HotButteredSoul

Seismic (aka Sonic) Resonance
Sonics, also known as “ringers” for the rings orbiting around them and those nearby, are widely misunderstood. Let’s take care of that problem right here and now.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Siphon
Available at Level: 1
Accuracy: 1
Range: 80
Endurance: 8.53
Recharge: 16
Duration: 30 seconds

“By setting up a constant vibration within the body of your foe, you weaken his Damage Resistance. Affected targets will take more damage from successful attacks.”

A very good power, which is fortunate since this is a mandatory pick. Pretend you were about to get into a boxing match with a kangaroo in a football uniform. I would bet on the kangaroo, I’m sorry to say, but let’s also say that before that fight began, a little bit of fairy dust was handed to you that you could blow on the Gridiron Marsupial that would disintegrate her football pads. That is what Seismic Siphon will do for you. Specifically, it reduces a target’s smashing, lethal, fire, cold, energy, negative energy, psionic and toxic resistance by 22.5% (for you defenders out there, yours does 30%)!!

We now interrupt this program with a word from our sponsor:

Puzzled by damage resistance debuffs? Uncertain of what they mean? At boards.cityofheroes.com we educate and empower those seeking knowledge in the ways of CoX. Consider the following:
<ul type="square">[*]Damage buffs all boost a power’s BASE damage. Take a power that does 10 points of base damage. A defender’s siphon power would damage buff that power by 25%, resulting in a new and improved 12.5 point damage attack! Now imagine that power with 3 green damage SOs in it. To make things easy lets just say they provide a 100% damage increase. That would mean the power now does 20 points of damage. Let’s let that defender siphon power again. How much will the attack do? If you said 22.5 points, you are correct! The reason is that damage buffs only buff the BASE damage, not the enhancement damage. Damage enhancements are not base damage. Neither are inspirations, Build-Up powers, or Aim powers.[*] Damage resistance debuffs boost the GROSS damage your attacks do. This makes them more effective, percentage per percentage point, than pure damage buffs like Siphon Power and Fulcrum Shift. Let’s take that 10 point power again. Hit the enemy with a 22.5% resistance debuf and then attack and you’ll do, yes, 12.25 points of damage! However, imagine slotting your 10 point attack with three damage SOs, then attacking the enemy after a 22.5% resistance debuff. How much damage will you do? If you said 24.5 points of damage, you are correct! This may not seem like much, but it adds up. Deprive an enemy of 45% damage resistance and suddenly that 100 point scrapper attack is doing 145!!! Pretty cool. And get this: damage resistance debuffs have a separate cap from damage buffs. Thus, while your blaster friend is capping his damage with Aim, Build Up, and inspirations, you can help him do damage beyond the cap by dropping enemy damage resistances. Wow! Who likes it when their blaster buddy does 580% damage? Raise your hands! Yep.[/list]We now return to our normally scheduled programming

Seismic Siphon does not self stack from the same caster. It’s not like Kinetics’ Siphon Power, which does. As you can imagine, if it did it would become way too powerful. You’ll know it’s working if you see a little red shield on your victim. Poor sod.

Finally, in those rare situations where you’ll need to be the one to pull, this is the power to use. It won’t lock the target down, it’ll get his attention, and it won’t affect the surrounding meanies.

Recommended Slotting: 1-2 accuracy.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Barrier
Available at Level: 2
Range: 80
Endurance: 7.8
Recharge: 2
Duration: 240 seconds

“This shield dramatically reduces the damage an ally takes from Smashing, Lethal, and Toxic attacks for a limited time. You cannot stack multiple Sonic Barriers on the same target; however, the shield can be improved by another ally using the same power.”

Boost your teammates’ resistances to smashing, lethal and.. get this.. sewage (toxic) by 15%. Drop three SOs in this and you’ll give them 23.4% resistance (for defenders the numbers are 20% base and 31.2% with 3 SOs). Pretty nice. Only drawback: you can’t use it on yourself. You can use it on Gretchen, however. Though it doesn't self-stack on a teammate, it will stack with another sonic's barrier. Another bonus: it looks like you’re screaming at your mates when you activate it. You want this power.

Recommended Slotting: 3 damage resistance, 0-1 endurance reducers.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Haven
Available at Level: 4
Range: 80
Endurance: 7.8
Recharge: 2
Duration: 240 seconds

“This shield dramatically reduces the damage an ally takes from Fire, Cold, Energy, and Negative Energy attacks for a limited time. You cannot stack multiple Sonic Havens on the same target; however, the shield can be improved by another ally using the same power.”

This boosts your teammates’ resistances to fire, cold, energy, and negative energy by 15%. Triple SOs will boost this to 23.4% (for defenders the numbers are 20% base and 31.2% with 3 SOs). Like Barrier, this power does not self stack. Notice, between Barrier and Haven, psionic damage isn’t covered. Make sure your team knows this when they mess with monkeys or Mother Mayhem. Fortunately for Earth/Sonics, our pet laughs at psionic damage. Not even a Dark Armor scrapper can compare (btw, I love DA scrappers).

Like barrier, you can’t use this on yourself. A shame. Get it anyway.

Recommended Slotting: 3 damage resistance, 0-1 endurance reducers.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Cage
Available at Level: 10
Accuracy: 1.4
Range: 80
Endurance: 12.48
Recharge: 60
Duration: 30 seconds (15 PvP)

“Encases the target in an impenetrable field of sonic waves. The target cannot attack or be attacked.”

If you’re going to PvP, you’ll dig this. Nothing like caging some poor stalker like an obese mouse, mixing up a Soup of Death beneath him, and waiting for the cage to drop as your hero friends gather like hungry foxes to tear him apart. It’s quite lovely. In PvE it’s nice to remove a meanie from a spawn by dropping this, but you won’t find too much use for it once you get close to 20. From 10-18, it can help, however. My favorite use post 18: caging FF generators, DE eminators, or anything whose effects buff your enemies. The cage cuts off the buff!

This power basically puts an enemy in timeout. Most skip this power, as it generally irritates teammates who have a difficult time understanding that the floating word “unaffected” means “stop attacking this target, Einstein.” It’s worth it to inform your partners-in-crime-fighting that an enemy wearing a translucent hula-hoop is one that can’t be attacked at the moment.

Recommended Slotting: 1 acc, PvE
2-3 acc, 0-3 recharge PvP.

Disruption Field
Available at Level: 16
Range: 70
Endurance: 0.52/tick
Recharge: 8
Radius: 15 feet
Duration: toggle

“You set up a constant wave of sonic energy around an ally, weakening the Damage Resistance of all nearby foes.”

For some reason Enervating Field gets most of the press. Acid Arrow gets the rest. Disruption Field is arguably better than both and even Disease Control’s Montezuma's Revenge power. However, Freezing Rain it is not. The specifics?

Disruption Field is anchored to a teammate (or your stoney). Any enemy found within range suffers a 22.5% (30% for you defenders) hit to smashing, lethal, fire, cold, energy, negative, psionic, and toxic damage resistance. Enervating Field and Acid Arrow could be called comparable debuffs, but they both lack the Disruption Field advantages:
<ul type="square">[*]It goes to the right spot without you having to direct it or re-activate it. Put it on a capable teammate, and he’ll run into the thick of the enemy while you worry about other things.[*]It doesn’t go away. How many frustrated radiation controllers and defenders watch as their anchors get slaughtered? How many times does an archer shoot his arrow to make sure the acid is refreshed? Disruption Field stays on as long as you and your anchor are alive and in range of one-another without any button-mash overhead.[/list]Use this in conjunction with Seismic Siphon and you’ll be doing -45% damage resistance to your target. That is what I call, “very nice.”

Now the Surgeon General Warnings: Disruption Field generates aggro towards YOU, not your anchor. It’s kinda like your anchor is your contract killer, but he’s wearing a mask with your face on it. Thus, the affected enemies want to pay you a special visit. Oh no! Fortunately, Taunt and Gauntlet are stronger aggro magnets than Disruption Field. So place it on a tank or a dwarf. In a pinch you can use it on a scrapper, especially one with a PBAoE like Death Shroud or Quills… just stay out of sight until the scrap has the full attention of the enemy, or power it up once you have your controls down. Moreover, beware the herd-happy tanker. Some tanks believe the more they herd the better. The problem is, should he get too large a group he will fail to aggro everyone, and the leftovers will be coming for you. One more warning: remember to turn it off when your team is stealthing or traveling long distances. If the tank runs by some pile of enemies with her taunt aura down and speeds off, guess who those angry heathens will come swarming after? You.

Also, the power makes sound waves shoot out of your hands. It’s friggin neato in a Speedo. Get it.

Recommended Slotting: 3 endurance reducers.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Dispersion
Available at Level: 20
Range: Player based
Endurance: 0.26/tick
Recharge: 15
Radius: 25 feet
Duration: toggle

“You create a large field of sonic waves, protecting all allies inside. The Sonic Dispersion gives all allies within increased Resistance against all damage except Psionic. The Sonic Bubble also protects allies from Immobilization, Disorient, and Hold effects.”

Ah yes… finally some defense for yourself. It provides you and all friends within 25 feet of you resistance to smashing, lethal, fire, cold, energy, negative, and toxic damage at a clip of 11.25% base, 17.55% with three damage resistance SOs (defenders have 15% base and 23.4% enhanced). Wait! That’s not all! It also provides resistance from holds, stun, and immobilize.

Take this power and love it. Nothing like mezz protection. And sure we’ll take the damage resistance on top.

Between this and your seismic shields, you can boost your teammates’ resistances by over 40%! Squishy group hug!! Run this at all times. Be aware, this shield, like your other ones, does not protect against psionic damage.

Recommended Slotting: 3 damage resistance, 1-3 endurance reducers.

Seismic (aka Sonic) Repulsion
Available at Level: 28
Range: 70
Endurance: 0.52/tick + 2.5 per enemy repulsed
Recharge: 8
Radius: 10 feet
Duration: toggle

“You create a powerful sonic resonance around an ally, repelling all foes nearby. You will lose endurance for each target repelled.”

Know those nights when you want to get out and about, but you just don’t have it in you to party all night? A movie theatre sounds a little stagnant but a club too much. What do you do? Well, you play CoX!!! Okay, before you got CoX what did you do? You went… BOWLING!

Drop this on a teammate and watch the enemies go flying. It’s fun, it’s laugh-inducing, and you can make a buck video capturing the results and sending the tape to America’s Funniest Home Videos.

This power can nullify foes who aren’t knockback resistant. That frightening boss without knockback is now your comrade’s basketball. In PvP this potentially helps, but most of your enemies will have knockback protection. That empath who is buffing you and the new target of the villains can possibly bounce his way to safety. Then again, who in PvP doesn’t have some knockback protection?

It’s pretty fun but it can quickly leave you winded, especially if you are running the other two seismic toggles.

Frankly, I didn’t take this power. But you definitely should try it on test just for fun.

Recommended Slotting: 3 endurance reducers, 0-3 knockback.

Clarity
Available at Level: 35
Range: 70
Endurance: 5.2
Recharge: 4
Duration: 90 seconds

“By bouncing a carefully pitched sound wave off an ally's ear drum, you can free him from any Disorient, Hold, Sleep, Confusion, Fear, or Immobilize effects, and leave him resistant to such effects for a good while. Protection will improve with multiple applications.”

I can see clearly now the rain is goooonnnneee. Sing along!!! Freedom from stun, sleep, immobilize, hold, confusion, and fear, plus a perception boost. In other words, it’s Clear Mind without the purple head. Take it, use it. For PvP in Warbug and beyond, your team will rub on your for it. There are those stalkers who know to look for the purple aura of Clear Mind, but don’t know how to identify Clarity. Into range they will come, thinking they are stealthy, only to take a quick trip to the hospital. Do not worry, my seismic siblings… I will not tell them what it looks like. Ha!

Recommended Slotting: 1 recharge or 1 range or 1 endurance reducer.

Liquefy
Available at Level: 38
Accuracy: 1
Range: 60
Endurance: 23.4
Recharge: 300
Radius: 25 feet
Damage Scale: 0.45 Smashing + 0.45 Energy = 0.9 Total (2.5 BI)
Duration: 30 seconds

“You unleash a barrage of sonic waves on the Earth itself, generating a powerful, localized earthquake. The impact of the sonic shockwave may Hold some foes and deal some minor damage. Most foes that pass through the location will fall down. The violent shaking…”

Doesn’t this description sound like Earthquake’s big mean brother? How I drooled, wringing my hands in anticipation waiting to get my hands on this power. Then I experienced it. What did it do? It knocked down some enemies, held some others, and before I knew it, they had all freed up and run out of the AoE, only to wave their armpits in my face. Very disappointing.

However, with a little work and education, I found out some interesting things and a nice use for Liquefy, the final ingredient in Death Soup. I will now let you in on the mystery that is Liquefy. The specifics:

When cast Liquefy tries to hit all within its range. If it hits, a 4-5 second hold ensues with smashing damage and energy damage. A knockdown component activates as well. Yep. It does those three things, none of them well. What it does do well is the following: it reduces recharge time on enemy powers by 20%, it drops enemy defense by 25%, and it drops enemy accuracy by 25%. Check it out: it does the cool stuff without a to-hit roll. That’s right… weak stuff needs the to-hit roll, cool stuff doesn’t. Now we’re talking!

Imagine this: A pile of bosses. Drop Volcanic Gasses, then Liquefy, and their holds stack, freezing several bosses quickly! Yay Liquefy! Add Quicksand to the mix and you have the recipe for, you guessed it, Death Soup.

Now, imagine this: You take on a group, quickly Quicksanding and Earthquaking them into submission. However, another nearby spawn sees you and starts their attack… nothing that Stalagmites, Stones Cages, and a follow-up of Volcanic Gasses can’t cure. Then, a moment later… an ambush. Oh no! Earthquake is recharging, Volcanic Gasses and Stalagmites are too, and you respec’d out of Stone Crystals! Not to worry. Liquefy knocks down the ambush and holds some of them. Stone Cages locks them in place so they don’t run away. Now you have an ambush of to-hit debuffed enemies that have nowhere to run. They shoot at you but very few hit. Good work!

Recommended Slotting: 3 recharges, 3 to-hit debuff. Sure you could slot defense debuff, but why bother when your primary is Earth Control?

Earth Control Powers
The mother of AoE controlling. There have been many guides covering this set. What can I say? Here’s another:

Containment
Available at Level: Inherent

“Controllers are the masters at locking down and controlling their opponents. Few can escape their will. Controllers do extra damage to any target that is already Held, Immobilized, Slept, or Disoriented.”

Okay, this power isn’t specific to Earth. It is specific to controllers. Critical damage for anything that is locked down? I’ll take it! Remember: if you lock something down, you’ll do double damage to it. That’s right, +100%. Know that you don't have to be the originator of the lockdown. If it's locked down, you'll get the containment bonus. Also notice that "fear" isn't listed as a condition for containment.

Sometimes the best things in life are free.

Fossilize
Available at Level: 1
Accuracy: 1.2
Range: 80
Endurance: 8.53
Recharge: 8
Damage Scale: 1.0 Smashing Damage (2.77778 BI)
Duration: 22 seconds (15 PvP)

“Encases a single target within solid stone. The stone slowly crushes the victim, dealing Smashing damage. The Fossilized victim is held helpless and unable to defend himself.”

The single target hold for Earth is a staple for all 50 levels of your journey. Consider this your desert island classic. You know… if you were trapped on a desert island with an Ogre and you could take only one earth power, what would it be? It would be this one. Note that Fossilize does not hold a target until it is on the ground. Why “until?” Because if you Fossilize a target and that target subsequently touches the ground before the Fossilize wears off, the hold will activate! How do you get those fliers on the ground? Stone Prison and Stone Cages will do just that for you. Which one you toss out first, your immobilize or fossilize, makes little difference on a flier.

Fossilize happens to be one of your best damage powers before you get your pet. If you decide to solo much, consider slotting damage instead of hold durations in this power pre-32. Then again, don’t solo much.

Wait, that’s not all! Not only will your victim will be locked in place, he will be resistant to knockback and, therefore, energy blast relocation and other knockback attacks. Even better: a 20% hit to your target’s defense. Yep… that Ogre will soon have lots to talk about with Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Recommended Slotting: 2 acc, 2-3 hold durations, 1-2 recharge.
Soloist slotting: 1-2 acc, 3 damage, 1-2 recharge.

Stone Prison
Available at Level: 1
Accuracy: 1.2
Range: 80
Endurance: 7.8
Recharge: 4
Damage Scale: 5 * 0.2 ticks = 1.0 Smashing Damage over 9.2 seconds (2.77778 BI)
Duration: 28 seconds (18 PvP)

“Immobilizes a single target within an earthy formation and deals some Smashing damage over time. Some more resilient foes may require multiple attacks to Immobilize. Stone Prison can also reduce a target's Defense.”

The single target immobilize for Earth is considered optional to some. Why take it when you can take the AoE immob at level 2 and halt an entire group in its tracks? The logic makes sense. Think about it: what if you want to keep a pack of Vahz immobilized in Freezing Rain, or stuck next to a Mort suffering from Radiation Infection, or cooking in Burn? An AoE immobilize will suit you better than a single target version of that power. Right?

I hate to break it to you, but you don’t have any of those powers! If you know you’ll be partnering with a Fiery Aura tank or Storm Summoning or Radiation Emission character, maybe then prioritize Stone Cages. However, you are a Sonic. You won’t get Liquefy until level 38 or an AoE damage attack until 41. Sure Stone Cages pairs nicely with Stalagmites, but it can definitely wait until level 22 or so and you won’t miss it.

You will miss Stone Prison. Having the ability to immobilize one villain without aggravating an entire spawn is a very useful talent. In addition, having a power that recharges every 4 seconds, uses little endurance, and can stack quickly to give you containment and immobilize magnitude makes for a very useful tool indeed, especially in those moments when you’re forced to solo. This might happen to you: your entire team might leave your Positron TF 5 defeat all missions from the end and, at level 14, you’ll be forced to solo the rest. No I’m not bitter… that much. If Fossilize is your hammer, Stone Prison is how you hold the nail. Take it early and love it.

Not only will it immobilize, it too has a -20% defense penalty to your victim. It nullifies knockback, but it will neuter knockdown too. Do not use it on top of things like Earthquake or Ice Slick unless your target is also held or soon-to-be held. Wait, there’s more! It drops fliers, which makes it a very useful in combination with Fossilize.

Recommended Slotting: 2 accuracies. Durations aren’t needed with a 4 second recharge time.
Soloist slotting: 1-2 accuracies, 3 damage.

Stone Cages
Available at Level: 2
Accuracy: 0.9
Range: 80
Endurance: 15.6
Recharge: 8
Radius: 30 feet
Damage Scale: 3 * 0.1 = 0.3 Smashing Damage over 9.2 seconds (0.83333 BI)
Duration: 28 seconds (19 PvP)

“Immobilizes a group of foes within earthy formations and deals some Smashing damage over time. Slower and less damaging than Stone Prison, but can capture multiple targets. Stone Cages can also reduce a target's Defense.”

The AoE immobilize of Earth Control is a Stone Prison party! Everybody gets one. Really, I love the look and sound of this power. Clap your hands and BOOM, cages. Definitely turn up your sub-woofer when using this power. It will vibrate your ticklish parts.

Stone Cages is like yelling “STAY” to a room full of well-trained dogs. Why would you like this? Two reasons: Stalagmites and Liquefy. The former sends your victims staggering about. Wanderers have the unfortunate ability to wander into locations non-conducive for arresting. Stone Cages corrects this problem. Liquefy, after its short hold, sends enemies running. Stone Cages keeps them in Liquefy. Finally, Stone Cages psychologically prepares your enemies to enter the penal system. Talk about your Mind Control flair.

This power also provides knockback and knockdown resistance to your targets. This is very important. Do NOT toss this out on a mob doing a popcorn imitation on your Earthquake or your comrade’s Slick. You’ll simply stabilize the bouncing bodies, allowing them to regain their balance and fire some unwanted substance at your face. This is bad. Use it with caution.

This power is a potential aggro magnet as well. Do not open with it. Remember those dogs? Imagine they all had guns and projectile energy barks… not good. Be sure the dogs are preoccupied or otherwise incapacitated before laying this on them.

Another issue: Cages ticks off almost 16 endurance points each time you use it and it recharges quickly. Liberal application will result in heavy breathing. I put this power off until after stamina. It was a big help.

A great use of this power is setting up containment on an entire spawn. For those twilight levels in your career when you may actually get AoE damage attacks, this is a lovely thing. And as with Stone Prison and Fossilize, Stone Cages drops 20% of the defense of each target it hits. It’s a prelude to a massacre. Whether its your own or your enemy's massacre depends on how your use it.

Recommended Slotting: 2 accuracies, 1 endurance. Recharge and immobilize aren’t needed as the cages are still up when the power has recharged.

Quicksand
Available at Level: 6
Accuracy: Auto-hit
Range: 90
Endurance: 7.8
Recharge: 30
Radius: 25 feet
Duration: 45 seconds

“You can cause the ground to liquefy like Quicksand at a targeted location. Any foes that pass through the Quicksand will become snared, their movement will be dramatically Slowed, and their Defense reduced. Foes trapped in the Quicksand cannot jump or Fly.”

Oatmeal not only provides you with an excellent start to your day, it’s an excellent start to your attack chain when you have a corner to work with. Earth/Sonic is blessed with four location target powers, which means you can stand behind corners out of sight while delivering a welcoming breakfast to soon-to-be Brickstown inmates. Why do I love it?

Firstly, it has the longest range of any of your powers. If you don’t have Stone Cages available, it’s a decent substitute for keeping enemies away from you and stuck in some other place they’d rather leave, like an Earthquake or Volcanic Gas eruption.

Secondly, it prevents flight and jumping. In other words, it sets up fossilized target practice; an activity that is fun for the whole family.

Thirdly, it drops the defense of all enemies in it by 25%. If you haven’t already, please take a moment to stop and say to yourself, “this is excellent.” Isn’t it?

However, read the warning label on your oatmeal. It will generate aggro. Some enemies will not be significantly slowed, such as Minions of Igneous. Most, however, will.

Now for a small debate. Some suggest slotting quicksand with recharges. The argument is you can reach the slow cap by simply laying down multiple Quicksands. My experience is this works, since the slow effect stacks from the same caster. An aside: the defense reduction does not. However, there is a danger to this approach.

Imagine this: you join an 8-member team with a few toons that are +2 to you. They are running invincible missions, which means your enemies are as purple as Prince’s jacket a la 1984. You drop down a Quicksand at the first group you see, only you’ve slotted it with 3 recharges and zero slows. One of the bosses notices your oatmeal stains on his new Jordans and a moment later he’s peeling your fillings out of his knuckles. Has Quicksand recharged yet? No. Do you care? No. This guy has run out of your first Quicksand and is cleaning his shoes on your forehead. What should you do about this? Hospital, then slot your Quicksand with three slows and try again. You will floor his speed. That boss will get off one ranged attack before you have him Fossilized.

Get this power. It is a primary ingredient in the Soup of Death.

Recommended Slotting: 3 slows. 0-3 recharges.

Salt Crystals
Available at Level: 8
Accuracy: 1
Range: Player Based
Endurance: 15.6
Recharge: 90
Radius: 30 feet
Duration: 19 seconds (14 PvP)

“Attempts to encrust all nearby foes in a Pillar of Salt. The victims will remain encased within the salt for quite a while, but will automatically break free if attacked. Affected targets have reduced defense for a while, even if they break free.”

A usually overlooked though interesting power. An AoE sleep that is player based and, therefore, requires some maneuvering. Many dismiss it. Who wants to run into a spawn of enemies, get smacked around, toss out a sleep should he be able to, and pray nobody breaks the spell and initiates another round of smackdown? Raise your hands. Yep.

Yet, it is effective to sleep a spawn before you arrest it. Unlike the other sleep powers in the game, this one drops enemy defense by 20%!! How lovely is that? Plus, this is one of the most biblical powers in the game. You jump into a group of enemies and scream, “hey look! It’s Sodom and Gomorrah being destroyed by brimstone and fire” and everybody turns into a pillar of salt. Tell me that isn’t cool? It just is. It’s worth a bind key and its own toon concept: Bible Boy.

I love it in PvP. Someone bothering you? Sleep them. Then lay down the Soup of Death. I love it in PvE… an ambush from behind? Salt Crystal them. It looks cool too. Your enemies struggle with their arms pinned to their sides. Take a moment to gloat before finishing them off.

When teaming definitely educate before unleashing. It’s very important your buddies understand what you are doing. Put yourself in that fire blaster’s place: “hmmm.. the squishy is running right into that mob!!! Holy snikies!! Don’t worry.. my fireball will save you!!!” You don’t want this to happen. Communicate.

That said, this is a power I personally went without. You can’t have everything.

Some get Salt Crystals early, then respec it away at 24 once they have a couple of other AoE’s in place and slotted(earthquake and stalagmites + stone cages). Try it and see what you think. It’s definitely an optional choice.

Recommended Slotting: 2 accuracies is all you need if you’re using it to set up attacks.
Add 1-3 durations if you plan to use it as an ambush nullifier.

Stalagmites
Available at Level: 12
Accuracy: 0.8
Range: 70
Endurance: 10.4
Recharge: 90
Radius: 25 feet
Damage Scale: 0.25 Lethal Damage (0.69444 BI)
Duration: 15 seconds (11 PvP)

“You can cause Stalagmites to erupt all around an enemy, damaging all nearby foes. The Stalagmites deal minimal Lethal damage, and can Disorient all affected targets for a good while, as well as reduce their Defense. You must be on the ground to activate.”

Nothing like stomping your foot to get attention. Only this foot stomp shoots mineral deposits out of the ground better than Zit Control’s Pop Pimples power. The major bonus: the affected meanies don’t get the opportunity to strike back before they’re disoriented. The magnitude won’t stun bosses, but their friends sure won’t know what hit them. On small enough teams where spawns lack bosses, Stalagmites allows you to initiate battles. Imagine: you’ve been teaming on a story arc for the last hour hour with a tank who told you about every slice of meat-lover’s pizza she’s chowed. Suddenly she types, “brb-bio.” Are you really going to wait? Unless she’s one of those professional gamers who has her rig set up on her toilet, she’s gone until Letterman is over. Stalagmites lets you take control of your own destiny and initiate so you don’t have to wait.

Stalagmites + Stone Cages makes an excellent control combo. You want to keep wandering to a minimum if you can, and you can.

Take this power and use it. As your career progresses you will have two main uses for it: 1) the initiate combat power and 2) the disorient a mob for a bit power. If you find yourself using it mainly for 1), you should slot accordingly.

Recommended Slotting: 2 accuracies, 2 disorient durations, 2 recharge
If find you only use Stalagmites to initiate your other controls, try 2-3 accuracies 0-1 disorient, and 3 recharge.

Earthquake
Available at Level: 18
Accuracy: Auto-hit
Range: 60
Endurance: 10.4
Recharge: 90
Radius: 25 feet
Duration: 30 seconds

“Generates a powerful, localized Earthquake. Most foes that pass through the location will fall down. The violent shaking also reduces their Accuracy and Defense.”

There are people who don’t like sunsets. There are those who don’t like mom’s chicken soup, others who don’t like reliable transportation, and some who dislike having Earthquake as one of their Earth Control powers. What do they have in common? I don’t understand any of them.

Earthquake is a knockdown power. It’s a targeted location power that snips 10% off your enemies’ defense and 10% off their ability to hit. It works on greens and blues and whites and yellows and oranges and reds and purples. Remember the team scenario where you’re battling +4s? Stick an Earthquake under them and watch them bounce bounce baby. Only the Slicks and Circus Tent control’s Trampoline power work as well.

For moments your opponents will be able to stand and move. That’s why you want to drop a Quicksand on top of your Earthquake. It’s like peanut butter and jelly. Take this power at 18 and triple recharge it by 19. You have now come into your own as an Earth Controller. What could be better than Earthquake? Believe it or not, there might be something. Just wait until level 26.

Recommended Slotting: 3 recharge. If you want to add more, don’t bother with defense. Quicksand will take care of that for you. Some like to slot an additional 3 to-hit debuffs to up the to-hit debuff to 15%. I, however, highly recommend the triple range option. Three range SOs boost your Earthquake reach to 90 feet! That gives you thirty more feet of range to find a corner to hide behind, and it matches the range of Quicksand.

Volcanic Gasses
Available at Level: 26
Accuracy: 1.4
Range: 60
Endurance: 18.2
Recharge: 240
Damage Scale: 0.01 Fire damage every 2 seconds (75% chance) (0.02777 BI)
Duration: 60 seconds

“You can tap into the geothermal power of the Earth and focus it at a targeted location. Foes that pass near a thermal vent will take minor Fire damage and be overcome by the gasses, leaving them choking and helpless.”

I love this power: a big gaseous blob. Wait for the tank to run in and gather aggro, then drop this baby under her and type, “DANG woman!!! You gotta hold back on those meat-lover pizzas!!” It’s a laugh riot. Even those too mature for potty humor jokes snicker. Reading about it here may not sound that funny, sure. Go ahead and try it in game. I dare you.

Another location target power and this one is great. The gas pulses your enemies for damage and hold. The damage is minor, but the hold pulses every 6 seconds for a 7.45 second hold. The pulses are rather accurate, and if you slot the hold out they’ll overlap. This power is arguably better than Earthquake, except that Earthquake has a faster recharge and is available earlier in your career.

It is also a main ingredient in the Death Soup recipe.

And, even though your enemies aren’t wrapped up in stone and earth, they are still considered to be contained once overcome by your gas. Take this at 26.

The downside? One of the few Earth Control powers that doesn’t damage your foes’ defense. Not a problem… lay down some Quicksand.

Recommended Slotting: 3 recharge. Add 3 hold durations if you like.

Animate Stone
Available at Level: 32
Accuracy: 1
Range: 60
Endurance: 20.8
Recharge: 240
Duration: See below

“Earth and stone coalesce to form an incredibly tough entity that can attack your foes. The Animated Stone is not alive and is immune to Psionic damage. It is also virtually immune to Sleep, Immobilize, Disorient, and Hold effects. The entity can be healed.”

This power is considered optional by many. I would opine that the Earth/Sonic should have this power at least until she takes one or two epic damage powers and slot them out. Frankly, you should take and keep this power period. Considered the “tank” pet of the controller summons (imps are scrappers, phantasm is the blaster, singularity is the controller, and Jack is left so he has to play the defender) “Poo” as many people call her or “Gretchen” as I call her can take quite a beating. Look at her numbers:
<ul type="square">[*]40% resistance to smashing damage.[*]50% resistance to lethal damage[*]60% resistance to fire, cold, energy, and negative energy damage.[*]80% resistance to toxic damage.[*]100% resistance to psionic damage.[*]Virtually immune to sleep[*]Resistant to knockback and general being knocked around.[*]Virtually immune to immobilize, holds, and stuns.[*]Taunt effect from attacks.[*]Hurl boulder attack for a 3 smashing damage scale (8.33333 BI).[*]Stone fist attack for a 1.8 smashing damage scale (5.0 BI)[*]Stone mallet attack for a 3 smashing damage scale (8.33333 BI).[/list]Gretchen’s attacks are slow and she likes to hang out at range and toss boulders, sure. Also, her damage does not benefit from containment. But she can take a beating. Add to that her resistance to exotic damage and your ability to boost her resistance to common damage, and you have one tough pile of mud! At level 33 if you toss three damage enhancements in her your soloing speed will be utterly magnified.

And in those moments where a spawn of a few bosses with no corner nor tank in sight would turn your grapes into juice you now have the option of summoning Gretchen right in their midst to take the alpha while you lay down your controls. Those who use Gretchen for consistently taking alpha strikes slot recharges so she’s available for respawn on a somewhat regular basis. Note that once spawned, Gretchen will stay with you until you dismiss her (right click on her and hit ‘x’), respawn a new Gretchen (the old one automatically dies to limit the caster to one pet), zone (elevators don’t count), or she or you fall in battle. If you don’t plan on using her much for alpha strikes, don’t bother with recharges.

She can even act as an anchor for your Disruption Field when needed. Enemies prefer to attack Gretchen over her master, generally, so she’s quite useful to have around. My only complaint: she’ll track dirt onto your rugs. Be careful where you take her.

Recommended Slotting: 1-2 accuracy 3 damage.
- Alpha Gretchen: 0-1 accuracy 3 damage 2-3 recharge.

I Feel the Earth… Move… Under My Feet II
A Guide for the Earth/Sonic Controller, v 1.0

An Introduction
Earth Control and Sonic Resonance: the Dodo Bird of Controllers. Last February I had never even seen such a creature in-game. I saw not a post on the controller forum nor heard even a rumor on the chat channels. In the nine months since then I have seen three in-game, one of them being my own. Even Enantiodromos, last May, listed Earth/Sonic as the rarest controller combination in his guide to Choosing the Controller that’s Right for You.

Why? What kept this combo stuffed in the dark moldy dingy corner of the CoH basement?

There are those who point to the Sonic Resonance powers. Complaints about the graphics and sounds abound. Some relate stories of migraine headaches, projectile vomiting, and fits of rabid-like insanity after limited exposure to the set. Conversely, others claim neither knowledge nor understanding of any Sonic Power even after working alongside a Ringer for an entire task force. It sounds peculiar, yet people either vehemently react to or completely overlook Sonic. It is a strange beast, indeed.

Others blame Earth Control. The damage output lingers way below all other controller primaries, except for the Ice and Down-Pillow control sets. The fact that Ice deals cold damage places it above Earth, which offers mostly smashing with a splash of lethal and fire: the former two being the most commonly resisted damage types in the game. Some are turned off by the look of the set. Brown blobs on a computer screen have been noted to induce free association relationships with brown blobs that occur in real life. This rarely, if ever, is considered a good thing.

A new question very similar to our first question arises: why? Why would anyone ever be masochistic enough to play an Earth/Sonic controller?

As you will see, the Dodo may have been weird, but it had a beauty all its own.

The Rumble Down Under - Theme
There is great thematic synergy between Earth and Sonic. This may not matter to some, but they are not the true blue comic book fanatics we seek for our most valued teammates. What are comic books? They are stories! Illustrated, wonderful, sometimes campy, action packed tales are what they are. Shouldn’t your MMORG comic book hero have a compelling story? Of course! Would you rather team with *\_ k00L-fUl_/* with the lime green and fuchsia random costume and a description that reads “Loading data…” or Captain Marvelous in the inspiring threads and the compelling back-story? Earth and Sonic easily provides for concept. Consider:

The Earth constantly moves. Not just spins, though it does that too. The Earth itself shifts. Earth plates, erosion, avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions… you get the idea. Sound waves also travel. Sound can move earth and earth movements make sounds. Both are measured in waves. How many interesting character concepts can you come up with now? A shaman of the Earth Spirit, a scientist who discovers the secret behind seismic waves and plate tectonics, a variant renegade Minion of Igneous, a mutant whose control over sound allows him to move earth, a seismic android built to prevent earthquakes who has run amok and is now vying to protect Paragon from anything it can… your turn! There are many exciting possibilities. If you are going the route of the Earth/Sonic, I implore… no, demand you take the short amount of time necessary to concoct a fine concept. Creatively challenged? Snowlily’s Guide to Creating Role Playable Characters offers help to those in need. Need help with a name? Tyrantula’s Naming For Noobs: A Guide To Originality! should help. I also recommend http://www.wikipedia.org for researching when generating a concept.

The Raw Power – Primary Ability
Earth/Sonic is a control monster. The iron fisted general, the raging control-freak movie director, and the megalomaniac monarchy dictator all offer less control than this pairing. Earth Control sports six, yes 6… area of effect controls. That doesn’t even count the pet, the tank known as “Animate Stone”, which is excellent for absorbing alphas. And if that isn’t enough, THERE’S MORE!! Sonic offers the following: an AoE hold and debuff, an AoE knockback power and a foe capture power; all for the low low price of $15 per month. A well developed Earth/Sonic can easily handle all the controller needs of an eight-member team and find tidbits of time to type silly chat messages.

The Overlooked Influence – Secondary Ability
Just like shaking ground unbalances those on it, the Earth/Sonic unbalances the battlefield. How? It’s quite muahahaha sinister, really. Even though the Earth/Sonic does little damage, she increases her comrades’ damage potential while constricting their damage intake. Consider:
<ul type="square">[*]The obvious: the wide array of Earth Controls emasculates most enemy attacks. An enemy who isn’t attacking is an enemy who isn’t damaging you and yours.[*]Sonic shields provide damage resistance to all damage types save psionics up to around 40%, weakening the blows of those few enemies who manage to bypass controls.[*]The secondary effect of the majority of Earth Control powers is defense reduction. Sonic’s Liquefy does the same. Making your enemies easier to hit means everyone hits them more often. The more everyone hits, the more damage your team does.[*]Sonic Resonance provides two powers to reduce enemy damage resistance. Using them in tandem can provide your team with a boost of around 45% in gross damage output. And a team that does more damage is a.. er.. team that does more damage. Ahem.[*]Clarity allows you to keep your teammates from suffering the same fate as your enemies, keeping them bright-eyed and bushy-tailed to attack at will.[*]The brown blobs are great forms of communication. A common team tactic is to not attack the held criminal until the free ones are arrested. This isn’t true in all cases… best to take down bosses, sorcerers, and so on, even if they’re held. The tendency holds true. Your experienced teammates know this. They think, “if that Tesla Knight is held he won’t attack. So we better take down the free Clocks before they do too much damage.” Earth Control, better than any other set except Ice and Elephant control, communicates which enemies are held. Sets like Gravity, Mind, Illusion, and to some extent fire lack the full visual exclamation point Earth declares when holding opponents. As a result, the “attack free criminals first” tactic is very successful when used with Earth.[/list]What does this all mean? It means make friends, mister, if you’re going to play an Earth/Sonic. You will be at your best and most effective with a team. And your team, whether they know it or not, will adore you for it.

And Now For the Guide!
Sit back and enjoy. In the posts that follow I will give you my take on:
<ul type="square">[*]Earth Control in detail.[*]Sonic Resonance in detail.[*]Power Pools in overview.[*]The Controller Epic Powers in detail.[*]Personal Opinions About the Earth/Sonic Hero.[/list]Please forgive me if all the number calculations aren’t accurate to the exact tenth of a percentage. All numbers are courtesy of Red Tomax’s City of Data, except for Damage Scale numbers which are from my own work on Test Server’s I8. For those of you unfamiliar with damage scales, please refer to iakona’s Power Data Standardization/Brawl Index Replacement
I have included BI numbers for those unfamiliar with Damage Scale.

Putting shields on your teammates can be an annoying process.
Now now.. I did it until level 50, so you can too.
Using Storyteller's FF binds as a base, I made my own.
His original post is The Incomplete and Unofficial Guide to /bind.
Now you can have my binds too.

Just clip the code below and save it into a file you call:
sonicbinds.bat

Then double click on the file and follow the prompts.

These binds will allow you to shield a teammate by simply
pressing the corresponding number on the keypad.

Also, you will be able to Clarity a teammate using shift-numkey.

The shielding bind usually works.. sometimes you have to
hit the numpad key a couple of times to get both shields on
your target.

Both the clarity and shield binds include a follow command.
If you find your toon running into melee as he shields
a scrapper, that is why. You can override follow by
simply hitting any movement key.

Enjoy.

<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>
REM configure
CLS
TITLE
COLOR 1F

REM Print hello
ECHO ************************************************** **************************
ECHO ******************** Sonic Resonance Bind Generator v1.1 *******************
ECHO ******************** by @HotButteredSoul *******************
ECHO ************************************************** **************************
ECHO * *
ECHO * This batch file generates a set of keybinds for CoX. *
ECHO * Once loaded, these keybinds will cast sonic barrier and sonic haven *
ECHO * on a teammate by simply pressing his corresponding number on the keypad. *
ECHO * In addition, left shift + numkey will cast clarity on the teammate of *
ECHO * same number. Enjoy! And thanks to StoryTeller for the initial version *
ECHO * of these binds for bubblers. *
ECHO * *
ECHO ************************************************** **************************
ECHO.

REM Ask for folder to make files in
SET folder=
SET /p folder=Type in a full path to create binds in (Default: c:\sonicbinds):
IF '%folder%'=='' set folder=c:\sonicbinds

REM Make folder
MKDIR %folder%

REM Make files
FOR /L %%n IN (1,1,8) DO ECHO numpad%%n "+down$$-down$$teamselect %%n$$follow$$powexec_name Sonic Barrier$$bind_load_file %folder%\SonicShields%%nb.txt"&gt;%folder%\SonicSh ields%%na.txt
FOR /L %%n IN (1,1,8) DO ECHO numpad%%n "+down$$-down$$powexec_name Sonic Haven$$bind_load_file %folder%\SonicShields%%na.txt"&gt;%folder%\SonicSh ields%%nb.txt
ECHO shift+numpad1 "+ $$teamselect 1$$follow$$powexecname Clarity"&gt;%folder%\load_sonic.txt
FOR /L %%n IN (2,1,8) DO ECHO shift+numpad%%n "+ $$teamselect %%n$$follow$$powexecname Clarity"&gt;&gt;%folder%\load_sonic.txt
FOR /L %%n IN (1,1,8) DO ECHO numpad%%n "+down$$-down$$teamselect %%n$$follow$$powexec_name Sonic Barrier$$bind_load_file %folder%\SonicShields%%nb.txt"&gt;&gt;%folder%\loa d_sonic.txt

REM Print goodbye message including hit key to exit message
ECHO.
ECHO Bind files generated.
ECHO.
ECHO Now run City of Heroes, log in as your sonic, and type
ECHO /bind_load_file %folder%\load_sonic.txt
ECHO.
SET anykey=
SET /p anykey=Please hit ENTER to EXIT...

REM Cleanup
COLOR
TITLE cmd
CLS
</pre><hr />

Brilliant. Just brilliant.

I have always had a GM response in minutes. Of course, my petitions have only been about enemies that have been blown through walls or doors that require defeat to push forward or complete a mission.

Just be sure that while you're waiting you pay attention to your screen. You won't want to miss them when they do show up.

Also, my experience with GM's is they're very polite.

Enantiodromos is my favorite linguist. You really can't get anything by him!

*applause* for another great guide.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
This is just a personal observation but I find players who invest heavily in thier primaries to be a bit more team oriented.

[/ QUOTE ]

I find the exact opposite of this to be the case on the villains side of the game. Most of the team oriented powers are in the secondaries on villains.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, except for dominators. *hugs his dominator*

Teaming effectively is my favorite aspect of this game as well! Thanks for making a guide.

[ QUOTE ]
One sign of an unworthy teammate is the use of "Leet." If a person can't be bothered to speak properly to his teammates, why would he exert effort toward mastery of the game or helping you?


[/ QUOTE ]
I, personally, dislike l33t as well. I would point out, however, that not all who speak leet are poor CoH players. I have teamed with some who have poorly chosen names in all caps and use leet with great abandon, who also could tank the heck out of a spawn or scrap the living daylights out of enemies and so on. Do not judge a book by its cover.

[ QUOTE ]

Another sign is a "flavor of the month" set of powers. You don't want someone who seeks out cheap powersets like Energy Melee, but the one who likes to find unorthodox ways to counter those powers.

[/ QUOTE ]
I too am a huge fan of the road less traveled. After all, my only 50 is an Earth/Sonic controller. That said, many of my most effective teammates have been spines/regen scrappers, or Fire/Kin controllers, or empathy/you name it defenders, and so on.

An aside, I prefer to call empaths empaths, and not healers. And I'm not a big fan of assuming defenders should "heal". Some should, sure, but some shouldn't.

Anyway, I would recommend people pick teammates because they are good teammates, not because they pick commonly seen powersets.

[ QUOTE ]

3. They admit fault when something goes wrong. Perhaps the most reassuring thing one can say to one's team is "my bad."

[/ QUOTE ]
Amazing how people who admit to failure prevent lots of bickering. In almost every case where I or a teammate said "my bad" the resulting posts were "no problem" and so on. Really a classy manuever and one that promotes team peace.
[ QUOTE ]

10. They have incredible fun!


[/ QUOTE ]
*applause*

As far as the lengthy way you suggest growing a team, I think that sounds great. However, I often have limited time when I'm on and want to jump into a big team for the excitement. I have found that this works in many circumstances, especially at higher levels as players are more comfortable and knowledgeable about the capabilities. If the team is horrible, I simply excuse myself. If it's good, well... it's good... and off to work we go.

[ QUOTE ]

Scrapper: More versatile than the tanker, a team scrapper acts first and foremost as a second line of defense.


[/ QUOTE ]
In my experience the scrapper's main function is of offense rather than defense. My scrappers can hold some aggro when needed, but their ability to dish out punishment easily outshines their defense.

[ QUOTE ]

Controller: You stifle incoming fire and help your teammates. You use your storms and repels to maneuver the enemy into tight little groups to make the blasters' job easier.


[/ QUOTE ]
Of course, you also lock down enemies in one place so they're stuck for easy arrests and buff/debuff as well. Not all controllers have storms or knockback abilities.
[ QUOTE ]

Ideal team composition -- you will no doubt develop your own combos. These are, I hope, helpful rules of thumb.

Heroes: One tanker, one scrapper, one controller, blasters and defenders.


[/ QUOTE ]
This is my rule of thumb too. The interesting thing is, however, how well teams with unusual combinations can do. I did the Eden trial with 1 controller, 1 defender, 2 scrappers, and 4 blasters. We did wonderfully. I've done tf's with 5 controllers, a war shade, and a couple of scrappers. A team of eight defenders can do astonishing things.

Thanks for the guide! Any thoughts on Khelds?

As a controller with clarity, I originally had my teammate type zzz if she was mezzed. On a big team that meant the following would happen:

1) Teammate types zzz
2) I look over at the teammate to find her name on the team menu.
3) Click on the teammate name
4) Type 'f' to follow
5) Hit clarity

Sometimes this would take a moment, especially if I was heavily in the throws of other actions.

So, I did 8 keybinds: left shift + numkey[1-8] = select teammate #, follow, clarity.

Thus, when teammate number 4 got mezzed, all I had to type was left shift and 4. Instead of telling my mates to type "zzz", I simply asked them to type their number if they got mezzed.

The new and improved scheme became:
1) Teammate types number, i.e. '3'
2) I type shift + numpad 3

Try it. You'll like it!

This was definitely my problem. After almost 2 years my highest toon was a 35. But then I did commit and, though I did mess with another toon for 36 levels in between, I got my 50 during a six month span. I have one suggestion for a recovering altoholic:

Do a little soul searching to find out what it is you really love in a character. Then, make yourself that character and commit to it.

For instance: I know I love a silver-age concept AND a rarely seen powerset combo. I'm not a power-leveler or min-maxer. Thus, for my 50 I spent a long time generating a concept that I really enjoyed that tied to a powerset combo I'd never seen in game before.

Do you know what you love? If you're a min-maxer, pick a spines-regen scrapper or mind-kin troller or energy/ stalker. Do you like gothic toon concepts? Make your own vampire. A satirist? Make that silly toon you always wanted.

Whatever it is, put some thought and effort into your character before you roll it. You will feel more involved with that toon and stick with it, and you will get lots of positive feedback.

Once you've done that, build on it. "Speak" like your character would. Use emotes and bind little sayings. Breathe some life into your character and you will feel like that hero (or villian).

Finally, plan your build. Search the forums for guides and read up. Get the character planner, make at least one build, then post it online and get feedback. Nothing will disenchant you more than gimping yourself halfway through your journey.

I'd recommend the following links to help you on your road to recovery:

Snowlily's Guide to Creating Roleplayable Characters
Starmor's Guide to Random Phrases!
SherkSilver's Character Builder

For an account of my personal experience recovering from being an altaholic, see the top link in my sig.

I actually have a plan for an Ice/Kin scraptroller that doesn't take speed boost nor ID. Of course, scraptroller is a special case.

My 36 kin/sonic offender doesn't have ID either. I didn't have the room and I wanted him to concentrate on maximizing the damage output of the team. How hard is it to find an empath with clear mind to care for the group? Not very.

That said, my offender has speed boost and I love it. Sure you have to keep the group boosted... but all you need are some keybinds and it's easy. I prefer to bind the numpad keys so 1 = speed boost on teammate 1 and so forth. Doesn't take long to boost.

I would add that 3 accuracies in your single target attacks is overkill IMO. Some people use 1. I went to 50 using 2 so I could do a little PvP if I wanted to and be effective on teams where I was -3 or -4 levels below my mates.

Also, I highly recommend stone prison on an Earth/FF. Stone cages gives you lots of aggro, and sometimes you want to drop your aggro footprint. In addition, when soloing pre-32 you won't have endurance issues with a fossilize-stone prison combo. With stone cages, however.... you will. Especially if you're putting off stamina until 28. Also, in PvP it's nice to have stone prison and stone cages to quickly build up immobilize magnitude. Same with EBs and AVs.

I have to say to Epiphoid, congrats on getting an Earth/FF to 50. That's a rare build and a real accomplishment. You'll understand if you look at my signature, that I feel a great deal of empathy and comraderie towards you!

Huzzah!

Wow hudsonsmith. That sucks. Maybe they had a busy night

Curious.. what is the blaster debuff? I know a defender sonic attack will give you a 20% damage boost on a subsequent attack against an even level minion. Blasters?

[ QUOTE ]
I had to abandon a trial last week due to a Cairn behind the Rock Wall that couldn't be destroyed even with AoE's.

[/ QUOTE ]

Really? Did you petition a GM that you were stuck? In a TV trial my team once knocked a guard back through a closed door (that he had the key too), catching us in a 22: need the guard to open the door... need to open the door to get the guard. I petitioned a GM and one popped over and fixed the problem for us.

Also, empaths and rads aren't necessary, FMIST, IMO.

Where's the "in depth" part?

I think an essential tip is missing in the guide: use slow powers on the walls. Those walls can easily summon enough DE to overwhelm a team. However, slow powers decrease the rate at which they summon.

Ice tank? Crey Pistol? Snow storm? Psy powers? Ice blasters? You get the idea. Use your recharge reducing powers on those walls. It can be th e difference between success and failure.

The team I completed Eden with had 1 defender, 1 controller, 2 scrappers, and FOUR (count them: 4) blasters (yes.. one of them was ice).

I have a question for anyone who has tested this... what does more DPS:

1) Flurry + AS
2) Boxing + Kick + AS
??

[ QUOTE ]
ANY good controller build will be much more soloable today than it was in 2004.

[/ QUOTE ]

Maybe you haven't tried soloing an Earth/Sonic or Earth/FF pre-32. Try that for fun! Sure it's easier now that in 2004, but that's not saying much. Grav/Rad? Piece of cake with homemade frosting.

To add to BurlyTorch's idea, I have found that three range enhancements in Earthquake allow for a reach that equals quicksand! This is very helpful in laying down the EQ + QS combo that is a bread and butter hold for your entire career.

Then again, finding three extra slots for range on EQ is a very difficult thing when you take the slot-hungry /storm summoning secondary. If you can you'll enjoy the results.

[ QUOTE ]

4. Stick to your character.... Do not make too many alternate characters, this is a waste of time when you can be leveling up your main character.

...

Level 28 Empathy Defender : Ms-Healer
Level 27 Peacebringer: Blind Angel
Level 24 Invul/SS Tanker: Invulnerable
Level 16 Katana/Regen: Ms Katana
Level 14 Rock/Mace Tanker: Granite Angel
Level 11 Warshade: Kheldian Angel


[/ QUOTE ]

Uh huh.

Just kidding... I have way more alts than that!! And I'm not 50 after 2 years.

What about the leadership pool? With so many powers based on accuracy, isn't tactics a fine choice for sonic attack/kinetics corruptors? My kin/sonic defender sure loves it.

[ QUOTE ]
i can't find a power pool guide, how much extra damage does assault lend?

[/ QUOTE ]

My test with a defender running assault vs an even level minion: Assault boosted damage 18.7%

My personal experience:
Was in a 7 player team fighting Countess Crey. My Earth/Sonic had disruption field running off our tank AND was popping sonic siphon.

Countess Crey's health bar didn't budge.

Even held, her bar didn't budge.

So we recruited a Rad defender. CC was arrested shortly thereafter.

Can't wait until they FIX this. I avoid doing AV missions unless I use my Kin or team with the right toons. In other words, I'm playing the game less because of this.

I think you're missing out on the synergy of some of the powers in this set. For instance:

1) Lift + Propel: Lift the enemy in the air. As he's getting up, you have enough time to fire off your propel. As he's recovering from propel, lift... and so on, and so on.

2) Wormhole + Crushing Field: It's annoying when disoriented foes wander all over the place. No problem. Stick a crushing field on them and they stick. This combo plus GDF gives you TWO AoE holds. Very nice.

As far as crush goes, I love it. It's great in hero fights and PvP, and it's one more attack while you're growing up. One more attack means you're that much closer to domination, which is where we all want to be. And the -fly is a great ability to have. Your melee companions will LOVE you for dropping those flyers.