SwitchFade

The DFB nerf is foolish at best and highly counterproductive at worst. Now it'll just be level 1s looking to get PL'd in PI/Grandville farms, in exchange for giving the mission owner any good drops (recpie/salvage). The XP rates available from that (remember double xp weekends on live servers where people would PL from 1 to 50? I do. So that's just your P2W +100% xp buff "anytime") are similar to way over DFB's depending on the relative "efficiency" of the two teams. The advantages of DFB are huge and being overlooked compared to the other content: * A group of low levels can do it, without begging/selling their soulsdrops. * It actively encourages actual participation as opposed to piking at the door -- you help, the run is faster, your xp/min goes up. * All ATs meaningfully contribute (mostly because when you're limited to level 10, everybody sucks equally). * It teaches people to use some of the tools (building a team, queueing to lfg, etc) of the game. * It lowers the cost of experimentation ("would I like this powerset/at combo? Let's get it to 22, do it up with SOs, and see!") and so players will be more willing to experiment. ** * Its relatively short content so you can drop in and drop out when you have 15 minutes as opposed to, "oh yep another 1.5 hour task force. That's excellent, but I have a family these days so I guess I'll just go play... something else." * When high levels drop in because they only have 15, newbies can ask questions and learn something. The other thing these patch notes say is the old Asheron's Call player motto: "exploit early, exploit often." Highly unhealthy, IMO. **: This wouldn't be a big deal if we had powerset-choice-respecs. If I could turn a dark/inv scrapper into a rad/bio scrapper just by running a (reasonable) difficulty trial (preferably spaced like the terra volta ones are -- I'm not talking "grid to 50 and...") that would be a vast improvement to the game. The DFB change was brilliant at worst and downright enlightened at best. DFB serves it's purpose, and now is no longer abused and exclusionary by nature. Amazing job HC team!

because dividing the community this way and not supporting other operations is obviously bad for the community the game came back by a miracle, we shouldn't be competing and throwing each other under the bus especially considering there's no legal way to benefit from these operations. We should be acting like a god damn community. Um yeah, no. Not just no, but HELL NO! If those other operators are doing things that could bring down NCSOFT upon ALL of us, then NO, the Homecoming team is under no obligation to support their shenanigans. Full stop. And folks can find those other servers. The installation guide clearly states where to find them. This team (and it's wonderful work) are under no obligation to advertise for them. (Especially with some of the toxicity allowed, as I've read, in one of the more, errr, anything goes servers) The i24 servers aren't some trade secret. Folks know where to find them if they want that. Clearly with the majority being here, they don't. I prefer i25, folks that don't have options other than Homecoming. those other server operators are not doing anything more illegal than what homecoming is doing. Stop this fearmongering bullshit and face the reality that homecoming is not better than the other server hosts for any reason. You, my good sir, should seriously consider reigning in your aggression. Stop being disrespectful. There is no room for this behavior. Please be respectful, or leave.

Perhaps it's a good point to remain on topic with a synopsis? Homecoming team is stupendous, by far exceeding any and all expectations The game is back, we thank them profusely, and all love the version they have allowed us to enjoy Farming is ok AE is both liked and disliked Players want to play their way, which is ok No individual player desires should go contrary to the community good Newbies deserve to be allowed to experience a game that will captivate them Spam in communication channels that herds everyone to AE, DFB, PI PL'ing etc, is harmful Xp gain is tailored to suit many situations, and works well Now. Let's leave personal desired aside, and agree on solutions that keep up the greatness, without harming new player perception and experience, for one reason above all Long term game viability. Please everyone, focus on this.

And this is what both sides of this supposed debate must grasp. Content like AE used for powerleveling is not the issue, the issue is how it overwhelmes the communication channels and the perception of new players is that that is all the game is. Veterans forget what made them fall in love with this game. When any form of farming floods all grouping to the point it is the majority of what newbies see, it will disillusion them. So, in essance, either keep farming out of broadcsts or adjust the rewards to encourage balance so new players experience the game that hooked all of us veterans. We live in a community, and in all communities we have a balanced compromise. People who argue for let me play my way forget that they can play their way, if they can find a solution that doesn't harm the community. This same argument is used in examples such as mandatory helmet laws for motorcyclists. Some simply argue they should not be forced to wear a helmet because it is their choice and their body, and harms no one else. The society they exist in believes otherwise, due to the negative impact on the community. We get you want to play your way, but it the harm it causes to your community outweighs your individual desires.

Agreed. Dfb has overwhelmed lfg.

Simply amazing! This truly is the most balanced direction and framework. Hat's off, chaps!

Agreed.

I believe Perma rage was an issue at some point. Without regurgitating half remembered metrics, the buff was heavily imbalanced.

Double nope.... 6 slotted Brawl! ;P

Did you put quotes around the whole string?

Your naïveté is astounding. Of course Marvel could sue this fan based show, the same way for many years Lucas nuked any Star Wars fan site. If a company doesn’t protect its copyright then they can lose it. If you are going to argue copyright law, please show some familiarity with copyright law. Actually no. If you do not protect a TRADEMARK you can lose it. You cannot lose a copyright for not protecting it. Essentially, he is correct. My family is in patent law. Litigation in these matters is so astronomically expensive, that unless you have the financial clout of Disney, just defending against litigation is financial ruin. Why even risk it?

Again, I vote no. I much prefer that names are unique, I don't want others seeing mine and copying it. The magic of this game is how real and personal the creation is, which just becomes generic when anyone can copy anything. The only reason I can see anyone wanting names to not be unique, is that they want a name for themselves, which is taken. I understand the desire, but that's like wanting someone else's wife, or motorcycle or house. Non sensical. Might as well just call everyone generichero1.

More negative attention is bad. I would always suggest don't infringe, as that just adds fuel to the fire. Make something g original, and make it easier on the homecoming team.

A little more detail on your desires may help in giving direction. Brutes can farm, but may not be the best pick. How do you want to farm? Solo? You mention helping lowbies, do you want to shield them from aggro? A tank may be a better pick. What level are you hoping to mature your toon? Brutes kill quicker, but can't hold aggro as well as tanks. Controllers farm well late game. A bit more info would help.

Lvl 25 io's at lvl 22, and have fun till the late 30's early 40's, by then your info and recipe drops are easily enough to buy better.

Honestly, if you team and play, you will level more quickly in this game than most. Over the years, the game was enhanced in ways that made leveling ridiculously easy, doing anything. Back in issue 3-8, it was brutal to get from 14-22, speed up again from 23-30, and then hit a crawl at 36ish. Just have fun. Missions give great exp, tf's dump loads. Join groups, or hit contacts and finish arcs for massive dumps of completion xp. Hit the p2w vendor for a doubling of your XP and street sweep. I could probably hit 50 in a weekend of just door missions and tf's, really. Have some fun!

I would have to vote nay on this, as I too prefer my chosen names to remain unique, assigned to that toon only. ;D

We fundamentally disagree, because IMO, there is no 'problem' other than some people trying to make others bend to their will. AE and PvP are not game breaking, that is chicken-little talking. I see you may be misunderstanding. The game breaking is not an opinion, it's an observation of occurrence. When AE overwhelmed broadcast, lfg, help and all forms of gameplay, it is breaking. The same can be said for pl'ing in PI. The issue is more about how we use AE. I agree, AE is not the issue, nor is PvP. The issue is, when new players, upon entering the game, are confronted with massive spam on all channels to AE, it is unbalanced. And, it was game breaking in live as well. People left over how prolific AE became. So the issue is not AE, rather, it is us. I'm sure we can find ways to have AE, and not let it ruin the game for new players. I think we must remember that to a new player, what they see in chat, and what groups they join in their initial weeks and months becomes their perception of the game, and they miss out on everything great. I'm sure we can find a better way to discuss, without posting about how each other's opinions or comments are "chicken little"? I am glad you're here, as I am glad everyone is here, and I hope we can take a deep breath and work together to enjoy our game.

Nah, it's the horse that's dead, they just keep beating on the poor creature. More like the horse is dust and to even beat the thing you have to run an epic level mission of for Hate and Anger to gather the dust, add some Hellion blood and re-constitute the thing to even begin to strike at it. The whole thing, _just like every single other game_ boils down to a group of people that claim they 'cannot imagine why' or 'cannot understand why' someone would play this way, when in reality thier brain chemistry simply does not allow them to accept that other people live their lives differently. This same tired argument is some form exists in _all_ game forums. Play the 'right way' or GTFO. Some don't just lack creativity, they activily try to stiffle it in others, because 'they cannot understand.' Yeah, I am a bit bitter over it, because I am tired of people with no imagination or ability to think ouside the box trying to tell others to stop doing thigs they "just don't understand". I strongly encourage you to remember that the slippery slope of division and dissent begins with rhetoric such as this. Please be mindful that your opinion may be just as exclusionary as those you are admonishing. All communities must have compromise, and to this end please keep in mind that AE itself is an issue on two fronts. One, it is a system resource hog, and cannot be justified. Two, and equally as important, if AE use crowds out all other use and spam overtakes all group forming broadcast posts in game, new player experience is destroyed. All the veterans, you and I included, love this game for the experience we cultivated before, during and after AE. AE farming is an issue when it negatively affects the community in such a way that the majority is being harmed to serve the minority. In such cases, we must decide on scenarios that benefit the greatest good. AE must be kept from destroying regular play, much as pvp has been, as it is secluded. While the majority understands your view, that you want to play the way you want, we ask that you see the view that abuse of it is game breaking in so many other ways. I suggest, rather than lamenting about problems, join us in creating a solution that meets the needs of everyone.

The Man himself! Firstly, my gratitude for your efforts and passion are truly inexpressible in mere words! Thank you so much for everything. Thanks for the personal attention and timely reply to this, your attention is more than appreciated.

This is very interesting information. In light of the fact there have been multiple threads on this topic, it may be important to have a red name chime in on this. I am sure that many of us, even those who are savvy in such venues, get that twitchy dread feeling in the gut at even the mention of malware. Would it be possible to have this addressed by a Dev? Thanks so much, homecoming team!

Greetings fellow CoH'er! I must say, I'm just thrilled we can play together and have these kinds of discussions as well! Well thought out post, but I would definitely put my money on a Warshade as one of the most powerful, being able to hit 85-90% resist all, +200-300% damage output, 2-3 pets in all the time, self heal/end recover, tank mode if I get bored, friend/zone teleport... The list goes on. The reactions I get are giggle inducing when I step in to teams and begin to wreck shop, to teleport people across maps, take over to protect the tank, run maps invisibly, and generally just have no limits. Granted, tanks, blasters and scraps can get 10% higher potential within their classes, but slotted and keybound properly, the Warshade is truly epic.

I suspect that, due to complexity and later maturation in the leveling process, AT's like warshades are less frequent. They really need keybinds and a good understanding of just how powerfully they scale to harness their true capability. That said, my Warshade is my favorite AT, and I had to unlock it the old fashioned way a decade ago, by hitting 50.

Until we have clarity on this from a Dev, I would strongly suggest NOT copying and pasting that into a web browser to look it up.

Throwing a couple more out... Krunch, made some epic tank invuln guides Tic-Toc, another great tanker