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Ok, I admit that I've failed somewhere before. But anyway welcome. Just a brief intro on what you should expect here:
1. Football. Not gonna post much of that any soon since season is over. :S
2. Anime, Games, etc. Just abt anything conceivable under the Japanese radar barring anything and everything Rule 34. Now that's illegal. Period. -.-;
3. Music. Everything to do with it is listed under the tab.
5. Unacceptable humour: Anything and everything is fair game here. As long as I don't get rounded up by the ISA. -.-'

6.
The Known World=Fantasy world building in process. I: Used to be glossary, now devoted to random rambling; II: Character Concepts; III: Lore.
7. der Wolf=my Fictionpress account under the moniker Tsumujikaze no Soujutsu. A Ranger's Tale is hosted under this page. :)
8. New section now upped. Maybe I should also gun for upping A Ranger's Tale here since I do have this funny feeling that traffic coming to here is way more than whatever I'll get in FP.

Statement of intent: Everything said here is a figment of personal opinion, be it me or anybody commenting. I try to be responsible, but my parents=/=parents of the world.

@Druid of Luhn: Crap. Should have remembered far earlier to give you the credit for your CSS text box code. :(

A/N: But sadly, it seems that your CSS text box code has now been halved efficiency wise. :(

That most important note I should have added: Any images posted in this blog are NOT my own stuff. I got them from Google image search, I don't earn any shit by being a thief and liar. Those responsible for the pictures, rest assured that you all are great artists in your own regards. Sadly, we all know what limited space means in terms of posting.

Latest Note: Changed alignment for my page widgets due to my worry that I can't centre align the thing.

Note on A Ranger's Tale: In case any complaining fella wants to have a legal case with me, let this be known that A Ranger's Tale is rated M by default. I've upped the swearing and somewhat a bit on the dark/gritty factor. You all have been warned, let no little boy and girl enter the forbidden realm.

Latest on ART: A Ranger's Tale now starting to kick back in gear. But I really hate the insanely fluctuating climate here in S'pore.

P.S: Oh, and one more thing. Vid below is yet another ideal OP for A Ranger's Tale.

Saturday 31 May 2014

Pre-mortem 2014 (Group D)

Apparently, it's been statistically proven that popular bloggers can attract around 40K hits daily with Instagram accounts normally racking up a 5-6 figure sum. Why am I saying this? Actually, I only say this for fun. At the same time, I also add 2 vids below for fun.



Group D


República Oriental del Uruguay
Talk cock intro: Welcome to Uruguay, a nation best known for winning the first World Cup and a certain Luis "tak lugi" Suárez. [1] This is a nation which have gotten the US and 90% of England hot under the collar. The former was because of South Africa 2010, the latter due to a conspiracy between two mutually hated rivales. [2] If there's anything to go via this current La Celeste, it would be them and Italy being hot faves to trump the group. That is unless Suárez decides to become Alucard III.

La responsabilidad: How in the blue hell does Óscar "not García" Tabárez manage to win games by parking seven amigos behind the ball? To make this shit football tactic work, two amigos must work in tandem. While it's easy to identify Suárez as the key man, special mention has to be reserved for a certain Edinson "not Edison" Cavani. I remembered seeing La Celeste in action during 2010, this was when football matches were aired 'live' for free at McDonalds. [3] Allow me to be a jerk by saying the only bugger catching my eye was Cavani. If Suárez is all about pace and penetration, then Cavani is all about pace and trickery. Both are equally aggressive, but that's all when it comes to exact attributes as footballers. If La Celeste wants to become a force of reckoning at Brazil, 'tis important to understand where Cavani should be playing. A flat 4-4-2 might work, but I prefer saying 4-4-1-1 with Suárez being the lone target man and Cavani in the hole. [4] Then again, it doesn't make much sense in terms of balancing the width with seven men unless Tabárez is guilty of using 4-5-1 with Cavani played out wide. Won't put it past him though. [5]

Prediction: La Celeste will have something to prove here. This is a team most likely to break down play across the middle 3rd while deploying a high block system. They will be out to frustrate and penetrate, both Cavani and Suárez will most likely be given the license to kill. Or rather only these two. Most likely bookmakers' fave to qualify apart from Italy.

Who I'd like to see in her national colours
Johana Riva aka Miss Uruguay 2014

República de Costa Rica
Talk cock intro: Little is known about Los Ticos apart from the fact that this is that team which made Mexico sweat like crazy. Drawn into the Group of Death, will Los Ticos make it out alive? Or maybe they will become Los Tacos? I admit that I know nothing next to shit concerning Los Ticos. But if there's anything to go by via what might possibly go through the team's mind...

La responsabilidad: A lot will hinge on a certain Bryan "not Singer" Ruiz. Being a team suffering little to zero fame in the sport, 'tis only natural to see Jorge "not Valdano" Luis Pinto opting for a pragmatic 4-2-3-1. With Ruiz being that ace in the hole, a lot will hinge heavily on how he pulls the strings behind two wide amigos and one central amigo. As both secondary striker and attacking midfielder, it's rather likely that opponents will try making Los Tacos out of Los Ticos via exploiting massive gaps left in between offence and defence. At this point of time, it will be down to the three amigos. Or rather Ruiz and his two amigos at the back. Whoever tasked with anchoring the fort by then, you both have been warned.

Prediction: I don't like to play the doom prophet because there is only one Pele. Rather, enjoy the ride. YOLO amigos=you're worth it. One interesting fact tho: Los Ticos got screwed by La Celeste in the buildup to 2010.

Who I'd like to see in her national colours
Jarlyn Arias

England
Talk cock intro: Better known as Engrand in broken Engrish, this is truly a proud nation fallen into hard times. In the merry world of football, England has always been a footballing paradox. The English Premier League has always been the most competitive league by a long shot. Yet, this is also a footballing nation well known for churning out shit national players. This is NOT to say English players are shit. Rather, the Three Lions have always been mocked as a winning 11. Football isn't about whether you have the best 11 players starting. It's about creating a winning team of 11. This is where England fell horribly short with Sir Alf "not Gordon" Ramsey being the only person to defy history. I've got no problem saying Frank "not lampa" Lampard and Steven "not Steve Ang" Gerrard are world class players. Yet, I'd rather jump off the roof of SGH than to call them a world class pairing. Only Fabio "KEEP THE ****ING BALL DAMMIT YOU BLOODY MANGKOK!!!!" Capello and Glenn "smartest man in the room" Hoddle were able to prove themselves tactically intelligent. The rest are either shit or the jury is still out. [6] Okay, I admit this verdict is too damning even though I'm actually calculating from post Euro 96 onward.

In a world where the only player you can never afford is Messi, people will always go for quick fixes rather than long term planning. England have no one to blame but itself for this predicament. Greg Dyke might have suffered plenty of fire over his Aladeen moment, but allow this bastard to applaud him for having the balls to tell the entire footballing world that... "yes, our domestic football is a bazillion times better than our national football."

The onus: Will Roy "not of the Rovers" Hodgson finally boss the team like Roy of the Rovers? Hoddle was the last man to call himself Roy of the Rovers and rightfully so. Take a good look at England under him. This SHOULD be what England is all about. Sadly, Roy of the Rovers is quintessentially fiction. Messi on the other hand is a living PS4 gaming sprite. Thankfully, Hodgson decided to rip up the script drafted by a certain Sven-Göran "kenna goreng" Eriksson. This IS the thing England need the most and 'tis high time for Hodgson to prove his doubters wrong once and for all. It'd be interesting to see how England will cope with the hot and humid Latin climate as the lads cannot afford to burn too much energy playing like the England Jack "Gunner Jack" Wilshere had (in)famously stated. [7]
It's important for England to retain possession and not commit themselves recklessly. This will be where the spine of the team comes in. From central defence to central striker(s), chasing back possession should ONLY be the last resort. This is not me telling England how to play. This is me stressing home the point that England should just minimise the need to do so.
As for youth blooding, Hodgson will do well in allow wide players to express themselves. It's not that England players are shit all the while. Joey "fightin' round the world" Barton might have been a tad too damning in his words, but there's a certain logic behind his apparent Mad Hatter moment. No cohesion means no cohesion, only an idiot will see a donkey and call it a horse. If there have been players like Lee "not Billy" Sharpe, Glenn "smartest man in the room" Hoddle and Chris "not waffles" Waddle gracing the history of English football, why then must the English corporate culture administer euthanasia on those truly good enough?
Personally speaking, it'll be good to see the likes of Daniel "not partridge" Sturridge, Ross "not Charles" Barkley, Adam "not lalas" Lallana and Raheem "not Donald" Sterling strutting their stuff on a starting basis.

Prediction: The hot seat has never been a poisoned chalice. Rather, I'd call it Siege Perilous where any Tom, Dick and Harry happening to sit on it will perish straightaway. The St George faithful are still waiting for Sir Galahad, will Hodgson be the one? Hodgson wagered a tenner on Engrand finally reverting to England, I firmly believe the only thing every long suffering English wants right now is for this once proud footballing nation to retrieve a good semblance of the English pride. Ofc winning a tenner shouldn't be enough if England really manage to reverse time itself. Therefore, every lad mag must be prepared for the unexpected. If England win, there must be some hot chick(s) posing in the shirt and I do not mean those featured in the Sun. [8]

A/N: I find it quite interesting that this current squad is hellbent on staying low profile. It's a good bit like me saying S'poreans are capable of taking the world by storm when it comes to football and fantasy novel writing, both which are used to ridicule before typical S'pore itself. If Hodgson is trying to deflect whatever media bs lavished unto the team all the while, it means that his first move is alrdy a proven success.

Repubblica Italiana
Talk cock intro: A nation which understands not the meaning of defeat, this will be how I describe Gli Azzurri. Calciopoli was a scandal that should have torn this nation apart. In the face of economic uncertainty, facing a scandal equivalent to Richard Nixon and Watergate was the last thing Italy ever needed. In 2006, the country got screwed by Juventus. Ironically, it was also through the footballing lineage of La Vecchia Signora that gave this nation solace and hope. In case you all still taktau, Marcello "Signore Turin" Lippi used to coach the Old Lady over two stints, i.e. 1994-1999 and 2001-2004. Come Euro 2012, Calciopoli struck back like a revived Palpatine hellbent on seducing the entire Skywalker lineage over to the Dark Side. Suffice to say, however...
Interestingly enough, Italians are also known for their handsome blokes. Way before the current generation is hot on Korean flower boys, those born around my generation and beyond should remember a certain Paolo "not that Paolo in my dept" Maldini. If you even happen to ask any S'porean bella signora around 2-3 yrs my senior on who is Maldini, there's a decent chance of her aging at least 5-10 yrs in reverse. All for this Azzurri's sake.

L'onere: If you think S'poreans are bad enough in terms of being pragmatic bastards, think again. The concept of catenaccio was the brainchild of footballing pragmatism and Italy was the country making it (in)famous. Additional stuff like zona mista and libero are just like imagining Julius Caesar turning the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. As for Cesare "the godfather" Prandelli, he managed to pull off his own Julius Caesar by advocating a more adventurous approach without compromising what makes Italian football truly Italian.
A lot will depend on Mario "Ball-lol-telli" Balotelli. This is a player synonymous with talent and trouble. Truly one hell of a beast, the only detrimental attribute denying his development will be an explosive temper. Explosive pace and equally explosive instinct makes this black jack a badass jack. Not only is he a scoring machine unlike John "I scored w/my ex-BFF's ex" Terry, allowing him to prowl off ball will be the last thing you''ll ever want. Nobody was able to tame this lion let loose, not even José "O Especial" Mourinho. [9] That is until Prandelli managed to find a way to shut the lid. [10]
And therein lies another player whom I believe holds the key to unlock title no.6. A lot had been said on Andrea "Mago" Pirlo during the last Euro, but can he be fit enough to endure whatever excruciating weather that awaits? This is where another mago makes his presence known.
Riccardo "Mago II" Montolivo, this will be Prandelli's man. The best locksmith can unlock any lock, this got nothing to do with misogyny. As both an attacking mid and deep lying playmaker, Montolivo is truly one son of a gun. Prandelli's challenge is very simple: how will he accommodate Pirlo, Montolivo and Daniele "Capitan Lupi" De Rossi?
Key to make or break lies in the magic word and it's got nothing to do w/the clip below.

So what does C.I.R.C stands for? C.I.R.C has nothing to do w/A*STAR or NUS [11], it doesn't stand for Clinical Imaging Research Centre. That one belongs to beautiful and smart radiographers who happen to say "kthnxbai" to DDR itself due to better job prospects. [12] 
C stands for Control, I means Intelligence, R denotes Reconnaissance, C indicates Cunning as a fox.

Prediction: Together with La Celeste, Gli Azzurri has to be the top fave to win the group. I'm not saying this b/c the Old Lady is coming to my country. I'm saying this from the bookmakers' POV.

Who I'd like to see in her national colours
Claudia Romani

[1]: The former which is quintessentially ulu knowledge I obtained during my primary school days.
[2]: Namely one orang hitam merah and his orang putih biru friend.
[3]: That was during the 24 hr outlet era.
[4]: iirc that was how Boro took the season by storm under Jack "I got a little black book" Charlton when he decided to play George Camsell as Suárez and Wilf Mannion as Cavani.
[5]: Another tactical possibility is a back and forth 4-3-3 where 2 wide forwards will track back upon losing possession. Easier said than done for the opponents due to ruthless aggression from the last 3 amigos if so.
[6]: Jury still out on Hodgson.
[7]: Although the object of his objection has gone Belgian.
[8]: Not to mention the likelihood of Merseyside boycotting Rupert "I want to own the sky" Murdoch once again.
[9]: Let alone Roberto "not Martinez" Mancini.
[10]: Albeit success rate is rather dodgy so as to speak....
[11]: Because Scorpio are meant to be obsessive arses, let me voice out that my younger sis also graduated from NUS.
[12]: This got nothing to do/S'porean society to be fair since even doctors would prefer better working environment.

P.S: Because Sir Ian McKellen happens to be English...
(Okay lah, I only use him as an excuse to do this shit below)


RB  RCB  LCB  LB
RW  RCM  LCM  LW

Tuesday 27 May 2014

Hi time to recalibrate shit...

Last minute update: Realized I've cocked up big time in terms of important details left out. Note that relevant changes are now in place.

Or in the words of Capcom and its BFF, mass retcon. A lot has transpired ever since I got through Dr Doom. Firstly, I really enjoy shocking the living shit out of enemy bosses since I'm now in the process of learning how to use Sue Storm, i.e. Invisible Woman. My 1st impression is basically doing force field+stun/weaken+frontal fire. Using her movement melee bs where she'll go range resistant afterwards (not immunity mind you) just adds a whole new dimension of aggro imba'ness. A little wonder why she can only deal nothing next to shit in terms of damage. I suspect she'll have a tougher time come the latter half of gameplay development.
My personal advice on any eager Sue Storm'ers?
Make sure you go defensive upgrade, NOT offensive upgrade. Black Panther is quintessentially Guy holding Wakandan passport due to offensive upgrade (that plus using correct Vibranium enhancement=Guy's heroic BSOD moment come post-Zero/Alpha 3). If you want offensive upgrade, make sure you overwrite it into defensive somewhere down the road. At least I strongly recommend this by time you reach Dr Doom's stage (actually, chances are that you'll need grade 3-4 defensive upgrade to win against the likes of Rhino, Juggernaut, Blob+Toad, Pyro and Magneto). Remember, little boys and girls. Sue Storm IS 70-90%+ support-centric. Won't say you can't do a shit by soloing, but trust me when I say 70-80% of her skills are meant to do aggro-support (Tip: try maxing out her debuff+spirit restore shockwave skill as Invisible Woman can truly create a fantastic job in party raids).

Note: Whatever opinion I stated here are either been here, done that or pure bullshitting. iirc my Sue Storm has yet to give New Jersey her first salute.

Finally finished story mode, so what's next [for T'Challa]?
Firstly, it'll be interesting to see how far I can go via terminal mode where cube shards can be earned once per 24 hrs (note that you can only do that via boss killing). Trading in cube shards can be extremely frustrating as you'll run into minimal probability in getting Unique equipment. However, one good thing about throwing the proverbial die is a decently high chance of getting a stacked artifact. You see, your character can only use 1 artifact. However, said artifact can be stacked up till 1000 times, i.e. 1000 same artifacts equipped. Depending on your character build, this can be rather fun or frustrating. Ofc the best way to get rid of unwanted items is either to barter or donate. I strongly recommend choosing crafter first if donate is your way. This is due to Asgardian Enchanter being a 50-50 unless he reaches level 4. Anywhere below that, your lvl 25 Uru forged item will only receive partial bonus. In case you're not willing to waste time farming for runes, I suggest Seer's Brilliance unless you're not keen on dealing Energy damage.

Secondly. Odin Marks are now easier to gain due to legendary quests. Yet, I must also stress home the fact that farming OMs can and will be extremely time testing b/c you can only gain this much per legendary quest completed. Yet, the individual blessings will make this worthwhile (that is if you're actually crazy enough to waste 2-3 hrs farming OMs this way).

Thirdly, Manhattan IS a must. Granted it's been frustrating for me come lvl 40-44 stage, but it's more of me being indecisive in terms of skill sets recalibrating. Unless you've yet to complete normal difficulty story mode, whatever you accomplished in terminal and challenge modes will contribute massively in terms of Eternal Shards farming. Not to mention Runes farming is actually easier as well. Manhattan can offer you a handsome return for ES and Runes compared to OMs. ES is the easiest, but Rune farming can be a tad too frustrating at times unless you happen to get the ones you need. And did I mention Asgardian Enchanter rejecting any/every Rune donated as a result? You can donate Runes to any crafter/vendor, but NOT the Asgardian Enchanter.

PvP is arguably my greatest phobia b/c I don't particularly enjoy the notion of pitting myself against human opponents. You see, more than a decade of my life has been built upon self-inferiority where it seemed that society was trying to say that I'm like shit. I can't say I'm still living in the past, but 'tis true that the stigma remains true.

On the one shot mission, yet to try that out in its entirety. Period.

Skill build ver 2.0
With the advent of Panther Leap, Evasion Throw has sorta become obsolete. However, PL is quintessentially offensive in nature while ET is defensive bailout. At this time of typing, I'm still trying to get a hang of ET. PL is actually easier to use b/c playing an attacking Panther can be much easier than playing defensive Panther. So how should I go about recalibrating my Black Panther?

Skill set 1: Shadow Warrior
Left click: Claw Slash
A: Knockdown Sweep
S: Cryo Dagger
D: Triple Throw
F: Jungle Snare
G: Fan of Knives
H: Wrath of Bast
Right click: Stealthy Escape

Tactical usage
Mainly for jungle terrain where you can effectively play mob control. KS can be absurdly effective in close quarters as there's not much space for enemy grunts/peons to escape. Take note that to use KS effectively, one must understand the importance defining SE (note that SE is also your bread & butter in jail breaking).
CD>TT/JS>TT sequence will be your basic mainstay. Once you're comfortable w/both, try CD>JS>TT/JS>CD>TT. Learning Black Panther is like understanding how certain fighting game characters tend to work. Blokes like Guy (Street Fighter) and Yagami Iori (King of Fighters) base their fundamental offense on their rekka chain, i.e. command chain combo.
WoB is best used as a prelude to FoK (this is due fast firing rate and high penetration point blank).
Damage buff items are needed due to this build having the lowest damage output.

Skill set 2: Assassin
Left click: Enervating Slash
A: Scything Sweep
S: Slashing Lunge
D: Predator Frenzy
F: Evasion Throw
G: Jungle Snare
H: Dora Milaje
Right click: Stealthy Escape

Tactical usage
Mainly for urban/open terrain. Prepare to use SE a lot. This is def your bread & butter set b/c plenty of stages will boast of urban/open terrain. Urban in particular can be seen as either boon or bane as you can easily mob destroy and get mob destroyed so as to speak. If you cannot master this build, then forget abt playing Manhattan on higher lvls.
You'll be using plenty of ES>SL loop, so keep a look out on where your Black Panther will appear post-execution. On one hand, you cannot afford to get yourself too far flung out (this will curtail your offensive game). On the other end, you need to understand the dangers of being surrounded by unwanted company. Initially, I prefer pairing Savage Strike w/PF. If you're playing Manhattan, forget abt using SS b/c not every opponent belongs to the fish market. There'll be plenty of mechs and Sentinels respawning, so SS is basically useless. Granted there's still a higher ratio of living enemies, but the fact that the worst type of elite enemies actually hail from technology is the best proof on why SS is crap.
JS is a MUST! You'll need that for mob control. The last thing T'Challa ever needs is to be ganked. I can assure you that he's no Cain Marko, Piotr Rasputin or Bruce Banner. These are the guys who can AND will dish out plenty of punishment before one can say OMG WADE KILLED BOB!!!!!!!!! In particular, Juggernaut and Colossus are especially hardy on the defensive end. Likewise, he's not built for effective crowd damage (imo Wanda Maximoff is the indisputable anti-mob bitchslapper w/Dr Strange being second best). Activating JS doesn't mean you're safe, but at least it means you're free to jail break via ES. At the same time, JS can be used for effective synergy where chaining PF w/ES>SL can result in a massive replay of Kill Bill.
On Scything Sweep, use it ONLY after you execute SE, i.e. invisibility mode. After execution, make sure you apply SL immediately. Period.
And lastly, Evasion Throw should be your no.1 priority jail break measure. If you end up nowhere near the proverbial dry land, only then should you pull off JS>SE.
Be prepared to use plenty of heal items worst come to worst.

Add stuff: DM is your lifeguard cum vanguard. The good thing abt T'Challa's fearsome twosome lies in the fact that this can easily become an awesome threesome. Once DM is unlocked, pls understand the need to toggle between any skill menus. Absurdly effective if your Black Panther happens to hunt solo.

A/N-Replaced Scything Sweep w/Fan of Knives due to better return in terms of mob clearing+more effective synergy w/JS. That plus FoK actually got the best firing rate out of every ranged attack skill.

Skill set 3: Wardancer
Left click: Enervating Slash
A: Slashing Lunge
S: Savage Strike
D: Panther Leap
F: Cryo Dagger
G: Blessing of Bast
H: Wrath of Bast
Right click: Stealthy Escape

Tactical usage
STRICTLY ANTI-BOSS!!!!!!!! Do not, and I repeat DO NOT use this in any other circumstances unless you happened to be Jeff Hardy attempting Swanton Bomb during TLC (which tbh was how I carry myself out in recent tries. A bloody miracle I've yet to eat a defeat for the last N bouts). Fighting 1 boss or 3-4 (depending on which instance you're at) can be a bitch. In particular, fighting the Brotherhood is just like Winnie the Pooh invoking his magic words in front of his PC, i.e. Magneto is far more of a bitch in Manhattan due to his cell trap bs. This is why you'll need BoB [Tactical note: Like DM, BoB should also be placed under menu toggle alert due to fighting mobs capable of crowd control. ****ing hate them Sentinels, this got nothing to do w/whether Onslaught managed to impress a certain Fan Bingbing]. At the same time, WoB is needed to accelerate the offensive pace. Crossover offense is key to stayin' alive due to stacking stun w/freeze effect (note that stun doesn't confer DoT). Your 1st strike should be SS as it will give you a head start in DoT. ES should be used as your main DoT while SL is your combo finisher. This is basically yolo, something tantamount to visualizing how the Wardancers fight:
V: Verve
G: Guts
A: Aggression

A/N-You'll need DM for vital backup. And by this, I mean summoning them before getting yourself into the deepest end. That plus XP buff items due to... well, we all know the obvious drift.

Tuesday 20 May 2014

Marvel Heroes: A game that doesn't end

Apparently, there's no end to this shit. Firstly, I find it strongly addictive (albeit years of social solitude has made me stubborn). Secondly, I find it quite effective in terms of giving me much wanted distraction in terms of unwanted straying on the internet (I'm not gonna be a liar by saying I'm a saint like the son of Jesse). Thirdly, I can't last long when it comes to playing (my brain will start swimming after 1-2 hrs of play). Lastly, this is the moral of the story.

Updates
Firstly, I was too stupid to accidentally donate two items due to right-clicking to wear the stuff. The greatest problem? I forgot to lift my finger off the Alt key. First time round, shit was a bummer b/c I wasted one good Unique headgear b/c of that. 2nd time round, it wasn't too much of a hurt b/c I can live w/a M.O.D.O.K Medal gone this way (note to any who care: If you're using characters like Colossus and Hulk, you should have a go at that one).
At the same time, I accidentally offed my rank 2 Wrath of Bast b/c I actually equipped myself with a Cosmic Bodysuit blessed with higher raw stats. Turned out that I earned a rank 3 Dora Milaje. Won't call this a trade off tho since DM is actually much easier to use. WoB is bloody effective as a boss kill (especially if you're fighting Event bosses or bosses who enjoy summoning random pieces of shit), but DM is arguably more effective b/c you can easily gank whoever the bastard trolling you. As Kingpin will tell you, golden rule in fighting boss+backup is to kill the boss asap.*
*Okay, I literally lied b/c I tried WoB on Sauron. That has to be my fastest boss kill till date.

Some other bosses I've fought
Got pwned once again. Manhattan is only good for its Fish Market since there's no chance in hell my future gf would want to put up w/me playing MH for more than an hour. Interestingly enough, WoB is def the showstopper here as you'll effectively force every boss into a standstill.
Sabretooth is gankbait due to the marsh terrain capable of cornering him (note of caution: bastard is an Event boss and I suspect one of the toughest as well).
Bonebreaker is fun to hammer due to DM.
Mr Sinister very fun to hammer due to DM.
M.O.D.O.K most super fun to gank due to DM (that plus me remembering what Robert "never go full retard" Downey Jr said after completing Season 1 M.O.D.O.K mission).
Mandarin not so fun to gank due to three reasons:
1. Too used to ganking ppl in similar terrain (i.e. Bonebreaker, Mr Sinister and M.O.D.O.K are all indoors). 
2. This means I have problem trying to catch up w/my faithful twosome when I realised they're actually faster than me when it comes to closing in.
3. Sir Ben "Aladeen's BFF" Kingsley got some weird circle made famous by them Koreans.

Current status: Three checkpoints reached, one more left. This is kucing hitam gila talking abt Doom.

What kind of person uses T'Challa?
Firsrtly, it means you're a major fanboy who knows the Avengers has nvr been about someone named Steve (no, not you Steve Ang Eng Hock). Secondly, it means you're not content to play sheep and that you're hellbent on being an Irish Wolfhound. Thirdly, it means you need to be extremely intelligent.

On factor tiga, let me elaborate on being extremely intelligent. In fighting games, there will always be 4 main types of characters.
1. Ryu-Ken-Gouki archetype. These are the ones deemed famous and quite easy to use.
Possible characters applicable-Human Torch; Captain America; Hawkeye; Storm
2. Alex-M.Bison-Cody archetype. These are bruiser characters either fairly easy to use or considered technical tanks.
Possible characters applicable-Hulk; Colossus; Thing
3. Guy-Ibuki-Barlog archetype. These are the ninjas of the game. Fast, full of skill and brimming w/swag. Otherwise known as nukes made from glass.
Possible characters applicable-Wolverine; Nightcrawler; Gambit; Black Widow
4. Rose-Dhalsim-Guile archetype. Characters relying on kamehameha in every shit they do, but who are also much technical than merely 70% ease. Self-explanatory.
Possible characters applicable-Scarlet Witch; Dr Strange; Iron Man
Note: Above statements & examples listed should only be taken w/a grain of salt. Or rather less than half a grain.

Then we have type no.lima, namely the Gen archetype. Recently my dearest S'pore has someone main'ing this ah-kong satsau, namely this guy. In this sense, Black Panther is quintessentially blasian.

Pros:
1. Effective skill synergy, be it basic or advanced. This will be especially significant once you attain Wrath of Bast and Dora Milaje via the acceptable way, i.e. level requirement.
2. Tactically versatile due to Stealthy Escape.
3. Fast attack speed means you can effective link hits like a Guy wannabe.
4. Knockdown permits plenty of hellshit. Sadly, I don't use this tactical means beyond one shot sniping.
5. High movement which ultimately permits gauntlet run. One of the very few characters capable of shaping the fight this way (the other notable bastardo in this context being Nightcrawler due to Azazel himself).
6. High dodge. This is especially important against ranged fire and close combat.

Cons:
1. Low killing power means you'll need to play your cards right in terms of skill points allocation.
2. With great power comes great responsibility. High end synergy=high end spirit usage might be the reason why I don't get to see much Black Panthers in my server. iirc plenty of Johnny Storms and Storms tho.
3. Can't withstand prolonged punishment due Black Panther=assassin/ninja archetype.
4. Average tenacity by my own estimation. Basically this means you can't afford to get slowed/stunned/flamed/iced/whatever.

How I rear my cat
Firstly, I chose to stack Relic of Skrullos due to its tenacity buff. One thing I realised abt my handicap is that I can nvr have even 1% of Daigo's gaming reflexes. This means I need to play around w/the surroundings more oft than not. This is especially vital in the Mutate Marsh where human-saurs and whirling chains will be your main course. Coupled w/flaming Barney shamans and I'd need plenty of that to survive. I'm tempted atm to try Relic of Asgard once it reaches beyond stack 3, but I might prefer Skrullos at the end.

Secondly, I realised my brain is only capable of registering a simple 2-way skill synergy at a time. This means I need to tweak my skill menu to something simpler. Chances are that I'll choose between Savage Strike-Predator Frenzy, Cryo Dagger-Triple Throw or Enervating Slash-Slashing Lunge. Due to the game allowing 3 skill menus instead of just one, all I need is to consider whatever possibility in terms of terrain.

Thirdly, I can't live w/o Stealthy Escape. I always buff this one as much as possible. Coupled with the fact that I'm now more or less comfortable w/Panther Grace...

Fourthly, Blessing of Bast is a must for me. It should also be a must for every Black Panther due to its spirit recovery per basic hit. Once you notice spirit running low, it means a bailout is still 100% likely instead of forcing yourself to bodyslide. This also comes into mind Panther's Soul.

Lastly, pls note that due to my innate disability, above tips should only be taken as reference. That plus for some weird reason, I always end up going solo 7-8 out of 10 times. This is esp evident in my last few chapters played. Either that or 'tis no more than 4-5 ppl having my back.

Skill set 1: Assassin
This has to be my most direct tree. Apart from basic attack and Stealth Escape, my other two key skills would be Predator (due to bonus damage vs champions/elites/bosses) and Cryo+Triple (basic offensive synergy). Jungle Snare is a must due to my Energy stat upgrade. In fact, Jungle should be your staple skill for any given style. To facilitate my dodge bonus conferred by my Unique boots (this will only kick in once I use med kit/any other healing items), the H-key would always be reserved for any healing stuff. Basically, list goes something like this.
Left Click: Basic Attack
A: Leg Sweep
S: Cryo Dagger
D: Triple Throw
F: Predator Frenzy
G: Jungle Snare
H: Med Kit
Right Click: Stealth Escape

Notes:
Stealth-Sweep is effective in mob clearing, but also equally effective in sniping out 2-3 grunts in a go. Former is the basics, latter case is all about setting up the stage to do combat.
Cryo-Triple is effective, yes. Try Jungle-Triple, you won't regret it. Now if only I can shake myself off the Cryo-Triple mentality...
Savage is your combo mainstay where you can link it w/basic attack/Cryo-Triple. Do take note that you'll only need to use it 1-2 times unless fighting elite/boss enemies.

Skill set 2: Sniper
By far the easiest style provided you managed to buff Stealth high enough. Do buff your Fan of Knives as well b/c this one=best mob clear tactic. With penetration and energy damage, this one is esp imba against shit like Hydra-bots or A.I.M-bots. If you're fast enough, this one can even become the Hand's greatest nightmare (bar the elite ones ofc).
Left Click: Basic Attack
A: Leg Sweep
S: Savage Strike
D: Dora Milaje
F: Fan of Knives
G: Jungle Snare
H: Med Kit
Right Click: Stealth Escape

Notes:
Most likely I'll tweak this one by replacing Sweep w/Predator to make this more anti-champ/elite/boss friendly. In short, I only need one mean to snipe, not two. To make things easier for execution, I might go A for Savage and S for Predator.
Toggling between set 2 and 3 is a must in boss fight due to the gank factor.
Jungle can be absurdly effective against both machine and flesh. It's only down to whether you'll only use Predator or Savage-Predator synergy. In this sense, this can/will be your best boss kill set.
To play safe, activate Stealth mode first before summoning Dora Milaje.

Skill set 3: Brawler
This operates best under close quarters. I recommend you not to be stupid like me and try using this at any given terrain. This IS a spec skill set where you use to kill the likes of M.O.D.O.K, Pyro, Magneto and Sinister. I call them Overlords of the Closet due to terrain restrictions. Best used for close quarters curbstomp.
Left Click: Basic Attack
A: Cryo Dagger
S: Enervating Slash
D: Slashing Lunge
F: Predator Frenzy
G: Evasion Throw
H: Med Kit
Right Click: Stealth Escape

Notes:
Evasion Throw should ONLY be used once you're either a. pinned against the wall or b. your HP running low. Latter case will be vital if you got the Unique boots which confers dodge bonus upon heal.
Cryo is basically standalone due to freezing effect.
Enervating-Slashing can be absurdly killworthy once you manage to corner the boss. Strongly advise not to use this if you only happen freeze that bugger anywhere else. M.O.D.O.K is exempted from this rule once Dora Milaje close in for the gank. Just make sure the laser doesn't hit you like Goldfinger's infamous castration machine.
Toggling between set 2 and 3 is vital since you'll need Dora Milaje to close in and whack. At the end of the day, once the boss dies, all his kah-kia will auto run away.
Arguably the easiest skill set to master due to Cryo-Predator setup.
Evasion can also be used to transit play. In short, it goes like Evasion>Stealth>set toggle>Jungle>do anything but don't get caught. This part has to be the most tactical due to a cool head needed rather than just cool moves or equally cool reflexes.

So anything more to add?
I only realised recently that T'Challa actually fell in love with Ororo Munroe during his teenage years. Apart from that, I actually developed a phobia for all things non-Story mode. Especially PvP. And lastly, am I too much in requesting Marvel to bring this back?
If you hate Panther-Storm, it means you hate either Marvel or humanity.
Period.

Saturday 17 May 2014

First time in personal history that I've finally...

...snagged a gf? Nah. While I admit there are pretty girls in my workplace (i.e. they say beauty is in the eyes of the beholder), this is NOT about which girl I find pretty or whether I know her name. Rather, I decided that I have no life, that's why I now doing FAQ. But first...


DISCLAIMER!
This is me doing some half-assed FAQ on my experience thus far in playing Marvel Heroes. Don't expect info any pro might otherwise know. If there's any reason why I want to do this meaningless piece of crap, it's because I got cat mentality.

Firstly, allow me to call myself a liar. You see, I did say that either I'll be playing Remy LeBeau [Gambit], Kurt Wagner [Nightcrawler], or Wade Wilson [Deadpool]. Sadly, I think Nightcrawler costs 500 gold while Gambit costs around 900 and Deadpool... I think that's like 1350 or some 4 figure sum starting with 13. At the moment of typing this, I only got like... 250 gold?! That's half the amount I need to recruit Nightcrawler otherwise!!!!!!
Apart from that, I've got some nifty choices to start with (speaking in terms of Marvelverse popularity ofc!). In the Avengers camp, we got Steve Rogers [Captain America], Natasha Romanova [Black Widow] and Clint Barton [Hawkeye]. For the Fantastic Four, I can only recall Johnny Storm [Human Torch]. As for that movie all in S'pore are waiting for, I only remember this guy below.

My ultimate Chosen One? The Last Avenger himself. Okay, that's me bullshitting. There's no such character, this is me invoking the name of Bast. Or rather the Black Panther himself, T'Challa.

But why you choose such ulu character?
As a certain Steve "not Rogers" Ang Eng Hock can testify to my favour, I always enjoy doing things rebelling against conventional norms. There was a time when people said a writer won't make it, but I did (i.e. not in terms of the result, but my decision to go ahead). I didn't end up earning $$$ like J.R.R Tolkien and C.S Lewis, J.K Rowling or G.R.R Martin. The only thing I've earned in the process were scars and spurs, armour and a sword.
If there's anything T'Challa is most famous for, it'd be getting hitched with Halle Berry. Technically speaking ofc since I'm talking abt Ororo Munroe [Storm]. Albeit briefly.
As a belated member of the Avengers, T'Challa's in-game quotes actually hinted at both his personality (utterly serious and duty-bound) and interactions with specific PCs (most notably his quote towards Human Torch's sense of humour, Iron Man's random gadgets, and his appreciation towards Storm's bearing as a queen/goddess). Not to mention "Greetings, fellow Avenger."

So how did my whimsical choice pan out?
Due to a gross lack in mobility skills, I found the initial training curve to be a tad quite steep. Trying to get past Black Cat required a massive turnaround in terms of orientation (and to be fair, I'm what others might call a directional retard). Going around in circles would prove to be costly very soon...

1st death count
This is technically diff from "kill count" where you get to rack up plenty of dead bodies by solo'ing Diao Chan. Death count basically means my Black Panther's 1st death came in the form of Harry Osborne. Needless to say, I lost count on how long it took me to get accustomed to the gameplay interface.

Super imba equipment?
Seems that I've started getting rare/epic equipment like from... Hell's Kitchen? Doubt it's at the Raft. Regardless of how good my loot drop luck has gotten thus far, I'm pretty much convinced there are plenty of deserving folks receiving equal, if not better loot.
Declaration alert!
By time you're seeing this post, I can assure you that my Black Panther has gotten two pieces of Unique equipment with the rest considered Legendary/Epic.

Getting around your handicap
Mrs W: I feel so retarded...

Ms J: W***! How can you say that?!

Above exchange is based on real life work interaction where people can and will go only 50 km/h instead of your normal 80 km/h. If you think I'm being a jerk, it means you don't deserve to be in the workforce. Long story short, the best thing I've ever done for my Black Panther is running the gauntlet. To do that successfully, you need to level up Stealthy Escape as high as possible. The best thing abt SE lies in the fact that you can run like Kevin Bacon in black w/o getting caught by the cops. Be careful tho. You wouldn't want to run out of spirit/risk exposure.

Be your own running man
Ever watched Running Man apart from wishing Gary Kang and Song Ji-hyo are for real? It takes one entire cast+chosen celebs to form Running Man, T'Chall only needs himself to solo run. Against any given boss, Running Man has became my ultimate secret weapon. More on that later.

You see, Marvel Heroes is all abt real time stage clearing combined with actual side scroller elements. The era where Guy and Cody were popularity equals to Ryu and Ken has truly gone, but not whatever influences left lingering. It took me until post-Hell's Kitchen to grasp the basics 100% correctly, but taking advantage of the terrain IS a must for any Black Panther users. There are mainly four types of terrain available, namely:
1. Urban terrain.
2. Open flat terrain.
3. Hard terrain.
4. Enclosed terrain.

Examples of urban terrain will be Hell's Kitchen and most part of the Purifiers stage. This is actually what I'll call a 50-50 deal between ease and efficiency. It's neither hard nor easy because it depends on how the enemies move about. The East End stage was especially challenging on this end b/c you get to fight plenty of big ass monsters somewhere halfway through. Purifiers wise, you'll have to be mentally prepared for nerfed version of Zerg swarming. If you can't even navigate Hell's Kitchen, then you deserve to use other heroes like Colossus or Nightcrawler instead.

Example of open flat terrain will be Buccaneer Beach. This involves maximum ease in movement and efficiency. Plenty of room to run like Invisible Man himself, plenty of space for sniping. At the same time, you can easily outmaneuver any enemy, be they elite or otherwise (which ultimately results in effective sniping. Duh~). You should ready Fan of Knives for this one.

Hard terrain is all about getting surrounded by obstacles. This is the main reason why solo'ing such stages like Bamboo Village, Fort Stryker, and Savage Island can be totally crazy. You won't have much time and space to run about, you'll need to understand that effective maneuvering is key to stayin' alive. In particular, Savage Island is quite respawn friendly due to plenty of trees and rocks. Basically, it means you need to ready Jungle Snare+Fan of Knives as your tactical mainstay. Period.

And lastly, enclosed terrain means either you have to go underground or indoors. Former case actually has a higher probability in being spacious (go ask Taskmaster if in doubt) while latter cases are like the Kingpin's office or that stupid labyrinth lab in Savage Island chapter.

There's something about being a generic...
In a recent interview, Sir Ian "Gandalf isn't gay, Dumbledore is" McKellen asked an important question:
If you're to make a choice, would you want to be a mutant or a generic?

Why I say this is an important question has got nothing to do with Sir Ian McKellen's sexuality or my status as a conservative Christian. Rather this was something 100% hand to heart. If you say mutant, cynics will call you a liar. If you choose being a generic, you'll risk the wrath of politically correct activists who happened to dislike utterly honest people like Ned Stark. Give me a choice and I rather be a Stark. Because I truly hate faking myself over something like that where in fact I've got no problem with people being honest by choosing option one.

Political incorrect ranting aside, T'Challa is also technically a generic. The only reason why he's different is due to some panther god/goddess earmarking him as that Chosen One. At the same time, Sir Ian himself also likened mutants to outcasts and outcasts with gays, blacks and being Jewish (although we all know how Orthodox Jews view homosexuality). While I won't go that far to say T'Challa is both black and gay (because that's a lie anyway), it remains true that Black Panther abhors the hurting and killing of mutants. In fact, it's a surreal feeling whenever I recalled running the Purifiers gauntlet. Stuff like "human rights are for humans!", "mutant lovers!" are (and should be) considered slurs and we all know William Stryker happened to build his own church. Aptly entitled the Purifiers Church no less. Which now comes to...

Like a Boss
I'll try to list as much personal sharing as possible. If I miss out any, feel free to believe that I'm only human. I'm gonna skip those like Electro, Green Goblin and Shocker since I can't remember what I did to them. To cut down time wasting, I'll only list down Viper, Bullseye, Elektra, Kingpin, Juggernaut, Pyro, and *gasp!* Magneto himself.

Notable Boss 1: Viper aka Lady Hydra
Event bosses are extremely hard to kill, I'll give you that. Particularly, fighting the event boss for Fort Stryker can be extremely anal 90% of the time b/c there's NO way you can try doing it solo. By my estimation, you'll need 3-4 buddies to kill these two. Yes, I'm referring to TWO bosses meshed into one. Blob will always try crushing you via some invulnerable window executed beforehand, Toad can be really annoying with his mobility.

Okay, back to Lady Hydra. Trying to nail her dead will be your biggest challenge b/c she's truly capable of teleporting away while getting hit. My way of dealing w/this situation lies in pulling off SE straightaway. The invisibility status you gain as a result will help you a lot in avoiding unwanted contact (i.e. sudden attacks out of the blue). She's quite fond of proclaiming guns alone can't kill superheroes, basically this means she's capable of shooting while invulnerable.

Tactical key-Using Cryo Dagger to freeze her on the spot with Triple Throw to soften her up. No harm trying Enervating Slash>Slashing Lunge if you're cocksure enough (note that you'll be fighting in Lowtown, which is an urban terrain). Use Predator Frenzy as your only direct measure.
Note: If you're really playing Black Panther with another fellow using Human Torch, then Johnny Storm will be your BFF for this Event boss fight.

Notable Boss 2: Bullseye
This is quintessentially playing cat and mouse with Lester. The only question is who is the cat and who is the mouse? You can try playing the cat if you want to, you'll get yourself killed. Bullseye is perfectly built as Robocop's most dangerous antithesis, playing him out at his own game is the only way. You'll have to play the mouse until you reveal your actual hand. Stage terrain is 100% gauntlet run friendly, so try using it to your advantage. Or else you can die trying so. Once you see yourself getting surrounded by some funny red zoning circle/warning signal/whatever you wanna call that, GET THE HELL OUT!!!!!! Because once you get hit at the bullseye, you're pretty much dead.

Tactical key-Stick strictly to CD-TT chain. Open space means higher difficulty in landing your ES-SL chain. Use PF to decimate and Savage Strike to damage stack. Take careful note of your spirit though as Black Panther is practically 99% spam unfriendly.

Notable Boss 3: Elektra
Best known as Daredevil's ex, Elektra is all about playing mobility and plenty of dodgy shit. The only catch? You're not fighting her along the same terrain as Bullseye.

Tactical key-SE has never been so bloody important. Having high mobility as a melee fighter means two things.
1. High damage dealer.
2. High dodge and movement speed.
Try not closing into her w/o having effective measures to neutralise her greatest strength. Once you slow her down, show no mercy. You'll need plenty of SE and CD to shape the battle, SS to damage stack. If you do this correctly, you'll most likely only need to use PF once or twice. You won't really need TT for this unless you want to include it as a contingency plan.
Note: Alternately, you can use TT and SS in place of PF.

Notable Boss 4: Kingpin
Big ass bastard out to trap you? Use the terrain against him as you'll be fighting under close quarters 100%. Once you corner him, the fight is yours to win or lose.

Tactical key-Use CD-TT as your damage mainstay, PF as your key HP burner so as to speak. You can do w/o SS since cornering Wilson Fisk is more important. If fat bastard manages to summon Bullseye and Elektra, keep on hitting him unless they start closing onto you. Use in strict order SE to jailbreak, outmaneuver the two, and corner Kingpin. Once you KO'ed this guy, Bullseye and Elektra will automatically bail. In short, ignore these two unless you want to waste unnecessary time, effort, and spirit.
Note: Kingpin's office is quite constricted so as to speak. While Storm would have some fear issues otherwise (she's actually claustrophobic), a king of T'Challa's stature would not have problems pinning an opponent back against the corner.

Notable Boss 5: Juggernaut
Apart from Green Goblin, my other two deaths came from the hands of Rhino and Juggernaut. Rhino is an Event boss and I was stupid enough to try taking him head on solo. In short, I deserved to respawn. Juggernaut, on the other hand, is quite another game altogether. In fact, I didn't know what hit me before I was forced to respawn. Below details the reason why I was so blur in the first place.

Tactical key-If you want to use CD, make sure you're mentally prepared to fight someone capable of shaking off slowing effects big time. This is not to say Cain Marko can't be frozen, but whatever effect working to your favour would be halved. TT is important here because it plays a major part in chipping his life away. No point trying to decimate him because you'll get yourself rammed to death. Do not, and I repeat DO NOT, try being clever by running yourself into a corner or against the wall. You need to be 100% aware of your surroundings due to fighting this future member of Excalibur in close quarters. Thankfully, you'll be doing so in a big room rather than Wilson Fisk's office. Now that would have been a disaster.
Note: Once you see a red arrow flashing on the ground, GET THE HELL OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Notable Boss 6: Pyro
Really hate this Aussie and this doesn't have anything to do with whether Pyro is truly racist. This fellow is my best lesson learnt in terms of "how to destroy nukes" due to his insanely imba damage range. See all those big red circles popping up? You better start running hard and pray equally hard. You'll be fighting in an enclosed area surrounded by fire. What this means is this: Unless you have a good enough movement rating, chances are that your hands and feet will be tied. Once Pyro set off his nukes, it will take out more than 3K worth of HP cleanly. I nearly got myself burnt to death because of this idiot. If I never got my Med Kit handy, chances are that St. John Allerdyce will send my Black Panther straight to St John's Island.

Tactical key-If you can't spam CD-TT chain by now, then you got no chance in hell of winning. Period. Seriously, even I can get the gist of making this work. Unfortunately, I was only clever enough to discover this upon hindsight. Don't even bother trying PF against this guy. Too damned risky. SS is a safer bet, but Pyro will never be that stupid to charge around like dumb Rhino himself. Pyro has a very interesting movement game. He will never try pushing you towards the entrance/exit gate. Rather, he's only content in bumming around the back end of that flaming room. Limited space for you to maneuver, but at least you'll have enough breathing space to plan your next move. He enjoys bumming in the flames every now and then though. Either you try to snipe him w/CD or you wait for him to come out.
Note: In case you really need some major breathing space, you can bail out via the nearest entrance/exit gate. There are actually two, one of which leads to your original entrance point. The other one, I haven't tried yet.

Notable Boss 7: Magneto
Yes, I know Sir Ian McKellen is a homosexual. But that doesn't give me any satisfaction in KO'ing his X-Men character. I mean it's a game! Why should I feel as if I've accomplished something great where in fact my life is worth ten times more than people shouting God hates fags and fags hate God? See William Stryker's tech office? Yep, that's the same manner of terrain you'll be fighting Magneto. Perhaps it's down to a different style of play I've designated for Black Panther, but still it's actually easier for me to defeat Magneto.

Tactical key-Go aggro on him, but be careful of the space warping around him. Once you see something queer happening, GET THE HELL OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I've gotten myself trapped as a result, I would have gotten myself respawned if not for my high tenacity. Once Magneto hit you, you'll end up having much of your HP gone. It's not that painful compared to Pyro's pyrotechnic nukes, but allow me to say that Magneto is equally good as Juggernaut against opponents out to immobilise/slow/stun. If not better than Cain Marko himself. What it means is this: CD is effective, but TT will serve as nothing bar an itch. Which manner of offensive option serves you the best, go for it. Ideally, you'd want to max out CD and TT so as to speak. If not, try ES-SL chain repeatedly. PF should only be used to wipe off whatever HP remaining.
Note: Using ES-SL chain is assuming you got Black Panther's Unique level boots which grant him a massive boost in Movement attacks. Otherwise, stick to SS as your offensive mainstay instead.

To be cont'd...
(b/c I now need to sleep)

Sunday 11 May 2014

While I wait for...

Marvel Heroes to d/l the patch and itself, I might as well pull off a grand summary of what I've done thus far. Well sorta...

Mr TTC: I don't think trying to do your own CCG is ideal, you know.

Me: Why?

Mr TTC: Because Marvel is a global company. You do this kind of thing, they will want you to pay royalty.

Above convo truly happened during church. So much for trying to be my own man... -_-

Apparently, I got myself lost in 2-3 sub-quests @Hell's Kitchen. Damn fun running around in open space and spamming Black Panther's basic attack tho*...
*Gutted to say I've yet to get the hang of using Cyro-Dagger in terms of trying to pahlang instead of pahjiao.



[Marvel Alliance of the Atom Ver 1]
What you need:
1. Cards from Marvel Alliance of the Atom
2. More than one deck of poker cards
3. Counters

Different phases during every player's turn:
Draw-Draw a card from any deck belonging to your Characters. You can only draw one card per turn this way.
Main-This is where your Characters will engage combat with enemy Characters.
End-Concludes your current turn together with resolving any debuff (including Stun) effects.
Note: Unless stated otherwise, all debuff/Stun effects lasts only until end of current turn.

Character and deck rules:
1. For every Character played, a deck containing 53 cards plus 7 additional Character cards must be used. More on the latter part later on.
2. Every Character will have his/her own respective cost. No matter what, total cost used cannot exceed the maximum limit of 10.
3. Maximum number of cards in your hand will be decided by twice the number of Characters you play.
4. Every Character's actions will be classified under one of the four types, i.e. Spades, Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds.

Card type rules:
1. Diamond denotes Heal. Value of the card played will decide how much Life your Character will recover. Can be used more than once during any given turn.
2. Clubs denotes Stun. Value of card played must be greater than target Character's Strength or Life, depending which one is higher. Stun can only be played once per turn and after successfully dealing damage.
3. Hearts denotes Defend. Value of card played will reduce the amount of damage suffered by your Character. If that card's value is greater than damage dealt, defending Character takes no damage instead, i.e. successful Defend. Can be used more than once during any given turn.
4. Spades denotes Attack. Value of card played decides the amount of damage which can be dealt. Can only be used once per turn.

Rules for different cards:
1. Standard cards will have value ranging from 2 to 10.
2. Burst cards are those beyond the value of 10, i.e. Jack, Queen, King.
3. Characters affected by Stun cannot use any action apart from Heal.
4. Using Heal will remove Stun.

Burst:
1. Only one Burst card can be used per turn.
2. Burst will override all other effects.
2. Attack Burst, i.e. Spades, will always deal full damage. Damage value is fixed at 12.
3. Defend Burst, i.e. Hearts, will always ignore all damage dealt from a single source.
4. Stun Burst, i.e. Clubs, will always cause Stun status regardless of whether target Character manage to take damage.
5. Heal Burst will always recover full Life. Remove all debuff status including Stun this way.
6. If a player's Character deals 1 Attack Burst and target Character uses 1 Defend Burst, the Character with the higher Burst value wins, i.e. winner activates the respective Burst effect while the loser's Burst effect will be nullified.*
*Stun and Heal Burst cannot be used this way.
Note-Burst card value counts as Jack being the lowest and King the highest.

Flare:
1. Applicable only for Characters only.
2. Every deck must have four Aces. Flare will confer either twice the damage successfully dealt or +4 to Defend.
3. Flare lasts until end of your next turn.


Universe:
1. Every deck can only have one Joker.
2. If you draw one Joker card and decided to use it, all your Characters can use any ONE card from the hand as a Burst card. 
3. Will only last until end of current turn.
4. Can only choose one type of Burst effect.

Combat:
1. Unless specified otherwise, every Character can only Attack once per turn.
2. Attacking Character will always initiate attack.
3. Defending Character can never do so, no matter what.
4. Defending Character will attack back against the attacking enemy Character as a result.
5. Defending Character cannot attack back once stunned.
6. Characters cannot attack once stunned.
7. Stun effect will last until affected Character's next turn.

Characters:
1. Every Character will have one Ability.
2. Every Character will also have his/her own combat type and damage type.
3. Extra Character cards can be played to boost their existent counterparts during the game. This is known as Alternate Impact. This must be done before your Main phase.
4. Alternate Impact can only be used during your current turn and will last until starting of your next turn.
5. You can only use one Alternate Impact per same Character.
6. Alternate Impact confers +1 to any two stats of your choosing.
7. Cards used for this purpose can be added to the respective Character's deck.

Combat type
1. Blindside: Will always attack first.
2. Rage: +3 to successful damage dealt during next attack whenever receiving damage.
3. Brawl: Attack twice per turn instead of once.
4. Lock: Attack deals full damage at the cost of any one extra card used. Cards discarded this way must have a higher value than the Attack card used.
5. Leadership: Draw 1 extra card from any friendly Character's deck after winning a combat.
6. Wild Card: Unique effect that does not belong to any of the above five.

Stats:
1. Every Character will have the following stats: Life, Strength, Agility, Intelligence.
2. Life indicates maximum amount of damage Character can take. Once any Character's Life drops to 0, the Character will be declared dead and removed from game.
3. Strength indicates how much damage a Character can dish out. However, actual damage dealt will be decided by value of the Spades card played+Character's Strength.
5. Agility indicates Character's chances of avoiding damage altogether so long value of the Hearts card played+Character's Agility is higher than total value of damage dealt by enemy Character.
6. Intellect indicates number of extra cards drawn from that Character's deck during Draw phase so long you have less than 4 cards in hand. Can be stacked with Leadership.


C001: Iron Fist
(Danny Rand)
Cost-3
Life-17
Strength-7
Agility-8
Intellect-1

Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Mark of Shou-Lao
Can choose to skip Iron Fist's current turn. Iron Chi cannot be used during your following turn.
You can choose one out of four choices below during your next Draw phase.
[Healing Chi: Any Heal card played will double the amount of Life healed]
[Critical Chi: +4 Attack. Not applicable against Defend Burst]
[Fortress Chi: Immune to damage whenever any Defend card is played. Not applicable against Attacking Burst]
[Silent Chi: Immune to Stun]

C002: Angel
(Warren Kenneth Worthington III)
Cost-1.5
Life-16
Strength-5
Agility-7
Intellect-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage Type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Soaring Free
Attack with value of 4 or more will be treated as Lock Attack without the normal cost of 1 extra card.

C003: War Machine
(James "Rhodey" Rhodes)

Cost-2.5
Life-15
Strength-7
Agility-5
Intellect-2

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Energy Ranged
Description: Total damage equals Attack value+card discarded.

Noble Assistance
War Machine can choose to Stun any attacking Character during opponent player's turn; resolve the effect per normal. Can only use this Power once per every player's turn.

C004: Morbius
(Dr. Michael Morbius)
Cost-3
Life-18
Strength-7
Agility-6
Intellect-3

Combat type-Wild Card
[Heal 1 Life whenever Morbius wins a combat]
Damage type-Feral
Description: +1 Attack; +1 damage successfully dealt.

Living Vampire
Whenever Morbius is attacked and you choose not to use a Defend card, draw a card from attacking Character's deck. If drawn card is a Diamond numbering 2-10, use it to heal Morbius according to the card value. If it's a Burst or Flare card, put that card into your hand.

C005: Mister Fantastic
(Dr. Reed Richards)
Cost-1.5
Life-14
Strength-5
Agility-4
Intellect-4

Combat type-Leadership
Damage Type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Ability
Elastic Deflection: Defend card with value 8 or more will nullify any non-Burst Attack targeting Mister Fantastic. Draw 1 extra card from Mr Fantastic's deck upon success.
[When Defending Burst is used: Redirect all damage from any source to target enemy Character]

C006: Sentinel
Cost-3
Life-24
Strength-10
Agility-2
Intellect-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Energy Ranged
Description: Total damage equals Attack value+card discarded.

Extermination Programming
Sentinel can't be healed. Can choose to use any Heal card together with an Attack card during combat; Sentinel gains +1 to that Attack card dealt and +2 damage dealt. Can only use this Ability once per turn.

C007: Mystique
(Raven Darkholme)

Cost-1
Life-12
Strength-4
Agility-4
Intellect-2

Combat type-Leadership
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Impostor
If you have the lowest number of Characters in play during any turn, Mystique will copy one enemy Character's stats. Draw an extra card after this ability is activated. Can only use this ability once per turn.

C008: Avalanche
(Dominikos Ioannis Petrakis)
Cost-1
Life-18
Strength-6
Agility-4
Intellect-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Seismic Ranged
Description: Discard any one card from your hand after successful Defend; deals damage to attacking Character according to the value of that card discarded this way.

Seismic Shock
Whenever Avalanche uses any Burst card, deal 7 points of damage to all enemy Characters. Stacks with Attack Burst.


C009: Hogun
Cost-3
Life-19
Strength-9
Agility-3
Intellect-1

Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Crushing Melee
Description: +2 damage successfully dealt.

Warriors Three: Grim
Hogun cannot be a target of any enemy Character's Burst effect.

C010: Tier
(Tier Sinclair)
Cost-2.5
Life-17
Strength-7
Agility-8
Intellect-1

Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Feral
Description: +1 Attack; +1 damage successfully dealt.

Son of Hrimhari
Discard any Hearts card from your hand with value above 4.  Tier gains +2 to any stat of your choosing.

UC001: Spider-Woman
(Jessica Drew)
Cost-2
Life-17
Strength-8
Agility-7
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Maximum Resistance
Draw the top card from Spider-Woman's deck during your Draw phase. Spider-Woman becomes immune to damage until end of your turn if drawn card's value is 7 or more. Discard the drawn card if Maximum Resistance is activated. Otherwise, place that card at bottom of the deck.

UC002: Pyro
(St. John Allerdyce)
Cost-1
Life-10
Strength-4
Agility-5
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Area
Description: Can target up till three Characters.

Shaping the Inferno
You can choose to draw the top card from any of your Character's deck during Draw phase. If it is a Spades with value above 5, Pyro can attack up to five enemy Characters. If it is a Burst card, Pyro can attack all enemy Characters instead. Discard all cards drawn this way. Can only use this Ability once per turn.

UC003: Hydro-Man
(Morris Bench)
Cost-1.5
Life-16
Strength-7
Agility-6
Intelligence-1


Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Riptide
Whenever Hydro-Man is attacked, draw a card. If it is a Hearts card, Hydro-Man deals the same amount of damage as that card's value to attacking Character. Place the drawn card at bottom of the deck afterwards. If it is any other card, add it to your hand. Can only use this Ability once per turn.

UC004: Thing
(Ben Grimm)
Cost-3
Life-18
Strength-9
Agility-1
Intelligence-1


Combat type-Rage
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Clobberin' Time!
Discard any Spades/Hearts card with value of 7 or more from your hand during Draw phase. You cannot discard any Burst/Flare/Universe card this way.
[If discarded card is Hearts: Only Attack cards with value 7 or more can damage Thing until next turn]
[If discarded card is Spades: Attack counts as Rage until end of current turn]


UC005: Shadowcat
(Kitty Pryde)
Cost-2.5
Life-11
Strength-3
Agility-4
Intelligence-3

Combat type-Blindside
Damage Type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.


Intangible Phasing
Whenever Shadowcat takes damage/is attacked, you can choose to discard any Hearts/Diamond card with value above 6 from your hand. Shadowcat takes no damage instead until starting of your next turn. You cannot discard any Burst card this way.

UC006: Boomerang
(Fred Myers)
Cost-2.5
Life-13
Strength-4
Agility-4
Intelligence-3

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Tactical
Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.

Boomerang Specialist
Select one out of seven options during your Draw Phase. Boomerang's Attacks will have specific added properties until end of turn. You cannot choose the same option twice in a row.
[Shatterangs: +3 to successful damage dealt]
[Gasarangs: Attack cards will also count as Stun, i.e. successful damage dealt will automatically cause Stun]
[Razorangs: Only Defend cards with value 6 or more can be used by attacked Characters]
[Screamarangs-Stun any two enemy Characters of your choice whenever damage is successfully dealt]
[Bladarangs-Only Heal cards with value 6 or more can be used by attacked Characters]
[Gravityrangs: Can use any card as Stun]
[Reflexerangs: Enemy Character will be automatically stunned whenever a Stun card of any value is played]

UC007: Kane
(Garrison Kane)
Cost: 3
Life-18
Strength-7
Agility-3
Intelligence-3

Combat type-Leadership
Damage type-Tactical
Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.

Interphasing Analysis
During your Main phase, target one enemy Character and draw the top card from Garrison Kane's deck. If you draw any Spades card this way, damage dealt by Garrison Kane to that enemy Character will count as Lock. If you draw any other card this way, Garrison Kane gains +1 to all stat until your next turn. Interphasing Analysis can only be used once per turn. Discard any card drawn this way.

UC008: Hammer
(Eisenhower Canty)
Cost-1
Life-12
Strength-4
Agility-2
Intelligence-4

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Tactical

Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.


Artillery Innovation
During Draw phase, you can discard any four cards, i.e. one Diamonds, one Clubs, one Hearts and one Spades. Hammer will automatically deal 5 points of damage to one target enemy Character whenever any of your Characters is attacked. Effect last until starting of your next turn.

UC009: Banshee
(Sean Cassidy)
Cost-1.5
Life-15
Strength-5
Agility-7
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Area
Description: Attack can target up to three Characters.

Eldritch Blast
Discard any Spades card from your hand during before Banshee declares an Attack. Add that card's value to amount of damage successfully dealt. Cannot discard Burst/Flare cards this way.

R001: Nightcrawler
(Kurt Wagner)
Cost-1.5
Life-13
Strength-4
Agility-10
Intelligence-2

Combat type-Blindside
Damage Type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Smoke and Brimstone
Place a Teleportation counter during your Draw phase.
[Remove any number of Teleportation counters during combat: Nightcrawler is immune to damage from X number of sources where X equals the number of Teleportation counters removed this way. Can only be used during your turn]
[Remove all Teleportation counters: Nightcrawler's Attack will target X number of enemy Characters where X equals the number of Teleportation counters removed this way. Characters targeted this way cannot use any Defend cards apart from Burst]

R002: Quicksilver
(Pietro Maximoff)
Cost-2
Life-15
Strength-5
Agility-10
Intelligence-1



Combat type-Brawl
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Supersonic
Place a Speed counter every time Quicksilver takes no damage from any Attack.
[Remove all Speed counters: Quicksilver's Attack will target X number of enemy Characters where X equals number of Speed counters removed this way. Characters targeted this way cannot use any Defend cards apart from Burst]

R003: Bullseye
(Lester)
Cost-1.5
Life-14
Strength-6
Agility-7
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Lock
Damage type-Physical Ranged
Description: Can use two Spades instead of one whenever attacking. Value of cards used this way can only range between 2-6.

Anything Goes
Whenever Bullseye declares an Attack on an enemy Character, reveal the top card of that Character's deck. If value of the card drawn is not a Burst/Flare/Universe card, you can add that card's value to Bullseye's Attack. Attacked Character will place that drawn card at bottom of the deck afterwards.

R004: Thunderball
(Eliot Franklin)
Cost-2.5
Life-19
Strength-9
Agility-1
Intelligence-3

Combat type-Leadership
Damage type-Tactical
Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.

My Wrecking Ball
Draw an extra card during your next Draw phase whenever Thunderball successfully deals damage.

R005: Colossus
(Piotr "Peter" Rasputin)
Cost-3
Life-19
Strength-9
Agility-1
Intelligence-1



Combat type-Rage
Damage type-Unarmed Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat.

Organic Steel
Immune to damage so long attacking Character's Attack is value 6 or below. Colossus is still able to activate Rage so long he is attacked.
[Discard any Hearts with value above 5: Colossus replaces any attacked Character as the target]

R006: Sif
Cost-3
Life-20
Strength-9
Agility-5
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Rage
Damage type-Slashing Melee
Description: +2 to successful damage dealt

Dragonfang
Next Attack will automatically deal full damage so long the Attack card played has value above 6.
[Use any Attack Burst: Effect cannot be nullified by any Defend Burst]


R007: Gambit
(Remy LeBeau)
Cost-2
Life-14
Strength-4
Agility-9
Intelligence-2

Combat type-Blindside
Damage type-Explosive Kinetic
Description: Play one additional Spades upon successful damage; add that card's value to total damage dealt. Cannot use any Burst/Flare cards this way.

Cajun Flair
Place a Kinetic counter during your Draw phase.
[Remove any number of Kinetic counters before combat: Gambit gains +X to either Agility or Strength until your next turn where X equals the number of Kinetic counters removed this way. Can only be used during your turn]


[Deal any Burst card during combat: Remove all Kinetic counters. Gambit deals X damage to attacking Character where X equals that Burst card's value+total number of Kinetic counters removed this way. Effect cannot be nullified by any Defend Burst]

SR001: Thor
(Thor Odinson)
Cost-3
Life-20
Strength-10
Agility-4
Intelligence-1

Combat type-Rage
Damage type-Lightning
Description: Successful damage dealt can be allocated freely against more than one target.

Mjolnir
Place a Bravery counter whenever any of your Characters defends successfully, i.e. takes no damage from any attack after defending.
[Remove one Bravery counter: All your Characters gain +1 Strength]
[Remove all Bravery counters: All enemy Characters automatically suffer X damage where X equals Thor's Strength+number of Bravery counters removed this way]

SR002: Loki
(Loki Laufeyson)
Cost-2.5
Life-13
Strength-4
Agility-2
Intelligence-5

Combat type-Blindside
Damage type-Tactical
Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.

God of Mischief
Place a Trickery counter whenever Loki receives damage without healing.
[Remove one Trickery counter whenever being attacked: Enemy Character can only deal damage by playing two Attack cards instead of one]
[Remove all Trickery counters during your Draw phase: All enemy Characters cannot initiate any attacks during their next turn unless the controller discards his/her entire hand]

SR003: Black Panther
(T'Challa)
Cost-3
Life-19
Strength-7
Agility-10
Intelligence-3

Combat type-Brawl
Damage Type-Unarmed Slashing Melee
Description: Can choose to use Hearts as Attack and Spades as Defend during combat; +1 to successful damage dealt.

Soul of the Panther


Discard any card of standard value, i.e. 2-10. Black Panther gains +X to either Strength or Agility where X equals that card's value divided by two and rounded down.

SR004: Deadpool
(Wade Wilson)
Cost-3
Life-15
Strength-6
Agility-8
Intelligence-2

Combat type-Wild Card
[Can choose between Blindside, Lock, or Brawl to utilize before the game starts: . Deadpool will gain that combat type until end of the game.]
Damage type-Tactical
Description: Can use Diamonds, Clubs, Hearts, or Spades as Attack during combat.

OMG! THEY KILLED DEADPOOL!
Place a Healing counter whenever Deadpool initiates attack. Deadpool automatically recovers X amount of Life after taking damage where X equals the number of Healing counters.
{YOU BASTARDS!!!!}
[Add-on effect: If Deadpool is killed, remove all Healing counters from the game and place Deadpool back to your hand instead. You can place Deadpool into play again starting from your next turn. Effect only takes place if Deadpool has at least 10 Healing counters in play]

A/N: If you guys ever wonder where the images are from, please worry not.