DarkMaster
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Quote:Honestly, I still have to say, I think Ice/Energy is one of the best Blasters for soloing and even teaming, for at least what you're looking for.Originally Posted by firespray
well, I decided to make an energy/energy blaster. I'm level 6 and despite the slow leveling speed I'm having fun so far. The knockback is providing plenty of mitigation and I can kill things quite quickly. I'm not sure I'd want to play energy blast on a team, but solo it's really nice.
Pro's of Ice/Energy:
Fast Activating attacks: energy, while fun with KB, can honestly feel a bit slower than Ice, even though act times are supposedly the same. Ice always feels fast and agile. Pick up CJ+Hurdle or even Swift+Hover to assist you with keeping fast and on the move.
Slows and -rech: sure, you don't have a ton of slowing capability early on (Power Boost defintely helps later), but the slows and -rech do indeed make a difference in how much a foe attacks you and follows you. All the minor slowing does add up, and even preventing "one" attack from recharging before you kill a mob, can be worth it's weight in gold.
Freeze Ray: This thing is amazing, especially for the solo Blaster, in that you can quickly hold a pesky LT or random mob that may be giving you trouble. Even on teams, I find it very helpful when a Tank or Brute loses aggro from one or two mobs. It's very fast activating as well. Later, you can get Power Boost from Energy to prolong its duration, and/or grab Bitter Freeze Ray to two shot hold bosses before they even have a chance to fight back. MAJOR damage mitigation there.
Bitter Ice Blast: BiB is quite the amazing attack, even though you don't get it until lvl 18, it's worth it. It has a 50 ft. range vs. PowerBurst's 40 ft, and although that doesn't sound like much of a difference, it REALLY makes a significant difference in-game. Furthermore, it activates in 1.07 seconds! PowerBurst is not only shorter range, but takes 2 seconds to activate. Sure, it does some KB, but it's honestly not garaunteed, and you can't afford that chance sometimes. However, BiB's -rech/slow/and -tohit component work 100% of the time. Furthermore, when you combine BiB with Boost Range from */Energy, it now becomes a regular 80 ft range attack....just like all of your other attacks
I'll take my chances with BiB.
Early Build Up: Thanks to */Energy, you get Build Up by lvl 4, which means you can start laying the smack down to bosses very early on.
Team Friendly: yup, unlike Energy/*, Ice doesn't have to worry for a second about KB. So there's no wasting time lining yourself up to prevent it when teaming. Nope. Just "pew pew" that damage away, with no worries. In fact, your -rech/-speed will help out the entire team in general, without pissing anyone off
Solid Melee Attack: Another early, and very solid attack, you recieve at lvl 10, and that's Bonesmasher. Not only is it a solid attack, but it's packs a pretty reliable and powerful disorient.
Conserve Power: If you need it, you can get it by lvl 16. Blasters can definitely chew through endurance fast, especially during a tough boss fight. If you find this happening to you in the early levels, CP can help. Pop it before a boss fight or just before a large room of spawns and it can help you continue pumping out damage without winding out like half the other Blasters on your team will be doing.
Anywho....those are just some of the reasons as to why I think Ice/Energy is most likely one of the most solo friendly Blasters around, especially for the levels you're looking to make "easier" on yourself. -
So....what was the final verdict on the "best" endurance sapper around? I've been really wanting to make one too....
Personally, I was thinking Elec/Thermal/Mu Corr would be best, but I'm no expert at that department, just going off of being on the "recieving" end of it's drains in pvp before...lol... -
Quote:and it's a statement, like that right there, which truely shows your lack of understanding for this game.Originally Posted by Syntax42
This game does not have complex fights (save for a couple TFs) like other MMOs where experienced players have any real advantage.
If your reg-date has anything to do with your in-game experience CoX, then I can see why you think that. There are always ways to improve your performance in this game, even simple things, like the way you pull a mob and where you pull them to. Just like any other game, there are ways to vastly increase performance. The difference between a veteran team of good players running a mission (or especially a TF) is a night and day difference than running with a team of 3-6 monthers. The veterans who "know" have advantage, yes. Sure, it may not be as complex as some other MMO's out there, but there is still a good level of complexity in this game. The only real difference, imho, is CoX isn't as strict/harsh/less forgiving to those who aren't willing to fully obide by that complexity as other MMO's are, which imho is wonderful for the average player who simply wants to hop online and have fun for about 30 min to an hour. No one should be forced to make a game their career/life, but if you want that level of involvment, it IS complex enough to give it to you.
Anyways....you don't appear to really know how Invln, or buffs/defenses, truely work in this game. DP is not only an AWESOME heal which will pretty much give you your ENTIRE HP bar back if you're at around a quarter health, but ON TOP of that, it will massively increase your Hit Points, which DOES, in effect, equal higher resistances....even to psi. IIRC, DP is the equivalent of a 35-40% +res buff, thanks to it's HP value and heal.
Think logically for me here and let me break this down for you....we'll start with Resistance: lets say you're fighting a mob that deals 100 pts of smashing damage, you have 100 hp, so you toggle on a +res toggle that grants you 25% resistance to his damage. He hits you for 100 pts of damage, your toggle reduces that damage by 25%, so the final damage inflicted is now 75 pts, and you're left with 25 HP.
Ok, now for a +Total HP Power: same scenario, you have 100 hp, the mob deals 100 pts smashing damage, but this time, you don't have a +res toggle. Instead, you click a +HP power before running in which grants you +100 hp, which gives you a total of 200 HP. The mob hits you for 100 pts of damage, you recieve FULL damage for his attack and are reduced from 200 hp to 100 hp. Resulting HP? 100 HP.
Results: 100 HP (with DP and no +res) vs. 25 HP (with +res and no DP)
So, as you can see, in this rather simple example, DP "can" work just like +res, and in many cases, exceed it. In my scenario, I didn't even take into account the healing portion that DP has, which is a HEFTY +40% heal. That would only further skew the numbers in favor of DP, and show even more proof that it definitely "acts" as a form of +res. If +res is meant to reduce incoming damage type, then DP's added HP does the same thing.
For a simple example, even healing can be viewed as +res to an extent (something I didn't even account for in my simple scenarios). If I have a healing power which can heal me from 1 hp to full in one click, so a 100% heal, and I use it when I'm at around 5 HP, in essence I've given myself around 50% +res, since it will force the mob to have to tear away at ALL the HP I just got back, for a second time, effectively doubling the time it takes for him to finally defeat me. Anyways, these are simple examples, which could be taken even further and combined with even more number crunching to get the total actual values, which may be slightly lower or even higher than those I've displayed.
The bottom line is: Invln has a "form" of +res to psi, it's called Dull Pain. It may not be the "best" form, but it's definitely there, and definitely helpful. -
Awesome, thanks for the info.
I fully realized that a Tanker was not going to reach DM Scrapper or Brute damage figures, I just wanted to know if the damage on the Tanker version was good or not, and if it was considered to be one of the better attack sets for ST Damage available to a Tanker.
That said...what would be a good paring for this combo? I've been considering running this combo as either Shield/DM or FA/DM for immense "damage dealing" or as an Invln/DM which would give me next to the most ultimate survivability while still holding some solid Damage.
I mean, I don't have to be the "premier damage dealer" I suppose lol, I would be a Tanker afterall lol, but I would like to be able to hold my own fair share of damage contribution against hard targets while teamed, while still being able to stand toe-to-toe with just about the toughest of foes while I'm at it. Scrappers and Brutes can do that sometimes also, Scrappers to a somewhat lesser extent unless seriously IO'd, but I'd like to be able to do that almost all the the time all while bringing solid DPS to my team.
Sooo...with all that in mind...out of those three sets...any suggestions? Maybe those sets aren't what I'm looking for at all? Thanks for any input!!!! -
Hey all, ever since DM was ported over to Tankers, I've been itchin to roll me another Tanker! However, I'm wondering, how is Dark Melee for Tankers? Is the damage as good as it is for Scrappers and Brutes? I know that the "burst" damage of DM isn't all that great, unless you have a fully saturated SD, so I'm wondering if that translates to "anemic" damage on a Tanker, since the damage modifiers are so much lower than say, a Scrapper?
Also, is DM as much of a King of ST Damage as it is on Scrappers and Brutes? Or is there a Tanker primary that actually does better than DM for some reason? Sorry, I haven't browsed the Tanker section in awhile, but I'm really wanted to again.
Any insight/info, would be very appreciated! Thanks! -
Quote:Lol, and don't be fooled by THIS ^ Post.Originally Posted by Syntax42
Don't be fooled by this post. This person has probably not been swarmed by psionic-wielding Arachnos or had their defenses debuffed by Paragon Awakened groups. A whole 15% defense isn't going to make you feel tough against psionic damage and Invulnerability lacks significant defense debuff resistance.
Invulnerability does combine high resistance with decent defenses. It does not require IOs to "feel" invulnerable against most enemies. It does have weaknesses, though. With far less than 50% resistance against non S/L damage types, the hits that get through your defenses are going to hurt. When you have 16 enemies beating on you, those hits that get through will come far more often and may happen all at once. Unstoppable may save you in dire situations, but don't rely on it too much.
Pick any defensive set and most people on these forums can point out the weaknesses. The only way to cover those up is through IO sets, which may not cover them up completely. Teaming is really the best way to overcome your weaknesses in your build.
Invln has far MORE than 50% +resistance against S/L damage types, not far less. With their resists actually slotted, they have almost 54% +res to those two most common damage types, S/L. So when he says "far less" than 50%....he's dead wrong. Furthermore, any Invln who DOESN'T take Tough and yes, even Weave, shouldn't be playing Invln in the first place. Re-roll or choose a different secondary, because you're not playing Invln to it's strengths properly. Stacked with Tough, Invln has over 71% +res to S/L damage, which is definitely nothing to scoff at. Taking weave will grant you next to 6% more +defense to stack with Invince, as well as give you at least "some" defense vs. psi damage.
Invln also comes with a VERY hefty HP boosting power with Dull Pain....this massive HP boost can literally count as another huge boost of "+res" and, in effect, grant you the "+res to psi" which Invln indeed lacks.
Fully IO'd out, Invln is a true monster of mitigation. Perma-DP+HP-Accos+Physical Perfection+fully-slotted-Health+Invln resists/defenses+FightingPool is no joke, and that doesn't even take into account the real "oh-no!" power of Unstoppable or using Darkest Night....Invln is beast-mode after IO's, and the only runner up is about 100 yards behind it. Stone is the only other one that really beats Invln in survivability, but there are huge trade-off's for going stone, so with those in mind, I do feel that Invln gets the overall edge in survivability. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
Not even close. Inv has 25% end drain resist compared to DA's 86.5% (Disclaimer: I'm going by tanker numbers).
DA can basically ignore end drain and recovery debuffs. In a sea of Mu or even sappers, my blue bar doesn't flinch. A friend of mine and I ran through a heavy end drain group in AE, him on his WP tank. Even with Quick Recovery and Stamina boosting his recovery, the lower cost of his toggles, he bottomed out fast, even through Strength of Will's recovery boost.
Elec is even better on this front. Elec armor is completely immune to end drain and recovery debuffs. That's not even mentioning Power Sink.
Brute: Dark Armor: Murky Cloud = 69.2% +res to end drain.
Not quite as good as a Tanker gets. The Tanker's res to end drain reaches levels where you truely "won't" hardly notice any drain at all, whearas a Brute's res is actually quite a bit lower...in perspective. Don't forget, that DA still has a couple of end sucking toggles that it should be running, so I can totally see where the end drain protection difference between DA and Invln "could", in effect, sorta cancel eachother out. However, I do think DA would have the better protection, even if only slightly, against it even with all things considered.
Your buddy, on his WP Tank, has zero endurance protection, so of course he's gonna flatline his bluebar fast, since most forms of -end drain/-recov will be much more than any +endrecov that you'll ever generate solo. It's proven that it actually takes "resistance" to -recov to effectively stop it, or even slow it down. -
Quote:Lol, and see, that's what I've been wondering! Would Gloom from Soul Mastery for Brutes, somewhat make up the "damage difference" between being a Scrapper Dm/Fire or a Brute Dm/Fire!?! Ahhhh, lol, wish someone knew...Originally Posted by Sir_Lionheart
I was faced with the same decision and I went Brute. I had a DM/Fire scrap at around 30, which was alright, but felt squishy compared to my other Scrappers. The Scrap probably does more dmage, but so far, I've been pretty good at keeping Fury at 2/3 - 3/4 on teams, so damage is good enough for me.
I prefer the higher survivability, and general consensus seems to be that Soul Mastery is awesome. -
MM's used to be pretty decent, heck even savage, in zones, back before TP-Foe recieved it's "un-affected" state. Now in zones, they really are only good for a "defensive" fall back.
They're sorta like a "mobile fortress." They can, albiet very slowly, move with the battle and keep a sort of "front line" for players on your team to fall back on and recieve buffs/support. So in all essence, they really are a mobile, slow moving, fortress, if built and played correctly that is. It's actually quite effective, especially if you have 3-4 good MM's working together to hold ground as the zone is gained, since they can spot heal and/or buff even "non" teammates as they fall back to them, plus they can even provide pretty solid damage support.
I've had MANY times in zone pvp where I've been "on the run" with a toon of mine and about to die, when I've spotted a clump of about 2-3 MM's and have had to dive right into the center of them for refuge. I recall one time in particular when I was on my Dominator that I was forced to do this while solo; SO first off, I recieved an instant BURST of buffs simply by diving into the middle of the pack thanks to all of their various "aoe" buffing powers. Next came heals and ally granted buffs when they noticed I had taken refuge amoungst them. Two of the Scrappers chasing me followed me into the pack carelessly, and lets just say, that between the MM's combined damage and debuffing, as well as my own....those Scrappers left via hospital trip, within about 10 seconds. The other great thing was, the rest of their teammates stayed at bay as well, after seeing this lol
Anyways, MM's aren't awesome in zone pvp, but they can/do provide a very helpful role. That role, however, can be tedious, and you'll want at least one to three other MM's on your team to truely carry it out effectively. MM's can definitely clean up in duels though, which is their strong point, imo. In fact, there are many people who simply will not fight an MM in a duel, because a good one can be just that invinceable.
Anyways, ymmv -
Quote:Ah, and ok. So the thread that Blue posted here, that's the "second" thread? Anyone have a link to that second thread?Originally Posted by Bill Z Bubba
What B_C said. But drastically change? Nahh, not really.
The first thread was designed around the concept of massive global recharge and tweaked up builds. In that thread the difference would be noticeable as fury would be dropped from the 90% I used there to the 75% I think to be the new cap for brutes when they aren't surrounded by tons of enemies attacking said brutes. Is the loss of 30% damage buff drastic? At first glance yea, but when you throw in all the other damage buffs it becomes less and less so.
The second thread, however, already used 75% fury as the baseline, so it shouldn't change at all. -
Quote:Yea, I can see MA definitely being at the top for ST Damage, thanks to the buffs to the set. But Energy Melee, honestly, after running the numbers is no where near the top for ST Damage...oddly enough. I know this sounds funny, but it appears to me that its actually one of the LOWEST damaging ST sets out there...and it doesn't make up for it with AoE's or even fast activation times....I think EM might actually....need a buff...for Stalkers at least....wierd huh?Originally Posted by Jibikao
I vote for Martial Arts. BU + AS and then Placate Eagle Claw. Not many bosses can survive that.
You've got 3 decent hitters in Crane, Cobra and Axe.
(If you don't care about not having any AoE)
PS: I find Kinetic Melee a very good mix of ST dps and one decent melee aoe. I wanted to try MA but I can't justify having all ST before lvl 44.
Anyways, from the independant testing I've done, and a bit of crunching, I've actually found Dark Melee and Martial Arts to be "the best" in Single Target Damage. MA was only "slightly" more damage than DM, by about 47 pts of damage....however, due to MA's purely smashing damage component vs. DM's large quantities of much "less resisted" damage type (negative energy) I would have to assume that DM could easily make up the less than 50 pt. damage difference needed to match MA in damage. In fact, I would have to assume that in most circumstances DM would easily exceed MA's damage, thanks to that.
Conclusion, so far at least, would be that would appear to me as though Dark Melee was king in ST Damage for Stalkers, with Martial Arts coming up as a close second place. Elec Melee was actually up there as well, ranking around third or fourth place, in my testing, and ElecMelee gets some decent AoE too.
Anyways, I'd still like people's personal opinions on this matter, as actual in-game-experience with something while leveling can sometimes say more than paper crunching.
Thanks! -
Quote:So Bill Z, that thread that Blue posted where you talked damage figures vs. Brutes and Scrappers, was that pre-i18? If so, I would imagine that those figures would most likely drastically change....right?Originally Posted by Bill Z Bubba
How did you get those in game metrics? Please share them with the rest of us. Every bit of testing I did in game with my brutes and scrappers matched up with the paper analysis I did for the "results are in" threads.
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Hey everyone, the title says it all. I'm wondering what everyone's opinion (or numbercrunching results) are for which Stalker Primary would offer me the most damaging single target takedown ability, for PvE. I know, I know, it's better to have a decent mix of AoE for teaming, but that's not my focus. For some reason...I just really wanna put a serious hurt to bosses/EB's while I'm teamed. I want to do it with a Stalker and I want to flatline my victim just as quickly as possible. As far as secondaries go, I think any will do, as long as they can help me survive long enough to take down my intended targets without faceplanting too quickly.
Anyways, I'm just really looking for the most damage a Stalker primary could put out on a single target, and possibly within the shortest amount of time. I'm looking for any suggestions, even "non-burst" dps builds might work, although I'd really like to be able to end the fight with a Boss as quickly as Stalkerly possible, like within 10 seconds. I'd rather not have to draw it out for 30 seconds simply because I'll slightly edge out ahead of other primaries in the 30+ seconds timeframe.
Any thoughts? Thanks! -
Well, thanks for all the input guys. Looks like it's all still up in the air for debate as well as some serious testing and number crunching.
I think I'll end up rolling this Dm/FA build as a Scrapper though, since it seems the general consensus here is that it should slightly, at the very least, outdamage a Brute under normal circumstances. Thanks again everyone -
Quote:Ah, very very good point.Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
Since FE's additional damage will benefit from damage buffs, sets with strong damage buff (e.g. SS, Dark Melee, and Kinetic Melee) will get the most out of the additional damage.
Now, between which AT? Scrapper or Brute? I realize that SS is just for Brutes, but as far as the newest change to FE goes, on average, would Scrappers benifit more from it than Brutes? -
Hey all, I've been wondering, with the latest changes to Fire Armor: Firey Embrace, which attack set would actually get the "most" mileage out of it's new mechanic? Has anyone done the calculations yet? I'm assuming this for either a Scrapper or Brute.
I mean, in the past, it was always Fire Melee which gained the most benifit, but with the new mechanic in place (the added "fire" damage for 20 seconds on ANY attack vs. a simple dmg boost), I'm not sure if that still holds true.
Any thoughts or experience here? -
Quote:Well, thanks for the info and your insight nontheless, I appreciate the feedback.Originally Posted by Saltyhero13
At a quick glance, using Mid's, with brute fury at 60-65% a brute will do about ~85-90% of what the scrapper does.
So you understand how I got these numbers: I used a somewhat flawed method assuming Mid's numbers are right; I opened up two instances of Mid's created a DM/FA scrapper and a DM/FA brute. I gave the brute 60% fury and gave them both saturated Soul Drain. I compared their attacks enhanced and came up with the ~85% figure. I suspect all things being "equal" the brute will fall behind even lower than 85%.
Some of the board's number cruncher types could give you a more accurate assessment of the current disparity between scrapper and brute damage.
My rationale for favoring DM/FA on a brute over scrapper is based purely on the added survivability the brute Soul Mastery PPP offers in addition to added AoE and a great ST attack. In my mind its a good trade off for a slightly decreased damage output.
If you go with the scrapper you may want to build for S/L defense (leveraging IO bonuses) to bolster survivability. Aim for 35% or higher if you go with this method. I have seen other builds focus on + Melee defense. I prefer S/L myself. You will notice a great boost in survivability at these recommended levels.
The other option is to grab Shadow Meld to help deal with alphas and spikes in damage. If you can max out Shadow Meld (~30%) plus ~15% defense from IO bonuses and power pools you can essentially have soft capping on demand.
Hopefully someone else can offer their insights.
What you did, is pretty much what I did to compare Dm/Fire Brute vs. Scrapper. I was also thinking, since Brutes have access to Gloom (which is an amazing attack for Brutes) would this skew their overall damage results somewhat? I'm thinking that it may....and that it may actually help the Brute's overall damage output vs. a single target.
I wish we had some more number cruncher, Arcanaville / BillZ, types or more firsthand insight on this matter to help out haha...
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Quote:Oh, ok, so do you think the damage difference is "much" higher or only "slightly higher" for Scrappers when comparing identicle DM/FA Builds? I realize that the Scrapper might be a bit squishy, but I do like damage lol, buuut, of course if the Brute's damage isn't too far behind, then the Brute's extra survivability might be worth it.Originally Posted by Saltyhero13
this is touched on here in this topic:
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=240598
I already have a DM/FA scrapper (which IMHO is very squishy) and was actually looking at a re-rolling as a brute for access to the Brute PPPs. Shadow Meld from the scrapper PPPs looks nice for a DM/FA but Gloom, two AoEs, and a -To Hit debuff toggle looks nicer despite scrappers capable of putting out higher DPS.
Hope the link helps in your decision. Good Luck!
What do you think? -
Quote:Actually, Phalanx Fighting doesn't grant your nearby party members defense, that's Grant Cover. Phalanx Fighting grants "you more" defense for any party member within 8 feet of you. The "base" defense of Phalanx Fighting is un-enhanceable, however the "buff" portion (the portion granted by any nearby teammate) IS enhanceable.Originally Posted by Werner
Phalanx Fighting grants YOU 3.8% defense, UNENHANCEABLE. It also buffs the defense of nearby party members (8 feet), and that's the part that's enhanceable. The self buff is not. That's why you're noticing no additional defense from enhancements.
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Hey all, so I'm really needing some help being sold on which AT to roll this combo with, lol and for the life of me I really just can't decide!! I've always wanted to make a Dm/Fire combo, and prior to Scrappers getting Fire Armor, my only option would have been a Brute...however, that's not the case anymore since Scrappers have full access to FA now as well.
So...I'm trying to decide...which would end up better, even if only slightly better, by level 50 with Patrons/APP's considered? For this toon, I'm really looking for solid high damage figures by the high levels, on top of at least adequate survivability. I realize that "supposedly" Brute damage is very close to or similar to Scrapper damage once they get rolling...but is that really true? When I compare the two AT's primaries side-by-side, it looks like the Scrapper easily outdamages the Brute, and that the Brute's only hope of simply "matching" the Scrapper in damage is with at least 50% fury (or something like that) and this doesn't even factor in Scrapper criticals....so with Brute Fury being harder to cap, it would appear, at least to me, that Scrappers >>> Brutes in damage, and that I would end up much more satisfied with the Scrapper's damage.
Am I right? Or are they really that close that it almost doesn't matter and I should just go with the Brute for slightly more survivability with FA?
And if so, would it be best to roll a Scrapper Dm/Fire then? If solid damage and decent survivability are what I'm looking for?
Thoughts? -
Quote:Originally Posted by SkarmoryThePG
Blasters - Dark Blast, with following changes:
-Tenebrous Tentacles replaced with Aim
-Dark Pit replaced with Dark Obliteration
-Drain Life damage buffed to not useless as an attack levels
WARNING: Night Fall conflicts with Soul Mastery. We warned you, but you didn't listen.
Blasters - Dark Manipulation - Punches, single target fears, the lot.
Controllers - Dark Miasma - Loses Fearsome Stare for... something. Don't know what. Uses MM numbers on Dark Servant. Fearsome Stare gets moved to Darkness Control.
Dominators - Urban Assault - A combination of Dual Pistols (the less flashy ones) and Martial Arts (withs pistols out!). Note that neither DP or MA has a good 15' PBAoE. Por ejemplo: Pistols, Dual Wield, Empty Clips, Executioner's Shot; Storm Kick, Cobra Kick, self-buff, two "other" powers.
I want to see ALLLLLLLLLLLLLL of that, PLUS...
I'd also REALLY like to see Ninjitsu (from the Stalker secondary) ported over to Scrappers, and maybe even Brutes...that's what I REALLY wanna see! -
Hello all, I've been wondering a few things since GR has come out and has invited the mixture of Hero and Villain AT's. I'm wondering, out of all the powersets given to Brutes and Scrappers, which powerset is actually more benificial to a Brute and brings a Brute more in-line with Scrapper damage output? Considering both primary and secondary sets in pairing.
I wonder this, because Brutes and Scrappers share ALOT of powers together, however, there are a few that they don't share, such as in primaries... for Brutes, at least for now, that's: Super Strength, Stone Melee, Battle Axe, and War Mace. After looking at all of the damage differences between Scrappers and Brutes, it looked as though we'd be outclassed by a Scrapper in damage relatively easily if/when using the same primaries that they have access to, with only "Fire Melee" being possibly equal thanks to the DoT being affected by Fury levels. So, in my mind, that meant that our hopes would rest in Battle Axe, War Mace, Super Strength, and Stone Melee.
After doing some slight comparing of damage between AT's using those four "Brute-unique" sets to a couple Scrapper sets, it looked as though Super Strength was the only set that could actually compete with Scrapper damage levels, and that was mostly thanks to perma-Rage and Rage stacking. I also felt that SS needed to be paired with one of these three secondaries in order to do it: Fire Armor, Shield, or ElecArmor. However, Scrappers do ALSO have access to those same armor sets, and as for Fire Armor and Shield, they do get better +dmg benifits from them which would greatly increase their damage output over a Brute. When pairing a Brute and a Scrapper with Elec Armor (which meant the Scrapper could not greatly benifit from a +dmg boosting Armorset), the values seemed alot more even, furthermore, the SS Brute benifited "slightly" more from the increased recharge from LR, since many of the Brutes biggest attacks are so slow to recharge in comparison to a Scrapper (ex: KoB = 25 seconds, while HS= 14 seconds).
Anyways......I didn't do any real "conclusive" testing or serious number crunching, and that's why I'm here. I want to see if anyone knows if there is any Brute-set that can really compete with the damage output of a Scrapper. Is Super Strength the only one? Or is it not even a competitor and I'm just confuzzled? Maybe I am mistaken, and Brutes already easily compete? Lol...ideas? Thoughts? Suggestions on what set would be best for a Brute who wants to attempt to "outdamage" the average Scrapper build?
Thanks! -
UnicyclePeon,
You'll want to drop Dark Consumption at lvl 18 and get Stamina earlier instead. After you get Energy Drain at lvl 28, DC will be completely outclassed by it and un-needed. I'd get Health at 18 instead and move Stamina to 20.
I'd also recommend dropping Energy Protection and Superior Conditioning. Both are completely useless on an EA Brute. Energy Protection might as well be nothing at all, and Energy Drain, once again, means that Superior Conditioning is very un-neccessary (yes, it's that good). Since you are getting tough, go ahead and keep Dampening Field since it will stack decently with Tough, granting you just shy of 30% +res to smash lethal, which will help soften up some of those big hitters that may slip through. Plus, it makes a decent IO dump for any bonuses you may want to aquire (Steadfast anyone?).
Edit:
Also, I would highly suggest that you drop taunt. You truely will NOT need it. In fact, you won't want a large amount of aggro bearing down on you all at once anyways, especially on a large team. Too much "direct" aggro can be brutal on an EA Brute, and if being the "tank" is your goal, this is completely the wrong secondary for you. The dev's make that clear by give you a "cloak" along with ZERO damage/taunt auras (Energy Drain is a horrible taunt aura and is wasted when used as one)
Instead of those two passives, I'd HIGHLY recommend that you take Weave and maybe even try to fit in a fully slotted Manuevers. Getting your EA Brute closer to the soft-cap will be much better than anything those passives will ever do for you. Furthermore, adding Weave and Manuevers will give you at least "some" protection to Psi attacks, which is the bane of all EA existance. I also notice that you don't have Overload. I will say that alot of people do really love that tier9 power and take it, and for good reason. Sometimes, it will be your ONLY true protection from Psi, in that it will greatly boost your hitpoints, allowing you to take ALOT more damage when facing Psi or Toxic enemies. In fact, because that is what "I" primarily use it for, for PvE purposes I slot it with 3 Rech and 3 Heal. For PvE there's no need to slot for increased Defense in that power. The base defense it will grant you is more than enough to cap you to all other damage types anyways, so you might as well get the most you can out of the HP buff, and use it when psi and toxic is being tossed around like candy. Coupled with the moderate defenses you'll get to psi from Manuevers, Weave, Energy Cloak, and CJ, and Overload can definitely help you withstand psi and toxic damage for a good while. The crash isn't horrid either.
Anyways, I have a lvl 50 DM/EA Brute, and I have to say, it's the BEST pairing with EA that I've found so far. DM greatly helps in filling the holes that EA has. It's still not the "best" combo out there, not by far, but it's definitely a solid one and I highly recommend it. I honestly cannot recommend any other primary for EA except possibly Stone Melee, simply because EA really can be that weak in late game.
EA still needs ALOT of help to bring it in line with other defensive sets, but for now DM, and to a lesser extent Stone Melee, can serve as decent crutches until we get that long needed fix/buff. -
Quote:Personally, I think Fire Melee look and feels very cool. But to each his own.Originally Posted by Nerfherder
...and a screaming sword of fire? Yeah, that is cool.... Keep telling yourself that.
I'm not saying it's most "brutish" in the context of what I think the OP is asking for. -
Quote:Hmm, ok, cool, I can see that lolOriginally Posted by Local_Man
Cold is a good secondary for an Illusion Controller. It has great single target debuffs which can help take down really tough targets, and a great AoE debuff in Sleet (mostly the same as Storm's Freezing Rain, but you don't get it until 35). It also has the defense-based shields for your teammates and Phanty. And the final power in the set, Heat Loss, is pretty sweet.
HOWEVER, Cold does not have a Recharge buff that will help Phantom Army recharge faster. If you want to eventually get "Perma-PA" on a Ill/Cold, it will be a lot more expensive than an Illusion/Rad because you have to find an extra 30% Recharge from sets. That usually means that you need some purple sets to get there. Also, those shields are useless on Phantom Army, and not all that useful solo. (The only powers in Rad that are useless solo are Mutation and Fallout, which even on a team build are very situational and I would recommend that you skip anyways.) Another issue is that Cold does not have a self-heal, while Rad does. Another point that matters to some people -- Cold has the same kind of shields you have in FF, Sonic and Therm -- you need to re-buff the team every 4 minutes. Some people hate doing that.
Illusion and Radition have wonderful synergy. Rad offers the Recharge buff, an Endurance Recovery buff, ranged foe-anchored AoE debuffs that will help Phantom Army hit more often and hit harder, and some additional controls to fill the control gap in Illusion (Ling Rad is a Slow, EM Pulse is a huge AoE Hold). There is a good reason why it is so popular.
You seem to know a bit about Controllers, which would you think best? Fire/Rad or Ill/Rad? I see these two names tossed around the boards here alot. Thoughts?