DarkMaster

Right. But you said:

...which was almost a bit misleading, in the sense that it sounded like you were implying that you could easily webenv an entire group and then burn them to the ground with one ignite. You did say..."mass-igniting". Sure, you could do "several" ignite patches, I'll agree with that.

Speaking of Power Boost and ElecControl....


How would an Elec/Ice Dom be? I mean, I definitely seem at least "some" synergy there for sure: Power Boost would greatly boost the amount of endurance you could drain...and Chilling Embrace+Conductive Aura sounds like a pretty mean combination for screwing over any mobs in melee range.


Thoughts?

except that ignites radius is only like...4 ft...



AR needs luv...and so does its secondary counterpart /devices...

Oh wow! Awesome!


I've been with this game since it's launched, and I have honestly NEVER taken a Controller past lvl 10!!! I dunno, I just haven't been able to get into the AT in the past. However, now it's the only AT I haven't played...and I think I might give it a shot. It's nice to hear they get some pretty solid damage in late game too.


Any Controller suggestions for me? I'd make him for mostly solo play, with some teaming along the way...and if it could turn into a decent pvp performer by lvl 50 and IO's, that'd be a HUGE plus lol


Ideas?

I normally roll right into Storm Kick after Eagles Claw, mainly because it has a very fast activation time that runs very fluent with EC, and it already has it's own increased chance to crit, so stacked with the increased chance to crit from EC, it's almost garaunteed double damage, which actually makes it more powerful than any other attack if they "don't" crit. I just basically like my chances with Storm Kick better, feels to fire off a critical almost every time after EC. The only other attack I might use instead would be Cobra Strike, since it's also a pretty fast attack plus it's stun will stack with EC's to dizzy bosses.

I'm sorry, but I honestly cannot fathom how you can even consider SL as "not an impressive heal."


You do realize that SL can take you, with Hasten, from 1 hp to 100% HP in roughly 20 seconds right? <---(1 hp to 100% hp = 19.75 seconds +/- 2.0 seconds)


Do you realize that SL is FAR better "regeneration rate" than Fast Healing, Integration, Health, and Physical Perfection combined? <---(1 hp to 100% hp = 38.8 seconds w/ALL slotted)


Do you also realize that SL is actually better "regeneration rate" than a fully slotted Instant Healing? <---(1 hp - 100% hp = 21.8 seconds)


SL will grant the user the equivalent regeneration rate of over 1098% if used in succession and in combination with Hasten. This does not even include the use of IO's for increased recharge rates or healing buffs. Add those accumulative values to this equation, and SL's regen rate skyrockets even further. Also, thanks to the new buff granted to SL a small while back, the damage it's dealing while you spam it to stay alive is actually still quite impressive (far better at keeping DPS "pace" than Katana's Divine Avalanche spam).


But really...SL is MORE than an impressive heal, its a godsend.

Wha!?!


Lol, no, Regen is a great set for a Scrapper, in fact, I think when the dev's actually created Scrappers, there were two main primaries and secondaries they used to truely "conceptualize" a Scrapper: Claws and Katana (MA possibly as well), and Super Reflexes and Regeneration. I'm sure that their creative drive for the AT spurred from those power sets. Claws/Regen being the "Wolverine" Scrapper and Katana -or- MA/SuperReflexes being the typical hero who is fast, agile, and skilled enough to evade incoming attacks (The Matrix: Neo). This is the same conceptualizing that the dev's had in mind when they created sets like Invuln and Stone Armor for Tankers and Ninjitsu for Stalkers.


Anyways, that's all in the heart of style for the AT, however I still wholeheartedly disagree that Regen is bad on a Scrapper. It's amazing, and can fill both the PvE roles and the PvP roles that one might need.

Uhm...first off....DM's heal is actually VERY impressive, especially if you were to actually slot it FOR healing. If you don't call a 20% heal every 5.5 seconds (without Hasten!!!) from a PRIMARY set impressive....then I don't know what is.


Also...what on earth do you mean by Soul Drain and +Recharge?!? Soul Drain is NOT a +recharge enhancing power, it's a +dmg/+tohit buff, which is amazing for DM's total damage output, especially on large teams.


To the OP, just go with what you think you'd find more conceptually appealing. Both DM/WP and DM/Invln will be absolute powerhouses. Paired with DM, neither can go wrong. Personally, I lean more towards WP, simply because it gives you better endurance management to help you keep on chuggin without much pause, but Invuln can definitely reach insane levels of survivability, especially when paired with DM, and thanks to new Epic Pools such as Energy Mastery, endurance problems should be all but null, even without DC.


So go with what looks most fun to you and enjoy the ride

For this...I'd seriously suggest DB with Nin or maybe SR then....DB is ten times more "graceful" than NB, so I think it'd fit your theme very well in that department, even if in your "previous" game the race didn't dual wield. As for Nin and SR, they are both very graceful looking sets, and are themed around that sort of "grace."

For the best "solo" Brute, I'd have to give the nod to Dark Melee/WillPower, hands down.


There's next to no reason for a Brute to have alot of aoe capability when solo, and DM has just enough, thanks to Shadow Maul, for when some aoe is needed. Furthermore, if some aoe is needed, it can easily be aquired in your Patron Power Pool anyways.


Dark Melee also has all the "debuffing" you'll ever really need against a strong target thanks to it's multitude of to-hit debuffs which can be applied effortlessly. It also has an amazing single target fear, which also applies a massive to-hit debuff, as well as a very nice (and high damage) single target self heal which can definitely help suppliment your regen rate from WP. DM is also amazing at getting the fury up FAST and keeping it there with very little effort, combined with the more solo-friendly Soul Drain, and your damage is always kickin'.


And WP, it's pretty self explanatory. Great secondary with little "maintenance" that needs to be done to keep it up and running smooth. Even without IO's, WP is a top performer, add some IO's into the mix, and it's amazing.

That's because you're only level 24 lol! Just wait until you start hitting the late game and psi and toxic is being tossed around like candy, you'll be finding yourself living in your tier9 just to survive. When it's down....it's back to a Blaster's level of survivability against those foes....


And to those who say "EA is fine, you just gotta invest in a million bajillion IO's and powers into it to make it up to par with other sets".......really!? Are you hearing yourselves? EA is a barely average, maybe even still silghtly "below" average, set once stacked with Tough+Weave and it's primary defenses...in order to bring it in line with other sets takes ALOT of dedication in power choices through pools, and IO set bonuses. These are glaring issues imho. You shouldn't be almost forced to take 3 seperate pool powers (barring fitness) on any AT just to become "performable" with other sets of your same class level, and that's just it, even with all of those pool powers filling the large "gaps" in EA, they only make it "performable" ....not even up to snuff with the majority of other sets who could "also" take those same pool powers and become even that much better.


Nope, instead, EA is pretty much forced to spend a ton of time and investment in IO's just to become "slightly better than average." Once again, a toon of a different skillset could do the exact same and MORE than greatly surpass the "slightly better than average" range of play. And no one say it isn't expensive. Kinetic Combat is like one of the most sought after IO's these days FOR it's +def to smash/lethal damage. I know for a fact that Tankers, Scrappers, Brutes, Stalkers, AND EVEN Blasters who know what they are doing are fighting to get their hands on those now, because number crunchers have finally let the cat out of the bag on how useful +def to smash/lethal is on just about any toon, even a squishy Blaster. Cheap/Inexpensive? I think not.


Besides, I can roll a Regen Scrapper or WP Brute and spend next to nothing for set bonuses, only be required to pick up "one" power pool (tough/weave...not even fitness these days is necessary for either toon) and right out of the box perform WELL above the level that any EA set could of equal level, even when EA is facing enemies that are EA's forte, and lets not even get into the psi/toxic holes of EA...


Anyways....lol....I sound like I despise the set, but I really don't. I like EA, in all honesty I WISH like mad that it really was at least average...but I do realize that it simply is not. As I said before, I have 4 EA toons that I played to 50, not PL'd, played. 3 Brutes and a Stalker, so I'm well aware of EA's "strengths" and "weaknesses," so I acknowledge the fact, that yes, there are indeed some glaring issues that desperately need fixed with EA.


In the honor of game-balance...a set should not be forced to take 3-4 power pools AND invest in expensive IO's just to become on par, average, as other sets that do not need those same requirements to perform at that "average" level or performance. That dependancy alone proves that EA has some glaring issues, and that we are forced to use several "pool powers" and vast "IO's" in order to "patch up" those holes and help fix those issues, just to play our "pretty" set...lol.


The Bottom Line? EA needs reworked...badly...and I hope they take the time to do that soon...

Yea, I definitely still feel that EA needs alot of love...


Sure, you can spend a bazillion on IO's to help make it pretty good, but I don't think you should have to do that just to make it up to par with other sets.


I've played about 4 EA toons to 50 so far (yea...dunno why...it's pretty maybe...???) and those were 3 Brutes and a Stalker...and on all occassions, EA has been a very tough ride. Probably the "best" so far has been the DM/EA Brute, but I think most of that has to do with DM's awesomeness as a utilitarian set more than EA. In fact, I know it is. Anywho, if you've taken all the necessary powers to include tough+weave, EA starts to feel pretty solid, all the way up until about the very late 30's and early 40's...and then you hit the "psi/toxic" wall...or erm...the wall hits you...and squashes you flat.


The Psi and Toxic damage of the late game villain-side is seriously no joke. It's there, and huge damage, and it hurts terribly for EA. If you are an EA...I seriously suggest you morality check to Blue-side...you stand a slightly better chance there for late game tbh. Sure, some may say that Invln also has a "psi-hole" but trust me, it's no where NEAR as big as EA's. DP pretty much covers most of that psi-hole for Invln, whereas EA's only hope really is Overload...which cannot and will not ever be up as often as DP for Invln, and furthermore crashes your endurance when it expires which, if not monitored VERY closely, can be your demise. But really, the psi/toxic hole is so high and so noticeable in late game...that sometimes I feel no better off than a Blaster, only I have alot less damage and mine is all dealt in melee... :P


My suggestion for the set, at least as a "start" towards fixing EA and bringing it more up-to-par with other secondaries is:

• (1.) Add +regen to Energy Drain; starting with 100% +regen for the first mob hit, and then +25% regen for every mob after that (enhanceable), lasts 25 seconds. Increase ED's rechage from 60 seconds to 90 seconds to compensate +regen buff.
  
• (2.) Increase the base +heal of Energy Drain by 5% (currently it's only 3%). This compensates for the increase in refresh time "nerf" making it a slightly better "burst" heal between refreshes.
  
• (3.) Increase the +defense to smash/lethal in Kinetic Shield: from 12.8% to 15%, matching the defense EA gets to F and C. I mean...EA already has a GAPING hole to psi and toxic damage....why make it have a hole/weakness to Smash, Lethal, AND negative damage as well!!??!
  
• (4.) Add: 7.5% +res Energy to Kinetic Shield and Power Shield.
  
• (5.) Change Energy Protection...I mean...seriously...what the hek do we need that passive for?!!? Other than a free IO dump...it's crap. Instead of +res, I think it'd be MUCH more practical if it were changed into either a minor 5.63% +defense to: Energy/Smash/Lethal (which would mean they could leave Kinetic Shield alone), or into something like Fast Healing or Quick Reflexes/LR. At least ANY of those options would be both useable as well as helpful in the overall survivability of the set.

If they made all four of these changes, EA would finally become a viable set without having to drop an arm and a leg for IO's and pick up every +defense power-pool under the sun just to become average.


Aside from the 5 changes I mentioned above...I'd also like to see a 6th and final change made eventually as well...

• (6.) Replace Conserve Power with a +HP boost power, inherent, similar to HPT or TG. Maybe make it unique by having it grant a True Grit level of +HP to the player as well as a +5 max endurance attribute similar to APP's: Superior Conditioning. I'd vote for a "Dull Pain" clone as well, but I don't wanna push it.

Imho....the 3 things the dev's really need to do to help Stalkers out...is:


1.) Make Hide an inherent slottable power, keeping it's SAME values (of course).
2.) Whatever power the dev's choose to replace the "current" hide with....make it useful for a STALKER <---emphasis on...useful for a Stalker!
3.) Make build up 100% +dmg (...and no one say anything about AT damage modifiers, I know all about that and their relation to build up...it still should be 100% +dmg for Stalkers though.)


This would be an excellent "start" if you ask me, and at least a step in the right direction.

From there, maybe they could consider making ALL Stalker versions of Build Up refresh as quickly as Claws' Build Up (Claws = 72 sec, all others = 90 sec) and of course somewhat adjusting Claws' Build Up, to maybe 60 seconds. In the end, high level game, it's actually a somewhat "minor" change once all late game +rech factors are taken into consideration. For example; the difference between Claws' Build Up + Hasten + Quickness vs. MA's Build Up + Hasten + Quickness is only 6.2 seconds....but this little change would be uber helpful in leveling up a Stalker in PvE. Game breaking? Hell no. Helpful nonetheless? Hell yes.


All these changes added together, and I think the Stalker AT would be right where it should be.


Anywho...

....uhm....honestly, for me, I LOVE the DP animations! They really are simply amazing. This game, when it started, was sorta...well...dull when it came to certain powerset animations, espcially for sets that did not involve alot of "color" and "light" effects. I'm very very very happy that the dev's have finally started making the animations in this game look freakin awesome. They are ALOT more superhero-like now than they ever were. Dual Blades, Dual Pistols, and to an extent Kinetic Melee (especially for the Stalkers' KM AS!!!) look amazing.


Hell, even "ninja-run" was LONG over-due!!! I'm actually hoping and praying that they go back and rework all the travel powers somewhat to make them alot more interactive like Ninja-run. I almost feel as though this game might have been better off (especially the "pvp-side" of this game) had they only ever implimented travel powers such as Ninja-run. Travel powers that were never really too over-the-top in speed/travel, but had alot of dynamic and life. Yea, yea, I may get flamed for saying that (especially by the pvp crowd) but had they always been that way from the start, no one would have ever noticed them being a tad slower like Ninja Run, and the dynamic would have made up for some of the loss in travel speed I think. And once again...pvp honestly might have been a touch better...


Now sure...flashy animations may sacrafice a little on the "performance" side of things, but one thing I've learned from this game is that it's really not 110% about min-maxing and going all out on maximizing every ounce out of a particular set. It's really about having fun and living in the spirit of a true comic-book-like hero. For those that get a blast out of straight up "min-maxing" there are PLENTY of sets out there for you (even I like doing that here and there) but I'm really very pleased to see the dev's working on the "theme" and "asthetics" of this game more now too. Bravo on DP and DB, Dev's, and I look forward to seeing alot more really cool/fun sets. Just dont' skimp out "too" much on performance to do it lol, because yes that does matter some still too haha

LOL! So tru.


His SONS fought to the death, eventually being killed in a gun fight between US Marines. Saddam, on the other-hand....hid like a rat for several months. There was nothing strong about this man, other than his ability to abuse his seat in power. It's not an uncommon act for those who are "in power" to present themselves as "tough as nails" and "scared of nothing"...it's easy to hide behind your army...at least until that army is gone...which was what happend to Saddam. It's at that point that we see just how "brave" that leader really is. Whether or not we should have been over there is a moot point in my mind, I still say good riddance to an evil and corrupt dictator.


Anyways, not to derail....on with the thread :P

I would kill to see either a real Dual Pistol secondary or a Martial Arts secondary come through in i19...my gosh I'd love that...especially if either set synergized so well with the current DP that they made it better and more on par with other blast sets

Lol, yea, I really do like DP on Devices, sure, it loses Build Up which sorta sucks sometimes, but it makes up for it with another VERY nifty trick....I don't suppose many people have talked about how useful and downright mean TripMine+HoB is yet....or is that just our little secret lol...?

Eh!?!

I'm sorry, but you sir, are terribly wrong. I think Hart summed it up very nicely and said all that I was going to say in response:


Hart:
If anything, a Corruptor is LEAGUES ahead of a Blaster in damage capability when teamed. If my Corruptor is granting your Blaster, and the other 6 people on the team, even more damage, then that damage output increase can and IS attributed to the Corruptor and not each individual player. When a Kinetic give your Brute/Scrapper a fully saturated Fulcrum Shift, do you stand back and say "Omg WOW! I rawk so hard and my damage is SO good and it's ALLLL thanks to ME cuz FS comes out my rear and I could do this much damage solo too!!!"....or....do you thank the Kin and then invite one every friggen time you get a chance to? Lol...I think you'll be in Broadcast asking for a /Kin buddy


Once again, Blasters fall behind, and it's this cascade of problems that I feel severely need fixed. I love my Blasters, but I shouldn't be required to be a professional strategist, mathematician, or have the twitch reflexes of a competitive First Person Shooter player just to play the AT. This is, afterall, a game where players are suppose to have fun, kick back, socialize, and relax all while playing a toon they adore. Blasters can make it hard to do that. I'd like to see that changed, for PvE sake (they aren't too shabby in the current pvp system).

Did I ever say my Blaster's were dropping dead often? Hmm? Show me where I stated that "my" Blasters' were dropping dead often. Perhaps you lack reading comprehension? Or is it that you simply like to jump to self drawn conclusions? Or maybe it's just plain ignorance? Whatever the case, my Blasters do just fine thank you very much.


In your first sentence, you stated exactly what I have been stating from the start; Blasters at high levels are indeed "less forgiving" than just about ANY AT IN THIS GAME. Thanks for agreeing with me...lol..


I love how quickly AT "fanbois" leap head first and eyes shut into a thread to defend their oh-so-beloved toons, before they even pause to consider or to realize that the people expressing certain problems with an AT may only be advocating and rallying for a fix/buff for those shortcomings...lol...hilarious but idiotic...when those very people are on your own friggen side in the first place...lol...

The difference is....the Corruptor or Dominator has the "survivability" to actually fully dispense their ordinance until every last baddie is dead...and that is the key difference here.


Sure, in an all out "who can deal the MOST damage the FASTEREST ready set GO!!!" war, the Blaster will most likely win...however, the Corruptor or Dominator will most likely still be standing and dealing solid damage WITHOUT a bunch of outside support long after the Blaster has already blown his load and hit the hospital for round 2....winner....Corruptor/Dominator.


This isn't to say I don't like Blasters, I love them and the fragile style in which mine live, but I'm also wise enough, and not too proud, to acknowledge and recognize their glaring deficiencies.