Mister_Mass

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Which leads to another question, how DO you all manage to keep powers +3 slotted all the time? The only time I manage that is at the 2-3 and 7-8 level number ranges. Considering I'm about to hit 40, I'm starting to worry about how I'm going to keep up my SOs. Anyways, more later.

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Actually, it is easier to keep your SOs green in the 40+ game from what I hear. At that point the rate of influence gain begins to outstrip the cost of upgrading your SOs, so you have relatively more influence to spend on keeping them topped up. Most posters are referring to the 40+ game when they are discussing slotting optimization.

Also characters that have reached lvl 50 continue to earn influence, but have next to nothing to spend it on - SOs are maxed, costume slots are filled, aura bought, etc. This means that they build up enormous bankrolls of influence. Some players put this influence to use by transferring it to lower level characters, allowing those lowbies to max their SOs earlier. So making friends with a player with a 50 is one way to help keep your SOs green.

_Havok_ I'm not disagreeing with you. But that comparison is only valid after all of the attacks are 6-slotted & with perma-Hasten. That doesn't usually happen until your toon is in the 30s. So for the first 30 levels of the game, Jab doesn't hurt your attack chain because you don't really have one. My advice here is aimed at lowbie tankers, not at maximizing the damage chains of high level tankers.

BTW, I'd like to take this chance to thank you for this guide. It has helped me immensely. Mr-Wonderful in particular owes his success in the game thus far to your advice in this guide.

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The problem now being, I can't figure out how to get Punch BACK into my build. I created one without it, and I'm pretty streached to take all the powers I want. The only thing I could do is not take Group Fly, but I did sort of want it for RPish type reasons, see what you all think about this build (note that it has DO +3 enhancements all loaded right now, that can of course easily be changed):

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Right, I switch out Punch for Air Superiority. They are functionally equivalent except AS gets the -Fly & knockup & unlocks Flight. By skipping Punch, I get 3 attacks I can 5-slot before lvl 20. Then I can take Dull Pain, Taunt, Flight, & still qualify for Stamina by 20, while 6-slotting Unyielding.

The only downside to this is that you are relying on Jab, which many posters (_Havok_ lead among them) despise. Actually Jab isn't that bad - it recharges quickly & its DPE (Damage per Endurance) is the same as Punch & Haymaker. But as _Havok_ is quick to point out, its Disorient effect doesn't have any synergy with the rest of the SS attack line, which do knockback. Hitting the baddies with a series of knockback attacks allows you to stack knockback - effectively allowing you to keep the baddie on his backside for long stretches of the fight. So replacing Jab with Punch is well worth doing as you get into end game considerations.

But my advice was meant to be usable for the lowbie tanker just starting out. At that point Jab is a good attack & well worth slotting, especially if you have other powers you want to get early like Dull Pain or Taunt. But then you can have it both ways. Use Jab early, then respec the slots into Punch later in your toon's career.

As to what powers to lose, start with Unstoppable. Most players find they never use it - or if they do, it just ends up getting them killed anyway. Of course most people say Group Fly is useless too, but if you want it for RP reasons, I say keep it!

BTW, I see that you added Hasten back into the build. Mr Mass intends to keep it out of his build, but that is because he is ornery. Mr-Wonderful has it in his build & swears by it. I woud suggest that you move it up to lvl 22, where it can help KO Blow recharge faster, along with everything else - especially Dull Pain.

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30 - Res PD (30)ResDmg
32 - Hover (32)Flt (33)Flt (33)Flt (33)Flt

Why taking ResPD and Hover at all? Just curious.

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I just threw ResPD in here to get closer to the Bashing/Lethal RES cap. But you can skip this & add another slot to TI or take it later. You don't need to be capped this early, but it doesn't hurt. And on this build I found that slots were more precious than powers. YMMV.

As to Hover, it is a great battlefield power once well-slotted. You can basically be flying the whole time (+5%DEF melee/ranged) with decent speed at virtually no END cost. Flight on the other hand is a terrible battlefield power now with suppression. You end up moving at the speed of unslotted Hover at a much higher END burn & you have to deal with drift too. Yuck. If you see your toon flying around the fights laying down the smack, well-slotted Hover is the way to go.


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I've never actually BOUGHT a DO yet, how much ARE they?

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Much more expensive than TOs, which makes sense since they are twice as effective. I don't usually invest in the lvl 15 DOs in the early teens, choosing instead to save my influence to buy lvl 20 DOs when they become available at lvl 17+. Again YMMV.

Superlativegirl, from your last post it soulds like you have decided to reroll your toon & fix your character now rather than plod through until the lvl 24 respec. If so, it is a good call. You should be able to get back to 11 in just a few days of play, while trying to drag an underperforming toon through 13 levels & the respec trial is a real pain. trust me, I know.

Anyway, your comments make it sound like you could follow the design I am using for one of my flying tankers. It is extremely playable at low levels & works fine into the upper 20s at least. It is a no-Hasten build & provides all of the defense that a low level team tanker needs, while affording substantial offensive combat ability.

1 - Temp Inv (1)EndRx
1 - Jab (1)EndRx (3)Acc (3)Dmg (5)EndRx (5)Dmg
2 - Dull Pain (2)RchRx
4 - Taunt (4)TntDur
6 - Air Sup (6)EndRx (7)Acc (7)Dmg (9)EndRx (9)Dmg
8 - Unyielding (8)EndRx (15)ResDmg (15)ResDmg (17)ResDmg (17)ResDmg (19)ResDmg
10 - Haymaker (10)EndRx (11)Acc (11)Dmg (13)EndRx (13)Dmg
12 - Hurdle (12)Jmp
14 - Flight (14)Flt
16 - Health (16)Heal
18 - Invincibility (18)EndRx (19)DefBuf (31)DefBuf
20 - Stamina (20)EndRec (21)EndRec (21)EndRec (23)EndRec (23)EndRec (25)EndRec
22 - Res Energy (22)ResDmg
24 - KO Blow (24)EndRx (25)Acc (27)Dmg (27)EndRx (29)Dmg (29)Dmg
26 - Res Elements (26)ResDmg
28 - Rage (28)RchRx (31)RchRx (31)RchRx
30 - Res PD (30)ResDmg
32 - Hover (32)Flt (33)Flt (33)Flt (33)Flt

This gives you 3 5-slotted attacks by lvl 13 so you can contribute offensively. In the early game I slot them 2 EndRx, 1 Acc, 2 Dmg - but once you have Invincibility & Rage running, the Accs should be removed for more Dmg. And once you have Stamina working, 1 EndRx in your attacks is enough.

Defensively, I hold off slotting Unyielding for a few levels because Training Origin enhancements do so little for defensive powers. But if you expect to have the money to buy DOs in your early teens, then slotting up Unyielding makes sense. In this case, simply delay slotting up Haymaker until after you slot up Unyielding.

Good to see that this guide is still going strong. When I first started playing the game a month ago, _Havok_'s advice printed here was crucial in building a good INV/SS Tanker right out of the box.

Some of the new Tankers are complaining about END usage at low levels. The first thing to remember is that getting Stamina as early as possible is the best thing you can do to deal with this problem. The earlier you get it means the earlier you can 6 slot it. It makes all the difference in the world.

But you can't get it until lvl 20 & can't have it 6-slotted until lvl 25 so what do you do until then? The key is to 6-slot the attacks that you use as soon as you can. Fully slotted attacks are more END-efficient than low-slotted attacks. More slots means more EndRdx (less END per use) or more Accuracy (fewer misses means more damage to the mobs) or more Damage (more dmg per swing means fewer swings to knock out a mob) in the attack. How you actually slot your attacks is a matter of personal preference. I like 2/2/2 EndRdx/Acc/Dmg, but others prefer 1/1/4 or 1/0/5. Once I get Invincibility at lvl 18, I begin to replace the Acc enhancers with Dmg. Once I get Stamina 6-slotted with SOs, I replace one of the EndRx with another Damage, ending up with _Havok_'s suggested setup of 1/0/5. But it really is just a matter of preference. I hate to miss & I like to be able to keep swinging longer if necessary, so 2/2/2 works fine for me. Others might find my setup too slow & prefer something that gives more of an alpha strike capability. It's all good.

So my advice to young tankers is take Unyielding at 8 & 6-slot it immediately. And take Stamina at 20! But your next priority is to 6-slot your attacks ASAP. You'll enjoy your tanker a whole lot more.