Ms. Mesmer

Legend
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  1. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Thunder Knight View Post
    I think the point was that "Artemis Crock" is an actual DC comics character, albeit an obscure one, not a character entirely made up for the series. The comics version (who uses a crossbow instead of a regular bow, and goes by the codename "Tigress") is the daughter of two villains, both of whom have appeared on the show (though her mother wasn't shown as a villain).
    I never realized or saw that Tigress, who originally went by the name Artemis way back in Infinity Inc., was actually named Artemis in real life. I always thought that was just an abandoned code name. It still doesn't stop her from being a child raised to be a League of Shadows assassin who eventually gets turned to being a hero, though. In fact, everything except for the certainty that she was part of the League of Shadows, rather than just known by one of their key members, has been established. This Artemis Crock already has more in common with Cassandra Cain than with DCU Artemis Crock. The argument could be made that she has some elements in common with DCU Artemis Crock's mother, the original Huntress, who was briefly a Young All-Star called the Tigress before becoming a villain.
  2. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Canadian_Medbot View Post
    Was I the only one who found a bowl of CC, while delicious, would turn the roof of my mouth into hamburger?
    When I was a kid, it certainly did cut up/tear off the top layer of skin from my gums and the roof of my mouth. I've had it in recent years, occasionally, and it doesn't seem to do that anymore. Perhaps my mouth has just gotten tougher over the years, but I suspect that they changed the consistency of it a bit so that it doesn't break off into such jagged pieces now.
  3. Well, yeah. If she does turn out to be "what if the natural-bred assassin prodigy was Merlyn's daughter, rather than David Cain's?" it would be kinda dumb for her to actually be named Cassandra Cain.

    Oh, and I went back and checked, and they're calling them the League of Shadows in Young Justice.

    Edit: Just to be clear, I don't think that she's going to be exactly like Cassandra. There are already some pretty key differences, like Artemis being able to talk. What I think is that they're borrowing certain broad elements from Cassandra's backstory for Artemis.
  4. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dark One View Post
    Miss Martian is just too cute. <3 Also, when was she in a cheerleader costume? That seemed to be thrown in there. Naturally, things have happened other than what we've seen, but that's kinda...random.

    Let's see...Psimon, Boom Tube, whatever the roller thingie is, and hints of Artemis' past. Doesn't Ollie have an archer-nemesis?
    That cherrleader bit was odd. It sounded like there was a laugh track in the background.

    There are hints of Cassandra Cain in what little we've seen of Artemis' background. Dad who trained her to kill and might be a member of the League of Assassins, or whatever more kid-friendly name they might be using in its place. Merlyn in the main continuity was a member of the League of Assassins, so she she could be a kind of new version of Cassandra, if she had been Merlyn's daughter.
  5. Father, you were half-right.

    It started off kind of slow, but really picked up. That was probably the best visual representation of a psychic battle I've ever seen.

    Oh, and Boom Tube.

    This show continues to to deliver on action, main character and plot development, and cameos.
  6. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Agonus View Post
    Man Ape is the next oldest I can find at '69. Wiki doesn't say when it was revealed that Black Manta was black.
    Black Manta was revealed as African-American in the same story where he killed Aquaman and Mera's son, in 1977.
  7. Making them account-wide would be great, it would completely relieve my worries that these will be some of those badges that become harder to get for an alt down the road.

    Unlike some would try and have you believe, this is not actually me being an alarmist, but that's all right, since it would appear that those people use words that they heard someplace but don't know the definitions of pretty regularly. I presented examples of other activities that require teams plus repetition, and give very good rewards, that just aren't anywhere near as easy to get the badges for now as they were when they were introduced, and those are the badges for the Mothership Raids. Thankfully, the developers reduced the Demolitionist badge from 25 to 10, so it isn't some arduous task. Most servers do at least 1 scheduled raid per week, so you can get both badges for it in 10 weeks with fairly minimal effort each week. My reasoning is that WST participation will be the same, as people get their Notices for their characters and move on. It's a guess, but it's a guess that is based on simple pattern recognition.

    I'll go a step further on this prediction. Instead of some nebulous "After Issue 20 launches" date, I'll give you a concrete date to look forward to, March 1st. That is when WST 5 will be announced. If I am right about Notices being the driving force behind a good part of the activity for the WST right now, as people are getting all of the level 50s that they care about the Notice to make a Rare, and later a Very Rare Alpha, then WST 5 will be noticeably less busy than previous ones were. The only caveat on this is if WST 5 is the ITF. ITFs are always extremely popular, and don't need special incentives to be so. If it is the ITF, then WST 6 will be where you see the drop-off.
  8. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Razoras View Post
    I've been on the LRSF half a dozen times and I had no idea there was a longbow in that group! Maybe it's random.
    He's been there every time that my Mind Controller has been the designated Sleeper of the Phalanx on the team. For any of the techniques that I've seen used for that fight, it could be very easy to miss him, since they all seem to end with a massive dogpile on Statesman, in which stray AoEs probably obliterated him.
  9. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    I'm not the one flip-flopping between trying to claim a distinction between badges that are "harder to get now than they were when they were new" and badges that don't have that quality. The fundamental flaw in your argument is that you're trying to push your OPINION that this new 50 count TF badge will A) become one of those "future harder" badges and B) that that's something to be considered "bad" thing as established facts.

    You may have enough experience with this game and badges to make valid assumptions those things "might" happen to this new badge. I just happen think this badge is NOT repeating the same mistakes epic badges have made in the past. "Bless your heart" for being an alarmist about it in this case.
    I made no flip-flop anywhere. I pointed out a distinction. That is all. A flip-flop is going from one side of an argument to the other, and I have been consistent the whole time. I also never once pushed my opinion as having any more weight than yours. I suppose that I could have put more "probably"s in my statements, but since we live in a world where nobody can be certain about the outcome of future events, I thought that it was pretty much implied. Please, keep trying to misrepresent my claims when they are there for anyone to read, it's rather amusing.

    I'm not the one calling people alarmists, after all, as I actually realize that this is fundamentally a difference in opinion, which is fine. The world is full of those. Again, time will tell if I am correct about the participation in WSTs declining over time, and with the introduction of alternative methods of getting the only reward that is currently unique to them. Even if my prediction is correct, you might still think that these badges are fine, and that is your right.
  10. The DE thing is a bug. Before Going Rogue, there were almost no actual DE at level 50, mostly just the monster types that you find in the upper islands in Peregrine, the Hive and the Abyss. You would get a map full of level 49s when you had a DE mission, regardless of your difficulty settings. When they added the new ones that were level 50, the same ones that have the base 64% ToHit, by the way, they don't seem to have created a level 50 Lieutenant version of the Greater Devoured for the Bosses to scale down to.
  11. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    So you just made the counter argument that ultimately there really isn't -that- much of a problem getting the majority of badges at any time you want. If that's the case then your concern about people having trouble finishing badges doesn't seem that pressing.

    In the wide range of different kinds of badges available I don't see it as major problem if we get an occasional badge (like this new 50 count TF badge) that's closer to the "might be hard to finish later on" end of the spectrum, especially if we can assume your take on it that there aren't really that many badges like that to worry about to begin with.
    No, but you've attempted to build a nice straw man to knock down, bless your heart. That was a counter-argument to this other little gem of misdirection here:

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    For years the badge system in this game has institutionalized the idea that "it's easier to work new badges when they first come out than 6 months later". And yes on some level that is an unfortunate situation.

    But I'll counter your valid concern by asking if you think we could ever get any new badges in this game that would not have that problem to some degree? Basically for years now the latest badges have always been easier to get when they first came out. I don't see that quality as a particular unique failure of these new TF count badges - that's pretty much going to be the case anytime new badges (which require serious teaming) arrive on our doorstep.

    Ultimately it would be cool if badges didn't suffer this problem in general. But I think if you're going to be against a specific set of new badges just because they are going to be harder to earn in the future then I think you're going to end up (at least indirectly) being against pretty much -any- new badge from now on.
    My argument is the same as it was from the first post that I made, that any new badges that will be considerably harder to earn in the coming months and years than they are when they are new are bad, be it 1 or 100. What it isn't is opposition to any new badges, as you tried to paint it.

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Snow Globe View Post
    Normally I would agree with you. In this case I won't. I don't see an end of people doing the Weekly TFs. The merit bonus, the Notice of the Well reward, and the XP bonus (for those that are not an Incarnate) will all work towards keeping these active. Maybe not as active as this week, but active.

    On the other hand, I think they should have made the Shard TFs co-op and did Dr. Q as the first WST to punish the people that would even think of rushing the badges in the first week. The notion that you have to get badges cleared in the first week needs to be changed.
    Time will tell, but I'm already seeing less running of the current WST as the week progresses. When the new method of getting the Notices comes in with Issue 20, it won't be a question of if the WST loses popularity, it will be a question of how much it loses. Right now, I'd say we'll see half of the WST activity that we have right now. About the only way that it won't happen is if the Incarnate Trials are awful, like the Cathedral of Pain, but you can bet that they'll adjust them a lot quicker than they will the Cathedral, being that they are the new centerpiece of the Incarnate system, if the players begin to avoid them the way that they did the Cathedral.

    I could be wrong, and feel free to dig my posts up and gloat to me about them when the time comes. I was wrong about how terrible it would be to get Fabricator on the live servers, based off of how tight the market was during Closed Beta for Issue 9, for instance.
  12. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    For years the badge system in this game has institutionalized the idea that "it's easier to work new badges when they first come out than 6 months later". And yes on some level that is an unfortunate situation.

    But I'll counter your valid concern by asking if you think we could ever get any new badges in this game that would not have that problem to some degree? Basically for years now the latest badges have always been easier to get when they first came out. I don't see that quality as a particular unique failure of these new TF count badges - that's pretty much going to be the case anytime new badges (which require serious teaming) arrive on our doorstep.

    Ultimately it would be cool if badges didn't suffer this problem in general. But I think if you're going to be against a specific set of new badges just because they are going to be harder to earn in the future then I think you're going to end up (at least indirectly) being against pretty much -any- new badge from now on.
    Exploration badges, History badges, running a story arc, Crafting, most Architect badges, even Wentworth's/Black Market badges are all pretty much the same difficulty as they were when they were introduced. Ouroboros badges might be slightly more difficult if you don't have a build suited for soloing with the various challenges set. In other words, the vast majority of the badges in the game. Even things that require a team, but no special amount coordination among the members, like running any Task/Strike Force might only become marginally more difficult after the newness has worn off. Adding repetition to team (or multi-team, in the case of Banners) requirements is the main way in which badges become significantly more time-consuming to get over time. That probably isn't even 10% of the total badges in this game.

    How are all of those Improved Energy Turrets that everyone has now? Meanwhile, I can still get Rescuer or Explosive Finale about as easily as when they were introduced (easier in the case of Rescuer, since my character that outlevels it can start it up via Ouroboros) and I can already get badges like Laureate easier than I could when they were brand new.
  13. My main argument against the last one is that I'm kind of sick of badges that become much more difficult to achieve for other characters 6 months down the road, after the rush effect has worn off. Things like RV AVs/Heroes, Master of badges and the like. Even with the resurgence in Mothership raids, those badges will likely take you 10 weeks to earn, when they could be earned in a week when they were new, due to the near-constant Mothership raiding in prime time when the RWZ was new. This will be one of those types of badges. Fairly easy for your characters that can get it now, significantly more time-consuming for new characters to get in the months and years to come.
  14. Quote:
    Originally Posted by VoodooGirl View Post
    Isn't the whole point of an "Accomplishment" overcoming or completing a long and arduous task?

    Not just having something handed to you?
    No, there's no mention of arduous.

    ac·com·plish·ment

     /əˈkɒmplɪʃmənt/ Show Spelled[uh-kom-plish-muhnt] Show IPA
    –noun 1. an act or instance of carrying into effect; fulfillment: the accomplishment of our desires.

    2. something done admirably or creditably: Space exploration is a major accomplishment of science.

    3. anything accomplished; deed; achievement: a career measured in a series of small accomplishments.

    4. Often, accomplishments. a. a grace, skill, or knowledge expected in polite society.

    b. any acquired ability or knowledge.

    I'm not asking for it to be "handed to" anyone. I'm asking that they maybe think about the future a little with these badges. 50 runs of this for no extra reward is a lot right now, and I can guarantee you that the luster will wear off once the trials come in. I just don't think that a badge should be easier for the first people in a group to get than it is for those down the road.

    25 might be a more realistic figure. To take someone else's target from above, running it 4 times per week means 3 that count toward the badge. That's about 17 weeks with the current total. Even at 25, it would take you 8 weeks plus an extra run in the 9th week. Is that badge now being handed to you? Last I heard, completing more busy work wasn't an accomplishment to most, and those that thought that it was were generally public school administrators.
  15. It's also an unrealistic target for anyone that wants to get the badge on a character once Issue 20 goes live and people abandon the WST en masse for the new Incarnate Trials. Please either reconsider that total now, or lower it after Issue 20.
  16. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Obscure Blade View Post
    The number on top of the updater (that IS the version number, right?) doesn't match that of the Strike Pack on Test.
    No. The number on the top of the Updater window is the Updater version, not the game version. For some reason, the live server Updater never shows the game version number anymore. The Test one still does.
  17. The patch to bring the current live version to Issue 19.5 on Test was only about 25 MB. It's just a patch. I don't know what that predownload that some people got with the last patch to live was, but it wasn't 19.5.
  18. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Divus View Post
    Aqualad is Black Manta's son and Garth will be Tempest. Not a spoiler, the creators of the show have been talking about it. Also Miss Martian in reg continuity is a White Martian and not related to the Martian Manhunter, so if she is an actual relative, that's a big difference.
    Aside from that, only the lineup makes it look like a blend of Teen Titans books. Conceptually, it's more like some of the more recent versions of the Outsiders, but with younger members.
  19. This last one was only about eight days early, and there had been no patch to put the badge information into the game for a month prior. Compared to the two and three months early that we were seeing reports prior to the recent adjustment, eight days early is nothing. You enjoy your early Veteran Awards, Turgenev.
  20. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Scythus View Post
    Still no predownload.
    I'm leaning toward the predownload being a bug. It looks like only those that logged in and off within a few hours of the patch got one. Test updated from the current live build to Issue 19.5 with a patch that was about 25 MB. I really doubt that the stuff for the next booster would be around the size of an entire issue.
  21. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Bionic_Flea View Post
    There currently exists a mechanism in the game that tracks when a character last completed any particular TF. This mechanism is what reduces merit rewards if you run back to back ITFs, for example. That has not yet been coded in to the game for arcs, although I suppose they could. You are suggesting that it track the Notice drop. That would have to be brand new code.
    Timed tracking of drops already does exist. It's what used to keep you from getting a recipe from the same TF within 20 hours, and what still keeps you from being able to select the HO at a Hamidon raid or the SHO for a STF/LRSF within 20 hours. The game can also track time since you last crafted an item, purchased an item with a token, or did a specific action, those being G'rai Matter crafts, Alignment Merit purchases and mission dropping, respectively. There's even a precedent for 7 day timers with the first version of the mission dropping feature. The drop trackers might be tied to a specific task, but they also run independently of each other where there is more than one choice.
  22. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Djeannie View Post
    On a side note, everyone I know has either gone radial for the recharge or cardiac for the end reduction. I have yet to meet a damage/accuracy person at all. Sadly some of these bonuses just don't excite me or are even wanted outside of the uncommon slot but you gotta do at least the rare to get the level shift.
    For what I actually have slotted right now, this is true. My Rad Defender is sitting on both Musculature Uncommons to make the Very Rare Radial in that tree because the debuffs and buffs in it line up pretty nicely with her abilities. I could take or leave the Immob duration, since I don't have an Immob on her, but the other parts fit very well for a Rad.

    My Mind Controller will make both the Cardiac and Nerve Very Rare Radials to augment her various control powers.
  23. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Aett_Thorn View Post
    I want to say that the orange inspirations were in I5, as kind of a way to placate people who had just been hit with the global defense nerf (GDN). But I may be mistaken on that.
    Not right with Issue 5, but a mere 20 days after. The timing is still right on for them being a palliative effort from GDN.

    Quote:
    Added Damage Resistance Inspirations (Reduces the damage you take from an attack). Drop rate for non-defensive Inspirations has not changed. 50% of defensive Inspirations that drop will be the old Defense (avoid getting hit) Inspirations, and 50% will be the new Damage Resistance Inspiration.
    Wiki copy of the notes.

    Oh, look, that's the same patch that reduced Believer from 10 defeats of Sally, who was still on a once in a blue moon spawn timer, to 2. I was just talking about that to someone while we were gathering for a Katie TF last week.
  24. Quote:
    Originally Posted by FunstuffofDoom View Post
    I'm given to understand it was the other way around, actually. Tyrants were, originally, leaders who simply weren't elected. They tended to show up during times of high stress because that's when you tend to need a guy to make snap decisions, as opposed to bureaucracy. And, ya know, during war, leaders need the power necessary to save country, and over time people began wondering, why bother giving it up? Thus, language drift.



    Please. He's a legally and democratically elected official. The first definition doesn't apply. If we jump back to the possibility that people in his government are corrupt, but he, personally, is not, then he's not an abusive ruler, either, just an authoritarian one. Which means that second definition doesn't fit.

    If we're rocking the Greek definition of the word... well, you're right. But, well...

    So, GG, I'm sure you've got some snappy answer for me, which may or may not have come from a fortune cookie, but on the off-chance that I'm wrong, or perhaps the decent chance that a different forumite is interested in discourse, let discussion continue, hmm?
    From the Tyrant bio:

    Quote:
    Cole addressed what was left of the United Nations Security Council. In that momentous speech, Cole spoke of the Roman Empire, and how in times of greatest peril, Rome would elect one man to lead her people and armies against their enemy. Divided, said Cole, they would fall, but united in this conflict they would triumph. Cole, careful to silence cries of dictator, stated that he would not pursue this role, he needed to be on the front lines. The Council exploded into conflict, nobody could agree on who should become the Consul, everything descended into petty bickering, all of which was of little consequence given the nature of the looming threat.


    Only Cole's booming voice would silence the delegation. It was at that moment that it all became crystal clear to everyone in the assembly. Only Cole could truly lead mankind against this, their greatest threat. He took the office grudgingly. Never one for details, Cole delegated many of his tasks to more capable commanders in the world's combined Super Corps. He dubbed this new fighting force the Praetorian Guard. Cole's mandate to this new force was that they were going to cut off the head of whatever was leading these monsters.
    That's not a legal, democratic election. I only have our UN Security Council to go by, but they don't have the power to elect a Consul of the Earth on this Earth, no matter the circumstances, and they certainly don't speak with the full authority of the governments that they represent, nor the authority of the people of those nations, in nations where the leaders are democratically-elected. Most of them aren't even elected from their nations, but rather appointed to the position.

    Now, the people later did put pressure on their governments to follow him, but it says nothing about elections. Mobs can be very persuasive, but they may or may not represent the views of the majority.
  25. I timed it on a run in the overnight period last night/this morning. She spawned, and we started hitting her at 2:42 AM, and she was off the map at 2:44 AM. Adding in stray seconds, we'll call that two and a half minutes. We then dealt with the interim spawns, and it took us until 2:56 AM until she returned. We finished her and the TF at 3:02 AM.

    Total time from her initial hit to her defeat: 20 Minutes.
    Total time that she was on the map: 9 minutes on the long end.
    Members who got the badge: 0.