new player, lots of questions

ok i'll skip introductions and get right into the questions.

what is the max level in the game? about how long does it take to reach the max level/how much effort involved?

is there a limit on the number of primary and secondary powers we can learn in each of our sets? what i mean by this is, every 2 levels i can pick a new skill to learn, if i pick a pool power, will that prevent me from learning one of the primary or secondary powers later on? also is it possible to learn all of the pool powers?

is there a plain simple list somewhere (like wikipedia or something) where i can see all of the powers (and short description of what they do)? as is i can only see the new pool stuff every few levels when something unlocks (so i cant see 2 or more steps ahead).

also can someone explain a bit about the reward bonuses thing? how often do we get points for it? do we have to max out each tier before going up to the next one? if not, is it possible to move sideways across the tiers or do we have to pick the thing that is right above the highest one we put a point into? also on the tiers, where it says that capes unlock, does that mean the ability to use them (same as the purchasable one in the shop)? does that also unlock the capes themselves (like the regular capes, not the ones in special costume sets)?

and are there any (other?) purchasable items that unlock on their own at a certain lvl or with a quest or the reward tiers?

i think that's all for now. any help would be appreciated. thanks.

First off, welcome to the game!

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Originally Posted by TurkeyMash what is the max level in the game? about how long does it take to reach the max level/how much effort involved?

The max level is 50. How long/difficult it is to get there will vary widely by how you play, plus it just gets easier once you know your way around. I recently got a character from 1-50 in about 60 hours of play time, which was pretty intense, although some people can do even faster. For your first 50, I'd expect it to take a few hundred hours of play time, although possibly much less if you find a good team/SG, and MUCH less if you get powerleveled. But don't do that, you miss all the good stuff. You shouldn't even consider letting someone powerlevel you until you know exactly what you'd be skipping. Unlike some MMOs, the fun doesn't start at the level cap, so don't be in a rush to get there.

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is there a limit on the number of primary and secondary powers we can learn in each of our sets? what i mean by this is, every 2 levels i can pick a new skill to learn, if i pick a pool power, will that prevent me from learning one of the primary or secondary powers later on? also is it possible to learn all of the pool powers?

You can take every power from your primary and/or secondary if you want to, limited only by how many power choices you get (a total of 24, by level 50). You can only choose four power pools, plus one "epic" pool at level 35+, but you can take as many powers as you want from the pools you choose, again limited only by how many power choices you get.

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is there a plain simple list somewhere (like wikipedia or something) where i can see all of the powers (and short description of what they do)? as is i can only see the new pool stuff every few levels when something unlocks (so i cant see 2 or more steps ahead).

Paragonwiki has great info on just about everything you could possibly want to know about the game, including powers. You can also use Mids Hero Designer, which lets you plan out a whole build and see numbers and detailed information on what everything does.

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also can someone explain a bit about the reward bonuses thing? how often do we get points for it? do we have to max out each tier before going up to the next one? if not, is it possible to move sideways across the tiers or do we have to pick the thing that is right above the highest one we put a point into? also on the tiers, where it says that capes unlock, does that mean the ability to use them (same as the purchasable one in the shop)? does that also unlock the capes themselves (like the regular capes, not the ones in special costume sets)?

Everybody starts with one reward token. You get an additional token at the end of each month of VIP subscription, and for every 1200 points you purchase. You must fill a tier completely before starting the next, but you can spend your tokens anywhere you want within the tier you're currently working on. Cape use isn't in the rewards tree, AFAIK - capes are unlocked by doing a mission at level 20+. What you're seeing in the rewards window is probably shoulder capes, which go over one shoulder, rather than regular capes.
Some relevant links:
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Reward_Token
http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Paragon_Rewards_Program

I hope this helps, and I hope you're having fun Don't hesitate to ask if you have more questions.

Welcome aboard.

Indeed welcome. http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page is the start for most questions.

Leveling. yeah. It is very different in CoH/CoV. My standard 1-50 is about a week, and I work full time. I can level one to 50 pretty fast to 50 maybe 4 days, if I can add a couple full weekend days, then 2 nights grinding. My current project is to do all content Blueside on one character as I level. He is currently 29 (I turn off experience a lot) and will be for another week or so. He was rolled up about a week before New Years. I am hoping to 50 him sometime in early March at this rate. Late February would make me happy too. Early February would make me ecstatic. You want to find something in between those two extremes.

I suggest running the introductory mission, then the story arc in atlas Park, that opens missions in Kings Row with the same contact. If you do not have the patience for full story arcs see if you like running with teams. Big teams are a very good source of experience, and after 20 or so the only reliable and stress free way to level at a good clip. Soloing story arcs is a very slow way to get experience. The rewards there are different. You learn the city, and get "Merits". More at Wiki for that. If you find you like story arcs you can open them this way: anytime you run a series of "radio missions" or "paper missions" villain side you get a "bank mission". Heroes run the Safeguard, villians get the Mayhem. After completing the contact that gave it to you will give you another contact, who has a story arc.

There are sewer missions, aka Death From Below trials. They are very fast ways to level to 10, and fast to 20 if you do not mind grinding some. You learn almost nothing about the game, teamwork, or anything. They are sanctioned powerleveling, they dumb down everything they can, and give incredible rewards. I would suggest using them a bit, but really focus on getting out and playing your character, seeing if you like the powers, the effects, the concept. Sewers are dumbed down so much you cannot even use most powers in them.

The biggest experience killer in the game? Altitis. This is the termed coined for making up new characters constantly. Most people who play are afflicted to at least some degree. It is cool, and we all definitely understand. But that is the biggest threat to not 50ing right there. If you find a character concept you like, and a couple power sets you like, and an archtype that suits your playstyle (and you stay mostly on that one character) within a few weeks you should 50, if you play about 10-20 hours a week. Moreover, you will learn to play the character well, and have a lot of fun.

Good luck in the cities.

thanks a lot. i have a few more questions from the info you both provided.

i used the char designer thing and came to the conclusion i wont be able to max out each skill with 6 slots. if i want to remove slots to put on other skills how would i go about doing that?

First, welcome to the City! I'm going to assume you mean move slots in game, not in Mids. If you meant Mids after all, well, this info may still be useful sometime.

In order to change your slot placement and power selections (in-game), you need to Respec. Here's the Paragon Wiki page: http://wiki.cohtitan.com/wiki/Respec

If you are still a very low level (under 10) my suggestion is to visit a Trainer/Tailor, save your costume, and re-create the character, as your only real respec option at that point is to buy one with Paragon Points (our cash shop).

From levels 10 to 24, you can use the second build feature as a sort-of respec. This will let you choose all your powers and slotting as if training for the first time. You can use this method once. (You can also use this method after 24 of course.)

At level 24, you can begin earning respecs by running the Respec Trials. These are Task Forces, so you need others to help you. You can earn three respecs over the life of your character this way, after level 24 for the first, 34 for the second, and 44 for the third and last.

Also, the developers have historically granted free respecs at new Issue releases (our major content patches) if there are major changes to powers. Issue 22 recently became available on the VIP Beta server, so it is likely still over a month away. I anticipate a free respec with I22 as there are changes to Stalkers and Gravity Control coming, but I'm not a dev, so I can't say we will get one for certain.

A pointer for character builds in general that new players may get bit by: I never put slots in Brawl, Sprint, or Rest. When I was new, I did sometimes put a slot in Sprint because I wanted more jump power, but the ability to enhance Jump (or run for that matter) is generally not worth a slot that can be better used elsewhere. Some people may dispute slotting Brawl, especially where Brutes and/or Invention Origin proc enhancements are concerned. I don't know if you have a VIP subscription, but if you don't the Procs are unavailable to you, and even for Brutes, I feel a single Accuracy is sufficent.

I apologize if any of the below have already been mentioned, but if not...some good items to take a look at for new and old players alike:

http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=274219
MIDS guide


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-Cnpbgfd70
MIDS youtube walk through


http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=281715
misc game info

Besides the Wiki, there's also the old RedTomax database which is now maintained by CoH Titan. It's a very helpful guide to picking powers and understanding classes (ATs) regardless of your experience level with City of Heroes.

http://tomax.cohtitan.com/data/powers/

Welcome to the game and the forums

I've posted something like this before, so I'll do it again.

Do not rush to the end game. The end game is something to rush to only if you've been playing for a couple years and have exhausted the story lines. It isn't the be all and end all of the game like with so many other MMOs. In fact it was pretty much tagged on after 7 years of people asking why there wasn't an end game.

Most MMOs are like a theater. The leveling experience is like trying to find a parking place, then standing in line for tickets, then standing in line for snacks. The real entertainment doesn't begin until you are seated and the movie starts. And if you can manage to skip the whole waiting experience then so much the better.

COH is more like Disneyland with a Disney cartoon being shown at the exit. If you just enter the park and jump on the tram that takes you to the theater then you watch the cartoon and leave it's likely you would say "Wow, Disneyland sure sucks. I wonder why it's so popular."

So enjoy the park. See the exhibits and get on all the rides you can. Don't worry about getting to the end until you've had fun doing all the neat stuff in the park.

Not rushing to the end-game used to be standard advice when the game didn't have much of an end-game. It's still valid advice, but now there's actually content at 50+ so it's also more understandable to want to get to that point.

If you do decide to rush to the end-game, make sure to practice your altitis and make a new toon to level up more slowly. A lot of old-timers are used to doing this, and you'll be surprised at the company you meet along the way.

And even if you rush to the end, now you can do most of the game's missions (every story arc, I believe) through Ouroboros.

Well, except Praetoria stuff. If you do make a Praetorian sometime, the story missions there are great but you REALLY need a character that can solo well. It's really really hard to get a team there.