KillerShrike

I have great love for /SR, but I'm hesitant to play it on a tanker.

In beta for freedom, I made a level bumped 50 SR/MA (a mirror of my original MA/SR scrapper), fully slotted out with the top end IO's including purples, and I was not impressed.

I ran side by side tests vs various high end threats such as the back stretch in RWZ, pylons, and running the Cimm wall, a few maxed out tip missions (malta, carnies, etc), and some other random stuff.

The tanker was actually less survivable than the scrapper, as the scrapper would annihilate mobs much faster. The less time the mobs have to swing at you, the less time the random number generator has to screw you.


Now, a different melee set might find SR/ more durable on a tank, but I wont be making a SR/ tanker anytime soon. Invul on the other hand is quite durable.

YMMV; good luck.

One of my 50's is a D3 Defender, and one of his best powers is Fearsome Stare (w/ Glimpse of the Abyss x6). It makes a huge difference in PvE, bringing down incoming attacks significantly, and keeping mobs rooted. Combined with Tenebrous Tentacles, it's even more ridiculous. Terror is a "weaker" control, but its still a pretty good one and it's long duration is very useful. It didnt used to be that way...I recall back in the early days Terror didn't work so well, but they buffed it long ago and its been great ever since.

From the other side, one of my other 50's is a /SR scrapper, who has 0 Fear protection. It's one of the few holes in the character, and he's actually been defeated several times after getting Feared. I have to be careful to keep a break free (which under normal circumstances he has no need for whatsoever) handy at all times when running missions with seers and what not to protect him from occasional quaking in fear moments. I wish there was an IO that granted Terrorize Protection; I'd slot it in a second on this and a few other characters. As it is, I love being teamed w/ a Dark character using Shadow Fall.

/EA is /awesome now. Respec and hit the bricks to level your 2 toons up. I have a 50 KM/EA and he's one of my best / faves. I think an SS/EA will be very tough too. The extra recharge and end management of /EA will synergize w/ Rage quite well.

I didn't really get in depth on your build, but just glancing at it slotting Rise To The Challenge w/ Dark Watchers Despair seems like a big mistake.

RttC give you most of your regeneration (it gives you very large numbers when you are fighting packs of mobs).

I slot my numerous Willpower characters RttC with 1 END 3 HEAL or 4 pieces of Numina's or Miracle, minimum. The tanks and a brutes also get 1 Taunt or 2 pieces of a taunt set if I have slots to spare.

And Draeth Darkstar is correct; Kinetic Combat is the best thing you can slot in your attacks to complement Willpower for the S/L bonus. It's worth the expense / time invesement if you are serious about the character.

If I wanted to "tank" with a brute, I wouldn't do it with /WP. Even /WP TANKS are relatively squishy, due to WP's lessened ability to absorb an alpha strike / big burst damage. You'd do ok on normal content, but have issues with high end tanker tasks.

Don't get me wrong, I love Willpower and have a variety of Tanks, Scrappers, and Brutes that use it. It's got a lot of upsides, but I know from personal experience that there are things my 50 SS/WP tank can't survive (without team buffs) that some of my other Tanks and even a couple of Brutes can do...like tanking Lord Recluse while the rest of the team takes down the towers on STF, or tanking on Keyes without face planting a few times, and so forth.

Invul is very tough vs everything except for Psi, and dull pain goes a long way to get around that. Invul isn't as fun or sexy and has no utility abilities besides Dull Pain, but it actually is pretty solid on the numbers.

You can do some really crazy things with Dark Armor thanks to Dark Regeneration, though I don't know how well that would combo w/ Street Justice as they both are hard on END.

Brute Regen seems to be pretty decent, if you are johnny on the spot with your clicks and push RECHARGE in your build, and is similar to /WP. I had a level bumped 50 on Beta all slotted out and I was pretty impressed with his survivability, though I personally prefer a toggle and go set.

Energy Armor is pretty solid too. My soft-capped 50 KM/EA easily tanks normal content, has tanked on many TF's for full teams, and I often tank on BAF (though it can be dicey if the RNG goes against me). He's not indestructible, but he's tougher than some tanks and does better damage.

If you like "Stone" but not Stone Armor, you can make a Stone/Shield or Stone/Invul Brute, and use costume choices to simulate "Stone". There's a Stone skin...actually, if you consider the Omega skin to be an acceptable "crystalline" look there are two, and there is also a "stone" shield under elemental shields that looks pretty cool. Thus you can make a rock guy without the down sides of the Stone Armor set. I have a Stone/SD brute called "Bluff" who's pretty cool looking and works well (though END is a struggle), and a SG mate has a 50 Invul/Stone Tank who is really tough and hits hard; a Brute version would be a little less tough and hit even harder.


Good luck.

Traps requires you to change your play style to make it work, as it's static drops require some planning and basic tactics to make the most out of, but in return it is mechanically very solid. It's a fantastic utility set, with a little bit of just about everything.

The main thing I've found w/ my Bot/Trap MM, and it's pretty obviously given the high number of click powers that all do something different, that RECHARGE is very important. If you have enough recharge to make sure you have optimal availability for your toolboxy power options, you will do very well.

Also, slot effect procs into Acid Mortar; I have Positron Energy, Lady Grey Negative, and Achilles Heel -RES in mine currently (and ACCx1, RECHx2). It makes more of a difference than you might think.

I used to avoid Seeker Drones as I just don't like them much for some reason (probably because I'm a control freak and their semi-random behavior aggravates me), but the numbers are just too good and I eventually relented. Using them strategically to soak alphas really is a winning tactic.

Playing other MM's is still fun...but I often find myself wishing for FFG or Acid Mortar or even Triage Beacon from time to time. Basically other sets all have a hole somewhere, while Traps feels more across the board covered at the cost of mobility.

Thanks for running the numbers.

My putative "main" is a release-era MA/SR 50 that ive spent a lot of time on over the years, and been thru the vagaries of both MA and SR changes with.

I've been really excited by SJ since beta, and have been having a lot of fun with it.

I have not done the hard analysis, but subjectively I feel like my MA toon is maybe a little harder hitting overall but I personally find Street Justice to be much more _satisfying_. It's brutal and fast "feel" suits me better than MA's more elaborate animations, and I particularly like how well the powers chain together for a very dynamic looking flow from move to move.


As a tangent, do you have any IO slotting insights between the two sets?

I've been trying different SJ combos thru beta and in live, on all 4 melee AT's. So far, SJ/Willpower seems to work best for me, though I haven't gotten past the mid 30's yet on any of the toons.

It's a super smooth leveler, and the END management of Willpower entirely offsets the ability of SJ to chew thru a lot of Endurance.

A supergroup mate is tandem leveling a SJ/SR with one of my SJ/Willpowers; we are just about to hit 30. He's having a LOT of trouble keeping up. I'm pretty much always able to just keep going and going and going even after tough fights, while he is pretty much always battered and winded. However, we're building into the IO curve already, and based on my experience w/ SR and Willpower in end game content I'm confident that in the end his toon will be as good or better. Willpower is just much kinder in the earlier half of the game than SR.

Based upon some past experience w/ high END attack sets paired with Invul, I haven't even been willing to suffer thru SJ/Invul thus far so I can't give REAL advice on that combo, but I feel comfortable saying that if you do go that route you'll want to invest in REC boosting IOs as early and as often as you can.

Hope that helps.

In the interests of the OP, finding something for BS to excel at....and summarizing some of the ideas presented in this thread.

****

Premise: BS is the best melee weapon set for alpha striking, but correspondingly is less sustainable than other melee weapon sets.

To make that true, BS build up has its bonus doubled, but also its END cost and recharge increased commensurately (though not necessarily equally)

****

Premise: BS is the bleeding lethal set modeled as DoT's, but lethal damage is widely resisted and thus less useful than energy based DoT sets.

To make the first part more true, the bleeding mechanic dot effect is applied to all or most of the BS attacks, differing in number of ticks; this damage is over and above the base damage currently inflicted, thus padding BS's overall damage output relative to it's current state. The downside is already true.

****

Premise: BS is as much about wailing on foes as it is about cutting them, but correspondingly is resisted by the higher of smashing or lethal def.

All or almost all of the BS attacks have a small additional amount of Smashing added.

****

Premise: BS is the DPE king of the melee weapon sets, but the individual endurance costs of its attacks are abnormally high.

Increase all of the attack's END costs by 1.5 or so, and all of the attack's Damage per Endurance by 1.75 or something along those lines such that though the END expenditure is steep, the damage output per END spent is advantageous to BS overall. A BS character will float big fat orange numbers, but have to manage the blue bar more carefully.

****

Premise: BS hits hard, leaving foes disoriented. However, it's damage output is outpaced by faster lighter weapons.

Add a Mag 1 Stun chance to each BS attack (except maybe Parry), with something like a 10-20 second duration. Piling on the hits can stun almost any opponent. The detriment is already true.

****

Premise: BS inflicts a lot of trauma with its deep, heavy cuts and even though it's overt damage output isn't fabulous relative to similar melee weapon sets, it is particularly effective against fast recovering foes.

Add a stackable Regen debuff to all or most of BS's attacks. This has very little practical effect effect vis a vis standard content, but it does advantage BS vs AV's and Monsters, and regen based opponents relative to other melee sets.

****


Personally, I would like just about any approach that brings BS up to par with other melee sets or even just the other sword sets. There's got to be a reason to play a BS other than "i want a sword AND a shield".

All three are good in their own way. For me, mace is more -satisfying-.

Axe gets pretty monotonous, but is also intense...the various hits are pretty similar but on the other hand you don't have to really manage your attack order or try to set up combos; each attack does basically the same thing except for whirling axe and the small cones aren't worth repositioning for. Axe blooms later. You can juggle things with axe pretty easily. I have 1 axe character, and have thus far felt no urge to make another.

Mace is fun, and feels brutal, but the stun are not as effective as the reliable knock down of axe IMO. You get more variety of weapon costume choices w/ mace. The AoE's are noticeable on mace, but on the other hand I find myself having to dance around more to line em up for max effect. I have several mace characters; I have no hesitation to make another.

Stone is cool, but has a lot of extraneous sfx, with rocky bits popping off you. It feels like Superstrength without rage. It sucks a lot of endurance. It feels tough, but I always hesitate to choose it. I have a couple of stones, I rarely play either.

I've got a Brute KM/EA/en 50 I'm fond of. He's pretty tough already with heavy IO'ing, but I'm looking forward to a better heal and the recharge aura sounds very interesting.

The changes they announced sound reasonable on the surface; once we can see the actual numbers we'll know for sure.

I'm eager to see at least.

According to Dechs...


The last case to cover is Rise to the Challenge from Willpower, which is another unique beast like Ice Armor, except in a very bad way. Every other taunt aura has a magnitude of four, this one has a magnitude of three. The real problem is the duration of 1.25 seconds, less than one tenth the duration of the other auras! Keep in mind that duration remaining is part of the threat formula, so this directly affects Willpower's ability to gain and keep aggro.

The saving grace here is that Rise to the Challenge, unlike all other taunt auras, can stack with itself, but not without enhancement. Once you throw some taunt enhancement in here, it can stack up to a magnitude six taunt effect with over a two second duration. The extra magnitude helps to make up for the lack of duration, but you will have to lean more heavily on Gauntlet/Fury and the power Taunt.

But, seriously, if you are trying to hold aggro and tank you'd have an easier time of it as a Tanker or Brute, and with just about any mitigation set other than WP which is not ideal for pure tanking.

Yeah. I have one and I want to like him, but the END drain is PAINFUL and I can't maintain momentum.

However, the character is fun enough that I can't bring myself to delete.

He uses the stone armor costume and the stone shield and looks very "stony".

He also has a fun name, Bluff, which is a play on words.

Bluff may refer to:

a type of deception
a very steep and broad hill or small cliff

So...you know, he LOOKS like a STONE tanker, but it's a LIE. He's really a shield brute.

So I'm easily amused; sue me.

I have a 50 KM / EA Brute and I've had a lot of fun with it.

There are lots of posts on KM. A common theme is that many find it "slow" due to it's elaborate animations. The number crunchers assure us that it is not all that slow objectively, but it is a common perception.

The split smashing / energy damage is handy, particularly against targets with a lot of smashing resistance or more rarely a lot of energy resistance. Very few opponents have both (short of temporary god mode powers), so you'll generally get some meaningful damage in situations where a single damage type set can be stymied.

The t9 hit does a lot of damage but has a longish animation. It is satisfying to see the big numbers it puts up, but I only use it vs tough opponents when teamed as it is a common scenario to start the wind up and the target is wiped out before I finish otherwise.

Power Siphon works differently than build up but lasts much longer. You need to really work your attack pattern and timing around it, but if you do the pay off is worth it. I've found Power Siphon to synergize nicely with Fury on my Brute as both are building mechanisms and if you build up both simultaneously your damage peaks very high. Using the small fast hits to build up to (5) pips of Power Siphon and then throwing the t9 is particularly devastating. You may have to switch targets rapidly to yield the most effect from it; like build up on a lt, then unload on a boss and so forth.

The AoE, Burst, is great. It very reliably does knockdown making it a big help in damage mitigation.

I like the ranged attack, personally. In addition to adding an extra tool to your arsenal, it is a good set mule for ranged IO's, some of which have nice set bonuses. It's DPS isn't fantastic due to its middling animation time, but it does a nice chunk of damage and also knockdown. If you get good at using it, it can allow you to engage targets without moving and as part of an uninterrupted attack chain, which helps it's effective DPS. Ill often taunt a pack on to me and engage them with Burst, and then target a mob that has hung back to shoot at me with my ranged attack, then re target a mob near me that has stood up without a pause. It's also handy for flyers. With a Brute's "pokevoke" it's like a single target taunt that does damage.

And on that subject, compared to a Scrapper KM, you'll have access to Taunt which I personally like. Challenge is basically useless, but Taunt is a useful control tool, and also a good IO mule. The Taunt sets have solid set bonuses.

Don't take Torrent.


Like any attack set though, it's going to combo to be better or worse with various secondaries.

The -damage from KM is mild but every little bit helps. The knockdown helps mitigation also. Thus KM can help to boost the survivability of a squishier secondary a bit.

You want Power Siphon up as often as possible, and your attacks are a bit more toolboxy than some sets so you want the right tool to be available at the right time, so you want a lot of Recharge. If you pick a secondary with has a lot of clicks that also benefits from a lot of Recharge you have a good synergy on your hands, a curve to build into.

Personally, I found KM to pair well with EA both thematically and functionally. YMMV.

EC + DT is nice in a crowd, but EC + CAK is pretty awesome for single target damage also.

With the recent MA buffs, CAK does decent damage, and it crits reliably after EC.

As to outcome, I haven't taken the time to grind data or employ spread sheets, but before the MA buff I couldn't generate quite enough DPS to pass the rikti pylon challenge on my 50 MA/SR, but afterwards I could do it approximately 3 times out of 5 attempts (sometimes the RNG came up against me and the pylon wiped me out; SR flukeyness), though it took a while.

The reliable crit on CAK after EC was a nice spike in my DPS and I believe it is what pushed me over the top.

With the incarnate interface added on top of that it's almost cake to do the rikti pylon, but that's another subject.

As much derision as EA gets, one of my toughest characters is an EA brute and he does quite well. EA is very IO'able. It caters to a different play style and trades pure toughness for some utility. I wouldn't be saddened by a buff for selfish reasons, but really it's better than people give it credit for.

Also, several of you have said EA is "balanced", but from the context of your post I think you mean "UN-balanced". Being balanced is a good thing, unbalanced is bad.

Back on topic, I really really really want an Ice / Ice scrapper and have wanted one since the game came out. Every time the devs start talking about proliferation I hope it will make the cut...but I'm still waiting...

/EA can be solid, but you have to play to it's toolboxy / utility strengths. It's not as outright tough as a more pure defense, but the options it offers are nice. My 50 KM/EA brute is one of my favorite characters, and is very durable and capable. Here you go...

Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.93
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Kid Hype: Level 50 Mutation Brute
Primary Power Set: Kinetic Melee
Secondary Power Set: Energy Aura
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Quick Strike

• (A) Smashing Haymaker - Accuracy/Damage
• (3) Smashing Haymaker - Damage/Endurance
• (3) Smashing Haymaker - Damage/Recharge
• (5) Smashing Haymaker - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

Level 1: Kinetic Shield

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
• (5) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
• (7) Defense Buff IO
• (7) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge

Level 2: Dampening Field

• (A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
• (9) Aegis - Resistance
• (9) Aegis - Resistance/Recharge
• (11) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance

Level 4: Smashing Blow

• (A) Kinetic Combat - Accuracy/Damage
• (11) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Recharge
• (13) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (13) Kinetic Combat - Knockdown Bonus

Level 6: Power Shield

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
• (15) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
• (15) Defense Buff IO
• (17) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge

Level 8: Combat Jumping

• (A) Unbounded Leap - Jumping
• (17) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

Level 10: Entropy Shield

• (A) Endurance Reduction IO

Level 12: Power Siphon

• (A) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff
• (19) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff/Recharge
• (19) Adjusted Targeting - Recharge

Level 14: Taunt

• (A) Mocking Beratement - Taunt
• (21) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge
• (21) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge/Range
• (23) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Range
• (23) Mocking Beratement - Recharge
• (25) Mocking Beratement - Accuracy/Recharge

Level 16: Energy Protection

• (A) Reactive Armor - Resistance/Endurance
• (25) Reactive Armor - Resistance/Recharge
• (27) Reactive Armor - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
• (27) Reactive Armor - Resistance

Level 18: Burst

• (A) Scirocco's Dervish - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (29) Scirocco's Dervish - Accuracy/Damage
• (29) Scirocco's Dervish - Damage/Recharge
• (31) Scirocco's Dervish - Damage/Endurance
• (31) Scirocco's Dervish - Accuracy/Recharge
• (31) Scirocco's Dervish - Chance of Damage(Lethal)

Level 20: Energy Cloak

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
• (33) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
• (33) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (33) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge

Level 22: Maneuvers

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed
• (34) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (34) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge

Level 24: Hasten

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO
• (34) Recharge Reduction IO
• (36) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 26: Focused Burst

• (A) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (36) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (36) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (37) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (37) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (37) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage

Level 28: Energy Drain

• (A) Efficacy Adaptor - EndMod/Recharge
• (39) Miracle - Heal
• (39) Miracle - Heal/Recharge
• (39) Miracle - Heal/Endurance/Recharge
• (40) Miracle - Heal/Endurance
• (40) Miracle - Endurance/Recharge

Level 30: Super Jump

• (A) Jumping

Level 32: Concentrated Strike

• (A) Touch of Death - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (40) Touch of Death - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (42) Touch of Death - Damage/Recharge
• (42) Touch of Death - Damage/Endurance
• (42) Touch of Death - Accuracy/Damage
• (43) Touch of Death - Chance of Damage(Negative)

Level 35: Conserve Power

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 38: Overload

• (A) Red Fortune - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (43) Red Fortune - Defense/Recharge
• (43) Red Fortune - Defense/Endurance
• (45) Red Fortune - Endurance
• (45) Red Fortune - Defense

Level 41: Focused Accuracy

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff
• (45) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge
• (46) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance
• (46) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance
• (46) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance
• (48) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up

Level 44: Superior Conditioning

• (A) Endurance Modification IO
• (48) Endurance Modification IO

Level 47: Physical Perfection

• (A) Miracle - +Recovery
• (48) Miracle - Heal

Level 49: Laser Beam Eyes

• (A) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge

Level 50: Spiritual Total Radial Revamp
------------
Level 1: Brawl

• (A) Empty

Level 1: Sprint

• (A) Empty

Level 2: Rest

• (A) Empty

Level 2: Swift

• (A) Run Speed IO

Level 2: Hurdle

• (A) Jumping

Level 2: Health

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
• (50) Healing

Level 2: Stamina

• (A) Endurance Modification IO
• (50) Endurance Modification IO
• (50) Endurance Modification IO

Level 1: Fury
Level 4: Ninja Run
------------
Set Bonus Totals:

• 9% DamageBuff(Smashing)
• 9% DamageBuff(Lethal)
• 9% DamageBuff(Fire)
• 9% DamageBuff(Cold)
• 9% DamageBuff(Energy)
• 9% DamageBuff(Negative)
• 9% DamageBuff(Toxic)
• 9% DamageBuff(Psionic)
• 15.5% Defense(Smashing)
• 15.5% Defense(Lethal)
• 13% Defense(Fire)
• 13% Defense(Cold)
• 9.25% Defense(Energy)
• 9.25% Defense(Negative)
• 6.125% Defense(Psionic)
• 13.94% Defense(Melee)
• 9.875% Defense(Ranged)
• 13.63% Defense(AoE)
• 1.8% Max End
• 25% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 5% Enhancement(Heal)
• 50% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
• 9% FlySpeed
• 185.53 HP (12.38%) HitPoints
• 9% JumpHeight
• 9% JumpSpeed
• MezResist(Held) 5.5%
• MezResist(Immobilize) 11%
• 9.5% (0.159 End/sec) Recovery
• 50% (3.129 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 1.26% Resistance(Fire)
• 1.26% Resistance(Cold)
• 1.26% Resistance(Energy)
• 4.385% Resistance(Negative)
• 14% RunSpeed

------------
Set Bonuses:
Smashing Haymaker
(Quick Strike)

• MezResist(Immobilize) 2.2%
• 16.87 HP (1.125%) HitPoints
• 1.875% Defense(Smashing,Lethal), 0.938% Defense(Melee)

Luck of the Gambler
(Kinetic Shield)

• 10% (0.626 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 16.87 HP (1.125%) HitPoints
• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Steadfast Protection
(Dampening Field)

• 3% Defense(Melee), 3% Defense(AoE), 3% Defense(Ranged), 3% Defense(Smashing), 3% Defense(Lethal), 3% Defense(Fire), 3% Defense(Cold), 3% Defense(Energy), 3% Defense(Negative), 3% Defense(Psionic)

Aegis
(Dampening Field)

• 5% RunSpeed
• 3.125% Defense(Fire,Cold), 1.563% Defense(AoE)

Kinetic Combat
(Smashing Blow)

• MezResist(Immobilize) 2.75%
• 22.49 HP (1.5%) HitPoints
• 3.75% Defense(Smashing,Lethal), 1.875% Defense(Melee)

Luck of the Gambler
(Power Shield)

• 10% (0.626 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 16.87 HP (1.125%) HitPoints
• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Luck of the Gambler
(Combat Jumping)

• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Adjusted Targeting
(Power Siphon)

• 2% DamageBuff(All)
• 1.26% Resistance(Energy,Negative)

Mocking Beratement
(Taunt)

• 1.8% Max End
• MezResist(Held) 2.75%
• 2.5% Defense(Smashing,Lethal), 1.25% Defense(Melee)
• 3.125% Defense(Fire,Cold), 1.563% Defense(AoE)
• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Reactive Armor
(Energy Protection)

• MezResist(Immobilize) 1.1%
• 1.25% Defense(Energy,Negative), 0.625% Defense(Ranged)
• 1.25% Defense(Smashing,Lethal), 0.625% Defense(Melee)

Scirocco's Dervish
(Burst)

• 10% (0.626 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 3.125% Resistance(Negative)
• 9% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 3.125% Defense(AoE), 1.563% Defense(Fire), 1.563% Defense(Cold)
• 3.125% Defense(Psionic)

Luck of the Gambler
(Energy Cloak)

• 10% (0.626 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 16.87 HP (1.125%) HitPoints
• 9% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Luck of the Gambler
(Maneuvers)

• 10% (0.626 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 16.87 HP (1.125%) HitPoints
• 7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Thunderstrike
(Focused Burst)

• 2% (0.033 End/sec) Recovery
• 2.5% Defense(Energy,Negative), 1.25% Defense(Ranged)
• 7% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 4% RunSpeed, 4% FlySpeed, 4% JumpSpeed, 4% JumpHeight
• 2.5% Defense(Ranged), 1.25% Defense(Energy), 1.25% Defense(Negative)

Miracle
(Energy Drain)

• 2.5% (0.042 End/sec) Recovery
• 28.11 HP (1.875%) HitPoints
• 5% Enhancement(Heal)
• 1.875% Defense(AoE), 0.938% Defense(Fire), 0.938% Defense(Cold)

Touch of Death
(Concentrated Strike)

• MezResist(Immobilize) 2.75%
• 22.49 HP (1.5%) HitPoints
• 2.5% DamageBuff(All)
• MezResist(Held) 2.75%
• 3.75% Defense(Melee), 1.875% Defense(Lethal), 1.875% Defense(Smashing)

Red Fortune
(Overload)

• MezResist(Immobilize) 2.2%
• 1.26% Resistance(Fire,Cold)
• 2% DamageBuff(All)
• 5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)

Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control
(Focused Accuracy)

• 5% JumpSpeed, 5% JumpHeight, 5% FlySpeed, 5% RunSpeed
• 28.11 HP (1.875%) HitPoints
• 2.5% (0.042 End/sec) Recovery
• 2.5% DamageBuff(All)
• 2.5% Defense(Melee), 1.25% Defense(Lethal), 1.25% Defense(Smashing), 2.5% Defense(Ranged), 1.25% Defense(Energy), 1.25% Defense(Negative), 2.5% Defense(AoE), 1.25% Defense(Fire), 1.25% Defense(Cold)

Miracle
(Physical Perfection)

• 2.5% (0.042 End/sec) Recovery

I have a lvl 50 KM/EA Brute. I tried both KM/EA on Brute and Stalker at the beginning, and settled on the Brute as being the all around better of the two by 16. KM works decently well on a brute, but...I probably wouldn't play another one to 50.

As to your original question, yes you can easily "concept" KM as wind powers.

I actually get what the OP is saying; if you take pride in being good at what you do, then sure it could be frustrating to see people "get for free" something you feel you "earned the hard way".

But, really, its just a game. If you really need an ego prop, turn off your computer and do something "worthy" for real. And take pictures, so you can look at them fondly whenever your ego needs propping. It's more productive, and you might even do something truly worthwhile vs completing a butch purple IO set on your 5th alt's second build.


For those who argue regarding the homogenization effect, well yeah, that's power creep in action for you. We must not allow a mineshaft gap, obviously. The where does it all end (in disaster) wonder of it all is not new. Bubbles always burst eventually. But if you are riding the up-side for the duration you can have a lot of fun in the meantime.

On the other hand, if you prefer a less escalated play experience, there's good news. The Incarnate content is stacked on top and doesn't really permeate downwards. So, you can continue to enjoy the non end game aspect of the game indefinitely. Just resolve to not worry about what the Joneses are doing and play as you always have.




Personally, I'm already bored running BAFs and Lambda's, and I'm a pretty casual player. I came back after a couple month absence two days ago, have played about 10 hours, and have basically caught up already, have 5 each of the Incarnate trials under my belt (all successful), and led Lambda myself earlier tonight. I wish there were at least one other Trial to mix up the monotony a bit.

We're victims of our own appetites of course; many of us go thru the content so much faster than they can make it rather than savoring it over time. It's all about the new shiny. But, that wont stop me from playing enough to get each of the 4 new slots filled in. I find my Skinner box quite comfy, apparently.

I stumbled on this older post doing some research.

I have a lvl 50 KM/EA brute that I lavished some love on, which I've posted about previously. I've also played a few other EA's here and there to mid levels. All in all I've found the set to be very competitive with SR if you invest reasonable time and resources to get IO'd out. In fact, I often compare my lvl 50 KM/EA brute and my lvl 50 MA/SR scrapper side by side by running the same missions and tf's with both to see how they stack up.

The mixed nature of the EA set allows the slotting of a lot of different kinds of IO sets, and is in a backwards way an advantage. I went for 4 sets of LotG a couple of decent resist sets, and Numina's in Energy Drain to make it more useful as a heal. I use Maneuvers, though at this point I'm far enough over soft cap that I don't really need it except as a safety buffer, and avoided the Fighting Pool altogether. I'm going for perma-hasten (currently have a few second gap), and am recharge and damage centric.

The character does really well, though any Psi based AV or sometimes EB is problematic due to the huge Psi hole. Negative is sometimes a problem; Ghost Widow for instance; but generally not noticeable.

The combat stealth is a HUGE boost to the survivability of the set. Unless you are reckless or occasionally unlucky it allows to carve out manageable numbers of enemies and fight only as many as you can handle. Many times I've taken down mobs while other mobs stand 5 feet away with their backs turned, completely oblivious.

I use taunt (useful as a set mule as well) to pull aggro and can even tank for a smaller team of 2-5 players without problems; I've been on many teams where an actual tank wasn't cutting it and ended up becoming the lead unintentionally. Tanking an AV is not a good idea as EA can't take the big hits that get past the RNG, but with the t9 running or a good buffer / healer it's doable in a pinch.

The primary set has a lot to do with EA survival as well. KM has some damage debuff, but also a very reliable circle knockdown in Burst. Most opponents spend the fight on their rear ends not attacking while I beat them up. The "active defense" of the primary would help any secondary of course, but the amazing endurance management of EA once Energy Drain is available allows even a casual player to constantly spam attacks while running toggles without having to tune for endurance.

On that note, I suppose once fire ramps up it kills quick, but when I tried a Fire/EA to lvl 10 I found it squishy. I've had better results with Dark and KM. Thematically I wanted EM/EA to work but I abandoned it after level 12 as it just wasn't doing it for me.


All in all EA is a non-standard defense set and it lags in several areas on paper, but in actual game play it works well if you find it's "groove". It's fun and toolboxy, and offers up some options normally not available. I find it to be a counterpoint to Dark Armor, another set I really enjoy. You can't dabble in EA and form an opinion; you really need to stick with it long enough to get Energy Drain and slot it; I recommend slotting it as a heal. If it's still not doing it for you after ED, then bail because that's the pinnacle of the set.

With the recent MA changes there almost isn't a "bad" MA chain.

Personally I cycle EC + CAK + SK + Box, plus clicking Focus Chi every time it comes up. I throw DT in vs Box when it is appropriate to do so, and possibly put DT after EC for the circle crit if the foes are tough enough for it to matter.

I crit so often on CAK following EC that I almost _expect it_ to happen. Those two attacks back to back are insta-gibbers. They both hit for a ton. I imagine the bad guys heads popping off. Other players have asked "wth was that!?!" after I one shot something tough (I tend to use the punching animation which not everyone is familiar with). The ultimate ultimate is when Focus Chi is on, Gaussian's Chance for Damage kicks in, I crit with either EC or CAK and the Chance for Damage IO either power has procs...yeah, that never gets old.

I don't have any of the other MA powers but if I didn't want Toughness and Weave I'd have Thunder Kick or Cobra Strike vs Box as well. I used to use Crane Kick but I finally just got tired of the knockback messing with my groove.

Have fun!

From a performance standpoint Mace is better than Axe, and has more customization options. Having played both, I'll never make a new Axe guy again unless the set gets retooled. Not only is it sub par, it is also boring; you get a lot of the same basic attack over and over. Mace mixes things up a bit more.