Atlantic City: Chapter 2

In my earlier post about Mafia Wars: Atlantic City (Chapter 1), I griped about the boring nature of the jobs and the low XP:Energy ratio in Atlantic City (about 1.3 to 1.5).

One reader commented that, if you've finished all the other cities, you might as well complete Atlantic City's other chapter, since there are 24 Skill Points to earn there (6 jobs, 4 levels). And I thought, that's a great point. So I plowed headlong into Atlantic City -Chapter 2.

Again, the jobs have generic names, with Mastery dropping from 7% to 5% to 4% to 2% as you go from Bronze to Silver to Gold to Ruby. The XP:Stamina ratio is again brutal - 1.3 at worst, 1.6 at best.

And your only pit stops along the way, besides getting the Skill Point at the end of each job, is completing an entire level:

You still earn Vegas dollars and get Vegas items as drop loot. In Chapter 2, however, I noticed slightly better Loot dropping from jobs - the two standouts being the Goldsmobile (55D) and Range Finder Rifle (54D).

I also realized that the low XP:Energy ration isn't as much of a problem as I thought. After all, when you level up, your Energy and Stamina - even when used in the best ratio jobs and fights - cannot get you even close to the next level, especially as you get higher and higher in levels.

So instead of being 1,800 XP short of the next level and reluctantly cashing in a 6,300 Energy point pack - which drives me crazy since so much of it goes to waste, I found that Atlantic City jobs' low ratio - along with the low ratio from the tons of Missions out there - make my Energy use more efficient. I still can't level up in one shot, but I also don't leave 4,000 Energy wasted when I do level up.

Your other option is to keep doing jobs in Napoli or Hoover Dam or Area 51, trying to nail the few and far between top items there (Meadow Viper, Corpo Armatura, Ballista Missile Launcher, Bighorn, Foo Fighter). But the drop rate on ANY item is so low if you're at Ruby level in those Districts/Regions, to the point that you can spend 5,000+ Energy and get one Hopped Up Thug or one Cinghiale for your efforts.

In Atlantic City - Chapter 2, after spending some 70,000+ Energy points, you'll reach the finish line:

The Bullet 44 OET will be a standout in your Vehicle list on both Attack and Defense, and just LOOKS good:

One other neat feature about Atlantic City is your ability to upgrade your stats when you level up - you don't need to go back to Mafia Wars on Facebook to do this:

The best feature of Atlantic City is still the ability to collect from all of your Properties - in all 6 cities - while you're away from the computer.

So, thank you to the reader who made the comment about 48 free Skill Points.

Now I *really* have nothing to do with my Energy until Mafia Wars releases Italy Regions 6, 7, and 8, probably after the New Year.