A Guide to the Gravity / Radiation Controller
Wherein I attempt to share why I think Grav/Rad is so great, and how you can get the most out of it.
Table of Contents:- Introduction
- Concepts
- Gravity Control in Summary
- Gravity Control in Detail
- Radiation Emission in Summary
- Radiation Emission in Detail
- Power Pools
- Ancillary Power Pools
- Sample Build
- Acknowledgments
1. Introduction
I started my Gravity / Radiation Controller way back in Issue 3, and have been playing her off and on ever since. She hit 50 quite some time ago, but I still enjoy playing her, especially against Archvillains and particularly in Statesman's Task Force. In all this time, I have only ever seen one guide for Grav/Rad, and even before it disappeared it was woefully out of date. Perceiving a need, I thus set out to fill it.
This guide covers the Gravity and Radiation powersets, gives recommendations for Pool and Ancillary Pool selections, and includes my current build. All information is aimed at PvE play as I have neither experience nor interest in PvP.
2. Concepts
Before I go into any detail about the powersets, it seems appropriate to go over a few concepts basic to controlling. Experienced Controllers may feel free to skip this section.
a) Magnitude
Magnitude is the system that determines when applied status effects, or mezzes, go into action. Anyone new to Controllers will benefit from reading this guide:
Magnitude - or, why Johnny can't hold Dr. Vahzilok . For a rough summary which suits our purposes, we note the following:
<ul type="square">[*]For most controller mezzes, a single application will affect a minion or lieutenant, but a boss will not usually be affected.[*]A second application of the same mez will activate the effect on a boss.[*]Occasionally, a mez can have a critical, which increases the magnitude and can capture a boss on the first application.[*]Archvillains have massive mez protection which cycles on and off (colloquially known as the Purple Triangles of Doom); while it is active mezzing an AV is nearly impossible without a large number of controllers stacking their effects, but when it shuts off they can be mezzed as if they were bosses. Immobilizes are not subject to this protection and can always take effect normally.[/list]
b) Containment
Containment is the inherent power for the Controller AT. Whenever a Controller attacks a Held, Disoriented, Immobilized, or Sleeping opponent with a damaging power from her Primary, Secondary, Pool, or Ancillary powersets, the final, fully enhanced and buffed damage is doubled. Brawl and Temporary powers do not benefit from Containment. There are a few powers which gain only a partial benefit, notably Spectral Wounds from the Illusion primary and Jump Kick from the Leaping pool. As a Grav/Rad Controller, neither should concern you (don't take Jump Kick).
3. Gravity Control in Summary
Before starting a new Gravity Controller, it is nice to know what you are getting into. Here are the strengths and weaknesses of the powerset as I see them.
Strengths:
<ul type="square">[*]Good at single-target damage (but not as good as Mind or Illusion).[*]Gravity Distortion Field, the AoE hold, is ranged rather than PBAoE as in many of the other sets.[*]Gravity has Wormhole, the only AoE Foe Teleport in the game.[*]AoE Containment can be reliably activated via Crushing Field.[*]Excellent at stacking hold magnitude due to Singularity.[*]Singularity is a very team-friendly pet; it is intangible and so doesn't obstruct movement, and it rarely draws unwanted aggro from nearby groups.[*]All attacks are Smashing damage, which gets a bonus against most robots.[/list]
Weaknesses:
<ul type="square">[*]Reliable AoE control comes late; every other primary gets some form of fast-recharging AoE hard or soft control by level 18, but Gravity has to wait for Wormhole at 26. This is the biggest drawback by far.[*]Smashing damage is widely resisted by non-robot groups (however, very few mobs have more than 20%-30% resistance; CoT ghosts are the major exception). Note that all the pool attacks are Smashing as well, so there's no way to diversify, pre-Epic.[*]Poor AoE damage (though Gravity is far from alone in this).[*]Hold animations can be hard for your teammates to see (although Mind and Fire are worse in my opinion).[/list]
4. Gravity Control in Detail
This is the part where we list the powers and what they do. All damaging powers have their damage listed as a Damage Scale (DS) value. All ratings are my opinion only. Slotting suggestions are for SOs or basic IOs; you should of course use IO Sets as desired to customize your build. All numbers come from
City of Data.
Crush (Level 1)
Ranged Foe Immobilize, -Fly, -Speed, Dot(Smashing)
Range: 80 ft
Cast time: 1.33 s
Recharge time: 4 s
Endurance cost: 7.8
Accuracy modifier: 1.2
Damage: 0.2 DS * 5 = 1.0 DS (Smashing)
Mez: Mag 4 Immobilize
One of the two level 1 picks. I would typically take it over Lift because it enables Containment, the damage (though DoT) is slightly better, and Immobilizes are often handy against AVs. Crush can be slotted as an attack if desired. Note that Crush is a mag 4 effect, which means it will immobilize a boss in one shot.
Rating: 4/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 0-3 Damage
Lift (Level 1)
Ranged Foe Knockup, Damage (Smashing)
Range: 80 ft
Cast time: 1.03 s
Recharge time: 6 s
Endurance cost: 6.86
Accuracy modifier: 1.0
Damage: 0.8 DS (Smashing)
The other level 1 pick. It's quite satisfying to fling bad guys into the air, but Crush is overall more effective. While the animation is very quick, there's an annoying 2-second delay between the power's activation and the enemy taking damage. Lift can be useful if taken as part of an early attack chain, and respecced out later once it's no longer needed; this is what I did.
Rating: 3/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 3 Damage
Gravity Distortion (Level 2)
Ranged Foe Hold, -Fly, -Speed, -Knockback, DoT(Smashing)
Range: 80 ft
Cast time: 1.83 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 8.53
Accuracy modifier: 1.2
Damage: 0.22 DS * 5 = 1.1 DS (Smashing)
Mez: Mag 3 Hold, with 20% chance of +1 mag
Your single-target hold. Take it at level 2, slot it out immediately, and use it forever. You may note that Gravity Distortion (and the AoE version GDF) impart knockback protection to the target; this is in contrast with most other primaries, which have knockback protection in the immobilizes. Gravity Distortion does significant damage, and slotting it as an attack is a valid approach if you feel that your other powers provide enough control so that additional duration won't be missed. Remember that control durations increase with security level, so hold enhancements may be less critical at high levels than you might think.
Rating: 5/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Recharge, 0-3 Hold, 0-3 Damage
Propel (Level 6)
Ranged Foe Knockback, Damage (Smashing)
Range: 60 ft
Cast time: 3.5 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 9.36
Accuracy modifier: 1.0
Damage: 1.96 DS (Smashing)
The highest-damage single target attack in any Controller primary. The animation, while fun, is decidedly inconvenient, so Propel can be skipped if damage is not a priority for you (i.e. you do not plan to solo at all). I have had it for a very long time, but I am considering dropping it as I find myself leaving it out of my attack cycle due to the cast time. I suggest slotting for range if possible, as the base range is much shorter than your other Gravity powers.
Rating: 3/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 1 Range, 1 Recharge
Crushing Field (Level 8)
Targeted AoE Foe Immobilize, -Fly, -Speed, DoT(Smashing)
Range: 80 ft
Radius: 30 ft
Cast time: 1.33 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 15.6
Accuracy modifier: 0.9
Damage: 0.1 DS * 3 = 0.3 DS (Smashing)
Mez: Mag 3 Immobilize, with 50% chance of +1 mag
An AoE Immobilize with a token DoT. It's handy if you need AoE Containment for one of the Ancillary Power Pool attacks, or if you find the wandering of disoriented mobs to be troublesome (though Lingering Radiation also addresses this issue).
The damage is abysmal, but Crushing Field can be slotted with no less than three different damage procs (Positron's Blast, Impeded Swiftness, Trap of the Hunter) which might add up to respectable damage (I haven't tried it). As noted above, the immobilization powers in Gravity do not have -knockback, so feel free to spam your fully-proc'd CF on top of your teammates' Ice Slicks and Earthquakes.
If you don't have one of the above specific applications in mind for Crushing Field, I suggest you skip it.
If you do take it, remember that Crushing Field (like most AoE controls) has an accuracy penalty, so slot accordingly.
Rating: 2/5
Suggested slotting: 2 Accuracy
Dimension Shift (Level 12)
Targeted AoE Foe Phase, Immobilize
Range: 60 ft
Radius: 20 ft
Cast time: 1.17 s
Recharge time: 90 s
Endurance cost: 13
Accuracy modifier: 1.0
Mez: Mag 3 Phase; Mag 3 Immobilize
Dimension Shift has the distinction of being one of only two AoE Foe Phase powers in the game, and the only one available to Controllers (the other is Black Hole from Dark Miasma). The typical prescribed use for DS is as a panic button, but I feel that taking any power for such occasional use is wasteful. An alternative application (for which I credit Enantiodromos) would be to forego accuracy slotting and use DS to thin large groups; however, players are notoriously bad at identifying phased mobs, so you are likely to cause much grief for your teammates unless you train them to identify and ignore the untouchable bad guys, which is far easier said than done as the FX for Dimension Shift are indistinguishable from those of the other Gravity powers to anyone who doesn't know what to look for. I personally don't see it as worth the effort.
It should be noted that, unlike all other control powers, slotting to enhance Intangibility increases the magnitude of the effect, not the duration (which is fixed at 30 seconds). If you desire, you can slot DS to phase bosses. And a special note of warning; don't ever use Dimension Shift on enemies which resist Immobilize (such as wolves), as they will merrily run right up to you and further muddle the issue of which enemies can be hurt.
Rating: 1/5
Suggested slotting: 0-1 Accuracy, 0-1 Intangibility
Gravity Distortion Field (Level 18)
Targeted AoE Foe Hold, -Speed
Range: 80 ft
Radius: 20 ft
Cast time: 1.83 s
Recharge time: 240 s
Endurance cost: 15.6
Accuracy modifier: 0.8
Mez: Mag 3 Hold, with 20% chance of +1 mag
Your AoE Hold, with the typical short duration (around 15 seconds at level 50) and long recharge. Some players feel that since it is no longer available for every fight (as it was before the Issue 5 changes), Gravity Distortion Field is no longer useful. I find that I can still get good mileage out of it by using it when it is available, and using Wormhole while I wait for GDF to recharge. The knockback from Wormhole is a little too annoying for me to use it exclusively.
Rating: 4/5
Suggested slotting: 2 Accuracy, 2 Hold, 2 Recharge
Wormhole (Level 26)
Targeted AoE Foe Teleport, Disorient, Knockback
Range: 80 ft
Radius: 20 ft
Cast time: 3 s
Recharge time: 90 s
Endurance cost: 15.6
Accuracy modifier: 1
Mez: Mag 3 Disorient, with 20% chance of +1 mag; Mag 4.1 Teleport
There's nothing else quite like Wormhole. You get an AoE Teleport Foe together with the game's longest-lasting AoE Disorient, plus you get to place the mobs where you want them (at least until the knockback kicks in). Wormhole can and always should be activated from out of sight of the targeted mobs, as they will be aggro'd at the beginning of the animation, which is lengthy. When possible, try to aim the exit point into a corner to contain the knockback. If you add an application of Crushing Field you eliminate disorient wander and effectively create a second AoE hold, but I don't typically find it to be necessary. As noted above, Lingering Radiation with its -speed could also be used for this purpose if you don't take CF.
Rating: 4/5
Suggested slotting: 2 Accuracy, 2 Disorient, 1 Range, 1 Recharge
Singularity (Level 32)
Summon Singularity
Range: 60 ft
Cast time: 2.03 s
Recharge time: 240 s
Endurance cost: 20.8
For me, Singularity is the reason to pick Gravity Control. Your Singularity is more or less a second Gravity controller who only uses Crush, Lift, and Gravity Distortion, and does more damage with them than you can. It can't be healed, but that shouldn't matter often as it has 90% Psi and Toxic resists (the cap for pets), and 50% resistance to all other damage types. In addition, it has a built-in Repel aura, so your foes will rarely be able to use their hard-hitting melee attacks on it. Also, it can still benefit from buffs, including regen buffs.
Singularity tracks your movements closely until it finds a target, at which point it stops moving and starts cycling its powers. So long as there are targets in range, it will not move unless you go too far away. This means that it will essentially never pick up aggro from enemies you aren't ready for. It also means that Singularity can be strategically placed for area denial; try dropping it in the towers at the end of the STF and watch the Arachnos Repairmen go flying. And don't forget to use it to soak the alpha from any psi-heavy AVs such as the Psychic Clockwork King.
While the basic slotting below is satisfactory, I suggest that you invest in Set IOs for your Singularity rather than ever using basic IOs or SOs, as the Pet Damage sets are typically very cheap Hero-side. I've slotted mine thusly:
<ul type="square">[*]Dam/Mez HO x2[*]Sovereign Right Acc/Dam and Resist Aura(all but Psi) Unique[*]Blood Mandate Acc/Dam and Acc[/list]The set bonuses for Pet Damage are rather poor, so focus on the Enhancement values, and the Globals if you like; I chose the Resist Aura global to further enhance the already-impressive resists. If you don't have access to those HOs, pick your Enhancers with more of a Damage focus and slot a basic IO Hold or 2; my slotting emphasizes Accuracy more than is strictly necessary. You might try 2 set Acc/Dam, 2 set Damage, and 2 basic Hold IO.
Rating: 5/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 3 Damage, 2 Hold
5. Radiation Emission in Summary
Radiation Emission is widely considered to be one of the most powerful Controller secondaries. Its strengths are many, and weaknesses few.
Strengths:
<ul type="square">[*]The best secondary for debuffing, better even than Trick Arrow which doesn't do much else.[*]Has Accelerate Metabolism, a terrific buff all-around.[*]Includes both a rez (the best one, at that) and a heal.[*]Includes EM Pulse, a fantastic hold (which works even better for Controllers than Defenders!).[/list]
Weaknesses:
<ul type="square">[*]No mez protection (AM has mez resistance, though).[*]Two out of three debuffs are toggles, which take a little practice to use safely and effectively.[*]Many players find their teammates' insistence on killing their anchors frustrating.[/list]
6. Radiation Emission in Detail
Here we see exactly how Radiation does the wonderful things that it does.
Radiant Aura (Level 1)
PBAoE Ally Heal
Radius: 25 ft
Cast time: 2.03 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 13
It's a heal, and not a particularly strong one either. That's about all there is to say, since you're stuck with it. At least it's not Gale.
Rating: 3/5
Suggested slotting: 3 Heal, 0-1 EndRdx, 0-1 Recharge
Radiation Infection (Level 2)
Foe Toggle -Def, -ToHit
Range: 70 ft
Radius: 15 ft
Cast time: 3.1 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 0.52/s
Debuffs: -25% Defense, -25% ToHit
The first of three excellent Rad debuffs. The ToHit debuff is incredible, and the Defense debuff is great for hitting plus-con foes. Radiation Infection will see a lot of use early on, but in the higher levels you may find your anchor is dead before the the lengthy animation is even completed. Even at the highest levels, it is still handy against AVs. Slot for the ToHit Debuff first, as that's the effect which will keep your team standing.
A few words should be said here about using toggle debuffs. Since the effect ends when the target (commonly referred to as the anchor) is killed, you should take that into account when selecting a target. There are a few different schools of thought here: you can go for a lieutenant, since minions tend to die quickly to AoE and your single-target teammates will typically go for the bosses first; or, you can just throw it on the boss, to assure that he will receive the debuff, and finish the rest of the spawn without it. I tend to use the second approach, but whichever you choose you will have to come to terms with the fact that your anchors will die before you are done with them, and there's not much you can do about it. Just learn to accept it.
Also, if your anchor runs away, don't forget to turn off RI and EF! The toggles will shut themselves off automatically if the anchor moves too far away, but this distance is much, much further than the 70 foot cast range, and on a large or crowded map you can easily end up with a half-dozen angry groups aggro'd to you by a debuffing runner.
Rating: 4/5
Suggested slotting: 3 ToHit Debuff, 0-3 Defense Debuff, 0-1 EndRdx
Accelerate Metabolism (Level 4)
PBAoE Ally +Speed, +Recharge, +Recovery, +Damage, +Resist(Effects)
Radius: 25 ft
Cast time: 2.03 s
Recharge time: 422 s
Endurance cost: 15.6
Buffs: +30% Speed/Recharge/Recovery, +20% Damage, +173% Resist(Effects); all for 2 min
The best buff in the game, in my opinion. Just look at that list! Take it and six-slot it, no questions asked. If your IO Set slotting results in lots of +Recovery bonuses you might consider dropping one or more slots of EndMod, but in my opinion it would be more efficient to keep the EndMods and focus on other set bonuses.
Rating: 5/5
Suggested slotting: 3 Recharge, 3 EndMod
Enervating Field (Level 10)
Foe Toggle -Damage, -Resistance
Range: 70 ft
Radius: 15 ft
Cast time: 1.5 s
Recharge time: 8 s
Endurance cost: 1.04/s
Debuffs: -20% Damage, -22.5% Resistance
The second debuff. The animation is faster than that of Radiation Infection, and combined with the fact that most players tend to work out their own accuracy issues, but resistance debuffs always adds more damage, I tend to use Enervating Field more than RI once I get it. While the resistance debuff is the primary benefit, the damage reduction is welcome as well. EF is quite expensive, so I would tend to wait until after Stamina to take it. It's a shame that neither debuff can be slotted for, but on the other hand, that makes it easier to find slots for EndRdx.
Rating: 5/5
Suggested slotting: 2 EndRdx
Mutation (Level 16)
Ally Rez, Special
Range: 15 ft
Cast time: 3.2 s
Recharge time: 180 s
Endurance cost: 26
Buffs: +200% Recovery, +100% Recharge, +40% Damage, +30% ToHit; all for 90 s
Debuffs: after 90 s delay, -40% Damage, -30% ToHit; both for 45 s
It's a rez, and a good one at that. There are too many other great powers for it to be a priority, though. My current build has it at 49, just in time for the myriad of deaths that go along with the STF. Since it has both a high cost and long recharge, I suggest you slot the base for whichever you find more annoying, but adding additional slots is not necessary.
Rating: 3/5
Suggested slotting: 1 EndRdx or 1 Recharge
Lingering Radiation (Level 20)
Targeted AoE Foe -Recharge, -Speed, -Regen
Range: 80 ft
Radius: 25 ft
Cast time: 1.5 s
Recharge time: 90 s
Endurance cost: 15.6
Accuracy modifier: 1
Debuffs: -75% Recharge/Speed, -500% Regen; all for 30 s
The final Rad debuff, it is Lingering Radiation more than any other power which makes Radiation so good against Archvillains. The speed and recharge debuffs are very good (though not typically needed considering your other tools) against normal foes, but the staggering regen debuff is key to putting the hurt on AVs with their super-high regen rates. Don't forget to slot for Accuracy, as unlike the two toggle debuffs, LR is not autohit.
Rating: 4/5
Suggested slotting: 1-2 Accuracy, 1-3 Recharge, 0-1 EndRdx
Choking Cloud (Level 28)
Self Toggle PBAoE Foe Hold
Radius: 15 ft
Cast time: 2.03 s
Recharge time: 90 s
Endurance cost: .832/s
Accuracy modifier: 1
Mez: Mag 2 Hold, 50% chance; Mag 1 hold, 80% chance; every 5 s
Choking Cloud is a pretty nice power, if you are a Defender. Every five seconds, it makes two separate hold attempts at each foe in range. With proper slotting, minions will be held fairly quickly and almost indefinitely. Coverage on lieutenants will be more spotty, and bosses won't usually be bothered at all without additional holds stacked. Other than the hefty endurance cost, the power's biggest drawback is the massive recharge time, which makes fighing enemies with mezzes a real problem. As a Controller, you have better and more endurance-efficient control options, but if you really want to max out control at the expense of other powers you could do a lot worse.
CC cannot be slotted for accuracy; the only way to improve its effectiveness is to slot for Hold duration so that when an enemy is held, he stays held for more time. It's not clear whether ToHit buffs or Defense Debuffs from other powers improve performance. If you take CC, be prepared to invest the needed slots.
Rating: 3/5
Suggested slotting: 3 Hold, 3 EndRdx.
Fallout (Level 35)
Dead Ally-Targeted AoE Damage(Energy), -Defense, -ToHit, -Damage, -Resistance
Range: 60 ft
Radius: 30 ft
Cast time: 3.2 s
Recharge time: 300 s
Endurance cost: 20.8
Accuracy modifier: 2
Debuffs: -30% Defense/Tohit/Damage, -50% Resistance; all for 30 s
This power deploys a near nuke-level blast on a dead ally. There's a school of thought that says you shouldn't bother with powers that require dead allies as they shouldn't be dying in the first place, but in practice deaths are inevitable and Fallout can be somewhat useful. Teams built around taking heavy casualties and using Fallout (and Vengeance) repeatedly can be quite powerful, if that play style suits you. Outside of a dedicated team, don't take Fallout with the expectation that it will be a major source of damage. Even slotted, I found the damage to be disappointing. If you have the option, I would take Vengeance over Fallout every time as it is easier to use and more effective.
City of Data gives the accuracy modifier as 2.0, but after testing Fallout myself I have my doubts; I would devote one slot to Accuracy. Slotting for the ToHit or Defense Debuffs is an option as well. You shouldn't need to slot for recharge unless you are on a team built for regular Fallout usage.
Rating: 2/5
Suggested slotting: 1 Accuracy, 3 Damage
EM Pulse(Level 38)
PBAoE Foe Hold, -Endurance, -Regen, Damage(Energy, to electronic enemies only); Self -Recovery
Radius: 60 ft
Cast time: 2.43 s
Recharge time: 300 s
Endurance cost: 20.8
Accuracy modifier: 1
Mez: Mag 3 Hold, with 50% chance of +1 mag
Debuffs: -40% Endurance; -1000% Regen for 15 s
Special: Self -1000 Recovery for 15 s
Though it comes in a Defender primary, I consider EM Pulse to be the closest thing there is to a Controller nuke. It covers a staggering 60 foot radius, has an extremely long duration, and has a 50% chance to hold bosses. As if that were not enough, there is also a monstrous Regen debuff, making EMP an effective power against AVs even if they cannot be held by it. Your recovery will be stopped cold for a brief time, but it should hardly matter as there is no endurance crash as in a Blaster nuke, and you will resume recovery long before your enemies cease being held. With appropriate slotting, EMP can be available nearly as often as GDF, and you can alternate the two if Wormhole is not to your taste. Be careful of aggroing nearby groups, though. EM Pulse also has a minor damage component which only affects robots, and which you are unlikely to notice unless you are specifically looking for it.
Rating: 5/5
Suggested slotting: 1-2 Accuracy, 2 Hold, 2-3 Recharge
7. Power Pools
Power Pools are a source of individuality for characters with the same powersets. I will tell you what I think, but feel free to ignore my suggestions completely.
Fitness
While you have access to a recovery buff in AM, the rest of the powers in Radiation Emission are fairly endurance-heavy, and so I would not recommend a Grav/Rad build which did not include Stamina. Take Health, and depending on your travel power selection, either Swift or Hurdle.
Speed
I strongly recommend Hasten as it will help you keep AM active more often and vice versa. Add in some +Recharge set bonuses and a Luck of the Gambler +7.5% or two for additional awesome. Super Speed is a nice travel power if you know your zones well; be sure to get Hurdle.
Leadership
Tactics is always a solid choice for a Controller if you can fit it in. Open the pool with Assault if you are short on slots, or Maneuvers if you aren't; it's a good place for the many useful globals in the Defense sets, and if you commit 5 slots to Red Fortune (which is underrated and underpriced in my opinion), you can get some +Recharge. Vengeance is great if you can spare the power pick; I am planning to squeeze it in somehow when I respec for Issue 11.
Flight
Fly is my favorite travel power, and the one I currently use; be prepared to spend a couple of slots to get flight speed to a reasonable level. Hover is another fine place to slot LotG 7.5% or Karma -KB. Air Superiority is the best attack in the power pools, but I wouldn't take it as the one thing you are not lacking with Gravity is single-target attacks.
Leaping
Super Leap is good if Fly is too slow for you but you still want vertical movement. Combat Jumping is yet another power that takes Defense sets. Acrobatics is less attractive than it once was since the introduction of -KB IOs, but you may still want the meagre hold protection.
Teleportation
Recall Friend is always useful, but I skipped it because it's usually safe to assume one of your teammates took it; its usefulness goes way up if you take Vengeance or Fallout, however. You can also use Recall Friend to reposition your Singularity without having to recast it, but I wouldn't pick it for that purpose alone. Teleport is very nice if you get used to it and are willing to slot it a bit for EndRdx and Range. Forget TP Foe; you have Wormhole.
Fighting
You don't need any more attacks, and focusing on your controls and Rad toggles is a better use of your endurance and power picks than the passive mitigation of Tough and Weave. Skip this pool unless your concept demands it.
Medicine
3/4 of the pool is right out as you already have a heal and a rez available from your secondary. It has been suggested there is a non-zero chance that there exists a universe in which a Rad controller might wish he had Stimulant, but I wouldn't bother.
Presence
All you get here is a couple of fear powers you don't need at the cost of at least one taunt you will never want to use. Skip it.
Concealment
Between the +Stealth IOs and the Hyper Phase temporary power from Siren's Call, this pool has become largely obsolete. Skip it.
8. Ancillary Power Pools
Also called Epic Power Pools, they become available at 41 and include powers you couldn't otherwise get as a Controller. I've only tried three of the five, but I will tell you what I think about the others anyway.
Fire Mastery
This is the Ancillary pool I picked first. Fire Ball is the reason to pick Fire Mastery; be sure to take Crushing Field for AoE containment. You also get Fire Blast (ST blast), Fire Shield (resist-based Smash/Lethal/Fire), and Consume (an end management tool you probably don't need). When I found myself using Fire Blast much more often than Fire Ball, I realized it was time to respec into something different.
Stone Mastery
Hurl Boulder is fun and the damage is great, but it's hard to justify taking another slow-animating short-range attack when you've already got Propel. Fissure only stuns minions by itself, and its short range and radius combined with Wormhole's knockback make stacking problematic; as an attack it is outclassed by Fire Ball. The real reasons to go for Stone Mastery are Rock Armor (def-based S/L) and Earth's Embrace (huge self heal with +HP). I've tried this pool on Test, but the defensive focus wasn't a good match for me.
Ice Mastery
Ice Blast is an excellent fast-animating attack. Frozen Armor is very similar to Rock Armor; you trade a very minor reduction in S/L defense for decent Cold resistance and negligible Fire resistance. Ice Storm would be the key power for me; even though you won't get Containment damage due to Ice Storm functioning as a pseudo-pet, your slows and controls will ensure that the mobs stay in place to take their punishment. I can't see myself using Hibernate (huge self +regen and +recovery, can't use powers or be hit) much, as if I'm dying I'm typically mezzed and thus unable to activate any powers; it's much better in the hands of a Tanker. I haven't actually tried Ice Mastery, so keep that in mind when considering my suggestions.
Psionic Mastery
I haven't taken this one either, but it is very tempting. Indomitable Will is the only way to get good self mez protection, and even though you can't make it permanent it should still be quite useful; plus you get 22.5% Psionic defense, which is quite a lot. Mind over Body has Psionic resistance to go with the S/L resists. Mental Blast has an annoyingly long animation, and Psionic Tornado is not quite as good as Fire Ball. Despite what you may have heard, Psionic resistance is actually fairly common among high-level mobs. Take this pool for the mez protection and Psionic resist/defence.
Primal Forces Mastery
This is the pool I'm currently using. Power Blast is just a little slower than Ice Blast or Fire Blast but it gets the job done. Temporary Invulnerability only gets you S/L resist (though at a higher rate than the other resist shields). Conserve Power, like Consume, is endurance management I have no need for. "Why did you take Primal Forces, then?" you might ask. The answer is the pool's fourth pick, Power Boost, which is so good it deserves its own paragraph.
Power Boost increases the base duration of your controls by 186.3%. Let me say that again; it increases the base duration of your controls by
186.3%. Take EM Pulse, for example. At level 50, the base duration is around 30 seconds. Fully enhanced, that goes up to almost 60 seconds; a more reasonable slotting which allowed for accuracy and recharge might get you to 45 seconds instead. Hitting PB first adds nearly a
full minute to that time, and it also increases the mobs' endurance loss (though it's not likely to matter, as they could quite possibly recover to full before the hold wears off!). PB also increases the power of Radiant Aura, and the +speed buffs of Accelerate Metabolism, but the main benefit is the control boost. With AM, Hasten, and recharge slotting, you can easily have Power Boost active one-third of the time, and you could potentially increase that to nearly one-half if you invest enough in +Recharge IO bonuses to hit the recharge cap.
9. Sample Build
This build is what I'm currently running, save a few pieces I haven't gotten my hands on yet. The enhancement levels aren't really all 50, either; I'm slotting whatever I can get affordably that is close enough to 50. I'm not really slotted for exemping at all; the focus is maximum effectiveness on the STF.
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.21
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.21
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php
Quark Compeller: Level 50 Science Controller
Primary Power Set: Gravity Control
Secondary Power Set: Radiation Emission
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Primal Forces Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Crush -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 1: Radiant Aura -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx:50(A)
, Dct'dW-Heal:50(3)
, Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(3)
, Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(5)
, Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg:50(5)
Level 2: Gravity Distortion -- G'Wdw-Acc/Rchg:50(A)
, G'Wdw-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(9)
, G'Wdw-Dam%:50(9)
, EoCur-Acc/Hold:50(11)
, EoCur-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(11)
, HO:Endo(13)
Level 4: Accelerate Metabolism -- EndMod-I:50(A)
, EndMod-I:50(13)
, EndMod-I:50(15)
, RechRdx-I:50(15)
, RechRdx-I:50(17)
, RechRdx-I:50(17)
Level 6: Radiation Infection -- HO:Enzym(A)
, HO:Enzym(7)
, HO:Enzym(7)
Level 8: Propel -- Entrpc-Acc/Dmg:35(A)
, Entrpc-Dmg/EndRdx:35(19)
, Entrpc-Dmg/Rchg:35(19)
, Entrpc-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:35(21)
, Entrpc-Heal%:35(21)
Level 10: Hover -- LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(A)
Level 12: Swift -- Flight-I:50(A)
Level 14: Fly -- Srng-Fly:50(A)
, Frbd-Stlth:50(23)
, Frbd-Fly:50(23)
Level 16: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:50(A)
, Mrcl-Rcvry+:40(25)
Level 18: Gravity Distortion Field -- G'Wdw-Acc/Rchg:50(A)
, G'Wdw-EndRdx/Hold:50(25)
, G'Wdw-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(27)
, EoCur-Acc/Hold:50(27)
, HO:Endo(29)
, RechRdx-I:50(29)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A)
, EndMod-I:50(31)
, EndMod-I:50(31)
Level 22: Enervating Field -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
, EndRdx-I:50(31)
Level 24: Lingering Radiation -- P'ngTtl-Acc/Slow:50(A)
, P'ngTtl-Acc/EndRdx:50(33)
, P'ngTtl--Rchg%:50(33)
, P'ngTtl-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow:50(33)
Level 26: Wormhole -- Stpfy-Acc/Rchg:50(A)
, Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun:50(34)
, Stpfy-Acc/EndRdx:50(34)
, Stpfy-Stun/Rng:50(34)
, Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg:50(36)
, RechRdx-I:50(36)
Level 28: Maneuvers -- RedFtn-Def/EndRdx:50(A)
, RedFtn-Def/Rchg:50(36)
, RedFtn-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:50(37)
, RedFtn-Def:50(37)
, RedFtn-EndRdx:50(37)
, LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(39)
Level 30: Tactics -- HO:Cyto(A)
, HO:Cyto(39)
, HO:Cyto(39)
Level 32: Singularity -- BldM'dt-Acc/Dmg:50(A)
, BldM'dt-Acc:50(40)
, SvgnRt-Acc/Dmg:50(40)
, SvgnRt-PetResDam:50(40)
, HO:Perox(42)
, HO:Perox(42)
Level 35: Hasten -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
, RechRdx-I:50(42)
, RechRdx-I:50(43)
Level 38: EM Pulse -- G'Wdw-Acc/Rchg:50(A)
, G'Wdw-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(43)
, G'Wdw-EndRdx/Hold:50(43)
, HO:Endo(45)
, RechRdx-I:50(45)
Level 41: Power Blast -- Decim-Acc/Dmg:40(A)
, Decim-Dmg/EndRdx:40(45)
, Decim-Dmg/Rchg:40(46)
, Decim-Build%:40(46)
, Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:40(46)
Level 44: Temp Invulnerability -- S'fstPrt-ResKB:30(A)
, ImpArm-ResDam:40(48)
, ImpArm-ResPsi:40(48)
, ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx:40(48)
, ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:30(50)
Level 47: Power Boost -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
, RechRdx-I:50(50)
, RechRdx-I:50(50)
Level 49: Mutation -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Containment
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]<ul type="square">[*]+2% DamageBuff[*]+1.88% Defense(Psionic)[*]+6.75% Max Endurance[*]+9% Enhancement(Accuracy)[*]+4% Enhancement(Heal)[*]+43.8% Enhancement(RechargeTime)[*]+2.5% Enhancement(Slow)[*]+3% Enhancement(Stun)[*]+103.9 (8.63%) HitPoints[*]+Knockback (Mag -4)[*]+MezResist(Confused) (Mag 2.75%)[*]+MezResist(Immobilize) (Mag 4.95%)[*]+MezResist(Sleep) (Mag 5.5%)[*]+MezResist(Terrorized) (Mag 3.85%)[*]+6.5% Recovery[*]+18% Regeneration[*]+2.52% Resistance(Fire)[*]+2.52% Resistance(Cold)[*]+3% Resistance(Psionic)[*]+15% RunSpeed[*]+PBAoE (20ft) Pet +Res(All but Psionic) 10%[/list]
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>| Copy & Paste this data chunk into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
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</pre><hr />
10. Acknowledgments
Thanks to Red Tomax for creating and maintaining
City of Data, a truly awesome resource.
Thanks to Enantiodromos, UnicyclePeon, Titan_III, magicj, and Local_Man for constructive criticism on the guide.
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