Zhym

Not that I recall. They just followed me around like pets…or non-targetable Chris Jenkins law firm associates.

Impossible, right? But:

Hm. Let me try a test. Here's a large screenshot I took highlighting what looks like a bug in one of @Darmian's Praetorian missions: I'll check my quota then delete the image and see what happens. Edits: That's a 1.69MB file and my quota is currently at 12.48MB. Now l'll delete it...and, yup, back down to 10.79MB. You don't suppose that the other thread was somehow using the files you'd already uploaded here, do you? (And you're refreshing/reloading the "My Attachments" page after removing pictures, right?)

Are you sure you're deleting the attachments from the posts (at the bottom of the post, where it lists attachments), not just removing them from the bodies of the posts? When I replaced a couple of huge PNGs in this thread with smaller JPGs, it updated my quota usage right away.

You might want to check whether removing those threads (or posts) actually improves your quota. I believe it's impossible to "delete" posts on these forums, only hide them—which means if you just hide the threads instead of going through them and deleting those attachments manually, they'll still count against your quota. Although I think you can delete multiple attachments at once from the Attachments page. I assume that if you did that, they'd just disappear from the posts.

I can't remember whether I commented in the Box Set threads, but if so those would be lost as well. And removing those three threads only postpones the issue—it'll cut your quota usage in half, but you'll end up bumping into the quota again before long. And FWIW, I find the Box Sets much easier to read. Maybe those could be the repositories for the photos, and this thread could be edited to have links to the Box Set threads? BTW, while we're on the topic, the forums don't seem to handle the really long image-heavy posts all that well, at least on my browser. And they result in pages that are really really long. Have you thought about having one post per mission, instead of per AE story? You could use placeholder posts to keep the stories together (i.e., when you post the first mission in a story, immediately post four more placeholders that you can edit when you're able to get to the next missions).

Yikes! I wonder if the forum admins could increase your quota. Or maybe the screenshots could be hosted on another site and linked in the posts here? These play-throughs are great and I'd hate to lose them (or the Box Set threads, which IMO are easier to read through) because of that quota. It might at least be worth a PM to the forum admins to see if there's a solution.

FWIW, the forums have a ~100MB limit on attachments (which include images). So @TerroirNoir, you might want to check "My Attachments" (in the dropdown menu under your username in the menu bar at the top of the page) to see how much of your quota you've used so far. ETA: It looks like the few images I've uploaded have eaten into my quota because they're fairly huge PNGs, not JPGs. @TerroirNoir seems to be smarter about image file size, so hopefully 100MB will be plenty of room to watch Engineria go through all these long story arcs!

Not to spoil things (I hope), but there's one mission in the Praetorian stories where I'd really like to get a team together.

Excellent question. When did I say that? Oh, right: That was two weeks ago! You expect me to remember anything from way back then? ;) But it might have had something to do with how it looked like everything was resolving itself (more or less), the last mission was just going to be a coda, and then Ms. Liberty shows up to fight us and tease Season 2. It's not quite a cliffhanger, but it's not quite not, either. Incidentally, I recall spending a lot of time running around the map in the last mission trying to figure out where the objectives were (NPCs or glowies). I'm not sure if it was that map in particular or what. Oh, and it would be nice if the Meteors' perception could be boosted; trying to herd all of them at the same time got to be a challenge. I think one of them even got stuck inside a planter or a floor or something. It's a great arc, though. It's written very well, which is not something that can be said of all AE stories. @Darmian has an engaging, readable writing style. And the plot is engrossing—I basically "binge played" through the whole thing because I wanted to find out what the deal was with Lord Richter (a name/title that really grabbed me early on with a "WTF?" reaction) and, well, what would happen next after each episode. I also really like how the story ties into existing lore & characters. I got a kick out of seeing characters like Chris Jenkins and Thunderclap. And I loved how @Darmian took a bunch of NPCs who are standing around Atlas post-Galaxy City, gave them each personalities, and turned them into a supergroup. Stories involving the Vindicators or Freedom Phalanx can seem like Mary Sue fanfic, IMO; centering the story around a hitherto unheard-of supergroup made up of characters we've seen (if not necessarily noticed) was brilliant. If I have a criticism, it's that the story might lean into clones and doppelgangers just a bit too hard. There's a risk that once a story has made it clear that clones are easy, cheap, and plentiful, anyone could be a clone. Did you really defeat Lord Richter, or just a clone (of the clone)? How many Weavers are there? Are those really the Meteors you're fighting with, or are they clones too? The clones-within-clones-within-clones thing can kind of eat itself, IMO. In early episodes, for example, the fact that someone was actually a clone could still be surprising (even though it was totally set up for the player). Used too much, and the player starts to wonder if any victory actually means anything. (I did like how one of the fake Lord Richters was just a guy in a costume. Nice job of playing with expectations and tropes there.) And I could really use a recap/synopsis and the end of what the heck just happened. There was a lot going on in that story arc. You've got Lord Richter's identity, the Weavers, Tessitore, three different "Arachnos" factions, the Spectras, and so very very many clones. I honestly can't remember now which of those threads were resolved and which were left open for a future arc. Random thoughts: I like how the story eventually acknowledges that getting a DNA sample to clone someone who goes by the name of "Lord Recluse" would not be easy. Drea the Hook seems awfully reclusive for someone who can usually be found just standing around Port Oakes. Are we supposed to have any idea what the hell the Weavers are talking about in the penultimate mission? Or is that mostly flavor and setup for the next story arc? Finally, kudos to @TerroirNoir for these great posts. @Darmian's arcs are fun, but so is reading about the adventures of Engineria as she goes through the stories and reacts to them. I especially appreciate that Engineria is a weaker AT who often gets knocked back onto her ass, frequently needs to call for backup or rely on friends, and is on a first-name basis with the Emergency Room doctors at all the local hospitals. It makes these posts a lot more entertaining than if the character had no trouble defeating anything that came along (although the latter is who I'd usually play). I'm looking forward to the coverage of the Praetorian arcs. I have some thoughts about those, too, but who knows if I'll remember them.

Nice look. BTW, I think you were right originally to use the "armored" costume pieces instead of "tight." In the comics, there's definitely a bit of flare at the top of the legs, for example. So I redid my version with armor pieces instead of tight. Here's what I ended up with: I'm not sure now that the shoulder pads are necessary, either—I think the big rounded "pads" in the comics are just the artist's conception of what the normal armor shoulders look like. But I kind of like the look of having the pads on. BTW, what are you using to get the glowy eyes?

Sure, I've played them, but I haven't written damn long posts with pretty fun commentary and characterization about them.

Frankly, I'm happy to have a thread where we aren't arguing with each other. The tone in this thread is frankly a breath of fresh air compared to General lately...

Hey—weren't there AE reviews and playthroughs in this thread? (We sort of took this over from @TerroirNoir, didn't we? Sorry not sorry...)

Do you mean CoX, or Thunderclap?

Can I just say how great it is that we're obsessing over how to replicate the look of a one shot tie-in comic book character from 2002? Man, I love this game.

Here's my take on him, FWIW. I looked at the first strip again, and the different colored wires are only prominent in one panel. For the rest, it's all blue. That's Tech Wired for the chest (which is definitely what the comics are modeling—the silver bit on the upper chest and the back details give it away) with Valkyrie 2 for the shoulders. The gloves are large Tech Sleek, which also look to me to be just what the comics are trying to do, with the blend effect. The legs are also Tech Wired, with rocket boots. I didn't work too hard on the face—you seem to have that nailed.

BTW, this? I really wanted it to be some version of Efficiency Expert Pither.

Come to think of it, I wonder if there's a belt option that would cover the upper legs. It sort of looks like the comics version has something like that.

It's too bad you can't color the cables in the legs gold without the waist also getting that color. But I think having the waist be gold wouldn't quite look right.

I just added a screenshot from the comics to my post above.

Nice! I think the legs are a bit different, though. The legs in the first comic have a pretty clear analogue in the tailor, I think (it looks sort of robotic/clockwork):

In the original Dark Horse promo comic, he actually shows up before Apex and War Witch—who, if you aren't aware, are also characters from the Dark Horse and Blue King comics. Apex was a total low-level noob in those comics, so it's still kind of cool to see him as a bad-ass with Vanguard. The Top Cow comics focused on the Freedom Phalanx and weren't nearly as charming as the ones with Apex and War Witch, IMO.

BTW, if you want to read the old comics, there's an archive here: http://www.cityofheroes.ca/media-and-downloads/comic-archive/index.html I was tickled to see Thunderclap show up in one of @Darmian's AE arcs.

Maybe so! And the last mission in "Gaunt Saints" is in an office building, not a lab, so you might be remembering a different mission.