Greycat

SGs: For me they're a mix. I have some that are solo, yes - either just as homes to alts, or stuff I *would* make an active SG if I had time or inclination to actually run it. Others are shared with others, based on a theme or some bit of shared personal lore or whatever the SG is founded on, especially being an RPer. Some are there just to make use of the base for a setting of some sort, building your own office or mad scientist's lab or park or port or bar or what have you. We even make use of coalitions, to some extent. Friends lists: Yes, I make use of them, both the individual character lists and the global ones. Honestly I kind of wish I could make more than one and/or categorize them.

*Watches hard mode TFs get speedruns.* Personally... well, the answer gets split into two categories. As far as the choices for enemies buffed, etc? Other than the timer or number of deaths, I don't know that I've ever seen them used. People might solo with them for a badge or something, but they're sure not advertised if there's going to be a TF with them activated. If we're talking actual "Hard mode" multi-star whatever? I tend to just skip them these days. There seems to be a choice of them being speedrun, so people are just bouncing to what *has* to be done like overcaffeinated monkeys on crack to get the prismatics and other rewards in as little time as possible, or they're being run by people who INSIST you MUST BE RIGHT HERE and do EXACTLY THIS to where you wonder why you're bothering playing instead of just giving them control of your system, or the *most* fun... both. None of that interests me, so... *shrugs*

I'd agree with "on their own, no, but the way they're implemented, yes" hits it about right. Having characters that solo things designed for teams at full-team size (x8) and buffed (+4) being as common as they are should never have happened. Personally, I'd have dropped the "rule of 5" to a "rule of 3" and kept *much* more from being perma'd without outside help. (Domination, for instance - used to be that, sure, it was easier to build *on* a team (and still is,) but on SOs if you wanted it perma, you'd make friends with a Kin or two, and it'd be situational otherwise, requiring some degree of thought as to "is this the fight I want to use it on this time." Now? It's practically taken as a given and/or people think it's something you have to do. T9 armors? Why deal with any drawbacks when you're already at def/res caps long before them, with an easy to get build copied from the forum or discord? So... yeah. I think dropping to a "rule of 3" would have kept some degree of challenge while still allowing plenty of build diversity with IOs. But, ship's long since sailed, reached the other port, made multiple runs around the oceans, been updated, run some more, and gotten worn out enough to be sold for scrap right alongside any native difficulty in the game.

EXCEPT... yes, even if the sleep is broken, it's already shut off various armors or buffs/debuffs, which take time for the NPC to be able to use again and usually can cut through defenses other things aren't. *Especially* with how early you get it, that's insanely useful. COT mage bubble? Doesn't resist sleep. AOE debuff aura that's making everyone miss? Turned off by a sleep. Armor? Turned off by sleep. Used to toake my mind controllers/doms on MLTF/LRSFs because ... they'd let you deal with the AVs one at a time while the others took a nap. Sleeps are *quite* powerful, but people are so hung up on "oh, but they're woken up with any damage" nobody pays attention.

Mind control's great as is. Any issue with it would be a general controller issue with the old lengthened AOE hold recharge. Definitely don't need or want Confuse turned into an AOE or chain. Absolutely not. The times I use it (frequently,) I *want* just one target (typically a buffer, sometimes a sapper for amusement) confused, not everything around it. If I want everything around it confused, I use ... wait for it... Mass Confusion. And yes, seeds is AOE and earlier. It also causes aggro to pay for it. I don't want either confuse doing that. It would make the set much less useful. (It's also why I don't put the damage procs some confuse setss have into it.) And Mass Confusion is perfectly fine as a T9. It's a Mind signature power. The AOE hold? I tend to want that earlier. (Yes, people *do* take it and use it and know how to use it.) Especially on controllers, since it's setting up everything held by it for Containment (and a boss can be followed up on quickly by the ST hold to stack. ) And with the power availability changes (which, frankly, I still dislike and which annoy me on every character I'm leveling) you get it earlier.

No, they're thinking nobody should/does take AOE holds. And they're wrong. As far as the OP - as mentioned, the effects aren't "your powers." They're something added on. The tailor or whoever doesn't have any way of knowing or caring about procs and their effects, and I'd hate to see how messy the interface would have to be if that *did* get added.

... and you had to necro a year and a half old thread to ask that?

Nope. I typically do as well. A fast, generally low-end attack to finish something is fairly useful. About the only time I don't is on some control sets.

Here's one - If you're going to run on MSRs? Take fold space. Not *as* useful leveling up, but once you've got an Incarnate level - and can blow money or threads on Ultimates - then, in the bowl, you'll pull *everything.* About the only thing you won't pull to yourself will be U'kon. Hover above (or take advantage of someone with group fly *waves to the masterminds*) and just keep dropping enemies en masse into the meat grinder. ... Yes, even bosses. If you're *not* pulling things? Move a bit towards one of the edges. Enjoy the vmerits.

I have too many characters of different types to really have a "set" way of doing things. It really depends on the character. I don't bother with purples for the most part. ATOs... sometimes, and then "eventually." I generally buy purples (via merit) when I have a bunch of catalysts sitting around - catalyze and toss on the market for a bit of INF. I don't generally bother with "builds." I throw in what looks interesting as it goes - sometimes that's just "eh, ST ranged, thunderstrike, ok," sometimes it's "wonder how many powers can take a stun" (electric's fun that way,) sometimes it's just something that only I will see that I find amusing (Feliney Assault, cat brute, has Mako's bite and the Leviathan pool because catgirl tossing fish around amuses me.)

... I don't need to read more. >.> "I told you not to run into that mob alone!" Ooh... can one of the items be a book? Is a slap upside the head part of the pool too?

Yeah, I've got someone who could use a big, dangly, tacky pendant. (No, not kidding.) If the shoulder/neck detail can hang down some... might need chest details for the really tack... er, substantial ones. That said... being able to use something other than neck chains for necklaces would be nice. Things with actual pendants of various sorts, for instance (not just for dressing up, either) would be appreciated.

Yeah, there are a *number* of issues with character positioning to actually "sit on" things. Other MMOs allow you to click on something and select "sit," but I shudder to think of the amount of work that'd have to be added to every seating surface in the game to do this (not to mention alignment for things in the base editor so you don't have three people sitting at a table facing each other and one staring at a wall.)

I've got to agree with this. WIllpower's such a hands-off, don't-need-to-think-about-it set. I don't do "builds," I'm not perma-anything capped-anything (at least on purpose) and my WP characters are still exceptionally durable, to where I have to check the map and make sure I haven't split off at some point if I notice my teammates not around.

Following someone with superjump when I'm on sprint... You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. You are getting too far from your mentor. Your mentor is too far away! You are in range of your mentor. (repeat 60x....)

*Recalls the Big Red Ball from forums past.*

It surprises me when people seem to have just discovered how to do this. I hear people (especially melee) having trouble with Protean and it's like.... have you never tried this technique? He'll never get his PBAOE off since you're only in range for half a second...

So, Spectrum's an ... interesting look, and can lead to interesting shadings. Still, after seeing a video where the lighting ... kind of reminded me of Spectrum, it also got me wondering if it'd be possible to do *patterns* that were also Spectrum-ized, even if it could only be used with Spectrum itself. ... that sort of look, where you've got zones where you could put in another color (or shadow) that wouldn't necessarily be colored that way by default. Yes, I'm thinking specifically on top of Spectrum itself... though if that could be brought over into normal patterns, that may be interesting as well.

I pretty much always take a travel power. Rarely put it off - if nothing else, it's a "ok, don't really need to slot this, so extra slots early for some power." About the only power I skip is superspeed - thanks to early game annoyance with it and Terra Volta and the lack of vertical travel... even with the current "extra" tacked on. (Same goes with experimentation... speed of sound. The extra effect is actually extra annoying. I'll only take it if the character *really* calls for it.) As far as availability of other powers... rarely does that influence me. I'll take those pools *despite* the travel power sometimes - primarily for combat teleport and/or fold space (Teleport Target is always useful.) (And since it was mentioned, I rarely take hasten. Maybe as a 49 "I have nothing else I need" pick.) Group powers... I've said before, and somehow this seems to just get any number of panties in a twist, that we should have Null in coop zones. MSRs and Hami raids fill quickly, at least on Everlasting, and leaving to hit Pocket D to turn off Group Fly if you've forgotten to may mean you don't get back *in* the zone for a while, if at all. But I don't generally mind group travel powers, otherwise... other than Incandescence.

Not sure if still valid, but I *vaguely* recall extra damage or some such for a stalker's AS on a held target at one point.

*snort* I remember beta when everyone looking at the market was *sure* Boresight was going to make them rich on the market. Yeah... no.

Starting back in i3... First character, got him into the hollows. Don't recall what mission I was trying to get him to, but suddenly seeing this giant, floating skeletal thing conning purple. Seemed like something I should *really* avoid (having not fought COT at the time...) Also, on a different character (the one who'd be my first 50,) doing missions with a team in the Hollows and seeing this white floating thing come out of the door and fly off... hooked on Kheldians since.

Eh. I mean, they *are* looking for a group. And I suspect all that a "farm" channel would do - besides cause griping - is cause messages to be duplicated in there *and* in LFG. Even as an "official" channel, it may not populate for people with older characters (such as the people *doing* the farming) where they're looking or trying to advertise. And we already have people uptight and complaining if anyone says *anything* that's not directly "We are doing these missions and have room for X" in LFG. I'd rather not see them fill the channel with so much whine it's mistaken for France.

I don't perma-dom at all and have never found it "pretty brutal" on any dom.

... well. 15 minutes of waiting, posting this, deciding to head to Eden (because I need my costumes...) Stop to punch some COT mages and one finally showed up. First time I've actually seen an ambush for that mission.