Make the Shadow Shard Co-Op AND...

[Wavicle]

Like the title says, let's give Redside access to the Shadow Shard and its contacts.  Seems easy enough.

I would ALSO like to see the Shadow Shard all turned into Incarnate content.  But I understand that's undoubtedly not as easy.

[Chris24601]

Standard Code Rant applies, but I second the idea of making the Shadow Shard co-op and getting it a general update.

 

To that end, I have a few suggestions;

 

Cosmetically the zone as a whole is fine; it’s a vast alien realm and feels that way. What could stand some updating in terms of appearance are the human NPCs throughout the zone.

 

Back when the Shadow Shard was first implemented, Rikti still ran around naked and there was no Vanguard. But lore marches on and it’s now been established that Vanguard is THE organization tasked to deal with extradimensional threats.

 

They are also more than willing to work with villains to keep those threats contained.

 

So my first suggestion is this; as part of making the landing zone co-op, replace the fatigue-wearing troops with Vanguard troops and make the Firebase and other human outposts explicitly Vanguard installations.

 

As this is an NPC model swap (and for ones that already exist) my hope is that would be easier to implement.

 

The second related suggestion is; now that it’s an explicitly Vanguard operation, the zone access to it can be made through the existing Vanguard depots with no new art assets required; just the same sort of pop-up menu that comes up when multiple zones/instances are possible and with both the RWZ and Shadow Shard as destination (the current big portal in the Firebase being the destination for them).

 

Beyond that, I’d like to see some actual story arcs developed for it; perhaps related to other groups trying to exploit the Shard (the Circle are there and Nemesis has a base there) and explore more of the lore of the Shard.

 

While it would be a deviation from the original dev’s plans, but the Shadow Shard would also be an excellent way to do an alternate “Oncoming Storm” (made even more interesting given the Letter Writer’s identity) that doesn’t require as much in the way of new art assets to produce.

[Llewellyn Blackwell]

On 1/19/2020 at 7:35 AM, Chris24601 said:

Standard Code Rant applies, but I second the idea of making the Shadow Shard co-op and getting it a general update.

 

To that end, I have a few suggestions;

 

Cosmetically the zone as a whole is fine; it’s a vast alien realm and feels that way. What could stand some updating in terms of appearance are the human NPCs throughout the zone.

 

Back when the Shadow Shard was first implemented, Rikti still ran around naked and there was no Vanguard. But lore marches on and it’s now been established that Vanguard is THE organization tasked to deal with extradimensional threats.

 

They are also more than willing to work with villains to keep those threats contained.

 

So my first suggestion is this; as part of making the landing zone co-op, replace the fatigue-wearing troops with Vanguard troops and make the Firebase and other human outposts explicitly Vanguard installations.

 

As this is an NPC model swap (and for ones that already exist) my hope is that would be easier to implement.

 

The second related suggestion is; now that it’s an explicitly Vanguard operation, the zone access to it can be made through the existing Vanguard depots with no new art assets required; just the same sort of pop-up menu that comes up when multiple zones/instances are possible and with both the RWZ and Shadow Shard as destination (the current big portal in the Firebase being the destination for them).

 

Beyond that, I’d like to see some actual story arcs developed for it; perhaps related to other groups trying to exploit the Shard (the Circle are there and Nemesis has a base there) and explore more of the lore of the Shard.

 

While it would be a deviation from the original dev’s plans, but the Shadow Shard would also be an excellent way to do an alternate “Oncoming Storm” (made even more interesting given the Letter Writer’s identity) that doesn’t require as much in the way of new art assets to produce.

The whole oncoming storm thing got scrapped and reworked several times over the years. As was the original lore bible. For example Rully wasnt actually basically a galactus stand in and was someone that did what later they had Wade try to do, a mortal being who somehow was able to absorb entire dimensions worth of energy, very lame terribad idea to be the origin of the being and why it was never made official))

 

As I mentioned to you in another thread Id make access if it was made a co op zone would be to put it in the midnighters. Its their prison after all and the rikti themselves far too mucha  threat for vanguard to divide its forces.

 

(( Dont get me wrong if I had it my way I would see the war with the rikti ended and them and their mother ship leave. Id replace the warzone with a shining new city using assets from praetoria, Have the conflict with Arachnos ended while I was at it as his aid in the end of the who will die series really should have gained him some pretty serious hero cred and maybe the death of cole caused stephen to shift more to a rogue/vigilante fix the world rather then conquer it type))

 

IMO the oncoming storm should be something super twisted like the nictus possessing one or more of the aspects of rul, all the shard related mobs getting new dark dmg and dark debuffs added on top of everything else their attacks do already, and make the rul invade like the rikti and zombie outbreak city events. especially because in the above the rikti would be gone entirely or reduced to a rogue faction lead by their warlord who refused to return home.

 

Ultimately though the issue with the  shard is one of people not liking to spend time there traveling, and those who dislike flying especially loathe that zone. Me I love it and go there to solo wipe mobs for kicks often.

[quixoteprog]

If you are going to conclude the whole Rikti conflict (in the comic book sense, since nothing in comics ever really ends, it just "ends") then I would add at least one Rikti Archetype as an optional player class, like Arachnose soldiers. (I know pie in the sky, devs are people not slaves chained to desks coding for this free to play game.)

 

Not that I see either happening. But if you want to throw out pipe dream content then dream big. Maybe make the Rikti, and their associated ATs be a third (4th? Is Praetorian a faction?) faction.

 

 

[Vanden]

On 1/20/2020 at 5:19 PM, Bentley Berkeley said:

For example Rully wasnt actually basically a galactus stand in and was someone that did what later they had Wade try to do, a mortal being who somehow was able to absorb entire dimensions worth of energy, very lame terribad idea to be the origin of the being and why it was never made official))

There’s nothing in the game that says that Rularuu’s original backstory isn’t still canon.

[Alchemystic]

The Shadow Shard is indeed in need of an overhaul.

 

I think after the events in the story regarding Darrin Wade, I think there would definitely be more incentive for villains to get involved in keeping Rulaaru at bay, or perhaps trying to steal a fraction of his power for their own. Inviting them into the Shadow Shard would kill two birds with one stone; it helps recreate or reinvent the numerous hazard zones as the original dev team had planned, while also allowing for more villain content.

 

I think the best way to do this would be to change all the soldiers there into Vanguard Sorcerers, and establishing a larger base of operations alike the one in the RWZ. After that, we open up a select number of arcs to villains, though we'll keep some of them hero only of course, and add villain specific ones too.

 

Then its all a matter of adding a mothership raid style event to the zones, perhaps one that rotates throughout the 4 shadow shard zones, requiring you to battle it a number of 4 times to complete it.