Statesman, issue with your position on blasters
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3 points
1. A scrapper has FAR less a risk of being "skewered" then a blaster. It really tickles me when your friendly neighborhood regen scrapper who is practically invicible to the same groups that cut a blaster in half in a matter of seconds tries to say that he takes such great risks.
2. Controller same. I see Fire Controllers barreling through group after group without breaking a sweat. Fire Controller soloing is neither time consuming nor dangerous.
3. Device blasters can still solo without smoke grenade. Not quite at Scrapper level safety (and yes Smoke Grenade provided nothing more then the level of Protection that an SR scrapper enjoys) but still good.
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Why do you have to turn everything into a subtle "Nerf other AT" rant? I thought this thread was to help Blasters with their issues, not complain how other ATs are "invincible" This kind of attitude is what keeps people divided and prevents fixes to broken ATs and powers because people are too busy arguing nerfs or defending their ATs.
Could you please post your Blaster build that is designed to engage in long-term battles?
I'm thinking that you must be designing with Defense in mind, but then I think that the defender receives the most beneficial defense bonuses with such things as Manuevers. Both the manual and the play style of most Blasters is to deal a great deal of up-front damage to avoid return fire, the idea that the best defense is a good offense.
You would have players build a weak defensive-oriented blaster that exchanges offensive powers for a few defensive ones? Its sounds as if you are trying to change the nature of the blaster to me. A defender is what you are thinking of, someone that can buff/debuff/bubble and still knock out a few offensive shots.......if you revisit the blaster builds, you will find little or nothing to aid in their defense outside of the generic power pools, and those are better suited to other ATs.
Blaster = High damage, low defense, low hp
Did I get confused on the issue here, or is the blaster being "phased out" to be replaced by an AT that has no value to the game?
BTW, if we wanted to talk about the ease of CoH post-30th level, I wouldn't be opposed to studying the Tanks, Scrappers, Controllers and Defenders. Do the Controllers or Tanks have any fear once they reach 30th level? Seems like the ones I meet are bored because their jobs become too easy and they end up re-rolling....
Or, as an alternative, let's leave everything the way it is. Blasters can continue to run-n-gun, tanks can continue to stand there and dish out the AoE damage while they go eat dinner and watch a movie, the Controllers can play Puppet Master all night, and the scrappers can run around and count how many "floaties" they can get to show up on the screen at the same time. Honestly, I don't think that the game is THAT hard for any AT post-30.........ask anyone to tackle solid Purple areas pre-15th leve (Talos Island maybe?) and people will laugh, but all of the people I play with hunt reds and purples in their late 30s and 40s, and that's all they do (Tank, Blaster, Defender, controller....don't play with a scrapper though)...........
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Erratic
Well if blasters are meant to stay out of melee, why do we have so damn many melee range attacks, I can name 10 right off the top of my head.
energy has at least 4
fire has 2, and flame breath is damn close range
AR has buckshot, and flamethrower
etc etc.
I was fighting freakshow tanks last night, had one charging me so i hit slug, he is outta range but coming forward, slug activates and the tank is damn near on top of me now i kite just as he gets to melee, luckily i got away in time with SS.
Now I was lucky, usually they get a swipe and remove 90% of my health.
If blaster are meant to stay out of melee, give us more range with our attacks. Also as far as avoiding said groups well when you do missions like I do, and it say kill 30 freakshows in terra, my mob size choices are limited to groups that are 10 in size.
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The answer to this is very simple. Erratic is an idiot.
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You're the one who can't figure out the message was directed to me. Feel free to go put a slug into your brain. . . oh wait, that wouldn't have any impact as you're not using it for anything.
To address the questiion I would point out that there is a difference between entering melee with a single target and entering melee against an entire spawn and ask the asker if he expects. The developers refer to Tankers and Scrappers as the melee classes and don't mention Blasters in their company, so whatever else Blaster melee attacks are for, it is hard to see how they are meant for the same purpose as Shadow Maul and Headsplitter. One might figure they are an option for dealing with things that get close that don't need much more to be dispatched, and failing the dispatch to deliver a secondary effect like a Hold, Knockback, or Disorient to better allow the Blaster to otherwise deal with the target or get away.
Under construction
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Not with the right choices in powers. Whirring hands will make short work of 10 +2 minions. For that matter grab 90 more then jump in a dumpster and start spamming an AoE and all 100 will die pretty fast.
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No way. First, herding and stacking don't work as they used to. Second, you assume this is with an INV tanker (as you wouldn't even suggest it with Ice). Not all tankers herd like INV. Third, most can agree that Blasters overall do more damage than scrappers, clearly tankers do less than scrappers. It should be %75, but it's more like 30-50% effectively in game. I think if INV/EM was soooo easy mine and many more would be 50th, and more than 10% of the player base would be tanks.
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10 +2 minions pose no threat to a well built scrapper.
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Yeah? At what level? Certainly not pre-20. DA is virtually gimped now, and that was the prime psi defense for high level gaming. INV is pretty awesome, but psi goes right through it.
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Against 10 2+ minions? I can guarantee you that my fire controller will go through groups like this like crazy with no risk to me whatsoever. The only problem is finding enough of them to satisfy my apatite. If I can find a second group I will likely have that dead before a blaster using TB is even up and hunting again after willing the first one.
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So all the screams coming from the Controller board post patch 2 are really woots of uberness?
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If we discount people who were PLd I know more controllers, tanks and scrappers then blasters.
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Most of them I've seen are blasters, the only tanker I ever saw was fire. Maybe I have bad luck.
Hello all,
I started this thread with the hope that when Statesman reads this, he will see that we are truly concerned and that we are looking for his response. Let's not ruin this thread with a flame-fest.
I would actually be content if the DEVs leave the game as is. We have become weaker, but we can still solo effectively. I am however concerned with the EVENTUAL change that Statesman said he will bring. I know that all you blasters out there share my concerns. Let's all elt Statesman know that we ARE concerned.
What is your personal issue with Erratic? Let it go. Sometimes he comes off as arrogant but he is still bringing something to this conversation. But on topic, I have an Ice/Ice blaster that I can solo quite well. I cannot take on groups of +1 mobs(in large amounts) but I knew that before the patch. I work on mobs -1 level of semi large size or -2 of huge quantities. I open up with aim, frost breath, and ice storm to get the mobs to scatter off me, and then pick them apart with ice blast and ice bolt. I dont have to many problems, but then again I play realistically. I can run my missions, and in a group, I become UBER. Tanker that draws aggro, spines scrappers, rad defenders, storm defenders, kin defenders, controllers of all types, they make my blaster more of a bad a$$. But I like to play in teams. 
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...This game was meant to be done in groups, while having the option to solo...
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Actually, the viability of grouping or soloing was pushed at the beginning, so that it would attract more players, now it seems as if soloing = over-powered. So many players complain about the mythical "one shot, one kill" abilities of the blasters that a bandwagon gets formed.
My Fire/Dev blaster has always had trouble staying alive. The warning in the manual about being aware of your surroundings at all times is exactly right. With those big rewards, come greater risks. If my defender takes on a group of 3 mobs (one Lt. and 2 minions), I'm pretty confident that if things go badly, I can still get out of trouble. But, when my Fire/Dev blaster takes on a group of 8-12 mobs, she better get it right, or she's dead. Endurance dependence leads to many deaths while trying to avoid the groups that you can't kill with one, or two, or three, or four, or five....etc. shots. And, when you're out on your own, an Awaken is not an option (usually), so its off to the hospital and then run/fly/jump back to your area.....oh, and did I mention that grinding is so boring that you fall asleep at the keyboard?
People really should try playing each of the ATs before making statements about the "uberness" of them. Some things did need to be addressed (SG, for one), but this talk of how over-powered blasters are is really ridiculous...
/me goes back to playing my FF/Dark defender.....
Hey, I'm a usual face on the tanker boards, but I have a level 15 fire/fire blaster on justice, and I wanted to weigh in since I've been both super duper Invul tanker and fast little firespitter.
As a player who does both, I think that the massive offensive capability of Blasters is supposed to make up for their lack of any defensive capability to speak of, and that the best way to make a better character would be to even out these imbalances. My firebomber is coughing out fire and dropping fireballs pretty quickly, and I do lots and lots of damage, but the amount of punishment I can take is so little I NEED to be able to drop an even con in one volley if it slips away.
As a tanker, I see this as a huge issue. Not because "lolz blaster r weak" or anything, but because it makes Tankers into Meatshields for Blasters. Tankers want to be durable and feel important, taking a lot of hits, but to do that job best we need to
a) be rooted (half of us)
b) provoking all day (until you get invincibility--then just often)
And that's no fun for Tankers, and NO FUN for Blasters at all! Who wants to watch one Abomination slip past your friends and chase you through the level spitting goo for 50 of your precious HPs?
Since mobs are getting tougher, and therefore the percentage of their health we slice off per hit is shrinking (fireball does the same damage, but the guy has 2x hps so it basically does 1/2 the damage it did before!), we need defenses.
Not scrapper or tanker defenses, of course. But who wouldn't rather trade in some of their offense (namely a lot of secondary set powers) for some defense that lets them stay out of debt? As a Tanker, debt is a sign of a major screwup. As my Blaster, it's a sad fact of life I die about 2x times on a TF if I'm not being a kite and staying at max range.
CoH uses too many massive disabilities to define out characters. I think we'd all be happier if street gangs weren't our threat--but big bosses, and tough missions and TFs.
I think Statesman's position on Blasters is fine, but I think he's relying too much on the equation that:
Blaster + Tanker = Balanced Offense and Defense
It doesn't work that way. We should all be independant heroes who just take specializations. My blaster should be defined by the fact he likes to engage at long range, and builds all his powers that way. I wish we'd all start at the same stats--same HPs, same basic skills--and start working from there, and never really get as far from center as we do. It just ends up making us half of a superhero.
And for the reference, I as a tank do solo huge, huge packs of reds and purples and sometimes go grab a coke without worry. But I had to actually /invite a blaster mid-mission once because I couldn't do enough damage to beat a boss. He was no threat to me, I just didn't do enough damage. To the blaster, he'd be a threat and the risk would be staying alive.
We need to try to pull everyone a bit back towards 'the norm' so that we're a team of equals, not of extremes. Just my comments from a Blaster that doesn't want to have to kill everything in one shot, and therefore make my team feel stupid, just to keep from DYING whenever I see something.
Okay Eratic smart [censored] post your great build and tactics..
since you seem to know how to play a blaster the "right" way.. tell us all the great secret.
Either put your money where your mouth is or stop puking all the tactics and play style [censored]..
Well Put Anachronism.....
I might ask you the same question Jor since it seems that you see cries for nerfs everywhere. I was responding to another poster's characterization of those ATs with my own thoughts. Nothing more. Its nice that you see the need to turn anything and everything into some psuedo-political battle though.
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Could you please post your Blaster build that is designed to engage in long-term battles?
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I'll assume that you're reading my comment on designing for more than alpha-striking to mean designing for drawn out fights. A Blaster remains a major damage dealer even if alpha-striking goes away. The point shouldn't be to survive a 20m battle but rather to survive long enough that even without alpha-striking you win. As to posting a build, do you want one you don't believe a single build exists that meets the requirements or are you wanting a general build for all blasters to go by?
Defense comes down to either denying attacks or mitigating the impact of attacks. Alpha-striking was a method of denying attacks, as things that were dead couldn't strike back. Taking it off the table for now, what remains? Knockback/Knockdown, Disorient, Slow, Immobilize, and Hold at least. Mitigation takes the form of resistance, +Defense, -Accuracy/To-Hit Debuffs, healing, damage reduction (not open to Blasters).
I would focus on taking as much of those as you can get.
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You would have players build a weak defensive-oriented blaster that exchanges offensive powers for a few defensive ones? Its sounds as if you are trying to change the nature of the blaster to me.
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No, I would have you recognize that insufficient defense means not surviving long enough to use all the offense you stocked up on. Is it absolutely necessary to have every damage dealing power open to you to be a good blaster? If so why? If not, then don't defenses give you more opportunity to use your offense?
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A defender is what you are thinking of, someone that can buff/debuff/bubble and still knock out a few offensive shots.......if you revisit the blaster builds, you will find little or nothing to aid in their defense outside of the generic power pools, and those are better suited to other ATs.
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And no doubt playing a Defender for as long as I have colors my thinking. (Of course at the time I was putting up with a bunch of people saying you should have made a Blaster.) No, Blasters as a whole don't enjoy a great defensive theme. That doesn't mean they don't have powers and effects that don't serve defensive purposes or that the Power Pool doesn't offer some of what is lacked.
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BTW, if we wanted to talk about the ease of CoH post-30th level, I wouldn't be opposed to studying the Tanks, Scrappers, Controllers and Defenders. Do the Controllers or Tanks have any fear once they reach 30th level? Seems like the ones I meet are bored because their jobs become too easy and they end up re-rolling....
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They should stick around, I'm sure the Envoy of Shadows, the Blades of Artemis, the Carnival and Malta will give them something to relieve their boredom.
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Honestly, I don't think that the game is THAT hard for any AT post-30
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Which explains the boredom you see and why the changes that have been made have occurred.
Under construction
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since you seem to know how to play a blaster the "right" way.. tell us all the great secret.
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Uh uh, I won't claim to know the right way, I just know that repeating what isn't working and crying about it is not productive and that crying for things to return to what they were isn't likely to work. I suggest focusing more on defense because clearly it works for ATs that don't deliver the same damage as Blasters do (say like that Defender in my sig). If I can go out and solo with her at will, the question that should come to mind for any thinking individual is, "Why?" And when that question is answered, what in that answer can a Blaster then do to make his life easier.
No, Radiation Infection isn't open for Blasters, but other powers that do the same basic thing are. Hmmm. . .perhaps taking them would be a good idea.
Lingering Radiation? Not open to Blasters either (for that matter not open to anything other than a Radiation Emission possessing Defender or Controller), but powers that slow opponents can be found in both Ice Blast and Ice Manipulation.
See the approach?
Under construction
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since you seem to know how to play a blaster the "right" way.. tell us all the great secret.
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Uh uh, I won't claim to know the right way, I just know that repeating what isn't working and crying about it is not productive and that crying for things to return to what they were isn't likely to work. I suggest focusing more on defense because clearly it works for ATs that don't deliver the same damage as Blasters do (say like that Defender in my sig). If I can go out and solo with her at will, the question that should come to mind for any thinking individual is, "Why?" And when that question is answered, what in that answer can a Blaster then do to make his life easier.
No, Radiation Infection isn't open for Blasters, but other powers that do the same basic thing are. Hmmm. . .perhaps taking them would be a good idea.
Lingering Radiation? Not open to Blasters either (for that matter not open to anything other than a Radiation Emission possessing Defender or Controller), but powers that slow opponents can be found in both Ice Blast and Ice Manipulation.
See the approach?
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Nope. I see someone who hasn't played my build for 41 levels, and has never seen me play telling me to "change tactics".... you know what my secondary effect is...? more damage. guess I should just drop 4 months of gaming and roll an ICE /Elec blaster for the "slow effect"
JUST GIVE UP AND REROLL
ERRAT DORK SCHOOL OF TACTICS.
defender board ---->
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since you seem to know how to play a blaster the "right" way.. tell us all the great secret.
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Uh uh, I won't claim to know the right way, I just know that repeating what isn't working and crying about it is not productive and that crying for things to return to what they were isn't likely to work. I suggest focusing more on defense because clearly it works for ATs that don't deliver the same damage as Blasters do (say like that Defender in my sig). If I can go out and solo with her at will, the question that should come to mind for any thinking individual is, "Why?" And when that question is answered, what in that answer can a Blaster then do to make his life easier.
No, Radiation Infection isn't open for Blasters, but other powers that do the same basic thing are. Hmmm. . .perhaps taking them would be a good idea.
Lingering Radiation? Not open to Blasters either (for that matter not open to anything other than a Radiation Emission possessing Defender or Controller), but powers that slow opponents can be found in both Ice Blast and Ice Manipulation.
See the approach?
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Nope. I see someone who hasn't played my build for 41 levels, and has never seen me play telling me to "change tactics"
defender board ---->
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You're too upset over having your little feelings hurt to see someone who has made do with weaker attacks and yet survives and solos happily post Update 2. If it'll make you feel better about yourself, I lose no stock in:
I declare here and now that hapheastus is the lord and master of all knowledge of things Blaster, especially in comparison to your's truly.
Now, get over it and look at what's been said.
Under construction
Oh come on Punisher. You've been asking for a regen nerf ever since that "What other powers need to be looked at" thread. Dont kid a kidder.
Man you are a chip eating chimp aren'tcha?
I have no problem soloing post release 2. In fact I think the changes are quite refreshing.... fact is I haven't had to change a single tactic or stratagem. I'm complaining about proposed changes. You just ran in and started flapping your gums. And having played a blaster to level 41 of course I'm more qualified to talk about it 's strenghts and weaknesses. you see me on the defender board mouthing off to them? Did you see me beating up on dark defenders? "Dark Miasma is just fine... you just need to change your tactics." 
Did you hear me saying tanker damage is fine? you just need to know your roll meatshield? no.... you running in here with that change your tactics crap with your 1337 level 11 blaster experience is an insult.
Erratic
1. Doesnt change the fact that the Scrapper's defenses render him virtually invulnerable to the melee attacks of the same spawn whose ranged salvo would shred a blaster before he could blink. You could take every defence in the world on your blaster and it will buy you 30 seconds tops. A scrapper can sit in the middle of the same spawn and have lunch. A scrapper doesnt have a leg to stand on if he is trying to talk to a Blaster about risks.
2. Actually i have. Fire imps are as strong as ever. The fact that they hit much more often effectively mitigates the fact that they deal less damage. Additionally they are now much less vulnerable to being one shotted by opponents.
3. I can. SR scrappers (and if you want just one power i would direct your attention to Elude) have the EXACT same defensive capabilities as smoke grenade provided and that isnt even considered the strongest scrapper defence set. I think a lot of people need to pull there heads out of their butts when it comes to what smoke grenade did. It was the equivalent of maxed defence. Thats it. Elude and Invicibility both provide maxed defence with one power and Defence isnt even considered all that good among scrappers (that is why SR is considered not particularly strong)
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JUST GIVE UP AND REROLL
ERRAT DORK SCHOOL OF TACTICS.
defender board ---->
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thank you and good night ladies and gentlemen, Heph will be here all week.
I'd advise arguing with that one. Anyone who takes the time to lecture others on the defensive possibilities on blasters, while proudly displaying to all in their sig their single blaster build at under lvl 20, should simply follow your sign to the def boards.
Personally, and I posted this thread on the general power discussion, I think the solution to all woes, for every AT, is a powerpool soley for mez fx mitigation. Thats really the trump factor for *every* damage dealer. Mez: it kills scrappers and blasters dead. If there was an adequate mez defense, a lot of folks would be happier and view the coming difficulty changes with less stress.
And Jor if you would pull your head out of your a$$ and read some of my recent posts on the subject, you might notice that that is no longer my position. Of course in your world, nobody ever changes their mind about anything since everyone else but you is an unreasonable nerfherder right.
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Hate to burst your bubble, fei...... but "intelligent slotting?" slotting what?
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Well, you're not bursting anything, you're just replying to a fraction of what I wrote. But anyway, onto the rest.
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If you mean attacks there is only one optimal scheme. Damage, and lot of it. Yeah spare a slot for accuracy...... but post stamina that's it.
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Most good scrapper builds operate on the same principle. A few high level players will also put an end reduction into a few attacks. And personally. I'd take the blaster end reduction over criticals anyday.
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You max damage on everything else. And if the attack has an inherent accuracy factor you forgo that too. just pure damage....
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Yup. Lotta blaster AOE gets acc buffs. Kinda nonsense to me, and I play one.
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You get hasten to wipe out the need for recharger... and replace that with sweet, sweet damage. Why? because as a blaster optimal damage out put is a must. do you see invincible tankers and scrappers slotting for accuracy or endurance post invincitbility and stamina? hell no. Because they know what I know. the more damage the better.
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Yes, there are entire books it seems written on the fine art of Scrappers trying to keep up with Blaster damage, all of involving highly elaborate power and slot selections. Oh, and rather specific 1st and 2nd choices.
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Back to defense. A non dev blaster has only a few defensive options open to him... all of them in the form of pool powers.
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They all have powers with defensive utility. Just none so blatant as something like Cloaking for example. Otherwise, yes I agree.
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A non dev blaster built for defense would need
jumping
fighting
concealment
leadership
he'd lose 8 powers for that, and possibly 36 slots. so he could reach an awesome 36% defense bonus against even conned minions.... that he won't be able to kill having screwed up his offensive punch.... and endurance trying to run all those toggles and fight.
Personally I'll stick to inspirations.
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Well, lets take a defensive oriented non-dev blaster with something more reasonable.
Concealment
Fitness
Fighting
Leaping (if you have Fire as your second you could probably go with flight and hover instead, but I considered Acrobatics as a possible choice for some who don't have burn.)
9 powers, including the travel power and the very required Stamina. You could make it 10 if you REALLY wanted Acrobatics.
Now of those 9 you should probably spend 23 slots. This includes stamina. So for 18 slots you're getting 20% res + 38.75 Def. Enough to reduce an even con to roughly an 11% chance to hit you. Not bad for having no defenses of your own besides massive amounts of kill potential. Obviously there ARE a lot of Devs running around. So drop Stealth, take the lovely Hasten and now for an extra five slots you're in perma-hasten, increasing offensive power (we know what that does for defense) and granting an extra 5% def. Even minions are at 6% to hit you. Nearly the cap. Now add Smoke grenade, no slots in it at all... You just hit the cap, and since it's not a reductive debuff, it's even more effective against higher cons.
You get, what 67 extra slots by 50? You could just about 6 slot ALL of the attacks. Which, who needs to, so it opens up those slots for other powers in your secondary or pools. Now if you're willing to team, you don't even need to slot that heavy in a lot of these things.
But yeah, go ahead and pop that luck, scrappers do it ALL the time too. And for the 30 seconds that it lasts, after you tossed a single slotted SG, you just capped DEF against +3 minions. Or you nearly did without it.
As an aside to Blaster melee damage, it's also the most damaging melee attacks in the game. Even more than the melee classes. Just a random tidbit of info.
Having read the juvenile retorts coming off of this particular post, I'm somewhat hesitant to post here for fear of either total ignorance or complete intolerance to another opinion, but at the risk of being flamed by people who'd either rant hard over and over or make personal attacks and childish nicknames, I've decided to add something more substantive to this particular discussion than what's been seen.
I agree first of all with Erratic in that crowd control and damage mitigation is beginning to become somewhat more important in the life of the average Blaster. Simply killing everything isn't all that simple at 35+, as various villians with Holds, Stuns, and other little annoyances begin to make life rather difficult on us. We've seen more than enough posts on that, thank you all the same; it's obvious that debt will be incurred if the same tactics used before Issue 2 debuted are used here.
But, I also agree with Haephaestus in that the art of the Alpha Strike is very important to the normal Blaster. We really do have that little HP, and outside of Inspirations and perhaps Aid Self we've got no real way to regain it quickly. We're also the lightest defensive AT in the game, for obvious reasons -- I believe with all abilities 6-slotted Devices gets the gold here for defense, with a staggering +24%. Now, delving into the Power Pool can net another (CJ 12% + Ha 10% + We 12%) 34% or a total of 58% Defense. To do this, the Defense - minded Blaster must run 3 toggles, Hasten, and toss Smoke Grenade. That's quite the En cost for that much Defense -- SR scrappers can get 60% with just one toggle. The applications here aren't all that good, either -- 12% of that depends on mob level, so it can quickly descend into uselessness, and this won't adequately shield one from an even-con LT, let alone an even-con Boss. Only even-con Minions are defended against well here, and perhaps +1.
So, we can say with some safety that this tactic has become obsolete. Very well; let's explore some options.
Continuing on with the assumption of Assault Rifle, we've got three direct mitigation powers and a host of Cone AoE's. The two big damage ones, Flamethrower and Full Auto, need time to work and allow the enemy to respond. Obviously this is a bad thing. So, we need some method by which we can attack the enemies and not be harmed in the doing for the duration of the various attacks here.
One can accomplish this if one uses their mitigating attacks properly. Consider: Getting the enemies in an assumed clump, we can open with M30, tossing the enemies back a bit and onto the ground. For the next four seconds, while they get up, they cannot respond in any way. This is an obvious time to use FlameThrower, which lasts for about three seconds. But you'll need to renew the Knockdown quickly; Buckshot could do it here as it's quick and gets the job done. Over the majority of them go (you DO have Cone Range and KnockBack in Buckshot, right?), granting another shot at using a DoT in relative safety. Out comes Full Auto, and the now heavily damaged mobs should sit down and stay down.
But now we come to the payoff. What are we to do against Bosses? They'll survive all this (the LT's will too, just with not much HP) and they might even shrug off the KnockBack.
The answer is to kill them quickly. Right; you knew that. In Assault Rifle's case, you'd cut them down with Slug and Snipe mixed together, shooting rapid-fire Beanbags if you need to get one to stop attacking for a few moments.
Of course, this little field exercise doesn't take into account Trip Mine, which will of course make life much easier for the AR / Dev player. Just set it off and clean up; the Bosses will still be alive, of course, but with Inspirations and targeting them specifically you should be OK. Of course, try and knock them down, or even get gutsy and Beanbag - Taser. That's a combo you don't see every day.
The moral of the story? It's not impossible to excel under the conditions of Issue 2. It's just not as simple or as quick as it used to be, and Blasters' various Crowd Control powers are beginning to matter quite a bit more.
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It really tickles me when your friendly neighborhood regen scrapper who is practically invicible to the same groups that cut a blaster in half in a matter of seconds tries to say that he takes such great risks.
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One of your recent posts. I don't know, but words like "invicible" seems to me that you haven't much changed your stance. And haha, you sure got pissy in a hurry. I must have hit a nerve there.
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Erratic
Well if blasters are meant to stay out of melee, why do we have so damn many melee range attacks, I can name 10 right off the top of my head.
energy has at least 4
fire has 2, and flame breath is damn close range
AR has buckshot, and flamethrower
etc etc.
I was fighting freakshow tanks last night, had one charging me so i hit slug, he is outta range but coming forward, slug activates and the tank is damn near on top of me now i kite just as he gets to melee, luckily i got away in time with SS.
Now I was lucky, usually they get a swipe and remove 90% of my health.
If blaster are meant to stay out of melee, give us more range with our attacks. Also as far as avoiding said groups well when you do missions like I do, and it say kill 30 freakshows in terra, my mob size choices are limited to groups that are 10 in size.
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The answer to this is very simple. Erratic is an idiot.
Blaze, firebreath, fire sword circle. all close ranged attacks. For that matter so is inferno.... Guess we should just stop using the powers that make up 1/3 of our primary/secondary sets. THAT'S TACTICS DONE THE ERRATDORK WAY......
Know what? at a certain level even defenders start spamming nukes. no one cries foul when my foce field pal strolls up to a group..... sets off darkstar then pops a CaB then Personal force field..... No that's cool. but when blasters alpha strike [censored] NERF THEM.... NERF THEM NOWWWWWWWWWWW.