The thing about SJ on a DA scrapper is because, prior to I9, you needed leaping pool to get Acrobatics for Knock Back protection since Dark Armour doesn't have it. Hover gives a semi kb protection since you only flip back in the air, however it was not the best solution due to the quantity of -fly powers that foes have. Now, with the invention sets, you can get KB protection from the Steadfast Protection unique enhancement (slotted in dmgres powers) and also from the Karma set KB prot enhancement, which has to be slotted in a def power. As SJ is a cool power, most DA scrappers still choose it, so they can select Combat Jumping and slot the Karma KB prot enhancement on it. My advise would be to go for leaping pool and once you get any of these 2 enhancements (Steadfast is unique but karma one can be slotted in up to 5 deifferent powers) then you respec and choose any travel power you wish. Bear in mind that DA is a high end consumer and so is TP, hence you will need to rest every time upon arriving to mission door. If you get one of the Karma KB protection (recipe sells for about 6 mill), I'd suggest you to choose Combat Jumping instead of Hover and slot it in there. Combat Jumping will give you better jump height and air control, plus less end consumption than hover and iirc, it also protects against immobiization.
Murky cloud, where is it?
Anyway, I havent played dark armour past lvl 12 but I'd say murky cloud is pretty much a must to have.
Powers like cloak of fear and soul transfer are debatable, both depend very much on your build and playstyle. Personally having cloak of fear, dmg res toggles, hover and aoe dmg toggles seems a bit end heavy, I'd drop cloak of fear.
Confront is good if you want to be the psi tank.
I just hope those slots arent serious 
- @DSorrow - alts on Union and Freedom mostly -
Currently playing as Castigation on Freedom
My Katana/Inv Guide
Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either. -Einstein
Oh, I only checked the travel power side, DSorrow is right, Murky Cloud is definitely needed for Fire/Cold/Energy/Negative damage resistance plus also protects agains endurance drain. The best thing about DA is that it protects against all kind of dmg, if you don't want to have protection against every dmg, probably an invulnerability scrapper would be a better idea.
Personally, this is the build I'd use taking into consideration a minimum of set enhancements, specially KB protection and recovery increase:
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1,20
http://www.honourableunited.org.uk/mhd.php
Spines-DA: Level 50 Mutation Scrapper
Primary Power Set: Spines
Secondary Power Set: Dark Armor
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Teleportation
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Body Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Lunge -- RechRdx-I:50(A), Acc-I:50(19), EndRdx-I:50(37), Dmg-I:50(45), Dmg-I:50(46), Dmg-I:50(46)
Level 1: Dark Embrace -- EndRdx-I:50(A), EndRdx-I:50(3), ResDam-I:50(3), ResDam-I:50(7), ResDam-I:50(9)
Level 2: Spine Burst -- Acc-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(15), EndRdx-I:50(23), Dmg-I:50(34), Dmg-I:50(42), Dmg-I:50(43)
Level 4: Murky Cloud -- EndRdx-I:50(A), EndRdx-I:50(5), ResDam-I:50(5), ResDam-I:50(7), ResDam-I:50(9)
Level 6: Swift -- Run-I:50(A)
Level 8: Impale -- Acc-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(15), EndRdx-I:50(23), Dmg-I:50(27), Dmg-I:50(27), Dmg-I:50(34)
Level 10: Obsidian Shield -- EndRdx-I:50(A), EndRdx-I:50(11), ResDam-I:50(11), ResDam-I:50(13), ResDam-I:50(13)
Level 12: Recall Friend -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 14: Teleport -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
Level 16: Dark Regeneration -- Acc-I:50(A), Acc-I:50(17), EndRdx-I:50(17), EndRdx-I:50(36), RechRdx-I:50(37), Heal-I:50(37)
Level 18: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+:50(A), Mrcl-Rcvry+:40(19)
Level 20: Stamina -- EndMod-I:50(A), EndMod-I:50(21), EndMod-I:50(21)
Level 22: Combat Jumping -- Krma-ResKB:30(A)
Level 24: Quills -- Acc-I:50(A), Acc-I:50(25), EndRdx-I:50(25), EndRdx-I:50(40), Dmg-I:50(40), Dmg-I:50(50)
Level 26: Boxing -- Acc-I:50(A)
Level 28: Ripper -- Acc-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(29), EndRdx-I:50(29), Dmg-I:50(34), Dmg-I:50(46), Dmg-I:50(50)
Level 30: Tough -- EndRdx-I:50(A), S'fstPrt-ResKB:30(31), S'fstPrt-ResDam/EndRdx:30(31), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+:30(31)
Level 32: Throw Spines -- Acc-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(33), EndRdx-I:50(33), Dmg-I:50(33), Dmg-I:50(43), Dmg-I:50(43)
Level 35: Oppressive Gloom -- HO:Endo(A), HO:Endo(36), EndRdx-I:50(36)
Level 38: Death Shroud -- HO:Nucle(A), HO:Nucle(39), EndRdx-I:50(39), EndRdx-I:50(39), EndRdx-I:50(40)
Level 41: Conserve Power -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(42), RechRdx-I:50(42)
Level 44: Focused Accuracy -- HO:Cyto(A), HO:Cyto(45), HO:Cyto(45)
Level 47: Cloak of Fear -- HO:Endo(A), HO:Endo(48), EndRdx-I:50(48), EndRdx-I:50(48), EndRdx-I:50(50)
Level 49: Soul Transfer -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Jump-I:50(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 1: Critical Hit
------------
[u]Set Bonus Totals:[u]<ul type="square">[*]+3% Defense(Smashing)[*]+3% Defense(Lethal)[*]+3% Defense(Fire)[*]+3% Defense(Cold)[*]+3% Defense(Energy)[*]+3% Defense(Negative)[*]+3% Defense(Psionic)[*]+3% Defense(Melee)[*]+3% Defense(Ranged)[*]+3% Defense(AoE)[*]+20,1 (1,5%) HitPoints[*]+Knockback (Mag -8)[*]+1,5% Recovery[/list]------------
[u]Set Bonuses:[u]
[u]Karma[u]
(Combat Jumping)<ul type="square">[*] +Knockback (Mag -4)[/list][u]Steadfast Protection[u]
(Tough)<ul type="square">[*] +1,5% Recovery[*] +20,1 (1,5%) HitPoints[*] +Knockback (Mag -4)[*] +3% Def(All)[/list]
<font class="small">Code:[/color]<hr /><pre>| Copy & Paste this data chunk into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
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</pre><hr />
I used teleport as per your preference, although I'd personally go for SJ and choose another power such as Air Superiority or even Jump Kick to improve the attack chain.
The slotting is quite general and should be adjusted to sets or different IO's as per your own preferences.
Please note that I am not very well acquainted in Spines, my DA scrappers are Claws/DA and DM/DA so anyone with more experience than me in Spines will give you better advice, as I said, this is the build I'd try if I rolled a Spines/DA, but I would be open to changes as per gameplay.
I think the main question is: "What do you want to do with your scrapper?"
[u]What a Spines/DA is good at:[u] High survivability against multiple enemies (especially vs Psi damage), producing large amounts of AoE damage output and protection against odd types of mez like end drain and fear.
[u]What a Spines/DA is not so good at:[u] Endurance management and taking on a single, strong enemy (Bosses, Elite Bosses). Lack of KB protection. These can be helped by pool power choices, IOs and careful slotting.
Playing to a Spines/DA's strengths would therefore be making it into an AoE-damage-heavy toon, with the ability to act as a fill-in tanker (especially against Psionic or Endurance-draining Mobs).
You'll definately want to take Stamina. You'll probably want to take the leaping pool for Combat Jumping + Acrobatics, which will allow you to skip Cloak of Darkness and cover all your remaining status protection holes. It can be done with a different travel power + CoD and KB protection IOs, but you'll still occasionally get KB'ed and you'll have slightly lower hold protection. If you're taking Oppressive Gloom and/or the Damage Auras then you won't want Cloak of Fear (Fear doesn't "play nice" with damage auras and OG is better than CoF anyway).
There's a fairly recent thread on i9 slotting for Spines/Darks in the guides section with more info.
Thanks everyone, this is just what I'm looking for. I'll switch to SJ as what you said makes good sence and I'm not dead set on Teleport.
I'll use the build you posted Nightmarer as a guide because I've been really unsure of what powers to take and what enhancements to slot so that will give me the boost to get further into the game and make my own ammendments.
That thread looks to be quite interesting so I'll keep that for ideas aswell, thanks Maelwys.
Heres my 10c worth:
I would say as a DA scrapper you still have to get the leaping pool purely for acrobatics. If you team a lot, especially in 8 man teams, you NEED it. I spent more inf than I care to think about buying 3 steadfasts and 1 kama KB IOs only to find that I could still get knocked back with reasonable freaquency by some mobs. Tsoo and the croatoa witches are the worst. Hurricane will get through 2KB IOs, Gale through 3, so if you have 2 bosses in 1 mob, your on your [censored]. Also fighting a lot of Council/preatorians with the MA sets will find you bouncing around.
I hate having to take leaping for acro, but thats the way it is as a /DA. If you solo a lot, you'll be fine with 3 KB IOs.
I take boxing early as a low end fast recharge addition to the attack chain.
If your going all out AoE (which you should be as a spines/da) take Death shroud and Opressive Gloom. Feared mobs don't run as much as stuned ones, but by using both CoF and DS at the same time, they have a habit to semi cancel each other out.
Take MC but you don't need it until the 20's.
If you do go without acrobatics, you can slot the shields 2xendredux IO, 2xdmg redux IO and 1 steadfast KBprot. This looses you 2% res in each one, but would give you mag 16 KB prot.
I've looked at Aegis etc and decided that I'm better off with IOs as the set bonuses don't add up to much. You could try titanium coating as the set bonuses are more applicable to /DA, but that costs inf and requires an extra slot.
I'm going to post up a few more builds in my DM/DA guides, basically focusing on IO rather than set IO slotting as I feel it gives a better build for the average player (ie one who doesn't have 500,000,000 inf to buy and craft the sets)
Hope some of these points help.
Hey everyone, I'm still pretty new to CoH and have only just started playing the Scrapper AT but enjoying it so far. I've been playing around with Mid's Hero Designer and have come up with this Spines/DA build, I've left out the Enhancements as I'm still trying to find my way around them. Could you wise scrapper gods please have a look over my power choices and levels and give me some opinions or general tips about the class.
W$2&HO9MU#WKZD2(VR&F'7GO_\1D.1E$3)OU^V
7[%2:43M\%B"VTI6=LB
?M3O:K/>'9,^N\VV=E._B=:WI<N/
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.153
http://www.onthejazz.co.uk/hu/mhd.php
Level 50 Mutation Scrapper
Primary Power Set: Spines
Secondary Power Set: Dark Armor
Power Pool: Teleportation
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Ancillary Pool: Body Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Lunge -- (A)(3)(3)(5)(5)(7)
Level 1: Dark Embrace -- (A)(7)(9)(9)(11)(11)
Level 2: Spine Burst -- (A)(13)(13)(15)(17)(17)
Level 4: Death Shroud -- (A)(15)(19)(19)(21)(21)
Level 6: Recall Friend -- (A)(23)(23)(25)(25)(27)
Level 8: Impale -- (A)(27)(29)(29)(31)(31)
Level 10: Hover -- (A)(31)(33)(33)(33)(34)
Level 12: Hurdle -- (A)(34)(34)(36)(36)(36)
Level 14: Teleport -- (A)(37)(37)(37)(39)(39)
Level 16: Obsidian Shield -- (A)(39)(40)(40)(40)(42)
Level 18: Health -- (A)(42)(42)(43)(43)(43)
Level 20: Stamina -- (A)(45)(45)(45)(46)(46)
Level 22: Dark Regeneration -- (A)(46)(48)(48)(48)
Level 24: Quills -- (A)(50)(50)(50)
Level 26: Ripper -- (A)
Level 28: Cloak of Fear -- (A)
Level 30: Build Up -- (A)
Level 32: Throw Spines -- (A)
Level 35: Oppressive Gloom -- (A)
Level 38: Soul Transfer -- (A)
Level 41: Conserve Power -- (A)
Level 44: Focused Accuracy -- (A)
Level 47: Confront -- (A)
Level 49: Cloak of Darkness -- (A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- (A)
Level 1: Sprint -- (A)
Level 1: Critical Hit
Level 2: Rest -- (A)
Copy & Paste this data chunk into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build.
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I have been looking at some other builds posted and most seem to use SJ for their travel power. I was just wondering if this is through choice or is there a benifit to a Scrapper to have SJ? In my build above I have chosen Teleport, is this a viable choice? Thanks in advance for your help