Is there a good reason to use Power Surge on an Electric Defense Brute?

Seems like Electric can eat a blue then Power Sink and come back from the Crash, but I was wondering what advantage if any you get from it?

Power Surge decently slotted will cap all your resistances to everything but toxic (and get around 60% toxic resist). It also increases your recovery.

When Power Surge crashes, it drains both HP and END, so you'll do this order: Blue Insp, Energize, toggle back up, powersink. As powersink is a taunt, firing it before your resistance is back up and at around 1/2 health isn't too wise. If you do have the demonic accolade, if you fire this a few seconds prior to losing powersurge, your survivability goes WAY up.

I'm not a huge fan of power surge. If it didn't drain health and stacked defense on TOP of resistance, I'd like it more. It's just I can carry some "Robusts" and get similar levels of survivability when I need it, and not worry about a crash.

Though, Power Surge does look cool. You can even activate your raptor pack and not see it and become a flying mini-deathsurge.

I view Power Surge as somewhere between unneeded and downright detrimental for scrappers and tanks, but on a Brute, it works. Here's why: tanks get sufficiently higher resistance modifiers that running their regular toggles (and fighting pool) can get them to over 80% resistances in the important fields (cap = 90%), and scrappers have lower caps (75%), which their level of resistances will approach well enough. Brutes get the tanker caps but the scrapper mods, so jumping from baseline to resistance cap for a brute is a pretty massive survivability jump. You shouldn't need Power Surge on a constant basis, and inspirations can smooth over the need or replace Power Surge entirely, but having Power Surge ready to go when you/your team get into a hairy situation is a good thing. In Power Surge, you're at the 90% resistance cap to everything except psionics and toxic damage, and even those are solid; if your insp tray was running low, your teammates were struggling, and you were facing down a couple extra Longbow ambushes or an AV that favored Neg. Energy blasts, you'd likely be in a world of hurt outside of Power Surge.

It still has the EMP blast right before the crash doesn't it?

I used to use it all the time back when my EM/Elec brute only had SO's. Now that I have him IO'ed and around 25% defense to everything and my resistances I just don't find I ever need it. I respecced out of it awhile back and don't miss it at all.

Even in the days of SO's I only planned on taking Surge on one of my 5 Electric armor brutes. As mentioned above on the one I kept Surge on its solely for that OH $hit moment when my tray is shot demonic is long gone etc.

As mentioned by the Doctor it has its uses I am not saying the power does not have its place. But like other tier 9 powers this that crash Unstoppable, Elude, etc I skip most of them because that crash is not part of my play style.

While the crashes are mitgatable with a little prep I agree with Tonality if it really gets thick an INSP is usually of more use. Instead of using INSP to bridge or recover from the crash.

Normally, my Claws/Elec brute has trouble with EBs, but Surge of Power makes killing them a lot easier. IT's also a good button to push when you can tell you're about to take a beating.

Power Surge is a great g-d mode power. I don't use it all that often, but I also can't imagine not having it on my ELA Brute. Those moments when the entire team wipes and you stand alone as an electric gremlin to decimate the entire spawn are priceless.

The gist of ELA is that the set only needs to survive long enough to levy -endurance to drop the incoming damage dramatically; this is why Energize was such a great addition. The things that ELA can do through Power Surge by landing multiple Power Sinks and draining endurance via Lightning Field make it one of the best g-d modes in the game. It gives you the ability to survive massive incoming damage while the endurance debuffs take effect.

Power Surge also takes hold sets, allowing for the use of 4 parts Basilisk's Gaze or 5 parts Unbreakable Constraint. The EMP works great, but has several limitations that you need to be aware of: the radius is only 12', there is a 10 target cap, and the hold is mag3 with a 50% chance of mag4.

Hm... I routinely skip Power Surge after having tried it on my first Electric Armor Brute. I may consider taking it again if any or all of the following happened:

• Reduce or eliminate the hit point crash - it was brought up earlier in the thread as taunting by using Power Sink with 50% of your hit points is a bad idea... except that you only have 10% of your hit points after the crash. And yes, I have killed myself when I misjudged how much time I had left and Energy Transfer was animating and hit right as the crash did.
• Extend the range of the EMP. Give it the same AoE and target cap as the Radiation Emission portion, and it'll be more useful at what seems to be the intended goal of "keeping the toggle-dropped melee that had lots of aggro and only has 10% hp and no recovery from going squish in an instant"; as it is, it hits things within 12' of you and is target capped at 10.
• Add a +hp component and swap it and Overload, so that Energy Aura can get some decent resistances against mobs with defense debuffs and/or tohit buffs, and Electric Armor gets some defense for those situations where being at the resistance cap just isn't enough.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle it has gone from unconscionable to downright appalling that we have no way of measuring our characters' wetness.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brillig It's hard to beat the entertainment value of Whackjob Wednesdays.

Ah. I respecced out of it before Energize, so I used to pop a blue, hit Aid Self (if possible), redo toggles, then Power Sink. For a while I tried timing Power Sink so that the toggles didn't drop, but it became more of a hassle then it was worth with the hp crash.

And considering that if I was going to need to either pop several Lucks or Demonic (to get the Aid Self off), and that either of those options will last for 1/3 of the time, provide better mitigation while active, won't make me have to keep a blue inspiration in my tray, and are available starting at level 1 (the EM/Elec I'm referencing had Demonic at level 13), I never saw the problem with getting rid of it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PleaseRecycle it has gone from unconscionable to downright appalling that we have no way of measuring our characters' wetness.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brillig It's hard to beat the entertainment value of Whackjob Wednesdays.

I like to pick up the Ethereal Shift Temp Power to avoid my Tier 9 crashes. I offer the same advice to all of you. You won't have to waste Demonic and it gives you time to prepare for the remaining mob. Just remember the cast time is kinda long so activate the power before you actually crash. From my experience, once I see my Tier 9 first blink I typically wait 2-5 seconds (so I can smash more) then cue the power.

On the topic at hand, if I'm using Common IOs then I usually take Tier 9s in normal level progression and might slot it with 2-3 recharge. However, if I'm diving into a max IO build then I MIGHT take the Tier 9 at level 49 or I will just ignore the power completely.

Power surge is only useful against heavy tox groups, since its the only toxic resist power.

shame that there are no lvl 35 vahzoik. Even arachnoids don't do that much toxic damage (only the spitters deal it afaik)

This is a tough one. Should I spend my power choice on a power that will get me killed and that i rarely use or should i spend it on a power that is going to help me out all the time.

Your best bet is DONT buy. Go with another power choice that make you consistantly better. Get demonic aura and dont be shy about using it. It recharges. It a great power and it does not cost you a power choice and will not get you killed. I do dislike powers that get you killed.

Your second best choice. Buy it, have it, feel comfortable with your blanky. Aviod using it.

Your third best choice, use the power and try to mitigate its massive down side by well popping emp, use demonic aura and inspirations, which well using any of those options would have likely solved your problem by themselves but feel free to take the massive damage and end hit because its exciting to risk death for no reason.

Your 4th option, use it, then pop your phase shift temp power. Be out of combat for 30 secs. You get 10 charges of it, so have some stored in your black market section. You wont die, but while you sitting waiting, cross your finger and hope your absence does not get your group mates killed and it should not hurt your damage or fury all that much. I mean fury only takes 30 secs or so to vanish and your out combat well....for exactly 30s. Good for you. But hey, YOU got to live.

Clearly, I think these T9 powers that kill you are a bad buy. Now I am not say they are completely useless. Like they say, even a broken clock is right twice a day. You will eventually see a spot in time where that power will help you out and will be greatful you had in on that day and in that moment. But the other 99.9 percent of the time its useless. If you try to make it a part of your consistant play and use it as a reliable tool, like granite armor or Sow or one w/ shield. Your in for alot of pain.

Quite simply, the buff you get is eye poping, and its a trap designed to make you suck. Clearly the Devs saw this and they adressed it in the newer power sets. I say good for them. It nice to see them evolve t9s to the level of useful.

Enjoy,
Cipher

Has anyone else in this thread slotted Power Surge with a hold set? I run 5 parts Unbreakable Constraint and intentionally spawn dive when I'm nearing a crash and can clump most foes in EMP range. The -55% endurance gives you enough time to recover properly even against bosses that aren't held 50% of the time-- assuming they're already lowish on endurance.

I only have to use Demonic or Phase Shift if the spawn is heavily spread out and/or I have ranged agro.

I agree that this crash has TOO steep of a penalty. Unstoppable has no prolonged -recovery period after the crash, so that means that the -recovery is what we pay for the EMP. If you aren't using the EMP to your advantage, the skill is indeed mediocre.