America's Angel

17 year old games tend to be a bit boring. The trick is exploring new things you haven't done before.

After testing out rooting changes on Mighty Leap, I would like to suggest that [Takeoff] have the foe knockdown element removed, so that it can then in turn have its rooting removed. It's a movement based power. It rooting me feels counterintuitive. (Also having to be grounded to activate it kinda sucks. None of the other popup tray movement powers have this restriction.)

After testing out rooting changes on Mighty Leap, I would like to suggest that [Takeoff] have the foe knockdown element removed, so that it can then in turn have its rooting removed. It's a movement based power. It rooting me feels counterintuitive. (Also having to be grounded to activate it kinda sucks. None of the other popup tray movement powers have this restriction.) Edit: Wrong thread.

Welcome! 🤛

Everlasting is only recording in 2s intervals, too:

Sorry to hear you won't be able to make it, Dandropo. It was hard to find a time that fits for everyone. I'm sure we'll be doing more in the upcoming months, I'll try and make sure one is a bit more EU-friendly with times.

Please don't tell the devs they're wasting their time. They might be wrong sometimes. But they're not wasting their time. Ever. -- Has anyone in this thread playtested RoP on beta yet? Has anyone run the numbers for the mitigation it provides vs Unleash Potential/Unrelenting? (Bearing in mind that res scales better vs high damage?) That's the way to approach this IMO. Debating the patch notes never really achieves anything.

Update - the time limit for matches has been increased to 15 minutes.

Update - the time limit for matches has been increased to 15 minutes.

Update - the time limit for matches has been increased to 15 minutes.

Howdy pardna! Been seeing a lot more people Fightclubbing under the Atlas statue in Recluse's Victory these last few days. Looks like people want to get the practice in...

Another nerf on beta that isn't listed in the dev post: Stalker > Psy Melee > Greater Psy Blade Base Damage lowered from 206.84 to 155.13 Critical Damage lowered from 206.84 to 155.13 Insight damage reduced from 103.42 to 75.67

(Tweaked a few math errors and typos in the above post.)

The Scrapper Snipe Changes & Future PVP Nerfs to Epic Attacks @Faultline @Captain Powerhouse @Jimmy Okay, this is weird feedback. Because it's not just about the snipe changes, but the wider scope of what their implementation will entail. This is going to be a long post. It needs to be. The current "one-size-fits-all" approach to balancing epic attacks in is too high level to work effectively, and is harming game balance on a granular level. I will explain why below without hyperbole, with numbers. Also, to be clear, when I speak of "scrapper snipe nerfs", I'm talking about the highlighted parts only, as these highlighted parts are what is drawing concern. (Lowering the base damage and proc rate.): Now, the concern right now from PVPers is twofold. The first is that the scrapper snipe nerfs are bad. The second is that they set a precedent. Note, it isn't just me saying this, it's a concern I've heard from every PVPer I've seen speak on this, including every tester on the PVP discord, as well as the the PVP Community Rep. Anywhere PVPers have been able to give feedback, this has been the verdict. PVPers are worried that these nerfs are the "first out of the gate" for epic attacks, and that more will follow. There is concern that nerfing the snipes will lead to powers like char, fossilize, spirit shark jaws, etc all getting nerfed. Before the Homecoming dev team embark on this road, I wanted to spend some time checking the numbers, to see the impact this would have on PVP balance in practice. (Not just in theory.) I'll do this alongside an analysis of the scrapper snipe nerf, so we can answer these two following questions at the same time: Is the scrapper snipe nerf good or bad for PVP balance? Are future epic power nerfs good or bad for PVP balance? Below, I've calculated the likely nerfs to the most popular melee pvp epic powers. I did this by following the scrapper snipe nerf. Specifically: Changing the internal recharge of each power to match the primary set power it was based on. (Char becomes 8s, Gloom becomes 8s, etc). Reducing the base damage relative to the new recharge. Note, in some original powers with no primary equivalent, such as Laser Beam eyes and Spirit Shark Jaws, I had to guess the nerf numbers. Laser Beam Eyes I put at 4s with a 2s internal recharge. (Based on Powerhouse's past comments.) Spirit Shark Jaws I put at 8s internal recharge (to match Char). Here's the breakdown: Scrapper Moonbeam on Live = 707.23 damage (446.48 DPA) Scrapper Moonbeam 12s internal recharge & reduced damage = 595.83 damage (376.15 DPA) Scrapper Zzap on Live = 642.66 damage (405.72 DPA) Scrapper Zzap 12s internal recharge & reduced damage = 540.04 damage (340.93 DPA) Scrapper Char on Live = 859.69 damage (651.28 DPA) Scrapper Char 8s internal recharge & reduced damage = 568.46 damage (430.65 DPA) Scrapper SSJ on live = 879.51 damage (416.43 DPA) Scrapper SSJ 8s internal recharge & reduced damage = 614.48 damage (290.95 DPA) Scrapper Laser Beam Eyes on Live = 490.59 damage (265.47 DPA) & ~9% -res Scrapper Laser Beam Eyes 4s external/2s internal recharge = 248.55 damage (134.49 DPA) & ~3% -res *** Brute Gloom on Live = 401.73 damage (304.34 DPA) Brute Gloom 8s internal recharge & reduced damage = 320.34 damage (242.68 DPA) Brute Fossilize on Live = 769.99 damage (343.13 DPA) Brute Fossilize 8s internal recharge & reduced damage = 551.47 damage (245.75 DPA) Here's the DPA change vs live: Gloom = -61.66 DPA Zzap = -64.71 DPA Moonbeam = -70.33 DPA Fossilize = -97.38 DPA SSJ = -125.49 DPA Laser Beam Eyes = -130.98 DPS (and a reduction of -res per second from Achilles Proc from ~9% to ~3%) Char = -220.62 DPA As you can see. Broad-strokes nerfs to all epics sets do not equally nerf the epic powers within those sets. This harms game balance. "Stop writing so much! Just tell me what to increase the scrapper meleepvp damage scalar by!" Hmm. Should we say +70.33 DPA to make up for Moonbeam being nerfed? Or should we say +130.98 DPA to make up for Laser Beam Eyes being nerfed? Which number should we pick? Even the snipes have been nerfed differently! What about the -res from Laser Beam Eyes - how does that factor in? How do we account for primaries having/not having access to -res procs? What about current primaries that don't need the epics, why are we buffing them by increasing the pvpmelee damage scalar? These are the questions this "simple solution" raises. We need to answer them or we're not doing due diligence. But yeah, as you can see, the reason behind this epic nerf is too high level/vague/broad strokes. And the attempt to fix this nerf by buffing primary damage scalars is also too high level/vague/broad strokes. What is needed instead is a detailed, GRANULAR, analysis of how the various epic powers balance in PVP RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER, and then tweaking those powers on a case-by-case basis. This is a slow and attentive process. A one-size-fits-all approach to balance might be quick, but it DOES NOT WORK. (In fact, not only does it not work, it actively harms game balance!) "No way am I balancing the scrapper snipes relative to other scrapper epic powers! I don't want Scrapper snipes doing more damage than blaster snipes!" Blaster Moonbeam on live does 586.47 damage on live Scrapper Moonbeam on live does 707.23 damage on live ...yet a Blaster still does more damage than a Scrapper with Moonbeam. Both on live AND beta. "What?! You're lying! The number for Scrapper is higher!" I am not lying. The blaster can use their Moonbeam once every 12s (50 times per match). The Scrapper can use it once every 24s (25 times per match). Because of this, the individual power's DPS is a better barometer for how these two powers perform relative to each other in PVP. So let's take a look... The DPS for Blaster Moonbeam on live is 48.87 DPS The DPS for Scrapper Moonbeam on live is 29.47 DPS (59.89% of blaster damage) As you can see, scrapper snipes aren't "doing more damage than blaster" snipes in a PVP environment. So this change achieves absolutely nothing from an AT-to-AT PVP balance perspective. All it does is make Moonbeam worse for scrappers RELATIVE TO THE OTHER SCRAPPER EPIC ATTACKS. The real question is...is this a bad thing? Almost 100% of the feedback from PVPers has been against this change to scrapper snipes. (I think one person said they didn't care. Nobody, to my knowledge, has supported this.) So, if PVPers think this change is bad, and if no-one on the dev team PVPs, I'd be inclined to just side with the PVPers. But let's check and see if they're right, anyway. As we do this, let's remember our goal - we want all the epic attacks to provide similar DPS relative to their external recharge time, taking into account any additional utility they offer that would offset a difference in DPS. Let's also remember our methodology - looking at numbers in depth. Let's compare the two current Scrapper epic attack frontrunners: Scrapper Moonbeam on Live = 707.23 damage (446.48 DPA) Scrapper Laser Beam Eyes on Live = 490.59 damage (265.47 DPA) & ~9% -res HUUGE difference in DPS. But the -res that the achilles proc does, plus the short recharge time of LBE vs Moonbeam, means that they are both viable options. Here's the attack chain DPS numbers for my Dark Melee/Energy Aura Scrapper (versus an enemy with 50% res): On live: Attack chain with Laser Beam Eyes = 190.34 DPS Attack chain with Moonbeam = 184.45 DPS On Brainstorm: Attack chain with Laser Beam Eyes = 190.34 DPS Attack chain with nerfed Moonbeam = 180.83 DPS As you can see, Moonbeam and Laser Beam Eyes are closer together on live than Brainstorm. Therefore this nerf upsets their balance! "Fine then, I'll just nerf Laser Beam Eyes." Let me stop you there. That idea looks like this: Attack chain with nerfed Laser Beam Eyes= 173.84 DPS Attack chain with nerfed Moonbeam = 180.83 DPS Better than Brainstorm, for sure. But worse than live! This change would lead to every scrapper taking nerfed moonbeam over LBE. This is bad for tworeasons. The first is build homogenization. (Literally the opposite of what game balance should strive for - you want more powers viable, not fewer.) The second is that melee sets that have access to the -res in achilles in their primaries will have a greater advantage over those that do not. (As their only source of it - LBE, is no longer optimal.) I'll say it again: The purpose of game balance is to make as many powers viable in PVP as possible, not fewer. "Well I guess I could just nerf Laser Beam Eyes and the other epic attacks less severely and increase the scrapper melee damage scalar to offset the epic decrease in damage." If you do this. We'll just end up worse than we are on live. Sure, all the epics will be balanced relative to each other, but they will be much worse relative to the primary powers. This will push people into taking primary sets that use the achilles proc well (Claws, Street Justice, Broadsword, Katana, etc), and just running focused accuracy or moonbeam. So, again, build homogenization. In attempting to balance the game, you will have unbalanced it. As I explained to @Piecemeal on the testing discord: Stronger epics = differences in primary viability decreases Weaker epics = differences in primary viability increases So if you make epics weaker, you need to buff underperforming primaries to restore balance. What we have right now on live, options-wise, is good. And it's varied. Do you take the snipes? Do you take laser beam eyes? Do you take focused accuracy? Do you try some weird stuff with Char and Fire blast? We have a wealth of options. And numbers-wise they are all viable. There are some epics that are poor, and it is they that we should be looking at buffing. As I've said time and time again, in PVP you balance around the top performing sets/powers. (Because everyone takes them...so you have to!) If you nerf stuff down in PVP, you're changing the game. If you buff stuff up, the game remains the same, but there are more options. (The goal of game balance!) The one thing you need to take away from this novella I'm writing is that in PVP you can only nerf something if it is objectively overperforming by a large margin. If it is already balanced relative to other powers of a similar type, you're not nerfing a power. You're deleting it. Anyway, let's wrap this up. To conclude: The scrapper snipe nerf numerically damages game balance between the scrapper epics. Blasters do more damage than Scrappers with their snipes on both Live and Brainstorm. ...therefore, the nerf to scrapper snipe base damage and internal recharge rate achieves NONE OF THE GOALS YOU SET OUT TO ACHIEVE, actively harms PVP balance, and it 100% needs to be rolled back. Now, as we look to the future, and consider Dominate, Fossilize, Spirit Shark Jaws, Char, Gloom, and other popular epic powers. It's important we look at the process I went through, above. It's important we do that side-by-side, in-depth, unrushed, granular analysis FOR EVERY SINGLE POWER before nerfing them in PVP. Because THAT is the level of attention that is required when it comes to balancing powers in a live PVP environment. And if you don't have the time to do this with every power? Ask PVPers to. You have a small army of the best PVPers in the game on the Golden Testers Discord. Use them. They know the game better than anyone, because they've been exploiting it to beat each other for almost two decades. They look at powers this in depth all the time. It's nothing to them. Listen to PVPers. Listen to the numbers. Thanks for reading.

You got it! (Sorry it's so late! If it makes you feel any better, I'm in the UK - so I'll be staying up late for this, too.) Seems like we're going to have a good turnout.

Welcome! 🙋‍♀️ Bonjour! France is GMT+1. So, the event will start at 12am (midnight) for players in France.

"It's not about going faster, it's about staying at the flight cap with my current slotting on live!" said the person not at the flight cap with their current slotting on live.

Sometimes mindgames are more important than DPS.

Yeah exactly. Anyone complaining about "needing to respec" is mistaken. (Fortunately!)

Just tested out the new flight speeds with my tank. I wanted to see if the statement "flight on beta is as quick as flight + afterburner on live" was true. This is the slotting I have: Swift: lvl50 Flight IO +5'd Fly: lvl50 Winter's Gift Fly Speed/end Catalysed lvl50 Winter's Gift 20% Slow Resistance Catalysed Flight + Afterburner on Live vs Flight on Beta Here's the numbers: So overall I'm seeing a reduction in my baseline flight speed vs live. However, if we add in Afterburner at 33% uptime, my average flight speed on beta is 73.97mph. This is higher than live. So it's it's not true in all instances that flight on beta is as quick as flight + afterburner on live. This statement likely is only true in those instances where people are slotting flight with a single +5 flight IO. That said, a more accurate comparison would be... Flight + Afterburner on Live vs Flight + Evasive Manuevers on Beta So overall I'm seeing an increase my baseline flight speed vs live. Add in Afterburner at 33% uptime and my average flight speed on beta is 97.72ph. This is much higher than live. (Faster than the live superspeed cap!) A huge buff. No need to respec at all if you are using Afterburner on live..

Welcome! Everlasting represent!

I like boosters. They free up slots in builds. This encourages build diversity. (Same reason I like procs.) One thing about live I hated is that every blaster played the same way. Boosters and procs have gone a long way to change that. Has made for a much richer/deep game.

Yup! Think of it as pylon testing...but the pylon hits back! 🤭

We want to find the best melee fighter in City of Heroes...is that you? What: A 1v1 PVP tournament for melee fighters only! When: Saturday March 27th 2021 @ 4pm PST // 7pm EDT // 11pm GMT Where: Pocket D on Indomitable Who: Anyone can enter! Want to enter? Want to know more? Click here to go to the official sign-up thread.