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Author: Veloce
3,732 Views
11 Comments
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Certainly one of the hardest period in CoH are the so-called ''teens'' (between levels 10 and 20):
A) You start collecting debt every time you are defeated; meaning your leveling slows down to half-speed (half your XP goes to paying off the amount given until fully paid)if you are not more careful than you were. Wading in until those pruple goons finally go down one by one between revives and hospital trips is no longer a valid tactic. New tactics are now needed besides the lame fight-heal routine. And using the emergency transport network (hospital/base infirmary trips) as a free teleport mode (very useful in Hollows) is no longer valid either.
B) Enemies are more numerous (like in Faultline), more powerful (The psionic Losts), more versatile (the multi-powered Sky Raiders) and more organized (the crafty Tsoos)so fights become longer, harder, more complicated. new powers are never a luxury to cope with teams of Frostfires wannabes and buffing-debuffing-healing blappers.
C) Missions get more lenghty and complicated with arc-stories, trials and task forces more and more available. Finding yourself the 5th wheel of the chariot (here comes our 5th squishy folks), or on a three-wheeled one (ok said the scrapper, I'll try to tank) is not a rare occurence when teaming up because of (E)(see below).
D) Contacts suddenly become far apart, missions are distributed all over several bigger maps, and simply ''Sprinting'' around in no longer practical, except for the very, immune-to-boring hero blessed with patient, unhurried (or understanding and helpful-TP friend endowed) team mates.
E) Therefore, most if not all characters are stuck with the now infamous ''uncool universal power sequence '' : pre-travel power(12)-travel power(14)-Fitness power(16)- Health (18)-Stamina(20); all those cool powers of your primary and secondary sets that would help you so much to tackle (A) to (D), or those other useful Pool Powers (now reduced to only 2 categories permitted), all that could make your character stand out from the ''Faceless Army of the Nameless Clones'' must wait until level 22; and you want them now, you need them now!
The following suggestions are for those that want to resolve this situation by ''skipping'' the traditional travel powers and their necessary requirements in order to have more options open when choosing their powers as they go through those levels; but not at the cost of crawling around Paragon City (so boring), begging for Teleportation (so pitiful) or (so unwise) missing out on the only 2 powers (Health & Stamina) that augment your only 2 stats in the game (Hit Points and Endurance).
Unless you DO want to ''soar higher than any plane'', be ''faster than a speeding bullet'' or ''jump over tall buildings in a single bound'', here are ways to ''streamline'' your character during play by condensing the ''Uncool power sequence''; and, you can always respec afterwards to get back to those awesome travel powers you skipped during your teens.
I- HAVE POWER... STREAMLINING
The main idea here is to substitute already needed powers to getting the standard modes of travel, beefing them up with enhancements slotted at maximum (++) and adding their effects to approximate a descent replacement; not as powerful, but good enough to move around and have more freedom in power versatility.
Some players may argue that this is a waste of enhancement slots better used in their main and secondary power sets. In
my own experience (since October 2004 and over a hundred toons) and that of many players I know, this is not the case.
Before level 12, only training enhancements are usable, and they barely (usually 8.3%) augment your (first and weakest)powers, against opponents easily defeated with bare powers (at least until level 10), and without much risk (no debt). When you start getting Dual-Enhancements (DO) and more effective augments, you barely accumulate enough influence to pay for them all slots and find yourself running around for a long time with still a good number of Training ones anyway... if not dead (red) or empty slots.
Because of this, some players even go as far as to NEVER buy or slot Trainings, selling everything up to level 12 and then buying as much DOs as possible and as soon as possible. Also, the Jump, Fly and Run enhancements are among the cheapest ones. Therefore, using available slots for streamlining as described below is not at all detrimental in building an effective hero... and, because of streamlining, maybe just the opposite.
II- ...WILL TRAVEL
There are essentially 4 ways to travel around in CoH. We will overview them and the opportunity of streamlining they may offer:
II.1 - TELEPORTING
Arguably the fastest mode of travel and most useful (Recall Friend & Teleport Foe have numerous applications) but END consuming, somewhat risky (you may appear between unseen enemies, stuck in an unseen bad spot or fall if computer-glitched)and finger-wearing (no autorun). Because their are no substitute powers to it, Teleporting is not a viable option for streamlining along the guidelines of this guide.
II.2 - FLYING
Certainly the most practical mode of transportation (safe high-flying over danger and obstacles, autorun available, easy multi-level exploration) it is however END hungry, needs some control and not as practical as the other travel modes for melee fighters, since you can't fly away fast enough to escape that last killing strike and get no defense bonuses. Highly recommended however for blasters, controllers and non-agressive defenders (especially with long range efficiency).
STREAMLINING: Take HOVER at lv 6; add 2 slots at lv 7-9 and one at 11, the other to Swift; take SWIFT at level 8 and add 2 slots to it at lv 13 and 15, using Fly Speed enhancements instead of Running Speed... unless you have Quickness (from Super-Reflexes, wich does the same as Swift and some Hasten-like permanent effect too) or want to rely on the buffs from the Kinetics power set (wich also adds to the previous two).
You will move around efficiently with perfect control, stay out of range with a small bonus to defense, all at almost NO END cost. With Trainings you will go about as fast as an unslotted Sprinter, faster with DOs and as good as one-slotted fly by level 22 (when your first (SO) Single Origin enhancements become usable). You will however be somewhat slow for a good while, unless you also add Kinetics to it, so you will probalby use it more to vault over obstacles while running... but, taking Health at level 14 and stamina at level 20, you will now still have 2 Pool Power sets still available and able to take any power you want at levels 10-12-16 and 18 instead of just at level 10.
II.3 - JUMPING
Superjump is the slowest (but not that much) mode of travel and shows the same inconveniences as Teleport, except for the END cost (very low) and falling danger (you were going down anyway with higher absorption capacity).Control is better than with Fly but you have to be more aware of the terrain (jumping on things will get you higher). Highly recommended to all melee-oriented characters since you can get in and out of the fight easily end efficiently, especially with obstacles to jump over and hide behind.
STREAMLINING: Take HURDLE at level 6; add 2 slots at level 7-9 and one at level 11. You may put the remaining one in SPRINT (and more if you see fit) and to both you give Jumping enhancements.
At an early stage, you will already vault on and over current obstacles, over a few stories with DOS and, while as high as Superjump (unless Kinetics are involved) with SOs, high enough to negotiate up to even the most difficult terrains with a bit of travel planning... all of this at NO END cost, always ready and NEVER toggled off by an enemy attack! Moreover, while taking Health at 14 and Stamina at 20, you will be free to get whatever you want at levels 8-10-12-16 and 18... and have THREE Power pool sets choices left!
II.4 - RUNNING/SWIMMING
Superspeed (effective as Running and Swimming movement)can challenge all but the heavily-slotted teleporter in terms of raw speed; and at a lower END cost. It works on autorun, thus esier of use, but, like using waterways as improvised freeways, requires some savvy in negotiating any rough terrain (the thing that really gives an edge to the other travel powers; Superspeed alone is a pain in Hollows, a nightmare in Faultline). It also adds a small bonus to defense, good escaping or hit-and-run tactics, almost inescapable auto-follow effectiveness and changes Stealth powers into full Superior Invisibility (able to attack and stay partially hidden). control in tight environements is somewhat tricky however.
It is for many the coolest travel power but the least practical, unless adding some obstacle-solving power to it. better suited to melee characters but ranged ones can benefit from it too with sound tactical play.
STREAMLINING: Take SWIFT at level 6; add 2 slots at lv 7-9 and one at 11, putting the other in SPRINT; 2 slots in the latter at levels 13 and 15, or better yet in Quickness if you have the Super-Reflexes power set. Fill them all up with Running Speed enhancements.
At an early stage, you will move around faster than any non-powered mover, and with DOs, you will not be far behind most standard travellers. With SOs, even combining Quickness and Sprint to Swift and all fully slotted, you will not reach the top speed of superspeedsters (although you will with Kinetics) but you will go darn fast; faster than most characters using standard travel powers... and again, at NO END cost, always on and full immunity to off-toggling. You will then be free to take any power at levels 8-10-12-16 and 18 and still have 3 choices left in Pool power sets.
Note that the invisibility bonus given by Superspeed combined with Stealth powers will not be available using this alternative.
The biggest drawback however, is this: your running speed will be PERMANENTLY accelerated, making it a hard, constant exercise in control in small, tortuous, multi-leveled settings like caves.
Also, you will have to plan carefully where you go to avoid the innumerable obstacles in your way. Fortunately, most maps offers a lot of ''runways'', if not the option of swimming around rough sectors.... You may opt however to take HURDLE to jump over some of them (and keep open your 3 Pool powers copportunity), or another obstacle-vaulting mode from one of your other Power sets if one is available.
With my main character, Veloce, I got up to level 45 before taking Teleport to solve the obstacle-problem more easily and permanently... and boy did I learn the maps!
CONCLUSION
All the above suggestions are offered as a mean to maximize your freedom of choice in powers during leveling, especially during those grueling levels between 10 and 20 where you often have to rethink your whole gameplay for then and after. As explained, many combinations are possible to give you an effective mode of transportation while allowing you to get a better access to the powers that you want.
Using the test server to experiment those options will help you try and make the character as resourceful, effective and enjoyable as you want before committing yourself to the heroic business on the live servers.
So, as in Jeet Kune Do, take what is useful and go on from there.
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