The Empathy/Psychic Blast Defender - Updated for I8
I originally wrote this guide over a year ago now. Since then many changes have skewed my views, not least getting to 50, experimenting with PvP and several Issue freespecs. Vet rewards hitting test gave me another 2 respecs which have been repeatedly tried on the training room to find a build I like. In doing this I have played around with most of the powers in various combinations, so this guide has changed from the last in many ways.
The biggest change I have made is to try and offer all the benefits of each power from an objective point of view, rather than the subjective view of my last guide. You will not find any "don't take this" comments in here, simply because it is up to you how to build your toon. That caveat out of the way though, there are many references to how I found the power useful or not.
The numbers are taken from SherkSilver's
Hero Builder. The comments and other notes are based on the I8 Training Room environment. KayMoonpetal is updating this database (see this thread :
here ) which will always be a more up to date guide regarding hard numbers.
(As a side note, after ED, I felt that much had changed and didn't really want to update the guide. Recent comments to the old guide and a realisation that it was deficient in a lot of ways has made me re-write. I hope this new guide is more relevant than the last, but still aims to assist both new players as well as old.)
[u]Powers :[u]
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 Dark's 8, Kinetics' 7, Rad's 8, Storm's 8, TA's 9 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-team band, which is why consideration must be given to your playstyle before you begin.
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. Personally, I have not had much experience with the other sets (most levelled only to the mid-30's) so comment will be reduced to "You've chosen Psi, let's move on".
The slotting considerations here are purely observational. Slotting is really a matter of choice for the individual and programs such as the Hero Builder can give you precise effects at a glance by adding one type of enhancement over the other.
[u]Empathy[u]
[u]Heal Other (1):[u]
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 SO's (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. All in all though, slotting is down to personal taste.
[u]
Healing Aura (1):[u]
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 requires a little more careful thought. Are you going to be soloing a lot? Do you mainly team with a bunch of tankers who stick together? Are you friends with five crazy scrappers who run all over the map aggroing everything in sight? I spend about 75% of my time alone, so this is slotted 3 heal, 2 recharge and 1 end redux.
[u]Absorb Pain (2):[u]
This is where the decisions need to be made. Absorb pain's end cost is less than a single point. It provides a 67% 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. This power does have a myriad of uses, but remember that it's useless if you're solo. 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.
[u]Ressurect (6):[u]
Quite simply this gets a fallen hero back into the fray with the minimum of fuss. It has a hefty end cost (50) 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 a Kheld 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.
[u]Clear Mind (8):[u]
Finally... A power you can skip
initially. This power offers a good status protection to an ally. Fortunately, the villains that use status attacks don't generally appear until much later in the game. 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 before 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 seems to remove 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. 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 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...
[u]Fortitude (12):[u]
Finally a power that reduces the need to stab green buttons all the time. Fortitude will give a +30% Accuracy, defence and 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 45 seconds) slotting is a juggling act of recharge vs enhancement. Most players already slot their attacks to make sure they hit as often as they like, so the defensive portion of this power is probably more useful. My choice is 3 defbuff, 3 recharge redux and I can keep it on four folks when running Hasten. 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 SO's, Tankers & 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
[u]Recovery Aura (18):[u]
Finally, at level 18, we get the second power that can also affect us. It's nice too. For 90 seconds you'll have unlimited End pretty much. 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. If you are teaming with people that fly (no pun) along, these extra seconds may be worth it. Another decision you will have to make. Creating a bind to announce the firing of this power will make life a lot easier. I have also included the "whistle" emote so that those not looking at the chat window still know it's about to be fired (see binds/macro's later)
[u]
Regeneration Aura (26):[u]
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). Some people have argued that this power is useless, others that it is invaluable. I think this comes from the way the power is perceived to work. Certainly it doesn't give you the same 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. If you like to top off any drop in a green bar on a player, then you may feel that this is a waste of a power choice. If you are prepared to late players hurt a little, you will notice how their hit points drop, but not at a rate that is worrying. Obviously there are exceptions to this, but in a team where everyone knows their job, and is managing their own defence to an extent (with click powers or insps) this power will give you a lot more time to breathe. I did slate this as being not overly useful in my previous guide and done a 100% about-face. Having tried many iterations of this on test now, I have ended up with it 6 slotted (3 recharge redux, 3 heal). Also, bear in mind that if you spend a large proportion of your time soloing and you don't take this power, you have access to only 2 useful powers out of 9 in the set. One has to ask why choose Empathy? Even if you don't put any slots in here (apart from a single heal or recharge redux in the default) it still is a nice buff out of the box.
[u]Adrenalin Boost (32):[u]
Well this is the top-tier power and the "jewel" allegedly. The target will receive a nice boost to Recharge (30%), Endurance recovery (40%) and hit point regeneration (50%). 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. Personally, I don't slot for end mod or health, but if you're slot rich, you may want to consider it.
[u]Psychic Blast :[u]
One of the major benefits of Psi, is that it seems to have the longest ranges in the game, which makes you a perfect puller at lower levels. The animations are pretty cool, and you have a good selection of powers to suit most playstyles. In I8, Mental Blast has had its animation "looked at" which (IMO) has made this set a lot better than it used to be. Additionally, whilst many claim that Psi is heavily resisted later in the game, it still has uses in PvP.
I have used (rightly or wrongly) the Brawl Index numbers provided in Sherk's Hero Planner.
[u]Mental Blast (1):[u]
You have no choice, and to be honest, with the modifications in I8, this is now a very decent power. Fast recharge, and moderate damage (BI 2.78) 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
[u]Subdue (2):[u]
Much changed since the I4 version I lambasted, this power is now a decent attack power. The damage is good (BI4.56) and the immob is probably not worth enhancing unless you like the nice pink rings. It's only a 5 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.
[u]Psionic Lance (4):[u]
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 yards (most Psi attacks have 100). With a BI of 7.67 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. Using it once per combat made me think once more about its' "situational availability" and I dropped it. No reason for you to though, although 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 it is very useful though, both as a pulling tool, and support fire.
[u]Psychic Scream (10) :[u]
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 (BI 2.89). 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. The range of the cone is outstanding - even to the point of picking up mobs further away than you thought. If I had the spare slots, I'd take this. It really does need 3 damage in here, plus whatever else you can spare in the acc/end redux/recharge redux department. I still miss it now.
[u]Telekenetic Blast (16):[u]
I love this power. It hits hard (BI 5.4), 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.
[u]Will Domination (20):[u]
This is the second of your staple attacks. Not only does it do decent damage (BI 5.4), but it will sleep your opponent (for 30 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. No point in discussing slotting much - it will depend on your overall build. 3 damage is a good starter though.
[u]Psionic Tornado (28):[u]
I have run with this power now for some time, and have removed it quite recently. The planner says it's 5 ticks of 0.97 which equates to a BI of 4.86. It just seems to take an age to get there... 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. 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.
[u]Scramble Thoughts (35) :[u]
You already have a single target attack that provides some control (sleep) and does a good amount of damage with the Will Domination. As the character can chain together many of the previous more damaging attacks, this additional hold may not be necessary if you are a damage-lover. However it does provide a measure of hard control with a disorient (10 seconds). The 3 second activation and lower damage (BI 2.9) make it a tenuous judgment call as to whether it is "worth it" in the long run. In my opinion it's not worth it, but then my playstyle doesn't suit it. If you are going for a more controllery build though, this may be for you.
[u]Psychic Wail (38) :[u]
Pre - I5, you could run Recovery Aura, then hit a mob with this, take a step back, and within a second or two be ready to throw another attack at your heavily damaged (BI 15), mezzed-into-next-week (well.. 15 seconds) survivors. I5 fixed the "nuke" attacks to flatten your END line regardless of the recoveries you have in place for 8 seconds. For an Empath this is Not Good. In team situations, you can no longer have a heal ready after throwing it and soloing it really does not work. This power only has a use if you have a couple of spare blue insps you can chew on straight away aftwerards (and perhaps Conserve Power from the Epic pool). That makes it potentially a situational power which can be taken if you have the spare power choices and/or like the animation (which is very nice).
[u]Secondary Sets[u]
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.
Top Doc's movement guide is an excellent place for travel power research for those interested: <a href="**http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=3086027&page=0&a mp;fpart=1&vc=1" target="_blank">Link</a>
[u]Speed :[u]
Hasten... With over half your 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.
[u]Flight :[u]
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.
[u]Teleportation :[u]
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 how much of a difference does it really make? 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.
[u]Leadership :[u]
Defenders get the best benefits from the Leadership pools. Manoevers isn't really worth the 3% defence, 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. Add to the fact it stacks with other players and you really do have a win-win situation. Tricky to run in Stamina-less builds, but possible as long as not too many other toggles are running. vengeance is great, but very situational. Now I'm actually at 50, I find that players die so rarely that it isn't worth the power slot. Some of the missions leading up to the "end-game" (Maria Jenkins' AV arcs for example) may find more of a use for it.
[u]Concealment :[u]
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 Invis, Hover, CJ, Weave, Manoevers etc is a possibility, but there are so many powers to be chosen for so little defence. If you can convince yourself though, congratulations!
[u]Fitness :[u]
Stamina... Well, there are several schools of thought on this, and your entire build needs to be thought about carefully. Firstly, you can 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. Nuff said.
[u]Presence :[u]
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.
[u]Medicine :[u]
All of the powers available here can be duplicated to some extent with your primary. Spending one of your four pool choices here could be argued to be a waste.
[u]Fighting :[u]
The powers in this set don't really compliment your primary & secondary. Tough (7.5% resist) and Weave (2.5% 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.
[u]Leaping :[u]
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 & 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.
[u]Epic Power Pools :[u]
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.
[u]Power Mastery[u]
[u]Conserve Power :[u]
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, then this power is a real jewel. Having played a defender with Stamina and this powerset, I think it's probably overkill End wise, although there are some that could run out of end I'm sure.
[u]Power Buildup :[u]
So much more than regular build up (from a Defender perspective), this power boosts your non-damaging attacks too. Aura's, Fortitude and your heals. Not to mention your attacks. Another long recharge timer though makes this a painful set if you're without Hasten. A great power though. +50% damage buff and a +100% effect buff. It really does make Fortitude sickening.
[u]Temporary Invulnerability :[u]
A 20% resistance to lethal & smashing is not to be sneezed at. Slotted for resistance it priovides some much needed defence, but then so do all the shields in the third tier of the epic pools.
[u]Total Focus :[u]
Very nice melee damage (BI 9.8) with a nice 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
With the improvements to Psychic Blast, do you really want to get into melee range?
[u]Psychic Mastery[u]
[u]Dominate :[u]
15 seconds of hard control with a 1 second activation and a moderate (BI2.7) 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 a fairly good measure of control. As a damage power though, it seems mildly underwhelming, but that is based on observation rather than any hard numbers...
[u]Mass Hypnosis :[u]
Nice AoE snooze that works well solo unless you have the two AoE's in the Psi set (which will awaken your targets as soon as you hit them). Gives you a 30 second (not sure about this - Hero planner & my testing differ somewhat) sleep to all hit by the AoE which is lots of time to mop up those bad guys one at a time.
[u]Mind Over Body :[u]
A 27% resist to Smash & 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.
[u]Telekenesis :[u]
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.
[u]Dark Mastery[u]
[u]Oppressive Gloom :[u]
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.
[u]Dark Consumption :[u]
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.
[u]Dark Embrace :[u]
20% resist to lethal, smash, toxic & negative energy. A shield.
[u]Soul Drain :[u]
Much better fourth tier power. Only a 120 second recharge, and a +20% accuracy bonus make this very nice out of the box. Testing seems to indicate this is a 4.5% 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. BI value of 2.6. You do have to be fairly close to the mobs though, and it will draw agro.
[u]Electric Mastery[u] (Note - never tested this. Comments are purely conjecture)
[u]Electric Fence :[u]
A single target immobilise (lasting 15 seconds) with a fast recharge makes this a good contender for the controllery defenders looking for more control.
[u]Thunder Strike :[u]
The 3 second activation appears to be quite a while but the BI of 9.1 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.
[u]Charged Armour :[u]
An 11% resistance to lethal, smashing and energy. Very good all round protection.
[u]Power Sink :[u]
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...
So that's the power descriptions done. Next we'll look at some more generic things in reference to defenders (or even general play).
[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 (Psi Scream, Tornado, Scramble Thoughts etc) 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, or team with friends) and the powers you will lose as you drop may make a difference.
The Hero Builder 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 (IMO) 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...
Try this for starters...
[u]1. 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.
[u]2. 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, 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. 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.
It has been mentioned that you can set player health on-screen over the actual player, and this may work better, but clicking a target in a room full of mobs can sometimes be difficult. Ideally, with your numberpad bound to team members, you won't even need to click for your primary powers. Click away for your blasts, then drop your hand to the numberpad when it's buff time.
(edit) The above information is mainly for those who do not play defenders. You may already have a good feel for the team you run with, and may also be able to "read" a team well. The suggestions above are just that. Your job is to defend, and be aware of how the team is doing. If you can do that by some other means, then the above info is redundant.
[u]3. 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). They are no good to you, and could swing the tide of battle. Call for retreat and then run! 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]4 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 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]5. 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]Last Words....[u]
[u]"We need a healer" / "R U a Healer?"[u]
If a team sends you a tell saying they "need" a healer, then it's probably wise to approach with care. They probably only want someone who can stop the green bar falling, and often, this is to compensate for bad tactics. No amount of "healing" can save poor teamwork. I tend to give these teams a very small leash, and leave at the first sign of a road accident. (Feel free to try and sort out where the problem lies. I rarely have time!) Of course there are exceptions to this, but my experience is such that "we need a healer" usually = debt.
[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 don't like 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 PvP 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.
[u]Very Final Thoughts...[u]
Empathy defending is rewarding. Saving lives, pulling teammates out of trouble, blasting, buffing, strategic placement of auras... It is certainly the most interesting AT I have played, though I am not an "I have several 50's" player. Certainly if there is nothing going on or no teams, I can go badge hunting, TP folks to Atlas globe, or spend an hour or so in the Hollows pulling teams from trouble and helping out new players. Almost always, I get tells of thanks from players who were in trouble and it makes me happy to be a hero. I'm no taxi-bot, but don't mind responding to calls for one. I like to RP, exemplar, and am happy to just fly around.
I think the Psi secondary is an unusual choice, and quite rare. I still don't get tired of knocking trolls of roof's in the Hollows with Telekenetic Blast. A lot of folks bemoan it, but even if I could respec out of it I don't think I would.
[u]Mellenta, L50 Empathy/Psychic Blast Defender[u]
---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (
http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
---------------------------------------------
Name: Mellenta (Virtue Server)
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Empathy
Secondary: Psychic Blast
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Heal Other==> Heal(1) Heal(3) Heal(7) Rechg(11) EndRdx(11) Rechg(21)
01) --> Mental Blast==> Acc(1) Dmg(5) Dmg(25) Dmg(29) Rechg(37) EndRdx(40)
02) --> Healing Aura==> Heal(2) Heal(3) Heal(7) Rechg(9) Rechg(9) EndRdx(21)
04) --> Subdue==> Acc(4) Dmg(5) Dmg(25) Dmg(29) EndRdx(39) Rechg(39)
06) --> Combat Jumping==> EndRdx(6)
08) --> Resurrect==> EndRdx(8)
10) --> Hasten==> Rechg(10) Rechg(17) Rechg(23)
12) --> Fortitude==> DefBuf(12) DefBuf(13) Rechg(13) Rechg(15) Rechg(15) Rechg(17)
14) --> Super Jump==> Jump(14) Jump(43)
16) --> Swift==> Run(16)
18) --> Recovery Aura==> Rechg(18) Rechg(19) Rechg(19)
20) --> Clear Mind==> EndRdx(20)
22) --> Telekinetic Blast==> Acc(22) Dmg(23) Dmg(33) Dmg(34) Rechg(37) Rechg(37)
24) --> Health==> Heal(24) Heal(40) Heal(46)
26) --> Regeneration Aura==> Rechg(26) Rechg(27) Rechg(27) Heal(31) Heal(34) Heal(34)
28) --> Acrobatics==> EndRdx(28)
30) --> Stamina==> EndMod(30) EndMod(31) EndMod(31)
32) --> Adrenalin Boost==> Rechg(32) Rechg(33) Rechg(33) Heal(46) Heal(46)
35) --> Will Domination==> Acc(35) Dmg(36) Dmg(36) Dmg(36) Rechg(39) Rechg(40)
38) --> Assault==> EndRdx(38)
41) --> Dominate==> Acc(41) Dmg(42) Dmg(42) Hold(42) Rechg(43) Hold(43)
44) --> Mind Over Body==> EndRdx(44) DmgRes(45) DmgRes(45) DmgRes(45)
47) --> Telekinesis==> EndRdx(47) EndRdx(48) Rechg(48) Rechg(48)
49) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(49) TH_Buf(50) TH_Buf(50) TH_Buf(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
---------------------------------------------
This is another build for Mel who now has only 2 Vet respecs remaining. I would love to be able to squeeze Absorb pain in here as well as Psychic Scream, but I so rarely used AP that it wasn't worth it to me, and I just couldn't find a power to drop for Scream.
Previous incarnations had both Flight and Teleport at the expense of Stamina and Leaping, and this has meant a big difference in the way she plays. Currently however she only works in small (less than 4 heroes) teams or goes solo, so needs to be able to pull her weight in a fight as well as on her own. She does these exceptionally well, and can even go toe to toe in the arena or PvP with less experienced players (if I'm lucky!) I do miss Flight though, and Recall Friend... Sacrifices must be made however, and this build has surprised me more by what it can do than by what it can't. It also goes to show that whilst some choices may seem odd, they work for me.
Lastly, the power choices per level may seem strange, but Mel doesn't need to exemp any more for anything specific, so any exemping is generally done with friends which makes pwoer choices less of an issue.
Happy defending!
-H
