Primantis

I experienced this as a curse that killed my interest in endgame raiding. You're always on the clock in WoW. Raid leaders, and probably everyone else, always knew how much damage or healing you were putting out and how much threat you had generated. The opposite of fun. It also means everybody knows immediately who stepped on the wrong square and the other sorts of catherding that sends players into realtime voice chat just to play the game. - pretty much sums up my experience. I might be tempted to go back and dust off that version of Heraclea. But only if this kind of data gets hidden. Hence why the ongoing joke with Classic WoW Endgame was that it was literally "A second job". Such tools were important for seeing who was carrying their weight and who was under performing, or not listening to instructions. They should *not* be used to shame (although they were, sadly), but should ideally be used as a management tool by the raider leaders to instruct and guide raid/guild members who were either under performing or messing up the raid. Generally if you ask a group of people "Who messed this up?" you'll either get no one answering, or random finger pointing with little real evidence. So a log you can look at and see "Yup, it was Thunderbux" is useful to avoid such a scenario. Flip the situation a bit. How would a person feel feel if they were super dedicated to a raid, farmed for days to make sure they and everyone else had the mats they needed. Spent literally all day grinding through the raid to the final bosses. Suddenly, they can't proceed further, because some chap can't listen or is confused and keeps doing something he isn't supposed to be doing. Wiping the raid over and over. Causing all the preparations to be for naught and wasting the time of 35+ people for hours. Surely some tool to pinpoint who is messing up and why would be useful. Then the leader could personally message them and ask them to do things a bit differently. The issue, like all tools, lies in the abuse of said tool. ...And this is why I seldom raided. I wanted to have fun. Maxing out my level and getting decent Heroic gear was enough for me.

I agree with many of these changes, Cooldowns especially need to be looked at. Unless you're rocking some major global recharge, most of your key powers will not be up every spawn. Which just feels wrong. Especially on faster moving teams.. In fact Traps seems to currently shine on teams with mediocre damage, as they excel at "setting up base and camping". But that plays counter to the rest of the game entirely. A few changes I'd make Web Grenade - I am not sure. While its lackluster on most teams, it is a critical tool for binding down AVs for those who like to solo them. Making it AoE would increase recharge and endurance cost making it less usable for that purpose. Caltrops - Double or triple the AoE radius, bring the "max Run debuff" up slightly to compare to Tar Patch's'. This will provide a bit of soft control as well as "lock down" ability. As mobs love to run away from Acid Mortar. Triage Beacon - Cut Cooldown in half. It should be at least Perma on SOs. Acid Mortar - Reduce recharge slightly. This is probably one of the better balanced powers in Traps Force Field Gen - The power itself is perfect. I'd prefer if the FFG drone was better affixed to your character though. Or it didn't have clipping box. It gets 'lost' too easy in the crowd which can lead to some untimely deaths. Poison Trap - Turn this back into the proc bomb it used to be! ... But on a more serious note, this power is also pretty good. I'd leave it as-is. Seeker Drones - Increase the PBAOE radius of the debuff. Increase their travel speed and slightly reduce recharge. Trip Mine - Take Trip Mine and Time Bomb and combine them into "Remote Bomb" or some such. A near clone of Omega Maneuver. Time Bomb - New level 32 Power. And I have two different ideas. Idea 1 : "Mobilize Tech" - Triage Beacon and Acid Mortar are turned into mobilized versions of themselves. Which now follow you around like psuedo pets. Also provides a small (20%~) recharge bonus. Maybe some low-level stealth too. This is an auto power Idea 2 : "Transference Field" - You summon a "Transference Field" at the targeted location. The Field is fairly large, 15-20 yards. The field pulses every few moments. Each time it pulses it applies a debuff on the mob (-Dmg, -End, -Rch) and transfers that over to any allies (including caster) in range. Giving them a (non stacking) +Dmg, +Recharge and +End Recovery buff. Once they leave the field the buff wears off after a few seconds. Recharge 240 seconds, duration 60. (Or maybe 120/30) Masterminds could get a slightly altered version so they could cast it more easily on their minions without having to send them into melee range. Cottage Rule is probably broken with that last power, but I made sure the replacement power was at least offensive in nature in both cases. Acid Mortar Drones would mean you could potentially have 2 of them following you in most cases, leading to some nice debuffage and proc potential. The offensive potential of "Transference Field" is a mix of SB and Fulcrum Shift. But not quite as hefty. I'm thinking of something like 30-50% DMG, Stamina-level Recovery buff and maybe 30% recharge buff (Defender Numbers)

+1 for fingers!

What would you do with time bomb? I agree it could use some looking into. But I can't think of anything. Maybe having it attach (as in "anchor") to a mob that detonates after some time (like a sticky bomb). That way you can target the boss and it will go off. It still wouldn't do too much AoE damage, but it'd see some use. Then again, I'm not even sure if that's possible. Well a "quick fix" in my opinion would be to make Time Bomb function like Crab Spider's "Omega Maneuver". Every time I use or see that power being used I think "That's what Time Bomb should be". I like your idea as well! I also feel it overlaps too much with Trip Mine. They feel kind of redundant. So maybe some sort of extra debuff attached to the Time Bomb could help distinguish it.

I came here to suggest this. For a power set called "Mind Control", there's a startling lack of actual *mind controlling* going on. To make sure the pet doesn't instantly get killed by friendly fire, it could also potentially be 'turned' so that it is considered a psuedo pet. Instead of merely a long-term confused mob or something. This has the added bonus of giving MC a pet, and a unique one that fits the theme of the set. They could potentially also use the same tech they demonstrated in some of the Sentinel armor sets. Have "Thrall" be a level 32 power alongside Mass Confusion. The player can choose either one or the other. Lore-wise the hero is either good at confusing a bunch of critters at once, or they've honed their skills to focus all their confusion prowess on a single target, turning it into a Thrall.

+1 When the time comes... 'Art' and a 'Comic Culture' board. Comic Culture being where we discuss comics, video games, movies too. Not just super hero stuff. It was really great back on Live.

Oh is that what's going on? heh.. I imagine that the case for a lot of these interactive zone-changing NPCs? Like the helipad guards etc. They all seem to have finicky interaction boxes. Heck even the Ticketmaster in AE makes me click on his shoulder most of the time.

I can confirm this. You don't have to be trained to 35+ in order to do the Patron Missions. I've done it several times. I usually hit 35 then refuse to train because I want that APP power as my level 35 power. But If I'm on a rolling team or something I might be 36/37 by the time I get around to it. So yes, if the last level you trained was 34~ish but you have enough XP earned to train up to 35+, they'll still give you the missions. (I would still like to see them unlock at 34 though, makes more sense to me to be able to preemptively earn the badge)

I'm gonna make a few comments on this. While you are technically correct, the positives are not objective but subjective. "CO has a more robust costume designer." That is technically correct. However the game felt much more limited in costume parts and other ways I can't remember. It took 3 huge steps forward then 1 step back. I also personally thought CoH's costume pieces looked better from an aesthetics point of view. But yes, the costume creation was technically superior due to more attachment nodes and asymmetrical design. Better facial modifications too, even if (imo) all the faces looked rather unpleasant or cheesy. Although at the end of the day, I would give this one to CO, even if I prefer the look of CoH. "CO has more flexibility in character creation." Also true, but also not entirely good. This lead to several "One true builds" and massive, massive nerfs to everything because all people ever did was cherry pick. When I played, everyone just picked that Land Mine power and filled the empty powers out with buffs or something. It really wasn't as good as it sounded. But from a pure RP perspective this would be a golden goose, yes. Also, some people (such as myself) like identity in our characters. I choose Defenders because I want to be "The Support Guy". When everyone is everything, that identity gets kind of diluted. But once again, that's down to personal preference. "CO has features that could only have been wished for when CoH was in development." Much of which (Power Customization etc) came later for CoH, and I felt CoH did a better job at it once it *was* implemented. being able to choose where projectiles originated from was pretty cool though, and that never made it into CoH. Outside of that you had Nemesis which was nice the first few times, but I *personally* found it annoying by the time I hit my 3rd alt. New shinies get dull if the base game isn't up to snuff. It also took a step backwards in a few features. I don't recall SKing working nearly as well (if at all??). Teaming was a joke, indoor missions were a joke... I didn't mind the crafting but I know others disliked it. I felt there were too many costume drop/unlocks etc. "CO has more action oriented game play with less downtime in combat." Subjectively good or bad. I found the faster combat spazy and obnoxious. Maybe its just my old bones but I'll take CoH's combat over CO's any day. Also, Energy Builders seemed to be counter productive to the style they were going for. "CO is a "next generation" (compared to CoH) MMORPG." I cant really argue with this one. CO was a different MMO generation than CoH. But "Newer = Better" is a fallacy. As an ending note. I pre-ordered CO and played it very early on. I wanted the game to succeed. I wanted it to be great. So I am not trying to dog on it out of spite or anything like that. It had huge potential, but I was ultimately let down by the product.

It takes mad skills to perma Haten. A pure legend!

Time/xx Defenders are especially effective at this. Rock that 'Time's Juncture' to debuff the mobs while simultaneously boosting the front lines' Defense with 'Farsight'. Dropping 'Distortion fields' under you for some extra slow and chance to hold goodness. Choose a secondary with lots of PBAoE's and go to town.

Generally speaking the "Chance for a buff when you attack mobs" style procs cap out at 1 proc per activation. While I haven't personally tested Call of the Sandman, I know this has been the case with just about every other similar proc (chance to Build up, Force Feedback, Defender ATO procs, etc) Also, proc chance in AoE is calculated based on how many mobs were hit, not the maximum possible. So if you used Jacob's Ladder, and it only targeted 1 enemy, it should be roughly the same chance to proc as if it were a Single Target attack instead of an AoE. Hitting more than 1 enemy would diminish its chance to proc per enemy, but you're rolling more dice too. So it should all equal out. (I am not sure how misses factor in though)

I fall victim to this very often as well. Especially on faster moving teams or when I switch from a non-anchor defender to an anchor defender. I think the end result is a gain, but the option to turn it on and off would also be nice, if possible.

Lol awesome xD

Failing the TF seems a bit harsh. I'd be ok if we were forced to re-do the mission though. Or even tack on an extra "Woops the hostage died so now you have to complete an extra mission" feature. So people actually try to keep the hostages alive. But at the end of the day, I don't think the issue is big enough to warrant excessive dev time devoted to it.

The thing that sticks out in my mind, is the term "Signature" hints that it should be unique. Even if you could choose any one power in the game, its still just a generic power that many other heroes have. Which isn't very "Signature" feeling. While I'm sure its completely infeasible, I would love to be able to craft your own power some how. To make it true signature power, a power few others would have unless they copied your template. Structurally it could work similar to spell crafting in the elder scroll games. You could choose if its an Attack, Buff, Debuff etc. Then choose if its range, aoe, melee, effects and side effects. All while working against a "budget" of sort so the power doesn't end up being absurdly OPd. This will never, ever happen. But hey I can dream xD

This is what I do as well =3

If a buff makes current choices (like dark mastery) obsolete, then it's arguably a nerf just as much as it is a buff. Debatable (as you mentioned). While you're not as efficient as you could be compared to the alternatives. You'd still be just as efficient as you were before the patch/change. I'd call such a situation straight up power creep xD

I too would take this in a heart beat. -Also yes, I also get that annoying flicker with Fade xD

Pretty much this. It is well written and I can't think of much to add! However if you want to utilize [Trip Mine] in a team I've found that a decent way to do so is by placing it right after your PGT. That way you are less likely to be interrupted. Due to the PGT hopefully holding most foes and the others being blinded/stunned by the Seeker Drones. If you're heavy on Defense and have PGT totally maxed out I've used "Mortar --> PGT --> Trip Mine" to some success too. That is, laying the Mortar smack in the middle of the mob. It fires AOE so it should still blast em all. I lay the Mortar first so it can debuff a few mobs before the Trip Mine goes off. You could probably lay the Mortar further out but I just find it works smoother this way, so YMMV

Yes indeed, I truly believe CoH was a happy mistake for the most part. A lot of the later mobs are just.. over designed. Too many debuffs, way too many buffs... NightWard is a friggin nightmare depending on which mobs you are up against. Feels like the mobs are designed for level 50+ content, not 20-30. Same with Preatoria. Huge ambushes, tough mobs with mezzes and debuffs you generally wouldn't see until the late 20s at the very earliest (and iirc they were on *minions* not LT or bosses). It feels like what you get when players make AE maps with custom mobs and try to make things overly difficult by giving them too many good powers. Now if a player enjoys this stuff, more power to them. But zoning through a portal on level 30ish x8 team, only for nearly the entire team to instantly wipe because the devs decided to make a faction full of mini-masterminds who cast Darkest Nights, mezzes and res debuffs *and* have them camp the portal, not my idea of fun..

I keep hearing about this combo (lightning rod and s charge)and I don't quite get it. Is it just loads of damage? I mean you'd lose the cool 'I traveled fast' or even gap close effect by running them one after the other. Not to mention other sets have similar aoe gap closers like savage or leaping... It's oodles of damage, enough to wipe out entire spawns save for maybe the bosses, sometimes LTs survive if they are tanky. They also share the same recharge rate, which is fairly low (90 seconds, so 45 with SOs). Meaning you can use them at least every other spawn generally.

[glow=red,2,300]Vengeance + Fallout[/glow]

Just quoting this bit to add that I think that Sleeps need to be fundamentally reworked because as it is now, sleep is one of the most useless types of mez in this game. Sure, it has use solo, but so little of this game is played solo that most sets with sleeps regard those powers as skippable. The only sleep power I have ever used that actually felt worthwhile was Static Field because of how it pulses and reapplies the sleep after an enemy is woken up from it. In my opinion, this highlights a huge problem with the way other sleeps work mechanically. This kind of falls out of the scope of this thread, of course, but I would not say no to some improvements to Ice Manipulation. I do agree with the idea that the set probably just needs some numbers tweaked or some individual powers buffed rather than a complete overhaul. I always thought some sort of randomness to sleep might help it a bit. Instead of a 100% chance to wake the target, make it around 25%. Enough to make it worth it to put them to sleep, but also risky enough to prevent it from being a "hard" mez. Also prevents it from being to similar to how Fear functions. (Since Feared targets retaliate but then go back to being Feared) Even in the real world. If a person is put under for medical reasons, they don't instantly wake up as soon as the doctor pokes them with the scalpel. I would like to think super abilities are at least as potent as the drugs they use to put us under in the OR or even the dentist chair.

Let us bump spawns up to x12 and apply Incarnate shifts to level 54 mobs in standard content. Could be some chaotic fun xD I dunno if the game can even spawn mobs larger than x8, but I did notice the option for x10 on my personal private server under /mmm. Granted I haven't tested it.