an amazing build I may have to try this!!!
This is a horrible guide. He starts out by saying, this build sucks?! Of course fire secondary is a lot of melee- so are most of the other blaster secondaries. My AR/Fire blaster is a beast, and has tons of Aoe's- with a possible 10 Aoe's! Thats a lot! When I get my toon to 50 I'll write a guide to replace this poor one.
You could probably have done better jsut by writing the guide.
Also, bear in mind that this was written pre-I5. Blaster dynamics have changed since then, iirc.
Intro
A guide to the build I chose for my lvl 50, I intend to show how the gimped fire secondary for blasters can be used to make a fun and interesting blaster.
The build focuses on powers from the primary as the secondary is pure melee. Personally I would not suggest AR/Fire unless its for concept, or you already made one and got it to a level where you would like to keep it.
This is v. 1(beta) of my guide, and my first guide ever, so bear with me if I make huge mistakes along the way.
Assault Rifle, the primary powers:
The Assault Rifle allows for huge variety both in powers and theme. You can be a futuristic super-soldier that has come back in time to save the world, or a WWII soldier sent into the future by a temporal anomaly, or anything inbetween. The powers include, 4 true AoEs, 3 true single target attacks, 1 area based DoT damage AoE, and 1 control power. This guide focuses on the hero as an AoE blaster, though a single target blaster could be built from the AR set.
note: all powers in the assault rifle primary have a small bonus to basic acc, making some need no acc enhancements.
The powers:
all powers are rated 1-5 with 5 being the best and 1 being the worst
Burst:
You open up with a burst of fire from your assault rifle, dealing moderate DoT damage.
A basic DoT attack, quick recharge with a medium length animation time. Also has a minor defense debuff, though it is not enough to make a real difference.
4/5, I suggest this power as it is very helpfull for quick damage in the early game, though in the late game slug and sniper rifle are much better for single target damage.
suggested slotting: either 4 damage and 1 acc, or 5 damage*
Slug:
You fire a single slug from your assault rifle, dealing moderate damage.
The basic single target attack of the AR primary, this deals good damage to a single target, more than burst, but with a longer recharge time. Also does knockback.
5/5, the best single target power this set has to offer.
Suggested slotting: 5 damage and 1 acc, 6 damage*, or 1 end redux 4 damage and 1 acc
Buckshot:
You fire a single buckshot, a bullet which seperates into fragments to deal damage in a cone.
Your first AoE, buckshot is a close range cone AoE dealing ok damage and knockdown. Many people suggest skipping this power, but I like it as another AoE.
3/5, the cone is a bit small and it doesn't do as much damage as slug, Buckshot is still nice in a good AoE attack chain.
Suggested slotting: 4 damage and 1 acc, or 5 damage*
M30 grenade:
You launch a grenade from you assault rifle, which explodes and hits any enemies near the grenade.
Your second, and in my opinion, best AoE, M30 grenade does a good amount of lethal/smash damage, 2/3 of it lethal, and 1/3 smash. This power is very nice for those enemies that are weak to smahs, but resist lethal like council robots.
5/5, an awsome AoE with a good quick recharge time and almost no animation time, this is the AoE that allows you to be a AoE blaster.
Suggested slotting: I put 1 range, 4 damage, and 1 acc in this, which puts it up to the range and damage of burst with my 4 damage 1 acc slotting, though most suggest the normal 5 damage, 1 acc in this, or 4 damage, 1 end cost, and 1 acc.
Beanbag:
You fire a beanbag from your rifle to dissorient enemy for some time.
Dealing only minor smash damage, this power is mostly for controlling. I like it for soloing, as it disorients an Lt. in one shot and a boss in 2.
2/5 or 4/5, a power that doesn't get much use in a team, its made more for soloing. pick this up if you plan to solo, but either don't take it or take it around 35 if you play in teams more.
Suggested slotting: 2 disorient and 2 recharge if you have hasten, or 3 disorient and 3 recharge if you do not.
Sniper Rifle:
You aim and fire a long range shot, dealing major damage to a single enemy.
A sniper attack, this requires time to aim and can be interupted. A nice way to get rid of a single minion quickly or start a battle, this is another nice single target attack to take.
3/5, I would suggest taking this if you plan to solo at all, but if you play with friends always and so can always get a team, skip this.
suggested slotting: 1 acc 1 range and 4 damage, or 1 acc and 5 damage, or 6 damage.
Flamethrower:
You spew flames from your rifle, burning everything in front of you.
Another cone AoE, flamethrower is a must have as it is a DoT which works well combined with any other AoEs to deal huge damage. The fact that it deals fire damage, allowing you to avoid lethal damage somewhat, is also great.
4/5, the second best AoE in this set, it deals good damage, but it has a long animation time and recharge time.
Ignite:
You spray a location with a burning liquid, dealing fire damage to anything that enters the flames.
Similar to burn from the fire tank primary, this has a smaller AoE, and is ranged. enemies will run out of the flame unless they are immobilized.
2/5 or 4/5, Good for immobilized enemies and dropped pets, this power has many uses, though none as simple and usefull as the other AoEs in this set unless teamed with a controller. If teamed with a controller this power is extremely usefull as the controller can hold enemies in place while you burn them.
Full Auto:
You spray a huge number of bullets at enemies in front of you, dealing massive damage.
The Nova of the AR blaster, it is often put down as not being as good as nova or inferno. I disagree with this as it has a much shorter recharge time than either and can be used at range.
5/5, once fully slotted, this can easily one shot large groups of minions, and combined with flamethrower, severly damage Lts. The only disadvantage is that it has a long animation time, during which you can not move.
Suggested slotting: 5 damage 1 acc, or 6 damage
* these powers have a 80% chance of hitting with no acc enhancements and against an even level enemy. Unslotted with acc, fighting higher level enemies will be hard. all non-starred cases of this have base acc of 100% or higher making them effective without acc enhancements against enemies 1-2 levels higher than you.
Fire Manipulation, the secondary:
Fire is melee heavy, meaning many of the powers are not worth taking for the all range blaster. generally all I can suggest taking is Build Up.
The powers:
I'm skipping a lot in this section, though if blasters are updated in I5 I will change this section for that.
Ring of Fire:
you have to take it but its pretty much useless in the late game. Only use is the occasional immobilization of a lt you want to keep at range.
suggested slotting: 1 acc
Fire Sword through Fire Sword Circle:
Melee and PBAoE attacks. I would suggest skipping these, though I took Fire Sword at lvl 49 and like its look as a concept power.
Build Up:
a must have for blasters, this increases your damage and accuracy greatly for 10 seconds.
suggested slotting: 2 recharge
Blazing Aura through Hot Feet:
PBAoEs again, we don't want em! Consume can be nice, but it does damage and that can draw aggro. everything thing else is a no.
Power Pools:
with fire as your secondary, you can take a lot of power pool powers. I would encourage variety here, though Fitness is a must have, and I quite like hasten.
The power pools that are best for this kind of blaster are:
Flight: hover is nice for hover sniping and when powers that do knockback are used from above they do knockdown instead which is nice for playing with tanks and scrappers
Concealment: first off, a bit of defense is always nice for blasters, and stealth gives you that. Also phase shift can get you through missions without attacking a single enemy if its a glowie mish, which is very nice if you have an AV that is optional in the mish.
Fitness: a must have for stamina currently.
Medicine: heal self is nice I hear, though I have never tried it.
Epic Power Pools:
Each epic pool works well with AR/Fire I would say, though force mastery and munitions master both mesh very well with the AoE blaster.
Force Mastery gives you very good resistance with Force of Nature, with 3 slots towards resistance you have 56% resistance across the board, and can put 3 slots of recharge in as well.
Munitions Mastery, on the other hand, gives you a snipe range targeted AoE, giving you an extra targeted AoE, something AR is lacking in.