City Of Heroes: Guide To Panning Out

how to pan out on city of heroes

City of Heroes is a multiplayer game with a comic book-inspired world and a powerful character generator. The game offers a classic experience where players can choose between being a Hero or a Villain. It also features an alternate dimension, Going Rogue, where players can make choices that determine their character's morality. The game has a wide range of character designs and power sets, allowing players to create unique characters. City of Heroes also emphasizes group play, although it can be played solo. Players can move their characters using the keyboard or enable \click-to-move\ to manoeuvre with the mouse. The game provides various movement options, such as sprinting, teleportation, and powerful vertical leaps to bypass obstacles. Players can also obtain temporary powers, such as flying or leaping great distances, through specific missions. Additionally, City of Heroes offers inspirations and enhancements to improve character performance and protection.

Characteristics Values
Game type Massively-multiplayer
Genre Comic book mythology
Character options Hero or Villain
Questing options Going Rogue (alternate dimension with involved questing) or Freedom (classic CoH experience)
Character creation Over 100 possible character designs
Power pools Four power pools that increase character movement speed
Navigation Predefined in-game navigation and control commands (e.g. W, A, D keys)
Customisation Custom key bindings and icons using /#bind
Movement Click-to-move, auto-jump, teleportation, vertical leap, follow function
Combat Inspirations (one-use powerups), enhancements, resistance inspirations, dispersion bubble
Group play Easy to play with friends or random players; the game will scale your level up or down to match the group leader

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Choosing a side: Hero or Villain

Choosing a side between Hero or Villain in the game City of Heroes is an important decision, but players should know that it is not permanent and they can switch sides. The choice of faction determines the starting location, with Heroes starting in Paragon City and Villains in Rogue Isles. The game also offers two intermediate alignments: Vigilante, as a player progresses from Hero to Villain, and Rogue, as a player progresses from Villain to Hero.

Heroes and Villains are separate supergroups, meaning a Hero cannot be in a Villain group and vice-versa. However, Rogues can be in the same supergroup as Heroes. Vigilantes and Rogues can join teams led by opposite-side characters and do opposite-side content, but they cannot initiate the content themselves.

Players can create a Level 1 Hero or Villain by selecting their preferred alignment at the time of character creation. At Level 20, the player can begin the process of changing their alignment. For instance, a Hero can start to become a Vigilante, and a Villain can start to become a Rogue. At Level 20, players can also choose their character's path as either a Loyalist or a member of the Resistance, which determines whether they side with Emperor Cole's ruling faction or oppose him.

Players can switch alignments instantly on the Homecoming server by talking to an NPC called Null the Gull in Pocket D, a neutral nightclub area. On other servers, players can run tip missions at Level 20+ to eventually switch alignment.

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Character creation and customisation

The first step in creating a character is deciding whether they will be a hero or a villain. Heroes confront super villains, aliens, madmen, criminals, and other fearsome foes in Paragon City, protecting the sprawling metropolis and its citizens. Villains, on the other hand, fight for survival on the Rogue Isles, committing heists, kidnappings, and infiltrations.

Your archetype determines your powers, granting access to specific primary and secondary power sets. This is the second most important choice in character creation. During power selection, you can view details on each power's attributes by clicking "Show Details" in the power selection interface.

Next, you choose the body type for your character, selecting from female, male, or huge body types with varying builds. You can also adjust the length of your character's legs.

One of the most enjoyable tasks in character creation is designing a unique costume. There are millions of possible costume combinations, but the process is straightforward. You can rotate your figure, zoom in and out, and select matching pieces from the "Costume Sets" menu.

Finally, before beginning play, you must select a name for your character, along with a brief description and a battle cry. With these steps completed, your character is ready to enter Paragon City or the Rogue Isles.

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Solo vs group play

City of Heroes offers players a variety of options for both solo and group play. When it comes to solo play, certain classes and builds are more suitable than others.

For example, the Scrapper class is commonly regarded as the best choice for soloing on the hero side, while Brute and Mastermind are ideal for soloing as a villain. Stalkers are another good option for solo play, as they can deal lethal damage and have access to Placate and Knockdown abilities to take down robotic enemies.

Additionally, the Sentinel archetype is well-balanced for solo play, offering excellent Secondary Powersets to compensate for their squishiness. Masterminds, specifically those with Robotics, are also a popular choice for solo players, as they can summon robotic minions that deal high damage and provide healing.

On the other hand, group play allows for different dynamics and strategies. Controllers, Dominators, and Defenders are better suited for group play as they can support their allies with buffs and healing. Vigilance, for instance, provides Defenders with a Damage Boost that scales with party size, making it ideal for groups.

Players who prefer a long-range playstyle in groups can consider Dual Pistols, which offer versatility in damage types and self-buffs. Staff Fighting is another option for group play, providing excellent AOE damage and self-buffing abilities, making it a good choice for Brutes and Tankers.

Ultimately, the choice between solo and group play in City of Heroes depends on individual preferences and playstyles. Both options offer unique challenges and opportunities for players to explore.

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Controls and navigation

City of Heroes offers a set of predefined in-game navigation and control commands. The W, A, S, and D keys are used for movement, with W moving your character forward, A strafing left, D strafing right, and S moving backward. You can also use the mouse for movement, with right-clicking to turn your character and the mouse wheel to zoom in and out.

If you prefer to use the keyboard for powers and abilities, you can do so by going into the Options > Controls menu and assigning specific keystrokes or mouse button clicks to the desired actions. This can also be achieved through the use of the "/bind" command, which allows you to customize your controls by telling the game, "From now on, when this button is pressed, I want you to trigger that action." For example, you can bind navigation and movement keys to your mouse buttons for greater mouse control. By clicking on "Map" on the outer edge of the Nav Window or selecting "Map" from the Menu Window, you can open the Map Window, which allows you to zoom in and out and set waypoints for navigation.

Additionally, the "click-to-move" feature in the Controls menu enables you to maneuver your character using the mouse instead of the keyboard. You can also use the "mouse look" function by right-clicking and holding, then moving the mouse to change the direction your character is facing. The "camera rotate" function allows you to change the camera's view without changing your character's facing direction by clicking and holding the middle mouse button.

Some special keys called chord keys can be used in combination with other keys and mouse buttons to create more complex commands. For example, the left shift key is referred to as "LSHIFT," and the right shift key is "RSHIFT." These unique names help differentiate between keys with the same name, like the "1" key on the number pad, referred to as "NUMPAD1," and the "1" key in the row of numbers at the top of your keyboard.

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Powers and enhancements

Powers in City of Heroes have many aspects, such as damage caused, accuracy, and endurance cost. Enhancements are added to these existing powers to improve them. Enhancements can be bought from contacts, stores, and Quartermasters. They are also randomly "dropped" by defeated (non-player) enemies and are provided as rewards for some missions.

There are four main types of Enhancements: Training, Dual Origin, Single Origin, and Invention Origin (TO, DO, SO, and IO, respectively). Training Enhancements are usable by all character archetypes and origins and are the least potent of all Enhancements. They may be bought in Freedom Corps stores located in various zones, from Freedom Corps Superpowered Field Trainers in Atlas Park and Galaxy City, from Quartermasters in various zones, and at an inflated cost from individual contacts. Dual-Origin Enhancements provide exactly twice as much improvement as Training Enhancements. Single-Origin Enhancements are even more powerful, providing twice as much improvement as Dual-Origin Enhancements (or four times as much as Training Enhancements). They may be used only by a character whose origin matches the Enhancement. Invention Origin Enhancements fall into two categories: Standard (aka Common) Invention Origin Enhancements and Invention Origin Enhancement Sets.

Special Enhancements are usable by all character archetypes and origins, but are only obtainable by completing some very difficult tasks. They provide the same improvement as Single-Origin Enhancements, but to more than one aspect simultaneously. For example, a Special Enhancement may affect both the damage and accuracy of a power. Currently, Special Enhancements include Hamidon Enhancements, Crystal Titan Enhancements, and Hydra Enhancements.

Enhancements have levels, and a player cannot use an Enhancement that is much higher or much lower than their Security Level. The level of an Invention Origin Enhancement must be less than or equal to three levels above the player character's current level. Enhancements at a higher level than the player character provide a 5% bonus per level difference, while those at a lower level have a 10% reduction per level difference. The level of the Enhancement changes colour based on its level in relation to the player character (green is above, white is equal, yellow is below, and red is too low or too high for the character to use).

Each power initially has one slot for an Enhancement, but as a player gains new Security Levels, they will gain additional slots that can be added to their powers. A power can eventually have as many as six slots - and thus six Enhancements. Enhancements, when slotted, are locked in and cannot be moved to another power, but they can be discarded in favour of a new Enhancement. Enhancements can be combined, but only under certain conditions. For example, Trainings and Single-Origin Enhancements can only be combined with others of the same kind, while Dual-Origin Enhancements can be combined with others that share an origin.

Frequently asked questions

City of Heroes is a social game that emphasizes group play, but it can also be played solo. When creating a character, you can choose between "Freedom" and "Going Rogue". Freedom involves picking a side (Hero or Villain) and enjoying the classic CoH experience. Going Rogue is set in an alternate dimension and features more involved questing experiences that allow for more character customization. It's important to choose a character concept that you enjoy, as you can make almost anything work in the game.

By default, the W key moves your character forward, the A key strafes left, and the D key strafes right. You can also use the "click-to-move" function by activating it in the Controls menu in the Options Window. This allows you to maneuver your character using the mouse instead of the keyboard. Additionally, all characters are capable of powerful vertical leaps to bypass obstacles and reach higher elevations.

Inspirations are one-use power-ups that increase your accuracy, such as Insight (25%), Keen Insight (50%), and Uncanny Insight (75%). Enhancements, on the other hand, are plugged into the powers you've obtained to make them more effective. Dispersion Bubble creates a pan-defensive shield to protect you and your teammates from damage. Repulsion Field knocks back enemies but drains endurance quickly.

City of Heroes automatically scales your character's level up or down to match the group leader's level when playing with friends or random players. This means you don't need to maintain multiple characters at different levels to play with others. However, you may have access to fewer powers at a lower level.

You can remap movement keys and create custom commands using the /bind function. For example, you can bind /++up to the J key to create an "auto-jump" key. You can also use the /tell or /t command to send a private message to another player.

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