Who Will Die Part 2 SSA - Thoughts
By
2short2care,
Posted on: 2011-10-11 03:50 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
I think this increased Rularuu activity might also be connected to the Well of the Furies "waking up" - that seems to have created ripples all through the multiverse, and something as powerful as Rularuu would feel them.
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
I think Wade is behind the Rulu-shin and his appearance in the blueside SSA was just a distraction. Wade ordered the invasion of the Midnight club and then he shows up to help fight off the ambushes not to save the Midnighters but to keep the midnighters distracted long enough for Wade's minions to finish looting the vault.
I don't know if this has been mentioned but if you hang out in the vault too long in the first mission redside the Midnighters will attack and kill you.
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Ignoring the problems inherent in wrapping us up in predetermined plot, that's still 400 Points PER ARC. If we assume all eight arcs will be 3 missions long, which seems like a fairly safe bet at this point, then all eight arcs will come up to just 24 missions. That's the length of World Wide Red, more or less. If that whole thing came out for 800 or 1200 points, then yeah, I could see it as good value for money, but at 400 points per arc? Put it like this - if I weren't a VIP already, I wouldn't spend money on them. What's there is good, but there just isn't enough for 400 points.
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Originally Posted by El__D
An involving, evolving story-line where our characters interact with the game-world on a higher level than they have before, capped off with insane amounts of rewards? I'd buy that for 400 Points.
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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.
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I liked the arc but I couldn't help but have this mental image in my head:
Rulu-Shin: "Hello, we would like to make a big deposit."
Teller: "Certainly, our facilities are among the safest in the Rogue Isles."
Rulu-Shin: "Excellent, here is our item."
(Removes big Rularuu Eyeball from bag)
Teller: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!! "
*runs screaming*.
Rulu-Shin: "We'll take the north vault."
Otherwise it was pretty nice seeing an old favourite spiced up with the Rulu-Shin. I still haven't gathered why they are around the Hamidon, thinking they want to set it loose to cause more havoc when Rularuu returns, I may have misssed something in the clues.
Questions about the game, either side? /t @Neuronia or @Neuronium, with your queries!
168760: A Death in the Gish. 3 missions, 1-14. Easy to solo.
Infinity Villains
Champion, Pinnacle, Virtue Heroes
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As pointed out earlier in this thread, the dialogue explains this: They took a wrong turn and got stuck.
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Originally Posted by Neuronia
Otherwise it was pretty nice seeing an old favourite spiced up with the Rulu-Shin. I still haven't gathered why they are around the Hamidon, thinking they want to set it loose to cause more havoc when Rularuu returns, I may have misssed something in the clues. |
Gosh Sam, it's like I'm stalking you or something. But anyway!
If you're going to be comparing the SSAs to legacy content, you need to factor in the diversity of the missions, not simply their quantity. Sure, WWD2 only has three missions, yet in those three missions that take less than fifteen minutes to beat if you aren't reading the dialogue there is more variety than existed in all four of the level 45+ hero arcs which represented the entire extent of highbie hero content from issue 1 until issue, uhhhh, the one that introduced super sidekick so highbies could run TFs and stuff without having four appropriately leveled lowbies.
Does World Wide Red take a while to beat? Yes. Does it suck? Wowie, does it ever. I'll take a concise, creative arc over that any day of the week. AND the SSAs give better rewards, as if the old arcs needed any more nails in their coffins. At this point it's just nail-based art on the sides.
I played this again today to see the redside version and got quite a surprise when I busted into the vault! 
My characters at Virtueverse
Faces of the City
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Does World Wide Red actually have a story? Yes, it does. Would it still have a story if you removed the giant robot? Yes, it would. Would the SSA still have a story if you removed the cheap gimmick of killing off a major character? Hmm, let's see...so far we have the Lost turning to magic to siphon off Synapse's powers...let's explore that shall we? No? Ooop, no. The arc is about killing off a signature character, not a schism within the ranks of the Lost. Ooo, a crazy Lovecraftian cult has shown up....shall we explore them, maybe? Find out why they've made themselves visible now, maybe find out what Rularuu's been up to for the last few years? Nope. Turns out they're only after Numina's proverbial bowling ball.|
Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle
Does World Wide Red take a while to beat? Yes. Does it suck? Wowie, does it ever. I'll take a concise, creative arc over that any day of the week. AND the SSAs give better rewards, as if the old arcs needed any more nails in their coffins. At this point it's just nail-based art on the sides.
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World Wide Red is a story. A story that could be told better with modern production values, as it were, but a solid story nonetheless. The SSA is a series of gimmicks. And it is in no way creative, since the very premise was stale years ago.
Eva Destruction AR/Fire/Munitions Blaster
Darkfire Avenger DM/SD/Body Scrapper
Arc ID#161629 Freaks, Geeks, and Men in Black
Arc ID#431270 Until the End of the World
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I don't think it sucks - it just lacks the polish, complexity and sophistication of the newer content.
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Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle
Does World Wide Red take a while to beat? Yes. Does it suck? Wowie, does it ever.
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@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
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And by that, you mean "ambushes" |
Originally Posted by Golden Girl
I don't think it sucks - it just lacks the polish, complexity and sophistication of the newer content.
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There is no such thing as an "innocent bystander"
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He says "the one meant for me" or something like that. It sounds more like the conspirators sat around and said "...and Bob will get Valkyrie's powers, Penn will get Positron's powers..."
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Originally Posted by Kierthos
Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't the mystery subordinate in the cutscene (the guy in the victorian steampunk vest) say something along the lines of the next target being the one he was built for? (Look, I'm at work right now, I can't check.)
If I'm remembering that correctly, that leads me to one of two options. 1) Automaton - in which case, the Devs are really pushing the idea that this thing is being run by Nemesis. 2) Mystical construct - in which case.... I got no idea. |
Issue 16 made me feel like this.
Warning: This poster likes to play Devil's Advocate.
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In all fairness, Positron's powers are: 1) Invent Stuff and 2) Date Ghosts
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Originally Posted by Vanden
He says "the one meant for me" or something like that. It sounds more like the conspirators sat around and said "...and Bob will get Valkyrie's powers, Penn will get Positron's powers..."
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There is no such thing as an "innocent bystander"
There was a clue in part 1 of the redside SSA that "foreshadowed" the Rulu-shin. The top cabinet in the 3rd mission of the new SSA talks about Warburg.
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I wonder if blueside players are gonna end up fighting Arachnoids. I can't think of any blueside arcs that deal with that group.
| You find documents regarding sales of artifacts to a group called the Rogue Arachnos within Warburg. The document has details saying that the group seems to be planning some sort of large operation soon. |
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There is a Vigilante tip mission that does. That's it, as far as I know.
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Originally Posted by warden_de_dios
I wonder if blueside players are gonna end up fighting Arachnoids. I can't think of any blueside arcs that deal with that group.
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Eva Destruction AR/Fire/Munitions Blaster
Darkfire Avenger DM/SD/Body Scrapper
Arc ID#161629 Freaks, Geeks, and Men in Black
Arc ID#431270 Until the End of the World
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Ambushes in new content is nothing compared to the ambushes World Wide Red throws at you.
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Originally Posted by BigFish
And by that, you mean "ambushes"
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Sorry. I have 1 lvl 50 after five years of playing and have never played World Wide Red. Missed the target I was aiming for with the one-liner|
Originally Posted by warden_de_dios
Ambushes in new content is nothing compared to the ambushes World Wide Red throws at you.
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There is no such thing as an "innocent bystander"
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Her ghost staus is kinda vague - she can also become solid, and isn't a spirit the whole time.
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Originally Posted by BigFish
In all fairness, Positron's powers are: 1) Invent Stuff and 2) Date Ghosts
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@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
Ran the new blueside content a few times with different characters, rather liked it, it was quick, concise, introduced a new faction linked to an existing group that can be used later, loved the costume pieces of the new enemies, and generally used existing assets well while adding a little bit more to the lore.
One thing that I would like to see on blueside, is the ability to talk to the sig heroes after the end. they potentially could add a good wrap up or extended perspective of what you have done, but they just kind of stand/float there. synapse claps, but I feel it is one thing that makes the blueside arcs seem a little flat. I understand reds do get to chat up the phlanxers, and thats not a problem, but just some dialogue, i missed synapse the first time i completed the ssa 1.
and to reiterate, REALLY want those chest/glove and back spikes. yes i know they are the only unique parts of them, and thats nice, but i still want them, especially the back spikes.
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This might have been addressed earlier, but as the game is now F2P and lots of new people will be playing based off this, we do need to consider information availability. A level 20 freem who's bought the pack or only just gone VIP might not even be fighting DE yet, let alone what the giant blob is meant to be, and the mish doesn't say what it is, in clue, mission sendoff, in-mission dialogue... So that could come out of the left field pretty hard.
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Originally Posted by Jake_Summers
Well the dialogue box voice asked for a portal out of the base when you arrive, and he didn't care where it led. He should have been more specific I suppose, as the Zealot dude says they are pretty much trapped between your Hero and the Hamidon, and they made the right choice to try to fight by you rather than Hami.
They could have used another map I suppose, but the "Oh crap is that...?!" reaction I had upon seeing Hami was worth it's use I think. |
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A fair remark on how bland legacy content is blue-side |
Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle
Gosh Sam, it's like I'm stalking you or something. But anyway!
If you're going to be comparing the SSAs to legacy content, you need to factor in the diversity of the missions, not simply their quantity. Sure, WWD2 only has three missions, yet in those three missions that take less than fifteen minutes to beat if you aren't reading the dialogue there is more variety than existed in all four of the level 45+ hero arcs which represented the entire extent of highbie hero content from issue 1 until issue, uhhhh, the one that introduced super sidekick so highbies could run TFs and stuff without having four appropriately leveled lowbies. Does World Wide Red take a while to beat? Yes. Does it suck? Wowie, does it ever. I'll take a concise, creative arc over that any day of the week. AND the SSAs give better rewards, as if the old arcs needed any more nails in their coffins. At this point it's just nail-based art on the sides. |
.However, I'd suggest that the comparison is better made against First Ward. 600 points for 7 story arcs and one world zone. Whereas with the SSAs, it's 400 points for 1 story arc and modified mission maps. I do understand that modified mission maps have a bit of difficulty to them, however, I don't believe they warrant the arcs being 7x expensive as First Ward.
One other remark in general that you reminded me of
. It's a video game, the story needs to be told in more than just walls of text. The SSAs have some improvement in that they do have those modified maps, but at the same time I see a lot more wall of texting going on. I admit it's probably fairly hard to avoid it due to the nature of how spawns are placed in this game, but it's still something to note.
Let's Dance!
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I beleive the walls of text are a way of addressing a player complaint.|
Originally Posted by reiella
The SSAs have some improvement in that they do have those modified maps, but at the same time I see a lot more wall of texting going on. I admit it's probably fairly hard to avoid it due to the nature of how spawns are placed in this game, but it's still something to note.
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If you are not the mission holder in a mission, much of the text explaining what you are doing and why is not visible to you. One answer? NPCs that give exposition in dialogue. To a point, I think it's an improvement.
Story Arcs I created:
Every Rose: (#17702) Villainous vs Legacy Chain. Forget Arachnos, join the CoT!
Cosplay Madness!: (#3643) Neutral vs Custom Foes. Heroes at a pop culture convention!
Kiss Hello Goodbye: (#156389) Heroic vs Custom Foes. Film Noir/Hardboiled detective adventure!
wonder if anyone has tried to defeat that giant group of bosses in the Villain-side version yet...
Yes.
@bpphantom
The Defenders of Paragon
KGB Special Section 8
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One gives incarnate salvage (if unlocked) and/or hero merits (again, if unlocked). the other gives standard story rewards. THAT's what the cost difference covers in my opinion.
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Originally Posted by reiella
However, I'd suggest that the comparison is better made against First Ward. 600 points for 7 story arcs and one world zone. Whereas with the SSAs, it's 400 points for 1 story arc and modified mission maps. I do understand that modified mission maps have a bit of difficulty to them, however, I don't believe they warrant the arcs being 7x expensive as First Ward.
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@bpphantom
The Defenders of Paragon
KGB Special Section 8
Once we get more of them (and remember, we aren't stopping at the 7 for 'Who Will Die?') at the speed you can run these things, you can take a character who hasn't yet done any of them and get a month or so worth of Hero/Villain Merits in one day. Beyond that, even if your character has run all of these before, you can still run them on and off along with normal Tips to gain more H/V Merits than you normally would.
An involving, evolving story-line where our characters interact with the game-world on a higher level than they have before, capped off with insane amounts of rewards? I'd buy that for 400 Points.
But since I'm VIP, I don't have to
Personally, I dislike thinking of it as a means to a reward. Mostly as that means the value is in facilitating a grind, as opposed to the value being in enjoying the content. If it's just for the reward, I'll do a 10 minute ssa1.1/week for my grind fest.
Also, you say you'd pay 400 points for all that, but I question, would you pay 2800 points for all of that?
Let's Dance!