BrandX

Seeing as how the best DPS chain for Dark Melee is Smite > MG > Smite > SL > Repeat, I dont see why those chains wouldn't work.

as for the rest of it. Opening with Assassin Strike from the hidden state will be the best DPS.

Using Placate + Assassin Strike is also some of the best DPS. In theory. The problem with the theory is that in content where you'd want to make use of this, you're either being hit by many enemies (regular PvE) so Placate isn't helping much (this is also going on the thinking that you're not softcapped), when surrounded by enemies placate the one, then get hit by the other and lose the hidden status.

Now, for ST DPS against the hard targets, Placate doesn't work as well, they tend to see through hidden status, even softcapped, they have a better than 5% chance to hit you, and usually they do something to make Placate + Assassin Strike fail period.

At least in my experience with a softcapped KM/WP. Placate + Assassin Strike may be the most awesome of DPS potential and burst damage in one 1-2 power combo, but it's also END intensive, and if it fails to deliver you lost a lot of time and end for nothing, while messing up your DPS that would of been better served by just continuing to scrap it out.

Really, the lack of AOE in some stalker sets isn't a problem imo. Yes, compared to Scrapper counterparts, Stalkers have less, but there's Stalker sets with lots of AOE if the player wants to go purely for AOE (Spines and ELM have lots of AOE, and come i22, I think we may just see even more ELM Stalkers as ELM wis already considered best on Stalkers, now it'll be even better).

With todays setup, I just don't see Stalkers being able to one shot as many enemies as people seem to be thinking Stalkers should be able to do.

I think making the Stalkers go become the best at Burst and ST DPS is the best way to go for the Stalker AT. How they go about it is a different story all together! But I do agree with others that gimmick + gimmick + gimmick + gimmick, just seems to be bad

On a melee AT I don't take all day killing stuff.

And we'll just have to disagree. I don't see a problem with their being enemies that take extra work for you to take them down because of your choosen power sets.

You're a PSI user, going up again highly trained PSI users, you're going to have a much harder time against them.

Going up against that mindless robot? Just be glad you can do anything period!

Yes, I think going by concepts is a great idea. And like people have said, if you don't want to go up against them, well there's always sticking to enemies who are really weak to you.

As for Jean Grey, I think that's more of a problem with the PSI sets which are much more based of Telepathy, which no, Jean couldn't use on robots, and less on Telekinesis, which Jean used a lot...so smashing damage!

But I think Psi users only have access to 2 Telekinetic attacks Telekinetic Thrust and Telekinetic Blast. Versus all the other more telepathic style abilities.

Because they didn't have time to make the new animations that would be required for Ice Melee to be ported to Stalkers. They even said as much.

Brutes don't have IA because Brutes were different way back when they were introduced.

[Edit: See your forum reg date, so you should know all that ]

Really now, you may have not been around for CoV's intro (I have no idea), but you were likely here for IA's port to Stalkers.

And anyone who frequents the forums should of seen some post on the whole issue with IA and Brutes at some point.

Edit: And seeing your forum reg date now, you should of known all that already known information, instead of acting like it's some big scheme to screw over ATs

But, the sword over the shoulder WHILE you hand wave...would be great

I'd rather they just made the Resists make sense.

Armored up! Have high S/L Resist!

What's really so bad about that?

If it was that easy to kill them off, it would of happened by now Seriously, that's what they were thinking? Bullet to the head? Even witht heir own 99% chance save your life medical transporters?

And for them tohave the player look like the symbol of the pinnacle of power, does this mean no more team content? Because teaming up to take on a group of minions isn't my idea of pinnacle of power.

Yes, doing so for a massive invansion is one thing, but regular hero business? Or not going one on one with an AV! I mean really...taking on an elite boss is a show of power?

Saddly, while I may never of had a problem with defeat, I don't know if the mass majority of players agree.

I recall quite well the early days of the ITF and people ragequitting (the TF) because they died to often, or thought it unbeatable.

The 9hour+ ITF, that I assured my team we could beat if we used planning and stuck to it is still one of my favorite moments in the game.

And that was beaten by only 4 remaining members of the team who refused to say "quit" 2 SKs and 2 Mentors (1 50 Tank, 1 50 Troller, and a SKed Troller and SKed Tank).

Even though I admit that's an extreme, I remember many people leaving any ITF that took between 30-90mins.

"We've been at this for 90mins! Gaaaah!" *So and So has quit team*

Really, my experience is people don't want challenges, they want to smash buttons and win, while looking good doing it.

Sure, they might like to look like they COULD faceplant, but they don't tend to want to faceplant.

Unless it's a dedicated Blaster ^_^

If the player is suppossed to take up Statesman's role (as they said was the case with the reason of killing off Statesman)...why would my character need any help beyond taking on the minions while my character takes on the big bad solo!

"YAY! I'm Statesman!" *gets knocked out by a minion* "But I feel like Synapse!"

You know, the same thought crossed my mind when I first saw it. But no, I'm pretty sure's she's just holding her hand over her shoulder.

I'm not!

I just don't tend to play Blasters either

That's as bad as "Can't kill BABS he's a minority on the team"

If anyone replaces Statesman on the Freedom Phalanx, it should be purely because it makes sense. And would it make sense for Ms Liberty to be the one to replace him?

Well she's his granddaughter and his sidekick. Maybe. But then, isn't she a bit more willing to get her hands dirty unlike every member of the FP except for Manticore?

And it looks like I was wrong. And still feels like a cop out of "Let's get rid of Jack for good"

No really, no matter what they do, they're not going to make the player character truely feel like they're taking up Statesman's place.

It's a question that shouldn't have to be asked and if it was one that shouldn't have to be answered as it's insulting to the devs, as it's basically accussing them of terrible things.

That said, I agree. It's what keeps BABs safe imo. Nevermind how they could make it the most awesome and sad and basically the best story ever told, and it would still leave them with feedback asking for them to defend themselves on the choice.

Basically killing BABs would likely have the forums and the devs PMs filled with flaming posts, and likely some new TV Trope that gets worse than Miss Liberty's death.

It's a sad state of affairs, but judging by the forums just how it would be.

Sooo...if I was going to bet, I'd say BABs is safe.

Still thinking Positron or Manticore. For Synapse to go out, I think it'd be a disservice to have him go out by anything other than a huge Crey Industries threat to the city type of storyline.

Truthfully, when it comes to Demoralize, I've just come to not even worry about it on my Stalkers.

Really, I just wasn't seeing the effect all that often, to the point I was wondering, was it even there!

There's still plenty of themetic difference. But like many ATs, there's exceptions and thusly it can get lost.

Scrappers will still be the better off tanks (this isn't to say Stalkers couldn't if built for it).

Personally I like the idea of Stalkers becoming the better ST killers period. In that they have the better ST Burst and better ST DPS.

Can a Scrapper have better ST DPS than a Stalker? Yes! If they pick a higher ST DPS combo compared to the Stalkers combo!

But if they pick the same combo, I would like to see the Stalker win out in but the burst (AS) and following DPS.

Yes, it means Stalkers become closer to Scrappers. But that's really the only way to do it with CoH without it screwing things up, while keeping to the Stalker theme, which is more in line with being a ST killer (exceptions of course..and things like ELM with staying hidden through LR will likely continue to make ELM the most awesome on Stalkers).

Which is sad on the part of the people who bring attention to that sort of thing on either side of it, rather than just enjoying the story.

I think Wing and JB said it well enough. It's not that the genre can't support it, it's that it's being WAY to overdone.

You say "Oh well, this is my concept!" Then everyone looks around and goes, "Yup. Just like the millions of others who think they're awesome, not really typical superhero genre, concepts!"

Not saying I don't like a lot of those concepts. There are some really well done ones. But, I recall that time when all I saw when I looked around was vampire and werewolves, and that time it was all D&D style characters...you see those in mass quantities and as someone who came here for the superhero genre, you start to go "sigh"

But it's no different than my complaints about shield (which is yes an awesome and fun set)...it's a very little used superhero powerset. There were better and more common sets that could of been done.

If one thinks about it, Shield is so rare, why not give the webslinging power set a go, since it's just as common, if not maybe just a little more common.

Oh well yeah, and why during beta for shields, I asked for a Bubble version of the set that would allow use with 2 handed weapon sets.

It's quite a fun set mechanic wise, but limited in concept due to requiring a shield.