Introduction
Hello, and welcome to my guide. I'm Ares23 and I decided to share with the rest of you my experience with Mercs/Traps MM. I have reached lvl 40 and although I mostly PvE I do join a weekly PvP night events with my VG and I will include my thoughts on strategies for both later on....
... As for now let's take a look at some of the toys you will have access to once you become a Mercs/Traps MM.
Primary Set: Mercenaries
Burst (lvl 1)
BI = 4 Ticks of 0.75 of Lethal Damage
Range = 90
Recharge = 4
Quickly fires a Burst of rounds at a single target at very long range. Damage is average, but the fire rate is fast. Can also reduce the target's defense.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Damage
My Notes:
I'm of the opinion that MMs should not get any of the attacks, feel free to disagree, but this is my guide so I don't suggest getting this.
Soldiers (lvl 1)
Range = 90
Recharge = 90
Calls forth one to three Mercenary Soldiers (depending on your level) to do your bidding. The third Soldier you gain will be a Medic. All Soldiers use Sub Machine Guns, but these can be upgraded. You may only have 3 Soldiers under your control at any given time. If you attempt to call Soldiers, you can only replace the ones you have lost in battle. If you already have three, the power will fail.
Slots:
3 Acc/3 Damage
My Notes:
This is why you became a Mastermind, so take this power at lvl 1 and love it. At 18 you get a medic instead of a 3rd soldier. He's nice accept he has a shorter range on his attack so he tends to die alot.
Initially the soldiers start with ASMG Burst, medic starts with SMG Burst and a heal.
With Equip Mercenary soldiers get ASMG Heavy Burst, medic gets SMG Heavy Burst
With Tactical Upgrade soldiers get Auto Fire, medic gets Stimulant and Frag Grenade
Slug (lvl 2)
BI = 4.56 of Lethal Damage
Range = 95
Recharge = 8
Fires a single Slug at a targeted foe. Firing a single Slug is slower than firing a Burst, but deals more damage is longer range, and can knock down foes.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Damage/1 Recharge
My Notes:
*See Burst*
Equip Mercenary (lvl 6)
Range = 10
Recharge = 6
Equip your Mercenary Henchmen with more advanced munitions and weaponry. This power permanently bestows new weapons and abilities to one Mercenary Henchman. The powers gained are unique and dependant upon the target Mercenary Henchman. This power only works on your Mercenary Henchmen and you can only Equip any given Mercenary Henchman once.
Slots:
1 End Redux
My Notes:
Not much to say, this is your first of two upgrades, you should get it at lvl 6 as soon as it becomes available
M30 Grenade:
BI = 0.83 Smashing Damage and 1.67 Lethal Damage
Range = 80
Recharge = 16
Launches a Grenade at long range from beneath the barrel of your Assault Rifle. This explosion affects all within the blast radius, and can knock them back.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Damage/2 Recharges
My Notes:
Burst and Slug are bad enough, but this one is down right terrible. It's damage is pretty low, less then that of Burst, but it's an AoE which means you'll get LOTS of guys hating you very much. DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, TAKE THIS POWER.
Spec Ops (lvl 12)
Range = 5
Recharge = 90
You can enlist one to two highly skilled Spec Ops Mercenary (depending on your level). Spec Ops weapons are highly accurate and long ranged, and they are adept in may different tactical weapons. Like all Henchmen, Spec Ops can be equipped with even deadlier munitions. You may only have 2 Spec Ops under your control at any given time. If you attempt to summon more Spec Ops, you can only replace the ones you have lost in battle. If you already have two, the power will fail.
Slots:
2 Acc/3 Damage/ 1 Disorient Duration
My Notes:
I love these guys, they do damage and control.
Initially Spec Ops start with SCAR Burst, SCAR Heavy Burst, and Web Grenade
With Equip Mercenary Spec Ops get Rifle Butt and Flashbang Grenade
With Tactical Upgrade Spec Ops get SCAR Snipe, Tear Gas Grenade and Stealth(which is bugged)
Serum (lvl 18)
Ranche = 50
Recharge = 1000!!!!!!
Duration = 60
You can use a special Serum to turn one Mercenary into a virtually Unstoppable killing machine for a short time. Once the Mercenary is injected with this Serum, his Damage, Accuracy, Endurance Recovery, and Damage Resistance to all damage except Psionics, will be greatly increased. The target Mercenary will also be virtually immune to controlling effects including Disorient, Sleep, Hold, Immobilize and Knockback. After the Serum wears off, the Mercenary will be exhausted and drained of all Endurance for a while.
Slots:
3 Recharge
My Notes:
Well this is one of those powers people either swear by or swear at. While is does provide a fair bit of buffing to one of your henchmen for 60 seconds is recharge time is WAY too long to be of any use. I had this power before my 1st respec, and got rid of it. While it's nice to have for a tough boss fight I did not see the real need to keep a power just for that.
Commando (lvl 26)
Range = 5
Recharge = 90
Enlists one highly trained Commando. The Commando is a seasoned professional who favors heavy assault weapons. He is simply a one may army that can leave a wake of destruction in his path. In addition to standard Soldier resistance, the Commandos experience also makes him resistant to Fear and his rugged advanced training makes him slightly resistant to Fire, Cold and Toxic Damage. You may only have 1 Commando under your control at any given time. If you attempt to summon another Commando, the power will fail.
Slots:
2 Acc/3 Damage/1 End Redux
My Notes:
Ah the commando. This guy is your heavy hitter, once you get him and slot him you will learn to love him, so much so that you'll want to name your next baby boy after him
. No, seriously this guy rocks, especially once he gets Tactical Upgrade.
Initially Commando has Burst and Slug.
With Equip Mercenary Commando gets Buckshot and Full Auto
With Tactical Upgrade Commando gets M30 Grenade, Flame Thrower (burn baby burn), and LRM Rocket
Tactical Upgrade (lvl 32)
Range = 10
Recharge = 60
Permanently Upgrade the most advanced tactical weapons and gears to one Mercenary Henchman. The Tactically Upgraded Mercenary will gain powers, weapons and munitions. The powers gained are unique and dependant upon the target Mercenary Henchman that is upgraded. This power only works on your Mercenary Henchmen and you can only Tactically Upgrade any given Mercenary Henchman once.
Slots:
3 Recharge Redux
My Notes:
Your second of 2 upgrades. With this you just turned your army from mostly single target damage to a whole lot of AoE damage. You'll see lots of orange numbers on top of your enemies from now on. Also an important thing to note is that your commando will now have a non Lethal/Smashing damage attack in the form of Flamethrower.
And that concludes the primary....
Secondary Set: Traps
Web Grenade (lvl 1)
Range = 50
Recharge = 4
Upon impact, the Web Grenade expels a strong, tenuous, and very sticky substance that can Immobilize most targets. This non-lethal device deals no damage and does not prevent targets from attacking, although their attack rate is Slowed. The Web can bring down flying entities and halts jumping.
Slots:
2 Acc/1 End Redux
My Notes:
For a power that you MUST take this one is pretty damn good. Firstly it's a nice way for you to bring down fliers, that's VERY important in PvP. It also helps you keep mobs from running which they seem to do alot. It also stack nicely with your Spec Ops Web Grenade to hold even bosses with just one shot from your and the Spec Ops.
Caltrops (lvl 2)
BI = 22 tics of 0.1389 Lethal Damage
Range = 25
Recharge = 45
Duration = 45
You toss a handful of Caltrops at a targeted location and spread the tiny metal spikes over a large area. Any enemy that passes over the Caltrops will be forced to move at a slower rate. They will also take some trivial lethal damage over time.
Slots:
1 Recharge/2 Slows
My Notes:
First let me note that even though the Hero Builder has the Recharge and Duration as the same it doesn't actually work that way the duration seems shorter then the recharge. Anyways, this power is great. I cannot sing enough praises for it. I will discuss it's use later in the strategies section. Now, I'll just say that this power will save your life more then once if you learn how to use it.
Triage Beacon (lvl 4)
Recharge = 200
Duration = 60
You can plant a Triage Beacon into the ground. The Beacon is immobile, but it emits a powerful healing aura. The Regeneration Rate of you, or your allies, will be greatly increased as long as you are near the Triage Beacon. The Beacon is invulnerable.
Slots:
3 Recharge/3 Heals
My Notes:
Of all powers to skip in the Traps secondary this one is probably it, though I don't recommend it. Keep in mind that you should 6 slot it if you do take it. Unslotted you will get 150% heal rate which isn't much but with 3 SO Heals it will be up to near 300% which is nice. It's of more use in large teams( 4+) then solo or on small teams, simply because it's stationary can't be TPed and unless you forsee a fight that will last for a bit there is no reason to put this one down. Although with 3 recharges you will be able to use it every other battle, or if you're on a large team probably every battle.
Acid Mortar (lvl 10)
Recharge = 90
Range = 5
Duration = 60
You can place a small Mortar on the ground. If an enemy passes nearby, the Mortar will fire an Acid grenade at the target. The grenade will explodes in a small shower of acid on impact. This acid eats through armor, causing minor damage over time. It reduces the target's Defense as well as his Damage Resistance. The mortar will last up to 60 seconds and will fire up to 10 grenades. It can be destroyed by your foes.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Recharges/2 Def Debuff
My Notes:
This is arguably the best power in the set. This power makes enemies easier to hit, and for more damage. It also can take agro away from you. It also has enough HP to make a Brute (maybe even a tanker) jealous and you can TP it around. I will discuss strategies with this power later, just remember that you should get this power at lvl 10 and NOT ANY LATER THEN THAT!!!!
Force Field Generator (lvl 16)
Recharge = 15
ou can build a Force Field Generator Drone. The Drone will generate a Dispersion Bubble that gives all nearby allies increased Defense against all attacks including Psionic. The Dispersion Bubble also protects allies from Immobilization, Disorient, and Hold effects. The Drone will follow you and can be buffed and healed or even destroyed like any friendly entity. However, the Drone is not a Henchman and cannot be given commands. You can only ever have one Force Field Generator.
Slots:
3 Def Buff
My Notes:
Pretty much a must have power in the Traps set. Like it's description says it protects from Immobilize, Disorient and Holds. Those tend to be the most common status effects so it's really worth having this power for that. Plus it adds some defense, it's not much only 7.5% unslotted, but it's nice to have anyways.
Poison Trap (lvl 20)
Recharge = 90
Duration = 30
You can build a Poison Gas Trap on the ground. Any foes that pass near the Poison Trap will cause it to detonate and release its toxic vapors. The poison is a very noxious gas, and any foes in the affected area may start to choke or even vomit. Affected Foes Regeneration rate will be reduced as well. The trap is almost impossible to detect, but it is fragile and may be set off by an enemy's explosion. Even if destroyed, the Trap will detonate.
Slots:
3 Recharges
My Notes:
A situational power, and one that some people may want to skip. Besides being a great for those times when all hell breaks loose it's also very useful against AVs due to it's -regen component. One other thing I like to mention is that while Slow is listed as one of it's effects I have never seen it slow anyone by any noticeable amount.
Seeker Drones (lvl 26)
Recharge = 90
You create two Seeker Drones. These Seeker Drones will follow you until they detect an enemy and then they will zero in on their targets and detonate on impact. The small explosive flash of energy does only minor damage, but the concussion can weaken foes. Affected targets will have reduced Damage, Accuracy and Perception and may even be disoriented for a short while. You can only ever have Two Seeker Drones out at one time and they can be destroyed by your foes.
Slots:
1 Acc/ 2 recharges/3 To Hit Debuffs
My Notes:
Well another great power here. Makes bad guys hit you less often, and when they do hit you it's for less damage, and as an added bonus you also get a chance to disorient and -perception. The only downside to this power is that the Drones are dumb as hell, and will sometimes just float next to enemies for seconds before deciding which one to attack.
Trip Mines (lvl 35)
BI = 11.11 about half Lethal and half Fire
Recharge = 20
Duration = 120
You can place a Trip Mine on the ground. Any foes that pass near the Trip Mine will cause it to explode, severely damaging all nearby foes and sending them flying. The Trip Mine is almost impossible to detect, but it is fragile and may be set off by an enemy's explosion. Even if destroyed, the Trip Mine will detonate. Setting a mine is delicate work, and if you are interrupted, you will fail.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Damage/2 Recharges
My Notes:
It makes a big boom, what's not to love? It's great for both PvP and PvE. More on it's uses in the strategy section
Detonator (lvl 38)
Recharge = 60
A good Mastermind means always plans ahead, but a great one knows when to make a strategic sacrifice. You have equipped all your Henchmen with explosives. When the time is right, select a Henchman and set off the Detonator. Undead and Robots are easily rigged and will blow up instantly, devastating nearby enemies. Ninjas, Soldiers and other free thinking Henchmen will try to place the explosive on the ground and get away. But you know... the fuse is short.
Slots:
1 Acc/3 Damage/2 Recharges
My Notes:
Like trip mines this makes a big boom. The reason I didn't list BI is that it varies based on which henchman you use this on. But it's more powerful then Trip Mines even if you use a Tier 1. A thing to note here, the description that leads you to believe that mercs have a chance to escape the explosion is misleading. The poor sucker who has to set the bomb up will always die.
And well that wraps up the secondary.
The Power Pools
Conceal
The power you want here is Grant Invisibility, for using it in conjunction with Detonator, more on this later...
Stealth is another power your may want to have, it does allow you to get closer to your enemies, just remember that they can still see your henchmen.... and your Force Field Generator!!!
Fighting
Uhm.... avoid this like the plague
Fitness
The great thing about Traps is that it's very endurance effecient, so you can skip this if you want.
Flight
A good choice for a travel power. Things to note here is that Hover will allow you to set up traps without being rooted in the animation. Some people choose to take Group Fly which is nice, but beware of the lagging henchmen issue associated with Group Fly.
Leadership
A the leadership pool. Well if you browse that MM forum you'll find many rather heated arguments on the issue of Leadership. The main point to keep in mind is that the only power really worth anything here is Tactics everything else is garbage (well Vengeance is nice but doesn't work on henchmen).
Leaping
If you like to jump alot go ahead and take this pool for your travel power. Otherwise, acrobatics is a nice way to protect yourself from knockbacks.
Medicine
Aid Others is great. Aid Self is nice too
Presence
Right... moving on....
Speed
I find that you really need a travel power with vertical movement in CoV, so SS is not really a good choice. Hasten is a nice little power, that I think would be of great help for setting up Trip Mines quicker, and other things as well, but it's not really needed, most Traps have a short recharge.
Teleportation
This is what I took. Teleport is a solid travel power though it does drain lots of endurance. Both TP Foe and Recall Friend are very useful additions to any Traps MM and are both in my build.
That's it for power pool....
.....And now what all you impatient readers have all been waiting for....... THE BUILD!!!!!!
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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
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Name:
Level: 41
Archetype: Mastermind
Primary: Mercenaries
Secondary: Traps
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Soldiers==> Acc(1)Acc(3)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(5)Acc(9)
01) --> Web Grenade==> Acc(1)Acc(37)
02) --> Caltrops==> Rechg(2)Slow(9)Slow(17)
04) --> Triage Beacon==> Rechg(4)Rechg(7)Rechg(7)Heal(31)Heal(33)Heal(40)
06) --> Equip Mercenary==> EndRdx(6)
08) --> Recall Friend==> EndRdx(8)
10) --> Acid Mortar==> Rechg(10)Rechg(11)Rechg(11)Acc(23)DefDeBuf(23)DefDeBuf(25)
12) --> Spec Ops==> Acc(12)Dmg(13)Dmg(13)Dmg(15)Acc(15)
14) --> Teleport==> EndRdx(14)
16) --> Force Field Generator==> DefBuf(16)DefBuf(17)DefBuf(19)
18) --> Aid Other==> Heal(18)IntRdx(19)
20) --> Poison Trap==> Rechg(20)Rechg(21)Rechg(21)
22) --> Grant Invisibility==> EndRdx(22)
24) --> Teleport Foe==> Acc(24)Rechg(25)
26) --> Commando==> Acc(26)Acc(27)Dmg(27)Dmg(29)Dmg(29)
28) --> Seeker Drones==> Rechg(28)Rechg(31)Acc(31)TH_DeBuf(34)TH_DeBuf(34)TH_DeBuf(34)
30) --> Aid Self==> IntRdx(30)
32) --> Tactical Upgrade==> Rechg(32)Rechg(33)Rechg(33)
35) --> Trip Mine==> Acc(35)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Rechg(37)Rechg(37)
38) --> Detonator==> Acc(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Supremacy==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
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Strategies
Toe Bombing
One of the common strategies that a /Traps MM should learn is Toe Bombing. This is done with either Poison Trap or Trip Mines. The first step in Toe Bombing is get the mob agroed on something other then you. If you solo it's probably going to be your henchmen and/or your Acid Mortar. In teams it will be your henchmen and your teammates. Once this is done run into the middle of the mob and plant your Poison Trap/Trip Mine. A thing to note here is, if you planting Trip Mines remember that it is interruptable. So if you are fighting AoE heavy mobs this strategy might not work. It's also very dangerous as there is always a chance that
you will be hit by AoEs. Another thing about planting Trip Mines that you should be aware of is that they do alot of damage and that means that it is likely that any surviving mobs might be just a wee bit more pissed of at you then anyone else.
This strategy works well in PvE, but in group PvP this can actually work too. This is especially true against tankers who seem to enjoy brawling for long periods of time, the key is to approach unnoticed. This requires that you do not bring henchmen (have em attack someone else) and you have some sort of stealth power. Also obviously the target must be engaged with someone else. There is alot of luck involved in this, but I have done it more then once. And I wish I could see the look on a tanker's face when he sees all his toggles dropped because he's been standing inside the poison trap cloud for too long.
TP Foe
This is a great power for both PvE and PvP. In PvE I often used this for pulling. It doesn't do any damage and thus has a good chance not to agro too many mobs. Though you have to remember that it's pretty much minion only. Good for pulling minions away from elite boss/hero/AV so that you can concentrate on him only and not worry about minions as well. You can also TP particularly nasty minions (Longbow Flamethrowers!!!) into Trip Mines, to easily deal with them.
In PvP this is also used in much the same way. Set up a nice mine field on top of a building somewhere, liberally spread caltrops around it and drop a poison trap or two. Find the unlucky hero within range and TP away. This of course requires that you find that perfect spot where you can stay hidden, but at the same time be in range of TP Foe.
Another PvP strategy, which I DO NOT approve off on heroes, it's cheap. Of course we are villains so cheap works for us.
Caltrops Usage
Caltrops is a power that will safe your and your henchmen life more often then anything else in PvE. The big thing about it is the scatter that it causes. Any mob caught in it (even AVs!!!) will try and run out of it. They might take a few shots while they are running out, but mostly they'll just try and run. The second thing that caltrops do is they pretty much force the mobs caught in it to reaquire their target (though they still may aquire the same one once they run out anyways).
In PvP these will slow down anyone caught inside them as well. There is also a chance that any stalker trying to AS you will be interrupted, so you should pretty much always be standing inside caltrops while in PvP areas (though you shouldn't be doing too much standing in PvP, period).
Grant Invisibility
Grant Invisibility has only really two uses in my build. One is to use in conjunction with Detonator. It's a real simple strategy. Put the pet to be sacrificed into Passive (VERY IMPORTANT!!!), cast Grant Invisibility on them. Send em into the middle of a nice large spawn (don't bother with anything less then 5). And cast Detonator. Detonator has a pretty long range so you don't have to worry too much about aggroing the spawn yourself. Do be ware that any surviving mobs from that spawn will try to take out their anger on you!!!.
The second use for Grant Invisibility is to increase the survivability of your Medic. The devs in their wisdom have granted the medic the shortest range attack of all of your henchmen (excluding the spec op rifle butt and commando flamethrower). So 90% of the time he will be ahead of all of your henchmen and 90% of the time he will be the first one dead. Grant Invisibility increases his chance to live. So cast it on him often.
I've also read people who say that they use it to keep their henchies invisible while they travel. I don't see this as a realistic goal. Grant invisibility only lasts about 2 minutes, and it will probably take you about 30 seconds to make all of your henchmen invisibile, meaning that you will have to stop every minute and a half and repeat the process. Doable, but impractical and very annoying.
One last thing that I do suggest. Use binds and macros. I don't care if you use the Numeric Keys Binds or some others, it's really hard to be an effective MM without them. And you will find that many times you just need to command just one or two of your henchmen to do something. And it's much easier to do so if you have binds and macros ready for those situations.
Well this is all from me for now. Remember, most important thing is to have fun.
If you have any comments, or if you spotted an error, please feel free to reply so that I can add your comment and/or correct my error in the next version of my guide. Which will probably be sometimes after I7 and when I hit 50.
Ares23
