Techbot Alpha

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  1. Quote:
    Originally Posted by HardRider View Post
    No.
    Why?
  2. If she was 14 in Faultline and 19 now, I'd buy it. Even 15 and 20. But 18 in Faultline?
    No, sorry story Devs, no. That needs re-writing. Because it just does not gel.

    Mind you, it DOES gel with the apparent habit of putting ones pants on ones head while doing the SSA arcs, so.... ¬¬
  3. Not really. There was the aforementioned Carnies. Peoples have been kidnapped a bit.

    STATESMAN'S DE- oh, no, that's not happening until he actually vanished from in-game around about about I23, same as a certain other character.

    The pair are still there, being pair-oid? Ellie is still chasing anything female. Various characters are still as ever? Business as usual, really
  4. Oh dear, I forsee a wave of butthurt people raging about 'How dare you take away stuff we've had exclusively for nearly six years now waaah!!' and other such dross...

    I have the slide and....uh....never use it? By all means, put it on the market or in Vet awards, I say.
  5. If they were copying Xmen 3, that explains a lot.
    Film was utter guff. And I LIKED the first two!
  6. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Venture View Post
    bring me the bore worms!!!

    We're out of Bore Worms, sir, but we DO have the cyber-turbo ferrets, and the truly-toxic-toads of Wrath. Will that do?
  7. Yeah, I wasn't too impressed with that felt like the shoe-horning in there. No guards, no Longbow escort, heck not even Wyvern. This is Manti's damn WIFE, and they didn't think to bring Numina or any of the other magic savvy Heroes along? What the hell were Montague and the Midnighters doing, having a tea break?

    I wasn't too ticked with Part 5, personally. Despite the many gripes it got from some, it did work albeit with a little lack of polish in places.
    This wasn't part 5. This was...eh. It started off promising, and then fell flat on its face. Badly.
  8. Quote:
    Originally Posted by BrandX View Post
    I didn't think her look was all that bad...when drawn. It did suffer greatly from the old costume pieces in game though. :/
    Yeah, the 3D renders of her out of game looked pretty decent. But her in-game model was just...ugh. No ta.
  9. Unless we CAN bring Psyche back later on when we 'arrest' Wade..?
    I honestly wouldn't mind that. I liked Psyche, and she deserved way more screen time than she got.
    She also needed a new look from Serge, but that's neither here not there...
  10. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow View Post
    Essentially, what you're saying is "context." Being a hero because it's right in itself is not the problem, but rather being that without establishing why that is. OK, if that's what you're saying, then I agree. It's all a question of presentation
    Pretty much. And that goes for the first part of the post, too; a man who steals and kills just to stay alive in a hostile environment like the Rogue Isles isn't necessarily evil.

    A man who live in comfort in Paragon but non-the-less chooses to prey on those weaker than him and to steal and take for himself? That's a villain. Sure, there are broader definitions within that too; a guy who steals from the rich and well off and keeps it for himself is more of a Rogue. But a guy who steals everything and kills anyone who gets in his way? That's a full on villain. Not a very imaginative one, sure, but a villain.
  11. Yeah, after the arc started well it kinda just....flopped. I was a bit disappointed, really. I mean, yeah, way to go walking in like chumps. No Numina, the other really powerful and MAGIC psychic? No Psi Cop back-up, at the least?

    It just...ugh. Yeah, someone needs to proof-read these better, seriously. And, yes, I *could* do better, before anyone asks.

    However, Penny Yin. Forget the artsy gripes about her uniform. I WANT that Psi Shockwave attack. Can I get a 'Bamf' please? And those psi-blades. Girls got the moves, that's for sure
  12. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow View Post
    Well, that's assuming that motivation was spontaneously generated, and by a human hero. Suppose we're talking about someone who's lived a long life, tried many different things and finally decided that someone simply has to do the right thing? Take, for instance, Shen Shao Shi, my old martial arts master. He learned all the Martial Arts he could, lived until he was 150, ascended to the afterlife, learned all he could there, and then simply returned 600 years after the fact to share his wisdom with the world and use his knowledge and skill to protect those who can't protect themselves. At this point, he's neither human nor precisely young, and his motivation is born out of contemplation, ideology and conviction.

    That's kind of what I mean, I'm not specifically arguing. I get that "He's a hero, that's what he does!" is a cop-out excuse... But isn't it only a cop-out excuse when you use it as such? When a person has thought about it, slept on it and walked the path of life and still feels like simply doing the right thing because that's what he's chosen... Is that still a cop-out? Honest question here.
    Even then, that guy didn't just wake up, find he had powers, and go be a hero. He's an ancient master, whose goal is to teach others. It's because he has done all the stuff in the past that makes it...I guess an 'informed' goal, or a realistic goal. It's the sort of thing you look at and go 'Yes, I understand why he's chosen that kind of heroic path'.
    Hope that makes sense XD



    Quote:
    What I'm saying is that while it's not exactly sophisticated, heroes who do good because it's the right thing to do are still acceptable as serious characters. Again, not precisely deep or developed ones, but you can see them show up in a serious story without taking much away from the tone. And you can even have them lecture people about being good and pure and taking pride in protecting the weak. They do it because it's right.

    Now turn that around, and what's a villain who does it "because it's wrong?" That's a Saturday morning cartoon villain who sings about how evil he is, he hates puppies, kittens and the smiles on babie's faces, his ultimate weakness is laughter and he cackles when he's surrounded by sadness and suffering. Essentially, Robbie Rotten.

    So why is that? Why are we so much more willing to accept that someone would be a hero because he likes good, but so much more difficult to take a villain seriously who's a villain because he likes evil?
    Personally I wouldn't take either seriously, but that's because I'm a jaded and cynical pile of scrap and devious circuitry
    I guess....pretty much what Arachnid said, t'be honest.
  13. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dink View Post
    Metallic top has been added to Shirts, Robes (Sleeveless also), Jackets (Sleeveless also), Trench Coat, Magic Bolero and Unique Tops and will be out soon
    Wh-

    *Blown out of the water after direct hits from a barrage of PURE AWESOME*

  14. Asymetrical shoulders. Want. Want now.
  15. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blackleviathan View Post
    What id like more than this..... Is make maybe "leadership" inherit or move the most used powers from Leadership and The fighting pool and merge them and make it inherit and the other powers in a different pool renamed.... Along with extra power slots for the new inherit stuff still be able to have the 4 pool powers. Like concealment, speed, flight, leaping, etc.
    Why is this needed? Not to mention the very real slot crunch that would then produce.
    None of those powers are needed as Inherents. Fitness WAS, for the simple reason that builds without it were in a very, very small minority as opposed to the thousands that had powers from it. Besides that, sucking wind every other fight is simply not fun.
  16. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Cobalt Azurean View Post
    I...it...that...

    Is that Comic Sans?! What blasphemous horror have you got as text?!
  17. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Samuel_Tow View Post
    Isn't that the same thing, though? You protect the world because you were hurt and you don't want others to get hurt sounds like very much the same as protecting the world because it's the right thing to do. Or are you saying that because at least there's a reason, it's more than "We do it because it's right!" as the C&C Generals Crusader tanks used to say? I can buy that, but this assumes that "I do it because it's right!" isn't a reason, or at least not reason enough.

    This brings up an interesting parity. Are we saying that doing evil because it's wrong is the same as doing evil because it's right? Honest question here.
    In a way, protecting the world because you were hurt and want to pre-empt it happening to others is still more, or rather a more valid or realistic reason than going out and fighting crime 'because it's the right thing to do'.

    Being honest here, what would be the first thing you did if, tomorrow, you suddenly discovered you had super powers? I know I'd probably spend a while freaking out, then experimenting and then....well, FIRST off I'd go to my old flat and get the damn money those smeg-damned girls owe me for bills which they never paid ¬¬ Then I'd probably spend a while trying to figure out what the heck I'd do next.

    People don't spontaneously go "I'm going to save the world from villains!" It's an ideal, yes, but it's also not a very realistic or human one. Now, beating up villains so that they can't do to others what happened to you as a kid? And, y'know, maybe making them really sorry while you're at it? That's a human like and realistic reason. It's a heroic ideal, fighting crime, mixed with a human want for pay-back of vengeance, even if it's not a malicious or overpowering urge.

    I don't quite know what you mean by the last question, though XD Clarify?
  18. I still despise the trial 'participation' thing. Yes, ok, so it stops people from door sitting. Big whoop, the kick button was already there for that.

    I got a damn threads table, after horrific rubber-banding and lag stopped me from getting to the fights and right places in a TPN. Single most frustrating trial ever, even worse than the old Keyes which I did a total of once and then never did again until it got changed.
  19. I think Mark Kermode sums this up best

    I just object to Bay's complete and utter *******isation of characters, well established characters at that. Not to mention his oh so hilarious 'hurr, cars on the lawn, lets make all the Autobots clumsy and tactless' in Bayformers 1.

    Let's review it, shall we? First off, Megatron. The whole plot is all over the damn shop; first he's the big bad, then he's actually the 'apprentice' (OHGODSTARWARS!) to the Fallen, and then ACTUALLY it was all part of his plan alongside Sentinel....Prime....wait, what was that sound? Oh, don't worry, it was just my grey matter melting into a little puddle of pain and misery.

    Optimus. At least they got Cullen to voice him rather than some no-name (the guy who did Primal from BW woulda been ok) but...really? Op was turned from a warrior-doctor-scientist-philosopher into a generic 'badass' attempt. Having Op be either still in need of wing-earning OR the veteran Autobot leader both work fine...but making him as merciless as he was? I get the one off time where he goes all out ("I'll take you all on!") but when he executes both Megatron AND Sentinel in DotM? Sure, great, epic set-piece...but it's not Prime.

    And the kill-offs. Oh, boy, the kill-offs. Jazz gets, what, five minutes screen time? Then Megatron snaps him in half. The shot isn't even at a good angle. Most of the Decepticons, barring Megatron and Starscream, die off with barely any characterisation. Yes, the 86 movie didn't do into detail about a lot of the deaths that happened there (they even admitted it was only really so they could intro a new toy line...) BUT! But, you still had all the characterisation that had already been done in the TV series. Bayformers? You might as well have been exploding cardboard cut-outs, for all the impact it had.

    As for the humans, well...ONE of these days we'll have a female second or lead who ISN'T just bewbs on legs. One of these days...right?
    Ugh...
  20. /Signed so much I'd break my fingers typing it out over and over.
    This should have happened already.
  21. Quote:
    City of Heroes has recently been graced with fancy-pants new tutorial, which I suppose serves as a faster and probably mostly unnecessary introduction to the basics of how to do stuff like move around with the WASD keys. It features some weirdly out-of-place voice acting which you will never hear again, and finishes with an epic confrontation which you literally can't lose. The most difficult thing I'm required to do is open up the online store and purchase a $0 badge, just so I know how to do that in case I ever find myself in the possession of money I don't feel like I need. Wink wink. Nudge nudge. Back-brain kick.
    Oh good, I'm not the only one who thought that, and was disappointed with the wasted tutorial revamp as a whole?


    Quote:
    Also roped off are a lot of the newer but not completely essential features, like the crafting system, auction house, and Architect Entertainment, which allows players to make their own elaborate storylines and missions but is mostly used to set up XP farms.
    Got that one right, too...

    Quote:
    Probably most crippling is the inability to set up or join supergroups, speak in broadcast chat, or even send private messages to other players. I realize that it's a measure that probably helps to cut down spam from gold-farming scammers, but it's easily the biggest obstacle for anyone who wants to play completely free. Meanwhile, those social options are among the very first things to be permanently unlocked on your account should you either spend a few bucks in the store or pony up for a single month's subscription.
    I guess the easiest unlock kinda mitigates this...but still...I still think this is shooting oneself in the face at times. Ho-hum.


    Quote:
    I took Copywrong from 1-30 in a few evenings, and while I do find myself missing stuff like the power boost from invention enhancements, I never had a hard time finding pickup groups when I needed them. Really, cutting off in-game /tells and other basic social functions for non-premium players is the most egregiously frustrating thing about the experience. Then again, I'd have a hard time not spending the minimum of five bucks it takes to open those up.
    I suppose that's a good thing, at least?


    Quote:
    City of Whatevers is definitely a game with a class divide now, with people who throw down their cash enjoying greater power and convenience, but given that the PvP aspect of City of Heroes is deader than JFK it's not something that makes life directly harder for the freebie players. Meanwhile, the decision to proportionately reward players who don't just pay now but have done so at any point in the past is nothing short of brilliant.
    A pretty fair summary overall, I thought.
  22. Nice character there, Draeth.
    But it's 'gamut', not gambit
  23. To be honest, I think it ends when you get into the 'I'm doing it for teh evulz!' territory. You also tend to be moving into borderline boring characters; doing stuff 'because it's evul lol' tends not to be very (de)motivational, interesting or even that good(evil).

    It's not always impossible. A 'Chaotic Neutral' character can and has been done right in some cases, but it can also be a bit rough dealing with a genuine fruit loop.
    It's more a case of avoiding jerkism. For instance, pushing pram into roads and kicking kittens is 'evil', sure. It's also pretty pointless and doesn't paint a character as 'scary' or 'evil' and more as an amoral jerk-bag.

    If a character was, say, pushing prams into roads because they were convinced that the Earth was over-crowded and that levelling out the population was the only way to save humanity...well, they're still a bit fruit loopy, but at least they have a motive. They have more depth to them.
    Now take that to the levels of Recluse and his Darwinistic 'survival of the fittest' ideals and you have actual, motivated villainy. But the same can be said for having any recognisable motive; Money, power and influence or scarring the whole human race, both are villainous motives that give room for depth.


    On a tangent, I'd also say the same argument is true for Heroes. Characters that do good 'because it's the right thing to do' tend to be boring and somewhat sterile. Not always, there are exceptions to every rule. A fellow Union RPer has that kind of true-blue heroine, but that sort of thinking is actually indoctrinated in her by her superiors, and she has a far more human-side that comes to the fore now and then.

    Characters that have motivation are usually more interesting. Some heroes want to clean up the world so terrible things don't happen to others like it did to them. Some (like Chief Centurion Z1, one of my characters) feel they owe Earth and Humanity and seek to pay that back by taking the fight to villains so that others don't have to. Some are actually just soldiers or cops, people who do the job they chose to do and take each day as it comes with as much a semblance of normality as they can. Heck, I have one who's a pure-human reporter who gets by on stealth, a well placed knee to the groin, contacts and a driving urge to drag the truth into the light of day.

    Being 'up for whatever' can still be a motive. Mercs are still in it for money. Some people are in it for kicks/blood/combat high/souls. Having no motive tends to fall only under 'doing it for teh evulz', where there is no clear goal except 'being a baddy'. Which tends not to work. Not always, but tends to.
    /ramble.exe
  24. It's not just you. It's a shame how more recent sets have, mechanically, been stronger while at the same time being weaker when it comes to sound quality.
  25. Techbot Alpha

    Echo Faultline

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SmegHead View Post
    The new rikti crash site is almost identical to the old so I don't really see a point in remaking that one. The new faultline is a lot different, and personally during my time playing this game I've heard time and time again how people would love to revisit the old fault. I know I would like to see it again. Some of those free falls were epic.

    Here a video to bring back some of the nostalgia:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTDOxiTHGOM
    Man, those were some giant cliffs. I can see why they changed it; old Faultline must have been a nightmare for those without teleport or fly, even more so than the current one. That and, well...I don't quite see where it's a 'work of art'. The new Faultline fits pretty nicely without some of the slight insanity of giant crevasses. I can see why the CoT fitted in the old zone, though; they must have really brought the roof down on bits of Oranbega there.