Would like to say that with my experience with sonic/sonic, slotting Liquefy with anything other than debuffs is kind of pointless. Liquefy may get bad reviews because it's control options (hold and knockdown) aren't that great, which they aren't, but the thing can debuff and it'll do it good. 
And for defenders, I find since our health is so low anyway, you really only need one heal slot in Health.
You got a good point there actually, haven't hit that yet so I was just spitballing far's that goes. The Planner's got it with a -15% base to Accuracy, so I'm thinking of replacing the Hold Durations with ToHit: Accuracy Debuffs. Have to see how it goes! If it's akin to Choking Cloud it won't work too hot on Holding Bosses or Lts. at all.
Far's Health goes, I'm still going to threeslot it. It all works on percentages so one slot still heals decidedly less than three. Seeing as the only heal this'll have is Aid Self, any extra regen rate is effectively even more Damage Resistance. Net effect stacks nicely.
"I'm flying free with my beautiful butterfly wings!" ~ Randy Marsh
Some thoughts on your build from a 40 Son/Son...
You've got too much EndRdx in there. For comparison, I have 2 EndRdx in Sonic Dispersion, Disruption Field, Assault and Tactics... *and* I run without Stamina.
Skipping Howl, IMO, is a big mistake. Howl is what you use to -res debuff the entire spawn, not just one target. Aid Other at 41 and Aid Self at 43? Why bother? Get them early or don't bother, I'd say. Oh, and Aid Self is kinda meh anyway. I generally play up front with the melees, and don't have health problems. On the rare occasions I take a few hits, that's what greens are for.
Siren's is for Sleeping. Slot Sleep enhancers rather than damage. I also like to slip a range in there as well.
Gotta take Shout. Short range or not, it's a big smackdown, and who doesn't like a big smackdown. I like 1 Acc, 3 Dam, 2 Range slotting on it myself - you can use it at a fairly reasonable range then.
I think 1 IntRdx is plenty on Aid Other, but other people swear by 2 - *shrug* that gives me room to slot some Recharge in there, because Aid Other comes back pretty slow.
As Vert said above, slot Liquify 3 x ToHit Debuff, then add Recharges to taste.
Finally, if you're going the Hover/Fly route, why not Swift? Swift can speed up Hover and Fly, while Hurdle gives you squat.
Glad ya mentioned the Planners being way off for Sonics, it'd been nagging me for a while that I was doing more damage than I "should" be.
Shout was just too subjective (read: rarely fired in a fight) to warrant taking, using Howl frequently would make Siren's Sleep pointless, and Siren's is spammable as it is right out of the gate. S'why I went with what I did. It's all set to hit at 70'+ aside from Dreadful Wail and Liquefy. You can Hover snipe and actively use every non-teammate power in the build.
Medicine I took for utility since there is no Epic Sonic set. Continuity reasons usually make me hate having to take an Epic that seems totally out of place. Lacks finesse.
Endurance Reductions and Liquefy are the main things I'm changing, DEFINITELY getting the 3 ToHit: Debuffs.
So here's the revised:
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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
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Name: Name ?
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Rechg(13)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)Rechg(9)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
06) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(6)DefDeBuf(15)DmgRes(17)
08) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(8)EndRdx(9)
10) --> Hover==> Fly(10)Fly(11)Fly(11)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12)EndRdx(13)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(23)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14)Fly(46)Fly(46)
16) --> Swift==> Run(16)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)Heal(40)Heal(43)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22)EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24)EndRdx(25)TH_Buf(25)TH_Buf(27)TH_Buf(27)
26) --> Clarity==> Range(26)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28)Acc(29)Dmg(29)Dmg(31)Dmg(31)Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30)Rechg(34)Rechg(37)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32)TH_DeBuf(33)TH_DeBuf(33)TH_DeBuf(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)Rechg(37)Range(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(41)DefBuf(42)DefBuf(42)Heal(42)Heal(43)Heal(43)
44) --> Aid Other==> Heal(44)Heal(45)Heal(45)IntRdx(45)IntRdx(46)
47) --> Aid Self==> Heal(47)Heal(48)Heal(48)IntRdx(48)IntRdx(50)
49) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(49)Rechg(50)Rechg(50)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
---------------------------------------------
"I'm flying free with my beautiful butterfly wings!" ~ Randy Marsh
Ehh, if you're going to post a build with the intention of other people using it, I'd suggest you steer clear of taking dump powers instead of epics for story purposes. The idea behind posting a build generally is to display new combinations that one finds to have exceptional synergy...
Of course, your mileage may vary...
All that is planned fails. All that is born dies.
All that is built crumbles. This will always be true.
But memories remain, And that is beautiful.
Snarky bastards aside, I have leveled this and with I8 had the following changes. Shout is now in, due to the soon to be Live range changes. It's not horrid for range now, really, but having the base doubled is quite nice. It's also set up to fly very early what with the Hover speed increase and Swift upping that. Sooner you're out of melee the safer you are. There is still no added AoE damage (Siren's Song) or AoE -Res debuff (Disruption Field). After having bad luck with Howl getting me killed due to retarded aggro Tankers, I gave up on it. Being one of the keystone defense ATs on the team, it is NOT good if you die often. I find I do better concentrating big singletarget damage on the truly dangerous mobs such as Spectral Daemon Lords or the Bosses. With them dead it's just mopup with your fully shielded team doing so in relative safety. Minions in general are no match for shielded Heroes. Solo this's pretty much unstoppable after you get Siren's Song. Sleep/Disorient the group with Song and Screech, then rip it in half with Shout, Shriek, and Scream. About three hits to kill a Lt. if you Siphon it. Just be aware which mobs resist Sleep effects, those you'll have to be wary of.
Pay no attention to the plebe touting you must take an APP. That's total silliness, you can get much more mileage out of Power Pools if you take the right ones for the style you wish to play. Forgive me if I don't agree with everyone having to be glowing pink scream queens.
Solo ability and more damage is what the APPs predominantly give, not team friendliness. A good deal of the Defender APPs are duplicated at best on teams, and as pointed out many a time the shields without complete mez protection are quite useless when dropped. They DO ramp up damage a lot with the exception of Psi (more control which Sonics already HAS), but I'd still rather be able to Vengeance if anyone dies and prevent that team wipe. Seeing as Sonics are so rare to begin with, why would you pick an APP when you get more flexibility just from taking powers from your Primary or Secondary? Think before you have a kneejerk.
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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder - (http://sherksilver.coldfront.net/index.php)
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Name: Sable Shrike
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
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01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1) Acc(48)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(9) Rechg(11)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2) Dmg(3) Dmg(5) Dmg(9) Rechg(11) Rechg(13)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4) DmgRes(15) DmgRes(43)
06) --> Hover==> Fly(6) Fly(7) Fly(7) EndRdx(25)
08) --> Swift==> Run(8)
10) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(10) DmgRes(15) DmgRes(45)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12) EndRdx(13) DmgRes(34) DmgRes(37) DmgRes(40)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14) Fly(50) Fly(50)
16) --> Shout==> Acc(16) Dmg(17) Dmg(17) Dmg(19) Rechg(19) Rechg(21)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20) EndMod(21) EndMod(23)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22) EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24) EndRdx(25) TH_Buf(46) TH_Buf(48) TH_Buf(48)
26) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(26) EndRdx(27) EndRdx(27)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28) Acc(29) Dmg(29) Dmg(31) Dmg(31) Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30) Rechg(46) Rechg(46)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32) TH_DeBuf(33) TH_DeBuf(33) TH_DeBuf(33) Rechg(34) Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35) DisDur(36) DisDur(36) DisDur(36) Rechg(37) Rechg(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38) Dmg(39) Dmg(39) Rechg(39) Rechg(40) Rechg(40)
41) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(41) DefBuf(42) DefBuf(42) Heal(42) Heal(43) Heal(43)
44) --> Sonic Repulsion==> EndRdx(44) EndRdx(45) EndRdx(45)
47) --> Sonic Cage==> Acc(47) Acc(50)
49) --> Clarity==> Rechg(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Run(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
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"I'm flying free with my beautiful butterfly wings!" ~ Randy Marsh
As far as single target goes is sonic siphon really worth it? If you are getting the leadership pool wont it all even out. Siphon doesn't fit very well in my attack chain and I don't really see much difference when using it. Also i still have some endr issues being the team bubbler/ buffer.
Siphon is a great power. The defender version will drop an even level enemy's damage resistance by 30%. Disruption field does 30% and the damaging sonic attacks do 20%. That means you can drop a target's damage resistance by 80%. Getting a boost to gross damage by your team on your target of that much is pretty excellent. Even just 30% is great. Sure a 10 point attack doing 13 doesn't seem like much. But taking out an enemy faster over the course of your defender career adds up. And when that 100 point blaster attack does 130, you notice.
Thanks for taking the time for the info and build. My only thoughts would be in Veng. I would slot for Recharge and Defense. It works pretty well.
@MarvelatMee and @COL Burn
24 - 50s
Too many ALTs
[ QUOTE ]
Siphon is a great power. The defender version will drop an even level enemy's damage resistance by 30%. Disruption field does 30% and the damaging sonic attacks do 20%. That means you can drop a target's damage resistance by 80%. Getting a boost to gross damage by your team on your target of that much is pretty excellent. Even just 30% is great. Sure a 10 point attack doing 13 doesn't seem like much. But taking out an enemy faster over the course of your defender career adds up. And when that 100 point blaster attack does 130, you notice.
[/ QUOTE ]
I have to dispute taking this power at all - let alone calling it "great". The question is when do you use it? If you cast it on the boss first you've missed the chance to debuff the entire mob before a lot of your team's first aoe attacks. If you don't you've missed the chance to use it on the boss before it's down to about 60% health anyway. From a purely mathematical point of view it makes little sense when you can use an aoe attack to start and then wail on the boss with actual damage that gives a 20% -res anyway (for less time, but then nothing short of an AV lasts very long in a fight really). And Siphon has an activation time of over 2s, which is a relatively long gap between the activation of other far more useful powers. Given that your other attacks debuff for 2/3 of what this power does, it's virtually redundant over 90% of the time. Almost whenever you use it you'd have been better off using a damaging attack or something else entirely. Against an AV it would be worth using because the fight will last a while. When soloing it is obviously more useful for the same reason (and because you get to use it before all your other attacks), but still even when soloing it will only have a marginal edge over starting with damage from the off when fighting very tough opponents.
A little maths to make my point:
Counting 1 as the average damage from one of your damaging attacks and assuming that each debuff from a damaging attack only lasts long enough for the next 2 attacks:
Without siphon your dmg goes like this:
1+1.2+1.4+1.4+1.4+1.4
for totals:
1, 2.2, 3.6, 5, 6.4, 7.8
With Siphon:
0+1.3+1.5+1.7+1.7+1.7
for totals:
0, 1.3, 2.8, 4.5, 6.2, 7.9
Great, but the vast majority of mobs don't last until the 6th power activation, and Siphon actually has a slower activation time than most of your damaging attacks, which in practical terms reduces the speed of damage after it, and the above maths only applies to give you an advantage against the tougher mobs in the nice controlled soloing environment where no attacks will hit before the siphon.
In short as the power stands now I'd pick Barrier first. Of the 6 powers to pick from during levels 1-4 Siphon is by far the worst.
If they wanted to make this non-situational they could have made it an aoe effect with relatively small radius (say 5 feet) and it would have been a usable power even if only half the effect radiated to the mobs other than the actual target.
Alternatively they could have made it (also) buff your own resistance (probably in a non-stackable manner). At least then it would live up to the "siphon" part of its name.
Anyone have a good idea for a sonic/mental defender build?
Member of The Stoned Templars
"If you can't eat it or smoke it, I'm not paying $100 for it" - Cherry Cupcakes
K, of note is this is a BUILD, not a guide. This is just one version that seems to work well for me. I built him as a nighthawk type critter, though it'd easily make sense for a bat person.
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Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
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Name: Anvil Hawk
Level: 50
Archetype: Defender
Primary: Sonic Resonance
Secondary: Sonic Blast
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01) --> Sonic Siphon==> Acc(1)
01) --> Shriek==> Acc(1)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)EndRdx(46)
02) --> Scream==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(5)Dmg(7)EndRdx(43)
04) --> Sonic Barrier==> DmgRes(4)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
06) --> Sonic Haven==> DmgRes(6)DmgRes(15)DmgRes(17)
08) --> Disruption Field==> EndRdx(8)EndRdx(9)EndRdx(9)
10) --> Hover==> Fly(10)Fly(11)Fly(11)
12) --> Sonic Dispersion==> EndRdx(12)EndRdx(13)EndRdx(13)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(19)DmgRes(23)
14) --> Fly==> Fly(14)Fly(46)Fly(50)
16) --> Hurdle==> Jump(16)
18) --> Health==> Heal(18)Heal(40)Heal(43)
20) --> Stamina==> EndMod(20)EndMod(21)EndMod(21)
22) --> Assault==> EndRdx(22)EndRdx(23)
24) --> Tactics==> EndRdx(24)EndRdx(25)TH_Buf(25)TH_Buf(27)TH_Buf(27)
26) --> Clarity==> Range(26)
28) --> Siren's Song==> Acc(28)Acc(29)Dmg(29)Dmg(31)Dmg(31)Range(31)
30) --> Amplify==> Rechg(30)Rechg(34)Rechg(37)
32) --> Liquefy==> Acc(32)Hold(33)Hold(33)Hold(33)Rechg(34)Rechg(34)
35) --> Screech==> Acc(35)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)DisDur(36)Rechg(37)Range(37)
38) --> Dreadful Wail==> Dmg(38)Dmg(39)Dmg(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Aid Other==> Heal(41)Heal(42)Heal(42)IntRdx(42)IntRdx(43)
44) --> Aid Self==> Heal(44)Heal(45)Heal(45)IntRdx(45)IntRdx(46)
47) --> Vengeance==> DefBuf(47)DefBuf(48)DefBuf(48)Heal(48)Heal(50)Heal(50)
49) --> Resuscitate==> Rechg(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> Empty(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Empty(1)
01) --> Vigilance==> Empty(1)
02) --> Rest==> Empty(2)
---------------------------------------------
You'll notice I skipped anything shortrange, and all AoE but Siren's Song and Dreadful Wail. This was intentional. You're going to be the keystone for the Squishy Wing of your team, meaning you wanna stay in back with them. No real point in taking super shortrange stuff as you'll rarely get to use it. There's also no point in taking the other AoE since it'll ruin the Sleep on your Siren's Song. Just use Song to lock the group down whenever it's up, and kill them safely one at a time with your singletarget. You can just Hover out of melee and do this really easily on most things, though Vahzilok and a few others are a pain as they resist Sleep.
Anchor your debuff aura on the lead melee guy on the team, keep cranking Sonic Siphon, and you can easily hit 75% or more -Resistance on the target you're attacking. Bosses kinda just wither up and die, and Monsters go down with a lot less people than'd normally be needed to kill them.
You'll wanna Siren's Song a spawn at least once before you kick off Amplify and fry em with Dreadful Wail. Softening them up with your lockdown'll make sure that every single one's killed by Wail.
Anyways! In closing ya can probably land three Sonic attacks before the first one's -Res debuff starts to fade. That's 45% off resistance, add in 23% or so for Sonic Siphon, and if they're in Disruption Field that's another 15% for a grand total of 83% Resistance Debuff on a single target. Assault adds in 19.5% offense for a net gain of 102.5% to the entire teams' damage. Basically it's a Build Up for everyone once you get rolling. Other sets come close for AoE -Res debuffs, but Sonic's still the nastiest for singletarget.
You'll probably get mobbed with /tells if you take the time to get this sucker high enough to start hitting AVs in missions.
"I'm flying free with my beautiful butterfly wings!" ~ Randy Marsh