Archery
Stamian is very very good to have. Archry and energy sigood if you dont mind the weapon redraw.
sounds like u got it covered mate tbh. if you find that you need more end, slot an endred into everything, if thats not enough, then dont, but get stamina (or stamian if u like, bit satanic for me tbh). get aim in there asap, if you are lacking upfront dmg and dontm ind melee, pick up ur secondary melees as u go, but if u are happy blasting, pick up aim and boost range. if you're still happy with your performance then pick up aid self.
hasten never hurts, but as i said i think your on the right road.
Plight
I think I may go blapping quite a bit, but I am more concerned about what archery powers to take/not take. Skipping Snap Shot, and Stunning shot, the others look like I just can't pass them up.
As for energy, I'll take a few blaps, thinking just Bone Smasher and total focus. Will take Boost range, but is power boost worth it? Does it do anything for me?
If you're not taking stunning shot power boost won't help your primary much at all. Things it will do for you:
*Increase KB distance on power thrust
*Increase disorient time on Bone Smasher and Total focus
*Increase toHit buff from Aim and build Up - Good for PvP but possibly overkill in PvE (handy for taking out MoGed Paragon Protectors tho)
*Increase movement from things like Swift, Combat Jumping and Hover
*Increase healing if you are taking the medicine pool
I intend taking Power boost at level 38 or 50 (running a fully ranged build atm so i'll be skipping TF, which i realise is blasphemous to the blaster gods, i shall do penance later) for the toHit boost in pvp and the extra duration on stunning shot.
With blazing arrow, aimed and fistful you've got the basic attack chain - those three chained will down most yellow minions (with 3 damage SOs). (can do the same with snap shot instead of fistful, but snap shot is *meh* at best, i just have it as a filler, it definitely has drop potential come my next respec)
Slot wise (talking SOs here) on these i go with 1 x Acc 3 x Damage the last two slots are down to personal choice - i go with 2 x range on Blazing Arrow so its closer to the range of Ranged shot but 2 x recharges is very nice too - pretty sure you can cram two blazing arrows into an Aim/BU cycle if you're running hasten and 2 recharges.
I have stamina two-slotted at the moment and i only run out of end if i'm really going for it with hasten running chaining shot after shot into an AV so i should say its possible to get away without it - conserve power is a viable alternative i'd guess, but as a personal thing i can't get on with it - not up long enough for its recharge time, YMMV, naturally. Depends really if there's two other power pool powers you really want instead of swift/hurdle i guess.
Aim/BU,Ranged shot, blazing arrow is an alpha strike of beauty - you'll take out the first two minions from a spawn with this, (the blazing target will get a shot off before the DoT gets him usually) you can then follow up with aimed, fistful and a blap on the last guy in your typical three man spawn. The same alpha will usually kill an Lt if both shots are directed at him and make a good size dent in a Boss. All this from an unenhanced range of 80 feet
Don't neglect power thrust before you get your blaps - keep it handy and with a nice ACC enhancer in it - that power will save your life when a Freakshow tank gets in your face and gets ready to smear you over the carpet.
Don't dismiss stunning shot too quickly - it IS situational, and you won't use it every fight but the ability to reduce the number of people wailing on you by can make all the difference. Its animation is a little long for it to be a good panic button so its best used at the start of a fight. Good in Pvp against corrupters and dominators too - its great fun to leap off a building, pass a flying squishy with it queued and drop them into the street, they will get there own back tho (Hellooooo Darksiren ). With your blaps stunning shot will give you the ability to stack some powerful stuns too. Its essential for my playstyle, it might not be for yours.
This is all single target stuff, the true beauty of archery IMO is that it mixes all this single target goodness with some impressive AoEs.
Your basic bread and butter Aim/BU, fistful, explosive arrow is nice, but it does tend to leave minions alive and gunning for you unless you chew on a red insp beforehand.
True joy, however, comes at 32, this is as high as i've gotten my archer (Pvp keeps getting in the way) and i've only got a single damage SO in it atm but the first time i hit Aim/BU and dropped Rain of Arrows followed by explosive arrow on a tightly packed street spawn and all the mobs fell over on the spot i was grinning from ear-to-ear.
Best of luck with your build, Archery/energy is never going to be a the new Ice/energy but it offers some unique possibilities to the thoughtful player due to its range and AoEs and is very rewarding to play - playing mine has definitely made me a better blaster, you learn the importance of choosing the right shot at the right time and the of good positioning and keeping mobile. I'll be keen to hear to how you get on combining blapping with archery too, since its a playstyle i'll most likely end up using on my archer at some point.
Union 50s:
Crimson Cannon: NRG/NRG/Force
Tara Thorn: Archery/NRG/Elec
Damatria: BS/SD/Body
Defend the Earth from Aliens in my MA Arc: ID:57186
I've decided not to go blapping now, still taking total focus though, I'm sure bow re-draw animation is worth that
And can anyone comment on how good Boost Range is? Does it affect cone radius? And I think I'll post a build here somewhere, and I'll be trying to go sans-stamina with this build, seeing as with archery you don't need as many acc SOs, I'll have space for end reds, and also interrupt reducer on Ranged Shot, if it helps alot.
boost range only changes the range you can take the shot from, cone angle and AoE doesn't change , still very useful if you want to PvP however (good tactic is to boost range snipe then run in and use total focus takes out most ATs)
can be useful in PvE but you can get on without out it imo
Now, I've just made my Archery/Energy Blaster, and I'm liking it quite a bit. I'm wondering, anyone got one of these? Is it a bad combo? Any slotting reccomendations? AFAIK, I have Aimed Shot, the starter energy attack, Fistfull of arrows, build up, and Blazing arrow. I find it pretty good, and I've been 'testing defiance against high level mobs' and to be honest, I can tear up leuts with build up. Anyone got advice? Do I need Stam? Can I slot to get away without it?
Advices plz.