DreamerAFK

Here's an alternative to the current scheme of single target spamming of status effect resist buffs. Make them group buffs and stretch out the recharge timer, along the lines os Recovery Aura. That way chosing when to use them becomes a tactical decision. No one gets stuck playing buff bot. Emp Defs would actually get to concentrate on healing. And there would be no 100% status resist coverage; status effects could still have a large effect on groups without them being so overpowering that a person gets stuck doing nothing but buffing resists.

Yes I'm beating this into the ground. It's from personal experience doing the Indy TF. All those Tank Smashers didn't stun our tanks or dps chars once. The cost was burning me out on playing an emp def.

As for those who compare buffing to a blaster doing dps, they should consider that the defender isn't choosing targets and what powers to use on those targets. The buff bot is following a schedule and could be run by a macro if they were allowed. It's mind numbing.

1. Cast Fortitude on Teammate #1.
2. Cast Clear Mind on teammates # 1-7.
3. Cast Fortitude on Teammate # 2.
4. Cast Clear Mind on teammates 1-7.
5. Return to step one.

No, it wasn't quite as simple as that. I got to throw a heal every once in a while. And I watched End bars religiously to justify throwing RA at the correct time. 6 slotted with Recharge SO's it still can't do 100% coverage.

So all you blasters who want to tell us how to run our defenders go out there and make one of your own. Blaster is the only AT that doesn't have split priorities when it comes to choosing what powers to take and slot. Tanks have to get their resists but still need to get damage powers. Scrappers also need their defensive powers since they are at melee range. Controllers are spread across the countryside for power utilization. Defenders have no offense if they don't choose their secondaries. But the blaster? Lets see.... I need an offense. pick a damage power. I need a defense. Another damage power so they go down faster. Lets get Hasten so I do even faster damage. Eventually I will get stamina so I can do more damage longer. Face it, blasters are just that: blasters. Not controllers, tanks or defenders. And yes, I have a blaster character. I love it. It's incredibly easy to run. I've never had a door mission that couldn't be solo'd, even with the recent +1 mobs.

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Apply early is good. Apply often is okay too...but when that turns into 'restart application cycle every 33 seconds, alternating with other buffs' then it isn't a matter of strategy, it's a matter of unfun rote repetition. Stretch that out for an hour or two, repeat every time you play the game, and it starts to be a little bit frustrating.

If status effects didn't eat toggles, I probably wouldn't be worrying. I'm *not* going to avoid certain zones or enemy types or anything because they have status effects...defeats the whole point of playing the game to only hang out in the easiest zone farming the easiest mobs. I want to be somewhere scary trying new things and generally having fun. But if I have to spend most of my time there spamming status protection, that fun will eventually dissipate.


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This is one of the reasons I stopped running my Emp Def. I spent most of the Indy TF doing nothing but casting Clear Mind, Fortitude and Recovery Aura. The dark defender in the group ended up doing 98% of the healing since I had a bad tendancy to be stunned whenever it really was needed. And since Clear Mind locks me up for such a long time after activation I couldn't heal when needed even when I wasn't stunned. Seriously, over half my time was spent locked into the Clear Mind animation.

Emp Defs get all these nice powers and can't do a damm thing for themselves with most of them. All these nice targetted buffs cannot be used on the originator. Only the Group/AE buffs do anything for the caster.

I really think the whole status effect concept needs review. They are extremely common and anyone who can buff against them ends up being tagged as a buff bot. The tanks and scrappers have a good point about their toggle avoidance/mitigation abilites being hosed by being stunned/slept/held for even a fraction of a second.