Any tips on DM/Ice?

I've managed to make a DM/Ice and am thinking the synergy will be great. Anyone out there have tips that might make this journey to 50 better? I will be duoing the majority of the time, but any moves I shouldn’t take ECT. Anything would be appreciated, maybe if anyone has a mids build at 50 that I could look at to see what I should build myself towards.

Thanks in advance.

Advice? It's kind of hard to give advice not knowing your play style. But I can give briefly list somethings that I like about the combo.

My last 50 defender was a Dark/Ice, I built him specifically because of the holds inherent in both sets. I also picked up hold procs for all the other single target ranged attacks. I also slotted fluffie with hold enhancements. The combo of Fearsome Stare, Tar Patch and Ice Storm is awesome! He is however an endurance hog because I can't play a toon and NOT attack things.

Well, in no particular order:

Take freeze ray and petrifying gaze as soon as they become available. Skip bitter freeze ray. Petrifying gaze often gets a bad rap, but it's got the same hold as BFR, recharges faster, and costs less end - not to mention showing up much earlier. Take FR and PG, and go forth and hold bosses. You don't really need a third hold that much, but if you really want one (or you want to replace PG with a better hold), take dominate from the psi mastery when you get high enough - it's got an accuracy bonus and a longer hold duration than PG or BFR.

Tar patch + rain powers = very happy defenders and very unhappy baddies! Defender ice storm and blizzard do blaster level damage (in fact, the powers simply summon the blaster versions of the pseudopets), and if you've got both of those falling on a tar patch, aint nothing gonna get out of that area before the rains are done. Ice isn't normally known as an AoE set, but paired with a resistance debuffing or damage buffing defender primary, you can really put out some orange numbers over a wide area.

If you're looking for powers to skip, my personal choices would be: black hole, bitter freeze ray, and aim. The first two are completely unneeded, and while aim is useful (perhaps take it in the 40s if you have room), it's less useful than the rest of the powers in each set. (Alternatively, you could skip frost breath instead of aim, but I like my AoEs.)

Ice gets its 3rd single target blast late - it doesn't show up until 28. Unless your duo partner is a ST damage specialist, I would probably suggest going fly, so that you can get air superiority for another attack in the early game. With all of the tohit debuffs you can throw around, you can get away with darting into melee with the occasional baddie.

For dark, your main debuff is -tohit. Between slotted darkest night and unslotted fearsome stare, you can floor the tohit of even con enemies. With only some tohit debuff slotting in fearsome stare, you can floor +1s, and if you max out fearsome stare, you can floor +2s. Yes, fearsome stare is a tohit debuff power as much as it is a fear - it%Proxy-Connection: keep-alive
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s the best power in the set, no contest. 6 slot that bad boy with a mix of accurate tohit debuff (or normal tohit debuff) and fear sets to get as much enhancement of both elements as possible. Similarly, the biggest thing dark servant does is tohit debuffs - slot him with a bit of acc, and then max his tohit debuff.

Thanks for the info, I’m duoing with a Storm/Ice Defender, so I'm assuming one she gets slotted then she will do most of the tanking. I’m excited about the blaster level damage, I didn’t know about that. I have a rad that I love, and I’m going to play it similar, herding groups with darkest night to a corner and dropping Tar, then rain. I’m still undecided about Frost Breath because I’ve heard mixed reactions on the power itself. For a Duo group, does anyone else have an opinion on black hole? I’m contemplating taking it as a "oh crap move", but I don’t know if it’s worth it for "Crowd control" for accident pulls ECT. Also, should I slot Howling twilight for stun? Debuff?

Thanks again.

Oh you're dou'ing with a Storm/Ice?

Fearsome Stare+Tar Patch+Freezing Rain+Ice Stormx2= You're cheating!

Some standard Dark play tips will help you both:

Toggle pull to the tar patch: Pick your target from around a corner/rock/etc. Drop darkest night on him (snow storm will work, but slowing the whole spawn will help less on the pull than the huge -tohit will). As they run to your hiding spot, drop tar patch right where they will be. They will all bunch up and completely slow down (TP floors their movement speed, as well as massively debuff their resistance). NOW drop freezing rain on them to complete the debuff trifecta (DN + TP + FR = helpless foes). Drop your rains and cackle with glee! What? One of them is trying to run? Laugh some more, then hold him with one of several holds available.

Open with Fearsome stare: FS and Darkest night are equal to each other in the amount of -to hit; however, FS is much faster to throw, and doesn't have an anchor that will run all over the danged map and aggro everything. Also, things that do not fear (robots, all of Nemesis) still get hit with the debuff! They will shoot at you but still can't hit! This power makes you capable of tanking, just as much as your stormy - maybe you can trade out who gets to tankfend each spawn ;-)

Fluffy is a mini-you so slot him that way: This is the trickiest bit. Do you play more controller-y or more debuffer-y? Do you melee or range? A little of all? The answers will change how you slot and use fluffy. No matter what, he will need accuracies. Past that, it's players choice. I prefer to use him as a debuff bomb. Slotted up the -tohit (he has -tohit in all of his powers except the hold) and then summon him into the middle of a spawn. His taunt aura, though weak, will grab all initial aggro and debuff the snot out of them. Then I can waltz in, cackling with glee, and decimate the spawns. Well, in a defender damage 'decimate' way... On the otherhand, if you want more holds, slot him for holds! Your heal is always better timed and stronger, so it is likely a waste to slot him for heal. You can slot for the immob in Tenebrous if you have problems with AVs slipping by. His AI currently will make him run into melee range, which means Chill of the Night will work better - but you can be sure that he is now an aggro monkey.


The main caution for your duo is about the KB. With so much KB and so little immob between the two of you, you will have to work out *where* to put the Tar patch and the freezing rain so mobs aren't KB'ed out of them. ie "far corner" or "too open, don't knock them too much"

First, I compliment you on your duo choice. Few defender cousins mix it up as well as a Dark miasma and a stormy. Your duo has multiple ways to set up piles and piles of foes to debuff and defeat rather quickly with tar patch and freezing rain being the features. Storms can definitely close the door from behind on groups herded with toggle pulls into tar patch. Storms can corner pull, too. Setting up shop near far corners or walls is another good battle ground. This duo is full of win!

Power specifics: your duo has too many good 'oh crap' powers to bother with Black Hole. You could have a use for it on a solo build.

Freezing rain, stops foes in their tracks. Hurricane, Fearsome Stare, and Howling Twilight can crush incoming aggro. Even gale will buy you a few precious seconds of time to regroup.

Speaking of Howling Twilight, I slot that sucker for maximum recharge and then stun to your tastes of generic IO or sets. Just remember any accuracy portion in a Stun IO is wasted. Howling Twilight is AUTOHIT. It's a great tool to deal with the groups you will cluster for the slaughter. It's also great for add on groups. It's also got a big -regen factor which your stormy partner has none of in your boss/AV/GM fights.

I Would love to add a forcefield defender to your potential trifecta to complete the "Can't Touch This" squad. HA.