GM Impervium
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Hiya!
Can you post a screenshot of it?
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Aw shucks =^_^=
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Hey all! Whether you're a fledgling hero (or villain), an all-powerful incarnate or somewhere in between; it doesn't matter who you are, sometimes, you need help! This guide is aimed at giving you the tools you need, to get the help you deserve! It will also serve to give a bit of an inside peak into how we GMs handle situations that come to our attention!
(Dramatic re-enactment of our virtual office when Reunion went down on 2/20/21)
There are many different problems one may encounter while playing City of Heroes: Homecoming. And not all of them can be dealt with in the same way. Some problems need to be taken care of immediately (I'm looking at you, Pither!). Some issues may need to be investigated. And an issue with your game settings is going to be dealt with far differently than an abusive or rule-breaking player. With this in mind, the way in which to seek a solution to your issue will also usually be different on a case-by-case basis! Which is where this guide comes in, to enable you to make the best decision of where and how to report specific issues.
One major disclaimer before we go much further: As you (probably) know, all of our Developers, Game Masters and other staff are VOLUNTEERS. While we do have a pretty good track record for responsiveness and strive to be professional, please keep expectations measured when asking for in-game assistance. We may not always be able to respond to issues in a time or manner you desire, though generally, we do try our best! With that out of the way...
1) The Forums
Let's start with right here on the forums! As you're probably well-aware, we have many different sub-forums dedicated to different aspects of the game. In many cases, most non-critical or non-confidential issues can be posted somewhere around here. We have a very positive and helpful community, and anything that doesn't necessarily require GM intervention can be answered by players with the proper expertise; also, others may have had the same problem, and you can look up old posts to see if a solution has ever been discovered!
While you cannot post in the getting started forum, it's an excellent repository of knowledge, and it may have a solution to various issues getting your account in order or getting the game to run. Always check there first if you can't even get into the game at all!
Help and Support: Pretty much any technical questions you may have, can be asked (and probably answered) here, usually by other players. GMs and Devs do look through this section regularly, as well.
Bug Reports: This is where to post when you know something in the game isn't working in the manner it's SUPPOSED to. "My graphics look funny" is probably going to be a topic for Help and Support. "One of my attacks only does half the listed damage" MAY be a bug, or it may be something else. A lot of times, we'll get a support request that falls in this category, and we just point them over here, as the developers read this section regularly. If you're having an issue that needs immediate attention, though (Hello Amy Johnson, stuck in the wall again?), there's better ways to get help than waiting a few weeks for a bug fix to be rolled out (which we'll go over shortly)! However, do NOT post about potential exploits here; please Direct Message a Game Master, Lead Game Master, or Homecoming Team Member instead!Suggestions and Feedback: If your support request begins with "You guys should..." or "I really don't like..." it PROBABLY belongs here! Again, nothing a GM can do to grant your request in a case like that, so it's best placed where the development staff will see it and take it into consideration!
Then obviously there's the various AT sections for help with your character builds, and sub-forums dedicated to other parts of the game like PvP, Bases, or the Market where you can ask questions related to those systems!
And of course, we can't talk about the forums without mentioning our Report Post feature. While the GMs and staff do peruse the forums, we're not always everywhere at once. If you see a post that breaks our rules (generally: be excellent to each other), hit that button andsubscribelet us know! HOWEVER, "Report Post" is NOT a "Disagree" button! Also, fair warning: If you're reporting someone's posts, but we find you're also engaging in rule-breaking behavior while arguing with them? That's gonna backfire on you. Just sayin'. In fact, just... don't engage to begin with. Just report a post at the first sign of trouble, and let us deal with it before it escalates. Thank you!
2) Discord
What if you need some help, but you need it a bit-more "real-time"? Or you just want to have a conversation about something instead of waiting for replies to appear in a forum thread? Well then, our Discord server is the place for you! It's set up a lot like our forums, with sections for each AT and various aspects of the game. One big difference is the In-Game Help channel. Our GMs keep an eye on this channel and try to assist those in need, though other players often answer questions, too! If you're not getting a response, and/or your issue is a little more urgent, you can always look and see whether or not someone is @On-Duty, and ping them by typing that title in!
However, if and when you really need some help within the game itself; whether you've got a stuck NPC, another player breaking the code of conduct, a glowie is missing, someone is harassing you or others, that's when you need some...
3) Menu -> Support (In-Game)
...Okay, "that's when you need some Menu->Support" doesn't actually flow as a sentence. I tried.
Anyway, this option (also available by typing /petition) is your most powerful tool in getting the help you need! It brings up a window that allows you to briefly tell us what the issue is. I won't go into full details, but once submitted, we're alerted on multiple fronts that someone in-game needs aid, and our staff of volunteers will then try to respond as quickly as possible!
As an aside, PLEASE make double-sure that the e-mail you used to sign up on our forums works and isn't a burner: Our responses go to that e-mail address, and for more complex issues we'll usually engage in correspondence through e-mail and our online support system rather than in-game!
Let's go over the options here:
9 times out of 10, a badguy simply got knocked through a wall. The other 10% of the time is due to the incomprehensible mechanizations of an unspeakable eldritch abomination that lives in the game code.Stuck: Pretty self-explanatory. This is the most common use of the Support window, and conversely, the best way to get the help you need when you ARE stuck. Whether an NPC is jammed up in the geometry, or a glowy is hidden a bit TOO well (like inside of a staircase), or something has just gone wrong which is preventing you from completing the mission, this is the option to use! Just click "Send Petition" and someone will be with you shortly! IMPORTANT: if you use this option, PLEASE stay on-line for at least five minutes for a GM to contact you! For these situations, we will often have to log into the game and attempt to find you before we can offer assistance; and this can sometimes take a minute or three. We typically do give these requests highest priority (when we're available), as otherwise players are standing around not having any fun, so we ask for just a little bit of patience!
Exploits and Cheating: Also self-explanatory. You catch someone jerk-hacking, dupin' rares and/or going to the Americans, let us know! Or, if you've happened upon something yourself, like a hole in the geometry (especially ones that give a player an advantage, like in a PvP zone) or some cool way of chaining your powers together that causes the mapserver to crash, let us know here, also! The caveat, as mentioned above: Do NOT discuss anything you would report here on the forums, discord, or in-game with other players.
Feedback and Suggestions: Anything you'd put here will probably get a response to post in our suggestions and feedback forums. We won't ignore your suggestion, but the forums are the best (and only) place for the Dev team to see your idea 🙂
Harassment and Conduct: We take the enjoyment, safety, and security of our players, as well as the enforcement of our Code of Conduct, VERY seriously. Our number one goal and priority is to make sure everyone has a fun, and safe, place to enjoy their favorite Superpowered MMORPG. If you witness another player breaking the code of conduct, please report it here. This includes things like copyright violations, abusive or hate speech, offensive character names or descriptions, and so on.Not every single report will result in a player being sanctioned or banned. We investigate these issues fully, and if we determine someone IS breaching our Terms of Service or Code of Conduct, then we WILL take action against them. However, just be aware (and 99% of the time, we'll send you a message stating such) that we will not be able to inform you of any actions taken as a result of your report.
Technical Issues: Most things reported here should probably go on our forums or discord. Some technical issues that need specific GM intervention might be if your Long-Range Teleporter stops working after a server transfer, or you encounter a game-breaking bug of some kind.
General Help: Since this is a broad category that covers "Everything else", use your best judgement here. Does this REALLY need an immediate response? Could it go into another, more specific category? Would you be more likely to get an answer from the rest of the community rather than a GM? Feel free to use this option, but many times, we've had to direct folks making such inquires back to the forums, anyway.
As an aside, remember, too, that there's always the in-game Help channel, usually full of friendly and knowledgeable players... and we GMs are occasionally known to pop in and drop some wisdom, as well!
Overall, there's two big take-aways here: First, when you submit a support request, STAY IN-GAME for a few minutes so we can contact you directly, especially if it's an urgent issue. Failing that, make sure you check your e-mail that you signed up with, as our responses will go there. Thank you!4) Online Support Center
Our Online Support Center is actually a web-based version of pretty much everything I just talked about above! However, there's no character limit, and you can attach images and files to your report, as well! Accessible via the forums, it's at the top, in-between "Faq" and "Server Status". You can also see the status of any past or pending reports, too! Use this when corresponding with us, even if you originally contacted us from in-game: The message we send to your e-mail can't be replied to (or rather, it'll just get eaten if you try) but this tool allows you to communicate with a GM handling your issue directly.
That said, making initial contact via the in-game ticket system is usually preferred (unless you literally can't get in-game), as your ticket will also contain information about your character that may help us investigate your issue (Character name, server they're on, and map they're on). If you use the online support center to tell us your mission won't complete, well, we won't have any of that info and won't be able to assist you without asking you for it, which just wastes everyone's time, especially yours.
5) Managing Expectations, and Frequently Encountered Issues
Us Game-Masters wield tremendous in-game power; however, believe it or not, there are some things even we cannot do. Whether it's because of policy or actual game limitations, please note these restrictions as well as possible self-help solutions to the following common issues:
* Badges. Before sending in a ticket about a missing badge, make sure you meet all the criteria for earning it. Here are some things to check:
- Alignment (especially if you're a vigilante or rogue going for dayjob badges)- Being within range of the monster/event on defeat/completion
- Correct enemy type (For instance "Rogue" Arachnos in Warburg don't count for the various Arachnos defeat badges)
- Correct zone (The "Echo" versions of various zones still cause some confusion)
- Participation threshold (Most giant monsters require your team to do about 10% of the total damage, give or take)
- Whether or not you actually already have it!
* Lost Influence/Enhancements/etc, Sometimes things get misplaced. Be cautious when using the Auction and in-game mail systems!
- Check your price and number of bids when bidding on an item in the AH. There's nothing we can do if you accidentally add some extra 0's or buy 10 of something on accident. Related: Make sure you're bidding on the correct item. If you meant to get an enhancement, make sure you didn't buy the recipe.- Don't use the AH as long-term storage. If you accidentally list your purple IOs for 5 inf because you were trying to sell something else, there's nothing we can do once it's sold.
- When e-mailing Inf to yourself, put a reward merit in the attachment slot. This will auto-fill your global name so that you do not make any mistakes. You can remove the reward merit after. Once you hit "send", the mail is sent, and we can't get it back for you if there's an accident!
- When sending mail to another player, you should copy and paste their name, just to make sure you're not dealing with any uppercase i's disguised as lowercase Ls or vice-versa. In fact, use the Trade interface whenever possible!- Failed respecs: when this happens, your inventory can vanish! But don't worry, logging out for a few minutes, and logging back in should return your stuff. To reduce the risk of failed respecs, make sure you are not on a team, or in an instance (including bases), or in a high-traffic area. Also, make sure you are fully leveled before starting a respec. These steps should reduce the risk of this particularly nasty error.
* Supergroup issues.
- Only the Leader of a Supergroup (the character marked with a red star) should be sending help requests related to the SG.- If a leader is not available due to inactivity, our hands are going to be tied. We cannot promote an "active" officer over an "inactive" leader. You'll have to wait for the auto-demotion timer to trigger.
- If you're the former leader of an SG that was auto-demoted due to inactivity... our hands are also tied there. All Supergroups should have a plan of succession that is understood by all members.
- The SG leader (and anyone they allow) is the one who sets the permissions for the SG, including invites, promotions, and storage. Set certain permissions to specific ranks, only promote people you trust into those ranks, and set permissions on each storage bin accordingly.
* Task Force Mission Repeating: Sometimes, you'll encounter the same mission over and over again. While there's no command we have to force the Task Force to continue normally, we have found that having each member log out for a few minutes, then back in, corrects the issue. This also sometimes works when a member can't get into the door.
* Task Force Mission Repeating: Sometimes, you'll encounter the same mission over and over again. While there's no command we have to force the Task Force to continue normally, we have found that having each member log out for a few minutes, then back in, corrects the issue. This also sometimes works when a member can't get into the door. Wait, what's happening?
* Task Force Mission Repeating: Sometimes, you'll encounter the same mission over and over OH COME ON...! no command we have to force th-
*LOG OUT*
*RESTART*
Whew, that's better. Now, where was I?
Conclusion
I wrote this guide in the interest of transparency, and helping players navigate our help system, as well as manage expectations. We've had several instances where we were never able to follow up with the players making the report, because they immediately logged out or never responded to their e-mail. So, in a way, this guide is to help you help us help you? Yeah that... that doesn't sound confusing at all.
If you have any questions, let us know! Otherwise, take care and have fun!
Special thanks to @GM Kaiju for his input when writing this guide!
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So, turn every zone in the game EXCEPT FW into a PvP zone? You got it! All we gotta do is flip a switch and it's done! Great idea, TVT!
On a serious note, I can see why some may find SoH is kinda... boring. He's just a bag of HP that flies in circles.
PERSONAL OPINION: The Seed should be able to extract himself from his flight path (probably a technical impossibility), and directly target and move towards and away from characters like a normal NPC. Have him dive into the water, then fly back out and ambush someone; have him be able to just eat a character no matter how high their HP is (don't stand directly in front of him!); stuff like that. Make him a THREAT!
Raise the challenge, raise the rewards (which I think are so low because he spawns every hour regardless; unlike Primal Hami, where you need a full league of characters to kill dozens of Giant Monsters to get him to come out and play). But yes, I too would like to see players go after him more often 😃-
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Hey all!
So the whole "Does Mez belong in the game/what function should it have/who should it affect" convo is a fun and all, and while I know it's tangentially related to the use of RoP, how about we take it somewhere else (or even better, just drop it for now) and allow this thread to serve it's purpose for general Page 2 feedback?
Thanks!-
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11 hours ago, Ethanidas said:
When doing the extra high jump from running with superspeed for 4 seconds, im taking fall damage from the landing. Is it supposed to work that way?
Probably not, but that sounds hilarious!
I MEAN
It probably has to do with the jump buff expiring before you have a chance to land. Or if you're jumping to a surface that's lower than where you started, that might do it, too. What other powers or buffs, if any, are you using when this happens?-
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3 hours ago, Grouchybeast said:
It's always seemed weird to me that Ms Lib is now in two places at once, while poor BAB is stuck out in the boonies. Why not let him be the main Atlas trainer? Or, if seeing Ms Lib on entering Paragon for the first time is too iconic to change, let BAB launch the TF instead.
Fun tidbit: He originally WAS going to be the contact for the TF after WWD, but the Devs decided it would be more thematically fitting for Recluse's Niece to spearhead the TF. They just hand-waved her being in two places at once. Atlas is where she is when you're starting your career as a hero and you need her help to learn the ropes. Once you're a high-level hero who's come into their own and you're ready to save the world, SHE now needs YOUR help. It's quite a fitting bookend-esque situation... if only she wasn't literally in two places at once.
Also, BaBs DOES serve a purpose in that alley: If you do the "new" AP arcs, you end up right in front of him after one of the big missions, where you are almost certainly going to need to level up. And this way, you don't have to run all the way back to Ms. Liberty, just to run all the way back to Argosy Industrial for the next mission!-
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*sigh* I knew this was going to come up.
Other than what @Grouchybeast and @TemporalVileTerror said (both excellent posts, btw!), I will make one distinction clear:
This thread is about E-RP. Most "grey area" character concepts may still engage in normal, non-adult role-play, as long as they don't venture into adult themes or come off as intentionally fetishistic on their own. Use your best judgement.
My PERSONAL suggestion (though don't take this as an Official Homecoming work-around, as other GMs or staff may disagree and take action against offending accounts): Treat such characters the way mainstream source material would, IE: skipping over any intimate details in the course of a story or event. This goes double if one actively mentions their "gray-area" age status.
I know this might be a bitter pill to swallow, especially given how full speculative fiction and fantasy are with these types of characters and tropes, and how they usually interact with adult themes. And not many people are fans of Zero-Tolerance policies in real life. But in the case of Homecoming's rules on what is and isn't allowed in regards to ERP, allowing exceptions beyond "consenting legal adults" just leads down a rabbit hole, both morally and legally, that we do NOT want to deal with.
That said, I don't see this thread trending anywhere but downhill from here. I want to thank everyone for being mostly civil and mature throughout this discussion. Take care, have fun, and be safe!-
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55 minutes ago, maelenah said:
I've generally found that the quickest way to attract something is to indicate that you do not want it in your bio. Unless you want creepers, then just indicate that you are under age 18 or were diddled as a child and they will find you.
Hard "NO" on anything in that last sentence, especially the last part.
If you're under 18, don't advertise it. Basic online safety 101. Only say so as a tool to get out of a bad situation (and then report the person harassing you so that we can take action). That said, don't lie about your age, either. You can just say "I'm a minor" and leave it at that. If someone presses for specifics, that's probably a red flag.
If you're over 18, pretending to be a minor (either IRL or in-character) for the purpose of inviting ERP, for whatever reason or end-goal, will result in an account ban.
And I definitely wouldn't advertise one's trauma's, especially if you're just making stuff up. Not just for your own sake, but I'm sure plenty of people would be very upset that something that actually happened to them was being used as a joke in another person's profile. Also, it's against the CoC as we prohibit discussion of real-world crimes.
So, yeah, while I know where you're coming from and probably mean well, this is actually really awful advice!
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@J_Wolf_13 I wanted to take a moment to answer your concerns more directly.
First, colorful superheroes aside, we do not consider this a "kid's game". We do not allow anyone under 13 to play on our servers, if that's any indication (if you find out someone under 13 is playing here, let us know). That said, we also strive to keep any content one may experience in the realm of "PG-13" (Character names, appearances, and Bios; public chat in zones; AE missions, etc). We do our best to moderate anything that goes beyond that general "PG-13" rating. However, many reasonable people can (and do) disagree what that constitutes. We try to take a balanced approach. So yeah, your nephew might see a catgirl in a thong and a cleavage-enhancing Barbarian Bikini with a few strange words in their bio, but it's up to you (or his parents) to contextualize that in a way that you find appropriate; however, anything beyond that may be something you can come to us with.
On that note, I assure you that the safety and privacy of all our users is our NUMBER ONE priority. Especially those under the age of 18. If your nephew were to play, you would have to set some ground rules for how to interact with people, since he may lack this knowledge himself. Things like not revealing his real name or specific age, not talking to people with specific tags in their Bios, etc. Don't make him afraid to team with others to enjoy missions, but do let him know how to either assert or extract himself if, say, team chat starts getting inappropriate.
As for dealing with the possibility of him dealing with ERP, he simply needs to inform anyone trying to start with him that he's not interested (or underage if he really wants to spook them); Either way, once he tells another user to leave him alone, it's written very clearly in our rules that they must leave him alone. That goes double if he reveals he's a minor. Any contact after that short of a brief apology? Let us know, and we'll deal with it. This assumes, of course, that he's not actively seeking it out. In which case, we'd ban his account.
2 hours ago, Shadeknight said:Impervium, what's the official stance of a bio linking to F-List via something like
/c/pagenamehere
For context, F-List is a website where (among other things) you can make a character kink 'sheet'.
Is that reportable? I forget if this has been said before.
Obviously you have to actually know what /c/pagename here / "has a /c/" refers to buuut curious people are curious. Sometimes not for the better.
Our general policy is no direct links to the content; interpret that how you wish. Though I'll add that you should make sure that the "pagenamehere" also adheres to our code of conduct (ie, isn't explicitly sexual or graphic. I'd make up some examples, but, well, then I'd be breaking the CoC!). If this isn't possible, you may need to get creative.
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2 minutes ago, Tyrannical said:
Could we perhaps get an amendment to the CoC? I feel as though it deserves a little amendment to explain what themes players are permitted to roleplay perhaps?
That's the sticky part. The guidelines are there, and we (the GM team) need to be free to engage discretion when enforcing them. If we list bullet point by bullet point what is and isnt't allowed, we'll just end up alienating otherwise innocent players, while purposefully toxic ones will try to rules-lawyer their way into being allowed to straddle the line. And no one wants that.
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As a follow up to the above:
Having an [ERP] tag in a bio is not actionable. A bio stating in explicit detail what kinds of sexual situations they like to engage in would probably get the axe.
Anywhere in between would be up to the discretion of the GM answering the complaint.
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Okay, so, this topic deserves a more succinct response than I can type out right now, BUT...
ERP is allowed AS LONG AS:
It is done so privately
All parties involve consent
NO MINORS ARE INVOLVED. This means either a Player OR Character. Any and all accounts involved in underaged ERP will be banned without notice. Please report anyone either trying to ERP with or as a minor (under 18 years).
Will probably follow up later with more detail if needed.
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14 minutes ago, siolfir said:
Bug? Or issue with the patch notes?
90 second recharge gives you a much better uptime ratio.
Bug that's already been fixed internally (The recharge is not supposed to be affected byglobalrechargebuffsenhancements, but it is at the moment - Thanks for the correction, @Captain Powerhouse)-
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Closing thread as per OP's request 😃
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Hey all;
Just a reminder to keep discussions/debates to a minimum, please! -
3 hours ago, VV said:
So, question, does running Hover+Fly+EM together provide any benefits over Fly+EM or Hover+EM? Either in combat or our of combat?
What happens if you run Hover+EM together?
You hover a little faster 😃
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4 hours ago, QuiJon said:
I dont need to test it
Funny thing about that. We prefer qualified, objective feedback based on testing and first-hand experience, not "armchair patch-note reading".
Not that armchair patch-note reading is always a bad thing. If there was a patch note that said "All summoned Pets will now be a non-combat Baby New Year", that would be objectively awful (and okay, kinda hilarious), and I would hope that the developers would take the flood of angry/confused/objecting comments seriously before fully committing to that path.
But in this case? You seem to be letting your competitive instinct guide your opinion on this (as you're apparently concerned that a super-speeder will beat you to a mission door?). That's all on you, unfortunately, and has no bearing on whether or not we'll ultimately go forward with these changes. Now, if you tested this out and found, say, that the super speed members of your team were able to complete a mission before you could even get to the door (assuming you started from the same spot and tried your best to reach the door as fast as possible, including use of temp and day job teleport powers), then THAT would be an issue we'd like to hear, have other people test, and THAT might (no promises) lead the devs to closing the speed gap a little.
This is the difference between subjective and objective feedback, the later of which is much more highly valued.-
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1 hour ago, Razor Cure said:
Wait, THAT is the response..from a GM?
Two TFs out of however many, having a really annoying and easy to miss 'mechanic'...and your response is..'oh sure, it is what it is.'
May as well not fix, tweak or update anything in the game anymore..cause, ya know, it is what is it.
Hmm, you're right 😃
"It is what it is... for now. Hopefully one of the devs will see this and take it into consideration!"
...is what i SHOULD have said! I'll be more mindful of my wording in the future; thanks for keeping me on my toes!-
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Impervious
...Okay maybe I'm biased.-
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With that particular SF, speaking to Lord Recluse (not Barracuda) after the "final" mission is a mission itself, not the standard debrief (or rather, it's part of the mission). If people bail before the team lead can talk to Recluse, they're technically leaving before the SF is complete.
It is a little out of sorts with how most TFs go, but it is what it is.
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We're not giving every character a way to have 100% mez protection all the time.
Also, closing this, since people can't help but argue.-
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Teleport Bug?
in Bug Reports
Posted
We're currently tracking this issue. It seems to be related to what you're targeting (specifically something you can't hit, like a civilian or an out-of-range teammate) but we're not 100% sure. Any information that anyone can provide would be greatly beneficial in tracking down and squashing this bug!