Seriously: Alt-itis, What To Do? A Discussion on Self-Control

[MTeague]

8 hours ago, tripthicket said:

At the risk of poking the bear, with all those alts, is there any archetype you haven't played yet, maybe because you didn't think you would like it, or it looked too complicated, or something?

...

• I have not yet played a Warshade, but I have a Peacebringer. 
• I have not yet played a Soldier of Arachnos, but I have a Widow.

I've tried at least one of every other Archtype.  I don't have them all to 50 or anything, but most are in the middle-sy range.

 

the Peacebringer is one of few I have still at lvl 10 because Void Hunters cause the Nerdrage.  I know it won't stay bad for the long haul.  But it's making the early levels difficult.

This is compounded by another quirk of how I play the game. 

 

I tend to solo MOST of the first 20 levels on all my characters, to "earn their stripes", as it were. In the VERY screwed-up place that is my own personal thought process, if you're going to be a hero, you should be able to handle some basic missions and come into your own power without a team.  And for a villain, oh heck ya, you need to build up your own personal street cred.  Maybe the villain doesn't have to prove he's the baddest man in the whole damn town, but I like to have my villains demonstrate their own personal capacity for destruction before joining a regular running group.

 

[tripthicket]

Teaming, yeah. As I've said, I do run on teams, but I've noticed something. Maybe it was this way back on Live, maybe it's just Homecoming's particular atmosphere, maybe it's my fevered imagination. But the teams I run on (DFBs, PUGs, MSRs, mostly) seem to seldom function as a team. It's a group of soloists on the same mission. DFB: run through, bam bam bam, some small strategy to achieve the Vazh boss badge, but that's about it, and I don't really pay attention to what others are doing. PUGs: (especially radios) run through, let the tank/acting tank take the alpha, then bam bam bam, on to the next group, pew pew pew, stomp on the last boss, done, pull up the next mission. MSRs: here is lots more strategy involved, but it's on rails, 'cause you do a mothership raid the same way -- pylons/follow the crowd, shields DOWN/plant bombs, into the BOWL, U'Kon's DOWN, BAM BAM BAM PEW PEW PEW HEAL HEAL HEAL, a big spammy sometimes-confusing mess until the timer runs out.

 

Prolly another by-product of me doing the same ol' stuff over and over and over. Maybe I'm just a soloist who happens to be running with a team; maybe I'm the only one not paying attention. With my new toon, leveling slow, I'm planning to learn all the Task Forces so I won't be shy about joining any of them because of my current ignorance. Already I've gotten merits from 2 mission arcs that I don't believe I've run before, plus a new badge from one that I know my other, Sentinel main doesn't have.

 

Another thing I'd like to do is start/run teams, rather than waiting for someone else. Hopefully learning the ins and outs of the various TFs will help with this. For this, I'd be fighting my own reclusive nature, which personal change is always fun, and never hard to do. 😁

[Oubliette_Red]

On 5/8/2020 at 11:59 AM, Greycat said:

I don't, because I generally don't care about "builds." I don't try to perma-this or softcap-that. My builds tend to be "organic" - slots go where they go when I get them with what it looks like I need now or in the near future. Yes, sometimes there's a set in mind, but not a grand overall plan.

 

I have tried "builds" a time or two and it just never felt like *my* character, no matter how much I played them.

Same here. Putting all that effort into creating a build for a character seems like work to me and not fun at all. I've looked at other's builds that are posted if they mach my set combination but more often than not they will have Pool powers selected for what they can slot in them and it's not always a simple thing to swap out what works for my character vs what they've chosen.

[Hexquisite]

There is no cure. There is no self-control

 

There is only giving in.

 

Yesterday, I went to make an alt. I ended up making three.

 

There is only giving in.

[Coyotedancer]

11 hours ago, ArchVileTerror said:

Arachnos Soldiers and Widows are fantastic.  
Kheldians . . . meh.  I've made one of each, and have barely touched them.  The shapeshifting is a cool concept, but overall the Archetype is creatively very stifling, and overall I find the Archetypes have very little in the way of reward for my playstyle preferences.

 

Might I recommend a human-only rather than a shifter? (Says the person with the human-only/perma-lightform/"photonic sentinel" PB-as-Heliomancer-mage character)

 

 

Edited May 10, 2020 by Coyotedancer

[ArchVileTerror]

I've done both builds.  Felt pretty meh on both; not enough Cool Factor for human forms, and too much finickiness with Enhancement Slots for shifters.  At least for me.  I know other people enjoy Kheldians just fine, so I won't push for much in the way of changes to them.

[Twisted Toon]

I have a tri-form PB.

 

Unfortunately, it's stalled in the early 40s at the moment. I'm kinda digging my Grav/Time Controller.

[WanderingAries]

FILL ALL THE SLOTS!!!!! :p

[tripthicket]

1 minute ago, WanderingAries said:

FILL ALL THE SLOTS!!!!! 😛

Winnah

 

/thread

[CaptTastic]

The test server helped my altitis. 
 

Process back in the day:

 

Step 1: Idea

I would think up some combination of powers, either based upon a character concept or game mechanics, or just because I’d never tried a particular power set or some such. 
 

Step 2: Theory

This is when the idea would get a theoretical design in Mids so I could see the numbers. 
 

Step 3: Levelling 

If the theory stage looked good, I’d make the character and level it. Some levelled quick, some slow. Some were abandoned as I didn’t like how they played. 
 

Step 4: Implementing the theory

At level 50, I’d respec them into the build I’d made for them on Mids. Sometimes the theory would work in practice, sometimes not. Sometimes it would exceed my expectations. But it was only at this point where I knew if the playstyle and feel of the toon would capture me. 
 

Step 5: Repetition

Whether I loved the finished product, hated it, or it never even reached that stage, sooner or later I’d move onto another idea and start it all over again. 
 

Ultimately, it was all hinging on Step 4. All that work, all that time, all that grinding. And it always cake down to the same intangible: how a character felt endgame. As brilliant as Mids is, it could never tell me that. 
 

Homecoming though have allowed a crucial extra stage to it though. Now it goes:

 

Stage 1: Idea

Stage 2: Theory

 

Stage 3: Testing 

Load up the Test server and build the toon you designed in Mids. Get a feel for it there and learn what was previously intangible. It’s not infallible, as you can’t really learn how they’ll feel in teams etc or iTrials, or events and so on. It does tend to tell you if it’s a dud though. If it’s good, move on to levelling, implementation, and repetition. If it’s not, return to stage 1. 
 

It’s definitely not a cure for altitis, more of a process to streamline it and boost its efficiency! I wouldn’t want to cure it either. Alts are awesome. Don’t alt less, just alt smarter! Then you can alt even more 😂

Edited May 13, 2020 by CaptTastic

[Oubliette_Red]

Regarding altitis... on Legacy I had 121 characters and 14 level 50's, I've not been so prolific on HC (yet) with about 30 characters and 3 level 50's. Granted, it's only been a year.

 

 

😄

[MTeague]

Hm...  "Self Control".... is that a new powerset for Controllers and Dominators?

[lemming]

Let's see.   I am up to 42 characters.  One just started that I'm not entirely sure on (oh dang, just thought of another one...)

So far, 19 are level 50s.   I have seven sentinals just because they were new and shiny and trying out the power sets.

Only one stalker.   No defenders (I like corrupters a little more), but I'm more a melee player)

 

I tend to power level my guys a bit usually to 22, outfit with generic IOs, but then go back and do various task forces, etc...

 

My main who is my badger makes all the IOs, but I don't bother much with sets until they hit 50 and I can figure out their build. 😄

[ArchVileTerror]

What kind of Powers would there be in the Self Control Set?

Like . . . wh- what even . . . how . . . *brain starts to melt*

[lemming]

Oh on Live, I had at least 10-20 chars per server, though I think I cut down to about 80 near the end.

[lemming]

15 minutes ago, ArchVileTerror said:

What kind of Powers would there be in the Self Control Set?

Like . . . wh- what even . . . how . . . *brain starts to melt*

Well, for Scrappers and other melee types, something pops up when you're about to Leroy Jenkins asking "Are you sure?"

[Twisted Toon]

15 hours ago, lemming said:

Well, for Scrappers and other melee types, something pops up when you're about to Leroy Jenkins asking "Are you sure?"

I'm sorry, that would be disable for scrappers. Can't scrapper-lock with an annoying window popping up every 30 seconds.

[ILIWAPCT]

On 5/8/2020 at 12:02 PM, tripthicket said:

Almost all of these characters are based upon some build I found on these forums, like @Redlynne's No-Get-Hitsu Tank. 

Back on live, COV went from being just a game to "The Game of All Time" when I read about Permanent Domination on the forums.

Next the forum's led me to try AT's that I would never imagine enjoying. That lead to a synergy, for example playing a Brute gave me insights on different approaches to my Dominator which lead to insights to my MM etc. Iron sharping Iron.

 

It's a game. Your suppose to have fun. Every one of my alts is baptized in Break Out. It's the journey, not the destination 50, to create the alt that fits my play-style like a glove.  

 

One way I've helped restrain myself from getting carried away when inspiration hits is to limit 1 new alt a day. 

[EmmySky]

Slight thread necro but.....

 

ZOMG

 

I just made three new baby toons.  One for each side.  I have no self control.  I am up to...um...87 now. 

 

My 50s are languishing, most without incarnates beyond Alpha T4.  I think I would feel better if every 50 had all T4 incarnate so they can be 'complete' but as it stands now I kinda feel like I am lacking follow through.  I am always starting project but rarely finishing them.  Le sigh.

 

Happy alting!  😁

Edited May 28, 2020 by EmmySky
Auto correct will be the death of me!

[Greycat]

8 minutes ago, EmmySky said:

My 50s are languishing, most without incarnates beyond Alpha T4.  I think I would feel better if every 50 had all T4 incarnate so they can be 'complete' but as it stands now I kinda feel like I am lacking follow through.  I am always starting project but rarely finishing them.  Le sigh.

 

 

Pfft. It's called preventing burnout. You can jump around all sorts of levels and deal with different content.

[Coyotedancer]

57 minutes ago, EmmySky said:

My 50s are languishing, most without incarnates beyond Alpha T4.  I think I would feel better if every 50 had all T4 incarnate so they can be 'complete' but as it stands now I kinda feel like I am lacking follow through.  I am always starting project but rarely finishing them.  Le sigh.

 

Happy alting!  😁

 

Eh. My particular favorites are the only ones who get across-the-board T4s over here. (So... at this point 5 of the ones that I consider "finished" 50s, including Harry-) 

 

Everyone else? I aim for T3s in all their slots, and only build T4s if they happen to get purple iBit drops somewhere along the way. Typically that means they end up with about an even mix of T3 and T4 powers... Although a few have been unlucky and never got any VR bits at all. They still have all T3s. 

 

Unless you're into power-building or playing at the raw, bleeding edge, T3s are more than good enough for... anything, really. So don't stress. XD

 

 

Edited May 28, 2020 by Coyotedancer

[EmmySky]

So I am up to an even 100 as of tonight.  😁😥

[ImpousVileTerror]

Congratulations, Emmy!  

I believe in you, though.  I believe you can take this ALL THE WAY TO 5,000!

[MTeague]

Dammmmmn.  I'm still at 34 characters.  I need to stop fussing over whether or not I have "overlapping powersets", etc and just Make Moar Alts.

[DrInfernus]

My Altitis is a mere audition process. I want one top performing character for three roles: A damage dealer, support, and a meat shield. Currently they are:

 

Damage Dealer: Fire/EM blaster

Support: Cold/water defender

Meat Shield: SS/Invul brute

 

My time in game is split between playing those three and levelling other combos and characters. If I find one I like more, they knock one off the above roster and take their place. 
 

I do try to give a new 50 that I THINK I love, or could love, a 1000-merit road test though. I’ll know for sure after 1000 merits of content.