Neiska

I’ve had the best luck with Dino chicken nuggies and alcohol. Lots of alcohol.

Oh for sure, where and what you are farming matters just as much as the AT. I was speaking in generalities.

@shmurtypants thoughts come to mind. The first, is you “can” farm with MMs, but unless you are multi boxing, it’s far from efficient or stress free. Playing 2-3 MMs at once can be fairly fast, but it takes skill and practice. But what I do now is play whatever you want, but have 2 tanks/brutes on follow. I am currently farming on my crabber SoA, and I have one Savage/Bio brute and a spines/bio tanker on follow auto casting their AoEs. So I can pretty much farm whatever I like with that setup. You don’t really even need two, one would be doable, it’s just faster with 2. No muss, no fuss, smooth and easy farming even on 4/8.

I don’t claim to speak for anyone but myself, but I can offer alternative possibilities. The reasons why need not be malicious in nature. Some people including myself enjoy “red lining” the engine so to speak. Pushing a build or even a concept build as far as you can. It might also depend on the enemy or mission in question. Some enemies like carnies can be pita. Missions like “kill all” might certainly be faster if people split up. The same goes for “finding the McMuffin” objectives. I doubt splitting up on missions is for any kind of ego, as it’s not really a feat that’s impressive. Soloing an itf is impressive. Soloing GMs and AVs are impressive. Getting a ton of vet levels is impressive. And this isn’t considering the inexplicable. Someone may have taken a wrong turn, or just isn’t paying attention. They might have been enjoying a few adult beverages and have impaired judgment. They might just be on “autopilot” mode. Point is, is there are many other possible reasons why someone heads off alone before trying to show off or act with ill intentions. If bad intentions were their goal, I can think of many far worse things than running off by themselves that they could be doing. Overpulling mobs for example, or trying to deliberately wipe the group or sabotage the mission’s come to mind. As long as it doesn’t cause problems, I don’t mind if people run off. Others might agree. The only thing that really bugs me is when stealth people sprint to the glowie, skipping “everything.” But it’s okay to like different things. But others liking different things than you doesn’t make them bad, wrong, or malicious. If these things are so terrible, I would respectfully ask what makes them so terrible? What was the impact on the mission? Did it cause it to fail somehow? Asking in earnest here, because tone of voice is difficult to convey only through text.

I agree. Booting is allowed and is one of the ways to play “with someone else.” I can count on my fingers the number of times I’ve booted people. Most of the time it didn’t have anything to do with how they played, but what they said. They might have been rude and bossy, or something they said was a hot or sensitive issue that I don’t care to see in my personal leisure time. The thing about booting is, there’s no rules for it. If you want to split hairs, you don’t even need a reason. If you want to control how other people play, be the leader. But with that if someone doesn’t like how the leader leads, then people can leave or form their own teams. Someone who is too overbearing or controlling might find people leaving suddenly, perhaps even at the most inconvenient time. Especially if they are going for a badge or hard mode or something. The “play nice with others” goes both ways. I’ve left toxic leaders before, and took no small amount of satisfaction in doing so. People aren’t obligated to do things “your way” even if you are the leader.

By all means, let us pay heed to that giant pile of gabby-gook word salad from someone who by their own admission doesn’t play their level 50’s on what the correct way to play a level 50 is. Please, rain down upon us your hidden secret knowledge, shower us with your continence based upon your lofty self appointed superiority. We all hold such platitudes in the highest regard, kiss elbow promise! Yea but no. This is a “sandbox” game. People can all play and enjoy the game differently. There is no “right”, “correct,” or “wrong” way to play. If you style clashes with others, then just don’t play with them. It’s fairly simple. But what nobody gets to do is lecture other people on how to play or have fun. And unless you name has “HC staff” next to it, than your opinion is just that - an opinion. Not a fact. Certainly not a law or rule. And you most certainly don’t get to pretend that you are the sole arbitrary authority on what is or is not correct. Dont like someone? Don’t play with them. Go do your own thing with other people. No need to crow about it, no need to stand on your soapbox and address the ignorant masses on why your sole objective and style is the only correct one. Just put them on ignore, give them a 1 star to remind yourself, and press on with life.

I would like to go on record in saying that even though I have a few posts about multi boxing MMs, this is not me! 😆 In seriousness though, I can guarantee that unless they are using software to multibox, it’s more difficult for them to control and maneuver their pets than a group of random people tagging it. Long as you get a hit in, you should get credit. And if it’s on +4 it will take them time to chew down any EB. Another option is just to teleport it back? But correct me if I’m wrong here, but I thought EB’s couldn’t be teleported? Or am I thinking something else?

I meant be flexible as the fold space user, not everyone else. 😆

I don’t mind as long as it doesn’t mess up the mission or if the lone wolf bites off more than they can chew and blames others. I hasten to add not all of them do this, but some do. Long as you aren’t expecting people to follow you then I am fine with it. I have bigger issues with stalkers who just sneak to the glowy, click and dip out as soon as possible without helping kill things. I mean if you are just going to sprint to the clicky what’s the point? That’s missed exp, inf, salvage and recipes. Why bother teaming if that’s what you are going to be doing?

To add another suggestion is an SoA. You support the team just by being there. No effort to buff needed. The SoA maneuvers toggle alone is 16% all defense. Then there’s tactics and assault to. The new Leviathan pool is awesome on Crabbers. Your venom grenade and acid spew both have -resists that stack, especially for -toxic resist. Then you follow up with Bile Spray for an AoE toxic dot. Then you have spirit shark and your other crabby attacks. And nearly all of your attacks have built in debuffs. Either-res or - defense. Most people build crabbers for recharge for permapets, which is possible but takes a lot to get there, and takes a ton of slots doing it. But I actually prefer to build my crabbers differently. I build mine for flying and durability. Some don’t realize that you can get up to 85% resistance on a crabber, and it’s pretty easy to get the defense soft cap. You can be pretty dang tough as a crabber, there were times I was tougher than the tanker on the team. So my crabber is a flying artillery piece that both buffs and debuffs with great AoE, but kind of meh single target. Fully capable of soloing +4/8 difficulty, but you don’t have the tools to solo GMs or AVs. You won’t be few big numbers, but you will see a stream of constant AoE damages. Another downside is you have to plan your endurance use carefully as running so many toggles at a time is very hungry on your blue bar. And a crabber performs well on almost any kind of team. So if you like being a tough flyer with great aoe, buffs and built in debuffs give a crabber a look. PS - just got home and decided to show a screenie of the mids. No holes, End holds up well, fantastic defenses for a flyer, and protects them with both elusive maneuvers and -def debuff protection from Ageless. Lowest resists are 68%. Even has good PSI resistance! This is just her with toggles on, no barrier, no RoP (though she has that too). Note - don't be fooled by the melee/ranged/aoe DEF, that's just Elusive Maneuvers when its on. The actual combat values are 45/45/38. I've given thought to trying a build focusing on Toxic damage via venom grenade, artic breath, bile spray, even poison stuff from experimental pool. But haven't figured a build for that yet, but hoping toxic dart might help with the ST dps with all the -toxic resist it would bring into play. But that's a project on the back burner. This is my main Crabby setup and it works fantastic for me.

Don’t recall Fold Space ever being mentioned good or bad in a league. On teams though, it depends. If there is a tank or brute on the team, or even some scrappers, I tend to view them as the anchor. They are the ones who decide where we engage. 90% of the time it’s where the enemies spawned, but not always. I usually wait until they have a nice big pile before doing anything, and I usually use fold space to pull enemies who are staying ranged into the pile, or pull runners into the taunt aura. On teams without a tanker or brute, it’s kind of the Wild West. It takes a few pulls to see what the dynamic will be. Sometimes in such cases it’s me on my MM or SoA that plants the flag, but just as often it’s a controller or dominator locking things down who decides. So to me when it comes to tools like fold space, the key is to be flexible. Some circumstances call for it, others don’t. It depends on the team and difficulty. On some teams things die so fast that fold space isn’t even really necessary.

Complimentary pairings are good, but others can be just as good too. Robots/EA can be fantastic, even though one is defense and the other is resist. Robots/Dark is another great pairing. Demons/dark, demons and thugs pair with just about everything. /Time goes well with any pet set too. I think it might be more important to sit and plan out a build, so you can get an idea of what your final values will be. And some things like debuff numbers aren’t always obvious either. Anyway, tldr is you can make any pairing “work.” The biggest differences will be in play style, and how high of a difficulty you can solo. But don’t forget, sometimes the builds that don’t solo well, can prove to be some of the best support on a team too, especially on hard modes where debuffing is often what sets the tone of the team.

Some thoughts. First, we all start somewhere. Sure, it's an old game, but not everyone played live either. People to this day are still discovering the game. Which to me, is a good thing. Secondly, while there is an abundance of resources to pull from, I doubt there are many players who have done everything, played every class, every power, etc. Everyone is still learning something. Or some people may just be experimenting with something new. Thirdly, you never know the other persons situation. I am a deaf player myself with a cochlear implant, but I don't wear it all the time. If I'm not wearing it, sometimes it does cause issues, like if looking for a glowie, I won't hear it. But the other person might be having a bad day. Might be on pain meds. Might have had a few adult beverages, so on. For whatever reason they may not be at the top of their performance. Lastly, this is a free to play game. There are no trophies. No medals. Not even bragging rights. There is precious very little "new" achievements to be made. Everything you have done, someone else has already done. The game isn't a race to win. Its something we all play to enjoy. Now doing the best you can is all well and good, but not everyone minmaxes to the umpteenth degree, or subscribes to the meta. Some people like to do their own thing, even if it's subpar or not the kiss-your-elbow mathematically best for whatever situation. Personally, my goal isn't to "win", it's to have fun. That might be farming. That might be hanging out with friends. That might be hunting Giant Monsters or beating up archvillians. It might be doing Ouro stuff. It might be volunteering to do missions that I don't need because I have seen people trying to fill the team for a bit. It might be trying a new build, or even just goofing off in the pocket D. I have played many games where there is competition, and the attitude of "git gud" prevails. CoH is many things, but to me it is not one of them. It might be just me, but I just can't get worked up over pixels in a game old enough to vote. Sure, I may get frustrated with other players or hit a wall, but for me the fun is what matters most. Others may disagree, and thats okay. Its okay to try and min/max. This is just my opinions and thoughts about it. TLDR: Is it okay to suck at a game? A: Does it matter? Is CoH "serious business?"

It depends. If I'm the leader or tank, I usually keep one eye on the map and general party location. If I'm a support, I stick close to the tank or squishys. If there's a "gotta go fast" person on the team whose skipping everything running straight to the glowie map after map, I don't bother. And if its egregious, I'll quietly put them on my "don't team with" list.

And I did? I didn't speak on the topic again after the dm posted. You are the one who dug it back up?

I will only respond by suggesting you read Googly's post on the previous page. 👍

I kind of saw it the same way as well, and tried to demonstrate such in a manner as, well, "curtly" as possible. The post was removed. (shrug) Which is the GMs prerogative/judgement call. But there isn't any need to speak about them like they weren't here or present either. I think we are above that. Or at least, I hope. Except Snarky. Snarky is well below that. 6 feet below. In a coffin. During daylight hours.

....what? I have 3 accounts with 10+ level 50s on each. On the vast majority of them, I have never engaged on pvp with. Not once. I have been affected by GF, multiple times. A few of them are built around the concept, some are not. I would say I have more control over pvp than wither or not GF affects me. Just as you can say "you should use the null to avoid GF", I can say to you "why don't you just lead or play by yourself?" The difference here, is that I'm not expecting 500+ people to all go to an npc and turn off GF for a personal choice which is entirely optional. But regardless, we are going in circles here. Lets agree to disagree. Use GF if you want, but don't be surprised if the team lead boots you. Unless of course, you are the leader yourself. And I for one tire of going in circles. Regardless of what you and I think, the team leader will largely do as they like.

1. Ah, but why is that only one way? Why is it that OTHERS must accept group fly might be used on them, and not YOU must accept that most of the team may find it unwelcome? 2. You can only actively stop GF from affecting you proactively. Not retroactively during a mission. And, yes, you can stop people from actively ganking you, by simply not going to the pvp zone in the first place. Ultimately, its up to the team leader. If they say its okay, then its okay. If they say it isn't, then it isn't. Regardless of your take on it. And them booting you for doing it after being asked to stop is "part of the game" which has the higher authority on the matter. Its not like you have any way of forcing a team leader to accept it, but they most certainly can boot you for using it.

Or you could turn it on, and when asked to turn it off then do so? Or even perhaps ask in team chat "hey, does anyone mind if I use group fly?" No shitting on anyone necessary. But the thing is, I can't recall once in nearly 4 years of playing CoH, of anyone asking in team chat "hey can I use group fly?" Which suggests to me that the answer to that most of the time would be "no please don't." And since the answer will likely be no, people don't ask. They just use it. And then get upset when others are irritated by it. But that is just me musing aloud. Both sides of the topic can be rude about it. Personally, I say its team leaders call. If they say yes, then use it. if they say no, then don't. If you don't like them saying no, you can leave. If I am not okay with them saying yes, then I can leave. But let's not pretend that any and all people who use group fly are the "victims" here. I use group fly myself, when solo. Rarely used in teams unless the mission/tf needs it. But some people absolutely REFUSE to turn it off, regardless of how others are affected. Which is sort of why it causes many people to cringe when it's used. That, and many other people just plain don't like it.

It is difficult to know if this is sarcasm, or a serious attempt to make a valid point. Especially since that issue has been dragged across-topics before. But I shall treat it as legitimate and reply as such. One difference is, is you CHOOSE to enter a PVP zone. You opt out of default, by not entering the PVP zone. Someone doesn't CHOOSE to be affected by group fly. You made that choice FOR them. A choice that they must opt OUT of. "It's just part of the game" is irrelevant. What is stopping anyone from keeping you phased/intangible constantly, so the only powers you can use are self-affecting? To some builds, such as a Seismic Corruptor or Stone Tanker, the effect is quite similar. And while true, it's "part of the game," you do yourself no favors and win no friends in doing such things. It would be like being the player in a tabletop game who always shows up playing a murderhobo sort of character, always killing plot npcs, de-railing the story, wasting the DMs time, the other players time, in their need to constantly be the center of attention, even if its negative attention. And then wonder why they aren't welcome back. If someone did that at my game, they certainly wouldn't be welcome back. In short - the difference is personal agency. Or "choice." When using group fly on other people, you are "choosing" for them. And I do hope this post was sarcasm, because if not it is the OceanGate of comparisons.

I generally go by the saying - “know the water you choose to swim in.” If you are in a pvp zone, you are in essence consenting to it with your presence. You can “ask” others to leave you be, but it’s ultimately their choice. If they want to pvp, it’s certainly within their prerogative to do so. Another way I think of it as a non-pvper, is that if I’m in a pvp zone, I’m a guest in “their” house, or on “their” turf. Now, I have pvp’d before, but mostly it’s just goofing off with friends, chasing each other with wifflebats and the like. But the good news is, is the penalty for losing pvp is nonexistent. You can immediately respawn and leave if it’s not your bag. And the few times I have gotten involved with the pvpers it honestly wasn’t an unpleasant experience. I feel kind of bad for them at times, as far as I’m aware there has been next to zero pvp things added on HC. (I could certainly be mistaken here, not a pvper.) It might be neat if there was a tournament or league for those players to participate in. Like something that resets every few months and they could win titles or something.

My knowledge of game coding and such is pretty limited. Kind of bummed it's not really possible without making a whole new power, which is unfortunate.

Now I find myself wondering if the best fix would be just to give an option with Null to make group fly apply to just yourself and pets. That way the onus isn't on everyone else, but the person who want's the power. The person who uses the power themselves can just select "affect other players off." Kind of an everyone wins solution. The player who wants group fly will have it. So will their pets. Other players who don't wish to be affected won't be randomly by strangers. If the player is going to do an activity that group fly is needed, like Hami, they can always turn it back on when they decide to do that activity, then turn the affect team off again when they are done.

Ya but no. No one is dumping on a player for picking a power. They are dumping on the player for using a power that negatively affects others and then crying when they get booted from the team after being asked to stop but didn't. And in many people's opinion, rightly so. And now it's being turned into "help they are poking fun of me for my poor decisions!" and "no, I can use this power whenever I wish, others have no right to complain they are negatively affected by it!" Spoiler alert - if YOU pick a power and USE it and it NEGATIVELY affects other people and continue to do so after being asked to stop, then YOU are the problem here. The fixes is fairly simple - either play alone, make your own team, or god FORBID - actually ASK in team chat "hey anyone mind if I use group fly" before using it. Because, you know, apparently trying to play and team well with others is such a hardship. But NOoo... instead it's - "How DARE they not abide by my personal choices that affect them negatively! Quick! TO THE FORUMS! THE INTERWEB SHALL MOST CERTAINLY HEAR OF THIS!"