The first fight test, memories from live.

[Snarky]

One thing stands out about old Redside live.  You join a PUG and load into a mission.  If you can handle the first group you will be okay.  Some tricky areas of the map you may need strategy to pull and the last fight will include a boss/EB/AV.  But if you could handle the first group you would prob be okay. If your team is struggling on that first fight just bail.  Villains gotta be careful.

 

The modern game is just more lopsided.  Either we steamroll everything or you get an hour into a 2-4 star and just get stuck.  

[Solvernia]

Just ran a patron arc at 35 last night and the experience was identical to what you're talking about. Turns out a full team of controllers/dominators/corruptors is pretty squishy if you're not careful. If we tried to just steamroll everything mindlessly we died, but with a bit of tactics and coherency we were able to succeed.

 

You can still play the game the 'old way'. Or any way you want. It's really up to you.

Edited March 29 by Solvernia

[MoonSheep]

the game could do with some refreshed mission dyamics - more ambushes that move faster, perhaps also an event that makes 1 selected person the target of all attacks until something is defeated 

[cranebump]

Bosses that do something besides stand there and take it. I was in an AE mission not long ago, where Dracula speed-boosted or something, and just flew around like all over the place, occasionally passing by to hammer my arse with an attack. He had Elude popped (I was told), so, man-oh-man-oh-man, was that a tussle. You had to close with him in an office complex, and he doesn't bump into walls like you do. It was a bear, but it was fun. Anything that makes players move is nice.

[Snarky]

31 minutes ago, cranebump said:

 Anything that makes players move is nice.

I do not use target macros. Maybe I should.  But writing one for every thing I want to attack and keeping track of them is more than I want to do.  I use the game interface as it is 99% time.

 

Soooooo  in the Dr Aeon where the boss flies all over the place through hundreds of Goldbrickers in a warehouse?  Yeah, I rarely hit that bitch.  So, sure, make the bosses fly.  Hell, make them pop in and out of extra dimensional space.  Or attack us from under the floor.  But I do not run the Aeon much.  Once I get the badges for this years toon (hopefully soon) I may never run it again.  BECAUSE IT SUCKS.

[cranebump]

19 minutes ago, Snarky said:

I do not use target macros. Maybe I should.  But writing one for every thing I want to attack and keeping track of them is more than I want to do.  I use the game interface as it is 99% time.

 

Soooooo  in the Dr Aeon where the boss flies all over the place through hundreds of Goldbrickers in a warehouse?  Yeah, I rarely hit that bitch.  So, sure, make the bosses fly.  Hell, make them pop in and out of extra dimensional space.  Or attack us from under the floor.  But I do not run the Aeon much.  Once I get the badges for this years toon (hopefully soon) I may never run it again.  BECAUSE IT SUCKS.

I think if it's something relegated to mainly BB's, it'd be okay. One thing's for sure-the ability to lay down a hold, or knock someone out the sky has some value added in these cases.

[EmperorSteele]

6 hours ago, Snarky said:

Soooooo  in the Dr Aeon where the boss flies all over the place through hundreds of Goldbrickers in a warehouse?  Yeah, I rarely hit that bitch.  So, sure, make the bosses fly.  Hell, make them pop in and out of extra dimensional space.  Or attack us from under the floor.  But I do not run the Aeon much.  Once I get the badges for this years toon (hopefully soon) I may never run it again.  BECAUSE IT SUCKS.

 

I'm confused, do you mean the mission on the boat?

 

You know she doesn't "fly all over the place", right? She has three specific spots she flies to, predictably at 75/50/25% heath (or tries to, anyway, mezzes and debuffs can muck her up). Two of those times will have her fly through an ambush that intercepts the players.

 

It's not that much of a challenge =)

[Snarky]

19 minutes ago, EmperorSteele said:

 

I'm confused, do you mean the mission on the boat?

 

You know she doesn't "fly all over the place", right? She has three specific spots she flies to, predictably at 75/50/25% heath (or tries to, anyway, mezzes and debuffs can muck her up). Two of those times will have her fly through an ambush that intercepts the players.

 

It's not that much of a challenge 😃

I am doing it a lot now, and I see that.  But when I started doing it I was a carry for the first? #runs (a lot)  I also target through the tank if we have one.  Just ran one and it was ....okay.  And i have run this thing 40-60 times?  Well at least 30 and less than 100....  Granted, I am not good at stuff until I am comfortable.  too OCD.  But this F-er has not been fun for me.  At all.  

 

So...yeah for new content.  Built for a game this never was....  

 

Oh, and Brutes?  Really suck in there.  The small difference in armor between a Tank and a Brute is huge in this type of content.  The ability for a Tank to hard cap 100 on resists plays a big role. 

 

Big Edit: what do i mean hardcap 100 resist.  yes, Brutes and Tanks cap at 90% res.  But Resists is it's own Res Debuff Defense.  So 100 gives an unreduceable Resistance value, always 90%.  Brutes achieve this WAY less often than Tanks.  And the Goldbrickers do resistance debuff.

 

So, on top of everything else I do not like about Aeon it took a cheap shot at Brutes nutsack on the way out.  Because this Dev staff wants a Tank and a bunch of Corr.  Not a Brute, other squishies, meh, okay, not optimal.  But a Brute?  Let's just buff the Tank some more... More AoE this time?  Or maybe increase the ST damage mechanic this time around?

Edited March 30 by Snarky

[Zect]

I think the sheer prevalence of mindless steamrolling has led to many basic skills being atrophied, such that when those rare situations crop up where a modicum of strategy and thoughtfulness are required, the playerbase fails to perform, even though this is objectively an extremely easy game.

 

When I say basic skills, I don't mean designing builds in mids or speedrunning TF's. I mean things like

• following a player around the map
• being aware of whether you are with the team or alone
• reading and obeying simple chat directions ("come to me"/"stay put"/"fly")
• using a specific power when directed or on cooldown

I am reminded of one kill-most MLTF I did where I was playing an illusion controller. The tank bragged that they were very geared and should be able to tank lord Recluse easy. They arrived at the towers, and Lord Recluse instantly turned the tank into a red smear with his channelgun while I cackled in glee. Can I just say - I love debuffs, and I love watching heroes getting humiliated.

 

Anyway, I instantly concocted a solution to get us out of this debacle. I was levelling (hence my presence on a kill-most TF) and did not have my purples slotted for perma-PA. However, there was one other illusion troller on the team. If we could alternate using PA, we could tank Recluse indefinitely despite neither of us having perma-PA. However I was either unable to effectively communicate this concept to them or they were not intelligent enough to comprehend it. If they would just use their PA after mine, when I verbally told them to, we could complete the TF. Alas, they did not, and we did not, and somehow, that team invented a way by which infinitely, instantly respawning superhumans may still fail a mission.

 

I still remember that encounter fondly as one of the precious few times the game stood up, grew a backbone, and said to the players: "No; that is not good enough. You do not pass; there will be no reward; you must do better."

[Snarky]

1 hour ago, Zect said:

I think the sheer prevalence of mindless steamrolling has led to many basic skills being atrophied, such that when those rare situations crop up where a modicum of strategy and thoughtfulness are required, the playerbase fails to perform, even though this is objectively an extremely easy game.

 

When I say basic skills, I don't mean designing builds in mids or speedrunning TF's. I mean things like

• following a player around the map
• being aware of whether you are with the team or alone
• reading and obeying simple chat directions ("come to me"/"stay put"/"fly")
• using a specific power when directed or on cooldown

I am reminded of one kill-most MLTF I did where I was playing an illusion controller. The tank bragged that they were very geared and should be able to tank lord Recluse easy. They arrived at the towers, and Lord Recluse instantly turned the tank into a red smear with his channelgun while I cackled in glee. Can I just say - I love debuffs, and I love watching heroes getting humiliated.

 

Anyway, I instantly concocted a solution to get us out of this debacle. I was levelling (hence my presence on a kill-most TF) and did not have my purples slotted for perma-PA. However, there was one other illusion troller on the team. If we could alternate using PA, we could tank Recluse indefinitely despite neither of us having perma-PA. However I was either unable to effectively communicate this concept to them or they were not intelligent enough to comprehend it. If they would just use their PA after mine, when I verbally told them to, we could complete the TF. Alas, they did not, and we did not, and somehow, that team invented a way by which infinitely, instantly respawning superhumans may still fail a mission.

 

I still remember that encounter fondly as one of the precious few times the game stood up, grew a backbone, and said to the players: "No; that is not good enough. You do not pass; there will be no reward; you must do better."

This is why I am enjoying my Corruptor this year.  Honestly it would be hard to go back to melee now.  I can sit at deaths door and ignore my health.  Because 90% time i will not drop, complete what i am doing, and heal in two attacks to full.  If i drop i have a rez with stun.  I can heal anyone.  I click on them and get near then hit team heal.  If they are dying and way split i tp them to me.  Heal and/or rez them.  I debuff everything at the start of a fight.  I ST problems (surgeons and end drainers and such) I AoE in the cheap section of Blaster (which is a nice neighborhood) i do all of these things better around teammates because I alleviate many of their concerns and help maximize their efforts.  Basically i am an overpowered MM and the team are my minions….   So much more powerful than eating the Alpha and smashing stuff as a Brute.  Oh…I have also figured out how to eat the Alpha in 95%+ of content… combo of stuns and debuffs.   Then i go through PBAoE ghetto Blaster attack chain

Edited March 30 by Snarky

[InvaderStych]

11 hours ago, Snarky said:

Oh, and Brutes?  Really suck in there.  The small difference in armor between a Tank and a Brute is huge in this type of content.  The ability for a Tank to hard cap 100 on resists plays a big role. 

 

Big Edit: what do i mean hardcap 100 resist.  yes, Brutes and Tanks cap at 90% res.  But Resists is it's own Res Debuff Defense.  So 100 gives an unreduceable Resistance value, always 90%.  Brutes achieve this WAY less often than Tanks.  And the Goldbrickers do resistance debuff.

 

Eliminate the Smelters first. They are stacking Melt Armor as their opening volley.  The Rifters go second. Their -Res grenades are patches that can be avoided.

 

Don't bring fire damage, Brickers have high resistance to it.  Had to give up on my solo 1* run with my new Stalker because of the resists to Fire.  Too much of a pain to solo it that way. Psi/SD scrappy solo'd 1* during Beta. Difficult, but not in a bad way.