Azu's Guide to Plant/Thorns

Azucar_NA · 10-11-2007 04:12 AM

[u]Azu's Guide to Plant/Thorn[u]

Part 1a- The Plant Primary
Part 1b- The Thorns Secondary
Part 1c- Power Pools
Part 1d- Patron Power Pools
Part 2- Strategies
Part 3- Build
Part 4- Sources

Why Plant/Thorn you ask? Well, because plant/thorn is an early maturing and fun set that goes together well thematically and is easy to use for beginners. Besides, thorns isn't as fugly as spines.

This guide is based on PvE experience and teaming. Also, it is my view that AoEs are the best route for plant/thorn doms on teams.

Things you should already know:

The inherent power of dominators is Domination.

[u]Domination[u]

When your domination bar is over 90% you can activate the power domination. All of your controls will last 50% longer and double their magnitude. Your attacks are also increased in damage by 75%. Domination gives protection to Knockback/Knockup, Repel, Disorient, Hold, Sleep, Immobilize, Fear, and Confuse effects, and can be activated even while suffering from them to break the villain free. Domination also builds faster when you have more teammates.

Domination rocks and you'll want it to be up as often as possible.

PBAoEs and snipes (you have no snipes) can be used to build domination without actually attacking the target.

Melee attacks generally hit harder than their ranged counterparts.

Permadomination is when your domination power recharges before the domination bar empties (which is usually at the end of domination), you can click it without having to build it back up again. This can be achieve with high recharge values.

[u]Part 1a[u]

Now onto the plant primary!

Plant is a very good primary for dominators because it was made specifically for dominators.

Plant
Plant is a ground based smashing damage primary.

Strangler-
Ranged, Foe Hold

Trust me, you want this power. It should be a staple in your attack chain. Use it on anyone you are attacking or is dangerous because you are squishy and have a low amount of health.

Grade: A+

Slotting: 1 accuracy, 2 recharge, 2 hold

______________

Entangle-
Ranged, Foe Immobilize

Entangle is not necessary for a plant/thorn dom because you can get a better immobilize in your secondary and your pet takes care of all immobilization needs. This attack can be used in early levels though to keep bosses from attacking you, but you should just hold them instead.

Grade: C-

Slotting: 1 accuracy, 0-2 immobilizes, 0-2 recharge

_____________

Roots-
Ranged(Targeted AoE), Foe Immobilize

Many dominators do not take AoE immobs because they cause a lot of aggro especially when used as a first attack (VERY bad idea). It can be useful to keep mobs seperated after you confuse them, because if the mobs kill each other without you hurting them some, you will gain no experience. The damage isn't even worth looking at.

Grade: C+

Slotting: 2 accuracy, 0-2 immobilizes, 0-2 recharges

__________________

Spore Burst-
Ranged(Targeted AoE), Foe Sleep

NO! This is a horrible power for an AoE dom with an AoE pet. The attacks that you use will wake up the enemies and your teammates enjoy waking up enemies also. You have far better control options so this is not needed, nor wanted.

Grade: F-!

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 0-2 Sleep, 0-2 Recharge

_______________

Seeds of Confusion-
Ranged(Cone), Foe Confuse

*Drools* Ah, this is why we love plant/ so much. This attack combined with your AoEs will make mobs melt away. Enemies will start attacking each other and some might even buff you (Rikti guardians give AM )! This is MUST HAVE!

Grade: A++

Slotting: 1-2 Accuracy, 2 Recharge, 2 Confuse

______________

Spirit Tree-
PBAoE Heal

Some plant doms will not take this since it does not have a high regen value, but since you should be on large teams anyways, its effectiveness is multiplied. Its also very pretty and can be used to block doorways so you can escape from danger.

Grade: B

Slotting: 2 Recharge, 2 Heal

_________________

Vines-
Ranged(Targeted AoE), Foe Hold

This power is very inaccurate unslotted, but since you are /thorns you can easily use aim before performing this control. It can reduce the alpha to nothing and make your team completely safe for some time. Its a very nice emergency power to have.

Grade: B+

Slotting: 2 Accuracy, 2 Recharge, 2 Hold

_____________

Carrion Creepers-
Raged(Location AoE), -speed, -fly, -jump

Carrion are quite a magnificent sight. Their power increases as the mob size increases because the number of carrion summoned depends on the number of enemies. This makes for a great distraction tool for that mob that you just accidentally went to close to.

Grade: A

Slotting: 2 Recharge

______________

Fly Trap-
Ranged Control Special

Fly trap is a very nice and smart pet that will take care of all immobilization needs. He (or she) is also very expressive and you will be able to tell what its status is by simply looking at it. You will learn to fall in love with fly trap. It is on a long recharge so you must make sure that you take care of him/her. Fly traps damage and AoE capability is also quite nice.

Grade: A

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 damage, 0-2 defense debuffs, 0-2 recharge

____________

[u]Part 1b[u]

Thorny Assualt
AoE defense debuffing secondary. High Lethal damage with some toxic damage over time.

Thorny Darts-
Ranged, Minor Damage, -def

Its a level 1 power so don't expect too much from it. Its damage is quite low. It can be slotted in many different ways though. It can be used to pull with range enhancements, or to debuff defense with recharge, accuracy, and defense debuff enhancements.

Grade: C

Slotting: See description

_______________

Skewer-
Melee, Moderate Damage, -def

This attack is very helpful, it does nice damage and has a quick animation.

Grade: B

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage

_____________

Fling Thorns-
Ranged(Cone), Moderate Damage, -def

This attack has a very wide cone and does great damage against a large number of foes, it will be a main part of your AoE damage attack chain.

Grade: A

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 2 Recharge

__________________

Impale-
Ranged, Moderate Damage, Immobilize, -def, -spd, -fly, -jump

Impale is the reason why we don't take our single target immob, entangle. This does a lot more for a lot more damage and side effects. This can be used on fliers in order to get them down so your holds can affect them.

Grade: A

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage

________________

Aim-
+Acc +Dmg

Oh boy! Oh boy! This is one of my favorite powers. It makes it so that your none of your attacks will miss for the next 10 seconds and they will all get a 42.5% damage boost! This power is amazing. I highly recommend it.

Grade: A+

Slotting: 2 recharge, 0-2 Tohit Buffs

_______________

Thorn Burst-
PBAoE Melee, Moderate Damage, -def

This power is good for building domination while afk. It is also the other AoE attack that will allow you to melt mobs. This power is on a melee scale so it does good damage. It does have some problems with its animation time, but that will be discussed later. It has a huge defense debuff.

Grade: A

Slotting: 1-2 Accuracy, 2 Recharge, 2 Damage

______________

Thorntrops-
Ranged(Location AoE), minor damage, -spd

I had this power, but I see no good use for it. You can already slow your opponents with carrion creepers and immob them to stop them completely. The damage is not great at all. There are better things to pick.

Grade: F

Slotting: 2 Recharge

_________________

Ripper-
Melee(Cone), High Damage, -def, kb, -spd

This attack is great. It has a great animation in which you do...I guess I won't spoil it for you. Anyways, it also comes with a great defense debuff and is a very good melee attack. It is rare that you will hit 2 people at the same time, but its possible.

Grade: A

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage

_______________

Thorn Barrage-
Close, High damage, -def

This is another ranged attack. I haven't had it so I can't comment with personal experience, but this attack is not needed, because by 38 you should have a full attack chain. And the damage is less than ripper's.

Grade: ?

Slotting: 1 Accuracy, 2 Damage, 0-2 Range

_________________

[u]Part 1c[u]

Power Pools:

Fitness-
You can build a plant/thorn dominator without stamina, but it will cost you slots, while taking it costs you powers. There are IOs that can give you the recovery you need if you are willing to pay. Health is nice because the regeneration will stack with Spirit Tree's. I suggest hurdle for superspeed and combat jumping. While swift benefits flight more.

Medicine-
This is the pool that I chose. It greatly increases the survivability of you and your pet. Fly trap tends to get mezzed so stimulant would be very nice for him to have. You can also heal the fly trap and yourself. Due to your controls you are less likely to be interrupted.

Speed-
Hasten is a GREAT power. I suggest taking it even if you don't take superspeed. It causes your controls, attacks, and domination to recharge faster, which is definitely a good thing. Superspeed is useful because it allows you to position yourself for Seeds of Confusion. Superspeed can be difficult to use in CoV, so it helps to have a jump pack, hurdle, combat jumping, or temp power. Flurry is a waste, you have much better attacks. And whirlwind uses too much endurance and it won't kb anyone in your immobs.

Leaping-
Jump Kick is worthless also since you have better attacks in your secondary. Combat Jumping and Acrobatics are ok for when domination is down, because it gives you some mez protection. Super Jump is a convenient and fast travel power to use.

Flight-
Hover doesn't synergize with an AoE dominator because it is hard to manuever in combat and use your melee attacks. Fly has the same issue as hover except it costs more endurance. Fly is a good travel power though. Air superiority is bad because you can easily use holds to lock bosses down and impale to ground fliers. Don't take group fly...just don't.

Concealment-
Stealth can be useful for making fly trap take the alpha (you shouldn't do that, he/she is more useful alive). Grant invis won't work on fly trap because he will attack anything in his aggro range anyways. Invisibility won't work if you have fly trap with you. Phase Shift is an ok emergency power, but your AoE hold can take care of that. And Phase Shift costs a lot of endurance.

Fighting-
So you don't like being so squishy? I didn't either, so I did take the fighting pool (a long LONG time ago) and it won't make you much tougher even though you would like to believe it would. Aid self and controls work much better for preventing damage. Boxing and Kick are bad attacks and you have better ones in your secondary. You won't get good values on tough and weave, they are a wast of endurance.

Leadership-
Leadership is always good on a teaming dominator. The more leadership toggles the merrier. Assualt is better than manuevers because of manuever's low values and lack of any status resistance.

Presence-
Moving on!

Teleportation-
Recall Friend is useful if you decided to take rescusitate. Teleport Foe isn't really necessary. Teleport doesn't make a very good travel power. Team teleport is bad due to the high end cost, pets, and the general dislike of the power (and potentially you) by the populace of CoX.

If I had to list them in order of importance for a Plant/Thorn dom, I would list them as:

1. Fitness
2. Medicine
3. Speed
4. Leadership
5. Leaping
6. Flying
7. Teleportation
8. Concealment
9. Fighting
10. Presence

[u]Part 1d[u]

Patron Power Pools

Mace Mastery-
This is my pool of choice because the defense shield will help with avoiding being interrupted when I'm trying to heal with aidself. This pool goes greatly with my theme of nature since it has a tarantula pet. The Toxic Tarantula has good attacks that are primarily lethal with toxic DoT and -def (yep, just like /thorns). Poison ray is good for reducing a foes resistances, since lethal can be annoyingly resisted at higher levels. I am not getting Disrupter Blast since I have a complete attack chain and my other AoE attacks are much better.

Mu Mastery-
This is a very popular pool for dominators, because it has a pet that can heal you and has energy resistance which is common in pvp. I wouldn't recommend it for a plant/thorn dom since you can get aid self easily. Power sink and the AoE attack wouldn't add much because you already have good AoEs, and you don't have powerboost to increase the amount of endurance drained from enemies.

Soul Mastery-
This set suffers from the same problems as Mu, except its end drain is weaker and the pet doesn't heal. The pet gives you +perception which could be useful in PvP. The shield gives nice resistances to rare damage types. And the AoE attack does negligible -tohit and you don't need another AoE attack.

Leviathan Mastery-
This set is actually ok for plant/thorn doms. The AoE attack suffers from the same problems as the other set though. Waterspout and your immobs would create nice damage and would make a "ghetto" hold (disorient+AoE Immob). Shark Skin gives you nice resistances, but it doesn't help you avoid attacks leading to side effects (-res, -spd, etc.) and aid self would be harder to use. The coralax pet seems ok in the damage area, but doesn't add much especially with pet recharges.

[u]Part 2[u]

Strategies

Mob Melting- This requires Seeds of Confusion, Aim, Fling Thorns, and Thorn Burst. First, you approach a mob, then position yourself for the greatest number of confusions, then click Aim, then use Seeds of Confusion, then approach the mob quickly to use Fling Thorns, then Thorn Burst. In this situation, the enemies will die quickly due to the massive confusion, defense debuffs (they get hit by each other and your team easily), and the damage boost. If they aren't dead after this they should be very weak and easy to hit (-45% defense).

Another option is to use Vines instead of Seeds of Confusion. They won't die as fast but you will be in complete safety and have softened up the mobs for your teammates.

To get the most out of Seeds of Confusion you might have to gather the enemies around a corner at which you can place thorntrops.

During all of this Fly Trap will most likely use roots and fling thorns for more damage.

If you don't have stealth you can use Carrion Creepers or Spore Burst to start the fight so that you won't get killed in the alpha.

Archvillain Fights- If you do not have enought recharge to reach permadomination do not bother trying to hold the AV. Debuff his/her defense and use Aim and single target attacks to maximize the damage. Spirit Tree can also make a nice contribution during AV fights since they can last a long time in one spot.

Buffers- You should try to confuse buffers in order to increase your team's survivability. Make sure you have some form of stealth so they don't buff before you confuse them. Buffers include Rikti Guardians, Luddite Friars, Force Field Generators, etc. You can just leave them for last.

Note: Always use Fling Thorns then Thorn Burst after Aim, because Thorn Burst has a long animation time that might make you miss the aim buff for fling thorns. And it takes time to go into melee then back out, too much time.

[u]Part 3[u]

Build

This is my current build of Azucar. I'm at level 36. Its heavily based on Seeds of Confusion and AoE attacks like Thorn Burst and Fling Thorns.

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.21
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php

Azucar-no IO: Level 50 Mutation Dominator
Primary Power Set: Plant Control
Secondary Power Set: Thorny Assault
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Medicine
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Strangler -- Acc-I(A), Hold-I(7), Hold-I(7), RechRdx-I(11), RechRdx-I(13)
Level 1: Thorny Darts -- Acc-I(A), Range-I(36), Range-I(40)
Level 2: Skewer -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(3), Dmg-I(3)
Level 4: Fling Thorns -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(5), Dmg-I(5), RechRdx-I(13), RechRdx-I(37), Range-I(42)
Level 6: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 8: Seeds of Confusion -- Acc-I(A), Conf-I(9), Conf-I(9), RechRdx-I(15), RechRdx-I(21)
Level 10: Impale -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(11), Dmg-I(46), Immob-I(46), Immob-I(48)
Level 12: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A), Jump-I(42)
Level 14: Aid Other -- IntRdx-I(A), IntRdx-I(15), RechRdx-I(19), RechRdx-I(42), Heal-I(43), Heal-I(43)
Level 16: Aim -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(17), ToHit-I(17), ToHit-I(23)
Level 18: Vines -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(19), RechRdx-I(21), RechRdx-I(25), Hold-I(25), Hold-I(29)
Level 20: Aid Self -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(31), IntRdx-I(31), IntRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(37), RechRdx-I(37)
Level 22: Thorn Burst -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(23), Dmg-I(29), RechRdx-I(31), RechRdx-I(39)
Level 24: Super Speed -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(43)
Level 26: Carrion Creepers -- Dmg-I(A), Dmg-I(27), RechRdx-I(27), RechRdx-I(33)
Level 28: Health -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(40)
Level 30: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(34)
Level 32: Fly Trap -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(33), Dmg-I(33), Immob-I(34), Immob-I(46)
Level 35: Ripper -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(36), Dmg-I(36)
Level 38: Spirit Tree -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(39), RechRdx-I(39), RechRdx-I(40)
Level 41: Poisonous Ray -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(45), RechRdx-I(50)
Level 44: Scorpion Shield -- DefBuff-I(A), DefBuff-I(45)
Level 47: Summon Tarantula -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(48), RechRdx-I(48), Dmg-I(50), Dmg-I(50)
Level 49: Stimulant -- RechRdx-I(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Rest -- IntRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Domination
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]

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[u]Part 4[u]

Sources:

Mids' Villain Designer- http://www.onthejazz.co.uk/hu/mhd.php
City of Data- http://coh.redtomax.com/powersets/powersets.php#
Paragonwiki- www.paragonwiki.com

Hope you enjoy your dom!

Sir_Quixotic · 10-11-2007 06:28 AM

Excellent guide! I really do agree with Doms being an AOE monster if played the right way.

Olepi · 11-03-2007 06:16 PM

Just a quick comment on Spores; it can be very useful to sleep mobs. I regularly use spores in two cases:

1) another group has been aggro'd before the current group is done. In that case, sleeping the new guys is like keeping XP in the freezer

2) in a large fight, with lots of bosses, you can sleep everyone but bosses, and then focus on them. With full Domination, you might be able to sleep everything, and let your team get a fresh bite at them.

I agree spores are not in the main attack chain, but I would rate them a B in a build that went for control.

2012 -- 35 years on the Net

_Wolfen · 11-07-2007 05:10 PM

I have a new plant/thorns dom and like him more than any new alt in a long time.

I accidently took sleep when training and don't want to respesc just yet.....its the usual problem, almost useless on a team since everyone and their granny has some kinda area affect. There is no doubt it has situational uses, but its a going my next respec.

Solo/duo - no doubt.

Azucar_NA · 11-09-2007 06:20 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Just a quick comment on Spores; it can be very useful to sleep mobs. I regularly use spores in two cases:

1) another group has been aggro'd before the current group is done. In that case, sleeping the new guys is like keeping XP in the freezer

2) in a large fight, with lots of bosses, you can sleep everyone but bosses, and then focus on them. With full Domination, you might be able to sleep everything, and let your team get a fresh bite at them.

I agree spores are not in the main attack chain, but I would rate them a B in a build that went for control.

[/ QUOTE ]

You can keep 3 groups busy without spores. Spores is so utterly bad IMO. You have vines, seeds of confusion, and carrion creepers, do you really need more? If you are getting more than 3 groups at a time you're going to die anyways (or don't need control at all).

Purge · 12-05-2007 09:24 PM

I agree with your general ideas with Plant/Thorn being great at AOE's, but I think you could do some things better.

Aid Other doesn't really need to be 6 slotted imo, unless you want to focus on healing your teammates every once in a while. Does it really need 6 slots? Some of your attacks are underslotted. Either more end reductions or recharges would help your damage or endurance problems.

A comment on Roots:

I think it's completely awesome. I have Roots, Fling Thorns, Thorn Burst, AND Dark Obliteration from my Patron Set. I am very much glad they are all there. They don't move, and I can slam the aoe's into them until they die.

Some more comments on slots:

Fly Trap doesn't really need immobilize increases. Sure, his immobilize is sometimes useful, but how often does he use it at exactly the right time? Does he even immobilize in the middle of the mobs? Probably not. Those two slots could be better focused into single target attacks like Skewer, Ripper, or Thorn Barrage if you actually took it.

And btw, Thorn Barrage is awesome, does as much damage as Skewer, and activates faster than Impale. Sure, it's range is shorter, but I don't miss Impale.

Also, medicine isn't as necessary as you may think it is. I had Aid Self on my Plant/Thorn for a long time. I dropped it later and all I have to keep me alive is the patron shield, health, stealth and Spirit Tree. That works good enough. The only thing that gets me killed is bad application of seeds of confusion, such as it not affecting a boss I don't see, or if I mess up the cone, and only a couple are confused. Don't be afraid to drop Medicine to get more control or damaging powers.

Plant/Thorn with AOE's is definitely the way to go, but you don't have to let your single target damage suffer to complete this goal.

Azucar_NA · 12-08-2007 08:44 AM

Yeah...I'm working on an update, I've changed some of my views. I've been considering switching to this build:

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.30
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php

Azucar with no IOs: Level 50 Mutation Dominator
Primary Power Set: Plant Control
Secondary Power Set: Thorny Assault
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Medicine
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Strangler -- Acc-I(A), Hold-I(7), Hold-I(7), RechRdx-I(11), RechRdx-I(13)
Level 1: Thorny Darts -- Acc-I(A)
Level 2: Skewer -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(3), Dmg-I(3), RechRdx-I(15), RechRdx-I(17)
Level 4: Fling Thorns -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(5), Dmg-I(5), RechRdx-I(13), RechRdx-I(37), ResDeb%(42)
Level 6: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(23), RechRdx-I(31)
Level 8: Seeds of Confusion -- Acc-I(A), Conf-I(9), Conf-I(9), RechRdx-I(15), RechRdx-I(21)
Level 10: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A), Jump-I(11)
Level 12: Spirit Tree -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(19), RechRdx-I(40), RechRdx-I(40)
Level 14: Health -- Heal-I(A)
Level 16: Aim -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(17)
Level 18: Vines -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(19), RechRdx-I(21), RechRdx-I(25), Hold-I(25), Hold-I(29)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(42)
Level 22: Thorn Burst -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(23), Dmg-I(27), RechRdx-I(29), RechRdx-I(31), ResDeb%(39)
Level 24: Super Speed -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(42)
Level 26: Carrion Creepers -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(27), RechRdx-I(40), Dmg-I(43), Dmg-I(43)
Level 28: Aid Other -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(34), RechRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(34)
Level 30: Aid Self -- Heal-I(A), Heal-I(31), RechRdx-I(33), RechRdx-I(36)
Level 32: Fly Trap -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(33), Dmg-I(33), Dmg-I(43), ResDeb%(46)
Level 35: Ripper -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(36), Dmg-I(36), RechRdx-I(37), RechRdx-I(37)
Level 38: Thorn Barrage -- Acc-I(A), Dmg-I(39), Dmg-I(39)
Level 41: Poisonous Ray -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(45), RechRdx-I(46)
Level 44: Scorpion Shield -- DefBuff-I(A), DefBuff-I(45), EndRdx-I(45), EndRdx-I(46)
Level 47: Summon Tarantula -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(48), RechRdx-I(48), Dmg-I(48), Dmg-I(50), ResDeb%(50)
Level 49: Resuscitate -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Rest -- IntRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Domination
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]

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</pre><hr />

I'm still working on the I11 Guide, I want to test out impale vs. thorn barrage.

Azucar_NA · 12-08-2007 08:54 AM

Those changes are due to thorn barrage doing more damage in a smaller time than impale, the -resistance in the pets have a chance for every attack they do and it counts for each person in the AoE giving very nice -resistance bonuses. The interrupts really aren't necessary, you won't lose too much endurance with 2x slotted stamina. And with the defense shield and controls you aren't likely to be interrupted. Damage in carrion allow them to absorb aggro better (and they do quite a lot of damage, mid's says 123.3 damage). Your pets take care of movement issues (both would have immobs) so you wouldn't need impale anymore. I thought about disruptor blast, but the damage is too low, and causes kb, which I can't stop when I want (I can't control attacks fly trap uses). Also, root's damage is quite low too. I suspect it might take another 2 weeks or so until I can make the new version of the guide.

Azucar_NA · 12-08-2007 09:02 AM

Anything you all think I should add for the next version? I was thinking of taking photos of the powers.

Azucar_NA · 01-04-2008 09:33 AM

[u]Invention Origin Enhancements[u]

As you all know, with IOs you can do a lot of different things with your character to make it much stronger. For a plant/thorn dom there are a few unique IOs and bonuses that you would want to focus on. The bonuses I would recommend are:

<ul type="square">[*]Recharge[*]Accuracy[*]Recovery[/list]
Recharge allows both your secondary powers and primary powers to come up more often. One annoying thing that I've found out in later levels is that Aim's recharge is slightly longer than seeds of confusion making it hard to always use together. This problem could be eliminated with just a few recharge bonuses.

Certain IOs offer a certain level of recharge. I'll just steal a part of _Brev_'s excellent guide...

From _Brev_:

[ QUOTE ]
Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>Set # enhs Rech %
-------------------------------------------------
Confuse.Befuddling Aura 5 2.5
Confuse.Malaises Illusions 5 6.25
Defense.Kismet 5 3.75
Defense.Luck of the Gambler 1 7.5
Defense.Red Fortune 5 5
Fear.Glimpse of the Abyss 5 6.25
Fear.Horror 5 2.5
Fear.Unspeakable Terror 5 5
Heal.Doctored Wounds 5 5
Heal.Regenerative Tissue 5 5
Immobilize.Enfeebled Operation 5 3.75
Immobilize.Rooting Grasp 5 2.5
Melee.Crushing Impact 5 5
Ranged AoE.Positrons Blast 5 6.25
Ranged.Decimation 5 6.25
Ranged.Entropic Chaos 5 6.25
Resistance.Impervious Skin 5 5
Sleep.Call of the Sandman 5 6.25
Sleep.Hibernation 5 2.5
Slow.Curtail Speed 5 2.5
Slow.Tempered Readiness 5 3.75
Sniper.Calibrated Accuracy 5 3.75
Sniper.Sting of the Manticore 5 7.5
Stun.Stagger 5 2.5
Stun.Stupefy 5 6.25</pre><hr />

[/ QUOTE ]

All of the Very Rare Purple sets offer 10% recharge at the 5th slot. You can only slot these IOs at level 50.

[u]Procs[u]
A proc is simply an Invention origin enhancement that has a certain chance of activating in an attack. For toggle and rain powers it checks the proc every 10 seconds. For normal attacks it checks on every activation even in pets. Used correctly they can be quite a buff. Procs are usually placed best in an AoE or a quick recharging attack so that they are more likely to trigger. There are a few really good procs that I should mention.

*Touch of Lady Gray: XX% Chance for Negative Damage
*Achilles' Heel: 20% Chance for 20% Resistance Debuff
*Positron's Blast: 20% Chance for Energy Damage
*Armageddon: 33% Chance for Fire Damage (Very Rare)
*Scirroco's Dervish: 20% Chance for Lethal Damage

They can be very costly, but I recommend getting at least one of them for Fling Thorns, Thorn Burst, and Twitchy (Fly Trap). Achilles' Heel is currently bugged and will debuff YOU until you DIE OR ZONE. I still believe it is worth it, because it should soon be fixed and is a large damage increase on teams. Also, it is not only bugged for you, but for the enemy. It never goes away.

[u]Miscellaneous IOs[u]

Kismet: +Tohit

I slotted this in Scorpion Shield. I've noticed quite an improvement in accuracy. It was worth every million.

Rectified Recticle: +Perception

I hate not being able to see. At higher levels there are many enemies with stealth/-perception (longbow spec ops and all types of Bane Spiders, Tarantula Mistresses, Night Widows, etc.)

I've changed some things in my build. This is my current build up to level 44.

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.30
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php

Azucar with no IOs: Level 50 Mutation Dominator
Primary Power Set: Plant Control
Secondary Power Set: Thorny Assault
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Medicine
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Strangler <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (7) Hold Duration IO[*] (7) Hold Duration IO[*] (11) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (13) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 1: Thorny Darts <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[/list]Level 2: Skewer <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (3) Damage Increase IO[*] (3) Damage Increase IO[/list]Level 4: Fling Thorns <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (5) Damage Increase IO[*] (5) Damage Increase IO[*] (13) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (37) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (42) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff[/list]Level 6: Hasten <ul type="square">[*] (A) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (23) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (31) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 8: Seeds of Confusion <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (9) Confuse Duration IO[*] (9) Confuse Duration IO[*] (15) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (15) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (21) Range IO[/list]Level 10: Hurdle <ul type="square">[*] (A) Jumping IO[*] (11) Jumping IO[/list]Level 12: Spirit Tree <ul type="square">[*] (A) Healing IO[*] (19) Healing IO[*] (29) Miracle - +Recovery[*] (40) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (40) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 14: Health <ul type="square">[*] (A) Healing IO[/list]Level 16: Aim <ul type="square">[*] (A) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (17) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (17) Rectified Reticle - Increased Perception[/list]Level 18: Vines <ul type="square">[*] (A) Ghost Widow's Embrace - Accuracy/Hold/Recharge[*] (19) Essence of Curare - Accuracy/Hold/Recharge[*] (21) Neuronic Shutdown - Accuracy/Hold/Recharge[*] (25) Paralytic - Accuracy/Hold/Recharge[/list]Level 20: Stamina <ul type="square">[*] (A) Endurance Modification IO[*] (25) Endurance Modification IO[/list]Level 22: Thorn Burst <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (23) Damage Increase IO[*] (27) Damage Increase IO[*] (29) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (31) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (39) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff[/list]Level 24: Super Speed <ul type="square">[*] (A) Endurance Reduction IO[*] (33) Endurance Reduction IO[*] (42) Celerity - +Stealth[/list]Level 26: Carrion Creepers <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (27) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (40) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (46) Damage Increase IO[*] (50) Damage Increase IO[/list]Level 28: Aid Other <ul type="square">[*] (A) Healing IO[*] (34) Healing IO[*] (34) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (34) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 30: Aid Self <ul type="square">[*] (A) Healing IO[*] (31) Healing IO[*] (33) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (36) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 32: Fly Trap <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (33) Damage Increase IO[*] (43) Damage Increase IO[*] (43) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff[*] (46) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance for Negative Damage[/list]Level 35: Ripper <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (36) Damage Increase IO[*] (36) Damage Increase IO[*] (37) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (37) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 38: Thorn Barrage <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (39) Damage Increase IO[*] (39) Damage Increase IO[/list]Level 41: Scorpion Shield <ul type="square">[*] (A) Defense Buff IO[*] (42) Defense Buff IO[*] (43) Endurance Reduction IO[*] (45) Endurance Reduction IO[*] (46) Kismet - Accuracy +6%[/list]Level 44: Poisonous Ray <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (45) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (45) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 47: Summon Tarantula <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[*] (48) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (48) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (48) Damage Increase IO[*] (50) Damage Increase IO[*] (50) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance for Negative Damage[/list]Level 49: Stimulant <ul type="square">[*] (A) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]------------
Level 1: Brawl <ul type="square">[*] (A) Accuracy IO[/list]Level 1: Sprint <ul type="square">[*] (A) Jumping IO[/list]Level 2: Rest <ul type="square">[*] (A) Interrupt Reduction IO[/list]Level 1: Domination
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]

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</pre><hr />

The only difference in my build and the one posted is that I haven't gotten the acc/rech/hold IOs for Vines yet, so I had to take 2 from carrion (which would've been damage).

Brev's Guide to Permadomination with IOs

Kioshi · 01-24-2008 06:01 AM

Great guide (I'm 33 atm), but between Carrion Crepers, the fast recharge in Seeds of Confusion and Fly Trap I haven't really felt the need for Vines. I find that Vines' rech is so long that I'd probably forget to use it a lot just like I did on my Mind troller with Total Domination (respec'ed outta it).

Azucar_NA · 02-10-2008 05:10 PM

http://www.geocities.com/bluelight10...cTarantula.JPG

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n...3-11-01-20.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...ls/arach01.jpg

Toxic Tarantula Pictures Enjoy!

Vius_Akheva · 03-01-2008 05:42 PM

This is the build I am currently going for.
Any suggestions would be nice.

Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.30
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php

Akheva: Level 19 Science Dominator
Primary Power Set: Plant Control
Secondary Power Set: Thorny Assault
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leaping

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Strangler <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (3) Empty[*] (3) Empty[*] (7) Empty[*] (13) Empty[/list]Level 1: Thorny Darts <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (5) Empty[/list]Level 2: Skewer <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (5) Empty[*] (11) Empty[*] (15) Empty[/list]Level 4: Fling Thorns <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (7) Empty[*] (11) Empty[*] (15) Empty[/list]Level 6: Hasten <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 8: Seeds of Confusion <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (9) Empty[*] (9) Empty[*] (13) Empty[/list]Level 10: Hurdle <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 12: Combat Jumping <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 14: Super Jump <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 16: Aim <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (17) Empty[*] (17) Empty[/list]Level 18: Vines <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[*] (19) Empty[*] (19) Empty[/list]Level 20: [Empty]
Level 22: [Empty]
Level 24: [Empty]
Level 26: [Empty]
Level 28: [Empty]
Level 30: [Empty]
Level 32: [Empty]
Level 35: [Empty]
Level 38: [Empty]
Level 41: [Empty]
Level 44: [Empty]
Level 47: [Empty]
Level 49: [Empty]
------------
Level 1: Brawl <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 1: Sprint <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 2: Rest <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 1: Domination

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Azucar_NA · 03-01-2008 10:31 PM

Actually slot the powers. Don't put any extra slots in thorny darts. Delay superjump (use temps/walk), don't take vines. Get health in so you can work up to stamina at 20. You could take SS and save a power if you want. Then just respec back into it later. Impale is good at 10, and gets bad at 35+. Take a slot from skewer and fling thorns, put those 2 in hasten, slot for recharge. Hasten will take care of early level recharge needs.

1969jimbo · 06-10-2008 09:27 AM

I'm coming from a Spines/Regen, glad you did some of the ground work.

I just hit 34, and find myself doing great in groups but terrible on a lot of the missions solo.

I'm suprised Thorn Barrage is bad, I figured it would be comparable with Throw Spines, which was one of my favorite attack powers with my scrapper.

I'm still experimenting with what helps, any ideas on how to get more damage so I kill stuff (especially elite bosses in a solo mission?).

I'm not sure where to get more damage, but I'm willing to try, right now I've got mostly impale and th

Azucar_NA · 06-11-2008 05:29 AM

[ QUOTE ]
I'm coming from a Spines/Regen, glad you did some of the ground work.

I just hit 34, and find myself doing great in groups but terrible on a lot of the missions solo.

I'm suprised Thorn Barrage is bad, I figured it would be comparable with Throw Spines, which was one of my favorite attack powers with my scrapper.

I'm still experimenting with what helps, any ideas on how to get more damage so I kill stuff (especially elite bosses in a solo mission?).

I'm not sure where to get more damage, but I'm willing to try, right now I've got mostly impale and th

[/ QUOTE ]

Thorn barrage is actually pretty good. I think I corrected that in the later posts (can't edit. ). For elite bosses @ 34, you'd want to keep them held by applying as many holds as possible while using fly trap to wittle him/her down. If it has PToD (purple triangles of doom makes them pretty much immune to control) then use inspirations.