Double exp as a new player?

[Road]

This one facet alone makes me not want to play... and I don't know why.

 

I do want to.. just knowing could get levels faster at the tradeoff of not getting currency sticks in the back of my mind.

 

So it is worth taking right?

[Lunar Ronin]

Personal opinion: I'd advise leveling normally and skipping the XP boosters for the first couple of characters, just so you get more exposure to the game and learn it.  Unlike post-World of Warcraft MMOGs, City of Heroes is not an "endgame"-oriented MMOG thankfully.  It's about the journey.  Once you have a couple of characters under your belt and are more familiar with the game, then by all means use the XP boosters.

 

Of course, the ultimate decision is yours, but that's my two cents.

[Snarky]

It is “usually” not a financial decision.  Nothing is until you're broke…

 

almost everyone here will advise you, as you learn, to stay away from 2xp boosters 

[Six-Six]

depends on what you want to accomplish.

the inf you earn from the regular grind is negligible. that's unless you craft recipes, convert and play the market... which is another game on its own. That said, by the time you're 50, the game is practically throwing inf at you.

if you want to get enough powers to join the thick of things like Task/Strike forces, then power levelling + xp boost is the way to go.

if you prefer the content, then you'll feel that the regular levelling rate is too fast, and you'll want to turn xp off every now and then so you don't out-level contacts and missions. (a lot of low-level ones are really good.

the regular (slow) grind isn't that slow. you'll be level 10 in about an hour without rushing. level 20 in a day or two. things slow down onwards unless you raise the difficulty. The benefit is you learn how to use your powers better and git actually gud. Sure there are frustrating times that you just don't have enough powers or enough slots, but personally, I think that's part of the fun. 

but at the end of the day, it's a personal choice. while one way isn't wrong or better than the other, It shouldn't be a default. Just because you want to doesn't mean the other guy does as well--or just because the other guy wants it, doesn't mean you have to suffer for it.

[MoonSheep]

9 hours ago, Lunar Ronin said:

Personal opinion: I'd advise leveling normally and skipping the XP boosters for the first couple of characters, just so you get more exposure to the game and learn it.  Unlike post-World of Warcraft MMOGs, City of Heroes is not an "endgame"-oriented MMOG thankfully.  It's about the journey. 

 

i agree. a lot of the early content such as Posi 1 and 2 below lvl 20 is some of the best content in the game anyway 

 

there’s a lot to learn in the game. i’ve been playing for 20 years and still learn new things 

[tidge]

If someone is a really new player I can't imagine wanting to get (low level) XP faster... the starter zone content will get a solo player to level 10 with almost no effort... and I find that I run the risk of missing zones like Port Oakes, the Hollows or Kings Row even without extra XP. There are some fundamental things to learn early, like zone travel and travel powers.

[Ukase]

Opinions are certainly going to vary. Since I'm not new, and the game has changed a fair amount since HC opened the doors, almost making it a bit of a different game from retail, in some ways, I get to feel like a new player. 

Because once a month or so, I make a character (or three) that have to level up organically, starting from zero with no help from alts, I think I'm in a good position to answer this. 

No. Don't take 2xp. The reason why has nothing to do with the influence that you lose. It has more to do with the powers you've chosen, and how you might use them in game to keep from getting clobbered too often. Getting defeated happens. Many players laugh it off, which I guess is good, but a small number of those players have no idea how or why they got defeated, and never figure out how to avoid that from happening again. I'm not in the majority with my perspective, so please don't take my way as the only way or best way, it's just a way. 

Have fun while you're playing, but learn about your character. For every hour you spend in the costume creator, you might want to give equal time to looking at the powers you have available, and how best to use them. The problem is - as a new player, you really don't know what the npcs you'll face are capable of until you face them. And that is the rub that 2xp can rob you of. It gives your character experience while taking experience away from you, the player. 

It's useful to learn that Circle of Thorns have accuracy debuffs, defense debuffs, sleeps, holds, and a number of other challenges to overcome if you face a group of them. 
It's useful to learn that some npcs just slowly approach you, shake and then explode. 
It's useful to learn a lot of things in the game, and 2xp can rob you of those lessons. 

Now, a lot of us more experienced players - we've learned the lessons, and some folks even have the dialogue memorized and enjoy impersonating the sound of Molly Ephraim's voice when they recite dialogue from certain cut scenes. Amusing to hear, really. Alas, I was sworn to secrecy. But I digress. 

Don't take it. After you've been through the content a few times, then feel free to take it. At least then you're making more of an informed decision. 

[gameboy1234]

I'd give different advice.  When Torchbarer was just first opened, XP boosters where basically all I did.  Later, I thought that I could make more toons and run the through the story.  So I think if the XP seems like something you want to try, do it.  Get it out of your system.  Get a high level Tanker and Brute and Scrapper and Dom to play around with.  Later when you feel that you actually want to, you can look at the story as it progresses through the various zones.

 

 

[biostem]

11 hours ago, Road said:

This one facet alone makes me not want to play... and I don't know why.

 

I do want to.. just knowing could get levels faster at the tradeoff of not getting currency sticks in the back of my mind.

 

So it is worth taking right?

The amount of influence/infamy/information you get in the lower levels is far lower than once you get to 50, and there are other ways to earn that currency besides from enemy defeats.  That being said, if you don't like it, don't use it.  I'm not sure why a purely optional and voluntary feature would put you off so much...

[Scarlet Shocker]

Much of the answer that works for you is going to depend on your own goals and personal playstyle

 

If you're soloing, XP boots "take the edge off" the levelling process. If you team, they do the same but you typically get more XP simply by dint of being able to knock down more enemies in a given time frame. 

 

As others have pointed out, Inf gain is negligible (I don't usually start filling slots until close to 20 unless something useful actually drops) just vending everything that comes my way. 

 

My own preference is to not use an XP boost, or at least only use a little one (25% or 50% max) but sometimes I do use 100%ers, for example when I am already familiar with the powers and style of a particular alt and I just need to get to Level X. 

 

Some of the lower level content is outstanding and well worth playing through as intended and an XP Boost can break that experience. 

 

The main reason for not using XP boosts is because you might get to 50 very quickly and then discover you don't know anything about the game.  

[MTeague]

In the six years I've played since 2019, I have never used a single 2 XP booster deliberately. 

The one time I accidentially popped one, I immediatially went into options and selected "No XP".

 

It is stupidly easy to level super-fast even without any bonus XP / patrol XP. And if that's really what people want, OK, knock youself out.  I guess I picked up some parts of my outlook from EverQuest and WoW's early years, and feel like levelling should take a long time, and that I should experiance several phases of a character's life as they gradually grow in power, and that anything else is cheating myself, denying myself the lessons needed to play the character properly. Which, intellectually, I know that doesn't hold true in CoH. But the back my mind will not let that go.

[WuTang]

15 hours ago, Road said:

This one facet alone makes me not want to play... and I don't know why.

 

I do want to.. just knowing could get levels faster at the tradeoff of not getting currency sticks in the back of my mind.

 

So it is worth taking right?

 

I've ran 2xp since day 1. The first thing I do after I make a character is load up on 8 full hours of the stuff. The last thing I do before I log out is replenish it. Rinse and repeat until 50, which I've done in 2 days without power leveling....sort of....after lvl 35 hop into a +4/8 ITF and technically your just along for the ride.

 

I've slow rolled a couple to 20 something and yes the stories are worth it, but that's not my thing really.

 

The "lost" inf from the 2x xp boost is seriously just a drop in the bucket. One run in an ITF after 50 and you'll earn more than you would've from 1-49 any ways. Influence or Infamy is super easy to accumulate after 50.

 

I say boost yoself! Get loads of inf socked away then slow roll you a toon to 50. This way you can gear the slow roller with all the best and it'll be less of a slog.

 

Just my 2 inf....

[MonteCarla]

Do you want to play Batman or X-Men? 🙂

In other words, are you planning to do as much as you can on one main character, or explore all the possible powersets and archetypes and see what you like?

 

If you're playing X-Men style, grab the 2xXP booster.