IMcurious

Looks like its time for me to start playing my level 8 Grav/FF controller again. He has Propel and I just parked him months ago. He seemed to be so hard to solo...even among controllers.
Ill/Kin Level 37
Ill/Rad Level 45
Grav/FF Level 8 (and maybe moving up again)

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So the weird thing is, I've got my Ill/Kin up to 26 now... and he still doesn't really feel like a controller. He's more like a weak blaster with a tank in his pocket. I have my deceive and my blind, but other than loooong deceive sessions, I'm not holding any more minions than an ice blaster can hold. I tried Flash, but it couldn't hit for anything, and it mostly got me killed when I tried to run in and use it, so I respecced it out. Am I missing something obvious, or does Ill/Kin just never end up feeling like a controller?

Actualy, I have a similar problem with a Kin/Rad defender I started recently. It feels like a blaster with a combat heal. In your opinion, what is the party contribution of the Kinetics set?

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Oh my Goodness! How have I managed to have so much fun with my level 36 Ill/Kin controller? I love Blind/Flash and they have been my cornerstone holds since Atlas. Flash got me killed so many times until I learned how/when to use it. Until PA, use it with Group Invis on yourself. Slot it up 2 acc, 2 holds, 1 rech and dont look back. Once you have PA, just drop PA in back of the group and then Flash away. Wound the ones with a bit of health left in them or to kill the edges of a mob while PA hits the middle. Blind the runners or the late drop ins/downs. Phants will sometimes just look at a Flashed mob so you may need to hop on the far side of a group to draw them in or just wound one or two and Phants will start whacking away. Don't take away my Flash.....it is what allowed my 4 man team to just complete the Numina trial with minimum deaths....3 from ambushes on other members..one for the defender who fell through the floor in the last room into a Dev Earth mob. Try blind on a +5 Fake Nemesis after you drop the PA on him, then (invisible) you run super speed in and Flash near him. Two holds will start the "grab my head and shake" routine. Now all the minions are shaking...the Fake is shaking...you have to decide...do I Syphon Power....do I use Transference.....do I ....wait..it's time to blind again...sigh...where was I....oh wait..it's time to bring up the third Phant....Blind....oh good the Tanker is back from selling enhancements....now he can get a couple of hits in before the Fake dies. Once I get Fulcrum Shift...how am I gonna get a soda and still not miss the Nemesis Hulks exploding??? I may have to get out my level 38 Fire/Dev blaster....now there was a sweaty palms times against +2 bosses....wait...I hate debt. LOL
Illusion/Kinetics Level 36 (because I play 4 other heroes too)

I had my level 25 Ill/Kin controller parked in Brick train. When I logged on, I immediately got asked by a level 33 tank to team. We did one of his Nemesis mishs twice (ran out the door and reset it) just for the points. I was sk'ed up but it was so much fun. He loved the siphons, holds, and for fun I would use deceive for humor. Last night I got asked to duo with another tank for a dev earth mission. We only had one tough room and that was my fault. I aggroed the room too fast and should have let him taunt some out first. We lived and laughed about it. Late tonight I got asked by a level 11 blaster from my SG if I could help her. We did Talos and she had a grand time. We were hitting small groups of +2 liets and a +2 boss. My PA is slotted for 4 damage and 2 recharge and they worked great. We only had one "moment" and I had to use a green insp. I took her up to within one bubble of leveling in a short time. She is normally a level 35 Emp defender. Now she is amazed at what this build can do. I love the duo teams I get on because you really get a feel for working with them. My SG has never had a controller before and I really am working to be a good asset for them. My only problem so far is I have outleveled my contacts so fast by doing street sweeping and helping others on missions. I can live with it...lol, but now I have created a bunch of Speed Boost junkies!

I built a controller using your original template as a general guide. I sort of mixed the slotting from group and solo in some powers. I am having SO MUCH FUN with this guy it is scary. I tried a Gravity controller and parked him. My main hero is a level 38 blaster and this controller build allows me to solo fairly well when I want. I don't feel "squishy" and can solo in Talos in the mid 20's just fine. It is funny to see the reactions in teams that have never been around a controller before. They can tear through rooms quickly and still have full endurance. You explained choices very nicely and if I disagree then I am making an informed decision. The slotting guide is really nice too! My controller doesn't need respec'd every 10 levels like some heroes ( I just had to respec my radiation defender...I had him gimped with Fly...). I wish you were on the Triumph server....I would like to run with you sometime....that's the best compliment that I can give.

Thank you Developer(s) for your Boss decision! I had a post at the end of the "Boss" thread and mentioned about why we can't/don't all team up in COH. This is the first and only MMO game I have ever played. I fell in love with it since last July. I even bought this game for 4 of my friends (at $50 a shot) just to get them hooked. They are all devoted now and none had played an MMO before. We are all on different schedules of work and maybe once a week we can team up. The rest of the time we solo and THAT is what makes us pay to play. One of us is an uber leveling tanker. I am a "squishy" hero. We (except for the tanker) all are slow paced players who love to just hunt badges and solo due to work hours and raising kids (task force with a 2 year old in your lap.....not). Let me list some things that I am amazed and proud of your development skills.
1.Details in your maps....like fire escapes...steam...duct work...I have stood on a building in Steel and just marveled as if I was on the Empire State Building. I am so happy for badges, their locations have me seeing map areas I would never see. The detailed story lines are fabulous (Spanky is so funny...). Some nights/mornings all I have time to do is badge hunt for 30 minutes....but you have wonderfully given me that Solo option.
2. The pedestrians and their comments. These are some of the funniest things you can imagine. Now everybody can read what they say...and it is great.
3. Striga..........That map could be a game unto itself. It is fabulous and is one of your jewels!
4. The monsters and how they are purple to all now. Looking at the nest of level 30 and up heroes sitting in the Perez lake waiting for Kraken was sad to me. You wanted a team atmosphere and you guaranteed it with the new monsters. I loved listening to my friends talk about the mob on the octopus in IP. It was a party open to all and my "slow leveling" friends felt like they had hit level 50 when it died.
5.The reset of the bosses and the way that it was done. You have the difficulty slider (great move!!) for those who want it and yet you have still left us "Solo" folks a way to still get some satisfaction. The short game is what a lot of us make do with. I would like to play for 4 hours a day....do task forces...level 3 times a week...but I play when I can...I level when I can...and now again I can take a mission and complete it at my skill level without begging a +2 or higher hero to come in and kill my boss. You made me put my Halflife 2 box (unopened) back in the closet. For that.....my controllers and defenders thank you! Now go get Europe addicted to Paragon City!

Not everyone has the time allowed to team. I have a schedule that is volitile and is the result of being in health care. I may only have an hour in the wee morning hours to play. I like to solo during these times to relax and not stand at the Talos train begging for a team as my play time ticks away. My character was really fun to solo in Chapter 2. Now it sucks. I can do a mission up to the last area and then get ready to die twice because I'm "squishy". Not everyone is a tactician or is hard core player. Some of us like the hero concept and not the "Justice League" team concept. Here is what I ask you to consider doing for those of us who are slow, inept, casual, fearful, or whatever players.
A SOLO slider on most missions!!!
This would be an option when we take a mission from a contact. Once selected it means:
1. Only one person can go through the door, on the train, or start the mission. No teaming is allowed. The team option is disabled while the mission is in effect.
2. The XP points, Influence, and Mission points are 1/4 of the normal mission points at the standard Hardcore level. This is to prevent the Solo level slider from being a quick leveling tool. It will take 4 missions to equal just one normal one.
3. The minions are -1, the Liets are even or -1, and there are no bosses unless it is a -3 (effectively an even level one) needed for the mission story line.
4. Once Solo level is selected, it can only be changed at a Paragon Trainer like the slider is now changed. The Solo level can be put back to Hardcore or above but it costs the player 1/10 of his total Influence that he has at that time. This is to prevent folks from using it in a careless manner or as some kind of exploit. That way it affects players in a way from low to high. In other words if you take Solo.....u better want to finish it by yourself.
This Solo slider idea would allow those of us with weak play styles or characters to have the enjoyment of doing missions and staying alive better. We wouldn't level quick or even at at normal rate but we would ENJOY the game again. It takes the pressure of teammates yelling at us for our "bad" play style when we would just as soon be doing a mission at our own pace. If the present level of Boss problems stays like it is......I have my own solution to the solo problem. It's a box that says Halflife 2......I can be Gordon Freeman and solo at my own pace. Thanks!