Rudra

I could agree with tier 3, but not tier 4. Tier 4 is uber beyond the shifts tier 3 already gives.

Isn't Empathy supposed to have the best heals? Maybe even the buffs? So what is so bad about it? It may not be an offensive set, but if it does what it is supposed to do, then what needs to be fixed? If it is the set's reputation because of player usage, what bearing does that have on the set itself? Support sets tend to have high learning curves. I don't see the need for this change. I'm not going to argue on this one. I don't play empaths because of the support focus. Just like I don't play several other power sets because of their support focus. I am still left wondering why though. And that is from reading the OP. Why is this needed? The OP doesn't give any real reason other than having "the reputation of being the power set of choice for bad players". It doesn't bring much to the table? It has THREE heals plus a regen buff! It has a rez. It has a Mag 12.98 status resist buff. It has a +DEF (All), +DAM, and +ToHit in ONE power. It has a recovery buff. And its tier 9 buffs recovery, regeneration, and attack rate. That is a LOT to bring to the table. And 3 of those are PBAoEs. Edit: And another confusing point: You want to merge the rez into one of the heals. If you do that, then every power set with a heal and rez is going to want to be merged as well. Are you willing to accept that?

Yeah, CO has an underwater zone. And while beautiful, it is aggravating to navigate. That is poor zone design though. The way they handled breathing underwater was your first contact for the zone 'gives you something that lets you breathe underwater'. Then your first mission is to harvest more plants that something is made from. Swimming is just the flight mechanic there. And in that zone, it works. Outside of the zone where you can swim and fly? The water-air interface is buggy for switching controls. So non-fliers can find themselves briefly flying if they swim and then go up. The fun thing about a fully underwater zone is it is a full 3D environment. So you have to watch for enemies in all directions. Including above and below. As long as CoX doesn't try hiding mission entrances in random coral tunnels, that would alleviate a lot of CO's underwater navigation frustration. (As a side note? CO also has a space zone in a specific task force. And it cheats for breathing in space the same way they cheat for breathing underwater. You can automatically do so, but there is a contact or clickable that can give you an RP reason for it.) As for the Coralax? They are more a mid-level enemy, but can easily be bumped up to high level like the Banished Pantheon were. My biggest concern for this suggestion is the swim-fly mechanic and the water-air interface. CO did such a poor job with it, it looked and felt bad. So if this is done, I hope CoX can fix that problem.

In the middle of an Antarctic blizzard too.

Wouldn't be the first time I was wrong, but I could swear that your character has to be level 50 to get purple drops. And sidekicking only gets you up to level 49. Edit: Unless incarnate content allows sidekicking at level 50 due to the team leader's incarnate shifts? Edit: Never mind. You have to be 50 to slot them, but yeah, pretty sure you're right and they start dropping at 47.

Why not Coralax for the underwater foes? It /is/ where they come from. So would the underwater areas be access by a gate or other click transition point and everything is underwater? Or would you be able to swim down there from any point in FF? (If you can swim down there by just jumping in the water anywhere in FF, that brings up the problem of water-air interface character controls.) Thematically, how would non-aquatic characters breathe down there? You have an interesting idea, I think it just needs to have the particulars ironed out. Edit: I should be clearer. I do not expect you to solve the water-air interface problem. That is for the devs. It is a problem partially avoided by the current water tile settings. Since you can't stand in it, you have to stand on some thing the tile is resting on, or you just fall through and the water-air interface problem is simply ignored by not needing a swim power. Just a swim emote to temporarily replace the walk/run animation.

I'm thinking it is less what is the proportion of what is intended as drops versus purchase, and more just that the means was already given to us to get any recipe we want because the Live devs heard people asking for the ability to get them. We have the means of getting those recipes right now. Without throwing level 40-50 recipes at low levels for no good reason. Edit: Hells. Low levels already have a means of getting high level recipe drops. Just not purple drops. They can join a high level team that is willing to take them on.

That was a nonsense response. The point is that the level 5 could not use it. Not for another 12 levels. As opposed to getting drops the level 5 could use. At the time the character got the recipe drop. What would be the point of getting a level 20 minimum, level 25 minimum, level 30 minimum, level anything too high for use minimum recipe? Aside from just selling it on the AH for money like you just said. None. You just want a shortcut to accumulating inf'. Leave the drops at the point where they can actually be used by the character getting them. You want lower level drops? Orouboros has you covered. So does the AH. So does using your reward merits. So does running around with a lower level team. You want higher level drops? Join a higher level team. Use your merits. I don't see any good arguments on this.

Your argument is farming? We're talking game content and you're arguing farming? Farms are specifically set up for specific builds. Fire farms are set up for fire brutes/tankers. Smash/lethal farms are set up for invulnerability characters and other characters with max smash/lethal defense and resist. So you want to argue niche for balance? Or rather, to be able to throw balance out the window. Yep, you're done.

Oh no! If all the sets on an AT perform roughly the same, people may actually play more power sets than 1-3 best sets! *gasp* The world is coming to an end because we have the ability to use all sets and not be penalized for it! Run for the hills! We will have the creative freedom to make what we want and not be stuck running the exact same builds with the exact same power sets as everyone else! You know, like you claim to want but never seem to actually want. They aren't cookie cutter. They may perform more or less equally when balanced, but they have different effects, different damage, different animations, and so forth. I'm talking about equal performance. Not cookie cutter everyone uses these exact same powers on everything, but you already knew that, didn't you?

Sure, no one likes seeing something they like get nerfed. To keep all sets and powers competitive though? Nerfs are as essential as buffs. If one set outperforms every other set on the same AT? It needs to be nerfed. If one set can't keep up with the other sets on the same AT? It needs to be buffed. That's routine in video games. You can hate it all you like. I don't like nerfs either. It doesn't take away the need for them to be used from time to time though.

*looks at all threads has seen comment on* *raises hand and opens mouth* *clamps mouth shut*

I could do that too! 😄 Edit: Though I think that is the difference. I think back on Live, the devs removed the level requirement for the travel powers (after 4th level when pools became unlocked), but you still had to have a prior power pick. And the private server took away the power pick. If I'm remembering correctly at least.

Mmmmmmm... slight disagreement. I'm just saying to put the power pick requirements back. I'm fine with hovering across zones for 2 levels. Hovering across zones for 10 levels rather sucks. 😛

To get back to the OP. Sure, let the power pools be standardized. The travel pools are what are different, so let's change them back to where you need one of the two starter powers to unlock the actual travel power. You'd have lots of players up in arms, but the pools would be standardized again. Edit: I don't really see the travel pools being reverted to match, but there you go. Standardized power pools that avoids any mention of creep and avoids making it easier to min-max your character.

They are introducing harder content because of all the power creep that has happened. Edit: If the goal is balance, making characters even more powerful than they already are steps all over that. More powerful characters demands more difficult content or players complain. With the harder content comes more requests to make the characters more powerful. With the more powerful characters comes the demand for more difficult content. Until you finally reach a place where the elite players are soloing Uber-Enhanced Ultra Hamidon and his equally powerful clones while the average player is left well behind. Edit again: Imagine for a moment progressing the game to the point several of these suggestions want. You start playing. You find the starter areas fairly easy. And the game keeps getting easier as you level. Not more interesting, just easier. And then you see the ultra elites solo annihilating the so-called end game final bosses. How interested would you be in continuing to play? There is no reward for your challenge because there is no challenge. Why would that person keep playing? And then that person possibly talks to his/her friends and says "sure, play City of Heroes if you want a grade school level of challenge." This is an extreme take, but it is where I see these suggestions going.

Damn good question these days.... Sorry, I don't think I have an answer for that.

I'm pretty sure the idea is to build for balance and keep the game interesting. I could be wrong though.

Sooooooooooo... if the already best players/characters get better, but not by more than some undefined limit, it is fine because they are already the best.... So if a change allows a min-max player to skip the min part and just go for max... that's good game play.... My head hurts.... Edit: And to be clear... all you want is something new? You are not trying to find a way to max out your characters' power/effectiveness? And maxing out is... somehow adding something new to the game? Oy.

Okay, my mistake, Thanks. What about the Olympian in the replacement Maria Jenkins arc? Is that just a renamed original Tyrant or is it a new Olympian too? (The original arc, it was Tyrant.)

Good post. Both entertaining and enlightening. I was under the impression the Holy Quartet consisted of Hasten (which I never take), Combat Jumping (which my ground bound characters do take, but not the fliers or teleporters), Maneuvers (which I take on my Masterminds for obvious reasons), Tactics (which I also normally take on my Masterminds for obvious reasons), Assault (my Masterminds again), Tough, and Weave. This is the first I've heard of Aid Self being a 'must pick or are noob' power. Still a valid point. Also, I guess that makes me a noob too. I'm scared to ask if I'm one of the ones with the holy cause, so that probably means I am one.

Thanks. May I ask what the differences are then? (Edit: I was under the impression the Olympians were just the old Tyrant from the ... Maria Jenkins' arc?)

Isn't Olympian 29 just a renamed original Tyrant just a re-colored Statesman? So isn't he just using Statesman's abilities?

There is a difference in my comment(s) you seem to have missed. With the Fly pool as the example this time. I am perfectly happy with having to pick up Hover to get Fly. The change made me happy because I no longer had to wait until level 14 for my winged characters to fly. I only had to unlock the power. Starting at level 4. So I am fine with the travel pools going back to the way the other pools are. Let the devs do that. There is the requested pool standardization. I just don't want to have to wait until level 14 to make use of something that is obviously a theme of the character. (Edit: And by obvious I mean any other person who even glances at that character knows that character can probably fly. Not just obvious to me, the person that made the character.) Edit: The being hypocritical part is about my being happy the level requirement was reduced. Not about the the lack of prerequisite.

Except this provides nothing new to the game. Just easier. You want new? Provide a suggestion for something new instead of easier.