UltraAlt

Just logged into Excelsior, picked up all the loot from the stuff I had on sale, bought a H/V and a V/R card pack, opened them, and retrieved a card pack item from email. I'm wondering what might be causing it your end?

Not before I get my nature blast powers, customizable mastermind pets, color-customizable acoustic guitar backpack, costume slot linked fly poses ... and, yeah ... other stuff! The DEVs are great. They will do what they can as they can. How about some lists of what you think the powers should be for those sets you are suggesting? And why no Scrapper primary Temporal set?! (Sounds like a speedster set to me!)

This is pretty negative from the get go. Honestly, I'm not sitting at my computer doing nothing if I'm waiting to see something drop in LFG that I want to join. And if I am recruiting, I have already done a search to see if I think there are enough players online that might want to join whatever content that I'm looking to recruit for. I get the feeling that you don't understand or know how to use the recruiting tools in the game so you seem to be the one that is "close minded" to me. I have a good friend that I have been gaming with for over ... damn ... 35 years at this point that lives out in the sticks and has the equivalent of two tin cans connected by some string for an internet connection so he can't use Discord. Honestly, I think TS3 (teamspeak) is a superior communication product when paired with a website ... huh, we HAVE a Homecoming website ... you posted to it! (another tool for recruiting, that you may be ignoring! Not to imply you are close-minded!) There is a City of Heroes Homecoming Discord and you are more than willing to go over there to use it, but it's rude to call other people Luddites for not using it. We are not throwing wooden shoes into the Discord source code! "A common misconception relates to the etymology of "sabotage" and how it relates to clogs (or sabatage). A popular misunderstanding is Luddites threw their wooden shoes (or sabots) into the machines to break them up. Hence. they sabotaged the machinery. However, Sabot in French not only refers to wooden clogs but also railway sleepers and in all probability disgruntled French workers in 1912 cut the railway tracks and used the sabots (sleepers) to destroy industrial equipment." -http://historyofwoodenshoes.blogspot.com/2009/05/attraction-of-wooden-shoes.html

The starting character arcs are not in Ouroboros. Except for the post-fall of Galaxy City arcs. So if you want to do those, you will need to hit up the contacts while still in their level range. Later arcs are accessible, to the best of my knowledge, just not the starter get-used-to-the-game stuff in City Hall. uh, the arcs for fighting Dr Vazh and the Clockwork King aren't through the "starting character arcs". They are through other contacts down the line and I don't even think it was the 2nd or even the 3rd contact in the origin contact strings if I remember correctly. Thanks. It's more of a "task" than anything I will really have fun doing, because I'll have to be careful not to outlevel stuff as I go (I generally like a challenge but I know that would yield too much xp for what I'm trying to accomplish) It will be something I'm doing when I'm not .... up to no good ..., feel like start a group, or see some group that I want to join trying to recruit from more. I have plenty of other characters to jump to for all of that.

Exactly. I'm going to work on following those original paths and see if I can map out the contacts. I might have to go dig through the Ouroboros arc stuff to make sure I'm not going off path. But I think the origin contacts might still send you to the next origin contact so I'm going see what I can find. As I recall, they origin contact lines started merging as you leveled ..... like I said in a previous post in this thread. I think there was and still may be an arc about the origin of the origins. I don't know if it was removed or if it's just hidden back there so far away from the popular stuff these days that it's just not as easily accessible as it once was.

Okay, so what is the problem with them being in your inactive contact list?

I don't know when the change happened, but I remember different origin paths. I was sent on mission arcs to fight Dr Vazh and the Clockwork King based on my Origin. I think both those arcs are out there and accessible in the Ouroboros if not by following the origin contacts any longer. At this point, honestly mostly do a couple of DFBs and then hit Posi 1 and 2 and Penelope Yin and then random from there. I guess I'll have to go back and not use any 2xp and see what I can find for myself. I'll make a science and a magic and see what contact paths are the options. I'm not doubting you, but I know they used to be there.

At least the starter contacts do. I have the feeling that there are still legacy origin contacts if you follow the origin contacts trail from other origin contacts instead of using the find contacts menu None of the Praetorian ones that get littered into the content in the 20's or so ever had any origin relation nor hero/villian relation for that matter and you only get sent to these to start if you use the "find contact" button unless you are Praetorian and are sent to them by prior contacts, but even these may have some origin relation based on what kind of contact they are. Some are definitely more mystically based. But one thing to point out, the villain group you fight against drops enhancement based on their origin, so if you are trying to save influence, you need to be running content from contacts that are related to your origin who will send you to fight villains that are related to your origin that drop related origin enhances. If you get the book icon on the contact, you can't out level the contact - is that correct? You can out level the missions, but the book keeps the contact open so that you can complete the arc, get the merits, and get the next contact (even if they immediately blow you off because you outleveled them.) are you saying you want to delete them from the active or inactive contacts list? I'm assuming you are trying to delete them from the active contacts list, if so you should still be able to do these missions even if they are held open by the book icon and the enemies are grey. Are you talking about leaving Ouroboros arcs? Okay, so not stuck open with the book? I think you can go back and talk to them and they tell you to take a hike.

This is incorrect. I can't find evidence quickly to back this up, but I believe that the origins arcs start to merge together as you advance. I can't remember at what level this starts happening, but, if I recall correctly through all my alting ... Starts off with just your own origin for origin related contacts. Then there are two origin contacts. Then there are three origin contacts. Then there are four origin contacts. and heading on 50 all the origins merge together. But that is just for origin related contacts. As the game progressed ... merits were added for completing arcs. If I want to get credit for an arc I'm playing at that point, I would have to have the same contact and follow it through to the end. How many players are going to be able start the arc together? Sometimes someone would join a team that had the arc that was several missions behind and we would go back and run their missions until they caught up to the rest of the team. If it was an origin mission, there might be people from other origins that couldn't even get the arc. So more generic contacts were added to the game which were not origin related. I have the feeling that some of the original origin arc paths may have even have been removed due to the size of the game. (I don't believe this was a heavy handed as they have had to be with DCUO which is constantly whittling away at their older content to reduce the side of the game). if you followed the origin missions it is a long convoluted story with *** spoilers**** about each of the origins and their interactions with one another.

Logged into my secondary account. Bought a H/V and V/R card pack. Opened them. And pulled card pack items out of email. I have never purchased cardpacks with this secondary account before and so had no card pack items in email before I opened those 2 packs. It seems to be working for me at this point regardless of account.

Typical manipulation tactic to drive up the sale price.

I'm only working with one account. I had the problem with not being able to open superpacks or download superpack items from email on Tuesday after server resets. I'm not 100% sure when things may have been corrected, but by Wednesday afternoon, I was able to open card packs and superpack items from email. Is there perhaps a 24 hour period between purchasing card packs after the update and being able to open them for the first time which is also linked to email? Possibly. Need to do something then I'll check my other account.

Yes. Tip missions have been around for a while, but ... Tour Guide Missions Issue 27, Page 2 introduces a brand new type of mission: Tour Guide Missions. These are special tip missions which drop when street sweeping in most zones, and will direct you to any exploration badges that you haven't yet earned in that zone. This is especially helpful for unlocking Long Range Teleporter destinations without needing to rely on VidiotMaps. Detailed Info Enemies in most zones now have a small chance to drop a Tour Guide Mission Tip The tips will only drop when street sweeping, by defeating enemies out on the streets (critters spawned through other means will not count) The tips will drop regardless of your level - grey conned mobs will still drop tips - however, the tip drop rate increases based on the rank of the enemy you're fighting (ie: bosses are more likely to drop tips) Tour Guide Missions are classed as Tips, and will show up in the Tips tab of the Contacts window You can only hold one tip per zone at a time, but can carry a total of three Investigating this tip will direct you to one of the exploration badges in that zone Once accepted, these missions cannot be abandoned, autocompleted, or team completed - you must visit the badge location, which will auto-complete the mission If you earn the exploration badge for a specific tip before investigating it, it will point you towards a different exploration badge in that zone If you earn the exploration accolade before investigating the tip, you will only be able to dismiss it They do not grant any additional rewards beyond the badge All zones which can be unlocked in the Long Range Teleporter have Tour Guide Missions set up (apart from Pocket D and Kallisti Wharf), which is a total of 288 missions! Step 1: Go. Hunt. Kill Skuls. Step 2: Acquire Tips. Step 3: Collect Badges.

I guess I'm getting old. I don't remember the stores and contacts NOT being on the map and I started a week before episode 2 dropped. OH, is that "why" tip missions exist. I thought the DEVs were just adding something cool for the people that like to street sweep and explore the City. Pretty much everyone wants to TT and Mission Teleport across the City so there isn't he kind of exploration there used to be or getting slowed down by stopping a purse snatching along the way. I thought the exploration tip missions were a good way to let players get something from exploring the city and fighting enemies in each zone. I didn't make any connection at all that it was an addition to avoid downloading Vidiot maps.

You have to know Mordu's weakness to be able to defeat him, and even if you do it takes a Legion of Super-heroes to take advantage of it. I don't think Doctor Strange could take on Mordu alone. I think Circe and Tala would be up to a mystic battle with Doctor Strange. Both of them have a good enough "getaway" role that they pretty much always avoid defeat. They are also both alluring women that could take advantage of most versions of Doctor Strange. A battle between Doctor Strange and Klarion the Witch Boy could be very entertaining. The Emerald Empress versus Doctor Strange would be a good one as well. Darkseid for sure. Dr Strange couldn't stand up against him alone on a good day. I haven't read enough content on Neron to make a good judgement call on him. I have to say whoever wrote that msn post doesn't know very much about DC Comics, or maybe just recent DC Comics. Seeme like a post directed at attracting hype/clicks from the new movie release more than anything else.

Are we all supposed to ping @TheZag now? Or is that on Jimmy Day?

I don't. I don't want it automatically downloaded into the game. If I want a Vidiot map I can search for images of them on the internet. You can get tip missions for exploration badges in a zone by street sweeping. You will only get a new tip mission for exploration badges that you don't have yet. Homecoming added these to the game. Who really "needs" Vidiot maps and why?

I think the DEV team is doing great. I don't want to be treated like a customer the way that most big gaming companies like to treat their customers. I like feeling at Home with people that are doing what they are doing because they love the game. I mainly feel that way because I love the game, and I know that people that really love the game want to do things for it that are true to and for the love of the game. And, yeah, work, real life, and fun have to balance out so that none are taking too much of a toll on the others. Balance is important in most aspects of life. Thank you and other DEVs for keeping this CITY that I love alive.

not always, but that would be telling I know a guy that is really into converters, but he doesn't have the Luck of a Gamber, so ... yeah ... I haven't bothered fiddling with the converts. Seems quicker and cheaper through other methods.

But then again, catalysts drop and you can get them in super packs. At that point, the are essentially free. You could sell them, but sometimes it is cheaper to craft a low level IO, slot it, and use a catalyst than to play a high price and try to sell one you crafted which has auction house charge when you put it up for sale and when you get the return for someone purchasing it. I agree that you are correct for anything that sells on the market for under 3 million. I won't comment much on marketing because, you know, ....

Which has been my point. It isn't on Homecoming to do it. If players want to recruit more players, they have to do it on their own. My other posts are about player retention, which I put hand-in-hand with recruiting. This isn't a subscription based game any more. F2P players jump from game to game because they have nothing invested in sticking with something. Pay for a month or two and decide it's cheaper to pay for a year, and you are suddenly invested. I was invested in City of Heroes before I even had a computer that could play it because I had been playing Champions (the RPG ... before RPGs were called "tabletop" games) for years and using other systems to play super-heroes before Champions was around. I already had prepared more than 10 characters to create before I even logged into the game. When it's all "oooh, shiney", it jump over here and then over there. I guess it is wrong to want to explore games and find the depth of different game play within each game? I don't know. We each play the game different ways. I find running content that turns into a light show no fun at all. I certainly wouldn't want to show up to do with with the same 30-60 people everyday. Running around with different people, helping new players explore the game, helping people in help chat? Seems pretty heroic and enjoyable to me, and I kind of think making it fun for them gives them a reason to enjoy playing the game. But there too is the problem. If you can't understand the difference between the "game" and what is obviously the "end-game" and don't understand that the DEVs did not create the AE to be a farming tool, then maybe you just don't want facts to be facts. Perhaps your alternate truths fit better with your narrative so the facts can't be true to you. I don't think there is any nice way to put that. Because you are correct. Facts are facts and opinions are opinions. I'm willing to give people the grace of believing in their opinions even if they refuse to accept the facts. You may very well have paid for gaming products that I have produced. Many people here probably have. I have run into some that have. I don't feel like I need to talk about that. I'm here to wear a mask. But maybe I have some idea about game design and others are just playing a game and talking about why other people should make the effort to recruit when they just want fodder to fill the gameplay that they enjoy and aren't willing to invest their time into recruiting or retaining players. I'm pretty much over this but I think it's respectful to respond to people until they have pushed me to put them on ignore. When it comes down to making personal attacks to try to make a point, that is where it has gone too far for me. I'm not trying to personally attack anyone. I'm willing to accept other people have different opinions. But the "end-game" is the "end-game" and the DEVs did not design the AE to be used as a farming tool. Homecoming has been mitigating power-leveling and influence gained through farming. If you don't want to recognize a fact, it doesn't mean that it isn't a fact.

I'm seeing it now too. It was taking time to read your post.

Make friend, leveling, badge hunting, accolades, crafting, building a financial empire, etc, etc, etc. I do all that below level 50. Every day that I play. None of that is restricted to being above level 50. ... even farming which I personally detest on multiple levels. You can go back and do all the lower level content at 50, but how many level 50 players actually do that? So that's HUGE chunk of gameplay lost from the equation you are giving. I think there is more player retention generated playing lower level content with players than by dragging them to the end-game and throwing them into the deep-end.

I understand that some do. I standby what I said. The "end-game" isn't the game; it is the "end-game". I think dragging new players into the "end-game" from the start is damaging to retention. That fine for you. I think dragging new players into the "end-game" from the start is damaging to retention. This thread is about recruiting players, and I think player retention is directly linked to recruitment. If player doesn't want to continue playing, what is the point of luring them to the game in the first place. The Incarnate system is a huge mess. By dragging a new player to the end-game you are throwing them into a huge pit. They don't learn the game by playing. Go get mid. Don't figure things out for yourself. Ask everyone else how to slot. There is no experimentation and feeling a sense of accomplishment when you are spoonfeed. Advice is fine. Regulating game play no one wants. "playing the game wrong" are your words. Not mine. Yes, you are. if you weren't you could have deleted that rather than typing another sentence to try to cover it up. Yep. Bet they most of that that mostly play level 50 content. Tactical advice in a situation when a team is failing is alway different than jumping on someone because of their build or they should stop playing the actual game because it is ... ... to do all the work? Yeah. I'm seeing the players are too lazy to do it. It shouldn't be on the DEVs if a group of players want to recruit, it's up to them to put their time and/or money into doing it. Homecoming seems to be doing fine without spending resources on a recruiting drive that would likely awaken the sleeping dragon in Korea.

It's pretty much all correct from where I stand. It's called the "end-game" for a reason. The Market, Areana, base building, and AE were all added as "time eaters" to give players something to do if they didn't want to play the game. Sorry, but that is a tried and true subscriber-keeping tactic in game design. Just because you don't understand it, that doesn't mean that it isn't a fact. All of those were added when the game still subscriber based. It didn't go F2P (City of Heroes :: Freedom) until after all of that was going on. The Incarnate System (end-game content) was already released before City of Heroes went F2P ... which was release after the Market, Areana, base building, and AE were all added. The game IS the first 50 levels. Everything else is add-on. There weren't even 50 levels when the game was first released. I'm not saying that I don't market (... don't look at me, over there... look! ... something shiny! for 80 mil! ca-ching! Thanks!), base build (I only have like 8 of them at this point), write AE stories (yeah, actual stories instead of farming content - I haven't asked for more than 3 slots, but I hear you can support ticket for more if they aren't for Farms), go into pvp zones or battle in the arena from time to time (even though the PVP zones are pretty much empty when I'm here and I only play in the arena is someone else actively wanting to do that, The progression post-level 50 is vainglorious. "Look at me! I'm a godling!" [The Incarnate System was built to gain additional revenue from the player-base as much as it was to give end-gamers and L337 players something to grind.] The first 50 levels are about becoming a hero (or villain, or confused citizen in a dystopia), exploring the city, ,fighting to stop crime (or commit it, or struggle to survive in dystopia), and rising to overcome obstacles that were seemingly impossible only levels before. The path funneled from distinct starting points for each origin into being more unified game play as you approach level 50. I said "It is fine that we disagree on that point." Apparently, that isn't okay with you that we disagree. I said "You don't have to agree with me. That's where I'm coming from on this." You don't have to agree with me. If you want to have a discussion with me, don't start with an attack against me. You could have stated points for why what you believe is real, correct, or whatever, but you felt the need to start with an attack instead. I see where you are coming from. I won't take time to read more than the first sentence. From my point of view, your attitude is not a place that will recruit new players nor retain them. And that is what this thread is about.