I just have to start out by saying "Erratic is my Hero!". Okay, got that out of my system. Erratic has given several intelligent, well thought out, civil arguments in this thread. Unfortunately most of the other posters seem to be talking at cross purposes. Erratic says there is a way to adapt, to change tacticts, to use different power sets to achieve the desired end. Hephastus, who I have to say comes off as some sort of emotionally unstable third grader, does have a good point though. It took me about 10 posts to actually dig out what his point was (whereas I knew Erratics point after the first post).
Hephastus' point: at some point in the future the devs have indicated that they may change mob hit points in the upward direction. If this makes the mobs live past my alpha strike I cannot play. He then goes on to muddy the water, but it all comes down to this....if the devs change the game in such a fundamental way as to make a level 40-50 character unable to solo (note: unable, not made harder) then they have done something wrong. Rerolling is not an option. Can I take the toon I have, re-spec and still be able to solo? If not then they have broken the game. This is Hephastus' definition and I agree with it.
Erratic argues that tactics or power choices may be made to compensate, but he is using different deffinitions than Heph (do you mind?). By Hephs deffinition, no power choice makes it possible to still solo. His argument by definition is that solo is impossible no matter changes to tactics and/or power selection. A somewhat circular argument, and one that Erratic does not embrace.
Karras has a better, more focused goal, and one that I think has gotten more refined over the course of this thread. In his last post he comes close to what I would call the root of the issue, at least for AR/DEV. Its not the damage that you do, its being able to live long enough to deliver it (which has been stated so many times at to become a truism). He gives some very good insight into the AR problem. Not damage, not defense so much. Getting killed by animation and activation times.
What is the solution to this problem? I dont have it right now, and I dont have time to work on it, but consider something like this,
New power: AR-Name-Covering Fire-(Delayed activation)- immediately after your next damage dealing power is used you lay down a blistering field of cover fire, briefly slowing your enemies and reducing the accuracy of return fire.
How much of each would be up to the devs of course. But if they make Hephs world come true, something like that is the only way you could make it better.
BWT; Erratic rocks!
Metastable
