MBarUK

Since everyone and their mother have an Ice Tanker these days, I was also tempted to make one. Then I decided not to. And since I have an Invulnerability, and don’t want to go near Stone, and in the absence of MORE TANKER PRIMARIES, DAMMIT!!!, that leaves the squishiest option.

Below is a purely PvE build for a prospective copy of Inferna ... I mean, Fire/Axe Tanker who obviously is concentrating on the defensive side of things but with attacks coming in later and in the Epics.

1: Fire Shield
==> 1xEnd, 3xRes
1: Gash
==> 1xNone
2: Healing Flames
==> 3xHeal, 3xRec
4: Blazing Aura
==> 2xEnd, 2xAcc, 2xDam
6: Combat Jumping
==> 3xDef
8: Consume
==> 2xAcc, 3xRec
10: Taunt
==> 3xTaunt
12: Plasma Shield
==> 1xEnd, 3xRes
14: Super Jump
==> 1xJump
16: Swift
==> 1xRun
18: Health
==> 3xHeal
20: Swoop
==> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
22: Stamina
==> 3xEnd
24: Acrobatics
==> 1xEnd
26: Boxing
==> 1xNone
28: Whirling Axe
==> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
30: Tough
==> 1xEnd, 3xRes
32: Rise of the Phoenix
==> 3xDam
35: Cleave
==> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
38: Weave
==> 1xEnd, 3xDef
41: Char
==> 2xAcc, 2xHold, 2xRec
44: Fire Blast
==> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
47: Fire Ball
==> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
49: Fiery Embrace
==> 3xRec

I’m tempted to give this a go if even just to see how rubbish Fiery Aura has become and how often Rise of the Pheonix comes into play.

What I need some advice on is some slotting considerations:

<ul type="square">[*]Is Consume slotted intelligently? [*]Given the choice between Fiery Embrace and Build Up, Fiery Embrace is better right?[*]Rise of the Pheonix: I’ve put 3 slots aside for it (and yes, it will be taken and yes, it will be slotted, comments to the contrary will be greeted with rapturous silence ), however I don’t know what to put in them. Recharge, Heal and End Recovery seem unnecessary in it, with it hopefully not required more than once every 3 minutes, and Consume and Healing Flames there to kick Health and Endurance back towards full bars. Disorient Duration is probably a good idea to maximise the high magnitude of the effect, however I’m also interested in the Damage it does. How big is it / is it worth slotting for? [/list]
I expect to have to use RotP on a semi-regular basis and honestly I don’t give a monkey’s if I'm hitting the floor faster than a Blaster in Defiance, as long as I know when I go down, I’ll be back up in seconds, and I’m bringing a hell-storm of some sort with me.

My only comment and an expression of a current despressing trend in Tanks these days:

You have one power that will actually cause Damage: Footstomp.

I understand you've made the build to be as basically unkillable as possible, but ironically, it's overkill IMHO.

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I must say though, Sonic Resonance looks quite tasty, since you have the debuffs and shields.

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Don't! Really. I mean it!

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What's wrong with Sonic Resonance? Got me a lvl 47 Ice/Sonic and she fairly rocks.

If you meant */Sonic is poor for solo'ing, well, yes, you're probably right. It is definitely of much better use in teams.

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20) --&gt; Ice Patch==&gt; EndRdx(20) EndRdx(34) EndRdx(34) Rechg(34) Rechg(36)

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The Recharges I can understand but three End Redux in a power that only costs about 10 End every 30 seconds?

Isn't Indomniable Will available for Defenders in the Psi Epic? What kinda Magnitude is its Mez Resistance?

Edit: No, wait, it's apparently not ...

I was under the impression that you got it to spawn by killing a considerable number of Bane Spiders on the beaches North-ish of Grandville.

If you need an extra pair of battering fists when you're taking it on, get me @MBar.

... you can put on your own personal fireworks displays.

/powexec_name Incandescent Strike

/powexec_name Pulsar

/powexec_name That Foot-Stomp One That I Can't Remember The Name Of, Solar Flare, Is It?

/powexec_name Light Form

/powexec_name Dawn Strike

etc.

etc.

etc.

[img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Get both!

Perma-Stun Bosses!

Then do the Chicken-Dance in front of them as they dance about drunkenly! [img]/uk/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

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I didn't think it needed the recharge ...

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Depends how many people on the team you want to keep Fort'ed. I've seen a few Empaths whine about getting Speed Boosts because it messes up their "Fort Cycle" [img]/uk/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]. I'm guessing with Recharge slotted in it, they can keep X amount of team-mates perma-Fort'ed.

Not that I know a lot, I'm very much on the receiving end of things regarding Empathy. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

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meh, dont care, don't have either of them.

CoF = too high end cost
OG = takes health, so you need to use DR more, so you have more end cost :P

i dont have much of the blue stuff, i'd rather save it.

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OG takes 3 hp for each mob it effects which is far less than them hitting you so its well worth it.

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Agreed, on my Brute, it actually takes 4 a mob, but the amount of Damage it can save you is immense.

Take every power in the Invuln Primary. Get Temp Invulnerbaility, Unyielding, Invincibility and Unstoppable as soon as possible. The Passives (The three Resist X powers and Tough Hide) can be delayed in favour of more interesting things, but still pick them up eventually.

As for Energy Melee, Stun is about the only power you don't really want. Energy Transfer and Total Focus are awesome, take them ASAP. Taunt is obviously also an auto-pick, but it's up to you when to take it (however having it ASAP will help your Tanking lots). Everything else is useful, however Barrage is pretty weak overall and although I'm forced to take it, I haven't slotted it and don't use it anymore at lvl 50.

There is a debate raging currently about whether the Fighting Pool is a smart choice for Invuln Tankers. Yes, it adds a lot of survivability, but the End cost of the additional toggles will flatten your Recovery and I'm really not sure they are needed with Unstoppable there to take up the slack. I don't have the Fighting Pool on MBar and I probably never will.

Invuln/EM is good in teams and solo. Levels 40 - 50 can be tough as the amount of Psi Damage the badguys do increases, but with a little Defender support, you'll be fine. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

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... although smoke flash looks like a potentially great power which just screams NINJA! ...

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Exactly what I thought ... until I had a go with it ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

And yes, there should be a chance for a Critical on Sleeping foes.

Played a Ninjitsu Stalker at lvl 40 during the RV event, and was rather disappointed.

I agree with most others here, Blinding Poweder can be good, and is probably worth a power-pick eventually.

Smoke Flash / Bomb / whatever its called was a huge disappointment. I was expecting an AoE Placate. Which it is. What I wasn't expecting is the ridiculously small area of effect it actually has. Seemed inaccurate too.

Overall, if I actually roll a Stalker it some stage, it'll now probably not be a */Ninjitsu one now, more likely Energy Aura.

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i know CoF fears leuts for brutes, and only minions for scrappers. the mag for brutes is higher.

I guess this could also be the case with OG (not IG [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img])

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Oh, the Mag is higher? Sweet! [img]/uk/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

I'm now glad I rolled a */DA Brute instead of a */DA Scrapper.

Not that thats much comfort to you ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Don't forget to put some Acc in it too. You probably want 1 or 2 Acc SO's in there eventually.

Oh, and don't bother slotting for Fear Duration, it's not really worth it since the nature of the power is tick-like.

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I was very disappointed to discover that neither power can affect LTs or above unless someone else affects that mob with the same effect or fear or stun respectively.


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Erm, I've got Impressive Gloom on my Fire/DA Brute and it fairly sees anything below Boss level (i.e. including LT's ) stumbling about the place.

Unless the Mag has been increased for Brutes for some reason ...

It works so well in fact that it actually results in a rather massive decrease in your Fury generation. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

I'd say you only need one of the two of OG and CoF, each has adavantages and disadvatages.

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Kron' lil explanation could also then explain Freezing Touch and Ice Patch.......

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Nah, thats easy. Thats inaccurate projection of coolant over an area (whether the area is a badguy or the ground).

Kronos is talking about accurately firing coolant into the shape of a sharp(ish) Ice Sword.

Again, that's a little harder to explain away. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Good news about Ice Patch then. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] I'll whip the additional slots out of it and put them in Chilling Embrace.

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And ice sword really is worth taking imo. Even if it doesn't quite fit the concept (how do you explain frozen fists?), i'm sure you can think of summat Mbar! [img]/uk/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

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You see, according to Hero-Planner, Frozen Fists actually does more Damage than Ice Sword. It's probably lieing to me, but whatever ...

As for why no Ice Sword, partly because I don't want to go Blapping too heavily again, but also conceptly. I'm thinking along the line of the toon using a coolant which freezes on contact with air, hence all he has to do to get Frozen Fists is have his gloves quickly excrete a coating of the coolant over his hands, equally instant Ice Pom-poms. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Crafting a sword out of Ice in a spilt second is a little bit more difficult ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Yeah, but */Fire offers nothing in the way of Damage Mitigation, which is what I believe you need if you want to have an easier time versus Bosses and the like. */Fire is all Damage, and mostly AoE Damage at that.

When my Controller hits 50, I'll have a level 50 toon for each of the basic 5 AT's on Union. But I miss the days when I dealt some actual Damage on Heroes, so, with limited slots on Union, I've been on Defiant creating a few Blaster and Scrappers.

Since my level 50 Blaster on Union is Archery/Elec, she tends very much to single-target damage (except Rain of Arrows, of course [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]) and Blapping, so she is not what one would call a "proper" Blaster. So, on Defiant I'm striving to find a good "proper Blaster" build, i.e. plenty of AoE's, a Nuke, more team (and Tanker) dependant, but with a little solo-ability thrown in.

So, Fire is the obvious choice for Damage, especially where AoE is concerned, and Ice seems good for providing that little bit of support and solo'ing ability, so find below a prospective build for Institute, currently a level 4 Fire/Ice Blaster. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

1. Fire Blast
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
1. Chillbain
--> 2xAcc
2. Frozen Fists
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
4. Fireball
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
6. Rain of Fire
--> 3xDam, 2xEnd, 1xRec
8. Swift
--> 1xRun
10. Chilling Embrace
--> 2xEnd
12. Combat Jumping
--> 1xEnd, 3xDef
14. Super Jump
--> 1xJump
16. Health
--> 3xHeal
18. Blaze
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
20. Ice Patch
--> 3xRec
22. Stamina
--> 3xEnd
24. Build-Up
--> 3xRec
26. Blazing Bolt
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
28. Aid Other
--> 3xHeal, 1xInt
30. Acrobatics
--> 2xEnd
32. Inferno
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xRec
35. Freezing Touch
--> 2xAcc, 3xDam, 1xEnd
38. Aid Self
--> 3xHeal, 1xInt
41. Personal Force Field
--> 2xEnd
44. Temporary Invulnerability
--> 2xEnd, 3xRes
47. Force of Nature
--> 3xRec
49. Aim
--> 3xRec

Notes
Aim left to very late in the build because I'm not sure it's needed in PvE when I'm slotting everything with 2xAcc, and Aid Self is a much higher priority.
No Fire Breath or Ice Sword because they don't fit the concept, being that he's a Techie Hero.
Once again taking the route of the limited Mez protection offered by Leaping and Medicine pools.

Main Concerns

The only thing that really concerns me are the prospect of Bosses and Elites. Without a couple of Holds or Disorients to stack up, there's no way I'm going to be mezzing them for safety.

However, what I do have is Chilling Embrace, Ice Patch, Aid Self and a load of Damage. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] (Ignoring the Hold aspect of Freezing Touch as it's being used more as a Melee attack, and is therefore slotted accordingly.)

I'm guessing a viable tactic when Bosses etc are encountered is to Snipe from range, run round a corner, drop Ice Patch on afore mentioned corner, let the Boss run on to the patch then bounce merrily while I roast him to death.

So What I need to know I guess is: How good is Ice Patch? Will it keep Bosses bouncing considerably often enough to effectively neuter them?

The other concern would be Endurance. No powers like Power Sink are included in either set, so I might be taking a knee more often than I'd like ...

So, whattaya reckon? Is this build sexy for PvE? Will I struggle with Bosses and the like? Should I give a crap when things will be buring and dieing around me?

And yes, I did have time to think about all this and type it into Notepad while the Forums were down. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Whats this about the Fly Trap? I assume he does single target Immobilises that screw up the Carrion Creepers?

Is he really that bad? I wanted a proper pet after struggling with Jerk Frost on my Controller ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

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why won't people just accept that DA r0xx0rz tah b0xx0rz!?

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You have no idea how much I miss Unstoppable on my Dark Armour Brute. The lack of Panic Button on DA is a big disadvantage IMHO, especially in PvP.

Also, Dark Regeneration's uberness is significantly reduced in PvP. Not only is there guarenteed to be less foes around for you to soul-suck but if they're a Defense-based toon, you'll have a hard time hitting them with it too.

The Fear and Psi Res and all is nice, but I've had much more success on my Regen Scrapper and my Invuln Tank and my Invuln Brute.

If you mean slot the SR Passives for Resistance, you simply can't. It's unenhanceable.

If you mean why bother slotting Passives at all, well, everyone has their own opinion. The guide does make out that any extra slots in the passives only give you an extra 1% Defense each (up to 3 slots total), which is actually rather low ... Hmmm ...

I'd still slot them, but they just became a lower priority. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

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I thought it was something like 20-25% from all 3 passives at 1 hp but thats from memory

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Nah, its higher than that when your that low. IIRC, it gets to crazy numbers below 10%. Lemme see if I can find the numbers ...

Edit: The below nicked from this guide-thing on the US boards

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Each SR passive has a scaling resistance to all but toxic/psionic. This scaling resist kicks in at 60%
remaining health, and increases from zero to 20% resistance as health drops from 60% to zero.
Its not enhancable. In numerical terms, each passive offers:
(60% - HealthPercentage)/3 Resistance to all except toxic/psionic
These resistances stack with each other and with resistance buffs, like Sturdies


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I guess this assumes the character is lvl 50, as they scale with lvl IIRC.

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You switched Frosthound and I in that photo caption. [img]/uk/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

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Damn you and your looky-likey-ness! So the Cold Corruptor was wearing black and the Dark Corruptor was wearing blue? O ... k ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

And on top of that, Quarks and Max decided to wear nearly identical costumes! Thankfully, Quarks' Energy Auras gave him away ... [img]/uk/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]