Alchemystic

Ahah! I've been looking for this! It was what inspired me to make the 'Tactical Gear' armor set, but I couldn't find the original material, but I'm glad to see that the vision I had ended up being pretty similar to the original concept! I had a look through the rest and it seems that Gears and Kinetic Assault seem to the the only two powersets there that we don't have (excluding Wind Control)

I was gonna go for Chain Fences, but figured it would be a little too close to Mu Mastery in that regard. Short Circuit could work, if the numbers were tweaked, or maybe Jolting Chain perhaps?

So, like I mentioned yesterday, I have plans for some of the other laser-themed powers I didn't include in the laser-blast set (since they're more of a rapid-burst kind of thing which doesn't quite fit with the Superman/Cyclops theme I was aiming for). I do however have plans for integrating them with another set of unique powers I dug up. Those who follow the thread may have noticed that I've borrowed a lot of material from various Praetorian factions for use in powersets here in this thread, most namely The Resistance, which helped shape the Marksman Rifle and Heavy Weapons powersets, two new weapons powersets with very different themes. Some of you may have noticed that I may have overlooked another key Resistance asset; their energy pistols. I had originally intended to pull the unique FX from the unique pistol attacks these NPCs have and use it in Marksman Rifle, but I noticed that they didn't seem to have solid projectiles, it was an entirely energy based weapon (despite being lethal/energy in effect). So with that in mind I decided to put the idea of using them on hold until I found something fitting that could work with the few unique powers available, until I decided to make revisions to the old Arsenal Blast powerset. With the laser powers removed in favor of the new Arachnobot Blaster ones, this prompted me to consider where those laser powers might go. Some helped make the new FX theme for Laser Blast, which originally relied on using Beam Rifle assets (which I thought was a bit cheap admittedly), but the rest I'm going to combine with those energy pistol powers from The Resistance to make 'Ray Guns'! Ray Guns is the best name I could think of, since the idea of laser weapons is something heavily influenced by atompunk stuff and pulp sci fi, and it gives us a chance to use those cool retro sci-fi pistols as actual energy weapons! The only problem was what kinda unique mechanic to give this powerset, and... well, the idea of these weapons stunning people has always been a popular theme, so why not that? So I present to you now.. Ray Guns You possess two powerful energy weapons capable of delivering quick blasts, rapid bursts and precision shots. Many powers have the ability to stun your targets, delivering a low magnitude disorient effect. - Snap Shots: A unique power belonging to Resistance Officers, dealing light energy DoT to a single target. No stun chance. (default tinting is laser red instead of plasma blue) - Laser Blast: One of the powers unique to Robots, firing a burst that deals moderate energy DoT and has a high chance to stun. Uses the 'Uzi Burst' animation belonging to Thugs' Enforcers - Fusillade: Another unique power belonging to Resistance Officers, dealing moderate energy damage in a cone with low stun chance. (default tinting is laser red instead of plasma blue) - Aim: Standard Aim power - Overcharged Shots: A Resistance Officer power that charges up a shot that delivers an AoE blast of moderate energy damage and has a good chance of stunning. (default tinting is laser red instead of plasma blue) - Aimed Shot: The final Resistance Officer power, dealing high energy damage to a single target at short range, and will guarantee a stun. (default tinting is laser red instead of plasma blue) - Heavy Laser Burst: Another power unique to Robots (specifically the Battle Drone version), firing a heavier burst that deals superior energy DoT with high chance of stunning. Uses the 'Uzi Heavy Burst' animation belonging to Thugs' Enforcers - Laser Volley: This power is similar to the 'Heavy Laser Burst' power of Protector Bots (same name, slightly different power). Fires from both pistols in a narrow cone to deal extreme energy DoT with high chance of stunning. Uses the 'Dual Uzis' animation belonging to Thugs' Enforcers. - Full Auto Laser: Another power unique to Robots, retooled to work as a powerful T9 ability that delivers superior energy DoT in a cone with a high chance of stunning. Uses the 'Uzi Cone Blast' animation belonging to Thugs' Enforcers. Possible weapon models for this powerset include; Resistance Officer Pistol, Crey CBX-9 Pistol, Rikti Pistol, Match Compensator, Match Compensator w/ Laser Sight, Patented Potent Pistol, Celestial Pistol, Rad-X, Quartermass Pistol, Quartermass Pistol w/ Fin, Plan 9 Striker, Plan 9 Striker w/ Fin, Sidereal Sidearm.

Well if you go back a few seconds before the timestamp you set for the video, he states "If the possibility existed to remake CoH/CoV" The word remake is very important to the context here, these are changes that would be proposed for a new project, not an existing one. As for what ATs he meant? It's a high possibility that he could mean all of them. It's not uncommon when looking at a revision to something like this that all materials are considered, not just a choice few. The Archetypes we have now might not appear in a potential remake, or the idea of archetypes in general might undergo radical alterations. All we know is that what's inferred in this video has tenuous bearing on the CoH we play now.

From the context, it seems these are changes Positron would make if he were to completely remake the game, which doesn't really fall within the scope of development for the small volunteer team we have working on the game right now. It's also important to note that this interview was dated 2012, directly after the game's shutdown, and references the state of the MMO genre at the time. The speculations they make might vary when measured against today's MMO scene, or the various new models for multiplayer games that have seen a surge in popularity over the years.

Went back to revisit a few earlier concepts in the thread and made a few updates, most namely Arsenal Blast incorporating some of the unique Arachnobot Blaster powers into the powerset, and removing the Laser and Anti-Matter powers to make space. Not to worry though, those powers have been incorporated into the 'Laser Blast' powerset instead as a new FX theme, where I think they're better suited (with the exception of the rapid-fire ones, which I will reuse in another idea soon!)

I tried my hand conceptualizing something similar called 'Heavy Weapons' a while back, but it was mostly focused on projectiles instead of energy blasts. Still, there's plenty weapon models in the game that could accommodate a similar theme.

Back onto Ancillary powers, I'm gonna take a stab at some more Electric and Dark type sets. I was initially avoiding these since all Archetypes already have access to Mu and Soul Mastery, but I think it's possible to make them different enough so there's not much overlap. Electric Mastery - Controller/Dominator / - Lightning Bolt/Discharge: A traditional blast power for Controllers, and some AoE Debuff for Dominators - Charged Armor: An armor toggle as is customary for these sets - Ball Lightning: An AoE attack that works for either archetype - Surge of Power: A strong buff power that mirrors Mu Mastery too keep it competitive / - Thunder Strike/EM Pulse: A heavy melee attack for Controllers, and another AoE Debuff for Dominators Surge Mastery - Scrapper/Stalker/Tanker/Brute - Static Field: An AoE sleep patch that works similarily to AoE immobilizes - Lightning Bolt: A standard blast power as you might expect - Shocking Bolt: A hold which seems common for these ancillaries - Ball Lightning: A large AoE attack that works nicely here - Discharge: An AoE debuff that some ancillaries of this type possess Shadow Mastery - Controller/Dominator / - Dark Blast/Tar Patch: A traditional blast power for Controllers, and some AoE Debuff for Dominators - Dark Embrace: An armor toggle as usual - Dark Obliteration: An AoE attack power that helps damage gathered mobs - Soul Transfer: A powerful ability that works similarly to Rise of the Phoenix / - Midnight Grasp/Fade: A heavy melee power for Controllers, and an AoE buff for Dominators like Mind Link Shade Mastery - Tanker/Brute - Torrent: Since this is a copy of Darkness Mastery from Scrappers/Stalkers, I've not changed anything - Petrifying Gaze: ^ - Dark Blast: ^ - Night Fall: ^ - Tenebrous Tentacles: ^ Netherworld Mastery - Blaster/Mastermind - Night Fall: A cone attack that mirrors Static Discharge in utility - Dark Embrace: Standard armor toggle as one would expect - Dark Obliteration: An AoE attack that helps increase DPS / - Fearsome Stare/Midnight Grasp: A cone mez/debuff for Blasters, and a heavy melee for Masterminds - Soul Transfer: A powerful ability that works similarly to Rise of the Phoenix

As a side note, I'd also like Bane Spiders to have customisable FX just as Mace Mastery does.

I'd really like to see the Tech Mace, Tech Knight, Carnival of Light/War/Venegeance and the Rulaaru skins ported over, I feel as though those are good thematic fits for a melee weapon that also projects bolts of energy.

for context;

All of these "metabuilds" are created via software called Mids, which is only configurable for up to 4 power pools. And no, it's not as simple as adding the numbers from a 5th power pool onto an existing build, because all the values wouldn't be correct. The only way an accurate example could be provided was if the Mids software was equipped to handle a 5th power pool, so all numerical data could be calculated properly, since the enhancement system is percentile based with all kinds of rules, exceptions and formulas. It is literally impossible to provide the evidence you want, so you'll have to settle for the theoretical materials provided.

@5099y_74c05 please explain to me how anybody is supposed to make a build with 5 power pools with software designed to handle only 4?

Your ability to change your argument in the face of new evidence is uncanny.

@aethereal sums it up nicely with the LotG example. You can only slot 5 of the Global Recharge Speed enhancements on any one character. With 5 power pools, we can easily just pick Weave (Fighting), Stealth (invisibility), Hover (Flight), Manuevers (Leadership) and Combat Jumping (Leaping). That means you can slot all 5 LotG enhancements in pool powers alone, which means an exponential increase in build performance across all archetypes. Now lets consider that you have at least one defense power in your primary or secondary powersets, or if you opted to pick a defense power in your ancillaries (like Frozen Armor or Scorpion Shield), that means you don't need that 5th pool power pick to accomplish the same result, right? However, that extra 5th pool power choice is likely going to be Hasten (Speed) to capitalise on the recharge boost that LotG offers, which means that any archetype in the game can run this kinda build, since all archetypes can access at least one defense power in their primary/secondary/ancillary powersets. Right now, in order to maximise this setup with just four power pools, you're going to need at least two powers outside of pools that grant defense, which for some archetypes or powerset combinations isn't as easy as others. If you want to make it work, you have to consider your options carefully and make sacrifices in other areas of your build. By introducing a 5th power pool, we just make it easier for people to min-max. So I'd argue this isn't going to bring more build diversification, it'll just create new metabuilds across all archetypes that grossly outperform the ones we have now. That's why if I were to support the idea of a 5th power pool, it would be in the form of swapping your ancillary power pool for a standard power pool, because it balances things a little easier.

Consider the following; do you really think that a suggestion as frequent as this hasn't received some sort of preliminary testing already? The scenario has played out dozens of times prior to this, and despite the popularity of the topic we've yet to see it gain any traction. It stands to reason that it has already been deliberated and tested internally and the HC team concluded that it's not something they're willing to explore further given the amount of resistance to the idea. The reason I draw comparison to Thunderspy is because testing to see if it works is different to testing to see if it's well received, and it seems you're more focused on the former. As I said, Homecoming has no inconsequential amount of feedback on this particular subject, and they use that to decide whether a project like this deserves further testing, so chalking this up to "blocking creativity" is just disingenuous. I'd also like to point out that I never said no to the idea, I just provided a rationale for why it hasn't been implemented yet, figured I'd bring that up since "what you say matters".

@5099y_74c05 what I was implying is that Thunderspy should be a cautionary tale about how testing is important.

Or adding the 'yellow' color palette to water blast

The unfortunate truth is that making changes that rely on good faith that people won't abuse it isn't a feasible development practice. People, mostly power-gamers as you said, will abuse the system if it is possible to do so, which will in turn harm the overall balance and game health. Besides, the only limitation on your creativity is the one you impose upon yourself.

Nobody said anything about sending people to Thunderspy, and I already said I'm partial to the idea of swapping your ancillary for a 5th power pool. And I dunno what having an RP server has anything to do with this kinda change, why should an RP server receive exclusive updates?

Breaking the game for the sake of creativity is why Thunderspy exists.

Alternatively, using the net prop/FX from Net Arrow as a replacement for the Bolas power would fit the same purpose and serve as a thematic second best.

A more reasonable compromise at least, though would this additional power pool be restricted to level 35 as ancillaries are?

I've been waiting to see this here! It's a very nice adaptation of my design😊 Speaking of which, here's Trucker, Rodder's Praetorian counterpart!