Umbral

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God, I hate reality alteration as a power.

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Thanks for the constructive criticism. I'll use your well worded suggestions to flesh out the problems with the powerset... oh wait a sec, it ALL sucks?

nevermind.

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I think he meant that more as an in-general, the ability to alter reality as your specific power sucks. Probably because it's almost always either a deus ex machina or incredibly overpowered (at least in comic books).

The problem I see with a power set based on altering reality is that altering reality has too much that it can accomplish within its domain. Transform anything in anything. Bring new things into existence. Bring things back to life. Manipulate anything. It's simply too broad a power to really be put into the game or pigeon holed into such a small number of potential abilities that it no longer really seems like altering reality.

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The only problem I see with a 4 minute fly buff is that if it's non-refusable, non-cancellable, it might really mess up, say, my Stone/Stone Brute. Even without a to-hit debuff, I'm still losing Fault, Hurl Boulder, Tremor, Rooted and possibly Granite Armour.

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IIRC, Granite Armor and Rooted have -fly attached to them which more than overcome whatever +fly Grant Flight would give you. Once you turn them on, you are pretty much incapable of flying.

The bigger issue with that comment is the fact that flying can render some attacks impossible, which I thought they were trying to fix.

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*sigh*

The 5th were NOT removed due to German anti-Nazi laws.

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I know. It was just a comment on the remarkable coincidence, which you have to admit is at least a bit amusing.

Though, that doesn't really address why the Axis America missions with their hefty Nazi ambiance were removed/modified, especially since it's an alternate universe where the 5th didn't necessarily have to get taken over by the Council.

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And this for enemy factions in the MA

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I remember the old Axis America missions where there were swastika flags all over the place (with the garbled Hitler speech on the PA). Those got taken out when the 5th got replaced by the Council which also coincided with the release of CoX in the EU, some countries of which have some pretty interesting laws concerning content in entertainment media (Germany has some pretty strict ones the whole Nazi thing, iirc).

Though to voice something relevant to the discussion at hand, I doubt we'll get any flag capes thanks to the workload involved, though, I wouldn't put it past them to create an in-game item pack with them. I'm reasonably sure that transcribing rectangles into trapezoids isn't too hard.

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While we're talking about it - Fix it so that the folks with you fly at the same speed. Last I recalled, unless someone else took the lead and the GFly holder had them on follow, everyone else would slowly fall behind, then out of the bubble and fall.

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This. I despise Group Fly. Make it a prompt power, take off the debuff, and increase the base flight speed to be significantly faster than the "caster" (you may move faster, but what does that matter when you can only fly for 2 secs when you leave him/her behind?).

Status Reports
Star Strider Force
Name: Umbral Fist
Global Contact: @Umbral Fist
Reporting on Assignment: Rikti Mothership Raid
Star Strider Force Unit: Freedom
Time/Date Location: 8:00 est, 11/21/08, Rikti War Zone
Level of Alien Threat: [High]

Report Details:
After a rather poor showing in our initial attempt to assault the Rikti stronghold on 11/19/08, Freedom rallied and decided to strut their stuff. Over the course of 3 hours, Star Strider Squadron Freedom assaulted the Mothership, delivered the explosive payload, and defeated U'kon Grai on three consecutive occasions. The Rikti managed to erect their pylons and reactivate their shields and defense systems before we were capable of destroying the Mothership, but, as we have shown time and again, we will not tolerate their presence as long as they choose to wage war against us.

Analysis of Current Situation:
U'kon Grai was defeated handily on multiple occasions within an incredibly short period of time. He and his squadrons will most likely be recuperating for a time. With more work, we may be capable of decapitating their army. If only we could find a way to hack into their emergency teleportation network so that they would not be able to flee whenever they are near defeat...

Suggestion of Action:
Higher grade payloads should be given to the Mothership Attack Squadrons. The "light" payloads we are currently given only serve to draw out U'kon Grai and inhibit the Rikti's ability to fix their shield generators and defense systems. It is necessary for us to be given sufficient means to destroy the Mothership, rather than providing a distraction and nuisance.
Further research should be put into interfering with the Rikti Emergency Teleportation Network, especially the one localized around their Mothership. Since we are incapable of penetrating the outer hull, the Rikti are given free reign to teleport away when injured and bring in reinforcements where we are weak. U'kon Grai would be no problem if he were not capable of fleeing when we have him on the ropes.

In the short term, we need to continue to assault the Rikti Mothership. U'kon Grai and all of his troops are beginning to weaken thanks to our repeated assaults. If we press the advantage, we should be able to end this war even faster.

Is there any chance that the Challenge System options be included to allow players to gain more merits by imposing limits on themselves? It's a system with a lot of potential that's only really utilized for ouro mishes and, even then, a majority of the badges can only be attained on specific tasks (Gold Medal on 95% of the story arcs and TFs out there?).

Nora in my pants.

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I have one question.

If I run defenders, they're empathy defenders. I have run with dark defenders and corrupters; but those black sheep baffle me.

What are those sheep Dark and darkity Dark leading around?

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They are the Dark Servant, aka "Fluffy." Think "Black Sheep" from the nursery rhymes.

I'm in PERC as well. Rose done forgot about me...

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I don't know... a big blue ball would be much better

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Heresy! Burn him! The Big Red Ball shall not be spoken of in this manner!

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Be still and wait. When the Big Red Ball appears, it shall come down and smite all doubters and nay-sayers while gifting all true believers with its bouncy presence. So it says in the Big Red Book of the Big Red Ball.

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Scrapper never forgot the day that Defender tricked him. Mighty was Scrapper, and headstrong as well, so no one believed he was wily, and could use guile and trickery as well as brute strength to achieve his ends. Though he was Vengeful, he was also a Hero, a son of Statesman, and thus he would teach Defender and all his brothers and sisters a lesson that they would never be allowed to forget.

Gathering his children to him, he gazed upon them and upon the children of his brothers and sisters as well. Though he loved them all, and knew that they had already been blessed by the children of Statesman. From Defender came Vigilance, from Controller came Containment, from Tank came Provoke, from Blaster came Defiance, and his own children had already been blessed with Critical Strike. But he wanted more for his own children, yet could not simply Gift them further, for to do so would be unfair to his nieces and nephews.

So, with guile no one will ever believe, Scrapper Cheated.

"My children," he said. "You are valiant and proud, and as varied as snowflakes in a blizzard. You are mighty and fearless, and because of this, your weaker and lazier cousins will attempt to use you for their own ends. But do not scorn your cousins for this," he warned them. "For they are as valiant in heart as you, but will need you not only to lead them, but to Lead them from time to time, to inspire them to their true potential and greatness. To that end," he continued, "I will grant you all my greatest gift. I will give you my Will, my Determination to never fail. To be the First one in and the Last one out. You will push yourselves to the edge of ruin in your pursuit of perfection. You will charge ahead of your cousins, and your wrath will be so mighty that it will be unable to be checked, and will surely bring chaos upon not only you, but on any of your cousins who are intrepid enough to fight alongside you or behind you. By doing so, you will challenge them to unleash their true potential, to become better warriors if they are going to keep up with you, let alone survive. But you will remember this not, my children, for the joy in battle will be too too bright for you to see anything else. Some will scorn you, and whisper behind your back. Some will admire you. Others may emulate you. Still others will decide you are insane and run away. But while they are with you, you will force them to be better."

"And you will never even realize you are doing it."

Thus, Scrapperlock.

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Nice. Might wanna say that Scrapper gave them each a lock of his own hair to carry with them a reminder of his own will. The Lock of Scrapper. Scrapperlock.

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Force Bolt:<ul type="square">[*]Add KnockUP Mag as well.[/list]
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This isn't possible. Knockback and knockup are the same function with the modifier that knockup is simply very low mag knockback (under 1.0 mag) because the mag determines the distance of the flight. The devs would have to create an entirely new effect that is different than knockback, making it so that knockup simply has different mag and "duration" (how long you are being knocked about) than a similar knockback power, or separate the mag and "duration" of knockback, so that the 2 effects are only a difference of "duration."

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This thread is full of win. I came here, demoralized by rejection and feelings of inadequacy for not being a pure healer. I return now to the fray, my confidence renewed (until the next time I get dissed for not being a real healer, of course).

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Just succinctly tell them "lurn2play" and then proceed to tell them that, mathematically, buffs provide greater mitigation and survival than healing. Healing is only important in the first 12 levels or so before characters start managing to get a full suite of powers to make themselves effective. After that, buffs and debuffs are king.

Nothing will make me stop hating him for what he did to IH.

Besides, people remember what makes the biggest impression on them. Generally, people remember the failures of an individual more than their successes.

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in a technical sense at high lvls defenders aren't needed at all, because controllers can do all the things they cant, but they have mezz's instead of insanely weak damage attacks which do nothing, soo controllers are much more preferred on high lvl teams now

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Except in Cimerora because a defender's non-assistance set isn't rendered painfully null by [shout of command] and the natural mez protection of the Cimerorans. Every ITF team I've been on has vastly preferred defs to controllers.

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I think it was the combination of necrophilia and hole-filling that drove my urges. Sorta like why I got married.

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This tells us so much about you...

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Wow. Who's the necromancer?

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/badstorm... I mean... bad Badstorm /scold

Top Ten 4 Year Anniversary Party

Uhhh.... I'm pretty sure I contacted LadyK to get a classified put in for an event that is being held tomorrow. Any idea why it didn't get put in?

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I always wondered how blue steel got away with it, but maybe when other cops saw the body one of them threw a gun on the floor next to it and whispered "Ok, that was my unregistered, extra non-issue piece, Steel...remember when IA comes you tell 'em he pulled a gun...."

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There are two explanations I can think of...

First off, the pre-clockbody Clockwork King was suspected to be a super-powered cop-killer (using robots controlled via telekinesis). Assuming that because he was super-powered, Blue Steel could actually let loose and stop pulling punches, he beats the Clockwork King into a pulp. He stops when he realizes that the Clockwork King does not, in fact, have any kind of specially endowed resilience like most heroes do and stops. The use of super powers to combat super powers is completely sensible, so it would have been forgivable to accidentally brutalize a murderer on the grounds that they were assumed to be tougher than that (cops have gotten away with injuring and ending up killing a hemophiliac because they could not have known that the acceptable level of force they were using would end up being lethal).

The second plausible possibility is simply that Blue Steel was never suspected of brutalizing the Clockwork King. As far as I know, they were the only two people at the scene. If Blue ended up nearly killing the Clock King in a fit of rage (which is plausible, there is a remarkable camaraderie among cops: one of the reason so few cop-killers actually get brought in alive) and he never admitted that he beat the Clock King so badly, it would be perfectly reasonable that the PPD would simply brush everything under the carpet, especially since Blue Steel is such a fine and upstanding member of both the superhuman and police communities otherwise. The amount of favors and leeway that are allowed to police is actually larger than most people realize, and, unless all of this was brought to light, it would most likely never get seen by the public.

Sometimes the Praetorians aren't all that different...

I don't think it was necessarily "brutal murder." It was more akin to impassioned manslaughter. Then again, it does beg the question of whether the city could have gotten sued for police brutality, though with so many super powered individuals around, it's probably pretty easy to assume that someone can take a hit and accidentally reduce them to mush.

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As I recall, Blue Steel is tied to the Clockwork King's backstory. When the Clockwork first appeared, they were mostly just an amusing nuisance being directed by a young scruffy looking guy, until a police officer was killed trying to interfere with them. Blue Steel tracked the Clockwork King down after that and lost control, beating the Clockwork King so badly that Blue Steel was sure he'd killed the poor delusional kid. At some point in between Blue Steel reporting the incidence and backup arriving, some of the Clockworks apparently dragged their King's body off and fixed him up as the current Brain in a Jar on a Robot Chassis model he is today.

So when Back Alley Brawler was moved to Galaxy City, as far as I know that's the bit of game lore they raided for Blue Steel. I'm pretty sure he's an Ex-Cop now (possibly due to disciplinary action after he nearly killed the Clockwork King?), but still works closley with the PPD. He was also definitely a member of the Regulators with Back Alley Brawler. I'm not sure, but I think the two of them may be the only heroes from that team to survive the Rikti War? That would explain why BAB signed up with the Freedom Phalanx and Blue Steel is operating solo these days (as a Vindicators reservist by the look of it, since he pops up in Villain lore to save Aurora Borealis from Arachnos prisons in half the story arcs in Nerva).

Also, note that War Witch, Ravenstorm and Castle have the distinction of being Hero Zone Trainers without having Praetorian Dopplegangers, or appearing as enemy NPCs in any Villain content.

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The reason WW, Ravenstorm and Castle do not have Praetorian versions is because they did not exist when the Praetorians were created (I1 for those who are curious). Blue Steel did exist when the Praetorian arcs were added and I'm pretty sure he is the only trainer/tf contact that didn't have a Praetorian version of himself.

Personally, I think this was just because of the lack of "shield fighting" because his shield is so integral to his character (at least in my opinion).

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- Jock Tamson, Who looks at the name quizzically again. That is right isn't it?

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Yup.

-PK, who thinks that Rogue is the HOTTEST fictional character ON THE PLANET.

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You just want what you can't touch.