Airhammer
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Posts
1942 -
Joined
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Quote:see thats the problem.. I dont play with a calculator.. I play the GAME.. I can tell you that all my blasters can survive well and thats a function of me knowing how I have built them.. how to play them, knowing their advantages and limitations and utilizing my build optimally..Originally Posted by PrincessDarkstar
Ignoring the word best, I would love to see arguements (With numbers and facts) that ANY secondary aside from a high recharge /mental build can get comparible survivability to a scrapper.
'I don't have many problems' is not an arguement.
Now I dont try to play blasters like scrappers ( one I hate scrappers ) and I believe this is 50&% of the issue.. It doesnt play like X so its not good.. if X is better then Y sucks..
So if you want number crunching I cant help you with that.. nor will I try to convince you otherwise.. Ive been playing blasters since day one.. no IO's No Epic pool, no defiance.. NO BREAK FREE's and I have never felt totally gimped or broken..
again I think Blasters need some tweaks.. not a major revision or a rewriting of all secondaries.. -
Quote:so basically you want to play a scrapper with blasts..Originally Posted by Yogi_Bare
I would like to see more secondary choices for Blasters:
Kinetic Manipulation
Stone (Earth) Manipulation
Spines
Martial Arts
Street Justice
Claws
Thorns -
Quote:My Blasters do not die all over the place..Originally Posted by PrincessDarkstar
Human Torch can't be a blaster. When I watch the movies I want him to die, but he never does.
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Quote:See this is opinion and conjecture because I can make arguments for Electric and Energy and many would argue that Ice is the best secondary as well.Originally Posted by Tsuji
From my perspective, the main issue with blasters is that they have no secondaries. Yes, they have them, but they're all garbage aside from Mental, which is only super good with IOs. In fact, the only blasters that are really any good past about 30 are the ones with the /IO secondary.
Maybe it sounds a bit extreme, but it's just how it is. Every other AT in the game has a secondary that supports its primary in some way, while blasters get a hodgepodge of crappy abilities mixed with one or two usable ones. The devs can try to fix blasters with more damage or weird inherent abilities all they want, but the truth is that there's nothing anyone can do to fix them without a more or less completely retool of every secondary.
I have to agree with Memphis Bill here. You would think that the blaster is horribly horribly broken and I dont get that feeling when I play my blasters at all whether solo or in team play.
Challenging at times yes.. Have to actually THINK about what I am doing.. yes.. Do blasters need tweaks.. yes..
Complete overhaul.. no.. -
This IO has the potential to create the most massive respec campaign I have done since Issue 19 when Fitness pool became free and added 3 extra powers for everyone..
Peacebringer.. check
Nrg/Nrg Blaster.. check..
Storm Ice Controller..check...
Ice/Thorn Dominator.. check..
Rad/Rad Defender.. check
Rad/MM Blaster.. Check..
arch/Dev Blaster.. Check..
and thats off the top of my head.. better start saving up influence -
I have both.. and both are excellent.. one might even say.. overkill...
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Quote:I agree that you cannot map movies to games.. Iron Man to me is a bad example if you want to use try to type a Blaster... To me is more like a Corruptor with some Melee attacks.Originally Posted by Hopeling
No, but I did see him pulling
Moreover, the MOVIE version of Iron Man, as Stealth_Bomber specified, has only moderate durability (note how he ends almost every major fight with his armor severely damaged), but lots of "whoa" attacks. Mapping movie characters to game archetypes is fuzzy business, but he could reasonably be interpreted as a blaster. Heck, Avengers had a cinematic version of the "anyone got a wakie?" moment, with Iron Man the faceplanted one. (Hulk combined three reds.)
Now Human Torch.. PURE blaster.. -
Quote:This.. This is what is what I want to scream every time I come to the blaster boards now..Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill
I'm waiting for a reason other than "It isn't X AT" to revamp the AT as a whole. And most of the arguments end up sounding exactly like that. I mean, hell, EG wants them to be Dominators. Some people seem to want them to be VEATs. You're busy comparing your Blaster to your wife's Brute. Well, guess what, you're not a Brute. You play differently. That's kind of the point of different ATs. Do I take longer to finish a map? Who cares? I'm managing spawns. It's how I survive as a blaster. So what if they're not "monkey pound keyboard" easymode? Not everything should be. If mezzes are so bad to you, use the tools at your disposal, team, or play a different AT.
I swear, it seems the forums in general just want everything to be a grey AT. Everything gets the same resists, damage, damage scale, recharge. Tanks, scrappers, stalkers and brutes can get pets and major ranged AOEs from level 1. Squishiess get melee level mez protection and defenses - and what the hell, let's throw team buffs in there, too. Everyone gets Hide level stealth with bonus damage. Oh, and plenty of control, too, can't let the controllers and doms have a niche. Everyone gets controllable pets with bodyguard. Let's reduce that AT icon to the worthlessness of the origin icon. Would everyone be happy then? Because that's the direction these freaking "OMG, X AT is worthless, it needs to be revamped!" discussions go - with *every* *single* AT.
Do blasters have some issues.. yes.. what I have been saying all along..
Fix Snipes so that they are worth a crap
Fix Nukes to be crashless and faster recharge like Rain of Arrows, Full Auto and Hail of Bullets
Fix Range in the sets to be equalized ( no more short range 40' blasts )
Make it so that ALL combinations allow for Build up and Aim ( some combinations do not allow for this )
Fix the Time Bomb and Gun Drone in devices..Give Targeting Drone a damage buff to make up for the fact there is no Build Up..
Energy's AoE suck... fix em..
Give the blaster a ranged damage multiplier increase.
It was said a while back that range is a blasters defense.. well fine.. they give me a small ranged defense buff.. or give me a stacking buff when I use my ranged attacks ( up to 10% ) to simulate that I am an expert in fighting from range..
the entire AT doesnt need a revamp because you cant solo on +4/X8 like a brute or scrapper... when did that become the standard for normal anyway -
Quote:I hate to burst your bubble but Iron Man is not a blaster. He can shoot blasts.. that doesnt make him a blaster. Iron Man can utilize his armor to make himself as strong as Thor for a if he chose to do so. He can also take incredible amounts of damage.Originally Posted by Stealth_Bomber
Insightful as always, Arcanaville.
My personal view is that the movie version of Iron Man is the best definition for Blasters as the game is today.
Did you see him herding in the movie.. that sir is not a blaster.. -
Quote:I agree with these posts except for the AoE immobilize.. thats a sure fire way to get a blaster killed..Originally Posted by Starsman
Fair enough, although I still don't think I agree with the ST bonus damage under that road-map either. I certainly would not be amazed about a blaster getting a damage proc against critters that have no one standing by them.
Tossing spaghetti to the wall this crossed my mind reading your post:
What about a mechanic that not only adds splash mez to all single target blaster attacks with a low hit cap (5?) but also if every single attack did splash or piercing damage?
I note piercing simply because it is not very thematic for every bullet and arrow to detonate on impact.
Actually... I guess the "splash mez" and splash damage both would have to be on the same area schema (cone or target aoe.)
When Dual Pistol came out this was not possible, but I noticed playing Titan Weapon Tank that now the target of a cone can have special effects applied only to it (Bruise.)
So...
Archery, Assault Rifle and Dual Pistols (perhaps also Beam Rifle) can be piercing based while the rest are all splash on hit... bonus points if all affected foes by the splash effects get a big text pop-pup like Pierce or Detonation respectively.
That may, from a third point of view, be a bit more "WOA what you just did there?!"
BTW, may have already been brought up loads of times but this is my personal wishlist for other blaster nuisances (imho):
- I'd love to have all ranged attacks range normalized with perhaps a bonus over other ATs (all but snipes that is.) Currently having any attack have a short range sort of simply limits all my attack's to that minimum.
- I would love to see a much shorter animation time for snipes (all ATs) (it's OK to retain interrupt, BTW can we have interrupted attacks just do partial damage now?)
- Remove nuke's crashes and lower recharge to be in line with Rain of Arrows (All ATs)
- Turn ST immobs AoE (5 max)
- Make all armors in the blaster Ancillary Powersets add mez protection (hold/stun/immob.)
Also Blasters are never going to get mez protection.. sorry... 8 years it aint happened yet.. not gonna happen.. if Blasters get it then EVERY squishie is going to want it and at that point you might as well remove mez from the game. -
Quote:Ill let you know once I figure out why im supposed to be so horribly horribly broken...Originally Posted by Dz131
Well has it?
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One thing I think should be given some thought is to include one ranged mez attack in every primary. Not all sets have this and I think that could allow you to " get them before they get you "
I just dont see the devs giving blaster a more complete mez protection than they have now, but something needs to be done to balance the AT...
oh and Fix Nukes and Snipes.. and more damage. -
I dont think its that easy to define the role of any AT in this game and I think thats one of the best things about it. There are guidelines but then the player ultimately the one who decides the role of what they play.
Airhammer my Nrg/Nrg Blaster plays as am extreme ranged damage toon. He used hover and has several damage range HO's in every attack and uses Boost Range consistently. I can out distance almost every attacker in the game.
However Taser my E3 Blaster Can blast from range but is also efficient at draining the endurance of his foes and keeping it at zero, and with three single target holds he can easily hold bosses and even stack holds on an AV. So he can play like a controller as well.
However I think overall the blaster doesnt need to be the KING of damage. I think the blaster should have the best selection and modifier for ranged single target and AoE attacks.. I think that the complete crashes from nukes should be removed and all timers should be reduced to match Hail of Bullets, or Rain of Arrow... This will allow the blaster to do what it is supposed to do best.. blast.. -
I'll let others debate about the effectiveness of the secondary but it seems silly to me to proclaim that every secondary except Ice sucks and that if you are good with other secondaries or enjoy them its because you like to play things that are crap.
I just find that comment distasteful and insulting. -
Quote:you can spin it however you want.. I dont see anything wrong with them. I play them and play them quite well and enjoy them.. now YOUR mileage by vary but that doesnt stop me or numerous other people from enjoying them.Originally Posted by Nethergoat
People often enjoy things that aren't very good- I think I mentioned my fondness for my cold dom somewhere back up-thread.
Given the context of this thread, I thought you were claiming there wasn't anything wrong with them.
Okay, I thought you were making some sort of objective claim that they were actually "good".
And I have a stellar Ice Dominator By the way.. -
Quote:Well obviously your opinion will be different but I have enjoyed Energy, Fire, Electric and Mental Manipulation. I havent played Dark and I foumd Devices lacking. I played Ice a long time ago so I dont remember what it was like.Originally Posted by Nethergoat
Were you able to keep a straight face when you typed that? =P
Aside from Ice, name one even halfway decent blaster secondary- I'm genuinely curious.
So again and with a straight face.. the secondaries are not a problem for me.. there are some balance issues between secondaries like Devices having no build up... -
Quote:thank you.. Not everyone plays with IO's. The Mez issue IMO is way overstated.. There are other AT's that exist without it.Originally Posted by Electric-Knight
And also remember that some of us do not drop every very often, despite not having any defense.
Blasters underperforming IMO is not a mez issue. -
Quote:Funny I tried Stalkers and didnt like them at all. I dont like scrappers that much either.Originally Posted by Tater Todd
I like blasters but then again that should be no surprise since I love Stalkers... so it makes sense in a weird way.
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Quote:I dont agree that the secondaries are a weakness. I will say that certain secondaries are lacking. Again my first toon ever was a blaster before any incarnation of defiance so I developed a playstyle that works for me very well. I understand that those who play melee AT's like scrappers, brutes etc and then try a blaster its a complete and total shock how many enemies can mez you if given the chance.Originally Posted by Stealth_Bomber
Blasters face exactly the same opponents that every other AT does, with fewer tools to help themselves. It's the Secondaries that are the weakness.
When your Scrapper friends are getting Shield Charge and One with the Shield, we get melee-range single-target attacks for the most part.
And first off every scrapper doesnt have Shield Charge.. and One With the Shield aint that great a power. I skipped it on every shield character I have. I dont really care what the scrapper friend is doing.. hopefully he is taking some aggro off me..I dont have a blaster inferiority complex because I know what I bring to the table and thats because I am playing it not because of the AT itself. -
Quote:This is a dilema.. I have Dominators and Corruptors that I love. My Crab Spider does sick AoE. I have yet to make a Fortuna but looking into it..Originally Posted by Tater Todd
Not the answer I expected BUT I like your answer! You do acknowledge the AT's weakness and strenghts instead of blindly saying..."blasters are the number 1 for damage and that alone makes for all shortcomings!"
Why Play a blaster for just the thrill and the damage when you can get the same results damage wise and thrill wise with a Corruptor, Dominator or SoA?
However I have to say that I love the "purity" of blaster. Nothing satisfies me as well as a well played blaster. Its the challenge.. Its beating the odds.. Dominator.. I mez.. then I destroy... Corruptor... I debuff then I destroy..
Blaster.. I identify targets.. take them down strategically.. I attack through the tank... I move.. I hover to stay out of melee.. I move to break line of sight..
I guess its because I am doing more.. I enjoy them more..
but the AT needs help badly.. -
Quote:Fully IO's a tank has little to do with a tanks ability to manage aggro..Originally Posted by CyberGlitch
Until and unless the Tank AT's aggro capabilities are strong enough to counter the damage output of blasters and the squishies that need them (trollers, Corr's, Dom's...anyone with holds doesn't really need a Tanks protection), there is little reason to level a Tank. A brute or scrapper brings more to the team damage wise and damage trumps a non-effective Taunt and aggro-holding capabilities, which are meant to be the hallmark of the Tank AT. If they can't perform that role (not their fault....its a programming mechanic) then there is little reason to play a Tank other than just for the higher numbers. And having leveled dozens of brutes since that AT's introduction....survivability for a Brute is already fantastic. Needing "more" of that just begs the question of whether or not the user is familiar with IO's.
The job of a Tank is far more than just surviving...its supposed to be a meatshield to help the squishies survive. I peel aggro off of current Tanks (fully IO'd out Tanks no less) faster than anything.
I would like to address a a couple of things..
First off a Tank has three tools to manage aggro.. Gauntlet, Aggro or Damage Aura and Taunt... Taunt only works on five foes and a tank can only manage the aggro of about two spawns of 8. You can aggro as many as you want.. but the tank can only control the aggro of about 16-17 foes.. any more than that then its on you to manage the aggro you create..
Most teams I have been on dont even allow the tank to establish aggro control.. the second the tank contacts a mob there is a fireball flying up his backside...
A person has to understand how to manage their tanker and the aggro.. It is helpful to know how to manage your tanks abilities.
And there is plenty of reason to level a tank.. Because Tanks are fun.. I have plenty of brutes.. I find scrappers useless myself.. I love the tanks ability to wade through things thrown at it, help his teamates, and also contribute nice damage...
I say try one.. teams are not THAT picky where they are trying to get the perfect balance... most people just want a competent and fun person to play with.. -
Quote:Best answer..Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill
1. "Everyone" isn't softcapped, regardless of what it might sound like on the forums,
2. Incarnate powers are only an issue in the end game. There's more to the game than iTrials.
3. Don't worry about what everyone else does. If you want to play a tank, even "just" to get one of everything to 50, do it. Find a set that sounds fun and run it. -
Lets see let me run down my list of Blasters that do not dip into the fighting pool for survivability and hence are NOT built for defense AT ALL
Airhammer-Nrg/Nrg
Taser-Elec/Elec
Salvo-Ar/Nrg
FyrePsyde-Fire/MM
SureShot-Arch/Devices
Taiyoken-Rad/MM
I have deleted one blaster.. an Ice/Ice because in all honesty I felt it was too powerful.
The only Blaster I have that has defense built in and it was my first experience in making a defense build is a Rad/Fire.
I have played Airhammer and Taser since two months after launch.. and I still dont think giving Blaster mez protection is the answer to the blaster problem and in all honesty IMO the devs arent going to give it to blasters because it would set a bad precedence.
Corruptors will say.. well we are the ranged damage AT for redside.. why dont we have it..
Then Defenders will say.. well we are reverse Corruptors.. why dont we have it..
I mean why even have Mez in the game at all..
Carry break free and get them before they get you.. -
I feel that my Blasters dont suffer from mez any more than my Defenders, Corruptors, Masterminds or Controllers, If blasters get more mez protection then why not all the other AT's who are susceptible to mez protection. And unlike my Blasters who can get off a few attacks when mezzed none of these other AT's can. So I think it would be unfair to add even more mez protection to blasters.
Once again.. Blasters were crippled more by ED in my opinion than almost any other AT.
Pre ED my character Airhammer was the boss killer. Regularly on teams I would get this from the team leader..
Ldr: Yo Air.
Air: What
Ldr: Boss
Air: Check...
I was the go to guy for ANY serious foe. any Bosses..LT's annoying foes like Malta Sappers
Build Up Aim Snipe would take a foes down enough that two or three good shots would finish an even con boss..
Now post ED I need an average of 6-7 shots to take down the same foe..
Nukes use to be slotted with mostly damage and would decimate a group.. Now many times at least one or two foes survive who then precede to try beat down my Defenseless No end Having self..
Judgement powers at the end game which recharge faster and can do massive damage to an even larger number of foes make Blaster Nukes especially those that end crash seem pointless at best and obsolete at worst. Now my Tank with a Judgement power can wipe out whole mobs easily.
There are several things I think that need to be done..
1) Originally it was range that was supposed to be a blasters defense.. FINE I have no issue with that.. and I dont think thats a bad thing.. Then I believe several things need to happen
a) Normalize Blaster Tier 3 attacks so that they work from the same range as tier 1 and 2. Increase the end cost or increase the recharge a little if need be..
b) Give Blaster some inherent ranged defense. The blaster being a skilled ranged fighter should get a bonus for defense @ range.
c) Give those powersets that utilize PbAoE nukes a defense buff so they dont get pummeled to death trying to get the shot off
2) Fix Snipes. The end cost and animation time is hardly worth the damage anymore. The damage should be increased dramatically.. a SNIPE is designed to TAKE OUT a target.. not alert the target to your presence and make them angry at you.
3) Increase the blaster ranged damage modifier.
This to me would be a good start...
4) Remove the killer end crash from ALL nukes... -
Ranged Damage modifier I believe should increase some.
ED really affected Blasters badly.. You used to slot one accuracy and 5 damage. ED killed that and never balanced Blasters damage. This affected Snipes GREATLY.. Snipes need to fixed BADLY !!!