Fire has lots of AoEs but it's still got the best, or damn near close to the best ST damage.
Rad has lots of AoE.
Dark has crap ST damage.
Ice has good ST damage.
I'd say Fire or Ice. There will be times when you need AoE and Fire has that without sacrificing ST damage. Ice has good utility and very good ST damage.
Well, if you want strong single target damage, some possible choices that come to my mind are fire, sonic, and ice.
Fire, though often thought of as an AoE set due to fireball, also has extraordinarily strong single target attacks in flares, fire blast, and blaze. Plus, the lack of mitigation in fire won't be a factor at all given your partner. Also, for the times when you do team (or just when the situation calls for it) fire can still give you good AoE - even if you don't use it very often, it's still a useful tool to have in your box.
Ice is a stereotypical single target set. It's a bit behind fire, but the secondary effects and single target mitigation are very good. There is an interesting synergy possible here in that freeze ray from you plus his single target hold will lock down a boss instantly - however, this is not as important as it might seem since he can do that some of the time anyway with domination. Otherwise, though, all that extra mitigation seems to me like it might be a bit wasted with your partner around. It's still a good single target damage set, however.
Sonic could be an interesting choice. Sonic is not actually a very good AoE set - it only has one real AoE damage power in howl. It's only when paired with something like mental manipulation on a blaster, or when using howl to perform mass resistance debuffing for a team, that sonic's AoE really starts to shine. However, the secondary effect of -res on sonic's single target attacks would greatly increase your partner's damage as well as your own - sonic is probably behind both ice and fire for ST damage on its own, but add in a partner who is attacking the same thing you are, and it gets interesting. On the other hand, sonic's signature power of siren's song is totally redundant compared to mass hypnosis.
Radiation is also a possibility - cosmic burst is a very strong single target blast that also carries a nifty mag 3 stun. On the other hand, you may be annoyed at neutrino bolt's plink-plink-plink piddly damage, even if it does have a lightning quick recharge. Rad, like fire, also brings some decent, though not as good as fire, aoe for the times when it is appropriate.
Of those, honestly I'd probably go fire. It's more than likely got the best single target damage, has quick animations, is pretty endurance efficient thanks to the free bonus DoT, and the lack of mitigation really shouldn't be a concern.
@MuonNeutrino
Student, Gamer, Altaholic, and future Astronomer.
This is what it means to be a tank!
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Sonic could be an interesting choice. Sonic is not actually a very good AoE set - it only has one real AoE damage power in howl. It's only when paired with something like mental manipulation on a blaster, or when using howl to perform mass resistance debuffing for a team, that sonic's AoE really starts to shine. However, the secondary effect of -res on sonic's single target attacks would greatly increase your partner's damage as well as your own - sonic is probably behind both ice and fire for ST damage on its own, but add in a partner who is attacking the same thing you are, and it gets interesting. On the other hand, sonic's signature power of siren's song is totally redundant compared to mass hypnosis.
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You say redundant, I say stackable. Mass Hypnosis and Siren's Song will let you effectively put bosses to sleep in the first salvo and keep them that way - all the while you're picking them off very quickly one at a time. I say very quickly because - when duoing - Sonic is the best damaging of the choices listed. Remember, technically you add to the damage you deal all the EXTRA damage he deals as well. It adds up quick.
Sonic will out damage fire when you consider its stacked -Res effect, you won't need Ice's slows when everything is fast asleep, nor will you need Cosmic Burst's disorient effect from the AoE heavy Rad primary... Sonic is the way to go.
Just my two cents. I duo about 95% of the time and make all the builds for both of us.
Cool, thanks for hte info guys. Actualy, I was hoping it would turn out that Sonic would come out higher up on the scale. I realy like sonic. and combined as a Sonic/Rad, well, thats debuff galore. Thanks again guys. (/em grumbles to himself about even considering making a necro/poison MM and not using any pets)
I hate all this terrorist business. I used to love the days when you could look at an unattended bag on a train or bus and think to yourself.... I'm going to take that.
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Sonic could be an interesting choice. Sonic is not actually a very good AoE set - it only has one real AoE damage power in howl. It's only when paired with something like mental manipulation on a blaster, or when using howl to perform mass resistance debuffing for a team, that sonic's AoE really starts to shine. However, the secondary effect of -res on sonic's single target attacks would greatly increase your partner's damage as well as your own - sonic is probably behind both ice and fire for ST damage on its own, but add in a partner who is attacking the same thing you are, and it gets interesting. On the other hand, sonic's signature power of siren's song is totally redundant compared to mass hypnosis.
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You say redundant, I say stackable. Mass Hypnosis and Siren's Song will let you effectively put bosses to sleep in the first salvo and keep them that way - all the while you're picking them off very quickly one at a time. I say very quickly because - when duoing - Sonic is the best damaging of the choices listed. Remember, technically you add to the damage you deal all the EXTRA damage he deals as well. It adds up quick.
Sonic will out damage fire when you consider its stacked -Res effect, you won't need Ice's slows when everything is fast asleep, nor will you need Cosmic Burst's disorient effect from the AoE heavy Rad primary... Sonic is the way to go.
Just my two cents. I duo about 95% of the time and make all the builds for both of us.
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Well, I wouldn't say stackable, here, to be honest - siren's song does damage. So, you'd have to use it first to avoid breaking MH's sleep, which can lead to the corruptor taking a partial alpha given the short range and small delay before the sleep takes effect. It's a lot better than no AoE control at all for a solo character, but it's got some real downsides compared to MH.
I agree on the resist stacking, though, and I said as much, though perhaps not in emphatic enough terms. I mostly recommended fire in the long run because it's simpler than sonic (no need to coordinate to ensure you're attacking the same target all the time), because of the fast animations, and because of the AoE damage for those cases where it would be useful. Also, to be honest, I have a feeling that between the two of them they'll be dishing out so much single target damage that the stacking resistance debuffs would end up pretty redundant on anything below a boss. That's not to say that sonic won't work as well, though - they're probably close enough that it's more or less personal preference.
@MuonNeutrino
Student, Gamer, Altaholic, and future Astronomer.
This is what it means to be a tank!
Just to be clear - If he uses Siren's Song and then his friend uses Mass Hypnosis, the effects WILL stack, yes?
Yes they will stack but the long cast on Siren's Song means you'll probably be eating a partial alpha in the process. There will be better options for opening available.
Edit: Though Shockwave->Siren's Song->Mass Hypnosis would probably work, but it's rare for a Sonic/ to take Shockwave in my experience.
Ok guys, quick altitis question...
I am duoing with a buddy of mine who is a mind/electric Dom. I have been trying different AT's and different power choices for each. I have finaly settled down on a /rad Cor. Now, the problem I am facing is what to take for a primary...I realy dont want to have anything that is AoE specific since my friend will be sleeping most MoB's when possible. Atleast not AoE's that do damage...So, can somone please give me some ideas? I was considering rad/ dark/ sonic/ or ice/.
I think that sonic would be out of the question since it has mostly cone/aoe damage...But I could be wrong. Obviously, with his Dom, we are eventualy planning on being TF's monsters. We are doing this old school, no AE (Thank the Gods). If we do decide to do AE, we will be turning off our XP and just do it for tickets.
Now, since Sonic/ would more than likely be out of the question, what does that leave for mostly ST or non damaging AoE? Ice/ maybe...Dark/ would be a bit iffy since its good attacks are AoE...
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
I hate all this terrorist business. I used to love the days when you could look at an unattended bag on a train or bus and think to yourself.... I'm going to take that.