Creating a character concludes several steps. There are five Origins a player can choose for his/her character that dictate what type of enhancements the character may use, affect a single short-ranged power and can influence the various hero groups that the character goes up against; these origins are Natural, Magic, Science, Mutation, and Technology.First the player selects an Origin, an Archetype and a primary and secondary power set. Next the actual avatar with its costume is created. Lastly, the player chooses a name and can optionally write a background story to add some flavor to the character as well as creating an individual battle cry. COV Infamy is different from other game gold.
There are five basic Archetypes (or classes) in City of Villains that affect a character's Power choices throughout the game. Brutes are primarily melee fighters with some defensive powers who do more damage the longer they stay in combat. Corruptors are primarily long-ranged fighters who deal moderate damage and secondary powers that either weaken their foes or strengthen their allies. Dominator primary powersets focus on preventing foes from moving and attacking while their secondary set consists of moderate offensive powers. Masterminds are able to summon various Henchmen to do their bidding and can bolster their Henchmen with powers from their secondary set. Stalkers are melee specialists who rely on the power "Hide" to increase their damage potential.
A sixth "Epic" character Archetype was added in Issue 12: Soldiers Of Arachnos. This Archetype allows players to play as stronger versions of Arachnos minions encountered throughout the game, discover many secrets about the inner workings of Arachnos and its secret societies and achieve high ranks. They are also unique amongst CoH/CoV characters to date in having branching career trees. At level 24, Blood Widows can choose between the Fortunata (Dominator/Ranged Psychic attacks) and Night Widow (Stalker/Ranged Psychic attacks) paths, while Wolf Spiders can pick the Crab Spider (Corruptor with summons) or Bane Spider (Stalker/Brute with summons) paths. These are unlocked by reaching level 50 on a Villain character, similar to the method of unlocking the Kheldian Archetypes in CoH.
Differences Between The Games About City of Villains
COV Infamy is different from other game gold. As City of Villains is an expansion to City of Heroes as well as its own standalone title, it features several changes that are unique to its players, unless they also have a copy of the original game. One of the primary changes to the game was the ability to play as a supervillain, with new Archetypes (classes) and powers unique to Villains.
An instant-access mission system. Player vs Player areas for hero vs. villain conflict. This addition was an expansion on CoH's Arena areas, which allowed for Hero vs. Hero battles. Villain vs. Villain is also available in the game. Sharper and more detailed graphics, ragdoll physics, and other visual improvements. Ability to create/access Super Group bases (this is needed for creation and access to City of Heroes bases also). These features have been implemented into City of Heroes, as well. Initially, the use of a lair in City of Heroes requires a joint-subscription with City of Villains or the Good vs. Evil Edition pack that includes both games. Later, NCSoft would give subscribers to either game access to both games, allowing all users to have this feature. The instant-access mission system is the Newspaper and Broker system in City of Villains. This was implemented in City of Heroes in the Issue 8 expansion as the Police Band system.
