Calm down on the vigilante/rogue restricted storylines

[PresidentDSG]

This is something I've been mulling on for a while.

 

Homecoming has added a lot of story arcs at this point, and of them only the Piecemeal storylines have not been Rogue/Vigilante locked. (And the Aeon SF technically I guess, but it's a TF)

 

Can we cool down on that in the future? I know like 99.99% of characters are rogue/vigilante anyway, and the shades of grey etc etc is intoxicating area to explore, but there's quite a few pure blue or pure red characters who are locked out of the new content unless they get a vigilante/rogue buddy to start the storylines for them. I feel like you can still put vigilante/rogue options in a storyline without forcing people to be a mid alignment to do the quest at all.

[Rudra]

14 minutes ago, Rigged said:

 

Why are you totally derailing the OP with a completely unrelated suggestion? Your ridiculous digression has forced every reply to this thread to be all about you now. Go make your own damn thread.

 

 

 

OP: I think it would be nice to have more blueside/redside content which is available to both the graysiders and the exclusives. The best compromise might be moral options for rogues/vigilantes to pursue their preferred brand of morality, a lot like the later live story arc content.

Could also make some exclusive Hero and Villain arcs too.

 

Edit: For instance, maybe a villain-only arc from Arachnos to investigate why so many of their operations were not only compromised, but shut down in response to the Sgt. Schorr arc. Why use character villains? Same reason Marshall Brass uses the characters to investigate Dr. Aeon. They need a free agent to go and avoid revealing their involvement and vulnerability. Or perhaps they need a not known Arachnos member to infiltrate Wyvern as a "rogue" (only pretend) to investigate how Sgt. Schorr pulled off those missions.

Edited May 4, 2023 by Rudra
Edited to correct spelling of "exclusive".

[FupDup]

We should balance it out with pure blue and pure red story arcs so that there's some small gameplay reason (besides character concept) to not be Vig/Rog on every character. 

[Rigged]

3 minutes ago, Rudra said:

Could also make some exclusive Hero and Villain arcs too.

 

I mean I don't object to that at all, but like I said, it's a possible compromise.

 

What I do think is that maybe HC should create a "Implement this AE arc officially" thread, where community members can suggest the really well-written arcs to be put in game. Not every new HC arc has to have unique maps. It would encourage people to create real AE story content rather than farms. And HC can review the suggested arcs, decide if there are any balance issues, and put the mission givers in the open world.

 

I am sure people will ask, "What is the point of putting it in the world when you can just highlight them in AE?" Several reasons:

 

1) AE's implementation by the Live devs creates the illusion of a VR game and degrades the "realism" of the arc. For people who care about their character's story this matters. The AE building itself also loses something in the organic contact recommendation system.

2) AE has poor xp rewards except when exploited for farming, discouraging people from trying the content. Yes I know you don't mind. But people do. Obviously HC will check the balance equation of the story to make sure the arc is not filled with farm-abusable enemies, and can implement balance changes of their own before publishing.

3) AE has poor uptake outside of farming, partly because of farming. This makes discovery of good arcs relatively hard for newbies.

4) Currently the main way good new arcs are discovered is through community recommendation, but many players do not read the forums/discord to see them. This lets the best AE arcs reach more people.

5) It allows especially talented writers to make their mark on our server world. With HC's permission, they may even be allowed to expand the now-dead metaplot. HC can recruit writers that are really good for their own metaplot. With respect, nothing is truly official anymore, and the best this server can have is "HC official".

6) More story content in each Page will very likely improve player retention.

7) We can finally add more stuff to Kallisti Wharf. The intentions of the Live devs for that zone may never be realized, but the prettiest zone in Paragon City is sadly underused.