Difference between revisions of "Lore AMA"

==Overview==

==Overview==

That's a link to the doc, in case these boards get shut down, and because I don't want to clean it up for our forum posting format (if someone ELSE does, feel free to pad your postcount).

That's a link to the doc, in case these boards get shut down, and because I don't want to clean it up for our forum posting format (if someone ELSE does, feel free to pad your postcount).

Some answers are not satisfying. Some answers are made up, and that answer only exists in that doc. I tried to get everyone who was involved in the stuff at the end to answer the questions as best they could.

Some answers are not satisfying. Some answers are made up, and that answer only exists in that doc. I tried to get everyone who was involved in the stuff at the end to answer the questions as best they could.

If there is a miracle and somehow CoH is saved, we reserve the right to change any and all answers given in the doc, to maintain suspense and surprise.}}

If there is a miracle and somehow CoH is saved, we reserve the right to change any and all answers given in the doc, to maintain suspense and surprise.}}

MM: Not to my knowledge.

MM: Not to my knowledge.

MM: We planned a space station instead of Praetoria for Going Rogue at first. They were abandoned when the idea of going to the space station was.

MM: We planned a space station instead of Praetoria for Going Rogue at first. They were abandoned when the idea of going to the space station was.

MM: Sorry, art unreleased has to stay unreleased due to our contracts.

MM: Sorry, art unreleased has to stay unreleased due to our contracts.

JAH: Genesis was coming next, and the basic concept for the slot was creating “patches” or fields that buffed allies and debuffed foes.  The Core branches of Genesis powers would get larger areas of effect, while the Radius branches would let you make up to 4 small patches at once at the very rare level.  Imagine Sleet or Tar Patch + Accelerate Metabolism or Regeneration Aura + Incarnate-worthy, and you’re on the right track.

JAH: Genesis was coming next, and the basic concept for the slot was creating “patches” or fields that buffed allies and debuffed foes.  The Core branches of Genesis powers would get larger areas of effect, while the Radius branches would let you make up to 4 small patches at once at the very rare level.  Imagine Sleet or Tar Patch + Accelerate Metabolism or Regeneration Aura + Incarnate-worthy, and you’re on the right track.

MM: The Dimensionless are a race of beings superior to the Wells. Dealing with them once you became a well unto yourself was the next logical step.

MM: The Dimensionless are a race of beings superior to the Wells. Dealing with them once you became a well unto yourself was the next logical step.

STM: One of the ideas was that you kind of “cheat” to defeat Battalion, in essence doing something that should take you being level 50 ++++++++ and doing it at level 50, shattering the source of Battalion. However, this meant that a ton of things that were controlled by Battalion were now freed to do whatever they want, so the threats were unknown but out there, and now it was the responsibility of the players to go out there and handle them.

STM: One of the ideas was that you kind of “cheat” to defeat Battalion, in essence doing something that should take you being level 50 ++++++++ and doing it at level 50, shattering the source of Battalion. However, this meant that a ton of things that were controlled by Battalion were now freed to do whatever they want, so the threats were unknown but out there, and now it was the responsibility of the players to go out there and handle them.

MM: Statesman because of all the reasons we gave in interviews. Sister Psyche because we wanted there to still be a surprise if Statesman’s death leaked out. We called it “Who will die” and not “One will die” for a reason, it was always planned to be two, but talked up to be just one, so that spoiled information always had an air of uncertainty about it.

MM: Statesman because of all the reasons we gave in interviews. Sister Psyche because we wanted there to still be a surprise if Statesman’s death leaked out. We called it “Who will die” and not “One will die” for a reason, it was always planned to be two, but talked up to be just one, so that spoiled information always had an air of uncertainty about it.

MM: I approved art dailies from it on the last day of the studio. :( Issue 28.

MM: I approved art dailies from it on the last day of the studio. :( Issue 28.

RG: The funny thing is, our database had a value called MOONBASE that basically represented a build that didn’t exist in the system yet. It was a running gag that we would always be planning a moonbase, but it would never actually come to fruition. The plan for Issues 25-28 were the moment we hunkered down and said, “We’re actually going to do it this time!” We were... wrong.

RG: The funny thing is, our database had a value called MOONBASE that basically represented a build that didn’t exist in the system yet. It was a running gag that we would always be planning a moonbase, but it would never actually come to fruition. The plan for Issues 25-28 were the moment we hunkered down and said, “We’re actually going to do it this time!” We were... wrong.

RG: I get the feeling our environment artists would have staged an insurrection if we’d asked them to remake the Shadow Shard zones. That said, we had some stuff planned for Rularuu in Issue 25. While not a full zone remake, it would have made those zones slightly more relevant to the current storyline.

RG: I get the feeling our environment artists would have staged an insurrection if we’d asked them to remake the Shadow Shard zones. That said, we had some stuff planned for Rularuu in Issue 25. While not a full zone remake, it would have made those zones slightly more relevant to the current storyline.

JAH: Our first brainstorm meeting for i22, we actually did settle on revamping the Shadow Shard.  However, I think the strongest advocates for doing the Shard instead of DA were not on the team that was actually tasked with i22’s creation, and thus the plan changed to DA - both because it made sense as a zone to revamp, and because it’s important for the creators of a feature to be passionate and empowered about it.

JAH: Our first brainstorm meeting for i22, we actually did settle on revamping the Shadow Shard.  However, I think the strongest advocates for doing the Shard instead of DA were not on the team that was actually tasked with i22’s creation, and thus the plan changed to DA - both because it made sense as a zone to revamp, and because it’s important for the creators of a feature to be passionate and empowered about it.

MM: Of the two, she’s the one that we most want to “bring back”

MM: Of the two, she’s the one that we most want to “bring back”

JHH: I had wanted Tyrant/Cole to don Statesman’s mantle and redeem himself in the fight against Battalion, but nobody had really seriously discussed or explored that storyline more than Vanguard using Cole’s experience as the champion of Earth’s Well to get some insight into how Battalion functioned with the myriad wells at their disposal.

JHH: I had wanted Tyrant/Cole to don Statesman’s mantle and redeem himself in the fight against Battalion, but nobody had really seriously discussed or explored that storyline more than Vanguard using Cole’s experience as the champion of Earth’s Well to get some insight into how Battalion functioned with the myriad wells at their disposal.

MM: Blame the Back Street Boys.

MM: Blame the Back Street Boys.

JAH: Black Street’s Back, alright - the follow up arc to the i24 Personal Story mission in Kings Row.  *ducks*

JAH: Black Street’s Back, alright - the follow up arc to the i24 Personal Story mission in Kings Row.  *ducks*

MM: Lusca came LONG after Kraken, I don’t understand why anyone would think we mixed up those names.

MM: Lusca came LONG after Kraken, I don’t understand why anyone would think we mixed up those names.

JAH: Also, tangentially, the Kraken was actually related to a giant tentacled monster when it was first implemented - the Hydra down at the bottom of the Abandoned Sewer Trial.  I wasn’t part of the company back then, but I always thought that connection was kind of cool.

JAH: Also, tangentially, the Kraken was actually related to a giant tentacled monster when it was first implemented - the Hydra down at the bottom of the Abandoned Sewer Trial.  I wasn’t part of the company back then, but I always thought that connection was kind of cool.

STM: I really really really wanted to add a different Ouroboros/team that was run by Dream Doctor’s team - Ajax, Protean, Keith Nance, Dean MacArthur, and a few others. The idea was sort of similar to your Loyalist/Resistance moments in Praetoria. It would be Midnighters vs. Ouroboros. Neither of them would be totally wrong, but neither of them would be completely right either in their methods, but both wanted to stop Battalion. However, the idea was scrapped due to the huge amount of time it would take to create content for both and the difficulty of having another Ouroboros up. That was all scrapped by me, that is, when I realized all that. I don’t think I ever really talked much about it, other than in my waking dreams.

STM: I really really really wanted to add a different Ouroboros/team that was run by Dream Doctor’s team - Ajax, Protean, Keith Nance, Dean MacArthur, and a few others. The idea was sort of similar to your Loyalist/Resistance moments in Praetoria. It would be Midnighters vs. Ouroboros. Neither of them would be totally wrong, but neither of them would be completely right either in their methods, but both wanted to stop Battalion. However, the idea was scrapped due to the huge amount of time it would take to create content for both and the difficulty of having another Ouroboros up. That was all scrapped by me, that is, when I realized all that. I don’t think I ever really talked much about it, other than in my waking dreams.

MM: Everyone invested in him moved off the project before they did anything good with him.

MM: Everyone invested in him moved off the project before they did anything good with him.

STM: I had some proposals to have him involved in the moon base.

STM: I had some proposals to have him involved in the moon base.

MM: Praetoria wasn’t supposed to be a “mirror universe” where everyone existed only as opposites. It was supposed to be a universe where things were slightly different than ours, and how those slight differences ended up altering the world as it had. In Praetoria, someone might rise to station that never had that opportunity on Primal.

MM: Praetoria wasn’t supposed to be a “mirror universe” where everyone existed only as opposites. It was supposed to be a universe where things were slightly different than ours, and how those slight differences ended up altering the world as it had. In Praetoria, someone might rise to station that never had that opportunity on Primal.

JH: We wanted Praetoria’s story to stand on its own rather than have it be nothing more than a mirror of Primal Earth. Also, it was a great opportunity to introduce brand new characters to fill the roles we needed rather than rehashes of existing ones.

JH: We wanted Praetoria’s story to stand on its own rather than have it be nothing more than a mirror of Primal Earth. Also, it was a great opportunity to introduce brand new characters to fill the roles we needed rather than rehashes of existing ones.

MM: It was put in for a mission where you had to meet with a mysterious contact who told you to drop what you were investigating. Since that mission got cut, we didn’t need the asset)

MM: It was put in for a mission where you had to meet with a mysterious contact who told you to drop what you were investigating. Since that mission got cut, we didn’t need the asset)

MM: Not sure, probably Lord Nemesis.

MM: Not sure, probably Lord Nemesis.

MM: No plans that I was made aware of.

MM: No plans that I was made aware of.

MM: Jack detached himself when Cryptic started working on Marvel. He had nothing further to add to CoH and handed the reins completely over to me.

MM: Jack detached himself when Cryptic started working on Marvel. He had nothing further to add to CoH and handed the reins completely over to me.

MM: Vs. expanding others? It’s what a writer wanted to write about. Vs. “new” enemies? New enemies take a lot more resources (art, powers).

MM: Vs. expanding others? It’s what a writer wanted to write about. Vs. “new” enemies? New enemies take a lot more resources (art, powers).

STM: New enemies were expensive to make. You need character art time, animation time, FX time, and sound time. The same talents are needed for creating new costume pieces and new powers, so we need to pick and choose very carefully how we make new enemies and if we’re going to be able to use them a lot down the road, and also if we can leverage the assets in other ways. However, we also weren’t above re-using existing assets to put in new villain groups, like the UPA in i24 or the Rogue PPD in i19.

STM: New enemies were expensive to make. You need character art time, animation time, FX time, and sound time. The same talents are needed for creating new costume pieces and new powers, so we need to pick and choose very carefully how we make new enemies and if we’re going to be able to use them a lot down the road, and also if we can leverage the assets in other ways. However, we also weren’t above re-using existing assets to put in new villain groups, like the UPA in i24 or the Rogue PPD in i19.

MM: Rumor. Croatoa was put in to break up the monotony of “city city city city”.

MM: Rumor. Croatoa was put in to break up the monotony of “city city city city”.

MM: Grandville was poorly made in the first place. I think someone touched it up when we did ultramode, but there was never a plan to completely redo it.

MM: Grandville was poorly made in the first place. I think someone touched it up when we did ultramode, but there was never a plan to completely redo it.

STM: One of our lead environment artists a while back did an investigation to figure out how to properly “fix” Grandville. Grandville’s problem was that it was hacked together with lots of old pieces. Where a geo piece should’ve just been 1 or 2 pieces, Grandville’s was 10 or 15 pieces hacked together, which is why framerate can drag. To fix the problem, an environment artist would have had to go in there, grab those pieces, make them 1 or 2 pieces in 3D Max, then put it into Grandville. It would’ve been, I believe, 2 solid months of an artists time to fix it; unfortunately, it was time we never had.

STM: One of our lead environment artists a while back did an investigation to figure out how to properly “fix” Grandville. Grandville’s problem was that it was hacked together with lots of old pieces. Where a geo piece should’ve just been 1 or 2 pieces, Grandville’s was 10 or 15 pieces hacked together, which is why framerate can drag. To fix the problem, an environment artist would have had to go in there, grab those pieces, make them 1 or 2 pieces in 3D Max, then put it into Grandville. It would’ve been, I believe, 2 solid months of an artists time to fix it; unfortunately, it was time we never had.

MM: Sorry no. Spoiler alert: They all end up as fuel for Battalion, except for one. The End.

MM: Sorry no. Spoiler alert: They all end up as fuel for Battalion, except for one. The End.

STM: Matt has a grim ending but that probably would’ve been prevented. Look at me, the guy trying to not kill off people.

STM: Matt has a grim ending but that probably would’ve been prevented. Look at me, the guy trying to not kill off people.

TS: i24’s changes to power customization for pool powers would have given us the ability to revisit this, but to do both in one issue’s timeframe was too much. In fact, we had been waiting for the technical resources to free up to get pool customization in the first place.

TS: i24’s changes to power customization for pool powers would have given us the ability to revisit this, but to do both in one issue’s timeframe was too much. In fact, we had been waiting for the technical resources to free up to get pool customization in the first place.

JAH: There are two huge problems with Kheldian FX Customization - a.) They use Inherent Powers a lot, which even after i24 couldn’t be customized.  b.) Their powers used about 15 FX scripts per power, whereas a modern powerset uses one or two per power.  This means both code and FX artist time was required in large measures to allow Khelds to customize their powers - and one can’t just do Kheld FX without doing VEAT FX out of fairness, etc., etc.

JAH: There are two huge problems with Kheldian FX Customization - a.) They use Inherent Powers a lot, which even after i24 couldn’t be customized.  b.) Their powers used about 15 FX scripts per power, whereas a modern powerset uses one or two per power.  This means both code and FX artist time was required in large measures to allow Khelds to customize their powers - and one can’t just do Kheld FX without doing VEAT FX out of fairness, etc., etc.

MM: Issue 25: Battalion arrives, Issue 26: Fight Battalion, Issue 27: Get your ass kicked by Battalion. Issue 28: Beat Battalion (from the moon!)

MM: Issue 25: Battalion arrives, Issue 26: Fight Battalion, Issue 27: Get your ass kicked by Battalion. Issue 28: Beat Battalion (from the moon!)

MM: Genuine redemption, but given the reaction he got from everyone who learned his secret, he started thinking like the Old Nemesis again.

MM: Genuine redemption, but given the reaction he got from everyone who learned his secret, he started thinking like the Old Nemesis again.

JH: The exciting thing about Silos is that he has seen every time stream that didn’t end up with Battalion defeated, so traveling down the time stream where they were defeated (i.e. the one players are playing in) would have been just as much an adventure to him as it was to the players. Once Battalion was defeated, however, who knows what Silos might do.

JH: The exciting thing about Silos is that he has seen every time stream that didn’t end up with Battalion defeated, so traveling down the time stream where they were defeated (i.e. the one players are playing in) would have been just as much an adventure to him as it was to the players. Once Battalion was defeated, however, who knows what Silos might do.

STM: I joked that Battle Maiden looked at Malta’s line up and went, “Why don’t you just use all sappers? Or install their technology in everything?” But seriously, the idea was that Malta needed a method to become “super” in the Incarnate arms race that had begun - the idea started in my mind when people asked why Malta could go toe to toe with them in the Tin Mage TF, which was a very valid point. The idea was that we would eventually do a new 50+ version of them using Nanite technology with FX inspired by Battle Maiden’s. There probably would’ve been minimal character art revamp time - most likely re-texturing on the Titans and a new piece or two for the soldiers. That’s just me speculating, however, but it’s what I would’ve pushed for.

STM: I joked that Battle Maiden looked at Malta’s line up and went, “Why don’t you just use all sappers? Or install their technology in everything?” But seriously, the idea was that Malta needed a method to become “super” in the Incarnate arms race that had begun - the idea started in my mind when people asked why Malta could go toe to toe with them in the Tin Mage TF, which was a very valid point. The idea was that we would eventually do a new 50+ version of them using Nanite technology with FX inspired by Battle Maiden’s. There probably would’ve been minimal character art revamp time - most likely re-texturing on the Titans and a new piece or two for the soldiers. That’s just me speculating, however, but it’s what I would’ve pushed for.

RG: I know that Dr. Aeon was pretty set on having Scirocco set up to become a good guy. We even had an entire Sig Story planned around it at one point. We had shaken up the Freedom Phalanx, but Arachnos was still in the same state as it was when CoV launched... we definitely wanted to make things feel more dynamic on the red side of things.

RG: I know that Dr. Aeon was pretty set on having Scirocco set up to become a good guy. We even had an entire Sig Story planned around it at one point. We had shaken up the Freedom Phalanx, but Arachnos was still in the same state as it was when CoV launched... we definitely wanted to make things feel more dynamic on the red side of things.

TS: Prometheus was being set up to be the classic know-it-all figure which you surpass. He had an agenda which did not involve you becoming so strong, and he definitely wanted to keep you more in the dark about the actual operations of the Well and the other Well-level powers out there in the galaxy.

TS: Prometheus was being set up to be the classic know-it-all figure which you surpass. He had an agenda which did not involve you becoming so strong, and he definitely wanted to keep you more in the dark about the actual operations of the Well and the other Well-level powers out there in the galaxy.

STM: Baryonx was really excited about eventually doing a trial where you kick the face in of that giant blue smurf.

STM: Baryonx was really excited about eventually doing a trial where you kick the face in of that giant blue smurf.

MM: Yes, the Rikti from their homeworld would have helped vs. Battalion.

MM: Yes, the Rikti from their homeworld would have helped vs. Battalion.

STM: The idea I had was that Rikti would help us fight Battalion. But when they saw our Battalion, they would essentially say (in equivalent Rikti speak), “Oh, THOSE guys are WAY different and WAY more powerful than the guys WE fought. Er, but we’ll do our best.”

STM: The idea I had was that Rikti would help us fight Battalion. But when they saw our Battalion, they would essentially say (in equivalent Rikti speak), “Oh, THOSE guys are WAY different and WAY more powerful than the guys WE fought. Er, but we’ll do our best.”

RG: In Issue 25, Battalion was going to be heavily focused on killing Rularuu, because Rularuu represented a distinct threat to their efforts that they didn’t fully understand. After the players prevented that from happening, we had the idea to somehow use Rularuu as a final gambit against Battalion, likely involving some type of sacrifice from Dream Doctor. It was still pretty vague.

RG: In Issue 25, Battalion was going to be heavily focused on killing Rularuu, because Rularuu represented a distinct threat to their efforts that they didn’t fully understand. After the players prevented that from happening, we had the idea to somehow use Rularuu as a final gambit against Battalion, likely involving some type of sacrifice from Dream Doctor. It was still pretty vague.

This all sounds like a horrible fate for Dream Doctor, but it could’ve also been a future issue to deal with, like Issue 44: The Search for Dream Doctor Rularuu.

This all sounds like a horrible fate for Dream Doctor, but it could’ve also been a future issue to deal with, like Issue 44: The Search for Dream Doctor Rularuu.

MM: Battalion focused.

MM: Battalion focused.

Ultimately, you’d be fighting a Battalion general on the top level of the tower, looking out over the city.  Half of your league would be trying to hack the controls for the portal generator to shut it down, while the other half of your league would be dealing with the general and his reinforcements.  I was really excited about this trial, though it was pretty ambitious - I’m pretty sure people would have loved the tower defence aspect of it, and I think putting a “puzzle boss” into a CoH trial (the computers in the last stage) would have been a lot of fun.

Ultimately, you’d be fighting a Battalion general on the top level of the tower, looking out over the city.  Half of your league would be trying to hack the controls for the portal generator to shut it down, while the other half of your league would be dealing with the general and his reinforcements.  I was really excited about this trial, though it was pretty ambitious - I’m pretty sure people would have loved the tower defence aspect of it, and I think putting a “puzzle boss” into a CoH trial (the computers in the last stage) would have been a lot of fun.

MM: Possibly, we threw around some ideas, but Battalion’s arrival kinda cut those short.

MM: Possibly, we threw around some ideas, but Battalion’s arrival kinda cut those short.

TS: The same power that made Rularuu so powerful by combining with parallel versions of himself could have been referenced in merging/combining Praetorian Hamidon with our Hamidon - especially if we needed a “heavy hitter” versus Battalion. When we went through naming various “hidden Incarnates” in the game I made Hamidon an Gaia Incarnate, so it was also going to be a target of Battalion.

TS: The same power that made Rularuu so powerful by combining with parallel versions of himself could have been referenced in merging/combining Praetorian Hamidon with our Hamidon - especially if we needed a “heavy hitter” versus Battalion. When we went through naming various “hidden Incarnates” in the game I made Hamidon an Gaia Incarnate, so it was also going to be a target of Battalion.

MM: Dr. Aeon loves killing off characters, but other than bringing back Sister Psyche, nothing as game sweeping as that.

MM: Dr. Aeon loves killing off characters, but other than bringing back Sister Psyche, nothing as game sweeping as that.

JH: I had wanted Citadel to turn out to be an agent of Battalion in order to spice his character up significantly. Effectively unbeknownst to the scientists at Crey Biotech that built him, a hidden series of code was installed in him that would enable Battalion to flip a switch and turn him to their side. The goal was to make Citadel so that the process by which earthlings become so powerful could be better understood and studied, and thus he was unleashed on the world and observed from afar by a certain Battalion agent embedded in Paragon City.

JH: I had wanted Citadel to turn out to be an agent of Battalion in order to spice his character up significantly. Effectively unbeknownst to the scientists at Crey Biotech that built him, a hidden series of code was installed in him that would enable Battalion to flip a switch and turn him to their side. The goal was to make Citadel so that the process by which earthlings become so powerful could be better understood and studied, and thus he was unleashed on the world and observed from afar by a certain Battalion agent embedded in Paragon City.

MM: Plans are easy. Yes we had plans. What we didn’t have was enough interest from the players to ever warrant the TITANIC amount of work they required.

MM: Plans are easy. Yes we had plans. What we didn’t have was enough interest from the players to ever warrant the TITANIC amount of work they required.

JAH: I had just increased Base salvage storage to 100 salvage for Issue 24.  I also really wanted to revamp PvP so that it didn’t feel like the game was fighting you (travel suppression, heal decay), but rather so that all the same balance tools were present but in the hands of players instead of the inanimate server (maybe all your tier 1 and tier 2 attack powers would apply 50% heal decay and 5-6 seconds of travel suppression).  I also wanted us to gravitate away from Animation Time = Damage - this completely nullifies the role of burst damage in PvP, essentially flattening the “skill cap” of choosing when to use which abilities in combat.  However, as Matt said above - both facets of the game were so niche, they couldn’t really justify any investment with a return.  Any changes that were made to these systems would have to be entirely spare time projects, and would have to justify themselves as higher priority than any of the other myriad of things we wanted to tweak about the game.

JAH: I had just increased Base salvage storage to 100 salvage for Issue 24.  I also really wanted to revamp PvP so that it didn’t feel like the game was fighting you (travel suppression, heal decay), but rather so that all the same balance tools were present but in the hands of players instead of the inanimate server (maybe all your tier 1 and tier 2 attack powers would apply 50% heal decay and 5-6 seconds of travel suppression).  I also wanted us to gravitate away from Animation Time = Damage - this completely nullifies the role of burst damage in PvP, essentially flattening the “skill cap” of choosing when to use which abilities in combat.  However, as Matt said above - both facets of the game were so niche, they couldn’t really justify any investment with a return.  Any changes that were made to these systems would have to be entirely spare time projects, and would have to justify themselves as higher priority than any of the other myriad of things we wanted to tweak about the game.

MM: The Striker AT (Range/Melee DPS).

MM: The Striker AT (Range/Melee DPS).

JH: Bazooka Melee...

JH: Bazooka Melee...

RG: We had talked about this recently. Some of the non-Battalion storyarcs I wanted to do involved a President Lex Luthor-style storyarc where Crey gets some legitimate credentials, and the hero player is put in an actual moral dilemma - do you break the law and stop Crey from doing something you think is wrong? Or do you attempt a legal challenge and get bogged down in Crey PR and lawyers? Just something to make Crey’s presence seem more believable.

RG: We had talked about this recently. Some of the non-Battalion storyarcs I wanted to do involved a President Lex Luthor-style storyarc where Crey gets some legitimate credentials, and the hero player is put in an actual moral dilemma - do you break the law and stop Crey from doing something you think is wrong? Or do you attempt a legal challenge and get bogged down in Crey PR and lawyers? Just something to make Crey’s presence seem more believable.

We had plans for the Crey Corporation to appear in a meaningful way in the future.  I was really excited about these plans - corporate espionage, lawful evil, umbrella/shell/front companies, and an unexpected global reach.  I was also pumped to hopefully get some Crey in the game in the 40-54 range - that they didn’t really exist there was probably a big part of the reason not many stories were told about them.

We had plans for the Crey Corporation to appear in a meaningful way in the future.  I was really excited about these plans - corporate espionage, lawful evil, umbrella/shell/front companies, and an unexpected global reach.  I was also pumped to hopefully get some Crey in the game in the 40-54 range - that they didn’t really exist there was probably a big part of the reason not many stories were told about them.

MM: Imagine a world where people keep finding out sinister things that a company like Google, Apple, or Facebook is doing... and yet, people keep using their products, giving them money. That’s Crey.

MM: Imagine a world where people keep finding out sinister things that a company like Google, Apple, or Facebook is doing... and yet, people keep using their products, giving them money. That’s Crey.

STM: The Center, after Issue 24, was going to be building his powerbase to eventually fight heroes on an Incarnate-level. He’s a dictator and wants to convert the world to his way of thought, believing that things would be much better that way. Of course, we haven’t done much explaining about what his beliefs/thoughts are, so that would’ve had to be done so he doesn’t just seem like a cookie-cutter guy.

STM: The Center, after Issue 24, was going to be building his powerbase to eventually fight heroes on an Incarnate-level. He’s a dictator and wants to convert the world to his way of thought, believing that things would be much better that way. Of course, we haven’t done much explaining about what his beliefs/thoughts are, so that would’ve had to be done so he doesn’t just seem like a cookie-cutter guy.

MM: Someone should start a separate thread where we can confirm/debunk counterparts, because we don’t have access to “the list” anymore.

MM: Someone should start a separate thread where we can confirm/debunk counterparts, because we don’t have access to “the list” anymore.

MM: Civil War between the traditionalists and the restructurists. And Ruin had taken over South Butts, err I mean Australia, on Rikti Earth and created his own nation of enslaved Rikti.

MM: Civil War between the traditionalists and the restructurists. And Ruin had taken over South Butts, err I mean Australia, on Rikti Earth and created his own nation of enslaved Rikti.

JH: I had wanted the original Tin Mage to have actually survived the Omega Team attack, despite having warded himself runes of destruction in case of capture. I’d wanted the Rikti and him to have struck a logical and mutually beneficial relationship with him, mainly in that he would not be destroyed in exchange for him teaching them magic.

JH: I had wanted the original Tin Mage to have actually survived the Omega Team attack, despite having warded himself runes of destruction in case of capture. I’d wanted the Rikti and him to have struck a logical and mutually beneficial relationship with him, mainly in that he would not be destroyed in exchange for him teaching them magic.

STM: Extracting information from his mind about what Rularuu knows. This could take a looooooooong time, given that Rularuu has absorbed a metric ton of dimensions into his mind.

STM: Extracting information from his mind about what Rularuu knows. This could take a looooooooong time, given that Rularuu has absorbed a metric ton of dimensions into his mind.

MM: First attempt by the Well of the Furies to create a champion in over 100 years. She refused the power, keeping just the immortality. OR Battalion sleeper agent, placed on this planet in the mid 1800’s during an advance scouting mission.

MM: First attempt by the Well of the Furies to create a champion in over 100 years. She refused the power, keeping just the immortality. OR Battalion sleeper agent, placed on this planet in the mid 1800’s during an advance scouting mission.

STM: I expanded on them a bit in Issue 19. I always wanted to do a fight against the Leviathan and branch out the Coralax more, but that would be tough to do since the Leviathan is supposed to be all of Sharkhead Isle.

STM: I expanded on them a bit in Issue 19. I always wanted to do a fight against the Leviathan and branch out the Coralax more, but that would be tough to do since the Leviathan is supposed to be all of Sharkhead Isle.

MM: He was K’varr from a world where the demons bound to his armor took over his soul.

MM: He was K’varr from a world where the demons bound to his armor took over his soul.

STM: I always just wanted to kill Praetorian Infernal. I never liked the idea that Infernal came from an alternate Hell dimension, and that Praetoroan Infernal came from a Praetorian Hell dimension. But then Jeff and Matt asked me (in Matt’s case, being my boss, told me) not to do in issue 24 and came up with what they said up here, so I didn’t.

STM: I always just wanted to kill Praetorian Infernal. I never liked the idea that Infernal came from an alternate Hell dimension, and that Praetoroan Infernal came from a Praetorian Hell dimension. But then Jeff and Matt asked me (in Matt’s case, being my boss, told me) not to do in issue 24 and came up with what they said up here, so I didn’t.

MM: It’s incredibly difficult to make sweeping changes to characters like that, all their previous content becomes invalid and it becomes a hornet’s nest of work. If we did anything of the sort it would be slow and measured (like starting with Scirocco in I25).

MM: It’s incredibly difficult to make sweeping changes to characters like that, all their previous content becomes invalid and it becomes a hornet’s nest of work. If we did anything of the sort it would be slow and measured (like starting with Scirocco in I25).

RG: Nothing major planned for the CWK, other than trying to give him a more understandable side (and inform more players about his backstory, which I think a lot weren’t aware of). We definitely had plans for Manticore. Spoiler alert, though I think some already figured this out - Manticore was Lastri Kayumanis’s employer from SSA2. His plan was to destabilize Arachnos, to pave a path towards creating effectively a Vigilante group dedicated to destroying villainy at all costs. We also had a storyline where he breaks into the Zig and recruits from there, creating a Suicide Squad-type group.

RG: Nothing major planned for the CWK, other than trying to give him a more understandable side (and inform more players about his backstory, which I think a lot weren’t aware of). We definitely had plans for Manticore. Spoiler alert, though I think some already figured this out - Manticore was Lastri Kayumanis’s employer from SSA2. His plan was to destabilize Arachnos, to pave a path towards creating effectively a Vigilante group dedicated to destroying villainy at all costs. We also had a storyline where he breaks into the Zig and recruits from there, creating a Suicide Squad-type group.

JH: We discussed having Manticore form a third major side to play against Arachnos and the Phalanx. Basically, he would go full Vigilante with Wyvern and effectively say to hell with the ineffective goodie-goodie tactics of Paragon’s Heroes and dive under the various national treaties preventing Longbow from ever truly shutting Arachnos down.

JH: We discussed having Manticore form a third major side to play against Arachnos and the Phalanx. Basically, he would go full Vigilante with Wyvern and effectively say to hell with the ineffective goodie-goodie tactics of Paragon’s Heroes and dive under the various national treaties preventing Longbow from ever truly shutting Arachnos down.

MM: I’ll see if I can find the story I wrote.(Yes I found it, will publish it after this)

MM: I’ll see if I can find the story I wrote.(Yes I found it, will publish it after this)

MM: We didn’t commit to any revamps at the Pummit.

MM: We didn’t commit to any revamps at the Pummit.

MM: You’ll have to ask War Witch to see if she remembers.

MM: You’ll have to ask War Witch to see if she remembers.

MM: They need to maintain a presence in the Rogue Isles to keep an eye on things there.

MM: They need to maintain a presence in the Rogue Isles to keep an eye on things there.

RG: Working with the Rikti to fight off Battalion opened up a lot of possibilities. Redemption of Hero One was definitely one of those that we considered.

RG: Working with the Rikti to fight off Battalion opened up a lot of possibilities. Redemption of Hero One was definitely one of those that we considered.

MM: In Paragon City there are so many other super scientists and super technology guys running around, that sometimes it feels like 2/5ths of all Heroes have that as part of their Origin story. Positron doesn’t need to be as macro-level inventor as Anti-matter does because there is always someone else around doing it.

MM: In Paragon City there are so many other super scientists and super technology guys running around, that sometimes it feels like 2/5ths of all Heroes have that as part of their Origin story. Positron doesn’t need to be as macro-level inventor as Anti-matter does because there is always someone else around doing it.

RG: Don’t know about legitimate stories, but one of the jokes we’d tell around Melissa was how, now that War Witch was alive, we could kill her off in so many gory ways. She didn’t very much appreciate those ideas. :P

RG: Don’t know about legitimate stories, but one of the jokes we’d tell around Melissa was how, now that War Witch was alive, we could kill her off in so many gory ways. She didn’t very much appreciate those ideas. :P

STM: I never wanted War Witch to come back to life. Not that I think that the story that was done wasn’t good, it was great. I just like pointing out all the people who I said don’t bring back to life. I think Melissa didn’t like my threats that if she came back I would find a way to kill her off to make this one stick.

STM: I never wanted War Witch to come back to life. Not that I think that the story that was done wasn’t good, it was great. I just like pointing out all the people who I said don’t bring back to life. I think Melissa didn’t like my threats that if she came back I would find a way to kill her off to make this one stick.

MM: 3) Flux Capacitor 4) Call Box/Phone Booth 5) Steampunk machine 6) Black Hole 7) Time Tunnel 8) Magic 9) Divine Intervention 10) “Body Jumping” 11) The Method You Came Up With For Your Character.

MM: 3) Flux Capacitor 4) Call Box/Phone Booth 5) Steampunk machine 6) Black Hole 7) Time Tunnel 8) Magic 9) Divine Intervention 10) “Body Jumping” 11) The Method You Came Up With For Your Character.

STM: 12) Min-maxing.

STM: 12) Min-maxing.

MM: The true, alien, Rikti show up and kill off both sides since they are not pure.

MM: The true, alien, Rikti show up and kill off both sides since they are not pure.

JAH:  To expand, there’s this concept of Rikti being an actual alien species that exists in both what we would call Rikti Earth and in the Prime Dimension as well.  On “Rikti Earth”, that species found Earth and infested its human population, enslaving them and changing them genetically.  In Prime, they either never found Earth or were defeated by early powered individuals.  See Matt’s answer far below this for more info.

JAH:  To expand, there’s this concept of Rikti being an actual alien species that exists in both what we would call Rikti Earth and in the Prime Dimension as well.  On “Rikti Earth”, that species found Earth and infested its human population, enslaving them and changing them genetically.  In Prime, they either never found Earth or were defeated by early powered individuals.  See Matt’s answer far below this for more info.

MM: Surprised Dr. Aeon didn’t put that in here. Bug him and Protean for it.

MM: Surprised Dr. Aeon didn’t put that in here. Bug him and Protean for it.

MM: It was never relevant to the story, he was just a guy Miss Liberty fell in love with and had a kid with. Not every character has to be a somebody.

MM: It was never relevant to the story, he was just a guy Miss Liberty fell in love with and had a kid with. Not every character has to be a somebody.

MM: For any badge before Issue 6, I made it up off the top of my head when I went to the location that someone had picked to place a badge. What you see is all there is.

MM: For any badge before Issue 6, I made it up off the top of my head when I went to the location that someone had picked to place a badge. What you see is all there is.

MM: Clarify that Positron was never a “ball of energy/gas” in the suit. He was always a man, but his body was injured in the Rikti war to constantly emit anti-matter, which the suit converts to power. Regretted changing the text of the Atlas statue plaque.

MM: Clarify that Positron was never a “ball of energy/gas” in the suit. He was always a man, but his body was injured in the Rikti war to constantly emit anti-matter, which the suit converts to power. Regretted changing the text of the Atlas statue plaque.

STM: Malta revealing themselves at the end of Roy Cooling’s arc. It had enough twists as it was, it would’ve been better to just leave the Sky Raiders having a mysterious benefactor and that’s it.

STM: Malta revealing themselves at the end of Roy Cooling’s arc. It had enough twists as it was, it would’ve been better to just leave the Sky Raiders having a mysterious benefactor and that’s it.

JH: Nothing was planned, per say, but it is definitely something that you can bet Manticore would always have on his mind.

JH: Nothing was planned, per say, but it is definitely something that you can bet Manticore would always have on his mind.

RG: I wrote Synapse’s double-dating of the model sisters into SSA2.1. It was a minor callback, but some of the players who had run his valentines tips got the reference.

RG: I wrote Synapse’s double-dating of the model sisters into SSA2.1. It was a minor callback, but some of the players who had run his valentines tips got the reference.

JH: When we did the V-Tips I had sent a query out to the Paragon team asking for inspiration, ideas, etc. I got a lot of responses and then set to work writing the V-Tips up. I had always intended the V-Tips to hint at things going on in the background and maybe inspire someone to take those story hooks further. Mynx and Arbiter Sands, for example, could have been a great story arc to tell, but also infinitely more fun if Bobcat got mixed up in it all. ;)

JH: When we did the V-Tips I had sent a query out to the Paragon team asking for inspiration, ideas, etc. I got a lot of responses and then set to work writing the V-Tips up. I had always intended the V-Tips to hint at things going on in the background and maybe inspire someone to take those story hooks further. Mynx and Arbiter Sands, for example, could have been a great story arc to tell, but also infinitely more fun if Bobcat got mixed up in it all. ;)

MM: I assume this question is meant to be “did we tell Jack we were killing Statesman?” No. But I did tell Sean Fish about both deaths and he approved of the direction.

MM: I assume this question is meant to be “did we tell Jack we were killing Statesman?” No. But I did tell Sean Fish about both deaths and he approved of the direction.

JAH: Yes, this is dog.

JAH: Yes, this is dog.

MM: (Made up) You from the far future when you come to the realization that you would have been better off never stopping the Outbreak and becoming a Hero, or never breaking out of the Zig to become a Villain.

MM: (Made up) You from the far future when you come to the realization that you would have been better off never stopping the Outbreak and becoming a Hero, or never breaking out of the Zig to become a Villain.

STM: (Made Up) An agent of the Nictus trying to unmake the universe, possibly Requiem or just Requiem’s Nictus - most likely just Requiem’s Nictus. You still wouldn’t have found out who was doing all of this after the Battalion storyline was finished, so that would be a story hook that we would’ve explored more afterwards.

STM: (Made Up) An agent of the Nictus trying to unmake the universe, possibly Requiem or just Requiem’s Nictus - most likely just Requiem’s Nictus. You still wouldn’t have found out who was doing all of this after the Battalion storyline was finished, so that would be a story hook that we would’ve explored more afterwards.

TS: One of the story elements that is not overtly stated in the Mender Ramiel arc is that the light of the Crystal has gone out in that timeline. The idea that Silos was Time Incarnate was an appealing one, and we were thinking that the Crystal was actually part of him, not a separate power. Since in that timeline he was defeated/absorbed by Battalion - no Crystal.

TS: One of the story elements that is not overtly stated in the Mender Ramiel arc is that the light of the Crystal has gone out in that timeline. The idea that Silos was Time Incarnate was an appealing one, and we were thinking that the Crystal was actually part of him, not a separate power. Since in that timeline he was defeated/absorbed by Battalion - no Crystal.

STM: Issue 25.

STM: Issue 25.

MM: What issue/storyline were they from?

MM: What issue/storyline were they from?

MM: I have no idea, I can’t even think of a satisfactory made up answer to this.

MM: I have no idea, I can’t even think of a satisfactory made up answer to this.

MM: (Made up) He would eventually lead Arachos, hidden behind a mask, with the help of an international arms dealer who was secretly having an affair with his girlfriend.

MM: (Made up) He would eventually lead Arachos, hidden behind a mask, with the help of an international arms dealer who was secretly having an affair with his girlfriend.

MM: I don’t know, I think one of the older writers liked the character, but I have no idea if they had an ultimate plan for them.

MM: I don’t know, I think one of the older writers liked the character, but I have no idea if they had an ultimate plan for them.

MM: They turned out great and yes they are.

MM: They turned out great and yes they are.

MM: Ultimatum was getting their spotlight in Issue 25. They were the secret government operatives responsible for many events/assassinations that saved the world from doom.

MM: Ultimatum was getting their spotlight in Issue 25. They were the secret government operatives responsible for many events/assassinations that saved the world from doom.

JH: In the I25 story Battalion gives Earth (ironically) an ultimatum to surrender peacefully and join Battalion’s ranks or they will smash the Shivan meteor into our planet killing us all. The nations of the world are divided on the issue and Vanguard loses a lot of their ability to oppose Battalion amidst all the chaos. Ultimatum shows up with orders to blow up Paragon City using an experimental fusion bomb and blame it on Battalion in order to unite the world against this common threat. Ultimatum does the job nobody in their right mind would ever sign their name next to, which is why they are beyond black ops and who they are getting their orders from in the government remains unknown.

JH: In the I25 story Battalion gives Earth (ironically) an ultimatum to surrender peacefully and join Battalion’s ranks or they will smash the Shivan meteor into our planet killing us all. The nations of the world are divided on the issue and Vanguard loses a lot of their ability to oppose Battalion amidst all the chaos. Ultimatum shows up with orders to blow up Paragon City using an experimental fusion bomb and blame it on Battalion in order to unite the world against this common threat. Ultimatum does the job nobody in their right mind would ever sign their name next to, which is why they are beyond black ops and who they are getting their orders from in the government remains unknown.

MM: Hmm, none of the other writers bothered to answer this one, which makes me think that whoever wrote it no longer worked at Paragon.

MM: Hmm, none of the other writers bothered to answer this one, which makes me think that whoever wrote it no longer worked at Paragon.

MM: None

MM: None

MM: They grew up? The Adults of Enos doesn’t have the same ring.

MM: They grew up? The Adults of Enos doesn’t have the same ring.

MM: Ancient egyptian shapeshifters.

MM: Ancient egyptian shapeshifters.

MM: I think they were the modern day face of BotBS.

MM: I think they were the modern day face of BotBS.

MM: The period of time between Cimmerora and Paragon City is pretty dark of super-powered beings. They were extremely rare before Cole and Richter uncovered the Well of the Furies in the modern day.

MM: The period of time between Cimmerora and Paragon City is pretty dark of super-powered beings. They were extremely rare before Cole and Richter uncovered the Well of the Furies in the modern day.

MM: No idea, I think whoever wrote that wasn’t on CoH anymore, and the thread was dropped.

MM: No idea, I think whoever wrote that wasn’t on CoH anymore, and the thread was dropped.

MM: A supervillain who had the power to turn anything he touched into “gold” (which only looked like gold, had none of the properties, and was obviously fake) Since he was constantly tempted by what would appear to be wealth, but wasn’t, he became a criminal to steal REAL gold.

MM: A supervillain who had the power to turn anything he touched into “gold” (which only looked like gold, had none of the properties, and was obviously fake) Since he was constantly tempted by what would appear to be wealth, but wasn’t, he became a criminal to steal REAL gold.

MM: Battalion of Rikti Earth sucked.

MM: Battalion of Rikti Earth sucked.

MM: Launch pad, I think.

MM: Launch pad, I think.

JAH: It was definitely for the launch pad.  It’s marked as such in one of the maps that came with one of the versions of the game, though I can’t remember which.

JAH: It was definitely for the launch pad.  It’s marked as such in one of the maps that came with one of the versions of the game, though I can’t remember which.

MM: Once we lost all the environment artists to another team, we’d no longer be doing revamps.

MM: Once we lost all the environment artists to another team, we’d no longer be doing revamps.

MM: It was me taken WAY out of context. We removed a section of a war wall to add in a new area once. I tried to hint at it by saying we had the ability to take the war walls down. I have since learned to be less subtle. The new zone in Issue 25 was to be one of the places “between the war walls” on your Paragon City map.

MM: It was me taken WAY out of context. We removed a section of a war wall to add in a new area once. I tried to hint at it by saying we had the ability to take the war walls down. I have since learned to be less subtle. The new zone in Issue 25 was to be one of the places “between the war walls” on your Paragon City map.

MM: As far as I know, yes.

MM: As far as I know, yes.

MM: Hero Corp was supposed to be very “vigilante”, but when all players started to do all the content (because there simply wasn’t enough) we scrapped plans for HC because it would force Heroes to do stuff they didn’t want to. I took this idea and expanded on it for Void Sanction in Issue 24.

MM: Hero Corp was supposed to be very “vigilante”, but when all players started to do all the content (because there simply wasn’t enough) we scrapped plans for HC because it would force Heroes to do stuff they didn’t want to. I took this idea and expanded on it for Void Sanction in Issue 24.

MM: Issue 25 was going to open up Kallisti Wharf, a recently rebuilt area between the war walls.

MM: Issue 25 was going to open up Kallisti Wharf, a recently rebuilt area between the war walls.

MM: Circle of Thorns. Original idea was 5 existing villain groups, each with a different origin story. Freakshow: Tech, CoT: Magic, Outcasts: Mutant, Family: Natural, Council: Science. Arachnos was created as a conglomeration of all of the above.

MM: Circle of Thorns. Original idea was 5 existing villain groups, each with a different origin story. Freakshow: Tech, CoT: Magic, Outcasts: Mutant, Family: Natural, Council: Science. Arachnos was created as a conglomeration of all of the above.

MM: True Rikti lost their home planet when their star went nova, scattering across the galaxy. One group landed on Earth, killed the gods that were being worshiped, set themselves up as gods, then realized they stopped being able to reproduce. They began altering humans into becoming Rikti-hybrids, and eventually all the original Rikti died off, leaving only hybrids on the planet... and true Rikti scattered throughout the universe.

MM: True Rikti lost their home planet when their star went nova, scattering across the galaxy. One group landed on Earth, killed the gods that were being worshiped, set themselves up as gods, then realized they stopped being able to reproduce. They began altering humans into becoming Rikti-hybrids, and eventually all the original Rikti died off, leaving only hybrids on the planet... and true Rikti scattered throughout the universe.

MM: Magic meant the worship of other gods besides the Rikti. Once the Rikti killed all the gods on their Earth, sufficient magic could undo their efforts, so they outlawed magic to maintain power.

MM: Magic meant the worship of other gods besides the Rikti. Once the Rikti killed all the gods on their Earth, sufficient magic could undo their efforts, so they outlawed magic to maintain power.

MM: By exhausting our defenses.

MM: By exhausting our defenses.

MM: I wanted to do an Ouroboros mission back to Brass Monday, but the Art Lead said we couldn’t make Paragon City of the 1930’s. Viridian did a Brass Tuesday for SSA 2 though, with the Nemesis Monstrocity powered by the Well.

MM: I wanted to do an Ouroboros mission back to Brass Monday, but the Art Lead said we couldn’t make Paragon City of the 1930’s. Viridian did a Brass Tuesday for SSA 2 though, with the Nemesis Monstrocity powered by the Well.

MM: Yes, it was a very clockworked skin of the existing maps. It looked horrible and was scrapped.

MM: Yes, it was a very clockworked skin of the existing maps. It looked horrible and was scrapped.

MM: Sure, why not. Explains away the limitations of the engine and the art team sufficiently.

MM: Sure, why not. Explains away the limitations of the engine and the art team sufficiently.

MM: I believe there was to be a mounted warrior on it, but that tech never arrived.

MM: I believe there was to be a mounted warrior on it, but that tech never arrived.

MM: (Made up): Thunderclap was kidnapped and assimilated into Project: Locke by Crey. States had a helmet because the artist wasn’t told otherwise.

MM: (Made up): Thunderclap was kidnapped and assimilated into Project: Locke by Crey. States had a helmet because the artist wasn’t told otherwise.

MM: Artemis, isn’t it obvious?

MM: Artemis, isn’t it obvious?

MM: To avoid getting sued by Hasbro.

MM: To avoid getting sued by Hasbro.

MM: Talked about at lunches and such, but never went further than that.

MM: Talked about at lunches and such, but never went further than that.

MM: (Made up) Terra Volta Power had access to stolen Rikti teleportation technology and would teleport their workers directly from their homes. This explains the crazy electricity rates citizens of Paragon City pay.

MM: (Made up) Terra Volta Power had access to stolen Rikti teleportation technology and would teleport their workers directly from their homes. This explains the crazy electricity rates citizens of Paragon City pay.

MM: Because the only democracy to ever work for a significant period of time was the United States, and even there it’s a Democratic Republic hybrid government.

MM: Because the only democracy to ever work for a significant period of time was the United States, and even there it’s a Democratic Republic hybrid government.

MM: I don’t remember, but I know it’s in a design doc I no longer have access to.

MM: I don’t remember, but I know it’s in a design doc I no longer have access to.

MM: No plans to.

MM: No plans to.

MM: Because we added zones with water and had no time to do the work to freeze over the rest of the game.

MM: Because we added zones with water and had no time to do the work to freeze over the rest of the game.

JAH: The frozen water also generated a lot of customer service tickets from people getting stuck inside of it.  While ice skating is super fun, getting trapped in ice is super not fun.

JAH: The frozen water also generated a lot of customer service tickets from people getting stuck inside of it.  While ice skating is super fun, getting trapped in ice is super not fun.

RG: Don’t have an answer for you, just wanted to drop the running gag that we had for Blue Steel. The Blue Steel = Chuck Norris type gags were known around the office, and I had suggested we do a fight where the player is fighting Blue Steel, very hard fight. When he reaches 50% health, he stops, and says, “You think this shield protects me from the world. You’re wrong. It protects the world... from me.” At this point he drops the shield and does a build up animation that causes an explosion, effectively ending the fight as the entire area around him gets destroyed in a DBZ-esque manner.

RG: Don’t have an answer for you, just wanted to drop the running gag that we had for Blue Steel. The Blue Steel = Chuck Norris type gags were known around the office, and I had suggested we do a fight where the player is fighting Blue Steel, very hard fight. When he reaches 50% health, he stops, and says, “You think this shield protects me from the world. You’re wrong. It protects the world... from me.” At this point he drops the shield and does a build up animation that causes an explosion, effectively ending the fight as the entire area around him gets destroyed in a DBZ-esque manner.

STM: I wanted Blue Steel to appear more in story arcs and kind of sort of dispel his Chuck Norris-ness. He’s a really cool guy if you think about it - one of the few super heroes who is still a cop. There was going to be a cutscene in i25 where the villain tries to kidnap Steven Sheridan. They attack a PPD car which should have Sheridan in it. Instead, Blue Steel walks out. If you beat him down in one of the previous arcs, he would say, “Round 2, $Name”.

STM: I wanted Blue Steel to appear more in story arcs and kind of sort of dispel his Chuck Norris-ness. He’s a really cool guy if you think about it - one of the few super heroes who is still a cop. There was going to be a cutscene in i25 where the villain tries to kidnap Steven Sheridan. They attack a PPD car which should have Sheridan in it. Instead, Blue Steel walks out. If you beat him down in one of the previous arcs, he would say, “Round 2, $Name”.

MM: I would have loved to do that, but we didn’t have “VE Day era” art, and no time to do it right.

MM: I would have loved to do that, but we didn’t have “VE Day era” art, and no time to do it right.

MM: Each Praetorian didn’t need their own villain group, so we “retired” some of them for better looking assets.

MM: Each Praetorian didn’t need their own villain group, so we “retired” some of them for better looking assets.

MM: Likely ascended.

MM: Likely ascended.

MM: Either that or a Battalion sleeper agent. Take your pick.

MM: Either that or a Battalion sleeper agent. Take your pick.

JH: I preferred her unknowingly setting up all of Earth’s defenses into one Impervium lined basket which Battalion could then completely pacify with a snap of their fingers. Additionally, it didn’t make sense that Lady Grey would be a Battalion sleeper agent, she would have claimed Earth’s well long ago were that the case as nothing on Earth would have had the strength to oppose her.

JH: I preferred her unknowingly setting up all of Earth’s defenses into one Impervium lined basket which Battalion could then completely pacify with a snap of their fingers. Additionally, it didn’t make sense that Lady Grey would be a Battalion sleeper agent, she would have claimed Earth’s well long ago were that the case as nothing on Earth would have had the strength to oppose her.

JAH: Anti-Matter’s Space Station, which only made it into the game as the orbital laser in Keyes Island Incarnate Trial.

JAH: Anti-Matter’s Space Station, which only made it into the game as the orbital laser in Keyes Island Incarnate Trial.

MM: (Made up) A million years previously a moth went left instead of right, and got eaten by a bat.

MM: (Made up) A million years previously a moth went left instead of right, and got eaten by a bat.

STM: (Made Up) Someone told Seamus McCann, a writer in the 1400’s, to never kill a character in a storyline.

STM: (Made Up) Someone told Seamus McCann, a writer in the 1400’s, to never kill a character in a storyline.

MM: Back into the stable of “characters Rick Dakan created that we were unsure who owned the rights to”

MM: Back into the stable of “characters Rick Dakan created that we were unsure who owned the rights to”

MM: Flavor, but I think someone wanted to do something with it.

MM: Flavor, but I think someone wanted to do something with it.

JH: I had wanted to do an arc involving other members of the Nuclear 90, some good, some bad. I had developed one guy named Core but he didn’t get much further along than just the costume and a blurb I wrote up for him.

JH: I had wanted to do an arc involving other members of the Nuclear 90, some good, some bad. I had developed one guy named Core but he didn’t get much further along than just the costume and a blurb I wrote up for him.

MM: Blended animations (ability to not be locked down to cast) was a big thing missing in CoH and PvP for that matter.

MM: Blended animations (ability to not be locked down to cast) was a big thing missing in CoH and PvP for that matter.

MM: We use whatever faction fits the stories we want to tell. Void Sanction is really a Hero Corps story line, so there’s that at least.

MM: We use whatever faction fits the stories we want to tell. Void Sanction is really a Hero Corps story line, so there’s that at least.

MM: Northern Sweeney.

MM: Northern Sweeney.

MM: Not true, she’s just a very powerful Fortunata.

MM: Not true, she’s just a very powerful Fortunata.

MM: Outside of CoH, the Temple of the Four Winds was originally the place where K’varr and his order did their demon binding on their world, from Sean Fish’s Champions campaign. Sean co-opted the name for Primal earth for a place of super-monks that trained Dark Watcher. Many things from his long running campaign are in City of Heroes in one form or another.

MM: Outside of CoH, the Temple of the Four Winds was originally the place where K’varr and his order did their demon binding on their world, from Sean Fish’s Champions campaign. Sean co-opted the name for Primal earth for a place of super-monks that trained Dark Watcher. Many things from his long running campaign are in City of Heroes in one form or another.

MM: (Made up) They were all Protean in disguise.

MM: (Made up) They were all Protean in disguise.

MM: There is a running gag on 24 where usually moments before Jack Bauer is about to take down the Ultimate Bad Guy, we get a scene with UBG on the phone with someone even higher up the food chain. In that regard, Emperor Cole would have been seen calling Battalion right before the Magisterium Trial. Battalion would have called the Dimensionless right before taking down their leader and then the Dimensionless would have called True Rikti, the alien race from our own universe.

MM: There is a running gag on 24 where usually moments before Jack Bauer is about to take down the Ultimate Bad Guy, we get a scene with UBG on the phone with someone even higher up the food chain. In that regard, Emperor Cole would have been seen calling Battalion right before the Magisterium Trial. Battalion would have called the Dimensionless right before taking down their leader and then the Dimensionless would have called True Rikti, the alien race from our own universe.

MM: The guy who put the ram in the ramalamadingdong.

MM: The guy who put the ram in the ramalamadingdong.

MM: Yes.

MM: Yes.

MM: In order: More trials, PVP.

MM: In order: More trials, PVP.

JH: I treated them as canon.

JH: I treated them as canon.

STM: Yes. I loved writing Dean, specifically because he has that tragic backstory of being 2 steps away from being a good guy if not for decisions he made in circumstances given to him.

STM: Yes. I loved writing Dean, specifically because he has that tragic backstory of being 2 steps away from being a good guy if not for decisions he made in circumstances given to him.

MM: Master Plans... sigh.

MM: Master Plans... sigh.

Oh, and speaking of Issue 25, did anyone in beta notice the references to Kallisti Wharf during the arcs? I was trying to foreshadow the new zone in Issue 24.

Oh, and speaking of Issue 25, did anyone in beta notice the references to Kallisti Wharf during the arcs? I was trying to foreshadow the new zone in Issue 24.

STM: Yes.

STM: Yes.

MM: Jesse Ventura

MM: Jesse Ventura

MM: Some devs wanted it, and we were talking about how to do it.

MM: Some devs wanted it, and we were talking about how to do it.

MM: If we used them again, they’d have a new leader.

MM: If we used them again, they’d have a new leader.

STM: No idea for Terra. I continued the Pyriss storyline in Dark Astoria - Vernon von Grun used her as an experiment to try to control the Devouring Earth. He succeeded in essentially re-awakening the humanity in her so that she could actually follow orders. I didn’t have any exact plans of what would happen after that, but one idea was that she could eventually go back to being a hero, albeit a Devouring Earth. She’d eventually learn to cope with what she had become, and it would’ve sent a pretty good message to Peter Themari: evil wins the battle, but good wins the war.

STM: No idea for Terra. I continued the Pyriss storyline in Dark Astoria - Vernon von Grun used her as an experiment to try to control the Devouring Earth. He succeeded in essentially re-awakening the humanity in her so that she could actually follow orders. I didn’t have any exact plans of what would happen after that, but one idea was that she could eventually go back to being a hero, albeit a Devouring Earth. She’d eventually learn to cope with what she had become, and it would’ve sent a pretty good message to Peter Themari: evil wins the battle, but good wins the war.

MM: I believe this is answered elsewhere in the doc.

MM: I believe this is answered elsewhere in the doc.

MM: I think I would have gone crazy if we had yet another tutorial.

MM: I think I would have gone crazy if we had yet another tutorial.

STM: I think I would’ve gone crazy if I had to design another tutorial. I did want to eventually make a 40+ zone that was Destroyed Galaxy City.

STM: I think I would’ve gone crazy if I had to design another tutorial. I did want to eventually make a 40+ zone that was Destroyed Galaxy City.

MM: Avillians died the moment we saw wings working on any character model and they no longer had to be accounted for in animations. BotBS would have probably made their way into the game post-Battalion.

MM: Avillians died the moment we saw wings working on any character model and they no longer had to be accounted for in animations. BotBS would have probably made their way into the game post-Battalion.

MM: I don’t recall any specifics from the story bible.

MM: I don’t recall any specifics from the story bible.

MM: Jack vehemently said that Atlantis does not exist, over and over. I think the writer of the ITF never heard that from him.

MM: Jack vehemently said that Atlantis does not exist, over and over. I think the writer of the ITF never heard that from him.

MM: No.

MM: No.

MM: They were dimensionless, gifting those who were on the path of Ascension.

MM: They were dimensionless, gifting those who were on the path of Ascension.

MM: The future he came from came and went with the second Rikti invasion. Good job on ya for preventing his future’s fate!

MM: The future he came from came and went with the second Rikti invasion. Good job on ya for preventing his future’s fate!

MM: We had a Master Set of all the cards in the office. We pretty much tapped that well dry with Vanguard though... the rest were meh.

MM: We had a Master Set of all the cards in the office. We pretty much tapped that well dry with Vanguard though... the rest were meh.

MM: Thankfully, no.

MM: Thankfully, no.

MM: No plans.

MM: No plans.

RG: Move along, citizen. There is nothing *whirrr* * click* to see here.

RG: Move along, citizen. There is nothing *whirrr* * click* to see here.

MM: Because Jack wanted werewolves in the game. Oh you wanted an in-universe answer? Um, the Nicti wanted werewolves in their organization.

MM: Because Jack wanted werewolves in the game. Oh you wanted an in-universe answer? Um, the Nicti wanted werewolves in their organization.

MM: (made up) A mixture of Bromine and Barium

MM: (made up) A mixture of Bromine and Barium

MM: There is a river in Cimerora on a cave map you can swim under too. Ken Morse and I discussed, at length, an underwater map. Problem is... it’s very boring. WoW got away with it by scaling up the “interesting” features of the sea floor 1,000,000% and waving their hand saying “It’s Fantasy!” We don’t get that luxury. Champions tried it and when I looked at it there I was unimpressed. In all honesty I think WoW did it as good as it could be done and players still hate it.

MM: There is a river in Cimerora on a cave map you can swim under too. Ken Morse and I discussed, at length, an underwater map. Problem is... it’s very boring. WoW got away with it by scaling up the “interesting” features of the sea floor 1,000,000% and waving their hand saying “It’s Fantasy!” We don’t get that luxury. Champions tried it and when I looked at it there I was unimpressed. In all honesty I think WoW did it as good as it could be done and players still hate it.

MM: Art fail?

MM: Art fail?

MM: They all made it into the game, just with their name changed (legal reasons).

MM: They all made it into the game, just with their name changed (legal reasons).

JH: They didn’t fail him, he let that happen. As for why, I’m not sure, it was just poetic and interesting.

JH: They didn’t fail him, he let that happen. As for why, I’m not sure, it was just poetic and interesting.