unlock until level 26. However, the pet powers can be enhanced, and this will improve all the abilities used by the pets.

You also gain two powers that exist solely to make your pets stronger. These powers are area of effect, and usually only need to be used once each after all your pets are summoned. (IE, summon all six of your minions, then apply both of the upgrade powers.) If a minion dies, the replacement does not have the upgrades applied. Because the upgrades have their endurance cost balanced against all six pets, some people choose not to upgrade the replacement minions until more than one will be affected. At the very least, it might not be a good idea to upgrade them in the middle of combat if you're running low on endurance, since this could disable your ability to use your other powers.

The Mastermind pets overall are rather complicated, and it's probably a good idea to check the Mastermind guides for more details. I happen to like Masterminds, but they aren't really an ideal starting AT, since you're adding minion control on top of everything else you're trying to learn. On the other hand, if you can figure out Masterminds, most other classes will probably seem simply by comparison. Just be aware that your pets will at least occasionally do everything in their power to get you killed. And that some players dislike Masterminds due to past experiences with ill-behaved pets. (The two main complaints are that pets will run away and find something large and toothy, and kick in in the shins for you. And that pets have a nasty tendency to block doors. Both situations can be largely avoided if you just pay attention to what your minions are doing.)

Also, just to add to the confusion, some of the Mastermind secondary sets give you "sort of" or "sometimes" pets. These are things that look like pets, and act like pets, but you can't actually order them around. Some of them will follow you, some stay where they're put, and most of them only last a certain amount of time. Some of the main sets *also* have such extra pets. Necromancers, for example, can convert a defeated minion into a ghost, which will follow them around. /Dark Miasma Masterminds can also summon a shadow pet eventually. Demon summoners can summon squads of tiny demons made of living flame, Thugs can summon a gang of street punks, and /Traps users have a number of gadgets that float, zap, shield, and explode their way across the map. Again, the guides section will probably be the fastest way to figure things out. At the very least, be sure to read the descriptions of all the available powers when you make a character. (When you make a new character, or select a new power, you can hold your mouse over a power to see a basic description of what it does, even if your character isn't allowed to actually use that power yet.)

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Alliances: I am currently betraying the PDD for the Resistance and are doing missions for the resistance. Why is it that I can beat the tar out of both factions if I feel like it? I thought I would just breeze past whoever I was aligned with and that they would be friendly but both seem capable of attacking at random. Is this because i am tricking one side, (the PDD) and doing resistance missions or am I just being blonde for the fourth time?
It's a bit more complicated than that. The PPD are an Evil Supervillain police force. As such, the different departments are encouraged to fight with each other, since in evil villain logic this weeds out the stupid and the incompetent. Also, the "normal" PPD officers deeply resent Powers Division (that's you) because Powers types are all showboats with fancy super powers, and everyone else had to *work* to get the job.

The Resistance shoot at you because (as far as the average goon knows) you're a cop, and therefore the enemy. Even if you're not. See, the people in charge don't go around announcing that you're actually a traitor working for the Resistance. That way all the spies can't blow your cover by turning you in the first chance they get. And it makes your cover more authentic. And both the PPD and the Resistance are willing to sacrifice common soldiers to get the job done, even if that means ordering their super-powered allies to mow down their own people.

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Lastly: What a great game! Why didn't I pick this up ages ago? Blonde moment again perhaps hehe? Just hoping some of you folks may be able to help here as I have to admit that this is one damn fine game and I really want to be as competent as I can and enjoy teaming up with some of you at some point. Any help appreciated guys and a big ol' thanks in advance to anyone who can help me in my quest to become "not so blonde'.
Oh and no offense to anyone who is blonde, I just have a sick sense of humor.
Welcome to the game, and enjoy your stay.


 

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Originally Posted by EvilDonald View Post
lol, sorry Golden girl. no offense intended hehe and I have changed that phrase to "Fusionette" as suggested above.
One day, I might forgive you


@Golden Girl

City of Heroes comics and artwork

 

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Just another welcome to the game. If I see ya in game I'll say, "Hello." We like when new folks join the game here.

And, just to add another possibility on your pet question that I haven't seen anyone else mention, many Veteran players have 2 *really* minor pets, so that also could up the total number the Mastermind in the video you saw had. But, like everyone has said, they aren't true henchmen. Between temp powers, Vet powers, and primary and secondary, a Thugs/Dark MM may be able to get over 25 pets and henchmen, for a short time. But for the most part, MM get from 1-6, depending on level.