OVWyx_EU

I haven't read the whole of this thread, just the initial post and some of the more recent responses. I agree that devices does need a little help. I used it prior to ED, and have played about with it a little since. I ultimately deleted the character, basically because I didn't feel it was worth the slot it was taking up given the better alternatives I have.

Devices used to be almost up there with Energy Manipulation in terms of the Blaster Secondaries (which have always been massively varying in effectiveness), maybe even as good. Now, if it wasn't for one single very good power it would definitely be the worst all round. It is certainly weak for big team situations where people are primarily looking to blasters for damage.

ED hit the damage output with a sledgehammer.

Although Tripmine can be good when soloing and with TP, whenever I stand next to a devices blaster in a team at high level I am unimpressed by their damage, I frequently see them being challenged in damage output by certain Scrapper, Controller and Defender builds.

While you can make interesting builds to PvP which may work in certain circumstances, overall the set is weak in my opinion.

Fire manipulation is still pretty weak for soloing though, and a tough one in situations where you're not familiar with whoever is controlling the aggro. Much improved for teaming since they changed the rooting on FSC however, and at least it has build up to give the primary some more oomph.

I would say if using the character for team play you need to play to the strengths of your set. Radation Defence is not a healing set. Your heal will never be good enough to do anything more than top up the incidental damage people take through the debuffs, the debuffs on the other hand, will really, seriously, keep people alive.

The mainstay of your debuffs is Radiation Infection, which is well worth taking, and slotting, with at a minimum an endurance reducer and three to hit debuffs. This will massively reduce the amount your team gets hit. Enervating field will then add to that, meaning that when they do get hit, they'll take less damage, and lingering radiation will mean that in addition to the bad guys hitting less often, and for less damage, they'll do it a lot more slowly. These powers are good, they really do work when combined together, and these are the powers that really make the set, not a (sorry) third rate heal.

Add all that together and you're really protecting your team in the way that Radation does it best, in addition to raising your teams tohit and damage output and generally making them kill stuff quicker.

I would then look, at that sort of level, at slotting radiant aura with three heals and maybe one recharge, which will give a decent topup to any damage that gets through the debuffs.

I would also favour taking powers that keep your team alive, prior to taking mutation. It's a good res, and lets face it no matter how good the team people do die occasionally, but I'd probably look at slotting it in later, and not bother slotting it.

(On the subject of the secondary, if you're looking for an AOE attack, Irradiate is a lot more team friendly than Electron Haze. It does good damage, it has a high base defence debuff, it's only real draw back is it is mele. Electron Haze offers itself out as an AOE Knockdown, it's actually Knockback, it's not a great power when you want everything to stay in your debuffs.)

Edited to add: Grant Invisibility isn't that great, you could easily lose that out the build and not miss it in my opinion.

This is a rough suggestion to give you an idea for Fire/Ice/Fire as I'm not entirely sure what you're at with a build. I would probably be a little flexible on Frozen Fists and Hasten, they were basically two filler powers that could easily be replaced with something else, really just to give you an idea of something that could work, to start off from. I don't suggest you just copy the build, but it'd certainly be a good basis for a Fire/Ice Blaster and would definitely work although I think everyone likes to tweak their own builds as they get to know the sets better. What I would say is that you're going to be tight on endurance. If you added any more toggles, certainly anything like leadership, you'd be having real issues on endurance. I wouldn't recommend it.

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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
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Name: Fire/Ice
Level: 50
Archetype: Blaster
Primary: Fire Blast
Secondary: Ice Manipulation
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01) --> Fire Blast==> Acc(1)Acc(3)Dmg(15)Dmg(19)Dmg(27)Rechg(29)
01) --> Chilblain==> Acc(1)
02) --> Fire Ball==> Acc(2)EndRdx(3)Rechg(5)Dmg(7)Dmg(7)Dmg(13)
04) --> Ice Sword==> Acc(4)Acc(5)Dmg(15)Dmg(17)Dmg(31)EndRdx(46)
06) --> Hurdle==> Jump(6)
08) --> Fire Breath==> Acc(8)Rechg(9)Endrdx(9)Dmg(11)Dmg(11)Dmg(13)
10) --> Combat Jumping==> Jump(10)
12) --> Aim==> Rechg(12)Rechg(19)Rechg(36)TH_Buf(46)
14) --> Super Jump==> Jump(14)
16) --> Build Up==> Rechg(16)Rechg(17)Rechg(36)TH_Buf(50)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Blaze==> Acc(22)Acc(23)Dmg(23)Dmg(25)Dmg(25)Rechg(27)
24) --> Ice Patch==> Rechg(24)
26) --> Acrobatics==> EndRdx(26)
28) --> Shiver==> Acc(28)Acc(29)Slow(31)Slow(31)EndRdx(40)
30) --> Rain Of Fire==> Dmg(30)Dmg(33)Dmg(34)Rechg(48)Rechg(48)Rechg(48)
32) --> Inferno==> Dmg(32)Dmg(33)Dmg(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)Rechg(43)
35) --> Freezing Touch==> Acc(35)Acc(36)Hold(37)Hold(37)Rechg(37)EndRdx(40)
38) --> Frozen Fists==> Acc(38)Acc(39)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Dmg(40)EndRdx(46)
41) --> Char==> Empty(41)Acc(42)Hold(42)Hold(42)Rechg(43)Rechg(43)
44) --> Fire Shield==> EndRdx(44)DmgRes(45)DmgRes(45)DmgRes(45)
47) --> Rise of the Phoenix==> Heal(47)
49) --> Hasten==> Rechg(49)Rechg(50)Rechg(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Defiance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
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Edited to add: The empty slot on Char at level 41 was meant to be an accuracy, obviously I missed it when shoving that on hero builder.

On the subject of Stamina, I've yet to see, play with, or make a non-Stamina blaster build that doesn't feel seriously substandard without the constant attention of a kinetic, regardless of the endurance recovery/saving powers they take from secondaries/epics.

Medicine is handy for PvP, but Stamina is pretty near to a "must have" for any blaster. If you want medicine, I'd look at working it in to your build at a higher level.

Regarding losing the leaping pool, I would advise against it for PvE, and definitely not consider it for PvP. The leaping pool provides more than just a vertical travel power, it opens up Acrobatics to you, and over the next few levels you'll increasingly be looking for anything that can give you knockback protection, and the limited hold protection you can get. CJ and Acrobatics gives you excellent knockback protection, and limited hold and immobilise protection, SJ is just for getting around (although you can run acrobatics with SJ to give you a bit of hold protection while running around.)

When I create a blaster, I generally automatically accept now that I'll be putting aside 6 power slots for hurdle, health, stamina, combat jumping, SJ and acrobatics.

If you're needing to slot recharge in to RoTP, you're counting on dieing a lot by anyone's standards. The only time I can ever recall it not being available when I've needed it was on a Hami Raid.

Given the availability of excellent powers in the set all round, I'd still be looking at putting them in something else.

Just some random thoughts in no particular order, I haven't proof read as it's late so apologies for any typos.

I think you really need to look at slotting there.

Firstly, you need an accuracy check, maybe two, in every single attack barring Inferno, Rain of Fire and Blazing Bolt.

Next, the real strength of Fire Blast is the AOEs take them, early, slot them, and love them. I would recomment taking Fire Ball and Fire Breach early, and slotting 1 accurancy 1 endurance reducer, 1 recharge and 3 damage.

Rain of Fire can also be useful, particularly after you have Shiver, but is more situational because it makes mobs run and can be unfriendly on teams prior to taking Shiver. I would take it considerably later (and again, it needs at least 3 damage in it, maybe some recharge).

Shiver needs two accuracy enhancements, and is better with one or preferably two slows. You may also want an endurance reducer in it, as the cost is quite high, but I'd put that in last.

I also think any blaster will struggle without some form of knockback protection at higher level, personally I can't stand to play them without. Either Hover (which is second rate, and painfully slow now) or by preference the leaping pool.

I personally don't rate Frozen Aura at all (I know there are people who disagree with me on this one ), and the set is hard on endurance (I have a Fire/Ice Blaster, I can tell you now that endurance can sometimes be an issue over longer fights) I'd be looking at ditching that, and possibly the speed pool, in favour of the leaping pool. I also don't rate Bonfire for a fire blaster, particularly when you have a good knockdown in the secondary. Bonfire will throw them all over the place and out of your AOEs.

In order to find the extra slots for your attacks I would take slots out the following:

Ice patch needs a recharge, that's it. You don't need any other slotting in there to have it up permanently.

Rise of the Pheonix, yes, it's useful on occasion, but I don't recomment slotting it at the expense of anything that will help keep you alive, such as well slotted attacks.

Superspeed, if you really do have it in, I wouldn't slot it for end reducers, it supresses when you fire anyway, might as well just turn it off.

Blazing Bolt, I think if you have the power in, three damage is all you need. Recharge slotting on an attack with a very long animation is a bit of a waste, and as you almost always use it with aim or build up an accuracy check is unnecessary. Some people use reduce interrupt duration in them, I personally find any situation where I may be interrupted is generally one where a different attack would fare better.

It's a fun set, enjoy.

I will probably pop along. I may well have am Ice/Rad controller in range by then, if not it'll be a blaster with epic hold. I could bring a kinetic if it would be more helpful for extra SB, however she does not have a hold.

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+damage cap, which is something like +500-600% for most ATs, right? To keep it simple, I don't think the caps come into effect here.

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The highest you get for damage cap on heroes is 500% (Blasters and Scrappers).

Damage cap and -resistance cap are not related, which is one of the reasons I love teaming my Kin/Rad with OVOhms' Rad/Sonic Defender.

mmmmmmm Atomic Blast mmmmmmm

With Energy Manipulation I wouldn't really want anything to push mobs away from me.

I'm still in happy Total Focus heaven from taking it on my Defender, my /energy blaster is definitely getting more play time in the near future.

Hehe, I'd forgotten about that typo too.

Cookies for you.

As far as I'm aware it never had it. There is definitely no non-pool power pick available to blasters which offers any form of mez protection or resistance.

Burn used to, and it was taken out, I don't believe FoN ever did, although that doesn't necessarily mean it's not a good power. After all it's not a toggle, so that does give some very real advantages in the time it would take to pop a break free if you did get held.

Ice/Ice has a lot of nice supporting powers, so I find there's a fairly wide variety of ways I may approach a fight when playing mine depending on what's seem best. Sometimes it involves AOEs, sometimes it doesn't.

I find going through and holding each mob picky in situations where it's not necessary.

The main way I use frost breath in a mission is to plant Ice Patch on a convenient corner, fire at one group, and pull on to it. When they're on it, I'll hit them with shiver, just to make sure any standing up stay roughly grouped, then Frost Breath, and maybe Ice Storm. I use single target attacks to finish up, and will probably hold any luitenents if they're looking like they might still be alive when the initial Ice Patch dies.

Sounds like a lot of stuff, actually it's a really quick process, and if you're looking at grouping 3+ mobs, it's quite effective.

I don't use it all the time, some mob types I do prefer to open with holds and stick to single target attacks, I find it really not worth the endurance unless I know I'm going to hit at least two, preferably three bad guys. Ice/Ice has a very nice selection of single target attacks which are quicker animating, more endurance efficient, and higher damage if you're only going to hit one mob anyway.

Mostly I use frost breath when teaming though. If someone is grouping for you, and there's a lot of mobs in it, it's well worth it as a power pick. The damage is actually quite nice.

I'd really suggest trying it on the test server (although preferably respec it in on the test server, rather than just copying over when you level, you wont get a feel for it unslotted - I think the same is true of Shiver as well).

The smoking analagy is also ridiculous. Comparing something which kills in real life to something which irritates you in a game is an extremely bad way to illustrate a point.

But then it was an extremely bad point to begin with.

If you don't like PvP, don't go in the zones. If you want the rewards, accept the risks. It really is that simple.

As above, "resistance" doesn't stop you being affected, it merely reduces the duration of the hold/sleep/stun etc.

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Hmm, interesting to know. I ran across some estimates that it could take about 10-12 hours.

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I've seen those too, I can't imagine how. The longest I've seen the First Shard TF take is 7 1/2 - 8 hours, which was relying on just one person to TP us around, we did that over three evenings to break it up a bit (it's very repetative).

Thinking about it though, the under 5 hour run is probably not a good estimate. We did set out to run it fast. We had several TPers, a couple of folks with the zone well mapped out, a couple with fly, and a very fast paced team mix (plus a large quantity of beer - the beer helped).

Enjoy your TF - Sara Moore's is much better in my opinion. The last mission is very good fun.

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As I've not done the TF I'm unsure of the time needed to do it - rumours indicate it can be rather long however.


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Last time I did this it took about 5 hours, although we did run it on invincible, and some of us were doing a certain amount of drinking along the way - on the other hand it was also a team that'd played together quite a lot.

I'd give it about that long though, the first Shard TF is definitely the longest in the game.

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this is a blaster board, many people here will have none-little experience as the melee ATs.

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Blasters aren't a mele AT?

I don't believe you.

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The main advantage is that foes in the zone are slowed and they usually stop whatever they're doing to flee from the zone, so it's a couple of seconds during which the whole crowed runs while we hit them.

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That's pretty much the main use for it. It can be handy when it starts to go bad, but alot of tanks will hate you if you make the mobs scatter.

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Bit of a digression on the subject of the rain powers.

I find rains can be very good damage at times, although dependant on who you're teaming with, what you're combining them with, and also if you have the powers to spare for something that can be situational.

My fire/fire blaster hasn't had Rain of Fire for about a year and a half but the next respec I do, I will be putting it back in again. Overall the secondary set isn't that fantastic, which leaves me powers to spare for those occasions when I'm teaming with a Dark Defender, or Controller who has the appropriate amount of lockdown for it to not cause choas, and when it doesn't cause chaos, it's a pretty decent amount of damage.

My Fire/Ice has taken Rain of Fire because she comes with her own mini-ice-patch anyway, so for soloing it's fine, and again, although the ice secondary is one of the better ones in my opinion, there's only a small number of powers needed to really get good benefits from it. Add that to the fact we have several controllers in the SG of similar level, including an Ice Controller, and suddenly it's part of my main attack chain.

My Ice/Ice has Ice Storm, slotted 3 slow and 3 damage, combined with Shiver, Snow Storm mobs simply cannot run out of it fast enough to cause a tanker problems. I don't recall ever having a complaint from a tanker.

I have absolutely no intention at all of taking Ice Storm on my Ice/Energy. I just don't have room on the build for a situation power, and it doesn't fit what I'm trying to achieve with that character at all - single target damage and control.

I wouldn't class them as "must have" powers by any means, but what a fire blaster can do teamed with a dark defender in aoe damage is extremely impressive. Put an ice/ice blaster in a team with an ice/kin and you have absolute complete stop on enemy movement, and the ice blaster can do pretty reasonable AOE damage without causing chaos, in addition to the usual good single target stuff. Any controller doing AOE lockdown, Ice Control with Ice Slick in particular, or a dark defender, turn powers that normally are so/so in to extremely effective attacks.

I think I rambled so much (I do like my blasters, I get distracted ) I almost forgot what I was trying to say there, but essentially, the rain powers are extremely visible when they're badly used, which they often are (although why people find that more annoying than a Kheldian walking in to the middle of the group, damaging them all, annoying them, and throwing them all round the room, I do not know), and because of that they have a reputation for being "bad", when in fact in certain situations they can be extremely effective when used well.

Frost breath is lovely for team PvE, particularly if someone is rounding things up for you (it makes a great crunch as well). It's a power I get a lot of use of on my ice/ice as I often pull on to ice patch which keeps them nicely contained, if it wasn't for that I'm not sure how much I'd use it when soloing - I suspect probably not a lot.

Damage wise for PvP compared to your other single target attacks, and taking in to account the animation time, I wouldn't get too excited bout it.

[Edit] Replied to last post instead of the person I intended to, Nostra.

I can't remember ever seeing anything getting through the knockback protection on acrobatics.

I use the leaping pool on all my characters now except my kinetic (aside from the other benefits, knockback annoys me a lot, and Hover is just too slow these days without speed boost/siphon speed). Given the sheer volume of play time accross my higher level characters while using the leaping pool I'd think I'd almost have to have got landed on my backside at some point if it were possible.

The only times I ever recall it is after the toggle has come off for some reason. I can't say I've ever really paid a lot of attention to it, or tested it as such, but I just work on the assumption that if I have acrobatics on I'm staying upright.

I always thought of them more as bulges, rather than curves.

I disagree.

As soon as you're looking at +2s on a regular basis having more than one accuracy in your single target attacks is a massive advantage.

AOEs it's less important in my experience as I would normally time them to coincide with aim or build up, however if you can fit them in, then still useful.

I have two fire blasters that I've played a fair bit (Fire/Fire and Fire/Ice)

On the fire/fire, where I have consume heavily slotted to manage my endurance problems, I slot all my attacks with two accuracy, one recharge, and three damage.

On my fire/ice where I don't have anything to help manage endurance I slot the AOEs with one accuracy, one endurance reducer, one increase attack rate, and three damage, but still slot the single targets as above, I find I need the extra accuracy.

On a fire/elec I would suggest you would need endurance reducers in the AOEs (and probably Thunder Strike) prior to power sinc becoming available so would probably be better off with just one accuracy, however after that you could remove them. You may also find you need endurance reducers in Thunder Strike, but as you have, I'd still put two accuracy in, and run it without a recharge prior to taking Power Sinc.

If you intend to just fight on heroic/tenacious then you can probably manage without the extra accuracy.

Edited to add: When I refer to single target attacks, I should say with the exception of snipe, which in my opinion needs neither accuracy nor recharge for PvE. I would tend to use it only as an opener anyway due to the long animation time, in which case recharge is not relevant, and normally, again, would only use it with aim or build up. That combined with the very high accuracy anyway, makes slotting it for accuracy unnecessary.

Also on the subject of slotting, I would recommend slotting shocking grasp for the hold it is - you have other attacks which do more damage anyway, and it is an extremely good hold. The same goes for shocking bolt.

I would also stick an extra accuracy, and possibly a recharge, in air superiority if you're going to take it. It's very useful for a fire blaster when it comes to bosses.

The set overall is not lacking in damage, but you need overeall to make the most of the control available to you in my opinion.

I personally don't rate Medicine pool for PvE at all, and I would recommend some knockback protection.

Other than that, I think that's a pretty good build (and a very nice combination for PvE in my opinion).

Attacks that throw you half way accross the room and land you on your bum.

Not particularly heroic.

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Good thing you stepped onto the team I was on after then Wyx. (Earth Quiver)

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Unfortunately, by the time I bumped in to you guys last night it was already too late, I seem to have acquired yet another blaster, she's level seven and she's already great. It may be a bit soon to say, but I think this is another one that's going to be a keeper.

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It's because, to put it simply, Blasters Rule!

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Hehe, yeah, don't they.

I was playing my controller yesterday, don't get me wrong I like the character, but I didn't make her to solo and don't do it much. I was running through a mission which had very "unusual" spawns (all +3 or +4 bosses, on their own, possibly bugged at a guess). It was taking me bloody ages to kill them as I don't have my pet slotted yet, and I was trying to cook dinner as well, so I kept putting the debuffs on, a single target hold on auto, and just leaving Mr Frosty to it. Coming back in a minute or so and moving on to the next one.

It made me laugh thinking "I couldn't do this on my blaster" but any one of them would have completed the mission in a third of the time at most (possibly with the exception of the fire/fire who given the control available at that level would probably have had to go out to buy inspirations), and it would have been a hell of a lot more fun.

It gave me the incredible urge to make another Blapper, I'm thinking Elec/Energy this time.

Wyxie mumbles and wanders off to play with hero planner