Techwright

I agree with your first point. I don't hold to the second point. Too often I see Doom as ridiculous and over-the-top, but I tend to see him as more grounded a character than a lot of the "phenomenal cosmic power" stuff the F4 have to square off against, so I tolerate him. (I see Marvel as getting more ludicrous the higher up the power chain they go. I much prefer more grounded characters.) I definitely agree with your feelings on Doom 2099. That is a character I'd very much like to see brought to screen. A great deal of the 2099 stuff I deeply loved.

Oh, I agree. It's a hard decision as to which I hate worse: dark Arachnos bases or blue caves. The bases have some vertical room to move around, and the blue caves are better lit. I see these positives as cancelling each other in the comparison.

Exactly. It wouldn't be the first time a major character, or secondary character for that matter, was recast in the MCU: 1. Hulk 2. Rhodey 3. Thunderbolt Ross One thing to consider when speaking of Kang: the character is actually characters spread over an infinite number of universes. That credits scene in Quantumania should have shown many Kang variants with different faces, including different skin tones and facial features, heights, sizes, genders, and ages, not just different costumes. This is something that Loki got right. I suspect the reason the Kang storyline was at least tabled if not outright eliminated (and not recast), was because, with the possible exception of Loki, the story was not connecting with viewers. It might be best to hope that it's been put back in the fridge to marinate a bit longer, perhaps appearing at some point connecting to the F4.

That would, IMHO, probably strengthen the story. Justin Hammer is an intriguing narcissistic goofball, and Sam Rockwell is one of the best character actors of his generation, but I'm not sure the character can hold audience attention for a full movie, or series for that matter. As to whether the movie was folded in or not, since my earlier posting, I've found an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article from May of this year stating that the movie had been delayed due to the actor/writers strikes, but has been rescheduled with shooting to start in January at the film studios in Fayetteville, GA (south of Atlanta). The one source they cite does have the January 2025 date, however, curiously the supposed end of scheduling date is August of 2023. Quantum Realm time travel, perhaps? 😏 Clearly there's a typo, but whether it is on 2025 or 2023, I don't know. I do find it interesting that if it is back up and running, so little has been said about that, including on the official Marvel site covering the movie. I also found articles saying the reason the story was converted to a movie was that the powers that be felt it deserved a bigger budget than a D+ series would get. That's a positive sign to me, but again, those articles posted before Disney's slash-and-gash began.

That's a very creative use for the chain mail costume element. Have you used "Sand Flea" for a name yet?

Ah, I see. Apologies for the misunderstanding. This...this could play into Armor (Armour) Wars the announced D+ series that was converted to a movie and was supposed to have Rhodey fighting to preserve Tony's legacy and in specific keep Stark technology out of enemy hands. Justin Hammer is supposed to be the main baddie, however there was a seemingly passing comment that he might not be the only one. I've heard nothing about this project since the Sept. 2022 announcement of the movie instead of the series. That, I think, was before Disney dug out the pruners to deal with the budget losses. Are you aware of anything recent?

Okay Luke Cage, like the other "TV" series of its day (with the possible exception of Agent Carter) was ruled not MCU, though admittedly they've kind of soft-canon'ed it by using the multi-verse. But that technique also means the 1990, 1979, and 1944 Captain Americas are technically MCU as well, and none of that was designed for the MCU. Not to mention the cartoon from the 1960s. So I can see Alfre being used in a different role. Chris Evans turn at Johnny Storm did not start as an MCU thing, the MCU didn't exist at that time, though like the examples listed above, it might currently be soft canon due to their take on the multi-verse. Cumberbatch, Brown, and Cardellini were all playing a character live, and one that was CGI. Big difference to what RDJ is doing. Were RDJ to show up as another member of the Groot species, for example, that would be more in line with their performances. Kenneth Choi, I believe was playing two characters of the same family over a couple of generations. That's not an unheard of technique to show family resemblance. Gemma Chan hits closer to the RDJ situation, though under heavy makeup she's not only playing a different character but a different species. RDJ is playing the same species (presumably). I suppose the mask can substitute for makeup, drawing the comparison a bit closer, but then it would have to be Doom with the mask on constantly, which is pretty true to the comics. Doom has removed the mask in the comics at times, but last I knew, he never showed his face to the reader. Michelle Yeoh is the one name on that list that actually strikes a cord with the RDJ double role. While her Ravager character is likely alien, it is close enough to human to count. The Ravager is a minor character, almost a cameo, if I recall correctly, but the Ying Nan is an important secondary character in one movie. RDJ will not be playing a minor character either time, though an argument could be made that Doom will be a strong secondary character, depending on whom the camera spends the most time. Of course Ironman is not only a major character, but the first of the tentpole characters in the MCU.

DOOM is Nemesis' plot. Okay, I'm really puzzled about RDJ as Doom. Is he... The Victor Von Doom of the MCU universe (Earth-199999)? A Victor Von Doom of an alternate universe where Tony Stark became (or was born?) Doom. (For that matter, is he Victor or is another name in play?) If this is true, they're throwing even more shade on the "can't stay in another universe" problem that the last Doctor Strange movie wrestled with. The MCU Tony Stark miraculously revived but corrupted? An evil twin separated at birth from Howard and Tony? An evil clone of Tony created years before by Hydra? Inquiring minds want to know. I'm not upset about RDJ playing Doom, per se. I understand the behind-the-scenes power play here. The MCU has not batted well in the Fourth and Fifth innings, and they brought their Babe Ruth back from retirement to calm frazzled fan nerves and drum up business. I just think they're going to have to give a very solid explanation as to why it is RDJ. Next question: Why on earth (or nearby space) is Doom first appearing with the Avengers and not the Fantastic Four? Doom is one of two signature enemies of the F4. He represents a world wide crisis. Galactus represents a cosmic crisis. It should be a no-brainer to build from the smaller to the larger. It certainly was in Phases 1 to 3 where we started (storytelling-wise, not internal calendar) with Obadiah Stane, built to the global threat of Red Skull and Hydra, the global threat and European disaster of Ultron, and eventually ended up with the universal threat and complete disaster that was Thanos. I'm not opposed to Pedro as Mr. Fantastic, it's just that I can see other actors in the role rather than him, and yes, John Krasinski is among them. I think this is yet another power play to bring some life back to the MCU by bringing Mando fans over.

What? No cosmic cloud?

I will be reporting Dr. Phosphorous for directly ripping off the licensed look of Batman Beyond's Blight. I can't believe...oh...both DC...hmm...

Base Enhancement Tables offer filters "Show Permissions" and "Show Log". I'd like to request that a filter be added to display enhancements by rank, or perhaps by rank range. While it is true that enhancements of like kind will rank themselves (eg: Accuracy 50 > 45 >40 > etc.) The current setup does take some time to sort through items looking for the level one wants, especially when the base may have many tables. Being able to select "Show only level 40 enhancements" for example, would allow a quick assessment of what one can acquire or need to craft/buy.

I'm hoping "like a 100 items" is a deliberate exaggeration to make the point. There'd be no need for personal storage vaults or base storage, for that matter, if we could attach that number of items per email. I am curious though, and perhaps one of the "old guard" can answer the question: Why was the in-game email set to one item each? Other MMOs of the time were permitting 3 or more items to be attached. Is it some limitation within the game code, or original storage, or...? I am fine with having increase attachments per email but something more reasonable like 3 items or perhaps up to 5.

I'd say this could be a company killer, except for the fact that another tech hardware company, Dell, survived not only the long-term faulty capacitor design of computers in the mid-2000s, but the revelation that there'd been a deliberate cover-up with continued production using the faulty materials in millions of products.

I've never seen one of these before. Didn't even know they were a thing, which is odd because Mom was a seamstress for 41 years. Mom would use a cloth "tomato" for holding pins and needles. Is this a tool specific to a craft?

I discovered another nice feature of whitecap: it can take you through walls. I was teamed in the Citadel TF, we were in one of those caves with the building-like structures. Fighting was fierce in the doorway, and I saw through the slotted window that more were fighting us from the inside. Whitecap took me through all of that into the crowd inside, knocked them down, and I was able to keep them from continuing to attack the teammates in the doorway until they cleared enough that we could take the full interior. I repeated it a few times. Even if my target moved behind a wall, I could still get him. Pretty useful trick.

I too support the confirmation message, and I understand what you're saying. I've used it often enough, but large or small, the enhancement unslotter is a cost, while confirmation messages are free.

The Aura options for "Glow" currently has among its offerings: 1) Glowing Eyes 2) Glowing Fists with Eyes 3) Glowing Body 3) the combat versions for each I'd like to request that a "Body & Eyes" option, as well as its combat version, be added. I've found that glow works well with Spectrum skins, but as Spectrum doesn't come with eyes, the glowing eye effect really helps. The lack of the "Body & Eyes" options limits some creativity, though.

Welcome "Home"! 🏡 A little housewarming gift for you: a link to a list of abbreviations and other shorthand speak that you'll probably see in the chat sections of the game. We use more than these, but this will hopefully get you quickly acclimated. Don't panic if it seems overwhelming. We've all been there, and a great many of us are willing to help you if you just let us know what you need. You may also find good info in this thread started by another new player this year. There's been many of you.

Depends. Is it Tuesday?

I'd be all for START vendors selling limited function, captured Sky Raider teleporting backpacks. "We didn't get the resupply fuel, just captured the backpack, so you'll have limited usage." might be handy getting behind mobs in caves.

That takes serious guts. When I joked of tranq guns and helicopters, I didn't realize night would be key as the article notes, but I did realize not to tranq them in the river. Hippos go on land, so driving them to land, or in this case, waiting until they step out at night, seems the best course of action.

Those navy jackets with the multi-colored lapels look very sharp, though I'm not a fan of the sleeveless version. The Aussie ceremonial jacket is likewise quite nice, though again, pairing it with shorts feels weird for a special ceremony. Guess I'm just too old fashioned.

I feel like this INF donation is an opening move, not an end-all to a badge. After all, if one's name begins "Yomo", then instant badge. That might feel like a boring accomplishment. I don't know what a good next step would be, but let me toss a concept out there to see if anyone can refine it. Have a certain amount be a "buy-in" to a special, potentially challenging mission. Lets say for INF 500,000, the relief worker thanks the player for their generous contribution, and asks if the player would escort them to deposit the hard currencies that non-powered folk have also given. Agreeing takes one to a challenging mission to escort the relief worker to the bank. Completing it gives the badge. What goes into making "challenging' I'll not define for the moment. Taking the idea a step farther, have the mission be repeatable, each time unlocked by a buy-in (perhaps a larger buy-in?), and each time after a successful completion becoming notably more difficult. Just like taking down Mary Macomber 10 times, one gets a badge for each completion. I'm not saying 10 times for this, it might be 5 or 3, or whatever, but there would be extra badges reflecting a difficulty level, not just for repeating something.

MM pet customization is the one thing another CoH emulation did that I actual wish were in game here. Of course, my thugs would have mock turtlenecks, bowler derbies and identification markings across their chests.

I had the same question as the OP, but gave it a try anyway. I am running a dark/marine corruption, and so far have only teamed, no solo work. Teams have been 80% marine characters, and I noticed I seemed to be the only one using white cpa which I thought odd. What I can suggest is that white cap feels situational. In a team that means many opportunities, though I could foresee fewer with solo, except perhaps MMs. I have found it most effective in dealing with stubborn bosses and EBs when only a handful of opponents are within his melee range. My tactic is to strike then immediately back out of range as they recover, leaving my teammates to hit them repeatedly.