The Peltier Effect (Ice/Fire Tank) - Issue 12

Garthalus · 07-06-2008 01:11 PM

Firstly, credit to Star_Sentinel for his initial Issue 10 guide for Ice/Fire Tanks. He and FrostWeaver gave a lot of commentary in that thread and elsewhere in discussions on the CoH Forums about the Ice/Fire powerset combination and the myriad of options and areas of focus available to generate a viable Tank. With the advent of Invention Origin Enhancements in Issue 9, there are a lot of directions that you can tweak a Tank build with. Ill focus on my personal approach and methodology in this guide.

What is an Ice/Fire Tank?

The Ice primary is a Defense based set. Out of the options for Tank primaries, there are a good variety of sets that range from pure resistance (Fire/) to mixed Resistance/Defense (Invulnerability/, Stone/) to nearly pure Defense (Ice/). Resistance sets tend to be more predictable, since a percentage of the incoming damage is reduced. If things are going badly, you can generally see it coming a ways off and take action. Defense based sets are a lot more fickle, as you can be a untouchable god for some missions and then get absolutely hammered out of the blue.

Note that I dont claim to be an authority on the nuances of the Defense system as implemented in City of Heroes. For some truly in-depth information, I advise giving Arcanavilles post here a good read. Its one of the most definitive guides available on the subject. Put simply, an even level minion has a 50% base chance to hit you. Say you have 20% Defense vs. the damage type he is using, that chance for him to hit drops to 50% - 20% = 30%. Keep boosting your Defense and the chance for the enemy to hit you continues to drop until you hit the soft cap of 45% Defense. At this point, you have reduced the enemys chance to hit you to 50% - 45% = 5% chance to hit. The 5% chance to hit is the minimum allowed by the game mechanics. Boosting defense past the soft cap does no good in this case. In other words, if you had your Defense buffed further by a Defender and had 68% Defense, the same enemy would still have a 5% chance to hit you. This simplistic example gets more complicated in practice, since enemies at higher levels than you have an easier time hitting you, Lieutenants and Bosses get a better chance to hit you, AVs and EBs can hit you more easily, certain opponents have bonuses to hit you, etc. In general, shooting for a Defense at or over the soft cap means you almost never get hit. The fly in the ointment is the so called streak breaker that is reported in the coding of CoH. If you go a long time without getting hit by an opponent attacking you, the game code will manually overrule the incoming attack role(s) and dictate one or two hits in a row. This along with "bad luck" means no matter how good your Defense, youre still going to get tagged once and a while. The goal is to minimize how often that happens. (My apologies to Arcana if I butchered that explanation too badly.)

It is important to note that Ice/ is a typed Defense set. That means the Defense value is determined by the kind of incoming damage (smashing, lethal, fire, ice, energy, negative energy, psionic, and toxic), and not how its delivered (ranged, melee, aoe) which is positional Defense (like the Scrapper Super Reflexes Secondary). The Ice/ Primary is very strong against Smashing/Lethal/Energy/Negative Energy. It has marginal Defense capability against Ice and Fire attacks (found in Energy Absorption) and no inherent Defense against Psionic or Toxic damage. The good news is that Ice damage is not much of a concern, as you quickly cap your resistance to Ice damage at 90% due to additional effects for your Defensive powers in the Primary. That really leaves Fire, Toxic, and Psionic damage as holes to be careful of. Resistance to Fire can be developed and Psionic Defense and Resistance can be gained through Pool Powers and IO sets and set bonuses (more on that later). Toxic Resistance can be gained through application(s) of HoarFrost (a secondary effect of the power).

Other than that, Ice/ has a couple key elements going for it that make it a solid Tank Primary. Firstly, it has not one, but two Taunt auras (Icicles and Chilling Embrace). Chilling Embrace also happens to be considered by many to be the best Taunt aura available in the game. Secondly, it has a +Recovery/+Defense click power that is incredibly useful and enhances survivability and offsets endurance issues. It also drains opponents endurance as a nifty side effect. Thirdly, the set offers resistance to slows (Quicksand, Caltrops, etc.) and since it is a Defense based set, debuffs that require a to-hit check frequently dont hit. That means less debuffs and more full-speed Tanking. When developed, the Primary is completely stand-alone and survivable no matter what the Secondary is that is paired with it.

That segues into the /Fire Secondary. Fire is the best AoE set of all the Tank Secondaries. Most or a part of its damage is pure Fire, which is less resisted by many enemies. Thats a big plus. The down side is that the set offers absolutely no secondary damage mitigation other than just damage (i.e. defeating your opponents more quickly). The benefit of an AoE heavy set for a Tank is that you can tag a lot of opponents at once with Gauntlet, the inherent Tank ability that acts as a Taunt effect when you hit a target with an attack. Coupled with two Taunt Auras, those AoEs and Gauntlet make the Ice/Fire combination one of the most proficient Tank combinations at gaining and keeping aggro or, in other words, making sure your opponents are focused on attacking you and ignoring the team behind you.

What is an Alpha Tank and what role does it play on a team?

It is for the reasons outlined above that I consider the Ice/Fire Tank one of the most versatile and strongest team Tanks suited for what I call the Alpha Tank role on a team. That is, a Tank who is designed to be the sole Tank for an 8-man team running missions against foes up to +5 levels above the team. An Alpha Tank needs to be mobile to respond to the flow of combat and new threats (ambushes, team splits, a second spawn aggro, etc.), needs to be able to gain and hold aggro like an overtightened set of Vise Grips , and needs to be durable enough to hold up under the intense furnace of having one or more spawns trying their best to take you out all at once. The powerset combination has all the right tools and a wide variety of them that make it a versatile set. On top of all that, the Ice/Fire set is no slouch in dealing damage, having a strong single-target attack chain (albeit one that matures late) and heavy AoE Damage potential.

Note that Granite Armor Tanks get a lot of play because they are the most durable of all the Tank Varieties. However, that durability comes at a price Limited mobility that almost necessitates the Teleportation Pool or dropping out of Granite periodically to overcome vertical obstacles. Run speed is also greatly slowed, particularly when running Rooted as well. Kineticists are highly desirable to overcome the Recharge and movement slow effect from the set. No doubt they are durable, but the mobility, -Recharge, and Damage penalties are substantial.

Ice Tanks are less durable than Stone, but still downright TOUGH when built properly, and have equal if not better aggro management potential with great mobility and no movement penalties. As a matter of fact, the Slow Resistance in the set makes it probably the most mobile of the Tank Primaries, and an ideal candidate for herding or gathering opponents. This is not the sole role of a Tank, but herding/gathering can be great mitigation for certain situations and speed up missions depending on the team composition. In essence, the mobility and options that the powerset brings to the table, at least for me, offset the difference in survivability between Ice and Stone. Correctly built, Ice has fantastic survivability in PvE play, so its a very acceptable trade, particularly if it suits your playstyle.

My preferred Tanking approach for team-centric Tanks like the Ice/Fire Alpha Tank build generally focuses on some key elements (listed in order of priority):
1.) Ability to hold, keep, and control aggro
2.) Survivability
3.) Mobility
4.) Damage
This priority list may help to explain some of the choices I make for the build later on.

A few words about Invention Origin Enhancements:

IOs are a great method of enhancing and shoring up holes in your build. They are a huge increase in effectiveness in terms of enhancement values alone. Add in set bonuses, and you get substantial gains to survivability, aggro control, and damage output.

For those interested in more detail, I recommend the following guides related to IOs and some common approaches to affording them (since many complain about their expense). I do not want to re-invent the wheel or attempt to distill the great information in these guides, so please take a look if you are new to IOs or merely interested in learning more. The guides are:

Capn_Canadian's Guide - IO's for Newbs, Casual Playas, & Cheapskates
PeterPeter's No Numbers Guide to I9 for the Casual Player
Viva Las Vegas intermediate guide to IOs (I9)
FrozenHorizon's Guide to Getting Rich Quick
Wentworth's 101-107
Mid's Hero Designer

There are others available. Take a look in the Player Guides section of the Forums for more information and resources.

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On to the good stuff: The Ice Armor Primary

A quick note here, with the advent of real numbers information in the game and the various other guides that break down the details of each power, Ill focus on my personal impressions and some data to support them.

Tier 1: Frozen Armor (+Def to Smash/Lethal, +Res Cold/Fire/Def Debuffs)

The first armor (toggle) you have access to and the one youll use your entire career. Provides a base +17% Defense to Smashing/Lethal damage, +30% Cold Resistance, +12.5% Fire Resistance, and +17.3% resistance to defense debuffs. Fully enhanced, the power gives about +26.5% Defense to Smashing/Lethal damage. Slot for Defense and Endurance Rection. This toggle recharges extremely fast if it drops, so enhancing for Recharge is not needed. Get this one and dont look back.

Tier 2: HoarFrost (Self Heal, +Max HP, +Resistance to Toxic)

Another staple of the set, this is a click power thats essentially identical to Dull Pain (Invulnerability) and Earths Embrace (Stone). It provides a good self-heal and buffs your maximum HP for a decent duration. It also adds +20% resistance against Toxic damage. This is an excellent power and needed for those times where a few attacks break through your shields and land home. Slot for Heal/Recharge as the primary focus for the power. Endurance reduction is nice if you get it for free with IO sets, but not needed. Also, this is the ideal place early on to slot the SteadFast Resistance/Defense Unique IO (+3% Defense to all), since its the ONLY place to slot the IO until you get Tough/PermaFrost later on. Its also a good place to stick the IO since it will be available if you Exemplar down for Task Forces or to play with friends. For those that don't care about Exemp'ing down, the SteadFast Res/Def IO can later be moved to either the Tough or PermaFrost powers. Both accept Resistance IOs.

Tier 3: Chilling Embrace (PbAoE Toggle, foe Rech/ -Speed/ -Dmg)

This is it, one of the big reasons to pick the Ice Armor Primary. This is a great multi-purpose toggle power. It has a -32% recharge effect for the foes it hits, which is great, as it decreases incoming damage by slowing the rate opponents attack. It also slows run speed and jumping for the opponents it hits. On top of all that, it has a -14% damage debuff effect. The power is an auto-hit for those in range and ticks every 0.5 seconds with a Mag 4 Taunt. It can be slotted with the Impeded Swiftness: Chance for Smashing Damage and Pacing of the Turtle: Chance for Rechage Slow IOs for even more mitigation. Early on, this power will be your primary means of getting and keeping aggro from enemies.

Tier 4: Wet Ice (+Def all but Psi, +Res Cold/Stun/Immob/Hold/Sleep/Slow/KB/Def Debuff)

This one is one that I personally consider a must-have toggle at level 6. Its essentially your status protection and will keep you from being immobilized, knocked down, held, slept, etc. It also offers some extremely minor Defense (+1%), a base +30% cold Resistance, and offers Resistance to Defense Debuffs. The resistance to Defense Debuffs comes in handy, as it stacks with the resistance from Frozen Armor early on in your career. Odds are any opponents with a sword or edged weapon will have some sort of attack in their catalog that will apply a Def Debuff effect if it hits. This tends to be bad for a Defense based primary. This power only needs its base slot filled with a Endurance Reduction enhancement to be effective for your entire career. However, swapping this power to pick up HoarFrost earlier in your build is also a viable approach, since knockdown/mez is less frequent early on and generally restricted to a few enemies (Vhaz, Trolls, Lost, etc.). If you pass over Wet Ice early, be sure to pick it up by Level 10 when these effects become more common.

Tier 5: PermaFrost (+Res Cold/Fire/Slow)

Ordinarily, this power gets a lot of hate mail. Its a resistance power that gives base +30% Resistance to Cold and +12.5% Resistance to Fire. It also gives additional resistance to Slows (including Recharge effects). Problem is that without this power, most Ice/ Tanks cap their Cold Resistance at +90% with Frozen Armor, Wet Ice, and Glacial Armor. That means picking this power does nothing for Cold Resistance. As a result, most people pick it up to give additional Fire and Slow Resistance, particularly since Fire attacks can be more prevalent in the late game. The additional slow resistance also helps resisting debuffs, and with it youll laugh at the Caltrops that the Knives of Artemis throw down. I recommend it in my build, but not until VERY late, as it helps top off the builds survivability. Note that the power accepts Resistance IOs, so there are a number of Psi and status resistance IOs that can be slotted here to help out with that hole in the Primary. For those that don't care about Exemp'ing down, the SteadFast Res/Def IO can be placed in this power for the additional +3% bonus. Note that since the Steadfast Res/Def IO is a Unique, only ONE can be slotted in each build. Place it carefully.

Tier 6: Icicles (PbAoE, minor Lethal DoT)

Icicles acts not only as your second Taunt aura (toggle), but is also a damage aura. It ticks every 2 seconds for some small lethal damage in an 8 foot radius around you. As a damage aura, its somewhat meh since lethal damage is so heavily resisted, but in essence, its free damage while youre working to maintain aggro control on the bad guys clustered around you. Also, since its always ticking away in the background, all those small ticks of damage really add up over the course of a mission, and can be used to finish off opponents with a sliver of health remaining without spending an attack to do it. Due to the building endurance cost of running a bunch of toggles early on in an Ice/Fire Tanks career, I recommend holding off until after Stamina to pick up this power. You already have Chilling Embrace as a taunt aura, and the extra damage this pushes out is not significant enough to warrant picking it up earlier. Eventually, youll want to six-slot this power both for the enhancement values as well as for the PbAoE IO Set bonuses.

Tier 7: Glacial Armor (+Def Eng/Neg Eng, +Res Cold/Def Debuff, +Perception)

This is your third big armor toggle. This power, Frozen Armor, and Wet Ice are the core of your defensive powers in the Primary. It offers a base +17% Defense to Energy and Negative Energy damage, +30% Cold Resistance, Defense Debuff Resistance, and a nice secondary effect of +Perception. This additional Perception is great to have as a Tank, since Arachnos smoke grenades and such have very limited effect. Being able to see the combat and detect hidden or stealthy opponents helps a lot in your role as point man for the team.

Tier 8: Energy Absorption (PbAoE +End, +Def all but Psi, Res Slow, Foe End)

This is a GREAT utility power and one that helps the powerset combo a lot. You can struggle a bit with Endurance management until this power becomes available at Level 26. Grabbing this power not only buffs your defense substantially (where you will be spending a LOT of time), but also recovers endurance. This allows you to essentially steamroll spawn to spawn once it is slotted up and you can even double-stack the defense benefit for more goodness. The power is auto-hit for all foes in range, which is huge. It recharges quickly and should be six-slotted to maximize Recharge, Endurance Modification, and Defense. Its a key element of the non-stop driving that the Alpha Tank can do to steamroll missions with a team. Other members may take a breather from time to time. You wont have to after you grab this power.

Tier 9: Hibernate (Self Invulnerable/Hold, +Regen, +Recovery)

Hibernate is a very useful Tier 9 power for Ice Tanks. Its essentially a big panic button for those AV fights or situations where you get hammered and youre at risk of faceplanting and leaving the team exposed to the raw aggro that had been focused on you. Clicking this power once encases you in a mini-glacier and your hit points and endurance rapidly fill back up. Slotted with some Heal enhancements, you can hit this toggle, recharge, and then burst out of the block of ice before losing aggro. Usually its a good idea to fire off Taunt or an AoE before hitting Hibernate to ensure you have aggro for the duration of the power. With a high base Defense, you really shouldnt need this power that often. I tend to use it situationally, particularly with AV fights with foes like Antimatter or Envoy of Shadow that tend to be hard on Ice Tanks. It can also come in handy fighting Psi heavy foes like Psychic Clockwork and the Clockwork King. Carnies can also be rough, as the Ring Mistresses have a power called Mask of Vitiation that hits like a hammer with Defense, -Regen, and Recovery. Since your primary mitigation is Defense with Regen backing it up, this power is like Kyptonite for your Tank.

Garthalus · 07-06-2008 01:11 PM

Making the good stuff better: The Fiery Melee Secondary

Tier 1: Scorch (Minor Fire Damage)

Since the animation changes in Issue 12, this default power has gotten better. It deals relatively minor damage, but its pure Fire damage, which is pretty unresisted thoughout the game. Its a fast-activating power that youll use throughout your career as a filler attack in your chain and also for a little extra aggro control with Gauntlet. I actually like the new animation quite a bit, and the power as a whole is pretty solid overall. Early on, leave it with a single slot and use an Accuracy enhancement in it. Later in the build when slots free up, six-slot the power to maximize its effectiveness.

Tier 2: Fire Sword (Moderate Fire/Lethal Damage)

About twice the damage that Scorch pushes out with a mix of Fire and Lethal damage. Ive played around with this power a bit, and it can be a good additional attack early on, but later in the build, your attack chain is tight without it. Overall, I recommend skipping this power. Focus on your Defense and survivability early on. If you do take it, Id recommend respecing out of it in the mid 20s once the build fleshes out a bit.

Tier 3: Combustion (Moderate Fire Damage/DoT)

This power is the first staple in your AoE attack chain and youll use it throughout your career. It has a bit of a lengthy animation, but it has a big (15 ft) radius. It pushes out an initial burst of Fire Damage with 8 ticks of small Fire Damage over the next 7 seconds. This is great for getting aggro in an area combined with Chilling Embrace. It can also do quite a bit of aggregate damage in big spawns, so dont discount its usefulness. Six slot it and love it. Slot early on for Accuracy, Recharge, Endurance Reduction, and Damage (in that order).

Tier 4: Taunt (Ranged AoE, Foe Taunt)

A hotly debated topic on the forums, Ill just present my perspective here. Taunt is not required, but its a nice tool to have in your toolbox as a Tank. I use it frequently even in a build that is an aggro magnet like Ice/Fire. First, its auto-hit aggro control. Facing enemies with extremely high Defense (Demons, Paragon City Protectors who hit Elude, etc.) this power becomes extremely useful. Second, it offers ranged aggro management. Youll frequently be surrounded by a horde of enemies and spot a stray runner heading for a Defender in the back row. Taunt allows you to protect your teammates without dragging the entire spawn with you to save your teammate (tends to be counterproductive). It also is handy for ensuring aggro with AVs to protect your team. Overall, every Tank I make gets Taunt. It helps you do your job under challenging circumstances, and thats good in my book. That said, pick this up in your 20s when power selections open up a bit. Before that, Gauntlet and Chilling Embrace will do the job just fine.

Tier 5: Breath of Fire (Cone, Moderate Fire DoT)

Second of the AoE powers in the Secondary, this one is a long narrow cone. It deals some good damage and with the correct positioning it can be devastating. However, since the cone is so narrow, it requires jumping out of the seething mob surrounding you, hitting the power, and then hopping back in. It is also a good opening power when herding to a corner and the enemies bunch up for you. Despite this, it tends to require more footwork to use than I care for with a Tank. Overall, I recommend a pass on this power. Stick with the PbAoE radius attacks, as they synergize best with your two Taunt auras to lock down aggro in a spawn.

Tier 6: Build Up (+Dmg, +To-Hit)

Pretty standard power common to many CoH characters. +80% Damage and +20% To-Hit for 10 seconds. The to-hit is a nice boost, but since an Alpha Tank role is more about Aggro management and survivability and less about damage, this power gets a skip from me. Damage for the build is still very good and this power just doesnt support the conceptual design for the build as well as other power selections. Heresy to some, this is the approach I advocate here.

Tier 7: Fire Sword Circle (PbAoE, Moderate Fire/Lethal Damage)

This is the second big AoE click attack in the Primary that you have been lusting after since you picked up Combustion earlier on. Yep, its great. In Issue 12 they modified the animation a bit to slow it down, so its a bit clunkier than the old fast/smooth animation. Regardless, its still fantastic and the leaping, spinning sword animation is very pretty. This power really pushes the damage and should be slotted ASAP after you get it. This and Combustion will be the bread and butter of your attack chain in big spawns. Did I mention its great?

Tier 8: Incinerate (High Fire DoT)

Many people think this power is only meh because it produces a series of ticks of damage instead of a single big orange number. They are mistaken. This attack has a fast animation, pushes out almost as much damage as Greater Fire Sword, and is more Endurance efficient, to boot. The steady stream of damage is very useful for enemies with interruptible powers (CoT Mages when they squat, for example). This attack will be a staple in your single-target attack chain and once you pick it up, life gets a lot better. Six slot this ASAP and enjoy.

Tier 9: Greater Fire Sword (Superior Fire/Lethal Damage)

Yep, the Mac Daddy of fire weapons, this sword is almost comically large (pun intended). It has a somewhat lengthy animation, but deals some good Fire and Lethal damage when it hits. This is your big gun for single target attacks. Six-slot pronto and youll have a solid single-target attack chain finally. My attack chain for single-targets tends to run GFS -> Scorch -> Incinerate -> Scorch -> Repeat. Youll be certain to appreciate a hard-hitting attack like this one once you pick it up.

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Tying it all together: Pool Powers

The Alpha Tank concept is designed to be as survivable as possible while maintaining aggro with excellent mobility. To support those goals, Pool powers are added to the build selectively. The Epic Pools are not touched on this build, since Pool power selections support the build concept better. Specifically, since the Fiery Melee secondary offers no other mitigation (stuns, knockdown, slows, etc.), pool powers become essential to maximize the survivability of the build and to supplement the Primary.

[u]Leaping Pool:[u]

Combat Jumping (+Jump, + Def to All, +Res Immobilize)

A solid power choice early on, Combat Jumping is dirt cheap toggle to run, offers a decent base +2.5% Defense to all (including Psionic), and gives great air control. Taking this power is key to building on the +Defense from the Primary, so this is a solid choice. Also, coupled with Hurdle from the Fitness pool, you get a mini SuperJump that is insuppressible and provides superior combat mobility. Its also FAST and comes in extremely handy when herding/gathering. +Def and providing great mobility make this power a great pick.

SuperJump (+Long Jump)

SuperJump is an ideal and efficient power pick for an Ice/Fire Tank. It has Combat Jumping as a prerequisite and doesnt need any slots to be a great travel power. You get excellent vertical movement from this toggle, its not hard on your blue bar, and you travel very fast from point to point. About the only place I ever long for a different travel power is the Shadow Shard. Overall, it does the job and lets you put slots other places where they are needed.

[u]Fitness Pool:[u]

Hurdle (+Jump, +Jump Speed)

Pretty straightforward, this power boosts your jump height and speed. Gives better ground speed than Swift and synergizes extremely well with Combat Jumping (previously discussed). This is a pre-requisite for the other powers in the Fitness Pool, and its an auto power, so it takes no endurance to run and cannot be detoggled.

Health (+Regen, +Res Sleep)

A key power for Tanks. The Tank archetype has the most hit points out of all the available Hero and Villain archetypes. As a result, the % regen is much more substantial (the same % of a higher value = more hit points being regenerated per second). Unslotted, the power gives +40% Regen. Slotted up at the ED cap, it gives about 80% regeneration. Take it and slot it up pronto. It helps your survivability a lot.

Stamina (+Recovery)

Yep, this power is pretty much taken by every character in the game. It provides +25% recovery base and about +50% Recovery when slotted up at the ED cap. Take it at 20 and three slot it at 21. Once you pick this up, life gets a lot easier. When you hit Energy Absorption, your endurance woes will disappear. Take it and love it.

[u]Fighting Pool:[u]

Boxing (Moderate Smashing Damage, Foe Disorient)

An OK attack and one you may want to use as a filler in your single-target attack chain until later on. I recommend slotting an Accuracy enhancement in this power and not doing anything else. Smashing damage is highly resisted and you have better places to put slots in the build. This is a prerequisite for the rest of the picks in the pool, so you need to grab it.

Tough (+Res Smashing/Lethal)

A solid power choice (toggle) for all Tanks. In particular, for Ice Tanks it gives a measure of Smashing/Lethal Resistance in an otherwise Defense based set. Base values are +15% Resistance to Smashing/Lethal, and about 23% when fully slotted at the ED cap. Adding this power takes the edge of hits that manage to land and increases your survivability early on when your Defense is not up to its final potential. A great power to have to maximize the survivability for your Ice/Fire Tank. For those that don't care about Exemp'ing down below L32 (still would be in effect for the KH Task Force), the SteadFast Res/Def IO be placed in this power for the additional +3% bonus. Note that since the Steadfast Res/Def IO is a Unique, only ONE can be slotted in each build. Place it carefully.

Weave (+Def to All, +Res Immobilize)

The end-goal for taking the Fighting pool. Weave is a toggle that adds a base +5% Defense to all, and about +7.8% when slotted to the ED cap for Defense. The combination of Weave and Combat Jumping add a total of +11.7% Defense to all. Add in the SteadFast Resistance/Defense IO from HoarFrost (covered earlier) and you get a total of +14.7% Defense layering on top of the Defense values from the primary. That means with Frozen Armor, Glacial Armor, and Wet Ice (yes, that 1% Defense helps) you get a hair over 42% Defense to Smashing/Lethal/Energy/Negative Energy. Add in the +Def boost from Energy Absorption firing off, and youre over the soft cap for defense. Thats a great place to be.

[u]Speed Pool:[u]

Hasten (+Recharge)

A click power that gives a +70% Recharge boost to every power you have for 120 seconds. This means attacks cycle faster, HoarFrost recharges more quickly, and Hibernate is available when you need it in tough fights. A single power that has a large effect on the rest of your build. The down side is a 15 point endurance cost at the end when it drops (ends). For this reason, I recommend picking it up later in the build after Energy Absorption is slotted up. Overall, a great choice and maximizes your AoEs and tightens your attack chain.

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The final product: A sample build

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.40
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Peltier Justice: Level 50 Technology Tanker
Primary Power Set: Ice Armor
Secondary Power Set: Fiery Melee
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Speed

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Frozen Armor -- S'dpty-Def/EndRdx:38(A), S'dpty-Def:36(3), GftotA-Def/EndRdx:35(3), GftotA-Def:32(5)
Level 1: Scorch -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg:42(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx:41(40), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg:42(43), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:42(45), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:41(45), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:43(45)
Level 2: Chilling Embrace -- EndRdx-I:50(A), P'ngTtl--Rchg%:25(15), ImpSwft-Dam%:16(46)
Level 4: Combustion -- Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:43(A), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx:41(5), Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:41(7), Sciroc-Acc/Rchg:41(7), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:40(11), Sciroc-Dam%:41(11)
Level 6: Wet Ice -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
Level 8: Hoarfrost -- Tr'ge-Heal/Rchg:29(A), Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:45(9), H'zdH-Heal/Rchg:33(9), H'zdH-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:40(13), Numna-Heal/Rchg:44(13), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+:16(15)
Level 10: Combat Jumping -- GftotA-Run+:34(A), GftotA-Def:38(37), GftotA-Def/EndRdx:34(48)
Level 12: Swift -- Run-I:50(A)
Level 14: Super Jump -- Jump-I:50(A)
Level 16: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:37(A), Numna-Heal/Rchg:36(17), Numna-Heal/EndRdx:36(17)
Level 18: Glacial Armor -- S'dpty-Def/EndRdx:39(A), S'dpty-Def/Rchg:35(19), S'dpty-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:40(19), S'dpty-Def:37(23)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A), EndMod-I:50(21), P'Shift-End%:36(21)
Level 22: Icicles -- Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:41(A), Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:41(23), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:40(25), Sciroc-Acc/Rchg:41(25), Sciroc-Dam%:40(34), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx:42(34)
Level 24: Taunt -- Mocking-Taunt/Rchg:41(A), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg/Rng:40(46)
Level 26: Energy Absorption -- Efficacy-EndMod:40(A), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg:41(27), LkGmblr-Def/Rchg:37(27), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:35(34), S'dpty-Def/Rchg:40(36), S'dpty-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:39(37)
Level 28: Fire Sword Circle -- Sciroc-Acc/Dmg:43(A), Sciroc-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:41(29), Sciroc-Dmg/Rchg:41(29), Sciroc-Acc/Rchg:41(31), Sciroc-Dam%:40(31), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx:44(31)
Level 30: Boxing -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 32: Tough -- ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx:34(A), ImpArm-ResDam/Rchg:36(33), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg:36(33), ImpArm-ResDam:35(33)
Level 35: Weave -- S'dpty-Def/EndRdx:35(A), S'dpty-Def/Rchg:37(36), S'dpty-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:35(36), S'dpty-Def:33(37)
Level 38: Incinerate -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg:45(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:44(39), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:43(39), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg:45(39), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx:46(40), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:45(40)
Level 41: Greater Fire Sword -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:47(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg:47(42), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx:47(42), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg:47(42), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx:47(43), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg:47(43)
Level 44: Hibernate -- Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:49(A), Numna-Heal:48(46), Numna-Heal/Rchg:49(48)
Level 47: Hasten -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(48)
Level 49: Permafrost -- ImpArm-ResPsi:20(A), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx:35(50), ImpArm-ResDam:37(50), ImpArm-ResDam/Rchg:39(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- QckFt-EndRdx/RunSpd:50(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 1: Gauntlet
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]<ul type="square">[*]3% Defense(Smashing)[*]3% Defense(Lethal)[*]3% Defense(Fire)[*]3% Defense(Cold)[*]3% Defense(Energy)[*]3% Defense(Negative)[*]16.1% Defense(Psionic)[*]3% Defense(Melee)[*]3% Defense(Ranged)[*]12.4% Defense(AoE)[*]6.3 Max Endurance[*]54% Enhancement(Accuracy)[*]15% Enhancement(RechargeTime)[*]182.7 HP (9.75%) HitPoints[*]MezResist(Immobilize) 6.6%[*]10.5% (0.18 End/sec) Recovery[*]92% (7.2 HP/sec) Regeneration[*]2.5% Resistance(Fire)[*]9.38% Resistance(Negative)[*]10.5% Resistance(Psionic)[*]7.5% RunSpeed[/list]
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
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|-------------------------------------------------------------------|</pre><hr />

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Final values for my current build:
(standing still at L50, toggles up, no Hoarfrost, Hasten, or Energy Absorption effects)

S/L Defense: 42.3%
Eng/Neg Eng Defense: 42.1%
Fire/Cold Defense: 15.5%
Psionic Defense: 27.7%

S/L Resistance: 23.4%
Fire Resistance: 33.7%
Cold Resistance: 90% (capped)
Energy/Toxic Resistance: 0%
Negative Energy Resistance: 9.4%
Psionic Resistance: 10.5%

166% Recovery
280% Regeneration
124.8% Max HP (includes accolades)
116.3% Max End (includes accolades)

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some final words about IO set selections

IO sets were selected to maximize in order of priority:

1.) Regeneration
2.) Max Hit Points
3.) Recovery
4.) Accuracy

IO sets were selected for enhancement values first and set bonuses second, with the "rule of 5" in mind when comparing and matching set bonuses. LotG: 7.5% global recharge IOs were not used (too expensive) and the build does not make use of the Kismet +To-Hit IO in Combat Jumping like many builds do. Both are viable options, just not ones I chose to exercise at this point.

While this build approach may not be for all, it has proven to be a very successful team-centric Tank build for me. Ive Tanked about every AV in the game with it and challenged about every villain group out there. Its been not only fun to play, but effective as well. I hope the guide will give you some helpful ideas and/or another direction to consider when choosing a new Tank to play. Nothing here should be gospel, but hopefully it can help some people and provide a data point for others to build on and have fun with. After all, fun is why we all play CoH, right?

Best of luck and Happy Tanking...

Garthalus · 07-06-2008 01:11 PM

(Reserved for future updates/commentary)

Largo · 07-06-2008 02:00 PM

Add that Permafrost can hold the Steadfast Res/+3%Def Unique IO to stack with your other defenses. Most guides skip this little gem.

-Largo

Founder of A.G.O.N.Y. Supergroup on Victory
Member of Thought Sanctum VG on Victory
Member of St0rm Batallion SG on Guardian

Garthalus · 07-06-2008 02:06 PM

Good point, but I actually advocate placing the SteadFast Res/Def unique in HoarFrost instead of PermaFrost. PermaFrost is taken very late in my build, and having the SteadFast Res/Def in HoarFrost means it will be active even if exemplared down for the Positron Task Force (about as low as I would regularly forsee exemping down to). That's also part of the reason I selected a Level 16 SteadFast Res/Def IO (so it would function at that exemplared level).

I have updated the guide to mention that the IO can be also be placed in either Tough or PermaFrost. Thanks for the feedback.

Frostweaver · 07-06-2008 03:34 PM

A few points about IO slotting-

I don't neccessarily agree with Garth on all of his suggestions, since he runs a primarily team-centric tanker and I run a more solo-oriented build, but I figured I would throw in a few slotting Ideas for the 'cheapskates' that want to optimize both soloing and team tanking. His advice is generally very good though and won't steer you wrong, but the joy of CoH is that two people can use the same powersets and come to the same conclusions by different routes.

One of the things about fire melee is that, frankly, the recharge on all of it's attacks is SLOW. The heavy-hitters for a tanker (combust and FSC) will likely be used almost as often when facing a single boss as it will be when you are facing a horde of minions. I tend to prioritize my slotting with recharge first, fire resistance second, and then the 'mitigators' (health, recovery, +regen) and I really like having hoarfrost up as often as possible.

Set IO bonuses-

The first thing I want to say is, 6-slotting is overrated. Very few sets give anything worth six-slotting for to an ice/fire tanker. The exceptions (not the rule) to 6 slotting avoidance I will list-

Luck of the gambler (1 set in your entire build)
Mocking Beratement- (1 set in taunt) or perfect zinger (1 set in taunt)
Crushing impact- (The best IO melee set in my experience) (2 sets)
Gift of the ancients- (1 set)
Doctored wound- (1 set in health)
efficacy adaptor- (1 set in stamina)
impervium armor- (1 set in tough)

And of course, any purple set you can get your hands on.

Beyond those basics, frankenslotting helps a LOT! A lot of sets you only want the first two in (such as energy manipulator) 4, or 5 slots. Red fortune can help a lot in your build, as can crushing impacts, both of these sets can be had for a song.

Some powers you really NEED to frankenslot. Energy absorption is a good example of this. You want the recharge, defense, and endurance modification to be as close to maximum as possible.

Energy absorption will do amazing things for your survival not only because it can be double-stacked, but once you have it slotted for all three above, it can also keep enemies almost drained of endurance, and your defense will take a healthy boost Even when it is only used on one enemy!

Hoarfrost should also be strongly frankenslotted for resistance/recharge/healing, because once you get hoarfrost near-permanent, it will nearly double your survival, and the toxic resistance in hoarfrost is pretty much all the toxic resistance you will ever get.

Garthalus · 07-06-2008 04:15 PM

Good perspective Frostweaver. It's true that my guide is specifically geared toward an Alpha Tank team role, and many of the decisions and slotting are tailored specifically for that approach.

For contrast, I do exercise the equivalent of many of your suggestions in my Fire/Fire Tank. He is more of a hybrid build that focuses on a blend of raw damage output and toughness.

You are right, though. I appreciate the depth that IOs offer in that they enable a significant degree of flexibility in purpose for the same powerset combos. Some can build Ice/Fire to be an AoE "Scranker" like Star_Sentinel did, some (like you) can go with a more general purpose/soloing build, and some (like me) can maximize survivability and team-centric characteristics.

Good commentary, thanks.

meris608 · 07-07-2008 10:16 AM

One point I would like to bring up is the use of Medicine. For an Ice/ tank, Medicine is a really powerful pool. Slot Aid Self with 3 heal 2 interupt, and it is rare that you will not get it off after the alpha strike. It is a great way to keep you health high even with hoarfrost down.

My friend did a little survivability analysis of Fighting vs Medicine, and he came up with these numbers (I wont go into what these numbers mean, but just suffice to say that Bigger is Better)

Fighting/Medicine
S/L:2976.37%/2389.13%
E/N:2280.76%/2389.13%
F:775.81%/1310.64%

So as you can see, Tough/Weave is better in Smashing and Lethal, but worse in Fire and Energy/Negative damage. Also keep in mind that Tough and Weave are 3 power picks where Aid Self is only 2. So Fighthing is a little bit more powerful than Medicine, but Medicine allows you to get an extra power, which for a secondary like /fire is great.

Garthalus · 07-07-2008 01:44 PM

Personally, I dislike Medicine for Tanks.

Particularly for a Defense-based Tank, the +7.8% or so that Weave offers pushes the "big 4" Defense types from 34.4% Defense to 42.2% Defense. For me, that's huge, particularly when you stack EA firing on top of it. That will put you well over the soft cap and give a LOT of protection vs. higher level foes/EBs/AVs/etc.

Also, the tricorder requires you to stop what you are doing, execute the animation, and then resume. It's also interruptible (not as much an issue with a Defense based set, but still).

I prefer the Fighting pool because it it [u]Proactive[u] mitigation, as opposed to [u]Reactive[u] mitigation. Plus, the layered S/L Resistance is just icing on the cake after the bonus Weave provides.

There are schools of thought that prefer the Medicine pool. Unfortunately, I am not one of them. Thanks for the perspective, though.

Bobitron · 07-07-2008 03:33 PM

Nice, Garthalus! I'll be referring back to this while I work on my new Ice/Mace tank.

I've never played a defense set other than my /Nin Stalker, so I'm still getting used the the ups and downs. It was nice this morning, just after dinging 22 and getting lv25 IO's slotted, to be able to jump into a big giant group of 8 Tsoo that would have stunned the heck out my Inv/ tank or /Dark Scrapper and just stand there with all those pink fists whiffing by.

Thanks for taking the time to write this one up.

Star_Sentinel · 07-08-2008 09:47 AM

Alrighty. I just got a chance to read this new guide for Ice/Fire. Very nice guide. I would like to throw in my 2 cents.

#1 is Endurance Management. It is a pain until you get EA at 26. I agree with you in holding off on Icicles until 22, after you've picked up Stamina. While I see you've chosen wisely with your IOs, if someone doesn't have it 100% exact and are only using an End Redux in their FA, CE, GA, Tough, Weave and 2 in Icicles, they're using 1.71 end per second and gaining only 2.73. So it's gonna get rough Endurance wise. Just keep an eye one that.

#2. As you stated, this build is for being Alpha strike ready. I would have picked up the Pyre Mastery pool instead, but my build is for herding and doing more damage. Yours is on the more defensive side with Tough/Weave, but looks good to me.

#3. Quick mention on Frankenslotting. For those considering an Ice/Fire. Consider using Acc/Dams End/Dams a lot from different sets. You won't get set bonuses, but the results are quite nice.

#4. Chilling Embrace- Another reason this power is awesome, is that there is a 14% damage resistance built in as well.

#5. You mentioned a coding put into COH so that foes never miss more than 4 times. I understand that is only applied to Heroes/Villains, not NPCs. If you watch your combat window and you miss 4 times, after that you see "Auto-hit Enemy for X damage (which sucks if its brawl)." I've never seen that occur against me. You'll just a see a foe have a 5.5% chance to hit and roll a 2.09.

Overall a good guide. I give it my thumbs up.

Scrapulous · 07-08-2008 12:00 PM

Very nice guide, thanks. I have a couple of comments.

First is about the streakbreaker. You wrote:

[ QUOTE ]

If you go a long time without getting hit, the game code will manually overrule the attack role(s) and dictate one or two hits in a row. This means no matter how good your Defense, youre still going to get tagged once and a while. The goal is to minimize how often that happens. (My apologies to Arcana if I butchered that explanation too badly.)

[/ QUOTE ]

My understanding of the streakbreaker is that it's tracked per mob (just like it's tracked per player - you don't share streaks with your teammates, for example). So a more precise way of putting this is

"If you go a long time without getting hit by a given critter, the game code will manually overrule the attack role(s) and dictate a hit."

You also wrote:
[ QUOTE ]

This means no matter how good your Defense, youre still going to get tagged once and a while.

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, the accuracy floor is more of a factor here than the streakbreaker. In the best case scenario, any mob has at least 5% chance to hit, which means you're still going to get tagged once in a while. That's way more significant than the streakbreaker coming into effect every 100 misses (which is the frequency when your defense is soft capped).

Also, this comment on Wet Ice raised my eyebrows:

[ QUOTE ]

This one is a must-have toggle at level 6. Its essentially your status protection and will keep you from being immobilized, knocked down, held, slept, etc.

[/ QUOTE ]

Even for a team tank, I don't think Wet Ice is a must have at 6. Level 10 is the first time I start seeing status effects to worry about, and that's mostly from villain groups that are pretty avoidable, like Lost and Vahzilok. I'd say 10 or 12 is where it becomes important for a team tank to have. For a tank who sometimes solos, I would suggest that it can be postponed to 16 or 18.

The reason I bring this up is that power choices at the early levels have so much impact on ones success, especially for team-oriented ATs. I feel that Frozen Armor, Hoarfrost and Chilling Embrace are all much better survival tools at low levels than Wet Ice is, and Chilling Embrace is a better for the team, since it's an early aggro management tool.

Finally, I'd like to add a point to the Aid Self vs. Weave discussion: Aid Self is a managed power, while Weave is a toggle. For a tank specializing in 8 man teams, having one less power to manage is an advantage.

Scrap

Garthalus · 07-08-2008 01:27 PM

My understanding of the streakbreaker code matches yours, I just did not present the description as well. And yes, that and the 5% chance to hit is what I was referring to when I was discussing getting "tagged". My Ice/Fire has been in a lot of AV fights where they wiff you for ages and then WHAM! WHAM! You're down to 20% health in a heartbeat and frantically pushing the HoarFrost button. Fate is a fickle mistress...

As for Wet Ice... I can see your point. Arguably, HoarFrost has more value to pick up first for survivability. I dislike being knocked down by Trolls, etc. at lower levels and the mez effects from Vhaz bosses can be downright crappy because all your toggles drop... Dead meat in a hurry. Since this is primarily a Team-Tank, part of that preference is colored by my experience that there are generally healers, bubblers, sonics, and so on to help mitigate the damage for your Tank, but only a few that have anti-mez/knockdown buffs.

In truth, since XP smoothing, the early levels flash by so quickly, either choice is viable depending on the user preference. I will update my guide for clarity, though.

Thanks, good feedback.

Sailor · 07-08-2008 05:13 PM

Nice read Garth!
And having spent quite a bit of time with Peltier on teams, I can attest to the results!

Great job.

Bobitron · 07-25-2008 05:44 PM

I'm back with a few questions after getting Metacomet, my Ice/Mace tank, up to level 32.

1) Is slotting Energy Absorption for Defense really worth it? So far I'm finding that the numbers it adds are really minor.

2) I have Chilling Embrace slotted with a couple Slow IO's, which seems to make a noticeable difference. Is it really viable, or are the slots better invested elsewhere?

...and a quick tip for all Ice tankers who aren't yet running at that magical 45% Defense yet: Buy purple Defense Inspirations! Like I mentioned earlier, I'm new to Defensive sets, so I was pretty impressed with the difference stacking a purple or two with my toggles makes. Way better use of Inspiration space than Oranges or Greens.

Garthalus · 07-25-2008 06:36 PM

[ QUOTE ]
1) Is slotting Energy Absorption for Defense really worth it? So far I'm finding that the numbers it adds are really minor.

2) I have Chilling Embrace slotted with a couple Slow IO's, which seems to make a noticeable difference. Is it really viable, or are the slots better invested elsewhere?

[/ QUOTE ]

1.) Yes. With a well-slotted Energy Absorption, you can double-stack it. The +Def I can get from a large spawn (i.e. big teams) can boost me from 42% S/L/N/E Defense to about 60% Defense. That's substantial.

2.) Since the -Rech portion of the CE effect is unenhanceable, I don't bother with Slows. Slow effects also make herding just painful, so it's a mixed blessing. Personally, I just slot an endurance reduction and then the two Procs (-Rech and Smashing Damage). YMMV

Good questions.

Bobitron · 07-25-2008 06:49 PM

Okay, I'll give that a shot. Thanks Garth!

Scrapulous · 07-25-2008 07:12 PM

[ QUOTE ]

Yes. With a well-slotted Energy Absorption, you can double-stack it. The +Def I can get from a large spawn (i.e. big teams) can boost me from 42% S/L/N/E Defense to about 60% Defense. That's substantial.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's also worth noting that the marginal value of small amounts of +Def is much greater for people who already have high defense than it is for everybody else.

For example: a typical Fire Tanker with no native +Def gets a 5% +Def buff. Against even con minions he gets hit 45% of the time instead of 50% of the time. Their chance to hit this fire tanker has been diminished by 10%. He takes 90% of the damage he took before the buff.

Let's say that you, on the other hand, have 40% +Def natively, but you get the same 5% +Def buff that the fire tanker did. That takes you to 45% +Def. Instead of even con minions hitting you 10% of the time, they hit you 5% of the time (floored accuracy). Their chance to hit you has been diminshed by 50%. You have halved the amount of damage you receive with the same buff that only reduced the fire tanker's damage to 90%.

This is why powers like Combat Jumping and Weave, while often derided, are still worth considering for defense-based sets, because the marginal value of even small amounts of defense are considerable when added to an already high defense.

Scrap

Kris_Vibrance · 10-21-2008 09:19 AM

I'm having a hard time re-creating the Defs in the 40%s. It may be a Mid's error, I'm not sure. Any help is appreciated.

If I copy the text blurb, it comes out as noted in the post (low 40%s) in Mids. However, if I re-create it from scratch, I only get the high 30%s.

Conversely, if I start with the text blurb and remove everything except for the unenhanced base powers, it is still a few percent higher that if I start from scratch and add in the few base powers.

Can anyone else give a shot at re-creating the build and report their numbers? (BTW, my Mids is current and fully updated.)

Thanks

Garthalus · 10-21-2008 11:16 AM

I'll check it when I get home (no Mids at work).

The Defense values standing still are all about 42% for S/L/Neg/Nrg, I've verified that in-game with the combat numbers display.

With combat numbers running, I've been able to stack EA for over 60% Defense vs. those types, but not reliably.

Moar recharge plez!

Scientist · 10-21-2008 12:23 PM

[ QUOTE ]
I'm having a hard time re-creating the Defs in the 40%s. It may be a Mid's error, I'm not sure. Any help is appreciated.

[/ QUOTE ]

Note the little circles above (or maybe next to?) the various powers; it shows whether that power is being applied to totals. So if you have Combat Jumping, say, taken, but that circle isn't white to show that its turned on, Mids doesn't add it in.

Especially important with things like Hasten. . .

Garthalus · 10-21-2008 08:59 PM

I just loaded the code block from the original post, shows fine for me. Defense for S/L/Neg/Nrg are all over 40%...

Not sure where the difficulty is.

Tater Todd · 11-03-2008 02:30 AM

I have a quick question...with all those Toggles running that aggro the foes and you having Taunt. If I cast Ice Storm would they still flee?

Garthalus · 11-03-2008 01:54 PM

Short answer, yes.

Long answer, yes but with a caveat. I've seen this behavior with Rain of Fire in spawns I was Tanking. The fear effect can be somewhat offset by Taunting, such that they will turn back then re-fear when it ticks, causing them to turn and run back. The back-and-forth behavior can be odd, but usually with the AoE damage going on with an Ice/Fire, it's not for long.

Ytren · 11-13-2008 02:30 PM

Just wanted to say, it seems Ice/Fire Tankers are getting a load of Awesome, in Issue 13.

Eradication PBAoE Set
Obliteration PBAoE Set(Damage, Accuracy AND recharge?!?)
Blessing of the Zephyr Universal Travel Set

(Plus a couple Heal sets that may or may not go well.)

These, along with the following, make it seem like it'll be a good(er. Heh.) time to be an Ice/Fire Tanker:

<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre> All Taunt Powers in secondary powersets now include a -75% range debuff to the target.

All types of typed defense granted from Invention Origin enhancement set bonuses have been paired up and grant the same size of bonuses that were previously only granted to a single
typed defense bonus. The paired up groups are: Lethal and Smashing, Fire and Cold, Energy and Negative Energy. Psionic defense remains in its own grouping.

Invention Origin enhancement sets that grant typed defense (Lethal, Smashing, Energy, Negative Energy, Fire and Cold) will now additionally grant 50% of that bonus to
a single positional defense (Melee, Ranged and AoE). Lethal/Smashing defense set bonuses will now also grant Melee defense, Energy/Negative Energy defense set bonuses
also grant Ranged defense and Fire/Cold defense set bonuses also grant AoE defense.

Invention Origin enhancement sets that grant positional (Melee, Ranged and AoE) defense bonuses will now additionally grant 50% of that bonus to a pair of typed defense
(Lethal/Smashing, Energy/Negative Energy and Fire/Cold) defenses. AoE defense set bonuses will now also grant a bonus to Fire/Cold defense, Ranged defense bonuses will grant a bonus
to Energy/Negative Energy defense and Melee defense will grant a bonus to Smashing/Lethal defense.</pre><hr />