[u]Introduction[u]
If you are going to attempt PvP on a Dominator, you are either very brave, new to the game, or a damned good player. Plant/Thorns, the powersets covered in this guide, are not very popular for PvP. If you would like to take the slightly easier way through PvP as a Dominator, I would suggest Mind/Energy or Mind/Ice. If you have a high level Plant Dominator, then you already know the joy of causing unspeakable mayhem, and truly feeling like a
Dominator. For those who have less experience with Plant Dominators, you're on the right track if you have already rolled one. For those of you who have never played Dominators before, I suggest reading about other Dominator combos before trying this one.
First off, Plant Control/Thorny Assault is more evil than it sounds. It pretty much has a little of everything. You can do anything from turning yourself into a miniature Thorn Tree from Confusing everything in sight to shredding enemies with your sticks of fury, a smaller, browner version of Spines. There really isn't much to say about Plant/Thorns other than... It rocks.
Anyways, I'm sure you're all tired of my rambling by now, so here's the actual guide.
[u]Plant Control[u]
Entangle, Level 1
Desc: Immobilizes your target by Entangling their feet in a twisted mass of thorny roots. The roots do smashing and lethal damage to the target over time. More resilient foes may require multiple applications to Immobilize. Entangle can immobilize flying targets.
Short Desc: Ranged, Moderate DoT (Smashing, Lethal), Foe Immobolize, -Fly
Cost: 7.8
Recharge: 4
Range: 80
ACC: 1.2
Comments: No. Just no. There is nothing about this power that I like. The damage is low to begin with, but it is over time and it has both of the most resisted types of damage in the game. Immobolizes are simply useless. You have -Fly from other powers already. Don't take this power.
Strangler, Level 1
Desc: Holds a distant foe by Strangling him with massive root-like vines. The target is held helpless, while he is slowly crushed by the vines. Damage: Moderate(DoT), Recharge: Moderate
Short Desc: Ranged, Moderate DoT (Smashing), Foe Hold
End: 8.3
Recharge: 8
Range: 80
ACC: 1.2
Comments: Yes. Just yes. This is the power that you will use constantly throughout your career. Although in the later levels you will have other powers to lock down entire mobs. Still, this power is vital, and since the only other power you can get at this level is Entangle, this is a no-brainer.
Roots, Level 2
Desc: Immobilizes a group of foes by entangling their feet in a twisted mass of thorny Roots. Roots is slower and does less damage than Entangle, but it can capture multiple foes in one attack. Like Entangle, Roots can immobilize flying targets, if they are near the ground. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Medium
Short Desc: Ranged (Targeted AoE), Minor DoT(Smashing, Lethal), Foe Immobilize
End: 13
Recharge: 8
Range: 80
ACC: 0.9
Radius: 30 feet
Comments: This power is just like Entangle but it misses more and draws more aggro to you. Good if you like the taste of dirt.
Spore Burst, Level 6
Desc: You hurl a large fungi pod at your foes. This pod is full of Spores that burst on impact, engulfing the target and all those around him. All affected targets may succumb to the narcotic effect of the Spores and will fall asleep.
Short Desc: Ranged (Targeted AoE), Foe Sleep
End: 13
Recharge: 45
Range: 70
ACC: 1
Radius: 25
Comments: This power is good. Solo. In the low levels. Sometimes. In teams, people are retarded and will AOE everything awake without a clue as to what they are doing. Take it if you want, but definately respec out of it as soon as you get SOs.
Seeds of Confusion, Level 8
Desc: You throw a handful of seeds from a rare Baffle plant at your foes. The seeds spread out in a wide cone and release a dusty chaff that contain a number of alkaloids and hallucinogenic compounds.
Short Desc: Ranged (Cone), Foe Confuse
End: 15.6
Recharge: 60
Range: 50
ACC: 1
Arc: 60 Degrees
Comments: This power was bestowed onto Plant Control by god himself. You will fear nothing if this power is recharged, simply position yourself and throw at a mob and you have a huge mass of dead or dying bodies piling up for your viewing pleasure. Available at... Level 8? Must be a glitch. Anyhow, this power is PERMANANT (That's right!) with SOs. This power turns a wimpy little Dominator into a tanker. If you don't take this power, I am not your friend.
Spirit Tree, Level 12
Desc: You can tap into the elusive and powerful energy of the World Tree and extract a Spirit Tree at a targeted location. The Sprit Tree is immobile, but possesses incredible regenerative powers. The Regeneration Rate of you, or your allies, will be greatly increased. Recharge: Long
End: 13
Recharge: 200
Range: 20
Comments: I have mixed feelings about this power. It's a nice regen boost, but it is immobile and takes an eternity to recharge. On top of that, by the time you get Carrion Creepers slotted you won't have to worry about ever losing Health solo. Definately helps in AV fights, or whenever you have to stand still for a while (PvP fights can sometimes be like this.) I would reccomend respeccing into it at a high level, probably 30+.
Vines, Level 18
Desc: Creates a field of Strangler Vines that can Hold multiple foes at range. The affected targets are held helpless by the massive root-like vines. Unlike the power Strangler, this power does not deal any damage, but it can Hold multiple foes at once. Recharge: Very Long (Forever)
Short Desc: Ranged (Targeted AoE), Foe Hold
End: 15.6
Recharge: 240
Range: 80
ACC: 0.8
Radius: 20
Comments: Ugh.
Carrion Creepers, Level 26
Desc: 90% of it cut off from nofuture.org, but it is hella awesome.
Short Desc: Summon Creepers, Ranged (Location AoE), Target -Speed, -Fly, -Jump (Much more to it than it says here)
End: 26
Recharge: 360
Range: 80
ACC: 1
Comments: I apologize for the lack of info from the descriptions, there really is a lot to this power. First off, don't let the huge recharge time (6 minutes) discourage you. This power only really -needs- 3 slots, all recharge, to be adequate. Secondly, this power has a long duration, at least a minute or so.
My description of the power: You chose a location to drop a slow patch. Drop it below a mob (Obviously) for best results. For a second they will look around and think "[censored]?" and maybe start attacking the ground. Other times several vines will pop up immediately, about one for every enemy, and start drawing agro and wreaking havoc. They cause knockdown every time they whack something, and when they die just respawn themselves. After an enemy dies, a version of roots with a smaller AOE will appear over his corpse and immobolize and deal minor damage to any other foes nearby. If you go on to the next mob within the duration of the power (more than probable, as it lasts at least 60 seconds,) the vines will appear shortly after you attack. The first time I saw them appear next to me after I had already used the power on an earlier mob, I was so proud. This power makes you a walking garden of doom, which explains the title of the guide. Ever done the villain respec? You will feel like that giant blue AV in the final mission, surrounded by vines that have to be killed before the enemies realize you exist. Funny thing, yours respawn FASTER than the thorn tree vines.
There's much to say about this power, but I will leave it at that. Once you see it for yourself, you will know why I rolled my dom (Yes, I rolled it just to get this power)
Fly Trap, Level 32
Desc: Not present
Short Desc: Summon Fly Trap: Ranged Control Special
End: 26
Recharge: 240
Range: 50
Comments: This is the freakiest pet ever. Seriously. You don't even need to see it to be able to guess how scary it is. The powers it uses are: Fling Thorns, Roots, Thorn Barrage (?), and some sort of Bite. There may be something else, but this pet is known for its subtle animations.
Now you need some damage. While that is a lot to ask for as a Dominator, your secondary still sort of almost covers it.... Anyways...
[u]Thorny Assault[u]
Thorny Darts, Level 1
Desc: Hurls small Thorny Darts at your foes. Thorny Darts deal moderate damage. Poison from the Darts deals additional Toxic damage and can reduce your foes Defense. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Fast
Short Desc: Ranged, Minor DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF
End: 4.3
Recharge: 3
Range: 80
ACC: 1
Comments: Attack chain filler and kite power. Quick animation, short recharge, low end cost. The most "meh" power ever?
Skewer, Level 2
Desc: You lunge forward with this melee attack and Skewer your foe with the large Thorn on your arm. Deals moderate damage and poisons your foe. Poison from the Thorns deals additional Toxic damage and can reduce your foes Defense. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Fast
Short Desc: Melee, Moderate DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF
End: 8.5
Recharge: 8
Range: 5
ACC: 1
Comments: Stab! Your most powerful attack until level 35 (Seriously...) Get used to it. Pretty much Lunge from the spines set, except better sound.
Fling Thorns, Level 4
Desc: You can throw dozens of Thorns in a wide cone in front of you, impaling foes caught within the area. These Thorns deals moderate damage, and poisons any targets it hits. Thorn poison deals additional Toxic damage and can reduce your foes' Defense. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Medium
Short Desc: Ranged (Cone), Moderate DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF
End: 13
Recharge: 12
Range: 30
ACC: 1
Arc: 90
Comments: Nice power, all in all. Pretty much your best AOE damage attack. In the early levels it supposedly keeps you from losing EXP from confusing everything, but then again so does attacking. Since you can either take this power or take roots or entangle... Take this.
Impale, Level 10
Desc:You can throw a small cluster of large Thorns at a targeted foe. These Thorns carry a large amount of the toxin. In addition to dealing Toxic damage, a successful attack can slow a target, preventing Running, Jumping or Flying.
Short Desc: Ranged, Moderate DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic), Immobilize, -DEF, -SPD, -Fly, -Jump (Not complete -Jump, but it lowers jump height)
End: 6.7
Recharge: 6
Range: 80
ACC: 1
Comments: While not as damaging as Skewer, this is a very decent attack because it is ranged, for one, and because it debuffs the crap out of whatever it hits. This power was spared from the nerf Stalker and Scrapper Spines' Impale got; theirs is 40 feet range and ours is 80. Nothing to brag aboutt, but this can be used to kite somewhat.
Aim, Level 16
Desc: Greatly increases the Accuracy of your attacks for a few seconds. Slightly increases damage. Recharge: Long
Short Desc: Self +ACC, +DMG
End: 5.2
Recharge: 90
Comments: This power raises your ToHit by 100% and your Damage by something like 60%. I've been told too many numbers for its damage buff that I have no idea at this point. But this power is awesome and should be taken immediately.
Thorn Burst, Level 20
Desc: You can explode dozens of Thorns in all directions around you. These Thorns only travel a short distance, but they can deal moderate damage and poison any target close to you. Toxic damage from the thorns can reduce the Defense of affected foes. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Medium
Short Desc: PBAoE Melee, Moderate DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF
End: 15.2
Recharge: 15
ACC: 1
Radius: 15
Comments: Uh, if you like standing still for 4 seconds while you stand there looking constipated and wave your arms around while enemies kill you, that's fine, but there is no need for this power.
Thorntrops, Level 28
Desc: You fling dozens of Thorns into the ground at a targeted location. The small Thorns pepper the ground over a large area. Any enemy that pass over the Thorntrops will be forced to move at a slower rate.
Short Desc: Ranged (Location AoE), Minor DoT(Lethal), Foe -Speed
End: 7.8
Recharge: 45
Range: 25
ACC: Autohit (Yay!)
Comments: Very good power. In PvP it reveals Stalkers and lets you stay out of melee range with things that would otherwise 1-shot you. In PvE it distracts enemies until Seeds of Confusion or Carrion Creepers recharges. Doesn't -need- any slots, so it is great out of the box.
Ripper, Level 35
Desc: You can unleash a spectacular slashing maneuver that attacks all foes in a wide arc directly in front of you. Ripper deals massive damage and poisons multiple targets. It can even knock foes down.
Short Desc: Melee (Cone), High DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF, Knockback, -SPD
End: 11
Recharge: 11
Range: 5
ACC: 1
Arc: 90 (I outright refuse to believe this.)
Comments:
R-r-r-RIPPER! This is your strongest attack. It looks awesome. It sounds awesome. It is awesome. It is the Ripper. What more needs to be said? Well, it debuffs. It knocks down. It still is awesome. Take.
Thorn Barrage, Level 38
Desc: A short range, but devastating attack. Thorn Barrage unleashes your Thorns at high velocity causing severe damage at close range. Although these Thorns only travel a short distance, their impact can knock most foes on their back.
Short Desc: Close, High DMG(Lethal), DoT(Toxic) -DEF
End: 10.2
Recharge: 11
Range: 20
ACC: 1
Comments: Ever walk into the Thorn Tree's line of sight for a split second then get hit for several hundred points of damage and die because you couldn't pop a green because you were knocked back? This is that. Except not nearly as brutal. It is not
quite as powerful as Ripper, but it has a short range, so it is slightly safer. I still reccomend it to complete your attack chain and to have another strong (For a Dominator) attack.
Finally done. Oh wait.
Slotting
Entangle, Roots: 1 ACC
Strangler, Spore Burst, Seeds of Confusion: 3 mez, 2 ACC, 1 recharge
Spirit Tree: 3 heal, as many recharges as you want
Vines: Ugh.
Carrion Creepers: 3 recharge, as many slows as you want
Fly Trap: 3 damage, 2 ACC
Everything but Aim or Thorntrops: 3 damage, 2 ACC
Aim: 3 recharge
Thorntrops: 1 Recharge, as many slows as you want
Still not done...
Pools
Fighting: No.
Leadership: No.
Medicine: Aid Other helps your pet to survive, and Stimulant can help in PvP when people try to hold him. While they waste their holds on him, you can focus on holding
them and getting that kill. Either is fine, but probably not both. Aid Other probably only needs 1 heal and/or 1 interrupt. Aid Self is a MUST. 3 heals and 3 interrupts will do it.
Flight: I really don't think flying is the best you can do for travel. You don't need Air Superiority, either, because Impale covers your -Fly.
Teleportation: Not good for Plant's playstyle, IMO. It is not good at covering short distances, and TP foe is not needed because people will come to you for an easy kill (Usually their mistake if you play right.) Though if you want, I suppose if you can fit in Recall friend it can be helpful as Fly Trap is very slow. But I would not reccomend this pool as a whole.
Speed: Hasten is definately a must. Flurry is a waste, Super Speed has no vertical movement (Although, if you can fit it, it goes together with Super Jump very well) and Whirlwind is never worth it. Hasten, though... Slot it with 3 recharges and you will be dominating much more than usual.
Leaping: Combat Jump, Super Jump, and Acrobatics are musts. Combat Jumping is vital to kiting and keeping away from enemies until they are locked down, and Acrobatics keeps you from being knocked helplessly on your evil little [censored] or being held by KO punch or something. Slot SJ and CJ with one jump and Acro with 1 or 2 end reducers.
Fitness: Do I even have to comment?
Pressence: I think not.
Concealment: I honestly can't see you fitting Phase Shift into your build, and the rest of the set is pretty much useless to you. Although Grant Invis will make a Stalker very, very happy. If you happen to pick Phase Shift, go 3 recharges.
Pressence: What did I just tell you?
Dunno if there are any other pools I missed, but I already went over the vital ones.
PvP
Your basic strategy for PvP is finding a nice, open spot and setting up. Summon your pet, your spirit tree, and keep Thorntrops on the ground permanantly. The second you see someone come at you, summon your creeper patch. You want them to come into your little garden before moving. Once they do, jump away and begin spamming Strangler. Watch them slowly crawl their way towards you. Jump out of the way, rinse and repeat until they are held and then whip them to death. Sometimes you will not kill someone before the hold wears off. By the time it does, Domination should be ready. Hit it and try again. If you lose too much HP, use Aid Self. It's a very simple strategy, really, and once you get the hang of kiting you may even get a nerf whine or two.
An evil trick I like to do is find a small square like the ones in the pools north of the Globe in Warburg and stand in the middle. Throw Thorntrops onto the ground and wait for some unexpecting prey to attack. Thorntrops are very subtle and will likely go unnoticed. If they are in the pool with you, immediately jump out. They now can't jump out with you and the raised square of the pool keeps them from walking out. If they have fly, a quick Impale or Creeper Patch will keep them grounded. You know what to do at this point.
Thanking peoples and placing blame on nofuture.org.uk
Thank you for reading my guide. I apologize if it sucks, it's all nofuture.org.uk's fault.
Seriously though, some of the descriptions were cut off on their site so I just put on what was there. Sometimes there was too little to bother, if you look at the description for Carrion Creepers. It isn't that hard to check in-game, though, if you need to look.
[u]Build[u]
This is my build.
---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name:
Level: 50
Archetype: Dominator
Primary: Plant Control
Secondary: Thorny Assault
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Strangler==> Hold(1)Hold(3)Hold(3)Acc(5)Acc(5)Rechg(7)
01) --> Thorny Darts==> Dmg(1)Dmg(11)Dmg(13)Acc(13)Acc(15)
02) --> Skewer==> Dmg(2)Dmg(7)Dmg(9)Acc(9)Acc(11)
04) --> Fling Thorns==> Dmg(4)Dmg(15)Dmg(17)Acc(17)Acc(19)
06) --> Combat Jumping==> Jump(6)
08) --> Seeds of Confusion==> ConfDur(8)ConfDur(19)ConfDur(21)Acc(21)Acc(23)Rechg(23)
10) --> Impale==> Dmg(10)Dmg(25)Dmg(25)Acc(27)Acc(27)
12) --> Hurdle==> Jump(12)
14) --> Super Jump==> Jump(14)
16) --> Aim==> Rechg(16)Rechg(29)Rechg(29)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(31)EndMod(31)
22) --> Aid Other==> Heal(22)Heal(46)IntRdx(46)
24) --> Acrobatics==> EndRdx(24)
26) --> Carrion Creepers==> Rechg(26)Rechg(31)Rechg(33)Slow(46)
28) --> Thorntrops==> Rechg(28)Slow(43)Slow(45)
30) --> Aid Self==> Heal(30)Heal(33)Heal(33)IntRdx(34)IntRdx(34)IntRdx(34)
32) --> Fly Trap==> Dmg(32)Dmg(36)Dmg(36)Acc(36)Acc(37)
35) --> Ripper==> Dmg(35)Dmg(37)Dmg(37)Acc(39)Acc(39)
38) --> Thorn Barrage==> Dmg(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(40)Acc(40)Acc(40)
41) --> Spirit Tree==> Heal(41)Heal(42)Heal(42)Rechg(42)Rechg(43)Rechg(43)
44) --> Hasten==> Rechg(44)Rechg(45)Rechg(45)
47) --> Power Sink==> EndMod(47)EndMod(48)EndMod(48)Rechg(48)
49) --> Charged Armor==> DmgRes(49)DmgRes(50)DmgRes(50)EndRdx(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
01) --> Domination==> Empty(1)
---------------------------------------------
I am not telling you that this is what yours should be, but this is what works best for me.
