A ranged hold from an Epic works well.
L50s: Tanks: Cryofission - Ice/EM - Dr Celsius - Fire/Ice - Saint George - SD/SS | Controllers: Psichosis - Ill/Kin - Major Chaos - Ill/Stm | Scrappers - Neutron Crusader - DM/SR
Currently Levelling: Angelic Blade - BS/WP Scrapper | Seeds of Destruction - Plant/Kin Controller
That should work--I'd definitely need to make an alternate build for that--I took Body/Energy/Whatever you call it Mastery for my main build, but it's doable. Any other suggestions for increasing mitigation against Sappers, so that when I make that alternate build with the hold power, I can include them?
Feel free to try out my AE mission arc, # 473452: Praetorian Redemption
@Valerika
ask your teammates to focus on the sapper 
Quote:
Though I haven't looked at the Sapper ranged attack specifically, most end drain attacks are typed energy. Rather than trying to build up your Ranged defense, perhaps you could soft-cap your Energy defense instead, which would be a lot easier and less expensive.|
Originally Posted by Solicio
That should work--I'd definitely need to make an alternate build for that--I took Body/Energy/Whatever you call it Mastery for my main build, but it's doable. Any other suggestions for increasing mitigation against Sappers, so that when I make that alternate build with the hold power, I can include them?
|
Of course, that may not work if the sapper attack has a super-high to-hit, but that would be a problem for Ranged def as well. In which case you'd have to fall back on the epic attack or teammates that can take them out quickly.
My Characters
Knight Court--A CoH Story Complete 2/3/2012
Quote:
This. You don't have to build for any ranged/energy defense specifically to deal with Sappers. Just take the hold. Works for many other problem enemies as well.
|
Originally Posted by Psiphon
A ranged hold from an Epic works well.
|
Quote:
Sappers don't hit my soft-capped SR Scrapper any more often than other mobs, so I think you can rest assured they don't have a big to-hit bonus.|
Originally Posted by Finduilas
Of course, that may not work if the sapper attack has a super-high to-hit, but that would be a problem for Ranged def as well. In which case you'd have to fall back on the epic attack or teammates that can take them out quickly.
|
Willpower has some energy defense. At least you're not Fiery Aura.
Have you tried queuing up Knockout Blow, turning on your travel power, and hitting follow? I don't know what powers you have, but some make it easier than others. If you use Teleport, for example, you can appear right next to the Sapper and nail him with KBlow while bypassing the "getting shot as you approach" issue.
If we are to die, let us die like men. -- Patrick Cleburne
----------------------------------------------------------
The rule is that they must be loved. --Jayne Fynes-Clinton, Death of an Abandoned Dog
Try to come in from behind the Sapper with your Taunt aura off. The time it takes for him to turn and notice will help you land KO Blow beforehand.
The Nemesis Staff is a good way to buy you some time.
As noted, the ranged epic hold will help alot.
If you get close quickly enough fire Foot Stomp first, then KO Blow as he tries to get up. That will prevent him from starting the attack while your animation is running.
Insane scrapper jumps the crowd for a sap smack. The damage keeps sap aggro off you and sap is dead in two hits.
Had to do that repeatedly yesterday.
Yeah, defense sets should have the easiest time with Sappers. Boost your energy defense (which is already at a decent level for WP), and you won't even notice there are sappers in the group. I still target them since they're annoying to all, but they shouldn't give you issues, really.
My Fire/Fire dealt with them back in the day by using his ranged hold, as people suggested. Blech, it was ugly then... you could get 2-3 in a mob. Much nicer nowadays, and anyone can build up defense to dodge them now.
Guide: Tanking, Wall of Fire Style (Updated for I19!), and the Four Rules of Tanking
Story Arc: Belated Justice, #88003
Synopsis: Explore the fine line between justice and vengeance as you help a hero of Talos Island bring his friend's murderer to justice.
Grey Pilgrim: Fire/Fire Tanker (50), Victory
KO Blow is supposed to be a guaranteed mag 3 hold if it hits. The trick is simply to identify the sapper and land this on him before the sapper can get a shot away. I just target the sapper from a distance, turn on sprint, queue up the attack and go follow, so the attack fires immediately when you get in range. This is normally enough.
A ranged hold like Char is available immediately without deep investment in an ancillary pool as well; this is even better. So is Teleport Foe; the sapper is pretty harmless if it's just you and him. They're really only an issue on teams that think they can steamroll Malta.
<《 New Colchis / Guides / Mission Architect 》>
"At what point do we say, 'You're mucking with our myths'?" - Harlan Ellison
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Solicio
I have a level 50 WP/SS tank that is an absolute joy to play, but he has one Achilles' heel--Sappers. They are the bane of my existance. I inwardly groan every time my teams pick Malta missions just for that reason. How would you deal with Sappers on a level 50 WP/SS? I usually try to rush in and hit them with Footstomp or Knockout blow, but they often get in a shot before I can get into melee and fire off my attack. I've considered trying to soft-cap for ranged damage to offset this, but I'm which IO sets I'd need or if this is even possible. Influence isn't an issue for me though, so if I can tweak my build (or even create an entirely new "Malta" secondary build), that's not a problem. Help!
|
Prolly alot easer to softcap your energy d then ranged. *shrug*
I deal with them by kicking there @$$ first and moving on to the rest of the mob. I haven't had an overly hard time with them that i can remember, GRANTED, it's also been a while since i've ran malt missions on my lvl 50 tanks, because, i mainly TF on them and there are no malta TF's that i'm aware of. Do they show up in the shard tf's? I forget...
If your WP is build like mine, you should have 30 something defence to energy right? (34ish IIRC with weave/CJ/steadfast) a small purple should near soft cap yah. and that should be easy enough to scroung up before jumping into a group with a sapper in it.
@KingSnake - Triumph Server
@PrinceSnake
My common sense is tingling... ~ Deadpool
If you can't learn to do something well... learn to enjoy doing it poorly...
Quote:
It's true that one of the advantages of being a Tanker is that you can usually afford to completely ignore the other guys beating on you while you focus on one particularly critical target. So you could put your blinders on and just concentrate on the Sapper until he's on medical leave.
|
Originally Posted by KingSnake
I deal with them by kicking there @$$ first and moving on to the rest of the mob.
|
If we are to die, let us die like men. -- Patrick Cleburne
----------------------------------------------------------
The rule is that they must be loved. --Jayne Fynes-Clinton, Death of an Abandoned Dog
The main problem with KO Blow for Sappers is the long animation. By halfway through the motions ether your Aura or just general perception has kicked the Sapper into gear and started his attack. Even landing the stun will not stop it once it starts.
If you are trying to take him down with no chance of him hitting you then you need to be a bit sneaky.
Or just take the hit and pop a blue. Once KO Blow lands that is the end of the threat
/macro T, "$$Targetname Sapper"
So I always pick them out fast, then it was Superspeed in and Knockout Blow (which made a nice hold) then chain them down.
Sometimes they'd be hovering and so in with flyby Hurl or flyby taunt to a low ceiling or behind something.
Sometimes they could be unseen and so I would taunt them out by taunting a group they maybe connected too before hiding, then as they come I pick the Sapper out and surprise them instead.
Worst kind of team to be on is those who are up a tankers butt, you may need to assess the situation but oh no too late someone has pulled and so you have to shoot in and gain control of off everything, potentially that can mean finding 3 sappers in a room that other players had to be in perception range of. So first move for those careless teams and that situation could be the tier 9 as you aim to make the recovery. Ofc once you have your build IO setted it could get easier.
Was usually: shoot in, knockout blow sapper, footstomp Malta group, taunt anything not grabbed and then chain down the sapper.
Never: Someone elses responsibility.
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.
There are a lot of really good ideas floating around here--thanks for all the help! As a result of your ideas, I went ahead and created a secondary specialized "Sapper killer" build. In this build, I took Arctic Mastery instead of Energy Mastery so that I could get the single target hold. I also added the stealth IO to my running power, so I could use Stealth + Superspeed and sneak up on them unnoticed and deliver Knockout Blow, provided I had my taunt aura off. I also took Hand Clap (which I avoided in my primary build due to lack of damage, but the disorient will come in handy in this case), so if I fail to notice a Sapper after I grab aggro, I can alternate between Footstomp and Hand Clap--between the two of those powers, any unnoticed Sappers should stay out of commission. I also added a bind to target Sappers automatically. Any other ideas I could implement?
Feel free to try out my AE mission arc, # 473452: Praetorian Redemption
@Valerika
Here is how each of my tanks deals with them...
FireFire/Pyre tank throws Char watches them choke and then punches them in the face
Ice/Stone tank laughs due to his high defense and doesnt worry cause he has hibernate wades in and punches them in the face.
Shield/SS tank laughs when they miss horribly due to high defense, shield charges and foot stomps them into oblivion.
Willpower/SS tank realizes he has so much recovery with QR and Stamina, with 2 Performance shifter proc's and a Numina and Miracle recovery he will get back any end he loses anyway.. so with his perma rage on.. he punches them in the face... HARD...
Inv/Nrg tank has great resists and decent defense but not as much as the ice or the shield so he QUICKLY runs over to stun the crap outta them by... punching them in the face...
Elec/SS just laughs at the fool for even TRYING to sap his endurance... then BAM in the face...
The hard things I can do--- The impossible just take a little bit longer.
If numbers are so much more important than a teammate who is fun to play with, forget about the game altogether and go play with a calculator instead. -Claws and Effect-
My Inv/DM and WP/DM simply use Touch of Fear on them. That will keep them busy until they are attacked again; more importantly, I always slot it for -tohit.
Shield/Electric just charges the group with Build Up - Shield Charge - Lightning Rod. There will not be many minions left standing, and Sappers are minions.
Shield/Mace uses Clobber.
<《 New Colchis / Guides / Mission Architect 》>
"At what point do we say, 'You're mucking with our myths'?" - Harlan Ellison
Well, if you are in a TEAM, then have someone focus fire it. I mean, on my blaster, aim + build up + snipe = death.
Or on my stalker, build up + assassin strike.
Just because you are a tank, doesn't mean you have to take on the responsibility of EVERYTHING. Remember that. :P
Quote:
Its never just the tank's responsibility either. If you are in a team, its the TEAM's responsibility.|
Originally Posted by New Dawn
Never: Someone elses responsibility.
|
But of course, I suppose that could be just opinion-based. Then again, why be on a team which you think that you have to do everything in? Seems a bit AT-ist in my honest opinion.
I have a level 50 WP/SS tank that is an absolute joy to play, but he has one Achilles' heel--Sappers. They are the bane of my existance. I inwardly groan every time my teams pick Malta missions just for that reason. How would you deal with Sappers on a level 50 WP/SS? I usually try to rush in and hit them with Footstomp or Knockout blow, but they often get in a shot before I can get into melee and fire off my attack. I've considered trying to soft-cap for ranged damage to offset this, but I'm which IO sets I'd need or if this is even possible. Influence isn't an issue for me though, so if I can tweak my build (or even create an entirely new "Malta" secondary build), that's not a problem. Help!
Feel free to try out my AE mission arc, # 473452: Praetorian Redemption
@Valerika