Saltyhero13

Thanks I just caught that at the tail end of this post.

Cool. I appreciate it. I'll reach out next time I get a chance to get back in game.

Did some testing on my end too. SS or Hover+Jetpack/Steam Jet makes a big difference in applying the debuff quickly to the whole mob.

Good. I would like to learn this by watching you if that's not a problem. I have toons on Freedom too. I sent you a PM to make arrangements. I'm looking forward to learning something new.

As far as Storm/ Defenders I have not seen any break an alpha by "Herd"icaning unless the group was already somewhat clustered or aggro was already managed by another player via taunt or mez.

You can do this consistently on any mob regardless of scenario without a mezz and not die?

I want to see this. I'm always up to learning something new. What server are you on?

Forgive me! You were very specific in how you planned on placing the mobs but you never discussed how you would mez them. I figured you would miss my edit note. Haha!

As pointed out by others this tactic would work better with Terrify for the reason that sleep mez effects appear to be broken by Hurricane.

Unless its a chaotic playstyle you are going for, I think that you will drive yourself crazy without -KB from an Immobilize. Tornado will scatter anything you cluster every time you use it. -KB would make Hurricane a little more forgiving to use too.

It works on teams. If its a fast moving team you can always grab the next spawn and prep it for the team. On higher settings, with mobs that are not obliterated in seconds, an AoE heavy team will love you if you successfully "Herd"icane the mobs into clusters. Lighting Storm and Tornado are mini AoEs so they will also benefit from this.

Overall I think a well played *any*/Storm can achieve the effect you describe. Its not necessarily exclusive or any better in a pairing with Mind/.

I do wonder if TK + Hurricane can somehow stack on big game like AVs?

Are you sure they can stack? I was under the impression that activating one stealth power detoggles the other.

Welcome back Enan<cough>mos!

*any*/Storm can do what you describe IMO. As the other poster mentioned it will be difficult to keep them clustered and use tornado without a -KB power like an immobilization.

TK is a shadow of what it used to be. With it's long recharge and high endurance cost I don't see it being a significant contributor to the positioning you describe.

The thing that stands out the most concerning your proposed play style is do you intend to position the mobs without mezzing them? If so i hope you plan on building for DEF. Without mezzing and defense you will get creamed if you attempt this. (you didn't specify in your description so I didn't want to make the assumption that you would mez prior to herding)

Sure thing!

Given two smilar builds, both with Aid Self: if the primary difference is one is soft capped Ranged DEF and ~50% S/L RES; the other with soft capped S/L DEF, I believe the first build would have a longer "immortality line" (a higher degree of survivability).

I think that was the point you were making. If so, I agree with you if and only if they both can take Aid Self. If only the later can take Aid Self I believe the numbers would be very very close. So close that I believe it would come down to a factor of recovery rates and endurance available.

I don't have the numbers in front of me, so the above is a "guestimate".

If we make an assumption that they both take Aid Self and slot it in a similar fashion I would agree with your statement.

Mace Mastery offers a S/L/E shield. It requires a side switch (and back if you want to stay on blue side) and the completion of the villain patron arc in order to unlock it.

OP your best bet is to go S/L DEF if softcapping is your goal. As you can see there are some sacrifices made to softcap for RANGED DEF. The tradeoffs for going S/L would be a little more forgiving considering that the epic pools offering S/L DEF can grant you a considerable amount of DEF to work with.

@39mins and 00secs of this video Positron discusses the new "Titan" Weapons melee set. It will not be released with i21.

This thread and this thread also contain information and pictures of the new melee set.

If you post a skeleton build with just power selections (or even your actual build) I'm sure someone will be able to work out a Ranged DEF build with some recharge. However without the Fighting pool it will be difficult if not impossible.

I highly doubt the playability of a Ranged and AoE DEF build, if its even possible without the Fighting pool.

Both. You don't need the Fighting Pool to get there if you pick Stone, Ice or Mace. I imagine Leviathan will make it harder to get there.

I found both capable of producing very good AoE. In fact I think /Thorny has more AoE. Even so /Fire's damage output is tough to beat.

The main difference is that /Thorny's AoEs are primarily delivered at a closer ranges and the animations are a bit longer. /Fire can be successfully played at purely long ranges if desired.

In my mind it comes down to a question of playstyle and a tolerance for redraw. The playstyle contrast would be Mid range to Melee (Earth/Thorny) vs. Long range with the option of playing melee (Earth/Fire). The safety Earth/ provides can feasibly support both playstyles.

Best of luck with your decision!

<EDIT>

I forgot to mention that I ended up rerolling my Earth/Thorny (as a Ice/Thorny and an Earth/Fire) not because it sucked but because I also thought the -DEF was overkill as OB points out. I also found my playstyle conflicted. For me Earth/ seems to favor a longer ranged playstyle while /Thorny favors a closer range playstyle. YMMV

Sounds like a Beta leak.......

......Arrest him!

Same dilemma. I am overly optimistic that /Regen will get a decent buff in the future. Doesn't look like i21 is it though. I wouldn't delete the old toon either way.