Seeking New Toon Recc

I am getting pretty close to my first level 50 (plant/storm controller) and am looking forward to the next project. I want to start a melee toon and was thinking about a scrapper but thought I should consider a red side toon as well.

So ... suggestions? I'd like a toon that I can solo with pretty effectively (preferably good AOE for /x8 missions at some point). I have tried an Ele/SD to the mid teens and I just wasn't all that thrilled with it (yes, I know it was still low in level but the whole feel of the toon wasn't right for me). Thinking either a WM or DB primary and potentially SD as secondary but not sure if they will work out or not.

Thoughts? Good AOE combo's I should think about? Thanks in advance for any input you guys may have!

Oh ... I should be pretty well funded so can get all the normal IO's I need and will likely get crafted sets during the leveling process as well.

Claws, DB, ElM, FM, SS and WM all have good AoE damage, some of them better than others. SS and WM only get their AoEs at lvl 32, but they're great (I don't count Whirling Mace, available at 18, as a good AoE power). All of them except ElM also have good ST damage (again, some are better than others). You can't go wrong with any of them.

Of the secondaries, SD will give you the most damage but you can't have it with DB or claws. You won't have problems with any secondaries except for SA (penalty to recharge and damage) but some of them can be a bit tricky to play, and some become more powerful earlier and for less inf than the others.

For the smoothest first-time bruting experience, your choice of primary among the ones already mentioned is largely irrelevant (except if you don't like redraw and pick a clicky secondary, or would like AoE powers before 32), while WP is definitively the most "user friendly" secondary and quite good for soloing at x8 too.

Good info Exxar, thanks. I'd forgotten about SD and DB/Claws as primary so thanks for reminding me. I think I'd be ok with not much AOE until 32 assuming the overall damage output was still pretty good. I have a SD/WM tanker that is level 24 and staying there .... he's a damage sponge but running solo is painful.

Also, comparisons to scrapper builds and how they play up through the levels would be appreciated. Highest level scrapper I have is 28 (spines/regen) but I haven't played him in years (literally).

[QUOTE=AZKinger;2687253]Good info Exxar, thanks. I'd forgotten about SD and DB/Claws as primary so thanks for reminding me. I think I'd be ok with not much AOE until 32 assuming the overall damage output was still pretty good. I have a SD/WM tanker that is level 24 and staying there .... he's a damage sponge but running solo is painful.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZKinger Also, comparisons to scrapper builds and how they play up through the levels would be appreciated. Highest level scrapper I have is 28 (spines/regen) but I haven't played him in years (literally).

Well, I see only one significant difference between leveling scrappers and brutes: with scrappers, you want to be more tactful during leveling (as much as scrappers can be, with scrapperlock and all) and not aggro too much mobs because you don't have that many hit points. With brutes, you want to always jump right in and take all the aggro so your fury fills quickly and stays full, even if that means you'll die sometimes. That's why you need more mitigation on brutes (not necessarily defense/resistance, but "soft" mitigation like knockdown). It helps on scrappers too, but it's more important to brutes because they need to soak up more damage.

When considering the same sets on brutes and scrappers, I don't think there should be any major differences in the order of power picks and slot placement. There is a significant difference in slotting attacks though: scrappers need to slot both for accuracy and damage early on, but brutes don't need to slot for damage. They get much more damage from fury than enhancements, so you can use those slots for end redux. Example: 3 SOs worth of damage slotting will give a brute a little less than 95% to damage, while a near full fury bar will give 180%. You should still slot for damage later on, but it isn't necessary during the early levels (before 20 or even 30).

I'd say that a Claws/WP Brute would be able to burn through the game on par with a SS/WP brute, only it gets its AoE at lv 8 instead of lv 32. While Spin doesn't have as much damage as Foot Stomp, you also have Eviscerate, and your attacks activate and recharge much faster, which means you gain Fury faster.

I love my Claws/Elec Brute to pieces. It isn't as super-durable as a /WP or /Invul Brute, but it gets a Damage Aura and Quick Reflexes. With Focus, Shockwave, Mu Lightning, and Static Discharge, It can attack escaping or ranged enemies while staying in a place to throw down an AoE in a big mob immediately after. Also, it never runs out of endurance when fighting thanks to Power Sink.

Happy to oblige ^^

Good stuff guys. Thanks. I'm considering the idea of Claws/WP now (not sure I can get into SS). However, I've already started to formulate a toon concept for WM/SD and may go that path. How tough you think it will be pre-32 with that setup? I'm assuming it's got to be WAY better than my SD/WM tanker ....

DB/Fire not the easiest combo in the world but it's more rare than dice on your mirror and it's sick as hell to slice up a bunch of goombas and then have them fall like a second later(thanks to any number of D.O.Ts you have at your disposal) as if to say
Toon: You don't even know your already dead
Mob: What the hell are you talki-
*Body/ies Hit/s The Floor

I'll chip in for the claws/WP over SS/WP. I tried Super Strength and really, really, really hated it. Enough that it is one of the very few characters I have ever actually deleted (as compared to banished to non-use).

Claws is so fast activating and recharging that it just plays more fun. And WP is fire-and-forget so all you really experience is attacking. I will say that once you hit 32 footstomp is awesome, but it is literally the only power in the whole of Super Strength that I enjoyed. The rage crashes constantly pissed me off. I'd rather have had a crash on par with Eectric Armor's tier 9 than a damage hit that extreme. Really don't like SS. Wasn't fun.