At level 20 on Hero side, you should be hanging out in Talos Island and Independence Port. Once you've hit level 30 you'll be moving onto Brickstown and Founders' Falls.
You should have been introduced to your first Primal Earth contact in Talos. An agent who claims you've already been doing evil in Primal Earth. Run his arc and the one afterwards, they're pretty fun.
Make sure you find the "Detective" contact (in the Contacts window, Detective tab) and talk to them to receive the Police Scanner (it looks like a radio, in your Contacts window at the very top of Active tab.)
Use your Police Scanner while outdoors in Talos to get a choice of three missions. The Scanner missions are not particularly interesting (very Mad Libs style: (villain group) has stolen the (item)! (villain group) has kidnapped (a citizen)! (boss name) of (villain group) is on the loose!), but after running five of them you can run a Safeguard mission where you stop a bank robbery. After that the Detective will introduce you to a contact. This is the main way of gaining new contacts whenever you can't find anything to do.
Also check out the Task Forces: Positron in Steel Canyon, Synapse in Skyway City, Sister Psyche in Independence Port, and Citadel in Talos Island each offer one. You can run them at any level (you will be temporarily scaled down in level if you're higher than the maximum level, but you'll still earn XP normally), but you need a team to start them. Either watch out for "TF starting" messages in Broadcast, or start your own! They are fairly old content (aside from Positron, who got a revamp recently) but they come with a cool fight against a big tough guy at the end.
Don't worry too much about rushing to the end. There *will* be an endgame system in the next Issue, but a lot of people are skipping on it in favor of levelling alts through the existing content. Play at your own pace, read through the stories, try to learn as much as you can about the various archetypes and powersets.
Character index
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Praetoria is supposed to introduce you to the core of this game's flow of play: running missions from contacts. |
Originally Posted by Sangraiel
Ok I have run most of the AT's through Praetoria to the level 20-22 range. I am planning on staying on the Hero side for now and I have picked what I believe will be my main. Big question is what is the progression of this game at 20 plus? Praetoria was a small newb area compared to the open world of the game.
I am not sure where to go, what to do, or what my objectives are in this game. I guess my question is do I just run mission after mission following the story arcs? |
Upon exiting Praetoria you should be presented with a small number of available contacts. As you run their story arcs they will present you with options to meet more contacts who have more story arcs.
The original City of Heroes game was designed around the concept that players would follow story arcs based on their power origin. Players would follow contacts that sold their type of enhancement: e.g. Tech players would follow contacts that sold tech enhancements; science players would follow contacts that sold science enhancements. The original concept was that following each origin story contact would cause the players to experience a relatively cohesive set of storylines.
Various changes to the game over the years, such as making all of the enhancements available for any origin at a regular store, have removed the need to chase your origin type when running story arcs.
Still, it's probably a good way to go if you are running through as a new player and don't know where to go next.
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| Is everyone driving to 50 as fast as possible? |
Something to keep in mind is that the CoH forums reflect only a small percentage of the active playerbase, and most of the players here are the vocal get in your face type.
- A section of the game chases after level 50 as fast as possible.
- A section of the game takes it's time to explore the various stories of the game.
- The two sections will never agree on anything and will continuously meet in a fiery ball of rage.
The opinion I hold is that if a player treats every character as a race to 50... they've missed a key point of the game. It's not the destination that matters... it's the journey to getting there.
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| Is there an end game? |
Yes, there is an end-game in the sense that there is content that is explicitly set up for max level players. The problem is that the existing Shadow-Shard end-game was designed to appeal to the players of Ultima Online and Everquest, and features Task Forces that will easily take 6 hours or more for a casual pick-up-group.
At the same time, no, there is no such thing as an end-game. There's no point at which you play one game, then suddenly switch and play a completely different game because you've hit some particular level.
Unlike other MMO's, CoH leverages the concept of just everything being "the game" with what we call Super-Sidekicking. You can join any team of any level and receive experience and rewards for playing at that level.
Starting with the upcoming Issue 19, the developers are adding in additional high-level content for those who want challenges above and beyond what the current game offers. It's being called, and referred to, as end-game content. However, as the only real requirement for the Incarnate Content is that you have a level 50 avatar that has completed the Incarnate Story Arc, there really isn't a barrier, as of yet, between the Incarnate Content and the "regular" content.
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| I recently came from Everquest 2 which I have been playing for years in a Raiding atmosphere. |
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| Also i see alot of talk about I/o's for builds and purple recipes. When should I be concerned with this stuff? |
CoH's usage of enhancements is drastically different from any other game on the market. Trying to wrap your head around completely new game mechanics and the labyrinth that is the I/O system probably isn't a good idea.
From a realistic point of view, Invention Origin Enhancements are not required to partake in any part of the game. During the Issue 19 beta test I was one of the players trying to "break the system" by doing things casual players would do, like attempt the new Incarnate Task Forces on Single Origin builds only.
As of yet, I'd be hard-pressed to say that any content in the game is going to require you to use I/O's to be useful to a team.
That being said: if you like to solo a lot of the content, Invention Origin enhancements will give you several advantages such as increased defense, increased recharge, increased health, increased regeneration, increased recovery, or increased accuracy.
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Sorry about the wall of text, but I am enjoying this game and I feel like I am starting to spin my wheels. Thanks in advance for the replys 
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What server are you playing on?
Talos is a great zone to team in, lots of people in that zone interested in teaming, doing task forces and tip missions.
Join some global servers. Whichever server you're on you can do a channel search, you can sort that list to show you the most populated room and the rooms with the most people online. Join a bunch of channels, and watch for TFs and teams starting up.
If you're looking for an SG, head to Atlas and talk to the SG Register. There's an option to look at the top 100 super groups on your server. There's a description next to each one that leaders can put contact information. Some SGs are better then others but the good ones out weigh the bad.
Mids Hero Designer is an offline powerset building tool that deals with IOs, Purples and all the fun numbers. Download it and start playing around. You're gonna need money to do IOs, so sell your drops. The level range you're about to enter has some valuable salvage, and Talos has a WW right there.
Run Hero tips, the second time you confirm your Hero Alingment you'll start earning A Merits. You can save them for things you want but rolling for random recipes is so much fun. Start rolling around level 33 and see what sells. You'll end up making a fat wad of money doing this. Once you have money from selling rare recipes you can start buying IOs for yourself.
Welcome to Paragon and don't get to hung up on picking a Main. Having tons of alts in pretty normal in this game.
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QFT|
Originally Posted by warden_de_dios
. . . snip . . .
Join some global servers. Whichever server you're on you can do a channel search, you can sort that list to show you the most populated room and the rooms with the most people online. Join a bunch of channels, and watch for TFs and teams starting up. . . . snip . . . |
Go to the Forum section for your server(s) and see if there's a thread for Global Channels for that server. If there isn't, start a thread asking what are the popular Globals there. You'll meet lots of interesting people, have fun teaming, make friends, and depending on which Global you joined, you may have more than a few inappropriate conversations
Also, a lot of the game lore is revealed in the story arcs, at some point you'll want to experience them (or you could just read about them at the Wiki but its more fun running the arcs yourself, and you get Merits for completing them.)
Have fun.
"I used to make diddly squat, but I've been with the company for 16 years and have had plenty of great raises. Now I just make squat" -- Me
Pediatric brain tumors are the #1 cause of cancer related deaths in children.
In addition to Talos and Independence Port, there are a few other options. In both of those zones, there is a ferry to Striga Isle. Striga missions open up at level 20, and are a really fun group of story lines. Plus, the Striga Missions give you some really nice temporary powers.
Faultline is a zone designed for levels 15-25, so at level 20, you can go do the missions there. Take the train to Skyway and then go south to the entrance . . . or you can go into Pocket D and find the Manhole in the hallway. The first contact, Jim Temblor, is in the town square area in front of the Hospital. (Try flying through the hole in the donut for a badge!)
For levels 25-35, you can take the train to Croatoa, one of my favorite zones. Go to the town center (near the scupture in front of the University) and talk to the mayor, Gordon Bower, to start the missions. You'll get to fight a bunch of Celtic mythical creatures and get more good temp powers.
Each of these Story arcs award merits. The last arc in Striga unlocks a Hess Task Force. The last arc in Croatoa also unlocks a Katie Hannon Task Force. Both of these TFs are really a lot of fun.
Plus, some of the story arcs you can get in the 20's from other contracts are some of the better ones, like the Wheel of Destruction or Freakoympics. There is more to do heroside than one character can do before outleveling the content. All that is just Hero-side. There's more to do Villain-side, and you can always switch sides.
As for "End Game" content: the general view in City of Heroes/Villains is that the journey is more important than the destination. CoH/V is not built around "end game" content. There is some that has grown up over the years, however. Both sides have a bunch of contacts for Missions at level 50, plus there are Task Forces/Strike Forces. CoH has the Statesman's TF and Reichsman TF, and CoV has the Lord Recluse SF and Barracuda SF. Both sides share the Lady Gray TF and Imperious TF, and can join together doing Rikti Ship Raids. Each side has its own Hamidon Raid. And there is the new Cathedral of Pain Trial. And you can always sidekick down to do lower level content. Or do previous content through Ourobourus.
Hero-side, there is the Shadow Shard, a really cool looking zone with content for 40-45 and 45-50. The Quarterfield TF (for level 40-45 characters) is famous for being too long and too tedious -- it can take 6-8 hours for a full team of 8. The other three TFs that start in that zone are more reasonable and take 1.5-3 hours. They are older TFs, and the Developers have learned a thing or two about making TFs more fun since then.
And then there is the upcoming Incarnate stuff. Two more high level TFs. And maybe more in Issue 20.
Take your time leveling up. Enjoy the stories while you learn about a lot of aspects of the game. Learn about Invention Origin Enhancements and plan to use them starting around level 30-35. (Start with Commons first, and then learn about sets.)
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control
one thing to mention: If you're doing, for instance, a Task Force: There are sort of two ways to do it. "Tourist" and "Commuter." First time through, you're a tourist- you want to see stuff, take your time, figure out what's going on. Fifteenth time through, you're a commuter. Bam bam bam, go here get this, everyone out, who's going to do the Atlas run? I'm heading to Kings.
Almost every task force I've been on in the last two years has been commuter-style and almost everyone on a task force is going to expect it to be commuter-style. I don't really know a solution for this. MAYBE if you build your own team with no level 50's on it, explain to everyone that this is your first time through and you're going to be reading the text, you'll have a minimally annoying experience... maybe.
As far as the types of missions: there are several "generations" of missions- because most of the people in the game have seen the old stuff several times before. The original stuff, set in the original zones [all the places you can go by train, except Croatoa] has a certain amount of hunting, sometimes has a lot of repeated content ("go to these five warehouses and stop the Tsoo"), but will give you a core understanding of the game and the enemies and who's doing what and why.
There are standalone zones which each have their own set of missions, one set per zone: Hollows [level 5-15], Faultline[15-25ish], Striga [20-30ish], Croatoa [25-35ish] and the Rikti War Zone [35+]. These are newer, the development team has learned some lessons, the stories are tighter. Of course the good thing and the bad thing is that if you get on a team in that zone, you're doing those missions. Which can be like reading a novel by opening to random pages and reading that chapter. You'll read some parts twice, might miss some parts altogether and won't get it in order.
The Tip system is even newer- and until you get tired of the Tip missions, they're some of the most fun ones in my opinion. TIP MISSIONS ARE HARDER.
Praetoria was, of course, the newest set of missions, where the writers have the most experience of what to offer, the most tools [before Praetoria you couldn't make a meaningful decision...] and the best idea about what the players want [or what they said they wanted, not always the same thing.]
So those are, more or less, the ways through the game today.
Mini-guides: Force Field Defenders, Blasters, Market Self-Defense, Frankenslotting.
So you think you're a hero, huh.
@Boltcutter in game.
This game is very different from the other MMOs you may have experienced. As others have said, there is very much a balance between the end game and the journey to get there, and while the devs have tried to address the lack of a "true" end game with the Incarnate system they are introducing with I19, it will never be the focus of the game. This game was designed from the beginning to give players something to do from level 1.
For this reason, this game is a good place for what players call "altitis". When you have gotten a character to 20 or 30 or so, start over with another character and try another Archetype or power combination. It sounds like you have done that, since you have played enough alts to discover which is your main. But don't ignore your alts in the drive to level your main to 50. You don't have to level them all at once, but when you get tired of one character, don't hesitate to switch to another and try another AT for a while.
After a while, you'll be an altoholic like the rest of us, and stopping in the middle of playing your character to go, "Hey, wait, I wonder what this would be like as so-and-so" and rush back to the character creator.
Try starting characters in Paragon City and the Rogue Isles, too. And once you get them to 20, try out the Kheldians and SoAs. They can be a lot of fun, too.
I am not sure where to go, what to do, or what my objectives are in this game. Is everyone driving to 50 as fast as possible?
Some are. Many are not. I know people with over 100 characters and I know people with exactly TWO (one hero and one villain).
Your objective is to have fun. Fun means something different to each person. I have one character who has been 50 for YEARS. He was my first 50 and I still play him. I collect badges and also plan to get every possible mission souvenir. I also have other characters that I am currently leveling. I have a controller at 25 and a tank at 40. When the tank hits 50, I'll make a new character. I like to have two 'work in progress' characters at any given time.
Is there an end game? I recently came from Everquest 2 which I have been playing for years in a Raiding atmosphere.
Sort of. There is content that you can't even access until you hit 45. There are several 'raid style' events (i.e. requiring more than one team of 8 people to complete it). Also, we are going to be getting quite a bit more 'end game content'. I suspect this is due to the fact that a lot of people come in here and ask about end game content. 
Also important, in my opinion, is that almost all the content in the game is still accessible to you once you hit 50. You can do mission arcs that you missed; you can team with someone 40 levels below you, and the game will automatically scale your powers and abilities down so that you are on par with your teammates (or the mission, if you are solo).
I guess my question is do I just run mission after mission following the story arcs?
Sure, but after a while it's the same missions each time. However, the missions SEEM different with a different team, or when you are playing a different character. Teaming is a big deal in this game and there are systems in the game (supersidekicking, global channels, etc) that really do a great job of enabling teaming.
Also i see alot of talk about I/o's for builds and purple recipes. When should I be concerned with this stuff?
Short answer: Never. Plenty of people pay it no attention.
Another short answer: When you feel like it. If you're bored one afternoon, start taking a look at it. If you have a character that would be oh so much fun if he just had a little more endurance, look into IO sets.
Sorry about the wall of text, but I am enjoying this game and I feel like I am starting to spin my wheels.
Cool. I've been spinning my wheels over 5 years and they haven't fallen off yet.
Paragon City Search And Rescue
The Mentor Project
The questions have been answered, and the responses have been really good. The one thing I want to reiterate is the joining of global channels. I spent the first 3 of my 5 years here running around mainly on my own, teaming up here or there, slowly working my way up towards 50 with multiple characters, but never really focusing on anything, and progressing very slowly. I had never taken part in a task force, or fought any high level opponents.
Once I joined the various global channels (Protector, where I spend most of my time has 5 that are always in use), that all changed. Now,have access to a lot of content that I was missing out on, like task forces that are being run every day, and larger raids like the assault on the crashed rikti spaceship in the Rikti War Zone, and am basically a part of a larger community.
Since you've played to 20 in Praetoria, consider making 1 hero and 1 villain that start in the original zones. The arcs in these zones are older and often longer. But as you are a new player, they will be new to you. You might find them entertaining.
No hero arcs levels 1-10, except in the Hollows. Just missions. Contacts are handed to you. Radio/Safeguard missions are optional. After 10, more arcs than you can do without turning off experience. Downside is the missions hero side often send you from zone to zone, which is an out dated time sink.
Villain side arcs start at level 2, contacts are only handed to you until about level 6, after that you have to complete Newspaper/Mayhem missions to get new contacts. Story arcs are shorter, don't have the time sinks.
Like a lot of people, I have many alts. I like trying out archetype/powerset combinations. For someone like me, the fun is in the leveling, not in the endgame. After 6 years, I only have 5 level 50's, none of which have seen much play since getting to 50. That may change with the next issue, I want to try out the new incarnate stuff.
Since I didn't see it mentioned.
1st thing I do when leaving Praetoria is head to Atlas by way of Steel Canyon.
I make a quick stop to Icon and talk to Serge to get my 2nd costume slot and then head to City Hall to talk to the Rep for my cape mission.
Just always been my natural progression when hitting 'Stamina' level.
Unless that Alt doesn't need a cape, then I just run the costume mission.
All the other advice is great too!
Maestro Mavius - Infinity
Capt. Biohazrd - PCSAR
Talsor Tech - Talsorian Guard
Keep Calm & Chive On!
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Originally Posted by Local_Man
In addition to Talos and Independence Port, there are a few other options. In both of those zones, there is a ferry to Striga Isle. Striga missions open up at level 20, and are a really fun group of story lines. Plus, the Striga Missions give you some really nice temporary powers.
... For levels 25-35, you can take the train to Croatoa, one of my favorite zones. Go to the town center (near the scupture in front of the University) and talk to the mayor, Gordon Bower, to start the missions. You'll get to fight a bunch of Celtic mythical creatures and get more good temp powers. Each of these Story arcs award merits. The last arc in Striga unlocks a Hess Task Force. The last arc in Croatoa also unlocks a Katie Hannon Task Force. Both of these TFs are really a lot of fun. |
I must concur with LocalMan on this. I would head to Striga at 20. The zones IP and Talos are fine, but they also are still holding the age old story arcs that have been around since the beginning of the game. Many are very long story arcs and many are only moderately interesting. Many are also fixated on only one enemy groups for the entire arc. Some, like a couple of the Freakshow arcs, are like a dozen missions long and seem to be rather bland until the last mission. There is some element to that formula in both Croatoa and Striga, but it is far more varied and the arcs far shorter in length before you move on to another contact or other threats.
I find arc completion bonuses level your character faster and reward merits infinitely useful. So once I hit 20, I move to Striga, then Croatoa. Where IP and Talos have longer story arcs, you'll get merit rewards faster and arc completion XP bonuses more often by running the shorter arcs in Striga and Croatoa. I've never done the math but I'd be willing to bet that if you are either soloing or leading a team, you are getting far more xp by running missions in Striga/Croatoa versus the same number of story arc missions in Talos/IP. I can only speak for myself, but I appreciate the arc completion xp bonuses. They help a ton, especially if you enjoy soloing.
There story arcs in Striga begin by visiting Stephanie Peebles in Striga. The stories are interesting and and you get two very useful temp powers by going through these and ends with unlocking a contact for running a short, not particularly difficult, yet great tf. Visually, the zone is great. Getting around the zone is easy. It is, overall, very well done.
At 25, Gordon Brewer in Croatoa will begin giving you missions. And this is very similarly constructed to Striga in the way arcs were structured. Shorter, interesting, tons of temp powers, and ends in unlocking a contact that gives you a great task force.
While Striga is more or less a tropical-type island with a volcano on it, Croatoa is more of a darker more mysterious zone, with a theme located somewhere between between Halloween and folklore. Where you'll fight enemy groups on Striga Isle that you find elsewhere in the game, the enemies you fight in Croatoa you (generally) find no where else in the game. Both are fun and both are very different from the rest of the game from 1-50. Well... with the exception of the Shadow Shard.
Something I did not see in the wonderful bounty of helpful answers above, (assuming my eyes are functioning properly) the Midnighter badge. Go ahead and see the contact in Steel Canyon, who's name completely escapes me (Montague something) but he is at the University and is assigned to you when you cross over to hero side. Once you complete the arc you get into the Midnighter Club, with a shortcut to other campuses, a vendor and future access to another land. Also, if you run the arcs in Faultline you will get the Ouro portal, great for travel and access to more content. For more information do a google for the Paragon Wiki, a true lifesaver full of such information that I have found it invaluable. (a special thanks to those who work to keep it up to date)
I have been playing for a year now and have no level 50's. I am puttering through, playing alts, missions and working on my bases as the whim takes me. I love the fact that this game gives me options! That is my bit of fun...
Laile - @Kaie
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Yes, the glass is half full, there is always another perspective and no they are not following you.
Thanks for all the great info guys!! Made it to 30 on my Tanker and Loving it!
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Good to hear, and welcome!
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Originally Posted by Sangraiel
Thanks for all the great info guys!! Made it to 30 on my Tanker and Loving it!
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Welcome to the game
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 ):
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Excellent!|
Originally Posted by Sangraiel
Thanks for all the great info guys!! Made it to 30 on my Tanker and Loving it!
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Simply put, just find what you enjoy and do it. You don't have to race to 50, if you don't want to.
Personally, I think the game STARTS at level 35. You get access to Rikti arcs and the ITF and you have enough of your powers to get a real feel of how that toon is going to play. You can get at all of the TFC task forces.
You don't ever need to get into IOs and sets and bonuses and all that, unless you want to. It is a robust system that allows you to make your toon a little better and a little more unique, but does have a learning curve.
Welcome.
Never argue with stupid people. They drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.
@vanda1 and @nakoa2
There's also a global channel set up just for people to ask questions. It's call N P C (include the spaces) anyone on there is there just to answer or ask questions. No question is too dumb to ask and no time is a bad one to ask them.
I'll even send you a few million inf if you ask for me on that channel and I happen to be online at the time.
All these good answers and no one mentioned the Mentor Project?
All new and not so new players are welcomed. Join the 'N P C' global channel if you have questions while in the game. /join_chan "N P C" (Yest the spaces and quotes are required.
Welcome to the game Sangraiel, glad you're enjoying yourself.
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I did, in the post right before yours.
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Originally Posted by Red Valkyrja
All these good answers and no one mentioned the Mentor Project?
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Ok I have run most of the AT's through Praetoria to the level 20-22 range. I am planning on staying on the Hero side for now and I have picked what I believe will be my main. Big question is what is the progression of this game at 20 plus? Praetoria was a small newb area compared to the open world of the game.
I am not sure where to go, what to do, or what my objectives are in this game. Is everyone driving to 50 as fast as possible? Is there an end game? I recently came from Everquest 2 which I have been playing for years in a Raiding atmosphere.
I guess my question is do I just run mission after mission following the story arcs? Also i see alot of talk about I/o's for builds and purple recipes. When should I be concerned with this stuff?
Sorry about the wall of text, but I am enjoying this game and I feel like I am starting to spin my wheels.
Thanks in advance for the replys