If you haven't looked at the new Skulls, please do.

Holy post padding, Batman.

QR: Lord, save us all from a surfeit of political correctness!

Fact is, people tend to hang around with... other people like themselves. Its everywhere, you will see it at work, at the mall, standing in line at the grocery-store: like tends to congregate with like. Of course some cross-pollination goes on, but in general this is what you will see.

Please note that I did not say the following: that people SHOULD hang around with their own kind to the exclusion of all others. They should not be FORCED to keep company with only their own.

But its what you see IRL. There are exceptions, but its what you see, pretty much.

I would find it much more jarring to see every group of NPCs consist strictly of one white guy, one black guy and one Asian guy. Man, what next: are we going to hear complaining about how the Tsoo are not 1/3 black or white or something? Be serious, of course an Asian group is going to have *Asians* in it. Does this mean the Tsoo are eeee-vil racists?

I like 'em. I always kind of liked the "generic street gang' aspect of most of the Skulls, but Bone Daddys have screwed up that vibe pretty handily since the beginning anyway. Really, I think a swing toward either of those extremes is an improvement. They didn't seem to have much of a worthwhile identity before.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Father Xmas That may be but to us old timers it was once part of Czechoslovakia and an Iron Curtain country, therefore part of Soviet Eastern Europe Vs NATO's Western Europe.

Yep, in this case "Eastern Europe" is a cultural distinction, not a geographic one. 90% or so of Russia's land area is technically on the Asian continent, but Russians are hardly what anyone means then they say "Asian people."

I think I should make my stance clear here: I do love the Skulls update, I do agree with others that they should not be made into a purely ethic crime gang (because we have enough of those) with the exception of the Petrovic brothers and maybe the higher ups like Misery, Manible, and the odd bone daddy or death walker/doll.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow City of Heroes is a game about freedom of expression and variety of experiences far more so than it is about representing any one theme, topic or genre.

But the "recruiting from anywhere" theme is already part of the Hellions, Outcasts, Trolls and Warriors vibe - this revamp just shifts the Sklulls a little closer to the Tsoo and the Family, and adds another layer to the gang.

The Trolls are also another of the reskinned Hellions gangs, but the green skin and distinctive way of speaking helps to make them feel a bit different - although they could do with a makeover too - probably something that'd emphasize the Norse stuff a bit more, to really like up to the Troll name - something like making newer/larger Supatrolls called Jotuns, and having new enemy types who are "berserkers" conststanly enraged by the effects of Superadine.

It's not a huge sticking point for me at all, but since there is some back and forth about differentiating them from the Hellions:

The similarity between the Hellions and Skulls seems to me to be the perfect reason for their rivalry and also is very realistic (and possibly poignant). Again, the change is really no problem for me, but since we're just talkin'...

Different gangs exist (as heated/fatal rivals) without so much as a difference other than their gang colors. Worship/rituals surrounding Death as opposed to Demons is far more than enough to differentiate and all that jazz.
The fact that they'd both be recruiting from the same crop of potential gang-bangers is even better.

So, I certainly do not believe in those reasons for the changes. I can accept the changes if that's what they want to do with them, but it wasn't necessary and I can understand people being less embracing of the changes to (or, at the very least, a finer focus of the details of) the gang's existing lore.

I, personally, liked the fact that the two gangs looked somewhat like the same guys with different colors, insignias and masks. It somewhat speaks to the nature of such things.