Techwright

While I could wish for more Steve Rogers, the 616 Universe's Steve Rogers had a surprising, but ultimately satisfying wrap-up. I'd not really wish to tread on that ending. But we're in the multiverse phase, so we'd probably be looking at a similar-looking, but different Steve Rogers, and who knows what that character will be like?

Saving the base design: we think alike. There was, however, a discussion a year or two back where I'd brought this up. The context was the idea of having the skilled builders offer to design nice-looking stock bases for those with no design ability, then share to those in need. If I recall correctly, a comment made was that the whole base coding was a mess, hastily put together apparently, and to alter that coding to accommodate this would be a nightmare. One can still hope that someday a way might be found. Renaming SG without deleting base: this one surprised me. I might have been under a rock, but I don't recall this being an issue. I sent an SG rename request in a couple of years ago, and the GMs handled the rename for me. My base at that time was a pretty modest thing, but I don't recall any losses to it.

While I get it, I have to agree with others that it just starts a fight. That said, I'd be game for such a display only displaying for the league leader. That way they can make a private message in hopes to motivate the person to join. Taking it further, I'd really like to see an auto-support function kick in. When one forgets or refuses to click the green button, they are dropped from the league, just as they would be as the league enters the event, but with this version, a pause takes place and the game asks the league leader if they'd like to proceed, or if they want to back out to recruit replacements.

Okay, I'll pitch one, but it's a curve ball. Currently, we have that Mini mode for prismatic aether costumes. I'd like a new version where the mini mode is placed on different kinds of pets rather than the player's character. While it might be hilarious to be a mastermind with robots the sized of wind-up children's toys, or an illusion controller with mini phantoms, I was thinking more about the value of the mini mode for making it easier to see around the tall pets, like some of the MM demons, or (and I realize this is likely different coding) the Incarnate Banished Pantheon lore pets. With a pet mini mode, I'd be able to see better in BAF runs when my pet is constantly stomping around me in the chaos of two teams holding down a lane during the escape phase. It'd also be useful in tight spaces, like the blue tunnels. Cute and practical.

Ahem...

And for Winter Soldier, that's 2014 dollars, which were 33% more valuable than today. So had it come out this past weekend, Winter Soldier would have made $126,681,034.85 against a budget of $170,000,000. (2025: $226,635,788.39) Brave New World's budget, though, I'm not going to be able to put down cleanly, at least for the moment. On the one hand, it is publicly stated by Marvel/Disney as $180,000,000. But there's a lot odd about that. First, it's a lot lower in today's dollars than Winter Soldier, for example. (Additionally, Captain America: The First Avenger is generally considered the least expensive of the series and it comes in at $196,429,698.72 in 2025 dollars) Second, there's been, from what I've read, extensive reshoots. Reports just 8 months ago were stating figures of up to $100 million for just one major reshoot. The stated budget previously was $275 million before reshoots. In trying to be fair, I'll point out that several of these reporting sites sounded more like ones who like to egg on a train wreck, and likely had very light insider knowledge with much more guess work. Some of you have ties to the films industry. Can you tell me definitively if a company states what the budget for a film was, must it legally be a straightforward, honest statement? Or is there a lot of tricks and wiggle room used in the reporting? EDIT: Apologies if you see any duplicates of this post. The connection to the forums went crazy when I clicked the save button. I think I've cleaned them all up though.

I can't point to chapter and verse, but I do seem to recall comments made that the Miller/Fish bit was supposed to be a double reference. I've not gone looking for the NPC for a while, but if I recall correctly, the in-game Miller looks more like Matt Miller than it does Hal Lindon.

Nanna, Nanna, Nanna, Nanna,

That seems reasonable. I've seen The Falcon & The Winter Soldier, so I'm aware of the characters named. (I liked about 50% of that production. The "You're free" scene with Bucky was amazing.) Most of the ones you named as poor or unlikeable I agree with. Iron Man 2 I apparently had a greater fondness for, but it definitely needed something else added to it. And yeah, Winter Soldier is usually in people's top 3. Middle of the pack is surprising, but intriguing. Still not sure that I'll see it in theaters, but if it goes to D+ quickly, as I suspect, I might resubscribe to see that and catch up on some other things.

I was hoping they'd call it "Coulson". Death with resurrection is his super power after all.

*Grabs the two pennies* They've stopped making these. They might be valuable someday. @tidge is on target. I wish this event was just called "Valentines" or something like that, and one of the other two events had "Spring" added to the name, but it is what it is.

Thanks for making that point. May I assume you've seen all, or most, of the MCU movies? After seeing it, where would you place it if your were ranking it alongside the others?

Would the Fantastic Four, especially Reed Richards, quickly realize Clark Kent is just Superman with glasses? 😉 Okay, more on target: I've not always been a fan of the Fantastic Four in the comics. When they go way out there on the whole battling "phenomenal cosmic powers" thing, they can go ridiculous on scaling and it easily loose me. It is the humanity of the team, the smaller scale, where things get interesting. The trailer shows Ben Grimm's depression at what he's become. What I really liked in the comics was his relationship with the blind artist Alicia Masters, and how Alicia's acceptance of him helped him to cope. Might the demonstrated angst in the trailer be a foretelling of things to come? Any hint (leaks, footage, press releases, etc.) that we might be getting Alicia and the relationship?

It's a good point, thank you for making it, and I should clarify. I've had the kind of teams you mention. I do see those as a courtesy. I'd note the difference is "option". When a lead gives an option for someone higher to lead, but is willing to continue as lead, its not so much of a problem. When the recruiter announces they won't be leading and the star is going to someone else, that's the issue. I think some folks have only read part of my OP. In which part did I say I was "afraid"? I stated the opposite quite clearly. I used to enjoy the team lead, I've even done league leads, though I admit I don't find that as enjoyable. I also pointed out there's a RL condition involved that affects my level of participation, and noted it as but one example. I'd also note that speaking to the contacts is a point of holding up the team. I mentioned that too in the OP. Further, it is not the only duty of the lead, just the main one. The lead has the responsibility for adjusting difficulties and for settling problems within the team. None of which the leader can do if they have to step away. While not countless in my case, I have experienced this as well. I truly wish I could say never as Scarlet Shocker can. I actually got yelled at in a league not long ago, wondered why, looked at the league roster and realized that the guy who recruited it, dropped it in my lap without announcement, and left me to tidy it up. Personally, I hate leaving a team. I feel like I'm failing the other 6 chaps. But I realize some times, there's just not a great option.

I see at this writing that you've only 6 posts and all in this thread. I'll assume you're a new player or at least one unaccustomed to these forums. My apologies if my assumption is incorrect. I suggest you take the time to search the forums' history on the topic. The idea of hardcore has often been discussed. It is not a well-received idea, and I think some of that has to do with the presentation coming across as driven "this is the way", rather than a considered "I think several of us would be interested in". But regardless, it's been pointed out elsewhere that people generally are not interested in it, and additionally, there are too many variables that a player cannot control whereby their character could suddenly be taken out. Maelwys is correct. It would not be a popular server, but another ghost town. Those that are interested in the prospect have, in time past, formed groups to attempt to do this within the confines of the servers already active. The development teams, both original and Homecoming, have given us many tools for modifying instance missions to a player's content. I'm sure if you are interested in pursuing this course, you'll likely be able to find a team, league, or possibly super group willing to go along for the ride.

Is it that time of year again, already? 🙄

That has got to be one of the funnier parts of the game series, especially if Gandhi controls nukes. I get together with a gang every few months for a Halo gaming night. I'm there for the friendship and the pizza. I don't own an X-box, or even the PC version of any Halo game, so I stink at it. I therefore play under the code name "Gandhi". Another guy's son plays under the handle "A Small Child". We therefore have the occasional announcements of "Gandhi has killed A Small Child" and "A Small Child has killed Gandhi". 😁

Can't recommend any, as I've not been inside AE in a Rocket Raccoon's age. But I'm intrigued and watching this thread for something I'd like to tackle.

Civ VII: I'm taking the "let's see in 6 months" approach. I've seen a lot of negative reviews on it (Steam reviewers have it at Mixed right now, which is 5 rungs down on the ranking scale), and there's no way I'm shelling out $70, or even $20, for that rank. I would like to hope they'll make every effort in 6 months to fix what the players feel is broken. But if there's little change in 6 months, I'll be putting it in the "review every 6 months" category. I loved the early Civ games. At some point, I don't remember which one, a Civ game ruined it for me. It felt like they'd moved the game too far off the heart of the series design. I personally would be very, very happy if they did a remake of Civ II, mostly just improving the graphics to modern standards, and most especially improving the opponent AI. One thing that has always annoyed me in Civ games is the potential for an AI power that you've been treating exceptionally well to suddenly declare war on you, with no build up and no reason. It's 2025, and AI is all the rage. Build in one that acts much more like a human, and Civ II Redux could be the best of the series, despite being largely the earliest model.

I can see how ridiculous that is, But that was one of those ridiculous super powers they went bonkers with in the 1950s, like super-ventriloquism. What I refer to is something separate from his personal nature. And Kryptonian science is supposed to be on the edge of that oft-quoted idea of looking like magic to those from a lesser culture. Yikes! Let's hope an international crisis never involves hotel corridors. It's a fair point, and one I was considering after I wrote it. ID photos for driver's licenses, requiring the removal of glasses, would set that up as well. One thought I had was to use a small transparent "dot" of Kryptonian tech that can be adhered to the temple and act like a temporary version of the glasses (smaller tech = tiny battery = less charge, short term). That allows for short periods of removing the glasses. As it is Kryptonian science-like-magic it would be easy to wave a hand to say the science can baffle any Earth tech as well. I'm sure if a serious writer ever covered it for comic or movie, they could create a definitive Kryptonian tech explanation. I like the idea of a magic wielder getting involved, but then they'd have to appear in every version of the Superman tale. A.I. Jor-El does so now (at least, as far as I can recall) and therefore it's tech "magic" could fit the bill. The takeaway, though, is that, whether advanced science or magic, there's avenues of explanation DC's never explored for a "simple" disguise. I'd also like to add that your concept of the magic user arriving when Clark is in school, is on point. The idea of getting him using the glasses early, magic or tech, means that those subtle changes that happen over the teen years will seem natural to those he grows up with. It reinforces the idea that anyone who goes looking, even back to early Supes appearances around Smallville, will never associate the two faces as one person. Personally, though, I'm much more into the stories where Lois finds out early on, and chooses to sink the story. This maintains her reputation as Pulitzer-level investigative journalist, while fleshing out her compassion over her aggressive "news hound" nature. Great point! It reminded me of a pair of situations the TV show Candid Camera set up back in the 1970s. As I recall, both took place in New York City. In one, the crew built a door right in the middle of the sidewalk. People casually walked around it. A few of them even opened it and walked through it without really focusing on it. No one actually stopped to wonder why someone had set a door up that way. In the second, a guy dressed up in a gorilla suit and walked the city. No one even blinked an eye.

You know, there's an incredibly easy fix for all this: the glasses. Have Fortress of Solitude Jor-El A.I. design and print a high-tech Kryptonian device that looks like a normal pair of eyeglasses. When Clark dons them, they do some high-tech Kryptonian mumbo-jumbo that messes with people's perceptions. To any looking at him, glasses-wearing Clark appears similar but visibly different enough that he's never really considered. In essence, these Kryptonian glasses become his mask. Doctor Who had a similar concept they called a "perception filter". It was designed to hide something in plain sight by influencing people to look anywhere but straight at the object.

Well, since the thread has arisen, I'd note that the old comments often referred to having such a con being a trigger for an NCSoft shut down. How about now, since we've now got the official stamp of approval? Also, taking @Doc_Scorpion's original warning seriously, @TalynDerre's "piggy-back" comment seemingly makes a lot of sense, and any coordinated get-together might need to have a video conferencing option for those unable to attend in person.

It's a minor detail, perhaps, but if one is going to utilize temporary items, then find an allied super group base or a server's public base with a Tier II or Tier III Empowerment station. If you don't have access to these, there's also a Tier III Empowerment Station in Fort Trident (enter the Freedom Corp building just east of Atlas Park City Hall). Find it in the back, top level, small side room. With an Empowerment Station, in exchange for some common salvage (white), you could gain 90 minutes of Increase Recovery at 17%. While at the same stations, you can also acquire Endurance Drain Resistance at a 20% resistance, which will really help retain endurance when going up against endurance leeches like the Clockwork or the Freaks. I often use these two to smooth out the end drain when going through the teen security level ranks. Note that with Empowerment stations there are 3 options for each benefit, each option using a different set of salvage, but only one set can be activated during the 90 minutes. Also the arcane-based Empowerment Stations use different salvage from the tech-based ones.