LancerUK

[ QUOTE ]
Haha the hell you gone all lame for Black? But still hats off for all those runs I could tag along on since a ill/kin troller wasn't really sought after back then =P AND: "@Blackguard
Preceptor of The Astrum Rangers" <- just wanted sounding like my name huh? =P

And see alot of familiar names right now, awesome to see so many still around.

[/ QUOTE ]

Volt is just upset because I don't play as much as he would like.

The Preceptor thing, we invented it as our title in the beta, so no, not copying off you...in fact! Yes, yes you must have copied us. I'm onto your game. What next?! A character called Blackgourd, or perhaps Smackguard?

Oh and as far as I can recall "back then" Illusion was all over and seemingly alot more effective than it is now, I don't see Illusion controllers much, but of course I don't play as much, so what do I know. It was fun though, in those "good old days" It is very good to see you back. Who knows, maybe Aria will reappear next; or Elsea...or those other people I used to know who I totally haven't forgotten the names of.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
But Spawnus really gets my attention, recall us teaming with the likes of Yo Momma and Blackguard amongst others.

[/ QUOTE ]

Blackguard is lame at the moment, incredibly lame. He's not playing because he's too busy perfecting his lameness.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hey! Welcome back.
Also I am lame, Volt says so, it must be true.

Global Name : @Blackguard
Server : Defiant
City of Heroes/City of Villains: Both
PvP Characters:
Blackguard - Tank, 50
Disjunction - Brute, 47
Dynamise - Defender, 50
Aberration - Mastermind, 45
Type of PvP: Any
Can be contacted: Via my global, the oft unused ingame email or pm on the boards
Times on: Mostly in the evenings, but I can always make time to come on if I'm not.
Timezone: British Standard Time.

I'd just like to add to this discussion; that the debuffs a defender applies in pvp are unresistable, whereas a controllers are not.

Particularly with sets like Rad and TA (to a lesser degree Kinetics and Sonic) this could mean a big difference.

Against people using SR, for example, a Rad defender can better debuff their defence and speed than a controller can.


Also I find that my Kinetics/Rad defender is quite effective in pvp, both solo and in teams. Obviously there are some powerset combo's and Archetypes I cannot beat due to my lack of mez protection, however due to kinetics slows and damage buffs/debuffs I find I do a fair amount of damage against most people and using transference can also end drain people effectively (particularly useful against Brutes and Tanks). I do, however, have particular weakness for all you damned electric brutes
All my attacks are energy damage, to which you have capped res, and my end drain is equally uneffective against them.

I suggest looking at the supergroup recruitment hub thread located Here
Most of the SG's looking for members have made at least one post there, some more than one as their sg changes. Reading through there for an sg would be my suggestion. Most of those posts have links to the various sg's website homepages (for those who have them). Similarly, some sg'swebsites are listed here on the Fansite Alliance, so that could also be worth looking at.
Hope that helps.

[ QUOTE ]
Hello all,

I've decided to try and make me a good tanker. Invuln/Ice tanker. So far he is a powerful level 3

Anyways, I have a few questions.
- How important is stamina? Invuln toggles will be slotted for end reduction.
- Fighting pool: yes - no, if yes do I get the final power of the set as well?
- Any invuln powers not worth taking?

Looking forward to levelling him up, will be quite a change from a defender & blaster. From range and squishy to up-close and sturdy (or whatever the opposite of squishy is)

G-Force

[/ QUOTE ]

To be honest I would advise agaisnt slotting your invul toggles for end reduction, theyre fairly light on endurance as it is, and I can only help but feel the slot you would use for your end reduction could be better spent elsewhere. Of your 3 main toggles I think temp invul is most endurance intensive, and invincibility is least (Last time I checked, temp invul used 0.32 end/s, Unyielding 0.24 and Invincibility was 0.19). I would take stamina and leave end reductions out. Of course, if you do take end reductions, I'd still take stamina, as it'll be a noticeable boost to how long you can maintain your attacking and you toggles for.

I have never been a fan of the fighting pool, I think invul is tough enough already, and the 2 or 3 powers you take from fighting you could instead take attacks to finish your fights up faster. Especially now with ED, Fighting pool is fairly poor.

Powers not worth taking? Hmmm, I tend to go for all 9, but Resist Physical damage and Tough Hide have always been the most useless of the 9. However, if I had to drop one, Tough hide.

[ QUOTE ]
(or whatever the opposite of squishy is)

[/ QUOTE ]
I think it's "un-squishy"

[ QUOTE ]
Short answer no with an if long answer yes with a but.

In solo PVP against melee AT's your best option is a triple debuff (RI/EF/LR) centred rad/rad with strong healing (incase of scrapper crits). Stealth isnt as important in this circumstances since they will be running before you have to, attacks also arent to vital since you wont have to work fast and you can conserve some end, personally I can take down certain tanks and most scrappers using only cosmic burst and neutron bolt.

Single Target Against Ranged foes/Controllers, Here your main 2 debuffs are almost useless since most have invis or a status effect to drop your debuff so timing your attacks and choosing when to attack are the secret, Stealth and LR will be your best friend in this case and you will need to be more offence based in your power choices 2 attacks wont cut it.

In teams you tend to work best when you make plans with your team and the enemy dont know your there until its to late, un-ivising and cosmic bursting (slotted to stun) can keep controller/blaster off your back or a defender from healing for a few seconds allowing you to plant EF on a harder target and the rest of your team (told of the plan before hand normally helps) know then to attack and watch the target fall easily. Do not stay in the open to long, a mistake I’ve seen some rad users use is to stay in the battle to long using the debuffs making them an easy target for a blaster snipe or controller’s ranged hold, stay outside the battle until you see a chance to pounce, you are not an empathy you don’t need to be nearby to heal all the time.

The Best kept secrets of Radiation.
1. Accelerate metabolism is arguably the best buff in the game, as well as its known recharge and damage buffs it has a secret most people don’t realise it is one of the only self target able buffs that protect against Endurance drain.
2. EMPulse slotted properly can drain between ½ and 1/3rd of someone’s endurance and if you time it right and drain all their endurance you will drop all toggles and hold them.
3. Using mutation to rez a fallen blaster or scrapper makes them, for a short time, a tool of pure vengeance beware the angry mutant

Your biggest enemy’s, illusion controllers.
Your easiest target’s, regen scrappers.
Your dullest fight, another rad/rad.
(By easiest/toughest I mean against standardly skilled players/first time pvper's, avoid at all costs such pvp gods as scrapopapaloplypse or whatever they are called and of course the FSA, on union)


Note:
The majority of this guide is based on my observations of rad/rad between issues 2 and 5, with the arrival of issue 6, ED the paranoia bought about by stalkers and the proliferation of +perception based powers and other power changes some of it may be incorrect since I haven’t played since then.

[/ QUOTE ]

Being Cherry's friend 'n all I may be biased, however, I would take her advice seriously. I've fought her a number of times in pvp with my tank and I can say with certainty that shes awful to fight against, anything short of running away or using a full tray full of insps is futile. All through S4 we kept on praying we never had to face against a rad defender, Cherry managed to instill fear of rad into us. Fortunately we got soundly beaten in the quarter finals on Defiant and never had to. Also, I watched a number of Cherry's teams matches, and noticed she was effective against most of the enemy she fought be they blaster, scrapper or tank (I noticed she avoided controllers often though )

Anyway, in a sort of roundabout way, the answer to the original posters question would be: yes, they can....in my opinion anyway.

Greetings friends,
Much has changed since I last made one of theswe posts, so it was "suggested" that I make a new one at some point.
The Astrum Rangers Supergroup is now going to actively pursue the recruitment of more rangers to join in the fight against crime.
We are a very active group, with quite a few level 50 heroes and many lower level heroes and alts.
All we ask before you join is that you are willing to team with us and have a good sense of humour.
We try not to take things too seriously, though we have a few level 50's we are certainly not elitist. We are accepting heroes of any level and any length of time inn the game, as we are always willing to help no matter what level you are. We also have a brand new website recently updated by Hema; we have a teamspeak server, and now a spiffing, fully functional and growing new base for use by anyone in the SG.
The way it works here in the Astrum Rangers, is that you will be invited by one of our Preceptors, or one of our Champions. They will be responsible for you primarily, any help or advice you need, they will be the first there to help. Many of us have played since the beginning of the EU Beta test, so we like to think we know enough to help newer players now. Obviously this will apply less to any more experienced heroes as they will not need as much help as some who may have just begun their journey.

Our current Preceptors are:
Blackguard (currently playing as Aberration, Mind Forge, SOlon or Revolutionist)
Darkflight (Currently playing as Drogoth)
Energon (Currently playing as Hakon, Gomex or Random Hero)
Hema (Currently playing as Burns)
Stonefield (Currently playing as Goog or Revile)

Our Champions are:
Cartouche (Currently plying as Kitsunegari)
Slatecinder (Currently playing as Frame)
Volturne (Currently playing as Nocturnal)
Justice Father (Currently playing as Judas Father)


Joining the Astrum Rangers is easy. All you have to do is make a post Here and you will be contacted by one of the Preceptors or Champions and invited to the SG. All you have to do is say hello, leave your name, AT and level and anything else you care to write, you can say as much, or as little as you like.
Once invited you will be given the rank of Trialee, which means we will team with you for a month before upgrading your rank to Ranger and giving you access to all of the forums. The trial period is just a precaution and you are most likely to be given Ranger status at the end of that month.
Alternatively send any of the aforementioned Leaders a tell in game and im sure theyll be happy to invite you to the SG.
I hope to see you soon,
-Blackguard

Ah welcome back Moloch. I certainly remember you. As, I am sure, many people who were getting themselves to 50 back in March/April time like me will. You were a good person to team with, nice to have you back.

I have my 3 zombies
-Griff
-Donut
-Caboose

2 Grave Knights
-Church
-Simmons

The Lich
-Dufraine

The Ghost
-O'Malley

(When I get it) The Dark Servant
-Tex

My minions are named from the ever famous cast of Red vs Blue.

[ QUOTE ]
I dont have either of those powers and I dont think they are available to me.

I have Necromancy and Dark Miasma, can you recommend anything to me from knowing this?

[/ QUOTE ]

Personally I find pvp fairly easy with the Dark Miasma set. In 1 on 1 conflicts in pvp zones I can often come out on top due to Darkest Night, Tar Patch and Twilight Grasp.

Darkest night debuffs the enemy heroes accuracy and damage quite significantly and as an added bonus, it interrupts. So pesky blasters can't snipe you. Tar patch can stop Heroes with SJ and sometimes heroes with Fly if they come low enough. Superspeed seems to almsot negate the patch and they can run fast through it still. Tar Patch also debuffs res, so even tanks can be taken down while standing in the patch. Twilight grasp, slotted for accuracy and heals gives a substantial aoe heal and rarely misses (except against pesky SR scrappers) and debuffs accuracy.
With the necromancy set, the added bonus is that lots of your pets have attacks that will debuff accuracy, stacking nicely with darkest night.

I also have tactics from the leadership pool to help me see those invisible heroes that can often sneak up on the unwary Mastermind.

Yes; I find my MM rather effective in pvp, even though he does have the lowest amount of Hp of any of the current Archetypes.
Of course, if I become ganged up on I can be taken down fairly easily unless the heroes stay nice and close together. I can even break through that toughest of pvp opponent, the storm controllers. My minions seem to able to hit fairly well against these controllers and they can be taken down quickly. Just have to make sure I bring some Break Free's with me to counteract their primary powers.

[ QUOTE ]
Anyone know if this works for MM minions yet?

That is all, thanks

[/ QUOTE ]

I believe the situation is that you cannot cast vengeance upon a dead minion, however vengeance cast upon a beaten teammate will buff your pets.

Greetings friends,
The Astrum Rangers Supergroup is now going to actively pursue the recruitment of more rangers to join in the fight against crime.
We are a very active group, with some level 50 heroes and many lower level heroes and alts.
All we ask before you join is that you are willing to team with us and have a good sense of humour.
We try not to take things to seriously, though we have a few level 50's we are certainly not elitist. We are accepting heroes of any level, as we are always willing to help no matter what level you are. We also have our own website here and we have a teamspeak server for use by anyone in the SG.
The way it works here in the Astrum Rangers, is that you will be invited by one of our Preceptors, or one of our Champions. They will be responsible for you primarily, any help or advice you need, they will be the first there to help. Many of us have played since the beginning of the EU Beta test, so we like to think we know enough to educate newer players now. Obviously this will apply less to any more experienced heroes as they will not need as much help as some who may have just begun their journey.

Our current Preceptors are:
Blackguard
Darkflight
Energon
Hema
Stonefield

Our Champions are:
Cartouche
Slatecinder
Volturne
Justice Father

send any of these people a tell in game and im sure theyll be happy to invite you to the SG. Alternatively, you can register on our site and leave a post in the Greetings forum and introduce yourself and mention you would like to be inducted into the ranks of rangers we currently have.
I hope to see you soon,
-Blackguard