ThatGuyCDude

The Incarnate system was still under active development before NCSoft's shutdown, and four slots from the original intention remained undeveloped and unfinished. Of these, the only information we have is their names, and the original intention of the Advanced Physical Incarnate slot adjacent to Hybrid--Genesis (this information can be found on the Wiki). Genesis was meant to be ground-target fields that bolstered allies or debuffed enemies. The remaining three slots were to be called Mind (Advanced Psychic), Vitae (Advanced Physical), and Omega (Final Slot). EDIT: Based on feedback in this thread, this idea has been revised. See the revised idea further down the thread. --------------------------------------------------------------- Everything below this point in this initial post is left for record-keeping purposes so that the responses that followed make sense. It is no longer relevant to the proposal at hand. -------------------------------------------------------------- Looking at the existing components of the Incarnate system, each 'row' has emphasized one of the game's playstyles: Judgment and Interface are Melee, Lore and Destiny are Support, and Hybrid and Genesis would have been Control. That would suggest that the last two forked slots would fill the playstyle of Range. To that end, let's come up with powers for the unfinished slots using existing assets. First, the Genesis Slot. Genesis (Advanced Psychic Slot - Location AoE Control) We've already got Support covered with the Destiny slot, so having abilities in Genesis that buff allies is redundant. Instead, let's focus on debuffing enemies with Location AoEs. The Blaster pseudopet attacks like Fire Rain work for the targeting component, and we already have an array of debuff options to utilize from the Interface slot. I propose the Genesis slot recycle Blaster Location AoE graphics with Interface rider effects (at higher percentages). The Wiki says the Core branch would improve Area Effect while the Radial branch would allow multiple smaller patches to be dropped... to achieve the Radial effect, tack on a rider status that keeps the ability off cooldown until it has been used <x> times or <y> seconds have passed, much like how Combat Teleportation works. Moving on, we have the Mind and Vitae slots. Mind (Advanced Psychic Slot - Ranged Single Target Nuke) All of the existing Incarnate slots emphasize area-of-effect and wading into the middle of a swarm of enemies. Having a single-target attack in the mix would offer an opening salvo-pull move that can be dropped on a target. For convenience, we'll copy the Blaster sniper shots with longer cooldowns, and add the Judgment attack riders for variety. The Core branch emphasizes raw damage while the Radial branch offers additional effects. Vitae (Advanced Physical Slot - Armor Toggle) This is a tough one. I thought hard about the Incarnate click abilities and which archetypes they represent. Judgment screams Scrapper. Destiny is a Defender move. What was originally discussed for Genesis in the Dev AMA felt like a Controller move. Blaster and Tank were missing... and together they make the Sentinel. It's a perfect fit, which makes having Vitae as an armor ability ALSO a perfect fit. Vitae would be a self-heal and resistance buff on an extremely long cooldown, with Radial emphasizing damage type variety and Core emphasizing magnitude. Like Destiny, Vitae would also come with an Incarnate Shift of Level at higher rarities. Based on the 'flavor' of the slot, it could recycle toggle armor graphics from Tanker animations. If coming up with new effects is too much work, duplicate the Destiny buffs on the user only with higher magnitude. Think "Moment of Glory" Lastly, there's the question of the Omega slot... Omega (Final Slot) It's going to sound tacky, but we begin where we end. The Omega slot is an exact copy of the Alpha slot, level shift and all (NOT an Incarnate shift). The player can double down on what they boosted initially or they can diversify to fill any remaining gaps in their build. Obviously these sorts of additions would have to be accompanied with more challenging content to match. As a stop-gap, increasing the player's ability to shift notoriety level (up to +8 from +4) and notoriety count (to x12 from x8) would be a place to start. One last thought: just as the system starts and ends in the same place, it would be fascinating to run the unlock arc's first mission again as its last mission, only this time with the player's Incarnates equipped instead of the 'foggy' invincibility buffs. TL, DR: Finish the last four Incarnate Slots with existing assets. Genesis Slot using Blaster Location AoE's with Spectral Slot effects. Mind Slot using Blaster Sniper Shots with Judgment Slot effects. Vitae Slot as a self-heal and resistance activation, a "Moment of Glory" self-buff (maybe with Destiny Slot effects). Omega as a second copy of Alpha. Increase Notoriety limits to Level + 8 and Count x 12

I'd like to see Atta the Troll King pop up as a low-challenge low-merit Giant Monster after the Superadine Raves. He could show up in Grendel's Gulch in the Hollows and roam about for a while. In addition to the flashback taskforce-spawned super-infected, Mercy Island could also get another Giant Monster that spawns after beating 100 snakes or something, kinda like Scrapyard. It'd be nice to see Stheno have a more active presence in her attempts to seize the island. Along those same lines, more Arch Villains in general making appearances as zone challenges would be wonderful, whether it be triggered by task force, 'ritual', or faction patrol hunting.

I'm playing an off-tank Brute and I use the AoE fear *constantly* to paralyze groups as I'm fighting them. It's extra easy damage mitigation, and if I want it lets me focus on a boss with no interference. Provoke IS annoying because it can miss... a simple change to prevent it from missing PvE targets would be most welcome, even with no other changes. Provoke isn't nearly as bad as Pacify, though, which simply DOES NOT WORK with Tanks and Brutes since Gauntlet and Fury immediately aggro the pacified target. Pacify should reduce aggro generation of the user to 0% (for about a second) before it applies its placate effect so that it doesn't immediately break on those two archetypes. If it were to function in this manner, it would be equivalent to a Dominator putting a priority target to sleep: the player can carefully focus on other targets confident the one they've pacified is out of combat for a while.

For the Carnival of Shadows dresses, I wonder if setting it up like Monstrous Legs would work. That is, create a new lower body category that renders the model's legs invisible and makes the skirt a static or animated static object (like how Wings work). The developers have already done stuff like that for the fish tank head, so hiding parts of a model isn't new tech. Might look a little weird as the attack and effect auras would still be clinging to the invisible legs, resulting in 'psychic' kicks. I bet Snakes have the same problem with the leg animations, but I wonder if that approach would work with their lower bodies too. Also, maybe an approach like Trench Coats and Big Collars, where there's a static model around the waist and the cape physics only apply below the knees?

I want Kick to use the awesome animation from Street Justice's Spinning Strike. The Super Strength stomp animation is a snooze; it has thus banished Kick from my power bars.

I wonder if the Mission Architect infrastructure would be a better starting point to launch MasterMind pet customization. Set it up so that the player loads costumes into the various summon categories to create a Pet/Henchman "set" (just as they would for Minions, Lieutenants, Bosses, Elite Bosses, and Archvillains for custom enemy sets). Have the same kind of data limit as the Architect and make it account-wide. That way the amount of strain on the server side is limited: each player has a fixed amount of pet customization 'data' and if they want increased variety of individual pet levels it comes at the cost of fewer sets overall. Picking the pet appearance 'set' would then be done in Costume customization under the Accolade powers tab, or perhaps a new tab (if necessary). EDIT: Just to be clear, the player wouldn't be using their own costume slots for this, they'd be using allotted server data for pet customization.

I've been thinking about this thread as I've been working through low level areas, and I agree it'd be nice to spice up the middling enemies with newer powers. A LOT of enemies use Super Strength when there are other pools that would fit more thematically and make the fights more interesting. Like War Wolves of the Council and 5th Column: they could use Savage Melee instead of Super Strength. Replace Hurl with Savage Leap, and you've got players trying to flee or fight from range only to have their pursuer teleport back into melee. The stacking recharge buffs from the attacks would additionally make them more dangerous the longer you fight them, encouraging you to end the encounter quickly with one big hit (which makes the surprise more surprising when a Council boss turns INTO one of these guys!). The Family could cycle in some Street Justice attacks. Instead of the stock Jab/Punch/Haymaker, they could throw disorients with Initial Strike/Sweeping Cross, and the stronger ones could capitalize on the combo system with Spinning Strike or Crushing Uppercut. Doesn't even have to be *new* Power Sets for some of them. For instance, the Devouring Earth lieutenants and bosses: they could get some attacks from Spines to double down on their toxic theme.

Apologies for the necromancy, but this is still a bug. It's especially problematic as a Brute, because you can't even use it to single-pull the placated target! The Fury passive taunt pulls the whole pack when you try to Pacify. It would be nice if this power were fixed, perhaps by imposing a Taunt -100% debuff on the character for one second when it is used (before the pacify activation, so existing threat is unaffected but the pacified target is prevented from gaining threat). I can picture strategies where picking Pacify would be useful to the Tanking role (dropping a lieutenant from a pull that the rest of the team can handle, or *especially* when playing solo). As discussed above, it's also terrible that a power has absolutely no effect for a certain archetype, especially considering power pools are meant to extend the archetype's play into other areas they wouldn't be able to reach with their primary powers. The age of the original report is disquieting. I hope this gets fixed.

Thank you for the numbers, Rudra. Wouldn't it be impractical to keep that up, though? The inspirations only last a minute, and getting to that cap means stacking a bunch of them; you'd only be able to run it for about five minutes max before you'd have to go and get more, not to mention the recharge one would tank your endurance bar. Putting them on duals or party-wides would be a terrible idea, but as normal-sized inspirations and the Ding inspirations...? The range numbers are probably too high, though, I used the Enrage inspiration family as the template for those percentages.

While I was browsing the auction consignment house, I noticed an inspiration that grants the user temporary invisibility (Conceal. The wiki says it's obsolete, but it's still got active sales). That got me thinking that there are other mechanics with which the inspiration system doesn't interact. I began to wonder if some new multi-stage inspirations were possible, called for, and potentially useful/entertaining. Need that extra bit of buffer between you and the opponent? Use a Ranged inspiration (Reach, Stretch, Snipe, Sharpshoot) to get a temporary bonus of 25%, 33%, 50%, or 100% to the range of all appropriate powers. Frustrated your big move isn't ready for the next pull? The Cooldown inspiration (Ready, Prompt, Swift, Instant) would boost recharge rates by 5%, 10%, 15%, or 30% for its duration. I also considered suggesting a Speed inspiration for run/jump/flight speed, but I think that would end up being vendor fodder. Others like Taunt/Placate duration and Hold/Slow duration only impact archetype-specific mechanics and again likely run the risk of being vendor fodder. I don't know about other players, but I frequently use inspirations to fill in gaps in my enhancements. For that reason, having Range and Recharge in the list of consumables seems appropriate, as they are enhanceable traits that are relevant to every archetype.

I like the idea that Sever is a second, controllable critical hit. I was wary about the stacks being on the targets, because there's a lot of damage potential that vanishes if it isn't triggered on a felled opponent. However, in this instance that's actually a great balancing factor: the extra damage potential is countered by drop-outs in the ability to utilize that damage potential. I hope the devs take a good long look at this idea and give it their consideration.

Mastermind: "Fear the march of my mighty army!" Tanker: *Squinting* "Uhh... what army?" Mastermind: *Pointing* "That army there!" Tanker: "Ouch, did something just poke my foot?" Mastermind: "My demons are unrivaled throughout the multiverse!" Tanker: "I don't see any demons. I-OW! What the heck is jabbing my foot, did I get a rock in my shoe?" Mastermind: "Mwahahaha, even now you feel my power!" I think this could be addressed by letting the player pick costumes (and hence body scales) for their default and upgraded henchmen/pets. That would also go a long way in theming the powersets without having to come up with more of them. Got a knight? Replace the demons with your squires. That sort of thing.

You don't want to see the monster he's stitching together with all those old threads, though! Seriously though, as a newcomer and given that January was the start of the new license, perhaps a mass lock and delete of old irrelevant threads isn't a bad idea? Fresh start, as it were? Search results about builds leads to old stuff that isn't even relevant anymore, so clearing some of the clutter would be helpful.

The Graves villain missions go through an instance that has a nice natural wood mansion interior... I wonder if those assets could be used to make some more 'house' maps. I'd like that!

So I ran some Mission Architect tests on the proposed archetypes, based on their power pairings. My tests were with Boss-rank allies, and I refrained from attacking to let them 'team' by themselves. All archetype test characters had access to every power in their respective pools, and I tested on Characters x 3 with a team of three so the challenge would match the size of the party. Commander (Thugs + Willpower) The Thugs Commander was certainly more durable than a Mastermind, and did a competent job holding aggro with the built-in AI. In tests where the team consisted of my Stalker and the Commander against a comparable force, he did a good job keeping enemies off of me (though the screen DID get rather crowded, especially when the Commander was fighting his enemy copy). Not being able to heal his adds didn't seem to slow him down: he simply replaced them as they fell. However, when HE ran out of HP, they all died with him and the battle took a deadly south turn. This is consistent with what is expected of Tank gameplay, so I believe this archetype would hold up very well as a player option. Cannon (Water Blast + Fiery Assault) The Cannon was boring. As a boss, he died almost instantly without posing any real threat to me solo or against the test archetype team. I didn't bother rotating this archetype into the team because the boss test was so disappointing. Blast + Assault is thus a bust and I'd say this archetype belongs on the cutting room floor. Ravager (Battle Axe + Fiery Assault) The 'revised' Cannon, however, is a MONSTER! Solo as a boss, this guy could easily one-shot my Stalker repeatedly. In a three-man archetype party his frailty was easily overcome with the aggro control and support of the other test archetypes. Of the three archetypes I tested in a two-man team with my Stalker, Ravager was also the most successful result. While he eventually died, he did far better handling groups of Circle of Thorns mobs than the Redeemer. The ideology here is that Offense is the best Defense: an aggressive strategy of blasts followed by devastating melee attacks once the enemy gets close makes for an exciting battle. I believe this archetype would hold up very well as a player option. Mediator (Forcefields + Martial Arts) The Mediator as a boss was DEVASTATINGLY effective. Impossible to hit, and slamming with his own attacks, the Mediator mopped the floor with me solo, AND with the three man test archetype team. This power combination is absolutely busted, so much so I didn't bother cycling it into the test archetype team. Power fantasies like this are fun for a little while, but would be boring in the long run. Thus, Mediator is a bust and I'd say this archetype belongs on the cutting room floor. Redeemer (Pain Domination + Electric Assault) The 'revised' Mediator wasn't quite as combat imposing as his kicky counterpart. The combo of assault powers and support healing worked very well in the test team, especially in keeping the Commander's thug shields up and running. When I ran with Redeemer in a two-man with my Stalker, though, the poor guy got clobbered. He was able to handle a few packs, but then ran off and pulled the whole map. This is more a problem with the AI than the archetype, though, but it does indicate that this sort of power pairing needs SOMETHING to support it; likely the cooldown reduction bursts already suggested as part of the archetype. With some finessing, I believe this archetype would make a compelling option for players.

Hmm... Assault is a better fit for Redeemer now that I look at it, good call! And now I'm picturing Cannon with Melee and Assault instead of Blast and Assault... that could be a promising combo with a diverse spread of close and ranged attack powers. Gotta think on that a bit, but maybe turning Cannon into 'Ravager' or something synonymous--keeping it an 'all damage, no defense' archetype but throwing it in both range categories--would lead to more varied team dynamics with the archetype. I think I'll try to test some of these ideas in the Architect system with elite bosses, see how that pans out.

Updated the original post with some of the ideas from your feedback. Cannons suffer recoil damage from their attacks, so if they aren't careful they can blow themselves up. Mediators renamed to Redeemers, receive cooldown reduction bursts to their primary powers rather than full cooldown removal when using secondary powers (think like Hasten from Super Speed). No change to Commanders, but the comment about pet durability stands. I believe all inspirations should spread to subordinates for all pet users (including Masterminds), but I couldn't come up with a mechanic specific for Commanders to address the lack of support powers. Maybe one of the armor powers could be replaced with a healing AoE that only applies to their pets? "Authority"?

Fair enough. I've only been back on City for a few days, so my memory of content is reasonably foggy.

A lot of this is carry-over from the original game before the shut-down. Some of it is out-leveling content... there's a way to replay content you've overrun, but unlocking it isn't really intuitive to new (or returning) players: I tripped over it as a consequence of a mission I was running. I can't say (because I don't know) WHY overleveling content is still deemed necessary... it could be related to enemy groups not having appropriate mobs for certain level ranges (powers not defined, insufficient challenge for a stronger character), but that's certainly something to work on. Coming up with variants of the enemies in each faction that work in all level categories is a long-term goal I think the community at large would support. Bypassing the level caps on content would be the change to follow, and I know that I would welcome such an outcome. As for being introduced to the players, again, most factions are introduced in starting level content that the player passes too quickly. Your described immersion-breaking mashups are also a result of the Police Scanner: these are radial missions randomly-generated and they probably need more restrictions in their logic [Street gangs versus Street gangs, diabolical forces versus diabolical forces. In your example, a Clockwork war versus Vahzilok instead of Skulls... in the sewer instead of a warehouse, and Hellions or Trolls in the jewelry store]. Villain Side has somewhat better writing than Paragon, because it was produced later. It's got flaws too, but it's more coherent and you don't outlevel the zones as quickly. Some of the Villain contacts are really entertaining too, like the Radio, or fascinating, like Vincent Ross. I can't speak for Praetoria, though, as I've played hardly any of that content (contact finder flung me into First Ward, but I didn't really get what was going on). It's a fair criticism that the writing in the game is a little thin. Indeed, the players are essentially paper dolls, as they are meant to fill in the plot gaps with their own motivations and backstory. The text in the game could use some updating, indeed, and hopefully that is something that will be addressed as the game goes on. There's a mountain of content, though, and the HomeComing devs aren't really to blame for the cheesy old material.

Much like the Sentinel utilizes and modifies existing powersets to create a new play style, let's brainstorm ideas that shuffle existing assets to create new archetypes. WARNING: These ideas are probably going to be terrible--you have been informed in advance. Cannon (Ranged Damage) [DUD. See Ravager instead]: EDIT 3/4/24: Ravager (Melee Damage, Ranged Damage) Primary Power Sets: Assaults Arsenal Assault, Dark Assault, Earth Assault, Electricity Assault, Energy Assault, Energy Assault, Fiery Assault, Icy Assault, Martial Assault, Psionic Assault, Radioactive Assault, Savage Assault, Sonic Assault, Thorny Assault Secondary Power Sets: Melee Broad Sword, Claws, Dark Melee, Dual Blades, Electrical Melee, Energy Melee, Fiery Melee, Ice Melee, Kinetic Melee, Martial Arts, Ninja Blade, Psionic Melee, Radiation Melee, Savage Melee, Spines, Staff Fighting, Stone Melee, Street Justice Archetype Bonus: ??? ??? During Mission Archetype testing of the primary/secondary powerset pairings, the Ravager archetype became an apparent front-runner. Initially engaging in heavy ranged suppressing fire, as packs approach the Ravager they then crumble to his devastating close-range attacks. To the Ravager, offense is the best defense: while frail, targets never get an opportunity to land a hit. Not sure the Ravager needs an archetype bonus with such an impressive power pairing, though perhaps it needs to remain some kind of penalty like recoil damage. Commander (Tank, Pets): Primary Power Sets: Armor Bio Armor, Dark Armor, Electric Armor, Fiery Aura, Ice Armor, Invulnerability, Radiation Armor, Shield Defense, Stone Armor, Super Reflexes, Willpower Secondary Power Sets: Summons Beast Mastery, Demon Summoning, Mercenaries, Necromancy, Ninjas, Robotics, Thugs Archetype Bonus: Strength in Numbers EDIT 3/2/24: Rally Sidekicks (Henchmen) and Pets under control of the Commander and within 60' of the Commander send half of the damage they would take to the Commander (cannot be toggled off, but damage funneled is a separate hit subject to the Commander's own Defense and Resistance). In this same range, these units have increased Threat generation. Like the Mastermind, the Commander's damage comes from the minions he controls... though the Commander's minions deal a lot less damage by comparison. However, the Commander's minions serve as group aggro, funneling single-target damage back into an easily healed and durable Commander. Their vulnerability is AoE damage, which gets concentrated back into the Commander and fails to benefit the rest of the team with protection. EDIT 3/2/24: Long fights are a weakness for the Commander. While they are significantly more durable than a Mastermind, they cannot repair their pets in combat. This runs the risk of dropping aggro if the pets are defeated. I can't come up with a good solo answer to this problem (short of pets sharing inspirations with their owner, which should be a Mastermind mechanic too)... the Commander is thus dependent on support for big fights. EDIT 3/4/24: During Mission Archetype testing of the Commander's primary/secondary power pairing, the build demonstrated acceptable durability. Lack of support didn't seem to slow the Commander, who simply resummoned minions as they fell. However, when the Commander's health was depleted and all of his minions perished with him, the rest of the party was wiped out by the threat drop. This is an acceptable result for a tank death and the build shows remarkable promise, even without the archetype bonus. Mediator (Support, Melee Damage) [OVERPOWERED. See Redeemer instead]: EDIT 3/4/24: Redeemer (Support) Primary Power Sets: Support Cold Domination, Dark Miasma, Electrical Affinity*, Empathy, Force Field, Kinetics, Nature Affinity*, Pain Domination, Poison, Radiation Emission, Sonic Resonance, Storm Summoning, Thermal Radiation, Time Manipulation, Traps*, Trick Arrow* *Do not synergize well with Archetype Bonus Secondary Power Sets: Assaults Arsenal Assault, Dark Assault, Earth Assault, Electricity Assault, Energy Assault, Energy Assault, Fiery Assault, Icy Assault, Martial Assault, Psionic Assault, Radioactive Assault, Savage Assault, Sonic Assault, Thorny Assault Archetype Bonus: Triage Using any secondary power (the damaging Assaults) causes a Redeemer to experience a surge of Triage, granting significant recharge boosts to his primary powers (the support skills). Redeemers are fragile like Defenders but have harder-hitting attacks. The accelerated recharge from Triage triggered by engaging in combat makes their support skills more readily available, but like the similar pool power Hasten it risks energy starvation. In Architect testing of this power pairing, the Redeemer was excellent in teams but struggled in a duo. TL, DR: Bad new archetype ideas for a glass cannon, an aggro crowd, and a punch healer.

Tankers and Brutes, yeah? Or do you have variants for Scrappers and Stalkers? I'd be down for making a Stalker with a pipe wrench Resonant-infused Assassin's Bludgeon; I'd even be willing to part with Build Up for it.

Crosscut is an example of where the dialogue needs to have more response options. They can all lead to the same mechanical outcome/mission conclusion, but being able to click a response that resonates with the character makes a measurable difference. "I just want my toy back, $Character. He's my favoritest toy ever, and I don't want to start a new game until I'm finished playing with him." Crosscut giggles at you, his entire body shivering with delight. "I promise, it won't take long..." You've seen him make this look before. If you don't give him what he wants, he's going to turn his 'interest' back on you. Certainly this lackey of yours is disposable, yes? You're going to have to make decisions like this all the time as your power and infamy grows... maybe it's just part of the job. Who knows, the thug is resourceful... he might be able to get away, yeah? Or... perhaps you and Crosscut are kindred spirits, and your imagination runs wild thinking just what he might do with this 'toy'? <1> Oh, that's all? Sure, go ahead. Knock yourself out. <2> No, Crosscut, the toy goes back into the box. <1> Crosscut immediately snaps his gaze to the Skull accompanying you. "Oh, thank you, $Character. I won't be long..." <2> "What a pity. I guess I'll have to find something else to play with." Crosscut giggles again, matching his gaze to your 'pretty little eyes'. Right. I'll see you around. Other contacts handle dialogue trees in this same manner, such as Vincent Ross in Sharkhead Isle: you're given the option to offer to help with his tampered mind or simply shake hands and walk away. While there is no mechanical difference between his two dialogue trees, the impression left on the player is vastly different.. It would be a lot of leg work to find and address these motive dilemmas, but the community could help finding sharp corners like this and sanding them down a bit. A lot of them are in the lower-level content of City of Villains, too, so adjusting low-level mission dialogues (Mercy to Cap au Diable) could be enough.

I meant intuitive as in intuitive to the function implied to the player by the enhancement text. It says it reduces the interrupt window, so my assumption was that it accelerated the animation to start the power by cutting frames, thereby shortening the 'fire' time. From a technical standpoint, animations with more frames dropped would appear choppier, and if allowed too extensively might get dropped entirely (resulting in situations where the character stands still with the target immediately reacting to the action, which wouldn't look good and likely would be interpreted as a bug. I was unaware of the engine limitation described by Luminara, though it makes sense considering the age of the game. That would mean, as you suggested, that rather than subjecting the animation to a slider it would need to be broken up into separate files based on speed, a process that is time-consuming, resource expensive, and discontinuous (running against the grain of the percentage-based enhancement system, as only six such 'phases' of animation would even be possible). So it would appear it's a 'too much effort for the payout' situation.

This seems an intuitive adjustment (and I thought it might be the case for Assassin Strike, it certainly sounds like it should be). I can see Rest being a problem as it can take those kinds of enhancements and if the animation and effect is sped up you'll be able to use it in active combat. Could just be made to ignore that portion of the effect, though, like powers that ignore endurance reduction.

I agree not to underestimate the power of low-hanging fruit. A few labels and the injection of some inner monologue paragraphs in the middle of a contact diatribe can go a LONG way towards changing the feel of a game. For instance, the first Dr. Graves briefing (taken from the wiki, extra text added to the orange section)... Dr. Graves [Power] "You would believe me to be a ghoul? And I assume your self-image is that of a misunderstood protagonist, is it? Or maybe the snarling monster with a secret heart of gold? Or perhaps someone cursed to a life they didn't want? Bah. I am not here to trade barbs with someone of your like. However, what I am going to do is offer you, $Character, a formal invitation to a very exclusive, albeit unsanctioned... competition. Before you dismiss this opportunity, know this - the victor of the trial shall be granted the privilege of being apprenticed, if you will, to a person with very important connections." You take a moment to ponder the proposal. This is a chance to meet the other aspirants in the Isles, but is it worth attracting the ire of Arachnos? What about this Graves... do you trust he's on the level with this proposal? Power is power, and this could be a good opportunity to make your mark, but do you really want to dance for this walking corpse for the honor of winning an apprenticeship? You've got big plans, and being somebody's lackey isn't at the top of the list. Still, you have to climb the ladder somehow, right? It's not like you're getting locked in the Zig: you could always back out or sell Graves out to Arachnos if things don't play the way you want. Noting that your attention has drifted and irritated that you seem to be ignoring him, Dr. Graves looks around at nearby Arachnos guards in a rather dramatic fashion before fixing his soulless eyes upon you and reemphasizing his point. "Very, very important... connections." I'm listening, Graves. What do I need to do to make this happen? I'm glad to see that your ambition overshadows your attitude, $Character. You'll need both if you expect to surpass the others in the eyes of the one who is truly watching. With that said, let us tarry no longer with this conversation. Actions speak louder than words, and if you try hard enough, sometimes louder than screams. I will give you the location you are to 'register' at. Use the registration console within the gathering place to prove your intent and I shall then speak to you further. Changing the label indicates the contact's missions are about accumulating power, not wealth or status with Arachnos (so players running this mission know which narrative goal it actually targets). The added 2nd-person-perspective monologue demonstrates that your Villain is actually considering the value of the offer and whether it's worth their time. Injecting paragraphs like this is on the same level of involvement as fixing a typo, doesn't require changing any mission variables or outcomes, and gives the player more foundation to fill in the gaps when the only response option is 'sure' or 'I'll break your legs when this is over'. This kind of fortune-teller deniability of motive could make Villains more appealing to Vigilante and Rogue-style players who want to believe they're working towards benevolent (or at least less malevolent) goals, with no mechanical adjustments necessary.