Paragon City in 2021

[JesterCanuck]

Speculation thread here folks.

 

The history of Paragon City goes to 2002. Some events would have occurred after. The Council defeating the 5th Column, the Shivan Meteor destroying Galaxy City, repairs started on Faultline, and a few character developments.

 

Imagining if CoH were a modern MMO like World of Warcraft and evolved with a new expansion every two years. If Paragon Studios had Blizzard's phasing technology and such. Of if it were a "real" city or living setting. that could change over time.
Zones changes, characters grew older or died, and the storyline moved on.

 

What do you think would have happened in those twelve years?

 

Personally, I always thought Perez Park and Dark Astoria should have been cleaned up. Countess Crey would have been jailed and someone else taken over Crey Industries. Maybe a few of the damaged zones rebuilt.

[iBot]

I think Arachnos would have continued to expand operations and started to impact more of the "hero" zones.  New factions would arise to make up the purple types to give rogues and vigilanties more things to do.  And of course there has to be the next "unstoppable" threat that all would need to band together to give it our all to defeat.  Gains would need to be made on both fronts red and blue in order to maintain chaos that gives us all things to do.  Any resolution would result in the end of the story which no one wants.  More powerful character result in more power foes appearing.  So pretty much the typical comic book tropes from the last what 50 or 60 years 👍

[Blackbird71]

Why does it have to be 2021 (or real-world 2021 equivalent) in Paragon City?  I've never understood the need to tie fictional worlds represented in media (whether games, TVs, etc.) to the real life progression of time.  Doing so limits the stories that can be told as threads are lost and time passes in the game world while we're busy juggling reality.

[Greycat]

59 minutes ago, iBot said:

I think Arachnos would have continued to expand operations and started to impact more of the "hero" zones.

 

... or, since Paragon had this thing of "we want writers to explore their own ideas, not complete old ones," one of the writers thinks how silly it is for a little island to forcefully hold territory in the US and the Isles is taken over by a combined military/meta force, driving Arachnos underground. LR is only seen in propaganda (until later levels,) but since Ghost Widow still exists, you know Arachnos isn't gone...

 

Boomtown's slowly getting rebuilt. But the edges are still a veritable war zone.

 

There's a Rikti enclave in the city - not the war zone, though Vanguard has a presence as well. The Traditionalists are working to redeem the image of the Rikti, providing technical and medical advances while trying to ensure the Restructurists / Lineage of War don't start another assault. The Restructurists realize the mothership and that area are just a bottle waiting to be corked and occasionally pop up elsewhere.

 

DA gets de-Motted (current zone moved to Echo status,) but instead of going back to just-plain-Astoria there's so much negative mystic energy, misery and pain that it becomes the new location of City Hall a new political party's home the focus of a new high end group focused on using that energy to twist the world in ways that would make the BP blush.

 

We'd get to see more of the world, both in terms of new locations (Egypt - Gadzul Oil, Blood of the Black Stream) and being able to *see* it (moon/space environments.) Egypt, at least, becomes  a new starting zone option for both heroes and villains. (And no segregation - start off as a hero/egypt, you can hop over for a Synapse, then hop back to finish your story arcs, for instance.)

[CienFuegos]

Cimeroa and Croatoa grow giant monsters. a second tf in Cimeroa is against a team of Romulus the warshade infests 7 Avs and in Croatoa the pumpkin vs red cap arm war begins and the zone is invaded by COT 

[Darmian]

I've said this lots of times elsewhere.  After Red Widow's return and Statesman's death, Lord Recluse reforms (as in realigns internally rather than going heroic) Arachnos and the Etoile Islands.  Pull back troops from Siren's Call. Retakes Bloody Bay and  Warburg, now that Blitz is out of the picture, as full red side zones, and officially hands over control to "Prime Minister" Daos.   Apart from appearances in existing TFs/SFs we shouldn't see him at all.  Where is he?  Who knows? MYSTERY!

 

Arachnos reforming and being more like a "real" government might give more agency to players on Redside too.  Longbow kicked out of Mercy due to this new realpolitik by order of a negotiated UN decision.

 

Praetoria.  A few loose ends to tidy up there.  None of which should involve Cole donning Statesman's costume, what a stupid idea.  Mechanically - but it would piss off badgers - I'd remove the 1 -20 sections of Praetoria from all TUNNEL access and have the entrance to it from First Ward sealed to non Praetorians (like the alignment doors in PD).  In this case non-Praetorians includes Praetorians who crossed over to Primal.  I'd also lock the Gold side ouro missions of 1 - 20 so only Praetorians who have not crossed over can do them.  Again, that would piss off badgers.

 

Kallisti!!!  That's what we're waiting for!!

 

 

Edited June 16, 2021 by Darmian

[JesterCanuck]

2 hours ago, Blackbird71 said:

Why does it have to be 2021 (or real-world 2021 equivalent) in Paragon City?  I've never understood the need to tie fictional worlds represented in media (whether games, TVs, etc.) to the real life progression of time.  Doing so limits the stories that can be told as threads are lost and time passes in the game world while we're busy juggling reality.

 

Copying from something I wrote elsewhere: this is for a real world project.

I'm a tabletop roleplaying game player. And there was a newly announce Marvel roleplaying game. With a public playtest in like 10 months.

 

I like me some superhero games but only half my players care about Marvel and it'd be neat to allow them to do their own thing. And I realized I could probably set it in Paragon City. I’m a fan and it’d be easy to sit them down in front of the character generator for making costumes. 

 

And then I started wondering how the setting would have changed. Because I need a summer project, and don't know when to stop, I realized it'd be easy to bash together a setting guide to Paragon City. A City of Heroes RPG powered by the Marvel Multiverse Roleplaying Game.
And it’d be neat to evolve the setting from where we left off...

 

[merrypessimist]

2 hours ago, CienFuegos said:

Cimeroa and Croatoa grow giant monsters. a second tf in Cimeroa is against a team of Romulus the warshade infests 7 Avs and in Croatoa the pumpkin vs red cap arm war begins and the zone is invaded by COT 

 

Croatoa already has two native giant monsters.  There's also arguably a Cimeroan one, but it only shows up during one of the Incarnate story arcs. I forget which one offhand but it's the one that explains how the Sentinel arrived in Paragon, IIRC.

[arcane]

Perez Park would definitely be a tent city covered with needles and poop by now.

[Rumors]

-Old AMA mentioned the middle of Perez Park being lifted into the sky by Incarnate-tier Circle of Thorns.  The edges/streets of the park were going to remain the same level as is.  That'd be pretty cool

 

-Galaxy City as a (high level) hazard zone.  Maybe home to a Shivan giant monster?  Definitely should be some storyline there, probably involving Battalion.  A PvP zone would make sense too, but PvP is pretty niche. 

 

-There was supposed to show down with Praetorian Hamidon to cap Praetorian content off, but the devs were skipping that to go to Battalion due to people tired of Praetoria.  Which... kinda lame when you're right at the end and just cutting the ending off.  So, Praetorian Hamidon showdown!  Maybe make it the high level Gold-side zone too so gold-siders can 1 to 50 without AE or going Red/Blue.

 

-I have a feeling a lot of older cast would be steadily offed, whether by death or other effects, to make room for the player characters to shine and do everything as the various characters had their arcs concluded.  Some would definitely stay though, likely the popular ones like Manticore.  You can definitely see the transition in newer content, especially at high level.  You ain't doing things that's beneath Positron's notice, Positron is doing things that are beneath your notice.

[Techwright]

23 minutes ago, arcane said:

Perez Park would definitely be a tent city covered with needles and poop by now.

 

I'm not so sure of that, though I see the (dark) humor in that.  With CoT and Vahz in the area, anyone in a tent city looks like a grocery.

 

One thing I do see is the potential for disillusionment in the ranks of the heroes.  A seemingly never-ending fight to control a surge of crime in the city will wear some to the point of exhaustion and bad choices.  I could see a rise in vigilantes, heroes losing hope and feeling they need to take actions with more...permanent...consequences to reign in the chaos.  I also see the potential for certain groups to begin watching for these fallen and open negotiations for recruiting them into the ranks.  Maybe not to go against heroes, which they'd likely balk at, but helping watch the back of certain organizations from Arachnos and other challengers.   Propaganda stating the elimination of many rivals benefits all might be a powerful tool for manipulating those who want to see at least some notable progress.   

[CienFuegos]

I would have thought by now red side would have a lvl 8 to 15 strike force  and a 35+ tf 

[Xiddo]

They’d have to build a new prison at some point. Can you imagine the conditions in bricks. People must be furious there. I reckon it’d be built in new Boomtown (repaired).

 

Hero 1 is reformed. Becomes a pacifist. Takes over from Miss Lib in Atlas. She’s goes a bit like manticore, publicly in charge of a slightly more militarised LB but also a more cut-throat and hidden Wyvern. Doing what has to be done.

The Rikti chill out so vanguard are in Galaxy fighting the shivans. Meanwhile manticore leaves after what happens to Psyche.

Port Corps incursions that STICKS. One of those big portals blows, so there’s an event where something breaches and we have to fight it back. BaB is sent there to help contain it, giving him a new home.

 

Architect Entertainment shut down for tax evasion.

 

 

[Marshal_General]

21 hours ago, merrypessimist said:

 

Croatoa already has two native giant monsters.  There's also arguably a Cimeroan one, but it only shows up during one of the Incarnate story arcs. I forget which one offhand but it's the one that explains how the Sentinel arrived in Paragon, IIRC.

The Kraken though it is more Lusca than the PP kraken or sewer kraken.

[Darmian]

People, a thought, and it is just a thought so bear with me.  What if, I repeat what IF the devs were to decide that it's not 2021 in CoX?  Suppose it's, I dunno - oh, had another thought, someone poke me about that later - 2013 or 2014? Tops?  My thinking is setting the timeline back a bit gives them a lot more control over when things happen next and they can literally plan the "next year" or "next two years" out well, rather than stumbling into 2021/2022, like someone with a bag over their head and falliing over stuff.

[huang3721]

This is my head canon for Praetoria. In a decade or so, they have successfully isolated Hamidon, similar to what the primals has done to their Hamidon. Keep in mind that those guys who elected to stay are made up from Resistance members, IDF and Powers Divisions. If mere citizens can survive under Marauder, imagine what those guys can do under a good leadership. Cole was right afterall. Divided we fall.

 

In a couple of years, they would improve Metronome's digitization process and Neuron's cloning technology, making them nearly immortals. Once they has fixed their problem at home, they would probably turn their attention to the primal praetorians.

 

For those who abandon their brothers to Devouring Earth and traitors who invited death to their doorstep, it's payback time. 

[Rishidian]

22 hours ago, Darmian said:

People, a thought, and it is just a thought so bear with me.  What if, I repeat what IF the devs were to decide that it's not 2021 in CoX?  Suppose it's, I dunno - oh, had another thought, someone poke me about that later - 2013 or 2014? Tops?  My thinking is setting the timeline back a bit gives them a lot more control over when things happen next and they can literally plan the "next year" or "next two years" out well, rather than stumbling into 2021/2022, like someone with a bag over their head and falliing over stuff.

Maybe they can reverse the power creep.

Maybe they can UnNerf Regen.

Maybe they can uncover all the Nemesis Plots

--Only to find there never was any - and that Statesman was behind it all

[Greycat]

On 6/17/2021 at 7:28 PM, Darmian said:

People, a thought, and it is just a thought so bear with me.  What if, I repeat what IF the devs were to decide that it's not 2021 in CoX?  Suppose it's, I dunno - oh, had another thought, someone poke me about that later - 2013 or 2014? Tops?  My thinking is setting the timeline back a bit gives them a lot more control over when things happen next and they can literally plan the "next year" or "next two years" out well, rather than stumbling into 2021/2022, like someone with a bag over their head and falliing over stuff.

 

This post came to mind when I was messing around with an AE, actually. Time in the Cities - especially with the 'missing years' - is strange. It may not matter to people who just want to smash stuff if it's 2012, 2021 or 2112 "in game" (which is a perfectly fine approach to take - it's a game, enjoy it,) but on the RPer and lore side it kind of caused a bit of chaos as people tried to unofficially handle it. Some people didn't care. Some people tried to pick up like the "missing time" didn't happen. Some tried to explain what happened (from "snaps" to "well, I did stuff," to ... well, as many explanations as there are RPers.)

 

What ended up bringing it to mind was a reference to orphans from the loss of Galaxy - which we only had for about a year pre-sunset, but "now" would be nearly a decade ago. Which TBH doesn't really affect *that* story as much, but makes things like the crowds of people in Atlas asking desperately for information on when they can go back and looking for information on loved ones seem *odd.*

 

So, with both those in mind, here's a thought. Instead of trying to fill in the gaps of "What happened for that decade," why don't we tweak the timeline and bring some of those events *forward* instead? Space out some of the later canonical events to fill in time, given we don't have the dev team to actually *create* that much content or fit that many events in. Find some events that make sense to do it, figure out *when* it would make sense for these to happen and just tweak the years they happened in. Then develop the rest of the timeline (and new content/tweaked content) from there.

[Blackbird71]

14 hours ago, Greycat said:

 

This post came to mind when I was messing around with an AE, actually. Time in the Cities - especially with the 'missing years' - is strange. It may not matter to people who just want to smash stuff if it's 2012, 2021 or 2112 "in game" (which is a perfectly fine approach to take - it's a game, enjoy it,) but on the RPer and lore side it kind of caused a bit of chaos as people tried to unofficially handle it. Some people didn't care. Some people tried to pick up like the "missing time" didn't happen. Some tried to explain what happened (from "snaps" to "well, I did stuff," to ... well, as many explanations as there are RPers.)

 

What ended up bringing it to mind was a reference to orphans from the loss of Galaxy - which we only had for about a year pre-sunset, but "now" would be nearly a decade ago. Which TBH doesn't really affect *that* story as much, but makes things like the crowds of people in Atlas asking desperately for information on when they can go back and looking for information on loved ones seem *odd.*

 

So, with both those in mind, here's a thought. Instead of trying to fill in the gaps of "What happened for that decade," why don't we tweak the timeline and bring some of those events *forward* instead? Space out some of the later canonical events to fill in time, given we don't have the dev team to actually *create* that much content or fit that many events in. Find some events that make sense to do it, figure out *when* it would make sense for these to happen and just tweak the years they happened in. Then develop the rest of the timeline (and new content/tweaked content) from there.

 

I've been in SGs that did just this, and it worked very well for maintaining cohesive lore with the current state of the game.

Of course, it put things at odds with the RP community at large - as you point out, there is no uniform way of handling the missing years, and it often creates confusion when you have two characters, one for whom Galaxy City was a decade ago, and the other for whom it was last week (to say nothing of the ones for whom GC was "in another universe that winked out of existence and everyone escaped to this one").  Usually this stuff can be hand-waved, but it can still be annoying.

Oh well, I suppose that's one benefit of playing in a comic book world - continuity means next to nothing.