This came up over on the SJGames forums, specifically in http://forums.sjgames.com/showthread.php?t=96417]this tread: Does Scientology exist in the IST world?

The thread drift has become rather intriguing, at least up to post #19 (the latest as of this posting)...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

One hell of a letter.
http://videocafe.crooksan...g-profanity-laced-letter
Shaw smiles, Twain giggles and Wilde rubs out a crafty one through his breeches.

If you don't already know - there is a "Unity Rally" in Virtue server today. It was supposed to start at 5 PM Eastern Time. But people started showing up early.
WAY EARLY.
Last check, we're up to 7 INSTANCES OF ATLAS PARK!!!!!!

I got into instance number 6
Here's a screenshot -

(I'm dead center at the bottom of the first set of stairs)
Doctor Leo and Samuraiko are taking demorecordings.
And one of the most awesome images ever is where they have combined the demorecord files of EVERYONE who was in all 6 (at the time) instances of Atlas into the following image.


GREAT GOOGLY MOOGLY!!!!

And this is a little more than 3 hours away from the official time the protest was supposed to start!!

We're going to crash Virtue Server! LOL

http://www.google.com]Google - the Final Frontier

Be sure to play the Away Mission...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

Here's a fun way to pay tribute to our characters. Based on this thread here at this finely crafted link.
In case you don't know what this is riffing - here ya go:
NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW!
88 lines about 44 Women
NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW! NSFW!
I'll start -
Cyberman 8 a super android from the past.

Upgraded and updated, there're few who are so fast.

Kara Skye, her hair and wings of white a mutant story.

Gravity and Kinetics boosted teams to heights of glory.

Lily the Diamond was tough as her namesake.

Statesman and Recluse both knew she wouldn't break.

Okay. This is a post I made to the COH boards when we got a sliver of good news

Quote:[Admin] Alpha Wolf: Sorry guys but I don't have any new update. I know
Paragon management is having discussion with ncsoft and investors.
Continue get people to sign online petitions, post on game forums, and
just continue to make noises so ncsoft cannot ignore players.

Quote:

Quote:Originally Posted by jfp2004



Agh, this is just like that week
following the end of Mass Effect 3. It hit me hard enough that it threw
off everything. I kept bouncing between 'did that really just happen'
and 'it can't end like this' to cautious optimism that things would
change. Not entirely the same as what's going on here, but similar
enough.

I'm hoping things end up working out in everyone's favor. The last thing
I want is for the game to go away. I've been playing it for years, and
it's become a part of my life.

As I've said in the game - hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

Thank you for reminding me of Mass Effect and what the fans accomplished there!

There are those who say that petitions and letter writing compaigns
never, ever work. That NCSoft has never done anything but shutter MMOs
and kill them without selling them.

Those people who say that... they keep using the word NEVER.

I SAY...

LOOK!

Look at HOLD THE LINE and the other Mass Effect 3 protests and what THEY accomplished!

They forced... FORCED - EA/Bioware into releasing the Extended Cut DLC
when all indications are that the personalities at the top of EA and
Bioware had no intention of giving in - at least at first.

True - Extended Cut does far less than most Mass Effect fans had hoped.
For many, it simply made the ending - acceptable. Not great. Not epic
like it should have been. Just acceptable.

But that's MUCH better than it was!

The fans and organizers of Hold the Line and others SHAMED Electronic
Arts... EA... THE VERY DEMON of the Gaming World... Into actually
BUDGING even that far.

I don't think you realize just how HUGE that is. Take a moment to think about it.

Mass Effect fans were nowhere NEAR as tight knit as our community. They
were scattered. There were fan groups and fanfic writing communities,
but nothing centralized. Until enough of them realized that they were
ALL pissed off. It took about 2-3 weeks - almost a month before they
really started to move.

But move they did. And LOOK at what they accomplished!

Can we do any less? Can we AFFORD to do ANY LESS THAN THEY DID?

We can do MORE.

We are UNITED from the START. It hasn't taken us WEEKS to get moving. It's only taken DAYS. Maybe even HOURS.

We are collectively a JUGGERNAUT.

And we are ALREADY up to steam and moving forward!

Yes - it is wise to keep in mind we could fail. We could devastate
ourselves emotionally if we do not acknowledge the simple fact that the
odds are not in our favor.

But is that any reason not to have hope? NO!

We have every reason to believe that WE CAN DO THIS. IT IS MORE THAN POSSIBLE.

There is no more determined fighter than one who fights for their home.

PARAGON CITY IS OUR HOME.

Dig your feet in. Take a breath. Pop an inspiration or two if you need to...

THEN CHARGE FORWARD.

And the gates of all possibility will FALL BEFORE YOU.

Okay, given certain facts (a, that out of everything we are trying, massive public exposure and letter writing are the most effective, and b I have no media resorces for massive public exposure)  I feel I must, MUST write.  But, since I also feel I must make this last attempt as effective as possible, I'm looking for a beta pre read on it:
September 6, 2012
NC Soft West
Century Square
1501 4th Avenue, Suite 2050
Seattle, WA 98101
Attn:  Cheif Executive, Head of Public Relations

NC Soft
 158-16 NCsoft R&D Center B/D
 Samsung-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
 South Korea (ZIP 135-090)
ATTN:  Chief Exectutive, Head of Public Relations

To whom it may concern:
I am writing to express my displeasure with the announcement of the decision to shut down the "City of Heroes" MMO game owned by your company.  I, in fact, beg you to
reconsider this decision.  Failing that, please consider selling the IP rights or giving them back to the community. This would allow both parties to continue to focus, as it
says in your press release "on our core businesses".
I also do not understand why this decision was made, nor why it was decided to announce it to the City of Heroes player base in the way it was.  To we players, on Thursday
everyone was happy and looking foreword to new content being released, then mid day Friday we are told that everyone is being laid off, no more work is to be done on the game;
nor even when you would be turning the servers off.  The suddenness of it has left us badly hurt and very confused; and I for one was wondering if you would please explain the
rationalizations behind this decision.
I do understand that you, as both a publicly held company and as an executive of the same, have certain responsibilities to the shareholders.  I just do not understand how
shutting our game down fulfills that responsibility; would you please explain it to me?
Out of all the types of Massively Multi player games out there, only the superhero genre has had any real appeal to me.  I enjoyed the game so much I had no problem with a
monthly subscription, and in fact had just purchased in game currency (and had used more than a bit of it) mere hours before the announcement was made.  I understand if you,
as a company think that a super heroic MMO is no longer a part of your core business model.  Sadly, I have no interest in the other MMO style games that apparently are part of
your core business.
In summation, I would urge you to reconsider this decision.  You, as an executive and a corporation have the right to decide where you spend your monies.  I hope that you
would continue to spend them on City of Heroes, though if you do not I understand as well.  Do understand that City of Heroes is the only product of yours that I like well
enough to spend money on.
Hear that thunder rolling till it seems to split the sky?
That's every ship in Grayson's Navy taking up the cry-
NO QUARTER!!!
-- "No Quarter", by Echo's Children

It's time for all of us to start CRACKING and do what we can to do as much content as possible on what characters we have time for between now and November 30th. If I'm going to be forced to stop playing this game, I'm going to leave it with as few regrets as possible!
To that end, I want us all to tell each other - in as much detail as needed, whether it's a general statement or a point by point list, what you need the most for each character.
What content have you NOT DONE yet on your main level 50s yet?
If you don't have a level 50, do you need us to help you power them up to that point? Or do you have a character who is a recent favorite that you think is important to level up? Do you only need to level up to a certain point to do concept important content? Like say - running the Cimerora arc at lvl 35? Or help in running the Faultline arc? Or do you want to finally get Portal Jockey, Statesmans Pal, or Task Force Commander badges?
IMPORTANT NOTE:  I know I'm not the only one in this situation - and maybe it will change. I was in Premium mode when the announcement hit. And I CAN'T RESUB because they've locked the accounts and the ability to even accept new money! So I'm in a real bind! I don't have access to VIP status or my incarnate abilities. I truly hope this will change and the devs will simply activate VIP status across the board for all accounts until November 30th. But if not, we'll have to plan accordingly.
That means finishing up content on the Beta server. I have moved copies of all my characters there. I can access the Signature story arcs there myself. I still don't have incarnate abilities. But fortunately Cyberman 8 and Kara Skye (my main two 50s) never depended on incarnate abilities heavily anyway. They were a very welcome edge. But I can work without them with assistance in the higher arcs. (Aside from Endurance boosts. But I'll cope)
Format isn't important. Just jot down what you need. We'll figure out a schedule or something once we've got everybody's most important stuff listed.

Should we take it as a given that "I Know You're Out There Somewhere" by the Moody Blues has been tried as a Gatesong?  If the refrain, especially "And somehow I'll return again to you," didn't come up in Doug's search for useful lyrics, he needs to replace his search engine.
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere, somewhere
I know I'll find you somehow
Somehow, somehow
And somehow I'll return again to you
The mist is lifting slowly
I can see the way ahead
And I've left behind the empty streets
That once inspired my life
And the strength of the emotion
Is like thunder in the air
'Cos the promise that we made each other
Haunts me to the end
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere, somewhere
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere you can hear my voice
I know I'll find you somehow
Somehow, somehow
I know I'll find you somehow
And somehow I'll return again to you
The secret of your beauty
And the mystery of your soul
I've been searching for in everyone I meet
And the times I've been mistaken
It's impossible to say
And the grass is growing
Underneath our feet
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere, somewhere
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere you can hear my voice
I know I'll find you somehow
Somehow, somehow
I know I'll find you somehow
And somehow I'll return again to you
[Interlude:]
You see I know you're out there somewhere
O yes I know you're out there somewhere
You see I know I'll find you somehow
O yes I know I'll find you somehow
The words that I remember
From my childhood still are true
That there's none so blind
As those who will not see
And to those who lack the courage
And say it's dangerous to try
Well they just don't know
That love eternal will not be denied
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere, somewhere
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere you can hear my voice
I know I'll find you somehow
Somehow, somehow
I know I'll find you somehow
And somehow I'll return again to you
Yes I know it's going to happen
I can feel you getting near
And soon we'll be returning
To the fountain of our youth
And if you wake up wondering
In the darkness I'll be there
My arms will close around you
And protect you with the truth
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere, somewhere
I know you're out there somewhere
Somewhere you can hear my voice
I know I'll find you somehow
Somehow, somehow
I know I'll find you somehow
And somehow I'll return again to you.
-----
Big Brother is watching you.  And damn, you are so bloody BORING.

Let's not lose ourselves in what could have been, or how much it hurts. Well, we can do that in other threads. This is for the other side of the debate. The moments that still stand out whenever you play City of Heroes.

I first rolled Priss as a SS/Will brute, nearly 4 years ago. While Tanks never worked out for me, I had some magnificent moments on the original Street Sabre. Right from the very beginning in fact, when I skipped the Outbreak tutorial, selected Galaxy City... and loaded up right as Rikti started appearing. I didn't even have time to claim vet rewards or rearrange my power tray as Priss picked a Rikti and just started punching, stumbling into a team and thus creating her origin story in Paragon. A little while later, Ops and I met up with Atl and co in the D, promptly breaking him with Priss, Sylia and Nene, resulting in him working out Linnas costume for me.

Then there was the Positron of Hell. I remember it lasting an entire week, all us coming in every day, despite incredibly different time zones, and just fighting our way through the endless armies that only an 8-man Posi could spawn. Even now, I shudder as I remember spending two hours desperately trying to get that damn FEMA worker to stop just running in and out of the elevator, trying to survive endless waves of ghosts and Ruin Mages. At the end of the week, Street Sabre, Kara Skye, Digitalis purpurea and Sell-sword (I'm sure there were more left on the team by the end, but they're the only ones in the screenshot) went up to Positron and proceeded to beat the crap out of him with baseball bats.



(Points to Sell-Sword for excellent aim.)

The first Cavern of Transcendence trial, when Alice went from just one of my characters to my main, joining the Legendary and generally getting a lot of development, both originally as Just Another Archer, and then as Purrfect Archer. It was Alice that finally got things moving for me again writing-wise, after years of not getting anything put together fictionwise. Everything that came about because of her... the RPing and story writing with Ops and Spud after they came up with Inyme and Sammy respectively, was fantastic fun. I still remember logging in to find about three more Purrfects waiting for me, and nearly died laughing. Anything with Sammy was just fantastic run. And Inyme... One of the best memories I have of this game was putting Alices Vanguard story run through on hold until the RPing between her and Inyme was in position, then putting together a team of the Legendary and RPing the story arc up to the Positron fight. At that point, my connection hiccuped, right as Ops had Inyme completely lose her shit and tear the Automation apart. RPing the scene afterwards might be my favorite RP moment in this entire game.

While speaking of players, I have to talk about Spud, Ops and Uni. Ops I've known since 2001, when we completely stole control of a forum RPG from a useless GM, and convinced the other one working on it that really, the guy had to go. (Long story involving Autobots, Decepticons, a citybot and an army of clones.). I knew Uni from the same game and forum, and more then a few interesting moments, although none quite as spectacular as the Transistor Line. I introduced them to this game, figuring they'd enjoy it, and by God was I right. It turned out I'd actually known Spud years before, as the owner of a website where I posted a few fics, but for the first few months neither of us made the connection to the names. I brought it up one time, and we had a laugh about how it was a small world. From there, Spud grew into one of the best friends I've ever had. More then that, his friendship with Ops is one of the best things in my life, as it led to OM moving across the country, within a few hours of Uni, who he'd been long-distance dating for years. Last April, I finally got to meet all of them in person as Ops and Uni were married, which I have to rank as one of the greatest moments in my life.

Tiny Terr, before Adjustable height.

Rain of Arrows. Just... Rain of Arrows. Bonus points when teamed up with old Bill.

Warriorgeddon!

GET NAKED! FIGHT CRIME!


Clearly, advanced Rikti technology. 


Oh, like you've never tried it?

Faathim the Kind Task Force. The one time we've seriously tried Shadow Shard content, at least in my experience, and god was it hell. There's a part of me wondering about Quarterfield before it ends... my sanity shoots it down. HARD

The first time I used the self-destruct power. SO GLORIOUS.

Saving Statesman from Tyrant and getting to sit on Emperor Coles throne.

Ice-skating in Frostfires lair.

My first Paragon Haloween and Christmas.

The increasingly crazy ragdoll animations, that have only gotten even more hilarious every time the physics were tweaked.

Perhaps a rather sad one, given what's coming, but the end of Galaxy City. Dozens, maybe hundreds of players, all gathering in Galaxy City, holding a torchlight vigil and waiting for the meteors to fall. And then Street Justice was released a few weeks later, and Priss was rerolled properly at last. "SON OF A BITCH! AGAIN?!"