Pax__

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<ul type="square">[*]Patron Pools: Functionally and aesthetically they are vastly inferior to Hero APPs. (Suggestion: Add APPs for villains, ie you do your patron arc and get their pool (which you are locked into as usual) BUT you also get access to other APPs similar to the Heroes. Rebalance the APPs in general. Alternately, Make Patrons respecable and add in pools for the Signature Lackeys)[/list]
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This is the big, killer "800 pound gorilla" for me.

My complaints about PPPs:

<ul type="square">[*] We are in fact not given enough information in-game to make a proper, rational and informed choice. Case in point: my Mastermind. The only thing he wanted out of the PPPs was an AoE immobilise that resisted knockback (because of the synergy that would generate, in light of his Assault Robot's incendiary-missile burn patches). None of the statues in Grandville indicate any suchproperty, so I had to guess ... and went with Black Scorpion, figuring "big ol' gluey web grenade deluxe, that probably has -KB in it". Turns out I was wrong ... it's Scirocco and Electric Cages that I should have taken. So much for that, eh? And now ... I can't respec out, and change my mind. I'm stuck like this. 8P
[*] The difference between patrons, aside from minor details (damage type mostly, but also the -KB debacle above), amounts to little more than "how does it animate". There is no qualitative difference between picking Ghost Widow, rather than Captian Mako, or Scirocco. For any given AT, the powers offered are pretty much the same four powers, reskinned.
[*] No respec allowed, and only those four to choose from. Shame on the devs for this, and for not offering multiple PPPs per patron, to each AT. Seriously ... why couldn't each patron offer two AT-specific pools to each archetype? Or better, offer two AT-specific pools, and one "generic" PPP? Doing that would have actually softened the blow of the "cut-and-paste-ism" just mentioned.
[*] Everyone gets a pet, except the pet class ...? Huh??[/list]
Let's see, next issue ...

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<ul type="square">[*]Villain Accolade Requirements: Remove/Replace all PvP badge requirements. Damage and Debt badge requirements in particular are set too high. Hero-Slayer requires 100 signature heroes, while the equivalent badge heroeside (Villain Disruptor) requires only 25. A re-evaluation of villain badge requirements would be nice (This also applies heroside for things like Illusionist)[/list]
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Oh, HELL yes!!

The only accolades that should have PvP requirements, should be PvP accolades, on BOTH sides of the factional divide. And in fact, the one in Siren's Call ... come on, five HOURS in the zone? That just strikes me as shamelessly punitive.

The different thresholds ... I honestly didn't realise, and I agree, that's grossly unfair. 25 victories if you're a hero, but four times as many if you're a villain? Yeesh.

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<ul type="square">[*]Black Helicopters: Many Black Helicopters are parked right next to the ferries. They should be parked at the opposite ends of zones for ease of use (ie Near Thorn Isle)[/list]
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I'll go one further: why are there two separate Black Helicopter lines? Do you have any idea how much of a pain in the petard it is, to get between Mercy and Grandville? Yet, this past week, I've been doing Vernon von Grun's arc ... he's in Grandville. Many of the sites early int eh arc are in Mercy. The problem is ... many of the things you have to do for him, are in Grandville ... and the arc alternates between them: one in Mercy, then go talk to someone in Grandville, then back to Mercy for a door mission, then back to Grandville to talk to someone, etc, etc, etc. Gods that was frustrating - and I was burning Market teleports to get to CAD (for the ferry), then using the SG teleporters to get back to Mercy. For a villain not in a VG? Ugh.

Given you can take the black helicopter from Mercy to CAD, and then head for the water and swim all the way to the main inter-island ferry - or, even simpler, use your VG's teleporters, if you're in one - and get to Grandville as a lowbie ... I fail to see the point of making the sub-20 zones so hard to get to/from, for a higher-level character.

Heck, why not just put a minimum level requirement on the helicopters? Like, say, 20?

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<ul type="square">[*]Enemy Variety: Why do the Legacy Chain and Wyvern drop off the radar at level 25? Longbow is already too prevalent, lets change it up. Same goes for Arachnos. Also, Warden bosses don't get demoted to lieutenant when solo.[/list]
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I agree. Some higher-level Legacy and/or Wyvern - even if they get rare and infrequent in the higher levels - would be very nice indeed. More variety is good!

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<ul type="square">[*]Mayhem Missions: Mayhem missions are far harder than Safeguards, although they are arguably more interesting as well. Reducing the size of the ambushes would go a long way towards making Mayhems more team friendly.[/list]
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Well, I only ever SOLO mayhems, really ... but here's an idea: why not have every team-member generate ambushes separately, so tat no part of a divided team ever sucks the WHOLE team's worth of ambushes, at once?

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Which sets should have gotten ported over for villains?

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Brute: the primaries are fine; the Secondary ... hrm. I don't see that there was anything ELSE to give them, but ... meh.

Corrupter: these are fine, IMO.

Dominator: either elec/elec, or earth/poison. I just want some proper, non-hand-wave-y thematic tie between the two.

Mastermind: /Sonic; I think Storm Summoning is actually too good for MMs. HEck, I think even /Empathy would have been a better choice than /Storm. (It's laughably easy for me to keep my robots' HP topped off, and I haven't a heal in my secondary at ALL ... just aid other!)

Stalker: a Cold-based primary, and an Ice-armor based secondary, would have rocked SOLID.

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Controllers shouldn't have got Thermal.

Stalkers shouldn't have got Elec / Elec.

Tanks didn't want DA / DM.

Other than that, it's okay.

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Masterminds should never have gotten Storm.

Sonic would have been a good choice for them ... but not Storm. Nosir!

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Now tempted to roll up an ice/thermal controller so I can set Jack Frost on fire.

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Damn, that's an awesome visual. Now I'm gonna have to do that too.

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/agree.. awesome idea...

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/concur .... gimme some Baked Alaska!

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I checked the Dom set, 4 melee or pbAoE powers, plus one new power still leaves us 4 powers short.

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Don't forget a Build-Up (new grpahics, same old power). Also, at least one single-target immobilise. If it's a Sleep, I can see also having an Area sleep. So that's three more powers, out of the four missing ones, right there. Maybe add Lift, which is more a knock-down than an immobilise.

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Blaster
New Primary - Psychic Blast
New Secondary - Mental Manipulation

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Very cool.

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Corruptor
New Primary - Electrical Blast
New Secondary - Storm Summoning

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VERY cool.

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Controller
New Primary - Plant Control
New Secondary - Thermal Radiation

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Not unanticipated.

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Dominator
New Primary - Earth Control
New Secondary - Electricity Manipulation

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Hmm; neither fits thematically with existing sets. 8(

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Defender
New Primary - Cold Domination
New Secondary - Ice Blast

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Nice!

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Mastermind
New Secondary - Storm Summoning

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... wait, WHAT?!?

Of all the broken, nul-brained, idiotic ideas ... as if Masterminds weren't already "no risk, all gain" ... they're adding STORM to their secondaries ...?

Argh!

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Brute
New Primary - Battle Axe
New Primary - War Mace
New Secondary - Super Reflexes

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As expected.

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Stalker
New Primary - Electric Melee
New Secondary - Electric Armor

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O_o Unexpected. Not unwelcome, but ... unexpected.

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Tank
New Primary - Dark Armor
New Secondary - Dark Melee

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Interesting choices. Not what I'd've chosen, either - between Tankers and scrappers, NEITHER hero melee specialist got EITHER of the electrical melee / armor sets? Bummer.

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Scrapper
New Primary - Fiery Melee
New Secondary - Fiery Aura

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Nifty.

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Tomorrow... "Tomorrow" isn't a problem, and in fact, is pretty informative all on it's own, compared to the oft-quoted: Soon™...

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And just think, we've got more goodies for you next week too!

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... you're enjoying htis, AREN'T you, you sadistic [censored]?!?

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Your marketing department needs multiple stabs in the eye with a shark stick.

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And to agree with other posters, yea.. more details would have been nice. Or just say "sorry, delayed, come back tomorrow".. something other than this. This is getting a box, opening the box, and seeing pretty much nothing inside.

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My mother did that to me one birthday. I was five ... and they wrapped a DISHWASHER BOX, with a huge bow, and my name on it. Can you imagine? Five years old, and staring for days at a present bigger than you are ...?

So of course, on the Big Day, I wanted at that present. Wanted like never before ... it was eating me up, tearing my insides to pieces with INTENSE curiousity. But, no, of course my parents made me open EVERY other present first. And before that, we had to have breakfast. ARGH, THE WAITING! COULD. NOT. STAND. THE. WAITING ...!!1!one!!marthastewart!oneone!!!!11!

But finally, OH YES, FINALLY ... it was time ... time for the most glorious birthdaypresent any kid had EVER received, and somehow it was ME getting it! I tore into the wrapping paper - not even stopping when I saw it was a dishwasher (precocious reader that I was), thinking "maybe it's a bike! or one of those kid-sized cARS! wow!!". I finally got the top open, and standing on my tip-toes, peeeeered over teh top ...

... to discover a small, forlorn package, wrapped in birthday paper, down in the corner at the bottom of the huuuuge, and hugely EMPTY, box. Openign it revealed ... a mickey mouse watch. Which I had never asked for, nor especially wanted.

In that moment, I felt an emotion I had never felt before: intense hatred of my own parents. GOD that was such a cruel thing to do.

...

The kicker is, my mother doesn't remember it at all, anymore.

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someone want to explain the point of telling what issue 12 is about and not releasing it or giving a release date? quick talking about it and get it done! sheesh!

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Several reasons:

(A) - it builds anticipation for the Issue ... a little thing called "hype";

(B) - the Issue is still a "work in progress"; they will only tell us about things that are already working, or otherwise guaranteed to be part of the Issue. This way, if there's stuff they WANT to do, but it proves impossible? We don't end up standing around saying "but you promised _____";

(C) - it's better than hearing NOTHING about it, until it's all ready to go Live.

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I only see one drawback to this sweet revamp:

Where will I send my level 5s to practice their Mad Tiptoeing Skilz?

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Icon.



or just wait til 7 and do Perez.

Can you get every badge and plaque in PP without a travel power or stealth at level 7? Try it!

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Make it level 10. Start at 0 debt, not allowed to earn XP except from the badges themselves. He who finishes with the moxt XP gained and the least debt, wins. ^_^

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<ul type="square"> [*]Igs are bad, very bad.[/list]

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Come on: an enemy AT with slow and immobilize resistance on Warwolf levels and the ability to perma knock you down (yes, even scrappers who, like regens, don't get their mez resistance until lvl 16) and travel in packs of 10 unless they're rolling with 2 or 3 bosses that can perma hold you if they're 2 levels or more over you....

It's a challenge!

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Don't forget that they're HOLD resistant, too.

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However, Zub ... the truth is, you were guilty of a faux pas first. I mean, really now ... registration date attacks? You should know better than that!

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It wasn't a registration date attack, actually. What I noticed first was the tiny post counts [...]

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Shame on you, again.

Post count = not relevant.

Registration date = not relevant.

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In fact, this is the very first time I’ve ever questioned the reality of another poster on these forums. I think that in this case I had good reason.

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No, really you didn't. One should never lightly level an accusation of sock/meat puppetry; it's a pretty serious attack on the targets' character.

I maintain that you should be ashamed for your part in this.

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The one registered two days ago is particularly suspicious.

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Again with the registration dates.

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Not part of the "community?" How am I not, I play the freaking game!

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The Forum community and the General Playerbase are not precisely the same; those of us who frequent the forums on a regular or semiregular basis are a subset of the playerbase itself.

And you yourself suggested that you were drawn into the Forum community to support someone else's argument. That's being a meat puppet. I didn't make that part of your story up, you did.

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And Pax, truth be told, just because someone is on a forum with someone and is a friend of theirs, it doesn't make them a "meat puppet" when they decide to come here to defend that friend. It makes them a good friend.

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The definition of "meat puppet" as an internet colloquialism (at least, in my experience) is "Bob is in an argument online; Bob goes to his friends Mary, Joe, Bill, Susan, and Mike to ask for help ... even though none of them are part of the cummunity where said argument is happening; those five friends join said community and leap into said argument."

You call it "being a good friend", I call it "being a meat puppet": their presence has been requested solely to bolster the perceived popularity of Bob's position in an argument, and that is what a Meat Puppet is.

...

Aha, found a reference for you: Wikipedia's article on internet sock puppetry.

However, Zub ... the truth is, you were guilty of a faux pas first. I mean, really now ... registration date attacks? You should know better than that!

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&lt;3 War Witch.

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Maybe we are all on a channel for people who build bases, let's call this "BaseBuildersInc" for [censored]'s and giggles. And MAYBE, JZ was talking to us about this forum and how rude people like you are. So some of us came to see, and since we have lives, had to sign up.

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So ... you're defending yourself from an accusation of being a Sock Puppet ... with a claim that you are, instead, a Meat Puppet?

You know, Meat Puppets are no better than Sock Puppets.

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I'm sorry, but I don't have any idea what a "meat puppet" is.

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Precisely whatyou sugested: when a person in an internet argument, goes and gets friends who were not previously part of the community the argument is takng part in, to join that community and support that peson's side of things, making their opinion seem to have broader, more popular support in general.

If you hadn't put that suggestion forward, mind you, it owuld have been your opposite Iw as chiding, rather than you.

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Why are people quick to try to insult, do you feel that low about yourself that you need to make others feel that low? Does it make you feel good? Get off the forums that you spend all day on and get some self esteem!

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Straw man.

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Maybe we are all on a channel for people who build bases, let's call this "BaseBuildersInc" for [censored]'s and giggles. And MAYBE, JZ was talking to us about this forum and how rude people like you are. So some of us came to see, and since we have lives, had to sign up.

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So ... you're defending yourself from an accusation of being a Sock Puppet ... with a claim that you are, instead, a Meat Puppet?

You know, Meat Puppets are no better than Sock Puppets.

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I'm sorry to disappoint you but not all of us waste time on here posting thousands of replies back to others complaints. Some of us have lives.

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Was that a post-count attack?

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Trip - you get Veteran Reward respecs, too. ^_^ Surely you can't have used them all on that character, already ...?

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Heheh. I've been playing less than 6 months...I don't even have the second vet reward yet...though it should be Real Soon Now(R)

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HMMM, seems the first respect only comes at 9 months, damn. THAT won't be as helpful as I'd hoped.

There's always the option of starting a n new alt, and putting this one on the back burner until then. Try something Redside, the stories over there are completely different ...

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(there are a few non-criminal gang-like organizations out there in real life),

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Guardian Angels for one.

The Police for another. (Come on ... think about it: they have their own gang signs, they wear gang colors, they have gang-specific lingo, they roll around in gang-color-marked cars looking for trouble ... ^_^ ... the police are THE biggest gang in the freakin' country!)

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Not only that, but the texturing is about twice as heavy on the graphics card redside, [...]

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Jeeze. I only have a Radeon x600 ... and I get no lag, even in Grandville, with "moderate" settings. You know what fixed most of my lag problems?

RAM ... which is remarkably cheap nowadays.

Trip - you get Veteran Reward respecs, too. ^_^ Surely you can't have used them all on that character, already ...?

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As always, we are happy to listen and respond to your requests. Thanks for your feedback and continued support.

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Sir, please inform the developers that they have all earned a * for this added level of Awesome-ness piled atop an already great issue-to-be.

^_^

To address the issues of those who do not, can not, or simply will not use a Credit Card for NCSoft billing - instead preferring to buy Prepaid Time cards - might I suggest a Proportional Billing Scheme for such in-game purchases?

Specifically, the standard month-to-month rate is currently $15USD, for a nominal period of 30 days. This equates to one day of play time, for every $0.50USD.

Converting $10USD to game-time at that rate, results in a "cost" of 20 days.

Perhaps, where Game Time Cards have been applied, and no Credit Card is on file, NCSoft could simply move the billing date up by 20 days, for each $10 service purchased by such players?

[u]EXAMPLE:[u]

Bill has applied several months' worth of game time cards, and his next billing date is the 14th of August. He chooses to purchase 1 character slot on all servers, which carries a price of $10USD. In his case, he has no credit card on file ... so the client software offers him the option to advance his billing date by 20 days ... from {14 August} to {25 July}. Agreeing to this payment method, he also elects to move a single character, for another $10USD. Once again, the client software offers the option of advancing his billing date by twenty days, this time from {25 July} to {5 July}.

40 days of his Game Time Card have been consumed - days which bore a "value" of $0.50USD each, totalling $20USD ... exactly equal to the price listed for the two chosen transactions.

NCSoft loses no value; Bill loses no value. This is, in my opinion, a Win-Win solution.

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A hero asks their companions for help, and then they give what help they can using their own "mind".

A Villain gives orders, threats, ultimatums to their flunkies. A villain uses whatever power they have over their lackies to FORCE them into their will. There is no negotiation. There is no suggestions about tactics. You do it, or you suffer the consequences. Period.

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Does that mean that army NCOs and oficers are villains ...? Remember, they don't ASK, they COMMAND. There are, to crib your own words, "no suggestions about tactics. You do it, or you suffer the consequences. Period."

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And by consequences, you can bet I don't mean,

"Okay, Johnnie, sorry, but you're off the team."

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"Private Wilkes, this court finds you guilty of insubordination and desertion; you will spend the remainder of your term of enlistment in the Fort Leavenworth military penitentiary."

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I am talking about power, and control over ones underlings. I don't see what is unclear about this... but if you are still confused, please meditate on the following two words: HERO ARCHETYPE

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I re-iterate:

<ul type="square">[*] Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.i.E.L.D. ... or his earlier incarnation, as the head of the Howling Commandos ...?[*] Any of the team-leaders of the post-WW2 Suicide Squad.[*] It's not a comic, but fits the bill anyway: Major Reisman, of the film The Dirty Dozen.[*] The ever-popular Squirrel Girl (hey, she even took down Doctor Doom - solo, when she was fourteen!)[*] Or, Sgt. Rock of Easy Company. Who says heroes have to have superpowers ...?[/list]
Your attempt to insist that the only way to have such control over one's underlings, would be through force, intimidation, and threat of violence or death ... is, as cited already, Special Pleading ... and if it does anything, it LOSES the argument.

Not to mention ... why can't a heroic-minded individual build nonsentient robots, and direct them in the use of small-unit tactics in an effort to combat crime and fight injustice? (Robotics.)

Or, bargain with the deceased victims of said crime and injustice, allowing them to (temporarily) re-inhabit their mortal remains and gain some measure of vengeance / justice against the perpetrators of same? (Necromancy.)

Or, form a "neighborhood watch" of inner-city youths and young adults, and make a "counter-Gang" that seeks tow in back the streets from the destructive, drug-peddling hoodlums who're over-runnign the 'hood? (Thugs.)

Or, be an officer in a Special Weapons And Tactics division that gives it's field agents extreme autonomy ... calling in rank-and-file troops, requisitioning gear, and then leading those troops into battle with the forces of vice and villainy? (Mercenaries.)

Or, be a member of a "white" ninja clan whose goals are to protect the weak and innocent, and who ACT on those goals directly? (Ninja.)

...

There is nothing inherently villainous about having pets who follow your every command.