Just wanted to remind everyone that tonight we're gonna try a FA Zerg Run at 9PM-EST. That means packing the FA with 20 of us to run amok within and seeing which team's the most destructive via which one has the FA's First Place winner. The map we're going into is Starbase 24, the first FA available to all so even if you're new to the game you should be able to join in.
I'm having to repeat missions because these 'episodes' are starting to barely give me any XP. The only extra-episodic missions I seem to be able to find are fleet actions that take way more time than they're worth - or doing the player-created ones. Those are fun, but minimal XP gain.
I wanna thank everyone that showed up for the first FA Zerg Run tonight and congratulate Burton and Kasper for taking First Place in the three runs we took at Starbase 24. Remember that winning first place for the first time nets you a special trophy for your ship's lounge/mess-hall.
In other news, the upcoming Featured Series has been dated as starting on February 11 at 11AM-PST. The missions will come at a rate of one every Saturday with the last being on March 10. During the initial run of the story-arc (which is based on the Dominion), the missions' will offer special rewards that won't reappear once the series is done.
Sending out a reminder that this week's Fleet-STF Run is for The Cure, the second STF released for the game. The Cure's kinda weird for me and probably for a lot of other players as it's Space portion is pretty doable with a PUG but the same can't be said for Ground. Written info with pics in the box.
Space-side, the party have to defend a Klingon ship called the Kang while it's stuck without engine-power in the middle of three shipyards taken over by the Borg. The three shipyards will regularly pump out Borgified Klingon ships to take out the Kang which players have to prevent as well eradicate the shipyards themselves one at a time. Once again, the Borg backup-system has to be dealt with as players have to take out a Cube at each yard by taking out first a trio of Nanite Spheres supporting it and to do that take out the second trio of Spheres supporting the first. Wrecking the Spheres start spawning Borgified Raptors to defend the yard. B-Raptors also replace the Bird Of Preys that the yards produce when one's finally taken down with Battle Cruisers spawning from the last surviving yard at the end. The bonus objective for the yard ties into the Kang's defense as players must not only take down all three yards in 15 minutes but also keep the Kang from dipping below 75% health.
The boss comes in after the Kang departs, being a Borgified Carrier. Even with the fighters and BoPs it drops, it's not hard at all to take out as it roughly stays in one spot.
Ground-side, the party has to run through a pretty linear (if twisty) path, saving four alive Klingons and DNA from four dead ones. The first roadblock for PUGs and unprepared groups are a pair of individual barriers that require players stringing a line of energy from four generators to overload a control panel by the barrier. However, a generator require time with the energy they're receiving from the one before players can send said energy down the path. During this time, pairs of Borg drones will beam in to walk over to each active generator to turn it off, requiring a player or two to stick by or between a pair of generators to protect it from tampering.
Also, there's a turret in place between generator #1 and #2 and between #2 and #3 of both sets, both activating when the generators do. Players need to shoot it down to near death so it'll turn off it's player-repelling bubble and regenerate, giving one of the players enough time to run in and plant a bomb with a special command by it to kill it permanently. It'll make it difficult to do so as it erects Cover Shields (and turrets the first time players near kill it) to block the way. The bonus objective requires killing all the turrets in the map too, something that can be impossible if players don't take down the barriers in one go. Especially since the turrets by the barrier-sections respawn if you fail.
The second roadblock to STF-completion is the boss, a Borgified Klingon named Armek who traps players within a rectangular force-field. He's armed with the same chain-lightning debuff as Infected's boss, requiring players to keep away from each other and not summon pets like Security Teams and Generators. Worse, that big gun-arm of his lets him kill a player in one or two shots. A suggested method of beating him is to have four players armed with long-range guns go to each corner of the force-field enclosure and shoot while the fifth runs up to Armek's face and melees him as a distraction. Armek however will eventually start using Cover Shields like the turrets earlier on the map, requiring movement on the players' part. Also, it's been seen that he can be distracted by players outside the field (which is where you go if you try respawning) shooting at him, letting at least one survivor shoot him in the back for a very slow kill.
For those who want to see what it's like in video form, I've sadly not found one that shows off either side as they are right now well enough but I did find one done in October as a speed run of the old version, made by the same guys who did the Infected speed-run I posted earlier.
I also found another STOked video which explains the current Cure about 6:30 into the video so between the two, you should get a good idea of what to do.
I'll try to host practice runs into both Space and Ground portions between now and Wednesday. Good things to bring along are a full stack or two of Large Hypos, ship and long-range ground weapons of the anti-Borg sort and a melee weapon if you want to give that a try. For sixty Encrypted Data Chips, you can also pick up Mark-X versions of the MACO, Omega Force, or Honor Guard ground-set, which comes with a couple of unlockable abilities including an instant-remodulator. While it's on a 10-second recharge, it immediately remodulates your ground-weapon without any build-up, increasing your DPS against the Borg substantially and thus making the Ground STFs a little easier.
2) The new Cardassian Lockboxes are out. They function similarly to Mann Co crates from TF2. but thanks to the Dilithium Exchange, it's entirely plausible to trade your Dilithium for C-store points and open them that way, so F2P players who are committed to not directly giving Cryptic money are still solid. There is a new exclusive ship inside, as well, the Cardie Galor class.
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Let's Play Final Fantasy 'II' (Ch10 - 5/17/10)
I'm having to repeat missions because these 'episodes' are starting to barely give me any XP. The only extra-episodic missions I seem to be able to find are fleet actions that take way more time than they're worth - or doing the player-created ones. Those are fun, but minimal XP gain.
The Apocalypse Has Never Been More Fun
Secret Satan Wishlist!! Thinkgeek Wish List
In other news, the upcoming Featured Series has been dated as starting on February 11 at 11AM-PST. The missions will come at a rate of one every Saturday with the last being on March 10. During the initial run of the story-arc (which is based on the Dominion), the missions' will offer special rewards that won't reappear once the series is done.
Let's Play Final Fantasy 'II' (Ch10 - 5/17/10)
MineCraft: Menetherin
Steam: Vloeza_SE++
I just learned how to autofire weapons after getting to level 50
Space-side, the party have to defend a Klingon ship called the Kang while it's stuck without engine-power in the middle of three shipyards taken over by the Borg. The three shipyards will regularly pump out Borgified Klingon ships to take out the Kang which players have to prevent as well eradicate the shipyards themselves one at a time. Once again, the Borg backup-system has to be dealt with as players have to take out a Cube at each yard by taking out first a trio of Nanite Spheres supporting it and to do that take out the second trio of Spheres supporting the first. Wrecking the Spheres start spawning Borgified Raptors to defend the yard. B-Raptors also replace the Bird Of Preys that the yards produce when one's finally taken down with Battle Cruisers spawning from the last surviving yard at the end. The bonus objective for the yard ties into the Kang's defense as players must not only take down all three yards in 15 minutes but also keep the Kang from dipping below 75% health.
The boss comes in after the Kang departs, being a Borgified Carrier. Even with the fighters and BoPs it drops, it's not hard at all to take out as it roughly stays in one spot.
Ground-side, the party has to run through a pretty linear (if twisty) path, saving four alive Klingons and DNA from four dead ones. The first roadblock for PUGs and unprepared groups are a pair of individual barriers that require players stringing a line of energy from four generators to overload a control panel by the barrier. However, a generator require time with the energy they're receiving from the one before players can send said energy down the path. During this time, pairs of Borg drones will beam in to walk over to each active generator to turn it off, requiring a player or two to stick by or between a pair of generators to protect it from tampering.
Also, there's a turret in place between generator #1 and #2 and between #2 and #3 of both sets, both activating when the generators do. Players need to shoot it down to near death so it'll turn off it's player-repelling bubble and regenerate, giving one of the players enough time to run in and plant a bomb with a special command by it to kill it permanently. It'll make it difficult to do so as it erects Cover Shields (and turrets the first time players near kill it) to block the way. The bonus objective requires killing all the turrets in the map too, something that can be impossible if players don't take down the barriers in one go. Especially since the turrets by the barrier-sections respawn if you fail.
The second roadblock to STF-completion is the boss, a Borgified Klingon named Armek who traps players within a rectangular force-field. He's armed with the same chain-lightning debuff as Infected's boss, requiring players to keep away from each other and not summon pets like Security Teams and Generators. Worse, that big gun-arm of his lets him kill a player in one or two shots. A suggested method of beating him is to have four players armed with long-range guns go to each corner of the force-field enclosure and shoot while the fifth runs up to Armek's face and melees him as a distraction. Armek however will eventually start using Cover Shields like the turrets earlier on the map, requiring movement on the players' part. Also, it's been seen that he can be distracted by players outside the field (which is where you go if you try respawning) shooting at him, letting at least one survivor shoot him in the back for a very slow kill.
For those who want to see what it's like in video form, I've sadly not found one that shows off either side as they are right now well enough but I did find one done in October as a speed run of the old version, made by the same guys who did the Infected speed-run I posted earlier.
I also found another STOked video which explains the current Cure about 6:30 into the video so between the two, you should get a good idea of what to do.
I'll try to host practice runs into both Space and Ground portions between now and Wednesday. Good things to bring along are a full stack or two of Large Hypos, ship and long-range ground weapons of the anti-Borg sort and a melee weapon if you want to give that a try. For sixty Encrypted Data Chips, you can also pick up Mark-X versions of the MACO, Omega Force, or Honor Guard ground-set, which comes with a couple of unlockable abilities including an instant-remodulator. While it's on a 10-second recharge, it immediately remodulates your ground-weapon without any build-up, increasing your DPS against the Borg substantially and thus making the Ground STFs a little easier.
Let's Play Final Fantasy 'II' (Ch10 - 5/17/10)
1) NEW FEATURED EP SATURDAY GUYS HOLY SHIT
2) The new Cardassian Lockboxes are out. They function similarly to Mann Co crates from TF2. but thanks to the Dilithium Exchange, it's entirely plausible to trade your Dilithium for C-store points and open them that way, so F2P players who are committed to not directly giving Cryptic money are still solid. There is a new exclusive ship inside, as well, the Cardie Galor class.
that is why my new character I am trying to create bounces off the servers