Discussion: Featured Items at the Paragon Market - 2/21/12
By
Agent White,
Posted on: 2012-02-21 10:42 in News, Events and Announcement Discussion
An alignment change merit? Seriously? Like it's that hard and unrewarding to do it the 'long, hard way.' Maybe we can buy a merit to buy purples or incarnate abilities next.
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i think its more of the pay to save time thing|
Originally Posted by Darkscar
An alignment change merit? Seriously? Like it's that hard and unrewarding to do it the 'long, hard way.' Maybe we can buy a merit to buy purples or incarnate abilities next.
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instead of taking 4 days to rerun tip mishs you prolly done 100 times you can instantly change alignment regardless of which side your currently on
edit: the only thing i notice is that the alignment token works regardless if you have the GR alignment system, although it does seem kinda pricey at 800 pts
So 800 to switch once but 900 to be able to switch unlimited but some game play is required. Seems like a no brainer to me why would any buy this switch token?
I have to say that the alignment change token rubs me the wrong way too. At some point you have to wonder if there's any limit to what's for sale in the market.
The City of Heroes Community is a special one and I will always look fondly on my times arguing, discussing and playing with you all. Thanks and thanks to the developers for a special experience.
Alignment change tokens are great, and will save badge hunters time when new issues come out with opposite-side badges. They also will be great for roleplayers that want to RP a sudden change of personality or alignment (for situations like mind control, possession, curses, etc).
800 points, however, is exorbitant. That's the price of a new powerset. Featuring the entire alignment change system also highlights how expensive it is-- 800 points for a one time change on a single character, or 1200 points (900 right now!) for the ability to do it with any character, forever, after running 20 tip missions and two moralities, and bundled with it is new content, alignment powers, and alignment merits.
It's too bad, I was planning to buy these. I was expecting 80-160 points with how minor their effect is.
I'll probably be running the new SSA tonight, looking forward to seeing the impact of Statesman's death.
Please try my custom mission arcs!
Legacy of a Rogue (ID 459586, Entry for Dr. Aeon's Third Challenge)
Death for Dollars! (ID 1050)
Dr. Duplicate's Dastardly Dare (ID 1218)
Win the Past, Own the Future (ID 1429)
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Agreed .. Come on where do we draw a line here? I don't care if it costs 800 ar 8000 points. I can do 5 missons for 2 days and go from hero to vigilante or villain to rogue. Two more days and the swicth is complete. If we are talking about a 20 level character that we want to convert what makes the difference if they earn XP required to get to 21 and beyond doing tip missions or anything else? If we are talking a 50 level that someone decided to switch well .. suck it up and take a few hours away from the incarnate trials to switch over.|
Originally Posted by EvilGeko
I have to say that the alignment change token rubs me the wrong way too. At some point you have to wonder if there's any limit to what's for sale in the market.
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I wonder how long before we get the.. Instant level one to level 50 token so you can just create a character and then POOF .. start running trials with them for incarnate powers?
�We�re always the good guys. In D&D, we�re lawful good. In City of Heroes we�re the heroes. In Grand Theft Auto we pay the prostitutes promptly and never hit them with a bat.� � Leonard
�Those women are prostitutes? You said they were raising money for stem cell research!� � Sheldon
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Sometimes people will want to take several days and play through a bunch of Tip missions to spin around the alignment wheel. Other times they'd be willing to spend some points to save time.|
Originally Posted by Lucky666
So 800 to switch once but 900 to be able to switch unlimited but some game play is required. Seems like a no brainer to me why would any buy this switch token?
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If you want to save money change your alignment with Tip missions.
If you want to save time change your alignment with Alignment tokens.
Seems like a no-brainer why we shouldn't or couldn't have both options.
Loth 50 Fire/Rad Controller [1392 Badges] [300 non-AE Souvenirs]
Ryver 50 Ele� Blaster [1392 Badges]
Silandra 50 Peacebringer [1138 Badges] [No Redside Badges]
--{=====> Virtue ♀
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Because I already own "Going Rogue", and my blaster can't get the scorpion shield without becoming a villain (he started long before there even *was* a red side).|
Originally Posted by Lucky666
So 800 to switch once but 900 to be able to switch unlimited but some game play is required. Seems like a no brainer to me why would any buy this switch token?
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So, I ran 4 days of tip missions and got my PPP shield. Now I get to log in, bring him back to hero side *tonight* and be on my merry way.
Make a man a fire and keep him warm for the day, SET a man on fire and keep him warm for the rest of his life.
Incarnates: K'lir(Fire/Dark Corr):Hot-House Flower(Plant/Fire Dom):Kinrad X(Kin/Rad Def):Itsy-Bitsy Spider(Crab):Two Ton Tony(Mace/WP Broot):Teeny Weeny Widow(Fortunata/Widow) : Zeroth Law (Ice/Fire Tank)
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Well, a hero that wants patron pools (for example) has to go hero to vigilante to villain to rogue to hero to end up back where they started. That's 44 missions, over 8 days. Hardly insurmountable, but kinda annoying. I don't mind paying for the convenience, although exactly how much it should cost is debatable.|
Originally Posted by Darkscar
An alignment change merit? Seriously? Like it's that hard and unrewarding to do it the 'long, hard way.' Maybe we can buy a merit to buy purples or incarnate abilities next.
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It also lets me skip the crazier-than-the-Punisher vigilante-to-villain tip missions. Suddenly showing up in the Rogue Isles with everyone thinking I'm a villain fits my usual "hero going undercover" plan better than killing a sidekick and his family over a blog post.
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Actually I'm not really sure how "debatable" the alignment token cost really is. To serve its purpose it pretty much had to be a bit expensive.|
Originally Posted by Hopeling
Well, a hero that wants patron pools (for example) has to go hero to vigilante to villain to rogue to hero to end up back where they started. That's 44 missions, over 8 days. Hardly insurmountable, but kinda annoying. I don't mind paying for the convenience, although exactly how much it should cost is debatable.
It also lets me skip the crazier-than-the-Punisher vigilante-to-villain tip missions. Suddenly showing up in the Rogue Isles with everyone thinking I'm a villain fits my usual "hero going undercover" plan better than killing a sidekick and his family over a blog post. |
You see the only real reason the original alignment change system required 10 Tips and several days is because the Devs wanted to prevent people from flip-flopping their alignments every 5 minutes. This stops anyone from being able to figure out any kind of an exploit that might have been possible if you could change alignments at-will.
So with this new alignment change token they had to make it expensive enough to "encourage" people not to use it all the time. You see the Devs don't really mind people switching alignments - they just don't want us doing it constantly.
Loth 50 Fire/Rad Controller [1392 Badges] [300 non-AE Souvenirs]
Ryver 50 Ele� Blaster [1392 Badges]
Silandra 50 Peacebringer [1138 Badges] [No Redside Badges]
--{=====> Virtue ♀
Conceptually, I don't have a problem with it, for the reasons others have outlined. However, I do think it's a bit more expensive than it could/should have been. I had been toying with getting them occasionally as time-savers, but at that price I'll just do without the badges/PPPs/etc, or wait until I can use my game time for a week or two to make the switch.
@Glass Goblin - Writer, brainstormer, storyteller, hero
Though nothing will drive them away
We can beat them, just for one day
We can be heroes, just for one day
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Originally Posted by Liquid
800 points, however, is exorbitant. That's the price of a new powerset. Featuring the entire alignment change system also highlights how expensive it is-- 800 points for a one time change on a single character, or 1200 points (900 right now!) for the ability to do it with any character, forever, after running 20 tip missions and two moralities, and bundled with it is new content, alignment powers, and alignment merits.
It's too bad, I was planning to buy these. I was expecting 80-160 points with how minor their effect is. |
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Originally Posted by GlassGoblin
Conceptually, I don't have a problem with it, for the reasons others have outlined. However, I do think it's a bit more expensive than it could/should have been. I had been toying with getting them occasionally as time-savers, but at that price I'll just do without the badges/PPPs/etc, or wait until I can use my game time for a week or two to make the switch.
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Much like server transfers and character renames most MMOs price services like this on the relative expensive side in order to motivate people not to do them whimsically. You see they don't mind if a person wants to switch servers or, in this case, change alignments. They just don't want people doing it any time they want. If nothing else this reduces the impact to the servers and prevents possible exploits.
So long before I had even heard of Alignment Change Tokens I pretty much assumed that if something along those lines ever happened they would be sold for a relatively large amount. *shrugs*
Loth 50 Fire/Rad Controller [1392 Badges] [300 non-AE Souvenirs]
Ryver 50 Ele� Blaster [1392 Badges]
Silandra 50 Peacebringer [1138 Badges] [No Redside Badges]
--{=====> Virtue ♀
When server transfers were first made available, long before the Paragon Market, they cost $10. Some people happily paid it. Others were outraged that they'd charge so much for it. The justification for the cost was that it wasn't to make money, it was to keep people from using the service on a whim. A price tag like that meant only people who were really, truly serious about wanting to change servers would even consider it. Otherwise, people would transfer from, say, Champion to Freedom to run a task force, then transfer back. That's not how the devs wanted the service to be used, so they attached a pretty serious "Are you SURE?" to the whole process in the form of a not-insignificant price tag.
When character renames were first made available, long before the Paragon Market, they cost $10. Some people happily paid it. Others were outraged that they'd charge so much for it. The justification for the cost was that it wasn't to make money, it was to keep people from using the service on a whim. A price tag like that meant only people who were really, truly serious about wanting to change their character's name would even consider it. Otherwise, people would change their characters' names all the time, maybe just to confuse or grief other players. That's not how the devs wanted the service to be used, so they attached a pretty serious "Are you SURE?" to the whole process in the form of a not-insignificant price tag.
Are we sensing a pattern here? Okay, one more:
Today, with alignment change tokens now available, they cost $10. Some people will happily pay it. Others are outraged that they'd charge so much for it. The justification for the cost is presumably that it isn't to make money, it's to keep people from using the service on a whim. A price tag like that means only people who are really, truly serious about wanting to change alignments would even consider it. Otherwise, people would change alignments daily -- maybe more often, especially if they figured out a way to exploit the alignment merit system. That's not how the devs want the service to be used, so they've attached a pretty serious "Are you SURE?" to the whole process in the form of a not-insignificant price tag.
Time/patience or points/money -- which do you have more of? Which is worth more to you?
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Purchasable Alpha-slot unlocks have actually been discussed on uStream (not the abilities themselves, just the unlock, like the one you can buy from Astral Christy). That and unlocking Cimerora account-wide so you won't have to do the same Midnighter arc on every. Single. Character.|
Originally Posted by Darkscar
Maybe we can buy a merit to buy purples or incarnate abilities next.
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No confirmation or anything, but it's been brought up.
Time/patience or points/money -- which do you have more of? Which is worth more to you?
FUN FACT: That burst of light when you level up is actually the effectiveness escaping from your enhancements all at once.
On another topic, where is the contact for the new story arc?
My new Youtube Channel with CoH info
You might know me as FlintEastwood now on Freedom
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I understand this, and am fine with the price of renames and server transfers. I also think that this is why alignment change tokens shouldn't cost 5 points. |
Originally Posted by Lothic
Yes one could argue that their effect is "minor". But the cost of these tokens really has nothing to do with their overall perceived value.
Much like server transfers and character renames most MMOs price services like this on the relative expensive side in order to motivate people not to do them whimsically. You see they don't mind if a person wants to switch servers or, in this case, change alignments. They just don't want people doing it any time they want. If nothing else this reduces the impact to the servers and prevents possible exploits. |
However, renames and server transfers cannot be done without a per-use purchase, so they can be sold at a higher price. I can change my alignment from Hero to Villain in about 4 hours of gameplay over 4 days, and in the process, enjoy relatively interesting content and receive 100 merits. I don't have to spend Paragon Points or use any kind of subscription perk to do so, I just need access to the system. All the tokens do is eliminate that 4 hours of gameplay (as well as the rewards for it). Consequently, I feel 80-160 points would be a more appropriate cost when viewing what the product actually does.
If you feel 800 points is appropriate, I'm not going to argue with you further, I just want my viewpoint to be clear. I know they want it to be priced so that it isn't used frivolously, and I feel anything from 80-160 would be enough to do that without overestimating the value of the product.
Please try my custom mission arcs!
Legacy of a Rogue (ID 459586, Entry for Dr. Aeon's Third Challenge)
Death for Dollars! (ID 1050)
Dr. Duplicate's Dastardly Dare (ID 1218)
Win the Past, Own the Future (ID 1429)
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In your contact tab, like all the others |
Originally Posted by JayboH
On another topic, where is the contact for the new story arc?
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Or less snarkily, PI and Grandville.
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Ok thanks - I will take a look at the map and look for new icons.
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Originally Posted by Hopeling
In your contact tab, like all the others
Or less snarkily, PI and Grandville. |
My new Youtube Channel with CoH info
You might know me as FlintEastwood now on Freedom
So you can jump between Hero and Villain right away? Or just from hero to vig?
http://www.virtueverse.net/wiki/Shadow_Mokadara
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This. I tested these on beta and was eager to see them go live so I could buy a handful. $10 to flip one toon? Lol. No Thanks I'll continue despising the work required for alignment swaps since that's gonna be the only way they get changed for me. These could have been great sellers, but Paragon Marketeers screwed up another potential goldmine |
Originally Posted by Liquid
Alignment change tokens are great, and will save badge hunters time when new issues come out with opposite-side badges. They also will be great for roleplayers that want to RP a sudden change of personality or alignment (for situations like mind control, possession, curses, etc).
800 points, however, is exorbitant. That's the price of a new powerset. Featuring the entire alignment change system also highlights how expensive it is-- 800 points for a one time change on a single character, or 1200 points (900 right now!) for the ability to do it with any character, forever, after running 20 tip missions and two moralities, and bundled with it is new content, alignment powers, and alignment merits. It's too bad, I was planning to buy these. I was expecting 80-160 points with how minor their effect is. I'll probably be running the new SSA tonight, looking forward to seeing the impact of Statesman's death. |
.AND aside from SSA6(which being VIP I don't consider an addition to the "market") that's the only new thing this week. Was super disappointed when I logged in and hit the featured button at 3am this morning
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10 50's To Date! Check out Titan Sentinel; it got my CoH presence synced online
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Hopefully that just means when i22 hits live, so will staff and beast |
Originally Posted by Psychic Guardian
Was super disappointed when I logged in and hit the featured button at 3am this morning
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. Either or will keep me satisfied.
http://www.virtueverse.net/wiki/Shadow_Mokadara
As a badge hunter, I find the abbility to instantly switch from H to V and vice-versa incredibly useful. I probably will only use the tokens for that purpose. Having said that, 800pts is a bit of an eye gouge, but I understand where it's coming from: the opportunity to switch your morals is at hand but the devs still don't want you to take it lightly.
Rabbits & Hares:Blue (Mind/Emp Controller)Maroon (Rad/Thermal Corruptor)and one of each AT all at 50
MA Arcs: Apples of Contention - 3184; Zen & Relaxation - 35392; Tears of Leviathan - 121733 | All posts are rated "R" for "R-r-rrrrr, baby!"|Now, and this is very important... do you want a hug? COH Faces @Blue Rabbit
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wouldn't get your hopes up, they've confirmed Staff will not be going live with I22 and since Beast came out -after-, it's a safe bet it will not see release either, especially since it's still in the middle of tweaking.
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Originally Posted by ShadowMoka
Hopefully that just means when i22 hits live, so will staff and beast
. Either or will keep me satisfied. |
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Originally Posted by ShadowMoka
So you can jump between Hero and Villain right away? Or just from hero to vig?
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Originally Posted by Beastyle
Instantly change a single level 20+ character's alignment from Hero/Vigilante to Villain or from Villain/Rogue to Hero.
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@Roderick
For all you badge hunters you do know that there is badges associated with vigilant and rogue tip missions don't you? You'd skip em going the instant route so...
New featured items in the Paragon Market!
Signature Story Arc, "Who Will Die?" Episode 6 - New!
Reeling from the loss of its leader, a member of the Freedom Phalanx does the unthinkable. Signature Story Arc, "Who Will Die?" Episode 6 is part of a 7 part story arc in our episodic Signature Story content. This story contains 1 hero and 1 villain story arc for characters that are Level 40+. This content is free for VIP players!
Market Location: Content > Story Arcs
400 Paragon Points for Free and Premium Players (Free for VIP Players)
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Alignment Change Token - New!
Instantly change a single level 20+ character's alignment from Hero/Vigilante to Villain or from Villain/Rogue to Hero. (City of Heroes Going Rogue or Going Rogue Alignment System not required!)
Market Location: Paragon Picks > Featured
800 Paragon Points
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Going Rogue Alignment System
Have the option to change your characters' moral alignment at level 20+ through making hard, story-driven choices that affect gameplay experience.
Market Location: Character > Systems
Regular Price: 1200 Paragon Points - 25% off
Sale Price: 900 Paragon Points
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Heros and Villains Super Pack
Get a randomized set of items ranging from the new Archetype Enhancements, new Elemental Order Costume Set pieces, valuable Inspirations, Unslotters, or Boosters!
Market Location: Super Packs
1 Pack - 80 Paragon Points
12 Packs - 840 Paragon Points
24 Packs - 1440 Paragon Points