I can't see Whirlwind doing anything good for you, knocking stuff out of your AaO, Dragon Tail and Shield Charge range. I'd rather take Phalanx Fighting, which in my opinion is a must have (3.75% def to all, and another 2-4% def when teammates are close to you).
I understand the goal of your build but Cobra Strike still feels like a wasted pick especially post 32. You're taking a power that'll help a lot against one specific enemy at a specific level range, but by taking that power you're not taking another power that could help you against every enemy out there at all level ranges (for example, Combat Jumping, or Grant Cover - you'd have to rework power order for the latter).
I have a 41 MA/Inv, so I can't comment on the Shield aspect, but I'm seeing some core attacks coming very late.
Crane is available, and an ASAP attack, at 8. You aren't picking it up until 18.
I'm only going to comment to 32, as past that it's a dead zone of adding pools and stuff you never really wanted.
Thunder Kick is weak later, but your goto when everything else is regenerating. Storm is good all the way. Crane kick is as much ASAP as Storm. You should get Crane at 8. Air Sup is also a good supplement to MA as there is no redraw and you won't get knockdown until 26 with dragon's tail. The knock back of Crane is more an irritation than a feature. Keep that F key handy.
Putting Hasten to 24 is fine. I pushed mine to 18. But as you get more frantic, you'll need your Stamina. I've always considered stamina ASAP.
I don't feel Dragon's tail is an ASAP. It's fine, and I use it when surrounded. It does it's job well, but I think I could live without it.
Eagle's Claw is wonderful. Use whatever buildup you have and hit the button, watch the big orange number. ASAP.
You are taking your travel power incredibly late. If I was on your team, I would get tired of waiting on you. I don't take Recall Friend, wastes a spot. Seems like you're hoping someone will.
I don't do it, but seems others like flurry.
I highly recommend MA for coolness and fun. Not sure if your Shield has redraw issues. If so, stay away from the pool "arm" attacks.
I suggest throwing some cheap normal IOs in the 20s. They aren't the best, but they are better than what most people do, and MA needs some good slotting to really put the hurt.
I'm obsessed with getting this build to 50 myself. I've wanted to make a scrapper who punches stuff for a long time now. Not punching with dark/electric/fire swirling around his hands, just good ol' Punching in the face action! Now with the varied animations you can choose for some of the MA attacks this is possible. 
I've chosen to go more offensive oriented to start taking Focus Chi at 6 and Crane Kick at 8. At level 10 I have my attack chain that I will be using for a good long time (Thunder Kick, Storm Kick, Crane Kick, Thunder Kick). I feel like the last time I did research on MA there was a school of thought against taking Focus Chi, but I can't see why not?
Thank you all for the input so far. I reworked a few things, and it really feels like a tight build, but this is where I'm heading...keeping the same intention for the build.
I had planned to not take travel until later, and to instead buy a flight pack in PI, so I don't think my teammates waiting on me would be a problem. I've opted to fit in flight earlier, however.
I took some of the attacks late because with all the shields running pre-Stamina, I've seen some endurance issues. I opted into Air Superiority in this latest build, and will have an okay (though weakish) attack chain until post-Stamina. But it will be very safe.
I had taken Cobra Strike against the advice of a friend, not only for the early level reasons I already mentioned, but after reading a guide that talked about the stun stacking you can do to stun bosses (even AVs?) with Eagle Strike. Has anyone used it this way?
I am not a knockback fan, so originally didn't even have Crane Kick in the build (preferring the idea of Crippling Axe Kick), but put it in at the insistence of a friend. I know it seems late, but I couldn't work it in otherswise. The only other swap I can think of is putting it in place of Fly. I'll consider that, especially if I can pick up a raptor pack (haven't had luck doing that up to 16 so far).
+----------------------------------------------------------------
+ Built with SuckerPunch's Online Planner v5.0
+ http://planner.cohtitan.com/planner
+----------------------------------------------------------------
Archetype: Scrapper
Primary: Martial Arts
Secondary: Shield Defense
+----------------------------------------------------------------
01: Deflection
01: Thunder Kick
02: Battle Agility
04: Storm Kick
06: True Grit
08: Cobra Strike
10: Active Defense
12: Swift
14: Health
16: Air Superiority
18: Fly
20: Stamina
22: Focus Chi
24: Crane Kick
26: Against All Odds
28: Dragon's Tail
30: Hasten
32: Eagles Claw
35: Shield Charge
38: One with the Shield
+----------------------------------------------------------------
Any better? Any thought on Patron Pools?
Sorry for being an idiot. Okay, so I'll work in Crane Kick sooner, will work on getting a temp travel power, and have shuffled things around to look like this:
01: Deflection
01: Thunder Kick
02: Battle Agility
04: Storm Kick
06: True Grit
08: Cobra Strike
10: Active Defense
12: Crane Kick
14: Swift
16: Health
18: Air Superiority
20: Stamina
22: Focus Chi
24: Fly
26: Against All Odds
28: Dragon's Tail
30: Hasten
32: Eagles Claw
35: Shield Charge
38: One with the Shield
Yeah, that looks like it could work. Different feel than I'd go for, but entirely valid.
Don't count on a mez from Eagle. A death for a minion, damage to higher. I might have mezzed...but they were dead too quick to notice.
Crane is a knockback monster. My pattern: First mob, knock people away from Tank and have to persue them and kill them, leaving the warm comfort of the tanks aggroness. Then apologize to him/her about Kb. No response = "I hate this scrapper." Usual response = "As long as you kill it. no probs."
My attack is Eagle, Dragon [if others are there, else skip], Crane, Storm, whatever's regened, and if I need them to stop for a while, Air Sup. Crane, Air Sup, and Dragon can give you a break. But running after Crane's irritating KB is...well, irritating.
Another freakish thing I've never seen anyone else do is Fly, lock and F, Eagle, Crane, Storm, turn off Fly, then whatever. Though I mostly do this because I suck at stairs and am often too impatient to go over to them. All MA works in the air, as does Air Sup.
This is what mine has done so far. Obviously Shield is not Inv.
Name: Ink Girl
Archetype: Scrapper
Primary: Martial Arts
Secondary: Invulnerability
+---------------------------------------------
01 => Resist Physical Damage
01 => Thunder Kick
02 => Storm Kick
04 => Temp Invulnerability
06 => Dull Pain
08 => Crane Kick
10 => Stealth
12 => Air Superiority
14 => Fly
16 => Unyielding
18 => Hasten
20 => Swift
22 => Health
24 => Stamina
26 => Dragons Tail
28 => Invincibility
30 => Super Speed
32 => Eagles Claw
35 => Tough Hide
38 => Focus Chi
41 => Focused Accuracy
What my MA/Shield would likely look like. And since I already have pretty much MA/Everything Else, I'll eventually get to MA/Shields.
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.601
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Level 48 Magic Scrapper
Primary Power Set: Martial Arts
Secondary Power Set: Shield Defense
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Body Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Storm Kick -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Deflection -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Battle Agility -- Empty(A)
Level 4: True Grit -- Empty(A)
Level 6: Focus Chi -- Empty(A)
Level 8: Crane Kick -- Empty(A)
Level 10: Active Defense -- Empty(A)
Level 12: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 14: Health -- Empty(A)
Level 16: Against All Odds -- Empty(A)
Level 18: Crippling Axe Kick -- Empty(A)
Level 20: Stamina -- Empty(A)
Level 22: Hasten -- Empty(A)
Level 24: Super Speed -- Empty(A)
Level 26: Dragon's Tail -- Empty(A)
Level 28: Phalanx Fighting -- Empty(A)
Level 30: Boxing -- Empty(A)
Level 32: Eagles Claw -- Empty(A)
Level 35: Shield Charge -- Empty(A)
Level 38: Tough -- Empty(A)
Level 41: Focused Accuracy -- Empty(A)
Level 44: Physical Perfection -- Empty(A)
Level 47: Weave -- Empty(A)
Level 49: Grant Cover -- Empty(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Critical Hit
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
Quote:
Just accept crane kick and appreciate it for what it is... by slotting knockback in it, because there's a point where people go from, "man that knockback's annoying" to "Did that scrapper just kick him into space?" but they don't say that out loud, so you don't have to hear it.
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Originally Posted by Postagulous
Crane is a knockback monster. My pattern: First mob, knock people away from Tank and have to persue them and kill them, leaving the warm comfort of the tanks aggroness. Then apologize to him/her about Kb. No response = "I hate this scrapper." Usual response = "As long as you kill it. no probs."
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"Fascinating. I'm not bored at all, I swear." -Kikuchiyo
Quote:
Six-slotted Kinetic Crash. If he survives he'll wake up with a new postal code. And nice bonuses to boot. Once CK'd an Arachnos minion in Faultline. Guy bounced off about three different ledges before falling down into the water a hundred or so feet down. Or the one really tall Oranbega cave with the stone islands. You could finish another mission by the time that poor ******* gets back to where he was.|
Originally Posted by Katten
Just accept crane kick and appreciate it for what it is... by slotting knockback in it, because there's a point where people go from, "man that knockback's annoying" to "Did that scrapper just kick him into space?" but they don't say that out loud, so you don't have to hear it.
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Besides, I don't chase the guys I knockback. I just kill/arrest their buddies and wait for them to come back to me. Or let the blasters take 'em out from range. A single target knockback attack isn't likely to ruffle too many feathers as long as you're not following the tank/other scrapper and attacking their targets.
One guy out of your aura isn't going to affect damage/survivability noticeably, and by the time you CK the next guy into the wild blue yonder, the first guy will be back to take his place.
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
Cool, thanks. I read Thunder Kick has a really high DPA, and I notice you didn't take Cobra Strike. You don't buy the stacking stuns at high levels, huh?
I dislike stuns in general. Just a matter of personal preference, but Eagle Claw is a 100% chance to stun, and a pile of damage. I could crack that lt/boss upside the head and stun him too, or I could just kill him. Cobra Strike has two very nice animations, but that doesn't make up for it being somewhat superfluous.
As for Thunder Kick, it's not really a good attack. Storm Kick is, though. I've heard it's one of the best all 'round attacks in the scrapper primaries, and it is in the high dps chains for AV soloing. I generally skip TK altogether, or respec out of it once I pick up CAK (usually at 18).
If I had a /Dark Armor scrapper, I might go with stacking stuns with the stun aura in DA, but I generally find ST mitigation somewhat unimpressive. Now Dragon's Tail on the other hand is one of the highlights of the set for me. That AoE knockdown kills alpha strikes and works wonders in conjunction with your secondary.
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
Yeah, my friend said that scrappers have no use for ST immobilize like with CAK, so he skips it in favor of Crane Kick, which I still am not looking forward to. Don't like batting guys around like a pinball.
But yes, I'm looking forward to running AAO, Shield Charge in, then Dragon's Tail. Shouldn't be much left standing, I wouldn't think. 
OOOooooo....sounds so fun!
Quote:
Now that sounds like a fun project. |
Originally Posted by Katten
Just accept crane kick and appreciate it for what it is... by slotting knockback in it, because there's a point where people go from, "man that knockback's annoying" to "Did that scrapper just kick him into space?" but they don't say that out loud, so you don't have to hear it.
|
Is there a KB soft cap?
Quote:
I wouldn't skip CAK, it's a decent attack for damage. SK>CAK>SK>CK is one of the top end chains for MA, though it requires quite a bit of recharge. MA is quite capable of hanging with the big boys for ST damage output if built for it.|
Originally Posted by GreenBone
Yeah, my friend said that scrappers have no use for ST immobilize like with CAK, so he skips it in favor of Crane Kick, which I still am not looking forward to. Don't like batting guys around like a pinball.
But yes, I'm looking forward to running AAO, Shield Charge in, then Dragon's Tail. Shouldn't be much left standing, I wouldn't think. OOOooooo....sounds so fun! |
I generally don't consider secondary effects when looking at single target attacks. To me they're a bonus, but it's the damage I'm after. Some encourage new strategy, like switching targets after CK's knockback, but for the most part I'm looking to drop enemies as quickly as possible and it's straight up damage that does that.
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
Good advice, and I agree. Thank you. Regularly playing Controllers makes me very used to switching targets. In fact, I'm amazed at how such a simple concept escapes most players, and how much better and more survivable teams would be if more people did just that. You know, help the team.
Quote:
To kind of threadjack, as a blaster, I would like to change to a specific baddie, but short of trying to click him with the mouse, I don't see any easy way to do it. And sometimes it is too frantic for that.|
Originally Posted by GreenBone
Good advice, and I agree. Thank you. Regularly playing Controllers makes me very used to switching targets. In fact, I'm amazed at how such a simple concept escapes most players, and how much better and more survivable teams would be if more people did just that. You know, help the team.
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How do defenders/controllers do it?
Quote:
Go to options under keymaping and look for "select target", "farthest target", and "nearest target". You will be able to pick any key on your keyboard to do those task. Actually, they have pre set keys already but I can't remember what they are because I always change them.
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Originally Posted by Postagulous
To kind of threadjack, as a blaster, I would like to change to a specific baddie, but short of trying to click him with the mouse, I don't see any easy way to do it. And sometimes it is too frantic for that.
How do defenders/controllers do it? |
"All problems can be solved by throwing enough scrappers at it."
@Riez on Virtue, Protector, Champion, and Exalted server.
Yeah, Tab cycles through targets. I don't know which one it starts with. CTRL-Tab selects closest target, though sometimes CTRL accidentally selects your power to auto-fire. I don't know the "farthest target" one, but doesn't sound terribly useful unless positioning for cones.
I extensively use positioning myself correctly, followed by CTRL-Tab. If I'm trying to target a boss, I Tab quickly, unless there's a huge group and clicking on him is a better option.
But I'm not targeting expert. I wish I was better. Maybe others have good methods I don't know of.
Quote:
My default bind file has nearest set to the `~ key, next to 1. |
Originally Posted by Rieze
Go to options under keymaping and look for "select target", "farthest target", and "nearest target". You will be able to pick any key on your keyboard to do those task. Actually, they have pre set keys already but I can't remember what they are because I always change them.
|
Rats, I was hoping there was some secret easy way.
well my follow target is the down arrow on the D-Pad of my game controller lol, Yes I use a gamepad to play coh, makes for a great gameplay experience, I also play it on my 62 inch LCD TV lol, like playing a PS3 =P
oh I am runing a MA/SD too, and I love this toon! lvl 44 as of this morning,
Here is my at 50 sofar
I don't take a travel power, I use Ninja Run =D
------------
Level 1: Storm Kick
Level 1: Deflection
Level 2: Battle Agility
Level 4: True Grit
Level 6: Focus Chi
Level 8: Swift
Level 10: Hurdle
Level 12: Crane Kick
Level 14: Active Defense
Level 16: Combat Jumping
Level 18: Crippling Axe Kick
Level 20: Phalanx Fighting
Level 22: Stamina
Level 24: Hasten
Level 26: Dragon's Tail
Level 28: Kick
Level 30: Tough
Level 32: Eagles Claw
Level 35: Weave
Level 38: Shield Charge
Level 41: Against All Odds
Level 44: Conserve Power
Level 47: Focused Accuracy
Level 49: Physical Perfection
------------
If you want peace, you prepare for war!
-Vegetius
I've never had so many problems deciding on a build. I don't know if it's because there are so many good options, or the exact opposite with my MA/Shield Scrapper. But I can tell you, FortKnocks has been a blast to play so far to 16. However, I'm already thinking of respecing into the following build.
Deflection 1
Thunder Kick 1
Battle Agility 2 (Ranged Vahz)
Storm Kick 4
True Grit 6 (Vahz toxic attacks, Hellion bosses)
Cobra Strike 8 (Tsoo sorcerers)
Active Defense 10
Swift 12
Health 14
Focus Chi 16
Crane Kick 18
Stamina 20
Against All Odds 22 (put off until less squishy)
Hasten 24
Dragon's Tail 26
Super Speed 28
Whirlwind 30 (sounds like a fun oh s**t button)
Eagles Claw 32
Shield Charge 35
One with the Shield 38
For min/maxers and IO specialists, I'm sure this won't look ideal. What I'm shooting for, though, is a build that can survive and flourish all of the way from level 1. I've found that tactics are good for that, yes, but for me, so is building to the kinds of enemies that are most troublesome. Nothing worse than having no toxic resistance and getting puked to death. Just sayin.
So I have a few questions:
1) Any unforgivable holes?
2) Is Whirlwind effective at all as an escape tactic or to protect squishies if you're ovewhelmed? Sure sounds fun.
3) I really can't figure out a good Patron Pool set to take.
- I'm a fan of Caltrops for many reasons (Weapon Mastery), but all the other powers do S/L damage, which is resisted and the only kind of damage MA does - I figure I need a secondary form of damage at higher levels.
- Don't need Body Mastery, unless Physical Perfection is all that.
- Blaze is okay, but the big AOE Fireball divides its damage with Smash. Does Melt Armor make up for it and allow more of my MA hits to make it through?
- Dark just looks weak compared to the others.
Thank you. I appreciate your input.