DrGemini

Any character can contribute as Hamidon is an event where people are grouped based on what their character generally does best at. There are a few roles which require specific characters, but there really isn't anyone who should feel useless.

Ok. That is more what I am looking for: specifics. What would you suggest being /Time? Also, how do you go about keeping your pets near for BG but out of AoE range?

And, would I be correct in assuming that by "resists" you mean that Bodyguard mode is essentially "resistance" in that your pets are absorbing a good portion of the damage?

Just trying to hash out all this stuff so I can figure out what I am doing.

Then, there must be something I am doing wrong or don't know to do. Care to elaborate?

I heal. I buff. I try to maintain as tight a leash on my Ninjas as possible. How exactly do you propose I adapt?

This caught my eye (especially the part I highlighted).

Controllers are NOT a class meant for damage. If you want high damage, go play just about any other class. Controllers are meant to be a support class. Containment was added so that Controllers were not left completely in the dust for soloing.

It is definitely you. The fact that you look at your controller for damage means that you are expecting your character to perform a function which is not its forte. Controllers are meant to support a team by "controlling" the enemy's actions. This is why your primary powers have so many effects that hold/immobilize/etc. If you learn to manage your controls well against large groups, you become a fearsome addition to any team. And, combined with your secondary set, you can wield a very powerful package.

1. All controller sets have at least THREE powers which inflict direct damage to the enemy. Most controller sets allow you to summon pets which also do damage. Containment further increases the damage you can do to a "controlled" target. You can even take some pretty good attacks in the Epic pools which take advantage of your containment damage. You aren't exactly at a loss for damage - just don't do as much as damage as a blaster sorry.

2. There isn't negative accuracy on AoE powers. AOE powers just have lower base accuracy as part of their nature. In the long run, this "lower accuracy" is a non-issue thanks to IO bonuses and slotting.

3. Endurance is something ALL characters have problems with until you are able to acquire all of your slots and/or make use of IO bonuses. No character is spared the problems of endurance. Not sure why you think controllers should be spared. Oh and AOE powers tend to cost more endurance to use. Maybe you shouldn't be spamming an AOE against 1 target.

4. Again, long recharge times are a part of the game and impact everyone. Also, I might point out that HOLDS are not the only part of your primary. You have a vast array of immobilizes, sleeps, stuns, knockdown, knockback, confusion, slows... just because your AOE hold isn't up doesn't mean you can't contribute. And, those who are able to use their AOE more often means they have slotted enough recharge bonuses into their build to vastly reduce the recharge gap. Stop living in fantasy land and learn how to play your character better. Make use of ALL your tools.

Are you kidding me? This statement has to be an absolute joke. Just because a set doesn't sell for 100+ million on the auction house doesn't mean it isn't good.

So, yeah. It really is just you. Sorry.

Maybe I am just OCD about this, but Empathy is not useless by any stretch of the imagination. If you want to say that the "healorz" are useless, then that I agree with. But, a well-built, well-played Empathy defender is easily worth as much as any other kind of defender.
Now, that is not to say that Empathy is 100% useful in every situation. There are times when every power in the game finds its usefulness diminished. But, that is why any Empathy Defender worth their salt will be equipped to do some blasting.

No. His original question goes after whether or not your SECONDARY (aka Blasts) really matter on an Empathy/* defender. In short, it does not entirely matter what you choose.

Not really sure what relevance your post has to the original question...

On my Empathy/Dark Blast, I run Reactive. It is a good way to essentially bring some "debuffs" to the team which is an area that Empathy tends to lack. And, even though your blasts usually have good secondary effects, Interface now allows you to do even more on big teams where you may not be blasting very much. IMO, the incarnate powers are a great boon for Empathy characters because it allows you to be that much more effective.

Defender damage is not crap. Thanks to the awesome buffs and debuffs that defenders carry, defender damage is quite adequate. Now, Empathy defenders do take a hit in the sense that they cannot cast some of their powers on themselves. But, even in my experiences, an Empathy Defender can put out a fair amount of damage when you choose to.

But, I think that your opinion is based on an idea about Empathy defenders that is misinformed. And, I would probably be correct in concluding that many people are in your shoes.

Being an Empathy Defender is probably the hardest "job/role" in the game because of the fact that you are required to be extremely flexible and adapt to your team's needs. Yes, your primary role is to support the team through your heals and buffs. But, it is up to you to learn how/when to use them, where to be, who to focus on, etc.
You, also, should be equipped to use your secondary powers to some extent. You may not have a lot of opportunities to blast, but you will have them and you will actually find yourself getting a lot more out of blasting than you think. Why? Because it helps you to learn many aspects of the game that you will never learn if you are always being the team babysitter. It also teaches other people to learn the difference between the buffs they need and the buffs they think they need.

Let me give you a recent example. Last night, I decided to go help the SG run ticket farms in AE. The brute and I were the only 50s on the team hosting lowbies through a bunch of +4 Fire trolls. Essentially, it was my task to not only buff/heal the brute when needed, but I also did my best to keep the others on their feet so they could enjoy fighting as well. The runs went extremely well. Despite running PBU + Vengeance and a pair of T4 Rebirths, there was still plenty of healing/buffing needed, plenty of abuse of resurrect, lots of opportunities to fire off some judgements and whatever else... And, through it all, I never felt any "loss" for blasting because I had long ago learned how to balance it all.

My point is that playing an Empathy Defender is about more than just healing/buffing. It is more than blasting when you can. It is about using every tool efficiently and seeing the team thrive in the presence of an awesome teammate.

I have played my Ice tank since Issue 3 and can tell you that even with the aggro an Ice tank can hold just off of your auras, Taunt is something you should be taking just for the simple fact that it is a powerful tool that I see people underestimate.
In fact, IMHO, a tank without taunt might as well have rolled a scrapper or a brute. A tanker is designed to be the guy that attempts to take as much of the heat off the team as possible. Having Taunt allows the Ice tank to essentially "bait" mobs into melee where your auras can take over.

I have seen the usefulness of Taunt while running the iTrials. I can quite easily pull the AVs on the BAF around me where I have no trouble maintaining aggro from them (which often results in me being held quickly and multiple times during the fight). If I have some good controllers/dominators in the group who can immobilize the AVs, Taunt allows me to make the AVs waste their holds on me while I also hold the aggro of the reinforcements.

Just saying this statement makes absolutely no sense to me. Except in a few rare cases, NPC mobs even at +4 do not walk around with defenses enough to cause any real accuracy issues. And, it is well-known that AoE powers (obviously) have a lower chance to hit which is why they are often slotted with more accuracy.
Even then, I have never ever had accuracy problems as bad as the OP claims to have which leads me to believe he is either trolling or just needs to stop trying to take on +4 Paragon Protectors when they pop their MoG.

Even at the lower levels, I have never ever missed enough to warrant more than 2 Accuracy SOs in a power. It sounds more to me like the guy has no clue what he's doing or something.