Act 7 Chapter 2: Upset the Meta!

MCOC TeamMCOC Team Administrator, Admin [en] Posts: 595
edited May 2021 in General Discussion

THE BIG SHAKEUP

Welcome to the second Chapter of Marvel Contest of Champions’ bold new story!

We’ve been delighted to watch the community interact with and enjoy the contents of Book 2 Act 1 Chapter 1 since its launch last December. Folks seem to be enjoying the change of pace, and the increased focus on rewarding challenges appears to be a big hit. However, we’re not keen to rest on our laurels because crafting Quest Content for MCOC is an ongoing and iterative process. For Chapter 2, we’ve come up with a brand new set of challenges to help push the difficulty up a little bit without sacrificing the core designs that have worked so well already.

Story Content’s primary focus is still on player enjoyment, engagement, and providing enticing challenges. With Chapter 2, we want to take the reward for bringing in the right champion and expand it to bringing in the right team. This doesn’t mean you have to discard your favourite champs to get the job done, but it does mean that you might have to mix things up a bit if you want to get the full benefit of our new path buffs. So without further ado, here’s the low-down on the skinny behind Book 2 Act 1 Chapter 2 - UPSET THE META.

IF IT AIN’T BROKE...

Hot on the heels of Chapter 1’s success, Chapter 2 keeps the same format that worked so well already, with a few changes.

1 Act composed of 4 Chapters
Each Chapter consists of 6 Quests
Each Quest is composed of…
6 Paths with 6 Encounter per Path
3 Final Bosses (No longer Path dependent!)
1-3 Choice Nodes (found just before fighting the Final Bosses)

Choice Nodes are back again to give players a chance to swap out a non-KO’d 5 or 6-Star Champion for another in their roster.

The freshly swapped in 5 or 6-Star Champion will enter the Quest at full health and ready to rumble. Summoners will find these Choice Nodes after the final Path Fight, but just before the Final Bosses, giving them a chance to swap in a Champion better suited for the challenges those Bosses present.

After plenty of feedback on the Final Bosses’ orientation and positioning in Chapter 1, we’ve decided to shift away from placing them directly at the end of specific paths. Instead, players will complete a path and find themselves transported to an “Exit Island,” where they can choose from any of the 3 Final Bosses available on the map regardless of the path they chose to get there. We feel that this affords players the optimal flexibility on how they want to handle paths and Bosses separately, and gives our designers more wiggle room to design unique Boss fights without worrying about the impact a path’s design might have on that Boss encounter.

BOOK 2 ACT 1 CHAPTER 2 - QUEST BREAKDOWN & ENERGY COSTS

Each quest consists of 6 Paths, with an average of 23 Nodes per Path.
Each Path contains 6 Fights, ending with your choice between 3 Final Bosses.
Defeating those Final Bosses doesn’t end the Quest, so don’t forget to push on past those Bosses to the Exit!

TOTAL COST OF COMPLETION: 414 Energy
TOTAL COST OF EXPLORATION: 2484 Energy

A STORY QUEST STAPLE

Before we start talking about the new Nodes in Chapter 2, it’s important to mention that we’re keeping the initial 6-Star Supporting Nodes we introduced in Chapter 1. We’ve decided to keep these three Global Nodes for the foreseeable future of Book 2 Act 1, and have listed them below for reference.

Adrenaline Rush

The Attacker gains up to 100% Damage Reduction at all times, scaling with their current Adrenaline. Adrenaline is gained after being Struck.
Hold the Line
The Attacker gains up to +80% Block Proficiency at all times, scaling with their current Adrenaline. Adrenaline is gained after being Struck.
Star Power
6-star Attackers gain a permanent Passive Fury, increasing Attack Rating by +700.


SUPERIORITY COMPLEX

Inspired by the Nodes used in Chapter 1 and Cavalier content, we decided to approach the idea of “optimal counters” a little differently in Chapter 2. We wanted a system that still afforded the same flexibility that Class-centric Nodes gave players in Chapter 1, without making a single champ the MVP of an entire path's worth of fights. However, we still wanted to make sure that any Champion a Player supported and ranked up for Chapter 1 still felt viable in Chapter 2. With all those considerations in mind, we decided to pursue the idea of SUPERIORITY.

Superiority works by first laying out the requirements of gaining Superiority in a given fight. Thankfully, only Attackers can opt into having Superiority, so it’s entirely up to the player on whether or not they want to gain it’s benefits. The five Superiority granting Nodes are outlined below.

Superiority: Paragon
If the Attacker is a #Hero Champion, they gain Superiority.
Superiority: Scoundrel
If the Attacker is a #Villain Champion, they gain Superiority.
Superiority: Top Dog
If the Attacker has Class Advantage against the Defender, they gain Superiority.
Superiority: Even Footing
If the Attacker is the same Class as the Defender, they gain Superiority.
Superiority: Underdog
If the Attacker has Class Disadvantage against the Defender, they gain Superiority. Attackers with Class Disadvantage also gain a passive Attack Boost equal to 40% of their Base Attack.


Once you have Superiority, you’ll be able to take full advantage of the nodes looking for it. Some of these Nodes have general effects that are greatly enhanced by having Superiority, while others rely on it entirely. So when you’re planning your Teams for a Superiority Path, make sure you’ve got the right Heroes, Villains, or Classes so you can make use of Superiority’s benefits. The Nodes looking for Superiority are outlined below.

Passive Aggressive
While the Defender has a Fury Effect active, knocking them down applies a non-stacking Weakness Debuff reducing their Attack by 10% for 6 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, this Weakness increases in potency to 50% for 15 seconds.
Set in Stone
Striking into the Defenders Block applies a 15 second Petrify Passive to the Attacker, reducing the effectiveness of their Regeneration and Power Gain effects by 100%. If the Attacker has Superiority, intercepting the opponent applies the same Petrify Passive to the Defender.
Cut Your Losses
Whenever the Attacker loses power from a Power Drain, Burn, or Steal effect they gain a non-stacking Fury Passive increasing their Attack by 100% for 15 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, the Fury can stack.
Repulsive
For each Debuff active on the Attacker, they ignore 30% of the damage they would take while striking the Defender up to a max of 90%. If the Attacker has Superiority, they reflect damage with 200% increased potency while striking the Defender instead of ignoring it.
Deep Impact
Special Attacks thrown into the Defender's Block gain +100% Block Penetration and +100% Attack. If the Attacker has Superiority, Special Attacks thrown into Block gain +300% Attack and Blocked Specials passively Stun the Defender for 2 second(s).
Dynamo
If the Attacker has Superiority, Fury, Armor Up, and Prowess Buffs grant 30% Energy Resistance per active Buff. While suffering from Shock, Incinerate, or Cold Snap effects, the Attacker's Fury, Armor Up, and Prowess Buffs are paused.
Discombobulate
Whenever the Attacker Dodges an Attack, they apply a Disorient Debuff to the Defender reducing their Defensive Ability Accuracy and Block Proficiency by 35% for 12 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, Striking the Defender pauses these Debuffs for 0.4 seconds.
Head Rush
Every 12th Debuff Purified by the Defender converts into a Stun Passive lasting 1.5 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, every 6th Debuff Purified converts into the Passive Stun.
Backhanded Compliment
While Taunted, the Defender's Defensive Power Gain rate is reduced by 50%. If the Attacker has Superiority, their Heavy Attacks apply a non-stacking Taunt Debuff for 8 seconds. Taunted opponents have their Attack reduced by 40% and have a 70% higher chance to activate a Special Attack.
Rise Above
Whenever the Attacker gains a Buff they have a 25% chance to purify 1 Debuff active on them. If the Attacker has Superiority, this chance increases by a flat 25% for each Buff already active on them.
Outburst
Whenever a Buff is Nullified on the Attacker, they gain Immunity to Nullify, Fateseal and Stagger for 15 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, striking the Defender while Nullify Immunity is active gives the Attacker a Fury Buff increasing Attack by 10% for 10 seconds.
Superconductor
If the Attacker has an Armor Up Buff active, they gain +20% resistance to all Power Burn, Power Drain, and Power Steal effects. If the Attacker has Superiority, they gain an additional +30% for each additional Armor Up Buff.
Swing and a Miss
Whenever the Defender is suffering Falter and Misses the Attacker, the Attacker gains a Fury Buff increasing Attack by 25% for 6 seconds. If the Attacker has Superiority, these Fury's are indefinite.

THE SPICE OF LIFE

Superiority Buffs aren’t the only new Nodes making an appearance in Chapter 2! We’ve got a whole slew of new Buffs designed to give players some extra options when facing off against particularly punishing and niche Nodes. While some of these Nodes are still looking for Class-specific mechanics, or benefit some classes more than others, their intent is still the same: bring difficulty out of the range of the impossible and into the achievable.

No Surrender!
The Attacker resists up to 90% of Degeneration Damage, potency reduced by 30% for each of the Attackers filled bars of Power. Additionally, Knocking the Defender down removes the Attackers Degeneration effects, each inflicting one on the Defender, dealing 1000% damage over 5 seconds.
Release Valve
Whenever the Attacker successfully dodges a Special Attack hit using the Dexterity Mastery, their Combo Count is reduced by 5.
Stacking Power
The Attacker gains no Power from landing or receiving attacks, or from passive power gain effects or buffs. Whenever the Attacker activates a new Buff, they gain a burst of power equal to 20% of their Max Power.
Wax On Wax Off
Whenever the Attacker Nullifies a Buff on the Defender, the Attacker has a 100% chance of Purifying all Debuffs.
Light 'em Up
Whenever the Defender is suffering from a Shock or Incinerate debuff they also suffer a 200% reduction to their Evade and Auto-Block Ability Accuracy.
Juggling Act - Cold Snap/Incinerate
The Attacker starts the fight with an indefinite Cold Snap Immunity Passive. Whenever the Attacker charges a Heavy Attack, the Immunity changes to Incinerate. At the end of any of the Attackers Special Attacks, the Immunity changes back to Cold Snap.
Incinerate Vulnerability
While the Defender is Incinerated, the Attacker's Attack Rating is increased by 200% when landing an attack.
Shock Vulnerability
While the Defender is Shocked, the Attacker's Attack Rating is increased by 200% when landing an attack.
Time to Strike
Whenever the Defender would gain Power or Health while under the effects of a Heal Block or Power Lock, they are instead inflicted with a non-stacking Passive Degen dealing 100% of the Attackers Attack over 3 seconds.
The Weak Link - 1
While the Defender is suffering from a Weakness or Disorient Debuff, the Attacker deals a burst of Physical Damage on all Basic Attacks equal to 50% of their Attack.
The Weak Link - 2
While the Defender is suffering from a Weakness or Disorient Debuff, the Attacker deals a burst of Physical Damage on all Basic Attacks equal to 100% of their Attack.
The Weak Link - 3
While the Defender is suffering from a Weakness or Disorient Debuff, the Attacker deals a burst of Physical Damage on all Basic Attacks equal to 150% of their Attack.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

We’ve got one last lineup of brand spanking new nodes coming up inside Chapter 2, and we’re excited to see how folks respond to them: SYNTHESIS NODES. These Buff Nodes are looking for the player to combine either a specific Buff with a Precision Buff, or a specific Debuff with a Stun Debuff to produce a completely new Buff or Debuff! These nodes may seem tricky at first, but they open up certain niche challenges to a wider variety of counterplay options. We look forward to seeing how players approach problem solving for fights that make use of these Nodes.

Buff Synthesis - Fury/Precision
Whenever the Attacker activates a Precision Buff while they have a Fury Buff active, both Buffs are consumed and the Attacker instead gains an indefinite Prowess Buff increasing Special Attack by 50%.
Buff Synthesis - Armor Up/Precision
Whenever the Attacker activates a Precision Buff while they have an Armor Up Buff active, both are removed and the Attacker instead gains a non-stacking True Strike Buff for 15 seconds allowing them to ignore Armor, Resistances, Auto-Block and all Evade effects.
Buff Synthesis - Cruelty/Precision
Whenever the Attacker activates a Precision Buff while they have a Cruelty Buff active, both are removed and the Attacker instead gains a Steadfast Buff for 10 seconds, allowing them to Block Unblockable Attacks.
Debuff Synthesis - Stun/Bleed
Whenever the Attacker applies a Bleed Debuff to the opponent while the Defender is suffering from a Stun Debuff, both Debuffs are consumed and the Defender is afflicted with a Poison Debuff dealing 200% of the Attacker's Attack as Direct Damage over 15 seconds, and reducing health recovery by 30%.
Debuff Synthesis - Weakness/Stun
Whenever the Defender receives a Stun Debuff while a Weakness Debuff is active, both are removed and the Defender is afflicted with a Power Sting Debuff. An Opponent with Power Sting takes 50% of the Attacker's Attack as Direct Damage when activating a Special Attack.
Debuff Synthesis - Stun/Armor Break
Whenever the Defender receives an Armor Break Debuff while a Stun Debuff is active, both are removed and the Defender is afflicted with a Cold Snap Debuff dealing 200% of the Attacker's Attack as Energy Damage over 10 seconds. Cold Snap also prevents the activation of Evade.

SHOW ‘EM WHO’S BOSS

It wouldn’t be Story Content without some creative and challenging Boss Fights, and we’ve rolled out an assortment of Boss Buff Nodes just for the occasion.

Critical Eye
Whenever the Attacker crits on the Defender, the Defender gains an Unblockable Charge making their next Attack Unblockable. Unblockable Charges are consumed whenever the Defender attacks, regardless of whether the Attack hits. Intercepting the Defender removes all active Unblockable Charges, and gives the Attacker a 10 second Precision Buff increasing Critical Rating by 20% per charge removed.
Moth to the Flame
Gain 1 Fervor charge when landing a Basic Attack. Charges fall off one at a time when the Attacker is far away from the Defender. Each time the Attacker launches a Special Attack up to 10 Fervor charges are removed, each granting Fury, increasing Attack Rating by 10% for 10 seconds. If 0 Fervor charges remain the Attacker is inflicted with a Degeneration Debuff dealing 50% attack over 10 seconds.
Burnout
Whenever the Defender activates a Special Attack, they gain a Burnout Charge increasing their Special Attack by 10% per Charge. When the Defender has 10 or more Burnout Charges, 10 are removed and the Defender is passively Power Locked for 10 seconds. Whenever the Attacker activates Dexterity for any hit from the Defender's Special Attacks, the Defender gains an additional Burnout Charge.
While the Iron is Hot
Whenever the Defender is struck while their back is against the wall, the Attacker gains an indefinite Prowess Buff increasing their Special Attack damage by 20%. Max 10 stacks. These Prowesses are consumed on Special Attack activation. The Defender's Defensive Power Gain rate is increased by 5% for each active Prowess on the Attacker up to 50%.
Set Up and Spike
Whenever the Defender is knocked down they remove their active Debuffs. If more than 6 Debuffs are removed, they take 500% of the Attacker's Attack as direct damage. Otherwise, the Attacker takes a burst of physical damage equal to 50% of the Defender's Attack.
Stampede
Whenever the Defender blocks an attack, they gain an Overrun Charge. Each Overrun Charge increases Attack and Combat Power Gain Rate by 10%. If the Defender's Heavy Attack is ever interrupted, all active Overrun Charges on the Defender are removed and the Attacker gains an Unblockable Passive for 2 seconds for each Overrun removed.
Smorgasbord
The Defender has a 100% chance to Purify all incoming Debuffs. Whenever the Defender purifies a Debuff, they gain a Snack Charge. Every 30 seconds, if the Defender has less than 10 Snack Charges they gain a Regen Passive restoring 25% of their health over 6 seconds. If the Defender has 10 or more Snack Charges, they gain a Degeneration Passive, removing 10% of their health over 6 seconds.
Surge Protector
Whenever the Defender is struck with a Basic Attack, they gain a Surge Charge. If the Defender activates a Special Attack, any Surge Charges on them are consumed and refund 10% of their spent Power per Charge. If the Defender is struck by a Special Attack, any Surge Charges on them are consumed and inflict a burst of Direct Damage to the Defender equal to 25% of the Attacker's Attack per Charge.
Meltdown
At the start of the fight, the Attacker is afflicted with a Meltdown Timer for 30 seconds. Whenever the owner of the Meltdown Timer activates a Special Attack, the Meltdown Timer is refreshed and applied to their opponent with -5 seconds. When the Meltdown Timer reaches zero, it deals it's owner a burst of damage equal to 200% of their Attack. It then resets back to 30 seconds and applies itself to the Attacker.
Wombo Combo
Whenever the Defender activates a Special Attack, the Attacker's Combo Meter is consumed and reset to zero. For each Hit in the Combo Meter consumed, the Defender gains a Prowess charge increasing Special Attack by 20% for 8 seconds. Max 30. If the Defender is knocked down while these Prowess Charges are active, they are consumed and deal the Defender Direct Damage equal to 10% of the Attacker's Attack per Prowess consumed.

BIG BOSS ENERGY

Book 2.1.2 comes complete with it’s own totally custom Chapter Boss in the form of, well, we won’t spoil it for you here. Hop into Chapter 2 check out the unbelievable Final Boss that awaits you at the end Quest 6.
Post edited by Kabam Boo on
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Comments

  • Silver_GooseSilver_Goose Member Posts: 488 ★★★
    Excited to read through the new nodes!
  • Agent_X_zzzAgent_X_zzz Member Posts: 4,498 ★★★★★
    ayyyy lets go
  • Boss_Starling_217_Boss_Starling_217_ Member Posts: 206 ★★
    I'm excited to see this in action.

    I am speed.
  • pseudosanepseudosane Member, Guardian Posts: 3,990 Guardian
    pretty sick, color me excited.
  • Ironman3000Ironman3000 Member Posts: 1,956 ★★★★★
    Do you have to fight all 3 bosses to get completion?
  • This content has been removed.
  • Agent_X_zzzAgent_X_zzz Member Posts: 4,498 ★★★★★

    Do you have to fight all 3 bosses to get completion?

    Nope but u have the option to fight any of the 3
  • SquirrelguySquirrelguy Member Posts: 2,654 ★★★★★
    edited May 2021
    Rewards are okay, super similar to 7.1 with mainly the extra 25% T5CC for exploration, but I'll take it. I really like the debuff synthesis mechanic, and look forward to playing through and seeing how it goes! If it is anything like 7.1, I'm sure it will be a good time.
  • Agent_X_zzzAgent_X_zzz Member Posts: 4,498 ★★★★★
    TyEdge said:

    So the rewarda are the same amount of t5cc with a pittance of t3a and t6b? Ouch.

    there is 25% more t5cc in exploreation 2x 25% crystals + 25% selector
  • SquirrelguySquirrelguy Member Posts: 2,654 ★★★★★

    Do you have to fight all 3 bosses to get completion?

    @Ironman3000 No, just one of them. The way they did it is that once you catch a portal too the final "Boss Island", you can choose one of three paths that take you to one of the bosses, then after a single boss fight, to the final node of the quest, which would grant you completion.
  • Lvernon15Lvernon15 Member Posts: 11,598 ★★★★★

    is it me or the rewards look exactly like chapter 1???
    very disappointed,
    also, why using of VPN doesn't qualify you for legend? some countries the game is blocked there and you can't access it without vpn, so you just killed all hope for them

    Mercs use VPNs to make it look like the person is the one logging in, rather than the merc so that they don’t get caught
    Yeah, and I assume they already have the tech infrastructure to catch runs that don’t use one, definitely pushing me more to going for a run again
  • MrInsanityMrInsanity Member Posts: 1,539 ★★★★
    LETS GOOOOO
    HYPE!!!
  • MrInsanityMrInsanity Member Posts: 1,539 ★★★★

    Me after seeing the discombobulate node:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B62ACxuq8Pw

    LOL THATS WHAT I THOUGHT OF TOO
  • DrZolaDrZola Member Posts: 9,125 ★★★★★
    VPN ineligibility.

    Is that new? Do VPN users need to worry generally?

    Dr. Zola
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