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Quote:My post was a response to this Bill, didn't really say one way or the other what I thought about the notes. Don't really care one way or the other TBH. Fury nerf sucks... kinda. Low enough dmg mod the the % won't kill me though. The post doesn't seem "troll worthy" to me. He left out a nerf, and an unnerf. Or did I actually miss a change?Originally Posted by magikwand
I have to say... I am not a huge fan the fury cap reduction, but you have overlooked some of the good changes happening. Your post is quite limited in scope and borders on troll worthy. You should read more about some of the changes happening before deciding it is all bad. -
They nerfed shield charge, and unnerfed burn.... What else did he miss? Not a whole lot of love for brutes in those patch notes.
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SS/WP is a decent budget farmer. Footstomp and Rage are enough to clear x8 mobs by themselves. WP also deals with end crashes well with QR and optional Stamina. Running Tough/Weave is easy with that kind of recov. You won't kill as fast as a SS/FA, but you wont feel as soft initially either.
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Quote:That's effectively the argument I made on the beta boards. The sleep/confuse combo are a common thread for plant and EC. Seeds is a superior confuse to synaptic overload, but static field is a superior sleep to spore burst. I agree that static field is going to suffer in group play due to the AoE centric nature of the game. It's still very functional for stutter step control.Originally Posted by Oedipus_Tex
IMO it's a matter of opinion but the difference to me is Seeds an opening power, and not a "pre-tanking" one that you throw prior to starting the fight. The comparison is not Seeds versus Synaptic Overload, but Seeds versus Synaptic Overload plus whatever you layer on it that starts the fight. Plant Control is not at liberty to make this distinction.
The same holds when compared to Mind Control. SO does have a base 5% chance to miss. However, it also has a 100% chance to be active 4 times as often as Mass Confusion. The recharge is equivalent to Mind's sleep power. I think it's extremely competitive in that department, so much so that I'm not sure Mass Confusion doesn't need a recharge reduction to compensate. -
Alright Dechs, now I'm curious. If I have anything it's free time. I need a new project toon anyhow. Sorry if this is highjacking the thread, but heres the build I cooked up. How's this look?
Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.707
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Level 50 Magic Brute
Primary Power Set: Claws
Secondary Power Set: Dark Armor
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Speed
Villain Profile:
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Level 1: Strike KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(46), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(46), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(50), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(50), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 1: Dark Embrace RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(A), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(37), RctvArm-ResDam(40), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg(40)
Level 2: Slash KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(3), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(3), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(15), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(46)
Level 4: Murky Cloud RctvArm-ResDam(A), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(5), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(5), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg(15)
Level 6: Spin Oblit-%Dam(A), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(7), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(7), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg(9), Oblit-Acc/Rchg(13), Oblit-Dmg(13)
Level 8: Combat Jumping LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), Ksmt-ToHit+(9)
Level 10: Obsidian Shield EndRdx-I(A), S'fstPrt-ResKB(11), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(11)
Level 12: Hurdle Jump-I(A)
Level 14: Super Jump Jump-I(A)
Level 16: Death Shroud Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(17), M'Strk-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(19), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx(43), Armgdn-Dam%(43)
Level 18: Health Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Mrcl-Rcvry+(19)
Level 20: Stamina P'Shift-End%(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(21), P'Shift-EndMod(21), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(43)
Level 22: Cloak of Darkness LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(23), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(23)
Level 24: Dark Regeneration Theft-+End%(A), Theft-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(25), Nictus-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(25), Nictus-Acc/EndRdx/Heal/HP/Regen(37), Theft-Acc/EndRdx/Heal(40)
Level 26: Focus Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(27), Thundr-Acc/Dmg(27), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(34)
Level 28: Boxing KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(29), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(29), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34)
Level 30: Tough RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(A), RctvArm-ResDam(31), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(31), RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg(31)
Level 32: Weave LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(33), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(33), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(33)
Level 35: Cloak of Fear SipInsght-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(A), SipInsght-ToHitDeb/EndRdx/Rchg(36), SipInsght-ToHitDeb(36), SipInsght-Acc/ToHitDeb(36), SipInsght-Acc/Rchg(37)
Level 38: Follow Up KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(39), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(39), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(39)
Level 41: Taunt Mocking-Taunt(A), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg(42), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg/Rng(42), Mocking-Taunt/Rng(42)
Level 44: Hasten RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(45), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 47: Swipe Mocking-Taunt/Rng(A), Mocking-Taunt(48), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg/Rng(48), Mocking-Acc/Rchg(48)
Level 49: Oppressive Gloom Empty(A)
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Level 1: Brawl Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest Empty(A)
Level 1: Fury
Level 6: Ninja Run
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It's worth pointing out that I made some fairly serious concessions to get to the s/l cap. I would prefer Eviscerate to Slash for an actual attack, and Strike is only a slot mule. Pretty spendy tradeoff, but no real issue. Follow ups accuracy is also anemic with only the KCs slotted, but I have a reasonable global accuracy and the kismet to lean on. -
Quote:Please define a loaded statement for me. Brutes cannot achieve the same resist numbers as a tank without outside buffing. Ever. Not once. Cannot happen. The defense oriented slant of IOs prevents it. In the future maybe the resist sets will get some love. A DA brute CAN achieve the exact same defense numbers as a tank. Please see the above about the defense slant of IOs. Also, bear in mind, that this is in fact a RESIST set that we are talking about.Originally Posted by _Deth_
That's so loaded it's not even funny. Show me ANY brute with tank resist numbers, short of Stone.
As far as hp goes, my claws/DA with have over 2k hp when I am done with him, and that isn't even focusing on hp. base hp on a DA tank is 1874. Capped, no, but up to tanker level, yep.
It is just beyond me why everyone has to crap on DA. The fact of the matter is, it has been shown that not only is DA solid, when people actually learn to play it it is an overachiever capable of some incredible feats.
If you can't get a handle on it, don't play it. But really, is there any reason to pretend that it is garbage just because you can't wrap your head around it? I hate SD with a passion, but I don't run around telling people not to play it, or spend tons of energy trying to "prove" it is broken.
_Deth_, I was not, nor ever did, imply that DA is broken, useless, worthless, unplayable, or in need of fixing. I stated the FACT that when you choose the set, and level it, you have the OPTION of taking 3 very unique toggles (CoD, CoF, and OG). I also seem to have posted that you can easily work around taking CoD (with CJ), and CoF can be skipped for OG. If you are going to choose the set, I would highly recommend CoD and at least Cloak of Fear OR Oppressive Gloom. The added toggles are what make the set unique. If you are not going to, you may as well roll a different toon. I also pointed out that the set does in fact have strong points as compared to others. The only caveat to that, is that I would plan on making a substantial investment into the toon. Most of the posts I've seen contradicting the numbers posted are of the "My softcapped McPurpled XX/YY is unstoppable, and therefore, you suck" variety. >shrug< Most of my toons are levelled with basic IOs, and a few double/triples where appropriate.
Could you please load up one of your DA toons, open combat attributes and tell us what your End consumption is? It would go a long ways towards validating your argument that my numbers were slanted to make DA look bad. They weren't btw, it's true. If you take the toggles and run them.... you use some more end.
As far as not understanding the ZOMGaWESOME of the set, I have played a claws/dark brute to ~40 (38 maybe?) and a spines/DA scrapper to 35. -
QR:
I realize the post was inflammatory, specifically to Dechs. I do apologize for that. As far as "optimal" slotting, I was referring to within the set. Obviously I would not recommend someone only slot thier armor toggles. Outside of those, scads of survival tools come into play. Notably def. slotting. That has little/nothing to do with DA and is achievable with any AT or combo.
Please show me an /DA brute with tank hp/resist numbers, I'll gladly retract my thoughts on the comparisons. -
I'll second rad blast, dark miasma. Real players do it on corrupters though :P.
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Baseline, no slot end consumption on brutes (da/ela/fa). All running all available toggles, second number w/tough and weave. Third number is w/1 L50 basic IO per armor toggle, 2 per offensive toggle (Dmg aura/CoF), also w/tough and weave.
DA: 2/s - 2.65/s - 1.7/s
ELA: 1.25/s - 1.9/s - 1.25/s
FA: 1.04/s - 1.69/s - 1.11/s
Even basic slotting for end reduction puts DA over the baseline 1.67 recovery. It is, in fact, an end hungry set. Is that still a debate? You can frankenslot the toggles to get down around 1.5/s, but that's not really within standard levelling parameters. DA does* have some options. You can drop cloak of darkness for combat jumping. You can also skip CoF in favor of OG. Giving up CoD/CoF will be walking away from what makes the set unique, not really a fair trade off IMO. Heavy spawns running OG will run into a separate issue as well. The ticking damage of OG is based on each mob hit (correct me if I'm wrong), that damage, couple with standard incoming damage will leave you relying more heavily on dark regeneration. DR's whopping 33.8% baseline cost is ridiculous. Even touching the DR cap your looking at about 18%.
Quote:Wanted to chime in with these posts Dechs. It would be much more relevent to the topic if you posted experience as a scrapper, those are the numbers that brutes share. I run a FM/WP brute, she mows down spawns. I wouldn't take her accomplishments over to the tank forum as a point of reference for how FM functions for tankers.Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
I'm going to hazard a guess that you're the kind of guy who doesn't slot endurance reduction in his attacks.
A well slotted tank should run about 70% s/l, 30% en, 60% ne, 45% f/c, 30% tox, 75% psi. Also with 15% pos. defense across the board. Not gamebreaking, but solid resist numbers. You'll also be getting more mileage out of DR with a tankers higher HP/HP cap.
The same brute will run alot closer to 50% s/l, 25 en, 45% neg, 35% f/c, 23% tox, 55% psi, 11%ish pos. defenses. That's running impervium armors/lotgs, which I would consider optimal for DA. Either tank or brute could slot to the neck for positional defense. Again that's not a solid measurement of performance of the set. Nearly any character with infinite patience for slotting can achieve the same.
In closing, DA is not bad per se. It's got esoteric resists, it's got some unique melee tools, its got a monsterous heal, and it flat out looks stunning (an overlooked bonus). It is not a toon I would roll on a welfare budget given the high cost of toggles vs. the annoyance of micromanaging toggles. I've played into the forties, but found another shiny toon to play. -
QR:
Illusion is great, but... odd. Plant is great, and visually apparent :P. I would also reccomend Plant for someone looking for a controllery controller, one who has harder lockdown capabilities.
To the OP: At 18 get Phantom Army. They deal damage, they are invincible (yes... cannot be killed/hurt/damaged/dubuffed/affected/healed off of at all - invincible), and they taunt. Yahoos and wingnuts gamewide will occasionaly tell you not to use them. Kindly ignore them and spawn your brood. At 26 grab Spectral Terror, he's your spawn to spawn control. -
This is my live build atm:
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.707
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Level 50 Magic Controller
Primary Power Set: Illusion Control
Secondary Power Set: Radiation Emission
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Ice Mastery
Hero Profile:
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Level 1: Spectral Wounds Decim-Build%(A), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(37), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(40), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(40), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(43), Decim-Acc/Dmg(43)
Level 1: Radiant Aura Dct'dW-Rchg(A), Dct'dW-Heal(46), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(46), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(46), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx(50)
Level 2: Blind Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(A), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(3), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(3), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(36), Decim-Acc/Dmg(37), UbrkCons-Hold(37)
Level 4: Deceive CoPers-Conf%(A), CoPers-Conf/EndRdx(5), CoPers-Acc/Rchg(5), CoPers-Acc/Conf/Rchg(17), CoPers-Conf/Rchg(36)
Level 6: Accelerate Metabolism Efficacy-EndMod/EndRdx(A), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc(7), Efficacy-Acc/Rchg(7), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(9), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg(11), Efficacy-EndMod(17)
Level 8: Superior Invisibility LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), EndRdx-I(9), EndRdx-I(36)
Level 10: Hover LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), Krma-ResKB(11)
Level 12: Radiation Infection DarkWD-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(A), DarkWD-ToHitDeb(13), DarkWD-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx(13), DarkWD-Rchg/EndRdx(15)
Level 14: Fly Flight-I(A), Flight-I(15)
Level 16: Swift Flight-I(A)
Level 18: Phantom Army ExRmnt-Acc/Rchg(A), ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(19), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(19), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg(21), S'bndAl-Dmg/Rchg(34), S'bndAl-Acc/Rchg(34)
Level 20: Health Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Mrcl-Rcvry+(21)
Level 22: Stamina P'Shift-EndMod(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(23), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(23), P'Shift-End%(25)
Level 24: Enervating Field EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(25)
Level 26: Hasten RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(27), RechRdx-I(27)
Level 28: Spectral Terror Abys-Dam%(A), Abys-Acc/Fear/Rchg(29), Abys-Acc/Rchg(29), Abys-Fear/Rng(31), Abys-EndRdx/Fear(31)
Level 30: Lingering Radiation RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31)
Level 32: Phantasm ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(A), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg(33), ExRmnt-Dmg/EndRdx(33), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), S'bndAl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34)
Level 35: Mutation RechRdx-I(A)
Level 38: Flash UbrkCons-Dam%(A), UbrkCons-EndRdx/Hold(39), UbrkCons-Acc/Rchg(39), UbrkCons-Acc/Hold/Rchg(39), UbrkCons-Hold/Rchg(40)
Level 41: Ice Blast Apoc-Dam%(A), Apoc-Dmg/EndRdx(42), Apoc-Acc/Rchg(42), Apoc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42), Apoc-Dmg/Rchg(43)
Level 44: Frozen Armor LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(45), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(45), LkGmblr-Def(45)
Level 47: Frost Breath Ragnrk-Knock%(A), Ragnrk-Dmg/EndRdx(48), Ragnrk-Acc/Rchg(48), Ragnrk-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), Ragnrk-Dmg/Rchg(50)
Level 49: Maneuvers LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(50)
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Level 1: Brawl Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest Empty(A)
Level 1: Containment
Level 6: Ninja Run
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Set Bonus Totals:
16.5% DamageBuff(Smashing)
16.5% DamageBuff(Lethal)
16.5% DamageBuff(Fire)
16.5% DamageBuff(Cold)
16.5% DamageBuff(Energy)
16.5% DamageBuff(Negative)
16.5% DamageBuff(Toxic)
16.5% DamageBuff(Psionic)
4.5% Max End
48% Enhancement(Accuracy)
2.75% Enhancement(Terrorized)
4% Enhancement(Confused)
116.3% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
4% Enhancement(Heal)
5% FlySpeed
129.7 HP (12.8%) HitPoints
5% JumpHeight
5% JumpSpeed
Knockback (Mag -4)
Knockup (Mag -4)
MezResist(Confused) 5%
MezResist(Held) 5%
MezResist(Immobilize) 10.5%
MezResist(Sleep) 5%
MezResist(Stun) 5%
MezResist(Terrorized) 7.2%
18.5% (0.31 End/sec) Recovery
62% (2.63 HP/sec) Regeneration
6.3% Resistance(Fire)
6.3% Resistance(Cold)
1.58% Resistance(Toxic)
1.58% Resistance(Psionic)
5% RunSpeed
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The good news? Higher regen/recharge/acc set bonuses than Local's (fantastic btw) moderate priced build, also purple sets are ridiculously good while exep'd. The bad.... apoc/rag sets in your APP attacks. Power pick wise, the build is near identical, just a slightly different slant on slotting.
I just have a couple things to point out. The first is that any perm. PA build is going to be prohibitively expensive, easily measured in billions of inf. or thousands of merits. The second is that even builds within perm. PA are at the mercy of the servers. You're not going to see it really in moderate lag situations, the interface lag will tag you for a couple of seconds. The third is simply a question of value. Ill/rad is a monster with even moderate recharge bonuses. I did it more as a hobby than a breakneck "must have NAO!" build. I'm not really all that huge on soloing av's and certainly not gm's, so the return on the last 20-30% recharge was minimal for me. If all you ever wanted to do in game was solo beatdown Adamaster, than by all means go for it! Just keep in mind that when you DO hit perma, it's not a gamechanger in day to day group play. I only mention it because I was a bit underwhelmed when I got there. -
I would be into playing a spiner. I generally play 8 or 9 to ~1a.m. CST (GMT -6). Shoot me a tell or mail if you still have room for folks.
@Krukut -
Oops, you're right it is -dam on chem rounds. Happen to know the numbers/duration on that?
Did I miss a patch note where the Hail of Bullets animation changed to being interruptable but completed damage anyhow? -
I haven't seen it mentioned here, but part of the "meh" is that the much ballyhooed Swap Ammo only changes 30% of the damage done to the specified type. 70% Lethal/30% Fire is still going to be pretty plain jane against mobs with high lethal resist. Ditto for ice, you get a slow.... but it's not really related to the passive slow in Ice Blast. Chem rounds give you -Recharge which is of dubious use at best. Even the KD in the all lethal ammo is unreliable, unlike buckshot in AR.
The devs seem to overrate the value of optional secondary effects. Dual Blades has the same handicap. 2 of the combos start with the crappy minor damage first attack :/. Coupled with the fact that every DB combo includes an attack that has no secondary effect at all (4 total attacks w/o any secondary effect).... who cares if you can choose? It seems to serve me better to do a little research before I create a character, and have a reliable secondary effect throughout my toons career.
All told the set would be good as an AoE blast set. Except we already have a couple of those. Archerys nuke is better (ranged/animation). Fire is superior damage, and better AoE options, and doesn't have to contend with redraw. Radiation is a solid AoE set if your willing to play in melee and deal with KB with no redraw.
I love the animations, even though they are a bit lengthy. By all means if that is a primary factor for the character, enjoy. If you were hoping to get min/max numbers out of the toon, you might want to look elsewhere. -
Quote:Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Greater Fire Sword also suffer from this? I know Fire is a better loved melee set, but goose and gander here. Only perused the pages here, but it looks like this keeps coming up. It's a valid point that MA could use a tweak here and there. Not sure I would put the whole bank in upping the T9 attack though.Originally Posted by Nihilii
Which is very very wrong if you ask me. Singletarget T9 attack that gets skipped in optimal ST chains. Blah.
It'd be definitely great if EC DPS was improved. -
Mace > Axe seems to be the general consensus these days. I think the devs implemented the strong and pretty thread ideas flawlessly.
To expand on the thought though, I just got my macer into the 20's. Whirling mace is bad, like, whirling hands bad. It could be I've just been spoiled with spin and FSC (not to mention Foot Stomp). I was hoping for a bit more in the sets PBAoE. Crowd control does look nice, and shatter looks about par for the course.
One thing that you are going to notice soon and often, is that divine avalanche is broken good. You're going to miss it coming over to a brute. You do get a small chance for disorient to provide some mitigation. The disorient will never be as consistent or useful as a flat out +Def though. -
Good evening fenders, I was wondering if someone could point me toward, or post, a set of binds for sonic shields? Is it possible to have a cycling keybind to the number pad? Such as pressing numpad1 will select teammember 1, cast sonic haven. Pressing 1 again will select teammember 1 cast sonic barrier. If not I suppose I'll learn to love the shift key.
My apologies if this is ground that gets covered frequently. Giving ST buffing my first go round, and the sticky bind guide didn't have anything particularly useful.
Thank you. -
Ill/Rad troller. Enjoyable levelling. Once you hit 50 you're a solid toon with a ton* of options for IO slotting. Every TF team wants /rad and Ill/ with ridiculous recharge embarasses the tank.
Was my first kitted out toon, and still miles ahead of any other in terms of sheer utility and enjoyability. -
People still invite fire/kins to teams? On an off chance, do you use siphon speed? Are you generally the first to a spawn? Do you drop fulcrum shift at your willy nilly convenience?
Fire/Kins make excellent solo/farm toons, neato. When grouped, the advantage of have 7 people speed boosted (and yourself siphoned) is a far greater gain than losing your activity while boosting is a loss. Ditto for the bulk of your secondary >shrug< I'll take a FSed blaster over any 2 controllers anyday.
Kinetics is a ST buff set, it's a bummer, and it steers many people away from the set. Please also see therm, cold, FF, and sonic. When people broadcast "LF Kin for XXX" they are in fact looking for a buff set. It isn't poor manners for players to expect teamates to make the most of thier characters. As stated repeatedly, no one drops thanks on the tanks for taking point, only heroic heal efforts will gain a thanks, and it takes phenominal DPS to catch a Wow! Nice nuke!
I don't beg buffs or critique playstyles as a matter of course. If a team is having difficulty, and someone says "Player X, do you think you could use Power Y", and the response was "Only if you say please", I would look around for the "Kick" or "Quit" button. -
I recently put together a new computer. I opened it up and I found my sense of humor wedged in between my $300 dollar video card, and my 15 FPS with ultra mode running. Unfortunately, the video card is installed directly into my ragequit board, which is dangerously close to overheating. Wondering if any of the option gurus might be able to help me get more than new style water out of Ultra mode? This is the comp I'm running:
Sapphire Radeon HD5850 (DDR 5/1G/256b)
AMD Phenom x4 3.2ghz
6g DDR 3 1600 RAM (Corsair XMS 3)
Asus M4A78T-E Mobo
Antec 900w PSU
Windows 7 Home Pro (64b)
Not exactly a monster machine I suppose, but I was hoping for adequate at least. I spent a considerable amount more on the card based on this:
Quote:So.... ahhhhm.....Originally Posted by Positron
After demoing the Ultra-mode at HeroCon, one of the most frequently asked questions we have been receiving is what are the video cards you recommend to get the most out of Ultra-mode? With the holiday season coming up, we asked the programmers in charge of implementing the features of Ultra-mode what they would recommend. We would like to forward this information on to you so you can better work on your holiday shopping lists.
If you are looking to spend under US$100, then an NVidia 9800 GT is your best bet. For AMD (ATI/Radeon), we dont have enough of these cards at this price point to get you good data. This would be the minimum card for enabling all the features, only at reduced quality settings.
If you are looking to spend between $100 and $200, the Radeon HD 4890 and GeForce GTX 260 will do you well. We dont have numbers from the Radeon 57xx series yet to verify if that is better or worse though. This would end up somewhere in the middle of Ultra-mode quality.
Finally if you are going to spend over $200, the GeForce GTX 285 is an excellent choice. We dont have numbers from the Radeon 58xx series yet. This would be able to run Ultra-mode with the quality maxed out (except we have no data on Anti-aliasing, so caveat emptor when it comes to that specific feature).
Note: This is based on our current internal testing and might change by the time Going Rogue is released. Also, a video card is not the ONLY thing you should take into consideration. Your PC having a decent processor and memory will also enhance your performance. As we continue to test and get more information available we will update you. I hope this helps, and happy holidays!
UPDATE 2-10-2010: Spoke with our engineer today, and he said we were seeing excellent performance from the Radeon 5770 card, which is a mid-range card. We have not tested the 5870, but expect the performance on that card to be one of the fastest for Ultra mode. Also noteworthy is that Ultra Mode does not currently support SLI configured cards. Were working with NVidia and ATI about this, but you all can speed up the process by contacting NVidia and ATI about updating things on their end to get it to work.
Catalyst 10.4 drivers haven't seemed to help. I suppose my mobo drivers are out of date.... but ahhhhm.... well it says here that my comp smokes your game :P. Heres a DxDiag for reference, mebbe I am* missing something.
------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 5/9/2010, 17:16:56
Machine name: UPGRAYEDD-PC
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (6.1, Build 7600) (7600.win7_gdr.100226-1909)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: System manufacturer
System Model: System Product Name
BIOS: BIOS Date: 10/28/09 15:49:52 Ver: 08.00.15
Processor: AMD Phenom(tm) II X4 955 Processor (4 CPUs), ~3.2GHz
Memory: 6144MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 6144MB RAM
Page File: 1685MB used, 10599MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)
DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
DxDiag Version: 6.01.7600.16385 32bit Unicode
------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
Display Tab 1: No problems found.
Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
Sound Tab 2: No problems found.
Sound Tab 3: No problems found.
Input Tab: No problems found.
--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D: 0/4 (retail)
DirectDraw: 0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (retail)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (retail)
DirectPlay: 0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow: 0/6 (retail)
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Display Devices
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Manufacturer: ATI Technologies Inc.
Chip type: ATI display adapter (0x6899)
DAC type: Internal DAC(400MHz)
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Dedicated Memory: 1012 MB
Shared Memory: 2807 MB
Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (59Hz)
Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
Monitor Model: VK246
Monitor Id: ACI24F1
Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.000Hz)
Output Type: DVI
Driver Name: atiu9p64.dll,aticfx64.dll,aticfx64.dll,atiu9pag,at icfx32,aticfx32,atiumd64.dll,atidxx64.dll,atidxx64 .dll,atiumdag,atidxx32,atidxx32,atiumdva,atiumd6a. cap,atitmm64.dll
Driver File Version: 8.14.0001.6105 (English)
Driver Version: 8.723.0.0
DDI Version: 10.1
Driver Model: WDDM 1.1
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 4/6/2010 20:22:38, 28160 bytes
WHQL Logo'd: n/a
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Vendor ID: 0x1002
Device ID: 0x6899
SubSys ID: 0xE140174B
Revision ID: 0x0000
Driver Strong Name: oem8.inf:ATI.Mfg.NTamd64.6.1:ati2mtag_Evergreen:8. 723.0.0
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Rank Of Driver: 00E62001
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I actually just rolled an SS/ELA, for whatever reason the pulsing on blazing aura gives me a brain cooker of a headache. I have energize down to a reasonable 35s recharge, and footstomp at 6.xx seconds. I'm just hoping that the middling resists are enough to hold up. If sapping were as effective on mobs as it is on players I wouldn't hesitate :/.
-
I'm not denying the MM's are tough Eiko. I'm glad to let an MM take point if that's thier thing, they can eat the alpha all they like. When I'm playing my FM/WP though the alpha is all the aggro they are going to see. That's not what I would call tanking. A provoking BG mode MM could conceivably do it. I've just never seen it done as well, or as consistently, as a like minded brute. Under the best of circumstances I simply do not see a Tankermind holding the entire freedom phalanx on them, or Reichsman+aggro cap. You can have the entire team eat a tray of oranges to stay at the resist cap in the RSF, or sleep for single pulls with an awesome dom. Again, neither of those are done by merit of the MMs tanking prowess. Coupled with the fact that level 50 MMs looking for group are about as common as hens teeth at the bottom of a haystack >shrug<. It could be you've found the games best kept secret.
As for fighting nemesis at +1/x8, sorry, I just don't see it happening with a def toon. That will stay the same until they come out with a dif setting to remove Lt's.
Above all I was disputing the intial dev quote "Masterminds are the redside Tank". That statement was made prior* to BG mode being added. It was made on the basis of the go-to/aggressive ability. The idea was that MMs would send pets in first, group soon to follow. That is not how MMs do, or are able, to tank. BG mode was added later to address an unrelated issue. Conversely, it seems to me, that Taunt was adjusted away from the scrapper version for brutes. Please correct me if I'm wrong. It seems to me that the AoE and -Range aspect was added after CoV launch. Brutes have everything available to them in thier primary and secondaries to build a tank (sorry /EA). Masterminds have nothing in either to allow them to pull aggro once the battle starts.
*edit*
Sorry Eiko, that sounds really flamey. I didn't intend to come off jerky. I should have prefaced the statement with the fact that I feel tanks are the most overrated group role in the game. Barring a few encounters/mob types, I'd just as soon have another troller/dom on the team than a taunt monkey. -
Quote:Unless your fighting LB. Or Malta. Or maybe even Rikti. And almost certainly when your fighting Nemesis.Originally Posted by Eiko-chan
If your Minions and Lieutenants are getting toasted without heals, you're neglecting your pets. With both of my 50 MMs, the Bots and Thugs are all soft-capped (or at least nearly so), and don't have problems with getting massacred.
Of course, both MMs also pull the alpha onto themselves, not their pets, and let their own defences and BG mode take care of it. I'm always pulling alphas with them (of course, I pull alphas with my Corrupter too, but that's another story.)
Pulling an alpha is one thing, and I've seen it done fantastically in a number of ways (Tar Patch & RoF! Yay!). Tanking an entire 8 man spawn for an entire fight is a different creature. Add in EB's and AV's and cascading defenses will not be enough. MM's of any build are unique in that they are the only AT more* susceptible to AoE attacks than ST attacks. -
SS/Fire might be more up your alley. /ELA is also an option, and the easiest on end management. The heal in /ELA is on a longish recharge though. You could also look at /WP if you're strapped for cash, but AoE damage will be a wee bit lacking. Even on a /WP footstomp & patron AoE makes a lot of corpses. Look me up if you are rolling of Freedom >shrug< @Krukut. I'd be glad to help you level a bit.
-
Largely I agree with most of what's been said already in the post. Taunt on a brute depends on sets, player, and situation. That being said, it seems that a couple of points have been understated or glossed over. Starting with this:
Quote:Not picking a particular bone with you Alt, but this argument comes up again and again, both in game and on the forums. It may have been the initial intent of the devs that pet tanking would be the primary alpha soak for villies. That wasn't really the case at CoV release though, for a couple reasons. It is a *drag* to summon/resummon and buff pets, even post change. The second is that MM pets have never, and will never, recieve full support from the rest of the team. Without an AoE heal (better than the MM version of Twilight Grasp) your minion/lt's WILL get toasted, which brings us back to the first problem. Teams don't want/are unable to keep pets up reasonably, and certainly don't want to wait for a resummon every second group. BG mode is a nice trick, and helps somewhat. Make no mistake though, BG mode was a bandaid emergency fix for PvP problems. The boards were rampant with players getting one shotted by blasters, who oddly enough were unwilling to target your army instead of you.Originally Posted by The_Alt_oholic
Brutes were never supposed to be the Tankers of CoV ... Masterminds are the Tankers of CoV.
The side by side comparison also tends to divide folks, with some falling on the scrapper side and others on the tanker side. Brutes are in fact *neither*, but they are the closest thing to an actual tanker that vils have. You get to float at 5/6 tanker HP, with tanker resist caps. Both of those are very important in a group setting where you will have a variety of support options available. That's also the only reasonable time a taunt argument would arise.
Also, the set version of taunt accesible to all brutes is a 4 target AoE (like tankers) the set version for scrappers is a single target (someone correct me if that's wrong please). Taunt is also extremely effective and efficient slot wise. Two taunt/rech IO's is all you really need. PZ and MB also have attractive set bonuses depending on your focus as well.
All told taunt is a power that I will fit into most any brute build. For ease of use, and teaming purposes. It tends to go in rather late. The question I have for the "Lol taunt"ers is ...... what did you take at 49 that you couldn't live without?