Does Statesman deserve a potential killing off? I don't agree
By
Agent White,
Posted on: 2011-12-13 22:16 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
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Quick, freeze the planet and annoy RPers!|
Originally Posted by Xanatos
This means that Xanatos is now the most powerful hero in the city. Awesome.
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Originally Posted by Zwillinger
The sense of irony is not lost on me, and I apologize if there was any sense of duplicitous behavior. None was intended.
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There is absolutely a sense that certain mods don't know much about this game. Not you, necessarily, but par for the course.
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
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I find myself forced to agree with Tenzhi this time. |
Originally Posted by Tenzhi
Yes. Had I not heard that Superman was going to die or that Batman was going to "fall" in advance I probably wouldn't even have bothered checking out those story arcs. What made them interesting were the dialogues and events surrounding the titular event, not the titular event itself. Much like a good detective novel, where you know the crime will be solved by the investigator, but the dialogues and situations leading to that are what make it good - even if you've already read the story, the unfolding of these events is a good read.
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It doesn't matter that we were told about it. It doesn't even matter who it is that's dying.
What matters is the how, the why and the story surrounding it. There has never been a death of a major character in any comic book that wasn't leaked or released in advance. None.
They told us Superman was dying, they told us Captain America was dying, they told us the Human Torch was dying. That by itself doesn't make it special. It's the story involved in it that makes it special.
But please devs, for the love of all that is comic-booky, one up the major comic companies and let your major character STAY dead! Killing off a character so you can write a story arc about how much they will be missed and showing off how human and real your characters are, only to bring the character back a year later is just idiotic. I've always thought that.
Killing off a character and bringing them back is just a cheap excuse to make a quick buck and then continue to profit from the character later. Whoever it is you're killing (I'm not entirely convinced the spoiler isn't a red herring to throw us off), they need to stay dead.
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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. |
It was fun to harp on Statesman back in 2005, but in all the recent arcs Statesman has been supportive. Playing through the revamped A Hero's Epic made me appreciate Statesman the character as much as most of the other PCs out there, as far as storylines are concerned. He's got a bit of angst in that he's paralyzed by the Well, but outside of that he's positive and normal. Leading through a STF didn't raise any red flags in the dialogue either.
As someone who's wound up liking the character despite the earlier drama, I hope that this is just a comic book death. Have him come to the player character for help when he's back, still confident and inspirational but also deferring to characters as peers.
The Paladin
Steel Canyon, Virtue
Exalted
@Paladin
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I agree with this, and I actually do not think it will be a problem. There is a lot more work to do to fully remove an integrated character (like Statesman) from a video game than there is from a comic book. It is a slim possibility that the Devs would go back and undo all of the changes they are most likely working on currently. While I totally respect the time that goes into creating a comic book, I have a feeling writing a comic about Johnny Storm coming back takes less time (and thus costs less money) than it does to remove and/or reintroduce a character in an MMO universe.
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Originally Posted by ClawsandEffect
Killing off a character and bringing them back is just a cheap excuse to make a quick buck and then continue to profit from the character later. Whoever it is you're killing (I'm not entirely convinced the spoiler isn't a red herring to throw us off), they need to stay dead.
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@Winter. Because I'm Winter. Period.
I am a blaster first, and an alt-oholic second.
Statesman has struck me from day 1 as a bland mary sue. You couldn't have contrived to find a more boring superhero.
The only way I'll notice he's not there is the Statesman TF.
Great Wall of Prophecy, reveal to us God's will that we may blindly obey.
Free us from thought and responsibility
We shall read things off of you.
Then do them
Your words guide us.
We're dumb
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I never thought I'd be quoting you....but....first of all, thank you for changing the name of my thread back to the original title. I thought perhaps it was a little hasty to do so originally given how widespread as you say you made the news. So thank you.|
Originally Posted by Zwillinger
There's a reason we announced this ahead of time. There's a reason we decided that this would be the cadence of the reveals. Perhaps all is not presently clear, and overtime it will be made as such, but there is a reason.
We wanted you to know in advance that States would die. We wanted you to know that this is coming. This is part of the delivery of the story which will play itself out in the coming months. It may just be difficult to see the forest for the trees right now . |
However.
I can, with confidence, and at the age of 44 and having read comics my entire adult life, say I'm seeing the forest directly. I realise your position in this is to make it what it is meant to be, an event. And I don't begrudge yourself, Paragon Studios, or anyone else who makes a living from this game doing what they feel is right for the story direction and tone of their game.
But I'll continue not to agree with your decision, both from a story perspective and as a player of the game. In some very real ways (having just watched the Ustream chat), there is a distinct lack of interest in Statesman and it is percieved by you (rightly or wrongly) that this is the right tack to take with this story.
I respectfully disagree for a number of reasons, most of which I have posted here. I had not up to this announcement tried to second guess or predict the writing; I had taken it on its merits. I felt a character that people cared about would be the one who dies (and they still may yet).
But killing off (in whatever form that takes, given that the superhero genre rarely leaves people dead) the flagship character of the game is both designed to attract media attention (hence all the media attention, ironically) and be an 'event'. I think it'd be hard to argue that it's not. I'd do it in Paragon Studios' position.
But, as I said, it's being done to a character that most people frankly don't care about (I am an exception) and giving it such a long lead time diminishes its impact and I feel breaks several cardinal rules of writing of which I at least adhere to.
I appreciate your position in this (which I know is more difficult than mine), but I feel the execution of this has been lacking, with all due respect.
S.
Part of Sister Flame's Clickey-Clack Posse
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First of all, apologies for snippage. |
Originally Posted by Eva Destruction
I know how to not be a self-righteous jerk. I also know not to drop alien motherships onto populated areas. Me: 2, Statesman: 0. If a significant number of players don't want to emulate the values he represents, then that also says something about those values, doesn't it? You can't dictate morality to your playerbase. We saw how well that turned out with Going Rogue. This is the tactic that will be used to "force" us to react the way they want us to react to Statesman's death. Despite all the "I'm glad he's gone" and "I don't care" on the forums, our characters will be shocked and saddened. Even the ones who, in-character, would be either glad he's gone or wouldn't care. |
Second of all, I hoped I had clarified that I felt the 'jerk' portrayal of Statesman isn't an accurate one, and I hold to that. As I said to Melancton, I couldn't reconcile the various portrayals of his personality and when I decided to make a choice on what I felt was a more rounded portrayal, I went with the more positive one. Is it selective reading? Yes. Do I feel I chose the better writing for the character? Also yes. I think people have not taken the time to step back and ask 'hold on, he's written one way here, but another here. How does this work?' Ultimately it doesn't. The portrayals aren't reconciliable. The change in character is just too drastic. That's what I'm holding to, personally.
As for how we're 'going' to react...well, I'm going to exercise my freedom as a reader also and not let the text tell me how I should feel. If it moves me, well and good. But if it doesn't, then I'll go with that also. Being told what my emotions are is the worst form of manipulative writing to bring me to conclusions that may not be my own. And I'm old enough to work that out on my own.
S.
Part of Sister Flame's Clickey-Clack Posse
Someone is going to die. They have said that from the beginning. The question is, would any of them have deserved it?
Now they have told us it will be Statesman. Fine. big whoop. Kill the Mary Sue, and be done.
If he comes back - at all - I will be as annoyed and all 'that's stupid' just like I have every time a comic or movie brings back the dead hero. Dead is dead. Is dead.
Alas, poor Statesman! I knew him, Horatio: a fellow
of infinite knockback, and invincible fancy: he hath
borne us on his back a thousand times; and now, how
adored in my imagination it is!
City of Heroes was my first MMO, & my favorite computer game.
R.I.P.
Chyll - Bydand - Violynce - Enyrgos - Rylle - Nephryte - Solyd - Fettyr - Hyposhock - Styrling - Beryllos - Rosyc
Horryd - Myriam - Dysquiet - Ghyr
Vanysh - Eldrytch
Inflyct - Mysron - Orphyn - Dysmay - Reapyr - - Wyldeman - Hydeous
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Fortunately, you have only one writer to deal with. |
Originally Posted by Eva Destruction
I know how to not be a self-righteous jerk. I also know not to drop alien motherships onto populated areas. Me: 2, Statesman: 0.
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Statesman is all over the waterfront, depending on who is writing him. I think Troy Hickman reflected the "official history" Statesman and added some depth, so I default to his portrayal when I consider "Statesman."
Couldn't the Devs just kill the Sentient Insane Possessing Well of Furies instead?
The writing has been consistently bad since the Incarnate System debuted.Quote:
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Originally Posted by SuperOz
I hoped I had clarified that I felt the 'jerk' portrayal of Statesman isn't an accurate one, and I hold to that. As I said to Melancton, I couldn't reconcile the various portrayals of his personality and when I decided to make a choice on what I felt was a more rounded portrayal, I went with the more positive one. Is it selective reading? Yes. Do I feel I chose the better writing for the character? Also yes.
I think people have not taken the time to step back and ask 'hold on, he's written one way here, but another here. How does this work?' Ultimately it doesn't. The portrayals aren't reconciliable. The change in character is just too drastic. That's what I'm holding to, personally. |
For me, Batman is somewhere between the extremes of the mocking dufus of the 1960s TV series and the insane psychopath vigilante murderer of Tim Burton's movies. Obviously, some disbelief has to be suspended; the usual route for folks that want to protect others would be to join the police force or the Army, etc. But why can't Bruce Wayne's motivation simply be a noble desire that no other child will see their parents murdered on his watch?
As I said, I default to the Hickman Statesman and ignore the StrawMan Statesman that other writers so enjoyed knocking down. You have pretty well called it.
"How do you know you are on the side of good?" a Paragon citizen asked him. "How can we even know what is 'good'?"
"The Most High has spoken, even with His own blood," Melancton replied. "Surely we know."
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Originally Posted by Zwillinger
There's a reason we announced this ahead of time. There's a reason we decided that this would be the cadence of the reveals. Perhaps all is not presently clear, and overtime it will be made as such, but there is a reason.
We wanted you to know in advance that States would die. We wanted you to know that this is coming. This is part of the delivery of the story which will play itself out in the coming months. It may just be difficult to see the forest for the trees right now . |
When watching a movie or reading a book I never - NEVER - skip ahead to read a key point so I can go back and then continue with that revealed nugget in order to make the story more rich and fulfilling. (for example, ever see a book jacket that says - 'On page 400 this key event will take place. Enjoy!' Or wouldn't Star Wars have been awesome if while Luke was training with Yoda the film stopped and a trailer revealed that Vader was his dad, or that Han would be captured no matter what he did, and then the movie continued?)
I categorically reject any premise that says this particular story is somehow different than any other medium of story telling.
And that doesn't even address the fact that I am so thoroughly enjoying the arc, that I was taking the time to consider which character got the opportunity to run it, and whether it is a hero or villain first to find out what happens for myself. I was looking forward to ep5 after ep4. Now I really, really don't care as much about the story anymore. Like it or not, Zwil, this decision has sullied the experience I was enjoying from WWD.
(As an aside, I joined about Issue 7 and I never had a strong opinion one way or another about anything big picture that was done until recently. And now item after item is piling up and now I feel like a negative nancy [no offense to any nancies out there]... I am becoming increasingly disappointed and unenthusiastic over the last 12 months....)
City of Heroes was my first MMO, & my favorite computer game.
R.I.P.
Chyll - Bydand - Violynce - Enyrgos - Rylle - Nephryte - Solyd - Fettyr - Hyposhock - Styrling - Beryllos - Rosyc
Horryd - Myriam - Dysquiet - Ghyr
Vanysh - Eldrytch
Inflyct - Mysron - Orphyn - Dysmay - Reapyr - - Wyldeman - Hydeous
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Wow. Thank you again, Melancton. I agree with you, though...for any character to be interesting and sustainable, they have to be balanced. One of my favorite characters growing up on tv as a kid was Steve Austin aka The Six Million Dollar Man. I like him now as an adult because not only is he portrayed as the cool secret agent guy with robotic parts that can run in slow motion ( |
Originally Posted by Melancton
I think you eloquently explain the process I came down to as well. It has to be done with any number of superheroes now. For me, Batman is somewhere between the extremes of the mocking dufus of the 1960s TV series and the insane psychopath vigilante murderer of Tim Burton's movies. Obviously, some disbelief has to be suspended; the usual route for folks that want to protect others would be to join the police force or the Army, etc. But why can't Bruce Wayne's motivation simply be a noble desire that no other child will see their parents murdered on his watch? As I said, I default to the Hickman Statesman and ignore the StrawMan Statesman that other writers so enjoyed knocking down. You have pretty well called it. |
) but also as a caring human being who had to overcome his own direct trauma of being turned into a cyborg. He wasn't just one or the other, he was both. He suffered, he cried, he laughed, he learned. I would never care for Statesman at all if he was just purely one-dimensional. I see Marcus Cole, the scared young man dying from mustard gas poisoning, and I see Statesman, doing his best to help protect his world, his heritage from falling to threats his original generation could never imagine.
But maybe I'm just too enamored of 'classic' superheroes; maybe I'm just of a generation where terrorism wasn't really terrifying, and heroes were people you wanted to emulate and be like, both in fiction and in real life. Maybe I want to see the best in my fictional characters as I do in my real life friends and others.
But I'll also be one of the first characters in the game to mourn the passing of someone who in many ways was a greater hero than a lot of us could hope to be. Someone who as you said had a thousand volunteers willingly give their lives to aid a cause. That kind of man I would follow to Hades and back.
S.
Part of Sister Flame's Clickey-Clack Posse
Well, guess it was a good thing I finished my last Statesman story when I did the way I did ...
*sigh*
So I suppose this means we're going to lose the Rogue mission where you get to dress up as Statesman and say, "For Justice and kittens!" 8-(
Seriously, that one mission did more for making Statesman likable than six years of other in-game content ...
My COX Fanfiction:
Blue's Assembled Story Links
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If it was that easy to kill them off, it would of happened by now |
Originally Posted by AzureSkyCiel
Actually, based on a comment from David Nakayama, or what I can infer from it, the reason Statesman is being killed off is because out of all of them HE'S the one that's supposed to be invincible. The rest of the Phalanx are tough, but storywise, you could kill all of them except Citadel with a bullet to the head, and even Citadel might be forced to shutdown.
Personally, I do agree that it's a bit of a shame that instead of choosing to better write and develop Statesman, they choose to kill him off. But at the same time I understand the reasoning behind it, which is: This guy was a symbol of the pinnacle of power in the game and now he won't be, that's the player's role. So ironically, Statesman was chosen to die because he is the toughest. But on the plus side, if we look at the guy in a more positive and tragic light, he's earned this, after more than a hundred years of life. A life that has seen him lose countless loved ones and friends, lose the ability to relate to his fellow man, and every day lives in fear that the Well of Furies could take him over and drive him to slaughter everyone for a cheap laugh, he's earned his rest. |
Seriously, that's what they were thinking? Bullet to the head? Even witht heir own 99% chance save your life medical transporters?And for them tohave the player look like the symbol of the pinnacle of power, does this mean no more team content? Because teaming up to take on a group of minions isn't my idea of pinnacle of power.
Yes, doing so for a massive invansion is one thing, but regular hero business? Or not going one on one with an AV! I mean really...taking on an elite boss is a show of power?
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
The BrandX Collection
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Where do you find this mission? What level range?
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Originally Posted by BlueBattler
Well, guess it was a good thing I finished my last Statesman story when I did the way I did ...
*sigh* So I suppose this means we're going to lose the Rogue mission where you get to dress up as Statesman and say, "For Justice and kittens!" 8-( Seriously, that one mission did more for making Statesman likable than six years of other in-game content ... |
Culex's resistance guide
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You have to have gone from Villain to Rogue. I believe it's a mid twenties mission. It's a TIP on the path from Rogue to Hero.
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Originally Posted by Pitho
Where do you find this mission? What level range?
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My COX Fanfiction:
Blue's Assembled Story Links
Thought:
Statesman the hero dies, but not Marcus. Perhaps he sacrifices/ surrenders his powers to be free from the Well. Maybe he's just re-rolling and starting as a new AT.
Perhaps he grants a portion of his power to the player to-- as suggested elsewhere-- open a new Incarnate slot.
Est sularis oth Mithas
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Combine the two, and add the Market!|
Originally Posted by Arnabas
Maybe he's just re-rolling and starting as a new AT.
Perhaps he grants a portion of his power to the player to-- as suggested elsewhere-- open a new Incarnate slot. |
Statesman dies and Marcus Cole gains new powers. Completing the entire arc allows players to buy an AT/power set change on the Market for a bajillion PPs.
Arc#314490: Zombie Ninja Pirates!
Defiant @Grouchybeast
Death is part of my attack chain.
Honestly, since reading about the "Who will die?" SSA, I always figured it would be Statesman who would be the one to go. Now how and why were certainly up for speculation, but in putting more thought into it, I can see why it would be him:
Statesman is holding the story back.
Allow me to expand on that a bit. Some people seem to be looking at the WWD arc as just a stand alone item, just a simple story within the game, but I see it as just one small part of a bigger picture. And in looking at that picture, taking Statesman out of it would allow a great deal more options and storylines to be developed, especially in light of the current ingame lore.
Its hard to place when the WWD arc is taking place within the current storyline, but I am assuming its taking place at the same time as the current battle against the Praetorians with the Incarnates as the focal point of that conflict. If that is true, then Statesman death could have a great impact on how things would go from here.
We have been told, from various sources such as Prometheus that the Well is not happy with our two big incarnates: Statesman and Recluse. Recluse because he is trying to keep his power, but break the bonds that bind him to the Well; whereas Statesman refuses to not only increase his own power, BUT Statesman also doesn't want others to gain that power, for fear they would fall under the Well's control. To Statesman, every PC Incarnate is just a Tyrant in the making, someone bound to fall under the Well's sway. He seems unable to see how someone could learn to draw that power without going too far.
Someone in a post earlier in the thread said that Statesman reminds them of a classic superhero and that is very true. But unfortunately, like many classic superheros, he is a Black and White character in an ever evolving Gray and Gray world and is finding himself unable to keep up. Worse than that, he is holding others back whose help we could use. Right now, the only reason Primal Earth hasn't fallen to the Praetorian's is that we, the player characters, are striking as hard as possible, with help from Prometheus and our Resistance allies, to keep Tyrant off balance. As the Apex and Tin Mage TF's have shown us, if they do attack, our hero allies cannot stand up against the incarnate boosted Praetorians. Yet Statesman still refuses to let the Phalanx or their allies tap that power, even in the face of such evidence.
In light of this, our hero allies and even enemies have fallen from relevance. At this point, the Phalanx and even Arachnos are nothing more than minor players in events which they instead should have contribution in, even attempting to sway in their favor. But, if Statesman were to fall, this could change. Imagine if we were to have the primal heroes help fight their Praetorian counterparts, how that would allow for development of the characters and the different paths they could take. Or how Statesman death would shift the balance of power on Primal Earth; without Statesman there to stop him, Recluse may decide to make his move while he perceives weakness in the hero's side.
PS - As an afterthought, I find myself wondering if this may not lead to some interesting development for Ms. Liberty. Perhaps, if by some means she is given some of Statesman's power due to the events in WWD, this could be compared/contrasted by her Praetorian counterparts attempts to manipulate the Praetorian hierarchy in her bid for Tyrants power?
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I just hope his being around is not thing causing the temporal annomoly in first ward.|
Originally Posted by Zwillinger
There's a reason we announced this ahead of time. There's a reason we decided that this would be the cadence of the reveals. Perhaps all is not presently clear, and overtime it will be made as such, but there is a reason.
We wanted you to know in advance that States would die. We wanted you to know that this is coming. This is part of the delivery of the story which will play itself out in the coming months. It may just be difficult to see the forest for the trees right now . |
Then again, maybe recluse is the cause, and Statesman's death is simply something trying to put balance back in the universe.
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Admittedly, it is also selective reading on the part of the Statesman haters. It is a knee-jerk reaction to being told "this person is better than everyone else. You will respect and love him. You know he is awesome because everyone else loves him, except his enemies, and they don't count because they're evil and they only hate him because he's so awesome." The thing is, people have that same knee-jerk reaction every time they are told something like that. Then they start flinging around the term Mary Sue and wishing the character would undergo total existence failure. The harder you try to get people to like the character, the more they resist. Good writers realize that.|
Originally Posted by SuperOz
First of all, apologies for snippage.
Second of all, I hoped I had clarified that I felt the 'jerk' portrayal of Statesman isn't an accurate one, and I hold to that. As I said to Melancton, I couldn't reconcile the various portrayals of his personality and when I decided to make a choice on what I felt was a more rounded portrayal, I went with the more positive one. Is it selective reading? Yes. Do I feel I chose the better writing for the character? Also yes. |
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Originally Posted by Melancton
Fortunately, you have only one writer to deal with.
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Couldn't the Devs just kill the Sentient Insane Possessing Well of Furies instead? The writing has been consistently bad since the Incarnate System debuted.
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Originally Posted by Lewq
As the Apex and Tin Mage TF's have shown us, if they do attack, our hero allies cannot stand up against the incarnate boosted Praetorians. Yet Statesman still refuses to let the Phalanx or their allies tap that power, even in the face of such evidence.
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| Or how Statesman death would shift the balance of power on Primal Earth; without Statesman there to stop him, Recluse may decide to make his move while he perceives weakness in the hero's side. |
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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Judging from a lot of the characters out there lacking biographies or descriptions and the fanfiction of ALL the different people who've kicked Statesman's and Recluse's butts, the same can be said about a lot of player characters, too.
| No, the question is "what's right with him?". He's practically a part of the scenery in the game, a swaggering tin-plated dictator with delusions of godhood in the comics and a self-centered jerk in the novels. He might be the most powerful hero in the setting but he's certainly not the greatest, or even great. His status in the setting is an example of an Informed Attribute. Of course, much the same could be said about any of the "signature characters" |
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
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Characters like Superman and Batman have had decades to work their way into public consciousness, and we weren't playing characters in their universe. Even if the Devs had wanted to, the game didn't have the capability to have us team up with Statesman and pals back in 2004, so it's really hard for us to get to know them in a way where we particularly feel connected to them. (And to be fair, there are many people who hate Superman just because he's that powerful. Statesman could be the best written character in the game, with every arc he appears in being a 5 Gold Star production, and there are people who would hate him just because of his power level.)|
Originally Posted by Eva Destruction
Admittedly, it is also selective reading on the part of the Statesman haters. It is a knee-jerk reaction to being told "this person is better than everyone else. You will respect and love him. You know he is awesome because everyone else loves him, except his enemies, and they don't count because they're evil and they only hate him because he's so awesome." The thing is, people have that same knee-jerk reaction every time they are told something like that. Then they start flinging around the term Mary Sue and wishing the character would undergo total existence failure. The harder you try to get people to like the character, the more they resist. Good writers realize that.
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Personally, I'm not a big fan of "Let's Kill Off Character X" in comics, and the sort of impact that Statesman's death would have in a "real" Paragon. is not something we're going to see in game which substantially dulls my expectations for what we're going to see.
In game, Statesman has been the world's greatest hero, its last line of defense against the evil of Recluse, of Nemesis, the Rikti, etc, for more than 70 years. Arguably, his death should have an impact comparable to the First Rikti Invasion. This would be like America losing its nuclear weapons and Santa Claus all at once. Nearly every contact we have Blueside should be freaking out to one level or the other.
Paragon City becomes a lot less safer place without Statesman. It should literally change the entire game.
But it won't.
My COX Fanfiction:
Blue's Assembled Story Links
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It's not fanfiction. I have kicked Recluse and Statesman's butts. Granted, I had to have the Jade Spider help me with States, stupid Unstoppable. That said, I don't expect you or anyone else to care about my characters. If I wanted you to care I'd put them into an AE arc and let you decide for yourself whether or not you care, assuming that the default answer is "no" and I have to work really hard to make you care.
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Originally Posted by Mr_Grey
Judging from a lot of the characters out there lacking biographies or descriptions and the fanfiction of ALL the different people who've kicked Statesman's and Recluse's butts, the same can be said about a lot of player characters, too.
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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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Originally Posted by Melancton
Fortunately, you have only one writer to deal with.
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Originally Posted by Eva Destruction
Yes, but my writer sometimes drinks and has been known to play under the influence. Which leads to such out-of-character moments as "Eva Destruction tried to solo Nemesis? on an AR Blaster back in i5."
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"How do you know you are on the side of good?" a Paragon citizen asked him. "How can we even know what is 'good'?"
"The Most High has spoken, even with His own blood," Melancton replied. "Surely we know."
Statesman not only deserves to be killed off, his alternates do too. Retroactively.
If you felt Statesman was shoved down your throat before, then once he's gone there won't be a single blueside mission that won't reference him, a big statue of him will be erected in Atlas park, Redside will mention him if only to say "there's no one standing in our way now that Statesman's gone!"
If a significant number of players don't want to emulate the values he represents, then that also says something about those values, doesn't it? You can't dictate morality to your playerbase. We saw how well that turned out with Going Rogue.
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