m3lon
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Posts
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Joined
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I have one that sits sadly on the sidelines as I play other kins. Damage capped Rain of Arrows is ridiculous, however it has the widely known fault that it takes forever to use and things die before you finish the animation. Arch/Kins get it worst because if you're doing it right your team is killing things twice as fast as normal. It's remarkably frustrating to play on lower difficulties, which unfortunately are the only difficulties frequently played.
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Congratulations guys, we've beat the game! We've done everything from making Blasters than can tank AV's, to making Tankers that can slaughter masses. Empaths are soloing AVs and Scrappers are getting healing badges. We've finally reached the point where anything can do everything.
I know I'm in a vast minority that's so small I'm not sure I have a single ally, but players in general are too powerful. It's been bad for a while, but it feels like the devs and the community are embracing it and it has slowly driven a wedge between me and the game I loved.
The exact problem is the ubiquity of level 50 tank mages. There have always been builds that were particularly powerful, especially since inventions came into play. I enjoy the mathematical side of min maxing, but I don't generally enjoy playing or playing with fully optimized builds. I find the game far more thrilling when the mission difficulty represents risk for the team, and I rather play a character that requires me to play well over one that I can play when I'm too drunk to pour a glass of water. This hasn't always been a big deal however. Not that long ago I could grab 8 players for a level 50 radio mission and set it to Invincible and be reasonably certain that it would be a challenge; it was rare that somebody was capable of running off and soloing the mission. Lately, I've been running level 50 teams doing tip missions and whether I set it to +3 or +4 it seems like there are always a couple of players on the team that could solo it in a reasonable amount of time. It's almost as though they added TankMage as the fifteenth archetype.
I don't like it. To me the game feels about as balanced as Positron VS. JLove on a seesaw. Whenever I'm playing with a tankmage I feel useless unless I grab one of my own, but I tend not to enjoy that either as I don't like playing a tankmage. I enjoy codependency that this game sometimes has, such as:
- Playing a blaster that depends on a skilled tank to keep me alive.
- Playing a controller that can shut down a group but benefits from a scrapper to take down the guys I can't control.
- Playing a defender that's only uber because of the other defender on my team.
It's hard to enjoy those moments when it's completely reasonable to bring a tankmage that can easily take out most groups you face on their own.
I'm not posting this as a request for massive nerfs, as I know that's just not going to happen. The much more depressing reason I'm posting this is because things have gotten so ridiculous in game I enjoy complaining about it more than playing. -
For the past few weeks I've been on the fence about keeping my subscription active because of the very many things I've grown to hate recently. Then I saw this thread title and remembered why I love City of Heroes.
Group hug? -
Quote:Every powerset has a specialty and/or secondary effect. All fire sets (excluding Thermal Radiation) have the benefit being among the highest damage of their respective sets, generally have the most attacks of any set and usually the highest at all around damage. The downside is that fire is the least survivable. It's a design choice that is present across all Archetypes. In theory, when you choose Fire your deciding to give up some of your tools for survivability in exchange for better damage output.Originally Posted by Dlloyd
Why is it that if you want to make the best of your dps class be it scrapper brute etc have to take fiery aura to maximise your dps?
Would be nice to have a few more damage type armors with equivilent dmg outputs , and not feel you have to take fire to have the most dps possible.
Again assuming im correct it seems a big let down in the otherwise very good customization of powers that your limited to one for full dmg potential.
If im wrong here then by all means explain to me im still fairly new to the game so i may of missed some mechanic some where , but from what i can see no matter which primary you take you need fiery to maximise it ( strictly from a dps vantage ) .
This doesn't mean that Fire is a stronger set than others, it's just very one dimensional. In terms of armor sets, Fiery Aura has always been the highest damage, but Electric Armor and Shield both do a lot for damage output are substantially more survivable. -
... Really?
One the on hand that's kinda awesome, but on the other hand increase density!? I thought prop 19 failed. -
Come on guys, knocking things back is such uncreative greifing.
I'm voting for an ice tanker with no auras, a ton of recharage on hibernate, stealth, and team teleport.
Gather your whole team, then team teleport in, immediately queuing hibernate. If they don't die, teleport the entire team into another group then another, then back to the first just to disorient them. By then hibernate will hopefully be recharged. -
My first toon was a Stone/Stone brute on a trial account. I uninstalled the game and continued on my tour of MMO trials.
Later I came back and made a SS/Invuln tank, which led to somebody suggesting I roll a controller. I for some reason rolled a Mind/Trick Arrow controller and before I got out of the tutorial I fell in love and was set on buying the full game.
Having one enemy trapped in a net as I bounced his friend like a basketball was freaking mind blowing. -
Quote:Blasters Defenders and Corrupters all get the same damage blizzard. Corruptors get the most damage from it because of scourge.Originally Posted by Supermax
Pretty sure blaster Blizzard is the strongest attack if the target stays in it for the whole time.
Not considering nukes, probably a stalker BU+AS on an AV (don't they do extra damage to harder targets?). -
Quote:I'll be sincere for just a few moments, though you might not appreciate my advice. Play on SOs. I've completed every blue side TF on my Kin/Sonic (not the build i posted, something more traditional) and never gave a damn about IOs. On TFs I spend most of my time whining that they should increase the difficulty, and on the rare occasions when I'm on a team that'll run at +4 (or it's an Apex/Tin Mage) I complain that the difficulty doesn't go up enough. It is a build that struggles on speed ITFs, but since I don't care about farming merits I don't go on those.Originally Posted by InUse
Freaking nice build
Unbelievable you didn't slot anything
Couldn't help wondering if you are just being sarcastic
Keep in mind I am still pretty new
Yet I will keep aspiring to to learn how to play COH
One day hoping to be a true master at building my heroes
Until then I will continue to ask for help from my peers.
So yeah.... throw your money somewhere else. That's the best advice I can offer. -
In my HUMBLE opinion this is the definitive Kin/Sonic build to which all should aspire. Heavily team oriented build I wouldn't even consider soloing with, but the affect on a team is profound to say the least.
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.90
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
FerkNins: Level 1337 Magic Defender
Primary Power Set: Kinetics
Secondary Power Set: Sonic Attack
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Siphon Power -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Shriek -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Repel -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(3), EndRdx-I(3), KBDist-I(5), KBDist-I(5), KBDist-I(7)
Level 4: [Empty]
Level 6: Siphon Speed -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(7), RechRdx-I(9), RechRdx-I(9), Range-I(15), Range-I(17)
Level 8: [Empty]
Level 10: Shockwave -- KBDist-I(A), KBDist-I(11), KBDist-I(11), RechRdx-I(13), RechRdx-I(13), RechRdx-I(15)
Level 12: Speed Boost -- Run-I(A), Run-I(17), Run-I(19), Range-I(19), Range-I(21), Range-I(21)
Level 14: [Empty]
Level 16: [Empty]
Level 18: [Empty]
Level 20: [Empty]
Level 22: [Empty]
Level 24: [Empty]
Level 26: [Empty]
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
Level 4: Ninja Run
Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Health -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- Empty(A)
Scrappers are adding me to their iList every time I walk into a mission. I didn't even know this game had Apple integration; it must not work so well because I never see them again. -
If you're going to do a concept character that helps in a painfully inefficient way, it has to be a Grav/Storm/Leviathan with the teleport pool and about 3 fingers of rye whiskey.
Your scrapper friend needs to get into the fight, so you team tp everybody in. Now the blaster is in trouble so you phase the enemies. Now the scrappers is bored because he doesn't have anything to fight, so Wormhole over another group of enemies. But that scares blaster, so turn on hurricane so he has some room to breathe. But now the enemies are scattered so summon your tornado as far away as you can to reign them end. Oh on tornado is going crazy, so counter it with a Water Spout.
Now consume the whiskey, and wait for dim shift to recharge. -
Quote:To be fair, pretty much anything paired with kinetics would be/already is overpowered. And a force fielder in melee would have a lot in common with an defense based tanker except with ally buffs instead of defense debuff resistance and a taunt aura.Originally Posted by Badk4buki
The Wildcard class would be incredibly and monstrously overpowered, especially if combined with Kinetics. An AT with Scrapper attacks plus Fulcrum Shift would put out disgusting damage and make farming a breeze. Add to that the ability to increase the output of Fulcrum Shift three times?
Mhm, doesn't sound too pretty to me.
Force Fields plus melee attacks would completely mitigate the need for defense as well, and basically turn Wildcards into the WoW equivalent of old bubblers - basically unkillable.
All things considered, I just want my damn paladinfender NOW! -
Quote:Dammit, cast fallout and veng first!Originally Posted by Vel_Overload
'Casts Resurrection'
Thread! Come back to life!!!!
You guys are funny when you necro threads...
Way to unrealize our power... -
I can't believe nobody was critical of his choice of video games.
I mean if gaining 10 levels makes a character twice as powerful, and a level 32 is owning characters in their 90's then it has to have remarkably poor balance. -
Quote:No, that's exactly wrong. Being able to solo is fine in the realm of soloing but when your main contribution to the team is being able to do it without them you're not being as helpful as the guy who can help the team do it better. Simple example, compare a blaster teamed with a bubbler to a scrapper with bubbler. The scrapper goes about on his normal routine except invincibler with a comrade helping out is damage a bit. The blaster benefits from the buffs becoming invincible and can use his powers to full affect, which would mean that the blaster is out damaging the scrapper and the survivability difference has gone away.Originally Posted by Seraphael
Why the constant need to dumb down the discussion? This isn't purely about any one aspect of the AT. It's about over all performance. Besides, if you're able to solo the world you're also more than likely to put any of you teammates to shame unless they also are world beaters. Capiche?
In the solo world the Scrapper's advantage is huge since they can focus entirely on their offense. In the teaming world the blaster's survivability disadvantage is much less meaningful, because they can easily be made survivable with team play.
To put it more blatantly in terms of overall performance; Blasters are on the weaker scale of things solo, but with team play they're amazing. Scrappers have a stronger baseline solo, but don't become amazing with good team play.
@Seebs
Every RPG ever is probably a tiny bit hyperbolic, but its been my experience that with melee DPS it's easy to become survivable enough to solo a few things that are bigger than you while still having the dps to do it quickly. But to justify this in such general terms I'd be using such broad strokes I could paint a barn in to swipes, so I'll end with this: melee healers ftw! -
Quote:On an entirely related note, spiffy avatar.Originally Posted by Oedipus_Tex
You know Turbo, it might strike you one day that you are not the only person who has experience playing City of Heroes. It might also strike you that the icon displaying in my avatar is the Controller archetype crest, and it's there because of how much I enjoy playing Controllers. You might also venture to the Controller section of the message boards one day and see that I'm a regular contributor. You may also discover my advice on slotting to maximize the Controller's ability to use holds, stuns, knockbacks, and other abilities. In addition it might occur to you that the reason I rolled, and posted a build of, an Electric/Force Field Controller was precisely because of experience I have had with Controllers and getting mezzed. On further reflection it might dawn on you that I have two Ice Control characters, one Electric, and two Fires, and have at least some authority to report what my play experiences have been with those sets. It might occur to you that several of those builds have Indomitable Will from the Mind pool. Finally it might become apparent that when you have to argue with 15 or so people for four days to prove your point, the universal truth of your message is possibly disputable.
Actually, never mind. None of that is going to occur to you. The rest of us are simply too "ignorant and incapable" to comment on any aspect of the game with which you disagree. -
Quote:You're right, a scrapper/brute can be built to be very survivable and very high damage, and like in every RPG ever the melee DPS classes win at soloing. Subsequently they'll beat any thing else on most solo metrics.Originally Posted by Another_Fan
Here is the heart of the problem in this thread. The people that are posting that blasters are fine think +2/1 is doing fine. The people that are saying there is a deficiency are thinking +2/8 is good, +1/8 is the acceptable . If you go to the prior mentioned pylon results thread and actually read it, you will see the top times there done while fighting a pylon and being at the aggro cap surrounded by +2 Rikti.
Oh and those times weren't 6 second fights. Thats a scrapper staring down a pylon and a Rikti spawn for 4-5 minutes no insps.
When you get into the teaming world that significant edge in survivability starts to lose importance and the small difference in damage starts to matter. This is because there is a point where a team has more mitigation than they need, but there's no such thing as a team having too much damage.
A well played blaster will benefit from their team and work with them to make the most of her outrageous damage potential. A well played scrapper does whatever she always does. In other words, what Fulmens said.
But there's a more important issue that I'd like to just touch on for all the people who remind me they can solo the world on +5/xOver9000:
I don't care
There's a place for talking about doing outrageous solo feats and we call it the scrapper forum. Beyond that it's pretty arbitrary to chose intermediate difficulties and call them good or acceptable. Why is it soloing +2/x8 the base line for good instead of it being +3/x8 or max difficulty? It's entirely arbitrary. Worst is that soloing is the strongest point of scrappers and brutes. If you want to base everything on the metrics that favor them it's a clear victory.
This is a lot like a skilled checkers player beating a chess grandmaster in a game of checkers and then proclaiming that he's the best at board gaming. It's meaningless to beat somebody at your own game of choice, you have to beat them at their own game. -
Quote:When playing on my Blaster or a Kin I frequently bring up this exact phenomenon as the reason why the team should playing on +2x8 minimum. On +0 or +1 enemies just die so fast I feel like my damage out put is being wasted and I'm spending more time waiting for somebody to take the alpha than I am fighting. At least on +2 things take a couple hits before they go down, but on +3 or +4 we actually get a nice fight that still moves at a good pace.Originally Posted by StratoNexus
Ironically, when I play my Fire/Fire blaster, I do often hear kins saying they can't get Fulcrum Shift off because the enemies die too fast (and I think, "Then we don't need FS now, do we?"). I often consciously slow down my kill speed on teams in order to let things like FS and Spine Burst happen, not because I think it will make us faster, but because I think it will make the other players have more fun (and it is also fun for me to stand in the center of a mob with Hot Feet ticking and then watching the Rain of Arrows fall around me killing all of our enemy).
After all, when you FS buff that Tanker who then Foot Stomps, you don't stand back and say, "OMG! I rawk so hard and my buffs are so uber and its ALLLLL thanks to ME cuz FooT Stomp is crap without FS and I could face these spawns solo too!!!!" -
Same reason that Conductive Aura doesn't take accurate healing; because IO's "aren't" factored in while making new power sets.
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Quote:If you're going calculate with Fulcrum Shift at the target cap, you should also include the buff that's targeted around the caster, which is another +40 and +50 dam for Corrs and Defs respectively. It's also misleading to leave out damage slotting, because what type of maniac wouldn't slot their hypothetical attack for damage. That's another +95 dam for each.Originally Posted by Warkupo
Now, this chart seems as though it's still giving favor over towards the Corruptor. Even at fully power Fulcrum Shift, once the enemy is at 40%, the Corruptor is doing better damage than the defender. However, what really needs to be kept in mind is that from 100% to 50% HP, the Defender is doing quite a bit more damage than the Corruptor is capable.
Let us examine an enemy that has about 3000 HP. We're going to assume that we used Fulcrum Shift, and then blew up everything around him, so it's just us vs this enemy with our fully saturated Fulcrum Shift. We'll continue to use our Theoretical Attack, which is assumed to be shared by the Defender and Corruptor, and thus things like RECHARGE TIME and ACTIVATION TIME are irrelevant. Instead, we will simply examine this Theoretical Attack in the number of "Turns" it must be used when modified by the AT using it to defeat this enemy.
Keep in mind that this is still assuming AVERAGE damage for simplicities sake. The only other method of calculating percent chance would require that I make an entirely separate chart for every Phase in which a critical hit was possible: One to Calculate if the attack was a critical, and one if it was not. I would very quickly be making waaaay more charts than I care to type out.
So instead of Corrs and Defs getting a theoretical +200 and +280, it should really be +345 and +300. Not sure what (aka indifferent to) it changes or by how much, but if you're going to take things into the WTFOMG damage buffing range, it's unfair to assume that the corrupter couldn't afford damage SO's.
Also according to in game numbers scourge is "2.5% chance for every percentage health below 50%" which isn't the same as what you used in your calculations.
Anyway, the offiicial BPM stance on Corrupter vs Defender Blasting.
On a team? Corrupters win!
Solo? Form a team! -
I'm really tempted to say that certain toons will be taking taunt. There are few things more aggravating than your anchor deciding to go chase some blaster when you need them in a certain spot. If the pool taunt was as good as normal taunt (auto hit, non trivial duration, and a range debuff) it'd be no question, but I don't really expect it to be effective enough to be worthwhile.
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Quote:Seconded! We also need this for Blaster and Dom secondaries. My Fire Blaster wants to set you on fire with his bare hands, not a sword. My Stoner Dom doesn't ever want to put away his hammer.Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
Elemental melee sword/no sword choices.
I want every one of my fire tank's attacks to use the fire scimitar.
I want every one of my ice melee tank's attacks to not use an ice sword. -
Quote:...Originally Posted by Miladys_Knight
Part of the fun is the suspension of belief that "most" of the power sets in the game could actually be done in the real world given the right circumstances. All powers beyond the tier 2 power in DP are outside the realm of that. I find that immersion breaking in a game I play at least partly for the immersion.
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Quote:Pretty much this, except I'd like to include AoE heavy/dependent characters as well. I can only think of curse words to explain how irritating it is when a group my D3 carefully herded is suddenly spread into 2 seperate groups, or worse my anchor is knocked out of the group. Or worse when my Stormie herdicanes a whole room so I can drop a huge blizzard well over the target cap, only to have a bad kb power take away 10 of my targets. Or when my kin is at half damage because somebody is spreading out the mobs.Originally Posted by rsclark
It's not just some ambiguous "time to kill", it's also a pain in the *** for melee characters. You are finishing up a ST attack and queue up your pbaoe, then WHOOM, AoE knockback, and your power hits nothing. You're standing on a pile of KoA caltrops and the boss you're trying to beat down is now half way across the room and you can't get to him.
It's not just that it slows down the group, it's that it neuters melee characters and doesn't allow them to use the powers they chose for their characters. For every bit of "fun" you have by throwing knockback carelessly, you are stripping fun away from the melee character in the group, as they are not being given the same option of using their powers that you have.
I'm generally laid back so I don't complain unless it people are dying because of it, but it's always irritating when somebody is talking about how much fun they're having knocking everything around while the rest of the team is upset that their toons are suddenly less effective.
However, Energy Blasters get a break. When they knock something back that means they just took a nice chunk of its health away and will get finished quickly anyway. -
Complaining that Fiery Aura is too squishy is like complaining that Stone Armor does too little damage.
Aside from the couple months when Shield Charge was a win button, Fiery Aura has always been the top damage dealing armor set and (probably) always will be.