Community College Hero 2: Knowledge is Power (Would a Game Guide for CCH1 & 2 be helpful? post 1941)
@Eric_Moser (and to anyone else who have discussed this)
I know youâve discussed previously about the MCâs power(s) for the future, and what they might entail. But would that power set be limited to the âseeking powerâ path, while the tactician and Dr. Stench path would receive the lesser power sets we used as preference in CCH1? Or is the coding too difficult to do for that?
It seems like our MC is destined for zenith abilities regardless, but Iâm mostly curious to see if the powers would be determined by our choices. I find for the tactician telepathy would be the most useful, similar to Hag, where coordinating the team would become much easier, and secretive, because eventually shouting orders of plans to teammates in front of villains may become problematic.
As for CCH3, Iâd like to see more development in our Professors. Weâve seen so much in the Hedonist, as he loses his facade Saviour gave him, and becomes much more relaxed and âtrueâ in front of the students. We can see exactly how much he believes in defending people and his stance on heroism when heâs receiving status reports on the other cities, and basically chokes when he hears, what Iâm assuming is the reported casualties.
We also saw development of McCormick in CCH1 on the farm, where she exploded on Crook, and immediately, Hedy tried to smooth over the studentsâ feelings, and make them understand where she was coming from. Iâm hoping to see the side story of her, but really getting into a development of her in the third installment would be pretty cool, such as why she keeps making sacrifices for these students that donât care for her lessons, wreck her car, etc. We also see some of her morals when she loses it on Downfall, not to mention how flippant she can be to some people, such as when she brushes off Crookâs law degree, helping him out of the lawsuit, etc.
The unmasking of Nil I think would be too âehâ of you didnât get his âpetâ status, unless itâs detrimental to the battles ahead. But getting to see more of him is what Iâm looking forward to.
Lastly, Iâm on board the Crook murdered CPâs dad back when he was young and impressionable theory, but maybe having the traitor be different according to our stats? Each team member, and faculty member has a good case for and against, but since the intro in CCH1, all we know is sometime in the past two years, we trusted the wrong person. Doesnât necessarily mean we met them, as of the end of CCH2? So, if our RO is fluctuating, and we have different morals, therefore trusting different people in each âlifeâ so to speak, unless the coding is too hard, having a different traitor would certainly make things interesting and more realistic to the MCâs path.
I CANT BELIEVE I FORGOT TO PUT QUEENâS âDONâT STOP ME NOWâ ON HEDYâS PLAYLIST
throws self out the window
Six powers for Tactician and Dr. Stench mean 12 more paths. Thatâs not difficult to code, thatâs IMPOSSIBLE.
Telepath Tactician would be completely broken. You would have no weaknesses and would be able to do pretty much everything as long as you have teammates.
Thatâs like saying tacticians arenât allowed to be Telepathic. Ever. Which makes 0 sense. Lol
So, I know a lot of people dislike Savior because of how they seem to look like they want to control the entire population and create what is basically a cult but hear me out.
Sure, they sent Captain Crunch to collect all your information but what the hell has Prestige done besides fuck all? Savior has been supplying aid and sent teachers out on loan, depending on what you choose one of them even gives their lives for you. Even though the contrarian/manipulator publicly threatened your school, Mega Puss still hasnât even bothered to show up or send any people/information whatsoever. Not even a âthinking of youâ postcard.
Not saying I approve of Booksmart but if theyâre the lesser of three evils even though I know they might end up against me when it suits them, Iâll cross that bridge when I get to it.
MC is put in a position in a precarious situation. At this point, choosing factions because âwhich school is coolerâ isnât even a factor. The DD have made it clear theyâre not going to hesitate to hurt or kill anyone and Prestige have made it clear you are expendable.
And yes, I understand. Savior could potentially attempt to take away your free will if you donât behave accordingly but thatâs a problem for another time. Its a hell of a lot better than being dead.
Point taken.
But itâs not like the telepathy would be developed as well as Hag. It could easily have limitations, based on how many people CP could talk to, broadcast distance, or perhaps it would rely more on empathy, where if they didnât have a good connection with a person they wouldnât be able to connect? I think thatâd be fun, but itâs hard to let go that I might not get force fields or super strength haha
I agree with a lot of what youâre sayingâIâm very anti-Prestige and pro-Saviorâbut I do wanna point out âŚ
He did send Nil and Downfall in book 1. And I was actually talking to somebody about this earlier, cause when I look at the teachers each school sent it really seems like Savior was there to serve their own purpose, yes, but wasnât interested in damaging Speck at all, while Prestige felt very much like it wanted to dismantle the institution. Hedonist is obviously sketchy as hell but heâs also apparently developed out of it, so leaving that aside, itâs the Prestige folks, Nil and Downfall, who are telling the students they should be fighting each other, spying on each other, sowing mistrust and breaking up the Speck community from as close to the inside as they can get. Which feels much more malicious to me, and backs up Booksmartâs comment âthis is not a fiefdom, Mega Cat is not a lord,â as evidence that Mega Cat, instead of just being interested in making the world better, is interested in keeping a monopoly on heroics.
I think one of the big strengths in CCH is the way the moral greyness of the factions is handledâitâs not so much âhere is the facts about Faction 1, here is the facts about Faction 2, itâs up to you who you think is more justified and in the right,â and a lot more âBooksmart says Mega Cat is a MEANIEHEAD but Mega Cat says Streetsmart WAS RUDE TO A PUPPY ONCEâ he-said-she-said style stuff that I think is really cool. Way back when I said I thought it was really cool that you donât know whoâs the good guy, you just look at the very small amount of actual concrete evidence and then weigh up the hearsay and personal anecdotes and itâs up to you whoâs word you trust more in the end. And way back when I said it seemed like the Smarts might be controlling and they certainly arenât flawless people but they ultimately come off as a lot more goodhearted, if misguided or extreme, while Mega Cat strikes me as someone who wants to be lauded and important more than anything else, and thatâs still the impression I get
I think Saviour has a good concept. I just hope Booksmart bites the next bullet. I mean, she was able to manipulate, Tress, DG and CP from taling about what/who they saw on their trip. So what if sheâs doing this to her brother Streetsmart? He seems okayâŚ
Cap hasnât had much character development, but so far, it seems like heâs as active Mega Cat. Which is to say, not. Sure he flew Rain to the hospital, but he was there and heâs getting paid to do so. But otherwise? Everything he does, seems like itâs for show. Heâs there to spy for Booksmart, why else would they send someone so reliant on gadgets? Maybe Iâve missed this, but apart from a high tech surfboard, what ARE his powers?
But I totally agree; Mega Cat has been absent and we donât have enough information to choose. All we really know is that heâs probably lied to the public about Zeniths (whether this is to avoid panic or for selfish reasons we donât know) and that he sent Nil to see how this new school was doing.
Nil wanted secrets so that information could belong to Prestige, and not fall into the ego of Booksmart. Beyond that, we donât where his loyalty is, or if Mega Catâs even still around. He was in an interview with Stunner, and saw Dean Tolly privately. Why? Because heâs not the hero he was (morals obviously changed if he went from fighting the Dozen to striking a deal), and he probably canât give much more to the fight. This would be my conclusion.
I wouldnât say Saviour is the lesser of three evils however. It seems like Speck would be. Tolly was a constant in ALL universes. McCormick supports her in trying to build the community and so far, they and Tolliver seem to genuinely care about the students, and standing up to the Dozen.
If you keep the Hedonist alive, you donât get the dialogue that shows his heartâs changed when it comes to his involvement in Speck, but you see that heâs willing to disobey the Smarts and break from their control, based on beliefs. If you do spare him, you see that he cares about his friends and Speck, but not in the same scope.
Saviour is trying to make everyone docile, and super, so that everyone becomes normal. Tactician path.
Prestige, yes, they do treat people like theyâre expendable, itâs why everyone has to wear the militant uniforms and look all the same, because theyâre searching for power and numbers. Zenith path.
Speck wants to include those forgotten and look out for the little guys. Theyâre incompetent due to ignorance and inexperience, but they are trying to do something and keep their head above water. Dr. Stench path.
SO, in all, I do agree with your points about Prestige, Mega Cat and the Smartâs plan, but I don\t know if putting Booksmart as a âsolve laterâ issue would be good. If the Dozen donât take her out, who can?
I donât think Downfall was ever working with Prestige. She only got hired after she was fired from Speck.
But Downfall was a free agent in CCH1.
The Hedonist says this after McCormickâs lashing on Crook at the farm. That sheâd had it the worst, Saviour has been incredibly generous to him, and Downfall just happened to be interested in Speck, to make sure the kids knew what reality of being a hero was.
He said Saviour would love to have her, if she was interested. We only find out after sheâs fired that she moves back to her home of New York, where she was THEN approached by Mega Cat to teach at his school. Nil probably said âhey, she fits in to our military-esque crib, and she knows how to get stuff done. If you want strong soldiers, get her.â
Edit: This is not to say I donât agree with your perception of Mega Cat. I believe youâre right, but I personally donât think âflawedâ is enough of a word to describe the Smarts.
@No_This_Is_Patrick & @LadyColossus woops my bad, completely misremembered that.
It still doesnât raise my opinion of Mega Cat tbh. Downfallâs âtrainingâ method is ridiculously ineffective. She probably would do better at somewhere like Prestige where the students would already have some level of training alreadyâbut her teaching tactics are just telling the students to fight each other, essentially hoping they already know how to do it. And expecting college freshman to be able to take her on and breaking a prone studentâs arm when they canât isnât the same as teaching them how to fight. And adding that to her treatment of Mob during the Prestige visit, sheâs pretty transparently a lot more interested in hurting the students than actually teaching them. I guess this is more anti-Downfall than anti-Mega Cat but if sheâs the type of person he thinks is suited for his staff, it says bad things
As stated far above:
savior aims for neat little boxes, reducing people down to one or two charactertraits which are then exaggerated ad absurdum. The Hedonist is the best example. Sure, he IS a bit sleazy and a pleasure-seeker, but heâs very caring and protective as we see now. Latter are traits that did not fit with the persona Savior created for him. Likewise Cal. He is a sorta selfish and grumpy guy at his core, compared to the chill surfer dude persona.
Prestige has the opposite problem. Their solution is a different kind of hivemind, one in which no individuality exists.
Sic semper tyrannis. No one is invincible.
WellâŚSpeck itself (the community, students, the teachers) are fine but Tolly is knowingly putting students in danger. Sheâs either an idiot we shouldnât follow in the first place or up to no good. But Speck on its own is simply not powerful to deal with everyone else, if it werenât for lore armor.
Atta boy. 
squeals like a Japanese schoolgirl because senpai noticed
Donât get me wrong, I think Booksmart is trash too. I think I just hate Mega Cat more. 
Oh and on a sidenote. Streetsmart is surprisingly likeable but probably because he comes off as a little more down to earth and approachable unlike his creepy robotic sister.
I agree. Sheâs extreme and itâs hella uncool for her to be a teacher, considering the amount of assault charges that could be laid against her from the class at Speck. And Mega Cat seems unhinged to hire her.
BUT, this begs the devilâs advocate, is she really that ineffective? We see CP reflect on Downfallâs teachings several times, and her brutality looks like puppies and kittens next to the Dozen coming to town. The students were ill prepared for the Wyvern, the Manipulator, the Saviour trip kids werenât ready for the sims, and the Speckters werenât ready for real combat in the final fight. Apart from Tress, Stoic and our MC, everyone was either shaking, despondent or heaving.
Downfall was extreme and I do not support her methods. I do understand however that she was, in her own way, making sure that the kids were prepared to be targeted by the big leagues. She wanted to make sure that those KIDS would be prepared to fight for their life, no matter what, because thatâs who heroes face: murderers, drug induced thugs, violent perpetrators, etc. She didnât want someone so soft like Origami fighting, if she had no backbone to stand on. She didnât want kids throwing away their lives without knowing what it means. At least, this is my take away. Extreme and a sociopath? Yes.
Ineffective? Iâm gonna go with no. CP kept referencing her, and at least she was willing to show kids the roses.
I think Streetsmart is likeable, but I have to question how much he was doctored by his sister. Does she have boundaries? Is she willing to control EVERYONE for her initiative? Because what if he sees something wrong with her future? Will she force him to comply, like our Speckters when they returned from Saviour, or will she eliminate him, because she is smarter than him and his visions?
As for Tolly, she does put the kids in danger, but she does give them every opportunity to walk away from her, and let her stand on her own. She even says that she wishes they werenât risking their lives for her vision, for her beliefs. Take Pink Cavalier for example; she leaves minutes before stuff hits the fan.
First off, with the exception of Origami (who shouldnât have been there in the first place) theyâre not kids. They are adults, who want to go out in the world and fight real life, DEADLY psychopathic super villains.
Theyâre not being prepared for a bake sale, or a gossip slumber party. Theyâre supposed to be getting prepared to go out every night, ready to die to protect people.
People keep acting like theyâre children. If youâre in training to be a cop, or the army, or any thing like that, itâs not padded floors and kid gloves. Itâs being tazed, itâs being pepper sprayed in the face, itâs coming face to face with things you will actually have to do in your line of duty.
In both these games there are only three actually useful/helpful adults working to get them ready for the world: Hedonist, Downfall, and McCormick. I guess Capt Cali too but his stuff is always paired with Hedonist in book 2, so canât get a good feel.
Iâd still make the argument that yeah, she is ineffective.
She was also the only fighting teacher they hadâdoing something in front of students, and then making them do it, itâs not surprising that some combat knowledge was imparted. But if she were a better teacherâstarting slowly and making sure the kids knew the fundamentals of fighting before making them just blindly smack each other, encouraging them to work together instead of asking them directly to badly hurt each other (which is super counterintuitive anywayâhow are the injured kids supposed to learn how to fight if theyâre recovering from injuries? Especially with kids who are gonna be disadvantaged in a fight anyway why wouldnât effective teamwork be part of her curriculum?) maybe they wouldâve been more prepared in some of these fights. Or at least less un-prepared.
In my experience, starting out freshman 101 level classes with âin the real world, this is gonna suck,â is not helpful for anybody. Of course itâs gonna suck in the real worldâluckily weâre in a freshman level class, on the first day, here to learn how to make it suck less. At that point it isnât Downfallâs job to be showing them the roses, and I donât think she deserves credit for just kind of wanting to be teaching a higher level class than she is. She was hired to teach kids the basics of fighting, and said kids are now being punished because she has bigger ideas for what they should be able to do than what they signed up for
Ultimately I think youâre right that these are young people, theyâre barely adults and theyâve got no business being in the fights theyâre ending up in, and I donât think any teacher couldâve really prepared them for what they were going to have to deal with, especially as soon as they ended up dealing with it. But the fact that the main character thought about the only combat training theyâd had while they were in combat doesnât mean that said combat training was worth much.
Where was the MC born?
With the exception of Crook, they are young, and kids does describe them well. Iâve been through police academy, they treat you as a child for the first bit, and thatâs exactly how we should be treating our cast.
They are inexperienced, with dreams of wonder and glory, as reinforced by CPâs options of daydreaming, and until theyâve proven themselves to their professors and other heroes, since they are 19-24 (again, excluding Crook), they will continue to be treated at children and looked down upon as children.
I do agree with your assessment of the professors. But they never did take the kid gloves off as much as Downfall did.