Full list of Villain content?

[Sou1catcher]

I want to grind my way through All of the Villain content. I understand that this will require that I turn XP off through a very decent sized portion of my career.

 

Where can I find a list of all the Villain side Content with Level indicators so I know when to turn XP Off/On?

[Snarky]

I have not found one.  I do this about once a year.  I turn off exp to do so.  I keep a handwritten log (updated each run) that guides me.  The current one I am working off of is 5 1/2 pages long.  It was generated by clicking on each contact in the Villain contacts, writing down name, level range, who they introduce, how to unlock.  Special notes like Arachnos VEAT contact, SSA contact, Strike Force contact etc.  

 

In my mind someday I will put this on an excel spreadsheet.  But I do love pen and paper.  Very tactile.  I have done some drawing and painting.  I even write stories a little better with a honest notebook than on the computer.  Sigh.  So old lol.

[Greycat]

https://hcwiki.cityofheroes.dev/wiki/Category:Villain_Contacts

 

Also available by clicking "More" and picking "unofficial homecoming wiki."

[TerroirNoir]

Thanks for all this.  Appreciate it.

[Snarky]

Sorry for the stains, photo quality, and the wear and tear of unlife. These things bounce around my crypt forever.

 

[TerroirNoir]

How long have you had those?

[Snarky]

My current run is slightly more organized, leaves off VEAT, and only has 1-29 covered....

[Snarky]

2 minutes ago, TerroirNoir said:

How long have you had those?

I think those date to my first run back through on live....2-3 years ago?

 

[TerroirNoir]

1 minute ago, Snarky said:

I think those date to my first run back through on live....2-3 years ago?

 

So they will later go in your Presidential Library?

[Snarky]

lol.  I said Live but I meant Homecoming.  Undead life?  Life again?  Anyways, yes, these should be enshrined.  Then sold lol

[TerroirNoir]

Like that Wu-Tang Clan album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin!

[Sou1catcher]

2 hours ago, Snarky said:

I have not found one.  I do this about once a year.  I turn off exp to do so.  I keep a handwritten log (updated each run) that guides me.  The current one I am working off of is 5 1/2 pages long.  It was generated by clicking on each contact in the Villain contacts, writing down name, level range, who they introduce, how to unlock.  Special notes like Arachnos VEAT contact, SSA contact, Strike Force contact etc.  

 

In my mind someday I will put this on an excel spreadsheet.  But I do love pen and paper.  Very tactile.  I have done some drawing and painting.  I even write stories a little better with a honest notebook than on the computer.  Sigh.  So old lol.

@SnarkyDid you go Rogue and also grab all the Blue/Gold Exploration badges?

Edited August 20, 2021 by Sou1catcher

[Neiska]

@Snarky - I am surprised you don't type that up in case you misplace it, also easier to share if you decide to. But well done, I keep game logs too about my experiments, tests, ideas, and theorycrafting.

[ZemX]

I'm not keeping a log or anything, but what has worked passably well for me is just keeping the hcwiki page for each villain zone I am working up in a browser.  The page for each zone lists contacts, including unlockable contacts, and their ranges.

 

One thing to be aware of: Sometimes the level range listed for a given contact spans several story arcs which each have their own limited level ranges.  This is the case for Dr. Graves in Mercy, for example.  He's listed as 5-19 on the Mercy Island page but clicking over to his own page reveals his three arcs are 5-9, 10-14, and 15-19.  If you miss his 5-9 arc, you end up having to do all three in Flashback... which is what happened to me.  Lesson learned.

 

Anyway, for example: https://hcwiki.cityofheroes.dev/wiki/Mercy_Island

 

Looking at this you know to do Kalinda and Burke first, stopping XP at 4 if necessary.  Then Kuzmin, stopping at 7 (by the way, the followup choice here is either/or.  Recommend FireWire  while you're leveling and then Webber in flashback to avoid a certain issue with a contact disappearing later... but this is the only situation I ran into redside like that).  While it's possible to finish an arc once you've started it, even if you exceed its level range, resist that temptation unless you know it's the last arc of the last contact in that level range.  I missed Billy Heck's second arc in Port Oakes this way and had to Flashback it as well.

 

You can occasionally check your progress in Ouroboros to note if any arcs are not complete.  This covers just the story arcs and not the side missions.  Each contact often has some series of side missions that are little more than Newspaper-ish style one-offs.  I still do them, but they're a bit of a chore for no real payoff in story/lore, so if you know from the wiki that you've done the story arcs, and none of the one-off missions have a badge, they are pretty skippable.  

 

This is another good guide but it only lists arcs the author thought of as worthwhile.

Still... worth looking at for the zone progression at least and hints about where to pause XP.  Also gives a nice macro button for toggling XP.

[Snarky]

1 hour ago, Sou1catcher said:

@SnarkyDid you go Rogue and also grab all the Blue/Gold Exploration badges?

For my current run yes.  I am also going to be doing all Gold mission badges and alignment badges as well as Blue mission badges in Ouro. All TF SF and Trial badges.  On this run also doing all First Ward and Night Ward.  Running 25-29 content now.  Almost done Red stuff then start Blue/Gold. 702 badges

[TerroirNoir]

1 hour ago, ZemX said:

I'm not keeping a log or anything, but what has worked passably well for me is just keeping the hcwiki page for each villain zone I am working up in a browser.  The page for each zone lists contacts, including unlockable contacts, and their ranges.

 

One thing to be aware of: Sometimes the level range listed for a given contact spans several story arcs which each have their own limited level ranges.  This is the case for Dr. Graves in Mercy, for example.  He's listed as 5-19 on the Mercy Island page but clicking over to his own page reveals his three arcs are 5-9, 10-14, and 15-19.  If you miss his 5-9 arc, you end up having to do all three in Flashback... which is what happened to me.  Lesson learned.

 

Anyway, for example: https://hcwiki.cityofheroes.dev/wiki/Mercy_Island

 

Looking at this you know to do Kalinda and Burke first, stopping XP at 4 if necessary.  Then Kuzmin, stopping at 7 (by the way, the followup choice here is either/or.  Recommend FireWire  while you're leveling and then Webber in flashback to avoid a certain issue with a contact disappearing later... but this is the only situation I ran into redside like that).  While it's possible to finish an arc once you've started it, even if you exceed its level range, resist that temptation unless you know it's the last arc of the last contact in that level range.  I missed Billy Heck's second arc in Port Oakes this way and had to Flashback it as well.

 

You can occasionally check your progress in Ouroboros to note if any arcs are not complete.  This covers just the story arcs and not the side missions.  Each contact often has some series of side missions that are little more than Newspaper-ish style one-offs.  I still do them, but they're a bit of a chore for no real payoff in story/lore, so if you know from the wiki that you've done the story arcs, and none of the one-off missions have a badge, they are pretty skippable.  

 

This is another good guide but it only lists arcs the author thought of as worthwhile.

Still... worth looking at for the zone progression at least and hints about where to pause XP.  Also gives a nice macro button for toggling XP.

Oh good stuff!  Thanks for this!

[A Cat]

Redside has it so hard they have to steal their guides from the Circle of Thorns. 

[Mezmera]

You want a detailed list of what us villains get up to?  Hmmm

 

I'll pass along the word to Westin Phipps that you're looking for some action, he's a good guy, has some great whisky, make sure to drink your fill...

[Mezmera]

4 hours ago, Snarky said:

Sorry for the stains, photo quality, and the wear and tear of unlife. These things bounce around my crypt forever.

 

 

Holy hell is that the ancient Nosferatu texts?  

 

Before reading these remember you'll need to recite "Klaatu, Barada, Nikto" or you'll doom us all.  

[A Cat]

"You finally relax. You feel the magical energies recede back into your core and the magical flames in your fists die down into a smoulder. The blue rocks of the cave are painted red with the blood of those foolish mages and their acolytes, which you slew by the dozen. NOTHING will stop you from your prize. Your snake-like eyes spot it in the darkness: a lone dias, heavily eroded by the sands of time, and an ancient codex upon it. Contrasting with the ruined but dignified dias, the tome was a savage work. You know from your research that it contained the insane scribblings of a mad man, a blind hermit who wrote on pages bound with his own flayed skin with ink made of his own blood. As you took hold of the moldering book, almost as if by an invisible interloper, the pages flung open with a suddeness that startled even you. You feel as if you were possessed by a demon. Even though every part of your being tried to avert your eyes, you could not help but devour the dread and incomprehensible letters within. Finally, as you feel the hot talons of madness sink deeply into your mind, the understanding flashes for a moment into your subconscious: Efficiency Master Pither, 45-50 Grandville."

Edited August 20, 2021 by A Cat

[Zhym]

8 hours ago, ZemX said:

This is another good guide but it only lists arcs the author thought of as worthwhile.

That guide, plus the HC Wiki, is what I used when I ran through every redside contact.  There are few enough contacts per zone, and the zones (with a couple of exceptions) progress by level pretty cleanly, so all you really need to do is load the wiki page for each zone when you're at the appropriate levels to see the list of contacts.  The Mean Missions Guide is good at highlighting where you'll want to pause your XP at various stages.

[ZemX]

Don't forget to watch the right amount of Television!

[TraumaTrain]

God bless you, @Snarky

[TerroirNoir]

On 8/21/2021 at 3:31 AM, ZemX said:

Don't forget to watch the right amount of Television!

That's a mixed bunch of people watching that television!

[TombTyrant]

You have no idea.