WhisperWitch's Tactics For Mind and Force Fields
By
DiskMind,
Posted on: 2005-07-15 07:32 in Player Guides
Fascinating! Great job on this, Very unique format and approach. Like the options and the link to levels too. Also always nice to see another hero took the long Mind/FF road to 50. Well done.
Great guide. I really like having the tactics correspond to levels.
The tactics listed in this guide have all been used successfully in I5.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
There'll be an update to this guide sometime in the near future. In the meantime, I'll be posting new tactics here.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Conserve Endurance Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a member of the group you're fighting.
2) Continue to defeat the rest of the group as normal, allowing the confused baddie to assist you.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic lets the MC defeat a mob while using less endurance. The tactic can be used once the MC begins to run low on endurance, or at the beginning of a fight to prevent endurance from running low. The author was able to solo the tunnels of the Atta mission without ever having to stop for an endurance recharge using this tactic.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Solo Frostfire Tactic
Powers used: Levitate, Dominate, Confuse, Hasten
1) Wait until Hasten charges up.
2) Pop 3 Lucks. Have 3 Break Frees in tray.
3) Levitate Frostfire. Dominate Frostfire. Repeat as needed.
4) If Frostfire gets pets out, Confuse them, starting with Jack Frost.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Frostfire is considered to be one of the more difficult villians in the Hollows. He is an Elite Boss and very difficult to kill, even for groups. Using this tactic the MC can defeat Frostfire in a very short amount of time with little risk.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Solo Atta Tactic
Powers used: Levitate, Dominate, Mezmerize, Hasten
1) Wait until Hasten charges up.
2) Pop 3 Lucks. Pop 3 Rages. Have 2 Respites and 2 Catch a Breaths in tray.
3) Dominate Atta. Mezmerize Atta. Levitate Atta. Repeat as needed.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Atta is the second Elite Boss you'll meet in the Hollows. Atta doesn't have pets, but is much tougher than Frostfire in terms of hit points. You'll need the Rages and the extra damage from Mezmerize to defeat him.
Levitate, Dominate, and Mezmerize each had 3 Accuracy Training Enchancements in them when this was done.
The numerous trolls in the tunnels of the Atta mission can be easily dealt with using the tactics in this guide, particually the Conserve Endurance Tactic.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Reverse Pull Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize
1) When encountering a small group, Mezmerize one of the baddies and then draw the aggro of the group. You can do this by walking up to the group.
2) If possible, duck around a corner to have baddies chase you. This draws the baddies away from the sleeping baddie.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
This tactic allows the MC to ignore one baddie from a group while defeating the rest of the group.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Red-Headed Stepchild Tactic
Powers used: Dominate, Confuse
Using this tactice the MC locks down one baddie with Dominate and confuses a second baddie with Confuse. The MC and the Confused baddie work together to defeat the dominated baddie.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Terrify Boss Tactic
Powers used: Terrify, Intimdate (Presence Power Pool)
There is no way to fear a boss using only MC powers as bosses require 2 applications of fear and the MC powerset has only one. By taking Intimate, a single target fear, from the Presence power pool, the MC can fear bosses. This adds to the exiting MC boss control abilities given by stacking Dominate with Total Domination, or Confuse with Mass Confusion.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Go Away Tactic
Powers used: Telekinesis
When encountering a powerful group that threatens the MC or team, hit the back half of the group with Telekinesis. This pushes that part of the group away from the team.
You are not trying to push the baddies into a corner or perform any other tricks. This tactic requires only selecting a baddie and toggling on TK.
Do not turn TK off until the baddies not in TK are defeated. This pushes the baddies in TK far away, often out of attack range.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Temp TK Tactic
Powers used: Telekinesis, Mezmerize, Domination, Confuse
When encountering a group, Telekinesis can be used to quickly lock them down. Then individual controls, such as Domination can be used to lock down each baddie. Once all the baddies are locked down individually, Telekinesis can be turned off.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
Using this tactic allows the MC to quickly control an entire group yet also allows him to turn off TK to avoid it's large endurance usage.
You do not need to master the skill of corning baddies with TK in order to use this tactic. Any wall will do.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Hibernate Tactic
Powers used: Personal Force Field, Aid Self (Medicine Power Pool)
When in situations of low health, raise Personal Force Field and apply Aid Self. This allows fast, safe healing in a manner similar to the Tanker power Hibernate. It has the added bonus that the player is not immobilized while healing.
You can also use this tactic, skipping the healing part, to recover endurance.
NOTE: You cannot use the Rest power while Personal Force Field is up. Activating Rest disables PFF.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Repulsion Field
For lockdown: Mass Confusion, Terrify, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 32 Herd tactic, but replaces Personal Force Field with Repulsion Field. This allows for larger herds to be gathered, but not as large as the herds that can be gathered with the level 38 power Force Bubble.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Wait Your Turn Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize
Apply Mesmerize to a baddie and defeat other baddies in the group. The sleep lasts a long time, allowing you to focus your attention on the rest of the group. On teams, it's often best to apply this to a baddie away from the center of the group to avoid having the baddie awakened by AoE attacks.
Mesmerize can sleep a boss in a single application.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Detoggle Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize
Applying Mezmerize to a baddie detoggles the baddie. The toggles stay down until they recharge even if the baddie is awoken by an attack. Armored villians, such as Outcast Bricks, and villians with AoE toggles, such as Murk Eidolons, are particularly good targets for this tactic.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Just a thought. Might it be better to wait as you accumulate a large set of tactics before you write these up, THEN post them a few at a time. Better, classify them as Defensive, Offensive, or Other, and categorize them that way.
Personally, I think this is severely overdoing it. This is a rare, but perfect example of Overformatting a guide and putting in too much fo the obvious. IMO, little things like combining Aid Self with PFF should be mentioned either as part of a power 'scrip, or as a bullet point in a strategies overview. (because if you can't put 2+2 on how PFF and Aid Self work together you probably shouldn't be playing).
Further on that thought, some of these are "That's kind of a neat trick" sort of tips, but a substantial number are "Well, Duh" In terms of how obvious they should be, even to a fairly new gamer. Things like using single target mezzes on different targets to keep them from attacking you are conclusions that should come naturally after a few hours of gameplay. If they don't get that themselves, I doubt a guide would help them.
Thanks for the comments Kossy. I'll certainly take them into consideration when I do an updated version of the guide. Some of the obviouse ones, like the Wait Your Turn tactic, where specifically requested by other folks.
Will they make the final version of the new guide? I can't say. But for now I'm collecting them here so I don't forget about them.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Solo Frostfire Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Levitate, Dominate, Mesmerize
Since the original Solo FrostFire tactic was published, Elite Bosses have been changed to behave more like AVs. This means you cannot keep FrostFire permanently confused, even with Hasten. Therefore a new tactic is needed.
1) While Frostfire is surrounded by his minnions, cast Confuse on him. Repeat this until he becomes confused.
2) Once FrostFire is confused, he will bring out his pets.
3) Once he has his pets out, cast confuse on the pets rather than FrostFire.
4) Allow pets to defeat FrostFire, or at least reduce his health greatly.
5) (optional) To finish off FrostFire yourself, wait till his pets are gone and attack using Dominate, Levitate, and Mesmerize.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Can't Break Free Tactic
Powers used: Detention Field
During PvP it's a common occurance for players to pop break frees to escape your holds. Containing a player in Detention Field allows you to take that player out of action and they can't pop a break free to escape. Note, however, that neither you nor your teammates will be able to further affect the player in the Detention Field.
This tactic is useful for PvP.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Punch Thru Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Dominate (optional), Sands Of Mu (Temp Power or Veteran Reward)
Sands of Mu has the ability to hit more than one target at a time, but it is often difficult to properly position the baddies to get this effect. To get the proper positioning easily, perform the following steps:
1) Confuse a baddie.
2) Dominate the baddie the confused baddie is attacking (optional, but recommended)
3) Wait for confused baddie to move into melee range (almost always happens)
4) Position yourself so there's a straight line between you and the two baddies.
5) Use Sands of Mu on the two baddies.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Zombie Attack Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Mesmerize
There are times when you confuse a zombie and it just stands there, refusing to attack. To "wake up" the zombie, hit it with Mesmerzie after Confuse. The sleep effect lasts less then a second and the zombie will then begin attacking his fellow baddies.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Can I Have Your Attention Please Tactic
Powers used: Levitate
If you want to pull an entire group rather than just one or two individuals in the group, use Levitate against one of the group members. Levitate almost always aggros the entire group.
This tactic can be used to reposition a group when several groups are near each other, such as during the Atta mission.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
Safe Sleep Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Confuse
Apply Confuse to a Mesmerized baddie to protect yourself from the baddie being woken up and attacking you.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
Building a WarTroller
Troller Damage
WhisperWitch's Tactics For Mind Control and Force Fields
Introduction
This guide provides an extensive set of tactics for use by Mind Controllers and Controllers with the Force Field secondary. There are three sections to the guide, one for Mind Control, one for Force Fields, and one for Mind Control/Force Fields. Each tactic is categorized in one of these areas and ordered by level. This allows players to check what new tactics are available to them as they move up in levels. All of the tactics provided here have been used in actual combat.
The contents section lists each tactic provided in this guide.
Thanks
I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed this guide and offered suggestions and encouragement. Special thanks goes to P_Dude, Burnard_McBurns, ZinePlex, Mystic_Amethyst, Spark_1, and Breville for their suggestions on how Force Bubble and Luck inspirations can be used to increase the number of groups you can herd.
Contents
Mind Control
___Level 1
______ Divide And Conquer Tactic
______ Sandman Tactic
______ Juggle Tactic
______ Attack Chain Tactic
___Level 2
______ Divide And Conquer Tactic
______ Sandman Tactic
______ Juggle Tactic
______ Non-Stop Attack Chain Tactic
___Level 6
______ Find Enemies Tactic
______ Preemptive Strike Tactic
______ Delayed Confuse Tactic
______ Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots Tactic
______ Turn Back Baddie Tactic
______ Multitasking Tactic
______ Pets Tactic
______ XP Buff Tactic
______ Getting To Know You Tactic
______ Safe Attack Tactic
______ Solo AV Tactic
___Level 8
______ Sandman Tactic
______ Delayed Sleep Tactic
___Level 12
______ Walk The Pet Tactic
______ Wall Of Protection Tactic
______ Corner Tactic
___Level 18
______ Sandman Tactic
______ 2 Bosses Tactic
___Level 26
______ Sandman Tactic
___Level 32
______ Sandman Tactic
______ Solo XP Buff Tactic
______ 2 Bosses Tactic
______ Safe Attack Tactic
______ Clump Tactic
Force Fields
___Level 1
______ Mini-Tank Tactic
______ Hide In Plain Sight Tactic
______ Arrive Alive Tactic
______ Decoy Tactic
___Level 2
______ Scrapper Tank Tactic
___Level 4
______ Lure Tactic
___Level 28
______ Line In The Sand Tactic
Mind Control/ Force Fields
___Level 4
______ Follow The Bouncing Ball Tactic
___Level 6
______ Walk The Pet Tactic
______ Feed The Pet Tactic
___Level 8
______ Herd Tactic
___Level 18
______ Herd Tactic
______ Power Leveling Tactic
___Level 26
______ Herd Tactic
______ Power Leveling Tactic
___Level 32
______ Herd Tactic
______ Power Leveling Tactic
___Level 38
______ Herd Tactic
Mind Control
-------------------- Level 1 --------------------
Divide And Conquer Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize
1) Mesmerize a member of a group.
2) Back up as his fellow group-mates come after you. Continue backing up until there is a good distance between the Mesmerized member and his group mates.
3) Repeat this process until the size of the un-Mezed group is manageable.
4) Defeat un-Mezed group.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Once enough distance separates group members, they will not come to the aid of their fellow group-mates who are being attacked.
This tactic is a useful way to break up group that are too large to handle into more manageable sizes. It's useful when soloing, especially at lower levels or in areas like intersections where there are a large number of baddies.
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize
1) Mesmerize each member of a group once.
2) Walk to next group.
3) Repeat for each group in the mission.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic is a useful way to "stealth" mission at low levels. The MC can walk through the mission looking for bombs, glowies, hostages, and what have you. Only baddies guarding these items need to actually be defeated. All others are put to sleep and then left alone.
In areas where there are too many baddies to effectively use this tactic, the MC can employ the Divide and Conquer tactic posted previously.
Juggle Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Levitate
1) Mesmerize a baddie in a group.
2) Levitate and Mesmerize (in that order) the next baddie in a group
3) Repeat step 2 until all baddies are sleeping.
4) Repeat steps 1 - 3 until all baddies are defeated.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
By employing this tactic, the MC can control and defeat an entire group while being in very little danger himself.
If at any time the MC runs low on End he can simply turn around, walk away, recharge, return, and begin the cycle again.
If a group is encountered that is too large to use this tactic the MC can form smaller groups from it using the Divide And Conquer tactic posted previously.
Attack Chain Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Levitate
1) Spam ranged attacks on baddie until he is defeated.
This tactic uses the MC powers like a Blaster. Ranged attacks are repeated on a baddie until he is defeated. The Controller's ranged attacks do less damage than a Blaster's, but are safer because they are also holds.
-------------------- Level 2 --------------------
Divide And Conquer Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate
This tactic is like the level 1 Divide And Conquer Tactic, but also uses Dominate.
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate
This tactic is like the level 1 Sandman Tactic, but also uses Dominate.
Juggle Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Levitate, Dominate
1) Mesmerize a baddie in a group.
2) Dominate the next baddie in a group.
3) Repeat step 1 and 2 until all baddies are sleeping or held.
4) Use Mesmerize, Dominate, and Levitate (in that order) to defeat individuals in the group. From time to time you may need to stop an attack on an individual baddie and Mesmerize or Dominate other group members to keep them locked down.
This tactic is useful for soloing.
By employing this tactic, the MC can control and defeat an entire group while being in very little danger himself.
If a group is encountered that is too large to use this tactic the MC can form smaller group from it using the Divide And Conquer tactic posted previously.
Non-Stop Attack Chain Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Levitate, Dominate
1) Spam ranged attacks on baddie until he is defeated.
This tactic uses the MC powers like a Blaster. Ranged attacks are repeated on a baddie until he is defeated. The Controller's ranged attacks do less damage than a Blaster's, but are safer because they are also holds.
When combined with Stamina from the Power Pool, the MC can spam these attacks non-stop for as long as required.
There are times when this tactic is useful, and even required. But if you find yourself using this tactic almost exclusively, you should review some of the other strategies for the MC or consider that you may be happier with a Blaster AT.
The Juggle tactic posted previously is a specialized version of the Non-Stop Attack tactic.
-------------------- Level 6 --------------------
Find Enemies Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a baddie that seems to be standing alone, but a group could be just out of sight (around a corner for example).
This tactic is useful while soloing.
A baddie seems to be alone, but may be part of a group that's hidden around a corner or otherwise out of sight.
If the baddies is part of a group, casting Confuse on him will cause him to run to his group and start attacking. If he is alone he will simply stand there.
Based on how the baddie reacts to Confuse, the MC can form a plan of attack.
Preemptive Strike Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Mesmerize, Dominate
1) Confuse the toughest baddie in a group.
2) Spam said baddie with Mesmerize and Dominate until he is defeated.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Confused baddies can be attacked with Mesmerize and Dominate and they will not draw aggro until they are defeated. DO NOT use Levitate as it will alert the rest of the group.
Using this tactic takes the toughest baddie out of the fight before it has even begun.
The MC can also rest in between Mesmerize and Dominate in order to have full End by the time the toughest baddie goes down.
Delayed Confuse Tactic
Powers used: Confuse and any AoE lockdown
1) Perform your AoE lockdown (Mass Hypnosis, Total Domination, or Terrify).
2) Find a baddie unaffected by the lockdown and Confuse him.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
If you Confuse a baddie and then cast a crowd control lock down power there's a good chance you'll effect the baddie you confused, undoing your own work. Instead, cast Confuse after the crowd control power on a baddie that was unaffected.
Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Dominate
1) Confuse two baddies in the group that are standing next to each other. Usually the two confused baddies will start fighting each other.
2) Allow the confused baddies to fight each other until one of them is down to about 25% health.
3) Cast Dominate on the healthy baddie.
4) Allow weaker baddie to continue beating up the healthy baddie until the healthy baddies is down to 25% health.
5) Cast Dominate on the baddie that is not currently dominated.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Use this tactic to severely weaken two members of a group before the fight has even begun.
Optionally, once you have the two weaken baddies locked down with Dominate, you can cast Confuse on a 3rd baddie just before the team attacks to have him help in the main fight.
Everybody loves watching Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. You can use this tactic during the "down time" of waiting for teammates to arrive in a mission. It's even more entertaining than the Boombox.
Turn Back Baddie Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) When a baddies has moved away from his group and toward yours, cast Confuse on the baddie.
This tactic is useful while soloing.
This tactic causes the wandering baddie to return to his group, allowing your party to remain undetected.
Multitasking Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a baddie in a group.
2) Move on to another group. Apply various strategies to defeat it.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
The multitasking tactic enables the MC to engage two or more groups at the same time with the intent of defeating them, not just locking them down.
An individual baddie is confused and allowed to soften up a group while the MC directs his attentions to another group.
With practice, the MC can combat 3 or 4 groups simultaneously.
Pets Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a baddie in a group allowing him to apply damage to his fellow baddies.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
While the Confuse power is technically a confuse class spell that does no damage, there is no question that a confused baddie in many ways acts like a pet. A War Wolf swiping away at the Council you're fighting certainly feels like a pet, and a pretty good one at that.
Differences Between Confused Baddies And Pets
1. A pet can draw the aggro from the group the party is engaging, acting as a defense for the rest of the group by increasing the number of targets the baddies have to choose from. Confused baddies act as a defense by reducing the number of baddies attacking the party.
2. A pet can draw the aggro of groups the party did not mean to engage, often with disastrous results. A confused baddie draws no team aggro at all.
3. Pets usually last for more than one encounter and follow the caster around the mission. Confused baddies last for only one encounter.
4. A pet is always the same type of pet, no matter how many times the spell is cast. Fire Controllers always get Fire Imps, for example. The MC can select from a wide variety of baddies to turn into pets, including inanimate objects such as force field generators and summoning portals.
5. No "To Hit" roll is required to create a pet. A "To Hit" roll is required to Confuse a baddie.
6. Pets incur no XP penalty. Confused baddies incur the XP penalty of Confuse. However, by using the XP Buff tactic, a confused pet can actually increase the XP awarded in a given amount of time.
7. Pets are attacked by baddies, while a confused baddie is not. The players must defeat a confused baddie.
Determining Which Baddie To Confuse
With so many different types of pets to choose from, determining which to select is a skill in itself.
1. Ensure that you can confuse the baddie quickly enough to be useful.
2. Ensure that the results of the confuse are acceptable to you and your team. For example, you may have the option to Confuse a Boss and have him wipe out his minions for you. In situations where the team is weak compared to the group, this may be acceptable. In situations where the team feels they can defeat the group themselves, the loss of XP may be unacceptable.
3. Remember that by confusing a baddie, you effectively gain 100% defense from that baddie. If Malta Sappers are weakening you team, by confusing them they are not attacking your team. Knowing what powers you want to take away from the group is fundamental to selecting the right baddie to confuse.
4. Remember that by confusing a baddie, you effectively gain an ally in fight the group. Once confused, the baddie is basically a teammate. This means that baddies that aid their teammates will be aiding you. Tsoo Sorcerers healing the team and Sky Raider Force Field Generators giving the team bubbles are classic examples.
5. If you've read about a neat Confuse tactic that you'd like to try, make sure you test it in a safe environment first, if possible. The tactic may be flawed, or perhaps the game has been updated and changed since a guide was released, perhaps you've misunderstood the guide, or perhaps the results were not what you were expecting. Always have real life experience with confusing a baddie in a safe environment before using it in a situation where the stakes are high.
The Dangers Of Confuse
Confuse is often thought to be a risk-free action. This is not true. Here are a few of the dangers to be aware of when using Confuse.
1. You can aggro the group if you move too closely to it to before casting Confuse. While it's common sense not to do this, you will almost certainly do it at least once.
2. Confused baddies can create "runners", baddies who run around after their health gets to a certain low level. If more than 1 baddie is confused, one of the confused baddies may be a runner. A runner who comes near you will draw aggro. Confused runners near you will draw aggro if their Confuse wears off. Eventually the runner will return to his original location. If you're still there when that happens you're subject to a surprise attack by the returning baddie. To make it even worse, the returning baddie may bring another baddie from another group with him.
3. Knockback attacks by a confused baddie can land an unconfused baddie right at your feet, drawing aggro.
XP Buff Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a baddie in a group allowing him to apply damage to his fellow baddies.
2) When the damage dealt by the confused baddie is 50% - 75% of a baddies health, defeat the confused baddie.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
The Confuse power has a tradeoff. Using Confuse lowers the XP you get for defeating a baddie, but also lowers the amount of time it takes to defeat a group. This tactic uses these features to maximize the XP you're awarded in a given amount of time.
The table below shows the relationship between the amount of damage done by a confused baddie to another baddie, the XP awarded based on that damage, and the time it takes the player to defeat the baddie.
Confused Damage________XP Awarded__________Time To Defeat
75%___________________57% of normal _________25% of normal
66%___________________66% of normal ________33% of normal
50%___________________80% of normal ________ 50% of normal
For example, if the confused baddie does 50% of the damage to a defeated baddie and the players do the other 50%, the players get 80% of the normal experience, but only took 50% of the normal time needed to defeat the baddie.
When confusing a single baddie in a group and attacking the rest of the group, the damage done by the confused baddie is usually minor and causes very little loss of XP. In this case, the XP will be near 100% and the damage done by the confused baddie simply speeds up the process.
For more information on the relationship between Confuse, XP, and time, see cForce's Guide To Confuse.
Getting To Know You Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) When encountering a type of baddie you have never seen before, cast Confuse on it.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
The Getting To Know You tactic allows the MC to learn about a new type of baddie without enduring great personal risk. Using this tactic you'll learn:
1. If you can Confuse the baddie.
2. How long your Confuse will last.
3. The powers and fighting style of the new baddie.
4. The damage done by the baddie.
Solo AV Tactic
Powers used: Confuse
1) Confuse a member of an AV's party, preferable a Boss.
2) Repeat step 1 until confused baddie defeats AV.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Using this tactic the MC can defeat an AV by himself. The MC casts Confuse on a member of the AV's group and lets that baddie attack the AV. The confused baddie must be powerful enough to damage the AV consistently.
MCs at any level can use this tactic to defeat baddies that are too tough for the team to defeat without enduring great risk.
The author used this tactic during the Mole Point Charlie TF in Shadow Shard against Ruladak the Strong. Using this strategy Ruladak was taken from 100% health down to 5% health. At that point the rest of the TF defeated Ruladak.
This tactic is a special case of the Pets tactic, posted previously.
-------------------- Level 8 --------------------
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate, Mass Hypnosis
This tactic is like the level 2 Sandman Tactic, but also uses Mass Hypnosis.
Safe Attack Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Other attacks as usual
1) Apply Confuse to a baddie.
2) Attack the baddie as usual.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Applying Confuse before attacking a baddie provides safety from return attacks by the baddie. When the baddie does manage to get off an attack they will attack each other.
Delayed Sleep Tactic
Powers used: Mass Hypnosis
1) Allow teammates to perform AoE attacks.
2) When the effects of the AoE attacks are complete, Mass Hypnotize the baddies.
Mass Hypnosis can be a frustrating power because any attacks on a sleeping baddie cause him to wake up. When playing teams it is a common tactic of teammates to hit a group with an AoE attack, completely undoing your Mass Hypnosis.
Using this tactic, the MC waits for the AoE attacks to complete before sleeping the group. This allows the group, or at least most of the group, to be held while your teammates' AoE attacks recharge.
-------------------- Level 12 --------------------
Walk The Pet Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Telekinesis
1) Save the last baddie from a defeated group. Confuse the baddie.
2) Use Telekinesis to push baddie into the next group located nearby.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Sometimes when you've defeated a group your confused pet is still alive. Rather than spend time defeating it, use a Telekinesis to push him to a nearby group and continue fighting. You must be careful not to push him too close to the group, or you will agro the group.
Walking your pet for long distances is usually not practical.
Wall Of Protection Tactic
Powers used: Telekinesis
1) When a group has an inanimate object with it that is placed in the middle of the group, cast Telekinesis on the inanimate object.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Casting Telekinesis on an inanimate object prevents baddies from passing beyond the inanimate object. This tactic was originally presented in Hedon's Guide to Mind control and Telekinesis.
Corner Tactic
Powers used: Telekinesis
1) Cast Telekinesis on groups of baddies, ultimately pushing them into a corner.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Once baddies are pushed into a corner using Telekinesis it is very difficult for them to escape. While held in the corner they are basically at the mercy of the player and his party. This tactic was originally presented in Hedon's Guide to Mind control and Telekinesis.
-------------------- Level 18 --------------------
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate, Mass Hypnosis, Total Domination
This tactic is like the level 8 Sandman Tactic, but also uses Total Domination.
2 Bosses Tactic
Powers used: Dominate, Total Domination
1) Cast Dominate on a boss.
2) Cast Total Domination on the group
3) Cast Dominate on a 2nd boss.
This tactic is useful while soloing.
Using this tactic, the MC can lock down 2 bosses using just 3 steps. As a bonus, all the other baddies with the bosses are locked down as well. The tactic works against any set of baddies that require 2 applications of domination.
The key to this tactic is the fact that Dominate stacks with Total Domination.
-------------------- Level 26 --------------------
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate, Mass Hypnosis, Total Domination, Terrify
This tactic is like the level 18 Sandman Tactic, but also uses Terrify.
-------------------- Level 32 --------------------
Sandman Tactic
Powers used: Mesmerize, Dominate, Mass Hypnosis, Total Domination, Terrify, Mass Confusion
This tactic is like the level 26 Sandman Tactic, but also uses Mass Confusion.
Solo XP Buff Tactic
Powers used: Mass Confusion, Confuse (optional), Dominate (optional), Total Domination (optional), Terrify (optional)
1) Cast Mass Confuse on a group of baddies.
2) Cast Confuse on any baddies you missed (optional).
3) Wait, allowing baddies to damage each other for 50% - 75% damage.
4) If one or two baddies in the group are doing a disproportionate amount of damage, Dominate them (optional).
4) Cast Terrify or Total Domination on the baddies (optional).
5) Defeat baddies
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic can be used on a team, but is really one of the best ways to solo with an MC. Using this tactic the MC can solo at a very good pace, as he only needs to do 25% - 50% of normal damage to the entire group.
See the level 6 XP Buff tactic for details about the relationship between Confuse, XP, and time.
2 Bosses Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Mass Confusion
This tactic works like the level 18 2 Bosses Tactic, except that it replaces Dominate with Confuse and Total Domination with Mass Confusion.
Safe Attack Tactic
Powers used: Terrify, Mass Confusion
1) Apply Mass Confusion to a group.
2) Apply Terrify to a group.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Applying Mass Confusion before Terrify provides safety from return attacks by the feared baddies. When the baddies do manage to get off an attack they will attack each other.
Note that if a Tank has aggro over a group it is safe to apply Terrify directly.
Clump Tactic
Powers used: Mass Confusion, Total Domination (optional), Terrify (optional)
1) Cast Mass Confuse on a group of baddies.
2) Allow baddies to clump together in a ball as they attack each other.
3) Cast Total Domination or Terrify on the group (optional).
4) Defeat baddies
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Mass Confusion can cause a group to clump together in a nice ball. This allows more efficient usage of AoEs that do not have Mass Confusion's wide area of effect.
Force Fields
-------------------- Level 1 --------------------
Mini-Tank Tactic
Powers used: Personal Force Field
1) Have team gather a safe distance from a powerful group.
2) Pass out bubbles to everyone (optional, but recommended if you have them).
3) Raise Personal Force Field and head to powerful group. Stand right next to a group member until you have their attention. Your Personal Force Field will protect you from harm.
4) Walk slowly back to team. Only some of the group members will follow you.
5) Team defeats all group members that follow you.
This tactic is effective for pulling off small groups from a large powerful group. Teammates can defeat the smaller groups one by one until the original group is dwindled down to a manageable size.
This tactic differs from a real Tank's herding in that goal is to pull smaller groups of the group rather than pulling many large group.
Personal Force Field will protect you from harm from at least to +3 baddies.
Hide In Plain Sight Tactic
Powers used: Personal Force Field
1) Raise Personal Force Field and walk through mission looking for hostages, bombs, what have you.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic is effective way to "stealth" a mission. The Controller is safe from the baddies inside his Personal Force Field. He can walk around the mission looking for key objects, such as glowies or hostages, without engaging with the mission baddies. They will attack him, but few of the attacks will hit the Controller inside his PFF.
Also note that the Controller can interact with objects like doors and glowies without having to lower the PFF.
Arrive Alive Tactic
Powers used: Personal Force Field
1) When traveling to missions and when entering and exiting missions, raise your personal Force Field.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
In many zones the act of traveling to the mission is often more dangerous than the mission itself. Traveling with Personal Force Field up greatly reduces the dangers of traveling through such zones.
Similarly, when first entering a mission or going up an elevator there is often a group waiting very near the door. Having Personal Force Field up before open the door or going up the elevator can be a real lifesaver.
Finally, when exiting a mission, there may be an ambush waiting. Having Personal Force Field up before exiting the mission protects you against any surprise attack.
Decoy Tactic
Powers used: Personal Force Field
1) When wounded or otherwise unable to take part in battle, raise Personal Force Field.
2) Stay in the battle zone and draw aggro from as many baddies as you can while you recover.
This tactic enables the caster to heal and draw baddies away from teammates at the same time. Properly done, you can draw the attention of a large portion of the baddies away from your team. Simply walk to any baddie not engaged with a teammate. This will draw their aggro.
Your teammates need to know they should not attack the baddies you have attacking you.
-------------------- Level 2 --------------------
Scrapper Tank Tactic
Powers used: Deflection Shield, Insulation Shield (Optional), Dispersion Bubble (Optional)
1) Cast Deflection Shield and optionally Insulation Shield on a Scrapper.
2) Scrapper herds like a tank, protected by the bubbles.
3) Optionally, wait at the herd location with Dispersion Bubble turned on to offer extra protection when the Scrapper arrives.
This tactic helps a Scrapper herd like a Tank. It gives him extra protection against the large number of baddies. When used with a good Scrapper, the Scrapper can herd just as well as a Tank.
This tactic will not magically enable a Scrapper who doesn't know how to herd to herd. A lot is based on the capabilities of the Scrapper.
This tactic can also be applied to Tanks, to enable them to herd larger numbers of baddies or higher levels of baddies.
-------------------- Level 4 --------------------
Lure Tactic
Powers used: Force Bolt, Personal Force Field
1) Have team gather a safe distance from a group.
2) Pass out bubbles to everyone (optional, but recommended if you have them).
3) Approach group to within distance of your Force Bolt and fire.
4) Raise Personal Force Field to protect you from the Alpha Strike of the pulled group. Once the Alpha Strike is complete, lower your PFF.
5) Team defeats all group members.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic will pull an entire group. It is useful for when the team wants to battle the group in a certain area and there is no Tank.
I've used this tactic to pull a powerful boss down from steep steps to an open flat area, and to pull a group out of a room full of groups in order to avoid accidentally drawing the other groups into battle.
-------------------- Level 28 --------------------
Line In The Sand Tactic
Powers used: Repulsion Field
1) Stand near a door or other small area that has baddies on one side and your team on the other.
2) Activate Repulsion Field to prevent baddies from entering the area where your team is.
This tactic is useful while soloing.
This tactic uses Repulsion Field to draw a "line in the sand" between your team and the baddies. This gives your team a safe area from which to attack or rest.
The tactic works best near a door, such as those found in the sewers.
Mind Control/Force Fields
-------------------- Level 4 --------------------
Follow The Bouncing Ball Tactic
Powers used: Levitate, Force Bolt
1) Knock back baddie with Force Bolt.
2) Lift and drop baddie with Levitate.
3) Repeat as needed.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
This tactic is useful for taking out a baddie from the battle. Using only these powers the baddie will never have time to attack the team.
It is especially useful for baddies who are resistant to sleeps and holds.
It is also useful when you or a team member is getting the worst of it from a powerful baddie. It really can be a lifesaver in these situations.
The cycle can be repeated for as long as needed, and it really is a blast to watch the baddie being pushed and tossed around the room totally helpless for an entire fight.
The downside to this tactic is it consumes the Controllers time completely while doing it, so you'll probably want to get back to your other duties once the baddie has been pushed a safe distance away.
-------------------- Level 6 --------------------
Walk The Pet Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Force Bolt
1) Save the last baddie from a defeated group. Confuse the baddie.
2) Use Force Bolt to push baddie into the next group located nearby.
This tactic is useful when soloing.
Sometimes when you've defeated a group your confused pet is still alive. Rather than spend time defeating it, use a Force Bolt to push him to a nearby group and continue fighting.
Walking your pet for long distances is usually not practical.
Feed The Pet Tactic
Powers used: Confuse, Force Bolt, Personal Force Field
1) Save the last baddie from a defeated group. Confuse the baddie.
2) Use the Lure tactic, posted previously, to bring a group to your pet.
This tactic is useful while soloing.
Sometimes when you've defeated a group your confused pet is still alive. Use the Lure tactic, posted previously, to bring a new group to your pet for him to fight.
-------------------- Level 8 --------------------
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Personal Force Field
For lockdown: Mass Hypnosis, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
Part i, The Herd
1) Examine mission layout. Find a corner that has no groups and is not in the line of sight of groups. If you are on a team, let them know where the herding location is. Also ensure they stay far enough away from it so as not to draw aggro.
2) Raise Personal Force Field.
3) Walk to group and draw aggro.
4) Repeat step 2 for as many groups as desired.
5) Walk to a corner, breaking line of sight with the groups, so all groups follow you.
This tactic is useful while soloing.
As a Mind/Force Field Controller you have the ability to herd and lockdown groups in a manner very much like a Tank.
The herding process consists of simply walking up to groups and drawing their aggro, protected by your Personal Force Field, then walking to the next group and so on. Once you have the number of groups you want, walk to a corner that breaks line of sight with the groups. This will draw all groups in to the corner.
It is important that teammates stay far enough away for the herding location as to not draw the aggro of the baddies you herd.
For more information on herding with force fields see WhisperWitch's Guide To Herding With Force Fields.
Part ii, The Lockdown
1) Raise Dispersion Bubble and any other protections you have that allow you to attack while they're in use. Stealth is an example, as would be the various shields that come in the Epic Power pools.
2) Target a baddie in the group.
3) Lower your Personal Force Field.
4) Lock down group with Mass Hypnosis
This is the delicate part of the operation. Once you lower your Personal Force Field you will be exposing yourself to some risk. You can try to time this with a lull in attacks by the baddies, if one exists. The use of defenses that allow you to attack while in use are helpful here.
The lockdown keeps all groups in place. After lockdown you can defeat the baddies one by one, or simply walk away, moving on to another part of the mission.
-------------------- Level 18 --------------------
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Personal Force Field
For lockdown: Mass Hypnosis, Total Domination, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 8 Herd tactic, but follows Mass Hypnosis with Total Domination. This allows the herd to be safely attacked with AoEs.
Power Leveling Tactic
Powers used:
Before Power Leveling starts: Deflection Shield (Optional), Insulation Shield (Optional)
After the herd has been gathered: Total Domination, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
1) Cast Deflection Shield and Insulation Shield on the team's Tank (optional). Raise Dispersion Bubble (optional).
2) Tank herds large number of baddies to a pre-defined location.
3) When the Tank gives signal, lock down baddies with Total Domination
4) Team defeats locked down baddies.
This tactic can be used while soloing (honest).
Power Leveling is a term that refers to a high level character using his skills to rapidly advance a much lower level character. Serious players generally frown upon power Leveling. However, the underlying tactic used is sound and extremely useful during serious play.
Using this tactic, the Tank will herd large numbers of baddies into a corner. Once he has them where he wants them, he'll let the rest of the team know. The second step is for the Mind Controller to lock down the baddies using Total Domination. The third step is to let Scrappers and Blasters defeat the locked down baddies. A player with healing skills is present to heal as needed.
The Mind/Force Field Controller gives bubbles to the Tank before he herds to allow him to grab larger herds. Once the herd is in place, the Mind/Force Field Controller locks down the group.
The XP gained from this tactic is impressive and missions are cleared at a very fast rate.
-------------------- Level 26 --------------------
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Personal Force Field
For lockdown: Mass Hypnosis, Terrify, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 8 Herd tactic, but follows Mass Hypnosis with Terrify. This allows the herd to be safely attacked with AoEs as well as causing damage to each individual in the herd.
Power Leveling Tactic
Powers used:
Before Power Leveling starts: Deflection Shield (Optional), Insulation Shield (Optional)
After the herd has been gathered: Terrify, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 18 Power Leveling tactic, except that Terrify is used instead of Total Domination.
-------------------- Level 32 --------------------
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Personal Force Field
For lockdown: Mass Confusion, Terrify, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 26 Herd tactic, but replaces Mass Hypnosis with Mass Confusion. This causes the herd to begin defeating itself. For greatest effect wait a few seconds before casting Terrify.
Power Leveling Tactic
Powers used:
Before Power Leveling starts: Deflection Shield (Optional), Insulation Shield (Optional)
After the herd has been gathered: Mass Confusion, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 18 Power Leveling tactic, except that Mass Confusion is used instead of Total Domination.
-------------------- Level 38 --------------------
Herd Tactic
Powers used:
For herding: Force Bubble
For lockdown: Mass Confusion, Terrify, Dispersion Bubble (optional).
This tactic is like the level 32 Herd tactic, but replaces Personal Force Field with Force Bubble. This allows for larger herds to be gathered, but requires the player to use at least 3 Luck inspirations before beginning the herding process.
That combo is just seriously sick, and is a perversion of gameplay mechanics. - Excelsio
The Infernal Challenge
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