magikwand

Since when did fiery aura have problems with mez protection? Sure, it has no KB protection, but that is a problem that is easily fixed with IOs.

I think most of the responses here are fairly accurate, but you aren't exactly comparing apples to apples here. Everyone knows that if you don't sink considerable resources into shield defense, it isn't quite a superb set. So if you are saying that SD is amazing with IOs, why not compare it to other builds with IOs. Namely, FA with IOs. Then you would have builds that are softcapped to s/l, tons of recharge, and of course, with KB protection.

FA isn't bad, but it just isn't for someone who is prone to /ragequit because he is on easy mode all of the time.

Don't forget that Fiery Embrace does wonders for fiery melee damage. Having both BU and FE is a great thing. Sure the build will be tight, but it will be active and challenging everytime you play it.

This would just be awesome. I would jump up and down to see this put into effect.

It already has- Going Rouge was i16. hehe.

Quoted for truth.

You should play a brute to 50, toss in some IOs and compare him to your scrapper. You might view things differently then.

Not really. A "pistols mastermind" is more than likely a gimp petless thugs MM. Dual pistols will be a different beast entirely.

Everything starts out pretty weaksauce IMO, but even at lower levels, the difference between tanks and a brute damage-wise should be fairly evident. Fury builds at all lvls, and does wonders even at low lvls.

I could only arrive at a conclusion that perhaps you are not playing your brute as it might be best played if you can't see the difference. Brutes don't have the luxury of stopping and going constantly. If you want to benefit the most from fury, you would be best served to stay in combat as much as possible. Tanks can, and in most cases DO, stop or pause in between spawns. Brutes, if played aggressively, normally go non-stop.

Also, I would venture to say it costs a lot more of your build to attempt to "offensively" slot a tank. You sacrifice durability at the cost of trying to go after scrapper lvl damage. Surely, your money is well spent if you are having fun. In my eyes, I would rather just roll a scrapper.

When I have my brutes on SOs/DOs, I don't think I ever slot damage enhancements into attacks. It is, in my eyes, more beneficial to slot endurance reduction and accuracy than it is to slot damage. If you play your cards right, your cup will runneth over with damage from fury and you will steam have the steam and enough accuracy to ensure your hits are true.

As far as your other discussion goes, I think the only person that would relegate you effectively to being a back line supporter is yourself. I have seen defenders on the offensive edge and still remain effective at buffs/debuff. Since you chose traps for a primary, consider the fact that traps is certainly one of the more soloable and aggressively oriented primaries available.

It seems you are very clear on the point that offense among low lvl toons is fairly similar. Don't forget that as you blossom with most blaster builds, damage is increased straight up and directly. With defenders, you can still achieve some nice damage output, but it is achieved indirectly oft times. (through your team mates or through debuffing critters.

Except for when you start killing too many of your meal tickets and your regen slows a bit lol. I always like to have a perma spawn on me to keep Rttc saturated.

I hope that isn't a lvl 50 brute at 0/8. If it is, that just isn't impressive in the slightest. At 50, I run at least +2/8 or maybe +3/8 if it is a sturdy build, or if I just am feeling spunky. +0 for anything above about lvl 15 or so is not worth the effort on a brute. Not flaming you for playing how you play, but if that is a high lvl brute, I think that is a poor example of what a solo brute is capable.

I think any primary works well for soloing. The only secondary I would stay away from on a solo toon is /stone armor. It will probably give you an inordinate amount of dmg mitigation compared to how many things you are killing and the speed at which you are killing them. It generally lacks mobility and is hideous to boot, but that is just my opinion admittedly.

I think WP is helpful for a brute largely because it gives you an endurance management tool that is more efficient than stamina at a very low lvl- allowing you to run toggles and still use attacks without running dry as quickly as some other builds.

Thanks for the swift response and detailed information. That makes a lot of sense now.