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401

New Powers (disclaimer–info may be a little off):
Archery[ul][li]Snap Shot - Single Target []Aimed Shot - Single Target, Improved Damage []Fistful of Arrows - Cone []Blazing Arrow - Lethal/Fire DoT []Aim []Explosive Arrow - Targetted AoE, Fire []Ranged Shot - Snipe []Stunning Shot - Disorient []Rain of Arrows - AoE[][/ul][/li]
Trick Arrow[ul][li]Entangling Arrow - Immobilize, -Recharge []Ice Arrow - Hold, -Recharge []Glue Arrow - AoE, Slow []Flash Arrow - AoE, Blind []Poison Gas Arrow - AoE Weaken (some will be rendered helpless) []Acid Arrow - DoT, -Def []Disruption Arrow - AoE, -Res []Oil Slick Arrow - AoE, Knockdown, Can be ignited! []EMP Arrow - AoE Hold, End Drain[/ul][/li]
Sonic Blast[ul][li]Shriek - Single Target, Minor Damage, -Res []Scream - Moderate DoT, -Res []Howl - High Dmg, Short Range []Shockwave - Cone, Knockdown, Minor Dmg []Shout - High Dmg, -Res []Amplify (Aim) []Siren’s Song - AoE, Sleep, Minor Dmg []Screech - Disorient, Minor Dmg []Dreadful Wail - PBAoE, Extreme Dmg, End Drain[/ul][/li]
**Sonic Debuff **[ul][li]Sonic Barrier - Ally, Smash/Lethal/Toxic Resist []Sonic Haven - Ally, Fire/Cold/Energy/Negative Resist, Stacks with Barrier []Sonic Cage - Intagible []Sonic Siphon - Foe -Res []Disruption Field - AoE -Res around targeted ally []Clarity - Cure Disorient/Holds/Sleep/Confuse/Terror/Immobilize. Improves with level []Sonic Repulsion - Targeted Ally, Bounce Shield (Force Field) []Sonic Dispersion - Bubble, +Res (All -Psi), Immobilize, Disorient, Hold protection Liquify - Earthquake[/ul][/li]
From the “What the Hell Are They Thinking?” Department:

Powers - General
[ul][li]Controllers will do double damage to a target (non pvp) that is Immobilized, Disoriented, Slept or Held. Increasing the non-Pet damage potential of all Controllers. This change is intended to give them a more balanced and even game-play experience throughout all of their levels.[/li][li]Controller AoE Holds, Disorients and Sleeps (and a few others like Quicksand and Ice Slick) recharge times have been doubled and duration cut in half. AoE Immobilize and Phase Shift powers were not affected. Volcanic Gasses duration was not affected. Game balance change due to the new increased damage of Controllers.[/li][li]Controller Pets (and Defender/Dark Miasma/Dark Servant) can no longer stack. That is, casting these summon powers before your pet has expired will remove the old pets and spawn new ones. Illusion Control/Phantasm can still summon multiple decoys. Fire Control/Fire Imps now always summons 3 Imps at your level. Illusion Control/Phantom Army now always summons 3 Decoys. Pet powers were never intended to have multiple instances out at once. Due to the change in the power, we removed the randomness in the number of pets you get with Fire Imps and Phantom Army.[/ul][/li]
**Powers - Global Defense Decrease **
In order to facilitate a more balanced game for the higher level characters (Level 25 and up), the defensive abilities of several powersets has been adjusted so that they are more in line with one another. Lieutenant, Boss, and Elite Boss villains have had their To Hit values reduced accordingly to work with these defensive changes.

[ul][li]Reduced all Archetypes’ base ability with Damage Resistance and Defense powers.[/li][li]Reduced Defense rating of Force Field powers (Deflection Shield, Insulation Shield and Dispersion Bubble).[/li][li]Reduced Defense bonus from Pool/Concealment/Stealth. Defense bonus suppresses if you attack.[/li][li]Reduced Defense bonus from Pool/Flight/Hover (and Kheldian Combat Flight).[/li][li]Reduced Damage Resistance bonus from Pool/Fighting/Tough. Increased its Endurance Cost.[/li][li]Reduced Defense bonus from Pool/Fighting/Weave. Increased its Endurance Cost.[/li][li]Reduced Defense bonus from Pool/Leadership/Maneuvers.[/li][li]Reduced Defense bonus from Pool/Leaping/Combat Jumping.[/li][li]Increased the Recharge Time and Decreased the duration of Pool/Presence/Invoke Panic.[/li][li]Pool/Speed/Hasten no longer buffs Defense.[/li][li]Reduced Ice Armor/Frozen Armor Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Ice Armor/Wet Ice Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Ice Armor/Glacial Armor Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Ice Armor/Energy Absorption Defense Bonus and set its max number of affected targets to 14. Added an Endurance Buff to the Caster for each affected target. [/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Temporary Invulnerability Damage resistance bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Resist Physical Damage resistance bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Resist Elements Damage resistance bonus. Added resistance to Toxic.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Resist Energies Damage resistance bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Unyielding Damage resistance bonus. Increased its Defense debuff.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Invincibility Defense and Accuracy bonus. Increased its max number of affected targets to 14.[/li][li]Reduced Invulnerability/Tough Hide Defense bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Stone Armor/Rock Armor Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Stone Armor/Brimstone Armor Damage Resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Stone Armor/Crystal Armor Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Stone Armor/Mineral Armor Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Dark Armor/Cloak of Darkness Defense bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Super Reflexes/Focused Fighting Defense buff.[/li][li]Reduced Super Reflexes/Focused Senses Defense buff.[/li][li]Reduced Dark Miasma/Shadow Fall defense bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Storm Summoning/Steamy Mist Defense Bonus.[/li][li]Set some of Illusion Control/Superior Invisibility Defense bonus to suppress if you attack. Reduced its overall Defense bonus.[/li][li]Reduced defense bonus of Illusion Control/Group Invisibility.[/li][li]Increased Ancillary Pool/Force Mastery/Force of Nature recharge time.[/li][li]Reduced Ancillary Pool/Psionic Mastery/Mind Over Body damage resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Ancillary Pool/Electric Mastery/Charged Armor damage resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Ancillary Pool/Munitions Mastery/Body Armor damage resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Umbral Aura/Absorption damage resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Umbral Aura/Shadow Cloak Defense bonus.[/li][li]Reduced Luminous Aura/Incandescence damage resistance.[/li][li]Reduced Defense and Damage Resistance values of defensive Temporary Powers appropriately based on above changes.[/ul][/li]
Powers - Villains

[ul][li]Reduced Lt. Accuracy (ToHit). This is to limit the severity of defensive adjustments made to some powersets.[/li][li]Reduced Boss Accuracy (ToHit). This is to limit the severity of defensive adjustments made to some powersets.[/li]Reduced Elite Boss Accuracy (ToHit). This is to limit the severity of defensive adjustments made to some powersets[/ul]

402

Wait, wait, wait, EMP Arrow? So they took the Radiation Emission EMP, and allowed you to center it on an opponent at range?

No fair. It was always dramatic to have Gassius Clay teleport into the middle of a pack and trigger his EMP. An arrow is so … so … gauche.

On the other hand, last night I formed TASK FORCE MONKEY and successfully earned the Zookeeper badge. Tonight I intend to get the Vanguard accolade to add to the collection.

403

I’m going to stay far away from the official boards for awhile. I can ‘understand’ the changes, though I don’t necessarily agree with them.

They’re reducing accuracy likely because of blasters. We’re a real squishy lot, often as soon as we are hit, we are dead. With accuracy reduced so that the one AT with no defense in any powerset has some survivability, defenses across the board had to be adjusted or the easy just got even easier. I rarely play my blaster unless some non-blaster needs someone purely for damage purposes.

The second controller change sucks BIG TIME. Even with double damage (2*0 = 0), I won’t be able to do the one thing I’m expected to do…lock down opponents. I’m guessing, since enemies often use the same powers, this is more in response to PCs being affected by holds and mezzes. Otherwise, it makes no sense. Slotting controller powers is a choice…lockdown or damage. Now we’ll just be blaster-lites. Lockdown with damage, but more potential to be faceplanted.

404

So this is officialyl the Issue of the Nerf, eh? I’m not even going to attempt to read the offical baords, seeing as 90% of all posts/threads will be,

“Why am I nerfed so freakin bad!! It’s not fair!”

Of course, my main alt (a level 29 Fire/Ice tanker) is barely effected. Her defense/resistance is down from the nerf of ALL AT’s, and will benefit from reduced accuracy of villains, but none of her powers were affected.

405

Sounds like there is a new Accolate that is tied to Croatoa badges. Collect all the badges in the new zone and you’ll have access to a witch’s hat costume piece.

406

Dooom!!!

I’m not sure I like the second Controller change either.

I like the new Blaster “Defiance” power, especially now that the numbers are out.

407

I’m unhappy about 80% of it.

408

I can see it now.

“Hit me”
“Again”
“One more time, not too hard”

“Great, NOVA!”
Taunt now effects only 5 people. Lots of kvetching about that. “Punch-voke” is the same, which I read to include all inherent taunts, but that’s not explicitly said. This could be an issue in larger groups, or a reason to have more than one tank. Hopefully these taunts stack, so it would be:

5 Invincibility
5 Whirling hands
5 Taunt
15 Total taunted.

I don’t play on test, so I won’t know. Actually, going forward I’m only going to have weekends. :frowning:

409

Just noticed a couple of other things in the announcement:

[quote]
(italics mine)
**Mission Customization **

[ul][li] Many existing missions have been updated with hostage escorts, friendly heroes who fight by your side, villain wave attacks and more.[/ul][/li][/quote]
I wonder how that works. Reminds me of the Barbarians in the Diablo II expansion.

[quote]
**Updated Zone: The Shadow Shard **

[ul][li]Shadow Shard Maps show the location of each Jump Pad. A dotted line connects the Jump Pad with its end point. [/li][li]A teleporter on Firebase Zulu takes players to any of the other three zones in the Shadow Shard (works both ways). [/li][li]Dr. Scott Wachhorst, a prominent xenobiologist and Portal Corp. leader, willingly purchases Enhancements from players in Firebase Zulu. [/li][li]A renegade Brute, Kallarn, purchases Enhancements with the hope that he might gain enough power to overthrow Ruladak. It can be found in the Cascades. [/li][li]Slarrah, a Wisp who has been converted by Faathim the Kind relieves players of excess Enhancements in the Chantry. [/li][li]Nameless Mystic. An interdimensional mystic feeds off the energy kicked off by the dreaded Lanaru. He happily accepts Enhancements. Found lurking near the Storm Palace.[/ul][/li]
**Updated Zone: Rikti Crash Site **

[ul][li]The military controls a teleporter in Peregrine Island that connects to one in the entrance of the Rikti Crash Site. Heroes can go back and forth from this point. [/li][li]Col. Barry Woodhouse works for Military Intelligence, gathering info on the Rikti activities. Players can sell excess Enhancements to him.[/ul][/li][/quote]
That’s going to help the higher level toons.

[quote]
(italics mine)
Experience System Changes

[ul][li]No experience debt until level 10. [/li][li]Half experience debt in missions. [/li][li]Experience awards for defeating enemies level 25+ increased.[/ul][/li][/quote]
Interesting. This goes hand-in-hand with the global defense decrease.

410

Aha! Now I see why people are blaming Dreck farmers.

411

I’m not. But I’ve been around long enough to know that any balancing will always be treated with huge cries of “Nerf! Bad Devs!” Reduced defense and reduced accuracy go hand-in-hand. They increased survivability for usually-defenseless blasters with (hopefully) not changing it too much on others.

Blasters get hit point increases and scrappers get damage increases. My beloved SR scrapper gets a defense increase with Evasion (which, if mob accuracy is decreased, probably isn’t necessary). Instant Healing gets “nerfed”, but I don’t have experience with that. Maybe it will work better as a click power, maybe not. It will definitely work differently, but I don’t view differently as inherently worse. Controllers got rightly nerfed post-32; I don’t know how the pre-32 ‘bonus’ will stack up, but I don’t like it on the surface.

AVs get harder (their accuracy is not affected). Not a bad thing in my book.

412

All AoE powers have been adjusted, as now they are capped as to how many mobs they can affect (buffs are not affected). No more pulling an entire zone into a trash bin and hitting Nova. The big AoE attacks cap at 16, other powers have different caps.

413

Most of it’s gibberish to me. :confused:

So controllers will have more damage? That could be a good thing (though as D_Odds said, 2 x 0 is still 0 ), because in my experience soloing controllers is near impossible. I barely play my earth/storm controller for that reason; he’s just not fun. What’s more, his AOE’s make him an instant target for the entire mob, so using them is tantamount to committing suicide. On a team, that’s slightly less of a problem, but still a big one. And now his primary function on a team is being hobbled? Doesn’t bode well.

What does “nerf” mean? You dang kids and your slang.

414

Only when the target is held by them, and holds are being tested with half the duration and twice the recharge time.

415

“Kid”? Guess you don’t know who you are talking to, son. "Nerf"ing a power means reducing its effectiveness in some way.

I don’t know how the controller changes will play out. I never solo my controller, so I don’t see this as a good thing. I remain open-minded, though.

I knew…I just knew…I shouldn’t have clicked on any threads on the CoH boards, but I wanted some idea how the changes were playing out. I’ll have to fight the urge. The knee-jerk reaction on game boards makes the Pit seem slow and deliberate.

416

Minions didn’t get an accuracy reduction. If they had, I’d be happier. Taunt capped at five? Feh. Why bother? For my five most played of the five basic archetypes, it stacks up like this :

Controller - Extremely unhappy.
Tanker - Mildly unhappy.
Scrapper - Meh.
Blaster - Happy.
Defender - Extremely unhappy. Like my bubbles weren’t useless enough.

Bottom line : At the baseline challenge level of CoH as it stands on the live servers, I have only a little fun. More with some archetypes, less with others. With the exception of the Blaster, it sounds like I’ll now be having less fun.

417

Blasters are getting a new Epic Pool:

Electric Mastery
[ul][li]Static Discharge: Ranged (Cone), Moderate DMG(Energy), -END [/li][li]Shocking Bolt: Ranged, Minor DoT(Energy), Foe Hold, -END [/li][li]Charged Armor: Toggle: Self +Res(Smash, Lethal, Energy) [/li]EM Pulse: PBAoE, Foe Doisorient, -END, -Regen, Special vs. Robots; Self -Recovery [/ul]

418

States-ment: http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=Dev&Number=3263859&bodyprev=#Post3263859

419

How much of this is setting up for City of Villians, I wonder.

Doesn’t affect me much. I still have an account but probably haven’t logged in for about six months… I probably should just drop it.

420

The response on that thread with regard to the changes is 99.9% negative…with the other .01% being “try it and see.” About what I expected. My initial reaction was “This is gonna suck”, and I know nothing about programming OR gaming - this is my first and only MMORPG. Which in a way makes me more qualified to judge these things. If I think it’s a bad idea, it must be, right? :wink: The techincal aspects are over my head and I don’t pay attention to them anyway (stuff like percentages of damage/buffs/whatever), and I don’t adhere to the “recommended” builds. I think any build for any archetype and powerset should be playable, based on how I want to play. I choose powers that I think would be fun or useful, and enhance what I want enhanced based on my experiences using those powers. Basically, I wing it, and that should be fine. This is a game, not a PhD thesis.

I haven’t played my controllers much, but I think I would be content with less damage if I felt I was making a contribution to my team by holding the foes. Well, so much for that.