PB benefits are discussed elsewhere, but the short version is: Dull Pain, Unstop, BU, Thunderstrike, Heal Other, Conserve Power, Self Heal, Phase, Nukes, Retarded pets that will add up dmg wise if they hit something at once (or if their AI was improved in I9) are all great aspects that a Peacebringer brings to the table in CoX Player vs Player situations.
[u]Peacebringing Love:[u]
PBs get improved dmg for each defender or tank on team
Kheldian #'s:
+20% dmg for each dmg buffing AT teammate within 300ft. With just 3 Defenders on team and in range, a PB can have a perma 60% +dmg buff. The PB dmg buff also comes from having a tank on the team.
-Tidbit: *Warshades receive +dmg from having blasters and/or scrappers on team!
Now, the negative which jumps out to me *is* the 300ft range requirement for nice Cosmic Balance, but looking at the teams we commonly roll with now, it's rare not to have 2 Defenders, and highly likely to have 3-6. Assuming an average of 4 defenders, when the PB is range, they wind up with [u]constant 80% +dmg[u]. Damage wise, that's better than two Defender Vengeances or two Defender Forts.
The usual/prime team for this PB:
2 Empathy Defenders
2 Kinetic Defenders
1 Rad Defender
2 Blasters
1 Peacebringer
the last spot where the PB is at has been the place of a Sonic, FF, another rad, kin, or more rarely, a blaster or emp. That sounds like a wealth of options, and it is, but [u]first compare the PB to a tank[u]. Remember that there was a time when tanks never died. Ok, that may have been in perma unstop, super hami, pre-ED days, but it was there. That time may also still be seen to exist presently in many matches, when we have been [u]unable to take out a tank, with 3+ damage dealers[u]. And more often than not, that's with one rad/psy on team, where you'd think Psy Blasts and -res would cut through the tank easily. But it was not to be so.
So why did these tanks bother us enough to kill them off? Taunt. With the right build, including Dwarf Form, a PB can have virtually the same 3 taunts as a tank, just with lower PvP scalars. Still, they have better scalars than a [u]scrapper's taunt in PvP[u]. Scalars are what causes taunt durations to fluctuate over lvls, or vary across ATs (i.e. Controller secondary scalars are lower than Defender primary's = 'Conts at 80% of Defender buffs/debuffs'.).
Now in comparing the PB to a tank, we can find similarity in taunt, and obviously in survivability. Or maybe not so obviously, to some. With the PB, we find Essence Boost, which acts as Dull Pain. +HP is the greatest 'resistance' buff in the game, it counters ALL. PBs have Light Form, which for all intents and purposes, is Unstop. The nice thing about Light Form, is that it [u]eliminates rooting[u]. Remember why everyone took Whirlwind? There you go. PBs in human form also have access to fine sm/lethal/ energy/neg energy and fire/cold shields, as well as a decent Inherent for +res to energy and negative energy.
The part where the PB can easily be seen as [u]*better than a Tanker*[u] is with Dwarf Form. Slotted up, you have something that's got more than 55% +res to all dmg, except Psy, built-in teleport, a self heal just like Reconstruction, a 75% increase to base health (this stacks with Essence Boost too), some more +recovery, and three lame attacks. So, with Essence Boost and Dwarf Form going, you basically turn into a tank in Unstop, with 3 attacks that won't do much, but virtually as much survivability, not too far away from dmg +res caps. Something else to mention is Reform Essence, which is ANOTHER Reconstruction/self heal for you, in Human Form, acting far faster than Aid Self ever would.
Now, [u]compare the PB to a blaster[u]. A Peacebringer may not have the glorious range of a /EM blaster, or Power Boost from the same set, or Aim, or a plethora of solid ranged attacks, but it DOES have two great melee hitters. That is, Radiant Strike, and Incandescent Strike. Comparable to a faster, more damage Bonesmasher, and Total Focus. These deal similar mixtures of smashing and energy damage, and also have -fly, knockback and -defense built in. Sadly, no disorients, but Incandescent Strike does have a hold component.
Really, the human form blasts pretty much suck, not great animations with poor bad dmg, but Gleaming Blast is most comparable to high end PvP blasting, with it having *more dmg than Fireball* for .67 longer animation. All of the blasts are also pure energy dmg. You get two good AoEs in Solar Flare which has over a 2 sec animation, but dmg wise is a good bit better than Fireball too. Dawn Strike acts as your nuke. All the blasts come with -defense as well. Wouldn't count dwarf form for dmg at all, but an AoE and two single targets there are better than nothing. And, of course, PBs get lovable Build Up. Even considering 'subpar' dmg here, with 20-80% +dmg for GB alone, things look pretty good.
Lastly, look at the [u]Peacebringer Extra's[u]. These are things that are cutouts from other sets, and generally add a whole extra dimension to things. First, Conserve Power. Yay, no endurance problems! Take a gander at Glowing Touch. This is a watered down version of Heal Other that does the same Ally Heal, but does so from a measly 30 feet. Otherwise, the same excellent 4 second recharge, wishy washy end cost, and 2.27 animation time. Slotted for heals and range, you get a [u]lifesaver[u]. O2 Boost has, since I6 been a reason for Storm's return to teams, and a factor in why killing someone on a stormie team can be so difficult.
Enter Quantum Flight and Energy Flight. Quantum acts as a suped up Fly, that puts you into phase at the same time. Bingo, lifesaver, and an insta-escape from the Unstop/Light Form crash. Energy Flight makes the arena Raptor Pack seem like a joke, and can pay off BIG time in outdoor maps. Someone trying to pull off a snipe from above? Go say hello with your nifty travel abilities. You've got Combat Flight, which is Hover, and with 2 SBs that could be fast too. QF also costs a lot less than it once does, and on this team, there's 2 RAs, 2 SBs and an AM available, as well as you having CP. Also something worth mentioning is [u]Group Energy Flight[u]. Who knows? Maybe team travel will eventually have a lot more presedence, in which case, this'd be usable.
Bonjour Photon Seekers... and Pulsar. PS are those 3 summonable pets with the gimpy AI, but still high dmg. Imagine summoning those into a group that's gathered, or is starting up buffs. Then slap on Pulsar, an AoE disorient. Ok, maybe Pulsar is a wash, and many would say PS are, but still they both have viability, and PS do provide 3 more targets, and in the world of *no macros (or gignore)*, that means a lot.
PBs can then still pick up the lovely Leaping line, speed for Hasten and SS, Fitness for Stamina and better movement, and can even get Leadership if they so desired. Leadership not looking so great since you want Dwarf Form if just for an extra taunt and bonus tp, but could still be nice, and if you look at the debuff/buff icons, self Leadership acts as a GREAT way to see if you're in range of the Defenders (or anyone) on your team, and gauge your increased stats accordingly.
A PB on this team acts as something better than a tank, except for no FA (but then some don't even have that, and Forts can eliminate that worry), as a ghetto blaster, as a really cheap healer, and as someone to just annoy the other team with a plethora of different powers. Having 2 SBs would mean fine taunting ability, and you could keep summoning PSes as you pleased.
A negative for PBs is also found in transitioning between human and dwarf form, and just living through Dwarf Form transformation animation sometimes. There are many many many ways in which the streamlined ATs are better, but considering the potential +dmg, +dmg resistance (from Scraps and Blasts) and even less vulnerability to mez (thanks to conts), having a PB on board can be a lot better than having, say, a tanker, a poor blaster, or an emp/blast/tank that will just get caged the whole time.
So, see someone being wailed on? Well, you can choose to heal your buddy back up, taunt the fiend, or even go in for the kill on your enemy, with scary melee attacks and a halfway blast, or by summoning a trio of mini nukes!
Going back to the top team, you have 5 defs and 2 blasts, the 2 blasts might as well cap the PB's +res no matter what (10% +res to ALL a piece), and 5 defs ups the PB's +dmg % chances even more. There have been great teams that worked in a tank in that last spot, or teams that have foregone a rad or 2 kins for multiple tanks. The Freaks vritually always did well with 2+ tanks in matches too, albeit those were usually larger.
The build I would use for this is a lot tighter on slots than I anticipated, but removing Fitness for more options, and fuller slots on some things = with HOs:
Now, the Dwarf heal isn't slotted sadly, and the human heal doesn't have the hottest recharge around, but you do have QF, although that is removable for something else just fine.
Having a PB on the team fills in some gaps, and adds to what other team members are bringing to the table.
Actually looking over it, I really dislike this idea, I'd pick a Sonic over a PB any of the week. This concept does have merits though, and might as well have everyone be able to see them. The ranged ally heal, taunt abilities, [u]survivability[u] and fine dmg are the real attractions here though, which combined with Cosmic Balance, make the PB a solid addition to the team, if they know what they're doing, and if the team can try to stay together. If/when sonics decline, or against certain teams, a PB may add a lot more, and because of all of the above, it would be very interesting to see how one does in a group setting.
[u]Sing's Guide to Peacebringing Love:[u]
Even considering 'subpar' dmg here, with 20-80% +dmg for GB alone, things look pretty good.
[u]Forward:[u]
PB benefits are discussed elsewhere, but the short version is: Dull Pain, Unstop, BU, Thunderstrike, Heal Other, Conserve Power, Self Heal, Phase, Nukes, Retarded pets that will add up dmg wise if they hit something at once (or if their AI was improved in I9) are all great aspects that a Peacebringer brings to the table in CoX Player vs Player situations.
[u]Peacebringing Love:[u]
PBs get improved dmg for each defender or tank on team
Kheldian #'s:
+20% dmg for each dmg buffing AT teammate within 300ft. With just 3 Defenders on team and in range, a PB can have a perma 60% +dmg buff. The PB dmg buff also comes from having a tank on the team.
-Tidbit: *Warshades receive +dmg from having blasters and/or scrappers on team!
Now, the negative which jumps out to me *is* the 300ft range requirement for nice Cosmic Balance, but looking at the teams we commonly roll with now, it's rare not to have 2 Defenders, and highly likely to have 3-6. Assuming an average of 4 defenders, when the PB is range, they wind up with [u]constant 80% +dmg[u]. Damage wise, that's better than two Defender Vengeances or two Defender Forts.
The usual/prime team for this PB:
2 Empathy Defenders
2 Kinetic Defenders
1 Rad Defender
2 Blasters
1 Peacebringer
the last spot where the PB is at has been the place of a Sonic, FF, another rad, kin, or more rarely, a blaster or emp. That sounds like a wealth of options, and it is, but [u]first compare the PB to a tank[u]. Remember that there was a time when tanks never died. Ok, that may have been in perma unstop, super hami, pre-ED days, but it was there. That time may also still be seen to exist presently in many matches, when we have been [u]unable to take out a tank, with 3+ damage dealers[u]. And more often than not, that's with one rad/psy on team, where you'd think Psy Blasts and -res would cut through the tank easily. But it was not to be so.
So why did these tanks bother us enough to kill them off? Taunt. With the right build, including Dwarf Form, a PB can have virtually the same 3 taunts as a tank, just with lower PvP scalars. Still, they have better scalars than a [u]scrapper's taunt in PvP[u]. Scalars are what causes taunt durations to fluctuate over lvls, or vary across ATs (i.e. Controller secondary scalars are lower than Defender primary's = 'Conts at 80% of Defender buffs/debuffs'.).
Now in comparing the PB to a tank, we can find similarity in taunt, and obviously in survivability. Or maybe not so obviously, to some. With the PB, we find Essence Boost, which acts as Dull Pain. +HP is the greatest 'resistance' buff in the game, it counters ALL. PBs have Light Form, which for all intents and purposes, is Unstop. The nice thing about Light Form, is that it [u]eliminates rooting[u]. Remember why everyone took Whirlwind? There you go. PBs in human form also have access to fine sm/lethal/ energy/neg energy and fire/cold shields, as well as a decent Inherent for +res to energy and negative energy.
The part where the PB can easily be seen as [u]*better than a Tanker*[u] is with Dwarf Form. Slotted up, you have something that's got more than 55% +res to all dmg, except Psy, built-in teleport, a self heal just like Reconstruction, a 75% increase to base health (this stacks with Essence Boost too), some more +recovery, and three lame attacks. So, with Essence Boost and Dwarf Form going, you basically turn into a tank in Unstop, with 3 attacks that won't do much, but virtually as much survivability, not too far away from dmg +res caps. Something else to mention is Reform Essence, which is ANOTHER Reconstruction/self heal for you, in Human Form, acting far faster than Aid Self ever would.
Now, [u]compare the PB to a blaster[u]. A Peacebringer may not have the glorious range of a /EM blaster, or Power Boost from the same set, or Aim, or a plethora of solid ranged attacks, but it DOES have two great melee hitters. That is, Radiant Strike, and Incandescent Strike. Comparable to a faster, more damage Bonesmasher, and Total Focus. These deal similar mixtures of smashing and energy damage, and also have -fly, knockback and -defense built in. Sadly, no disorients, but Incandescent Strike does have a hold component.
Really, the human form blasts pretty much suck, not great animations with poor bad dmg, but Gleaming Blast is most comparable to high end PvP blasting, with it having *more dmg than Fireball* for .67 longer animation. All of the blasts are also pure energy dmg. You get two good AoEs in Solar Flare which has over a 2 sec animation, but dmg wise is a good bit better than Fireball too. Dawn Strike acts as your nuke. All the blasts come with -defense as well. Wouldn't count dwarf form for dmg at all, but an AoE and two single targets there are better than nothing. And, of course, PBs get lovable Build Up.
Lastly, look at the [u]Peacebringer Extra's[u]. These are things that are cutouts from other sets, and generally add a whole extra dimension to things. First, Conserve Power. Yay, no endurance problems! Take a gander at Glowing Touch. This is a watered down version of Heal Other that does the same Ally Heal, but does so from a measly 30 feet. Otherwise, the same excellent 4 second recharge, wishy washy end cost, and 2.27 animation time. Slotted for heals and range, you get a [u]lifesaver[u]. O2 Boost has, since I6 been a reason for Storm's return to teams, and a factor in why killing someone on a stormie team can be so difficult.
Enter Quantum Flight and Energy Flight. Quantum acts as a suped up Fly, that puts you into phase at the same time. Bingo, lifesaver, and an insta-escape from the Unstop/Light Form crash. Energy Flight makes the arena Raptor Pack seem like a joke, and can pay off BIG time in outdoor maps. Someone trying to pull off a snipe from above? Go say hello with your nifty travel abilities. You've got Combat Flight, which is Hover, and with 2 SBs that could be fast too. QF also costs a lot less than it once does, and on this team, there's 2 RAs, 2 SBs and an AM available, as well as you having CP. Also something worth mentioning is [u]Group Energy Flight[u]. Who knows? Maybe team travel will eventually have a lot more presedence, in which case, this'd be usable.
Bonjour Photon Seekers... and Pulsar. PS are those 3 summonable pets with the gimpy AI, but still high dmg. Imagine summoning those into a group that's gathered, or is starting up buffs. Then slap on Pulsar, an AoE disorient. Ok, maybe Pulsar is a wash, and many would say PS are, but still they both have viability, and PS do provide 3 more targets, and in the world of *no macros (or gignore)*, that means a lot.
PBs can then still pick up the lovely Leaping line, speed for Hasten and SS, Fitness for Stamina and better movement, and can even get Leadership if they so desired. Leadership not looking so great since you want Dwarf Form if just for an extra taunt and bonus tp, but could still be nice, and if you look at the debuff/buff icons, self Leadership acts as a GREAT way to see if you're in range of the Defenders (or anyone) on your team, and gauge your increased stats accordingly.
A PB on this team acts as something better than a tank, except for no FA (but then some don't even have that, and Forts can eliminate that worry), as a ghetto blaster, as a really cheap healer, and as someone to just annoy the other team with a plethora of different powers. Having 2 SBs would mean fine taunting ability, and you could keep summoning PSes as you pleased.
A negative for PBs is also found in transitioning between human and dwarf form, and just living through Dwarf Form transformation animation sometimes. There are many many many ways in which the streamlined ATs are better, but considering the potential +dmg, +dmg resistance (from Scraps and Blasts) and even less vulnerability to mez (thanks to conts), having a PB on board can be a lot better than having, say, a tanker, a poor blaster, or an emp/blast/tank that will just get caged the whole time.
So, see someone being wailed on? Well, you can choose to heal your buddy back up, taunt the fiend, or even go in for the kill on your enemy, with scary melee attacks and a halfway blast, or by summoning a trio of mini nukes!
Going back to the top team, you have 5 defs and 2 blasts, the 2 blasts might as well cap the PB's +res no matter what (10% +res to ALL a piece), and 5 defs ups the PB's +dmg % chances even more. There have been great teams that worked in a tank in that last spot, or teams that have foregone a rad or 2 kins for multiple tanks. The Freaks vritually always did well with 2+ tanks in matches too, albeit those were usually larger.
The build I would use for this is a lot tighter on slots than I anticipated, but removing Fitness for more options, and fuller slots on some things = with HOs:
---------------------------------------------
Exported from Ver: 1.7.6.0 of the CoH_CoV Character Builder
---------------------------------------------
Name: PB PvP Build - Taunt Bot
Level: 50
Archetype: Peacebringer
Primary: Luminous Blast
Secondary: Luminous Aura
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Glinting Eye==> Acc(1)
01) --> Incandescence==> DmgRes(1)
02) --> Gleaming Blast==> Acc(2)Dmg(3)Dmg(3)Rechg(48)
04) --> Essence Boost==> Rechg(4)Rechg(5)Rechg(5)Heal(7)Heal(7)Heal(9)
06) --> Radiant Strike==> Acc(6)Dmg(9)Dmg(11)Rechg(13)
08) --> Shining Shield==> DmgRes(8)DmgRes(11)DmgRes(15)
10) --> Combat Jumping==> Jump(10)
12) --> Build Up==> Rechg(12)Rechg(13)Rechg(15)
14) --> Super Jump==> Jump(14)
16) --> Hasten==> Rechg(16)Rechg(17)Rechg(17)
18) --> Incandescent Strike==> Acc(18)Dmg(19)Dmg(19)EndRdx(21)Rechg(23)
20) --> White Dwarf==> DmgRes(20)DmgRes(21)DmgRes(23)
22) --> Reform Essence==> Heal(22)Heal(29)Heal(31)
24) --> Challenge==> Acc(24)Acc(25)Taunt(25)Taunt(27)Range(33)Range(33)
26) --> Glowing Touch==> Range(26)Range(27)Range(29)Heal(31)Heal(31)Heal(37)
28) --> Provoke==> Acc(28)Acc(36)Taunt(42)Taunt(42)Range(45)Range(45)
30) --> Conserve Energy==> Rechg(30)Rechg(46)Rechg(46)
32) --> Photon Seekers==> Acc(32)Dmg(33)Dmg(34)EndRdx(34)Rechg(34)Rechg(36)
35) --> Dawn Strike==> Acc(35)Dmg(36)Dmg(37)EndRdx(37)Rechg(40)Rechg(48)
38) --> Light Form==> DmgRes(38)DmgRes(39)DmgRes(39)Rechg(39)Rechg(40)Rechg(40)
41) --> Intimidate==> Acc(41)Acc(42)Range(48)Range(50)Rechg(50)Rechg(50)
44) --> Quantum Flight==> EndRdx(44)
47) --> Super Speed==> EndRdx(47)
49) --> Acrobatics==> EndRdx(49)
---------------------------------------------
01) --> Sprint==> EndRdx(1)
01) --> Brawl==> Acc(1)
02) --> Rest==> Rechg(2)
01) --> Energy Flight==> Fly(1)
10) --> Combat Flight==> Fly(10)
01) --> Cosmic Balance==> Empty(1)
---------------------------------------------
20) --> White Dwarf Strike==> Acc(20)
20) --> White Dwarf Smite==> Acc(20)
20) --> White Dwarf Flare==> Acc(20)
20) --> White Dwarf Sublimation==> Heal(20)
20) --> White Dwarf Antagonize==> Acc(20)Acc(43)Taunt(43)Taunt(43)Range(45)Range(46)
20) --> White Dwarf Step==> Range(20)
---------------------------------------------
Now, the Dwarf heal isn't slotted sadly, and the human heal doesn't have the hottest recharge around, but you do have QF, although that is removable for something else just fine.
Having a PB on the team fills in some gaps, and adds to what other team members are bringing to the table.
Actually looking over it, I really dislike this idea, I'd pick a Sonic over a PB any of the week. This concept does have merits though, and might as well have everyone be able to see them. The ranged ally heal, taunt abilities, [u]survivability[u] and fine dmg are the real attractions here though, which combined with Cosmic Balance, make the PB a solid addition to the team, if they know what they're doing, and if the team can try to stay together. If/when sonics decline, or against certain teams, a PB may add a lot more, and because of all of the above, it would be very interesting to see how one does in a group setting.