Vermain

You seriously don't need anything other than soft-capped Defense to be the King of Farmville. You don't even need that, depending on how hardcore you want your farming to be. I leveled up my Fire/Kinetics from 45-50 solo-farming, since I was within spitting distance of the S/L soft-cap and it was honestly faster (and more profitable) than teaming.

Teaming with Peacebringers and Radiation Blast anythings is like seeing a unicorn.

I'd definitely advise picking up as many Lucks as you can because Shields is a bit on the squishy side until you can get Weave and SOs. If you're soloing, I'd similarly advise running on -1/x6 or something similar, because Build Up + AAO + Fire Sword Circle will usually annihilate the minions and just leave the lieutenants for you to clean up. Gets you a lot of free inspirations.

You wouldn't happen to have a lot of Blessing of the Zephyrs slotted, would you?

If you want a taunt, you could always grab White Dwarf and just slot up Antagonize. Pop in quickly, taunt, turn back into a human and smack them around. In principle, it's not entirely human-only when you play a human-form build, just one that focuses primarily on human-form. Downside is you'd have to snap your defenses back on quickly every time you do this. You don't need Combat Jumping, especially if you're with a lot of Controllers who can buff up your Cosmic Balance resists, but I've found it handy. Personal preference. You should be carrying around two slots full of Break Frees eventually, so it's not like you'd be entirely helpless if you didn't take it.

If you want another AoE, I'd do Luminous Detonation over Proton Scatter. Both are really middling, but LD's better solely for the AoE. Proton Scatter's too hard to try and set up properly in melee.

Pulsar's only mag 2, but it's also got a 50% chance for an additional mag, so you can lock down a good portion of a spawn. I mainly use it to put annoying minions out of commission and, when grouped with other people with massed dazes, can lock down an entire spawn easily. My smoothest runs are always with a Fire Controller: double AoE daze nullifies the spawn and Fire Cages lets me Solar Flare to my heart's content.

Regardless of all that, glad to hear PB's working out well for you! It can start out slow since you don't really get any truly earthshattering attacks until Incandescent Strike (and even then its endurance usage will make Dark Armor look like Willpower by comparison), but once you slot in some KB protection and can get SOs, it's wonderful. Definitely my favorite character to play.

Luminous Detonation is pretty much the worst. It's got horribly anemic damage on top of a massive knockback. Scrap it and rearrange your powers a bit so you can get Pulsar. It's great on teams and well-near necessary for soloing, since you're not the sturdiest without Cosmic Balance backing you up.

Your only truly reliable AoE is Solar Flare, which compares favorably with Foot Stomp, aside from the KB component stuck into it. If you're in a group with Controllers who have an AoE immob, you can use it care-free, but if you don't, you're going to have to do the Solar Flare Shuffle. This is where you try to find a point where you can minimize the harm of knockback (usually by knocking outliers in towards the melee) while maximizing the number of targets you can actually hit with it.

I wouldn't bother with Provoke, to be honest. While PBs have some similarities with Scrappers, you're still squishy in spots, and likely won't survive the extra aggro that Provoke brings. I'd personally go with Combat Jumping, instead, since it's a great place to slot the Kismet bonus and provides Immobilization protection, which is always useful. Leadership isn't a bad option, but it's not spectacular, either, and you're already going to be guzzling endurance with Pulsar/IS/Solar Flare.

Here's an example build. It's roughly what I'm planning to do with my PB.

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.621
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Level 50 Natural Peacebringer
Primary Power Set: Luminous Blast
Secondary Power Set: Luminous Aura
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leaping

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Gleaming Bolt -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(3), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg(3), ShldBrk-%Dam(7), Achilles-ResDeb%(7), LdyGrey-%Dam(45)
Level 1: Incandescence -- S'fstPrt-ResKB(A), Aegis-Psi/Status(9)
Level 2: Gleaming Blast -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg(A), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(9), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(11), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx(11), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(13), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(46)
Level 4: Shining Shield -- ImpSkn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), ImpSkn-ResDam/Rchg(5), ImpSkn-EndRdx/Rchg(5), ImpSkn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(43), ImpSkn-Status(43)
Level 6: Essence Boost -- Numna-Heal/Rchg(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(13), Mrcl-Heal/Rchg(15), H'zdH-Heal/Rchg(15)
Level 8: Radiant Strike -- C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(17), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(19), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(19), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 10: Swift -- Flight-I(A)
Level 12: Build Up -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(21)
Level 14: Quantum Shield -- ImpSkn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), ImpSkn-ResDam/Rchg(21), ImpSkn-EndRdx/Rchg(23), ImpSkn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(42), ImpSkn-Status(42)
Level 16: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A)
Level 18: Incandescent Strike -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(23), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(25), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(25), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(27), LdyGrey-Rchg/EndRdx(27)
Level 20: Pulsar -- Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg(A), Stpfy-Acc/EndRdx(29), Stpfy-Acc/Rchg(29), Stpfy-EndRdx/Stun(31), Stpfy-Stun/Rng(31), Rope-EndRdx/Stun(46)
Level 22: Stamina -- P'Shift-End%(A), P'Shift-EndMod(31), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(33), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(46)
Level 24: Reform Essence -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx(A), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(34), Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg(34), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(34), Dct'dW-Heal(42)
Level 26: Glowing Touch -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx(A), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(36), Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg(36), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(50), Dct'dW-Heal(50)
Level 28: Solar Flare -- Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(36), Erad-Dmg/Rchg(37), Erad-Acc/Rchg(37), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx(37), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(39)
Level 30: Boxing -- Acc-I(A)
Level 32: Tough -- Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx(33), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx(33)
Level 35: Photon Seekers -- C'Arms-Acc/Rchg(A), C'Arms-Acc/Dmg(40), C'Arms-Dmg/EndRdx(40), C'Arms-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), C'Arms-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(43)
Level 38: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(39), RechRdx-I(39)
Level 41: Combat Jumping -- Ksmt-ToHit+(A)
Level 44: Conserve Energy -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(45), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 47: Dawn Strike -- Erad-Dmg(A), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), Erad-Dmg/Rchg(48), Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(48)
Level 49: White Dwarf -- ResDam-I(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Cosmic Balance
Level 1: Ninja Run -- Empty(A)
Level 10: Combat Flight -- Krma-ResKB(A)
------------
Level 49: White Dwarf Strike -- Empty(A)
Level 49: White Dwarf Smite -- Empty(A)
Level 49: White Dwarf Flare -- Empty(A)
Level 49: White Dwarf Sublimation -- Heal-I(A)
Level 49: White Dwarf Antagonize -- Empty(A)
Level 49: White Dwarf Step -- Empty(A)

I don't really like Light Form, but you can scrap something and put it in if you want. I put in White Dwarf there because it's another great self-heal if things start going to hell. I mainly focused on recharge and max HP for set bonuses.

NWs are pumped-up Stalkers who also have the mild side effect of being able to give everyone on their team 30% positional Defense. Fortunatas are Dominators with claws or psychic blasts (or both).

Whenever I play my PB, the main benefit I have is that I'm enormously self-sufficient and that I provide damage alongside group utility. There's four powers that really define the experience:

-Pulsar. A Mag 2 Daze with a 50% chance for a Mag 3. It'll lock down minions and has a good enough chance of locking down Lieutenants, as well.

-Glowing Touch. A hefty heal other on a ridiculously short cooldown. Bubble Defenders and me get along very well, since I cover anything that gets through his shields and he stops me from being hit the majority of the time.

-Dawn Strike/Photon Seekers. Both very good spawn clearers, with Photon Seekers regularly obliterating a tight group with only a few enhancements stuck into it.

-Cosmic Balance. On Scrapper/Blaster-heavy teams, I'm pretty well near invincible if I play smart, while Defender/Tank heavy teams puts me on even footing with most other melee ATs.

Granted, I will say that, as a guy who also has a Fortunata, Fortunatas do the whole melee hybrid thing a lot better than human PBs do. Human PBs trade damage for survivability, in comparison, but I'm not sure if it's an entirely equitable trade.

Also since it's a human PB thread: please change the KB on Solar Flare to Knockup!! Thanks devs.

Fortunatas and Crabs are both pretty good.

I actually prefer it this way. Please don't hurt me!!

I will agree that it should be a selectable option, though.

I'm frankly glad that there's more Widows and Soldiers running around now because I love having capped Defenses on a team just from a bunch of guys standing around, plus all the other goodies if they chose to take them.

Also useful if you want to run around with Darkest Night for whatever reason.

The best debuff is death and Kinetics helps enormously with that. Personal preference, of course, but most teams I group up on seem happy if I literally do nothing except keep Speed Boost up.

There's not really much of a difference in damage if you stay at range. I guess it's easier to aim Dart Burst and Psychic Scream, but not enormously so.

Crabs are basically sturdier Blasters. They're excellent in groups thanks to their assorted group buffs, their killer AoE damage, and their pets. Your mode of operation is: gather up everything into a big group, take a dump on it. I always appreciate having one on the team.

Night Widows are souped-up Stalkers. They have the ability to do a pseudo-AS and have high melee damage (one of THE highest in the game, actually, if I remember the calculations from before correctly), alongside excellent group utility. Consider: Mind Link is very easy to perma as a Night Widow. If you combine it with Leadership Maneuvers and your own inbuilt Maneuvers, you'll hit around 30% Defense to your group to every single position. And this is on an AT that kicks the tar out of things on its own terms. It's like playing a bubble Defender with claws.

Fortunatas are similar, but their group utility is more overt. They have a lot of controls (Subdue, Dominate, Scramble Thoughts, Confuse) alongside their team buffs, although it's harder to hit perma-Mind Link with them. You have two ways of playing: ranged Widow which generally hovers around, firing off controls and dealing good damage with mind beams. The second option is to play them like a Dominator, since you have access to all of the melee attacks from Widow Training. This is actually very effective, since you've got good damage, solid Defense, and good controls. You even get to play as a bit of a Stalker, since Aim + Lunge while Hidden does a lot of frontloaded damage and can outright kill some Minions. I've got a character who's a melee Fortunata and it's a tremendous amount of fun.

I have never, ever seen a single Radiation Blast Corruptor.

Pick the powers you want and then set him to Ranged behavior. He SHOULD swap out to Broadsword attacks once people engage him in melee.

Even later on, CJ's still a nice filler attack for a lot of Controller sets. Fire/Kinetics, for instance, really only has Seismic Smash for single target punching, and the extra damage from CJ can help to speed it along. It's also very endurance efficient.