After My First Arc: Some Questions and Suggestions

[madpoet67]

So, I finished my first Arc (posted details in another thread), and though I think I have things pretty well figured out, I do have a few questions... or maybe suggestions...

 

Question

 

The only thing I know I've seen in other arcs I've played that I couldn't figure out is enemy population. I've run MA arcs where it seems enemies are crawling all over the place... but when I create mine, there are vast stretches with nothing at all to fight.

 

Is there a way, author side, to increase enemy population?

 

Suggestions

 

These are things that I wanted to do but couldn't figure out how. I call them suggestion because I think being able to do them would make MA so much better. But there may BE a way to do them that I somehow missed.

 

1. I wish there was a way to "speak to" the final boss before combat. Even if it just means making the boss untargetable until he finishes saying what he has to say. (and more room to have him say things). I know the workaround is to use the mission complete clue or the return to contact text to pull the old, "When you defeated X, he said..." But that's just clunky. This is a superhero game, after all. What's a supervillian if he or she can't monologue.

 

2. I wish there was a way to place specific mobs in specific locations. It would be cool if you could place a boss on a raised area with his "guards" in a line in front of him instead of the boss spawning randomly with his guards all standing 30 ft away and looking in the opposite direction.

 

I'm sure, as I progress, I'll think of more things that I "wish" I could do. I am a writer after all (Hense the snazzy forum handle). Telling stories is what I do for a living. MA gives me another outlet for that... and it's pretty good, but from a storytelling perspective, it could be better (or maybe it is and I haven't figured it out yet).

 

Trust me, I know what makes a good story... I'm a professional ;D...

 

PS: What is the benefit of restricting an arc to a specific level range?

 

 

[Eva Destruction]

Some maps are more densely populated than others.  And some objectives, such as "Fight a boss" and I believe "Destroy an object" use up a spawn point.  I think patrols do too.  You can add some enemies by adding some objectives that have their own separate spawn points, I think rescues and "defend an object", and making them not required for mission complete, but otherwise, no.

 

The other two things would absolutely be nice to have, but unfortunately we don't have them.  Being able to talk to critters inside a mission was implemented fairly late in the game, after the devs had given up on AE aside from breaking things in their futile game of whack-a-mole with farms, so we didn't get those tools.

 

PS: the benefit of restricting an arc to a specific level range is that critters are balanced for specific level ranges, and if you use custom critters, they should be too.  A critter that is an appropriate challenge for a level 30 character would stomp all over a lowbie.  If you're just using standard critters, it looks nice and neat to have all your missions the same level range even if some missions contain enemies with a wider range, and since AE will auto-sidekick or exemp the player to the level of the mission, players will stay the same level throughout your arc.