Things to do before sunset

I've been away from the game for a few years. I did most of the content up to i15 or so.

I'd like suggestions on things I should try out or see before lights out. Specifics help (e.g. if you suggest a new task force, it would help to mention how to find the contact, since I might not otherwise know).

Thanks in advance.

I had to look up Issue 15 to find out what time we were talking about. First things first: They added power customization in Issue 16. Go try it out at a tailor or trainer. Green fireballs away!

All set? Good. Now, I'm not 100% sure that you'll be able to do all of this, since some of it might be gated behind VIP status (your name shows gold, which would normally mean yes, but I guess that's a bit buggy) or behind other content purchases. But, if you can, create a Praetorian character.

That's the big GOING ROGUE button at the beginning of the character creation process. If you can select that, then your new character will start in an alternate dimension where the line between good and evil is blurry, and all enemies are about four times as irritating. It's a completely different feel from either Paragon or the Isles, with the ability to make choices in arcs that send your story careening in different directions. (Ever wanted to murder your contact? Now you can.) It is also incredibly brutal and basically deserted, so expect to die. A lot. Still, it's worth it to see the ambitious, crazytown bananapants storylines.

The Praetoria Experience goes until level 20, after which your contacts will give you one last mission for a tearful reunion with all of the people you've saved, betrayed, or attempted to murder for the best of reasons. After that, you'll be sent to either Paragon or the Isles and everybody will pretend you've been there the whole time...

...unless you go to First Ward instead.

There are two more zones in Praetoria, both open to all VIP subscribers. First Ward has content in the 20-29 range, and Night Ward in the 30-39 range. They continue the pattern from the earlier Praetorian content of being big stories that break the superhero mold but also slam you with vicious ambushes and enemies designed to make you hate the game. (It's not that you can't solo it, but the difficulty really is noticeably higher. Enter it with the right mindset, and a few extra inspirations.) A Praetorian can stay, but you can also take any hero or villain there starting at level 20. Look for a Carnie to appear in your contact list. No, seriously.

Even if you don't have a character in that range, or want to create one, it's worth visiting First Ward and Night Ward just to see what the art team could do with better technology. You can gain access through the TUNNEL system, which are those swirly Easter-colored portals that appear next to some of the train stations and ferries. Watch out for the Seed of Hamidon!

I find the whole previous post really odd for anyone who plays CoH. CoH has never really been about the end-game, and despite that it actually got one, all the reasons it was worth playing without one still apply.

I have run literally over a thousand iTrials and mostly enjoyed it, and I would never tell anyone they should blow off the game's other content to race to 50 and grind out the same 10 trials over and over. Especially when, realistically, you're only going to see 5 or 6 of them run, especially now.

Yes, you can now achieve heights of character power previously unknown, even accounting for Inventions. (And if you're really into massive power, you can have both.) If that's what floats your boat, then iTrials are the way to achieve it.

However, if reading the story appeals to you, some very good content has been added to the game in First Ward, Night Ward, Dark Astoria, and various new contacts in existing zones which you may only be able to reach via Ouroboros, depending on character level. Also, the story content for characters created in Praetorea (levels 1-20) is, IMO, very high quality. (The actual challenge of playing there is a bit of a shock compared to, say, CoH - the critters are unusually nasty for their level, even after a rebalance pass, and large ambushes are unusually common.)

Thanks!

I should mention that I have plenty of characters at all level ranges. I've been wondering about the Incarnate trials and also the signature story arcs (although it's unclear to me if some of them are unreachable now that I can't buy paragon points). If the Incarnate stuff is fun I would like to give it a try, maybe scheduling something on the boards if necessary.

If you have any Paragon Points, you should be able to buy them.

In any case, if your gold forum name is any indication, you should be able to access them for free. They were free for VIPs.

I managed to re-up between the announcement and the time that they shut down purchasing on the game. Are there things that you have to buy with Paragon Points that aren't free for VIPs? For some reason I thought there were.

Curses. It does sound like a lot of great stuff was added after I left (which was a combination of having a kid and other life events). I doubt I'll be able to see it all before sunset happens, especially since I have a brewing crisis at work and I will likely have to put in some mega hours between now and December.

I was never a big fan of hami raids; mothership raids seemed more fun, even after hami was tweaked. I loved the final battle of the LRSF though. I'd like to give incarnate trials a go if I can find companions (and time). Most of my 50s are on Virtue but I have 50s on Infinity, Freedom, and I think Victory also.

After giving this some thought, I decided I prefer playing some of the characters I like best as opposed to creating new ones. Since all my favorites are level 50s, that points to the newer end-game content.

I just finished the new Dark Astoria arc. I have to say, it was really, really impressive. I have some quibbles with the changes to UI that have happened since I left (what's up with the progress bars on incarnate slots? They look like squashed oranges) - but the story content has improved pretty much linearly with time, IMHO. Well done.

I also did one I-trial and that was less satisfying... if I run out of high level arcs I might flashback Praetoria (assuming that's possible). So far though I'm pretty impressed with what's been done.

I'll miss this game, although I almost certainly played more than was good for me. I wonder if Paragon Studios itself will be open on Nov. 30 and if so, whether they'd let some players in to see the end with.