MTS

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  1. MTS

    Is that 21?

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sun_Runner View Post
    How about "I bought this powerset. It didn't go through. I bought it again. It didn't go through. Then I got both emails and it went through. But I can't get my points or my money back from buying it the second time." I did this in the beta with the available powersets. I'm going to assume that others will make this mistake as well. On a beta with free points, its' not a problem. On live with paid-for points and no refunds? Problem.

    Or when buying the extra storage expansions. You did notice how difficult it was to keep track of which ones you had already bought and which ones you still needed to buy? I know I did. I'm relatively certain I bought a few of them multiple times. Again, beta, free points, no problem. Live, paid-for points, no refunds, problem.
    If it were to somehow launch before the problem was fixed, and people on live ended up being double-billed due to technical issues, I guarantee you there would be refunds.

    Saying "all sales are final" is all well and good, but there are these little things called consumer protection laws that states tend to take rather seriously.
  2. MTS

    Is that 21?

    Those aren't even the only two issues I'd consider a showstopper. The character creator bug where if you put in the name on any screen except for the very last, it reserves the name and prevents anyone (including you) from using it could be EXTREMELY frustrating to anyone who doesn't know the workaround.
  3. MTS

    Is that 21?

    Well, we have at least two instances of red names on record as promising that it wouldn't be released until a critical issue was fixed.

    One was the mac client crashing when trying to access the store.

    The other was the store showing things you've already bought and letting you buy them again. *

    Both of those issues still exist on beta. We'll see if they actually keep their word on these, but given how critical those issues are, I think they will.

    * Hmm, I can't seem to find a link for that one. I KNOW I saw it, though. It might have been Positron in the Aug 4 ustream broadcast, I'll have to go rewatch it.
  4. IIRC I think the set that was hit the hardest by the pet recharge change was storm. Lightning Storm in ultra-high recharge builds was a sight to see, especially since Hasten carries over to the pet.

    Fire/kin was never really about the imps. It's fulcrum shifted hot feet + cages that does the majority of the damage, since containment effectively doubles your damage cap.
  5. Registry keys it definitely wants to be able to write to:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\NCLauncher
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\NCsoft
    (on 32-bit Win7 this should be directly under SOFTWARE instead of under Wow6432Node)

    I also just tracked down the other random issue I was running into. Believe it or not, it was a filename case-sensitivity problem. It had "C:\Games\CohTest" saved in NCLauncher\Config\Default\GamesAddendum.xml, but the actual directory is named CoHTest (with the capital H).

    Changing it in the XML file, or just deleting that file and letting the launcher re-create it cleared that message right up. Now I have it running fine without admin rights.
  6. It's possible, I've messed with it a couple times. Process Monitor from sysinternals is helpful here, you can filter on *DENIED*.

    Unfortunately the NC launcher seems to have some rather silly checks like "Directory is owned by current user and has full control over it" rather than, you know, just testing if it can write to it... So you'll have to give it to the individual user instead of the Games group, which is annoying.

    The latest version of it has some other admin check I haven't been able to track down. It works, but pops up warnings and then tries to run NCAccess (which crashes). I just replaced NCAccess.exe with a simple program that does nothing, but it gets rid of the crashing at least.
  7. MTS

    News from PAX

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SlickRiptide View Post
    If that's what some marketing person considered the best foot, then I'd say they either need to get back to the drawing board (so that said marketing person has better options) or they need to consider someone else for the position (so that the game doesn't look ridiculous).
    I agree in hoping that isn't what marketing considers their best foot forward. If it is, they should have picked something other than BLUE.
  8. MTS

    News from PAX

    What I think is funny is that people are interpreting one out of focus screenshot from a teaser slide show as representing the ENTIRE range of options available for a costume set.

    I'd wait for the official preview before spending all my energy writing long rants about it.
  9. I need to check those numbers anyway. In the database editor at least it's showing the wrong damage numbers (it's using the values for the current AT rather than the Pet class), but on the actual power it might be doing it right, if you can manage to read it.

    I'll give it a once over tomorrow and post a list of the individual pet powers and what enhancements they take. I had a big long post typed up with all the details, but my browser crashed and ate it

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Necromatic View Post
    In my tests, targetted AOE procs and slow procs fire off with about the same frequency (at least in the small sample I did). The others, immob, knockback, are about half as much or less. Adding up all the damage, the procs accounted for roughly 2/3 of it (2 targetted AoEs and the slow damage proc).
    Sounds about right. IIRC all of them except the slow patch take Damage enhancements, and everything except the immob takes Slows. Only one of the vine attacks takes kb (I thought it was both but apparently not), and only the immob takes Immobolizes.

    The immob however is based on a really funky psuedopet design involving dead hostile targets, so it's hard to measure. It might proc a little more than once per 10 seconds, but I doubt it will measure up to the slow and the damage set procs.
  10. The build I was referencing is a permahasten build, and I still needed to put the Recharge IO in there to get Creepers perma. It had about an 8 second downtime without it.

    A Dam/Rech IO would be enough to get it perma, though. At the time I used generics because I wasn't completely clear if Targeted AoE Damage sets would be accepted by all of the pet powers. Now I'm 95% confident that if they can be enhanced for damage, the set IOs should be able to do it.

    Creepers are mechanically one of the most complicated powers in the game, so figuring out slotting can be tricky. For example, after looking at it again, the Trap of the Hunter proc might have multiple chances to go off on a single target if they're packed tight enough. However the power that does it also considers dead critters as valid targets (which is why you get phantom damage numbers from them, incidentally), and has a low target cap, so it's tough to say if it beats slotting for raw damage. That's probably a bug, but I think if the power gets looked at too closely it might get 'fixed' and not be as good.
  11. MTS

    News from PAX

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Feycat View Post
    Can you quote someone saying that? Because that hasn't been the complaint. We want the girl costume NOT to be skimpy-corset-skirt-highheels every time a set comes out and/or we'd like to have access to the "male" costume. No one's saying they want realistic pieces.
    Err, the male barbarian stuff looks a lot skimpier than the female one. Unless you're asking for an option to let them walk around bare-chested?

    I really wish they had picked a color other than blue to show the female version in though. I'm hoping that the fur is optional (like the magic bolero) and that they get the low cut boots. Even 'Witch' I think you can use as a pattern on regular boots if nothing else.
  12. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Master_Templar View Post
    Not trying to thread jack, but what about Javelin Volley proc? Thanks

    Best,
    -MT
    I always miss that one since Mids lists it first in the set instead of last. Yes, Javelin Volley should work nicely.

    Impeded Swiftness is still the clear winner, since it has a chance to proc from both Brambles (AoE auto-power, so 10 second timer), and both of the Vines' attack powers.
  13. Yes, it does benefit from accuracy. Mids doesn't show accuracy for pet powers, and when it does, it usually shows it for the summon power rather than any of the pet's attacks.

    My preferred slotting for Creepers is:

    Nucleolus Exposure (Acc/Dam HO)
    Dam IO
    Recharge IO
    Posi's Blast Proc
    Impeded Swiftness Proc
    Explosive Strike Proc

    In a build without lots of global recharge, I might swap out the Dam IO for another Recharge IO or a Dam/Rech dual IO, depending on how close to perma creepers I am.

    I don't use the Trap of the Hunter proc in it, as it only would proc for the entangle power and be subject to the 10 second timer, so I think it gets more benefit from straight damage enhancement.

    Also, be aware that the creeper patch psuedopet does NOT copy creator attributes, so temporary damage buffs won't affect it, and set bonuses like +Acc bonuses won't carry over either. Alpha and Interface should work I think.

    IMO the Recovery set bonus from Posi's Blast is so tiny that I wouldn't bother with it unless you wanted to use another set IO anyway.
  14. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Sideline View Post
    No, they are evil / other counterparts that is all. Power levels are something else all together.
    More other counterpart than "evil mirror universe", I think. I'm sure GG will vehemently disagree with me (), but I think the 'new' Praetoria seems to be based on the idea that the counterparts are basically the same people, but who were shaped differently by their circumstances.

    IOW, Tyrant wasn't born a ruthless dictator, he became one because that's what he thought he had to be to save his people.

    By the same token, Synapse might have turned out to be an arrogant jerk if people had put him on a high enough pedestal.

    And who's to say primal Tillman wouldn't have eventually gone crazy too if she hadn't gotten her body back? It's implied the circumstances of Mother Mayhem having Aurora's body are different as well, which could have quite an impact on her psyche (no pun intended).

    Primal Vanessa DeVore put on the mask in order to fight the Rikti. And she did - it wasn't until after they were pushed back that the hunger for souls consumed her. Praetorian Vanessa was still fighting her war...

    Anyway, I could go on and on, but it seems to me that it's more the setting that's different, rather than the players. Not the first time the idea has been explored in fiction, sure, but I still think it's infinitely more interesting than "evil goatee universe where everything is backwards".
  15. One thing I noticed is that the vet reward base items apparently only award once per character on beta, rather than being able to be claimed as many times as you want like on live.

    I reported it in the Paragon Rewards bug thread, but it would probably be helpful if someone else could test this and verify that it's not working for them either.
  16. Quote:
    Originally Posted by SlickRiptide View Post
    What Golden Girl said. Paragon City supplanted New York. It isn't entirely clear that New York even exists - It might be named Empire City instead. It also isn't clear where the United Nations is headquartered since, by extension, Paragon City would have been the most reasonable place to put it given the history of "Primal Earth". Since we haven't yet been told otherwise, I suppose that we assume that the U.N. is in New York or its analog. It matters to the extent that it would be good to know where the Vanguard is headquartered when they aren't spending their time in the RWZ.

    For that matter, we don't even really know what the state of the U.N. is in a post-Rikti-War world.
    Could be Geneva, since there's a very large U.N. center there. Makes sense if New Work wasn't in the running and Paragon was unsuitable for some reason (Rikti invasion?)
  17. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Call Me Awesome View Post
    The Earth Thorns are 30-40 mobs and yes, they are nasty. Ruin Mages first appear in the teens (possibly earlier, I haven't played that level recently but they're definitely in the Positron TF) and their earthquake is very annoying. I think the Ruin Mages do continue all the way to 50 although a high level one is far more capable than a level 10 one.
    Wiki to the rescue! Earth thorn casters are 35-39, while Ruin Mages are 15-24. I guess I was hallucinating when I thought I'd seen them both at the same time.

    Quote:
    High level CoT are still nasty
    I've never played a character that had any trouble whatsoever with level 50 CoT, not even solo blasters with SOs.

    At level 45 they lose their last few troublesome enemies. At 50 they literally only have Guides, Ice Thorn Casters (pathetic), Behemoth minions and Lts, and Death Mages (keep a breakfree for the stun and you're golden). That's it.

    There are Possessed Scientists near portal corp and on a couple redside missions, but other than them nothing else even exists at that level for them.

    Both CoT and Crey need a 45-50 pass IMO, as they lose a ton of variety and challenge. Ironically, the shadow shard reflections of CoT have a lot more variety at 50.

    Quote:
    Knives of Artemis
    I really don't get why people consider KoA difficult. Malta? Sure. Carnies? Yeah. But knives? I find them to be at worst a moderate annoyance (when playing melee characters). For ranged or control ATs, they are a complete council-level joke.
  18. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Oedipus_Tex View Post
    So... at any given point in time, is Praetorian Vanessa DeVore alive or dead?

    Not that I really care whether she lives or dies, but the single player storylines shoved into a multiplayer game are part of why I stopped reading mission text. If she is "dead" will she still be standing around in Praetoria as a trainer? Does she resurrect everytime we have to refarm this trial and is dead immediately after? When I am running Lambda just after an Underground am I correct to assume she is still dead or did time reset and she is alive again until the next time I run Underground?

    Seems like we have a case of Schroedinger's Carnie.
    Actually, not really. At level 50 you can't get into the resistance base to see if she's there or not, so it's not an issue.

    The possible contradiction with the responsibility arc where you have the option of turning her over to Mother Mayhem is an issue though. Presumably if you went that route she would had to have somehow escaped between then and when the underground trial takes place.
  19. Quote:
    Originally Posted by gameboy1234 View Post
    I lot of the game stays pretty easy. You are a superhero after all.

    Some of it though can get challenging quickly. Circle of Thorns are famous for TPK once you get past the very basic adversaries. Watch out for Ruin Mages.
    Earth Thorn Casters can be nasty at the level you first encounter them, too. Stacked quicksand and say bye bye to your defense. Pretty sure they're in about the same range as Ruin Mages, which makes for quite the combo.

    Then they kind of get wimpy around level 40+ and eventually become the Circle of Fail with nothing but ice thorn casters, behemoth Lts (not even the boss ones anymore), and death mages. Yawn.

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DarkGob View Post
    Pfft, Carnie Illusionists (and Master Illusionists) were cheating for years before the Praetorian Resistance even existed. Attacking while phased? WHY THE HELL NOT
    Not to mention phasing while held...... Dirty cheaters.
  20. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lazarillo View Post
    2)The leaked photos included some female minions, which is one of the things I actually did like quite a bit about the revamp. Are they still around, or were they dropped to focus on fixing the costumes in general?
    Well, they've said that the circle of thorns costumes will be one of the NPC sets purchasable for use by players, so it stands to reason that female versions of it will at least exist.

    Whether or not the NPCs use them is another matter, but at least it would be easy enough to do.
  21. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Microcosm View Post
    but it has since been said that burnout's recharge won't be reduceable, making it generally quite useless in my view.
    Is there a source for that? At 30 minutes base, I have a hard time believing that it won't be slottable for recharge. That sounds like just the kind of "set it at 2-3 times how often want people to be able to use it" methodology that most long recharge powers use.
  22. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ura Hero View Post
    There's no Tol Barad in CoH...
    There's no PvP in the champagne room?
  23. MTS

    Debuffing AVs?

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Shadey_NA View Post
    So that -85% to tohit debuffs is confirmed?
    Yes, that's correct. The details are here:

    http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Archvillain

    85% is against a level 50 AV. It's less (but still a lot) for lower-level AVs. Also, it'll be even worse against an AV who is higher than you. Your debuffs are only 48% effective against a +4 enemy, and that's before the AV resistance.

    See also: http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Purple_Patch
  24. They played it over ustream last... wednesday I think? I don't know if they played the whole thing, but what I heard sounded true to the original. I don't think they would dare remove the iconic theme there, it was just longer and transitioned into (or maybe from) some strings.
  25. Quote:
    Originally Posted by MoltenSlowa View Post
    For some reason, it reminded me of this. Not sure why, but it was awesome either way.
    That video always makes me laugh so hard when I see it. Something about all the in-jokes and references packed so tight you have to go back to see the ones you missed.