Thank you, for everything, CoH.

This is probably the 15th time I've tried to write a formal note, reflecting my feelings of City of Heroes, and what this game has meant to me over the last 5 years. Every time, thus far, I've tried to write something, and put these heavy emotions into words, I break into tears, and can only sit and cry. With so many amazing memories, it's impossible to begin describing how much CoH has meant to me. But, I'm going to give it a definite try.

First of all, I started playing 5 years ago. In fact my 5 year anniversary just passed last month, but I'll never see that badge, LOL.

Originally, the guy I was seeing at the time, had confessed to being a gamer, and wanting me to get involved. We talked over what games we'd like to play together, and went to Game Stop, where we looked at Star Wars Galaxies and City of Heroes (this happened before the Good vs. Evil edition. CoH was its own box, and CoV was its own box). I remember the clerk talking me out of Star Wars Galaxies, promising me I would love CoH for the costume editor alone. Well, the guy wasn't lying. I remember the laptop I had, at the time, could barely run CoH, and it couldn't even begin function well enough to hold the load Freedom or Virtue had, so I started out on Protector, where I got my first 50, Voltage Rogue. Mind you, getting this first 50 took forever, because I was a very casual player, at the time. But, I remember the people who were with me when I got it, and how excited I was to have gotten the kill shot on a Nemesis controlled Manticore that ding'd me to 50.

To be honest, the driving factor for me to get to 50 was to join a mothership raid, and learn to lead them, because Rikti War Zone had just become a co-op zone.

Remember the days when a Villain couldn't trade with a Hero? Made for some very interesting LGTF's and ITF's.

Over the next 4 years, I celebrated both life and death with the community members of this great game. The people I met, in CoH, helped me through some of the roughest times of my life. Most notably, the people I consider friend, here, helped me realize the engagement I was in was abusive and I needed to get out. While I was out of work for a year and a half, the people here encouraged me to keep looking for work, promising me it would eventually turn out all right. I met the love of my life on this game, just last year, and am happy to report that we are making plans to move in together as soon as he is out of the military, come October 2012. This game has allowed a long distance relationship to stand up to the stress that comes with a long distance relationship. For that, I will always be grateful. I have spent more holidays here, than I have with my own family, and I am okay with that, because the people I spent those holidays with ARE my family. Half of the numbers in my phone belong to people I met in City of Heroes.

My home became Freedom, where I learned how to crunch numbers, and build some of the best builds this game has ever seen. Hell, this game helped me pass an algebra exam, when I decided to go back to college. Go figure that! It also became my home the day I finished building my gaming desktop, and tossed that old laptop into the garbage can . I can definitely say that Freedom has its own flavor. My first Freedom toon was a Fire/Kin controller, and I remember people asking me if I was making that toon to farm with. I had no idea what a farm was, because we didn't farm on Protector. Freedom taught me how to manipulate the game to bend to my will, not me bending to it's will. I learned it was entirely possible to run a ITF in 15 minutes, how to pvp (though I was never any good at it ), and that regardless of team make-up, it's the players that make a team work or fail.

I'm really going to miss running task forces with people I've played with, for so long, that I know their playstyle, and how to accent that, regardless of toon, AT, or how 'pimped out' it was.

I know this game isn't going away until November 30, and they WILL have to forcably disconnect me from the servers to get me to leave.

Until that day, I know I'm going to try my hardest to play every piece of content I can get my hands on between now, and then. And I'm going to try to team up with as many people (friend and stranger alike) between now, and then.

I've never been very good at putting words to feelings, especially when they are my own, because I'm always afraid no one will understand what I'm trying to say. But, in order to be super, you gotta continually face your fears, right?

Bottom line, it has been a pleasure, and honor, getting to know each and every one of you. No game will ever feel quite like home, the way CoH does. Thank you, all of you, for being some of the most amazing people I have ever met, and keeping me positive, even when I thought the world was coming to an end.

while i never got a chance to play in game with you, it was a very nice experience to get to meet you and the several other players who were at the MD meet/greet earlier this year

i only wish that i could have afforded to go to more of those

Obs, this is @Grimmloch; though we didn't chat much, you exemplified the kind of person and player that kept me coming back to this game. Simultaneously capable and humble, fun to chat and team with....just a good person. One of many who comport themselves well, and I have appreciated that so much.

I'll be around till the end too, and will be doing my part to speak up against our untimely dissolution.