Well I never did like MA till I try it with Shield Defense. It was a blast to play and /SD gives you a good AoE with Shield Charge.
For as the 3 that you say /WP, /Fire, /Dark. I would go with /WP it gives you good +Recovery and MA can beheavy on End.
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us...they can't get away this time"- Chesty Puller US Marine Corps
Looking for AoE damage... look elsewhere. Dragon's Tail is a fantastic combination of damage and mitigation, but it doesn't exactly make up for the lack of other AoE in the set. I run MA/Fire, MA/Regen, MA/WP for scrappers and a MA/Nin for Stalkers, and love the ST damage the set has.
Secondaries with Recovery, or AoE damage are my recommendations for pairing with MA. Fire and Dark provide damage auras that pile on damage while you destroy the bosses and lts. Shields adds extra damage, as well as Shield Charge at 35*, which is spectacular. Regen and Willpower give QR which helps with the high end costs of the set. Inv and SR are both solid secondaries, but neither would really benefit or hinder MA, although the extra recharge from SR would help putting together a good st attack chain.
While Shields are likely overdone, it would be my personal choice for my next MA scrapper.
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They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
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Shields adds extra damage, as well as Shield Charge at 35 which is spectacular.
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Fixed
Scrapper get Shield Charge at lvl 35 and Tanks get Shield Charge at lvl 26
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us...they can't get away this time"- Chesty Puller US Marine Corps
This probably won't affect your decision, but I actually like SR. It makes for a REALLY tight build, but it's just so, so satisfying not getting hit.
I also vote for Shield. I hated MA until I started up a MA/Shield, and this one I actually will probably level.
The combo I'm looking forward to is Energy Torrent + Shield Charge + Dragon's Tail. That will end up with a whole spawn spending so much time on it's back that it might not even get a shot off before it's defeated. Timing is important though, if you chain it too soon the standing up animation will override the knockdown, and if you chain it too late they will fire off an alpha before the next attack hits.
Kind of endurance heavy in the lower levels though.
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Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison See, it's gems like these that make me check Claws' post history every once in a while to make sure I haven't missed anything good lately. |
I'm actually gonna toss a vote in /Regen's direction. My first scrapper was MA/Regen, and I'll second Starflier's comments that it'll definitely help with the end drain of the set (since you can take QR *and* stamina).
Even though the secondary lacks the recharge component of /SR, I can still make a decent attack chain, and the toon goes through invincible missions like they're candy. And I don't even have her IO'd out yet.
Just a personal preference having played one. I'm sure the other secondaries mentioned are more than fine as well. 
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/anything will work just fine, mines MA/Regen, my mum (yes she plays and Im old 
) has a MA/WP.
I dont recall ever seeing a MA/DA though
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I dont recall ever seeing a MA/DA though
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I've never seen one in game either, to the best of my recollection, although I'm pretty sure there's a guide for MA/DA.
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
I have a MA/DA I've been working on - a darker take on the classic kung-fu sage. I think he'll be pretty beast if I can get a handle on his Endurance usage.
Dragon's Tail, Oppressive Gloom, Death Shroud, and Exploding Shuriken sounded like a pretty good combination, especially with Cobra Strike for boss-stunning stacking.
's doesn't make things plural.
I level'd an MA/DA to about 20. He was great, but the endurance was a huuuuuge problem for me.
my vote goes to MA/SD or /SR.
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I have a MA/DA I've been working on - a darker take on the classic kung-fu sage. I think he'll be pretty beast if I can get a handle on his Endurance usage.
Dragon's Tail, Oppressive Gloom, Death Shroud, and Exploding Shuriken sounded like a pretty good combination, especially with Cobra Strike for boss-stunning stacking.
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I think we recently voted it least popular scrapper, and then scratched our heads why. It should be great.
"That's because Werner can't do maths." - BunnyAnomaly
"Four hours in, and I was no longer making mistakes, no longer detoggling. I was a machine." - Werner
Videos of Other Stupid Scrapper Tricks
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I have a MA/DA I've been working on - a darker take on the classic kung-fu sage. I think he'll be pretty beast if I can get a handle on his Endurance usage.
Dragon's Tail, Oppressive Gloom, Death Shroud, and Exploding Shuriken sounded like a pretty good combination, especially with Cobra Strike for boss-stunning stacking.
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I think we recently voted it least popular scrapper, and then scratched our heads why. It should be great.
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Thats easy, DA covers up all the coolness of MA 
I want to see my guy kick not a shadow.
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us...they can't get away this time"- Chesty Puller US Marine Corps
Martial Arts has a lot of nice animations.
I've gotten it up in levels on a few different toons...MA/SR, MA/WP, and my highest at lvl 48 MA/Shield.
If you're looking for the highest single target DPS, yes, there are better choices.
If you're looking for a good mix of ST and AOE, yup, other choices.
If you're looking for style. Well, Martial Arts is one of the tops for that.
For a rare sight, MA/DA (Death Shroud will add to your AOE), is a way to go.
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
The BrandX Collection
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I have a MA/DA I've been working on - a darker take on the classic kung-fu sage. I think he'll be pretty beast if I can get a handle on his Endurance usage.
Dragon's Tail, Oppressive Gloom, Death Shroud, and Exploding Shuriken sounded like a pretty good combination, especially with Cobra Strike for boss-stunning stacking.
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I think we recently voted it least popular scrapper, and then scratched our heads why. It should be great.
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Thats easy, DA covers up all the coolness of MA
I want to see my guy kick not a shadow.
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I actually ended up loving the look of my Spines/Dark so much that I refused to take Cloak of Darkness. My Katana/Dark, on the other hand, is the usual puffball (how I wish at least the sword was visible, though).
"That's because Werner can't do maths." - BunnyAnomaly
"Four hours in, and I was no longer making mistakes, no longer detoggling. I was a machine." - Werner
Videos of Other Stupid Scrapper Tricks
Here's an excerpt from an upcoming MA guide that I'm hoping to get out before the next issue goes live. It might reiterate some of the things said above, but it also includes stuff that doesn't hurt to be known.
SECONDARIES
Because of the single-target nature of the Martial Arts set and some of its other properties, there are certain considerations for some secondary Defense Powersets.
Dark Armor
The significance of this powerset is the Oppressive Gloom power. This toggle has a mag2 Stun aura in an 8 ft. radius. Stacked with Cobra Strike or Eagle's Claw, this power can reliably keep bosses stunned.
Fiery Aura
Some of Fiery Aura's PBAoE attacks could help round out Martial Art's lack of AoE attacks. MA's only AoE, Dragon's Tail, could also be useful to keep multiple mobs in melee range for Fiery Aura to do its work.
Invulnerability
Invulnerability's highest potential comes in herding multiple mobs around itself, due to the Invincibility power. But this does run counter to Martial Art's focus on few mob targets. Otherwise, the sets themselves are compatible but a player needs to be aware of varying levels of performance through the length of some fights, and whether fighting solo or on teams.
Regeneration
This set is powerful and versatile so it works well with all sets. However, many of its core powers are click activated, which causes redraw for weapon sets. Because Martial Arts does not have any weapons to be drawn, some players who are decided on the Regeneration set might consider Martial Arts as an option. This is also a powerful set in solo or small team settings, which works well with Martial Art's focus.
Shield Defense
This set can be used to increase the damage potential of a Martial Arts Scrapper. Shield Charge also supplements another AoE attack to assist Martial Arts against multiple targets. Shield Defense is a late bloomer, so damage mitigation from your primary, such as Crane kick and possibly Cobra Strike, would be useful in the early levels.
Super Reflexes
This reliable set works well for all primary sets, including Martial Arts. Like Shield Defense, this is also a late blooming set, so using your primary for damage mitigation is definitely recommended, particularly at lower levels.
Willpower
Just as Invulnerability, Willpower becomes more powerful when surrounded by more targets. And just as Invulnerability, a MA/Willpower Scrapper would need to find a balance between its primary and secondary powersets.
When I used to play DA I had the eye tendrils aura colored blue. I used to run around with a Dark/Dark defender and be a Dark Servant look-a-like. Good times.
MA doesn't offer any big synergies except with Dark's stuns. So it pairs fine with basically every secondary. My favorites are SR (it's like the PBnJ of concepts), and Willpower.
QR
I've done well with Regen. She's 49.
Hmm...should get her to 50 today.
Hey All,
I guess I watched a few too many Kung Fu movies cause I got the itch to make a MA scrapper.
Question is, what to pair with it? Willpower is always a favorite but MA is missing any AoE attacks (other then the one at 28) so I wonder if Fire/Dark would be better choices?
Anyone have any thoughts?