Alchemystic

So far from what I've gleaned from the community, Stalker's Placate and Scrapper's Confront have fallen by the wayside in today's fast paced combat environment, and from what I understand is that compared to Taunt, which affects the whole mob, these powers do little to control the situation. One of the simpler solutions to this is to simply make the powers affect an AoE, which might seem like an easy fix, but presents a few problems too. Placate would benefit from being made an AoE, allowing you to disengage from several foes and increasing your chances of survival and your ability to land assassin's strike. However, that presents a problem with Smoke Flash, which has the same functionality, but lacks the ability to hide you thereafter. If we make Placate an AoE, we would need to buff Smoke Flash in order to keep it from becoming redundant. Adding a Teleport function to this power may be of use here, as without the ability to hide you, Smoke Flash exists entirely to get you out of trouble. That, or make it similar to the Ancillary version, giving it a -ToHit and -DMG debuff. As for Confront, making it an AoE would make it identical to Taunt, which means that it would start to step on the toes of Brutes and Tankers. We should keep the Taunt functionality there at least, we just need to do something else with the power to give it more utility. One idea I had was to make it a sort of 'Duel' ability, where the power has a higher Taunt magnitude, and nearby foes (not the target) suffer a low Fear and ToHit debuff. So to summarise; Make Placate an AoE Buff Smoke Flash with additional utility Change Confront so it has more aggro management

'Toxin Blast' was one of the latest additions to the thread, funnily enough, so we're of a similar mind that a dedicated Toxic damage set should be considered!

You're close to the mark! He was definitely inspired by soviet villains portrayed in plenty different kinds of media, especially those around the time of the 'Red Scare' of the Cold War, I just took bits and pieces of each and compounded them into a classic retro design!

Figured I'd throw another one here, my classic villain Commissar Cold

You know, I might just be able to squeeze a manipulation set out of both the Light and Void stuff, was a little challenging considering PB had very few mez powers, and WS felt very similar to Dark in many ways. Light Manipulation You are able to manipulate light in order to assault the senses of your foes, allowing you to blind them, reduce their accuracy, or disrupt their perception. - Dazzle: Same FX as Glowing Touch, with a bit of Blind mixed in too. Causes minor Energy/Psi damage and sleeps the target, while reducing Accuracy - Luminous Smite: Same FX as Radiant Strike, this melee power does moderate Smashing/Energy damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Blind: Same power from Illusion Control, with a little PB FX mixed in (also does half of it's damage as energy) - Build Up: Standard build up power, using the same FX as 'Inner Light' - Light Burst: New power that works much like Flash Arrow, reducing ToHit and Perception of foes, uses similar FX with some PB stuff added in - Radiant Glow: Uses the FX of Light Form (no wisp), grants Regeneration, Recovery, and also boosts Perception and Accuracy - Flare: Same FX as Solar Flare, this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Accuracy - Flash: Same power from Illusion Control, with a little PB FX mixed in - Brilliant Strike: Same FX as Incandescent Strike, this melee power does high Smashing/Energy damage and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes Void Manipulation You can manipulate the Void to generate crushing gravitic fields on your foes, ensuring they cannot escape your grasp while they are drained by fields of Negative Energy. - Shadowy Snare: Same FX as Gravimetric Snare, this power does light Smashing/Negative DoT and reduces enemy Defense. Also immobilizes the target - Dark Strike: Same FX as Black Dwarf Strike, this melee power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Orbiting Miasma: Same FX as Orbiting Death, dealing minor Negative DoT to nearby foes and reducing their Defense - Crushing Void: Same FX as Gravity Well, though with greater range, holding one foe in place and reduced Defense. - Build Up: Standard build up power, using the same FX as Stygian Circle (Self only) - Umbral Shroud: Same FX as Shadow Cloak, acting as a toggle providing Absorb over Time, minor Defense, as well as stealthing the character - Void Pulse: Same FX as Sunless Mire, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Defense - Leeching Miasma: Same FX as Eclypse, draining nearby enemies of endurance and slowing them down - Void Slam: Same FX as Black Dwarf Smite, this melee power does superior Smashing/Negative DoT and reduces enemy Defense

So long as we can still turn them off, last thing I want is to be subject to even more club advertisements in my day-to-day playing the game 😉

I ended up landing on Energy/Psionic for Light Blast to make sure it wasn't just another raw Energy damage blast set again, but Energy was likely going to be the core damage type either way. I added Psionic damage in as a play on the 'light' theme of Illusion Control and ther similar NPC abilities. I added the -accuracy effect to create the idea that the powers are so bright and dazzling that it throws off their aim, but without just copying the -ToHit effect of Dark. As for Void Blast, I opted to go for Smashing/Dark to avoid simply having another version of Dark Blast. I went for Smashing to play on the 'gravity' theme some of the powers have, and adding in -Def as a play on the crushing theme of many Earth powers, making the powerset feel more weighty and substantial than Dark Blast.

Replacement's actually one of the contributor's to this thread, and also who helped conceptualize the newer 'Light' and 'Void' powersets featured there! 😅

Going off what @Replacement suggested, there's plenty of material from Kheldians to formulate some more powersets, enough to make a feasible Blast, Armor and Assault set for both Peacebringers and Warshades for a total of six more powersets. The only issue is, what would we have to gain from making these identical in affect to the Kheldian versions? Obviously we don't want to make Kheldians redundant, so I think if we adapt the powersets so they look visually similar, but have different effects, we might be onto a winning combo. To that end, I've changed the secondary effects of the attack powers, and changed the damage type to Energy/Psionic and Smashing/Dark to make them more unique. Peacebringer armor powers work pretty nicely on their own, but Warshade ones were a little too close to Dark Armor, so I changed it to a Defense set instead. I would also say that to ensure that these powers don't look 100% identical to their Kheldian variants, that their base colors change from teal (PB) to gold (Light) and from purple (WS) to blue (Void). Removing the eye glow from many of the powers would also help ensure they aren't completely identical in aesthetics too. Light Blast You are able to project brilliant bolts of pure light at your foes. The sheer radiance of these blasts can reduce the accuracy of your foes, and some attacks may even blind them temporarily, holding them in place. - Light Bolt: Same FX as Gleaming Bolt, this power does light Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Radiant Beam: Same FX as Glinting Eye (projected from hands), this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Photon Ray: Same FX as Proton Scatter, this power deals moderate Energy/Psi damage in a cone and reduces enemy Accuracy - Bright Aurora: Same FX as Pulsar, this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes (similar FX to Flash) - Aim: Standard aim power, using the same FX as the PB eye glow - Luminous Blast: Same FX as Luminous Detonation, this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage in an AoE and reduces enemy Accuracy - Gleaming Lance: Same FX as Gleaming Blast, this power does superior Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes - Shining Wisps: Same FX as Photon Seekers, acting much the same - Incandescence: Same FX as Dawn Strike, this power does extreme Energy/Psi damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes Light Assault You are able to project brilliant bolts of pure light at your foes. The sheer radiance of these blasts can reduce the accuracy of your foes, and some attacks may even blind them temporarily, holding them in place. - Light Bolt: Same FX as Gleaming Bolt, this power does light Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Luminous Smite: Same FX as Radiant Strike, this melee power does moderate Smashing/Energy damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Radiant Beam: Same FX as Glinting Eye (projected from hands), this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy - Photon Ray: Same FX as Proton Scatter, this power deals moderate Energy/Psi damage in a cone and reduces enemy Accuracy - Build Up: Standard build up power, using the same FX as 'Inner Light' - Flare: Same FX as Solar Flare, this power does moderate Energy/Psi damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Accuracy. - Gleaming Lance: Same FX as Gleaming Blast, this power does superior Energy/Psi damage and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes - Brilliant Strike: Same FX as Incandescent Strike, this melee power does high Smashing/Energy damage and reduces enemy Accuracy. May also hold foes - Shining Wisps: Same FX as Photon Seekers, acting much the same Light Aura You can protect yourself with an aura of pure light. Light Aura focuses on granting resistance to many forms of damage, especially Energy and Fire damage, as well as providing some powerful healing abilities. - Light Shield: Same FX as Shining Shield, acting as a toggle providing resistance to Smashing, Lethal and Energy damage, as well as Perception debuffs - Radiance: An autopower that increases regeneration - Rejuvenate: Same FX as Essence Boost, activated by a click and increasing MaxHealth and providing resistance to Toxic damage - Radiant Shield: Same FX as Thermal Shield, acting as a toggle providing resistance to Fire and Cold damage, as well as Accuracy debuffs - Glowing Shield: Same FX as Quantum Shield, acting as a toggle providing resistance to Energy and Negative damage, as well as ToHit debuffs - Photon Shield: Same FX as Quantum Flight (No fade), acting as a toggle providing mez resistance and Psionic damage resistance - Illumination: Same FX as the Peacebringer eye glow, acting as a toggle providing minor defense to melee, ranged and AoE, and a boost to perception and accuracy - Restoration: Same FX as Restore Essence, allowing you to resurrect - Wisp Form: Same FX as Light Form (Wispy only), acting as a click power that greatly boosts all defenses and mez resistance Void Blast You can channel powerful blasts of strange nebulous energy, battering your foes with the crushing darkness of the void. Your attacks are able to weaken the defenses of your foes, and may even capture them in a crushing gravitic field, immobilizing them where they stand. - Void Bolt: Same FX as Shadow Bolt, this power does light Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Stygian Beam: Same FX as Ebon Eye (projected from hands), this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Nebulous Burst: Same FX as Gravitic Emanation, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in a cone and reduces enemy Defense - Gravimetric Wave: Same FX as Stygian Circle, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Defense. May also immobilize targets - Aim: Standard aim power, using the same FX as the WS eye glow - Quantum Blast: Same FX as Dark Detonation, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in an AoE and reduces enemy Defense - Umbral Ray: Same FX as Shadow Blast, this power does superior Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Collapsing Void: Same FX as Unchain Essence, this power does high Smashing/Negative Damage in an AoE and reduces enemy Defense. May also Immobilize targets. - Dark Nebula: Same FX as Quasar, this power does extreme Smashing/Negative damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Defense. May also immobilize targets Void Assault You can channel powerful blasts of strange nebulous energy, battering your foes with the crushing darkness of the void. Your attacks are able to weaken the defenses of your foes, and may even capture them in a crushing gravitic field, immobilizing them where they stand. - Void Bolt: Same FX as Shadow Bolt, this power does light Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Dark Strike: Same FX as Black Dwarf Strike, this melee power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense. - Stygian Beam: Same FX as Ebon Eye (projected from hands), this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Nebulous Burst: Same FX as Gravitic Emanation, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in a cone and reduces enemy Defense - Build Up: Standard build up power, using the same FX as Stygian Circle (Self only) - Void Pulse: Same FX as Sunless Mire, this power does moderate Smashing/Negative damage in PBAoE and reduces enemy Defense. - Umbral Ray: Same FX as Shadow Blast, this power does superior Smashing/Negative damage and reduces enemy Defense - Void Slam: Same FX as Black Dwarf Smite, this melee power does superior Smashing/Negative DoT and reduces enemy Defense. - Shadow Snare: Same FX as Gravimetric Snare, this power does high Smashing/Negative DoT and reduces enemy Defense. Also immobilizes the target Void Aura You can create fields of Void energy to protect yourself from harm. Void Aura focuses on providing defence against most forms of damage, especially Negative Energy and physical attacks that deal Smashing or Lethal damage. - Dark Armor: Same FX as Gravity Shield, acting as a toggle providing Defense to Smashing, Lethal and Negative damage - Shadow Touched: An autopower that grants resistance to Smashing, Lethal and Negative damage - Void Armor: Same FX as Penumbral Shield, acting as a toggle providing Defense to Fire and Cold damage and protecting against defense debuffs - Nebulous Armor: Same FX as Nebulous Form (no fade), acting as a toggle providing Defense to Energy and Negative damage and protecting against movement debuffs - Quantum Armor: Same FX as Twilight Armor, acting as a toggle providing mez resistance and resistance to placate and enemy teleportation - Umbral Cloak: Same FX as Shadow Cloak, acting as a toggle providing minor Defense to Melee, Ranged and AoE, as well as stealthing the character - Stygian Substance: An autopower that grants resistance to Energy and Negative damage, as well as boosting perception - Leeching Miasma: Same FX as Eclypse, draining nearby enemies of endurance and slowing them down - Gravitic Shell: Same FX as Shadow Step's latent visuals, acting as a click power providing a huge amount of Absorb and Resistance

Is there an outline for what would be considered copyright infringement? I've seen plenty "homage" characters that are basically identical to existing IPs, even down to their bio, but I've never bothered to report them... but I guess theres more reason to now 😅 Obviously CoH has a few archetypical characters of their own; Statesman, Manticore, Synapse... they all bear some resemblance to popular Justice League IPs, but distinct enough to have their own identities. Is this the bar by which we should measure what's considered a homage vs plagiarism? Lets say... a character is very clearly Batman, but they have a name like 'The Dark Bat' or 'Shadow Wing' or something, but appear identical in both appearance and bio, would that be considered an offense, or just... unoriginal? 🤔

CoH doesn't need to borrow this kinda mechanic from other MMOs/MOBAs, because it simply doesn't fit the way the game was engineered. Having a spammy auto-attack that fires off every few seconds might work as a cheap DPS/Aggro tool in other games, but CoH's combat is designed with more thought and consideration into the various mechanics in the game, and tries to be more engaging than just sitting around passively inflicting damage/healing. So you're right, it'll change the game... but certainly not for the better.

That's why IP bans are a thing.

True, but doesn't seem too clever violating the CoC/ToS around somebody who can record you doing it. Easy way to lose your account.

Sounds helpful, and probably fairly easy to implement!

I understand perfectly, I'm explaining that most of your requests are currently already in game, and those that aren't seem unlikely to happen due to development constraints.

Thugs Demons I have no idea Zombies Demons again Likely never, it's a 'Pet' not a 'Henchmen' Mastermind primaries are difficult to make, and most of the 'elemental' themes tend to wind up as Controller/Mastermind pets. But, that being said, there has been suggestions before about trying to make an elemental themed Mastermind powerset too, using the Animus Arcana as inspiration.

It's a vanity power, not a combat power.

I think it might be a little heavy on the mez to be a support set, but there's potential for something like this if we look at the unique animations/FX belonging to the Mastermind's 'Ninjas' powerset. 'Train Ninjas' and 'Kuji-in Zen' look as though they could be reused for different purposes, so I may look into incorporating that material into a potential new powerset.

I'm not sure if there's enough material for a full on support powerset, but I did make use of the powers from Ninjitsu and Ninja Training to create a new control powerset called 'Trickery'

I know PA is a balancing can of worms, but I think a few additional changes might make it more Dominator friendly; Swap Spectral Wounds for a single target sleep power. Reduce the damage so it's a little less that Spectral Wounds Swap Group Invisibility for an AoE sleep power. Give it a little damage to compensate for reduced DPS Bump Flash to T7/T8, so it lines up with other Control powersets. As for PA? I know people feel as though keeping them invulnerable is their key selling point, as is their ability to hold aggro, so the main issue is damage. Do we reduce the damage? do we reduce the delay between them healing that damage back? Or do we give Phantoms different powers?

These have been presented before, and I'll agree that they're pretty damn good, but HC tends to do everything in-house, so it may be unlikely these will be ported over.

👀

Following on from another thread that popped up recently, I decided to try and adapt some material from the 'Water Control' powerset earlier in the thread to try and make 'Water Manipulation', so we had more powersets with cold damage, especially secondaries. I know @oedipus_tex made a great Water Assault set, so I'm hoping to expand on that with some custom melee powers that could work with that suggestion too. Water Manipulation - Sink: A single target immobilize power, deals smashing/cold DoT. Forms a smaller version of the 'Whirpoool' FX on the target's legs. - Hydro Slam: A moderate smashing/cold melee attack that uses the animation of Kinetic Melee's 'Body Blow' with water FX on the hands - Submerge: Suspends a foe in a bubble of water, dealing high smashing/cold DoT. Foes are held in the same (albeit larger) water bubble FX created by 'Hydro Blast' - Build Up: Standard build up power - Mist Cloud: This power is functionally identical to 'Smoke' from Fire Control, but creates an aura of mist rather than smoke on each foes' head. - Saturation: A toggle power that grants regeneration, recovery, as well as resistance to fire and toxic damage. Similar FX to the droplets from 'Wet Ice' - Aqua Burst: A new smashing/cold PBAoE melee power with knockup potential. Uses the same animation of Kinetic Melee's 'Burst', forming a globe of water before slamming it down with the FX of 'Water Burst' - Aqua Globe: Creates a much larger water bubble. Targets in the bubble (including allies) will hover, but with the swimming animation. Foes will be slowed with reduced maneuverability and defense. - Pressure Blast: A heavy cold/smashing melee power that uses the same animation as 'Energy Transfer', with similar water FX to 'Tidal Forces' on the arms.