InkBlot's Inkernet

After far too much time, in an on-again-off-again relationship with City of Heroes, my original character, Hero14, has finally reached ‘50′. This is the highest level for this game, and unlocks an ‘Epic Archtype’ called the Kheldians.

I’ve been playing one for a few days, and just got one it to lvl 6. It’s an interesting type for the game, combing different “forms” to let you play multiple concepts in a single character. So far, it’s not too bad except for the lack of customization in the alternate forms. I’ve got my own hero I can tailor to my liking, and now at lvl 6 I have a floating squid form. Yay.

On the opposite side of the game, City of Villains, the most recent game update introduced Villain Epic Archtypes, or VEATS. On the whole, these special archetypes look much more interesting to me, as it’s expanding on one of the core mythologies of the game. The Kheldians, frankly, always struck me as cobbled together tack-ons. You could excise them from the game entirely, and the overall story arc wouldn’t suffer.

Plus, I still don’t forgive them for that horrible ending to the original CoH comic books. Interesting characters, interesting stories, then all of the sudden: Look, Bob’s a Kheldian! Read all about ‘em at our website. And oh, we’re canceling the free comic now.

The recent update has helped whet my appetite for the game. I’ve even learned to accept the arbitrary economy forced on the game through their auction house system. Mostly, because I’ve now learned how easy it is to exploit it. For example:

• Salvage sells for the same price to NPC vendors. Rates are something like 250 for Common, 1000 for Uncommon and 5000 for Rare. Some of this same salvage regularly sells for much less at Auction. Focus on the Uncommon.
• The latest issue allows you to “combine” three Inspirations into one of any other type. Despite this, a “Large” Damage Inspiration still goes for around 3000 at Auction, while a “Lagre” Resurection goes for around 150,000. Do the math.

With mild effort, any character can keep themselves in enough cash to keep up to date in regular enhancements, without having to touch Inventions until much later in the game. And since the lvl 25 invention enhancements pale next to lvl 25 SOs, this isn’t a bad thing. Still, it feels too much like weekly grocery shopping to keep my characters in beer and skittles.

Plus, I saw a blurb on their new loading screens that “The game was not made more difficult for Invention Enhancements”. So, uh, this Enhancement Diversification was just for fun? Really?

Sometimes I feel like I’m in an abusive relationship. I don’t want to enjoy CoH, but I do. At least, until an alternative ever comes out.