Viscount_Gareth

Very nice guide--thank you, Doc! I just started a MA/Ninjitsu Stalker last night and I was looking for a guide.

Just one comment regarding the use of Recharge enhancements in powers--such as Crippling Axe Kick--that have a slow effect. My understanding (from playing two Ice/Kins--in which both the primary and secondary powersets have powers that slow your opponent), is that Recharge enhancements will actually make your power recharge faster and will also improve the slowing component of the power against your target. Theoretically you could really slow an opponent by having both Recharge and Slow enhancers, but that is probably overkill (and you are better off with Damage or another effect instead of Slows).

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So, Why did they change Trolls in the early D+D rules from 6+3 hit dice to 6+6?

old gamer geek

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Because they gained more defense (via hit points) when they learned the ingenious move of castling.

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Folks, we've never seen an Issue expansion drop on live prior to a major holiday weekend. Cuppa's announcment really shouldn't really be a surprise to anyone, should it? If anything be glad, that they *tried* to get it out in time for the holiday, and give 'em credit for having good sense not to push a flawed product out over a holiday weekend (imagine the chaos!).

The flip side is folks can play it on Test in the meanwhile. So it's not really a big loss.

Thanks Cuppa, we can deal.

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Actually, I'm pretty sure we have seen an issue released live prior to a holiday weekend. If memory serves, Issue 2 (welcome Hollows and Shadow Shard) was released prior to Labor Day weekend in '04. It was filled with bugs, the Devs took the holiday weekend off thinking their job was done, and people were furious over all of the problems and the lack of support (there were fun things like Outcasts in the teens spawning right by the entrance to the Hollows from Atlas--waiting for all of those level 5 heroes just arrived in the shiny new zone). I think that experience taught Cryptic the lesson of not releasing a major issue just before a holiday. I thought it was possible we may see a release on Tuesday or Wednesday, but experience has taught me it is better to wait a few days and be happy with the product rather than get a buggy mess that frustrates and infuriates the player base.

Just my 2 INF.

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lvl35: Solar Flare - Similar to but not as good as the Dwarf equivalent. So why are we taking this? because when using Light Form which we'll take next, you will be limited to using Human powers, and this will nicely fill up our attack chain. Also while not doing much damage (although with buildup its BI is about 11), its knockbak gives us another way of doing crowd control. If for whatever reason you don't plan on using Light Form much, you might want to pick Dawn Strike here instead of later



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I'm not sure why you say Solar Flare is inferior to Dwarf Flare. It is a superior attack from a damage perspective, although it does Knockback instead of Knockdown. Even that is situational as when you are soloing it gives you more time to deal with one target than just knockdown does (as the mobs have to close back to melee distance unless they opt for a (usually) less damaging range attack).

Overall, good guide. You emphasize different powers and a somewhat different playstyle than I prefer with my tri-form (I use human form about half the time in combat), but they are certainly good choices.

Does anyone else see Grounded as /ELA's equivalent of /Fire's Temperature Protection? A passive power that is largely redundant with the other protections you get---so much so that most people won't bother to take it in what will already be a very tight build?

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Reference for Corruptors...

Dark Embrace
* Self +RES (S/L, N. Energy, Tox)
* END: 1 unit/sec
* Recharge: 4 secs

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Dark Embrace costs 1 End/sec! If I'm not mistaken, the cost for a Brute to run Dark Embrace is about .19 End/sec---this is over 5 times as expensive as the Brute version (and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that its base RES levels are lower, as well). Come on, Devs---for the most part these are low level powers that we are getting in the 40s. Don't make them entirely useless, as well. Overlong recharges and prohibitive End costs will make them not worth taking.

I think I noticed that the Brute's Gloom recharges in 20 seconds, and I'm pretty sure that is about 2.5 times longer than it takes for my Dark Corruptor's Gloom to recharge (I think the End cost is significantly higher, too).

I personally don't mind being locked into one patron or the fact that the powers available are very similar from pool to pool, but if the powers themselves are severely diminished in their utility, I may not be taking PPPs after all---and I was really looking forward to them.

I'll nominate the patron goddess of tankers: Iron Vixen---I'm sure she wouldn't mind being in the company of these ladies.

Very nice. I have a Ninja/Ninjitsu Stalker who will take this to heart.

Outstanding guide! Very comprehensive, and as a nice consolation to me, your suggested build almost exactly mirrors my own through about level 24, at least (I haven't nailed down my build past that point yet).

Just a couple of quick comments--when you reference the RES to Energy in various INV powers (such as UY), you omit Neg. Energy. Those powers provide RES to both types of Energy powers.

Also, your link from the Brutes Guide section brought me to the bottom post of your guide. I thought it was very odd that you started your guide with a discussion of pool powers. It was only after I finished reading that section and was scrolling up that I realized there was more at the top. You may want to fix that link.

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Who do you think is funding Longbow in the first place? Why is the military arm of the Freedom Corps (itself a subsidiary of the Freedom Phalanx) named Longbow?

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Because Manticore was getting tired, irritated and self-conscious with Sister Psyche and Ms. Liberty constantly teasing him about his Short Arrow?

Excellent guide--but I think you skipped a Dark Armor power. Isn't there a stealth power? Cloak of Darkness, IIRC.

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Since you are leaving, I was wondering, in all your time writing for CoH, what article of yours are you most proud of?



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I'm proud of them all--they all have to some degree an idea or phrase or insight that truly shines. But I think the one I'm most proud of was probably overlooked by many as it really didn't contribute anything to the actual game. For me it placed Paragon City in a perspective that even I had not seen prior to writing it. It was the first article that I had written that managed to create a real time and place.

The article in question? Rudolp Augustus Seifert and the Memory of Heroes

I would guess that no one else shares this fondness--but I'm damn proud of it.

-Gil

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An excellent article--as were they all! I wish you well in all of your future endeavours. May you have fair winds and following seas!

Actually, even if Photon Seekers were changed into essentially a three-pronged ranged attack against the targeted mob, their AoE radius is very small. They may have a higher combined BI than other blaster attacks (keeping in mind that our human form range attack BI multiplier is lower than that of blasters (although I'm not sure what the base BI for the Seekers is given they aren't really a ranged attack or a melee attack)), but they will do considerable less total damage in almost every situation (except extreme mob stacking) than would the level 32 powers of blasters, because far fewer mobs are actually hit. As such, they would not be overpowered IMO.

As a side note, after I5 my impression is that the AI of the Seekers has gotten even worse. I used to be able to stealth in until I was next to my primary target, summon the Seekers, and they would often all hit the target I wanted them to. Lately they are almost as likely to wander away and hit nothing as if I had summoned them from out of range and tried to train them onto a target.

I hope geko read through the whole thread and not just the first post. I think most people disagreed with the idea of completely removing phase from Q-Fly and Nebulous Form and there were various alternative suggestions given. Not that those were the issues he will be addressing.

/em Pulls stakes, garlic, silver crosses and other undead-fighting paraphernalia out of his pack to slay the evil Thread Necromancer!

There has recently been considerable discussion regarding the relative merits of ToHit Buff SOs vs. Accuracy SOs in Nova form. The discussion has revealed that the equation used to determine whether an attack will hit is significantly more complicated than a straight up comparison of values between ToHit Buffs and Accuracy. Also, many people believe the bonus provided by ToHit Buff SOs is based at 33% rather than 20%--a Dev has yet to confirm this, but some players with Controller backgrounds indicate that this has been shown to be true with Controller powers.

I believe that FourSpeed may be trying to distill this information into a usable chart (he had created several variants within the thread on this topic, refining them as the consensus indicated). The gist is that if you are fighting mobs up to +2, an Accuracy SO in the Nova blasts will likely provide a greater benefit. When fighting significantly higher level mobs the gap closes to where ToHit Buffs may become better overall. Obviously a combination would ensure the greatest chance to hit.

For my own use, I place a ToHit Buff in the default slot of Nova form and an Accuracy in each blast (other than Nova Bolt, which just has the default slot--so I use a Damage enhancement instead and rely only on the innate ToHit buff in Nova). Obviously YMMV based on your playstyle and preferences.

Well, I for one am certainly not suggesting removing the phase component. My suggestion is that rather than the current ludicrous implementation where End costs ramp up until you either turn off the toggle or fall out of the air, you instead shut off the phase component while leaving the max speed fly intact.

As it stands now, the only thing Q-Fly has going for it is the instant activation phase effect. I plan to pick Q-Fly back up at 47, but I have no intention of putting any additional slots into the power. As its only real value now is as a phase power, my 6-slotted Stamina (and Conserve Energy) are more than sufficient for its limited duration usefulness in most situations.

Edit: For the record, Q-Fly only needed two additional slots for perma use, not the three required for Energy Flight to cap--although my understanding is that two additional slots would get it pretty close to the cap (I have never added any slots to a travel power used purely for travel--I've always had other powers I deemed more important; OTOH, I did seriously consider adding a couple slots to Energy Flight when I respecced last week, but felt that using it to supplement Super Speed would mean I was still traveling as fast as I needed to with just the default slot).

Well, the flight aspect of Q-Fly it isn't just Energy Flight--it's Energy Flight with three extra slots added into it. Many people (me included) have complained about the mutilation of a power that was used as much for travel as for an escape/stealthing power (probably more in terms of actual time it was activated). There is no reason for the ridiculous End cost of this power if it is intended only for escape nor is there a need for it to have flight at all--as you say, we get flight inherently. My recommendation is an attempt to retain (recover) what appeared to be the intended use of the power--a combination of escape and travel. In most zones I actually use Super Speed (which I have to combo with Stealth) to travel as it is still faster than Q-Fly. If I need to clear an obstacle I can always just pop on Energy Flight and turn it back off when I'm on level ground--it gives a more dynamic feel to travel. I normally used Q-Fly in zones like Faultline, T.V. or D.A. where ground travel is a bit more of a pain; particularly if I wanted to go AFK for a minute and let it go on autorun.

As for when it would recharge--I imagine it would (and should) recharge 1 minute (~36 seconds with permaHasten, IIRC) after you shut off the toggle, regardless of how long it has been since the phasing aspect wore off.

I'm not sure why the Devs would not be able to have the phasing aspect shut off when it is a toggle power when they were able to give separate expiration times to click powers (previously with Elude). I'm not a programmer, though, so I suppose it is possible there is a difference.

Edit: Actually the nerf to Nebulous Form was much more problematical for me as far as travel goes. As with my PB, I have Super Speed (to combo with Shadow Cloak) and I am much more reliant on it with my WS than with my PB--largely because I really dislike TP as a primary travel power. I really liked the enhanced z-axis capability I had with Neb. Form combined with Super Speed. I actually used it much more for that than for its phased aspect (and definitely much more than for it's escape aspect, due to the long activation time). Generally I preferred to scout and attack (if using a human alpha strike) from effective invisibility so that I had Q-Fly or Neb. Form available as an escape power if necessary (for the moment I have respecced out both Q-Fly and Neb. Form, so this was in the past before nerfage). With the nerf to Neb. Form it is much less useful for travel. Although I can go a fair distance in 60 (or ~56 seconds after activation), it is not reliable to get across a zone, and if I have to wait for 36-60 seconds before I can reactivate it, I may as well not even use it for that purpose. It is better to just switch to Nova to fly or combine TP with my Super Speed to clear obstacles (which are the two remedies I am now using).

These two powers went from being outstanding powers before I4 (especially Q-Fly); to good, solid powers before I5; to mediocre or poor powers currently (Q-Fly is still decent due to the instant activation, despite the fact queued attacks still get through and can mez you out of the toggle; Neb. Form may be worth it if they reduce the activation time, but currently is rather bleh).

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<<Nebulous Form--replace phase with stealth/invis and eliminate timer.>>

I don't like this as a quality of life suggestion. We already get stealth (Shadow Cloak).

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What would you suggest then as a replacement for the power? It isn't very useful as-is.

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How about we don't? I like it as an 'oh [censored] ' power when I'm running from a Void..

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I concur--what they really need to do is make Nebulous Form instant activation like Q-Fly.

The current incarnation of Q-Fly needs to be changed. Rather than run you out of End, it should just shut off the phase aspect after 60 seconds leaving the max speed Fly aspect. Similarly, Neb. Form's phase should shut off after 60 seconds but leave the jump aspect operational. This would make both powers much more attractive, IMO.

I currently have respecced out of both powers after last week's nerf, but will likely pick Q-Fly back up at 47 just for the escape aspect (which is faster than transitioning to Dwarf and usable in Light Form if necessary). I may get Neb. Form again in the 40s, but it's long activation time currently makes it less useful as an escape power (although it is still useful to absorb alpha strikes from AVs like the PSI Clock King, but as you now can use 4 Robusts (the 20% RES inspiration) to get near the RES cap, it is less useful for this purpose than previously).

Just to provide some updated information for Issue 5:

After I5 goes live (assuming no further changes), it will be necessary to 6-slot the base Dwarf form with RES to reach the cap--and even then the SOs will need to be green. The new base RES for Dwarf will be 37.5%, so it will take 5 green +1 RES SOs plus 1 green +2 RES SO to reach the cap.

37.5 * .21 [green +1 SO] = 7.875 * 5 = 39.375

37.5 * .22 [green +2 SO] = 8.25

37.5 + 39.375 + 8.25 = 85.125%

If you use 6 +1 green RES SOs you will be marginally under the 85% RES cap at 84.75%.

The new base resistances for the toggle shields will be 22.5%, down from 27%. Thus each even-level RES SO will only provide 4.5% additional RES. If 5-slotted (as is often done by taking the shield at level 2 and using all slots available pre-Nova form) with even-level SOs the smash/lethal shield (or any of the toggle shields) will provide 45% RES. If 6-slotted with even-level SOs it will provide 49.5% RES.

The new base RES value for Light Form is 52.5% (reduced from 63%), so it will need to be 3-slotted with RES to reach the 85% RES cap: 2 +1 green RES SOs plus 1 even-level SO .

52.5 * .21 [+1 green SO] = 11.025 * 2 = 22.05
52.5 * .2 [even-level SO] = 10.5

52.5 + 22.05 + 10.5 = 85.05% RES

The amount of RES gained from hitting each mob with Eclipse remains unchanged.

The passive Energy/Neg. Energy Shield taken at level 1 has also been reduced (to 7.5% base, I believe).

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I dont know if this falls under mission customization, but it would be nice if there was an option to abandon a story arch. I have had this happen with numerous chars, and I will switch contacts as I go up in levels only to realize later that I never finished a story arch and I cannot get any new ones until I have completed an old one. this is usually after I am 5+ lvls above the villians in the missons. It would be nice to be able to just abandon the old one to get a new one, instead of having to run through x missions for 0 experience to just complete the arch..
Oh and I couldnt find a place to put this, how about increasing the amount of influence that can be transfered.

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I agree with this completely. Also, I would make it so that further story arcs are not blocked just because a contact offered a mission to you that would commence the arc--despite the fact that you don't take the mission. This is very annoying and counterintuitive.

I recently had to do a 20s level story arc with my 40s level PB because after one or two missions a contact in Talos had offered the initial mission in her story arc to me (the Scroll of Teliekku (sp?) arc). This locked me into her arc even though I did not accept her mission. If I decline the mission I should not still be locked into the arc.

I had previously gone back to all of my 30s level contacts and thought that I was all clear, but could still only get one arc. Finally I started working my way back through every contact in every zone until I found the one who was still offering me missions. I couldn't call her because I had only done enough missions to barely move her contact bar. That is a completely unnecessary restriction. I consciously chose not to do her missions (I don't recall why, but probably because I was trying to do Striga missions which I had not done before)--yet I still got locked into a story arc without realizing it (there were no clues under my Clues tab).

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I'm lost. What is this for?

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When Issue 5 goes live (supposedly some time this month), there will be zone events included. One of those events is that the Hellions are setting fire to buildings in Steel Canyon (the other has to do with Troll raves in Skyway City). Heroes will act to put out these fires.

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Well, if the Paragon Fire Department is anything like the Paragon Police Department, the firefighters run screaming from fires the way the cops run screaming from mobs (except in the Hollows, where they seem to have stationed the few cops with backbones and firearms training). No wonder they need heroic support.

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LOL im still trying to figure out why Paragon's S.W.A.T. isnt very S.W.A.T.-like. Everyone knows big city S.W.A.T. teams almost always have snipers on roof tops and such. And why the heck do they always get stuck by themselves in the hollows in the middle of the gulch, by their lonesome surrounded by trolls and outcasts..... Dont they know without a travel power Hollows = doom?

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Well, due to budget reductions, Paragon City government has contracted those duties normally provided by S.W.A.T. snipers to enterprising independent contractors. Feel free to observe these contractors at work in such city zones as Founders' Falls, Crey's Folly and Peregrine Island. Only the finest trained snipers have been contracted from Crey Enterprises and Paragon City's government has assured us that they will serve a valuable role in reducing crime . . . scrrrrtzz . . . breaking news . . . this just in: It appears that Crey snipers have been mistakenly shooting heroes flying through these city zones while on patrol. News Chopper 6 reports that these snipers have even taken potshots at those reporting on these events. Oh my . . . Mayor Morales, this is another fine mess you've gotten us into!

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Here's the real numbers (that's what I get for doing stuff from memory).

Wet Ice
0.5% base
1.265% Defence from Wet Ice with ++ SO's.

17.71% Max Defence from Energy Absorbtion (not what I had earlier).

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why should I slot these powers now?

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Well I certainly wouldn't slot them for DEF. Of course I've always thought it was a waste to slot a base 5% DEF power (such as Combat Jumping, formerly) for DEF. Just not enough return for the investment when slots are at a premium.

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Nice. Can't wait to make a bow defender. Gonna be sweet.

One question though. Why did you decide to put in Druids? Tuatha de Dannan=Druids. I've seen the witches before, but the druids are new, aren't they?

Edit: I mean, I see why they're there....forest of dread and all, just a bit shocked you went with the lesser known name (understandable)

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Actually, the Tuatha de Danaan were a race of gods and demigods who defeated the Fomorians and ruled over Ireland during a golden age.

The Druids were the priests of the pre-Christian Celtic religion--not just in Ireland.

Not quite the same thing.