Our experience with the six MMORPGS that Roy and I have played so far is that we frequently start out sampling almost every kind of character archetype available. But somewhere along the line, usually between levels 15 and 30, one emerges rather distinctly as the most fun to play. From that point on, whether the top level of achievement was 40 to 50 or 60 or 70, that was the character we played probably 65% to 95% of the time, and then often between 95% and 100% of the time as we neared the final game levels.
The Matrix Online represents the only time that didn't play out for me, since I played one toon from start to finish there and didn't even begin a second one until ScarletWave, my karate grandmaster, had hit 50.
In City of Heroes, I played a empathy defender named Astraea and a melee scrapper named Indigo8 before Artemis the Archer, my blaster, emerged as the toon I wanted to press on ahead to level 50. Same thing with my first level 50 villain, Inflamed Artemis, the Fire Blast - Kinetics Corruptor. I tried everything except a Brute and deleted several toons as high as level 28 before I finally focused on her.
Same with Guild Wars: Factions. Same for Roy in World of Warcraft before he finally decided on the Priest, Arakhn after trying out Warriors and Palladins and Mages and Druids. It was the same for Roy in Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa, where he finally focused on his Spy, Alex Stallworth after dabbling other game career paths. The Priest Arakhn and the Spy, Alex Stallworth were also like ScarletWave: one top level toon for the game, with little or no interest in doing it all over again with a second character.
What's happening now in City of Villains is a first for us. Three toons, all level 31 out of 50, all quite different, each on a different server, and all equally fun to play, so much so that I usually play one to the next level, then the other, and then the third before going back to the first one again. When I think about it, it's just about the perfect situation for an MMORPG that I really enjoy. Instead of the usual mad rush up the levels, punctuated by a few breaks, this kind of situation could be enjoyed for a LOT longer before all three were brought to the top level.
I'm not sure it's going to remain this way, but I think I'll just enjoy it while it lasts. Of course, now I also have to introduce them.
If there is one of the three that I do favor above the others, it's Vampire Vicereine, level 31 Brute, Electrical Melee and Willpower, on the Justice server. That's probably because she is one of the two punching bag, damage sponge archetypes in the game (along with the Tank archetype in City of Heroes) whose primary job is to absorb mob aggro in a small, controlled area, allowing other archetypes to work their holds and debuffs and damage.
Brutes are a little bit more fun to play because they don't have nearly as many health points as tanks, who really aren't required to do any damage at all on most teams. Because they have fewer health points, Brutes have commensurately much more damage dealing ability than any tank, and that makes them very fun to play. Brutes also have something called Fury: the more they continuously brawl, the greater their fury levels, and the more damage they are able to deal. So you literally run from one mob to the next and to the next without pause, if possible. You could think of Brutes as Scrappers, the melee Hero archetype whose primary job is to wail on whatever the tank has drawn the attention of. But they have better defense and more health points than scrappers.
Already, at level 31, Vicereine has almost as many health points as the strongest level 50 hero I have (I don't play tanks). I just love the way she can stand in the middle of any mob, taunt them to hold their aggro, absorb an amazing amount of damage, and then hand it back out in some pretty spectacular Area of Effect damage moves on multiple victims at once. The Electrical Melee power set comes with very entertaining special effects. She has 1,335 health points.
Rippen is my level 31 Arachnos Night Widow on the Freedom server. Widows, which can come in one of two forms, are one of the two Epic villain archetypes (along with Soldiers of Arachnos) that one only gets to play after they have first taken a regular villain to level 50. In that way, they are the equivalent in terms of a reward, to the Kheldian Peacebringers and Warshades that City of Heroes players get to use once theyhave taken a character to level 50. But the similarity ends there.
While the hero Khelds are considered the symbiotic joining of a human with an alien species, granting them immediate advantages in travel powers such as flying or teleportation at level one, the villain Epic Widows and Soldiers are all blue collar. They have to hoof it on the ground just like every other beginning hero and villain until they can choose the super speed or super jump or flying or teleportation travel powers at level 14. They do, however, get the signature armor of all Widow and Soldiers, which is pretty cool.
Of these three villains, Rippen, on the Virtue server, is the biggest anomaly. She is by far the weakest and most easily killed in terms of health points, with only 756 at level 31, compared to 851 for my level 31 Stalker Razor Grrl, and 1,335 for my Brute. Widows have to wait several levels to get their stealth mode power, and their version is not nearly as good as that of stalkers. They can be seen much more easily. But Widows so far appear to be the most amazing damage dealers in the game. All but one of her offensive powers are rated as High Damage, Superior Damage, or Extreme Damage. She can take down a mob much faster than either my Stalker or my Brute, IF she manages to stay alive.
The other odd thing about Widows is that high damage dealing toons are usually required do little else. But widows are also geared toward total team support. Her tactical training power sets give teammates enhanced defense and accuracy and damage dealing capability as well as improved perception allowing them a better chance of seeing cloaked opponents. These powers also grant teammates resistance to confusion, fear, taunt, and placate powers. Another very cool power Widows have is Mind Link, which temporarily givens even more enhancement to your team's accuracy and defense. All of which make Widows very popular in terms of damage and team support.
Razor Grrl is my level 31 Claws - Regeneration Stalker on the Freedom server. If you are new to City of Villains and just trying to get a feel for the game, or if you are the type of player who loves to tour a game world and enjoy its intricacies without fear of being ganked by every mob in sight, playing a stalker would be an excellent way to start. Unlike every other archetype that has to wait at last a few levels before they can acquire a stealth or hide or cloaked power, Stalkers get theirs at level one. And it is very possibly the best stealth mode in the game. You cannot be seen by opponents even when you are standing right next to them. This is even true with opponents that are at higher levels, meaning that Stalkers are free to move about higher level game play areas almost immediately without fear of being attacked.
The knock on Stalkers is that they are Lone Wolf toons, and nothing could be farther from the truth. They can scout out missions and warn their teammates about what they are about to face. They can go directly to the end of the emission and, with the simple addition of the Teleport Friend power, they can transport their teammates there to save tremendous amounts of time.
A Stalker's other signature power is the Assassin Strike, probably the single most damaging move in the game. Striking from stealth mode, they can one hit opponents that are two to three levels higher. Even when they aren't able to kill on a single strike, they can nail a very difficult opponent for a quarter to a third of his health, making them much more manageable to teammates.
I picked Claws for my Stalker because it also includes a long range power that also comes with heavy knockback, called Total Focus. It not only hits for high damage, it allows you to strike again as your opponent is picking his butt off the sidewalk. I tried other kinds of Stalkers and found them boring by comparison
Happy dilemma, since I can't seem to decide which of them to play. And because they are bad girls, I can have a little more fun with the way they are attired. Vamp is a god example of the fact that you don't have to look like a Brute to play one.
See you in the game.
