Brute = SMASH! - An intro guide to the Brute AT
By
Frostweaver,
Posted on: 2005-11-02 16:45 in Player Guides
Awesome writeup...thanks!
Thanks you for the time and effort in posting this. Good job!
"Yes, Cajun, you CAN have a pony!" - Dusk Hammer (11/11/2008)
Thanks. You're welcome. Hope it helps folks out.
Thanks for answering my question about what creates Fury.
Malay SMASH
This is not a bump. This is me posting to say: I love Brutes.
As a CoH veteran but a CoV noob, this is most helpful. I'm loving my Brute so far! SMASH!
May the SMASH! be with you... always.
Yeah Foo.....
You da BOMB when it comes to Brutin' things up!
/e genuflects in Foo's general direction..... 
Pretty much new to CoV and the entire legacy. Spent too much time platying Matrix, Guildwars and some other games before I finally stumbled across this gem. I have two things to say one ah Love the flight been looking for a decent flying game forever. and two I love being a brute never saw a game do fury properly until now. *steps off the soapbox* thank you
This thread hasnt been added to in a while!!!
I have a Brute...and at times I have seen ridiculous nimbers pouring from the baddie HP loss. My Brute is Dark/Dark.
"SHE" can take a swarm of same level baddies and completely wipe them out......brushing the little bit of dust off her shoulder when she is done.
The Tactic
Getting aggro is a great thing for your brute, but can be damaging if your not careful. I find that the AOE is the best solution, with 2 Taunt and 1 ACC slots. The AOE doesnt do much in the beginng of a small group herd (10-14 baddies), but adds up with FURY. Smite may start at about 40neg 15smash, and end up the highest i have seen 225neg 80smash. Something that is EXCLUSIVE to Dark Melee is Soul Drain, the 20 second buff that the other brutes do not get. This adds more than enough to the FURY combo to one shot minions and two shot LTs (maul , smite).
I do have some questions.
Soul Drain does HOW much per baddie hit? 10% or 20%? I see the effect cap is 7.
Does soul drain add to the BASE....as in before the enhancements, AND before FURY build up?
Standard Maul hits about 14 neg 14 smash with 3 DAM enhancements no fury, and I have seen a peak of 56 neg 56 smash, which looks like about the 850% cap you speak of (7 neg 7 smash base).
SMASH!
Great guide, thanks 
A couple of important tips about The brute for people who have not played in a while:
Fury multiplies the BASE damage. That means with 3 damage so's (about 97%) and full fury (pretty much impossible) you will be doing nearly 400% of your base damage. not the 600% people wish if it worked against the enhanced totals.
Build up also works off the base damage. So full fury+build up + enhanced = about 470% of your base damage.
what this means is that damage enhancements, if you tend to run close to full fury, are worth only about a third of what they would be worth to anyone else that uses the power.
This is true for external buffs such as reds and fulcrum shift also.
Slotting wise, what this means is that you get less use out of damage than anyone else. So your priorities should change.
Depending on your secondary, the FIRST thing you should slot for is accuracy. every attack that misses is considered 100% wasted endurance. Even if you are fighting minions and only miss 25% of the time, that means you are blowing off 25% of your endurance AND mitigation in the form of defeated foes or other secondary attack effects EACH TIME YOU SWING
The second thing you should slot for is likely going to be endurance reduction. EVERY brute has endurance problems, no matter what your set... and that includes /wp and sets with an endo drain.
Thirdly, make each shot COUNT. recharge reduction increases your damage output enormously due to fury gained as well as simply the damage involved. you have a lovely damage per-shot multiplier, so more attacks=more fury and more dead foes. Not to mention, once again, that almost every attack set except fire has a secondary effect that can help you live or fight longer. More attacks = more secondary effects.
Only when you have your wiffs and end under control should you worry about damage, and goe for efficiency instead of sheer numbers. If the first two IO's get you 78% damage and that third IO would only net you 13%, skip it. use the slot to add end reduction or accuracy or even put it on some other power for better mitigation
remember, that 13%, in brute terms, is only about 4% to every other AT... worth it for a set bonus, perhaps, but not worth an entire slot of it's own.
Also remember that endurance reducers should be used first on your smallest powers, the fillers like brawl or boxing. You use these ALL the time, and the big attacks only rarely, so save your endurance in the long run... slot end reducers into your little attacks first! And slot attacks for end reducers BEFORE defenses/toggles or passives, especially the little ones. The life you save could be your own.
also remember that build-up, while nice for accuracy, only adds about 24% to your full fury damage, or 18% if you have slotted for full damage. That makes build-up an easily skipped power on many brute builds, since that's less than a tiny red inspiration, and it doesn't even last as long.
Also remember that, on a brute with full fury, if you can afford the end to turn on your damage shield against more than one opponent, TURN IT ON! fully enhanced and at full fury it's doing about 4 times it's base damage, which means it does almost as much as a tanker's smallest attack EVERY SECOND to everything around you... highly efficient damage, to say the least!
So remember... SMASH happens! the Hulk doesn't need a gun to help him do damage!
That's a great point. I'd forgotten how much more important Acc/End/REch are compared to Damage.
I'm working on an SS/WP build. Would you recommend slotting out the attacks as follows
Punch: 1ACC/1END/1RECH/1DAM
Haymaker: 1ACC/1END/2RECH/1DAM
KO Blow: 1ACC/1END/2RECH/1DAM
Assuming those are all either IO's or SO's, would you recommend any changes? Also, is it worth slotting brawl with anything more than a single ACC?
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A couple of important tips about The brute for people who have not played in a while:
Fury multiplies the BASE damage. That means with 3 damage so's (about 97%) and full fury (pretty much impossible) you will be doing nearly 400% of your base damage. not the 600% people wish if it worked against the enhanced totals.
Build up also works off the base damage. So full fury+build up + enhanced = about 470% of your base damage.
what this means is that damage enhancements, if you tend to run close to full fury, are worth only about a third of what they would be worth to anyone else that uses the power.
This is true for external buffs such as reds and fulcrum shift also.
Slotting wise, what this means is that you get less use out of damage than anyone else. So your priorities should change.
Depending on your secondary, the FIRST thing you should slot for is accuracy. every attack that misses is considered 100% wasted endurance. Even if you are fighting minions and only miss 25% of the time, that means you are blowing off 25% of your endurance AND mitigation in the form of defeated foes or other secondary attack effects EACH TIME YOU SWING
The second thing you should slot for is likely going to be endurance reduction. EVERY brute has endurance problems, no matter what your set... and that includes /wp and sets with an endo drain.
Thirdly, make each shot COUNT. recharge reduction increases your damage output enormously due to fury gained as well as simply the damage involved. you have a lovely damage per-shot multiplier, so more attacks=more fury and more dead foes. Not to mention, once again, that almost every attack set except fire has a secondary effect that can help you live or fight longer. More attacks = more secondary effects.
Only when you have your wiffs and end under control should you worry about damage, and goe for efficiency instead of sheer numbers. If the first two IO's get you 78% damage and that third IO would only net you 13%, skip it. use the slot to add end reduction or accuracy or even put it on some other power for better mitigation
remember, that 13%, in brute terms, is only about 4% to every other AT... worth it for a set bonus, perhaps, but not worth an entire slot of it's own.
Also remember that endurance reducers should be used first on your smallest powers, the fillers like brawl or boxing. You use these ALL the time, and the big attacks only rarely, so save your endurance in the long run... slot end reducers into your little attacks first! And slot attacks for end reducers BEFORE defenses/toggles or passives, especially the little ones. The life you save could be your own.
also remember that build-up, while nice for accuracy, only adds about 24% to your full fury damage, or 18% if you have slotted for full damage. That makes build-up an easily skipped power on many brute builds, since that's less than a tiny red inspiration, and it doesn't even last as long.
Also remember that, on a brute with full fury, if you can afford the end to turn on your damage shield against more than one opponent, TURN IT ON! fully enhanced and at full fury it's doing about 4 times it's base damage, which means it does almost as much as a tanker's smallest attack EVERY SECOND to everything around you... highly efficient damage, to say the least!
So remember... SMASH happens! the Hulk doesn't need a gun to help him do damage!
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This is an excellent addition to this guide.
Welcome to the Brute AT!
First thing to know:
Brutes = SMASH!!!
That's all you *really* need to know. Get out there, start hitting things, get overcome with Fury and go on a rampage.
For those interested in more details:
How Fury works
Fury provides a +200% damage boost. That means that at full Fury, a Brute does 3x base damage.
Geko sez:
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Each time you click attack or are attacked, your Fury will increase (Click AoE and PBAoE attacked do not count more than a single target click attack).
Each time a foe attacks you, you gain some Fury.
It does not matter if you hit or do damage. It does not matter if your foe hits you or does damage to you. Its purely based on directed attacks.
Dropped entities, like a Burn Patch or ice slick, do not add to your Fury.
Your Toggle Auras do not add to your Fury (no matter if they are damage or debuff). Currently, enemy toggle, auto powers and dropped entities (like enemy blazing aura, Ice storms, fire or burn patches) DO add to your Fury. This is NOT supposed to happen and will be fixed.
What does Fury do?
The more Fury you have (indicated by the Bar under your endurance bar), the more damage you do. Fury multiplies your base damage up to 3 times your base damage when your bar is full.
The more Fury you have, the harder it is to gain Fury (as your Fury rate increases, each attack is worth less, so you have to work harder to maintain max fury).
Fury decays at a constant, steady rate.
When you are fighting a Boss or higher rank foe, you will gain Fury at a faster rate (twice as fast). If you are fighting an Arch Villain, giant monster (or equivalent) or player, you will gain Fury even faster (3 times as fast). This can go up to 4 times as fast with multiple high ranked foes (say 3 bosses, or an AV and a Boss).
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Fury is based on attempted attacks you make, or made against you, not hits or damage.
More about Fury generation...
Geko sez:
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Recharge times for different melee power sets really wont cause much of a difference in Fury (once the next few adjustments in power sets comes out).
Once you get about 4 single target attacks, along with brawl, there really is no wait time between attacks.
Additionally, although continued aggressive behavior (attacking) is necessary to maintain Fury, the amount of Fury you gain from getting attacked is far greater. Attacking is just necessary to maintain Fury and agro.
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Now, personally, I find that attacking is very much a part of Fury generation. The only time when I get more Fury from being attacked is when I am surrounded. Against one or two enemies, or slow-attacking enemies, youll need to keep punching to build Fury.
Best practices:
-Set Brawl on Auto-activate (CTRL+CLICK).
-Cycle your lowest damage attacks first. I start from Brawl, Jab, Punch, Haymaker, and repeat as they're available.
-save your big hits for after Fury has built. The exact amount is up to you. I find with 0.5 (out of 1.0) Fury, that a 3 DAM SO slotted-KO Blow can one-shot any even-con minion.
-dont be afraid to leave an almost-dead minion alive now and then while you beat up his still-healthy friends. Minions are pretty harmless, and the extra Fury will help you take out his buddies or Lt/Boss faster!
Tank or Scrapper?
Neither and both!
Geko sez:
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Actually, brute defense values are the same as scrappers, but they have slightly more HP. They do much less base damage than a scrapper, but have higher potential damage with Fury.
As with all archetypes, this becomes most apparent at level 20 and beyond.
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Brutes are NOT Tanks
Read this and understand this. Brutes, while tougher than Scrappers, are not meant to be aggro-holding meatshields. A Brute is very much an offensive AT. Fury is what a Brute is about.
Brutes have more HP than Scrappers, but quite a bit less than Tanks, and their defenses run on Scrapper-like numbers, not Tank numbers.
That said, Brutes can Tank pretty well, and are actually quite resillient. Brutes also have a single-target taunt in their attacks, Taunt Auras, and the same AoE Taunt ability that Tanks have (though it comes later in, despite being in the Primary pool).
Do not expect a Brute to be your bodyguard. Chances are, you want them busting heads instead of babysitting.
Who's the Brute rep?
His name is Jonyu, and he is mighty.
Jonyu sez:
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Greetings Brutes!
I just wanted to introduce myself. I will be the Archetype representative for Brutes and I hope to address any issues and concerns with the Brute. Just to give you a little background information about myself, I currently have a level 23 Dark/Fire Brute on the beta. I am a part of the powers team and I work directly under Geko, who some of you may already know from such great shows as the Great Geko Nerf of 2003, the Great Geko Nerf of 2004 and, of course, the Great Geko Nerf of 2005. Ive been playing online RPGs for a long time dating back to my MUDing days in college. Ive had max level characters on Everquest, Anarchy Online, and World of WarCraft. I generally have a preference for melee classes so Im very happy to serve the role as Brute representative. Oh, and one final word before I go...SMASH!
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Jonyu has been very good, and took feedback regarding the power progression in Fiery Aura into account, giving /Fire Brutes access to Plasma Shield (their Hold/Sleep protection) at 16 instead of 20.
NUMBERS (Beware!!)
What you've all been waiting for! Raw data to read until your eyes bleed!
Damage
The Brute damage cap is 850%.
According to Jonyu, a Scrapper has a maximum damage potential of 6.00, factoring in Criticals. Brute damage at cap was 5.95, but has recently received a bump. The current number is estimated to be 6.00 as well, meaning that a Scrapper with crits, and a Brute at full Fury should do similar damage.
Sidenote:
The Brute damage base is 0.75.
Circeus offers the following:
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Which means...
Brutes look like this:
0.75 Base
+200% Fury
+100% BuildUp
+113.5% Enhancements (6 Damage)
%Buffs: 413.5% (of 750% needed to cap)
Total: (0.75 * (1 + 413.5%)) = 3.85125 out of 6.375
Remaining Buffs needed to cap: 336.5%
(0.75 * (1 + 413.5% + 336.5%)) = 6.375
Now, before Scrappers get up in arms that potentially Brutes will be able to out-damage Scrappers, please notice the following:
Scrappers: Remaining Buffs needed to cap: 186.5%
This means that a Brute needs 1.8 times the number of buffs that a Scrapper does to achieve their maximum damage.
Or to simplify the above statement: Under the same conditions, a Scrapper is going to hit their maximum damage well before a Brute does.
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HP
To give you an idea:
Scrapper HP without Dull Pain at 29: 876.11
Brute HP without Dull Pain at level 29: 981.2
Tanker HP without Dull Pain at 29: 1226.56
As you can see, Brutes have a good deal more HP than Scrappers, but are a good distance behind Tanks.
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Ill update this if more information comes to light. Thanks to Circs big brain for the concise damage numbers.