DM/Regen or DM/DA

Hello, I'm rather new to CoH/CoV currently playing on a trial account but hoping to enjoy it enough to purchase the game and stick around a while. I'm looking for a fun AT/powers combo to play and get a good feel for the fun to be had here. So far I'm having a blast, I just cant settle on a character to stick with.

Anyway, I've tried a couple blasters and a couple scrappers. When I played breifly back in 2004 I played a lot of defenders and controllers but just didnt make it very far. I tend to solo a lot due to the hours I play and the fact I have a two year old that likes to pull daddy off the computer to play every so often. I do try to group when she's sleeping for her nap or at night. So, I'm looking for something that solo's well but can also contribute to a group once in a while and does not require a lot of influence to spend on expensive invention items at the start since I'm starting from 0. I'm also not a total power gamer so I dont need a perfectly tweeked power gameing class. Also, I primarily PvE and am not too interested in PvP at the moment. I think I've settled on a scrapper and like the dark melee primary but I cant settle on a secondary. I've found some guides for /regen but none for /DA. Which of those two would you recommend? Am I totally off base on hoping DM/? is a good class for me?

Thank you in advance for any advice and I hope to see many of you around in game.

Drent Darkstar

Dark Melee is a very good soloing primary. It specializes in single target damage, survivability and has a lot of useful tools.

It's also one of those primaries that goes well with just about everything. While you can certainly do it, I'm not sure that Regen or Dark Armor are ideal first secondaries. Regen's survival depends a lot on proper timing and use of its click powers, which can take some experience, though the only way to get that experience is to play it. I just worry that the learning curve might turn you off. Dark Armor also plays a little strangely, has some counterintuitive aspects, and has a reputation for being endurance hungry. It's all manageable if you know what you're doing, but it might be a bit much for your first scrapper. Also, Dark Armor really shines on teams, so may be a bit of a waste solo.

Willpower is a commonly-recommended first secondary. It blooms early and doesn't take a lot of effort. You just toggle on and go, and it sits there quietly in the background keeping you alive. And while it's probably serious overkill, between Dark Consumption, Quick Recovery and Stamina, you would probably never have endurance trouble, which tends to be a problem for people new to the game who haven't worked out how to deal with endurance.

Dark Melee/Shield Defense is the current flavor of the month for powergamers, but it does take substantial investment to get to those crazy good levels. I'm sure it plays just fine without all the investment, though, so it's a possibility.

Really, anything would work though. One of the good things about scrappers is that there really aren't any bad combinations.

I'm strongly biased towards DM/DA but I'm not sure I would recommend it for your situation. Here is a guide on the combo if you wish to pursue it.

DM/DA blooms late and can be difficult to manage endurance at early levels. The end results are well worth the required efforts though.

Thank you for the info Werner and the link to your guide Des. I am a long time MMO player and actually enjoy have a more "interactive gaming experience" rather than just clicking one thing and letting it go. I get bored if things are not active enough and I end up just mindlesly running around attacking. With that in mind, I think I've decided to go with the DM/DA just for the challenge of maintaining my endurance and having something to do other than attack the same mobs all the time.

Thanks again, I really do appreciate your assistance.

Drent/Damien Darkstar