Heraclea
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Posts
2089 -
Joined
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SOs are like temporary dental fillings now. I buy them if I get a slots level while teamed, because they're easily had; but eventually, you're going to have to go back and have them replaced.
There are some low level IOs that may not even be replaced for a while. So what if your level 50 has a level 20 IO in Super Jump? Just as good as it ever was.
My MA oriented characters collect tickets and turn them in for common salvage in the right level ranges. I make a bunch of high priority generic IOs (accuracy, damage, endurance, recharge) with the resulting random rolled salvage and auction the rest. This way, the characters get the generic IOs they need for levelling and my MA characters get crafting badges.
Around level 35, I start planning for if the character is going to need sets, and if so, which ones. Some set IOs (Kinetic Combat, especially) have to be bought with merits, but I will buy others on the AH. Many of the higher priority sets in my build cap in the 30-40 range, so they can all be slotted without significant decrease in quality at that time. -
Quote:I am thinking of moving it out of base storage; it's only there for convenience' sake right now. But it's less costly, in one sense, to find four open salvage slots in the base whenever a character needs a set than it is to devote an entire salvage rack to it.Originally Posted by peterpeter
They've extended the Halloween event by a week and they're increasing the rate at which the Banner event happens. I think Halloween salvage just became an even worse investment than it already was. -
Quote:That's why they're popular --- as villains. There's no question about your motivation. "Nazis! I hate these guys."Originally Posted by KaliMagdalene
Words and symbols mean things. While the 5th Column are videogame characters, they're explicitly defined as fascists. That's one of the reasons they were so popular as villains (and why Nazis in general are popular as villains): Fascists tend to be so horrible that you just don't feel bad about punching them in the face.
The Council is just confusing. Some kind of "brain trust" in league with extradimensional aliens. They're semi-redundant to the Malta, the Rikti, and the Fifth Column as well. The Fifth Column have a one word backstory. They're fascists, and that's all you need to know. -
Quote:*Reduce text and UI size to around 80%.Originally Posted by Dispari
You just made a new character, and zoned into Atlas, Galaxy, Mercy, or the tutorial. What do you do now?
*Add global channels to the top chat window.
*Load defaults and generic bind templates. (F7 is still broken, need to fix that)
*Move the nav bar to the top left; put target immediately next to it.
*Open map display and shrink it so it fits under the nav bar.
*Claim all useful veteran powers. Try to remember not to activate the sprints; they just make respecs that much harder.
*Set up 3 trays: 1 for attacks, 2 for toggles and misc, 3 for travel powers and more misc.
*Write people on my global friends list who have characters in my SGs or VGs, asking them to log on to one so that I can get an invite sometime.
*Run tutorial.
*Go to Atlas Park or Mercy.
*Defeat a few Hellions or Snakes for pocket change.
*Use pocket change to list the Tutorial inspirations on the auction house.
*Street hunt, sewer, or AE until I hit level 5.
*Log out of that character. Most heroes go for the Arena and Pocket D day jobs first, so I log out in Galaxy or Kings. Villains go for the Arachnos Base day job.
When I get into the SG:
*Grab 10 random SOs from the task force AV bin, and sell them.
*Grab a set of Halloween salvage, and turn it in.
*Make 2d costume at IP Icon, which is actually a bit safer than trying to get to the Steel one. -
Quote:At least now, they're committing assault, which is an actual crime. Not sure if standing on a soapbox making a speech in a public street is probable cause to "arrest" anybody.Originally Posted by Jophiel
When they first came back to Steel Canyon (and points beyond) I jokingly asked if it was wrong to cheer them on. But honestly they're just game icons. They don't do anything besides mill around on the sidewalk, stand on cardboard boxes and now beat up on Council.
I've wondered elsewhere what kind of offenders we were going after. The mission that always made me wonder was the one where the Cabal have imprisoned ghosts in a warehouse that you must free. What's the statute that covers that one? How would you fill out the police report? -
In the street battles between the Council and the 5th Column, do the Council ever win one?
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It's been a while since I've seen a build this different from the standard consensus build. That's a good thing - if you are enjoying playing your character, that is excellent.
No, I don't recommend WP/EM. But if I made one I'd be tempted to go a very similar route: ignore most of the low level attacks and concentrate on pure survivability and aggro management, and be a pure meatshield for a team in the early levels. Willpower is the way to go for survivability in the pre-SO levels. If you know that your aura is not as strong as others, and that stuns can cause problems for you --- "knowing is half the battle."
You certainly have top drawer enhancements in your build. I would have taken Air Superiority instead of Hover --- between mandatory Barrage, Boxing, and Air Sup you would have three attacks before level 20. And even without throwing slots at them, they will still help you hold aggro, and there will be times you may need them.
Since you don't have all that many fast recharging, low damage attacks, you can probably get by on Quick Recovery alone. If you are focussing on regen, I'd still try to find a way to work in Fitness at least to Health: it is better than Physical Perfection, which is essentially 1/2 of Stamina and 1/2 of Health. Three slotted Health and Stamina get you more than six slotted Physical Perfection. -
Quote:Martial Arts gets its knockback attached to its big, early attack, the one you aren't going to want or postpone or skip. And it's knockback, not knockdown. You will end up chasing mobs over the map or into the next spawn over. This is unhelpful.Originally Posted by Sailboat
While I get what you're saying, it's weird to me that Martial Arts' mix of knockdown, knockback, and stun is widely regarded as a knock against it, but you regard Mace's mix of knockdown and stun as a strength.
Stun can cause issues for Willpower tankers, and generally doesn't help Fire tankers (Fire/Axe > Fire Mace). On the other hand, it is guaranteed to stop a mob from acting for as long as it lasts, and especially in the 40+ game this is important. Knockdown may not last long enough for a tanker to kill that Sapper. An Axe tanker may need to work in Char or something similar. Mace has it taken care of. -
Quote:5% every time Rage cycles; and since Rage is likely to be in the damage crash when it cycles, adding a build up will not achieve a great deal.Originally Posted by StarHero
does Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control: chance for bluid-up give it's 5% every 10 seconds while rage is up, or only 5% every time the power is activatied?
thankyou all, came back after off for two years and trying to update my bluid.
If you are Invulnerability, it belongs in Invincibility. There, it can procs every 10 seconds. -
Quote:Shield/Mace and Shield/Axe are both very good, and nicely high concept. My first shield tanker is Shield/Mace.Originally Posted by Victus75
I almost went with /Axe instead of /Mace, but I liked the Warhammer look with my toon best. The crunch sound you get when you hit is very gratifying!
I would give Mace a slight edge over Axe in the higher levels. Now that their damage has been fairly much equalized, Mace's combination of stun and knockdown is more versatile than Axe's pure knockdown. An Axe tanker might want Char or a similar ranged hold in the 41+ levels. Mace gets Clobber in the secondary.
I still hope for Shield/Broadsword, because I want Parry in a tanker secondary. -
Shield/Electric has been a lot of fun for me. Two self-teleporting AoE attacks make it easy to deal with the threat of close multiple spawns, and lots of multi target attacks make it easy to hold aggro. Shield is not the toughest primary, but it is quite adequately tough out of the box, and is just a few points shy of the soft cap when you add Weave and Combat Jumping.
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Quote:This may send all salvage prices down even further, and may ripple through the rest of the "economy" as well.Originally Posted by peterpeter
That is a very depressing possibility for those of us who invested unwisely.
I've stored seven full sets in my blueside SG base, which is probably more than enough for the coming year. The rest will probably just be held by the characters who got it, to replenish the stock as needed, assuming I make seven more characters. So something has to be done with the salvage that they displaced. -
Quote:Ice melee is easily superior to energy melee currently, at least for team tanking. Ice Patch, Frozen Aura, and Freezing Touch are easily superior to Stun or Whirling Hands, although they come later in your build.Originally Posted by KaliMagdalene
Huh, my experience with Dark Regen is not like that at all - I've been able to use it effectively from 17 onwards on brutes and a scrapper.
I can't say anything wrt energy melee, though. I find soloing on my ice/stone tanker excruciating enough, and find it hard to believe that em could be more annoying than that.
I made my dark armor tanker Dark/Ice; while that tanker is not the toughest by any stretch of the imagination; she is a pure melee controller. If the team helps to keep her standing, she can keep any team safe. I wouldn't even bother trying to solo that combination though.
If I could re-roll my Fire/EM tanker into a Fire/Ice tanker, I would do so in a heartbeat. Ice actually helps Fire. EM does not. -
Quote:If you roll Willpower/EM, build for soloing.Originally Posted by KaliMagdalene
I was thinking of Willpower or Dark Armor. Probably Dark Armor.
Stuns create issues for Willpower tankers; because your aura taunt lasts just over a second, compared to the twelve seconds other auras get, any mob that wanders away is a mob you probably lost aggro on. You might be able to keep most of them with Gauntlet if you're allowed to herd tight, but that may take more patience than most teams seem to have currently.
On the other side, you shouldl not have issues with the slight damage you take from Energy Transfer. WP/EM is not a farming build by any stretch of the imagination; you will find it quite tedious to take out an 8 person spawn one at a time, even though you will probably survive it; especially since they will scatter as you attack them. -
Quote:Energy Melee used to be a good choice for the tanker that wanted good single target damage. It was essentially a one-trick pony, and now it can't perform its one trick any more.Originally Posted by KaliMagdalene
I see people complain about it here and there: What changed to cause such unrest?
The animations and activation time of Energy Transfer was made longer without making its generic Build Up last any longer. Barrage now takes six seconds to recharge, and that's the attack you are made to take at level 1. You can no longer stun a boss with Total Focus. Playing the set feels like swimming in molasses; you don't get a fast recharging filler attack with the set any more. I recommend having a browser window available for after BU-ET-TF are done; it will take half a minute for them to return.
The stun mechanic is not all that valuable, and that's the only secondary mitigation the set has. If stunned mobs stayed put, it would not be a problem, but they run; this does nothing for Fire tankers, and makes Willpower lose aggro. You get one of the weakest AoE powers in the set.
The animation time changes do specifically harm sets like Fire and Dark that depend on self heals, especially since the usual method is to cue up BU-ET-TF, and that sequence now takes more than seven seconds to finish now. It also creates a worse problem of spending your best attacks on dead targets on teams.
Steer as far away from this useless set as you can. -
All the drops I've gotten are from mob defeats in the Trick. I have gotten no salvage from the doors themselves.
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Quote:I'm probably pretty much an average player. There are a variety of things the game offers, and that I seek to do. There are others things that players do, that I generally avoid.Originally Posted by Fury Flechette
I see the phrase "casual player" thrown around a lot when discussing issues about game balance, the market and IOs; however, I've yet to see a clear definition of what constitutes a casual player.
I do not farm. I do or don't powerlevel, based on your definition; I do try to level on task forces rather than soloing, and run a task force almost every day. My level 50s are relatively neglected, at least once I get them to where I want them. It's time then to build a new power set. I have PvPed in the arena maybe three times, enter the zones only for PvE goals like shivans, and have run gladiator arena matches exactly once. I collect badges, especially for accolades, but I have no interest in collecting some like the debuffed Ouroboros mission ones.
I do collect set bonuses, but not purples; generally the characters I want set bonuses for need defense more than they need regeneration or recharge, and I try to have the endurance uniques to take care of that problem.
During the past several months I have been avoiding the auction house, or using it only as a dump for unwanted junk. Over the last month or so, it seems to have become relatively more useful.
I decided to designate one character as the bursar blueside and redside. Unwanted but potentially valuable recipe drops now get crafted to get sold by the bursar. This way, the inf accumulates on one character rather than being scattered, so more expensive purchases can be made if desired. I haven't made more than about a 150 million so far, because I'm not interested in accumulating inf all that much. If I sold all the set IOs I have in storage waiting for a character to level up far enough to use them, I probably would be closer to a billion. But then I wouldn't have my IOs.
I do a few more recipe rolls now, mostly with leftovers after specifics are bought, but the process frustrates me. If a level 50 rolls with merits they get a max level recipe rather than something a levelling character could use. Since most merit purchases and rolls are intended for characters other than the one holding the merits, I prefer to save them.
I don't consider myself a hard core player, mostly because I have no interest in joining the billionaires, manipulating the market, soloing GMs, AVs, or pylons, or making PvP builds.
I do think that market prices are too high, and that some kind of controls ought to be in place to make sure that even the most expensive IOs and recipes are purchasable with the inf that drops from defeating mobs while levelling or running ordinary content. That, to me, is normative play. Farming, manipulating the market, and similar sorts of play lie outside the boundaries of what I consider normal. To the extent that you can't afford recipes with the inf that comes from defeating mobs, inf has too little value and the game has a problem that the devs need to address. You usually hear the "there are no casual players" line from marketters and RMT apologists. -
Quote:I've done the ITF so many times that non-Nictus Rommie is "The Rooster" and Requiem is "Shorty". Pulling Rommie on mission 3 often results in a number of Alice in Chains puns.Originally Posted by El_Spark
Do you have any in-joke slang terms from your time in CoX?
I usually have one bind dedicated to interrupting Rommie's cut scene. "So you're Nictus. I bet your momma's so proud."
But both Hopkins (Manticore) and Vandal (Citadel) are just "Fatso". -
In the old days, I didn't pick Rage for concept reasons. Yes, this was a reason why I slotted up Accuracy. I still do. I just found that build because it was very basic, worked well enough for a long time, and was adequately tough without IO sets.
This build uses sets, and is designed with the current sidekicking system in mind:
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.601
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Heraclea build 2: Level 50 Magic Tanker
Primary Power Set: Invulnerability
Secondary Power Set: Super Strength
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Temp Invulnerability -- RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx:40(A), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg:40(9), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:40(11), RctvArm-ResDam:40(13), RctvArm-EndRdx:40(15)
Level 1: Jab -- KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg:35(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx:35(3), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:35(7), KntkC'bat-Knock%:35(37), Acc-I:50(43)
Level 2: Dull Pain -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(3), RechRdx-I:50(34), Heal-I:50(34), Heal-I:50(34), Heal-I:50(36)
Level 4: Haymaker -- Mako-Acc/Dmg:35(A), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg:35(5), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:35(5), P'ngFist-Acc/Dmg:25(13), P'ngFist-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:25(36), P'ngFist-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:25(43)
Level 6: Air Superiority -- S'ngH'mkr-Acc/Dmg:35(A), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/EndRdx:35(7), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/Rchg:35(36), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:35(37), P'ngS'Fest-Acc/Dmg:30(43), P'ngS'Fest-Stun%:30(48)
Level 8: Unyielding -- RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx:40(A), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg:40(9), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:40(11), RctvArm-ResDam:40(15), RctvArm-EndRdx:40(33)
Level 10: Swift -- Run-I:50(A)
Level 12: Taunt -- Mocking-Taunt:50(A), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg:50(37), Mocking-Taunt/Rng:50(46), Mocking-Rchg:50(46)
Level 14: Fly -- Zephyr-Travel:50(A), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx:50(48)
Level 16: Health -- Heal-I:50(A), Heal-I:50(17), Heal-I:50(17), Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:50(40)
Level 18: Invincibility -- GftotA-Def/EndRdx:40(A), GftotA-Def/Rchg:40(19), GftotA-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:40(19), GftotA-Def:40(45), Taunt-I:50(45), GSFC-Build%:50(50)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A), EndMod-I:50(21), P'Shift-EndMod:50(21), P'Shift-End%:50(45)
Level 22: Knockout Blow -- S'ngH'mkr-Acc/Dmg:35(A), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/EndRdx:35(23), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/Rchg:35(23), S'ngH'mkr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:35(25), P'ngS'Fest-Acc/Dmg:30(25), P'ngS'Fest-Dmg/EndRdx:30(33)
Level 24: Boxing -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 26: Tough Hide -- DefBuff-I:50(A), DefBuff-I:50(27), DefBuff-I:50(27)
Level 28: Rage -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(29), RechRdx-I:50(29), Rec'dRet-Pcptn:20(46)
Level 30: Tough -- RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx:40(A), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg:40(31), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:40(31), RctvArm-ResDam:40(31), RctvArm-EndRdx:40(33)
Level 32: Resist Physical Damage -- ImpArm-ResDam:40(A), ImpArm-ResPsi:40(50)
Level 35: Resist Energies -- ImpArm-ResDam:40(A), ImpArm-ResPsi:40(50)
Level 38: Foot Stomp -- M'Strk-Acc/Dmg:50(A), M'Strk-Dmg/EndRdx:50(39), M'Strk-Dmg/Rchg:50(39), M'Strk-Acc/EndRdx:50(39), M'Strk-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(40), M'Strk-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:50(40)
Level 41: Weave -- GftotA-Def/EndRdx:40(A), GftotA-EndRdx/Rchg:40(42), GftotA-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:40(42), GftotA-Def:40(42)
Level 44: Resist Elements -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+:30(A)
Level 47: Conserve Power -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(48)
Level 49: Physical Perfection -- P'Shift-End%:50(A)
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Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Gauntlet -
Quote:Actually, I was thinking more of Emma Peel than Lara Croft, but I can see the similarities.Originally Posted by mousedroid
Anyway, I like MaHaBone23's suggested bio (sorry Heraclea - yours is maybe a little too close to Laura Croft), so with a little tweaking, I'll probably use that.
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Quote:Bang-Bang, oriignally Emma Doughty, daughter of the British baron and industrialist Sir Nigel Doughty, entered Her Majesty's secret service after graduating with top honors from Cambridge with top marks in Organic Chemistry and Modern Languages. She frequently poses as a fashion reporter, and uses this disguise to win access to the conclaves of the rich and powerful, where their secrets are an open book to her.Originally Posted by mousedroid
OK, I'll give this a shot in anticipation of a character I'm going to create once Going Rogue hits:
1. Name: Bang-Bang and gender: female.
2. Archetype: blaster and power sets: dual pistols and (most likely) devices, including pools: unknown as of now.
3. Origin: natural.
4. A quick description of their appearance: 6' tall, athletically-built caucasian woman with short blue hair (possibly a wig). She wears tinted glasses that hide her eyes, a black patent-leather bodysuit, a gun belt, a dark purple suede leather jacket and dark purple patent leather boots. -
I'll have a go at this. I have great banter binds for this character, but thus far I've been at a loss to write a sufficiently awesome biography.
Name: Baroness Munchhausen. Female
Powersets: Electrical Melee / Shield Defense (scrapper)
Origin: Mutation
Appearance: typical Heraclea character, fairly tall and robust, long black hair. Wears an English monocle. Three costumes so far:
- black minidress with fishnets and high heeled boots
- black buckled leather
- tan jacket over black tank top, camo slacks and duster hat.
Shield logo is the "Bird" heraldic eagle.
Some of her sample binds:
"You cannot win, $target. I once defeated the entire Red Chinese army with a packet of Alka-Seltzer."
"Remind this $target about how I held off a thousand ninjas in Macao with a nail file."
"Don't try to climb K2 like I did, $target. I broke a heel."
"In the Peruvian Andes, we used to use $targets as bait in the tarrasque traps."
"I taught Ms. Liberty everything she knows, $target. About fighting, anyways. That trick with the jello shots was her own idea." -
Quote:Costumes - no; when costume pieces are added, I add them.Originally Posted by MechaCrash
As time has passed, new powersets, ATs, and costume bits have been added. Sometimes something that's a better fit than what you have now comes out and wish you could've rolled that instead.
Now, the most thematic combination for Heraclea would have been Super Strength/Super Reflex scrapper. Were the alternative Martial Arts animations available for Scrappers, so she could throw punches as well as kicks, I might have settled for that. -
Quote:Because this is a tanker build and you don't have a choice but to take Jab.Originally Posted by Laevateinn
Out of curiosity, why Jab and not Punch, since the build already has boxing, AS and brawl? There's no shortage of fast-recharging melee attacks there.
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Quote:This basic build served me well for many years.Originally Posted by Slippeh
I've done atleast 5 respecs and I can't seem to make a good SS/Invul tank for PvE....can anyone help me?
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.401
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Heraclea old: Level 50 Magic Tanker
Primary Power Set: Invulnerability
Secondary Power Set: Super Strength
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Temp Invulnerability -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(5), ResDam(7), ResDam(13), ResDam(15)
Level 1: Jab -- Acc(A), Dmg(31), EndRdx(42), Acc(43), Dmg(43), Dmg(43)
Level 2: Dull Pain -- RechRdx(A), Heal(3), RechRdx(3), Heal(13), RechRdx(15), Heal(37)
Level 4: Haymaker -- Acc(A), EndRdx(5), Acc(7), Dmg(34), Dmg(34), Dmg(36)
Level 6: Swift -- Run(A)
Level 8: Unyielding -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(9), ResDam(9), ResDam(45), ResDam(46)
Level 10: Hasten -- RechRdx(A), RechRdx(11), RechRdx(11)
Level 12: Air Superiority -- Acc(A), Dmg(25), Dmg(33), Dmg(37), Acc(48), EndRdx(50)
Level 14: Super Speed -- Run(A)
Level 16: Health -- Heal(A), Heal(17), Heal(17)
Level 18: Invincibility -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(19), DefBuff(19), Taunt(31), DefBuff(46), DefBuff(46)
Level 20: Knockout Blow -- Acc(A), EndRdx(21), Acc(21), Dmg(31), Dmg(33), Dmg(33)
Level 22: Stamina -- EndMod(A), EndMod(23), EndMod(23)
Level 24: Boxing -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(25)
Level 26: Tough -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(27), ResDam(27), ResDam(34), ResDam(37)
Level 28: Tough Hide -- DefBuff(A), DefBuff(29), DefBuff(29)
Level 30: Resist Energies -- ResDam(A)
Level 32: Resist Elements -- ResDam(A)
Level 35: Hurl -- Acc(A), EndRdx(36), Acc(36), Dmg(40), Dmg(48), Range(48)
Level 38: Foot Stomp -- Acc(A), RechRdx(39), Acc(39), Dmg(39), Dmg(40), Dmg(40)
Level 41: Conserve Power -- RechRdx(A), RechRdx(42), RechRdx(42)
Level 44: Weave -- EndRdx(A), EndRdx(45), DefBuff(45), DefBuff(50), DefBuff(50)
Level 47: Taunt -- Taunt(A)
Level 49: Resist Physical Damage -- ResDam(A)
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Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Gauntlet