Empathy/Rad - Do you actually get to use your rad?
By
Avalanche_EU,
Posted on: 2007-05-18 09:22 in Defenders
Yes, you will find yourself doing much less healing at higher levels, especially when teamed with experienced players.
I really should do something about this signature.
For various reasons (mathematical, expereince, mythological) empaths are healing like idontknowwhat in the hollows. I wont go into the tedious maths of it (unless you want to, but I dont advise it and my maths is not excellent).
Come level 22, when SO come into play things start to change, particularly if you have a tank on the team. This, coupled with more experienced teams, that play as teams, changes the landscape.
You will be progressively more valued for your buffs (fortitude and clear mind in particular) than anything else. You will also, consequently, have more time to irradiate things (Cosmic burst and Irradiate I would both recommend in particular).
To be honest, in expereinced/high level teams, healing is often consigned to "back up" usually only required when the plan goes awry. Sadly, empaths have their heydey in low levels / The Hollows. By the end game, teams want kinetics and rad defenders above anything else, and many other sets such as FF, Sonic, TA, Dark are all highly valued. Empaths are almost relegated to bottom of the defender pack by this point - although any defender is still more valued than other ATs and there wont be a significant problem in getting teams.
Anyway, hang on in there. Things do change from repeated demands to heal. Later on you will get repeated demand to clear mind and fortitude! 
. In essence, higher level empaths are veiwed more and more as buffers not healers. And you get plenty more time to hurl around the green stuff.
EDIT: Bah, PRAF Beat me.
Yes, but you explained in more detail!
I really should do something about this signature.
also if you go for a smaller team or a duo you get more chance to use the rad side of things, ive been duoing a fair bit lately and am enjoying useing the rad side more then the emp side, though when you fire off an attack and see your teamates heath disapearing and you cant do anything about it while your attack animates its a little bit panic inducing
I have never been so busy on an alt as the empath - we where in the hollows so the issue is related to defenses not being rounded out. Just glad its not an issue where healing ismore readily available on CoH and players have learnt to lean on it more.
Look forward to going from heal bot to buff bot them lol
Altitus doesnt have a cure just more alts
The trouble with playing an empath is all the noobs who have come from other MMOs and think you can't do anything in a MMO without a healer want to team with you.
/hide is your friend.
I really should do something about this signature.
Or in some cases, lowbies having teamed with an Empath before seem to think that every Defender or Controller is an Empath and the enevitable "Heals please!" makes it's appearance.
We Empaths are undervalued in the higher levels... it is true. But by this time, even though you will be doing less healing and more attacking, remember that we can contribute in the way of buffs. We get higher bonuses for the leadership pool power. (Defs gain the highest % bonus than any other AT) Plus Grant Invis is a great buff you can take.
...and let's not forget. Everyone remembers and loves a great Empath. The crazy amount of invites you get in the first 30 levels or so will no doubt help fill up your friends list. Brilliant if you're relativly new to CoH. Players will sometimes bend over backwards to get you in their team 
(Is there an emote for that?!). It's how I joined my SG and I'm still teaming with them for all sorts of missions and fun, 18 months later!!
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The trouble with playing an empath is all the noobs who have come from other MMOs and think you can't do anything in a MMO without a healer want to team with you.
/hide is your friend.
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There is a lack of problem solvers in the game, often people give up too easily and never try to think out of the box, things fall back to a "we needed a" when they may of never. People fail at things possibly cos they are standing in the wrong places getting needlessly effected by effects reducing their own abilities, or by applying powers at the wrong time. All types of defenders should be worked with and will be good as long as they too have a good understanding. As long as most people in a team put up with an anchor killer, herd messer or stand in more fire than they actually needed too the empath will often be seen as essential...well in the lower levels anyway.
At higher levels people prefer other sets, this isnt because other sets are superior. Its perhaps cos people tend to have better defense be it passive and/or active to allow less heals to be needed through better aggro control and i think that many people are seemably unaware of possible formations about AVs which then renders certain sets as undesireable. I personally put many people especially the "only know how to gank" people who need a rad or kin for example at later levels in the same category as people who need an empath in early levels. Why? because they are still going with the easy/convenient/desireable option.
I have every buff/debuff set cov and coh and i aint gonna give a monkeys at the end of the day who to team with from the knowledge of them all. I will always be seeing people lower team survivability through not interacting well with defenders, as well as defenders lowering team survivability by being or having to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
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.
Whilst I agree with most of what you say, particularly about the most important compenent in a team being (shock horror) the teamwork...
There are mathematical reasons why healing is superior pre-SO and inferior post-SO. Of course, empaths are not just about healing. (Flat vs Proportional damage mitigation for instance).
At the end of the day, however, any defender is a fine addition to a team. And most scrappers are, mathematically, a weak addition to the team.
Having said that, as you say, Its better to have a cunning martial arts scrapper than a wild card defender.
And, as you say, at the end of the day - do you LIKE the person?
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Having said that, as you say, Its better to have a cunning martial arts scrapper than a wild card defender.
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I said that?
hang on...
Its better to have a cunning Claws scrapper than a wild gale loving in mission griefing stormie defender.
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And, as you say, at the end of the day - do you LIKE the person?
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I said that?
hang on..
I dont have so called "optimum teams" instead I prefer "in it to win it" friends.
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.
Pardon my paraphrasing! 
Thats how I read the essence of your post.
To the original poster - take, slot and use Fortitude religiously, and you'll have much more time for blasting. It's arguably the best power in the set, buffs and debuffs are godlike in this game.
Also, don't hang out with teams that only play on invincible. Sadly, such teams are massively attracted to Empaths.
/hide is your friend.
My first defender was an emp/rad and I got sick of the constant moaning that I "let" other players die and the expectations that I should apparently only use the emp side. I deleted her at 12 and made a rad/rad instead which is much more fun and there is a little less expectation of.
You'd have far more fun if you roll a TA/A and spam the following bind on teams: HEEL DA HEAL0RZ!!
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My first defender was an emp/rad and I got sick of the constant moaning that I "let" other players die and the expectations that I should apparently only use the emp side. I deleted her at 12 and made a rad/rad instead which is much more fun and there is a little less expectation of.
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I've experienced similar things. One particular player implied I was intentionally letting them die. He would run off into great crowds of enemies and generally bite off more than he could chew thinking he was some godly tank (he was a peacebringer, and while not a terrible tanker replacement, we had one on the team who could withstand a LOT more pummelling). After a while he brought in a 3rd defender who had exemped down from lvl 50 and was obviously so amazing that he got all the praise despite the fact the death toll hadn't changed much.
Anyway that sort of attitude annoys me the most, so I put my defender on hiatus until I can figure out if I really want to continue fighting alongside players who see you as nothing more than their personal slave. Would it kill people to have a little caution sometimes? We're healers, not miracle workers!
Characters:
The Heroic Mary Grace (50)
The Mystical Thunderspark (50)
The Candy-loving Little Jenny (50)
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My first defender was an emp/rad and I got sick of the constant moaning that I "let" other players die and the expectations that I should apparently only use the emp side. I deleted her at 12 and made a rad/rad instead which is much more fun and there is a little less expectation of.
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I've experienced similar things. One particular player implied I was intentionally letting them die. He would run off into great crowds of enemies and generally bite off more than he could chew thinking he was some godly tank (he was a peacebringer, and while not a terrible tanker replacement, we had one on the team who could withstand a LOT more pummelling). After a while he brought in a 3rd defender who had exemped down from lvl 50 and was obviously so amazing that he got all the praise despite the fact the death toll hadn't changed much.
Anyway that sort of attitude annoys me the most, so I put my defender on hiatus until I can figure out if I really want to continue fighting alongside players who see you as nothing more than their personal slave. Would it kill people to have a little caution sometimes? We're healers, not miracle workers!
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People need to remember that the defender needs line of sight to heal as well. They have a habit of dodging around corners then screaming for a heal or running off into the distance on their own (my defender always stayed with the bulk of the team unless we'd made other arrangements beforehand). I've given up on my empath for the last time. I'm not taking the blame for other peoples stupidity any more...
Apologies to the person who sent Pixie Dee a tell yesterday, you didn't get an answer because I was just logging out to delete her...
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Apologies to the person who sent Pixie Dee a tell yesterday, you didn't get an answer because I was just logging out to delete her...
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Woo! Drama alert!
Let's hear it then
I am an experienced villains but but newish to CoH. I roled an empath/rad currently level 11.
Is it me or does an empath end up laying health out like a madman. Seems teams over rely on being healed compared to villains who seem more self sufficient (I do play MM's, brutes and corruptors mainly).
I currently have no problems getting a team invites appear as soon as I log on. However I seem to get very little mileage out of rad due to healing like crazy.
Question is does this change later in game?
Altitus doesnt have a cure just more alts