Websnark: Oh, thank Christ. It's September. Here's a video game post.

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Eric: Oh, thank Christ. It's September. Here's a video game post.

It was a long month, but now it's over. Granted, I have several 12+ hour days ahead of me, but those days will work out pretty well, I think. Servers are beginning to migrate, systems are beginning to come up, and life seems to -- potentially -- be okay.

And last night, Issue 5 of the City of Heroes game came out.

(This is not Issue 5 of the comic. That's coming out this month, to my knowledge, but it's not out yet. I've promised to have an open mind with that issue and by gum, I'll keep that promise. However, we're discussing the actual... you know, game, here.)

Issue 5 adds a whole new section of content (a nearby village that's being overrun by fairies, women who are clearly supposed to be witches of some sort but they're trying to avoid pissing off the neopagan community so they're called something else that I can't remember, ghosts and other beasties. I did some of the beta test of this and it's a fantastic new zone, chock full of content.

They also have new powersets -- specifically, sonic powers, archery and trick arrows. So, the obvious gap in City of Heroes has been filled: it is finally possible to role play out your own Green Arrow/Black Canary relationship in their game.

Seriously. Did they specifically sit down, say "man, I wish we could play Ollie and Dinah," and prioritize based on that?

Whatever. The new powersets are fantastic, so I'm just good naturedly joshing. Using sonics, I actually got to indulge in some nostalgia for a different game. A came some of you have heard of. A game called Villains and Vigilantes.

Villains and Vigilantes was among the first wave of Role Playing Games (what we today call "tabletop RPGs" to differentiate them from video games. "Tabletop" RPG veterans, of course, tend to just call them "role playing games," but that's another essay. V&V's first edition came out in... mm. I want to say 1979 or 1980. I know its revised edition came out in 1982, but by the time that came out I was already a V&V veteran. Anyway, it had all the hallmarks of early RPG design -- tables, special cases, every power working with every power differently (it included a grid with to-hit numbers based on all the powers and the ways they'd interact), and a random power generation system that could sometimes lead to bizarre -- or wildly unbalanced -- results.

It was incredible. I loved that freaking game so much. And my first ever super hero in any RPG came out of that system: Vibrex the Invincible.

Hey, look. I was twelve. Maybe you came up with really cool super hero names at twelve. I didn't. Get over it!

(And try to ignore the fact that the name sounds like a chrome plated marital aid.)

Vibrex had vibrational powers, the power of flight, and the ability to teleport, if I remember correctly. A bit of a mixed bag (though better than some). He was vaguely based on me (the game encouraged making characters based on your friends), and he fought alongside Thunderbolt (who had weather control powers and other some such, the Telekinetic Kid, Flambeau (we thought we were so clever), Cyborg-9, Ace, Rainbow and others....

Twelve year olds in power fantasies punching stock supervillains. But evocative ones.

So, I made up Vibrex, silly name and all. In honor of his illustrious beginnings (and to hopefully excuse the name somewhat) I made him a teenager -- not quite twelve, but not too far off. Sonic powers are close enough, and I could get his costume almost exactly. (Not that it's the coolest costume in the world. But then, that's part of the point.)

And, having seen the City of Heroes fanbase turn itself inside out freaking out about all the horrible nerfs and power reductions the developers were inflicting on us (by far the most contentious ever), I took out the character who was most affected by such (a scrapper with a broadsword and "super reflexes," which was a defensive powerset that was most directly affected by the nerfing, if the boards were to be believed) for a little while. Said character appeared in the midst of higher level enemies (yellow and orange, which in the old days meant "possible for a combat specialist to defeat, but it'd be a fight), hauled out the sword, and started whaling. And discovered that to compensate for the defensive losses, said sword now does a lot more damage. The character seems no more or less likely to die while slaughtering supervillains than before.

So, between that and City of Villains on the horizon, everything is aces in the superheroic world.

And it's September, and that means things will get better.

God damn it. Things will get better.

Posted by Eric Burns-White at September 1, 2005 8:14 AM

Comments

Comment from: kirabug posted at September 1, 2005 9:32 AM

Happy September!!

Comment from: Paul Gadzikowski posted at September 1, 2005 9:38 AM

I count three unclosed parentheses and an unclosed quotation in this post. You're out of training, mister! Drop and give me twenty sentences, now!

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 9:45 AM

Call that post-August exhaustion. ;)

Comment from: Christopher B. Wright posted at September 1, 2005 10:15 AM

Unfortunately, i5 also nerfed just about every other class really hard, and made tankers laughable *unless* there's a defender around to buff them. I don't even know why they bother having controllers around any more.

Oh, and the vibration powers are cool, but the defender vibration set is what the FF set SHOULD have been. I think the new powersets are interesting, but not enough to play them. THere's not much left in the game for me any more, sad to say. I'm thinking of letting my subscription go.

And then I think, "but wait! Then I'll stop getting that comic!"

And *then* I *really* start to think about letting my subscription go...

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 10:19 AM

But dude -- giant walking pumpkinheaded creatures!

Giant walking pumpkinheaded creatures!

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 10:20 AM

Also, I have a couple of close fire tanker friends, and they say they're still walking death machines. It just takes a little longer.

(FF Defenders took it in the chin, sadly. And yeah, Sonics will displace FF in pretty much everyone's lineup. Resistance debuff is the new Defense buff.)

Comment from: Christopher B. Wright posted at September 1, 2005 10:20 AM

When a tanker can't solo, there's something wrong. Even back when we couldn't do any *damage*, at least we were able to take a mountain of punishment. No more...

They had me, but they're losing me.

Comment from: 32_footsteps posted at September 1, 2005 10:22 AM

I blame smileys. People waste the close parenthesis on smileys and thus don't have any to spare for closing side comments.

As for various types of role-playing games - as someone who greatly enjoys table-top and console RPGs, I'd really like to not have to deal with a discussion of nomenclature again. There are enough stubborn people who like only one type that get antsy whenever you start discussing another type (which of course bleeds even further into madness if you start adding in MMORPGs, LARPs, PC RPGs, PBEMs, and some cases of collaborative fiction). I'm personally content to say that different mediums can use the same terms for different things and leave it at that.

Comment from: Phil Kahn posted at September 1, 2005 10:24 AM

Hells yes things will get better this month. Between my four film classes, living in a new city, my birthday and issue 5... Things are coming up Wild Cards, I say.

Comment from: Christopher B. Wright posted at September 1, 2005 10:27 AM

Well, yeah, fire tankers still do great damage. But Invulnerability tankers? Inv/SS? It's just sad, now.

I haven't given up yet, but I'm close.

Oh, and if Statesman uses "it just wasn't FUN before!" ONE MORE TIME...

Comment from: Kludge posted at September 1, 2005 12:38 PM

Vibrex The Invincible

At the moment, courtesy of a project my boss is working on, we have an industrial-strength vibrator in our office. The Vibrasonic 2000.

(...not as much fun as it sounds, ladies. We turned it on this morning (it's attached to a sieve for sieving chocolate or drugs), and it works with a piercing whistle, sort of like being attacked by a thousand angry space-crickets.)

Comment from: Kirath posted at September 1, 2005 12:40 PM

Every time you talk about CoH, Eric, I come closer to re-upping my subscription. I played for about two months right after launch, but then my friends left to play another game and I went with them. EQ2 is my main game, and will remain so, but I tend to have a lot of time to kill on the weekends that CoH might just fill quite nicely... It would be good to spend some time with my Natural/Blaster and his assault rifle, P.C. Duro. (On the Liberty server. Maybe. It's been a while.)

Is there a particular server that is known for roleplaying? I know that I am much more likely to stick with a game much longer and enjoy it a lot more if I can roleplay on occasion, even if it's with complete strangers.

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 12:57 PM

(...not as much fun as it sounds, ladies. We turned it on this morning (it's attached to a sieve for sieving chocolate or drugs), and it works with a piercing whistle, sort of like being attacked by a thousand angry space-crickets.)

You just described the noise I've had in my ears for the past two weeks perfectly. Someone has clearly mounted a Vibrasonic 2000 in my head.

Comment from: Wednesday posted at September 1, 2005 1:02 PM

Someone has clearly mounted a Vibrasonic 2000 in my head.

See, next time, you need to specify which permanent vibrator mount you want in your head.

Those double-headed Hitachi Magic Wands, say? One of those next time.

Or, given work, perhaps you should go by Brookstone and pick up one of those shiatsu things.

Comment from: Meagen Image posted at September 1, 2005 1:28 PM

Virtue is the unofficial roleplaying server. A lot of people gather to be IC in Gemini Park (Galaxy City, near the gate to Perez Park).

I'd tell you to look me up in game (@Meagen), but I will most likely not be playing in September.

Comment from: Kludge posted at September 1, 2005 1:48 PM

Someone has clearly mounted a Vibrasonic 2000 in my head.

Ouch. When we turned the thing on for the first time, three out of four of us jumped back clutching our ears (not ultra-loud, just ultra-horrible). The fourth guy (the guy holding the sieve) was OK - hearing already destroyed to the point he couldn't hear noises that high at all, so he couldn't believe the way the rest of us were reacting.

If you've had that in your ears for two weeks and you've not been able to leap back out of your own head, you should be about ready to see a doctor (medical or psychological).

Comment from: TroyHickman posted at September 1, 2005 1:58 PM

Well, I was there bright and early, using the new power sets to create Old Yeller' (geriatric sonic/energy manipulator) and Arrowspace (high-tech archer type). Seem pretty cool so far, but haven't had time to try out my older characters and see how things are working. The free respecs were nice, though.

Comment from: Aerin posted at September 1, 2005 2:12 PM

Archery! Yay! I have a special passion for archers, yet I've never been able to make them work in my stories. And since CoH is offering me five days of free play starting this afternoon, methinks I shall have to install my new video card and take these new powers for a spin.

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 2:20 PM

If you've had that in your ears for two weeks and you've not been able to leap back out of your own head, you should be about ready to see a doctor (medical or psychological).

"I have seen a doctor. And, he has seen me."
--Sir John Gielgud.

Comment from: Eric Burns posted at September 1, 2005 2:28 PM

Troy -- the new ones are heaps of fun, I have to admit. I did make up a Dark/Archery defender as well, and I'll do an Archery/Fire Blaster soon. (And no doubt something with Trick Arrow -- I'm addicted to alts.) But my evening game time's kind of tight at the moment, so aside from grabbing the name I knew I wanted, I'm mostly seeing how the old standbys play.

(Which means I need to take Transit out for a run or six. Which is always fun. Especially because Trans is the perfect level to go hunt giant pumpkinheaded monsters.)

Comment from: Kirath posted at September 1, 2005 2:37 PM

I just got the five free days e-mail, too. Apparently in celebration of Issue 5 and the upcoming release of City of Villians, everyone with an inactive account has had their accounts reactivated starting... oh, about a half hour ago, for five days.

So... there's no reason NOT to give the new powers a whirl. I'm working from home tomorrow, AND it's a long weekend. Whoohoo!

Comment from: larksilver posted at September 1, 2005 3:02 PM

whereabouts do you play EQ2, Kirath darlin'? I'm on the grobb server.

sony has been doing the "come back for "x" days" thing too. They've got EQ1 set up for free for 30 days (not going back, ever. Loved it, then stayed for friends, but not worth reinstalling. ehhe)... and EQ2 for 7 days. They're trying desperately to convince the level 50's who got bored (how, I'm not sure, still sooooo much to do!) to come back and get re-hooked before Desert of Flames comes out. Ohyeah, I should go preorder that. yeah.

Comment from: quiller posted at September 1, 2005 3:03 PM

I haven't seen Tabletop RPG used as much as P&P RPG, for Pen and Paper. Though it might just be the boards I frequent. At least Action RPG has come into usage, having Baldur's Gate and Diablo in the same category made my brain hurt.

Comment from: Christopher B. Wright posted at September 1, 2005 3:06 PM

I see it as "PnP" -- I reckon it's just easier to type.

Comment from: 32_footsteps posted at September 1, 2005 3:11 PM

I think it depends on which circles you deal with. Amongst video gamers, the term "tabletop RPG" is used because we typically differentiate between RPG types by the locale they are played - on a console, on a PC, online, or at the tabletop. Others prefer to describe the medium used to play - video game, pen and paper, and so on. Live action, oddly enough, falls into both categories, so they're all just LARPs.

Comment from: Kirath posted at September 1, 2005 3:13 PM

Hehe, already preordered Desert of Flames, myself. You can find me as Kirath(Yeah, I took my handle from my current character), currently a level 46 Guardian, on the Antonia Bayle server pretty much any given night of the week. Normally I am an alt-o-holic, but I just haven't had the desire to play many alts in EQ2, though I am now working on a baby Warlock on my second PC.

And yeah, a lot of folks hit the level cap, and did all the major Heritage quests, and started complaining about how there was nothing to do... hehe. Nektropos Castle alone is tons of content for any level, I never get sick of going through there, every chance I get. That's also why roleplay owns in MMO's. It makes the grind more bearable, if nothing else, and gives you something to do during down time, and on off nights when you don't feel like hunting or questing. My only complaint about EQ2 is tradeskills. Normally I love tradeskilling, but in this game it puts me to sleep, but I have somehow gotten Kirath to level 27 as a Carpenter, too(Mainly by making stuff for guildmates.)

Comment from: Dave Van Domelen posted at September 1, 2005 5:04 PM

V&V Second edition was my first superhero game, and the only game I used so much that I had to buy a new copy (the slightly revised version with tougher Adamantium). Much later on I snagged a copy of 1st edition (1979) at the comic shop.

I also got a photocopy of Superhero 2044 from the game's writer while in grad school. :)

Comment from: Christopher B. Wright posted at September 1, 2005 5:23 PM

V&V was the first superhero game that I ever *bought*, but the first superhero game I ever *played* was Champions (1st edition).

Then I was in a long-term Super World campaign... based on essentially the same system Call of Cthulhu used. We kept trying to come up with builds that could actually take out Cthulhu... we failed...

Then we switched back to Champions. Don't remember why. But our GM wound up writing a few supplements for Dark Champions while he was in college, so that worked out pretty well for him.

Comment from: miyaa posted at September 1, 2005 6:23 PM

1. Kludge: You work on developing new vibrators? Do they make them in a factory? How did Eric get a vibrator stuck up his ear? Why do I have this joke in my head about the gynocologist that went home to his wife after a long day at work and she greeted him nude. He sighed, "Honey, if I see one more vagina tonight..."

2. 32: I dislike smilies and winks myself. I think I have a pretty good idea of how you're reacting without needing to know if you're smiling, winking, or acting evil.

3. How the hell did we come up with the word 'vagina' anyway?

Comment from: 32_footsteps posted at September 1, 2005 6:34 PM

Wow, I just seem to be tripping across the vibrator jokes today. WATFO?

As for "vagina," everything I can find says that it's the Latin word for "sheath." As if we needed to make any jokes about a man "sheathing his sword" any more blatant.

Comment from: TroyHickman posted at September 1, 2005 9:44 PM

I never really played V&V, but I did have a Champions campaign that ran 15 years straight (in fact, a fair portion of my Common Grounds characters began as characters in that game). I guess the golden age of the pen and paper games may be behind us, but man, what was more fun, really?

Comment from: Aerin posted at September 1, 2005 11:50 PM

ARGH! So I finally installed my new video card, and now I'm trying to update. Except it can't apply the damn patch! It says I'm either out of disk space or trying to write to a directory on which I don't have sufficient permissions, neither of which is true. *headdesk* I am destined never to play this game.

Comment from: Kludge posted at September 2, 2005 6:53 AM

Miyaa: Sadly, no - at least then I'd know that someone, somewhere was using what I make.

32: I'm pretty sure I remember hearing that "penis" came from one of the latin words for "sword", so it doesn't really make the joke any more blatant, just less original.

Comment from: 32_footsteps posted at September 2, 2005 7:51 AM

The two origins I've found for the word "penis" either are for the organ itself (not terribly original) or a tail, in Latin. I don't know the origin of the word "phallus" beyond that it was Greek, though.

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