biostem

Sometimes you want a lot of pizzazz and to really shine with a costume, but other times you want something more subdued. One thing I really wish we had was an aura that allowed us to have a very specific, persistent, but somewhat more subdued effect. Namely, I'd like something akin to a glint or sort of persistent point of light at specific locations. Basically, think of the "sparkles" effect, only alternating between a single point of light or a 4-pointed star. Bonus points if it moved kind of like a lens flair and/or spun/twinkled more slowly. Example: https://www.vecteezy.com/video/2018260-spotlighting-lens-flare-background

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You are correct in your estimation, but not for the reasons you think; If, for instance, you come on the forums to report that "X change is bad", but couldn't be arsed to take part in the beta/testing process to have provided feedback when said change(s) were in the testing phase, then that's on you. If you cannot/will not provide feedback in a clear and concise manner, backed up with evidence, then that, again, is a shortcoming on your part. With an online game, change is all but inevitable, so if you, again, aren't willing or able to adapt to said change(s), then once again, that's on you. Don't get me wrong - it is OK to not like a particular change, but to act like a change was rushed through or otherwise implemented for a malicious reason, is misguided at best, and downright damaging at worst...

I would not shed a single tear if they removed the rezzing and intangible/untouchable mobs. With that in mind, who or what determines what is a "legit" tough enemy vs one that exists solely to waste time? What your tank can roflstomp solo, my blaster may have a very tough time taking on. What's the baseline?

I suppose it's a matter of how you interpret the whole Well of the Furies/Pandora's Box thing; One could interpret it as essentially acting as a muse to inspire those with genius to create their inventions, or maybe to introduce some sort of instability into the genetic codes of lifeforms to permit the kinds of mutations that could grant superpowers, etc...

For my part, I had a few ideas for what could work; 1. An earth control & poison or radiation controller. 2. At the other extreme end, something like a savage/radiation or bio armor brute, or maybe a stone armor tanker.

I had this idea knocking about in my head for a character whose powers stemmed from, or were otherwise augmented by, them being really really stinky; like a skunk or stink bug. What AT and powersets would you choose for such a character? Thanks for reading!

There's also that possible future mission in Ouroboros where we get to play our full-powered Incarnate self...

I mean, go do any event in a lower level zone...

I've no opinion on this matter, but "sus" is typically short for "suspicious" or "suspect".

I think you aren't seeing the forest from the trees, here; It's not about people caring if they can perform better than anyone else; It's about how, when the highest difficulty setting becomes the standard measure of performance that players expect to be able to solo on every character, that it becomes meaningless. In fact, the highest difficulty setting should probably be almost impossible for all but the toughest, well-built characters, controlled by experienced players, to accomplish, (especially solo). And just as an addendum, completing such a mission by way of you being defeated time after time, and only winning through attrition, isn't really the same thing...

Just responding in kind to the person who was dismissive of me to begin with. Yeah - that's why people never get confused by enhancement slotting, ED, IO set bonuses and the rule of 5, and let's not get started on incarnate stuff. Plenty.

Did you miss what I quoted? I was answering how someone could get to 50 without knowing how to play. AFK door-sitting farming is one such way. For the record, I have no problem with farming in general, only the specific instances where someone with little to no knowledge of "how to play" gets PL'd to 50 then whinges about things being too difficult, not knowing where to go or what to do, etc...

Yeah, I put 2 additional slots in both, (so 3 slots in total for each), and do panacea, miracle, and numina's in health, then performance shifter + 2 end mods in stamina, (I may add a 4th slot to stamina if I can spare it and still need that extra bit of end recovery).

Spy camera image from @Snarky's lair:

I mean, "AFK farm door sitting" literally does not require you be there, so, yeah...

It would be highly specific, (which for SoAs is already somewhat the case), but maybe they could provide a special version of the crab spider backpack, which still takes up the back slot, but simply becomes invisible while you are in a bane spider build...

Oh my sweet summer child, you poor thing. You seem to be confused; Learning a game's mechanics and systems is not the same as fast-twitch reaction time, and I'm confident you know that. Maybe try -1/x1 next time.

Oh no doubt - they'd have to add some sort of check or otherwise prohibit changing builds or costumes if you went from bane -> crab while wearing a costume without said spider legs...

If you lack the necessary hand-eye coordination or the ability to remember what keys to press for what actions, then that is something, (short of a disability), that you can absolutely work on. You aren't going to be good at ice skating or mountain climbing right off the bat, either. Many games have difficulty settings that you can select as well, so if you can't/won't/don't have the time or inclination to develop the skills necessary, then you have options. If you *do* want to play on those harder difficulty settings, but don't want to improve yourself, then that's on you. As for it not being part of videogames in the past, then you may not be familiar with the term "Nintendo hard'.

I really just wish they'd allow a SoA to *not* have the spider backpack if they are in a bane build.

There number of games that are appealing and/or fitting for eSports is vanishingly small, and they generally need to be fairly big or well known beforehand. Blizzard was already a giant in the video game industry before eSports even caught on, so it's kind of a chicken-and-egg scenario. Does the question of "is this game going to be streamed a lot" really enter into a developer's mind when they're deciding what (type of) game to create? IMHO, it's more like "is this a FPS, a 3rdPS, an RPG, an RTS or Diablo-clone?" With regards to "Dark Souls" type games, I see it more as a response to requests by gaming media or other such folks for "journalist modes" where the game basically plays itself, so they can report on the game without having to put in the time to learn it or be good at it in general...

Hmm... in checking the Wiki, it seems that body mastery, which, IMO is the equivalent of your proposed "Super Strength Mastery" for melee ATs, was recently renamed to "Energy Mastery". I think Body Mastery was better, as it implied, well, a higher level of refinement and development of, well, one's own physical abilities, (which could also encompass martial arts, street justice, and so on). For non-melee ATs, providing some less flashy/more internally developmental growth for the character, would certainly be a nice addition!

I highly doubt that most games were made harder for "pro-gaming". More likely, you have particular likes or dislikes that either differ from how things have shifted over time, (totally valid, IMHO), or you simply prefer older game design philosophies, (again, not necessarily a bad thing). Similarly, I am extremely doubtful that *anyone* plays "most games" to begin with.

While I can't speak to the devs' intentions behind the changes, I have to imagine that this is precisely why they were made tougher...