cranebump

Sorry for the inconvenience. Mish 4 is a work in progress, but the basics are there. New info:

Ugh...I did some work on Mobius 4, and 3 (to make an open map easier to find stuff). In the process, I accidentally used the wrong skin for one of the good guys in M3-2. Should be fixed within an hour of posting this (doing a test run). So, @TerroirNoir, if you're planning a run, sometime after that the mish should be fixed. Need tp pull this arc down to work on it. Will announce when Mobius 3 is back up.

The overpass. Yup. Westbrush pops in the square, below, about 3/4s of the time in tests. I think the simplest thing is just say “check in with Lt. Westbrush,” if PPD is confusing. That will specify who the player is looking for, if they don’t feel like fighting spawns.

if that’s the skyway map, it’s pretty easy. Any halfway patient player should get through that quickly enough. Now, there’s a Croatoa map in a later mish that would actually be helpful for.

Task Force Algernon is on it!

Where the hell did you get that, @Ankylosaur? Never even seen that.

Maybe focus on red or gold side?

Yeah, it fixes the original issues by relocating to a different map that's pristine. There's a base on fire map from the Lockhart mission in there somewhere that might've been better as far as atmosphere, but I want that first mish to be quick and to establish some clue to the bigger devastation. Objective spawn points are easy peazy (though I limited them to 2 required ones, 2 optional ones, and the 1 triggered objective). Wasn't sure how hard to make the first Boss. Just wanted to intimate what they can do, so that the end mish text has an in-game referent. For my incarnate blaster, it all depended on whether a mez landed. Since I was in test mode, and not running in invulnerable mode, I could held and ganked. If I'd had Insps, I think the initial boss would be pretty easy. I'll have to see how it is with a plain ol' non-IO'ed toon. So, I'd say it's...it's okay, I guess. Gets to the next mish. Players won't get lost, etc. I DO wish the map had more body bags I could spread around, though.:-)

Ended up going with something else already. But that escort trick might come in handy in other circumstances. Thanks for the tip!

P.S. Updated Comrade text in Hollow Victory to account for actually rescuing him. Rather than him being dead, he's in a coma. Small victories...:-) Mobius 4 is about halfway done (mishes 1-3 done and tested). Opening seems solid. Just mulling over options for 4-5. It's possible to end this one at 4, with something of a cliffhanger, but not sure about that yet. Speaking of what awaits in 4: *The return of characters from Ordinary People (mainly as background characters). *The first onscreen appearance of The Five. *The story of the Mobius Strip. And maybe more. I'm still mulling. Thanks to those who've stuck with it thus far.

Mish #1=removed burning AP map. Went for something smaller and simpler. No timer. Scaredy-cats everywhere may now rejoice.:-) Seems to be okay, but you'll have to let me know.

They did! For example, Maven was solid and inspirational. Axios was imposing. HvH was a moron...(kidding).:-) I remember these guys more than I do the mishes - which speaks (less to) my shitty memory and (more so) the memorable nature of the team. Well, I remember them and "carriage return.":-)

I don't think I have a definite process. But the one I keep returning to is just a simple AR/Tac Arrow blaster (with Presence and Munitions as [hardly-used] secondaries). He's not going to outshine anyone, but can always find a way to contribute something to a team (slows, stuns, knockdown [through slotting], flash arrow, etc.). Plus, he moves quick (within the bounds of concept, so Athletics+Sprint+Infiltration), has fast recharge, and never runs out of endurance (and rarely runs low). I like my staff scrapper, as well. He's fairly tough, quick and fun. It's probably easier for me to name what won't be on my "you're the one list," which includes: anything where I have to actively monitor teammates so I can buff/boost/heal them (I'm just no good at tracking this - I want to shoot/hit stuff) ; any powerset that has multiple area-target AoE's (the ones where you have to choose the spot on the ground, which is problematic if you're on a speeding bullet team, and you have 60-year old reflexes); and Masterminds (I don't like pet management). So, arrows, guns, and sticks -- I guess I'm just an unimaginative, lazy ass player.:-)

Speaking or thinking for the character. Like instead of accept text, Listen to Positron, you have the character speak (Just tell me where to go!). I'm not sure where he got the term.

It's also waaaaay out of my comfort zone. I've used a few outdoor maps here and there, but, most of the time, it's just not in my wheelhouse (and it shows). All of them strike me as pretty good for "Gather X/# of ___________," or "Close the Portals! (54 to go)." Multiple copies of single items (MCSI). Reminds me: early on, when I tried to do these MCSI's (4 Computers to go!), @Kyksie (who used to review these things regularly) hammered me on needless glowies. He was right, so I amended that practice, to the point where I haven't done many since (if at all). I still haven't completely gotten away from breaking the ocelot rule, though.:-)

Scenario with no enemies: covered by @Darmian (set map to "Empty"). I'm not sure what you want to do is actually doable, or even approachable, on that map. Since you're wanting a chat, followed by a fight, that sounds like use of "Ally" with a betrayal trigger (an escort to a glowie, perhaps, bearing in mind that, once the escort arrives, the mish ends, if that's the last objective). So, couple questions, one so I can better understand what you're attempting, the other to determine the necessity of the specific objective: (1) What info does the player get from the PC? (2) Do they have to get it from a contact? Beyond that, I'd only say, go with what it gives you. If you're fighting the map itself, due to its nature, or #/objectives, or some such, find a better map (I can speak to this from recent personal experience).

Well, see those guys actually have talent.:-) When it comes to writing, I follow this (fictional) response (from Bob Dylan to Jimmy Thudpucker):

P.S. at some point I’m going to go back and rewrite the text for if Comrade is rescued to having him lapse into a coma as he delivers his message. So there will then be a difference if he’s saved. Now, I do think it’s better narrative to have someone put a bullet in his head, but that doesn’t have to be the end result no matter how malicious and bloodthirsty I feel about it.:-)

The criticism of the timer not having a valid narrative reason to exist is legitimate. I cannot really justify Its existence other than to end the mission in case the player is stuck wandering all over the map. And further, since the last two players that have actually run through it have not been able to find the objectives quickly, or in one case not find them at all, then obviously I need to rethink this from the ground floor. So the first thing I’m going to do is get rid of that map. I obviously knew there was an issue with it which is why I put a timer on that thing in the first place. So we are going to get rid of that. Second, because the difficulty in finding objectives will be fixed, I can reconsider use of a timer, since it was only there to keep the original mission from going on for too long. With that in mind, and in consideration of the feedback I have received, I believe I have a way to write the text in such a way that the player can “succeed“ in the mission while realizing that the end of the world is nigh. If I have this right then this should fix the issues for the players, while maintaining the idea I’m striving for. ( @Zhym: I'll let you know when I've fixed it, so you can give it another run, if you want. It should be less complicated, since a) writing a possible fail actually takes more time, and b) map should be considerably smaller). The short version of this is I picked a map that I could not make work, and was trying to make it work anyway. Once I take the map out of the equation, I’m not forced to make mechanical choices that are inconsistent, illogical, or just plain annoying. All that said, I’m not going to promise that I won’t use a timer in the future. So if the Contact says “you better hurry“ then you better actually hurry. 🙂

Darm rewards you for paying attention, and gives you all sorts of clever Easter eggs, call backs, and throughlines pushing from start to finish. Everything is slick, meticulously executed, clean, clear, yet you look back, and there’s a ton going on. Just loads. Hard to see how he does that, but he does. I guess he’s Francis Coppola. I haven’t played enough of Ankys stuff to comment on story, but I’ve run enough to say he’s the most technically proficient designer I’ve seen among us amateurs. I don’t think anyone else is even close. I guess he’s Stanley Kubrick. I’m not good with the details or the framing. It’s all tone - highs and lows, bittersweet victories, sacrifice, and shades of gray. I think we’re all defined by our failures more so than our victories. And I think superheroes, were they real, would understand that better than anybody. Because you can’t save EVERYONE. That’s the tragedy. Great power will never be great enough. But a true hero keeps trying anyway. And that’s what it’s all about. Which makes me the guy with a decent script and no budget.:-)

I laid out my reasoning in the other thread. For the record, I’m not emulating Peacock. I’m trying to do a no-win scenario. The issue is visibility. Makes it to where you can’t even reach the boss fights. I might fiddle with it some other day, but not today. Timer is there so players don’t waste a ton of time trying to win what cannot be won.

Would that be nice. (Sigh) i ran that mish, man, I dunno how many times. I knew exactly what was going to happen, and still couldn’t always find Pos quickly. That was the 5-minute timer. So, I pushed to 10, and added Zoria gloating over his victory, thinking, “okay, so if you buzz around, you’re BOUND to find Pos in 5 minutes. Then Zoria in a couple, because maybe we’ve cleared the map some. But the sons of bitches just won’t pop up in the same spot. (Anky’s the outdoor map guy. Not me, as this ably demonstrates)

It’s possible I guess to drop both Positron and Zoria. Maybe just flood it with bosses but I’m not sure that’s any better. What it needs is a 5-minute timer, with a direct line to Pos (say 15 seconds). Then maybe 30-60 to get to Zoria. Then a Boss chain of infinite minions. I could use burning forest map, but doesn’t have the impact of Atlas. Ruined city has better visibility, but no fire. I think it needs smoke and fire, atmospherically.

Note: keep an NPC dialog window open. If you see speech text, you know it’s not a body bag. FYI: it’s “winnable,” but VERY, VERY difficult to do it in 10 minutes. I managed Pos, Zoria and 2 bossss, using a decent Incarnate. There’s also an ambush after boss #1. It’s ridiculously rough. And it needs about a 7-minute timer, due to the gd smoke.

Well…I’m just gonna make my case for that mish as is,*and here’s why: It’s hard to simulate the end of the world with a successful mission (you win! By the way, the world ended, but, yeah, you won! Everyone died, but you can feel good, because you WON! [pst…you didnt]). It has the timer to give a sense of futility. And it has to be short timer to get it out of the way so the subsequent story can start. This IS the outcome you’re trying to avoid. Rather than describe it, I’m trying to make you live it. Bottom line: It’s a Kobayashi Maru. Full stop. It’s not supposed to be fair or winnable. I just wish the map was less smoky. *bearing in mind that I tested all sorts of variations concerning timer lengths, boss chains, ambushes, etc. Peacock’s use of a jillion glowies works really well for his arc. But he isn’t doing the end of the world. I need fire and death and absolute futility. If it’s unsettling, well, that’s the point.