Local_Man
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Posts
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Zack Snyder's previous films of 300 and Watchmen have certainly pulled the fantastic into a realistic kind of world. This time, he gets to work with an original story instead of having to copy a previously well-known story.
Frankly, I plan to see this for the geektastic eye-candy . . . wild action, giant robots, hot chicks. I really enjoyed both 300 and Watchmen, so I expect to enjoy this. I think I just like Snyder's directoral style. If it is actually a good story . . . that's a bonus. -
While it is nice to get some Accuracy from sets into Choking Cloud, I think it is far more important to slot the Hold to the ED cap, and then slot a lot of EndRdx. The unique nature of this power means that you have a chance for it to pulse a hold every 5 seconds. Fully slotted, that hold will last almost 15 seconds or through 3 pulses. That means that you get three chances to extend the hold another 15 seconds. Anything less than full slotting will limit the hold to 2 pulses long, thereby reducing your chance to extend the hold substantially.
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Quote:Your question is kind of confusing. Choking Cloud does not take Accuracy enhancements on its own, but you can sneak Accuracy into the power through multi-aspect enhancements like set IOs and Hami-Os.Originally Posted by Postagulous
But everything I've read here says that if I slot a Acc/Hold that Choking Cloud's accuracy can't be changed?
The information we have on the power is that it first has to make a ToHit Roll on each foe in range, and then it applies the "chance for" mechanism -- 80% chance for Mag 1, 50% chance for a Mag 2. As far as we know, Global Accuracy and accuracy slotted in the power through multi-aspect IOs and HOs will increase the chance for the power to hit. -
Quote:There are several reasons I recommend Illusion/Radiation. Phantom Army is the key power in the Illusion primary . . . you want it up as often as possible. Also, PA cannot be buffed, so the only way you can make them better is through debuffs on the foes.Originally Posted by StupidlySmart
lol so its looking like right now i am leaning towards ill/something... now just to pick the correct secondary...tho plant is peaking my interest...one of my buddies keeps pushing me to make a stone/rad but i want something different than what peeps in my realm of teams play... appreciate all the advice thus far...keep it coming i am tallying the votes lol and in day or two whichever build has most votes is what i will do and see how it goes...figure its a fun way to start a new arch type!!
Radiation is the ONLY controller secondary that has a Recharge buff AND Defense and Resistance Debuffs. Plus, the buff in AM is PB AoE . . . you don't have to buff all your teammates (while missing out on it yourself, like Kin, Cold, Therm, Sonic, FF, Emp). The two important debuffs are autohit toggles anchored on foes -- just cast them once and they stay there affecting all the foes nearby until the anchor foe is defeated. Compared to other sets, only Kinetics has a Recharge buff for yourself, and that requires that you siphon off of a foe at least twice to pass the Recharge buff in Rad. However, Kinetics does not have the debuffs. Other sets have Defense and/or Resistance debuffs, but no other set combines all three like Rad.
Another nice thing about Rad . . . the key powers come early in the set. The heal, Defense/ToHit Debuff, Team buff and the Damage/Resistance debuff are all available early. The key powers in Kin, TA, Cold, Therm and (2 of the 3 for) Storm come very late in the set. Cold, Storm and TA are fun secondaries for Illusion, but many of the best powers come late.
Another nice thing about Rad: it has substantial -Regen in both Lingering Radiation and EM Pulse. This is why a Rad defender, controller or corrupter is always welcome on a TF where AVs will appear.
Rad has a self-heal, unlike Cold, Storm, TA, Sonic or FF. Rad is always team-friendly, and yet great for solo, too. The only two ally-only powers in Rad (Mutation and Fallout) are easily skippable. Storm and TA also work very well solo.
Of others, I would suggest pairing Plant with Storm, Kin or Rad. There is a lot of good synergy between Plant and Storm. I really enjoy Storm, but it is a challenge to play well . . . you need to learn when NOT to use several of the powers. I just got my Plant/Kin up to 50 . . . but it is very, very busy playing that character on a large team. She was started as part of a duo with an Elec/Shield scrapper, which is a really powerful combo of characters. The Scrapper would go in to gather aggro and try to bunch up the foes. Then I would hit them with Seeds, Roots, Fulcrum Shift, and then he could hit them with Lightning Rod and/or Shield Charge to wipe out entire groups in one shot. (I was pulling a lot of aggro and getting killed a lot until I added Super Speed with a Stealth IO to let me get in the best position for the Seeds of Confusion cone.) -
As a general rule, Damage procs should be added (a) in a power that does decent damage only after the power has been fully slotted for damage, or (b) in a power that does no or little damage and is activated frequently or is activated against a large group -- and there isn't something better to use that slot for.
In a power that already does decent damage, like Grav Distortion (single target hold), you should only consider slotting a damage proc if you have the power already slotted to over 90% or so on Damage. Slotting the power for damage below that will generally do more total damage. With Single Target Holds, you can also slot them for Hold, so I generally don't recommend using a damage proc there -- I prefer to slot for Acc, Hold, Rech and Damage.
The problem with putting a damage proc in GDF, the AoE Hold, is that it has a slow recharge so you won't get to use it all that often -- you may have a better use for that slot.
Damage procs work well in AoE Immob powers, like your Crushing Field. AoE Immobs do a low amount of damage (except for Plant's Roots) and can be used quite often, so the damage from the proc has a good chance to be greater than slotting the power for Damage. The Posi Blast Chance for Energy Damage is good for this.
As for Propel: Generally slotting the power for Acc, Dam and Rech will net you more damage than slotting a damage proc.
An exception to the "general damage proc rules" above are the procs from the purple sets . . . they have a higher chance to proc and do more damage than the common ones.
I have a Grav/Storm. Personally, I prefer Crush over Lift . . . it does more damage over time and it also sets Containment for Propel in case GD misses. (Lift really should have its damage increased to the same as Mind's Levitate.) My single target attack chain is GD-Crush-Propel when solo or small team. HOWEVER, Propel is so slow that on larger teams, Lift is probably more useful -- I find that I am often throwing things at foes who have already been terminated by my teammates by the time Propel finishes animating. (I call this "Necroblasting.") So, to me, I take GD and Crush, then choose between Propel or Lift depending on whether I plan to mostly solo or team. -
On my Ice-themed characters, I usually use Prestige Power Slide with the Speed on Demand binds. That way, it only turns on when they start to move. It usually seems to take a step or two before the slide starts . . . which is perfect, concept wise. The Ice character has to form the Ice and then slide on it.
It works great with Super Speed, though, too. -
Quote:Uh, no offense intended, but "Elec/FF" and "solo easily" do not belong in the same paragraph. Electric, Ice and Earth are the lowest damage primaries, and I would say that the Gremlins do disappointingly low damage. Force Field is the only secondary with no damage buffs OR resistance debuffs -- and the only damage power, Repulsion Bomb, is pitiful damage.Originally Posted by Largo
Both solo easily. Elec/FF is more AoE focused. Mind/Rad can be a single hard target dynamo. Depends on what you want to do with your character.
Mind you just have to avoid Carnies, because they are very resistant to your powers.
Elec/* once you get Gremlins is very safe and fast. Prior to gremlins, a little slow, so team up.
The only controller combo that may do slightly less damage is Ice/FF. -
Quote:Rocky has tank resistance caps . . . so he caps out at 90%. It is kind of interesting that he is actually given 100% resistance to Psi, but the Resist cap cuts that down to 90%.Originally Posted by Starwinds
Just out of curosity, and since I can't find anything on it on Paragon Wiki... Anyone one know what the caps are for pets. (Stuff like resistance, damage, you know... fun stuff like that)
Mainly I'm looking at Stoney for my Earth/Sonic build and I'm wondering what his resistance is going to cap at. 80%? 90%? 100%? What?!? (ok i'm dreaming on the 100% but oh well...)
Any one got a number for me? -
Quote:It would be cool to have that option. On the other hand, one of my costumes on one of my Illusion 'Trollers is a copy of PA, so it would kind of make that moot.Originally Posted by EU_Damz
While on the test server just now, a player asked Positron if it'ld be possible to turn Phantom Army into clones of ourselves like the ones we face ingame currently. Positrons answer? They want to do it and are trying but at the moment there are technical difficulties with it . . . .
Bad news they cant do it yet, but good news they are at least thinking
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Quote:Yes, Freedom and Virtue have the highest populations. However, if you want to make a place in a "community" of regular players, where you often team with the same folks, then the other servers are great.Originally Posted by Syntax42
Freedom and Virtue have the highest populations. The other servers felt empty to me, when compared to those two.
My main server is Guardian, and I really like the community of folks there. I run into a lot of the same friendly and funny, yet very competant players there. It is a moderately high population server, and there is pretty much something going on during all the standard busy hours and usually something happening during odd hours. My standard group of buddies have our main characters on Guardian.
We also have SGs on Pinnacle and Infinity with a lot of characters . . . . Pinnacle doesn't seem quite as active, but I have usually been able to find teams during the usual busy hours. I usually solo on Infinity (all villains there).
I also have some characters on Protector . . . it shows up as a low-ish population server, but every time I show up and join in with a TF or chat some on the global channels, it seems like there are a lot of enthusiastic, friendly people there. Last weekend I decided to lead a TF, and while recruiting I got tells from three folks commenting on my Ill/Rad guide -- it seems that Protector has a fairly highly active forum population.
I have some characters on Freedom and Virtue, too. While it is generally easy to get a team, Virtue is a little more friendly than Freedom, but I don't find either as friendly as the lower population servers. Just because Freedom and Virtue have the highest population doesn't mean that you should limit yourself to those servers. I prefer to get to know a few folks as regular teammates. -
Every few months, somebody comes up with another suggestion on how to change Gravity . . . most of them involve changing Dimension Shift or moving Wormhole to level 12. A while ago, Castle said that the Gravity animations were being "looked at," but it appeared at the time that the only thing being considered was shortening Propel's animation.
Castle has moved on, but I think it is clear that the Devs know that the players feel Gravity needs something. We don't know if they made a decision not to make any changes or simply haven't gotten to it yet. Yes, Dimension Shift stinks, but most powersets have a skippable power or two . . . this one is more skippable than most.
Intangibility powers are widely disliked. Yet, you don't hear many arguments that Black Hole in Dark Miasma needs to be changed . . . because the rest of the set is pretty darn good and one skippable power is OK in a good set. I'd like to see some improvements to the rest of the set. I could live with a worthless Dimension Shift if the rest of the set got some improvements.
I enjoy my Grav/Storm even if the set is a bit sub-par, as I mostly solo with him. On a team, Wormhole and Propel have limited benefits -- and those are two of the three really interesting powers in the set. Last weekend I ran a Sister Psyche with my Grav/Storm and found that (a) Wormhole had limited situations where it was useful, and (b) it seemed that about half of the time I used Propel, the object was hitting a guy who had already been killed by a teammate. Since I didn't have Singularity in that TF, I was limited to mostly using Freezing Rain and Crushing Field as my main AoE control.
Carnifax, if that power were real . . . imagine the jump in price for Acc/Mez and Mez/Damage Hami-Os! That is the only way you could enhance all those effects. Interesting idea, but I'm not sure I would like something that unreliable as a main control power. -
Just for comparison, here is my Fire/Rad build. For some reason, I did not include my Celerity Stealth in Superspeed, but I have one. Note that I was going for Recharge rather than Defense:
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.92
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Pyrophore: Level 50 Mutation Controller
Primary Power Set: Fire Control
Secondary Power Set: Radiation Emission
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leaping
Ancillary Pool: Psionic Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Char -- BasGaze-Acc/Hold(A), BasGaze-Acc/Rchg(3), BasGaze-Rchg/Hold(15), BasGaze-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(31), HO:Nucle(31), Dmg-I(31)
Level 1: Radiant Aura -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(7), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(34), Dct'dW-Heal(43), Dct'dW-Rchg(43)
Level 2: Fire Cages -- GravAnch-Immob/Rchg(A), GravAnch-Acc/Immob/Rchg(3), GravAnch-Acc/Rchg(11), GravAnch-Immob/EndRdx(15), GravAnch-Hold%(40), Posi-Dam%(42)
Level 4: Accelerate Metabolism -- Efficacy-EndMod(A), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg(5), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(5), Efficacy-Acc/Rchg(37), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc(37), Efficacy-EndMod/EndRdx(37)
Level 6: Radiation Infection -- HO:Enzym(A), HO:Enzym(7), HO:Enzym(40)
Level 8: Hot Feet -- Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx(A), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(9), TmpRdns-Dmg/Slow(9), TmpRdns-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(17), HO:Nucle(19), EndRdx-I(21)
Level 10: Air Superiority -- HO:Nucle(A), HO:Nucle(11)
Level 12: Flashfire -- Amaze-Stun(A), Amaze-Stun/Rchg(13), Amaze-Acc/Stun/Rchg(13), Amaze-Acc/Rchg(43), Amaze-EndRdx/Stun(46)
Level 14: Super Speed -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 16: Enervating Field -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(17)
Level 18: Cinders -- BasGaze-Acc/Hold(A), BasGaze-Acc/Rchg(19), BasGaze-Rchg/Hold(21), BasGaze-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(36), EoCur-Acc/Hold/Rchg(36)
Level 20: Lingering Radiation -- Acc-I(A)
Level 22: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(25), RechRdx-I(25)
Level 24: Mutation -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 26: Bonfire -- Dmg-I(A)
Level 28: Choking Cloud -- UbrkCons-Hold(A), UbrkCons-Dam%(29), UbrkCons-Acc/Hold/Rchg(29), UbrkCons-EndRdx/Hold(36), Lock-%Hold(40), EndRdx-I(46)
Level 30: Combat Jumping -- Krma-ResKB(A)
Level 32: Fire Imps -- ExRmnt-Acc/Rchg(A), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg(33), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(33), S'bndAl-Dmg/Rchg(34), S'bndAl-Build%(34)
Level 35: Fallout -- HO:Nucle(A)
Level 38: EM Pulse -- BasGaze-Acc/Hold(A), BasGaze-Acc/Rchg(39), BasGaze-Rchg/Hold(39), BasGaze-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(39)
Level 41: Indomitable Will -- RechRdx-I(A), HO:Membr(42), RechRdx-I(42)
Level 44: Mental Blast -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(45), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(45), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(46)
Level 47: Psionic Tornado -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(48), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(48), Posi-Dmg/Rng(48), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(50)
Level 49: Mind Over Body -- HO:Ribo(A), HO:Ribo(50), HO:Ribo(50)
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Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Containment
Level 1: Sprint -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Numna-Heal(27), Mrcl-Rcvry+(27)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(23), EndMod-I(23)
Level 4: Ninja Run
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Quote:My general recommendation for an all-purpose character who can solo, contribute to Small Teams and Large Teams, and handle most anything in the game is an Illusion/Rad Controller. And while a Perma-PA build can be expensive, it can be made at a somewhat more reasonable price with some smart choices . . . like running 5 Tip Missions often to earn Alignment Merits to buy the more expensive IOs (Luck of the Gambler Recharge).Originally Posted by Zerres
Hi!
I played for a stint back in 2009 and 2010 during a wow burnout and now having played DCUO (which i think is fun.....but its SOE =\) it got me re-interested in cox, I just reactivated my account tonight and i'm downloading the client as i type this.
Anyway, looking to get some info on what servers have a good population, good SG's to find people to group with, and a good versatile first character for a returning player. I'm looking for the jack-of-all-trades really. Something that can solo well, brings functionality to a group and isn't a 12B inf build to work it. Something i can use to build a foundation for all the crazy fun builds with.
If i remember correctly i have a 30-40 something Ice/Kin corrupter but i'm not sure i wanna jump straight back into him. I remember Kin being really hectic set to play and it being a relatively squishy and difficult build to play.
Thanks in advance for the help!
My Ill/Rad guide has a suggested leveling-up build as well as an end-game build. Just click the link in my sig. -
When I have some time, I'll try to feed this build into Mid's. From what I can see, your slotting for Hot Feet does not have enough EndRdx. Your slotting for Choking Cloud doesn't have enough EndRdx or Hold. Unless you are going for the Cardiac Alpha Boost, you are likely to be gasping for endurance when trying to run Hot Feet, Choking Cloud, Maneuvers, Tactics, Combat Jumping and Mind Over Body. Even more so if you are trying to run Enervating Field with only one EndRdx in it . . . I always use two.
Choking Cloud needs capped Hold and nearly capped EndRdx. My Ill/Rad guide explains how the power works and why you need capped hold.
The knockback proc from Stupify in Flashfire will be frustrating . . . I know since I tried it once. I get that you were aiming for the Ranged Defense, but knocking foes back will be frustrating.
You have a few other things that I would not do, but I tend to go more for Recharge than Defense. -
I asked a few other people, non-fans, of comic book characters they have heard of:
The old standards: Superman, Batman (& Robin), Spider-man. Hulk, Aquaman and Iron Man have had recent appearances in the media, and they knew about them. Wonder Woman, mostly due to the old TV series and her appearance on some cartoon shows. Fantastic Four were known by a few. One remembered Daredevil and Ghost Rider from the films.
Hellboy was known by a few. One person remembered the Judge Dredd film and the Blade movies, but did not realize they were from comics. And one other that hasn't been mentioned in this thread -- The Tick. Several people remembered the Tick from the cartoon show. And, importantly, they would recognize The Tick as the big blue guy with antennae. -
Quote:Illusion/Rad is my favorite character in the game for good reason -- he can Blast-Control-Defend-Tank. He is great solo, on small teams and on large teams. With Blind, Spectral Wounds and Deceive, you can solo from the beginning and never look back. Or you can team all the way with your early debuffs and team buffs. You don't have to wait until 32, 35 or 38 for the best powers -- the best power comes at 18 and you have the core build by level 26. He can handle anything that comes along. Illusion/Rad is also a great "first controller," as it is pretty easy to play moderately well, but challenging to play really well. See my Ill/Rad Guide, linked in my sig.Originally Posted by StupidlySmart
Hey all...so i have been playing the game since day one pretty much and have been a huge fanatic of Melee toons...all of my lvl 50 toons are either tanks,scrappers,stalkers or brutes, but now i am trying to get one of every AT to level 50 for variety and diversity and with that comes finding a build that i will actually level to 50 and not get annoyed with by 20 and delete... so that brings me to Controllers...i hear how much people love them...so i was looking at all the threads and mids builds and am kind of at a loss as what to make... so I am looking at a good fun first time controller build with a few stipulations for you Controller Professionals out there
1. I want a controller that can solo as well as be useful on a team, but be soloable most importantly prior to level 32
2. I have a lvl 41 Elec/fire/fire DOM, so trying to stay away from Elec primary
3. fun fun and fun
Thank you in advance for the help, i am sure these questions get posted all the time....Cheers
@DaSlaya
50s DaSlaya (dm/sr scrapper), DaSlaya perfected (fire/wp scrapper), DaSlaya the Great (dm/wp scrapper), Enfuego DaSlaya (fire/regen scrapper), Polisi Bagus (wp/ss tank), DaSlaya Jr. (wp/wm tank), D3eath Messenger (elec/shield brute), DaSlaya aka Chris (dm/fire brute), Mast3r of Chaos (km/wp stalker)
There are a few things Ill/Rad is not great at. Farming. Huge chunks of AoE damage. Fighting in melee.
Illusion works with any secondary -- I am fond of (and have level 50's of) Ill/Cold, Ill/TA, Ill/Storm. Ill/Kin is two great powersets with a few synergy issues. However, Cold and Kin get their best powers late, Ill/Storm is the king of chaos and has to be limited on teams, and Ill/TA is an all ranged, all debuff and Control build with the best secondary power coming at 35. Ill/Emp is a popular build for team healers. Ill/Therm, Ill/Sonic and Ill/FF all have their supporters.
As for secondaries, Rad is the works-with-them-all secondary. Storm and Kin are great with most primaries. TA adds some nice control and late damage but has no buffs. Emp, Therm and FF are really more team-oriented. I've never been able to play a Sonic very far . . . not my style.
If you can't break away from the melee/damage mindset, try a Fire/Rad or Fire/Kin. I actually prefer Fire/Rad for the Hot Feet+Choking Cloud combo, but Fire/Kin is known as a great farming build for good reason (but it is late blooming). If you like melee but are willing to play a support role with low damage, Ice and Elec are both effective at melee. Ice combines nicely with Rad, Storm and Kin. For Electric Control, I have only played Elec/Rad but it is a great combo. (Fire, Ice and Elec work well with Choking Cloud, but I would skip this power for all other controller primaries.)
If you want damage but don't mind a little bit of range, Plant is good. Plant is better than most controllers solo, but really shines at AoE damage rather than single target. Plant/Storm, Plant/Kin and Plant/Rad are all great, but Plant works with every secondary.
Earth is the best ranged AoE control set . . . but it is low damage. Earth/Rad and Earth/TA are the best all around ranged control sets. Some folks argue that Mind is up there with Earth . . . I prefer Earth. Mind does have some decent single target damage that makes playing solo easier especially in low levels, but seems to level out on damage in late levels just when other controllers are getting their pets. However, Mind has excellent AoE control that it uses in place of a pet.
Gravity is sort of the black sheep of controllers -- the single-target damage is good but slow, and it has several powers that, if misused, can really frustrate a team. My personal favorite is Grav/Storm, and mine is a mostly-solo character.
There are no BAD controllers. Some powersets have more synergy than others, but none of them are bad. It does, however, take more strategy and careful consideration to play a controller well -- some powers conflict with other powers -- often in the same powerset. (Earth's Stone Cages will stop the knockdown of Earthquake, and Ice's Frostbite will stop the knockdown of Ice Slick, for example.) Unlike most other ATs, you mostly do not just get in position and mash buttons -- although there is some of that. You have to think . . . "Do I use this now, or save it until later? How can I make this next group easier for my team to kill? How do I control or distract this group to keep myself from getting squashed while I take out foes one-by-one? -
I mostly use the Global Channels to get teams. However, if things are slow or I am on one of my secondary or tertiary servers, I will sometimes set up a macro to politely ask folks if they would like to join a team/TF/SF, and then use the search window to find people who have "looking for team" up.
And if none of my usual friends are on, I will occastionally turn on my "Looking for Team" flag while doing Tip Missions.
Like most things in life, the problem rests in abusing the system rather than using it reasonably. -
Quote:I think there are a lot of options, and it really depends on your playstyle.Originally Posted by Melancton
Local,
What are your thoughts on the 3 powers that should replace the now Inherent Fitness powers in your build?
I imagine that they may well take the two extra slots from Fly now that it hits the cap without enhancements. I should think that a -KB IO should go in the Fly inherent slot now. What say you?
For example, the Raptor Pack is just as fast as Fly, so I have actually dropped Fly on several characters and use Super Speed (with a Celerity Stealth IO for full invis) and just use the Raptor Pack when I want to fly over stuff. If I keep Fly, I usually slot it with a simple EndRdx unless I need it for a -Knockback or a Stealth IO. On some of these characters that are more team-oriented, I have added Recall Friend . . . which is a good place for the Zephyr -knockback.
I added Fallout. Yeah, I know it is very situational. But it is kind of fun. The combo of Recall Friend, Fallout and Mutation is especially fun on a not-so-fast moving team.
You could easily add Leadership toggles . . . if you have enough endurance to run them. Leadership is a decent choice since so many more people have it -- stacked Leadership can be significant. Some people building for Smash/Lethal Defense may want to go for the Fighting Pool. (I wouldn't, but the option is more open than it used to be.)
I think Stone Prison or Salt Crystals are worth considering. Previously, they weren't that useful but the build has opened up so much with Inherent Fitness, They are worth thinking about. Salt Crystals can be a kind of "panic button" power. Stone Prison can help solo if slotted for damage, and can Immob a boss or AV more easily than Stone Cages alone. -
I have five shows that I record on my DVR . . . all five are on the endangered or cancelled list
I've been watching The Cape, but I didn't expect it to survive the moment it was announced. I still watch Smallville in spite of the not-so-great writing . . . too many years to miss the last few episodes.
However, Chuck is my current favorite show and I will be very sad if it is cancelled. Fringe has been an interesting series this year. No Ordinary Family is fun . . . not a tragedy if it gets cancelled, but I'll miss it. It has just started getting more interesting. -
And to prove it works, my Illusion/Rad build has 4 Luck of the Gambler Rech and 3 sets of Baz Gaze.
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Overall, I think it looks good. You have chosen to stay with Leadership, which is fine.
One really, really small suggestion. You have about 63% extra global Accuracy from 3 purple sets, Adjusted Targetting and a Posi Blast, plus Tactics well slotted . . . do you really need that 6% from the Kismet in Combat Jumping? Seems like overkill to me. I'd move that slot to Mind Over Body for a little bit more Smash/Lethal Resistance or someplace else. -
OK, let's see . . .
You have appeared to make this build for exemping down to level 30 . . . but you have to sacrifice quite a bit in the build to do that. The level 50 IOs are much stronger than the level 25 and 30 ones. It is a matter of personal choice. Personally, I build my level 50 characters to play at level 50 with their bonuses. If I exemp down, then I lose my bonuses, but I don't do that very often. Not worth the sacrifice to me.
You have a LOT of recharge, which is always nice on an controller, but not needed as much on a Fire/Rad as some other controllers. You have Choking Cloud+Hot Feet for continual control. My view is that I would sacrifice some Recharge for better utility.
Char: 4 Baz Gaze are fine, but you will probably use this power a lot . . . it would be a good idea to get some damage in it, too. If we can find two slots, an Acc/Dam Hami-O and a common Damage will help a lot.
Radiant Aura: That 6th slot for 1.26% Toxic Resist? Not worth it -- I'd drop the End/Rech. There is one of your two slots for Char.
Rad Inf: Ideal slotting in this power is 3 Enzyme Hami-Os, as they enhance Defense Debuff, ToHit Debuff and EndRdx. A 4th slot for the Achilles proc is good if you have the spare slot, but that will get you back two slots at the cost of 5% Recharge.
AM is fine.
Fire Cages: The damage from this power isn't much. I go with 5 Grav Anchor (leave out the pure Immob) and a Posi-Blast proc in the last slot. That gets you back some of that Recharge you lost in RI.
Hot Feet: Your slotting is a little low on EndRdx . . . and has no Slow. The Slow helps keep foes in the area of Choking Cloud longer. Try the following (at level 50): Dam/End and Acc/Dam/End from Scirocco, Dam/Slow and Slow/End/Rech from Tempered Readiness, and an Acc/Dam Hami-O and a common EndRdx. That caps both Damage and EndRdx, decent Accuracy and a decent amount of Slow. Plus some small bonuses your slotting didn't have.
Cinders: See if you can put a 5th slot there for Acc/Hold/Rech from another set. It makes the power more effective. Remember that Cinders has a 20% Accuracy penalty. 4 Baz Gaze alone in EM Pulse is OK since it has higher accuracy and longer hold time.
Assault: I didn't take it. It uses a lot of endurance, and this build already uses a lot of endurance. However, a lot of people love the Leadership pool, so I don't think it is a bad choice, just not mine. I prefer to have Super Speed with a Celerity Stealth IO for full invisibility.
Ling Rad: You have no accuracy in this power, and it needs it. At your level of Recharge, Ling Rad works fine with a single Accuracy in the default slot. That frees up another slot.
Mutation: Nice to have but skippable. I would take a travel power over this . . . but I do have it in my current build.
Choking Cloud: You are too low on EndRdx unless you are planning to always have the Cardiac boost. CC needs at least 65-80% or more EndRdx. My current build has the Hold/End, Acc/Hold/Rech, Hold and Chance for Smashing from Unbreakable Constraint, the Lockdown +2 Mag proc and a common EndRdx. Sadly, you have to give up on that nice 10% Recharge bonus.
Tactics: I don't have it. I have pretty good accuracy anyway.
Fire Imps: if you chance those Expediant Reinforcement to level 50, you can use just 4 of them (leave out the Dam/End and the Resist proc), and then add the Dam/Rech and Chance for Build Up from Soulbound. Better Regen, capped Damage and Recharge. That way when the Imps die, you can re-cast them sooner.
Vengence: Another Leadership power I don't have. I understand that it could be a LotG Recharge mule, so that one is again a personal choice.
World of Confusion: It sucks -- the Radius is too small to be useful. Yeah, it could be a mule for the Confuse set, but I would MUCH rather have a useful power . . . like Psi Tornado. Psi Tornado is actually quite nice and puts out a good amount of damage. And it is KNOCK-UP rather than knock-every-which-way like it's Stormy cousin. You can get the same Recharge with the Ragnorak set, expensive, but you said Influence was no object. Or use the Posi-Blast for more reasonable cost.
Rather than Stealth, Super Speed + a Celerity Stealth IO is better invis and a travel power, too. Instead Stealth as a mule, I would rather have Hover to let me float out of range. -
I believe that if you have the Numina Proc and the Miracle Proc, you will actually get more Regen from using a Numina Heal in the third slot over the Regen Tissue Proc. The combination of the added Regen from slotting a heal in the power plus the 12% Regen set bonus adds up to more Regen.
I put the Numina proc in most level 50 characters. I'll add the Miracle proc only if the character is having endurance issues. -
jharbor, you have some room to move some slots around. I don't have time right now to go through your build, but I have some suggestions on ways to improve it.
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Quote:Originally Posted by Pinkpup
I have the Dev proc/Chance for Hold in Cinder and Char in my fire/storm.... for Cinder, I get 1 to 3 in its hold every time I use the power. For Char, its saved my bacon a few times when I was in trouble and it went off. But it is a pretty short hold, so I could see why you would pass on it. But on any aoe, its a good proc to have in it.
Actually, you are being misled. Char will hold Minions and Lieutenants on its own. Char has a 20% chance to "overpower" to add an extra 1 Mag to hold bosses. Devastation Chance for Hold has a 15% chance to hit . . . if the hold hits. But all the Minions and Lieutantants, and 20% of the bosses are already being held. The proc goes off and shows the Tesla Cage animation, but it is stacking hold on an already-held foe.
In reality, that proc only has any possible benefit against the 80% of bosses not held. 15%x80% is 12% . . . so you are seeing a benefit on only 12% of the Bosses. The number of bosses varies with your settings, team and type of mission, but if we assume that bosses are 20% of the total foes, that proc is only hitting 2.4% of the time.
On the other hand, if you slot Char with a simple damage IO, it will hit 100% of the time on all foes hit by your hold. Compare 100% vs. 2.4% . . . is the proc worth while?
That proc is nice in a Blaster's fast-recharging blasts, since it hits a full 15% of the time. But it is mostly a waste in a controller's single-target hold.