The Rularuu Assault: A set of "mini" iTrials

Okay, I got to thinking, "Villains hate helping others. They only got involved in the Incarnate fracas for their own skins...How can heroes and villains get their own, more different incarnate experiences to reflect this?"

My answer: Give heroes and villains their own separate versions of small iTrials!! The trials would be accessible as usual, through the TUT, but it would work more like the DfB/DiB, allowing only one-side teams in, as opposed to being co-op. The idea is that the two sides of each of the events are happening concurrently, (I.E. Trope Man beats his own reflection [see below] while Emperor Evulz is pounding Uuralur.) or in close procession (Trope Man disables the Factory Cubes, and then Evulz steals Chularn's weaponry.)

THE ASSAULT OF THE FACTORY CUBES:
*Hero: With the defeat of Tyrant and the Praetorian Hamidon, the Incarnate Heroes of Paragon City finds themselves dealing with a new threat: The actions of Darrin Wade may have stirred Rularuu. The heroes must disable the dreaded Factory Cubes of Chularn, and defeat the Slave Lord. This task has been complicated by the rituals of the Rulu-Shin, which have awoken extra power from within Rularuu and empowered Chularn and his minions. Can the heroes of Paragon defeat this new menace before they wipe out humanity long before Battalion arrives? Hopefully.
*Villain: Those goody-goodies from Paragon have gotten word that Chularn, that blowhard slaver from the Twil-er, Shadow Shard, is mobilizing his minions to make more weapons. While those suckers have them occupied, you can take advantage of things and get ahold of some sweet SWAG (Stuff Wickedly and Awesomely Griefed). Get in there before everybody else gets the good stuff! Just watch out for Chularn...those Rulu-Schmucks have managed to give him extra Mojo.

THE BATTLE OF MIRROR VALLEY
*Hero: After the assault on the Factory Cubes and the defeat of Chularn the Slave Lord, Rularuu's fragments have decided to take advantage of the natural features of the Shadow Shard; Namely, Uuralur the Mirror has perfected the reflection of Well-Empowered foes. These enemies may not have the full punch of their originals, but Uuralur plans to resolve this by forcibly absorbing the originals by any means, including killing them. If he succeeds, then Rularuu could gain enough power to escape the shard!

*Villain: Fresh off the Factory Cube gig, you found a...mysterious benefactor, willing to give you massive sums of moolah, on one condition: You have to get him a mirror from Uuralur's Garden. You'll have to fight the creep and take that mirror from his cold, ontologically inert hands, but boy will it be worth it to see Recluse's eyes bug out when you buy the Isles from under him. Be warned, though, if you're not careful, you might find yourself on the wrong side of the mirror.

THE PACKRAT ATTACK
*Hero: Kuularth the Scavenger has long been more of a nuisance compared to the other Aspects of Rularuu, until now: His Natterlings have found a small stash of Well-infused artifacts, undetected due to the fracas with Uuralur. Kuularth were to unlock their secrets, it could mean that Rularuu could regain control of the Shard, or worse yet, escape! You must enter the Repository and retrieve the artifacts, but beware: The Natterlings have fed upon some of the Incarnate Energy the artifacts contain, and there are strange, deadly, and previously unknown species living in the nest of Kuularth. While Kuularth is for some reason absent, he maintains telekinetic control over many constructs made up of the refuse in his abode.

*Villain: Your "benefactor" was very pleased with the *ahem* "quality merchandise" you "retrieved" for him. He's given you a shot at a "special source" of "high-end supplies" hidden in the Repository. Now get out of this storm of euphemisms and nab those artifacts while the Boy/Girl Scouts are busy with the Natterlings. And if that Kuularth moron shows up? Bash his cosmic face in!

THE DARKEST SHADOW
*Combined (sorry, guys!): "You have battled my Aspects at my very feet, stolen from my prison domain, and killed my underlings. Did you not think I would notice? I am Rularuu, devourer of more worlds than any of your mortal polymaths could ever comprehend, and I will kill you." Rularuu's ultimatum rang through the Shadow Shard as the entire reality rocked wildly: Rularuu has awakened, and he is not to be trifled with. He will attack you with all of his aspects, but if you can defeat them (and rescue his rebellious essence Faathim,) you will be forced to face Rularuu, with the stakes being the fate of reality. Prometheus has remained silent, except for one message: Before I can remove his power, you must destroy his body. Regardless of if he would destroy Earth, the Battalion would have no problems chowing down on Rularuu's Well-gorged form.

I'm throwing my money and Paragon Points at the screen but nothing is happening!

I approve wholeheartedly, the game needs MOAR RULARUU.....all of my /Signed.

Would Rogues & Vigilantes be able to use both sets of trials?

Plus, if they did something like this, villains would no longer need to always get folded into the heroes' team.

Edit:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Remaugen Would Rogues & Vigilantes be able to use both sets of trials?

No, just whatever side they happened to be on at the time. (If you're in the isles, you're doing it as a villain.)

A neat idea, but not big on the trial approach, for a variety of reasons. Make it an Incarnate-style Shadow Shard revamp, along the lines of Dark Astoria with a solo/small team approach? That'd be much more intriguing...

Well, I could see these being done as task forces, or as trials. Either way.

I like this idea. More of the shard is always a good thing.

I'm personally in favor of revamping the existing Shard completely, bringing Rulu-Shin into the Shard, making it "semi-Incarnate" (i.e., enemies go from 40 up to 54, and Incarnate shifts, work, but it's still suitable for lower-level characters, provided they avoid the really nasty stuff.), and adding the unused parts (e.g. Factory Cubes, Garden of Memories, the Repository, the Palace) as new zones, some Incarnate, some semi-Incarnate. And perhaps add some special swag (unique inspirations, special-origin enhancements, what have you) to the Shard. And open it to Villains. Seriously, why has Arachnos not tried to get ahold of some of that tasty Kora fruit? They're delicious!!

Sounds good, Wendy, but that might make things a wee bit more complicated as far as teaming, unless they added alignment to the reticle. If they did that, it'd be the perfect solution!