The_Laughing_Man

Good grief. My name against a post usually consigns it to death, but 10 replies in such a short time! Wow.

Thanks for all that. There does seem to be a variety of reasons as to "why", and it's interesting to note (not just from this thread but from other threads) that the "because it's there" reason is more than I would have expected.

Interesting also, to see how some view it as a game within a game, and others view it as a tool to help them game. As I struggled to train my first toon to 50, I remember the horrible pain of not having enough money to SO out at 25. I had to go through that again redside when that was launched. IOs not only changed my view of enhancing my character, but overnight, they removed any inf worries I ever had.

I really do fail to see sometimes how anyone can lose money at the market. Making money is easy. I guess this mini-game is all about how much and how fast.

It's good to know also, that some people do use it as a tool to simply equip & move on.

And to the poster who said "it's nice to see something sell high". I guess I didn't want to admit that I do enjoy that. It still makes me shake my head in incredulity at the things that sell for such massive, massive prices. Still - I tell myself that the money is coming from AE maniacs and wealthy folks such as your good selves in this forum.

Thanks for all the replies folks! Interesting reading to be sure.

-H

OK, so I've been around a while, and have played the market since launch. However, I play the market with specific goals in mind. Pretty much those goals are always to IO-out one of my toons (one badge toon now!)

So I flip, I craft, I do whatever I need, to get the money I need for the IOs I want. Once I'm done, I'll play the superhero/villain game until one of my alts is ready to think about IOs. Fire up Mids, work out what I need, work out what's going to be expensive, and start to play the market.

I've never had a billion inf sitting on a character, but the toons that I've done the above with, are all sitting on 10-100M each as well as having all the IOs they want. Emp/Psi defender, Fire/Storm troller, PB, Brute, Tank & Ill/FF troller are the current 45-50 toons that are done. I'm pretty sure there are billions of inf invested in them, but I don't really worry about how much it cost. Play the market, fight the mobs, run the missions, build the character.

When I read the Market forum, I'm a bit bemused by the obsession with making huge amounts of money. I'm not complaining here, just making an observation.

So why do you do it? What is the point in having bazillions? Do you have more than you need, or are you saving for super-super-super builds? Do you think it makes a difference (super-IO'd build vs reasonable-cost IO build)? Are you playing the market because there isn't a "Market Trader" MMORPG out there? (i.e. The Market is why you play CoX, not the superness) Or is it simply just bragging rights here?

I take my hats off to the billionaires out there, but while it's off, I'm scratching my head wondering "Why all the effort?"

No offense meant folks, I'm just asking!

-H

Quality.

I personally think the lack of line breaks adds to the piquance. Not sure if removing the punctuation would improve it. I'm torn on that.

I think the added information you've supplemented the guide with, telling the reader how to make bazillions is brilliant.

This is simply the best guide ever.

5 stars from me!

[ QUOTE ]
That's two 50s. Totally Awesome.


[/ QUOTE ]

Classic:

"I'm a fresh 80 so don't expect too much from me".

*sob*

-H

Great guide!

I don't think I enjoyed anything as much as getting my Fire/Storm to 50, and you're not wrong about End issues. +34% Recovery from sets, Numina & Miracle uniques, and three slotted Stamina. I still need blues on some occasions... Oh, but the fun... the fun...

Anyway this has helped me look at my next controller build. Plant/something I think. I have a TA/A and Kin/En defender so it may be Rad for a change of scene.

Thanks!

-H

Level 35 TA/A here. Not had Stamina and cope easily on teams. Solo, blues take care of dramatic issues, and I've built a little bit of +Recovery from IO sets: Thunderstrike/Posi in ranged attacks and four slots of Gaze of the Basilisk in Ice Arrow. Adds up to +18-20% recovery without much investment which is less than unslotted Stamina, but not by much. You may sacrifice some damage/end/recharge in those attacks, but it won't be much. Gaze caps out at 30 anyway, so there's nothing to stop slotting that right now (unless you don't have Ice Arrow!)

Moving up into the 40's - getting 20-25% recovery (unslotted Stamina) with sets isn't too difficult depending on your build. There's no need to spend a fortune on the uniques (Numina & Miracle) unless you have the cash to burn, or a desparate desire for better-than-stamina recovery levels. Here's a L30 build with +22% recovery as an example (using L30 IO's). Obviously you don't have to have the exact same enhancements or powers. This is just an example of how you could get to L30 and have almost-stamina.

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.401
http://www.cohplanner.com/


Level 27 Natural Defender
Primary Power Set: Trick Arrow
Secondary Power Set: Archery
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Flight

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Entangling Arrow -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Snap Shot -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Empty(3)
Level 2: Aimed Shot -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(5), Empty(7), Empty(11)
Level 4: Fistful of Arrows -- Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(A), Posi-Acc/Dmg(5), Empty(13), Empty(15)
Level 6: Hasten -- Empty(A), Empty(7)
Level 8: Ice Arrow -- BasGaze-Acc/Hold(A), BasGaze-Acc/Rchg(9), BasGaze-Rchg/Hold(9), BasGaze-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(15)
Level 10: Poison Gas Arrow -- Empty(A), Empty(11)
Level 12: Glue Arrow -- TmpRdns-Acc/EndRdx(A), TmpRdns-Acc/Slow(13)
Level 14: Super Speed -- Empty(A)
Level 16: Acid Arrow -- ShldBrk-Acc/Rchg(A), ShldBrk-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(17), Empty(17)
Level 18: Blazing Arrow -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(19), Empty(19), Empty(25)
Level 20: Explosive Arrow -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(21), Empty(21), Empty(25)
Level 22: Flash Arrow -- DarkWD-ToHitDeb(A), DarkWD-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(23), DarkWD-Rchg/EndRdx(23)
Level 24: Hover -- Empty(A)
Level 26: Oil Slick Arrow -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(27), Empty(27)
Level 28: [Empty]
Level 30: [Empty]
Level 32: [Empty]
Level 35: [Empty]
Level 38: [Empty]
Level 41: [Empty]
Level 44: [Empty]
Level 47: [Empty]
Level 49: [Empty]
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Vigilance

Bonuses:
+2.5% Defense(Energy)
+2.5% Defense(Negative)
+1.25% Defense(Ranged)
+7.5% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
+15.3 HP (1.5%) HitPoints
+22% (0.37 End/sec) Recovery

-H

Thanks for taking the time to write this up.

I've been scouring the forums for a while now looking for information on Regen, and your guide doesn't appear to be on any of the main lists. Might be worth contacting Fulmens to see if you can find a spot for it.

If anyone knows of any other sources of info on Regen I'd also be grateful of the heads-up.

So. I've built my Brute (SS/WP) with +Regen as a factor. I have no intention of spending pots of cash on him, so I have a regen tissue +Regen and that's all I'm going for. He's tough as nails anyway, so the Numina can be saved for someone that needs it.

One thing I would like to understand is the relationship between +Regen and +HP. If I have your guide correct, +Regen = a faster time between the ticks, and +HP = more HP back with the tick (5% of more HP = a bigger tick?)

Are there any points where it's better to go for +HP?

Currently, I have a middle-cost build that's giving (according to Mids) 783% Regen with RttC on one target. I also have 133% HP. Checking my understanding of the Maths...

(5/0.42 x 7.83) = 1.52 seconds per tic.

Assuming I have 1,000HP...

That tic restores 5% of (1000 x 1.33) or 66.5 HP whereas without the +HP it would restore 50. Effectively upping the restoration by 1.65%.

Hmm.. I'm sat staring at my maths and thinking "which is better?" Does it really matter that much?

Thanks for the guide. It's really helped me get my head round things. Please feel free to point out errors in my thinking, and let me start trying to understand it again...

Cheers!

-H

1) Laser/Light based power sets: Includes Blasts & Flashes (hold/stun). Must have a very cool sound effect. Blaster Melee set could be like light sabers. Scrapper set could have blinding (+Def) shields. FTL travel (the most oft underused power in Champions RPG!) allows you to click on the map and just get there...

2) Teleport Control/Blast: Teleport foe into ground for damage, teleport body parts out of them for more damage, much longer range tp foe (i.e. you can tp them out of a fight), teleport their feet into the ground for an immob, whole body into the ground for a hold/intangibility, Group foe teleport (wormhole style).

3) Mind Control MM: Have your own minions customisable or randomised from a selection of standard NPC baddies (possibly use gladiator badges or even MA as a minion generator? Or even the MM has to go out and get control of what he wants!). Upgrade = more control over them, hence they fight harder for you. Key powers would be to confuse enemies, and the biggie: Take control of enemies, adding them to your pet collection! Could have a couple of Dom/Defender Psi powers to pad things out (Hold/Sleep etc). Whole idea based around an old Champions character : Marrionette. Needs work to flesh out, but I like the idea.

4) Water Blast/Defence: Standard blasts with KB side effects. Wall of water (stops enemies running, looks v cool), suck the water out of someone (END drain), big splashy pool of water that slows and has a -Def. Tier 9 is a tidal wave washing over all in the area. Defender powers could include salt water in the eyes (-acc debuff), rehydration (heal other with an end boost too), filling lungs with water (redside only? hold/stun), maybe even a water pet?

5) Phase Control (Melee set?) Defence based (only partially there to be hit) or even actual phase shift that goes on and off? Invisibility, melee attacks involve resolidifying a fist/foot inside the target (high end cost attack chain, high damage, slow recharge)

Bah. That's all for now... Time's caught up with me.

-H

Glad you found the guide helpful MindGame! I'd forgotten about this guide.

I have no estimates on the cost of things really. Any reply here with even an estimate would be out of date within a couple of weeks, and after the changes in the coming issues (specifically merits and dual-builds), I suspect there will be some sort of effect on the market. Good judgement/anticipation/luck there could net you quite a bit of cash if you're feeling risky. Even "casual" play can turn out some good inf/hour rates to fund your needs.

Ultimately though, you will need to work to earn the inf for a fully specced out purple build. The best thing I can recommend is to head off over to the Market forum, and read. They have some good ideas over there. There are a couple of good guides for making money, and although the niches are not as wide as they used to be, there is still money to be made.

-H

Thanks for looking at the build. I went for more control than defence because on a team, I don't need the defence and the control is more goodness. I can go against multiple bosses quite easily, and with an occasional nudge from hurricane, I get all the defence I need. Char & RoF will soon have everything held, and with the recharge I concentrate on holding stuff whilst the imps and LS destroy. I have 14% defence to everything with toggles on, which is pretty good. Add to that the debuff from hurricane and there's little else I need. I did look at increasing positional and/or typed defence, but it meant I had to worry about the type of enemies I was facing. That 14% affects everything and leaves me free to roam the battlefield at range, in melee, or wherever I need to be.

I don't exemp down for DA. I've read Nethergoats thread, but I picked up Unai Kemen's outdoor BP mission just after I hit 50, and have used that. I get L50 recipes, and the chances of purples which increases my income vastly. It's also good for boredom relief. 15 minutes to clear the map, and if I get nothing interesting, I log an alt. After 4-5 runs, Recipes or Salvage is full and I head to the auction house to see how much money I can make. I dump everything there, head back to PI, and log off ready for the next set of runs. 5 more runs (this could be over a couple of weeks) then head back to the auction house to pick up everything that has sold and repeat. Doing this over long periods of time provides a steady (high) income and it fulfills my "farming" needs without being overly dull. Plus I have the Avalanche Shaman badge over my head which amuses me greatly as I cull their numbers.

I used to have lots of alts to work on, but RL changes have reduced my playing time, and so I deleted an IO'd 50 PB and 50 Fire/Fire blaster, shifting their IO's to Sukie who sold what she wanted and used the rest. (I was sat at my screen staring at 4 level 50's wondering what the point of having them was. Decided to keep my badger and my Fire/Storm) All my other alts are funding their own IO's by playing the market. An hour a day keeps the money rolling in even when I can't actually play.

I think I've been lucky with Sukie. She has found a perfect balance between recharge and recovery. Inspirations are beautiful sweet cherries that just keep making her more and more powerful.

-H

Heh, so I pulled the extra slot from Stamina, and an extra slot from FR.

Swapped the Stupefy to the Absolute Amazement set, and dropped a Dam/Rech in Fireball, and a Dam/End in Fireblast. It's a shame there's no Dam/End/Rech, or even End/Rech multi IO's.

The final result is +3.5% more recharge and the same END recovery (3.59End/sec) with a slight reduction in the END cost of Fireblast, and a minor improvement in the recharge of Fireball (which will only end up making things worse). The cost of a full set of Absolute Amazement is not cheap, and I'm wondering if it is all worth it. Probably not in the long run - I doubt I'd be able to tell the difference while playing, but fiddling with mids is fun, and a lowball bid on a couple of purples over the weekend might just get me lucky. We'll see.

It's a good job I hoover things up so fast, I have trouble eating all the insps before the tray fills up again. This usually takes care of any low END, but when I agro 2-3 groups and need to round them up with Hurricane, then pop FC, Tornado, & LS, the END bar is taking a hammering.

Cheers for the feedback though!

-H

[ QUOTE ]
One nitpick: the third IO in Stamina hardly does anything. Might as well replace it with a +End proc or else move the slot elsewhere.

[/ QUOTE ]

Every little helps! I know it doesn't make much of a difference, and probably an END reducer in fireblast might be more worthwhile to conserve END and keep things going.

[ QUOTE ]
Another: the third IO in Freezing Rain only improves recharge by 1.3 seconds. How about changing it to an EndReduc or DefDebuff or something?

[/ QUOTE ]

I'd move the slot to be honest. probably a chance to hold in Fireblast, or more end redux somewhere. Or mayb e even the dam/rech purple for Tornado. It does help with exemping though, when the +recharge from set bonusses makes that downtime a little longer. Looking at the planner though, the slot might be more viable elsewhere.

[ QUOTE ]
Wow, those purple sets are nice. Guess I should look into them myself. Are they very pricey?

[/ QUOTE ]

The purple Immob set was very cheap when I bought it. I've not looked at it for a long time though. The Hold set was also pretty cheap, but by "cheap" I mean compared to the two health uniques and LoTG's also in the build.

We're talking about the time that Purples had just come out, and Arcane salvage was still rare (hence valuable). I used to do a circuit of the BP outdoor map (forget the mish) in about 10-15 minutes on the second diff. I'd take Totems and Masks down for fun whilst the two AoE stuns were recharging, which meant a cleared map. I could usually squeeze four runs and a market trip into an hours play. What with regular IO recipes dropping (100k each), and a shower of Arcane salvage even a poor run made quite a bit of money. I had a couple of purple drops (which I sold) and just bid low on the purples I wanted. Eventually they filled. Purple prices seem to have stabilised now though, and Arcane salvage isn't as useful, but with Sukie finished, it's not such a problem. Those uniques though... Sheesh they've just gone up and up in price.

Frostweaver: I can't seem to import the build... maybe I have an old version of mids...

Fire Cages works well with Hurricane. Once they're immobilised, the KB portion is countered for 10 seconds, and only the repel will move them arround which is much more controllable. The fiery halo's from Cages also provides a handy visual reference as to who you caught.

Teaming with your Fire/Storm is just a matter of changing your playstyle. Char, RoF, Freezing Rain, Flashfires, T-Clap, Cinders, Steamy mist and hot feet all work fine in a team. If you can keep the -KB up by spamming Fire Cages, then you can unleash Lightning Storm, & Tornado for more fun and no discernable team grumpiness. Hurricane is a panic button, an I-win button, and a phenomenal positional tool. Practice with greys/greens in a hazard zone. Hem them in with FC and see how you can round them up.

But lastly, when your team has bitten off way much more than they can chew, you really shine. Unleash your imps, drop hurricane, tornado and LS, flashfire one mob, thunderclap another and Cinders to anything not stunned. If it's not staggering around, clutching its head or flying through the air, then it'll be crispy in no time.

Glad to see you back Eldandil. Sukie made 50 quite a while ago now, and as she is a great hoover of Banished Pantheon, she's very rich and has been able to dream IO herself out very quickly.

I second (or third or whatever) the comments around building for +Def if you can. The debuff from Hurricane effectively adds to your defence, which makes a big difference. And even with +38% recovery from sets, I still run low on End when jumping from group to group. Steamy mist, CJ, and Manoevers on all the time (no epic armour - it's for wimps!) The +80% recharge (without Hasten) makes a massive difference to getting FC back, and the global ACC bonus makes sure it hits pretty much everything in its AoE. Char and RoF hold procs almost guarantee a boss is insta held, and with the recharge on Char, it gets off one attack if it's lucky.

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.30
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php

Sukie Redflower: Level 50 Magic Controller
Primary Power Set: Fire Control
Secondary Power Set: Storm Summoning
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Fire Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Char -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx:50(3), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg:50(3), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:50(5), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(7), Dev'n-Hold%:40(17)
Level 1: Gale -- KinCrsh-Dmg/KB:50(A), KinCrsh-Acc/KB:50(5), KinCrsh-Dmg/EndRdx/KB:50(11), KinCrsh-Acc/EndRdx/KB:50(11), KinCrsh-Rchg/KB:50(21), KinCrsh-EndRdx/KB:50(34)
Level 2: Fire Cages -- GravAnch-Immob:50(A), GravAnch-Immob/Rchg:50(7), GravAnch-Acc/Immob/Rchg:50(9), GravAnch-Acc/Rchg:50(9), EndRdx-I:40(48), GravAnch-Hold%:50(50)
Level 4: Ring of Fire -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx:50(13), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg:50(13), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:50(15), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(15), Dev'n-Hold%:50(17)
Level 6: Combat Jumping -- LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(A)
Level 8: Hot Feet -- Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx:50(A), M'Strk-Dmg/EndRdx:50(19), C'ngBlow-Dmg/EndRdx:50(19), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(21)
Level 10: Hurdle -- Jump-I:50(A)
Level 12: Flashfire -- Stpfy-Acc/Rchg:50(A), Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun:50(23), Stpfy-Acc/EndRdx:50(23), Stpfy-Stun/Rng:50(25), Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg:50(25)
Level 14: Super Jump -- Jump-I:50(A)
Level 16: Freezing Rain -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(27), RechRdx-I:50(27)
Level 18: Health -- Mrcl-Rcvry+:40(A), Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:50(48), Mrcl-Heal:40(48)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A), EndMod-I:50(29), EndMod-I:50(29)
Level 22: Hurricane -- DarkWD-ToHitDeb/Rchg:50(A), DarkWD-ToHitDeb:50(33), DarkWD-Rchg/EndRdx:50(33), DarkWD-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx:50(34)
Level 24: Steamy Mist -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+:30(A), Ksmt-Def/EndRdx:30(31), LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(31), Ksmt-EndRdx/Rchg:30(31), S'fstPrt-ResDam/EndRdx:30(33)
Level 26: Acrobatics -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
Level 28: Thunder Clap -- Stpfy-Acc/Rchg:50(A), Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun:50(34), Stpfy-Acc/EndRdx:50(36), Stpfy-Stun/Rng:50(36), Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg:50(36)
Level 30: Cinders -- UbrkCons-Hold:50(A), UbrkCons-Hold/Rchg:50(43), UbrkCons-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(43), UbrkCons-Dam%:50(46), UbrkCons-EndRdx/Hold:50(46)
Level 32: Fire Imps -- BldM'dt-Dmg:50(A), BldM'dt-Acc/Dmg:50(37), CmdPres-Acc/Dmg:30(37), CmdPres-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:30(37)
Level 35: Tornado -- BldM'dt-Dmg:50(A), BldM'dt-Dmg/EndRdx:50(39), RzDz-Immob%:30(39), RzDz-Acc/Rchg:30(39)
Level 38: Lightning Storm -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx:50(40), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg:50(40), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:50(40)
Level 41: Fire Ball -- Posi-Acc/Dmg:50(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx:50(42), Posi-Dmg/Rchg:50(42), Posi-Dmg/Rng:50(42), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:50(43)
Level 44: Fire Blast -- Decim-Acc/Dmg:40(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx:40(45), Decim-Dmg/Rchg:40(45), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg:40(45), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:40(46)
Level 47: Snow Storm -- TmpRdns-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow:40(A)
Level 49: Maneuvers -- GftotA-Def/EndRdx:40(A), GftotA-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:40(50), LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- ULeap-Stlth:40(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Containment
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]<ul type="square">[*]+3% Defense(Smashing)[*]+3% Defense(Lethal)[*]+3% Defense(Fire)[*]+3% Defense(Cold)[*]+10.5% Defense(Energy)[*]+3% Defense(Negative)[*]+3% Defense(Psionic)[*]+3% Defense(Melee)[*]+3% Defense(Ranged)[*]+3% Defense(AoE)[*]+60% Enhancement(Accuracy)[*]+80% Enhancement(RechargeTime)[*]+8% FlySpeed[*]+76.8 (6.38%) HitPoints[*]+8% JumpSpeed[*]+Knockback (Mag -3) to Self[*]+38% Recovery[*]+16% Regeneration[*]+11% RunSpeed[/list]


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</pre><hr />

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I clicked on this expecting to disagree with most of the content but it's actually pretty good advice. I see way to many emps who just buff the scrappers or tank, spam heal aura, and think their job is done. Emping gtes a bad rap cause people don't play it with a lot of thought. A good emp adapts to the team and the mobs and is more than a heal bot. Thanks for writing this summary.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree.

I disagree with a couple things in the OP, though. In my opinion, Fortitude should be placed in the following order:

Blasters

Squids (not Khelds, squids)

Scrappers

Defenders

Controllers

Tanks

On mixed teams, Crabs and Banes are right up there with Blasters; Night Widows and Fortunatas with Scrappers; Corruptors with squids; non /Psi Doms with controllers; post-38 Psi Doms with Blasters; Stalkers with squids; Brutes with Scrappers; MM's almost never, unless I'm just teamed with seven of them.

In other words, I use it to maximise the offensive output on those most able to use it, and maximise the defensive output on those most unable to handle the return fire. Fortitude is a powerful buff, and I agree that it needs to be used with a certain degree of adaptation, because no two situations will be the same.

[/ QUOTE ]

The last sentence in Angry-Citizen's comment is the key here, and I agree with pretty much all of the above.

Just some personal thoughts...

Around Fortitude...

- I drop it on whoever is taking the hardest beating. Usually, that is tanks &amp; scraps (at lower levels) and blasters/squiddy Khelds at higher levels. The damage &amp; defence portion are the most useful to me. I have Tactics for team +Acc and most folks tune their heroes to be able to hit as often as they like anyway, so the to hit portion is less important to me.

Around Mez &amp; Mez protection...

- Your heal will break a Sleep. This is useful to remember if you opt to take Clear Mind later in your career. Sleeps tend to be quite debilitating to low level toons (esp Blasters) so keep your eyes open for the animation (or power icon if you have the team trays visible)

- Your secondary may have some form of control. If it's hard control (stun/hold) and there is only one mezzer in the opposition group, then taking the mezzer out is often better than Clear Minding everyone. More often than not, everyone will go for the boss in the group, and enemy mezzers may get overlooked. Options options options...

- Arachnos and -Perception. Very important this one.

- If anyone rezzes with a wakey, one dose of CM will clear their heads and AB will get them ready to rock again very quickly.

Adrenalin Boost...

- Blasters are a panicky lot, and whilst I do slot for EndMod, I hold off for a second after they nuke in case they eat a tray of blues/Consume/&lt;Insert other end regen/recovery power here&gt;. If they do, then I know they can take care of themselves, and I'll consider other candidates. If the team is steamrollering though, more nuking = faster mission clearing, so the blaster gets it anyway.

- That +Recharge element of AB is often overlooked. As Psyonico has mentioned, two Emps ABing each other makes for fun Aura rocking. Don't forget those Doms too on mixed teams as they have no way to increase the recharge of Domination without outside help (and of course, global recharge). Scrappers and Kheldians have long recharging and powerful Tier 9's just like Blasters, so in the post 32/38 game, bear that in mind too.

Auras...

I'm of the opinion to hold off on firing them until they're needed. I don't see the point of hitting it as soon as it recharges only to have the team hang around and pat their backs as the timer ticks away. I hardly ever call "gather" now, and usually leap on the tank and /emwhistle with a local shout for folks to get close to the tank if they want regen aura, and try and gather controllers/blasters/defenders in a group with recovery aura. Most Tanks and Scraps are self-sufficient end wise and will thank you for more regen, whilst trollers, defenders and blasters always seem to be running low on end, and more regen rarely helps their squishy bodies cope.

Hasten...

Listen to Psyonico. If you don't have it perma, save it until you fire off your auras.

The Geas Of the Kind Ones accolade is a boon too. It has a +100% recharge bonus which really shifts the recharge of your Auras and Hasten. Sure the 1500 second recharge is ridiculous, but Geas will work to reduce that, as will Hasten. It'll be up a lot more than you imagine, and it's one of those accolades that is better used and forgotten about for 20 minutes than forgotten about permanently. The accolade is fairly easy to get just running the Croatoa arcs.

And lastly, buffing as an Empath is hard work. Debuffers are looking at the PvE enemies. After a few months they know exactly what to apply to who (stormers work slightly harder). Bubblers can bubble everyone and then toy with the enemies at their leisure (kins work slightly harder). Empaths get stuck with something much worse than enemy AI - we get stuck with real people... Suicidal tanks, hotheaded blasters, scrapperlock, AoE uncontrollers... The list goes on. If you find a good team that knows what they're doing, you are in buff heaven. If you're on a team of loons, then it gets crazy very quickly but you'll find that using all your primary will come into its own.

Have fun buffing!

-H

Great, well written, in-depth guide.

I think it may be time to dust off my Illusion/FF troller and see what I can do with all those stored up respecs.

One thing that would have been nice would have been a few thoughts on IO's and whether they can shore up any weaknesses. I know that sets are very much dependent on what it is deficient in any particular character build, and this guide only looks deeply at the primary of Force Fielding. Discussing IO's may be best left for someone after specific advice on a specific build.

Cheers,

-H

My Empathy/Psychic Blast guide has been updated for Issue 11 here.

Consequently, these two guides can now be deleted :

Issue 5? I think...
Issue 8 (please can the guide to guides page also be changed?)

-H

This has now been updated to issue 11 : here .

I have finally updated my Emp/Psi guide to I-11 here .

-H

[u]General Notes[u]

Most of the following post is designed for those new to defending a team. If you're an experienced defender, this is unlikely to be old news.

[u]The Respec[u]
Respec's are becoming more common. Veteran rewards and the respec trials mean that you may have a good deal of flexibility in your build. The Empathy defender doesn't really benefit from taking some powers and dropping them at a later respec, but the respec does allow you to change (quite dramatically) your playstyle whenever you wish.
Copy your toon to the test server (here's how). Try out the builds you like. This is so important when you consider that there are many ways of building a hero. There is nothing worse than dropping Stamina on a respec only to discover you absolutely cannot live without it and can't respec back. The Test Server will allow you to try some of the less obviously "great" powers and draw your own conclusions as to whether they are worth it for you.

Also, bear in mind that you may wish to Exemplar down to a lower level (to do Task Forces, Flashback arcs, or team with friends) and the powers you will lose as you drop may make a difference.
Mids' Hero Planner is a great program for building your hero offline, and for looking at the effect of your enhancements. Build, Test, then finally once you're happy, respec and enjoy. It can be a lengthy process, but getting the hero "just right" is well worth the effort.


[u]Team Play[u]
Time is your greatest enemy. Heals never recharge fast enough, animations never finish quick enough, and you always need RA ten seconds before it refreshes.
I believe that Empathy is a team orientated primary. Not until you move into the 20's are you going to feel able to take on the world on your own, and soloing as an Empath can be a slow process. Read the guides on starting a team, open the chat window and get talking...

[u]Screen Setup.[u]
Make sure you have your screen set up with everything you need. The team window should be open, so you can see at a glance who's in trouble and/or has status effects on them. It's easier for rotating Fort through your chosen few if you are skipping down the team select list. Some people prefer to have health bars on screen, some prefer not. Try both and see which you prefer. Clicking a target in a room full of mobs can sometimes be difficult.

[u]Team Setup.[u]
When you are on a team and in a fight, there is no need to look at the screen. Select your target hero from the team list, then the appropriate power from the team tray, keeping a close eye on those red and blue lines. Assume you're the only one watching that and call for END rests (at lower levels) or help for those that are getting continually battered. Get a feel for who's tough, who's not, who needs Fortitude, and who missed the last drop of RA. The fighters will be looking at the screen for targets. You should be looking at their health and status. When in a mission, you will quickly get a feel for the team and how badly they need your healing, Clear Mind or Fortitude. If they don't need healing. Get blasting! But start slowly, picking off stragglers and with one eye always on that team bar. Your job is to stop them dying. Blast if you can, but not at the expense of a team mate. Watch out for any AoE's you have. You are the last person that needs to pull agro. Likewise, make sure you're outside the range of enemy AoE's. This is especially important in the 35-50 range when you're going up against AV's and the like.
Remember: All the other defender sets affect the enemy in some way. Bubblers (FF &amp; Sonic) will generally drop shields on the team then forget about them until rebubbling is required, Kins are the same for Speed Boost. Rad, Storm, TA and Dark focus heavily on enemy orientated debuffs. All (save TA) have team buffs of some description but compared to an Empaths team buffs they are not as good.

[u]Communicate.[u]
Ask who needs Fortitude. Call for recovery Aura. Tell folks to hit "zzz" when they are held, slept or want Clear Mind. Shout when you are out of end. Ask if anyone has spare insps (if you're short, for example, on blues). Give away your reds, purples and yellows (especially at lower levels) if you're not blasting. They are no good to you, and could swing the tide of battle. Call for retreat and then run! (Not sure how many teams shout "run" then all stay and die, but I've been on a couple) If you chose Recall Friend and Rez, you can pull the whole team back to a safe part of the mish to rest / awaken / rez as needed. If you die and no one has awakens, guess who has the long run back from Hospital? Communication is the key to a good team. Does the tanker need Fort? Ask him! He may say "nah, I'm fine", but that might prompt someone else to speak out.

[u]Buff![u]
If Fortitude is recharged. Hit someone with it. All too often I am on a team with an Empath, and no one has a red head. Even if you hit the same person, it's a big buff and it needs to be continually recharging. Every time you pause, check Fort. If it's recharged, hit a blaster with it. The same goes for Adrenalin Boost and to a certain extent, Clear Mind. This means you are constantly checking to see who has what and who needs what. Empathy Defending requires a sharp mind and quick thinking, if you want less stress pick another AT! Use your Aura's judiciously. If no one's end or health bar is moving, then there is no need to fire it off. It's then ready for the next "big" fight when you will actually need it.

[u]Key Binds.[u]
At the very least, you should macro or bind your calls for RA's. Later in the game, I found binding team select to the number pad (i.e. press 1, selects team member 1) then Fortitude, Clear Mind and Heal Other to "/" "*" and "-" respectively, with Heal Aura on "+" are invaluable in laggy situations where mouse clicks don't respond. You can practice the keybinds on the Police Drones. Although the powers don't work, they still go through the motions, and there's no one to laugh at you if you make a mess up! There are many guides to binds on the boards, but the one I followed is available here.

These are the binds I use for Mellenta. Just type them into the chatbar and they'll be done. This setup is based simply around the number pad. Numbers one to eight select the team member and the keys around the number pad are used for buffing. :

/bind numpad1 "team_select 1"
/bind numpad2 "team_select 2"
/bind numpad3 "team_select 3"
/bind numpad4 "team_select 4"
/bind numpad5 "team_select 5"
/bind numpad6 "team_select 6"
/bind numpad7 "team_select 7"
/bind numpad8 "team_select 8"

/bind add "powexec_name Healing Aura"
/bind subtract "powexec_name Heal Other"
/bind multiply "powexec_name Clear Mind"
/bind divide "powexec_name Fortitude"

/bind f "say Gather for Recovery Aura" (Binds the "f" key to a local shout for RA)
/bind lbutton+lshift "powexec_name Telport" (binds the shift key and the left click to teleport)


[u]PvP (Empath PoV - not other Defender AT's)[u]
I am not an expert PvP'er. Let's state that from the start. Every time I go into a PvP zone, I feel as though I have a big fat target on my head. I have joined teams, and tried to badge hunt solo and several times have been involved in some sort of conflict with villains. And those villains target Empaths. I can see why. We have little or no mez protection, we can't do a great amount of damage, we make their other opponents almost unkillable. So although we can't actually do much damage to the bad guys, we can make their life hell when we're teamed with someone. Make no mistake though, even on a team, you will be a priority target.
There are two ways to look at this. The first is to accept you're going to eat dirt fairly often and so you do your best to buff the hell out of your friends before face-planting. No need to change your PvE build, and it is pretty good fun (as long as you don't mind getting spanked). The second is to build your toon specifically for PvP, and this is doable without too much of a hit to your PvE build. You'll want to consider powers such as Leaping and Speed for the movement aspect of PvP, Concealment for stealth and Leadership for the +Perception. This means that your power pool choices will be restricted somewhat and this may affect (to the point of not being worthwhile to you) your PvE build. Remember : Only three of those powers work on you. Soloing in a PvP zone is going to require a good degree of skill.
Personally, I know I'm not great at PvP so I've stuck with my PvE build and don't let it worry me if it's not the PvP FOTM. I can make my scrapper or blaster friends (who I duo with quite a bit) pretty much invincible and it's good to watch the enemy fall, even if it is from behind the "Go To Hospital" pop-up. The simple fact is that we are less risky to take out than most AT's because our only arsenal is our secondary power set. The good news is that it's Psi which is not that well resisted by villains/heroes. Every cloud has a silver lining
There is a good guide to the PvP Empath here, which you should read (along with the reply comments) if you need a more detailed explanation.


And Finally...

[u]Jeez... I was annoyed when you said....[u]

[ QUOTE ]
Empathy really shines with poor team-mates (as much as it does with good ones)

[/ QUOTE ]

If you have a team running all over the map, dying left right &amp; centre, then it doesn't matter what your primary, you will struggle. However, a poor team will also lambast Stormers for Knockback, regularly target Dark/Rad anchors, complain about SB (or over-run everywhere) ask bubblers for Heals/Rez constantly, and wonder why they are dying. To a new or poor player, death = health bar hitting zero. An Empath, especially at low levels where most of the misconceptions exist, fills up green bars. It is obvious you are helping. A poor team will welcome you with open arms, because it's easy to see what you bring to the team.
Likewise, if you're new to the game, it's easy to see how those first few powers work. Heal = Player not dead. This is so very true, and as you progress through the levels, you will be able to experiment with those other powers and see that Empathy Defending is not all about healing.

[ QUOTE ]
Heal/Healer

[/ QUOTE ]

::Yawn:: Use the word how you want. I am English, and I like to use the dictionary definition, but I don't get upset when other people take it to mean something different. Be aware that in-game it could mean anything from "someone who can stop us dying all the time" to "someone who can keep my green bar full so I can smash things" including all manner of variations in-between &amp; outside it. On the forums... well... any post that mentions the word healer generally is filled with lol's, loi's and all other manner of fluff. If you have a question about Empathy and use the "h" word be aware that you will likely have to sort through pages of useless "lolling" and opinionated rubbish to find an actual answer to your question.

[ QUOTE ]
All comments are based on Mids' readout, and may or may not be accurate

[/ QUOTE ]

Some of the numbers may be wrong. I'm pretty sure Mids' planner doesn't include the recharge bonus of Hasten when calculating recharge times on powers. Similarly, I may have typoed information from City of Data. That's why I've hyperlinked most of the primary powers to that site. Undoubtedly, these pages may be moved/removed at some point, and in all instances the new combat window in-game will always give you the most accurate information.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading, and apologies for hurting your eyes!

-H

[u]IO's[u]

Recharge... That was my goal when IO'ing out my Empath. I was sorely wounded by ED when I lost perma hasten, but things are better now. Much better.

When IO'ing out any character, I tend to look at where the weaknesses are. For my Empath, it was certainly Recovery (due to a Stamina-less and Psi epic build) and Recharge.

Other things that you could slot for :

+Damage : You have lots of attacks. You could easily build +Damage into the build, but as a Defender with no primary powers to help you hurt the enemy is the gain worth it? Also, if you do slot heavily for recharge, your attacks will all come back quicker, improving your overall DPS as well as control. This is not a proven scientific fact, just another reason to choose +Recharge over +Damage.

+Regen : I feel this is fairly pointless. You have Heal Aura and Regen Aura to heep your own green bar topped up. If you're on a team, it's unlikely you'll be pulling agro to make +Regen as a set bonus worth the investment. As for Damage, +Recharge will automatically recharge both Heal Aura and Regen Aura faster - increasing availability.

+Defence/+Resist : The Defence and Resist bonusses from sets are very small and often against specific typed damage. Generally, these bonusses will only work well if you already have some base form of it in your primary and/or secondary power set. An Ice tanker or SR scrapper for example would benefit from +Defence even if it were only a few percentage points. As an Empathy defender, you have no powers outside the pool powers to increase your defence and only one power in the epics to increase your resists. Again... Is it worth it? I could understand a Stormer, Force Fielder or a Dark defender taking Def to work with their -acc debuffs, but as an Empath?

+MezResist : Mez resist is pretty useless. It just reduces the time you are mezzed. Generally if I'm held for 15 seconds or 7 it won't matter. I'm detoggled and in deep trouble. Slotting to reduce the time spent mezzed is really not worth it.


So, with that in mind, in order to reduce recharge, let's look at the IO's and sets that reduce this significantly.

At the top of the list we have our purple sets. Big bucks, but a big return. Most of the purple sets 5 slotted give 4% recovery and 10% recharge. However they are expensive... Sometimes... Sleep and immobilise sets do appear to be quite cheap, and the added bonus is that they work when exemplared. Unfortunately you have to be 50 to slot them, and slotting the Immob in Subdue and the Sleep in Will Domination will reduce your damage output. (Personally, I have the sleep slotted in Mass Hypnosis. The chance to placate proc has saved my hide twice in PvP so far)

The next highest reductions are the 7.5% seen in the Luck of the Gambler unique, and the Snipe set as well as the Knockback set.

Then we have the 6.25% sets, quite a few of those, and finally the 5% sets. If you slot your powers with these sets, you will find you have no room left for the 3.75% sets and lower.

Below are some prime set candidates for your powers, with a minimum requirement of slots. Please bear in mind that more than 5 types of the same bonus will not have an additional effect.

Primary Powers
Heal Aura : Doctored Wounds/Regenerative Tissue (5) : +5%
Heal Other : Doctored Wounds/Regenerative Tissue (5) : +5%
Absorb Pain : Doctored Wounds/Regenerative Tissue (5) : +5%
Regeneration Aura : Doctored Wounds/Regenerative Tissue (5) : +5% (If you're desperate/slot light)
(Bear in mind that Regenerative tissue is only a 5 slot set and has a +regeneration unique as part of the 5. It is an expensive set to 5 slot.)
Fortitude : Red Fortune (5) : +5%, Sixth slot with a LoTG Recharge for 7.5% (If you team!)

Secondary Powers
Mental Blast : Entropic Chaos/Decimation : 6.25%
Subdue : Entropic Chaos/Decimation : 6.25%
Psionic Lance : Sting of the manticore : 7.5%
Psychic Scream : Positron's Blast (5) : 6.25%
TK Blast : Entropic Chaos/Decimation : 6.25% or Kinetic Crash (6) : 7.5%
Will Domination : Entropic Chaos/Decimation/Call of the Sandman : 6.25%
Psionic Tornado : Positron's Blast/Kinetic Crash (5/6) : 6.25%/7.5%
Scramble Thoughts : Stupefy (5) : 6.25% (You could slot damage ones here but the damage is rubbish, so it's pointless)
Psychic Wail : Stupefy (5) : 6.25%

Pool Powers
Combat Jumping : LoTG Recharge (1) : 7.5%
Manoevers : LoTG Recharge (1) : 7.5%

I won't go into epics here as there are so many combinations, but you get the picture.

By level 50, you should be able to get at least 3x5%, 4x6.25% and between 2 and 6 7.5% depending on how rich you are. You could probably get between 55% &amp; 65% recharge without too much trouble.

Add a couple of the 10% bonusses in there and it gets even more ridiculous as it does expensive. But bear in mind that slotting a purple ranged damage set in a power that already has Decimation will only get you the 4% recovery and effectively 3.75% extra recharge. Is that worth the couple of hundred million (at the time of writing) that this would cost? Replacing something like Positron's Blast is even less cost effective unless you have money to burn.

Some people would scream "Gimpage!!" when slotting for IO's, but it is my most humble opinion that in this case, there is no such grounds for that argument. 5 slots of Doctored Wounds gives you only a few points off 3 Heal SO's, and most of the Ranged Damage sets make for some very nice reading. Perhaps the only gimped choice would be slotting Psi Tornado for Kinetic Crash, but if you're doing it for recharge, consider the effect this will have on the recharge of all your attack powers. If you can chain a good attack string together, Psi Tornado is a handy form of soft control rather than straight damage.

Slotting health IO's was an interesting dilemma. Most people will take Health on the route to Stamina, and dropping an extra slot in there for a couple of nice Unique IO's, or a couple of Numina's (for Regen) or Miracle (for recovery) was quite easy. Indeed there are several forum posts indicating that health could be 6 slotted with various combinations of set IO's to get some spectacular results.

If you don't take Health, Healing Aura is the only other power that can be activated without being on a team to give you some of the unique bonusses. If you solo a lot and put a Miracle unique in Heal Other, you'll never see the benefit. Bear that in mind as you slot your sets.

Sample IO Builds :

I'm not going to clog the guide with reams and reams of Mids' builds, just paste these into the planner to see... All comments are based on Mids' readout, and may or may not be accurate! None of the builds include Stamina. With IO sets, there is a good degree of Endurance reduction in many of the powers. Add to this the fact that +Recovery is also present in addition to the Defender inherent, and End management is really not a big problem. Essentially, you're taking three powers for +25% recovery. What are you going to drop in order to get that? Is it worth it? if it is, get Stamina, if it isn't, you can definately live without it.

[u]The "This Is My First Toon And I Have No Money" Empath, L40/[u]

Well... you should have a bit of cash, but assuming you are a market minnow, or newbie, here you go.

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No Stamina, but you'll survive... You have 11% recovery bonusses (just under half unslotted Stamina) with the sets, and 36% recharge which will have Hasten back just over a minute after it drops. Fortitude could be kept on 4 people pretty easily. It's not great, but it's relatively cheap and avoids the Decimation sets which can be prohibitively expensive to some. No Miracles, Numinas or LoTG's in there either.


The "I'm Level 50 but still poor because I can't farm for loot, have no sugar daddies, or play the market" build

OK, so I'm assuming you're not totally poor here. There are a couple of cheaper Miracles, and an Impervous Skin and Decimation set. You also get a few new toys with a couple of chances to Hold and a +Recharge proc. The big Fortunata Hypnosis set is included because it's (at the time of writing) cheap as chips and gives you a nice fat boost to recovery &amp; recharge.


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57% recharge. Getting much better now. 17.5% recovery which is marginally better than at 40. Hasten is now recharged 6 seconds after it drops, making a big impact on the recharge of your Auras and Fortitude. Consider also getting Subdue and slotting with the cheap purple Immobilise sets. You're not going to have a power that does much damage with it, but it will certainly help recharge and recovery as well as being a really good immobilise.

The "I'm Rich!" build.

This is the build I have for my Empath at the moment. It could be improved with more purple sets, but I have other alts to spend money on now. She's competent enough to solo and do some decent damage, as well as to provide a good benefit to any team. I have no idea how much this cost, but it was an awful lot.

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105% Recharge bonus, Perma hasten, 42% recovery when the uniques are firing. I've slotted both the numina and miracle uniques in Regen aura which may seem like a strange choice, but the speed at which Regen Aura recharges means there is only a small amount of time without the bonus. Absolutely no need for Stamina as the Auras recharge so quickly and the +Recovery in the build allows me to run CJ, Acro, Manoevers, Assault and the epic shield without too much of a problem. Sub-optimal recharge slotting for AB and Fortitude are inconsequential due to the massive global recharge available.

I can basically run with TK blast and Will Dom as an attack chain, throwing in Psychic Scream, Mental Blast or a snipe for good measure. The +Recharge IO in TK blast will trigger fairly quick as I'm using the power so frequently (although at the time of writing, some forum posts indicate this proc may be bugged). Auras are back fast, as are accolade powers. Psi Tornado and Wail are gravy for big teams, or for when I like to watch the pretty pretty lights...

It could be ramped up even further with AoE, and Ranged Damage purple sets as well as another LoTG +Recharge, but after paying for an Armageddon set I'm happy with the recharge I have at the moment.

-H

Welcome to the final iteration of the Empathy/Psi defender guide. It's Long. I'm sorry.

I have been playing my Empathy/Psi defender for nearly 4 years now. I've played Kinetics to 43, Sonic to 28 and Rad &amp; TA to 30. I've played /Force Fields to 38 and /Storm to 50. I've played a Fire/Fire Blaster, and a Peacebringer to 50 and seen how defenders work from the other side of the fence. More importantly how they have or have not helped me. The only thing I'm not familiar with is Dark. It's too dark

All the other defender primaries, and controller secondaries are very different. There are plenty of guides for deciding which power choices to make depending on the type of game you want to play. This guide will concentrate solely on Empathy and Psychic Blast.

All numbers are taken from the City of Data and hyperlinks on each power take you straight there. I can also heartily reccommend downloading Mids' Hero Designer for some really interesting information and help in building not only your Empath, but any other CoX character.

Powers :
Empathy powers are unique in that they have the smallest number of powers that actually benefit the hero using them. Of the 9 primary powers, only three will help you solo. This compares poorly to TA &amp; Dark's 9, Kin/Rad 7, Storm's 8 and even Force Fields' 6 is surprising. Only Sonic comes close with 4 powers of any use solo. This gives you an idea of just how much the Empathy powerset will be useful to you if you plan to solo. If you know, when you pick up the powerset, that you will spend a good deal of time alone, then that will help with your power choices. For most of us, we sit somewhere in the middle of the solo/teaming band, which is why consideration must be given to your playstyle before you begin.
Everything in your arsenal buffs your team mates. Nothing can be used against the enemy. On the upside, people will thank you for your aid, because they can clearly see the effect you have on their health bars - either by it not moving, or by it being refilled when they thought they were going to eat dirt. The shields of Blue &amp; Orange often get forgotten, both by the team, and by the defender who has 4 minutes of worry free time before reapplying the buffs. A kineticist throws out Speed Boost, maybe an occasional ID, then he is in on the action. A stormer or an archer will be making the enemies wonder what hit them, and a Radiation defender will throw out his debuffs on an anchor then relax. You have to keep your eye on your team. You have tools to help any one of them when they get into difficulty. Empathy is often lambasted for a poor playstyle, but Empathy really shines with poor team-mates (as much as it does with good ones).

Psychic Blast is often the choice of those with conceptual thoughts behind their character. It is also a set that Blasters don't have as a Primary choice, making those psychic blasts unique to those who wear the blue shield. Its main strength comes in the form of a -Recharge debuff on the target. The Psi damage caused by these attacks also tends to be either heavily resisted, or not resisted much at all. It is probably the least resisted damage type in PvP.

For slotting, I have included base IO/SO/DO/TO's only. Invention Set slotting is very much dependent on your available influence, and playstyle so I have discussed IO Set slotting in its own section.

Empathy

Heal Other (1):
This is a good single target heal that heals a target for 26% of their HP. It does nothing else. To get the maximum benefit from the heal, slot at least three Heal enhancements (when you can). Remaining slots can be taken up with a mix of range, end redux, or recharge redux as required. The recharge of 4 seconds is fairly rapid, whilst the end cost of 13 could be trimmed a little with an end reducer. PvP'ers may want to consider range as well.

Healing Aura (1):
This is the first power that will actually affect you personally. It has the same end cost as Heal Other, but the recharge is longer (8 seconds) and obviously as it is a PBAoE heal, the effect is reduced (13% Heal). Slotting here is similar to Heal Other. 3 Heals initially, then either End or Recharge reductions.

Absorb Pain (2):
This is where the decisions need to be made. Absorb pain's end cost is less than a single point. It provides a 66% single target heal and takes 15 seconds to recharge. The downside is that you take some of the damage yourself, and cannot be healed for a short time. The up-side is that it needs little or no slotting. One single +3 Health SO in here ramps up the heal to 89% and two takes it over 100%. No endurance reduction is needed, and if you enjoy pain, then I suppose a recharge enhancement could go in here. Most folks advocate a single health enhancement in it, then leave it alone. Throughout the game you will find yourself on a team where someone is getting his backside handed to him and AP will fill a green bar very quickly. It does need careful use though. If you're taking agro yourself and you fire this off, then you will be in trouble. Some defenders like to take a shot for the team, others believe they can handle it, and others bemoan it. Until you get your buffing powers later though, this can provide some level of damage-mitigation-through-healing. Controllers may find this power more useful due to the large heal and long recharge (they're busy controlling after all), but it does have a place in an Empathy build.

Ressurect (6):
Quite simply this gets a fallen hero back into the fray with the minimum of fuss. It has a hefty end cost (26) and a fat three minute recharge. I feel it's biggest use is in combat when you lose an important team member. It gets them back on their feet, fully healed and ready to carry on arresting. If a tanker (for example) goes down on a team where he is the main damage absorber, then you will often find that unless someone else can step swiftly into the gap, all hell will quickly break loose. In Arch Villain fights, or against Giant Monsters, it is not uncommon for people to face-plant. Getting them back into the fray as soon as you can is a good thing. As for slotting, this will depend on personal choice. Mine is slotted with a single END redux to allow the hit to be taken during a fight. Recharge reduction is a consideration, however with a three minute recharge, to be able to use it multiple times in a fight would require more slots. I have been on teams where two or even three heroes have fallen and once that happens, only rarely does everyone survive.

Clear Mind (8):
Finally... A power you can skip initially. This power offers a very good status protection to an ally. Fortunately, the villains that use status attacks don't generally appear until later in the game (low twenties on up). You could certainly get away with putting this off until after a travel power (if you are choosing one), but plan to fit it in somewhere around level 20. This power has a poor activation time (a shade over 3 seconds), and doesn't seem to last that long (although the Hero Planner says 90 seconds), but it is extremely useful and removes a large amount of different mez effects (it clears the dizzy effect of using a wakey). One technique of using this is to ask for team members to hit "zzz" in the chatbar rather than try and cover everyone with it. Additionally, if you use team based keybinds (team member number 1 bound to numpad1) you could ask them to call out their team number. When you see "3" in the chatbar, hit 3 on the numpad, then Clear Mind. In a fight, you'll be trying to do ten things at once, and refreshing CM will be low on the list. Accept that you can't keep everyone covered and move on. In smaller teams, this is less of an issue of course. As the levels progress, you will find that (non-Fire)Tankers and Scrappers get good mez protections, so are unlikely to need it. The Blasters and Controllers (as well as fellow defenders) however will thank you for it - and don't forget our Kheldian allies either. Nova (squid) form generally has no status protection. As you can't enhance the status protection, you can slot this as you wish, however a point to note would be that a single recharge redux would mean it would recharge before you'd finish activating it Most folks go for an end redux, but a range enhancement if you PvP on a team might be of more use. Blasters &amp; Khelds get the most love from me with this, and I'll often throw it out when Fortitude has recharged. It's not 100% coverage but it saves me buff buff buffing constantly.

Fortitude (12):
Finally a power that reduces the need to stab green buttons all the time. Fortitude will give an +18% to hit buff, 15% Defence buff and whopping 30% damage buff to the target. Both the to hit and defence portions are enhanceable as well as recharge, and with a recharge timer of 60 seconds (it has a duration of 120 seconds) slotting is a juggling act. Most players already slot their attacks to make sure they hit as often as they like (not to mention tactics, and Set IO accuracy bonusses), so the defensive portion of this power is probably more useful. As to "who to target". Well that will depend on the team you're with. Rather than list a priority of AT's, I think the best way forward is to either ask who wants it initially, and then dish it out based on who is taking the biggest beating. Post level 25, Tankers &amp; Scrappers tend to be able to handle themselves, so Blasters, Khelds and other Defenders would be my initial choice. Controllers are almost certainly going to be either not pulling any agro (everything is held) or pulling a ton of it (hold wears off/AoE Immobilise) so keep an eye on them too. If a tanker asks for it though, then it's worth handing it out. This is all part of the joy of defending for a team. Being reactive in a proactive way. Make no mistake, this is a good buff. With my IO'd out Empath, I could cover a team of 6, but after a while of micro management (who had it last, who needed it next etc) I relaxed a little. On a small team, I cover everyone, but on 8, I'll cover Blasters, Khelds, Trollers then Defenders in that order unless team tactics dictate otherwise.

Recovery Aura (18):
Finally, at level 18, we get access to the second power that can also affect us. It's nice too. For 90 seconds you'll have so large a boost to Endurance recovery that you will not need to worry about anything. The 500 second recharge afterwards also gives you a clue as to where the enhancements should go. There is no real need to enhance this for Endurance Modification. Adding a fourth slot (recharge reduction) will reduce by a few seconds the availability. At lower levels, creating a bind (or an emote, such as a whistle) to announce the firing of this power will make life a lot easier, but higher level characters tend to have their END covered, so I'll drop it on whoever is having the most trouble, or when I can get the most amount of team mates in the AoE.

Regeneration Aura (26):
Regeneration Aura has many benefits. At it's base, it is a 500% regen buff for 90 seconds with a 500 second recharge (same as Recovery Aura). What this doesn't do is give you the same perceived health recovery as Recovery Aura does for end. What it does do though, is trickle through an enhanced constant "heal" to all those in its aura when fired. Use of this power depends on your playstyle. In a team where everyone knows their job, and is managing their own defence to an extent (with click powers or insps), or they are "comfortable" cruising through mobs, this power will give you a lot more time to breathe &amp; blast. If you intend to use this power regularly, slot three recharge, then as many heals as you can spare.

Adrenalin Boost (32):
Well this is the top-tier power and the "jewel" allegedly. The target will receive a nice boost to Recharge (100%), Endurance recovery (800%) and hit point regeneration (500%). It makes a massive difference to the survivability of whoever you gift this buff to. Combined with Fortitude you can put your mind at ease that short of trying to take on Lusca's 8 tentacles singlehandedly, your target will now be safe. Well... for the next 90 seconds anyway. Another 300 second recharge timer makes it a "once per fight" power when coupled with three recharge reductions. One further End Mod SO in here will push the recover to over 1000% negating the downtime after a blaster nuke. Something they would be grateful for I'm sure.


Psychic Blast

Mental Blast (1):
You have no choice, and to be honest, with the modifications in I8, this has now moved from dreadful to very "meh". Fast recharge, and moderate-low damage coupled with a low end cost make this an ideal attack chain filler. One version of my empath (without Stamina) had this slotted 1 acc, 3 dam, 2 end redux and got on very well with it. Look at it as a free attack

Subdue (2):
This power is a decent attack power as well as a good immobilise. The damage is not too shabby, but it's only a 9 second immob, so enhancing it is probably not worth the slots. The damage is very nice, so slotting for damage and a combination of whatever else tickles your fancy is the order of the day. It will certainly serve you well until your better attacks at 16. The only other noteworthy thing about Subdue is that the immobilise sets can be slotted. Unfortunately, no immobilise set enhances damage, but they are very very cheap.

Psionic Lance (4):
Another decent attack power here. However being a snipe, it is interruptible, and also has a lengthy animation. Initially, I used it in combat frequently, but the fixing of Mental Blast has meant that this has been relegated a little from the attack chain. It has a 20% attack bonus though, and a range of 175 feet (most Psi attacks have 100). It's not to be sneezed at damage-wise either. If you are looking to open your attack chain with a bang, then this is the power. However, I found that after opening with it, I tended to drop into a cycle of MB/Subdue/TK/WD/MB etc and never needed to fire this off. It does need investing with slots to be really effective outside the "alpha". When I was using it in combat, I slotted 3 damage, 2 interrupt reducers, and one end reduction. Certainly at lower levels (or when Flashing Back) it is very useful though, both as a pulling tool, and support fire.

Psychic Scream (10) :
I do like the look of Scream. It has a recharge of 12 seconds and end cost 11, as well as a pretty good AoE damage and a hefty -Recharge component. Choice of which secondary powers to opt for is always going to be hard, and this is a tough decision. Also it will be based on how many mobs you face in a mission, along with the difficulty settings. Against lots of mobs, repeated application of Scream will wear them down. If you have a team battering away at them at the same time, it's quite a good power for dropping your buff-mode for a second to damage a good proportion of the enemy. if you're solo vs three mobs, the investment might not be so great. The range of the cone is outstanding - even to the point of picking up mobs further away than you thought. It really does need 3 damage in here, plus whatever else you can spare in the acc/end redux/recharge redux department.

Telekenetic Blast (16):
I love this power. It hits hard, knocks back, and has a short activation time. If you hit and knock back a single target with this, you can fire off a Psi Lance before the hapless villain can get back to his feet, doing a very nice combo of damage to a single villain. Very quick activation (1 second!!) and a fairly quick recharge (8 seconds) make this one of your staple attacks. The end cost is also average (8) so slotting again is down very much to personal preference and secondary power choices.

Will Domination (20):
This is the second of your staple attacks. Not only does it do decent damage, but it will sleep your opponent (for 24 seconds). By now you begin to exert control on the mobs. You can knock-back with TB and snooze another target allowing you more breathing time. Soloing now really becomes possible. Slot for damage primarily with a mix of acc/end/recharge depending on your build. As for Subdue, sleep powers are also cheap to slot with Sleep invention sets. However this power does good damage, so unless you are really primarily teaming, it would be better to slot damage.

Psionic Tornado (28):
I'm not sure about this power, even after 4 years... The end cost is also hefty (18) and the recharge is not much better (20) although that's probably a good thing. It also feels like I'm locked in the animation for much longer than the 2.37 seconds stated in the planner. It is an AoE though, and does give you a measure of soft control with the knockback as well as a very hefty -recharge debuff. I have found that the only time it is useful is in large groups when those few seconds that some of the mobs stay in the air allows the team to take a breather. With the long DoT, it is best fired at the beginning of your attack chain so it can continue to do its stuff while you blast/buff/heal away. Large AoE at the beginning of a fight often = Agro though unless you have a good team backing you up.

Scramble Thoughts (35) :
This attack provides a measure of hard control with a Mag 3 disorient (15 seconds). If you can fit it into your build, this power can be a life saver, and will always be of use. Slot it and love it. The 20 second recharge is quite long, so slotting for recharge (if you want lots of mobs stunned for a short while) or Stun (if you want one mob stunned for a while) would be the order of the day. Invention sets for Stuns are also relatively cheap and as the damage is pathetic, slot to stun.

Psychic Wail (38) :
So this is your nuke. It also carries a Mag 3 stun so any survivors will be useless for 15 seconds un-enhanced. The downside is that it flattens your END line and prevents recovery. This is not great if you're in a team that's taking heavy fire and requiring your active management, but if you're luxuriating in a team that is blowing everything apart, then you can get more use out of it. Taking the power epic Conserve Power will also help the crash, as that blue popped after the nuke will go much further. Other End enhancing buffs (AM, SB, RA and AB) from other team-mates will also make this less situational.



Pool Powers
Secondary power choices are very much dependent on playstyle. I will try and cover all the merits as well as some synergies, but ultimately there are too many combinations to cover.

Speed :
Hasten... With over half your primary powers having a recharge of 300 seconds+, this power will help tremendously in making you capable in time for the next fight. Most of the secondary powers have long-ish recharges, so this power will almost certainly be a boon. It is also a pre-requisite for Superspeed which makes early power choices easier if you want a travel power at 14 without taking any other pools. Perma Hasten in an IO build is very possible.

Flight :
Flight is very much a personal preference. Hover works well 3-slotted and Air superiority is a decent melee attack if you are that way inclined. Group Flight is also useful for places like the Shadow Shard and as a partial replacement for Recall Friend in a pinch (i.e. Zone Transport). The knockback resistance in Hover is also very useful as you get no status protection in any of your primary powers.

Teleportation :
Once keybound (see binds), Teleport isn't so bad. It is still high maintenance (in some opinions), and if you have a requirement for Recall Friend or TP Foe, then it is always an option. Recall Friend is a convenience power at best. Pulling people long (across zone) distances, or out of a fight so you can rez them etc. is a useful tool, but is it worth the power slot? Of course the more useful aspect is when combined with Stealth to allow you to sneak to mission objectives and tp the team there. TP foe also has PvP uses as well as the pulling ability, but with the Psi secondary, you have already got an excellent choice of pulling tools.

Leadership :
Defenders get the best benefits from the Leadership pools. Manoevers isn't really worth the 3.5% defence (unless stacked!), however Assault gives you a nice damage bonus (18%) and Tactics (if three slotted for To hit Buffs) can compensate for lack of accuracy SO's in many (if not all) of your secondary powers. The PvP +Perception bonus is handy too. With the advent of IO's, though, accuracy has become even less of a problem, and Tactics in the high end game is probably not worth it save for perhaps a nice IO set. With all the Leadership powers, their real strength lies in the fact that they stack with other players' Leadership powers. Vengeance is great, but very situational towards 50 as you are by then an expert in keeping the team alive, and they are experts at avoiding dying. Leadership powers can be tricky to run in Stamina-less, IO-less, builds, but possible as long as not too many other toggles are running.

Concealment :
Very straightforward power pool. Useful if you are finding soloing difficult and want to "grab-the-glowy" without being seen. Also, grant Invis is a nice buff for squishie team mates until they've attacked (the 3% def buff is pretty insignificant though). Stacking secondary powers such as Stealth, Hover, CJ, Weave, Manoevers etc is a possibility, but there are so many powers to be chosen for so little defence. Bear in mind that Stealth IO's can now be slotted into Sprint, meaning you can gain full invisibility from Super Speed + Stealth IO as well as from the Stealth power in this pool + the IO without too much trouble.

Fitness :
Or should I say Stamina... Well, there are several schools of thought on this, and your entire build needs to be thought about carefully. Firstly, you can very easily build an Empath that doesn't need Stamina. Lots of end reduxes, Power epic pool (conserve power) and very few toggles will mean soloing is possible. In a team, this will be even easier with Vigilance (the defender inherent). However if you're running an Empath with lots of toggles (Leaping, Epic armours, Stealth, leadership etc) then Stamina will help a lot.
If you have the money, IO's can also compensate for a lack of Stamina, and if you're cash rich there is really no need to take this power. My level 50 build later has the equivalent of Stamina and more without gimping the build. Cash is the key though.
Swift, Hurdle and Health are really all just pre-requisites for Stamina, and don't really add too much to the build unless you're going without a travel power.

Presence :
It's just not your job to scare people. Let the tanker do that with his big axe/fist etc, or the Scrapper with her scintillating dialogue and maxed out chest slider. The top tier powers may however help with a more controllery type build. I have never run with these powers due to the limitation of four power pools so there's not a lot more I can say.

Medicine :
All of the powers available here are duplicated to a lesser extent your primary. Spending any of your four pool choices here is a waste.

Fighting :
The powers in this set don't really compliment your primary &amp; secondary. Tough (15% resist) and Weave (5% defence) are all you will have, as your existing powers don't work to improve them with the exception of some other pool powers and the epic armours. Taking Weave, Manoevers &amp; Combat Jumping could provide around 15-20% defence if you slotted for it, but in my opinion it's not worth it.

Leaping :
This is an interesting choice as it does provide you with a fair bit of status resistance (as well as a travel power). Combat Jumping resists immobilises and Acrobatics resists knockback &amp; hold. There is nothing worse than hitting the "zzz" key whilst your team gets slaughtered. This poolset can provide a good mitigation to those nasty mezzes. Combat Jumping also allows you to slot Defence IO sets, of which the Luck of The Gambler recharge IO is a prime candidate.


Epic Power Pools :
The Epic pools are another set of choices that need to mesh with your primary and secondary choices up to Level 41. For me, concept was also a factor, hence why I haven't written much about Electricity. It's the only one that didn't fit with the concept and so didn't get tested. All the others have been run on the training room.

Power Mastery

Conserve Power :
Reduces the End cost of your powers for 90 seconds. It has a lengthy 600 second recharge though, so recharge reduction enhancements will obviously help. If you are running a Stamina-less build, this power helps survive during the downtime of RA. It also help if you chose Psi Wail as that single blue popped after the nuke goes much further. If you are running a lot of toggles and have gone Stamina-less or have no cash for IO +Recovery sets, then this power is a real jewel.

Power Buildup :
So much more than regular build up (from a Defender perspective), this power boosts your non-damaging attacks too. Not to mention your attacks. Another long recharge timer though makes this a painful set if you're without Hasten. A great power though. +80% damage buff and a +150% effect buff. It really does make Fortitude sickening.

Temporary Invulnerability :
A 20% resistance to lethal &amp; smashing is not to be sneezed at. Slotted for resistance it provides some much needed protection, but then so do all the shields in the third tier of the epic pools.

Total Focus :
Very nice melee damage, with a solid Mag 4 disorient for good measure. The only problem with this attack is its terribly slow activation. In all the time I ran with this I was constantly finding my victim being shot out from under me by a blaster or scrapper. By level 47 those two AT's are cutting swathes through most things, so I dropped it in the end out of frustration. Try on test.


Psychic Mastery

Dominate :
15 seconds of hard control with a 1 second activation and moderate damage make this a much better contender (on paper) than Scramble Thoughts. Combined with the aforementioned power, this isn't too bad at giving you good controlling capability. It will also take hold sets, though as for Will Domination, damage would probably be more useful.

Mass Hypnosis :
Nice AoE snooze that works well solo unless you spam the two AoE's in the Psi set (which will awaken your targets as soon as you hit them). Gives you a 24 second sleep to all hit by the AoE which is lots of time to mop up those bad guys one at a time. Sleep sets are relatively cheap as well, especially the purple set (at the time of writing).

Mind Over Body :
A 27% resist to Smash &amp; Lethal and a 20% resist to Psi makes this a better shield than Invulnerability. The special effect doesn't clash with your primary set either. To some... colour co-ordination is everything.

Telekenesis :
I have played around with this power and it is a good deal of fun. With Recovery Aura running, you can pin folks up against the wall and nail them all day (well for 90 seconds). It can be a lifesaver, as there are few mobs I have found so far that are resistant to the repel effect. I really hated this power when I first tried it on test, but after running with it for some time now, I like it a lot. In PvP it has saved my backside many a time, and whilst experienced PvP'ers can get around it, it will be a shock to those not expecting it. In PvP, you need as many shocks as you can get. I love it. Mix this with the nice range on your Psi attacks and you can keep most things pinned against a wall at distance whilst you pound them into whichever month you fancy.


Dark Mastery

Oppressive Gloom :
Oppressive Gloom allows you to use your hit points to keep enemies close to you disoriented. I have not had much luck at all with this. Most of my testing was done in the Hollows on grey cons who just seemed to ignore it, or it took them an age to react and become disoriented. In theory, it would work well with Regen Aura up and your Heal Aura to recover the damage. My experience with it has been underwhelming.

Dark Consumption :
This is a great power if you are end hungry (Stamina-less / toggle heavy) but again, on test, the recharge time (360 seconds) makes the power situational (i.e. whenever it has eventually decided to recharge). Even 3 recharge redux doesn't seem to help much. When it does fire however, the End gain is very nice. Just two or three mobs and a couple of end mod slots make this a blue bar filler. However you have to be really close to the mobs you're hitting.

Dark Embrace :
27% resist to lethal, smashing, and a 15% resist to toxic &amp; negative energy. A shield.

Soul Drain :
Much better fourth tier power. Only a 120 second recharge, and a +20% accuracy bonus make this very nice out of the box. You will get a good damage bonus per foe affected for a short time, so if you can survive the initial agro, this followed by Psi wail can be a nice boost. You do have to be fairly close to the mobs though, and it will draw agro.


Electric Mastery (Note - never tested this. Comments are purely conjecture)

Electric Fence :
A single target immobilise (lasting 15 seconds) with a fast recharge makes this a good contender for the controllery defenders looking for more control. It will also take some of the IO Immobilise sets nicely. Especially the cheapo purple one.

Thunder Strike :
The 3 second activation appears to be quite a while but the damage would make it seem worth it. If this is anything like Total Focus however in terms of wind-up, then you'll be hitting a dead guy if you're on a team.

Charged Armour :
An 27% resistance to lethal/smashing, and 20% resistance to energy. Very good all round protection.

Power Sink :
Leeches mobs in close proximity of their Endurance, and adds to yours. This appears to be a much better option for the end-hungry than Dark Consumption, mainly because the recharge of 120 seconds is so much more manageable. It's the one power in the set that tempted me with my Stamina-less build, but the Electric Epic just doesn't fit conceptually. Try on test...

-H

All Defender builds have the potential to be good for teaming.

Have a read of this guide if you're really stuck, but the best bet is for you to have a read through the defender guides to get a feel for what each AT can bring to the team.

-H

Nice guide, and useful to the new base builder in terms of thinking about setting the base up rather than actual base design.

Blueside, I set up pads to Kings Row as well as Steel initially. Then added Talos and Striga, but that's because I have a lot of mid range toons and Talos is without doubt the pad that now gets used the most.

Additionally, some of the Hazard zones are probably not worth putting in until the very end. There are only a handful of missions that take place in Terra Volta, Dark Astoria and Boomtown. Independance Port also got left until the very end as the drop-off point was in the middle of nowhere (that could have changed now). Sure DA and Boomtown are good inf making grounds, but generally folks out there to earn cash by arresting magical enemies are there for a good while.

The point about easy access is well made. Power, control and workshops can all be moved away from your "core", as players generally spend a while talking to the Pillar (if you have it) or crafting/storing etc. I appreciate that not everyone has the cash/flexibility to afford everything though.

One last comment is around looking to the future. My biggest headache with expanding a base has always been around deleting the multitude of placeables and shifting full storage devices and telepads around. As Telepads are crafted items, you cannot delete the teleporter room unless you move the telepads out of the way or delete them. If you have nowhere to move them to, you can't change anything. There is always the "move room" option, but if you have no space to move it, you're stuffed. So plan ahead and think about the space available to you. If you buy the smallest telepad room because you can now afford it, you won't be able to upgrade it by selling it &amp; rebuying it without losing your telepad. The same applies to a lesser extent to storage as they can't be deleted when full, but as they can be placed in a few different types of rooms, it's not so much a problem.

This is kind of off topic from the guide, but I designed my blueside base similar to the process above, and when I wanted to expand I had to pretty much rip it completely apart and start again. It's worth thinking about the future too.

Nice work.

-H

I would strongly recommend you reading Peg's Fire/Fire Guide. It has a very in-depth analysis of the powers and also IO slotting. It's current to I11 too.

I have run my Fire/Fire to 50, and also spent a lot of time with IO's. Sera was by far my squishiest character, and no amount of mitigation really seems to work. The most success I've had has been with Devastation Chance To Hold procs in all my single target attacks (including Char). With the fast activations, it's unusual to not see the hold going off once per fight. If you can grab an Empath or a Tank though, you can duo missions at a silly rate with almost complete safety.

Looking at your build a little more, 6 slots in Hasten just isn't worth it (IMO), the same goes for Consume. There is not much in terms of gain to be had by anything more than 3 slots of the same type. Build Up could use another recharge slot. You don't have Aim either. I did drop it myself for a while due to my perception that the first attack when I hit it always missed, but perseverance has stuck through and it really does make a big difference, both in PvE and PvP.

The Toughness pool and Medicine pool also seem unusual choices. I have had medicine on Sera, and she rarely used it, favouring instead chewing down on a couple of greens. The defence offered by Weave and Tough just don't seem to be enough. Generally as a Fire Blaster you will pull agro like no-one's business and small amounts of mitigation just don't help when you're being over-run.

Whilst I can't see the set bonus totals, Sera used to be IO'd out with a couple of LoTG's and a Numina and Miracle unique. My experience is such that any regen bonuses just don't really help noticeably. I still die very fast if there's no one around to buff her, or hold agro for her. Recovery is also very meh, as I have Consume as well as Stamina. Those IO's fit much better in other alts (Peacebringer and Controller) whose playstyle is very much more different. I ripped them all out a while ago, and gave them to other toons that actually benefitted (sp) much more. Sera now runs with full Devastation sets in all her single target attacks, but that's pretty much it. However I don't play her very much at all, so I probably don't notice the difference due to the time between playing her. Your experience may be very different to mine, this is just a collection of random thoughts.

I think that your playstyle will also dictate a lot of this. It looks to me like you solo a good deal as you have small amounts of mitigation (tough, weave, self heal, +regen etc) which may play better facing solo sized spawns. If you can bear to find an Empath that can cope with Fort and Clear Minding just you, or a Tank that can hold agro, then you can concentrate on pure damage with more damage procs, perhaps the leadership pool, or other scenarios. (Caveat : I mention the two types of character above from a personal viewpoint)

-H

Great guide.

Using inspirations is one of the most overlooked ways of helping yourself generally. Often I've been lying dead on the floor and have tried to pass newly dropping inspirations on team-mates only to get the "has no room" message.

Nice one Ant.

-H