BloodPython

Just a quick blurb about Earth's Embrace!

You're not going to take it for the healing aspect of it, you want to be taking it for the ungodly amount of extra HP it gives you when it's up. I think I'm looking at about 1080 HP max without Embrace, and 1590 with it up. Over 510 more HP for 120 seconds! Can throw the four Recharge enhancing IOs from Doctored Wounds in and call it good, that leaves it at 25 seconds of downtime or so.

Other thing of note in Earth is the awesomeness of Fissure. Over 200 damage with Containment every 10 seconds or so (less if you have set recharge IOs), a decent duration Mag 2 Stun, and the added benefit of your -knockback in Stone Cages keeping everything bunched in your debuffs.

Modus operandi seems to be: Stalags > Cages > debuffs > Fissure > Cages > Fissure > Stalags > Fissure > et cetera. Pretty much decimates anything ya run into.

[ QUOTE ]
Now, back to the design grind... anyone know a good way to pick a handcuff with a mechanical pencil, a Hero Clix, and a poker chip?

[/ QUOTE ]

"Look around you! Can you construct some form of rudimentary lathe?!"

Still my fave line in any movie out there.

Better dust off your Fruit [Censored] shirts and bring your ping pong paddles along to be signed. Gabe and Tycho were kind enough to sign a buddy of mine's.

I've recently gotten most of the procs except for the ones in my later level AoEs and the Uniques for Health.

Those other ones alone have cost me over 20 million, you'd best take this level of cost into account if you plan on trying this build out at all.

That being said, it's frickin' great on large teams. It's easy to lose sight of the procs in the confusion, but you'll really notice how much stronger they've made you. Shadow Bolt's damage is doubled every time the Smashing proc fires, for example.

They're a bonus 73 damage at level 50.

Here's my newest baby, might give folks some ideas.

+Regen/+Damage Human Warshade

... or, "How I Learned To Rot At My Job".

Thought ya might get a kick out of this, it's what I've got planned for my current Warshade on Virtue. People always seem stunned I'm all Human, moreso when I seem to actually do pretty well. Get on a smart team with an aggro tank or a few experienced Controllers and ya can do some pretty sick stuff.

Same basic tactics as the typical Human form rotter build, but now we've got much more in the way of tricks with IOs. Of note are the special proc IOs. I use a hell of a lot of em in this, but they give a lot of versatility to what was once just a normal blast or aura.

Your Inky Aspect can Immobilize Minions near you, and your Orbiting Death does Lethal damage occasionally. Your Shadow Bolt can fire extra Smashing damage, a Hold on a Minion, or proc a ten second Build Up. As Shadow Bolt is easy to spam, you should get a few Build Ups off which seriously increase your Orbiting Death's damage. Shadow Blast is identical in slotting, but the Build Up IO is replaced with the healing proc IO.

Every other set does one of three things: the bonuses up Regen, Max HP (which means you regen at a faster rate since your base is higher), or global Damage. This won't let you sling pets or your nukes as fast as a -Recharge build, but it's infinitely more survivable.

The Warshades themselves are the focus of the damage in this setup. All those procs add up fast. You've got 310% regen with this, a 12% global Damage buff, and 168 more HP than normal.

*BUG!* Shadow Step and Shadow Recall don't show up on the forum import. Shadow Step gets two Time & Space Manipulations, and Recall gets a common Recharge IO. That gives you the "missing" 8% regen.

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.153
http://www.onthejazz.co.uk/hu/mhd.php

Level 50 Science Warshade
Primary Power Set: Umbral Blast
Secondary Power Set: Umbral Aura
Power Pool: Fitness

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Shadow Bolt -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx:50(3), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:50(3), Dev'n-Hold%:50(5), ImpSwft-Dam%:30(5), Decim-Build%:40(11)
Level 1: Absorption -- S'fstPrt-ResKB:30(A)
Level 2: Gravity Shield -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx:50(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:50(17), TtmC'tng-ResDam:50(17)
Level 4: Orbiting Death -- Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(A), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx:50(25), Sciroc-Dam%:50(25), EndRdx-I:50(37), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:50(37), Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:50(50)
Level 6: Shadow Blast -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx:50(7), Dev'n-Dmg/Rchg:50(7), Dev'n-Hold%:50(9), ImpSwft-Dam%:30(9), Entrpc-Heal%:35(11)
Level 8: Swift -- Run-I:50(A)
Level 10: Penumbral Shield -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx:50(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:50(48), TtmC'tng-ResDam:50(48)
Level 12: Sunless Mire -- Sciroc-Acc/Rchg:50(A), Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:50(13), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:50(13), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(15), RechRdx-I:50(15), Sciroc-Dam%:50(46)
Level 14: Shadow Cloak -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
Level 16: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:50(A), Numna-Heal:50(40), RgnTis-Regen+:30(45)
Level 18: Gravity Well -- Mako-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:50(19), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg:50(19), Mako-Dam%:50(21), HO:Perox(23), HO:Perox(23)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A), EndMod-I:50(21)
Level 22: Stygian Circle -- Numna-EndRdx/Rchg:50(A), Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(43), Numna-Heal/Rchg:50(46)
Level 24: Twilight Shield -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx:50(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:50(48), TtmC'tng-ResDam:50(50)
Level 26: Gravitic Emanation -- Stpfy-Acc/Rchg:50(A), Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg:50(27), Rope-Acc/Stun/Rchg:50(27), Rope-Acc/Stun:50(29), Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun:50(29), RechRdx-I:50(31)
Level 28: Inky Aspect -- HO:Endo(A), RzDz-Immob%:30(46)
Level 30: Unchain Essence -- Posi-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Posi-Dmg/Rchg:50(31), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(31), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx:50(34), Posi-Dmg/Rng:50(37), Posi-Dam%:50(40)
Level 32: Dark Extraction -- BldM'dt-Acc/Dmg:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(33), RechRdx-I:50(33), BldM'dt-Dmg/EndRdx:50(33), BriL'shp-Acc/Dmg:40(34), BriL'shp-Dmg:40(34)
Level 35: Quasar -- Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:50(A), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:50(36), Sciroc-Acc/Rchg:50(36), Sciroc-Dam%:50(36), M'Strk-Dmg/Rchg:50(45), M'Strk-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:50(45)
Level 38: Eclipse -- Acc-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(39), TtmC'tng-ResDam/Rchg:50(39), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:50(39), TtmC'tng-ResDam:50(40)
Level 41: Essence Drain -- Mako-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg:50(42), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:50(42), Mako-Dam%:50(42), Numna-Heal/EndRdx:50(43), Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(43)
Level 44: Nebulous Form -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 47: Starless Step -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 49: Stygian Return -- Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Run-I:50(A)
Level 1: Dark Sustenance
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
------------


Copy & Paste this data chunk into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build.
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[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Heck it was tradition that after the LARP everyone would go to perkins for a few hours.

[/ QUOTE ]

LARP? LARP? Even the geekiest gamer nerds laugh at LARPers!



LIGHTNING BOLT! LIGHTNING BOLT! LIGHTNING BOLT!



[/ QUOTE ]

Ha, I so laughed at this. I cannot tell you how amused I was watching my first Vampire LARP session.

*girl walks up to a random guy*

"I'm going to seduce you and then bite you."

*leader walks over*

"You can't do that without contest, do paper/rock/scissors."

*me thinking*

"Well, at least they're playing some Lords of Acid..."

So yeah, I had a point I thought valid, but realized it wasn't when I reread your builds.

Damn well done, man! And I thought I was a build-[censored].

Don't quote me on this, but there's Kheldian IO thread stating you can get the first Knockback Protection IO at level 10. Long's it's not unique, you might actually be able to avoid Acrobatics.

(Nevermind, someone already listed em! Though the thing to note is the two Knockback IOs don't add much besides that. You'd lose a bit of resistance but gain a free power choice and some +recovery back.)

Honestly I had no problems with my SR scrapper with recent changes.

Except Rularuu. One friggin' Eyeball will pretty much always autohit with that crappy debuff they have.

Then my toggle and passive Defense PLUS my Divine Avalanche are WORTHLESS for the entire fight. They do not stop anything.

More than one eyeball and it's like the enemies are autohit. Which means unless I slow to a crawl and use my Inherent Origin power to pull stuff I get slaughtered by a group of stuff. Stuff that any other type of mob I can do the dance of death on.

The Defense Debuff Resistance doesn't seem to do ANYTHING for Rularuu. Really needs to be looked at.

I'm pretty much with y'all. I've tried all the big games, but they turned out to be just so much smoke and lights.

Nothing currently out holds a candle to teaming and combat aspects of CoH/V, at least not in MMOs. I've played more "combat oriented" games as well, but the server stability and execution of the GUIs usually makes me wanna swallow a live muskrat. Did they honestly test some of these crap fests? They can't have, I won't believe it.

Anywho! Huxley has really piqued my interest, what with the FPS aspect of it as well as the setting. Mutants and laser rifles have been done before, but this could turn out to be pretty neat. I find myself hopping on Resident Evil 4 now and then just for a little gun play, so there is something to be said for the actual skill required in a good FPS.

We'll have to see if they avoid that whole "start you out in a generic zone with hundreds of other antisocial n00bs and no direction" thing. That will usually kill a game for me right out of the box. That and if it's ugly and highly uncustomizeable.

So yeah! I doubt I'll be hanging up CoH anytime soon! Long's I've got the means to play. Way cheaper and healthier than a hard drug habit.

Looks good ta me! They really should sticky this, though a lot of the people who'd need the help of course don't check the forums at all anyways. Most won't even read the ReadMe or manual that came with the game.

Because aggro auras are so important for aggro control now, I kind of wish they'd move Invincibility up in Invulnerability. Yes, it's a great power, but not totally imbalancing to Chilling Embrace, say. Having no aura at all until 18's the main thing I see hurting your low level Invulnerability tankers. Unless they go AoE heavy and take Taunt they have a much harder time of controlling agg.

Maybe give Unyielding a taunt effect and change it's name to "Your Mom". That'd work.

"Go. Wurk. Invent Evil Teddy Ruxpin."

Incidentally, make a tape of the Exorcist and run it through that old Teddy you've got lying around. Your kids won't sleep for weeks.

"The power of Christ compels you! The power of Christ compels you!" Then his little eyes roll up when he "blinks". Priceless.

I have since updated this after many MANY attempts for a smooth run. I'm a perfectionist, I guess.

What I've settled on is this: maximizing your Mire, Unchain Essence, Quasar, and Dark Extraction potential.

Basically you want stuff in one place (AoE knockback actually hurts your survivability) stunned from your Inky Aspect. Then ya kick off a Mire, kill a minion with Gravity Well and Shadow Blast, then Unchain Essence to kill most of the Minions and maybe a Lt. or two. Alternatively you could Mire and immediately Quasar. Or follow Unchain Essence up with Quasar for a double nuke.

Obviously you want to team. More enemies means a bigger buff from your Mire, and more teammates means a bigger buff through the Kheldian link.

Keep in mind this when teaming: you get around 20% damage from an offensive AT, 20% resistance from a defensive, and Controllers give you mez protection. Two Controllers, three defensive ATs, and the other two offensive ATs seems to be the ultimate setup for you to go a-nuking.

The rest of the build's geared for buffing the nukes or keeping you going til they light up. This will solo pretty damn well after pets, but you still do best teamed. Just make sure to keep an eye on your green and blue bars. Essence Drain and Stygian Circle will buy you the time you need to kill a group, and then another Circle will totally recharge your Endurance and HP. You should be in perpetual motion if you're doing this right. I usually had to slow down for teammates.

Fight fire with fusion, baby.

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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
---------------------------------------------
Name:
Level: 50
Archetype: Warshade
Primary: Umbral Blast
Secondary: Umbral Aura
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Shadow Bolt==> Acc(1) Dmg(3) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) EndRdx(43)
01) --> Absorption==> DmgRes(1)
02) --> Gravity Shield==> EndRdx(2) DmgRes(50) DmgRes(50) DmgRes(50)
04) --> Orbiting Death==> Acc(4) EndRdx(5) EndRdx(17) Dmg(34) Dmg(37) Dmg(40)
06) --> Shadow Blast==> Acc(6) Dmg(7) Dmg(7) Dmg(9) Rechg(9) EndRdx(43)
08) --> Hasten==> Rechg(8) Rechg(11) Rechg(11)
10) --> Swift==> Run(10)
12) --> Sunless Mire==> Acc(12) Acc(13) Rechg(13) Rechg(15) Rechg(15)
14) --> Health==> Heal(14) Heal(42) Heal(43)
16) --> Assault==> EndRdx(16) EndRdx(17)
18) --> Gravity Well==> Acc(18) Rechg(19) EndRdx(19) Dmg(23) Dmg(23) Dmg(27)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20) EndMod(21) EndMod(21)
22) --> Stygian Circle==> EndRdx(22) EndRdx(48)
24) --> Essence Drain==> Acc(24) Rechg(25) EndRdx(25) EndRdx(27) Dmg(42) Dmg(42)
26) --> Unchain Essence==> Acc(26) Rechg(29) Rechg(29) Dmg(31) Dmg(31) Dmg(31)
28) --> Inky Aspect==> Acc(28) DisDur(46) DisDur(46) DisDur(46)
30) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(30) EndRdx(40) TH_Buf(45) TH_Buf(45) TH_Buf(45)
32) --> Dark Extraction==> Acc(32) Dmg(33) Dmg(33) Dmg(33) Rechg(34) Rechg(34)
35) --> Quasar==> Dmg(35) Dmg(36) Dmg(36) Rechg(36) Rechg(37) Rechg(37)
38) --> Eclipse==> Acc(38) Acc(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(40)
41) --> Aid Other==> Heal(41)
44) --> Aid Self==> Heal(44)
47) --> Stygian Return==> Heal(47) Heal(48) Heal(48)
49) --> Resuscitate==> EndRdx(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Run(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Shadow Step==> EndRdx(1)
01) --> Dark Sustenance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
10) --> Shadow Recall==> Rechg(10)
---------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------

Snarky bastards aside, I have leveled this and with I8 had the following changes. Shout is now in, due to the soon to be Live range changes. It's not horrid for range now, really, but having the base doubled is quite nice. It's also set up to fly very early what with the Hover speed increase and Swift upping that. Sooner you're out of melee the safer you are. There is still no added AoE damage (Siren's Song) or AoE -Res debuff (Disruption Field). After having bad luck with Howl getting me killed due to retarded aggro Tankers, I gave up on it. Being one of the keystone defense ATs on the team, it is NOT good if you die often. I find I do better concentrating big singletarget damage on the truly dangerous mobs such as Spectral Daemon Lords or the Bosses. With them dead it's just mopup with your fully shielded team doing so in relative safety. Minions in general are no match for shielded Heroes. Solo this's pretty much unstoppable after you get Siren's Song. Sleep/Disorient the group with Song and Screech, then rip it in half with Shout, Shriek, and Scream. About three hits to kill a Lt. if you Siphon it. Just be aware which mobs resist Sleep effects, those you'll have to be wary of.

Pay no attention to the plebe touting you must take an APP. That's total silliness, you can get much more mileage out of Power Pools if you take the right ones for the style you wish to play. Forgive me if I don't agree with everyone having to be glowing pink scream queens.

Solo ability and more damage is what the APPs predominantly give, not team friendliness. A good deal of the Defender APPs are duplicated at best on teams, and as pointed out many a time the shields without complete mez protection are quite useless when dropped. They DO ramp up damage a lot with the exception of Psi (more control which Sonics already HAS), but I'd still rather be able to Vengeance if anyone dies and prevent that team wipe. Seeing as Sonics are so rare to begin with, why would you pick an APP when you get more flexibility just from taking powers from your Primary or Secondary? Think before you have a kneejerk.

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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
---------------------------------------------
Name: Sable Shrike
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1) Acc(48)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(9) Rechg(11)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(9) Rechg(11) Rechg(13)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4) DmgRes(15) DmgRes(43)
06) --> Hover==> Fly(6) Fly(7) Fly(7) EndRdx(25)
08) --> Swift==> Run(8)
10) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(10) DmgRes(15) DmgRes(45)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12) EndRdx(13) DmgRes(34) DmgRes(37) DmgRes(40)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14) Fly(50) Fly(50)
16) --> Shout==> Acc(16) Dmg(17) Dmg(17) Dmg(19) Rechg(19) Rechg(21)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20) EndMod(21) EndMod(23)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22) EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24) EndRdx(25) TH_Buf(46) TH_Buf(48) TH_Buf(48)
26) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(26) EndRdx(27) EndRdx(27)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28) Acc(29) Dmg(29) Dmg(31) Dmg(31) Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30) Rechg(46) Rechg(46)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32) TH_DeBuf(33) TH_DeBuf(33) TH_DeBuf(33) Rechg(34) Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35) DisDur(36) DisDur(36) DisDur(36) Rechg(37) Rechg(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38) Dmg(39) Dmg(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(40) Rechg(40)
41) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(41) DefBuf(42) DefBuf(42) Heal(42) Heal(43) Heal(43)
44) --> Sonic Repulsion==> EndRdx(44) EndRdx(45) EndRdx(45)
47) --> Sonic Cage==> Acc(47) Acc(50)
49) --> Clarity==> Rechg(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Run(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
---------------------------------------------

[ QUOTE ]
I won't be happy until elec/ gets a fix. The animations, damage, and endurance drain do not balance out. It's friggin electricity so why doesn't it hurt?

[/ QUOTE ]

Ya know, I wasn't sure how off Electrical really was until I started soloing 14+ enemies at once in perfect safety with my Dark/Dark. Animation times are nothing compared to electricals, and there's way more AoE. You're right in that something's off more than a little with Electrical, the small Endurance Drain percentage doesn't make up for it. My Defender shouldn't be able to kill that many critters so incredibly faster than an Elec/ Blaster could. The damage over time comparison's not even close.

Maybe if every Elec/ had a chance to do Drain AND a small Mag 1 Disorient? Though that's still not fixing the problem of subpar damage over time.

Here's my Sonic/Devices build. I made it tailored to my own tastes, so bear that in mind. We aren't all winged rockstars from parallell dimensions, you know.

Sonic/Devices

Cuz there's lots of screaming and explosions, spandex, big hair... Well, you get it. Same's my Defender I built this to use Flight, as well as to not look odd with out of place powers.

---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name: Fugue Wraith
Level: 50
Archetype: Blaster
Primary: Sonic Blast
Secondary: Devices
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Scream==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Rechg(11)Rechg(17)
01) --> Web Grenade==> Acc(1)
02) --> Howl==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Range(11)Range(15)
04) --> Caltrops==> Rechg(4)
06) --> Swift==> Run(6)Run(43)Run(43)
08) --> Shout==> Acc(8)Dmg(9)Dmg(9)Dmg(15)Range(17)Range(25)
10) --> Targeting Drone==> EndRdx(10)TH_Buf(46)TH_Buf(46)TH_Buf(46)
12) --> Hover==> Fly(12)Fly(13)Fly(13)EndRdx(50)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14)Fly(50)Fly(50)
16) --> Health==> Heal(16)
18) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(18)Sleep(19)Sleep(19)Sleep(23)Range(23)Range(25)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Smoke Grenade==> TH_DeBuf(22)
24) --> Cloaking Device==> EndRdx(24)
26) --> Screech==> Acc(26)DisDur(27)DisDur(27)DisDur(34)Rechg(37)Rechg(40)
28) --> Trip Mine==> Acc(28)Dmg(29)Dmg(29)Dmg(31)Rechg(31)Rechg(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30)Rechg(42)Rechg(43)
32) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(32)Dmg(33)Dmg(33)Rechg(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Time Bomb==> Acc(35)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Rechg(37)Rechg(37)
38) --> Auto Turret==> Acc(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Body Armor==> DmgRes(41)DmgRes(42)DmgRes(42)
44) --> Aid Other==> Heal(44)Heal(45)Heal(45)EndRdx(45)
47) --> Aid Self==> Heal(47)Heal(48)Heal(48)EndRdx(48)
49) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Run(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Defiance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
---------------------------------------------


Notice I skipped Shriek and Shockwave? Shriek was simply because I haven't needed it for 18 levels. Scream set up this way is easily spammable longrange for much higher damage. Why take two powers when you can free up room and do the job just as well with one. Shockwave's just hose as far as this build goes, not much use at all in a /Devices build. Caltrops are more reliable and do way more damage longterm.

So anyways, I've been airborne for a while now, and the key things seem to be the accuracies even though you have Drone, and the Range enhancements. Sonic has no inherent accuracy bonus, so Drone alone is NOT enough to hit higher levels reliably. NOT enough! With even one Dual on there, though, I hit with 95% of my Screams whereas Shout without an Accuracy yet lands only 60% of the time or so. The Range when you've Singles will extend your two Cone AoEs out to very nice ranges, allowing you to hit more mobs and at longer ranges.

****KEY**** When using cones, you MUST be mostly level to your targets to hit them. Cones do have some height to them, but not much. Fire at too high of an angle and you WILL miss anything in front of your target, as well as what's behind it. This just means you swoop down to about ground height to kick off Howl or Siren's Song.

This solos quite decently now, but it'll really pick up steam at levels 18 to 28. Once you get Siren's Song you can easily lock Heroic or Tenacious spawns down and close in to use your singletarget Screech/Scream/Shout, Stamina will let you go nuts longer, and Trip Mines finally let you play like a real /Devices does lategame.

Trick with your Trip Mines: Smoke Grenade (it's autohit now PvE), fire up Cloaking Device, and you're unnoticeable by most enemies in the game provided you're within three levels of them. This means ya have full stealth, and only snipers can see through it. Use this full stealth to go into the midst of a big group and drop a Trip Mine or Time Bomb to lead off the fight. Big boom. Then you can sucker them back to the corner or doorway you have your Caltrops and a few more Trip Mines set up at.

Does this take time to do? Yes. Can you totally shred full groups of orange and red enemies in relative safety for big XP? You bet.

That's basically it! Auto Turret may be hose, but it's still too fun to pass up (what else would you choose, really). Can easily steal some slots if you want a different Epic set, but I went for utility with Medicine over more damage/control. You've already got Screech and Siren's Song, you really don't need more control than that. Just Hover over those enemy Caltrops and Earthquakes and blast away.

EDIT: Of note, those should be Flight Speeds you're slotting on Swift, Planner won't let ya add em.

Glad ya mentioned the Planners being way off for Sonics, it'd been nagging me for a while that I was doing more damage than I "should" be.

Shout was just too subjective (read: rarely fired in a fight) to warrant taking, using Howl frequently would make Siren's Sleep pointless, and Siren's is spammable as it is right out of the gate. S'why I went with what I did. It's all set to hit at 70'+ aside from Dreadful Wail and Liquefy. You can Hover snipe and actively use every non-teammate power in the build.

Medicine I took for utility since there is no Epic Sonic set. Continuity reasons usually make me hate having to take an Epic that seems totally out of place. Lacks finesse.

Endurance Reductions and Liquefy are the main things I'm changing, DEFINITELY getting the 3 ToHit: Debuffs.

So here's the revised:

---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name: Name ?
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Rechg(13)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Rechg(9)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
06) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(6)DefDeBuf(15)DmgRes(17)
08) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(8)EndRdx(9)
10) --> Hover==> Fly(10)Fly(11)Fly(11)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12)EndRdx(13)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(23)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14)Fly(46)Fly(46)
16) --> Swift==> Run(16)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)Heal(40)Heal(43)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22)EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24)EndRdx(25)TH_Buf(25)TH_Buf(27)TH_Buf(27)
26) --> Clarity==> Range(26)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28)Acc(29)Dmg(29)Dmg(31)Dmg(31)Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30)Rechg(34)Rechg(37)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32)TH_DeBuf(33)TH_DeBuf(33)TH_DeBuf(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)Rechg(37)Range(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(41)DefBuf(42)DefBuf(42)Heal(42)Heal(43)Heal(43)
44) --> Aid Other==> Heal(44)Heal(45)Heal(45)IntRdx(45)IntRdx(46)
47) --> Aid Self==> Heal(47)Heal(48)Heal(48)IntRdx(48)IntRdx(50)
49) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(49)Rechg(50)Rechg(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
---------------------------------------------

You got a good point there actually, haven't hit that yet so I was just spitballing far's that goes. The Planner's got it with a -15% base to Accuracy, so I'm thinking of replacing the Hold Durations with ToHit: Accuracy Debuffs. Have to see how it goes! If it's akin to Choking Cloud it won't work too hot on Holding Bosses or Lts. at all.

Far's Health goes, I'm still going to threeslot it. It all works on percentages so one slot still heals decidedly less than three. Seeing as the only heal this'll have is Aid Self, any extra regen rate is effectively even more Damage Resistance. Net effect stacks nicely.

Here's the link to my Sonic/Sonic I'm currently playing. Like a twit I added the first to the wrong spot. C'est la vie!

Click Me And Tell Me I'm Naughty

K, of note is this is a BUILD, not a guide. This is just one version that seems to work well for me. I built him as a nighthawk type critter, though it'd easily make sense for a bat person.

---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name: Anvil Hawk
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)EndRdx(46)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)EndRdx(43)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
06) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(6)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
08) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(8)EndRdx(9)EndRdx(9)
10) --> Hover==> Fly(10)Fly(11)Fly(11)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12)EndRdx(13)EndRdx(13)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(23)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14)Fly(46)Fly(50)
16) --> Hurdle==> Jump(16)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)Heal(40)Heal(43)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22)EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24)EndRdx(25)TH_Buf(25)TH_Buf(27)TH_Buf(27)
26) --> Clarity==> Range(26)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28)Acc(29)Dmg(29)Dmg(31)Dmg(31)Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30)Rechg(34)Rechg(37)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32)Hold(33)Hold(33)Hold(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)Rechg(37)Range(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Aid Other==> Heal(41)Heal(42)Heal(42)IntRdx(42)IntRdx(43)
44) --> Aid Self==> Heal(44)Heal(45)Heal(45)IntRdx(45)IntRdx(46)
47) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(47)DefBuf(48)DefBuf(48)Heal(48)Heal(50)Heal(50)
49) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
---------------------------------------------


You'll notice I skipped anything shortrange, and all AoE but Siren's Song and Dreadful Wail. This was intentional. You're going to be the keystone for the Squishy Wing of your team, meaning you wanna stay in back with them. No real point in taking super shortrange stuff as you'll rarely get to use it. There's also no point in taking the other AoE since it'll ruin the Sleep on your Siren's Song. Just use Song to lock the group down whenever it's up, and kill them safely one at a time with your singletarget. You can just Hover out of melee and do this really easily on most things, though Vahzilok and a few others are a pain as they resist Sleep.

Anchor your debuff aura on the lead melee guy on the team, keep cranking Sonic Siphon, and you can easily hit 75% or more -Resistance on the target you're attacking. Bosses kinda just wither up and die, and Monsters go down with a lot less people than'd normally be needed to kill them.

You'll wanna Siren's Song a spawn at least once before you kick off Amplify and fry em with Dreadful Wail. Softening them up with your lockdown'll make sure that every single one's killed by Wail.

Anyways! In closing ya can probably land three Sonic attacks before the first one's -Res debuff starts to fade. That's 45% off resistance, add in 23% or so for Sonic Siphon, and if they're in Disruption Field that's another 15% for a grand total of 83% Resistance Debuff on a single target. Assault adds in 19.5% offense for a net gain of 102.5% to the entire teams' damage. Basically it's a Build Up for everyone once you get rolling. Other sets come close for AoE -Res debuffs, but Sonic's still the nastiest for singletarget.

You'll probably get mobbed with /tells if you take the time to get this sucker high enough to start hitting AVs in missions.

I gave up on Magic after they released the 4th damn expansion and half the cards were the same. Money sinks become apparent after a while.

Anyways! Had a typo in the above, it's not KNOCKBACK that one Controller on the team mitigates, it's most DISORIENTS. Most enemy Disorient is only Mag 1 or Mag 2, so one Controller'll stop the generic kind. Means Crey Minions can't drop your shields on you.

Far's I can tell, the only power availble to Shades that'll mitigate knockback in Human form is Leaping's Acrobatics. I didn't bother getting it, as most stuff is easily locked down. Can't knock you back if they can't move.

Here's my pure Human Warshade build. It's compliant with I7 (and I8 unless hell freezes over). If you don't want to go forms or wanted something different, you might like it. I personally got sick of staring at Dwarf and Nova level after level.


Coffin Queen

For the heck of it I figured I'd post this Human Warshade build I'm currently running. Now, I intentionally did not make "teh uber" shade here, but rather one built on a theme that's also a hell of a lot of fun to play with. Namely I took every corpse power in there. I also went heavily offensive early on, I find that let me level her way faster than trying to build more defensively at low levels. If you're antisocial and don't team, you're never going to do well with this. You NEED the Kheldian's Link bonus to really scream through mobs.

---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name: Umbral Widow
Level: 50
Archetype: Warshade
Primary: Umbral Blast
Secondary: Umbral Aura
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Shadow Bolt==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)
01) --> Absorption==> DmgRes(1)
02) --> Gravimetric Snare==> Acc(2)Range(5)Immob(46)Immob(46)Immob(46)EndRdx(50)
04) --> Orbiting Death==> Acc(4)EndRdx(11)EndRdx(25)Dmg(27)Dmg(27)Dmg(29)
06) --> Shadow Blast==> Acc(6)Dmg(7)Dmg(7)Dmg(9)Rechg(9)Rechg(11)
08) --> Starless Step==> Acc(8)Acc(42)EndRdx(45)
10) --> Gravity Shield==> EndRdx(10)
12) --> Sunless Mire==> Acc(12)Acc(13)Rechg(13)Rechg(15)Rechg(15)EndRdx(45)
14) --> Hurdle==> Jump(14)
16) --> Health==> Heal(16)Heal(17)Heal(17)
18) --> Gravity Well==> Acc(18)Dmg(19)Dmg(19)Dmg(23)Rechg(23)Rechg(25)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Stygian Circle==> EndRdx(22)Heal(43)Heal(43)Heal(43)
24) --> Penumbral Shield==> EndRdx(24)
26) --> Twilight Shield==> EndRdx(26)
28) --> Inky Aspect==> Acc(28)DisDur(29)DisDur(31)DisDur(34)
30) --> Unchain Essence==> Dmg(30)Dmg(31)Dmg(31)Rechg(37)Rechg(40)Rechg(45)
32) --> Dark Extraction==> Acc(32)Dmg(33)Dmg(33)Dmg(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Quasar==> Dmg(35)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Rechg(36)Rechg(37)Rechg(37)
38) --> Eclipse==> Acc(38)Rechg(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(39)DmgRes(40)DmgRes(40)
41) --> Aid Other==> Heal(41)Heal(42)Heal(42)IntRdx(48)IntRdx(48)
44) --> Stimulant==> IntRdx(44)IntRdx(48)
47) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(47)
49) --> Stygian Return==> Heal(49)Heal(50)Heal(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Run(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Shadow Step==> EndRdx(1)
01) --> Dark Sustenance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
10) --> Shadow Recall==> Rechg(10)
---------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------



I ended up going with Stygian Return and Medicine just for the heck of it in the Epic Levels, mainly due to how useful they are on teams. Shades can port/rez, and I figured for a "free" power Return'd be handy on those rare occasions of a team wipe in a hazard zone. I just wanted to rip the life outta stuff to come back from the dead, really. Fit the theme.

Just be careful with Orbiting on teams that're light on Defenders or Tankers, you'll draw a crapload of hurt with that. I find with three defensive ATs on the team you can just stand there and take it with the tanks, even on big teams. Inky Aspect'll be a lifesaver when you start to hit mez mobs, I took that ASAP. Basic playstyle is to just kick on Orbiting, Inky, and the appropriate shields. Then I usually either port into the middle of the mob, or Step any problematic Voids into range of Gravity Well and Aspect. You want to Sunless Mire immediately, then kill a mob in the center fast as you can. I usually pop off Unchain Essence right before Dark Extraction if I need a new pet. Unchain'll blow em apart and stun them long enough for Extraction to totally animate. You don't need Accuracy on Unchain or Quasar if you always use a Mire before firing them. I put one on Eclipse just for the heck of it. Most times you don't even need the two Resistances there to hit your cap. Gravimetric is handy soft control, most stuff hurts more in melee than ranged. I find it super handy to Immobilize melee Bosses, say.

It's soloable on Heroic, but you want to get onto teams to really do well. Get enough people and you suddenly become the keystone for longterm damage output. Note the longterm there. Way tougher to kill the Human shade with capped Damage Resistance than a squishy Nova form or Blaster. You're going to get a lot of "how are you taking that much damage?" since most people have never seen a Kheldian use the Link that often.

One Controller teammate will stop most knockback, and two give you enough mez resistance to hardly ever get held (I even occasionally get stacked Holds on my SR scrapper, so it happens to the best of us). If they've got their AoE immobilize it just gets sick, since nothing can wander out of range of your Inky Aspect to wake up.

Just chuck a Taunt Duration or two on Icicles, Chilling Embrace, Invincibility, Blazing Aura, or Mud Pots and you're good to go. Invuln is the set that this sucks for, as your ag aura isn't til way later than the rest.

I don't even bother using Taunt to keep aggro anymore, the auras and AoE attacks do that fine. Taunt's more for picking up strays now, and since I'm not having to use it as much, I get to swing a lot more.