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Power Respecification

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This article is about ways to acquire a respec and how to use them. For the slash command, see respec (Slash Command).

Overview

A power respecification, or respec, is a means for a hero or villain to respecify, or change, the powers he or she has available for use. Power respecifications are gained in one of five ways:

  1. By completing a power respecification trial
  2. By crafting one from a Respec Recipe
  3. By having one given to him or her during a special event or after a significant change in power mechanics
  4. By reaching a specific numbers of months, and receiving one via the Veteran Reward System
  5. For villains only, by completing the first Patron arc and unlocking a Patron Power Pool, a single respec is also awarded

Respecs are typically used to trade unwanted powers for more useful ones and/or to rearrange hard-to-obtain enhancements that have been permanently slotted into powers.

  • However, during a power respecification, a character may choose different powers within his or her primary and secondary powersets, as well as select different Pool Powers and/or Ancillary Power Pools, reallocate enhancement slots, and redistribute all enhancements among new powers or slots.

Types of Respecifications

There are four types of respecifications available. Each type stacks separately. It is currently unclear which gets used first when a character claims a respec from a contact, however using the /respec command always uses a freespec.

  • Earned Respecs - 3 maximum
  • Free Respec - 1 maximum
  • Veteran Respecs - 4 maximum at 45 months
  • Patron Respecs - 1 maximum
  • Respec Recipes - 1 maximum (considered a Free Respec)

Earned Respecifications

If a character receives a power respecification due to completing a power respecification trial, it is considered an earned respec. A character may have multiple earned respecs, currently up to three, available at any given time.

An earned respec is used by visiting a special contact. For heroes, this contact is Jack Wolfe, located in the Freedom Corps headquarters in Galaxy City. For villains, the contact is Arbiter Lupin, located next to Arbiter Frederick in the Nerva Archipelago.

There are currently two trials for the purposes of power respecification:

Respecification Eligibility

A character first becomes eligible to take the respecification trials at level 24, and again at levels 34 and 44. The respecification is not linked to which trial is completed, but to the level. For example, a character who is above level 44 and has never done a respecification trial, can do the first (lowest level) trial three times, the last (highest level) trial three times, or any combination of the trials, and gain all three respecification awards.

Free Respecifications

If a character receives a power respecification due to having one given to him or her, it is considered a free respec. A character may have only one free respec available at any given time. If a character has a free respec when another respec is given out, he or she will not receive the new respec.

Free respecs are usually given out after significant changes to game mechanics involving powers. For example, when Enhancement Diversification was released on the live servers, a free respec was given to all heroes due to a significant change in the effects of enhancement slotting.

A free respec is used by typing the /respec command on the chat command line.

Veteran Rewards Respecifications

Several levels of the Veteran Reward System award respecs to all characters on the account. Specifically 9 months, 21 months, 33 months and 45 months reward respecs.

Heroes can claim a Veteran Reward Respec by visiting Jack Wolfe in the Galaxy City Freedom Corps building. Jack Wolfe is on the right after entering the building and is dressed in a Longbow uniform.

Villains can claim a Veteran Reward Respec by visiting Arbiter Lupin in Nerva Archipelago. Arbiter Lupin is located next to Arbiter Frederick.

Patron Power Respecifications (Villains Only)

Each villain character that completes the first Patron arc and unlocks a patrol power pool will also receive a respec.

Respecification Recipes

As of Issue 11 characters may earn Respec Recipes as rare drops from the enemy defeat recipe pools which, upon crafting the recipe, the character will receive a Free Respec as long as that character currently has no Free Respecs. This Free Respec (or "Freespec") will stack with earned respecs from Trials or Veteran Rewards.

How Respecifications Work

When a respec is used, a character will be presented with the power selection screen to select his or her powers. The choice will be limited to the powers available when he or she first selected powers at level 1. After selecting a power, the character will be asked to select another power, this time with the powers available when he or she selected powers at level 2. For each subsequent power selection, the powers available will be the powers available for the next progressive level of the character.

For example, when the sixth power is selected, the powers available will be the powers available for selection with the character attained security level 10 (i.e. when he or she selected his or her sixth power).

After the power selection is complete, the character is then presented with the enhancement slot selection screen. Again, the powers available for slotting are the powers that were available at the time that the character attained the level for that particular round of slots.

For example, when the sixth set of slots is selected, the powers available for slotting will be the powers available for selection when the character attained security level 13 (i.e. when he or she selected his or her sixth set of enhancement slots).

After the enhancement slotting is complete, the character will be presented with a screen in which he or she assigns all of his or her currently assigned and held enhancements to those slots. Until an enhancement is assigned to an enhancement slot or to the enhancement inventory, it is considered unassigned. Unlike the normal enhancement management screen, enhancements may be freely moved around between enhancement slots, the enhancement inventory tray, and the unassigned enhancements tray.

After all enhancements are placed into appropriate slots or into the enhancement tray, all unassigned origin (SO,DO, TO) enhancements will be sold for their full purchase cost. Invention Enhancements will be sold for the crafting cost (the price does not include the purchase cost). Hamidon and Synthetic Hamidon Enhancements are not assigned any value. They will be lost with zero influence/infamy gained if they are unassigned at the end of a respecification.

Notes

  • Important note: Once a character has earned all respecs available by completing the power respecification trial the maximum number of times (currently three for heroes and villains) and used all respecs available, the character may not change his or her powers again unless another unearned respecification is given out or that character crafts a Respec Recipe!
  • Because a character may have a maximum of one free respec at a time, it is highly suggested that these respecs be used before earned respecs by typing the /respec command on the chat command line.
  • A player may see how many unclaimed respecs his or her character has at the time of logon. A system (green text) message is displayed in the chat box stating, "You have x unclaimed respecs available," where x is the number of available respecs.
  • Remember that the order in which a character's powers are selected determines which powers are available when that character is exemplared or malefactored with lower-level heroes and villains. In general, powers should be selected in an order that reflects the order in which they would actually be used in-game.
  • Because the maximum number of respecs available is limited and the time between respecs is typically very long, it is highly suggested to test respecs on the Training Room server before actually committing to the respec on the live server.
  • The word "respec" is often seen misspelled as "respect" by those unfamiliar with the term, by speed touch-typists, or sometimes even by some in a deliberate satirical manner. The word is an abbreviated form of the word respecification, however, and the "respec" spelling is the correct one. In addition, "respec" is sometimes incorrectly expanded in-game to "respecialization", such as in the badge text for respecs given as Veteran Rewards, leading to further confusion amongst players as to what "respec" is actually short for.
  • The names of the villain respec trial contacts, Sparcetriel, Trepsarciel, and Ractespriel, are all anagrams of "respec trial."

See Also

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