COH Profile - Technobabe

COH Profile – Technobabe

Last time I introduced my highest level character on City of Heroes, a character named Underpants Lad. This time I've go my second highest level character from the last seven years on the game:

TECHNOBABE

Level 30 Technology Defender

Technobabe gained her powers from collecting and modifying alien technologies. Now she carries these gadgets to fight for justice and against bad things across Paragon City. These devices, and her own tactical genius have helped lead to the success of her supergroup, the Thursday Night Avengers (her teammates helped too).

SOLO BUILD
Radiation Emission: Radiant Aura, Accelerate Metabolism, Radiation Infection, Mutation, Enervating Field, Lingering Radiation, Choking Cloud, Fallout

Radiation Blast: Neutrino Bolt, X-Ray Beam, Proton Volley, Cosmic Burst

Speed: Hasten, Super Speed, Whirlwind

Concealment: Stealth, Invisibility

TEAM BUILD
Radiation Emission: Radiant Aura, Accelerate Metabolism, Mutation, Choking Cloud, Fallout

Radiation Blast: Neutrino Bolt, Irradiate, Aim

Leadership: Maneuvers, Assault, Tactics, Vengeance

Teleportation: Recall Friend, Teleport Foe

Leaping: Combat Jumping, Super Jump, Acrobatics

OTHER POWERS
Day Job Powers: Day Trader Teleporter, Enhanced Day Trader Teleporter, Revive Ally, Midnighter

Temporary Powers: Stealth Suit, Extinguisher, Taser Dart, Holiday Cheer, Mystery Gift, Build Snowbeast (x3), Ouroboros Portal, Holiday Spirit, Revolver, Call to Justice, Stun Grenade, Gabriel's Hammer, St. Louis Slammer, Hand Grenade, Summon Teammastes, Plasmatic Taser

Inherent Powers: Brawl, Surge, Dash, Quick, Rush, Jump Pack, Pocket D VIP Pass, Base Transporter, Ghost Slaying Axe, Nemesis Staff, Clockwork Pet, Walk, Shadowy Presence, Sprint, Rest, Vigilance

Inherent Fitness: Swift, Hurdle, Health, Stamina

NUMBER OF BADGES: 144

COSTUMES
Technobabe has had two primary costumes. The first one had different color variations over the years as she moved around to different supergroups.

Here is her original costume when she formed the Thursday Night Avengers in 2004:

Here is her current favorite costume:

CLOSING
She has been a difficult one to play in the past after the Thursday Night Avengers temporarily disbanded. It was nearly impossible to solo missions and team-ups with random people sometimes don't work well, especially if they have a preconceived idea about how a certain archetype should be played. For the most part she is a support character which did not lend itself well to soloing.

Now that the game has introduced alternate builds I was able to create a build specifically for solo play while keeping one optimized for team play. The change in the way difficulty settings work allowed me to tone down the danger of my own missions so I could have a better chance to be successful.

With all of that she is actually fun to play now, and since Underpants Lad is pretty much maxed out now she is one of my primary characters right now. The two others I play on a regular basis are villains. One is an Arachnos Spider while the other one I think I'll introduce next time – Doctor Dastardly!

Writing Update

I'm planning to enter a short story contest in a couple of weeks. Last week I wrote the first draft of my story coming in at just over 2,000 words and for the contest it has to be under 4,000 so I have room to work with.

For my genre I've chosen science fiction. I also decided to write something that didn't involve alien worlds, spaceships, bug-eyed monsters, or ray guns. Something that I guess would be hard sci-fi. It involves string theory, theology and takes place on an alternate Earth.

I have been lucky enough to have some people in a writing group I belong to available to read the draft. We all shared each others potential entries for the contest in hopes that at least one of us will win something.

Responses for mine were overall positive, but I've got lots of notes to go through to clean up some problems with the story. Luckily I have nearly 2,000 words left available if needed to fix these problems.

Overall I'm happy with how the story is turning out. Maybe I'll even end up winning the contest. I'll let everyone here know if I did when I find out. If I don't I'll post the story on this blog in December or January 2012 for those who are interested.

Third Sentence Thursday #9

"This was when soldiers were the most vulnerable, and the tightly packed men in each of the dozen assorted craft knew that a hit anywhere would impact on something soft, meaty, and human." (Red Inferno: 1945 by Robert Conroy)

This sentence pretty much sets the tone for the whole tone of the book. Despite the anxiety the men feel in this opening chapter of the book they cross the river without incident. However the rest of the book is filled with the horrors of war as the Soviet Union attacks the United States in the last days of the war to destroy Nazi Germany.



Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

COH Profile - Underpants Lad

I've played City of Heroes since the first months it came out over seven years ago. There have been large gaps in my play time due to limited finances or having a computer that could no longer handle the game well.

Over those seven years I've made many characters but only a small group of them advanced beyond 10th level. Only a limited few made it to 20th or beyond. I was determined to get at least one character to 50th level - that ended up being Underpants Lad.

A friend of mine created a character called Cptn Underpants. I decided to mimic the appearance of his character, except make him much, much shorter. I made him to be the kid sidekick, thus Underpants Lad was born. I did choose a different power set than the Captain. Lucky for me too. Dark Melee and Regeneration work wonderfully together.

Despite that it was a lot of trouble getting up to 50th level. I accomplished that feat about a year ago. Now I have played around with much of the current Incarnate system and have spent a huge amount of influence to slot enhancements that give me all sorts of additional bonuses. On top of that he has a huge collection of temporary powers.

Now I am able to focus on another character. Underpants Lad is going into semi-retirement. Here is where he stands right now:


Underpants Lad (Level 50 Mutation Scrapper)

Description: Little Billy Johnson was Cptn Underpant's greatest fan. After months of hero worship ( and collecting all of the various Cptn Underpants merchandise), Billy's latent mutant gene activated, creating a miniature version of his favorite superhero! As Billy grows in power, he is mutating even further.

POWERS
Dark Melee: Smite, Shadow Maul, Siphon Life, Touch of Fear, Dark Consumption, Soul Drain, Midnight Grasp

Regeneration: Fast Healing, Quick Recovery, Dull Pain, Integration, Reconstruction, Instant Healing, Revive, Moment of Glory

Leaping: Combat Jumping, Super Jump

Concealment: Stealth, Invisibility, Phase Shift

Body Mastery: Conserve Power, Physical Perfection, Focused Accuracy, Energy Torrent

Accolades: The Atlas Medallion, Crey CBX-9 Pistol, Portable Workbench, Portal Jockey

Set Bonus: Large Improved Recovery Bonus x 4, Moderate Improved Recharge Time Bonus x 4, Huge Improved Regeneration Bonus x 3, Large Accuracy Bonus x 3, Large Improved Regeneration Bonus x 3, Large Increased Health Bonus x 3, Moderate Increased Damage Bonus x 3, Moderate Increased Health Bonus x 3, Huge Increased Psionic Res Bonus x 2, Large Increased Endurance Bonus x 2, Small Improved Recovery Bonus x 2, Small Increased Health Bonus x 2, Huge Increased Negative Energy Res Bonus, Impervium Armor, Large Fear Duration Bonus, Large Improved Heal Bonus, Large Improved Recharge Time Bonus, Large Increased AoE/Fire/Cold Def Bonus, Large Increased Damage Bonus, Large Increased Negative Energy Res Bonus, Large Increased Psionic Def Bonus, Large Increased Psionic Res Bonus, Luck of the Gambler: Recharge Speed, Moderate Accuracy Bonus, Moderate Energy and Neg Energy Res Bonus, Moderate Immobilize Resistance Bonus, Moderate Improved Jumping Bonus, Moderate Increased Psionic Res Bonus, Small Increased Psionic Def Bonus, Tiny Improved Knockback Bonus, Tiny Increased Health Bonus, Tiny Smashing and Lethal Resist Bonus

Temporary & Other Powers: Day Trader Teleporter, Enhanced Day Trader, Resonance Disrupter, Confiscated Beanbag, Wedding Band, Holy Shotgun Shells, Warwofl Whistle, Electomagnetic Grenade, Raptor Pack, Stealth Suit, Stun Grenade, Web Grenade, Low-G Pack, Jaunt Initializer, Raptor Pack, Web Grenade, EMP Glove, Stun Grenade, Mutagen, Extinguisher, Shivan Shard, Holiday Spirit, Holiday Cheer, Build Snowbeast, Raid Deploy Pylon, Mystery Gift, Plasmatic Taser, Drop of Power, Drop of Resistance, Drop of Vitality, Electromagnetic Grenade, Shotgun, Ouroboros Portal, Cryonite Armor, Rock, Seduction, IR Goggles, Fiendish Glare, Rock, Med Kit, Rock, Stealth Suit, Nectanebo's Curse B, Vanguard Psi-Bomb, Gabriel's Hammer, Envenomed Dagger, Hand Grenade, Recovery Serum, St. Louis Slammer, Clockwork Connection, Molotov Cocktail, Revolver, Plasmatic Taser, Pwer Analyzer mk III, Fear Incarnate, Jet Pack, Kinetic Shield, Brawl, Surge, Dash, Quick, Rush, Jump Pack, Pocket D VIP Pass, Base Transporter, Ghost Slaying Axe, Blackwand, Rikti Pet, Assemble the Team, Walk, Shadowy Presence, Sprint, Rest, Critical Hit, Swift, Hurdle, Health, Stamina

Incarnate: Desitny – Rebirth Core, Lore – Seers Total Core, Interface – Diamagnetic Core, Judgement – Void Total Radial, Alpha – Spiritual Total Core

Badges: 670 (including the Medic badge I got before 50th level. Not an easy feat for a scrapper. I've since did a respec to swap out healing powers for concealment)

Overall Arena Rating: 1515

Hours on Patrol: 1,048 (over a period of over 7 years.... about 3 hours a week that works out to, not as bad as it sounds.... okay maybe it does sound that bad!)

I'm Back!

It's been a crazy month for me. Numerous things kept coming up which really cut into my online time. Now that I've recovered from everything, and had a really fun day yesterday, I'm ready to return to this blog.

I'll be posting more book and writing related posts. I'm doing some more writing and plan to try to catch up on my book reading challenge for this year. Additionally I'll continue the Mutant Arena series and make some more gaming posts.

The goal right now is to try to post at least four or five times a week at least until the end of this year.

Right now I'm reading Red Inferno 1945, an alternate history novel by Robert Conroy. It's pretty good so far; I'll post a review after I'm done with it.

Third Sentence Thursday #8

"This statement requires elucidation." (Armageddon - 2419 A.D. by Philip Francis Nowlan)

Well I suppose that this statement may indeed need elucidation. Elucidation means to make something clear. That takes care of the meaning of the above sentence. In context of the story it is Anthony Rogers attempt to clarify his unique position in history. Being a man born in the 19th century, fighting in the Great War in the 20th and finally coming out of suspended animation in the 25th century.

This book is the original story that started the future 'Buck' Rogers; the source of all future Buck Rogers stories and inspiration for other characters like Flash Gordon.


Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

2011 Book Reading Challenge Update

We are quickly approaching the middle of the year. At this point I've finished reading 27 books out of 100 for the year.... falling a bit behind schedule on that challenge.

The new MP-3 player I have is helping me get through a few extra audio books, which for the 'reading' challenge count towards the total (Heck, even 'graphic novels' count). Unfortunately magazines, newspapers, and other periodicals don't count. I don't want to neglect the various magazines and journals I read just to get a couple of extra novels finished.

Still, there is a chance I'll reach 100 at this point. The summer should be good to get in some extra reading and get some more miles logged on my out-of-date e-book.

I would do some reading at the gym, but the new machines they've installed have limited room for books now that they have put in shelves and ports and crap for peoples' Ipods. I have to bring shorter books (by height, not page count) so they will fit in the reduced area. I would bring my MP-3 player and listen to more audio books, but I know it will be too noisy in the gym and I'd have to crank up the volume, which is something I don't want to do. I've been two machines down from people where I can hear the music coming from their little head phones over the sound of our machines. That's got to be murder on the ears.

Are any of you participating in any book reading challenges? If so how are you doing now that we are reaching mid-year?

Third Sentence Thursday #7

"For us in England it came too late." (The Battle of Dorking by G.T. Chesney)

Something for the people in England came too late. Dorking is a city in southern England. The warning must be of foreign invasion. Question is wether it is the French, Russians, Germans, or Martians that are invading.

This story has been collected with other examples of 'Invasion Literature' in a book called Before Armageddon.

Here's how Third Sentence Thursday works:

1) Take the book you are reading now and post the third sentence
2) Review this sentence anyway you want (funny and silly reviews encouraged)
3) Post a link to your sentence to Sniffly Kitty's Third Sentence Post for this week.

Review – The Wind Whales of Ishmael

Here we have a sequel to Moby Dick. Now I have to admit I never read Moby Dick. I carried it around in my backpack for a few weeks during high school but could never read very much of it. It seemed long and boring, and I'm sure now that I'm older I might appreciate it more. All I knew about Ishmael was the “Call me Ishmael” line.

Philip Josė Farmer wrote a very different story as the 'sequel.' Ishmael is the lone survivor of the sinking Pequod. He is rescued by another ship. Not long after that the rescue ship slips through reality. It arrives in a possible distant future of Earth, long after the oceans have mostly evaporated away. The rescue ship falls thousands of feet to the slimy salt below destroying a sky ship in the process. Ishmael manages to be the only survivor of this second disaster.

The rest of the book is about Ishmael's explorations of his new world and learning to deal with the strange creatures and natives. He uses his now unique knowledge to help the native tribe that adopts him. The whole story has the feel of something written by Edgar Rice Burroughs (including a beautiful high priestess).

Format:
The format of the book is unusual in that it is not broken up into chapters. It is one long non-stop adventures without and breaks. It is also much shorter than Moby Dick, making it a very quick read.

Cools Stuff:
Strange creatures inhabiting the sea of air. Trap filled dungeons. Airships. Pulpy goodness.

Final Analysis:
If you are a fan of Burroughs you'll probably like this book. If you loved Moby Dick you might not, but then again it is a quick read and might end up surprising you.

City of Heroes Underworld

Paragon City can be really strange at times. Mutants, wizards, mad scientists, aliens, and other bizarre types can be found wandering its streets and rooftops. Large walls and force fields protect the city and thousands of heroes hold back the tide of evil. However things are not always as they seem as was learned by the not-so-altruistic hero Captain Cash.

Despite his rather low security clearance level Captain Cash made his way to take a day job at Portal Corp. After three weeks he quit and made his way back to the mainland. Instead of taking the ferry he decided to just swim to Talos Island. At one point during the trip the world gave way and he found himself not on the surface of the water, but instead falling through a blue void.

He landed on a flat blue surface that matched the sky in color. It was a very disorienting experience. Not knowing where the heck he was he began to look around for any sign of the world. Sure enough floating high in the sky were what resembled the protective walls of Talos Island.

Using his rocket pack Captain Cash flew up to examine the strange objects that were floating in the sky. Perhaps they were a link to home. He had to escape this strange realm. As he reached the upper range of his rocket pack he noticed doors on a floating object. He had to discover what those were.

Luckily his cell phone was still getting a signal in this other-worldly nowhere. He called a heroine calling herself Sister Blister to fly up to examine the doors. She arrived and had no trouble reaching the strange sets of doors. Unfortunately they would not open for her and no force could break them.

Investigating further, Sister Blister continued to fly up and hit the upper limit of the seemingly endless blueness. Part of her body passed through the strange barrier. Eventually she is able to make her way through the barrier and back to 'reality.' Captain Cash is still trapped.

His trillions of dollars unable to help him in this strange un-universe, Captain Cash calls out to whatever powers may be able to help him. “/stuck” his calls and his call is answered. He is spirited away, his senses tell him back up, but where he ends up is a place few heroes have returned from. The Captain found himself in a vast circular room filled with doors. A fountain of information spewing out the stuff of artificial life. Captain Cash believed he had found the source of the universe!

After spending a long period of time exploring this strange chamber and its unworkable doors Captain Cash came to a sudden realization. He checked his cell phone's GPS and discovered he was just inside the Talos Island Arena. He now attempting to come up with ways to gain influence with his incredible discovery..... so far other heroes don't seem to care....

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(interesting glitches in MMOs can sometimes distract me)