DoctorDitko

I had missed the issue 25 change to invasions of both Zombies and Rikti such that they no longer spawn if everyone in the zone is below level 25. Could we instead make it based on zone level?

Yea, it looks like issue 25 made the minimum level to spawn either zuvimbies or BEMs 25. Thanks for tracking that down, JusticeBeliever! I completely missed that item in the notes. All the other ish 25 stuff dazzled my eyes. I wonder if they could set it to be based on the level of the zone, instead? To the suggestion thread, citizens!

Not a PVPer, but very nice print! I'm curious, back on Live there was someone offering 3D sculpts, but the process was iffy and intricate. How are you handling the game-to-STL (I assume) process? And good luck with the event, I'll tell my pvping friends to check it out!

I have seen the same thing duoing with an old friend, we've been themed characters only teaming, alternating missions (both Kheldians, 1 PB and 1 WS) yet our dings are never in sync. Sometimes as much as half a level disparity I was ascribing it to the overall "Kheldian curse" but maybe there is Something Going On Here?

Weird and wonderful! Thanks for the research and write-up (it only counts if you publish)!

1. Around Issue 2, so circa 2005? 2. I played a lot before the game went "free-to-goldfarm-spam" in 2010? 11? And then intensely right before shutdown. I was devastated, it left a hole in my life like the loss of a friend. It made me realize the stark difference between real life possessions and virtual ones, though. I did also go out and reconnect with my future wife, so not all bad! 3. Shortly after I lost my wife to cancer, I discovered Homecoming. And it did indeed feel like coming home. Helped me through the grief. 4. I recreated my favorite main character, went through the tutorial, and wept like a baby when I stepped into Atlas Park and saw the other players. Then again when I heard the Steel Canyon music. Then once more when I reconnected with old friends. It was a high-humidity environment for a while. 5. I couldn't lay my hands on my original files, but I recreated all my favorites from memory, and was very glad of the new costume options. I was and am aware that everything could disappear again by another whim of NCSoft, so there is a certain tentativeness to play, and I do my best to savor every second. I'm getting to the age where all my life is like that, though, so I spend a lot of time with my fingers crossed. (Makes it hard to control my character sometimes.) 6. I tend to binge on one character at a time. I started with my namesake on Torchbearer (because that's where my friends were) and have worked my way through my favorites. Many are re-creations of characters I enjoyed playing in tabletop games during and after college. So, double nostalgia, I guess. I like playing Doctor Ditko (Ill/Rad and an Ill/Time variant) because there's something interesting to do whatever the situation. Summon pets, buff my team, debuff the bad guys -- always a way to contribute. Keeps me from getting bored. Good luck with your research, and Good Science to you!

My ignorance of MMOs other than CoH is vast and comprehensive, so: Single-player games usually offer a way to skip cutscenes, but do other MMOs? It seems like you'd be out of sync with your teammates who don't choose to skip. Besides, when else would I make sandwiches? (Romulus is the only one that gives me time to make a grilled cheese, but the others usually provide time enough for a quick PB&J.)

Even just a badge for "Did it the Hard Way" would at least yield bragging rights!

I've already confessed my perverse love of all things related to teleporting. It would be great if these guys -- named after the power -- were any good at it. (Afterthought:) What if they could use TP offensively? Give us non-PVPers a reason to not regret taking IOs with TP protection. I'd enjoy that!

Weather? What's that? We sometimes get snow...

Probably won't be noticeable for CoH, but disappointing to hear. I'm planning on sticking to Windows 10 (Edu version, I swear to Microsoft I'm under 13, and using O&O utils to hobble what 's left). But I'd be remiss in not mentioning that CoH runs very well under Linux. Dual boot is a good thing. You can even softlink your Linux install to most of the data files on a mounted Winders partition to save space. So far I have yet to see a compelling reason to switch to 11. But they had to pry 7 from my cold dead security-conscious hands.

I noticed I can TP through the windows with Combat TP, do any of the other version do that too? (Full conflict-of-interest disclosure: I love the new teleport pool. Deeply. Possibly even loverlike.)

Is it maybe time to make the unofficial Roleplaying Server... Official? Or at least flagged as the unofficial RP server? A GMOTD when logging on, a note on the server selection screen, might go a long way toward mitigating such behavior. The reasons for the commercial game not to do so are gone. And, as mentioned above, only the top ten percent (ahem!) of players visit the forums. (A little more prominence/explanation for the Roleplayer "warning flag" might help, too. At least newbies could be made aware that there are RPers in the game.) And, yes, editing your chat channels is a wise move. It can't bug you if it's happening in another tab (or no tab at all).

Another reason Steve Ditko is a madman and a personal favorite. Doctor Strange with his baggy tunic, billowing cloak, and intricate trim. Spider-man with all the webs on his costume -- not to mention in his powers. Guy was nuts! (Politically nuts late in life, but ya gotta separate the art from the artist (c.f. Neal Adams' planetology.)

Very much this! Same reason I seldom take self-anti-knockback measures: It makes me feel like I'm in a superhero fight! If only we could knock each other through walls... (Getting knocked through the occasional Tech door doesn't count; the door stays closed.)

I tried it as well, and, well I had this post-apocalyptic tech-tiger costume that has been seeking a home, so when Quantum Tiger popped up... He's my first SR/Claws tank, level 17 after an enjoyable afternoon. RNG ftw, "All Hail Diiscordia!"

AFAIK, they don't lose their attuned status, they just become slottable only at 50. Everything else stays the same.

Agreed, and Aurora Girl already said it, but communication does require a receiver to function. I can only suggest taking a page from journalists, don't bury your lede: KILL 'EM ALL, let Pluto sort 'em out: XP massacre ITF forming, pst! MERCURY IN THE DUST: Fastest ITF possible breaking records now, pst! (At least either should net you players with a sense of humor, always a good thing.)

It doesn't really need saying (but when has that ever stopped me?) that a lot of this friction comes down to communication. Set explicit goals when you recruit a team, and fewer issues will appear. It's not that much typing in the LFG window to specify a "Speed ITF, DPS emphasized" versus a "Stop & smell the XP roses ITF, all welcome."

From what I've seen, the HC launcher was designed with a quite good security model, much better than either the original or the Tequila/Rum versions. Gaudete! This is a good thing. This isn't something like the Epic launcher, there to spam you with ads and telemetry your arse. This launcher appears to be designed to securely check for updates, then get the hell out of your way and let you play the game. You can set it to exit after the game launches, so it's not hogging resources in the background while you play (c.f. Epic). Set a macro in your favorite macro-er if you like, but as said above, you don't want to skip the launcher. Cheers!

Never made a PVP character. Never run a redside Hami Raid. Never made a really great base. Never gotten all the badges. Never hit the inf cap. (No comment on the debt cap, at least on Live.) Never gotten a Brute, Dom, Scrapper, or EAT to 50. (Makes me feel a bit of a slacker...) On the other hand: Never kicked someone from a team for anything but sheer obnoxiousness. Never hit the ignore cap. Never turned down a prospective teammate for archetype or powerset. Never needed to turn off the profanity filter to insult someone (Take that, you ectoparasitic, feather-feeding louse!)

I prefer Noscript and Ublock Origin (on Firefox). I have to whitelist or temp-allow many sites for them to function as intended. Kind of a pain, but worth it for me. As an added bonus, the only YouTube ads I see are the ones the creators film and include.

Citing sources! Very, ah, exciting! But, yes, we are discussing a game (inherently a simulation) based on a genre which has its own filters and tropes. In the real world? Crime does pay, and billionaires can usually walk away with a wrist slap or a financial penalty. (c.f. the Sacklers.) Comic book morality and criminology are less rigorously researched, though there are exceptions. Just saying, we're talking about a simulation of an abstraction of the real world. Reality can inform our discussion, but in this context, we shouldn't take it as definitive. How I wish for the opposite: That all the real world problems boiled down to Nemesis plots and alien invasions. If only!

Also, don't forget, there are Defenders without heals, and there used to be Tanks who couldn't Taunt effectively. Spread out a bit, try some oddball combinations. This game was specifically designed to avoid falling into the "Holy Trinity" trap. It really is forgiving of odd builds, the emphasis on individuality is one of its strengths.

I had something in my eye the first time I logged into HC and heard the Atlas music. But the first time I heard the Steel Canyon Blyde Square music again? Tear gas, must have been.