I found my MA/Regen really fun to play, but pretty much any combination is fun. Cos we are the best!
Thanks Firekitty; a persuasive argument.
BF
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I've been playing COH for nearly a year now and the only AT I can't really enjoy playing is the scrapper--you may remember a similar post that I made many months ago. Anyway, I'm looking to give it another try so:
What kind of scrapper is the most fun to play and why?
Any advice on how to enjoy the AT?
All answers appreciated if you have the time or can be bothered.
Thanks
BF
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The scrapper is a great set to play for a beginner, but a fairly brainless set to play for the experienced player, unless you take one of the trickier, more complex secondaries like SR or DA, which bother require some thought as to costs and benefits of respective powers versus your playstyle.
Having said that, there's only really one playstyle for the scrapper - go for the mobs most troublesome to the team (e.g. Sorcerers, Ruins, Sappers, etc., etc.), or the toughest mobs first - in that order (i.e. the most troublesome to the team are the most important to take out quickly, and with your scrapper's secondary mezz resistance power, which is absolutely mandatory for a scrapper to take IMHO, you're the right man for the job).
To that end, there are two related points I'd say I found important as a scrapper.
You need to get used to using your 'F' key and you need to get your target acquisition keys sorted out in a system that maximises your speed of targe acquisition/change. Also you need a bind (e.g. the Kheldian "seek voids/quants/cysts/sappers/etc." bind) that identifies the toughest mobs around instantly.
The 'F' key is (as someone on the US boards put it) the "scrapper's friend", once you get used to F-ing and un-F-ing (i.e. locking onto and off targets that you select by switching targets, either nearest, next, previous, furthest, toughest (using the bind)), then you will be able to fulfil the scrapper's role really efficiently, even when speed boosted in tight corridors (combat jumping also helps you quickly leap into the thick of things, or get over environmental obstacles efficiently).
I rebound "nearest" to E, "next" to R, "previous" to Q and "furthest" to TAB, so in effect you are mostly using your index finger to "point" to targets, which feels very intuitive (YMMV of course, but it's important to experiment till you get something that's fast, intuitive and comfortable for you - default may be good enough, but I think you'll probably be able to find something better by experimenting.)
Once this is all sorted out, it's great fun to play, and you do feel really tough and Wolverine-ish 
It depends on what you class as 'fun' really.
If fun for you is a real difficult challenge then go for Dark Armour or even SR as a secondary. A real challenge would be to go for Spines/DA or BS/DA.
If, on the other hand, you just want to have a 'normal' fun then go for Regen as your secondary.
My choice for something a bit different from the normal Regens you'll have seen a lot of is DM/Regen. I'm currently levelling one up and it really is a whole lot of fun to play.
Have a look at the guides for DM/Reg on the US forums and give it a whirl
Proud member of FOXBASE ALPHA and coalition associates.
Hero 50's - 25
Villain 50's - 1
i tend to like anything AoE, I love my claws for shockwave, i know my spines would be great fun for me. The other sets aren't as easy to get a perfect AoE from but will offer other things. MA attack chains just flow. Broadsword WHOPS! Katana is simply such an all round balanced set and dark melee is sick in what it challenges you to do to get the most out of it. The only one i dont have is MA. I have had 2 in the past but all the kicking gets to me and then i pick flurry...
He will honor his words; he will definitely carry out his actions. What he promises he will fulfill. He does not care about his bodily self, putting his life and death aside to come forward for another's troubled besiegement. He does not boast about his ability, or shamelessly extol his own virtues. - Sima Qian.
if u want a run set try anything with regen, with other set there are many toggles to protect u, with regen theres only 1 toggle so instead of just attacking ur pressing ur heals all the time... its also fun to see how fast u regain health :P
It's now Issue 21 and I am back!
My new Global is @Zyhar
Currently enjoying the Exalted Server!
Currently leveling my BS/SR and have mixed thoughts about it.. Can be fun to play since you need to only have auto on Practiced Brawler, and then you can just focus on your attacks, But get really "Dull" (IMO) to play since you do the same things over and over again.. But it is a quite nice set since you practically can do everything (PVP & PVE) with almost the same build.. Maybe its just me.. But i'd guess that BS/Regen is the "Best" (Dont chop off my head here.. ) but the most fun can be anything.. Gonna try a Katana/Regen on defiant when i get home..
EDIT: Going to be a MA/Regen instead since ive seen FireKittys guid..
Personally, the scrapper is the least enjoyable AT I have ever played. It simply boils down to target acquisition, cycle attacks, repeat, for 99% of the time. Compare that to the complexity and indeed the devastating effectiveness of something like an Ice/Storm Controller.
It is also gloriously mediocre in big teams. Why take a scrapper when you could take a higher damage output blaster? (Providing you have a solid tank consolidating aggro).
I have played two scrappers:
a Spines/Dark to level 33. Who was monstorously good in big teams and is without question the highest damage scrapper you can possibly get (in big teams anyway) due to its sickening amount of AoE damage. Play this for a challenge and to be a real team player.
A MA/Regen who could solo on invincible easily - but I only played this toon to level 25, and it was PURELY to see all the content. It was sickeningly good solo - I got to see a lot of content, but ultimately, it was embaressingly poor in teams due to the fact it has only one AoE in MA and none in Regen.
Personally, I would strongly recommend Dark Melee, Spines, Claws as primary, and Dark Armour as Secondary, as these sets require more finesse to play.
Thank you very much for all of your replies; I really appreciate themt! I'm always impressed by the quality of posters you get on this forum.
BF
I think I have to agree with Cognito here. I just dislike playing toons that require skill equivalent to a trained monkey and from all the ATs I have played (and I have played all ATs in CoH and CoV) scrappers are by far the most uninspiring and needing the least thought to play effectively... well as effective as you can be when you are outdamaged by the blaster, the warshade and their dog as soon as you enter a half-decent team.
In my opinion the least unfun sets are spines or dark primary and dark secondary. So, if you just have to play a scrapper try a combination of those.
If it has eyes, you can blind it, if it has blood, you can make it bleed, if it has a mouth, you can make it scream.
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Personally, I would strongly recommend Dark Melee, Spines, Claws as primary, and Dark Armour as Secondary, as these sets require more finesse to play.
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utter rubbish :-p my claws dark armour plays like any of my other scrappers. charge slash slash charge slash slash oops rez plz. only differance is he's a lot better at it
I like scrappers, despite all the "smug" smileys in here.... 
They're by far the best soloist AT in COX: slightly less survivable than Brutes, but not needing to rely on Fury to maintain high levels of damage output. They've got mez protection, high damage output and damage mitigation... regen even has an insane endurance recovery boost... what's not to love??!? 
The single target damage output on most scrapper primaries is greater than blaster damage in PvE, at least until the late 40s when you start getting some really smashing/lethal damage resistant AVs.
Sure you don't have many AoEs... but for the most part you won't NEED any. Your single target damage output is more than sufficent to 'arrest' mobs quickly and safely, and in larger groups your traditional role is that of a "boss killer". Let the blasters and the Controllers whittle down the minions while you deal with the big boys... it's only in the largest teams with pinpoint aggro control and buffs coming out of their ears that a silly blaster will "outperform" you anyway... 
I've two scrappers at 50: a Spines/Dark and a Katana Regen. The Katana/Regen is bags more fun...
There's nothing like taking a flying leap into a spawn of +5 DE Bosses and LTs, arresting them all one-by-one and still being at full strength afterwards... "I got this mob, you can take the next one Mr. Fire blaster!"
OK... so a dedicated INV tanker plus a few a Fulcrum Shifted AoE blasters might have made short work of the spawn too..... but it wouldn't have been as much fun as letting a scrapper lay into them with a broadsword!!!
Subjecting a mob to scrapification also means that there'll generally be plenty of giant wobbly purple bits left lying around which you can take home with you as mementoes. Devouring Earth intestines in particular make wonderful conversation pieces and if you have one framed and mounted in your living room it'll help keep those annoying relatives away. And lets face it, facing a horde of huge bloodthirsty mutants with nothing but your trusty broadsword and a grin on your face is FUN DAMMIT!!!
(A scrapper needs to have a certain... erm... mentality. This should be evident from these two posts!) 
Certain mentality..."KILL KILL KILL" seems to work well for me
Go spines/da + a kin mate. That way its done fast.
A Paragon Defender
I like scrappers because they're so pick up and play. You can just jump on a scrapper, collar some bad guys with a quick string of attacks and be well on your way to mindless fun. I like claws as a primary because it has good momentum and I like regen as a secondary because it virtually eliminates downtime and provides active defenses in the form of dull pain and reconstruction so that you have more to do. Scrappers tend to be less about thinking and more about doing. That's nice because you can focus on the story of the mission or getting into the spirit of things.
The easy access style is also the downside of course...scrappers are simple characters. Not necessarily easy or brainless characters, but the playstyle is more straightforwards. Personally I enjoy my scrapper very much as an alt...it's a fun character to be able to hop onto when there's no teams to be had or if you just want to kick back and have a drink, but there's just not enough to it to hold my interest as my main or only character.
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Certain mentality..."KILL KILL KILL" seems to work well for me
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QFT Scrappers ftw
thePhilosopher Martial Arts/Regen/Fire Scrapper
theRegulator Empathy/Energy/Soul Defender
Total Inertia Ice Blast/Kinetics/Psy Corruptor
Total Inferno Ice Blast/Thermal/Leviathan Corruptor
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Certain mentality..."KILL KILL KILL" seems to work well for me
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Cough arrest cough
Well, despite all of your great advice, I'm afraid I can't stand scrapping. Actually, that's not entirely true; scrapping solo or in small teams is ok but in big teams I find it tedious and chaotic--maybe it's just me. I think the closest I can come to being a scrapper is as an attack based tank or a melee capable blaster, both of which I've enjoyed in the past. Once again, thanks for all of the opinions and advice.
BF
I currently have:
- a BS/Regen (which I don't find dull, though I do miss any kind of status effect at the moment - should be fixed with Disembowel at 26 )
- a MA/Regen ninja cow
- a Claws/Regen battle hamster (in honour of Richard Hammond).
The only problem I have sometimes with Scrapping is with target selection and keeping in the thick of things. Otherwise - KILL KILL KILL!
Is it time for the dance of joy yet?
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Otherwise - KILL KILL KILL!
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Whilst I do enjoy scrappers there is one major criticism of them. All the powersets bar one are more suitable for an comic-book anti-hero than for a comic-book hero.
Broadsword, it's a sword, swords kill people.
Claws, big knife things on your hands.
Dark Melee, fear, death and draining souls, sounds pretty evil to me.
Katana, see broadsword but with more finesse.
Spines, they are poisonous and impale people.
Martial Arts. Hitting people is fine for a hero.
I do like that these powersets are in the game but I'd like to have a hit people set in the scrapper primaries. After all in comic books the majority of scrappery type characters are either martial artists or super strong.
@Unthing ... Mostly on Union.
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Well, despite all of your great advice, I'm afraid I can't stand scrapping. Actually, that's not entirely true; scrapping solo or in small teams is ok but in big teams I find it tedious and chaotic--maybe it's just me. I think the closest I can come to being a scrapper is as an attack based tank or a melee capable blaster, both of which I've enjoyed in the past. Once again, thanks for all of the opinions and advice.
BF
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I know exactly what you mean, battleflag. Scrappers might be resiliant and good at solo, but they feel terribly underpowered and tedious (to me) in a team that really, really knows whats it doing. The one exception I have had is my spines/dark - which requires a lot of attention in terms of endurance management, positioning for AoE, and clicky Dark powers...
Just a word from someone who really really cant stand scrapping... I managed to eke some enjoyment out of this build. Give it a bash before you give up completely.
I have two Scrappers, a Claws/Regen and a Katana/Dark. Both play very differently and are perfect for when I only have a few minutes to play and want something simple to get into. That said, balancing all of the toggles/endurance issues in the Dark secondary can be challenging.
As for Scrappers in teams, yes they can be boring but then it depends on how much responsibility you want to assume. When I team with my Scrapper I appoint myself as squishy guardian. The Tank will most likely be in the thick of it, taking most of the aggro. But the tank can't always keep an eye on everything (or they might be a poor tanker...) so sometimes things are going to get free and go straight after the poor Blaster, Controller or Defender. That's where you can jump in and play back-up tank. Playing like this not only feels very heroic to me but also has garnered me compliments from squishys who don't expect Scrappers to be looking out for the rest of the team. Sure, I like the hack and slash of it but when I'm on a team, I want to be a team player and keeping an eye out for the less well defended players helps me to feel fulfilled in my role. The old scrapper-lock does kick in sometimes but if a team-mate's bar starts going red, it normally means something is going wrong and I may well be the most mobile at that time and able to help. (By the way, this is not meant to be patronising, I have several squishies myself and they are very capable of defending themselves. Sometimes though, they can get overwhelmed.)
As for weapons and damage, it depends on how you use your concept. My Katana/Dark's sword it completely blunt. However it is enchanted and deals 'illusionary' wounds to its foes in the same way Spectral Wounds works. Helps to make me feel less guilty for cutting up bad guys.
@Dante EU - Union Roleplayer and Altisis Victim
The Militia: Union RP Supergroup - www.themilitia.org.uk
Interesting stuff. I particularly liked Dante's guardian scrapper idea. That appeals because it means I can solo and team for very altruistic purposes. Obviously, this is likely to be a slow way of gaining xp but it may be the angle I was looking for to enjoy the AT.
Thanks
BF
I've been playing COH for nearly a year now and the only AT I can't really enjoy playing is the scrapper--you may remember a similar post that I made many months ago. Anyway, I'm looking to give it another try so:
What kind of scrapper is the most fun to play and why?
Any advice on how to enjoy the AT?
All answers appreciated if you have the time or can be bothered.
Thanks
BF