Traps is fairly endurance friendly unless you go for a Hastened-trip-mine-spamming playstyle. Wherther or not you should take Stamina depends on how you intend to play it. Most other powers are fire and forget.
Can't help you much more than that because I personally can't stand playing /Traps.
How to slot SpecOps... Here's how I'd do it:
Blood Mandate Acc/Dam
Blood Mandate Acc/Dam/End
Sovereign Right Acc/Dam
Sovereign Right Acc/Dam(End
Touch of Lady Grey: Chance for Negative Energy Damage
Achilles' Heel: Chance for Resistance Debuff
Recharge is very good for traps, since you can put out more stuff more often. Getting out two Mortars at the same time, helps divert aggro, and assure more debuffed targets.
The problem with recharge is that the more you have, the bigger your stamina drain will be.
Leadership toggles are also recommended for Mercenaries, which in turn increase the stamina drain further.
Hasten is recommended, but it will affect stamina recovery somewhat.
Tier one and tier two pets would benefit greatly from the Lady Grey proc. And the Achilles heel proc in at least tier one is also recommended. This largely negate the weak damage type of the mercenaries. Early on, more so.
The first personal attack got a debuff component, and can be slotted with many wondrous sets. I know people say that personal attacks sucks hard forever, but it's not so bad, when added to the symphony of bullets. With Mercs, anything helps. This will also drain stamina though. lol
Serum: Worst MM Primary Special in the Game. You can put a -KB IO there, which is the only use I can imagine for it. The crash drains stamina, the recharge is atrocious, and it doesn't work too well on a ranged pet. Use inspirations on the pet, and take something useful instead.
For later gameplay, the Scorpion Shield go well with the Force Field Generator. In Bodyguard you should have 70% resist at any rate, adding defense will help you live longer. As an added bonus, you could one day put a Luck of the Gambler 7.5% IO in there, for more recharge.
The rest of the stuff in the Patron Set is of little/no use though.
Powers in general.
Caltrops are nice, especially early on. And can take various sets. Or if you feel adventurous, they can take more procs than anything else in the set. ;-)
The Triage. Umm well. It's helping regen based characters in erm... a team, and you can put heal sets in it, which is good. It's also helping in a Boss fight. If this is your main healing source, you will have to resummon often. And that drains stamina like nothing else. It's kinda skippable I guess, but the regeneration effect does enhance Bodyguard mode enough to increase survivability beyond any doubt. When properly slotted of course. It can also take the doctored wounds set for moar recharge.
The Poison Gas Trap. Nerfed thrice recently. Still a fairly decent hold that helps mitigate and divert spawn aggro. IE, team mates or pets can get to work before the spawn can react properly. This sadly means that you will have to be inside that spawn to set the trap though. So use BG mode. :-p
The Mortar. Lovely thing. Can be slotted for recharge, debuffs, but no use putting damage sets in there. It's not making much of a difference. Unless you are going for set bonuses. Can take the Achilles Heel proc. The Mortar is at any rate one of the top three takers. Up there with the Force Field Generator.
The Force Field Generator. Status Protection. Small Area effect which means it also helps the pets. A must have.
Trip Mines. Situational. They're fun, they do damage. But interuptable, and often left behind in fast teams. Real damage, poor execution in normal situations. You might be able to put down the Gas Trap, and then Toe Bomb them with a Trip Mine. But in large active teams, interuption is the rule of the day.
Seeker Drones. They are useful against AV's and to take alpha strikes. You can summon them inside a spawn. Hehe. They can be slotted with various nice stuff. They're not vital for anything though. They will make enemies hit less often. That is a good deal if you're stacking defense.
Detonator. Highly situational. Want a big bang? Then you need use the Commando. It's slow to set, in any decent team the target is gone by the time you use it. And the pet dies. With the new summoning stamina drain, you don't want to summon more pets than absolutely needed. Unless you got tons of blues forever. Recharge is slow.
Soldiers - slotting.
Cram in a Lady Grey chance for Negative Damage ASAP. Otherwise just Frankenslot in anything that goes. An Achilles Heel chance for debuff here, will also do wonders. If they tend to go out often, some recharge in there helps for sure!
Spec-Ops -slotting.
Could use a Lady Grey as well. Otherwise cram in a piece from any to-hit set with a recharge component here, if you can. This is said to speed up the Spec-Ops themselves! Some damage and acc needed after all of this of course. An Achilles heel would be great in here, but you will be cutting down on damage by now, so well. If you have to prioritise, use a Lady Grey Proc. The achilles Heel will fire off more often in the soldiers.
Commando -Slotting.
Use a full pet set here if you can afford it. He need some stamina reduction, otherwise damage and acc should be enough. Recharge if you need summon him often. Procs is a waste in him mostly. IMHO.
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Here is my build for amusement, it's not suitable before level 50. This represents a very aggressive play style, if you want to proactively place traps with caution, this is not the build you are looking for.
Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1,401
http://www.cohplanner.com/
[u]Click this DataLink to open the build![u]
Sieghard: Level 50 Magic Mastermind
Primary Power Set: Mercenaries
Secondary Power Set: Traps
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery
Villain Profile:
Level 1: Burst <ul type="square">[*] (A) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge[*] (3) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (3) Apocalypse - Damage[*] (5) Apocalypse - Damage/Endurance[*] (5) Apocalypse - Chance of Damage(Negative)[/list]Level 1: Web Grenade <ul type="square">[*] (A) Gravitational Anchor - Immobilize[*] (7) Gravitational Anchor - Immobilize/Recharge[*] (7) Gravitational Anchor - Accuracy/Immobilize/Recharge[*] (9) Gravitational Anchor - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (9) Gravitational Anchor - Immobilize/Endurance[/list]Level 2: Soldiers <ul type="square">[*] (A) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance for Negative Damage[*] (11) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff[*] (11) Touch of Lady Grey - Defense Debuff/Recharge[*] (13) HamiO:Nucleolus Exposure[*] (13) HamiO:Nucleolus Exposure[*] (15) HamiO:Nucleolus Exposure[/list]Level 4: Caltrops <ul type="square">[*] (A) Armageddon - Damage[*] (15) Armageddon - Damage/Recharge[*] (17) Armageddon - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge[*] (17) Armageddon - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (19) Armageddon - Chance for Fire Damage[/list]Level 6: Equip Mercenary <ul type="square">[*] (A) Endurance Reduction IO[/list]Level 8: Swift <ul type="square">[*] (A) Run Speed IO[/list]Level 10: Combat Jumping <ul type="square">[*] (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed[*] (19) Luck of the Gambler - Defense[*] (21) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance[/list]Level 12: Spec Ops <ul type="square">[*] (A) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance for Negative Damage[*] (21) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff[*] (23) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage/Recharge[*] (23) Soulbound Allegiance - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (25) HamiO:Nucleolus Exposure[*] (25) HamiO:Nucleolus Exposure[/list]Level 14: Super Jump <ul type="square">[*] (A) Jumping IO[/list]Level 16: Force Field Generator <ul type="square">[*] (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed[*] (27) Luck of the Gambler - Defense[*] (27) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance[*] (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge[/list]Level 18: Health <ul type="square">[*] (A) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration[*] (29) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery[*] (31) Numina's Convalescence - Heal[*] (31) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance[/list]Level 20: Stamina <ul type="square">[*] (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod[*] (31) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge[*] (33) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy[/list]Level 22: Acid Mortar <ul type="square">[*] (A) Undermined Defenses - Defense Debuff/Recharge[*] (33) Ragnarok - Damage[*] (33) Ragnarok - Damage/Recharge[*] (34) Ragnarok - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge[*] (34) Ragnarok - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (34) Ragnarok - Damage/Endurance[/list]Level 24: Poison Trap <ul type="square">[*] (A) Unbreakable Constraint - Accuracy/Hold/Recharge[*] (36) Unbreakable Constraint - Accuracy/Recharge[*] (36) Unbreakable Constraint - Hold/Recharge[*] (36) Unbreakable Constraint - Endurance/Hold[*] (37) Unbreakable Constraint - Chance for Smashing Damage[/list]Level 26: Commando <ul type="square">[*] (A) Soulbound Allegiance - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge[*] (37) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage/Endurance[*] (37) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage[*] (39) Sovereign Right - Accuracy[*] (39) Sovereign Right - Resistance Bonus[*] (39) Edict of the Master - Defense Bonus[/list]Level 28: Maneuvers <ul type="square">[*] (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed[*] (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense[*] (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance[*] (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance/Recharge[/list]Level 30: Tactics <ul type="square">[*] (A) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff[*] (42) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff/Recharge[*] (42) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff/Endurance/Recharge[*] (42) Adjusted Targeting - Endurance/Recharge[*] (43) Adjusted Targeting - To Hit Buff/Endurance[/list]Level 32: Tactical Upgrade <ul type="square">[*] (A) Endurance Reduction IO[/list]Level 35: Hasten <ul type="square">[*] (A) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (43) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (43) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (45) Recharge Reduction IO[*] (50) Recharge Reduction IO[/list]Level 38: Triage Beacon <ul type="square">[*] (A) Doctored Wounds - Heal/Endurance[*] (45) Doctored Wounds - Endurance/Recharge[*] (45) Doctored Wounds - Heal/Endurance/Recharge[*] (46) Doctored Wounds - Heal/Recharge[*] (46) Doctored Wounds - Recharge[*] (50) Doctored Wounds - Heal[/list]Level 41: Scorpion Shield <ul type="square">[*] (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed[*] (46) Luck of the Gambler - Defense[*] (48) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance[*] (48) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance/Recharge[/list]Level 44: Seeker Drones <ul type="square">[*] (A) Absolute Amazement - Stun/Recharge[*] (48) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Stun/Recharge[*] (50) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Recharge[/list]Level 47: Assault <ul type="square">[*] (A) Endurance Reduction IO[/list]Level 49: Vengeance <ul type="square">[*] (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed[/list]------------
Level 1: Brawl <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 1: Sprint <ul type="square">[*] (A) HamiO:Microfilament Exposure[/list]Level 2: Rest <ul type="square">[*] (A) Empty[/list]Level 1: Supremacy
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Otherwise cram in a piece from any to-hit set with a recharge component here, if you can. This is said to speed up the Spec-Ops themselves!
[/ QUOTE ]Pets no longer benefit from recharge buffing, so this advice no longer applies.
Thanks everyone, very helpful, especially the bit about seeker drones. Couldn't figure if they're of any use from the description alone.
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Recharge times on pet attack powers will no longer be affected by any outside source. This includes buffs and debuffs. What this means is that pets can no longer have the recharge time on their powers increased by player buffs (like Speed Boost) or their recharge time decreased by player or NPC debuffs. This change was made to allow pets to correctly cycle through their attacks instead of getting locked on using the same attack over and over and neglecting to use other available powers.
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Was not updated on this since it does not affect my build anymore. But it happened with I14. Sorry for the outdated stuff. Just visit the US forums. There is much more information there at any rate.
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Serum: Worst MM Primary Special in the Game. You can put a -KB IO there, which is the only use I can imagine for it. The crash drains stamina, the recharge is atrocious, and it doesn't work too well on a ranged pet. Use inspirations on the pet, and take something useful instead.
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With a merc/pain i would consider taking it since you can negate the crash.
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The rest of the stuff in the Patron Set is of little/no use though.
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Web immob and hold are pretty useful
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The Triage. Umm well. It's helping regen based characters in erm... a team, and you can put heal sets in it, which is good. It's also helping in a Boss fight. If this is your main healing source, you will have to resummon often. And that drains stamina like nothing else. It's kinda skippable I guess, but the regeneration effect does enhance Bodyguard mode enough to increase survivability beyond any doubt. When properly slotted of course. It can also take the doctored wounds set for moar recharge.
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If you are going for recharge you can doublestack it and reach rest levels of regen.
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The Poison Gas Trap. Nerfed thrice recently. Still a fairly decent hold that helps mitigate and divert spawn aggro. IE, team mates or pets can get to work before the spawn can react properly. This sadly means that you will have to be inside that spawn to set the trap though. So use BG mode. :-p
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Abysmal as a hold but it still remains a godly -regen power.
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The Force Field Generator. Status Protection. Small Area effect which means it also helps the pets. A must have.
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Just to add. Its a pet entity so you cant be suppressed if you qare affected by sleep.
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Seeker Drones. They are useful against AV's and to take alpha strikes. You can summon them inside a spawn. Hehe. They can be slotted with various nice stuff. They're not vital for anything though. They will make enemies hit less often. That is a good deal if you're stacking defense.
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The stun and -tohit is pretty meh against Av´s
Also i dislike that build. Can be made much more effective with far less infamy.
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Serum: Worst MM Primary Special in the Game. You can put a -KB IO there, which is the only use I can imagine for it. The crash drains stamina, the recharge is atrocious, and it doesn't work too well on a ranged pet. Use inspirations on the pet, and take something useful instead.
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With a merc/pain i would consider taking it since you can negate the crash.
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The rest of the stuff in the Patron Set is of little/no use though.
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Web immob and hold are pretty useful
You got web immobilise and hold in the Mercenary/Traps set already. The patron hold is going to eat into better picks.
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The Triage. Umm well. It's helping regen based characters in erm... a team, and you can put heal sets in it, which is good. It's also helping in a Boss fight. If this is your main healing source, you will have to resummon often. And that drains stamina like nothing else. It's kinda skippable I guess, but the regeneration effect does enhance Bodyguard mode enough to increase survivability beyond any doubt. When properly slotted of course. It can also take the doctored wounds set for moar recharge.
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If you are going for recharge you can doublestack it and reach rest levels of regen.
Yes. But in teams that move, you will rarely see that. But with recharge you will have one triage up for almost every fight at least.
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The Poison Gas Trap. Nerfed thrice recently. Still a fairly decent hold that helps mitigate and divert spawn aggro. IE, team mates or pets can get to work before the spawn can react properly. This sadly means that you will have to be inside that spawn to set the trap though. So use BG mode. :-p
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Abysmal as a hold but it still remains a godly -regen power.
The hold is good enough to mitigate aggro in spawns. The -regen helps where the hold does not. The puke effect used to be a fairly good diversion. But they *fixed* that.
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The Force Field Generator. Status Protection. Small Area effect which means it also helps the pets. A must have.
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Just to add. Its a pet entity so you cant be suppressed if you qare affected by sleep.
[ QUOTE ]
Seeker Drones. They are useful against AV's and to take alpha strikes. You can summon them inside a spawn. Hehe. They can be slotted with various nice stuff. They're not vital for anything though. They will make enemies hit less often. That is a good deal if you're stacking defense.
[/ QUOTE ]
The stun and -tohit is pretty meh against Av´s
The tohit debuff supports a defensive build, where you already have lots of defense.
Also i dislike that build. Can be made much more effective with far less infamy.
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You got a much more effective build? Then post it, and explain what makes it so much more effective.
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The patron immob is aoe(15 feet radius), the single target hold can be stacked with pgt for bosses.
Also having two immobs helps you stack it against AV´s which can be useful in many situations.
They also have -recharge for even more mitigation
Agreed on triage but its great for fights that doesnt take 10 seconds.
-5% tohit from each drone(taken from redtomax). a level 50 av resists it by 95%.
Its -dmg is great though since the AV calculates its resists to -dmg and -res from their own damage restiance and damage type.
Not here(at work) But cramming every purple you can into a build is not that hot. Availability of purples(hamis as well) also have decreased thanks to most people not bothering with normal content and the ma is much more rewarding so who can blame them.
You can instead work on your defense and other stuff.
[ QUOTE ]
The patron immob is aoe(15 feet radius), the single target hold can be stacked with pgt for bosses.
Also having two immobs helps you stack it against AV´s which can be useful in many situations.
They also have -recharge for even more mitigation
[/ QUOTE ]
You can spam the single target web grenade, it stacks with itself.
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Agreed on triage but its great for fights that doesnt take 10 seconds.
-5% tohit from each drone(taken from redtomax). a level 50 av resists it by 95%.
Its -dmg is great though since the AV calculates its resists to -dmg and -res from their own damage restiance and damage type.
[/ QUOTE ]
The ToHit debuff is generally useful to support a defensive build. (You also got 2 chances to get that in per summon.)
The DMG (All Types) -20% for 40s, is quite nifty as you said. The seekers are great against an AV.
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Not here(at work) But cramming every purple you can into a build is not that hot. Availability of purples(hamis as well) also have decreased thanks to most people not bothering with normal content and the ma is much more rewarding so who can blame them.
You can instead work on your defense and other stuff.
[/ QUOTE ]
It's possible to get more set-bonus defense there, but at the cost of perma-hasten, which was not easy to get. It is possible to live a bit longer, and kill a bit slower, which does not suit me. With that said, the build was not made over the night. Its properly play tested. Setting something up in mids without playing it first, is not recommended.
It's not my fault people can't be bothered to play the game anymore.
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Perma hasten is not needed in my opinion. Nice but not needed.
Its not my fault i have opinion that differs from yours 
.
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Perma hasten is not needed in my opinion. Nice but not needed.
Its not my fault i have opinion that differs from yours .
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Perma-Hasten is not needed. It's just hard to get. :-p
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I know, mercs=lol, but I really like lots of dakka-dakka, and while I very rarely play redside it still would be nice to know what I'm doing when I do... So is there any good guide/forum thread with builds, tactics, etc? If there isn't then some specific questions:
Are /traps powers beyond Poison Gas any good? (Acid Mortar, Force field and PGT themselves are superb. )
What the build would need most? Recharge?
Stamina. Is it needed? At early levels (currently 24) end bar barely moves, except when I summon/upgrade.
Mercs, - how to best slot Spec Ops?