Maelwys

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My first tank was lvl50 back on I4 and I played a couple since then, so I'm not the greatest tank, but I tanked a couple hours :P


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don't ask a tank to kill something.... they can't

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Welcome to ED.

My Inv/SS is built for survivability, and he still outdamages my scrapper over short periods of time.

Anything /EM can put out a serious amount of hurt.

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Oh another question: screech + stun = disorient, even with a protection like integration, practiced brawler etc. ?

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Don't think so, unless you can REALLY stack 'em... should work on PvE bosses though.

My Kat/Regen/Body enjoys a few select pool powers:
He has Hasten, Hurdle/Health/Stamina and TP Foe/TP Self.

He had Tough once. Didn't like it, respecced it out for Air Superiority which was better for survivability.

Now I've respecced out Air Superiority and taken Combat Jumping because I'm completely bl**dy sick of arguing with Kins not to Speed Boost me. CJ lets me easily precision jump regardless of outside speed buffs and the extra immobilise protection is actually noticable vs certain mobs.

You've a good ranged chain there, plus a ranged stun... so I'd suggest Power Boost (for the PvP Aim/Build Up +accuracy and Screech duration) with Hasten for your second pick.

Howl is too long an activation in PvP to be useful there really. The Nuke should do you in PvE.

I guess Aid Self, Conserve Power or Siren's Song could be useful if you solo a lot. I'd certainly get the Nuke at 32 and try to fit Conserve Power in eventually.

Quantum flight is only really useful for running the heck away. Drains too much end to be useful mid fight IMO...

Footstomp is about as damaging as Radiant Strike (Punchy Knockback) but drains end fast.

Snaptooth seems very weak to Knockback: not for the first time I wish PBs could get Air Superiority...

Mu all the way.

Reasoning is that Katana has more than enough Lethal damage already, and the attack is probably powerful enough that is justifies the redraw every now and again.

Can use it just after a clickyheal or Hasten to minimise the number of redraws, Maelwys (kat/regen) happily does this with Laser Beam eyes + Energy Torrent and until recently he had Air Superiority too.

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You just want K-9


[/ QUOTE ]You yougsters and your cybernetic dogs...Whe I was young all we had was Dogmeat, and we had to trap it within force fields to keep it alive.

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You had DOGMEAT?
We used to DREAM of dogmeat.

We lived for three months in a brown paper bag in a septic tank. We used to have to get up at six o'clock in the morning, clean the bag, eat a crust of stale bread, go to work down mill for fourteen hours a day week in-week out. When we got home, out Dad would thrash us to sleep with his belt!

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Wait until Light Form, I guess... or run the S/L shield, Tough and a Break free.
MAYBE you could hoversnipe him in Nova, but that'd be impossible for a Human/Dwarf.

My INV/SS tanker has soloed snappy several times, ditto for my Kat/Reg scrapper and my Bot/Dark MM.
My PB has soloed him, but I don't think he'd last very long when Light Form drops.

The perils of trying to solo an EB i'm afraid.

Even my scrapper wouldn't last very long without using IH or Divine Avalanche. Snaptooth just hits too darn hard, he can strip over half my Dull-Pained HP with two hits (as a +3 EB anyway...)

I reckon my Human-form PB could just about handle him without Light Form by resorting to the full-tray-of-purples method, but at level 50 that's 20 purples...

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Regardless of what we may think of someone who simply wants to look beautiful, to the exclusion of all else, surely it would be worse if we remove the freedom of choice from them?


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If someone was to do this, then there is something fundamentally wrong with it. Apologies here if you're shocked by that non-PC "we must tolerate all viewpoints" stance, but it's a fact and fairly well documented.

I could easily mention eating disorders, teenage girls and the advertising-fuelled beauty products industry here, but what it amounts to is that such a person would be leading a very shallow life and have little self esteem.

Frankly they'd need some serious counselling.

That's not to say that it's wrong to try to improve your appearance (darn Political Correctness creeping in again) but basing your whole life on how you look is not healthy. Ask any counsellor or psychiatrist.

Professional models would be an exception to this, but even then many models will strive to show that they're not quite as shallow as they're portrayed by the camera.

Looks fade, a person doesn't.
And I'm aware I'm agreeing with GG here...

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I doubt very much there's a single female on this planet who couldn't be made to look gorgeous.

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But that shouldn't be our defining trait, or what we're judged on

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I'll bite. Why not?

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Because some of you are as butt-ugly as us guys are!

(Not saying who, I have SOME survival instinct...)

I'm tempted to make a "Huge Model" robotic toon called "Posing Pouch" now.
And dress him up with skimpy speedos and bunny rabbit ears just to prove a point.

Thank heaven it's Friday otherwise I might be going crazy...

TBH Bots has the best synergy with FF or Dark.

Dark for Darkest Night -tohit which "stacks" with the +def from Protector Bots' FF Bubbles... and Fluffy, who tends to stay at the same distance as the Bots and spams heals on them. Tar Patch has good synergy with Stompy's Burn Patches.

If you go FF you'll get Stacked Bubble goodness, and also Bot damage is mainly ranged so Dispersion Bubble and Force Bubble work very well with them. You won't need to Heal Bots as much as other henchmen with the Protector Bots' heals so you could even get by without taking the medicine pool.

From the Thursday 14th Patch Notes:[ QUOTE ]

You can no longer click on names in your /ignore or /friends lists to target players for attack.

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Does this mean we'll have to rethink that part of the Hami raid targetting strategy now?

Or is it JUST in PvP zones? Might need to resort to /target binds....

[Removed outdated comment - Bridger]

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Many invuln tanks find being defensive far more beneficial than resistant and get weave instead. It does work well but it all depends on what you make your tanker for on a scrapper th hp is less and the res is less.

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True. Also on tanks the defense buffs from INV are greater than on scrappers.

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In this scrappers case his defence the def buff from being amongst 10 foes from invincibility + combat jump + divine avalanche can get pretty good (all but psi) or pretty high (lethal).

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Actually it's excellent (melee and lethal) and mediocre (all else except for psi) Divine Avalanche is positional Melee and non-positional lethal defense. That means Psi damage is also covered if it's a "Melee" attack. Combat Jumping provides a tiny def buff to everything except toxic, Invincibility and Tough Hide can get you mediocre defense to all but psi/toxic.

By itself double-stacking a 3-slotted Divine Avalanche will put you at the soft defence "cap" for melee and lethal. Meaning that you won't see any extra benefit from running invincibility or tough hide if you're getting hit by those types of attacks.

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1 Dam Res in unstoppable hits you on the cap when combined with your other powers.

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I res capped it i think bearing in mind the passives to Rel and Ren arent there which is good and if your end drained unstoppable would put ya at 73.5% alone.


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Combined with a 3-damres-slotted Unyielding, 1 damres in Unstoppable puts you beyond the scrapper 75% resistance cap.

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The to-hit buff in invincibility is now pitifully small. Either 3 slot it, or don't slot it at all.

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It is small but not amongst numbers i believe, but i left it there because

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It's 75% of INV tank numbers. Unslotted the defense boost at 10 enemies is +15% (3.75% base + 1.125*10, DA gives +15% for a single application and +30% when stacked) but the +tohit is far less than that. Nofuture quotes a 2% ToHit boost, and judging by my INV tanker I think that sounds about right...

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Such a long post
to say so many wrong things,
such a shame.

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Quoted for truth.
Not even going to bother feeding it this time!

(I fear this thread could turn into another series of endless counterquotes...)

Ahh yes...
I was forgetting that we're all each meant to be just about a match for "3 even level minions"...

Ice tankers are fairly notorious for being able to hold aggro very solidly.
Something about very fast ticks on Chilling Embrace...

I don't think you'll have a problem.
Taunt will still be useful, just not a necessity.

@MaX: I know you qualified that by saying "when things are working right" but IIRC Blazing Aura, Mud Pots and Invincibility have longer periods between taunt "ticks". You might need taunt duration SOs in them to completely hold aggro between ticks when you're fighting purples.

*** Hunts through hero builder, blows dust off his Dark MM Build ***

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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
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Name: Dr Decryptor
Level: 50
Archetype: Mastermind
Primary: Robotics
Secondary: Dark Miasma
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01) --> Battle Drones==> Acc(1) Dmg(3) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Acc(5) Acc(17)
01) --> Twilight Grasp==> Acc(1) Acc(7) Heal(7) Heal(9) Rechg(34) EndRdx(34)
02) --> Tar Patch==> Rechg(2) Rechg(9) Rechg(40) Slow(43) Slow(43)
04) --> Darkest Night==> EndRdx(4) EndRdx(11) TH_DeBuf(19) TH_DeBuf(19)
06) --> Equip Robot==> Rechg(6) EndRdx(33)
08) --> Hurdle==> Jump(8)
10) --> Assault==> EndRdx(10) EndRdx(11)
12) --> Protector Bots==> Acc(12) Dmg(13) Dmg(13) Dmg(15) Acc(15) EndRdx(31)
14) --> Recall Friend==> Rechg(14)
16) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(16) EndRdx(17) TH_Buf(25) TH_Buf(31)
18) --> Teleport==> EndRdx(18)
20) --> Fearsome Stare==> Acc(20) Acc(21) Fear(21) Fear(23) Rechg(23) Rechg(25)
22) --> Health==> Heal(22)
24) --> Stamina==> EndMod(24) EndMod(37) EndMod(43)
26) --> Assault Bot==> Acc(26) Dmg(27) Dmg(27) Dmg(29) Acc(29)
28) --> Shadow Fall==> EndRdx(28) EndRdx(31) DmgRes(33) DmgRes(34) DmgRes(50)
30) --> Howling Twilight==> EndRdx(30)
32) --> Upgrade Robot==> Rechg(32) EndRdx(33)
35) --> Petrifying Gaze==> Acc(35) Acc(36) Hold(36) Hold(36) Rechg(37) Rechg(37)
38) --> Dark Servant==> Acc(38) Rechg(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(39) TH_DeBuf(40) TH_DeBuf(40)
41) --> Scorpion Shield==> DefBuf(41) DefBuf(42) DefBuf(42) EndRdx(42) EndRdx(46)
44) --> Web Envelope==> Acc(44) Acc(45) Rechg(45) Rechg(45) Immob(46) Immob(46)
47) --> Web Cocoon==> Acc(47) Hold(48) Hold(48) Rechg(48) Rechg(50) Hold(50)
49) --> Combat Jumping==> DefBuf(49)
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01) --> Power Slide==> Run(1)
01) --> Sprint==> Jump(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Acc(1)
01) --> Supremacy==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
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No, it's probably not optimal. Certainly isn't for PvP though it has killed a few heroes whilst hunting for Temp Powers in BB/Warburg.

But it's a heck of a lot of fun!

Group Immobilise/Slow is lovely for keeping a mob in Stompy's Burn Patches. Single-target-holds are useful for bosses or for those nasty, nasty longbow flamethrowers. Usually all I need to do is toggle on Darkest Night, drop Tar Patch and hit my "Attack" pet command...

Protector Bots and Fluffy usually take care of the healing but I can chip in if needed. I found that I didn't need to slot up Stamina until later even when running Assault/Tactics/Shadowfall constantly.

I wouldn't even bother taking invincibility on a Katana Scrapper.

If you get into trouble, spam Divine Avalanche. You'll be getting hit with melee attacks 90% of the time anyway, and will hit the defense 'cap' to melee/lethal in two applications. Laugh at the little mobs!

For a scrapper the Resist Energy/Element inherents are next to worthless. They do very very poor base damage resistance numbers: you nearly get more mitigation from Combat Jumping than both of them put together.

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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
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Name:
Level: 50
Archetype: Scrapper
Primary: Katana
Secondary: Invulnerability
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01) --> Sting of the Wasp==> Acc(1) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(7) Rechg(46) EndRdx(46)
01) --> Resist Physical Damage==> DmgRes(1)
02) --> Flashing Steel==> Acc(2) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(7) Rechg(46) EndRdx(50)
04) --> Temp Invulnerability==> DmgRes(4) DmgRes(9) DmgRes(15) EndRdx(15) EndRdx(43)
06) --> Dull Pain==> Rechg(6) Rechg(11) Rechg(11) Heal(13) Heal(13) Heal(17)
08) --> Divine Avalanche==> Acc(8) Acc(9) Rechg(17) DefBuf(19) DefBuf(19) DefBuf(23)
10) --> Hurdle==> Jump(10)
12) --> Combat Jumping==> DefBuf(12)
14) --> Super Jump==> Jump(14)
16) --> Unyielding==> EndRdx(16) DmgRes(34) DmgRes(34) DmgRes(34) EndRdx(45)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18) Heal(23)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20) EndMod(21) EndMod(21)
22) --> Stimulant==> Rechg(22)
24) --> Aid Self==> Heal(24) Heal(25) Rechg(25) EndRdx(36) IntRdx(37) IntRdx(37)
26) --> Soaring Dragon==> Acc(26) Dmg(27) Dmg(27) Dmg(29) Rechg(40) EndRdx(40)
28) --> Build Up==> Rechg(28) Rechg(29) Rechg(31)
30) --> Hasten==> Rechg(30) Rechg(31) Rechg(31)
32) --> Golden Dragonfly==> Acc(32) Dmg(33) Dmg(33) Dmg(33) Rechg(37) EndRdx(40)
35) --> Tough Hide==> DefBuf(35) DefBuf(36) DefBuf(36)
38) --> Unstoppable==> DmgRes(38) Rechg(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(39)
41) --> Focused Accuracy==> EndRdx(41) EndRdx(42) EndRdx(42) TH_Buf(42) TH_Buf(43) TH_Buf(43)
44) --> Conserve Power==> Rechg(44) Rechg(45) Rechg(45)
47) --> Energy Torrent==> Acc(47) Rechg(48) Rechg(48) EndRdx(48) Dmg(50) Dmg(50)
49) --> Super Speed==> Run(49)
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01) --> Power Slide==> Run(1)
01) --> Sprint==> Jump(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Acc(1)
01) --> Critical Hit==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
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Pure PvE Build. (I find Energy Torrent very useful PvE...)

OK... so you'd have to prise me away from my beloved Build Up with a crowbar. I just find it really, really useful for a scrapper... Build Up + high damage attacks + a lucky Crit? Yes please! Katana's 'Golden Dragonfly' even recharges fast enough to fit two of them into one Build Up buff.

Swap medicine pool for fighting pool if it takes your fancy. The extra slot in Health will help slightly if you can't fire off Aid Self but is basically spare (can be easily shifted into Hurdle to cap Jump speed).

Invincibility and Tough Hide are pretty interchangable there, can swap positions around with Hasten if you want them in pre-30, I'd advise leaving Hasten in the Build to cut the recharge on Unstoppable and Dull Pain. If I really can't talk you into keeping Build Up, you can drop it for Invincibility.

Flashing Steel is several orders of magnitude better than The Lotus Drops. It recharges much faster, does the same damage, costs much less and is a wide cone so will usually hit just as many enemies.

Without Hasten running you will always have a normal attack available: Golden Dragonfly, Soaring Dragon, SOTW and Flashing Steel. With Hasten running you can spam GD--> DA --> SD --> DA constantly without a break in your chain for a balance of very high defense and decent attack power- many EBs will fall to that!

Finally, Divine Avalance needs slotted that way for maximum effectiveness unless you have HOs.

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you should look at recharge times for potential damage per second and at damage per endurance over time, be it damage to a single target to an endurance bar or total damage output on multiple foes.


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Not for PvP.

You will NOT get a chance to unload several attack chains.
At most you may be able to get off 3 fast activating attacks before your enemy is out of range again.... (and guess what? Mace and Axe have no ranged attacks) this is why spike damage is so important.

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Stone Melee wins for pvp.


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No. No, it doesn't.

Really.
See above: the "Spike damage" bit.

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Scrappers do the most damage melee, they are designed to drop the beefier of sets


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No, Blappers do by far the most damage in melee in hero side pvp. This is why you'll very rarely see a scrapper taken into arena battles on small team fights when there's an /elec or /nrg blapper available.

That part of my post wasn't even knocking tank damage output. It was knocking the damage output of my katana scrapper, which is considerably more than that of a Mace Tanker. Most enemies in PvP will completely shrug off my scrapper's damage as they kite me about, only letting me get in one or two hits here and there. What makes you think a Mace, Stone or Axe tank would do any better?

My Peacebringer can take MMs apart. He does it in 3 steps: AoE disorient --> AoE Footstomp --> Blapp the MM. Or if I'm feeling particularly evil I just pop Photon Seekers on the MM's chin. The result...? The henchmen are disoriented and/or Knockbacked out of bodyguard range, the defenseless MM then gets their [censored] handed to them via a few well-placed blapps. Now a /SS Secondary could deal with MMs this way simply by using Rage, 'Hand Clap' and Knockout Blow. And Energy Melee has sufficent spike damage to deal with a MM on their own terms, with a 30% chance for an AoE henchmen stun in "Whirling Hands".

By the time a Mace or Axe Tank has killed off enough henchmen to strip a MM's bodyguard defenses, the MM will have his summons recharged. Other ATs will kite you or outdamage you over time. My Robot/Dark/Mace MM could completely destroy a /Mace tanker without breaking a sweat. Bottom Line: As a low-spike-damage toon in PvP, with no ranged attacks and weak mezs, I'd stick to spamming taunt or poaching Dominators.

And don't even joke about Scrapper taunts...
("Calling the Wolf"??!? Are you INSANE?? I'd rather take MoG!!)

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Now that I've cleared that up: Mace tankers will do just fine in PvE. As long as you're not intending to be a good PvP toon, it's definately worth considering.

I had a lot of fun levelling my Katana Scrapper in PvE, and he's completely and utterly pants in PvP. Hammerfall and White Magus can testify to the truth of that last bit...

'Fraid I won't be there this time... usually I can't make the Sunday ones, this one in particular is fairly short notice and clashes with a Carol service.

Y'all have fun though!

Whatever you do don't give Archy the star again... big n00bster that he is...

Someone was in a PVP zone without Knockback protection??!?



(Tell them to STAY THERE while I grab my scrapper...)

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but I have defeated dominators one on one in PvP zones with my tank. I also defeated a corruptor or two, through use of clobber when they had no break frees

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My Sonic/Elec Defender has defeated dominators. He has two attacks, each of which does approximately the same amount of damage as being slapped with a wet noodle. A VERY wet noodle.

The only consolation being that once domination drops, most Dominators can't survive being hit with a lump of soggy pasta.

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Not to mention mace should be better than all secondary sets bar fire and axe taking out MMs

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Axe has ONE AoE that does considerably less damage than Footstomp, and if you think you're going to hit many MM pets with a 5 degree cone you're wrong. Fire, I'll grant you has some very nice AoEs, but no mezzles at all to drop any toggles or get the henchmen off your back.

As to the other sets: Footstomp and Handclap, Fault and Tremor, Ice Patch? All good AoE damage/mezzles.

There's a reason that Super Strength and Energy Melee are the cookie cutter PvP secondaries. You could also argue the benefits of fire (indeed I have done in an earlier thread) but I seriously don't think anyone could promote War Mace as a "good PvP secondary".

Even if you're only going to be fighting Dominators and MMs you could find things tricky (when was the last time you went to a pvp zone that had Doms and MMs but no Stalkers/Brutes?). Traps and FF secondaries both have AoE disorient protection. And remember that you're just doing (fully resisted) smashing damage.

Whirling Mace has a tiny radius. Crowd Control might help against tightly packed mobs (melee henchmen?) but you're going to be hard pushed to kill another player with just Jawbreaker and Shatter. You lack spike damage output so they'll just run away and laugh at you (believe me, my Katana Scrapper knows all about it...)

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In my opinion there's not such pve/pvp build, but who wants excellence?

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This is a big universal truth. No such thing as PvE/PvP build.

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*COUGH* RADs *COUGH*