I'd say try energy/energy, because no rain powers. And smart use of knockback can be useful.
People motivate themselves, and are inspired by others.
__________________________________________
Orion Darkstorm lvl 50 tank (invul/ss/nrg) 483 badges
Ima Mann lvl 50 pb 397 badges
American Agent lvl 50 blstr (nrg/nrg/nrg) 279 badges
while I am partial to my Ar/Dev because I have solid aoe, good single target and device for control... I would offer some of the following to crack the AT
1. get Hover by L12... your not going melee so you need to be off the ground
2. Get by L24 either stealth (which has movement penalty) or cloaking device and super speed... which will provide you with invis
3. I find a lot of blasters that have problems have a strong melee background... there is no scrapping it out toe to toe... I am not saying run and hide... but a dead blaster is a useless blaster... in groups, I dont wait for heals (I am usually out of heal range anyway), either I heal myself or I am outta there, drop aggro and come back or drag the mob through the tank... you need to react to the first hit
4. I dont know dmg numbers for other blasters... but my screen is constantly littered with dmg numbers from all the aoe, its the best part...
5. in grps, redraw is your friend... while it does not happen often for me, when it does, I view the brk as helping the tank maintain aggro...
Quintessential is probably fire/nrg or nrg/nrg, but that might not fit so easily into your preferences for play experience.
@LostComet
-Repeat Offenders Network-
I think that ice/ice fits your playstyle. but i seem to draw a lot of aggro, moreso than on my Fire/mm.
You could also go Arch/* as the rain power there is very quick and high damage.
Fire/* has all the big orange numbers you like. The slows in /ice would help keep your enimies where they are for the rain. But fires high damage really doesn't need it.
In my mind the blasters blaster is nrg/nrg If you explained to concept of a blaster to someone on the street this would be the closest match to what they see.
Roxy On DA...Finally!
I would say doubling up any would be a 'quintessential' blaster, since you really can't plug one particular prim/sec under that heading.
Fire/Fire/ Nrg/nrg, ice/ice, elec/elec, etc. can all fit that bill in one way or another. I mean, if played right, a blapper with a couple of AoEs can dominate on a team with more than one blaster.
[ QUOTE ]
So I've come to the experts to help me make something that will stick. To get the full experience of a Blaster (whether to make me come back for more or to make sure I never have to come back, I'm not sure) I want to play a character that epitomizes the essence of a Blaster.
[/ QUOTE ]
It's more about your approach than the powersets. At its core, the Blaster AT is all about doing massive damage from range. If you do not lose sight of that underlying truth, you should do well as Blaster.
Hover is your best friend - use it as often as possible. In general, slot for damage, recharge, accuracy, and ranged defense bonuses and you will be a very tough out.
dont be afraid to slot 2 acc's for most of the powersets. Sometimes, its better to hit a weak attack rather than to miss a strong one.
Fire/ would probably be the best choice for what you're looking for. Being a blaster is about doing damage, and fire/ does that best, by a very large margin. Pair it with /em, /psy, or /elec and win.
I'd have to agree with Alluvion. Fire/Nrg is sounding like the combo for which you are searching. With fire you get massive amounts of floaty orange numbers in the AoE's of the powerset. But with AoE comes aggro. Enter your secondary, NRG. Many of the NRG melee attacks hit harder than most primary blasts. Also you get Build Up at 4th level with /NRG.
I have a Fire/NRG blaster on Guardian and she's a hoot to play. What doesn't die in the initial Build Up/Fireball/Fire Breath chain rushes towards me to get beaten to death by glowie red orbs of death.
Dont think there is a quintessential blaster.
Theres at least 5 major blaster types
Ranged Glass Cannon
Blaptroller
Blapper
AOE king
ST specialist.
Seeing as you want both range and melee and big orange numbers I'd go fire/ment.
You have blapper capability with this. Drain psyche to keep you alive, psychic shocwave, tk thrust and mind probe for nice close in attacks.
You also get clasice range and AOE. Fireball, firebreath and psychic scream. Subdual for that extra mitigation and a nice ranged damaging attack
Knight_Chill said
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, the Blaster AT is all about doing massive damage from range.
[/ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
I would tend to recommend Fire/Ice. You have two good approaches to mitigation- the corner + ice patch, and Shiver. Shiver will double or triple your lifespan, because enemies will have half or a third of the recharge. One warning-it's nearly a half-circle and it's got a HUGE range. You may aggro people you can barely see. Fire primary brings lots, LOTS, of damage. Firebreath/Fireball will generally drop even con minions without using either Aim or Build Up. Yes, ten at a time. Yes, in four seconds. Yes, every ten seconds or so. Yes, it's fun.
I like Sonic and Ice primaries, and mental and elec and energy secondaries, as well.
Maybe this will help your playstyle.
Mini-guides: Force Field Defenders, Blasters, Market Self-Defense, Frankenslotting.
So you think you're a hero, huh.
@Boltcutter in game.
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
[/ QUOTE ]
The exceptions are not the rule. Blasters, overall, do their most effective work outside of melee range (you know this).
[ QUOTE ]
Knight_Chill said
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, the Blaster AT is all about doing massive damage from range.
[/ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
I would tend to recommend Fire/Ice. You have two good approaches to mitigation- the corner + ice patch, and Shiver. Shiver will double or triple your lifespan, because enemies will have half or a third of the recharge. One warning-it's nearly a half-circle and it's got a HUGE range. You may aggro people you can barely see. Fire primary brings lots, LOTS, of damage. Firebreath/Fireball will generally drop even con minions without using either Aim or Build Up. Yes, ten at a time. Yes, in four seconds. Yes, every ten seconds or so. Yes, it's fun.
I like Sonic and Ice primaries, and mental and elec and energy secondaries, as well.
Maybe this will help your playstyle.
[/ QUOTE ]
That does it! I'm respeccing and getting Firebreath back. I'll drop my snipe. I hate giving it up as I like having a high damage attack with huge range, but I really miss my firebreath.
I wish the devs would come up with a PROPER respeccing system.
Arc ID#30821, A Clean Break
The only problem with defeating the Tsoo is that an hour later, you want to defeat them again!
"Life is just better boosted!" -- LadyMage
"I'm a big believer in Personal Force Field on a blaster. ... It's your happy place." -- Fulmens
[ QUOTE ]
I wish the devs would come up with a PROPER respeccing system.
[/ QUOTE ]
Yes. Please.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I wish the devs would come up with a PROPER respeccing system.
[/ QUOTE ]
Yes. Please.
[/ QUOTE ]
/signed
I find this an intriguing post.
First, I'm not sure there is a "quintessential blaster", or at least, defining that would
be all over the map... 
I've said it before, but it probably bears repeating. Successful (ie. not dead )
blasters do two things well, imho
- [*] Manage aggro well - ie. they're careful what/when they annoy mobs[*] They kill what they do aggro - quickly and efficiently[/list]That is how I would define "quintessential blaster".
Now, for me personally, the AT that meets that best is an E3 Blaster.
Looking at your described playstyle, I'll cover how I think it may meet your objectives.
[ QUOTE ]
I enjoy lots of (big) orange numbers.
[/ QUOTE ]
All well-slotted blasters do this - it's part and parcel for the entire AT
[ QUOTE ]
I enjoy seeing "You have defeated X" on almost every enemy when grouping.
[/ QUOTE ]
One word. NUKE. That said, you need to get to L32 to get it and that seems problematic
currenly. Prior to that point, Fire/* blasters are among your best AoE choices.
E3's are multi-target AT's, but they deal with them individually more than AoE.
[ QUOTE ]
I take pride in my characters being (almost) completely self-sufficient.
I never like to be the first man down every time.
I don't mind being at range or in the fray, but I like having both options available.
[/ QUOTE ]
I think these are areas where the E3 is pretty good... It has good damage, some strong
meelee powers, excellent holds, and when you can drain End - excellent mitigation.
Grab an Oh Sh*t power or two (etheral shift or hyper-phase temp, for instance), and
not only will you not be the first guy to go down, you won't go down at all, even when
the occasional crap does hit the fan...
I don't know if that will work for you, but I enjoy my E3 (first L50 - back in I3, and I still
play him often).
It takes a more deliberate and thoughtful playstyle to use all the tools it has well, but
if you can, and you're not antsy to level fast, you may find this AT worth the time...
In any case, GL.
Regards,
4
I've been rich, and I've been poor. Rich is definitely better.
Light is faster than sound - that's why some people look smart until they speak.
For every seller who leaves the market dirty stinkin' rich,
there's a buyer who leaves the market dirty stinkin' IOed. - Obitus.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
[/ QUOTE ]
The exceptions are not the rule. Blasters, overall, do their most effective work outside of melee range (you know this).
[/ QUOTE ]
No, I don't know that. I know how I play, and I'm in and out of melee range all the time. What's the total damage on a Bonesmasher/Energy punch combo? What kind of ranged singletarget damage can you do in that time?
Mini-guides: Force Field Defenders, Blasters, Market Self-Defense, Frankenslotting.
So you think you're a hero, huh.
@Boltcutter in game.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
[/ QUOTE ]
The exceptions are not the rule. Blasters, overall, do their most effective work outside of melee range (you know this).
[/ QUOTE ]
No, I don't know that. I know how I play, and I'm in and out of melee range all the time. What's the total damage on a Bonesmasher/Energy punch combo? What kind of ranged singletarget damage can you do in that time?
[/ QUOTE ]
Hey, I'm totally fine with my ranged ST attacks. You can have a pee pee contest with someone else.
Anyway, the powersets make my point for me. Just compare the number of ranged attacks vs. the number melee range attacks.
I wish the devs would come up with a proper respecing system
/signed
not that they will ever do it... but does it really matter... is it such a big deal that they cant do it...
The quintessential blaster is fire/fire because when people are looking for blasters to fill out their teams they don't care about how good your controls are. It does what blasters are supposed to do (which is KILL) and ignores things that are best left to other ATs.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
At its core, I disagree with this definition. Inferno, Short Circuit, Fire Sword Circle, and Havoc Punch are just a few very good melee-range attacks.
[/ QUOTE ]
The exceptions are not the rule. Blasters, overall, do their most effective work outside of melee range (you know this).
[/ QUOTE ]
No, I don't know that. I know how I play, and I'm in and out of melee range all the time. What's the total damage on a Bonesmasher/Energy punch combo? What kind of ranged singletarget damage can you do in that time?
[/ QUOTE ]
Hey, I'm totally fine with my ranged ST attacks. You can have a pee pee contest with someone else.
Anyway, the powersets make my point for me. Just compare the number of ranged attacks vs. the number melee range attacks.
[/ QUOTE ]
I think you would be hardpressed to find a Blaster that isn't able to do more damage in melee range than it can "from far away."
I've decided to give Fire/Ice a shot, first. I hopped on a (surprisingly) good PuG earlier this evening and shot to level ten and grabbed the Zero-G Pack. Even on the large team, my damage contribution was quite noticeable (after 8, Firebreath + Fireball was melting the groups). Thanks for all of the advice, everyone. I especially liked your mini-guide, Fulmens. Maybe I'll keep you guys updated on how the Blaster progresses.
I just threw this build together in Mids'. How does it look, overall? Mainly it would be a Hover Blaster, sometimes closing for a quick Freezing Touch + Ice Sword. I wasn't sure whether I'd like Surge of Power or Charged Armor more, but I went with Surge just to keep my toggles down so I'd have more endurance for attacking. This is just a rough draft, mind you. I'll probably start tweaking it for more +Damage, Ranged and AoE Defense tomorrow.
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.401
http://www.cohplanner.com/
[u]Click this DataLink to open the build![u]
Coldfire Knight: Level 50 Magic Blaster
Primary Power Set: Fire Blast
Secondary Power Set: Ice Manipulation
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Electrical Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Flares -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(7), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(15), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(39)
Level 1: Chilblain -- Acc-I(A)
Level 2: Fire Ball -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(5), Posi-Dam%(11), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(23), EndRdx-I(31)
Level 4: Fire Blast -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(5), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(7), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(15), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(29), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(37)
Level 6: Hover -- Zephyr-Travel(A), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx(40), Frbd-Stlth(40), LkGmblr-Rchg+(46)
Level 8: Fire Breath -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(9), Posi-Dmg/Rng(9), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(11), Posi-Dam%(25), Range-I(34)
Level 10: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 12: Aim -- AdjTgt-Rchg(A), AdjTgt-EndRdx/Rchg(13), RechRdx-I(13)
Level 14: Health -- Heal-I(A)
Level 16: Build Up -- AdjTgt-Rchg(A), AdjTgt-EndRdx/Rchg(17), RechRdx-I(17)
Level 18: Blaze -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(19), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(19), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(21), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(25), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(21), EndMod-I(23)
Level 22: Ice Patch -- EndRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(46)
Level 24: Fly -- Zephyr-ResKB(A), Zephyr-Travel(39)
Level 26: Ice Sword -- Mako-Acc/Dmg(A), Mako-Dmg/EndRdx(27), Mako-Dmg/Rchg(27), Mako-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(29), Mako-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(31), Mako-Dam%(39)
Level 28: Shiver -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(40), EndRdx-I(43)
Level 30: Boxing -- Acc-I(A)
Level 32: Inferno -- Oblit-Acc/Rchg(A), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg(33), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), Oblit-Dmg(34)
Level 35: Freezing Touch -- Lock-Acc/Hold(A), Lock-Acc/Rchg(36), Lock-Rchg/Hold(36), Lock-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(36), Lock-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(37), Lock-%Hold(37)
Level 38: Tough -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(A)
Level 41: Shocking Bolt -- Lock-Acc/Hold(A), Lock-Acc/Rchg(42), Lock-Rchg/Hold(42), Lock-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(42), Lock-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(43), Lock-%Hold(43)
Level 44: Surge of Power -- RctvArm-ResDam/Rchg(A), RctvArm-EndRdx/Rchg(45), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(45), RctvArm-ResDam(45), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(46)
Level 47: EM Pulse -- Lock-Acc/Hold(A), Lock-Acc/Rchg(48), Lock-Rchg/Hold(48), Lock-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(48), Lock-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(50), Lock-%Hold(50)
Level 49: Weave -- RedFtn-Def/EndRdx(A), GftotA-Def/EndRdx(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Defiance
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]
- [*]19% DamageBuff(Smashing)[*]19% DamageBuff(Lethal)[*]19% DamageBuff(Fire)[*]19% DamageBuff(Cold)[*]19% DamageBuff(Energy)[*]19% DamageBuff(Negative)[*]19% DamageBuff(Toxic)[*]19% DamageBuff(Psionic)[*]4.25% Defense(Smashing)[*]4.25% Defense(Lethal)[*]7.38% Defense(Fire)[*]7.38% Defense(Cold)[*]26.1% Defense(Energy)[*]26.1% Defense(Negative)[*]3% Defense(Psionic)[*]3.63% Defense(Melee)[*]36.1% Defense(Ranged)[*]11.8% Defense(AoE)[*]25% Enhancement(RechargeTime)[*]48% Enhancement(Accuracy)[*]7.5% Enhancement(Held)[*]12% FlySpeed[*]18.1 HP (1.5%) HitPoints[*]12% JumpHeight[*]12% JumpSpeed[*]Knockback (Mag -4)[*]Knockup (Mag -4)[*]MezResist(Held) 9.9%[*]MezResist(Immobilize) 4.4%[*]MezResist(Stun) 2.2%[*]11% (0.18 End/sec) Recovery[*]3.15% Resistance(Fire)[*]3.15% Resistance(Cold)[*]12% RunSpeed[/list]
Archery/Anything after level 32. BU, Aim, Rain of Arrows, Fistful, Explosive. It's not a rain type power like Fire or Ice. It does it's 3 damage ticks in about a second or less. Tons of AoE damage, and even more if you decide to have a secondary with even more AoEs.
Good ST damage too with Blazing, Aimed, and any ST attacks in your secondary.
No other character I've played has ever come close to the AoE damage my Arch/Fire can do except my SS/Shield/Soul Brute.
For your large orange numbers, I'd say go with Ice, Fire, or Energy Primaries. It just depends on how you want to play:
-Fire is the most "Kill it before it kills you" with DoT and a good handful of AoE powers. Combos with most anything but Devices really well IMO.
-Ice hits hard, but you'll want to abuse Freeze Ray and Frost Breath to slow down your enemies. This is also a useful primary since, by level 26, you'll be able to Hold a boss. In essence, you'll probably progress a bit slower than a Fire/ for Energy/ however, your survivability (especially with Hover) will increase exponentially. Combos best with /Ice, /Mental, or /Energy IMO.
-Energy is a fast, hard hitter. I advise taking most if not all of your blasts, and in doing so you'll have nearly a non-stop attack chain, especially with Hasten. Combos great with /Energy, /Mental, or /Ice.
My last piece of advice: If you intend to Hover Blast, avoid secondaries high in Melee (i.e. Fire, Energy, and Elec). If you intend to Blapp a lot, I suggest /Fire, /Elec, or /Energy. If you want to do a bit of both, take Combat Jumping, and from there it is your choice.
Best of luck.
@Winter. Because I'm Winter. Period.
I am a blaster first, and an alt-oholic second.
In a self-set quest to get all archetypes to 50, I've stalled at Blasters. Over the years I've made numerous attempts to "crack" this archetype, yet haven't been able to make it past level twenty-two. That's right, my highest Blaster ever was level twenty-two.
So I've come to the experts to help me make something that will stick. To get the full experience of a Blaster (whether to make me come back for more or to make sure I never have to come back, I'm not sure) I want to play a character that epitomizes the essence of a Blaster.
To help, I suppose I should tell you how I am as a player:
I enjoy lots of (big) orange numbers. I enjoy seeing "You have defeated X" on almost every enemy when grouping. I take pride in my characters being (almost) completely self-sufficient, that doesn't mean I need to be able to go solo 8-man groups, but I never like to be the first man down every time. I don't mind being at range or in the fray, but I like having both options available. I don't mind redraw, but it should not be excessive (I would define "excessive" as "happening every second or third power"). I'm not a fan of "rain" powers when I cannot keep the enemies stuck in them (i.e. When I don't have additional slows and/or immobilizes).
Now, I know that that was a very basic run-down on a playstyle, but it is getting late. Therefore, I am now opening to floor to any and all answers to the following two questions:
1) What is the quintessential Blaster?
2) Why?
If you have any other questions for me, ask away.
Edit:
My past (fairly) successful Blaster attempts were Fire/Fire and Ice/EM. I deleted the Fire/Fire because it would always leave a battle either almost at full health or with a sliver of health. I deleted the Ice/EM because of the lack of AoE damage.