Very briefly, I'd say that if you want to be passive in battle, go Traps. If you like being active, go Dark. Personally, I'm a big Dark fan, there's nothing quite as satisfying as watching your opponents whiff at your henches while you tear them to shreds. I can't comment on Dark Servant just yet (not long now...!) but I have it on good authority from several people that he rocks.
However, you mentioned Powerpools. If you go Dark, I'd get Fitness too otherwise you might find it tough going, especially if you want to run Leadership toggles along with it.
Hope this helps a bit. 
@Dante EU - Union Roleplayer and Altisis Victim
The Militia: Union RP Supergroup - www.themilitia.org.uk
DS is perma with 3 recharges
"Well, they found my diary today.
They were appropriately appalled
at the discovery of the eight victims
They're now putting it all together.
Women wrapped in silk
with one leg missing
Eight legs, one body, silk,
spider, brilliant!"
I've heard that a Dark servant could not be permanent on a MM no matter how you slot it. Anyone really tested it out?
15 seconds downtime with 3 recharge reduction SOs.
For perma DS you need Hasten,too.
DM looks more and more attractive, thx for the tips !
On a differente note, are any of the 3 robotic attacks worth taking?
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15 seconds downtime with 3 recharge reduction SOs.
For perma DS you need Hasten,too.
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With Hasten and 2 rchgs he's basically perma.
CoX 50s: <ill/rad> <ice/ice> <fire/kin> <grav/sonic> <ice/storm> <earth/kin> <kin/elec> <cold/psy> <thugs/dark> <fire/dark> <dark/elec> <night widow> <EM/ninj> <mind/icy>
Mines perma, but then I do have hasten.
"Well, they found my diary today.
They were appropriately appalled
at the discovery of the eight victims
They're now putting it all together.
Women wrapped in silk
with one leg missing
Eight legs, one body, silk,
spider, brilliant!"
[ QUOTE ]
DM looks more and more attractive, thx for the tips !
On a differente note, are any of the 3 robotic attacks worth taking?
[/ QUOTE ]
If you're 'Bots/Dark then you'll probably be to busy debuffing to bother with an attack. However if you do have the time to spare then I can recommend the Pulse Rifle Burst, it's a handy single target blast that does good consistent damage right through the game and has a regular knockback effect. I find it very handy for brushing the odd melee minion or Lt off my robots and for quickly finishing off targets. At lower levels it is potent enough to substantially supplement the damage of your henchmen.
Slot with 1 Acc and 3 Dam.
I also doubt that there is time (or enough space in a robo/dark build) for the blasts. The later the game the less effect they will have on your survivability. If you absolutely have to be able to attack I can recommend taking Air Sup as prerequisite for Fly and beating enemies around with that and Sands of Mu in bodyguard mode. (Be careful though. Your pets might think their help is not needed if you juggle an Elite-Boss for a while. 
)
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.
My thugs/dark is coming on nicely. Shadow Fall, the stealth skill is nice. You can got within range of most things ok without being spotted and the extra defence is always good. It is a little stamina heavy, I ended up taking stamina to balance it. Is you want some stealth I'd recommend it, especially as invisibility will stop your supremacy from working. Also twilight grasp is great for keeping your minions alive. Keep them close in bodyguard mode and keep casting twilight on your target and you and your minions are vert tough.
Traps seem a nice thematic choice for bots. I've not seen as much of traps. I've seen a thugs/traps at level 34, although hes only taken web and force field so far. The shield is nice and i can't comment on trip mines and tiem bombs.
good luck with the build
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DM looks more and more attractive, thx for the tips !
On a differente note, are any of the 3 robotic attacks worth taking?
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I took Pulse Rifle Blast and Photon Grenade.
I have the blast slotted 1 acc, 2 range, and took it purely for pulling unsuspecting mobs into Trap ambushes from a more or less safe range, and took Blast over Burst because it's cheaper on the endurance.
Photon grenade is for the opening salvo on a spawn. Only slotted 1 acc, 1 disorient (IIRC), but 3 Photon Grenades (one from me and one each from the Protector Bots) in an opening salvo can earn you enough breathing space for most of the mobs to be dead before they can return fire. (Web Envelope, Hit the bind for 'Everyone Kill my Target', Photon Grenade, start Web Grenading individual mobs as necessary)
So they can be useful, but if you're tight for space in your build (I'm a non-stamina /traps MM, so I've got 3 more powers to play with than your average stamina /dark MM will) you can skip them with no major drama. And besides, your playstyle will evolve to fit the powers you've got, so if you've never had them, you won't miss them.
Warning:
The above post may contain Cynicism, sarcasm and/or pessimism. If you object to the quantities contained, then tough.
So here I am, looking for arguments to go with traps or dark as a secondary. The MM I'm planning shall have his share in pvp.. don't want to be gimped when PvP calls me.
I've been reading a lot of good stuff on both specs.
As I understand, with Traps you mostly setup your mines and wait for a melee to drop by, or "TP foe" any caster in the field. Looks a bit passive, but still fun to experiment with. Might want to take the Leadership pool, Concealement as well as Teleport (TP foe) and Leaping (SJ and acrobatics) to support the build.
I've read bad things about Detonator also... looks like it's not very practical and very situational. It would be a shame not to take an ultimate tho...
On the other side... I have Dark Miasma. Group heal, a bit less defense, debuffs. And another pet (how long does he stay when you summon him?) Groupe stealth looks good also, but is it enough to ambush someone, or Concealement is needed for that ? As for Powerpools, it should only need Leaping and Leadership.
Could anyone with arguments on these specs help me decide please ?