All this talking make me wanna re-start my FF defender. I hope you are proud of yourselves people. 
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The staying alive part is my #1 goal really.
Shields are also pritty passive in their use; which allows me to focus on using powers to attack and control.
I wont be healing people or buffing that often which is how i like it; heh.
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I prefer teaming with people who say "Keeping the team alive is my #1 goal" personally.
With your motto you may aswell stay at the back of the group in a PFF, do some fun emotes and hope nobody notices your conspicious lack of efficacy. 
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As killing/confusing/blinding goes i'm a good teammate; and you also dont have to worry about me if my health starts to drop - i can just invis/pff and heal up (usually by moving to a defender; instead of expecting them to find me)
I find it works anyhow.
I'd be a much less effective soloer if i'd spent 2 powers on the team shields so far too; and with illusion as my primery power i guess thats even more understandable.
My plan is to switch round sometime around or after i get phantom army; so i have the friendly bubbles - but before then would mean i'm far less useful in an active way if you ask me. And i like to be active. Bubbling every teammate twice i have no problems with - but i dont want to be teamed on that basis; and nobody's had a problem with it yet.
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From how you describe your playstyle im starting to doubt FF is really the set for you.. you want to focus on controlling/damage.. which in combo with illusion means you need a debuff secondary. In case i didnt make it clear, FF is HARD to solo at high lvls.. not just hard, but really really REALLY HARD.
You have absolutely no means of improving your damage with FF, and with illusion you lack containment to deal damage with blasts etc.
Ill/ff is a real team build, even without insulation/deflection shield you still are a team build. I didnt have IS/DS for a while as I was trying out with a combo of hami build / pvp build. It worked, but of course in a team people liked me more when i specced those 2 shields back in.
As for slotting, you can see somewhere in this topic my personal opinion on the illusion powers. Including a discussion and other viewpoints on the matter, take a look at it and decide what works best with you.
As for bubbles.. I personally wouldnt recommend taking repulsion bomb and repulsion field. Repulsion field costs too much end to be effective, plus it becomes a bit redundant after you get forcebubble. Repulsion bomb.. well, i still dont see what devs were thinking when making this power. The instant KB around an ally may be nice to get a squishy out of trouble, but the animation is SO long that the squishy will be dead by then. Would be more useful if you could fire it on an enemy rather than ally.
If you mainly PvE, I'd suggest skipping Detention Field as well, in PvE you rarely have any use for it, especially as a controller. As for forcebolt, I can't say I used it alot in PvE, but its a handy tool nonetheless.
For bubble slotting:
I dont agree with slotting PFF 2 def, 3 recharge.. the recharge is fast enough for a panic button. I got it 3 defbuff myself.
Insulation shield, dispersion bubble, deflection shield.. 3 defbuf and endreducers to taste.
Forcebubble: 3 endreduc
Detention Field: own taste really, seeing I use it for pvp i got it 3 acc 3 rech, so it'll rarely miss AND be up as often as possible.
Forcebolt, 1 acc 1 rech could work, even though the base recharge is very fast on its own.
Btw, all this slotting is based on SOs, havent had the time to look into sets/IOs etc.
Right, hope it makes sense, bloody tired after workin all day and havin had no sleep tonight 
"god, how many devs did hami have to sleep with to get ED?"
Total Cat @Stagefright
Soloing isn't my main goal at the high end. I just like to be able to have an active role both in and out of teams.
Thanks for the slotting info; i'm sure it'll come in handy.
One thing though; the leadership pool or whatever its called; does that work on PA? and if so is it worth bothering with?
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For bubble slotting:
I dont agree with slotting PFF 2 def, 3 recharge.. the recharge is fast enough for a panic button. I got it 3 defbuff myself.
Insulation shield, dispersion bubble, deflection shield.. 3 defbuf and endreducers to taste.
Forcebubble: 3 endreduc
Detention Field: own taste really, seeing I use it for pvp i got it 3 acc 3 rech, so it'll rarely miss AND be up as often as possible.
Forcebolt, 1 acc 1 rech could work, even though the base recharge is very fast on its own.
Btw, all this slotting is based on SOs, havent had the time to look into sets/IOs etc.
Right, hope it makes sense, bloody tired after workin all day and havin had no sleep tonight
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As i said it is my defender build slotting. So i am repeating it again just clear that for PFF defender and controller sloting is different. 3 recharges in defender build is for tanking possibility with PFF and have no use for controllers. Especially good holds of other sets and PA of illiusion set. So for controllers with FF secondary i suggest one defbuff or if you want to 2 defbuffs at worst in your PFF.
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One thing though; the leadership pool or whatever its called; does that work on PA?
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No. The Phantom Army is not affacted by any buffs. That is why debuffs are so useful with illusion.
I really should do something about this signature.
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Soloing isn't my main goal at the high end. I just like to be able to have an active role both in and out of teams.
Thanks for the slotting info; i'm sure it'll come in handy.
One thing though; the leadership pool or whatever its called; does that work on PA? and if so is it worth bothering with?
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well, as said, at higher lvls, you arent really able to have such an active role outside of teams.. I was bout to give up in the 38-41 range as my SG died and I couldnt find teams. Twas only that I joined a new SG and they got me some teams in that lvl range that I pulled through. As stated before, soloing is pretty nigh impossible at the higher lvls. PA does nice damage, but with lack of debuffs it doesnt make a feasible solo strategy. And of course as said before, you cant buff PA in any way (aside from enhances of course).
I picked ill/ff when I built him cause I wanted to be someone that would focus purely on his team.
"god, how many devs did hami have to sleep with to get ED?"
Total Cat @Stagefright
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Actually fitness pool choices depends on your travel power mostly. If you get SS, with hasten in your build it will be an economical choice, you will probably want hurdle and swift. With Fly also swift is a option to speed up your flight. With Super Jump you will also want Swift+Hurdle combo. Health don't recomanded by most for squishy types (blasters, controllers and defenders) but sometimes i will add it to my builds. You know every little bit helps.
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Not really true, though you can boost travel powers this way, its by no means essential. And they have more to do with your primary/2ndary than anything else. If you go ??/kin you don't even really need a travel power and once you hit 35/36 you could probably get away without fitness. ??/Rad also offers a power that will let you go easy on the pool powers. And now with inventions you have even more options to avoid fitness.
Health is now more useful too, as unless you are ??/emp you are unlikely to have three fully slotted healing powers to gain the three unique Healing IOs (Miracle, Numina's C & Regenerative Tissue / +Recovery, +regen & +recovery +regen)
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I don't know your exact build but if you can't squeeze SJ into your build try to get jump pack from KR bank mission or if you have Good vs. Evil extras, bonus jump pack will be handy for you.
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Arguably with inventions unless you have a specific reason to take SJ you can avoid it entirely, even for PvP. Steadfast Protection (Res set) offers a knockback protection IO, as does Karma (Def set). So acrobatics can be avoided.
Personally my Ill/FF controller is played as a buff bot and little else, to the point where I'm not taking PA for several levels after its available, but even now (at 14) I can wander around PI with impunity 
Sadly Repulsion Bomb is another power needing its text fixed. Its now the power certain mob types use on you, yup its a targetable 'attack'.
When I was leveling my Ill/FF to level 50, I used him primarly as a bubble bot who could absorb alphas and lockdown a few key foes. Inbetween I'd use forcebolt and repulsion field and scoop foes towards the tank/anchor for improved herding. I never had force bubble and find its far more situtional and dangerous to use than the field but ymmv Detention Field has its uses, mostly if theres multiple bosses in a spawn but it may only get used once a day.
Just make sure you have; Blind, Confuse, Spectral Wounds, Phantom Army, Phantasm, Spectral Terror, Flash and Superior Invis. Hasten for me seems pretty much 'essential'.
Bubble slotting I had; x3 Def on PFF, x3 Def x1 End Red for each ally bubble, x3 Def x2 End Red for the mez bubble, x3 end red x1 knockback on repulsion field. Forcebolt was x2 Acc 1x knockback.
It was alot of fun but as mentioned already, your damage in high level teams is poor and the bubbling at somepoint will drive you crazy But you _are_ using a powerfull combo that teams should appreciate.
I'm using an ill/FF troller atm (as well as a few others)
I'm level 35 now, avoided the single ally shields for now, might get them later. I just wanted to get my ill powers 1st. I have the area effect bubbles & do find that the pets & defence make this char very soloable as well as a good team player.
With Superior Invis, its always a good idea to get Recall Friend for ghosting missions/TF's when needed.
Xtream
50's -
Scrappers - Xtream & Ouroboros Enforcer. Controllers - Vanguard Phoenix, Midnight Protector & Mythical Illusion. Tanks - Stone Cold Sober. Blasters - Ultimate Solution & Crey Prototype. Defenders - Lucifer - Bound. Peacebringers - Xtream Justice. Masterminds - Xtream Malfunction. SoA - Arachnid Lord
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I'm level 35 now, avoided the single ally shields for now, might get them later.
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Skipping insulation bubble I could sortof understand, but with a FF bubble, even from a controller, does wonders for peoples defences. Seriously, I strongly advise showing your build. I'm sure there's a power that could better serve specced out for Deflection.
Sorry, but I find, as others do, bubbles can make a huge difference: Be it on my scrapper, controller, tank, brute, blaster, they all go nuts in bubbles!
I'm an Illusion and bubbles 
Look for me in game: Swift Strikez im same level as you too, maybe we can team
I love my controller these sets i feel are awesome, even though im a big fan of superboost.
We are out there, we just hide out in out personal Bubbles, relaxing away from dmg
Debbuffing is my favourite too.
Mind you, at high levels (35+) when AoE holds and stuns start to fly around all over the place, nothing makes me happier than a sonic or FF defender (or troller).
AoE Mez resistance?
What where they thinking!