MaHaBone23

My Fire/Rad does pretty well. More survivable that /kin, and there's so many /kins running around anyway I almost never want for FS or SB.

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Just out of curiosity, how much end redux did you put in your attacks?

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I'd have to check when I get home, but I know I have AT LEAST 1 End Red in every Attack (not including toggles.) Some might have two. Plus I have Conserve Power on 3 recharges.

The conundrum I run into every time I play is this- the build is very dependent on inspirations to help manage health and end, and even chopping through mobs, I use slightly more inspirations than drop. So invariably, I get to the point where I have little to nothing left in the tray.

At some point in battle, both bars drop to about 1/4 or so, and there's that very uncomfortable decision. If i use Dark Regen (2acc, 2Rech, 2ER), I'll blow out my end, my toggles will drop, and I will follow them. Or worse, DR hasn't recharged from the LAST time I used it. If I attack, I can use less endurance and hopefully take out a few, but it doesn't mean they won't take me with them.

If anyone has a YouTube video of a /DA NOT sucking, I'd love to see it.

See, I'd love for DA to not suck. I love the idea of a Scraptroller, that can survive by locking down/debuffing foes. When DA works like that, it is kinda neat.

When it doesn't work like that, it REALLY doesn't work. Even with three end reds in every toggle, you chow through the blue bar. And you have oh so many toggles. Not an Auto power in the set. Nor a power to help you manage/recover the blue bar. It also gets none of the -tohit benefits every other Dark set enjoys.

Maybe if OG sapped small amounts of End from your foes, back to yourself. Maybe if Obsidian was an autopower. Maybe if Death Shroud and Dark Regen had a -tohit effect.

Maybe Spines and DA aren't the match they used to be. Spines is so AoE heavy, it writes A LOT of checks DA just isn't ready to cash. I can see a DM/DA toon being much more viable. Or a Spines/Invul or Spines/WP.

If some of you guys like it, more power to ya. I sure don't see many of you running around in the game.

I have. A few times. The aggro it draws VS the ability to survive that aggro is just way out of wack. There isn't a tank out there that could keep aggro off of me for long.

Like I said, this toon has been rebuilt over and over. After a while it feels like throwing my time away. It's sad when my Fire/Rad troller can melee far better than my scrapper.

I only see one major problem with your build. That spot on the top, where you clicked on "Dark Armor."

(sorry to sound bitter. I just logged off my 45 Spine/Dark... while a pile of $#!+... she used to be great. Way back before Enhancement Diversification gimped the hell out of her. I slotted her, respec'd her, IO'd her, and slotted her some more, and she still eats floor like it was on sale. Spines might still be fun, but DA just blows chunks.

Learn from my lesson- roll something else.)

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Oh and Earth/Storm is a beast.

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Yup. It's a buffet of slows, stun and knockdowns. Some of the best synergy (if not THE best) between secondary and primary. Also, if you're looking for a sturdy pet...

Fire/Storm has some stuns you can stack. The Imps are okay. Yeah, they get stomped pretty easily, but you get three.
Ice Storm has some slows and Knockdowns you can stack.
Not very familiar with grav...

There's not really much in the game that slows down/stops Tornado's knockback, short of an AV or GM. It will easily toss around enemies with immobs from two different controllers.

If you're running two man teams, Fallout wouldn't be very helpful. If one of you goes down, the other won't be far behind. On big teams, LOVE busting a Fallout off a dead blaster, especially when they grumble about me "defiling their corpse."

Stacked CC + Hot Feet is pretty Epic. Not to mention stacked toggles. I agree with LM- you both should be right in there in the Suck. Get your timing right, and you guys will be unstoppable.

Smoke is also handy for keeping Fire Imps from aggroing other mobs. They LOVE to chase down runners.

What kind of toon is your buddy making?

Enervating Field is a really nice power to have for long/tough fights, especially if you're light on damage. Which it sounds you might be. It is an endurance beast, tho, so three End Reds are a must to make it tolerable.

Fire/Rad is a very very fun build. I find it can be very uber, but if I get careless or do things out of order, I'll eat floor in a heartbeat.

This is my usual Method of Operation
1. Smoke- very minor Acc debuff, but it lets me get close enough to drop Rad Inf before they aggro
2. Radiation Infection- the acc debuff is key to surviving the alpha. The -def also helps steps 3 and 4 hit.
3. AoE Hold or AoE Stun- whatever is ready
4. AoE Immob
5. Lingering Radiation- esp on low DPS teams
6. Fireball
Heal as needed.
By now, Hot Feet and Choking Cloud have pulsed a few times and cooked up/locked down any stragglers. I usually check for any other nearby mobs we may be in danger of aggroing, and Smoke them. Or bust out some AM. If things get nasty, I bust out the EMP.

Last night on a team of 8, our tank had to bail, so I stepped in as Tank for Team Squishy. I kept the majority of the aggro, but without Taunt, my teammates did catch hell once in a while. Otherwise, it was slow but steady progress against purps. The best is telling everyone to come and gather for AM when you're standing neck-deep in purple.

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I'm not saying it's not a valid or solid set. I'm saying the reality < the hype.

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Isn't the hype mostly "it's awful" ? I'd call it better than it's reputation, actually.

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Not around here, at least not in the threads I've read. I've also teamed with more then a few TA's that were quite... impressed with themselves.

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Slot Hot Feet for EndRdx, Damage and a little accuracy. Adding some slow is nice, too, depending upon your secondary. For a Fire/Rad, the slow helps keep the foes in range of Choking Cloud longer.

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I went 3 damage, 3 end red on min, and threw an extra -def in rad infection. I NEVER charge a mob unless i have RI on them.

Cages does very well to stop the scatter.

Fire/Rad solos pretty well, imho, even before pets. Lots of damage to get the job done, and debuffs to keep you alive while doing it.

I gotta say, on all my attempts at Trick arrow, I've been pretty underwhelmed. Even when teaming with other TAs, I haven't been blown away. I'm not saying it's not a valid or solid set. I'm saying the reality < the hype.

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My fire/fire Blaster is lvl 31 and having a good time. But soon I'm going to have a 'free' power pick and I'm torn over Burn and Combat Jumping.


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Wait wait... you're trying to decide between Burn and Combat Jumping for your level 32 power?

...did nothing else on the menu catch your eye?

Smoke and Flash Arrow are extremely useful for parsing dense enemy spawns. They are essential for avoiding over-aggro, especially when using Imps. They can make the dreaded "Rooms of Death" much easier to manage.

True, the -ToHit is negligible, but the -perception has saved my butt more times that I'll ever know. Both require the user to really manage the room, and look ahead to the next mob, which can be hard when you're neck deep in this mob.

Another handy feature- I can get closer and have a precious second or two more to cast Radiation Infection on a mob.

Can you effectively go beyond 300% through resistance debuffs?

Also nice to know how many of the little buggers are still alive and kicking.

I toke Ice on my Ill/Storm. Hibernate is a great Oh Shi-! power, although it kills your anchor toggles. Armor is ALWAYS nice, regardless of what kind.

Frost Breath, if it is similar to the Blaster power, is underwhelming. Ice Storm adds some nice DoT if you can keep the targets in the kill zone.

I'm going with Fire on my Fire/Rad, mostly because of Fireball. It's a nice, flaming cherry on top of an already delicious sundae!

I am always very cautious about using Hot Feet with a new team. Fight the first group without it. If things go smoothly, switch on HF and just try hitting the edge of the next group. Again, if things go smoothly, dive in deeper.

Also, listen/look for the Tank's taunt going off. That's a good sign to get bolder.

Back up hot feet with Flashfire or Cinders, to hot neutralize your targets as much as possible.

True, you're not doing much damage, but you're probably doing more damage to most of the targets than anyone else, which makes you the target of all that aggro.

Bottom line - Hot Feet without a good tank is dangerous. Hot Feet without any tank or potent buff/debuff is pretty much a death sentence.

>>be able to solo well
>>Do some nice damage
>>while being hard to kill.

Roll a scrapper :-D

Seriously tho, I always recommend Scrapper to people new to the game. Nice damage, so you feel powerful. Survivability, so you dont get discouraged. Relatively simple attack pattern, so you can look around and see what other teammates/ATs are doing and not doing.

I highly recommend Smoke. It's saved my butt more than a few times, allowing you to blind mobs that are tightly packs. The debuff is pretty minor, but it lets you dictate the pace. Especially handy after you get the Imps, since the little buggers love to run off.

Dark would be pretty good. The AoE heal means you can recover HP fast after taking the alpha in BG mode. Add in fluffy, and not only do you get more healing, but more -acc debuff.

Plus a nice res debuff for more damage, Fearsome Stare for a nice opener, and an AoE rez to undo the occasional team wipe (no help with pets, tho)

I'm selling the name "Greedy n00b lamer" for a ham sandwich. Honey ham preferred. Rye bread a must.

I also have "Uninspired Meathead" and "Shallow Knob" on sale for a foot massage and a Little Debbie snack cake, respectively.

/Therm is HUGELY useful on a team. It's sort of a 'Greatest Hits" set, with shields, heals, buffs and debuffs, but you gotta be on the ball for it to be effective.



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Curse you for tickling my altoholic bone!

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O.O

I just got my Fire/Rad to 35 last night, and it just may have beaten out my Ill/Storm or Earth/Storm for fave controller. Choking Cloud + Hot Feet + Cages + Infection = reckless, deadly, stupid, suicidal, and FUN! I love standing shoulder to shoulder to the tank, stealing his aggro, and surviving by the skin of my teeth. Sure, I ate more than my fair share of floor, but it was totally worth it!

My Bots/Dark was a Crey prototype (it's always Crey, isn't it?) designed to be a Nanobot dispersion and management system with heavy mech support. Of course, the AI goes nasty, and she went rogue.

So her "Dark" powers are nanoswarms, not Netherworldly energies. I still pay homage to the dark side, tho. Her name is Lu-C4 (Project Lucid, Stage C, Mark 4) and all her minions have techy demon names (BLZ-bub, Asmo-DS, etc)

Bots/Dark is an AoE beast, and very easy to manage. You can chew through 12 baddies as fast as 2, so you might as well team for the fat spawns. An AoE heal, a pet that AoE heals, bots that heal, and MASSIVE ToHit debuffs (about 75% between Darkest Night and Fluffy, slotted) means never having to say you're sorry.

As much as my Necro/Storm NEEDED stamina at 20, I couldn't bring myself to settle down and get it until 22. There's just too much awesome going on in the late teens. Freezing Rain, Grave Knight, Soul Extraction. Gah!