Arc 5361: Striking Midnight

[Acyl]

As our mighty leader, Master Bob requested - let's see if we can get individual threads for announcing and commenting on arcs, shall we? Now on the LIVE SERVERS, it's...
Arc Name: Striking Midnight
Arc ID: 5361
Morality: Heroic
Creator: @Acyl
Difficulty Level: Moderate - Difficult

Synopsis: A mysterious group wants the Midnighters dead. And you're all that stands in the way. Can you save the Midnight Squad? Remember, no good deed goes unpunished.

Estimated Time to Play: 15-30 minutes (3 missions, but first couple of maps are small)

Notes: Sequel to the heroside Midnight Squad arc from Montague Castanella. A serious story, though there's some light dialogue. Final mission contains EB/AV (scales to an EB on heroic), with optional NPC allies for support. Uses tight indoor maps, so more suitable for small teams. 
Enemies are supposed to be challenging, but not impossibly so. Final boss is meant to hit hard. But is it too much? Let me know. I'm also wondering whether my storytelling is too blunt. This is a dramatic tale, but serious stuff ain't my forte. I'd be really grateful if you good could rate and review. =D
(Thanks to everyone who's already commented on it!)
-- Acyl

[Matrix Dragon]

Good arc. I had a similar idea, but never really developed it that well. This one is much better.

[His Lovely Wife]

This Arc felt like it was part of the original story to me. I like the use of the Unknown Assailant Group/Forsaken, I think they worked VERY well. The dialogue
didn't feel as smooth as some of your other writing, but like you said, Serious stuff is not your forte. It was still a great story, well written. Precis
(db scrapper) and Min took this one on, and having the "pets" was fun/helpful. I gave it 4 stars.

[Acyl]

*nods* Any idea why the dialogue wasn't smooth, or is it just a general feeling of clunkiness? =P

I'll probably have to take another pass at it, honestly. My own guesses on why the main mission dialogue might not work work:

1) Montague's text might be too heavy on the info dump.
2) It's pretty formal and stilted (Monty's a serious sort in the canon arc, but even so...)
3) Looking back, I think I just wrote this thing, I didn't read the dialogue out loud or anything.

Does that seem right? I can try improving it.
-- Acyl

[OpMegs]

Montague was VERY useful in his mission, but unfortunately, Percy seems to have an aggro radius on par with some of the less patient pets in the game, so he
and Mercedes went down quickly when I was caught up in a fight with some other Forsaken.

Admittedly, I was playing at level 20, so their full powersets may not have been unlocked, explaining why Percy only had the one attack.

Also, Ashley McKnight was a pleasure to work with. I absolutely adored her pre-aggro dialogue. "I beat the bogeyman under my bed when I was seven. With a
cast iron poker, actually." Priceless.

Also, lowbie /SR scrapper had a bit of trouble with this, mostly I think because she has so little ranged defense at present and the Forsaken are very gun
heavy. But that's a problem with Mia, not the arc. She'd probably have the same troubles with, say, a Council paper mish.
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[His Lovely Wife]

Hey Acyl. I ran this mission again with Bella, Leafstyle (plant/emp) and Marianne (axe/invul) and it felt much smoother. Of course, I also opened a tab for NPC
Dialogue only so I was actually able to read the dialogue as it happened. It didn't feel like I was missing something this time. The mission was much
better the second time around

[Acyl]

In response to the feedback, I've toned down the EB/AV in the final mission slightly.

The Midnighter Ally NPCs have also been tweaked somewhat...pretty much powered up in general, really.

In particular, Percy Winkley only had two attacks originally; this was intentional, since the fact he gets into trouble a lot is a gag in the canon Montague arc. On the other hand, having observed his NPC behaviour myself, that probably makes him... too dumb.

I might go adjust some of the text later, particularly the Forsaken bios. I'd like to add more to this arc, but it's dangerously close to the limit. I've already had to cut some stuff out.
-- Acyl

[OpMegs]

Question on this one:

What was the glowie you used for the Wardbreaker? I'm trying to do a decent "get to the escape pods" option for a final mission I'm working
on, and it might actually make a decent stand in. Or if there's any other clickies that might do better...
---
"Oh, silver blade, forged in the depths of the beyond. Heed my summons and purge those who stand in my way. Lay
waste."

[Acyl]

That object is Rikti Alteration Pod. Unfortunately you can only use it for defend/destroy object, it can't be used as a glowie/clickie.

However...

I recommend you look at Equipment (Arachnos 4) under the Wall category for collectable objects. Not floor. It looks more or less like a tech coffin surrounded by machinery, the size is pretty much correct...and given it is a wall detail, the placement should be perfect for you.
-- Acyl

[Ankhani]

You might look and see if you can use the Council Vampyri Chamber, though that might be just for destructibles.
---

The Master said: "It is all in vain! I have never yet seen a man who can perceive his own faults and bring the charge home against himself."

>Analects: Book V, Chaper XXVI

[Acyl]

I'm pretty sure the Council Vampyri Chamber is no longer usable in the Mission Architect, because it was being exploited.
(They give XP when destroyed, since they spawn Vamps... but if you attack one from behind, it doesn't spawn Vamps, but you still get the XP for destroying it...)
Might wanna check though. But even so, I think it was a destructable anyway.
-- Acyl