Since Champions Online is still a new game, there are very few resources out there to get information. I've made it very clear that I tend to read the forums. When I do, I stick with the Combat and Powers forum, because it has a lot of great information in the game and helps people think about things that haven't been done before.
But it is just as much win as it is whine. And the problem is that it becomes very difficult to discern the good from the bad, even for a Developer/Community Leader standpoint. It's got to the point that Goryus posted a thread about the
uselessness of the forum, since Dev's don't respond.
Daeke got involved and put a stop to that and started doing a (not quite) automated response saying "I got it, stop yelling." So we know they're out there. Here are a few tricks in order to get Daeke (and the other CLs) to extract your posts from the noise floor.
1. Do a Search for your Topic
Someone may have already hit the nail on the head in another post that got buried 3 pages back. By responding to that post you not only bring it back to the front, but you add ammunition as another witness to what's happening.
2. Be Clear and Concise
If you have a true concern, write the statement clearly and be to the point. Talk about how a power is not working or overworked. Don't tell us how many games of BASH you won with that one skill, don't tell us how many people use it in duals, don't tell us how you are going to quit the game if we don't deal with it. If it's just the facts, it's easier for people to respond intelligently rather than them flaming you and telling you "Pics or it didn't happen."
3. If you Have a Suggested Fix, Wait to Post It.
This may seem counter intuitive, but this way others can see your bug and test it and report. If they don't see the same thing, maybe your travel power was on, maybe something was unequipped, etc. Better yet, if someone comes up with the same fix, then it's
two independent people who came up with it. Much more power (even though you won't have credit should they use the fix). You want a better game, not a bigger f-peen (the F is for forum, you animals).
4. Avoid Immediate Bumping
Stuff gets lost when the forum updates faster than people TP out of holds in PvP. If it's been 10 minutes and no one has responded, give it a second. Wait at least an hour and say something intelligent like "I didn't see any other posts on this and it may have been lost in the noise. Has anyone seen this?" instead of "I GUESS I'M THE ONLY ONE THAT WANTS THIS SKILL FIXT LOL." Once people get used to searching, this should be less of a problem.
5. Avoid Ad Hominim Attacks
Trolls live under bridges, but there's nothing to do down there. They will inevitably rise up and visit your thread. Don't get smarmy, don't get angry, just ignore them. They are complete attention whores, so ignoring them is the best thing you can do. And if your original post was kind of smarmy, it's kind of justified for them to come back at you. Remember, it's the internet and odds are good the other guy lives in his parent's basement.
6. Compare Situations Intelligently
In this game, you need to use 'like' powers to give credence to scaling. Do not say
Circle of Primal Dominion is fine because the rest of the set is trash, because everyone can cherry pick. Don't say
Ego Blade Breach is better than
Reaper's Caress because they're not in the same tier. Don't say
Gauntlet Chainsaw is all around better than
Beatdown because Gauntlet Chainsaw costs way more energy. Just keep everything in perspective.
7. Be Thankful
If your thread becomes a positive environment for people to post input on a power/power set, thank everyone for reading and contributing. It keeps trolls away and makes everyone involved feel better. You can bet that Daeke will be more likely to read your next post if he actually feels invigorated by your last thread that had 50+ responses, rather than wanting to turn the computer off and go outside to keep him from slamming his head into the keyboard.
If you stick with these 7 tips, you may see some positive actions taken to improve CO, and you'll avoid being one of those people who post "OMG I'M QUITTING EVERYONE CRY NOW."
Megan at Out of Mana use to do a segment called "New Rules" that was adapted from Real Time with Bill Maher. While I think the latter is a complete hack, the former was one of the most influential bloggers/writers until she quit blogging.
Protip: Toggles are abilities that you hit once and automatically run. As a default setting, your energy builder is set to be a toggle that resets when you target a new enemy. You may have noticed at times that certain chain abilities
Every time Cryptic nerfs some overpower skill, people are outraged. In fact, a whole bunch of them are so angry that they post long tirades about how they're quitting the game and everyone should be sad that they're doing it. People flame them and inevitably it turns into a thread about Aion. (SEE YOU IN AION. ZOMG NO YOU WON'T LOL)
The 101 series is a short information segment providing some in-game information on some of the starter tier skills for various power sets. This will give a little insight into use early character building so people don't get stuck rerolling due to high retcon prices.
Seriously, I had to be the only person I knew growing up that could play Parappa the Rappa for hours on the old Playstation. That was before games sold out for bigger and better things, like the full three dimensions.
As you may already know, the powerhouse is the first spot you hit whenever you get a new level. This is the place where you purchase all of your talents, powers, and advantages. But did you know about all the neat things you can do there?
I've decided to do a summary of the Math Behind the Numbers thread, because going through over 140 posts about stats can be somewhat... tedious. Here's a follow up to Part 1 with the benefits as have been solved so far, as well as some additional information.
I live for the numbers in games. Have you ever played the board game Shadows Over Camelot? That game is practically impossible to win, but there is a way that we found out. You have to use 4 specific characters and they all have to do very specific things, but that actually gives you a fighting chance. Whenever I played WoW, I became a big time theory crafter and strived to understand every stat and how it applied to every class. It's just how I operate, I'm a engineer.
Most MMORPGs have some form of public trading facility (a place where people can post goods and purchase items from other people). Champions online has this, but it operates differently than many other MMOs. Here are some tips to using the Market in Champions.
There's some confusion on how super stats work, so here's a little clarity.
