Cybercel

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Following on from deleted thread.

Just been in RV for an hour.

After 50 minutes, two dominators came in.

Their heavy pummeled me. I got back up, surprised them and they had themselves fully healed and me dead before I could fire a second shot.

Let's hope it's actually a game with more people.

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I just have to check, because the situation sounds far too similar...

Are you sure it wasn't two Corruptors with no heavy, who came over, debuffed you, and killed you? And then you attacked them on top of City Hall, and they healed themselves, and then killed you, again with no heavy at all?

Sorry if it actually happened to you twice, but it just sounded all too familiar.


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Heh 1 vs 10 it was on union and they were a thermal and a kin

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If it was the Thermal and the Kin, there was no heavy involved, on this occassion. And your Ice Tank only gets one-shotted because of Forge and Melt Armour. We usually charge in before the heavies are even with us. Thermals eat Tanks for breakfast.

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Problem is you don't need to pull since they nerfed heroes to lvl 53, and everyone can have defense with Lucks.

Not to mention capped defense isn't that great in melee against 8 53s, you get 2-shotted a lot. It's better to have capped defense and some resistance/high HP.

Stalkers aren't useless, but most of the time having a brute in that spot would be better... better damage output (full fury all the time against AVs, even when the bug will be fixed it'll still be 90%), better defense, better aggro control. It'd be nice to see stalkers get something extra to make them wanted.

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You didn't need to pull when they were 54, either. Much like before, some teams are going to be safe enough to just rush everything quickly (although it's now a bit easier than it was, and more teams can get away with it), but teams that don't have particular setups may well do better pulling. Some teams crash and burn on the Vindicators, and they were never 54. SGs that want to do a run but don't have anything near an ideal mixture of ATs/powersets, for instance, will likely still benefit, as will teams who perhaps aren't very experienced, or aren't made up of really good players. One good puller, and it's pretty easy to explain to the rest of the team to wait for the heroes, and attack the one or two that show up. I've seen firsthand what trying to take players who aren't so good (or aren't good at listening to instructions) head first into the heroes can be like, and it's not pretty.

As for def, yes everyone can use purples, but you've got limited insp space, and they don't last that long. Being a Stalker offers permanently high def. That's a bit like saying carrying some green insps is just as good as having a self-heal available all the time.

Again, the way I see it is just that while there's an ideal team for everything, as long as it's playable by any reasonable team, then there's not really a problem. And to pull it back on topic, this goes for both Stalkers and Dominators (and you could argue MMs, too, which I quite like having along) - while they're not the ideal thing for a couple of specific fights in one SF, this is balanced out by the fact that they excel in other areas of the game. As long as it's not impossible to take Doms along (or Stalkers, or MMs), and they can contribute something (and I'm firmly of the opinion that they can, and I say this coming from an SG that has more Doms than anything else) then I don't see it as a huge problem.

The only issue I can see would be if there are people who are small-minded enough to refuse to invite anyone who isn't perfect for it, in their minds. In that case, set up a run yourself, or with your friends or SG, and ditch the people who are being silly about it - plenty of people seem to be running it these days, and I know that even during the early days - at least on Union - people of all ATs were coming along on the publicly organised runs.

I'll have to break from popular opinion and put in a good word for Spore Burst. It does cause aggro, and yes, they're easily woken up, but that power has saved me plenty of times. Aggro'd an extra group you can't really handle? Send them to sleep while you fight the first group.

It does become more situational higher in level, I think, or if you tend to fight in large teams only (where, generally, you can count on someone to Fireball anything you send to sleep a second later). At lower levels though, if you're soloing or duoing especially, you can send a difficult group to sleep, and then start working on the mobs one-by-one, starting with any you missed. With Domination up, it lasts a decent amount of time, I've found. And again, if mobs are accidentally aggro'd, or an ambush comes in while you're fighting a group, it's particularly useful at lower levels when you're less likely to be able to handle two or more groups at once.

I wouldn't take it for PvP unless I had a special hatred of Force Fielders, mind you.


My thinking on Spirit Tree is that it could be nice for some situations - think AV fights. You're all standing pretty much in one place, for an extended period of time. Regenning faster during a tough fight could save you. However, in PvP you're probably going to be moving around too much to use it, and in normal PvE, particularly at higher levels, you're probably going to be done with groups and moving on before you get that much benefit from it.


I'd go into the other powers, but I've not played Plant to a high level, and haven't played Thorns at all. Listen to Filth though, he has a level 50 Plant/Thorns who I've teamed with a ton in both PvE and PvP, and he's head and shoulders above most Doms I've teamed with.

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However, I find it by far more difficult to find an equally good team setup including stalkers (at least unless they get unresisted damage in PvE). So, as soon as you have an experienced LRSF-team a stalker won´t hurt you, but stalkers will definitely not be part of my LRSF dream team.

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All the best RSF pulling I've seen has been done by Stalkers, using their patron snipe - I'm guessing being in Hide (and Stealth, if they have that as well) probably helps. Grant Invis might be just as good, but I've yet to be on an RSF team where anyone had Grant Invis, so I've not seen it in action. I've seen people try the TP-the-puller trick, too. A Stalker with snipe is a lot simpler and more self-contained than those options, though.

I've been in a team with two Stalkers, and that was fine, as well. They can do a fair amount of damage to Heroes/AVs, and the high def (particularly on the def-based sets, of course) can survive quite well, as not getting hit can be everything in the RSF - when you're fighting something that can two shot most of your team anyway, a Stalker's low hit points don't matter much.

Combine those facts, and it means you have an AT that can handle both pulling and rushing the heroes.

I think with both Doms and Stalkers yes, you need to make sure you have enough buffs/debuffs/healing to support them, but you could say that about Brutes, too. Uh-oh, I'm suggesting a balanced team now, as well.

It is true that you can make "ideal" setups that are most likely to be able to do the SF with zero hiccups and very quickly, and those setups tend to be Corruptor and Brute heavy, because they can rush the end heroes without issue. I don't think it should matter very much, though - every mission in the game, every SF, has its "ideal" setup, and most people don't play with that in mind - they play with PuGs, or with whatever their friends are levelling. In my mind, the fact that it can be done with a team that's a mixture of ATs is what matters, not that a Brute/Corruptor team with finish it half an hour earlier and with a bit less debt. I still do have my own little dream teams I'd like to try out, but they're not the only ones I'd run it with.

The other day in Union Siren's, we had a team with two Colds, a Thermal, and a Kin. Shortly before that there was another Thermal around, too. The buffs going around were fantastic.

I can certainly see the draw in having self-sufficient toons for zonal PvP, since you're never guaranteed a good team like that, but for a combined PvE/PvP build, I don't think I could bring myself to drop the shields. Particularly when the build is specifically aimed at the RSF, where +def is a really nice thing to have. I'd stick with the shields, and just enjoy those times in PvP when there is a team about... or recruit my SG members and get a good team going.

It does depend largely on exactly what the toon is wanted for, and how willing you are to just PvP when you can join or form a team.

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I'm currently play an ice/ice tank and i have 2 unslotted attacks (one is boxing as a prereq) so she cant kill a fly, but has a full compliment of defensive powers and agro holding abilities. I did this because my damage simply isn't needed. It's a totally team-oriented toon, the only secondary i have atm is icepatch which i consider an addition to my primary defences rather than an attack.

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Hah, that's funny - I have an Ice/Ice Tank with a build quite similar to that. She has a couple of attacks (including the level one power), and I mainly have those just to I can make use of Gauntlet. I'll be getting Ice Patch, too. My feelings on both the Tank and my Empath was that I wouldn't be soloing them regardless, they're only fun for me on teams, so I might as well maximise them for that purpose.

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Conversely some of the worst players i've ever teamed with are also emps. How many times have a teamed with a "pure" emp build where noone has fortitude, mezzes wear off before you can get a clear mind and theres narry a RA in sight. Honestly if you cant do the one thing your built for then you might as well be a spectator.

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Yeah, it always strikes me as ridiculous when someone's built that way, and then doesn't even bother. As I said though, there are poor players everywhere, there are lazy players everywhere, and it follows that sometimes you're going to run into someone with that kind of build who just doesn't care, or perhaps did it because they figured they'd be able to get teams easily and leech. I still remember being on a PuG when I was in my 30s on my Emp, fighting DE. Repeated shouts to the other Emp Defender (who had no attacks) and the Earth/Emp Controller went completely ignored, even though the Defender was chatting away in team. We had teamwipe after teamwipe, and I ended up having to send tells to the Controller to get CM. A solid build alone won't do the trick if the player is no good, or not paying attention.

Yeah, I have seen more. My villain SG has more Dominators than any other AT, in fact, and quite a few of those are PvP-spec. Mind you, quite a number of those were made before the changes came in, although my two most recent dedicated PvP Doms are recent alts.

As Syn said though, there was an awesome Corruptor team in Union Siren's last night, though, so I wouldn't agree they're on the decline. I've actually been back in PvP on my Corruptors more recently than the last couple of months.

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Most of the best empaths i've teamed with have tended to be of the "pure"-emp variety. These are people who keep a constant watchful eye and can have your health refilled before you realise you've been hit. These people also tend to be the types who tend to carry the full weight of responsibilty for the teams survival on thier shoulders, and HATE losing teammates. I happen to think i do a pretty good job of both controlling and healing/buffing but theres no doubt a talented "pure"-emp will do it better. I've frequently lost teammembers due to being caught in a long enimation, such as for earthquake or quicksand while someone got 2 hitted. ATs like blasters only need get hit a couple times to be eating floor so any distraction on the part of the defender can result in a heal coming in a second too late. I've also seen on many occassions careless emps using absorb-pain to heal a teammate after blasting something. That little tickle then results in the emp getting agro with no way to heal themselves.

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It's interesting to actually hear someone who doesn't play a dedicated Empath build saying those things. You seem to have how I generally feel about teaming when I'm on my Empath spot on.

Some of the things you mention about activation times and Aborb Pain have always been worries of mine, too, and were part of the reason I originally went for a build with no attacks. I'd hate to let someone die because I'm stuck mid-animation, and it can happen. And I know how bad of an idea it is to get aggro when using Absorb Pain, and that factored into my decision as well. I've seen people do it, too. Obviously less of an issue for people who don't take AP, but again... I'd rather have an Emp with AP than without it.

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Also i prefer not to think of it as a "pure"-emp standing around doing nothing until someone needs healing, and rather as a "pure"-emp who's watchingcarefully, ready and free to act at a moments notice for when things unexpectedly to belly up (sue me i'm an optimist).

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That's exactly how I play. There are poor players everywhere, and there are doubtless Empaths who've only taken their primary but are still lazy... but for those of us who went for that sort of build with the intention to be the best Empath we could, I think the mindset of always being ready comes along with it. Like you, I've always found these kinds of Empaths to be the best I've played with - and I pay a lot of attention to Empaths' builds and playstyles, as I think regardless of alts, I'm still an Empath at heart.



Obviously, everyone can build as they wish to - perhaps I tend to get a little riled up about this issue, in fact, because of the people who always come out and say they'd kick an Emp without attacks. Having no attacks isn't for everyone, and I've had people say to me time and time again that they appreciate having me there, but they could never do it themselves. If someone would never level an Emp without attacks, and wants to have a few so they can solo occassionally, or blast when things actually are boring? Go for it, you won't find me kicking you off my team. But I'm always happiest when I find I have someone who's a full-time Emp, with all their attention on their teammates. And the build works perfectly for me.

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Yeah, for a lot of people, it's easy enough to fit in a couple of secondary powers - if you're not going for a full PvP-spec, or don't like Leadership, that certainly makes things easier.

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Leadership wouldnt belong to my pvp-spec anyway.

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Not what I was saying. It was an or statement -- generally full PvP builds without Leadership still can't fit in attacks. Mine has it because it's a zonal PvP build and I like seeing stealthed people and having Vengeance. Arena builds take different powers. PvP builds tend to have two travel powers, too, which takes up extra power slots.

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I don't think we're discussing about builds here, rather than how people play those builds. My empath is planning to take all of primary and slot it, but I will also have room for couple attacks (2 holds) which I may end up using occasionally. Naturally in teams my priorities are 1. heal, 2.buff 3. if everybody are buffed and nobody is dying - blast.

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Yeah, for a lot of people, it's easy enough to fit in a couple of secondary powers - if you're not going for a full PvP-spec, or don't like Leadership, that certainly makes things easier. And I have to issue with that. I certainly don't intend to kick such people from teams on sight, as some people seem to suggest about those without attacks.

My feeling about Empath secondaries has always been that if you have slots free for part of your secondary, then grab utility powers first, not straight attacks. If it can be used for support, or to protect yourself if a mob does come after you, that can be handy. So things like holds and stuns can be really nice. The benefit I find to utility powers like that is that unlike attacks, you don't need to keep firing them off to really have an effect. One hold to help stack on a difficult boss might be all you need to do before the other team members have it under control. It's no huge distraction.

And I can see the argument of people who take a couple of attacks just for those times when they are on the ideal team, and it's no issue to blast a tiny bit before the next Fort. Personally, I won't do it, because as mentioned above, I PvP with my Emp and need the power choices. That, and I don't like the idea of building for a situation I often don't find myself in -- I've always done a lot of pick-up teaming on my Empath, and generally in those you find that things aren't perfect, you're kept busy, and aggro can be a really bad thing because no one's going to come help you. If you mostly team with your three friends or your SG or something, build to fit in with them, that's fine. (Another reason I wouldn't kick someone with a number of attacks on sight -- I don't know why they've chosen to build that way, and they might have a very good reason.)

Perhaps we're are looking at different meanings of the same word. "Powerful" in my mind doesn't equate to "kills mobs the most quickly," which is where your AoEs come in. Ill/Rad can do things quickly, from complete safety, and is useful in a wide variety of situations -- my Ill/Rad is both one of my best soloers, and one of my best team characters, at the same time. Really. In fact, that's part of why I think it's so powerful. She can buff, debuff, control, tank, and do damage. She can take on multiple-person spawns solo, or she can act as support and protection to a large team. She really doesn't need her AoE hold in teams, and I dropped it because I was never using it - Phantom Army take all the aggro, and they're up long enough to drop a couple of groups. (And if you're really bothered about counting your AoEs, you should consider PA -- there are three of them, they switch targets a lot. Between them, while they're technically single-target, they do what basically amounts to a load of AoE damage, spread between mobs. They also drag aggro away from the team really nicely.)

Remember not to just look at how things are on paper -- how things play can be very different to how they look.

I'm /Energy which has no debuffs, which is a part of why I've not bothered with the attacks. I do have Power Push, which I wouldn't call an attack - it's just knockback, and I generally use it only when duoing, because it's just not needed otherwise. Not all secondaries are particularly useful, keep that in mind. (She was made Emp/Energy based on concept, and also before I really knew the game. I'm sure I'm not the only person in that boat.)

I know you don't need masses of healing on high-level, good teams, which is why, as you might note, I said nothing about healing in any of my posts. My main concern is buffing, and keeping up a Fort cycle, and keeping squishies CMed if you're trying to do it, is very difficult if you're busy doing other things.

I know you did have a Fire/Emp, but you stopped playing it at a rather low level. You've never had fully-slotted Fort to try and keep on four players at a time whilst also doing everything else you needed to be doing. I recently got Syn to make and level an Empath, and he really gained a new-found appreciation for how easy it is to get distracted from a full Fort Cycle, and trying to keep important people CMed. Once you have all your recharges in it, Fort is up every 22 seconds with Hasten, every 30 seconds without, just to give you an idea.

As far as aggro goes, I have a Thermal Corruptor. She attacks as well as deals with buffing and healing, so I do know what that's like. She was purely single-target until around level 38 when I picked up the AoE debuff, and then later respecced into more of an AoE build, but even as purely single target, I was pulling in a lot of aggro. I almost never die on my Emp, but my Thermal dies a fair bit. Obviously her heals are weaker, but it's not just a matter of staying alive, it's also a matter of being able to pay attention to the rest of the team's needs. If you're backing off and using your aura heal on yourself, and trying to kill off the mobs that are after you, that's time where you're not paying full attention to the rest of the team. Logically, you're not going to be doing your best right at that point.

Now, I realise, in a perfect team you've got everything taunted and nothing's going after the support toons and so on, but let's face it: people, and teams, are nowhere near perfect. Support toons do get aggro, and often enough, people won't come help you with it. You can't plan only for the perfect team, you have to plan realistically.

And my point still stands that you, a self-admitted hater of exactly the kind of build I've been playing with you for over a year, never noticed I was lacking attacks, and in fact have complimented me multiple times. I still think that speaks volumes about how unimportant an Empath's secondary can really be.

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I'll go with Pure Garbage, I really hate "pure" healers.

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True, to each his own, you want to be a "pure" Empath, go for it, just don't expect me to keep you on a team for long.

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And yet a few days ago, you told Syn I was one of the only good Emps you'd teamed with. I've not had an attack in the entire time we've teamed. I don't recall exactly what it was you said, but I'm pretty sure it was something about me being one of the few Emps you'd teamed with who'd really buffed properly, which fits in rather nicely with my argument that Emps who attack much tend to be poor buffers.

I'd kind of like to think this is case closed against those arguing that Empaths who don't take attacks are awful, if I've managed to team with someone who can't stand them for this long, and had him compliment me. And you've clearly not missed all that damage I "should" have been doing.

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It's been proven "pure empaths" are sub-optimal. I don't think I need to prove it again here if you have to ressort to name-calling already. People who care can go check the information on the US boards or try by themselves in game, people who don't want to believe it won't believe it no matter what.

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I don't think this is something you can prove, so excuse me for not taking this as fact. I'm sure on paper, in numbers, you can make such claims... but that's not taking other factors into it. Things like human error, and problems with aggro.

First off, keep in mind that an Empath adds damage potential to a team in a number of ways. Assault, if you have it, is barely any part of it. Things like AB (+recharge, and having enough end for consant attacks), RA, Fort (+acc, +dam) all add to the overall damage done. Plus, any time someone is alive, rather than dead, they're doing damage they wouldn't have been. And hey, if you have Assault? Over seven other teams members, on top of the other things, it does add up. So the Emp is giving a lot more than that 7.5% per player.

Next, you have the aggro problem. If you're on a team where you're the only support toon (which is where a primary-only Emp really shines, and is fun to play), or a team that isn't that great, a dead Empath is usually really bad for the team. Attacking, of course, pulls in aggro, and that's just not a good thing for an Emp.

Next we have human error. I don't know if you've actually played an Emp, but it's difficult to keep up all the buffs correctly if you're also attacking (and getting sidetracked dealing with incoming aggro you've created). Last time I brought this up there were arguments that just because I can't doesn't mean no one can... but the thing is, I'm not basing it on myself, because my Emp has never had attacks. I don't know if I could do it. I'm basing it on the fact that Empaths I've teamed with who have attacked a lot have, with maybe one exception, always been sub-par buffers. You can see it a lot in Corruptors, too - people get carried away attacking, and neglect to keep up with the buffs. Now, there maybe be some amazing people with incredible attention spans who can do it, but face reality, rather than looking at the numbers: most people aren't this good. In the end, something gives, and I'd much rather have an Emp who forgets its attacks than forgets its buffs. I invited it to act as support, not for the blasts.

As for the build you posted, it has problems all over the place. Hasten at 49? What if I want both Rez and Temp Invul? How about Vengeance, which is an awesome tool in PvP, and really quite handy in PvE sometimes, too? What if I have different choices in travel powers, and don't want yet another Super Jump/Acro toon? That build is really quite limiting. (Edit: I didn't notice your disclaimer about not paying attention to power/slot levels. Those do matter, though - try coming up with a build that actually takes that into account, because if you can't fit in Hasten until late, that's really not very good for an Emp.)


And one last thing people might want to keep in mind when they claim they'd kick a "pure" Emp from their team, as they're obviously immediately awful players: some of us are PvP-specced Emps, who have no need for attacks, and really do need all those power slots for other things.

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Not sure about that. All controllers are generally fab in big groups due to the large amount of AoE powers they have at their disposal. /Rad comes off pretty well in number of AoE powers, but Ill/ is moderate. IIRC, Ill has spectral wounds, blind, confusion, superior invisibility all as single target powers, with spectral terror coming in as a near AoE power I guess. Earth for instance has only two single target powers, the rest all AoE. So its a fairly rich AoE set, but not the best.

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AoEs really don't matter - my Ill/Rad doesn't have either of the AoE holds she could have, and she's easily the most powerful and easiest to play toon I have... to the point that I sometimes find her a bit boring, in fact.

What makes it so powerful is that you can do just about anything (as far as PvE goes) in complete safety - risk vs. reward goes out the window. You can operate from invis, you have powerful debuffs, and your pets do most of the work for you. Ill/Rad was the traditional AV soloer. You can also solo spawns meant for much larger teams. You're not going to do that on an Earth Controller.

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by the way i really don't know waht could be the best combinaison.

turn on hot feet -> flashfire -> fire cage -> drain psyché -> boonfire -> shockwave

or

creeper -> confusion -> psy scream - > spirit three ->drain psyché -> shockwave -> psyché -> shockwave....

the first is clearly more damaging, but the second seems more safe as spirit three stack with drain psyché and that confusion make me a little harder to target...

in PvE both would be as strong IMO but in PvP with breakfree and proctection i'm not sure at all : /

what do you think?

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Spirit Tree probably won't be great in most PvP situations, as you'll need to keep moving. I've heard Bonfire's usually not great, either (too many people have knockback protection in PvP).

I did initially try and make a PvP build for my Plant/Psi, but I just found that trying to fit in all the necessary pool powers for it screwed up the build. I had to drop too much else, and I didn't really feel like it had anything going for it in the end. If I were going to take one into PvP, I'd certainly level it with a PvE build first. In the end, though, I just opted to go pure PvE, and make myself another, more PvP-friendly, Dominator.

I think Fire has a little more going for it with things like Hot Feet and the Imps, and the added damage (plus it's Fire damage, not Lethal like Plant). The hold also fires off really quickly, which is nice when you're trying to keep moving. I'm not sure how good the synergy with /Psi is - I suppose the extra endurance from Drain Psyche might be nice when you're trying to run a toggle like Hot Feet, but there aren't any secondary effects that work together nicely, unlike something like Ice/Psi (stacked -recharge), or even Fire/Ice (PBAoE slow in both Hot Feet and Chilling Embrace).


Edit: Just thought to say, don't let that stop you, if you're really set on one of those combinations - I think most Dom sets can be made workable in PvP. If you'd enjoy playing the set, go for it. If you're really looking for something that would be specifically good in PvP though, those might not be the combinations to go for, imo.

I've always seen the term applied to people who have no attacks, just Empathy powers (and usually all or most of them), and then more support-type powers from pools, at least later on. I'm pretty sure I've run into people who called themselves pure Empaths but were missing really good powers from Empathy (most often Fort and AB), which seems a little silly to me. Wouldn't a better name be "secondary-free Emp" in those cases? Or maybe even "pure healer" since that seems to be what they're going for...

I'd think Fire/Psi for PvP. Ice/Psi would be nice, too -- the -recharge should stack up nicely.

Oh no, now I want to roll another alt...

Alvan's is fairly similar to something I'd come up with, as a PvP build (though I've not bothered doing slots, since powers were the main question):

Archetype: Dominator
Primary: Ice Control
Secondary: Icy Assault
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01) --> Block of Ice==> Empty(1)
01) --> Ice Bolt==> Empty(1)
02) --> Ice Sword==> Empty(2)
04) --> Chilblain==> Empty(4)
06) --> Hurdle==> Empty(6)
08) --> Hasten==> Empty(8)
10) --> Ice Blast==> Empty(10)
12) --> Combat Jumping==> Empty(12)
14) --> Super Jump==> Empty(14)
16) --> Ice Slick==> Empty(16)
18) --> Swift==> Empty(18)
20) --> Stamina==> Empty(20)
22) --> Acrobatics==> Empty(22)
24) --> Arctic Air==> Empty(24)
26) --> Power Boost==> Empty(26)
28) --> Stimulant==> Empty(28)
30) --> Aid Self==> Empty(30)
32) --> Jack Frost==> Empty(32)
35) --> Greater Ice Sword==> Empty(35)
38) --> Bitter Ice Blast==> Empty(38)
41) --> Power Sink==> Empty(41)
44) --> Charged Armor==> Empty(44)
47) --> Chilling Embrace==> Empty(47)
49) --> Super Speed==> Empty(49)


Unlike Alvan's build, I have Bitter Ice Blast in there in time for Warburg, which really only matters if you actually go in there (or just want your blast sooner). It also fits in most of your pool powers by 30, perfect for Siren's, if you go in there.

I left Chilling Embrace until later - I've heard Ice/Ice can have some end trouble, and left it until after Power Sink, which also frees you up for other powers earlier.

From what I've seen, Ice Slick is sometimes useful in PvP (althought a lot of people will resist it), but is certainly nice in PvE, so it's there for both, since you said you'd be using this not just for PvP. The AoEs are out, though - if this is mainly for PvP, I think they're worth sacrificing to make space for other things.

If you want the AoEs for levelling with, but still want a solid PvP build, you could always consider levelling to 50 with a PvE build, and then respeccing.

It might help people if you post your current or planned build, so people can make suggestions from there. Also, as Idris asked, is this for PvP or PvE?

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Thinking about it, one of the best LRSF setups I can think of would consist of two brutes (each one covering weaknesses of the other), four corruptors with a certain variety of secondary powersets and preferably one sonic attacker and two dominators. Have to try this when I find the necessary time...

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That's fairly similar to a setup my SG was considering, and my boyfriend and I actually have a couple of Doms we were levelling specifically for that kind of setup. It's also worth keeping in mind that it's very easy to send an AV to sleep, even when the triangles are up... we had a plan somewhat based around that fact. I think the only reason we didn't put our full weight behind it was seeing how much easier it is to just pull the Heroes anyway.

Of course, if you've pulled two or three of them, having one of them held even part of the time really is helpful. Same goes for if you opt to just rush them. I know the one RSF where we had a Dom along, I could really tell when he had Domination going, and it was useful. Two would doubtless have been better, and having seen for myself what three or four Doms can do to an AV by themselves (actually, I've seen two stay over an AV's regen rate while in Domination), I feel they can certainly do enough damage to justify their place on an RSF team.

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Would guess something like, I don't know, Illusion/Sonics? Not sure, all controllers pwn.

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Ill/Sonic is quite good, because you have resist debuffs that your unbuffable pets can take advtange off. You can even put the big -res toggle on your Phantom Army. Quite end-heavy from what I've seen though (my boyfriend has one, so I've teamed with it a fair bit).

The weakest Controller I've played is probably my Grav/FF, but that's possibly just her build. She's quite good at soloing, and really irritating in PvP (hold, immob, slows, -fly, knockback, Detention Bubble, Force Bubble, Singularity, etc.), but I never feel like she's anywhere near as useful in a team as most Controllers are. When a team really needs control, I'd much rather be on my Earth/Storm, and when they need support or damage, I'd rather be on my Ill/Rad. Still, she can do enough fun things to make her worth playing and levelling, even if I never as powerful playing her as my other Controllers.

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Is it possible to build a viable character around Psychic blast or will I just be a poor man's blaster? I want to bring something to the team, but want to be focused on damage over buffs/heals. Does anyone have any suggestions on what would be a good primary for this or any other general tips?

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If you don't want to be focusing on buffs too much, I wouldn't bother with Kin as people have been discussing, as everyone will just be shouting at you for SB... and if you don't take much from Kin early on, you'll be pretty useless to the team until you get Transference and Fulcrum Shift.

Try Rad/Psy if you've not made your character yet - lovely debuffs, useful to every team, and the damage is reasonable. You don't have to focus on buffing or healing, and the debuffs can be largely toggle on and get blasting. It's not hard to make a nice build where you have a good few blasts but also have the important powers from Rad (the toggles and Lingering Rad are the real must-haves, and the toggles will help you do more damage, as will Accelerate Metabolism). Also nice for PvP, if you ever do any.

I had a Rad/Psy myself, and I have to say it's one of the most fun characters I've played.

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However, I will stand by my comments that -regen powers are too valuable against AVs. The difference between having one and not having one against an AV is far too noticible.

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I was on a team recently where four Doms tried to take on a +2 Aurora Borealis. Three of us were the normal level for her (with -2 SOs and some missing outright), and the other exemped down. Getting over her regen was no trouble at all. I'm also pretty sure we held her through her triangles when we all had Domination up.

We didn't take her out in the end - mostly because we were all standing far too close when she nuked - but the fact we had her down to nuke territory should tell you something. Four Doms can pretty easily overcome an AV's regen. I think at higher levels, with better enhancements and bigger insp trays it wouldn't have been a problem. At least two of us were running with no self heal available, too, which didn't help matters. So all-in-all this was a less than perfect AV-killing team, and we still nearly did it.

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the 6-11 FFA that was quite halarious with all the bubble/elec defs

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Oh good, I'm glad someone got a laugh out of that. I hope you noticed they were all miniature lizardmen, too. A number of us had great fun levelling those the past few days - sadly, only four of us made it to the event, or it would have been even more chaotic.

At least two of my seven kills came from zapping my own boyfriend, including killstealing from KS's Stalker early on. I now remember why I don't normally PvP against him, as he's sitting next to me and I get shouted at.