nvasion Plans

Well, I also think we were heavily subject to the number of lowbies on the team. Admittedly, it could stand some tweaks but that stood out after I put my foot in my mouth with "It's not that bad".

We had higher levels on team 1 and they were still quite the challenge. Just too much stuff stacking too quickly that can easily overwhelm a team. The enemies, ambushes and final outdoor map really dragged down the experience of the arc for us. But I agree, it had a solid story behind it, group mechanics just broke it is all.

On a diff subject, there was mention of running an Ænvasion on Triumph, Sunday the 26th. I think this'd be a great idea but I'll be unavailable that weekend. Who wants to be Æmbassador for it? I'll add it to the OP schedule.

I'll volunteer to be ambassador for Triumph. Which means I need to not show up late.

Zam, if you're concerned on the start time pick one that works for you. I'll add it to the OP and make a thread on the Triumph subforum once you let me know.

Of course when the AEnvasion returns to a server, most recuring characters will be higher

Nah, noon is fine. I sort of have a politically incorrect comment about my being late. I'll err on the side of not posting it.

Ty Zam! OP is updated and Triumph thread is rollin'!

I bet I can guess 1 arc you've got at the top of your playlist!

Wow. Has it been 10 weeks, already?!? Today we finished our tour of US servers with Freedom and we ended it with a bang! New AE Storyteam member (and Freedom native,) 1st. Son led the charge on 3 very unique and well-crafted arcs.

#452144 "The Murders in the RWZ Morgue" by @FredrikSvanberg
1 Mish, Heroic

#67335 "Teen Phalanx Forever" by @PW
4 Mish, Heroic

#497107 "Supervillainous Scientific Inquiry" by @Neon Rider
4 Mish, Heroic

This week I was going to do a "Hunt for Hall of Fame" theme, where I pick from the top arcs, closest to getting HoF. But most of those are 4 or 5 missions long and we have a limited time for these events. So I chose 2 arcs near the top and a 1 mish arc by an author who's near the top. The result: a very creative mix that shows off the great variety of stories you can find in AE.

The Murders in the RWZ Morgue is a 1 mission murder mystery drenched in CoH lore. This arc is stands out, not only because of it's spot on characterization of Longbow and Vanguard operatives, but also because of how much story is packed into this 1 mission. The inventive mechanics in this arc allow 1 mission to have the content of 4 or 5 and makes the player feel on par with literature's sleuthing greats! BEST WHODUNNIT!

Teen Phalanx Forever is pretty much a classic at this point and it's mystifying to me how it hasn't earned HoF yet. It's a lowbie-friendly arc that is rich in details, background, characterization, dialog, and action! Join up with the teen version of the famous Freedom Phalanx and see if you have what it takes to be a real teen hero! BEST OVERALL!!

While TPF was a classic, Supervillainous Scientific Inquiry was actually a fairly new arc. WARNING: This is a challenge arc and not recommended for the inexperienced or low level soloer. We actually had to reform for this arc and put a 50 in the lead just to have a chance! If you're up for a true challenge, you'll find an action-packed story with incredible customs, nice expansions on lore concepts, and very rich details in character bios and story. If you've ever wondered what would happen if Arachnos decided to turn the dial to 11, then turn on this arc...just be sure to bring powerful allies! BEST CUSTOMS & MOST CHALLENGING!!

I had a good time this weekend, despite crashing twice or three times. It was fun to see my arc on a team since I hadn't had the luxury of testing it on a team before. It seemed to hold up still but it became more of an action movie than a murder mystery with Rikti and Vanguard all over the place.

I was curious how it'd play out on full team, too. With people clicking all over it can be harder to follow but I think we did a good job of calling out what we were clicking so people had an idea of what was happening.

My biggest surprise was the patrols that spawned on the overhead walkways. I first stepped into the back room, surprised it was empty, then suddenly it was raining Rikti!!! Gah!!

I did notice someone say they added it to their re-play list, tho

Today wound up being a rather small group. Opted to scrap the theme I had planned and just roll with it. First up was Advanced Tutorial - Knowledge is Power #403441 by @Paula. A good tutorial that has useful tips here and there. With such a small group, I'll probably try to find a time to run this again. Following that we went with Gunbunny's suggestion of The Twisted Tongue #1444 by @Days. While it could probably stand some sprucing up for modern times, it was fun little romp where the strength was in the dialog.

Thanks for the update Zam, glad you guys still had a good weekend and at least a few Triumph players came out to enjoy!

#403441 "Advanced Tutorial - Knowledge is Power" by @Paula
3 mish/Villainous

#1444 "The Twisted Tongue" by @Days
5 mish/Heroic

This week I was absent due to RL commitments, but as I played on the sandy beaches of CA, the AE Storyteam forged ahead!

Knowledge is Power is a quick follow up to the Dev Choice tutorial by @Paula and features a fun story with lots of little tricks for AE players and authors! This time, with a devilishly evil twist!! MOST EXPLOITIVE!!

Twisted Tongue was a suggestion from new AE Storyteamer, Gunbunny. As you can tell by the low arc number it's a bit aged. Apparently, it can use a bit of sprucing up and take advantage of the new toys they've added to AE since launch. But the character "Freaky" dialog in the arc more than makes up for it's age! B35T D14L0G!!11!!BBQ

As the Ænvasion nears the end of its first cycle it seems to be picking up even more steam! Week 12 took us for our first trip across the pond to Defiant Server and nearly 2 full teams showed up to experience Mad Science themed Mission Architect mayhem! We played 2 arcs this week!!

#177370 "Relativity be Damned" by @Tragic Eight Ball
4 mish/Heroic (Dev Choice)

#115174 "Vernon Von Grun's Extraordinary Extradimensional Excursions" by @Igor Blimey
5 mish/Villainous

Comics and Paragon City are ripe with stories of Mad Science, but I chose these 2 arcs to really illustrate what makes Mad Science work..."passion."

In Relativity be Damned you meet a passionate scientist that (I think) is trying to teach you how to have a better appreciation of science. Personal risks are irrelevant in the face of her scientific achievements and, of course, things go slightly awry and need your intervention for fixing. Along the way you travel to alternate times, dimensions, and even get to team up with the biggest name in science: Einstein!

While some plot points aren't fully developed, motivations aren't always clear, and there are a few typos, the passion your contact has really brings her alive and elevates an otherwise simple story to something memorable. BEST EINSTEIN TEAM-UP!

Now, for a true Mad Science enthusiast you need to take a trip to the Rogue Isles. There you will find an uninhibited thirst for knowledge and Vernon Von Grun's Extraordinary Extradimensional Excursions! "Passion" is almost too tame a word for Vernon's exhuberance for science and this arc dials that aspect to 11!

The dialog, details, humor and customs in this story can scarcely be contained in the arc, much less explained in this review. Suffice to say, Portal Corp is doing dimension hopping all wrong and there's only one man that can make it right...Von Grun!! DUNN DUNNN DAAHHH DUMMMM!!! Warning: the difficultly level is a bit higher in Von Grun's world than your average AE arc. Bring friends, insps, and a spare keyboard if you plan to drink while playing! This is the kind of arc that deserves to be a Dev Choice. BEST OVERALL - BEST SOUNDTRACK

13 weeks ago the AE Storyteam set out on a mission: to explore strange new servers and seek out new AE players & enthusiasts! This week, the team reached its first major milestone by completing its tour of every English speaking server. Union was our 1st cycle's final Ænvasion target and we met a good crowd of mates to play with. We fit 2 arcs into today's session:

#204942 "Chris Jenkins: Attorney at Law" by @Jophiel
1 mish/Heroic

#1166 "Taking Flight" by @Morgenstern COH
4 mish/Heroic

Honorable Mention: (ran out of time to play)
#379668 "W is for Vengeance x2" by @Khonshu
5 mish/Heroic

For today's arcs I wanted to spotlight stories that feature less-explored characters from the rich CoH lore. We all know who Azuria & Fusionette are and they get a lot of attention, both in-game and in AE. But there's a lot of other relatively unused characters out there that have interesting stories to tell. With the magic of AE, they finally get that chance!

Chris Jenkins: Attorney at Law has been a fixture of CoH lore since launch. His billboards plastered all over Paragon City; it's a wonder it took an AE arc to finally give him his day in the sun.

This lowbie-friendly, 1 mission arc explores what would happen if some of Paragon's more unscrupulous crowd discovered Chris' services and what kind of direct effect that could have on your hero. There's a lot of canon-related and meta-humor in this arc and it's fast, fun action for any size team. BEST OVERALL & BEST SANDWICH!

Taking Flight expands on the character of Tony Kord. Maybe you remember him from the Clockwork vs Skulls badge mission for "Negotiator." Or maybe you've been to the helipad atop Kord Industries in Kings Row. Well, this time Tony has a problem only your hero can fix and it's going to take more than words to "negotiate" a solution!

Along the way you'll witness & influence the birth of new hero and maybe learn a secret or 2 about Tony Kord you never imagined before!

Note: I've played this mission multiple times as a solo hero and never had a problem. But it was very difficult to complete on a full, mid-level team. It is just not balanced well for a team setting so I suggest you run it solo or duo.

The story, dialog, details and custom heroes are a real treat. It's a shame that it's not balanced for teams, as it is a fun and touching origin story which you don't find often in AE. BEST CUSTOMS & BEST SOLO EXPERIENCE

It figures you'd be playing on one of my main servers next week. I almost never work Saturday night, except, of course, for this Saturday

If you guys don't mind someone who'll only be able to stay awake for an hour or 2 this time I'll be there.