Lockpick

You are certainly welcome to your opinion. My opinion is different. I'm not talking about adding a huge amount of gating. I'm talking more about adding additional rewards to existing content. Maybe 5 to 10 unique costume parts, maybe a couple of more accolade powers, maybe some temp powers. TFC: Glad we agree here. I mentioned "We still have the accolade power, so it is not necessarily needed because people will still do these TFs for the accolade." You were able to form a Synapse in 20 minutes. Great! Do you think it would be easier or harder to form that Synapse if the TFC accolade was not gated behind it? I do appreciate you bolstering my case that additional rewards provide incentive for doing activities. I agree that doing SS TFs during the WST is really the best time to do them. I wouldn't mind though if an additional incentive like an accolade power or a costume part was awarded for completing all 4. It's not there now, no one needs it, what is the issue with adding something like that? If you don't care to do the activities that would unlock the reward then you would not miss it. Those that want the reward bad enough will find a way to earn it. Do you think the accolade powers that are gated today should be unlocked for everyone at level 1? Or do you think they should be earned as is today?

I can see the benefits of some gating and we already have some gating. Overall, I think we are in a pretty good place. That being said, I wouldn't mind seeing some additional rewards based on additional gating / accomplishments. I think it is fine to have accomplishments that reward players with items that can only be received from completing said accomplishment as long as everyone has the same opportunity to choose to do these accomplishments. Examples: I would have preferred that the Military Epaulets were still gated behind Task Force Commander. It was a unique costume part that indicated you had completed the core Task Forces. If you saw people wearing that part you knew they completed the TFC and if you wanted the part you were incentivized to do the TFs. This pushed more people to do these TFs and ensured groups could be found. We still have the accolade power, so it is not necessarily needed because people will still do these TFs for the accolade. However, if there wasn't a TFC accolade how many people would really do Synapse or Citadel? I would love an accolade power and costume part tied to completing the 4 Shadow Shard TFs and exploration of the shard. How many people really complete these 4 TFs? I don't think I have ever done all 4 on any of my characters. There is no incentive for doing it. Groups can be hard to get together unless they are the WST. Even during WST is available I very rarely will answer the call to group because it is not worth it to me. I saw one of the posts earlier that indicated these types of accomplishments are akin to doing the laundry; an unpleasant activity that needs to be done. I don't view them that way. I view them as achievements that I completed that provided me rewards I wanted. Everyone has the option to not pursue them, so I don't think it is unreasonable to have some rewards behind gating. I'm also an advocate of providing more rewards for vet levels tied with other accomplishments. Example: You have earned Task Force Commander and achieved 100 vet levels and you get X I like these gates / rewards because IMO they allow a character to continue progression beyond 50 and incarnates. I believe that characters that continue their progression will become better known on their server and as they become better known it will drive more of a community spirit, which I believe adds longevity to the game and player base. I, of course, have no data to back this up; just my opinion.

I just finished reading this thread. I find it interesting because I had just posted a suggestion recently that is on the topic of grind and rewards. I always felt the Live Dev team had missed the boat on not having an accolade power for finishing the shadow shard TFs and I also miss the grind to a certain extent. I came up with a grind with rewards and posted in the Suggestion forum and it is not popular at all. It seems grinding is a thing of the past... BTW, I don't want to grind all the time either, but I certainly wouldn't mind some challenges or content that provides unique rewards. I don't subscribe to the theory that everyone has to have all the rewards, but I do subscribe to the theory that everyone should have the equal opportunity to pursue the rewards. There are several accolade powers I will never get because I don't think the reward is worthwhile, while I always try to get the 4 passive accolade powers.

If you didn't want to do the challenge you wouldn't have to choose it. This is for people that miss the grind or want harder game play. Of course, they could team with 50s and be carried through the TFs, but you can't close every loophole. This is for people that want to grind. which surprisingly a number of people like and they would get some decent rewards for doing it. I would definitely do it once, but couldn't imagine doing it more than that.

All good points. /signed

A number of people have been stating the game is to easy, so my suggestion is to create an option at character creation that allows that character to choose to level the Hard Way. I'm sure someone will come up with a better name; maybe call it Incarnate Extraordinaire. The intent will be to limit the abilities / power of the character and make the grind harder, but once all tasks are accomplished a badge and an accolade will be awarded. Got to put some restrictions in to make sure people cannot just power level their way through the Hard Way. During character creation the character selects the Hard Way option Only SOs can be used for the first 30 levels The character will not have the option to slot anything but TOs, DOs, and SOs Only basic IOs for 40 to 50 The character will not have the option to slot anything but TOs, DOs, SOs, and Basic IOs Set IOs can be used at 50+ All IOs available All task forces must be done at original level No exemping down to do the Task Force New badges provided for doing the TFs the Hard Way in addition to the normal badges All task force must be done for the side selected at creation Might have to rationalize this because I think Villains get less Task Forces and the intent would be to make sure every character has to do the Shadow Shard task forces Temp powers cannot be used and will not be accessible at P2W All the Shadow Shard badges must be completed All the DA badges must be completed Hamidon badges must be completed XP will be limited to one level every 20 hours This will help prevent over leveling the task forces Maybe also have the system prevent leveling past a certain level if you haven't completed the required task forces at level At vet level 100 if all the prerequisites have been met the character receives A Badge - Incarnate Extraordinaire An accolade power that provides an auto buff that can be selected by the character (can only select one option): 7.5% Recharge 5% Defense to all 5% Resistance to all 7.5% Move speed Maybe something else A travel power that allows the breaking of the rule of 4 power pools, but the travel power only has one slot Basically, if you have selected 4 power pools like Leadership, Fighting, Speed, and Leaping, but you want Fly you could get the Fly power, but you would not be able to add more than the original slot. A new costume part that only characters that have completed the Hard Way challenge can receive Once the character receives the Incarnate Extraordinaire badge everything reverts to normal Leveling reverts to normal, so you can get more than one level per day You can exemp with set IOs Etc. I think the reward is pretty good and I would certainly create a character to do this challenge, but it would take a long time to do with the leveling restriction. You can't completely stop the power leveling, especially when you are working on the vet levels, but you would still have to put in an extreme amount of time. You would also be able to team with others that are leveling normally, so it might not be as challenging as possible. Any ideas on what restrictions you would add? Any other rewards you would add? Would you do this challenge? Am I crazy?

I have been paying for the Pocket D power since I started playing here. I had no idea I could get for hanging out there.

Glue Arrow is not usually part of an attack chain either. ENA is mandatory, but at least it had decent range and damage, so it fit into an attack chain of ENA, Snap Shot, Aimed Shot, repeat. I've played it with the reduced range and while I certainly don't like it and it affects the character I am sure I will learn to live with it. Or actually without it, since it now gives me an excuse to try out Archery / Devices.

They did; I didn't see the latest update until after I made this post. It looks like the reversion may be temporary though, so taking Ninjitsu now with the expectation that Shinobi-Iri will have good movement speed may not play out long term.

Thank you for these adjustments!

Shinobi-Iri is nerfed on Beta as are a number of secondary powers with movement speed...

I don't recall saying "How dare they". I merely stated my opinion agreeing with Tore and stated that there will always be a set that is stack ranked #1. I don't find balance changes in general to be very good for the health of the game, although I do agree that in very rare instances there might be a need to tune a power or set. However, IMO, it should be extremely rare. Right now TW is on top, next week EM will be on top, the following week something else will be on top. Balance changes beget balance changes and that leads to picking winners and losers. Some people are going to be happy and some are going to be not happy with the changes. The TW change doesn't mean much to me since I played the set to about 17 and did not like the mechanics. However, a lot of the Blaster secondary and movement changes do affect me and will definitely have an impact on whether I play those sets. By the way, I don't know what has happened to these forums. I recall the old forums as being relatively friendly without much drama. People were able to state their opinions without vitriol and animosity. These forums it seems like people are attacking each other all the time (which I admit I have fallen prey to occasionally). It's a bit sad how far we have fallen, especially since we are all here because of our passion for the game and we are all stating our opinions so that we hopefully get an improved experience.

I pretty much agree with this in the main. I'm not a fan of any of these power set changes and saw no real need to do them. I could see some minor changes here and there, but in the overall scheme of things all these balance changes are not needed because we are a small private server that is predominately PVE. Who cares if TW over performs a bit in PVE? I very rarely see them when playing and I know I shelved mine early due to the clunky mechanics. However, there are a number of other changes in this release that do affect me negatively. I just feel like this release was a "let's make change just to make change" release. There are some good changes like a new power set, story arcs, stances, TP changes, and maybe the EM changes, but for the most part I find all the balance changes to TW, Blaster secondaries, and secondary movement powers have really missed the mark from a "fun" perspective. I'm curious how they will be received when they go Live because I am sure a number of players are going to get an unwelcome surprise. What I really fine a bit ironic is that TW is getting nerfed, but EM is getting buffed. I expect that EM is going to be the new FoTM and is likely over tuned. Does that both me? Nope. One power set is always going to be on top and players that care about that kind of thing will adapt. These types of changes don't change that behavior, so why make changes that are not needed and likely not wanted?

Just tested the stances: Non-Default Stance (Does not seem to be working as intended) If I choose any stance but Default and then toggle on Athletic Run the inherent stance does not change. I choose Ninja Stance and my stance changes. I toggle on Athletic Run and I continue to run in Ninja Stance. I choose Beast Stance and my stance changes. I toggle on Athletic Run and I continue to run in Beast Stance. I choose Slide Stance and my stance changes. I toggle on Athletic Run and I continue to run in Slide Stance. Default Stance (Seems to be working as intended) If I choose Default Stance then toggle on Athletic Run the stance is standard run stance If I choose Default Stance then toggle on Ninja Run the stance is Ninja run stance If I choose Default Stance then toggle on Beast Run the stance is Beast run stance

I think you also missed my point. They could have gotten rid of the GM functionality without giving us any replacement, since we were not supposed to be using it in the first place. How would you react if they basically said "we are removing this power because it was being exploited"? You would probably be upset for a little while, but you would understand the need to do it because: They have stated months ago it was going to be removed It needed to be removed now due to an exploit After a few months you would be used to playing without it and if they added additional functions to the P2W vendor you would probably be grateful, right?

I'm having a hard time understanding the push back on these changes. We had a power that was supposed to be GM only, meaning players were not supposed to use it at all That functionality is being removed and it has been known this functionality would be removed for several months We are getting multiple options as semi-replacement, despite the fact that we are not entitled to the functionality since we were never supposed to have it in the first place I am happy to argue and persuade for things that I think are not logical (blaster TA secondary range adjustments and non-stacking movement come to mind), but I think the HC team has gone well above and beyond the call of duty for these changes. Think about this: They could have just removed the GM functionality as an exploit 3 months from now they could have provided some of these alternatives In this case everyone would be extremely excited to get these options, but because it is happening at the same time as removing the GM functionality there is an outcry I wouldn't mind lower recharge, but it isn't a major issue since I can pretty much always Oro to Talos and from Talos go to SG portal or Train or Tunnel.

Rapid Response Portal Yesterday I had transferred a character over with Rapid Response Member Accolade, but I didn't automatically get the Rapid Response Portal power. I logged off yesterday at my SG base and logged in today 24+ hours later. I had the Rapid Response Portal power with 30 charges. I used the portal and it worked fine. Seems to be working as intended.

Making changes for only PVP would seriously rile up some players. Why would it be good for PVP and not PVE? Movement Buffs On the changes as a whole I am not sure what the issue is. We have capped movement, so why does stacking matter? You will never go faster than the cap. I never understood the rationale to not allow CJ and SJ to work at the same time. I think Ninja Run, Shinobi, CJ, SJ, etc. should all be able to be toggled on at the same time and they should stack. What is the rationale for not allowing it to stack? It would be nice if someone could provide an explanation.

Good point, thank you.

Tactical Arrow ENA - I still do not think that lumping ENA in with other T1 immobilize powers is a good idea. TA is a ranged power set and all other Blaster secondaries have melee attacks, so are able to cope with melee better. TA has zero melee attacks and is better played at range, so I think it is legit to request that ENA have a slightly longer (80') range than other T1 immobilize powers. Gymnastics - While the additional Jump is nice the suppression with other powers is an unwelcome nerf. I would prefer to be able to stack Gymnastics with CJ, SS, NR, etc. I haven't really seen a good explanation as to why stacking is OP. There is a cap on movement speed, so why does it matter how you hit the cap? Devices TWG - I don't have a problem with TWG having a 50' range because Devices has melee attacks. I think the point that is being missed on ENA in TA is that TA has no melee attacks, so TA Blasters need to stay at range. FO - I tested the No Fade option and it works fine. I was thinking it didn't work and then realized I had Sprint toggled on with a Stealth IO, which was fading me out. Nice work. Martial Combat I confirmed that Reaction Time does not aggro mob when stealthed. Thank you. This is a huge plus for my DP/MC. Ninja Training Immobilizing Dart - I don't have a problem with Immobilizing Dart having a 50' range because Ninja Training has melee attacks. I think the point that is being missed on ENA in TA is that TA has no melee attacks, so TA Blasters need to stay at range. Shinobi - See Gymnastics above. These powers should stack; not suppress each other. Christmas - I played my DP/NT on test for quite awhile yesterday while testing LRT and didn't see the Christmas gift defect, so looks like this was fixed.

This is intended. They nerfed being able to stack movement powers in the latest patch. I'm not clear why and think they should actually allow all of them to stack, but this was an intended change. Movement Buffs The following travel powers will suppress Primary/Secondary equivalent power travel buffs: Pool > Leaping > Combat Jumping Pool > Leaping > Super Jump Pool > Force of Will > Mighty Leap Pool > Speed > Super Speed Pool > Experimentation > Speed of Sound Prestige Travel > Ninja Run Prestige Travel > Beast Run Primary/Secondary powers impacted by this: Scrapper Defence > Ninjitsu > Shinobi-Iri Sentinel Defence > Ninjitsu > Shinobi-Iri Blaster Support > Ninja Training > Shinobi-Iri Blaster Support > Tactical Arrow > Gymnastics

@Jimmy Can you answer a question around activating and canceling LRT (and other TP powers), but still having to wait for the cooldown? Is there a way to make the cooldown start after the TP is complete, so you don't wast a cooldown when canceling the activation?

I have the Rapid Response Member accolade on this character and used to have the Base Teleporter power with 30 charges on Live. When I copied over I lost Base Teleporter, but now have Monitor Duty Teleporter with 30 charges. The Rapid Response Portal is separate and I thought it would be issued automatically if you had the accolade. I'll log off at my SG and check back in a while to see if it is awarded.

Been doing some testing on the travel powers this morning: I copied a character over and logged in and was awarded LRT. This is good as it recognized I already had some exploration badges and gave me the power. I went from DA to Talos and worked fine. I noticed that I was missing some locations like FF and Bricks, so went to get those badges I got exploration badges for Bricks, FF, and KW. I then decided to check the menu to see what was missing. I activated LRT and took a picture. I then selected Cancel, because I wasn't going anywhere and I wanted to test if it would cancel the power and allow it to be immediately used. LRT was activated and was on a 10 minuted cooldown even though it wasn't used. I'm not sure if this is working as intended or not. It seems like if you cancel you should not be stuck waiting for the power to recharge. Is there a way to tie the recharge start time from when you land at your new destination? I had used the LRT power in previous testing and when going to a zone and doing a mission the 10 minute cooldown felt okay if the mission took some time. If not, the cooldown seems pretty long. I would suggest that the cooldown be reduced, especially if canceling the power is going to start the cooldown. I like the LRT menu. It looks clean. I only have 13 destinations available, so not sure how it will look when I get all. Curious if it will be to big or cluttered. If anyone can post a screenshot I would appreciate it. I added a number of locations and the list stays the same size, but adds a scroll bar. I like the Fast Travel power. This will save a lot of room in the trays. Very nice. Base Transporter - Has the same issue with LRT in that if you cancel you have activated the power and need to wait on cooldown. I assume all these powers will have this issue. The reduced activation time is very nice. Thank you. Rapid Response Portal - I'm not sure how to earn this power. Is it logging out at the base? I tried the freebie menu and didn't see it, so might be nice to add it there so we can test it. I added additional locations and getting a zone exploration badge is relatively easy as there is generally a badge near the SG portal in a zone. If you ave a SG base with the zone portals you will easily be able to use your base to get the zone exploration badges. I'll try to get a few more locations and see how the menu looks, but all in all I would say these are some nice changes.

Okay, I went back and did some more testing on the movement speeds. I was having a hard time with trying to capture as bullets, so put in a table format. Looks like in my earlier test when I thought they were stacking it is because the power was showing up for a bit before disappearing. I have to say I'm not a fan of this change. I loved my Sentinel being able to stack NR and Shinobi-Iri as a travel power and when I created my DP/NT Blaster I was expecting to stack NR with Shinobi and was disappointed when I couldn't stack them. I thought it was a bug. I did see a post earlier about stacking of these travel powers, but I really didn't understand it and the need to limit the stacking. I hope the table below makes sense. I am trying to show what is active based on different power selections. Movement Buffs AT Powersets Action Running Speed Flying Speed Jumping Speed Max Jump Height Blaster A/NT Only SS Activated SS No No No Only CJ Activated No No CJ CJ Only NR Activated NR No NR NR Only Shinobi Activated Yes No Yes Yes Shinobi + SS SS Neither Shinobi Shinobi Shinobi + SS + CJ SS None CJ CJ Shinobi + CJ Shinobi None CJ CJ Shinobi + NR NR None NR NR Blaster A/TA Only SS Activated SS No No No Only CJ Activated No No CJ CJ Only NR Activated NR No NR NR Only Gymnastics Activated Gym Gym Gym Gym Gymnastics + SS Gym + SS Gym Gym Gym Gymnastics + SS + CJ Gym + SS Gym CJ CJ Gymnastics + CJ Gym Gym CJ CJ Gymnastics + NR Gym + NR Gym NR NR Sentinel DP/Ninjitsu Only NR Activated NR No NR NR Only Shinobi-Iri Activated Shinobi-Iri No Shinobi-Iri Shinobi-Iri Shinobi-Iri + NR NR No NR NR