Global Agenda - Now Subscription less, GW model.

[Trippy]

Why am I always on the losing team?

[Lantyssa]

Sounds like a personal problem.

[Trippy]

Iknowright? How could one n00b always cause the team to lose, though?

BTW, how do you get mercenary tokens? I finally did win one but got no mercenary tokens.

[Amarr HM]

You have to be on the winning team 

[Trippy]

I was. I won two in row actually

No tokens won in either match, though.

[Amarr HM]

Nice!

I think it might be tied to your performance or maybe it's just random.

[DLRiley]

I have to say to all future mmofps designers that if you want to not flop make a fps first and mmo third. No one wants to play a shitty fps, no one, at least not anyone worth finding a dev group and getting a publisher for. Fact is this isn't 1990 anymore, we are not impressed that you've managed to strap a gun to a character model (or just place one a few feet infront of the camera) and gave us the privilege to aim said gun. You can talk about persistent objectives and large scale battles but we don't care if the basic gameplay is uninspiring. Fps work because scoring a nice phat head shot is one of the most satisfying things in gaming and that hasn't changed in 20 years, and won't change 40 years from now. The only reason tf2 gets away with only 3 weapons being able to score a head shot is because shredding people 2 at a time with a minigun or blowing people into spleen and kidney with a well placed rocket is satisfying in its own right.

[Morfiend]

I was. I won two in row actually

No tokens won in either match, though.

I think its a display bug. I was having this happen, and then next time I logged in, I had all the tokens I thought I didnt get. I still think they need to reduce the token cost of new items.

[Trippy]

I just logged back in to check and still 0. Apparently they are redoing the whole tokens things (there will be just one type). Dunno if that has anything to do with it or if it's cause being a Medic just sucks at fulfilling whatever conditions need to be satisfied to earn them.

[Morfiend]

I just logged back in to check and still 0. Apparently they are redoing the whole tokens things (there will be just one type). Dunno if that has anything to do with it or if it's cause being a Medic just sucks at fulfilling whatever conditions need to be satisfied to earn them.

The only condition should be playing. 1 Merc Token for a loss, and 3 Merc Tokens and 1 Conquest token for a win. I'm glad they are redoing it. I like the idea, but the execution is kind of flawed.

Link to Token revamp?

[Trippy]

I just logged back in to check and still 0. Apparently they are redoing the whole tokens things (there will be just one type). Dunno if that has anything to do with it or if it's cause being a Medic just sucks at fulfilling whatever conditions need to be satisfied to earn them.

The only condition should be playing. 1 Merc Token for a loss, and 3 Merc Tokens and 1 Conquest token for a win. I'm glad they are redoing it. I like the idea, but the execution is kind of flawed.

Link to Token revamp?

http://hi-rez.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/199

Scroll down to Token section

[Trippy]

I wasn't registered (still Trial user)

[Mrbloodworth]

For the Trippy:

Skill calculators (I hope they are still somewhat current):
Assault: http://serv.hexagenda.com/skills/assault.html
Medic: http://serv.hexagenda.com/skills/medic.html
Recon: http://serv.hexagenda.com/skills/recon.html
Robotics: http://serv.hexagenda.com/skills/robotics.html

With the very recent revamp of the game, im not sure we will find a reliable source for other things you asked about. Best to just ask questions here.

Also, we should maybe get the agency back together, if only so you can ask in game and cut down on the "your mom" answers.

[Typhon]

I wanted to play an assault character because I like the minigun/big gun + more armor concept.

Played through the solo missions, because I'm a bit burnt out on pugs from WoW.  Hit the wall on solo when I got to teir two, so eventually decided to try playing this multiplayer game with other people.

Played a merc mission, got a token, things went pretty smoothly, no one yelled at me for not knowing what I was doing (just followed other folks around and tried to lay down minigun fire because I understand that debuffs the armor).  Tried to turn on the immune-to-ranged shield and immune shield at opportune times to draw enemy fire and keep those behind me alive longer.  Pretty sure that I wasn't very effective, but had a decent amount of fun.  Died more then killed, but didn't really expect anything else being the tank.

Tried a group PvE mission.  I had two choices, the one was for a mining mission that capped out at lvl 19, the other required someone of at least level 12, but no cap.  I choose the latter.  Having never been in a multiplayer map I didn't realize that many new and exciting mobs were in store for me.  Unfortunately assault is an extremely poor choice of class to choose to learn the game while playing alongside of folks that have been playing for a long, long time. 

Here are some things that I learned (if you haven't played the game, don't take my rambling as anything like advice, I'm putting this down so some kind soul can say, "no, moron, do it THIS way"):

• As "tank", you aren't really more durable then the other classes... especially since I didn't specifically spec out as a tank
• "you are the worst fucking tank that I've ever seen, moron!"
• specing as anything other then a pure tank while playing an assault character and trying to do PvE is what morons do
• playing an assault character on a map that requires level 12 when you are a level 13 is what morons do
• "Why are you hitting the boss with your AXE, you fucking moron!"  (answer: because I ran out of power and I want to do something to maintain aggro)
• Even though I'm the tank, taking point is not really my job, exactly.  Staying close with the group and try to gauge when someone ISN'T going to lay down a support structure (shield, healing station, heal grenade, etc) - THAT is when you move to point (but not too far).  That's my guess, anyway.  Since I never actually did that, and I died a lot, I'm not 100% sure that doing that would have pissed folks off less either.
• When you get to the final boss, your group will (mostly) run to the right to set up force fields and other stuff.  You really, really need to follow them over there, while laying down fire on the boss to keep his attention.  Even though your role is "tank", you are in no way a tank.  You have a few tricks to keep yourself alive, but once you burn those, you're going to die.  Especially if you didn't follow your group over into the corner.  Only morons don't know that.
• At level 13, all you have is "immune to ranged".  If you are fighting an AOE mob, this will not protect you, and you will die very, very quickly.  Don't know which mobs do AOE?  Pretty much anything that doesn't look like a humanoid does AOE damage.
• Just play a Recon, you have no repsonsibilities other than shooting stuff and not getting your fool self killed
• If you really want to play Assault, just play PvP
• If you are going to play PvP, the talent that lets you get more out of your rocket pack is really good
• Play all four characters solo through the first couple of missions so you get an idea what all the stuff is for.  Robotics turrets, for instance, are really tough and do crazy damage.  If a robotcs dude lays down a turret, make sure you pull back to it and let it mow stuff down.  Try not to feel useless.

I have questions:

• If I play a recon in PvE, am I expected to use stealth/melee?  Seems like a good way to get myself killed as the robots seem pretty tuned-in to whether you are there are not, especially after the lead starts flying
• If I play a recon in PvE, my first impulse is to use the ballista (sniper rifle).  I don't recall hearing the ballista "pop!" though, during my disastrous run at PvE.  Does multiplayer move to quickly to support using the sniper rifle?  Should I stick with the SMG?

[01101010]

Assault in the twenties really fleshes out better, so take those licks and keep grunting it out. Eventually it'll come out or you'll end up with a hernia. If people bitch, tell them they should have played their assault if they wanted to play it their way.

As a recon, ballista only. SMG is shit in PvE and melee is pointless for 90% of the fights. If you get a mini-boss close (not the Helot - fuck those OP shits) melee the miniboss since they glitch out and do not melee back. Ballista, decoy, range stim, visual scanner are all you need.

[Typhon]

   Thanks

[TheDreamr]

For recon PvP you'll generally want the sniper rifle for taking out turrets + beacons as that helps your team take or defend points and earn you objective points.  Always take bionics as it'll let you get away from most 1v1 encounters when they start going wrong.  Everything else is situational and depends on how you enjoy fighting.

For general PvE stay back and try to get a clear line of fire or use a crate that'll let you shoot over the team and then snipe like crazy - prioritise threats, don't let anything get too close, use decoy if the team looks like it'll struggle with a large group and if all else fails toss an emp bomb towards the oncoming mob while backing away.

[Morfiend]

1. Just play a Recon, you have no repsonsibilities other than shooting stuff and not getting your fool self killed[/li][/list]
2. If you really want to play Assault, just play PvP
3. If you are going to play PvP, the talent that lets you get more out of your rocket pack is really good

1. Those are bad recons. Although those are the type you will find in a lot of matches. Well, in PVP anyway. I guess you are mostly right for PVE. In PVP you really need to be a counter for other Snipercons and Robo nests. A recon who knows his job can REALLY help a team where as one who just goes for kills is a hinderance.

2. Wrong. Assaults are very much needed in PVE. I dont like to do any of the PVE stuff with out one.

3. Respeccing is free and easy. Yeah, if there is no tank specced Assault, you should be tank specced. It does make a HUGE difference. You just need a few more skill points and skills.

As a recon, ballista only. SMG is shit in PvE and melee is pointless for 90% of the fights. If you get a mini-boss close (not the Helot - fuck those OP shits) melee the miniboss since they glitch out and do not melee back. Ballista, decoy, range stim, visual scanner are all you need.

I don't agree with this ether. Yeah, snipercons are very useful, but Bombercons and Meleecons have their place, especially if the meleecon has the Duel wield. They can absolutely rip through a robo nest.

[01101010]

As a recon, ballista only. SMG is shit in PvE and melee is pointless for 90% of the fights. If you get a mini-boss close (not the Helot - fuck those OP shits) melee the miniboss since they glitch out and do not melee back. Ballista, decoy, range stim, visual scanner are all you need.

I don't agree with this ether. Yeah, snipercons are very useful, but Bombercons and Meleecons have their place, especially if the meleecon has the Duel wield. They can absolutely rip through a robo nest.

Perhaps I should have noted that the original question was about Recon in PvE. No where was it suggested for PvP. Hence, my reply was centered solely around PvE play. That said, being a sniper in PvP is fuck stupid at times. i much prefer to go bomber with SMG and stabby things. SMG for finishing off robo-toys after a bombing run and for runners and stabby things for killing people. Sorry for the confusion.

[Typhon]

My questions were targeted to Recon PvE.  I tried the Recon at PvP and found what I already knew - I do not have the patience to be a sniper in PvP.  Actually had a fair amount of fun being a melee-Recon in PvP.  I didn't play Recon PvE because I was still gun shy (ha!) from my experience as a PvE Assault.

Even though I didn't say it, the intention of my post was to try to help folks just coming into the game to figure out what not to do, as I think I have that covered pretty well.  My comments on #2 were focused on a player new to GA who is trying to learn the game without pissing other people off (and thereby getting called a "fucking moron" repeatedly).  To learn PvE, play a recon because your only responsibility is to shoot stuff.  I agree that Assaults ARE very much needed in the PvE.  An Assault that doesn't know what he's doing is good for no one, especially the people who were repeatedly calling me a "fucking moron".

Some more stuff I wish I had known:

• Play a couple solo missions for each of the classes to get an idea of what each brings to the table.  I think this is different than most MMOs, because of the way the class abilities play out.  There are fewer abilities, and they have a 60 second cool down, and most of them are positionally static - favoring the creation of temporary bases.  I would say that the exception to this is that you don't have to play the Recon, it plays out pretty much as expected - as far as I could tell at the lower levels, they aren't bringing anything to the team except for DPS (they do have self-buffs).  While the decoy is nice, they get torn up so fast in a larger conflict you don't really notice them.
• Stick together.  The solo missions might give you the idea that you are a badass and you can lone wolf it.  You cannot.  Stick with your team.  This probably sounds really obvious, but for some reason it wasn't to me.
• Pick a class you like and immediately begin trying to play with others, don't wait till the 10-19 level to play those maps with others because they are harder and people seem to expect you to already have a good idea of what you are doing. It's easy to level up to 10 via the 0-9 solo maps, but it's a mistake because the 11-19 maps are significantly more challenging and you won't have a good idea of how to play in a group.
• There are stations throughout the multi-player maps that have red laser lights that rotate (looks like a fan of laser beams).  If you run through these laser lights (say, on your way back from dying), you will spawn more enemies.  This is bad.  You need to watch out for this and try to remember where they are on the map.  Your team mates will hate you (and call you a fucking moron) if you don't know this.

[Trippy]

Okay PvE is seriously fucked up beyond the n00b levels. Any tips on playing a medic in team PvE?


Edit: medic

[Mrbloodworth]

Okay PvE is seriously fucked up beyond the n00b levels. Any tips on playing a medic in team PvE?


Edit: medic

My main is a medic, I usually roll with the feedback gun (heals you and target), and heal grenade + poison wave. I stick the the assault like glue, treat all others as secondary heal priority. Hopefully on the boss you have a engi with a turret and a power field. Stand in that. Ill post my tree load out later, but i have a decent amount of AOE protection and power increases (on my mods and gear as well). The poison wave I use to light up the invisible fuckers as it causes them to be unable to cloak while damage is being done, so the DOT is good for that. Of course the grenade is for distance burst healing till i can make it to the person in need. I run with the standard gun for now, but i only use it if necessary or to provide support fire in times I don't need to heal so much. My boost i almost always save for the boss, as if you are doing mostly healing, you will likely only accrue enough for one use during the match.

Some things depend on the other group members as well however, assaults can get traits that increase the healing you do to them, so that's helpful, also when they have a shied up, let your power recharge during that time (assuming the used the appropriate one). Power though, is really needed, and if you want to focus on PvE heals, I suggest you take a good deal of the power related stuff from the common tree.

With a good group, that's works together (no ass hat running off to save the world) the PvE is challenging, but not imposable (with exception of max and ultra, those are a downright bitch some times)

We have a few people on F13 that still play (including my rag tag crew sometimes) so I suggest you group with them, and become a unit.

If that helps, may be best to ask direct questions.

EDIT: oh, and recons using the decoy on the boss = love.

EDIT: I have something like this going on, but this calculator seems to only go to 13. http://serv.hexagenda.com/skills/medic.html#u83j28g3

[Morfiend]

EDIT: oh, and recons using the decoy on the boss = love.

I'm not sure if they changed something, but the last few times I used Decoy on the boss, he just ignored it. Granted I don't PVE very much, and even less on my Recon, so I could be wrong, but thats what it seemed like to me.

[Cadaverine]

According to the tooltip on my decoy, it only works on mechanical enemies.  

Edit: Nevermind, it does work on bosses.  and rather well, at that.

[Trippy]

Thanks for the tips. I've determined that the problem with PvE is with other people and not me

I got on a team that was doing High Sec PvE and we cruised through multiple missions until we broke up. The key seems to be a solid trio of Assault, Medic and Robotics.

[Mrbloodworth]

The key seems to be a solid trio of Assault, Medic and Robotics.

For PvE yes, however sometimes, some exceptions can be made. It also really helps to group with people steadily so you know each other.

[Trippy]

Daily caps on tokens are fucking stupid.

[Mrbloodworth]

Global Agenda Videos: Sandstorm Video Dev Blog: Defense Raids

Global Agenda Sandstorm Expansion Debut Trailer

Now on the PTW:

Major Highlights

    * SONORAN DESERT ZONE: Players may step outside Dome City into the Sonoran Desert open PvE zone. Designed primarily for those between Levels 5 and 15, players within the Zone may accept missions from NPC’s in order to progress a story-arc, learn more about the neighboring Desert Dweller and Recursive Colony factions, and earn loot and experience.

    * 10-PERSON DEFENSE RAIDS: Facilities around Dome city are key targets of the Recursive Colony faction. When the Recursive Colony attacks, alarms sound within Dome City and the RAIDS mission type will become activated on your MISSION screen. Join the Raid queue solo, or as a pre-made team of up to 10 players, to be matched into a ten-person defense team and transported to an area that needs to be defended. Note that these missions are designed to be difficult and are available only to players Level 30+.

    * CONSUMABLES: Players may now craft Consumable items that can be used once while in a combat mission to give a short-term boost. Once used, that item is consumed. In order to equip a consumable, you must have a Consumable in your inventory, and fill the Consumable slot on your Equip screen. Only one consumable may be equipped at a time.

    * SALVAGE: Weapons and Armor that you do not desire to keep may be salvaged by clicking the Salvage button while the item is selected on your Inventory menu. When a weapon or armor piece is salvaged, you will receive a component loot drop put into your inventory (many of the components gained through salvage are useful when crafting consumables).

Additional Sandstorm features, such as PvP Tournaments and significant improvements to the token system, among others, will be in upcoming updates to the Public Test Server.

[Mrbloodworth]

Patch day! (22nd)

Version 1.35 represents the second phase of major new features and content being added to Global Agenda as part of the "Sandstorm" expansion. The release introduces the Sonoran Desert Open Zone, 10-person Defense Raids, Consumable Weapons, and much more. Sandstorm is free to all players that have purchased Global Agenda. All players are reminded that Global Agenda now requires NO MONTHLY FEES and the full content of the game is available without a subscription.
Major Highlights

    * SONORAN DESERT ZONE: Players may step outside Dome City into the Sonoran Desert Open PvE zone. Designed primarily for those between Levels 5 and 15, players within the Zone may accept missions from NPC's in order to progress a story-arc, learn more about the neighboring Desert Dweller and Recursive Colony factions, and earn loot and experience. Note that players must visit Dalton Bancroft inside Dome City (and run the Bancroft missions) before they can enter the Sonoran Desert Zone.

    * 10-PERSON DEFENSE RAIDS: Facilities around Dome City are key targets of the Recursive Colony faction. When the Recursive Colony attacks, alarms sound within Dome City and the RAIDS mission type will become activated on your MISSION screen. Join the Raid queue solo, or as a pre-made team of up to 10 players, to be matched into a ten-person defense team and transported to an area that needs to be defended. Note that these missions are designed to be difficult and are available only to players Level 30+.

    * NEW SONORAN DESERT SPECIAL-OPS MISSIONS:  New co-op PvE instances have been introduced for characters between Levels 5 and 19.  These missions are accessed thru the MISSION screen (Hotkey = "M") under Team/Medium Difficulty.

    * CONSUMABLES: Players may now craft Consumable items that can be used once while in a combat mission to give a short-term boost. Once used, that item is consumed. In order to equip a consumable, you must have a Consumable in your inventory, and fill the Consumable slot on your Equip screen. Only one consumable may be equipped at a time.

    * SALVAGE: Weapons and Armor that you do not desire to keep may be salvaged by clicking the Salvage button while the item is selected on your Inventory menu. When a weapon or armor piece is salvaged, you will receive a component loot drop put into your inventory (many of the components gained through salvage are useful when crafting consumables).

    * TOKENS: Major changes to the token system have been implemented. See TOKENS section below for more information.

    * CREDITS: Credits are now at the player level instead of the character level. Existing credits have been rolled up to the player level based on the total credits owned by all of your characters.

Server and Feature Availability

    * The Global Agenda Servers are expected to be down on THURSDAY, JULY 22 2010 from approximately 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM US Eastern (14:30 to 21:00 GMT) while the patch is deployed. Follow GAServerStatus on Twitter for up-to-date server availability information.
    * The European and North American Agency-vs-Agency Zones will be closed on THURSDAY, JULY 22. The Zones will open as normal on FRIDAY, JULY 23.

Mission-Giving System and the Sonoran Desert Zone

The Mission Giving system guides players through specific assignments that advance a story arc within Dome City and the Sonoran Desert Zone and progress the player’s character level.

Players will note that some low-level Special Ops PvE missions have been removed (on the "M" screen), as they are replaced by missions inside the Sonoran Desert Zone.

Players MUST visit Dalton Bancroft before they can exit Dome City and enter the Sonoran Desert Zone.

Please note the following useful keyboard shortcuts while in the Sonoran Desert Zone:

    "L" = Mission Log.

    "N" = Navigational Map.

    "M" = Global Missions (access instanced PvP and PvE missions).

     

Token System

The Token System has been modified significantly. There is now only one token type (Mercenary and Conquest Tokens have been collapsed into just "Tokens"). The Daily and Account limits have also undergone significant change and the pricing for items and rewards for individual missions have changed significantly.

    CONVERSION:

        * 1 Mercenary Token = 30 of our new tokens
        * 1 Conquest Token = 150 of our new tokens

    LIMITS:

        * Daily limit: 2,000
        * Account limit: 20,000

Consumables and Crafting

There are two new crafting career paths in this release: Consumables and Strike Force. The crafting of AvA items has been moved to the Strike Force path.

At present, there are only four Consumables available for crafting, all of the same quality level, so career progression along this path is limited.

The Consumables available for crafting are:

    * Insta-Heal: instantly provides a full heal when activated..
    * SuperShell: Pops a shell similar to the Perfect Target device.
    * Mini-Force Wall: Pops a small force-field (similar to the Robotics Force Field)
    * Excessive Damage: Provides a damage boost for a given time period.

All consumables can be equipped by players of any class and are use-once items.

Crafted consumables may be placed on the Auction House. Blueprints for consumables are found at a vendor in Dome City.
Level requirements for Mission Rewards

Level Requirements for Special Ops missions have changed.

    TEAM:

        * Medium Security - No Level Req, stops giving rewards past 19.
        * High Security - Requires 18, stops giving rewards past 29.
        * Max Security - Requires 25, never stops rewards.
        * Ultra-Max Security - Requires 30, never stops giving rewards.

    SOLO:

        * "Rookie" and has been renamed "Adept" and now requires level 20, stops giving rewards past 29.
        * Solo "Advanced" Requires Level 30. Never stops with rewards
        * Solo "Expert" Requires Level 40. Never stops with rewards.

Other Noteworthy Changes

    * Generally improved bot AI
    * Recharge time on bionics changed from 45s to 60s
    * Improved help text and general usability.
    * Durability shows in red when it is low
    * Small chance of Rainbow Dye to be dropped from Ultra-Max PvE missions.
    * Fixed mini-map player colors.
    * Confirmation messages pop up when the player lacks sufficient credits, tokens, skills, etc. to complete an operation.
    * Performance enhancements for intense PvE encounters
    * Improved response times of firing weapons and off-hands
    * Fixed  problem where boss encounters could have several waves of responder bots at the same time
    * Level is now displayed next to the XP bar in upper left
    * More alarm lights and sounds for Raid missions including notification within VR arena
    * Cybercuts now requires tokens instead of credits
    * Genolab Facial Reconstruction now requires tokens instead of credits
    * Improvements to backfilling PvP instances so that outcomes are as fair as possible
    * Fixed taskforce problem that would sometimes place player on the wrong team
    * When you exit the game, you will return to the open zone or the city depending on where you exited.
    * Added Bot Kills to Scoreboard
    * A number of other bug fixes with mail, repair functions, animation, graphics, chat and other areas

Kinda hot.

[Morfiend]

Going to have to give that a try tonight.

[veredus]

The Consumables available for crafting are:

    * Insta-Heal: instantly provides a full heal when activated..
    * SuperShell: Pops a shell similar to the Perfect Target device.
    * Mini-Force Wall: Pops a small force-field (similar to the Robotics Force Field)
    * Excessive Damage: Provides a damage boost for a given time period.

Are these PvE only or PvP also? Maybe it's just me but I hate consumables in PvP, specially ones like the above. When they are that powerful (specially the full heal) everybody has to have them to be competitive. Might as well just give everyone those abilities on a cool down.

[Mrbloodworth]

Both I assume, they are crafted, one time per mission use items, as I read it. That full heal is something medics can already do, all of them are skills of other classes already.

[veredus]

Both I assume, they are crafted, one time per mission use items, as I read it. That full heal is something medics can already do, all of them are skills of other classes already.

Ya I know they are skills of other classes. Another reason I hate consumables like that for PvP, waters down the classes a bit. Again might as well just give everyone those skills on a cool down or make them usable once per mission or whatever. That way then at least everyone has them. I just feel like it's an unbalancing advantage established players have over new players, being able to have and afford stocks of the consumables.

But if it is one time use per mission hopefully it's not that bad. Oh well, I'll quit bitching about them and just try it out and see how it plays out I guess.

[Trippy]

Both I assume, they are crafted, one time per mission use items, as I read it. That full heal is something medics can already do, all of them are skills of other classes already.

Medics can do an instant full heal?

[Mrbloodworth]

Messed around with this last night.

They did a good job I think, however the missions are standard fare, but some of the NPC's are rather colorful in text. I'm however impressed at the turn around time they have for new maps and such.

Took some screens:


I found some of it challenging even at my level, sure beats sitting around the dome waiting for a mission to pop. The dome assault is also rather intense, starts of slow and builds up to massive waves of bots and drones. Even gave some usable loot, from dyes, to gear, to cash and XP, even at my level.