Some feedback from a casual F2P player
By
Adelie,
Posted on: 2011-10-30 13:23 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
I'm sorry you didn't come to the forums sooner. If you had asked for help when you first ran into trouble instead of waiting until you were sick of the game and then coming here to explain why you are quitting, we would have been willing and able to help. Now it sounds like it is too late.
P.S. I don't think you're allowed to complain that there is nothing to learn about strategy, tactics, and combat mechanics and complain about how often you are defeated, both in the same post.
Avatar: "Cheeky Jack O Lantern" by dimarie
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Truth. |
Originally Posted by peterpeter
P.S. I don't think you're allowed to complain that there is nothing to learn about strategy, tactics, and combat mechanics and complain about how often you are defeated, both in the same post.
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Not to be harsh about it, but your tactics and difficulty setting are very likely the main reason you're eating pavement so much.
You're playing a Mind Control/Empathy Controller, and trying to solo it at +1/x2. That means you have set your missions to spawn enemies 1 and sometimes 2 levels higher than you, and they are set to spawn enemies for 2 players instead of just one.
Also, have you noticed that the vast majority of your secondary (Empathy) powers are completely useless to you while solo? There are only 3 powers in the entire set that you can use on yourself. For a controller to solo well, it generally needs to have a secondary that is better designed for soloing. Radiation Emission, Storm, or Cold would have been better choices for a solo Controller. A character's ability to defeat things is a combination of BOTH powersets, and you happened to choose the weakest soloing secondary set available to controllers.
Regarding accuracy: You do realize that a number of enemies can debuff your to-hit, right? If you're fighting one of those groups you will miss a lot because they are lowering your chance to hit. If you are NOT fighting one of those groups, I suspect your enhancement slotting is the culprit.
Regarding group play: You have a decent character for teams, but your BUFFS will be more useful than your heals in the late game. There is more strategy going on than you think there is, it's not a constant zerg rush. Unless the only groups you've been in are sewer runs, which IS a zerg because you are exemped to levels 2-5 and most of the team lost all their best powers, or haven't got to them yet. A level 2 tank cannot tank all that well, and a level 2 defender won't defend all that well. At that level, you'd still be killing rats in other MMOs.
If you have teamed in other things, pay closer attention to who is targeting what enemies, and who is doing what and when. Communication is at a minimum amongst experienced player because everyone already knows what they're supposed to do. When a team is running like a well oiled machine and crushing all opposition, everyone IS performing their appointed role. It can look like chaos to an inexperienced player, I will admit that much, but if you watch a little closer to an experienced team, you'll start seeing the tactics going on, they just aren't talking about them because they don't need to.
Is the tank jumping in first?
Is a controller with an AoE locking them down after the tank jumps in?
Is the blaster opening up with an AoE right after that?
Is the scrapper or stalker targeting a boss or a specific enemy? (because dangerous enemies aren't always bosses)
Are the defenders spending a lot of time buffing or debuffing? (it's not always obvious what they're doing, just because you don't see green numbers doesn't mean they aren't doing anything)
Pay attention to the ORDER things are happening in, that's a good way to tell a good team from a bad one. If things are happening more or less in the order I laid out, you're on a good team. If the blaster is starting fights and wiping the team before the tank can get the enemy's attention you're on a bad one (or you have a bad blaster). Now, if things are happening in more or less the order I laid out and the fight is over in a few seconds, you are on a GREAT team. That means everyone knows their role, and doesn't need to be told when to do their part. The best teams I've ever played on communicated very little, because everyone was already on the same page and knew what to do.
Above all else: This game is NOT made in the Tank/Healer/DPS mold of so many other games. All character types are useful, none are essential. A team composed of nothing but Defenders, for example, is one of the most potent forces in the game. Most other games would punish you severely for daring to take nothing but healers on a quest (defenders are not healers, but their role comes the closest to it), but in this game, the opposition just melts in the face of so many buffs and debuffs being stacked. An all defender team is quite frequently turning everyone on the team into gods and all of the enemies into kittens, simultaneously.
I don't know if anything I just said will help any, but your perception of what this game is is very obviously being colored by other games. You're expecting THIS game to work exactly the same way, and it just doesn't.
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Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison See, it's gems like these that make me check Claws' post history every once in a while to make sure I haven't missed anything good lately. |
Just need to reply to the mouse thing, if you hold down the two mouse buttons for about 3 - 5 seconds (I haven't timed it) then it switches to autorun.
[url=http://vox-doom.deviantart.com]Take A Gander At This.[/url]
I'll go along with the missing part. No other game frustrates me as much with the continual barrage of misses.
And I say this having played an energy/energy blaster with the /energy attacks slotted with two accuracy enhancements - it was damned amazing how often those attacks missed - and a Widow with a Nerve Total Radial Revamp slotted while keeping accuracy enhancements slotted in individual attack powers.
Sometimes when my tinfoil hat is in need of repair I even suspect that certain characters are marked at birth, so to speak, to be chronic missers. That electric/electric scrapper I rolled a year or two ago - I finally just gave up and stopped playing him. (Right about that same time, my MA/Regen scrapper was a HIT machine.) Right now I'm not particularly thrilled with my new StJ/WP scrapper, even after getting her into the SO level range. It's almost a certainty that every third attack will miss.
So, I dunno. Real or imagined, no other game frustrates me as much with the constant barrage of misses.
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Everyone has addressed everything else but I can probably help you on this.|
Originally Posted by NJMorford
Running/autorunning: this may be a bug, I don't know, but when I'm running using the forward key, I often want to change to running using the two mouse buttons held down together. However, when I press the two buttons, then release the key, I stop running. This can be bad.
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The default behaviour is for both mouse buttons to do run for 3-4 seconds and then go into Autorun. I think you are saying you want it to trigger autorun immediatly in which case you want to bind this key:
/bind mousechord "autorun"
I think it's Autorun, but I'm not at home to check. You don't seem to be able to add mousechord in the options so need to bind it.
Isn't it "++fwd"?
Also not at my compy to check it out, but that's the structure for auto-movement (such as ++up on toons with Super Jump, so you don't have to hold down the space bar).
The wisdom of Shadowe: Ghostraptor: The Shadowe is wise ...; FFM: Shadowe is no longer wise.
; Techbot_Alpha: Also, what Shadowe said. It seems he is still somewhat wise 
; Bull Throttle: Shadowe was unwise in this instance...; Rock_Powerfist: in this instance Shadowe is wise.; Techbot_Alpha: Shadowe is very wise *nods*; Zortel: *Quotable line about Shadowe being wise goes here.*
+forward means "run forward while I am pressing this button/key, and stop when I release it."
++forward means "run forward when I press this button/key, continue forward even if I release the key - and stop when I press this button/key again". This is the same function as ++autorun. (There is no function that is just "autorun" - you will get an error.)
NJMorford wants the second one.
Paragon Wiki: http://www.paragonwiki.com
City Info Terminal: http://cit.cohtitan.com
Mids Hero Designer: http://www.cohplanner.com
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Originally Posted by Dispari
I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.
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If you're really concerned about how often you miss, it might be worthwhile to get that hero stats program that parses your combat log. It's pretty common for people to believe that they only hit 1 time in 10, and then they actually track the data and find that they only miss 1 time in 10, but that one miss leaves a big impression in their memories.
I don't think the tracker is available right at the moment, due to some problems on the Titan Network website, but it should be available eventually at http://cit.cohtitan.com/
Avatar: "Cheeky Jack O Lantern" by dimarie
HeroStats can be found here:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/herostats/files/
I see that the last update was in September. I can't guarantee that it will still function with the current patch because new patches will often break HeroStats' functionality until Ineffable_Bob updates it, and there have been a considerable number of patches since September.
peterpeter: the one you're thinking of in CIT is the Titan Sentinel, which is for badge tracking and build exporting. HeroStats is a separate program and isn't maintained by the same people.
Paragon Wiki: http://www.paragonwiki.com
City Info Terminal: http://cit.cohtitan.com
Mids Hero Designer: http://www.cohplanner.com
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Originally Posted by Dispari
I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.
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The only thing I will say about missing is after over 7 years playing I will NEVER fire off a high tier attack on the first attack after popping a small yellow.
I could make a ton of money betting that first attack would miss.
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I can't abide not knowing when my powers are done recharging, so hiding my powers in invisible trays would be a non-starter for me.
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Originally Posted by Healix
I see so many people with a really cluttered screen. I couldn't stand that. I only have info that I want to know. (I don't want to be told I healed someone, I know that...and not interested in hit points, etc.) I like knowing what my rewards, xp, inf and prestige are. I made my windows transparent so I could see more of the screen.. I use binds and macros so usually only need one power tray showing.
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Blue
American Steele: 50 BS/Inv
Nightfall: 50 DDD
Sable Slayer: 50 DM/Rgn
Fortune's Shadow: 50 Dark/Psi
WinterStrike: 47 Ice/Dev
Quantum Well: 43 Inv/EM
Twilit Destiny: 43 MA/DA
Red
Shadowslip: 50 DDC
Final Rest: 50 MA/Rgn
Abyssal Frost: 50 Ice/Dark
Golden Ember: 50 SM/FA
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Ditto. My layout isn't all that cluttered, even though I've got so many windows open, because I have a 23" monitor. A 1920x1080 view on a 20" widescreen monitor is more cramped than a 1920x1080 view on a 23" widescreen monitor. Even though everything is all in the same place, having it all be "bigger" makes it seem more "open".|
Originally Posted by UberGuy
I can't abide not knowing when my powers are done recharging, so hiding my powers in invisible trays would be a non-starter for me.
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(Trays 4 and 5 (and also Rest in 0) all have exactly the same layout for all of my characters. It's where all my account-wide powers go, and travel powers, and rare clickies like accolades. This screenie is a little old, so there have been more vet powers added so things have been a little rearranged from where they are shown here. The resolution of the screenie is also wrong because I used to play in a modified-size window, now I play maximum-sized window but not full screen. Also, I've been thinking about getting rid of the enhancement tray if I ever buy the enhancement storage increases...if they ever go on sale to a reasonable price.)
Paragon Wiki: http://www.paragonwiki.com
City Info Terminal: http://cit.cohtitan.com
Mids Hero Designer: http://www.cohplanner.com
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Originally Posted by Dispari
I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.
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Sorry, my bad. Since the CIT page didn't come up, I couldn't actually see what I was linking to. You're absolutely right. HeroStats is what I was thinking of. Thanks for the correction.
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Originally Posted by Aggelakis
HeroStats can be found here:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/herostats/files/ I see that the last update was in September. I can't guarantee that it will still function with the current patch because new patches will often break HeroStats' functionality until Ineffable_Bob updates it, and there have been a considerable number of patches since September. peterpeter: the one you're thinking of in CIT is the Titan Sentinel, which is for badge tracking and build exporting. HeroStats is a separate program and isn't maintained by the same people. |
Avatar: "Cheeky Jack O Lantern" by dimarie
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Why no other game has this is beyond me.
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Originally Posted by Vox_Doom
Just need to reply to the mouse thing, if you hold down the two mouse buttons for about 3 - 5 seconds (I haven't timed it) then it switches to autorun.
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Thought for the day:
"Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment."
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Hey! I thought I was the only one who had that suspicion! I've even been known to reroll "cursed" characters. |
Originally Posted by Flarstux
Sometimes when my tinfoil hat is in need of repair I even suspect that certain characters are marked at birth, so to speak, to be chronic missers. That electric/electric scrapper I rolled a year or two ago - I finally just gave up and stopped playing him. (Right about that same time, my MA/Regen scrapper was a HIT machine.) Right now I'm not particularly thrilled with my new StJ/WP scrapper, even after getting her into the SO level range. It's almost a certainty that every third attack will miss.
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The other day, I missed with four Assassin Strikes in a row. That's *start assassin strike* *miss* *wait for assassin strike to recharge* *start assassin strike* *miss* etc. So it was four in a row with nothing but a build up in between.
The combat attribute monitor was reporting a 95% hit chance. There's something like 0,000625% chance of that happening. Either I really need to start playing the lotto, the random number function is quirky, or the attribute monitor is lying about my hit chance.
Thought for the day:
"Hope is the first step on the road to disappointment."
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You make a lot of good points. I've been playing for almost two years, not nearly as long as you but I definitely feel your pain especially with my Lvl 50 Brute running nearly all T4 incarnates and she's still squishy at +4 where she didn't used to be. Something in the formula is way off across the board. I certainly don't like constantly re-crafting/buying enhancements cause devs want to do something hinky. The levels across the board seem off espeically with this latest issue.
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Congratulations on your necropost! Also: you may want to bring along some proof, because my characters are MORE POWERFUL and MORE DURABLE than they have been since the last few issues.
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Originally Posted by Doctor M
You make a lot of good points. I've been playing for almost two years, not nearly as long as you but I definitely feel your pain especially with my Lvl 50 Brute running nearly all T4 incarnates and she's still squishy at +4 where she didn't used to be. Something in the formula is way off across the board. I certainly don't like constantly re-crafting/buying enhancements cause devs want to do something hinky. The levels across the board seem off espeically with this latest issue.
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Paragon Wiki: http://www.paragonwiki.com
City Info Terminal: http://cit.cohtitan.com
Mids Hero Designer: http://www.cohplanner.com
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Originally Posted by Dispari
I don't know why Dink thinks she's not as sexy as Jay was. In 5 posts she's already upstaged his entire career.
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Make a Scrapper. Go forth, kill stuff, enjoy.
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The post is well over a month dead. In all likelihood, the OP isn't around anymore, given the content.
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Originally Posted by Doctor M
You make a lot of good points. I've been playing for almost two years, not nearly as long as you but I definitely feel your pain especially with my Lvl 50 Brute running nearly all T4 incarnates and she's still squishy at +4 where she didn't used to be. Something in the formula is way off across the board. I certainly don't like constantly re-crafting/buying enhancements cause devs want to do something hinky. The levels across the board seem off espeically with this latest issue.
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Virtue Server
Avatar art by Daggerpoint
XP debt is actually not even noticed by me. For me the annoyance is having to to go the hospital and run back. I got the veteran rez power and carry a wakie, a break free, and a heal and a blue at all times. It is a fun game to awaken, break free, heal and eat a blue and then flee like the wind after dying at the feet of a mob.
My only real complaint about dying in this game seems no longer to be an issue. With the recent issue I found that I often crashed when zoning and going to hospital meant zonging, so it increased the likelihood of the game crashing. Recent patches seem to have fixed that now, as I haven't crashed at all in recent play sessions.