Guide to Storm Summoning / Energy Blast [I16]

Guide to Storm Summoning / Energy Blast [I16]


INTRODUCTION

The following is my old Storm/Energy Guide which was originally written shortly after I9 went life, updated for compatibility with I12. And now again updated for compatibility with I16.

Since I12 we had some interesting changes. I13 brought the toggle power changes: (passive) toggles no longer drop when mezzed, and new ancillary power choices. And I13 brought new IO sets. One of these, Blessing of the Zephyr, drastically changed the possibilities. Suddenly it was possible to soft cap ranged defense on a squishy. I14 brought a minor speed boost to Fly and Hover and the PvP IO sets. I15 and I16 had a lot of QoL changes, but no changes to Storm/Energy powers.
Additionally PvP was heavily changed since I12. Can't say that I liked the changes, so my PvP activity went from minor to zero. Therefore I won't/can't comment on PvP aspects of the powers/build anymore. Sorry about that.

Please note, that everything I will say in this guide is just my opinion and not „the one and only way to do it“.
When I write about when I took a certain power I'm referring to my original build (as far as I can remember it.)

All „hard data“ you will later find in the power descriptions is given for L50 and was originally either taken directly from the game (thanks to the devs for detailed power information) or taken from Mids' Hero Designer v1.3 (DB: 30.November.2007). For the I16 guide update I compared everything with the data from Mids' Hero Designer v1.6 (DB: 16 – Updated: 11.09.09).

OVERVIEW

Storm Summoning is not for everyone. It is not easy to play and can be frustrating for you and your teammates if handled wrong. I bet any player who has a L50 melee character could tell more than one story about a bad Stormie KBing enemies out of melee range, no matter how often you try to explain them how annoying that is.

It is difficult to say how „powerful“ Storm Summoning is when compared to the other Defender primaries. I guess it's safe to say that any answer to this question depends on the circumstances. In PvE many teams will prefer Empaths, Rads, Kins and Darkies because of their AoE heals. A good Defender is much more than just a healing bot, though.

On the bright side, Storm Summoning has the potential to really shine, if played well. It is versatile, dynamic and looks awesome (it is the best looking powerset in the game imho – this was my number 1 reason to choose it). I would rank it among the top 3 Defender primaries for solo play.

My reason to choose Energy Blast as my secondary powerset was – again – how the powers looked and „felt“ when I first tested them. I like the „oomph“ in Energy Blast. The secondary effect of Energy Blast is knockback. While it is hated by most meleers, it can add some survivability to your character in PvE. If I could change it, I would probably go for Ice Blast as a secondary set, because of the synergies and lack of knockback.

PRIMARY POWERS
[Note: At level 35 and higher an IO will always be better than a SO. For lower level characters I recommend to check the enhancement value of the best TO/DO/SO/IO you can get and cross index the prices. You can often get IOs at WW surprisingly cheap. If you replace/upgrade your enhancers every level to have them at max effectiveness you better have enough funds or you'll be out of influence very fast. When I level a character I usually upgrade only every 5 levels (i.e. L27, L32, L37; L42 etc.]

Gale
Ranged (Cone), Minor DMG(Smash), Foe Knockback
You can call forth a tremendous gust of Gale force winds that knock down foes and deal some Smashing damage in a wide cone area. Damage: Minor, Recharge: Moderate
Available: L1
End Cost: 7.8
Recharge: 8s
Range: 50 (80° arc)
Cast: 2.17s
Accuracy: 67.5% (0.9X)
Damage: 3.61 (Smashing)
Special: KB (mag 10.39) to target
Gale looks very good, but that's it. The power comes with a penalty to accuracy so it's not even reliable against minions, if you don't slot it for acc. The damage is negligible so the only usage is to push enemies around, usually simply away from you or to push them into the AoE of another power. Don't (!) use this power to push enemies away from melee characters. You won't help them. Instead you help your enemies because it now takes longer for the meleers to kill their targets and you annoy your teammates because of the same reason (meleers have to run after their targets, multiple targets end up scattered thus making AoEs less effective).
If you intend to take this power I would recommend to take it later in your build. Gale is pretty and is a plus for the fun factor, but it hurts your DPS and is not adding much to your survivability.
I didn't take this power (no room in my current build).
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg)
IO slotting:
The knockback IO sets are very cheap and give a good bonus each. Explosive Strike for example gives +1.88% on ranged def when slotted with 3 IOs. However, even when you took Gale you'll probably have difficulties to find the slots needed.

O2 Boost
Ally Heal, +Res(Disorient, Sleep, End Drain), +Perception
Saturates the air around a targeted ally with rich oxygen, healing their wounds. The O2 Boost can protect a targeted ally from Sleep, Stun and Endurance Drain effects as well as increase perception. You cannot use this power on yourself. Recharge: Fast
Available: L1
End Cost: 13
Recharge: 4s
Range: 80
Cast: 2.27s
Duration: 60s
O2 Boost is a good single target heal (unenhanced it heals 176.7 at L50 – Empathy/Heal Other heals 262.4) and is enough to really make a difference for 1-2 allies (useful to help in a Strike Team in the Hami Raid). It does not make you a „healer“, though. Additionally it negates Sleep and Disorient (mag -8.65) and protects from Sleep for 60s (173%). It is often overlooked, that it does give protection from endurance drain and end recovery reduction, too (86.5%). This can be very useful when fighting certain villains, especially in the higher levels (Malta/Sappers and Carnival of Shadow come to mind). I12 even added a perception bonus to O2 Boost (+108.12 perception radius on target and 108.12 res to perception radius for 60s).
I took this power at level 1 and started adding slots to it in the high 30s.
SO slotting: 0-3*Heal, 1*Rchg
HO slotting: Golgi (Heal/End)
IO slotting:
The best sets to slot this are Miracle and Numina imho. Panacea is very expensive and only gets golden if you 5- or 6-slot it. With 2 or 3 slots you are better off with Miracle (if you want +recovery) or Numina (if you want +regen).

Snow Storm
Toggle: Ranged (Targeted AoE), Foe -Speed, -Recharge, -Fly
While active, the chill from this Snow Storm can dramatically Slow the attack and movement speed of the target and all nearby foes. The torrent winds of the Snow Storm are enough to bring down flying foes. Recharge: Slow
Available: L2
End Cost: 0.52/s
Recharge: 10s
Range: 80 (AoE 25 ft. radius)
Cast: 2.03s
This is one of the signature powers in this powerset. It reduces run and flight speed, jump height and recharge speed of a target (-62.5%). Best used on a strong target (I always try to target the enemy who is most likely to survive the longest). I like to use it as an opener, followed by Freezing Rain. If you time it right, the knockdown from FR will keep them from firing at you too often. However, one lucky shot might be enough if it has the capability to mez you. That's why it's wise to wait til someone else grabs the aggro first. Also keep an eye on your anchor (the villain who was the target when you cast the power). The anchor can only move slowly by himself. But if he gets KBed a few times he might end up in another mob, instantly aggroing it.
I took this power at level 4. The second slot was added early, because the endurance cost of this power is very noticeable. I added more slots in the high 30s to increase the slow effect.
SO slotting: 1-2*End, 1-3*Slow
HO slotting: -
IO slotting:
The Slow IO sets are currently (I16) the only IO sets that can be slotted in Snow Storm. None of the sets really fits and all of them need to be 4- or 6-slotted to give a decent bonus. If you intend to use Snow Storm often you should avoid the IO sets and go for standard IO enhancers. I'd slot it with 2*End and 1*Slow in this case.

Steamy Mist
Toggle: PBAoE, Team Stealth, +DEF(All), +Res(Fire, Cold, Energy, Confuse)
Your mastery of the elements allows you to hide yourself and all nearby allies within a Steamy Mist. Steamy Mist makes you and your allies harder to see and increases your Defense bonus to all attacks, while reducing Fire, Cold, and Energy damage, as well as your Foes ability to Confuse you. You cannot use any other Concealment type powers while using Steamy Mist. Recharge: Slow
Available: L6
End Cost: 0.52/s
Recharge: 15s
Cast: 1.87s
Defense: 5%
Resistance: 20% (Fire, Cold, Energy)
Steamy Mist gives stealth, increases your defense (5%) and your resistance vs. fire, cold and energy (20%) and protects from confusion (216.25%). This is usually the first power I activate when I buff up. Combined with Super Speed you will have the equivalent of full invisibility in PvE.
I took this power at level 6. The end cost is noticeable and you'll need at least 1 end reducer to make it bearable. Try to add a 3rd and maybe a 4th slot early to increase resistance. This will help against Hellions, Outcasts and Lost (among others).
SO slotting: 1-2*End, 2-3*Res, 0-2*Def (5 or 6 slots total)
HO slotting: Ribosome (End/Res), Cytoskeleton (End/Def)
IO slotting:
Steamy Mist takes defense enhancers and resistance enhancers. If you don't intend to take Tough or one of the ancillary armors you should place the Steadfast Protection unique here. If you have enough influence you could also add the Gladiator's Armor unique (currently that sells for 2 Bn). Other than that slot Steamy Mist for defense. Shield Wall is the best set if you 3-slot the power (not counting the uniques). If you want to add the Shield Wall unique, you should add it as a 4th SW IO to not compromise the defense quality (you don't really need the global +3% res, though). Luck of the Gambler is the prime choice, if you want to add some recharge, especially if you have 4 slots available. 6 slotting with Titanium Coating is an option, if you placed the uniques elsewhere and need +2.5% ranged defense.

Freezing Rain
Ranged (Location AoE), Minor DoT(Cold), Foe -Speed, -Recharge, -DEF -Res
Summons Freezing Rain at a targeted location. Freezing Rain deals minimal Cold damage to anything that passes through the storm. It also Slows the affected foes and severely reduces their Defense and resistance to damage. Many foes may even slip and fall trying to escape the storm. Damage: Minor(DoT), Recharge: Long
Available: L8
End Cost: 18.2
Recharge: 60s
Range: 60
Cast: 2.03s
Accuracy: 150% (2.00X)
Duration: Special
Damage: 0.33 (Cold) x75
This is another signature power in this powerset. Freezing Rain can shred the defense and resistance of your opponent, making him much more vulnerable against your attacks. When it comes to reducing defense and resistance it is practically as strong as Rad/Rad Infection and Rad/Enervating Field combined (def -30%, res -35% for 45s). Additionally it slows all villains in the AoE (run/jump -70%, fly -60%, recharge -50% for 30s). The slow effect partially continues for 15s after the initial 30s duration (run/jump/fly/recharge -30%, unenhanceable). Villains in the AoE tend to fall down a lot. Try to combine this with other powers with knockdown (Ice Slick, Ice Patch or Blizzard for example). Enemies won't fall down if they're being immobilized. NPC villains usually will try to exit the AoE as fast as possible. This can result in a lot of chaos, if you're not careful. Don't use FR when position is more important than debuff (like in some AV fights). It's not a good idea to use FR on Warwolves either.
I took this power at level 8, added two slots at level 9 and enhanced it with DefDebuff, rchg and end. Later – when I had Stamina – I dropped end and added another DefDebuff. FR needs to hit to be effective but it comes with increased acc, so shouldn't be necessary to slot it for acc (well, maybe 1 acc if you fight purples often).
SO slotting: 0-1*Acc, 0-3*DefDebuff, 0-2*Slow, 0-2*Rchg
HO slotting: Lysosome (Acc/DefDebuff)
IO slotting:
The Shield Breaker IO set is the best set you can slot here, especially if you 6-slot it. Don't waste space to slot FR for damage or slow IO sets. The slow IO sets aren't that good and the basic damage in FR is so weak, that there isn't much you could enhance. There are 5 damage procs available that you could slot into FR. I never tried that myself, because procs are too unreliable imho, but with 5 damage procs at a 20% chance each to deal damage this could be interesting.

Hurricane
Toggle: PBAoE, Foe -Range, -To Hit, Repel, Knockback
You can summon a Hurricane. The wind and rain from this massive storm reduce the range and chance to hit of nearby foes. The massive winds of this storm continuously force foes away from you. Recharge: Slow
Available: L12
End Cost: 0.65s
Recharge: 10s
Cast: 2.03s
Hurricane is another signature power in this powerset. It will debuff ToHit (-37.5%) and Range (-60%, ranged attacks only). Additionally it will repel villains in the AoE and has a 5%/tik chance to KB (mag 8.31). All in all Hurricane provides excellent protection from melee attacks. With this power you can push your enemies into a direction you want (needs some practice, though) and corner them in corners or on projections and render them practically helpless there. When you are teamed with melee characters, please stay away from them. Hurricane will push their targets away and scatter them, making it hard for a meleer to do his or her job. Better stay back a bit and provide protection from melee for your „squishy“ teammates. However, if the meleer drops unconscious, you can run in and „touch“ the villains with Hurricane. This will debuff them for 10s. This way you can even replace a tank for a short while (usually at least long enough to rez him).
I took this power at level 16 and added 2 slots at level 17. With 3 slots at level 17 you should slot it with 2 end reducers and 1 debuff. The end reducers are needed, because Hurricane drains a lot of end by itself, and together with your other toggles your end could be depleted fast.
SO slotting: 1-2*End, 1-3*ToHit Debuff (2-5 slots total)
HO slotting: Enzyme (ToHitDebuff/End)
IO slotting:
This should be 4-slotted with Dark Watcher's Despair, wich is easily the best IO set for this power.

Thunder Clap
PBAoE, Foe Disorient
You can call forth a tremendous Thunder Clap that will Disorient most foes in a large area around you. Recharge: Slow
Available: L18
End Cost: 10.4
Recharge: 45s
Radius: 25
Cast: 2.37s
Accuracy: 60% (0.8X)
Duration: 14.9s
Special: mag 2 Stun to target
T-Clap is a great looking power with an even better sound. Unfortunately it comes with a penalty to accuracy so you need to slot it for acc if you want it to be effective. With 2*acc it will stun minions reliably. The mag 2 Stun is not enough to mez bosses, though.
I took this power somewhere in the mid 20s in my original build and added a second slot for acc asap. Later I added 2 more slots and enhanced it with 2*disorient duration. In the end I had it slotted with 3*Endo (Acc/Mez), 1*Rchg. However, in my later builds I respeced out of it (and that was a really hard decision). I simply needed the enhancement slots in other powers to max the efficiency of my setIOs. T-Clap usually doesn't have a strong impact anyway.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 1-2*Stun (2-4 slots total; you'll need the slots elsewhere)
HO slotting: Endoplasm (Acc/Mez)
IO slotting:
If you have the room you could go for Absolute Amazement (cheap purple set) and 5 slot it for the +10% recharge and other benefits. Razzle Dazzle and Stupefy are other options, if you can afford to 5- or 6-slot them.

Tornado
Summon Tornado: PBAoE Minor DAM (Smash), Foe Knockback, Fear, Disorient
Conjures up a funnel cloud at a targeted location. The Tornado will chase down your foes, tossing them into the air and hurling them great distances. The victims are left Disoriented and with reduced Defense. The Tornado is a menacing sight, and can even cause panic among your foes. Recharge: Long
Available: L26
End Cost: 20.8
Recharge: 60s
Range: 60
Cast: 1.17s
Duration: 30s
Damage: 6.67 (Smashing) x61
Special: Stun (mag 2) to target, KUp (mag 6.23), KB (mag 12.46), Def -15%
Tornado is a untargetable pet that moves around to „attack“ random villains in aggro range. Tornado does almost negligible damage, applies a mag 2 Stun and a strong KB to the target. Additionally it reduces defense (def -15%). It can be used to ease the situation when you're in danger of getting overwhelmed. Just drop it to your feet and let it create some room for you to breathe again. If your team has to fight in a large area with incoming mobs from different directions (like in the reactor room in the Respec TF) in can help to „cover“ the area. Minions are thrown away and end up stunned. Even lts. and bosses are affected by the strong KB. If Tornado stays in contact with one target (this will happen if there's only one target available) it will NOT start to build up magnitude. Tornado simply doesn't stack with itself. However, you could stack it with T-Clap (or other disorient powers if you have them) to overcome the mez resistance of bosses. The DefDebuff is often overlooked. Def -15% may not sound like much. But that is the unenhanced value plus it stacks nicely with FR. Unfortunately the Fear component may cause hard targets (i.e. AVs) to run which is usually undesirable.
I took this power at L30 in my original build. In my current build (and some other builds before that) I took it at L38 to make room for Super Speed at L30 (so I can have SS in Siren's Call).
SO slotting: 0-2*DefDebuff, 0-2*Disorient, 0-2*Rchg (3 to 5 slots total)
HO slotting: Peroxisome (Dmg/Mez)
IO slotting:
[Note: Tornado can be slottet with Pet IOs]
Interesting IO sets for Tornado are Shield Breaker (6 slots needed), Expedient Reinforcement and to a lesser degree Call to Arms (6 slots needed each), Blood Mandate (especially when 6-slotted) and Soulbound Allegiance (3-4 slots needed)

Lightning Storm
Create Storm: Ranged, High DMG(Energy), Foe -End
You can create a massive Lightning Storm that will strike any foe that approaches you. Lightning from this storm can knock down and damage all nearby foes, and can even instill panic. Lightning bolts will continue to fall as long as the storm remains. Recharge: Long
Available: L32
End Cost: 31.2
Recharge: 90s
Cast: 2.03s
Accuracy: 150% (2.00X)
Duration: 60s
Damage: 44.5 (Energy)
Special: -10% End, -100% Recovery for 4s (30% chance) and KB (mag 1) to target
The tier 9 power of Storm Summoning is another of the signature powers and simply a must have. It summons an untargetable, stationary pet above you for 60s, that attacks random targets within range. It does ok damage and works as long as you are in range of it. It's a fire and forget power and it's possible to decrease the recharge speed enough to have 2 L-Storms out. When it hits it drains some end from the target and has a 30% chance of stopping the targets end recovery for 4 seconds. I suggest that you try to fly/hover up a bit before you cast this power. It looks nice, but it can obscure sight, especially in narrow surroundings.
I took this power at level 32 and 6-slotted it asap.
SO slotting: 0-1*Acc, 3*Dmg, 2-3*Rchg, 1-2*End (6 slots total)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
6-slotting this with Thunderstrike might be a good idea. If you have enough defense already you could 5- slot this with Apocalypse. Another good idea, if you have enough defense, is to take 2 single target powers and slot both with 3 Apocalypse and 3 Devastation to double the regen and hp bonus from Apocalypse and Devastation. I would avoid end modification and knockback sets for this power.

SECONDARY POWERS

Power Bolt
Ranged, Minor DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback
A quick attack that rapidly hurls small bolts of energy at foes, sometimes knocking them down. Fast, but little damage. Damage: Minor, Recharge: Fast
Available: L1
End Cost: 5.2
Recharge: 4s
Range: 80
Cast: 1s
Damage: 7.23 (Smashing) plus 28.92 (Energy) = 36.15
Special: KB (mag 1.45) to target (20% chance)
The first power in the set. This means you have no choice but to take it. Luckily it's a nice and useful power. It's 3rd best in the whole powerset when you go for DPS or DPE.
I took this power at level 1 (what a surprise ) and started to slot it right away. Adding some acc and dmg first, later I added rchg.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 3*Dmg, 1-2*Rchg, 0-1*End (4-6 slots total)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
6-slotting this with Thunderstrike might be a good idea. If you have enough defense already you could 5- slot this with Apocalypse. Another good idea, if you have enough defense, is to take 2 single target powers and slot both with 3 Apocalypse and 3 Devastation to double the regen and hp bonus from Apocalypse and Devastation. I would avoid knockback sets for this power.

Power Blast
Ranged, Moderate DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback
A much more powerful, yet slower version of Power Bolt. Power Blast sends a focused beam of energy at a foe that can knock him back. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Moderate
Available: L2
End Cost: 8.53
Recharge: 8s
Range: 80
Cast: 1.67s
Damage: 23.13 (Smashing) plus 36.15 (Energy) = 59.28
Special: KB (mag 2.08) to target (30% chance)
Probably the most used power in this set. Good range, good damage. 2nd best power in the set when it comes to DPS or DPE.
I took this power at level 2 and started to slot it right away. At first I slotted Power Blast parallel to Power Bolt. Then, with the 4th and 5th slots I let it get ahead.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 3*Dmg, 1-2*Rchg, 0-1*End (5 or 6 slots total)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
6-slotting this with Thunderstrike might be a good idea. If you have enough defense already you could 5- slot this with Apocalypse (if you haven't placed it in another power already). Another good idea, if you have enough defense, is to take 2 single target powers and slot both with 3 Apocalypse and 3 Devastation to double the regen and hp bonus from Apocalypse and Devastation. I would avoid knockback sets for this power.

Energy Torrent
Ranged (Cone), Moderate DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback
Energy Torrent unleashes a cone of powerful energy that can smash foes and possibly send them flying. Damage: Moderate, Recharge: Slow
Available: L4
End Cost: 11.86
Recharge: 12s
Range: 40
Arc: 45°
Cast: 1.07s
Damage: 10.8 (Smashing) plus 23.9 (Energy) = 34.7
Special: KB (mag 6.23) to target (60% chance)
Energy Torrent is a nice AoE power early in the powerset and it comes with a high chance of strong KB. To get the most out of it you need to keep an eye on position. Use it to KB villains into the waiting Claws, Swords, Hammers and whatnot of your fellow meleers (and into AoE zones of active powers, of course). Don't use it to KB them out of their reach or out of AoE zones.
You will notice the end cost of this power, so I recommend to slot it with an end reducer soonish. I skipped Energy Torrent in favor of other powers.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 2-3*Dmg, 0-1*Rchg, 1-2*End (4 – 6 slots total)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
Ragnarok is the best IO set for this power. Positron's Blast is second best. If possible you should 5-slot this with either of the sets to go for the bonus to recharge (among other things).

Power Burst
Close, High DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback
A short range, but devastating attack. Power Burst unleashes a massive amount of energy dealing very high damage at short distances. The impact from this burst often knocks back most foes. Damage: High, Recharge: Slow
Available: L10
End Cost: 10.4
Recharge: 10s
Range: 40
Cast: 2s
Damage: 36.1 (Smashing) plus 40.5 (Energy) = 76.6
Special: KB (mag 4.15) to target (60% chance)
This power is the best you can get in this set when it comes to DPS or to DPE and it's the foundation of your burst damage (this power does high damage for defender standards, but don't compare it with the Blaster power of the same name ... Defenders are just not in their league when it comes to raw damage). You will notice the short range, though.
I took this power at level 10 and started to slot it up as fast as possible. When I got the 4th and 5th slot I slotted it parallel to Power Blast.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 3*Dmg, 1-2*Rchg, 0-1*End (5 or 6 slots total)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
6-slotting this with Thunderstrike might be a good idea. If you have enough defense already you could 5- slot this with Apocalypse (if you haven't placed it in another power already). Another good idea, if you have enough defense, is to take 2 single target powers and slot both with 3 Apocalypse and 3 Devastation to double the regen and hp bonus from Apocalypse and Devastation. I would avoid knockback sets for this power.

Sniper Blast
Sniper, Extreme DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback
A focused blast that can travel great distances with high Accuracy. This is a sniper attack, and is best fired from a distance, as it can be interrupted. Sniper Blast may knock targets backwards. Damage: Superior, Recharge: Slow
Available: L16
End Cost: 14.35
Recharge: 12s
Range: 150
Cast: 4.33s
Accuracy: 90% (1.20X)
Interrupt: 3s
Damage: 27.5 (Smashing) plus 72.3 (Energy) = 99.8
Special: KB (mag 1.45) to target (50% chance)
This power has very high single target damage at a very long range. However, it's easy to get interrupted when you're in the midst of things.
I didn't take this power. But if you do, I recommend to 6 slot it to make it as powerful as possible (you will have to sacrifice the slots elsewhere, of course). You might want to get at least one acc enhancer in it, despite the acc bonus this power has „out of the box“ (you really don't want to miss when you snipe something).
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 3*Dmg, 1-2*Interrupt (6 slots)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
Try the Sniper setIOs. They're really cheap at WWs and they give good benefits. Sting of the Manticore even gives the first bonus to defense with only 3 slots.

Aim
Self +To Hit, +DMG
Greatly increases the chance to hit of your attacks for a few seconds. Slightly increases damage. Recharge: Long
Available: L20
End Cost: 5.2
Recharge: 90s
Cast: 1.17s
Duration: 10s
Special: 50% ToHit Buff, 50% Dmg Buff
This power gives you a ToHit Buff and a Dmg Buff of 50% each for 10s. Aim is good „out of the box“ and doesn't need to be slotted (you really need the slots elsewhere). You can only slot this power for End, Rchg or ToHit Buff anyway.
SO slotting: 1*Rchg
HO slotting: 1*Membrane (ToHit Buff/Rchg)
IO slotting:
It's unlikely that you'll put additional slots here. If you do, it might be to go for 6-slotted Gaussian's Synchronized Fire Control or 2-slotted Rectified Reticle.

Power Push
Ranged Minor DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe High Knockback
This ranged attack deals little damage, but sends the target flying for a great distance. Damage: Minor, Recharge: Moderate
Available: L28
End Cost: 8.53
Recharge: 8s
Range: 70
Cast: 1.1s
Accuracy: 105% (1.40X)
Damage: 7.23 (Smashing) plus 7.23 (Energy) = 14.5
Special: KB (mag 16.62) to target
Here's the power I like the least in this set. Power Push has a 100% chance to KB a single target with a very high magnitude and does some damage. Doh. If you want damage, you can take better powers. If you want the KB, just take Gale. Gale looks much better and is AoE (with a decreased magnitude, though).
SO/HO/IO slotting: The only recommendation I can give here, is to avoid the power entirely. Yes, ...it is that bad.

Explosive Blast
Ranged (Targeted AoE), High DMG(Smash/Energy), Foe Knockback
You hurl a blast of charged energy that violently explodes on impact, damaging all foes near the target. Explosive Blast may knock targets backwards. Damage: Minor, Recharge: Slow
Available: L35
End Cost: 15.18
Recharge: 16s
Range: 80 (AoE 15 ft. radius)
Cast: 1.67s
Damage: 18.1 (Smashing) plus 14.5 (Energy) = 32.5
Special: KB (mag 4.15) to target (50% chance)
Explosive Blast is your ranged AoE in this powerset. It could use some more damage, imho, but currently it's all we have. Energy Torrent does slightly more damage and has better knockback. However, I prefer Explosive Blast because it has better range, bigger AoE and looks better.
I took this power at level 35 and 5-slotted it asap.
SO slotting: 1-2*Acc, 3*Dmg, 0-1*Rchg, 0-1*End (5 or 6 slots)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg), Centriole (Dmg/Range)
IO slotting:
Ragnarok is the best IO set for this power. Positron's Blast is second best. If possible you should 5-slot this with either of the sets to go for the bonus to recharge (among other things).

Nova
PBAoE, Extreme DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockback, Self -Recovery
You can explode in a tremendous blast of energy, sending nearby foes flying. The Nova deals massive damage to all nearby foes, although the damage does vary. Activating this power leaves you drained of Endurance, and unable to recover any Endurance for a while. Damage: Extreme, Recharge: Very Long
Available: L38
End Cost: 20.8
Recharge: 360s
Radius: 25
Cast: 3s
Accuracy: 105% (1.40X)
Duration: 20s
Damage: 36.2 (Smashing) plus 140.1 (Energy) = 176.2
Dmg (exact): 36.15 + 72.29 + 54.22 (75% chance) + 54.22 (50% chance)
Special: KB (mag 20.8) to target, Recovery -1000% to caster, Endurance -100% to caster
This is the big BOOM in this set. However, unlike the Blasters version of this power the Defenders version simply doesn't do enough damage to be worth the cost imho. This power, even if 6 slotted, will not kill everything around you. And it will remove all your endurance and will prevent endurance recovery for 20s. 20 seconds is a long time and your team will probably miss your buffs and debuffs.
I didn't take this power.
SO slotting: 1*Acc, 3*Dmg, 2*Rchg (6 slots)
HO slotting: Nucleolus (Acc/Dmg)
IO slotting:
Obliteration if you have 6 slots available, Armageddon if you have 5 slots available and Eradication if you just have 4 slots available.

POWER POOL
[Note: Only a quick overview given here.]

Concealment
Not recommendable for Storm/Energy.
Stealth
You cannot stack Stealth with Steamy Mist. No need to take this power.
Grant Invisibility
Works only on teammates and gives them invisibility for 120s.
Invisibility
Gives you invisibility. However, you cannot attack. Steamy Mist + Super Speed gives practically the same level of concealment in PvE.
Phase Shift
Once this was a great power and even worth it to take 2 unneeded powers to get it. Nowadays I would strongly suggest to keep away from this power. If you really really want Phase Shift, do some Safeguards and do the „Prevent Weapons Deal“ side quest. Eventually you will get a Phase Shift temp power (I have one – actually I have even two different Phase Shift temp powers and rarely use them).

Fighting
Possible choice if you want to go for max defense.
Boxing
Moderate damage melee attack. Almost like Brawl. Boxing has slightly better DPS than Kick.
[Note: Boxing has a Disorient component making it possible to slot Stun IO sets here.]
Kick
Moderate damage melee attack. I like it better that Boxing, because it has some style to kick a Paragon Protector's behinds.
[Note: Kick has a Knockback component, making it possible to slot KB IO sets here (Explosive Strike is probably the best choice to max ranged defense).]
Tough
Toggle that gives 15% Res (Smashing, Lethal).
Weave
Toggle that gives 5% Def and protects from Immobilization.

Fitness
Must have! Storm/Energy is very endurance demanding.
Swift
A passive power that increases run and flight speed. I took it at level 18 and put a Fly enhancer in it. I wouldn't recommend to slot it more than that.
Hurdle
A passive power that increases jump height and speed. The power of choice on your way to Stamina, if you're not a flier.
Health
A passive power that increases your Regen (+40%) and gives some resistance vs. Sleep (48.4%). I took it at level 20. This is the perfect mule for the Numina, Miracle and Reg.Tissue uniques.
Stamina
Maybe the most useful power in the game and probably the power most taken. Stamina is a passive power that increases you Recovery (+25%). I took it at level 22 and 3-slotted it asap (the benefit of a 4th slot wasn't worth it before I11 imho, but I11 introduced some setIOs for this power so a 4th slot is now something you should think about.

Flight
Highly recommended!
Hover
This power lets you fly really slow and provides minor defense (Def +2.5%). Take it and put at least 3 slots in this power, 1 LotG +Rchg and 2 BotZ.
It should be noted that it's possible to make Hover almost as fast as unslotted Fly (3-slot Hover with Fly enhancers and put Fly enhancers into Swift). This will give you aerial movement which is never suppressed. Additionally Hover is now unaffected by -Fly effects.
Air Superiority
A moderate damage melee attack with a strong KUp. This power is probably the best Power Pool attack because of that. Damage wise it's on par with the other Power Pool attacks (all Power Pool attacks have almost the same DPS – it's the secondary effects that makes the difference).
Fly
You can fly. Flight is suppressed for a short moment if you attack someone with a damage dealing power. Pure debuffs like Snow Storm do not cause suppression (be thankful for that – when they first introduced Suppression, debuff toggles caused perma-suppression).
[Note: You'll need this as a BotZ mule.]
Group Fly
You and nearby teammates can fly. This power drains a lot of endurance, reduces Acc and is slower than Fly. It can be useful in the Shard, during a Hami Raid and in some missions. If you use this power to group fly your team, let one of your teammates take lead and put him on autofollow. That way all team members probably stay in the AoE.
[Note: Another BotZ mule in Flight. No other power pool has 3 powers which take BotZ making Flight the best Power Pool if you aim at soft capped ranged defense imho.]

Leadership
Recommended.
Maneuvers
A toggle that gives Def +3.5% to you and any friendlies within range. Other ATs get even less defense from this power. It's weaker than Weave with identical end cost. However, it's available as the first choice in the Leadship power pool whereas Weave requires you to take 2 other powers first.
Assault
A toggle that gives a +18.8% DmgBuff to you and any friendlies within range (Other ATs get a lesser DmgBuff). You can only slot this power for End and Rchg.
Tactics
This toggle gives a +12.5% ToHit Buff, Res against Confuse and Fear and increases your Perception. A very nice to have, especially against Rikti Drones.
Vengeance
This power will give a strong buff to defense (Def +25%) and resistance vs. status effects, it will heal a little bit and will buff Damage (+35%) and ToHit (+35%). All you need is a fallen teammate within range (60) and you can provide this buff in a large AoE (radius: 100).

Leaping
Possible choice instead of Speed if you want to go for max defense.
Jump Kick
A moderate damage melee attack.
Combat Jumping
Toggle power that grants Def +2.5%, protection from Immobilization and increases JumpHeight.
Definitely the power to take on the way to Super Jump and Acrobatics.
Super Jump
Gives the ability to leap great distances and heights. Almost ideal combination of speed and 3-dimensional movement. Good for PvP.
Acrobatics
A toggle power that gives some protection against holds (mag 2) and protection against KB and KUp (mag 9). 2/9ths of the KB protection part is enhanceable.

Medicine
Nice to have because of Aid Self, but I don't see the room in the build.
Aid Other
Single target heal, comparable to Empathy/Heal Other (but weaker: interruptable, much longer rchg and lesser range).
Stimulant
This power is comparable to Clear Mind (but weaker: interruptable, lesser range, only half the duration, no +perception, etc.).
Aid Self
A self heal that can be very convenient (heals 199.4 at L50). If slotted with Interrupt enhancers it can even be use in fights, as long as you aren't taking DoT damage (when I tested this with 3*Interrupt I still got interrupted from DoT too often to use this power reliably under such a condition.)
Resuscitate
With this power you can rez a fallen hero.

Presence
Not recommendable.
[Note: I never really tried the powers in this Power Pool. I had Provoke on one of my early tanks (when it was needed because it was much better than anything Tankers had). I don't think these powers are very useful for a Defender. Maybe you just need some clever idea to use them?]
Challenge
Ranged single target taunt.
Provoke
Ranged targeted AoE taunt.
Intimidate
Ranged single target fear.
Invoke Panic
PBAoE fear.

Speed
Recommended.
Flurry
A moderate damage melee attack.
Hasten
This power increases the recharge speed of your powers. Hasten is a very good power, better than many Primary or Secondary Power choices. I recommend to take this power after Stamina, because the end drain from the now faster recharging attack powers.
To make Hasten perma you need ~276% recharge. 3-slotted with recharge enhancers gives you 99% recharge, hasten itself adds another 70%. “Only” 107% more recharge from other sources needed. It is possible, but very difficult (= expensive) and you risk to break your build (plus it's not needed for a Storm/Energy anyway).
Super Speed
Super Speed lets you run very fast. It gives no vertical movement, though. Together with Stealth (Concealment/Stealth, Storm Summoning/Steamy Mist or Dark Miasma/Shadow Fall for example) it provides the equivalent of full invisibility in PvE. Super Speed is good „out of the box“ and doesn't need additional slots.
[Note: Sprint stacks with Super Speed.]
Whirlwind
One question I have often seen is how it stacks with Hurricane (I was interested in the answer myself ). Well, combining it with Hurricane makes no sense. The end cost is too high and you won't notice any favorable effect.

Teleportation
Not recommended.
Recall Friend
This power allows you to teleport teammates to your position over great distances (10,000) which can be very convenient. In almost all zones the range is enough to port someone from any position to any other position. A few zones are too big, though (IP, Shard zones).
Teleport Foe
You can port a foe to a position near you (needs a target hit). Can be used to „pull“.
Teleport
Allows you to teleport in a direct line for a certain distance (300). Teleport provides very fast movement but is tricky to use, especially when you get lag. After a port you will hover for a short moment in mid air, then you begin to fall. Your vertical movement from falling is negated if you port again (this wasn't always the case). If you plan to use this power you should bind the power to a key on your keyboard (/bind numpad5 powexec_name Teleport – for example). This way you can activate the port with a key while you point with the mouse in the direction you want to go. Please note, that slotting this power for range does not only give benefits. A range enhancer in this power will increase the distance you can port. But at the same time it will make it more difficult to maneuver if you want to go a short distance.
Team Teleport
This power is comparable to Teleport, works for the whole team, though (if they are within a certain radius of the caster). It's a fun power but not really that useful imho.

ANCILLARY (EPIC) POOL
[Note: Only a quick overview here.]

Dark Mastery
Not recommended.
Oppressive Gloom
This is a toggle PBAoE that applies a mag 2 disorient to targets in the AoE. To keep it up you'll „pay“ a little amount of endurance and some hitpoints. Very nice if you pair it with T-Clap. It doesn't synergize well with Hurricane, though.
Dark Consumption
This power does moderate PBAoE damage and adds to your endurance.
Dark Embrace
The „armor“ in this set. Gives protection from Smashing, Lethal (Res +27.5%) and from Negative, Toxic (Res +15%).
Soul Transfer
A self rez.
Soul Drain
This power does moderate PBAoE damage while buffing your damage (+12.5%) and ToHit (+5%).

Electricity Mastery
Recommended.
Electric Fence
This is a mag 3 Immob with moderate DoT.
Thunder Strike
A high damage melee attack with a chance for a mag 3 Stun. This power hits almost as hard as a Sniper attack.
Charged Armor
The „armor“ in this set. Protects from Smashing, Lethal (Res +27.5%) and Energy (Res +20%). This is the best ancillary armor imho.
Shocking Bolt
A fast single target mag 3 hold.
Power Sink
This is a PBAoE and drains end from your opponents while increasing your own end. Maybe the best „end sucker“ out there.

Power Mastery
Recommended.
Conserve Power
This power lessens the end cost for all your powers for a good while (90s). This is a great power if you intend to use many „end expensive“ powers fast. Rchg enhancers are the only enhancers that make sense in this power.
Power Build Up
PBUp gives a ToHit Buff (+10%), Damage Buff (+80%) and a special buff that boosts all your secondary power effects (+149%), like the heal from O2 or the strength of your debuffs.
Force of Nature
More or less the same as the tier 9 tanker power Invulnerability/Unstoppable. Very nice to have but with a 100% end crash at the end of the duration.
Temp Invulnerability
The „armor“ in Power Mastery. It provides good resistance from Smashing, Lethal (Res +30%).
Total Focus
This is a melee attack that does extreme damage and applies a mag 4 stun. It does more damage than any other Defender attack with the exception of tier 9 attacks.

Psychic Mastery
Recommended if you want to go for max defense. This is the only possibility to get a confuse power to slot Coercive Persuasion (purple set, needs 6 slots and gives +5% ranged def among other things).
Dominate
Mag 3 single target Hold plus moderate damage.
Mass Hypnosis
Mag 3 ranged targeted AoE Sleep.
Mind Over Body
The „armor“ in this set. Protects from Smashing, Lethal (Res +27.5%) and Psionic (Res +20%).
World of Confusion
PBAoE toggle mag 2 confusion power.
Telekinesis
Mag 3 ranged targeted AoE Hold plus Repel.

SAMPLE BUILD 1

[Note: The sample builds are added to give you some ideas how to create a powerful hero(ine) with high survivability. From my experience they should be playable as they are. However, you might want to customize the builds a bit, before you use them for your toons, to take your own playstyle into consideration (and maybe to save some influence .]

This is an extreme build. I wanted to show how high you could get ranged defense. 68.4% ranged defense is complete overkill, of course. However, the build should be very playable. 26.5% melee defense + 57% to hit debuff from Hurricane give nice survivability in melee as well. Damage is above average, especially with the build up proc in Tactics (it's only single target damage, though). End use vs. end recovery is balanced and you even get some regen. Some minor sacrifices in the debuff department are hardly noticeable.


Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1,601
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Sample 1: Level 50 Mutation Defender
Primary Power Set: Storm Summoning
Secondary Power Set: Energy Blast
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Psychic Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: O2 Boost

• (A) HamiO:Golgi Exposure

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (7) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (7) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (9) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (9) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (11) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (11) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Endurance Reduction IO
• (39) Tempered Readiness - Endurance/Recharge/Slow
• (50) Tempered Readiness - Range/Slow

• (A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
• (40) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)
• (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) HamiO:Lysosome Exposure

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (13) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (15) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (17) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (17) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (19) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (13) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (48) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (15) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance

• (A) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff
• (19) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff/Endurance
• (37) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff/Recharge/Endurance
• (39) Dark Watcher's Despair - Recharge/Endurance

• (A) Flight Speed IO

• (A) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration
• (21) Miracle - Heal
• (21) Miracle - +Recovery
• (23) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
• (23) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
• (25) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery

• (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod
• (36) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge
• (37) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy
• (37) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (25) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

• (A) Red Fortune - Defense/Endurance
• (27) Red Fortune - Defense/Recharge
• (27) Red Fortune - Endurance/Recharge
• (29) Red Fortune - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (29) Red Fortune - Defense
• (33) Red Fortune - Endurance

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff
• (34) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge
• (34) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance
• (34) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance
• (36) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance
• (36) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up

• (A) Blood Mandate - Accuracy/Damage
• (31) Blood Mandate - Damage/Endurance
• (31) Blood Mandate - Accuracy/Endurance
• (31) Blood Mandate - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (33) Blood Mandate - Accuracy
• (33) Blood Mandate - Damage

• (A) Apocalypse - Damage
• (39) Apocalypse - Damage/Recharge
• (43) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (46) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Recharge
• (48) Apocalypse - Damage/Endurance

• (A) HamiO:Membrane Exposure

• (A) HamiO:Endoplasm Exposure

• (A) Lockdown - Accuracy/Hold
• (42) Lockdown - Accuracy/Recharge
• (42) Lockdown - Recharge/Hold
• (42) Lockdown - Endurance/Recharge/Hold
• (43) Lockdown - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge/Hold
• (43) Lockdown - Chance for +2 Mag Hold

• (A) Coercive Persuasion - Confused
• (45) Coercive Persuasion - Confused/Recharge
• (45) Coercive Persuasion - Accuracy/Confused/Recharge
• (45) Coercive Persuasion - Accuracy/Recharge
• (46) Coercive Persuasion - Confused/Endurance
• (46) Coercive Persuasion - Contagious Confusion

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (48) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (50) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

• (A) Empty

• (A) Celerity - +Stealth

• (A) Empty

• 15,5% DamageBuff(Smashing)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Lethal)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Fire)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Cold)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Energy)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Negative)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Toxic)
• 15,5% DamageBuff(Psionic)
• 7,25% Defense(Smashing)
• 7,25% Defense(Lethal)
• 12,3% Defense(Fire)
• 12,3% Defense(Cold)
• 33,8% Defense(Energy)
• 33,8% Defense(Negative)
• 6% Defense(Psionic)
• 8,5% Defense(Melee)
• 50,4% Defense(Ranged)
• 15,7% Defense(AoE)
• 2,5% Enhancement(Held)
• 21% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 30% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
• 4% Enhancement(Confused)
• 22% FlySpeed
• 103 HP (10,1%) HitPoints
• 22% JumpHeight
• 22% JumpSpeed
• Knockback (Mag -12)
• Knockup (Mag -12)
• MezResist(Held) 2,2%
• MezResist(Immobilize) 2,2%
• MezResist(Stun) 1,65%
• 23% (0,38 End/sec) Recovery
• 48% (2,04 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 1,26% Resistance(Fire)
• 1,26% Resistance(Cold)
• 22% RunSpeed

| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
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SAMPLE BUILD 2

This build goes for max overall defense. Ranged is capped at 53.7%, melee is capped at 45%, AoE is at 35%. Typed defense goes from 30% (Psi) up to 49.4% (Energy/Negative). Resistance is roughly at 25% vs. S/L, Energy and Fire/Cold. End consumption is a bit higher than in the above mentioned sample build, but you have Conserve Power. All in all this build should perform better than sample build 1.


Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1,601
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Level 50 Mutation Defender
Primary Power Set: Storm Summoning
Secondary Power Set: Energy Blast
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Power Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: O2 Boost

• (A) HamiO:Golgi Exposure

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (7) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (7) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (9) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (9) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (11) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (11) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Endurance Reduction IO

• (A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
• (37) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (50) Luck of the Gambler - Defense

• (A) Shield Breaker - Defense Debuff
• (21) Shield Breaker - Accuracy/Defense Debuff
• (23) Shield Breaker - Accuracy/Recharge
• (23) Shield Breaker - Defense Debuff/Endurance/Recharge
• (25) Shield Breaker - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
• (25) Shield Breaker - Chance for Lethal Damage

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (17) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (17) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (19) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (19) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (21) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (13) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)
• (13) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance
• (15) Shield Wall - Defense
• (37) Shield Wall - +Res (Teleportation), +3% Res (All)

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (15) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

• (A) Endurance Reduction IO

• (A) Jumping IO

• (A) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration
• (43) Miracle - Heal
• (43) Miracle - +Recovery
• (43) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
• (45) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
• (45) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery

• (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod
• (45) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge
• (46) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy
• (46) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End

• (A) Touch of Death - Accuracy/Damage
• (37) Touch of Death - Damage/Endurance
• (40) Touch of Death - Damage/Recharge
• (42) Touch of Death - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (42) Touch of Death - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (42) Touch of Death - Chance of Damage(Negative)

• (A) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance
• (27) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Recharge
• (27) Titanium Coating - Endurance/Recharge
• (36) Titanium Coating - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge
• (36) Titanium Coating - Resistance
• (36) Titanium Coating - Endurance

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
• (29) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (31) Luck of the Gambler - Defense

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (31) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Recharge
• (31) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (33) Luck of the Gambler - Defense

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (33) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (33) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (34) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (34) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (34) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Sovereign Right - Accuracy/Damage
• (46) Sovereign Right - Damage/Endurance
• (48) Sovereign Right - Accuracy/Endurance
• (48) Sovereign Right - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (48) Sovereign Right - Accuracy
• (50) Sovereign Right - Resistance Bonus

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff
• (39) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge
• (39) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance
• (39) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance
• (40) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance
• (40) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up

• (A) HamiO:Membrane Exposure

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO

• (A) HamiO:Membrane Exposure

• (A) Empty

• (A) Celerity - +Stealth

• (A) Empty

• 5% DamageBuff(Smashing)
• 5% DamageBuff(Lethal)
• 5% DamageBuff(Fire)
• 5% DamageBuff(Cold)
• 5% DamageBuff(Energy)
• 5% DamageBuff(Negative)
• 5% DamageBuff(Toxic)
• 5% DamageBuff(Psionic)
• 13,5% Defense(Smashing)
• 13,5% Defense(Lethal)
• 8,5% Defense(Fire)
• 8,5% Defense(Cold)
• 25,4% Defense(Energy)
• 25,4% Defense(Negative)
• 6% Defense(Psionic)
• 21% Defense(Melee)
• 29,8% Defense(Ranged)
• 11% Defense(AoE)
• 57% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 26% FlySpeed
• 133,5 HP (13,1%) HitPoints
• 26% JumpHeight
• 26% JumpSpeed
• Knockback (Mag -8)
• Knockup (Mag -8)
• MezResist(Confused) 5,25%
• MezResist(Held) 10,8%
• MezResist(Immobilize) 5,25%
• MezResist(Repel) 1000% (10% chance, in PvP)
• MezResist(Sleep) 7,45%
• MezResist(Stun) 7,45%
• MezResist(Terrorized) 2,5%
• 20,5% (0,34 End/sec) Recovery
• 52% (2,21 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 13% Resistance(Smashing)
• 13% Resistance(Lethal)
• 13% Resistance(Fire)
• 13% Resistance(Cold)
• 13% Resistance(Energy)
• 13% Resistance(Negative)
• 13% Resistance(Toxic)
• 13% Resistance(Psionic)
• 26% RunSpeed

| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
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Nice work.
I've never paired up Storm and Energy before, but I've played both sets a bit and really enjoyed them.

I'd slotting a little bit differently from you in a couple of cases:

- Steamy Mist
This is really crying out for slots, since its end heavy and both the Def and res bonuses are very nice. If you go Res IO+2 Res/End and a Def IO with two Def/End you're pretty much capping all three aspects of it - Resistance, Defence and end cost. Putting the Steadfast in there seems a bit of a waste.
I ended up putting the Steadfast and 5 Aegis (not the unique) in Tough - that gives you not only excellent actual bonuses but +4.6% AoE defence. Do that for the epic armour too with the PVP +3% Def IO if you've got one.
Melee Defence isn't really worth chasing if you run Hurricane - anything that engages you in melee will have a huge To hit debuff applied.

BTW - I really dug this power working with my Dark armour tank - the extra Res against Fire, Cold and Energy was just perfect.


- Freezing Rain.
I'd definitely slot recharge over def debuff. Once you're in the 20's you can hit most things with 95% accuracy pretty much, for special things like MoG'd Paragon protectors you have Aim and yellow pills. But I want Freezing Rain up every fight. You can also get a bit of extra Res debuff in there with the Achilles' Heel -res proc.

Both sample builds were added to give some "how to" ideas. Neither is a perfect build and both have issues in certain areas. I created them (and some others) to help me optimize my own build by giving me ideas and insight. But writing this now I realize, that I should include my own Storm/Energy build to make the guide complete.


Some explanations first:

When I created this build we already had rumors about GR adding up to ten more slots to our L50 characters. As I'm short on respecs I tried to include that information so it's possible to make the build better by just adding slots instead of needing to swap everything for other stuff.

Gale at level 49 was taken for thematical reasons. It's just a fun power and with the high ToHit buffs in this build I can use it without slotting it for +Acc. If we get more slots I might add one here to get a 2nd ForceFeedback IO for the +5% Fly speed bonus. Probably you'll find Aim more useful which gives nice slotting options with Rectified Reticle and the Gaussian IOs.

Thunder Clap at level 38 is another power you could swap for something else, if you want. However, with additional slots you can 5 slot Absolute Amazement for +10% global recharge, which would be nice (and almost cheap).

Combat Jumping at level 30 is debatable. Maybe you want to include Hasten instead. You'll sacrifice a lot of defense and your immob protection, though. Personally I think you don't need Hasten (in this build). It's far from being perma and your attacks recharge fast enough without it.

With additional slots I think I would add a LotG: Defense in Steamy Mist for +0.3 defense overall and the HP bonus from LotG (HP being more important to me here). A 3rd BotZ in Fly and in Combat Jumping (and probably in Hover, too) to increase AoE and Fire/Cold defense and KB protection. Probably a Slow enhancer in Snow Storm. Probably the Kismet:+ToHit unique in Combat Jumping. Maybe the Shield Wall unique in Maneuvers. And maybe the Performance Shifter proc in Stamina.


And now here's my build:

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1,601
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Myriad: Level 50 Mutation Defender
Primary Power Set: Storm Summoning
Secondary Power Set: Energy Blast
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Fitness
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Leaping
Ancillary Pool: Power Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: O2 Boost

• (A) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
• (40) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Recharge
• (40) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (3) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (5) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (7) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (7) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Recharge
• (9) Apocalypse - Chance of Damage(Negative)
• (9) Devastation - Damage/Endurance
• (11) Devastation - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (11) Devastation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Endurance Reduction IO
• (42) Endurance Reduction IO

• (A) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance
• (19) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (25) Shield Wall - Defense
• (27) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (27) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

• (A) Touch of Lady Grey - Defense Debuff
• (46) Touch of Lady Grey - Defense Debuff/Recharge
• (46) Touch of Lady Grey - Defense Debuff/Recharge/Endurance
• (48) Touch of Lady Grey - Recharge/Endurance

• (A) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage
• (13) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance
• (15) Thunderstrike - Damage/Recharge
• (17) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (17) Thunderstrike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (19) Thunderstrike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (13) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (39) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Endurance
• (40) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
• (43) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range
• (15) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance

• (A) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff
• (29) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff/Endurance
• (42) Dark Watcher's Despair - To Hit Debuff/Recharge/Endurance
• (43) Dark Watcher's Despair - Recharge/Endurance

• (A) Flight Speed IO

• (A) Regenerative Tissue - +Regeneration
• (21) Miracle - Heal
• (21) Miracle - +Recovery
• (23) Numina's Convalescence - Heal/Endurance
• (23) Numina's Convalescence - Heal
• (25) Numina's Convalescence - +Regeneration/+Recovery

• (A) Performance Shifter - EndMod
• (36) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Recharge
• (36) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy/Recharge
• (37) Performance Shifter - EndMod/Accuracy

• (A) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance
• (37) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance/Recharge
• (37) Shield Wall - Defense
• (39) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff
• (29) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge
• (31) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance
• (31) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance
• (34) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance
• (36) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up

• (A) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage
• (45) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage/Recharge
• (46) Soulbound Allegiance - Damage/Endurance

• (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance
• (31) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)
• (45) Luck of the Gambler - Defense
• (45) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

• (A) Apocalypse - Damage
• (33) Apocalypse - Damage/Recharge
• (33) Apocalypse - Damage/Endurance
• (33) Devastation - Damage/Endurance
• (34) Devastation - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (34) Devastation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

• (A) Ragnarok - Damage
• (42) Ragnarok - Damage/Endurance
• (43) Ragnarok - Accuracy/Recharge
• (48) Ragnarok - Damage/Recharge
• (48) Ragnarok - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge

• (A) Absolute Amazement - Stun/Recharge
• (39) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Recharge

• (A) HamiO:Membrane Exposure

• (A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/Endurance
• (50) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
• (50) HamiO:Ribosome Exposure
• (50) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO

• (A) Force Feedback - Accuracy/Knockback

• (A) Empty

• (A) Celerity - +Stealth

• (A) Empty

• 2,5% DamageBuff(Smashing)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Lethal)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Fire)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Cold)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Energy)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Negative)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Toxic)
• 2,5% DamageBuff(Psionic)
• 7,25% Defense(Smashing)
• 7,25% Defense(Lethal)
• 7,25% Defense(Fire)
• 7,25% Defense(Cold)
• 19,4% Defense(Energy)
• 19,4% Defense(Negative)
• 6% Defense(Psionic)
• 8,5% Defense(Melee)
• 25,4% Defense(Ranged)
• 8,5% Defense(AoE)
• 29% Enhancement(Accuracy)
• 45% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
• 18% FlySpeed
• 301,4 HP (29,6%) HitPoints
• 18% JumpHeight
• 18% JumpSpeed
• Knockback (Mag -4)
• Knockup (Mag -4)
• MezResist(Repel) 2000% (10% chance, in PvP)
• 31% (0,52 End/sec) Recovery
• 154% (6,54 HP/sec) Regeneration
• 2,52% Resistance(Fire)
• 2,52% Resistance(Cold)
• 18% RunSpeed

| Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build |
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|-------------------------------------------------------------------|

Thanks for the guide and build suggestions - my Storm/Sonic just hit 41 and I've recently IO'd her to about 22% Ranged Defense and am currently working on more sets (my main is an Electric / Electric/Mace Blaster who's got 45% Defense to S/L ) I'm curious what your thoughts are now that GR is out.

I'm not Myriad, but my advice would be to go s/l defense with the Scorpion pool. While as a Stormy you're mostly at range, softcapping your s/l will mitigate orders of magnitude more damage than medium ranged defense.

Given the huge chunk of s/l defense the Scorpion Shield gives you, it also affords a lot more build flexibility to get other stuff important for Stormies like +rech and +recovery.