what does phalanx fighting do

I have a shield scrapper and I am a bit confused about phalanx fighting. The description makes it sound like it only works when in melee with a team mate, but when i open the info page it just says grants 3.75 def to self. So is it a base 3.75 bonus with additional def based on players in range, or is it 0 def when solo and adds the def only when in melee on a team? Should I even bother with this power or is it skippable?

Thanks,

Gitch

Base Defense buff, with additional buff for close (very close) teammates.

As for skippable or not, I can't say. I have it and don't plan to drop it, just because every bit of Def helps, even if the 3.75% is unenhanceable (the enhancers work on the buff granted by teammates).

What Lemur said.

I took it anyways, makes it easier to hit the softcap

As LemurLad said it's a bonus 3.75% defense that doesn't require any endurance or slots (the team mate bonus isn't really worth slotting for unless you play on a static team).

You could probably skip the power if you really wanted to but the holy grail for Shield users is to get all three positions to the soft cap and Phalanx Fighting will probably do more for that than anything that you could replace it with (plus if you've got the cash you can slot a LotG in there for free since slotting for defense is not particularly useful).

Take it, but be sure to turn it off in mids when trying to get softcap values. The numbers in mids are a bit off from the game for that particular power. It covers very nicely for defense debuffs when teammates are around.

Actually Mids' allows you to set it to 0 allies now, though for some reason doesn't seem to be adding the base number to ranged defense for Scrapers.

EDIT: According to this thread on the Titannetwork forums the above mentioned bug will be fixed with the next update.

thank you guys very much. sounds as good as weave up front so ill be sure to get it

So, to be clear, it's 0 Def when solo?

Ah, ok, good.

I gotta wonder, does the power require players for a boost, or does any allied unit (pets, friendlies, etc) count for a bonus?

Here's the full details for anyone who likes to know everything about everything(*raises hand*)


Phalanx Fighting provides a constant base defense bonus.

5% for Tankers, 3.75% for Scrappers/Brutes. THIS BONUS IS UNENHANCEABLE.


It also provides a defense bonus for up to 3 teammates in an 8 foot range. TEAMMATES ONLY, NOT ALL ALLIES.

3% for Tankers, 2.25% for Scrappers/Brutes. This bonus IS enhanceable.

So, heres the breakdown:

Code:

PF UNENHANCED:
 
                Tanker                    Scrapper/Brute
Solo:         5%                         3.75%
1 in range   8%                         6%
2 in range   11%                       8.25%
3 in range   14%                       10.5%

Code:

PF ENHANCED with 3 even level defense SOs
 
                Tanker                    Scrapper/Brute
Solo:         5%                         3.75%
1 in range   9.68%                     7.26%
2 in range   14.36%                   10.77&
3 in range   19.04%                   14.28%

Hope that clears everything up

To the OP:

It's as good as Weave when solo and *potentially* much better when teamed.

It costs no endurance, doesn't require any slotting, can't be turned off,
and is a good spot for a LoTG 7.5% recharge proc or a Kismet 6% To-Hit buff proc.

In other words, take it. I wouldn't stress out trying to get it early, but you'll definately
want to take it before you bother with Weave (assuming you do).

It still makes me a little sad they changed that. It was really nice in beta teaming with a Mastermind. I can see why Castle did it, but part of me just goes when I think about it.

Does it stack? (If you know what I mean)

If I had a team of 8 likewise powered teammates and we all used Phalanx Fighting what does that do?