Raising a Peacebringer (in progress)

Posting so I keep working on it, and to get commentary as we go. Several reply spots will be reserved as this is a work in progress. Initially meant to be a companion to Dech's "MF Warshade," it got scrapped and restarted. New effort follows.

How to Raise a Peacebringer

I was going to write this guide initially while riffing from Dechs' "The MF Warshade" guide. It's a good guide overall to compare and contrast, and I strongly recommend anyone considering a Warshade to read it. But the more I wrote, the more it came back to me just how dissimilar a Peacebringer is.

That said - go read Dechs' guide. Take a few minutes to do so. We ARE going to do some contrasting here, and if you want to try both Khelds, you should know how the other half lives.

What this guide is not

I've got a philosophy that Dechs' guide works well with, and which I'm going to adhere to here. I am not going to give you an "uber lvl 50" build. You may spend thousands of hours at 50, and I hope they're enjoyable hours on your Peacebringer. (They certainly are on mine. I have, at time of writing, two at 50.) What I am going to do is give you tips and things to look for on the journey.

We're also going to split things up a bit when we hit 20. That's really where you've got a decision to make. (You can always go back through the magic of dual builds and respecs if you change your mind, of course.) I'll go into considerations for human, bi and triforms at that point.

I will also mention helpful IOs, slotting suggestions and such - but again, don't expect a build. (I will, however, point out "Don't miss" and "Seriously consider" powers.)

The Peacebringer difference.

"What's the difference between 'shades and Peacebringers? Insult a Warshade in a bar, they'll go out, slash your tires and put sugar in your gas tank. The peacebringer will just break your face." -Me.

That simplifies things a bit. It's a good attitude comparison (though the 'shade goes from sneaky to demigod later.) But at the same time, it simplifies things a bit too much. So we're going to do some comparisons here.

1. Secondary effects. A Warshade slows their enemies with their attacks. Easier to keep together, a little safer with -recharge. A Peacebringer debuffs defense, making them easier to hit with followup shots (and thus easier to kill.)

2. Steady state versus rollercoaster. A Warshade has incredible highs - and low, low lows. Their self buffs, self heals and the like rely on enemies, alive or dead. (This is the balance which lets them get such nice buffs off of Mire, for instance.) A Peacebringer is entirely self contained. When Build Up or Restore Essence come up, they're going to do the same buff for the same amount at the same level with the same slotting. No worries that you're down to fighting one tough boss versus a crowd of minions. Your buffs are always there for you.

3. Fluffies of Doom vs Fluff. OK, this doesn't make the Peacebringer come out quite so well. The Warshade's extracted essences are reasonably long lasting, ranged attackers that add seriously to damage for a while. The Peacebringer's Photon Seekers are... um... well, a melee attack. Don't drag them behind you and expect them to explode. They had an AI upgrade a while back that upgraded them from "Dumb as dirt" to "Just somewhat dumber than an earthworm." I've had them float harmlessly right on an enemy's head through an entire fight, apparently deciding to make them die of embarassment ("Oh no, dandruff!") instead of explodiness.

4. MF for strength versus MF "because I want to." If you read Dechs' guide like I said, you'll see how the Warshade's dwarf mire, human mire, Eclipse and pets all work together to make a Warshade an engine of purple destruction. Bi and humanform are still viable - but you do lose out on some power, depending on combination. The Peacebringer? The idea of "Self contained" carries through here. If you go human form, you don't lose much by not having Dwarf - no mez protected form, no second heal.

5. The Chosen One brings Balance. Similarly to the Warshade, your Inherent - Cosmic Balance - buffs your stats. Every Control (Controller/Dominator) character helps your protection from Control effects, and every other Epic AT (Hero or Villain) gives you Slow resistance. However, everything else is turned on its head. Are you protecting squishies? Every defensive AT (Tanker, Mastermind, Defender or Corruptor) helps your ability to protect them by giving you a damage boost. (OK, tanks and masterminds in bodyguard aren't generally squishy, but they are classed as defensive here.) Every offensive AT, such as sweaty Scrappers, BO Brutes... eh, wrong kind of offensive? Anyway, Scrappers, Stalkers, Brutes and Blasters all help you stand on the front line with them by buffing your Damage Resistance. "A Peacebringer is what the team needs; a team is what the Warshade needs." -Dechs

These aren't all the differences, but it's part of what we'll focus on as we grow our Peacebringer.

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Peacebringers and enhancements

"Woah, wait, you haven't even started talking about leveling and you're going into enhancements? And I though you weren't giving a build!"

Yes, I am. And no, I'm not giving a build.

There are a few things to keep in mind when planning out your Peacebringer (even if, like me, you don't really "plan them out." MIDS is nice, but just letting them grow can be fun, too.)

If you're going to go multiform, you'll feel the crunch.

Slot crunch, that is. Human form isn't bad. Bi-form can start getting a little tight. Triform, you'll have to get creative. What does this mean? Really consider your slotting. A Peacebringer, especially your first one, you can expect to burn respecs and that second build on as you "get it right." You'll also find yourself thanking the devs for putting IOs into the game.

Pre-I9, Hami-Os (available late game) were the Kheldian's friend. Multi-aspect enhancement at full SO power (more, at one point) in a single slot? Obviously, we were dreaming! It was late-game heaven! (Yes, Titan-Os also exist, but faded so fast it just wasn't funny.)

After I9? Multi-aspect enhancements are commonplace. And really, really useful - often exceeding SO slotting even without set bonuses.

Required reading. No, really. Capn_Canadian's IOs for News, Casual Playas & Cheapskates. It's an I9 guide, and still formatted for the old forums, but really will show you what I mean. And you don't need to spend a lot! What it boils down to - take advantage of frankenslotting.

Frankenslotting aside, it's really worth looking at sets as well. The set bonuses carry over between forms - not just for a few seconds, but as long as the set/power is viable. That can be a BIG boost, especially when you start building for bonuses. Fortunately, you have a lot of sets to choose from....

IO help - Remember everything your powers do!

The frankenslotting guide was great reading, isn't it? Now, don't limit yourself to which sets you can take. Think of what your Peacebringer does. What sets come to mind?

Melee.
PBAOE.
Ranged damage.
Targeted AOE.

OK, think a little more...

Heals.
Resistance.
Flight/Universal Travel.

We're getting a pretty good little list. But you're missing a few.

Pet damage.
Recharge Intensive Pets.
Endurance Modification - you'll want to remember this!
Defense Debuff.
ACCURATE Defense Debuff.
ToHit Buff, especially good to remember if you take Nova.
Leaping, if you take Dwarf.
Knockback
Holds - yes, you have a hold in Incandescent Strike.
Stuns - if you take Pulsar.
Defense - Get a Karma instead of a Steadfast Knockback Protection recipe? Level 10, Combat Flight. AKA Hover.

That's a pretty damn healthy list, ESPECIALLY if you want to frankenslot! Can't find an Acc/Recharge? Check your "other" sets. You may want to keep this page from the wiki handy. Bookmark it right next to the IO sets page. That way you can see easily what exactly has the combinations you want.

IOs to watch for.

OK. There are some IOs, especially for multiforms, that you'll want to go after. Call them high priority.

All Khelds:
Steadfast Protection: Knockback protection

You're a Peacebringer. Even if you go primarily for forms, there's a chance you'll be in melee when you have to drop down to Human for a buff or two. All Khelds get an inherent resist at level 1. Slot this in there for four points of knockback protection. (You can pick up the other shields and put it in them if you want, but four points really does take care of most of the game.) They're (comparatively) cheap - and if you don't want to spend the inf, run some AE arcs and burn bronze rolls in the 15-19 range. Sell everything else you don't think you'll need.

Forms in general:
Performance Shifter: Chance for +End

Even though after Issue 19 you'll have Stamina in human form, that doesn't carry over into Dwarf or Nova form at this time. (Seriously, bring up the Combat Attributes window, Base stats. Watch your Recovery rate, and switch into a form. It will drop in seconds.) Yes, the forms have some END recovery built in to offset the toggle cost. This proc can help. Grab it. Every ten seconds, it has a chance to fire off and give you a small END boost while you're in form. It can help.

Dwarf:

Winter's Gift: Slow Resistance.

Just play around in the ski chalet during the winter event, gather candy canes and get this. Slows are NOT your friend as a Dwarf. yes, you can teleport. You still don't want to sit there with no attacks and your heal taking forever to recharge.

IOs to keep in mind

These are more "if you have the slots." Not needed, but they might give a little extra kick now and then.

Overall:

I'm not going to give a big list here. There are a LOT of procs in the sets we can take that give a chance for specific damage types. Khelds, by default, only do Energy damage (except for Radiant and Incandescent strike, which also do Smashing.) If you meet an Energy resistant foe, a chance for Smashing or Lethal damage can't hurt... if you have the slots for it. There are also those that give a Chance for Build Up or Chance for Recharge. They can't hurt. But don't sacrifice a needed slot elsewhere to fit it in.

I will suggest, at least in AOEs, an Achilles' Heel Chance for Resistance Debuff. You're already making them easier to hit. Why not give yourself a chance to hit harder at the same time? Alternately, again in AOEs, Force Feedback: Chance for +Rech. Another luxury slot choice.

Dwarf:
Miracle +Recovery. For the same reason I suggest Performance Shifter: Chance for +End. This will fire off any time you use the Dwarf heal and give you a little Recovery boost. (15%)

Perfect Zinger - Just in general, as four slots will help your recharge a little. If nothing else, grab the Psi damage proc for a chance of more damage. Turn your taunt into an attack. Don't forget, though, the Kheld taunt benefits from Accuracy as well.

Nova:
You can get away without slotting the form, generally. However, if you have extra slots - a Kheldian luxury - there are a few you may want to look into.

Freebird: +Stealth. I like stealth on my Khelds. In your Nova form, you're going to be squishy anyway. If you can get a little closer before being spotted, it helps. It doesn't, of course, add to your defense. And if you have to escort someone, you'll have to drop form in many cases for them to follow. Still, after I18, the Stealth from this drops as soon as you detoggle (no 120 second timer.)

Rectified Reticle: Increased Perception. Another personal choice, primarily to deal with ghosts that vanish and run away. Keep them in sight and slap them around.

Gaussian's Synchronized Fire Control: Chance for build up. Who doesn't want a chance at more damage? It's admittedly 5% every 10 seconds, but still. It's a luxury slot purchase.

See my Guides and Tutorials

Growing Up Squiddy

OK, we're finally into the meat of the guide. How do you grow from a sea monkey to a white, glowy squid of doom? Well, sit on down and... forget some of what you read in Dechs' guide. I'm going to have you put off your final decision on what you want to be until level 22, and I'm going to make a few assumptions.

Levels 1-22

First, even if you really, really want to be human form, pick up Nova at 6 for now. Yes, I know it screws with your RP concept. Believe me, you'll be in Human enough, and people will forget all about that little seafood indiscretion as a kid. (Alternately, well, keep your second build handy at level 10.)

See my Guides and Tutorials

Forms and You

So, here you are at 22. Ready for a respec and some nice, shiny level 25 SOs. (Or IOs, or sets. I'm not picky.) Again, we're not just rewriting Dechs' guide with less purple, we're looking at being a Peacebringer - and that means human or multiform.

"But Bill, you studly tanker/peacebringer/plays everything altoholic," you say, "I'm not sure what I want to be." (OK, maybe you don't say it that way. It's the thought that counts. Stop laughing.) Well, let's go through the pros and cons of the various configurations. This is not simpler to more complex - each strategy has its own tradeoffs. We'll start with... humanform.

The All Human League

So, you decided being seafood just wasn't for you. You've got two arms, two legs and don't have people singing B-52s songs when you walk by. Fair enough. If you like the Blapper playstyle, you'll be right at home here - you'll probably think you've gone to Blapper heaven, because that's just what you are.

Pros:

No slot crunch. Really. You're not splitting your slots between your human powers, two forms (well, I know you wouldn't slot Nova) and the ten powers that come with them, trying to stretch them as far as you can. No, all your slots go right in your human powers. And you'll like it that way.

No form switching to buff *clap-point* you up. Hasten up? Click it. Essence Boost ready? Autofire? It's going off. All your powers are there at your beck and call, not hidden away in other forms.

No loss of powers. OK, one word. STAMINA. It will be running eternally. No loss when you swap forms.

No retoggling. This is a complaint of multiforms. Have Shining Shield? Maybe Tough? You don't when you come back from your other form... oh, wait, you don't HAVE other forms! So long as you have endurance, you have your toggles running.

Cons:

No forms. Yes, you want to be human, but the forms have their uses. What are you losing? While Nova's not that big a loss, you lose your mez protection and a second heal in Dwarf form.

Set loss: 1 set type (Taunt.) If you're looking for set bonuses, of course, you can snag the Presence pool for this.

Power and leveling strategies

You'll have most of your attacks available. Absolutely don't skip Radiant Strike or Incandescent Strike. Just like the prior section, Essence Boost is a must have, as is Reform Essence.

To help with the slot crunch (IE, I want a strong heal NOW!) consider Conserve Energy at 24. It's helpful on its own, but doesn't really need slotting - which means you get the slots at 23 and 25 to put right into your self heal. Also, Quantum Flight is a really nice SHTF button - instant phase (30 sec) with max flight speed. Another with no slotting really needed, which lets you spread those out to other places.

The shields will be more useful to you. You're losing the high resists of Dwarf form, after all, but at the same time, you don't need to retoggle. Shining Shield, the Smashing/Lethal, should obviously be first on your list when you pick them up. Quantum Shield next - you're a Peacebringer, you will face Voids doing Negative Energy damage. Might as well mitigate some of it. Thermal is totally up to you, but really... how often have you said "I really wish I had fire/cold resist?" If you want it for another resist set bonus and have the slots, go for it.

Light Form. It's Invincibility. Yes, it has a crash. It also turns you into a ball of fluff that can beat on your enemies from inside, which I find oddly amusing. Grab and slot. Unslotted, on its own (in Mids) you'll be at 52.5% resistance. Combined with the other shields... yeah, it's nice. Just watch for the blinking icons.

You'll appreciate having the Fitness pool as an inherent after Issue 19. Be sure to remember to slot Stamina. (Or don't and throw an assisting Miracle in Health.)

Optional powers

Group Energy Flight. It's group fly, with all the plusses and minuses. By the time you get it, though, most everyone else has a travel power. And with jetpacks given out so freely, well, it loses some of the luster.

Pulsar. It's a stun, which can open up some sets and bonuses, and you'll have the slots. You won't stun bosses with it, though.

Glowing Touch - If you want to be a khealer, here's your Aid Other. But it looks cooler.

Restore Essence - It's a rez. It's something else that doesn't really need slotting, and it's useful for what it is. I usually grab it.

Photon Seekers. Still dumb as rocks, but released in melee, it's not a bad attack, usually. Take Solar Flare first, though.

Dawn Strike. Do you like exploding? Consider this. Don't forget, though, you've got Conserve Power, not Stygian Circle - you're not doing an instant refill when you're done.

Power pools, aside from Fitness:

- Concealment. I mentioned before, I'm biased, I like stealth on my Peacebringers. However, unless you want a Def set, you don't need the power pool. 15-25, Hyper Stealth in Bloody Bay. 20-30, Combat Invisibility (better than stealth.) 30+, Hyper Phase from Warburg. Alternately, you can get the stealth IOs to put in Sprint, Hover or Fly. Plus, if you want a phase, you have Quantum Flight. Concealment is generally skippable.

- Speed. Just for Hasten. Snag when possible. If you want superspeed, go for it.

- Leaping. Primarily for Combat Jumping's Immob protection (and/or a place to put a second Karma KB protect IO, if desired.)

- Fighting. Incandescense works with Quantum shield to boost your Energy/Negative resists. Tough works with Shining Shield. Worth the investment? That's up to you. Me, I like staying alive longer. Three SOs in each = almost 53% resistance.

Playing the humanform

You're melee. All the time. Even your ranged attacks, just consider a REALLY LONG punch. You can lean more toward multiple target with Proton Scatter, and Solar Flare will scatter enemies to the winds (so pay attention when you're on teams - stay toward the edges to keep them together.) This is also where my stealth bias comes in - I love to get the drop on a Void hunter. Stealth, fly, follow, queue up Incandescent Strike, finish him when he's down. (Solar Flare can take care of getting the rest of the group off your back right away.) If there's not a mezzer, hit the first target with a quick Gleaming bolt (that -def, remember) before hitting him hard with Incandescent. Mezzers and voids, open with Incandescent (or Radiant to knock them down and away.) There's really no need to ever hang back. You are the front line.



The Inhuman

This is just the conceptual opposite of humanform. Yes, you do have a human form, but your focus is on Nova and Dwarf.

I'll admit, for me this is pure theorycraft. I've never gotten into this particular style, but others have, and it might appeal to you. What you'll end up with is a fully slotted Dwarf and Nova, with some utility in Human form.

Pros:

Fully slotted forms. Go with sets if you want. Your blasts, your taunt, everything about your forms will be the best you can make it.

Set bonuses. Humanform set bonuses still carry over. You can look at some powers for oddball sets or power choices you wouldn't actually use otherwise for set muling, if you choose.

No retoggling. Since you're concentrating on the forms, you're not taking shields and such - so, no retoggling needed.

Cons:
No stamina. END maintenance is going to be something to watch for you, unless you choose to drop to humanform to USE stamina. Otherwise, Conserve Power and Performance Shifter +END IOs will be your END. (Note that Fitness will be inherent after I19, so you'll be able to drop to Human to give yourself a little Recovery boost here and there if needed without burning a pool pick on it.)

Switching for buffs - Hasten, for instance, cannot be activated in form. You MUST switch to human for it. Same with Essence Boost and Reform Essence. Note this doesn't apply to Accolade powers.

Boom-Boom - OK, Khelds are noisy when they switch. You'll be switching. If the sound annoys you, this isn't for you. Of course, you'll have more reason to stay in form anyway, compared to, say, the MFing warshade...

No real synergy.

Power suggestions

Hasten. You'll want it, even though you need to drop to human to use it. The other suggestions of Build up, Essence boost, Reform essence and Conserve Energy also hold true here. I'd also suggest Quantum Flight here - again, it's a great get-out-of-jail-free card, and doesn't need slotting. However, if there's something else that fits your needs better, grab it.

Skip the shields. Barring wanting them for set bonuses, you're not going to want to spend time toggling them on between forms. You're not going to concentrate on human attacks, just your buffs.

If anyone who plays this form wants to chip in with their experiences, you're more than welcome.

Quick direct reply from Vessel of Light with their experience:

See my Guides and Tutorials

The Biforms

Biform - aside from what I called "The Inhuman" - is Human and one other form, either Nova or Dwarf. Like I mentioned early on, there's not really the same sort of synergy, the weaving together of powers to create something even more powerful, that there is with the MFing Warshade. That's no reason to discount the bi or triform, though.

Human-Nova

You're a person. You're a squid. You're the sushi place's worst nightmare come true. This gives you many of the advantages of Human form with the ability to concentrate a bit more on Nova's blasts.

Pros

More slots for powers. Nova's form doesn't really need slotting, and it only has four blasts. That leaves a lot of slots for humanform powers.

Nova's accuracy. The plus of Nova is, of course, accuracy, and you can just swap form and blaze away.

Travel synergy. Via keybind, you can drop from Nova to Human with flight toggled on right away - and from human to Nova the same way. No dropping like a rock for you!

Cons

No mez protection. Unlike Dwarf, Nova offers no mez protection at all.

Defenseless form. It also has no defense inherently (not that any Peacebringer form does) and no Resists of its own in Nova.

Slotting - Nova

If you go this way - actually, go with either biform - be sure to slot early using the Kheldian respec ability. Start fitting slots into Nova, but plan them out so you don't end up short elsewhere. You'll still be using Human for a fallback when you need to be tougher, as well as buffing yourself. The only specific recommendation I make for Nova is to put a Range into Scatter to bring it closer to the other blasts. Diving in and out always makes me feel like I'm wasting time. Fitting in some recharge doesn't hurt, either. Don't forget your END reduction. Start looking into frankenslotting or sets.

Powers and slotting - Human

You're going to need to be a little more stingy than the pure-Human Peacebringer. It's not as bad, though, as the form itself doesn't need slotting, just the attacks. With Fitness becoming inherent, you'll have one less choice to consider - though you'll still want to remember any Stamina slotting you need. Hasten is also going to be worthwhile for you. See how much you can get without slotting, though - again, Conserve Energy, Quantum Flight and Restore Essence, while handy on their own, are going to be slot liberators.

You're going to have to retoggle coming out of Nova as well. Between that, possible END issues (if Nova's burned more END than you thought) and slot crunch, you may want to look into just Shining Shield, if any. Tough is still useful, but it edges a bit closer to "Optional." Quantum shield, for all the Energy damage you may face, can go by the wayside or go with just a default END slot, depending on if you want to deal with the toggle or not. Slip an extra slot or two into Incandescence if you have them to make up for it.

Most of the "Highly recommended" powers are still recommended here - Essence boost, Reform essence, Conserve Energy, Quantum Flight, Restore, Light Form... the latter especially if you drop the other shields. Incandescent Strike and Radiant Strike are still your go-to powers, and you should have enough slots for your attacks to be quite effective.


Human - Dwarf

Dwarf is more slot hungry than Nova. The form itself should take slotting, plus there are more powers to consider slotting. You'll be looking more strongly at set IOs, even if just for frankenslotting, with this setup. This is probably the heaviest Melee-centered form of them all. If you like getting right up in the enemy's face, this is the way to do it.

Pros

M-M-M-Mez Breaker! Yes, you get a form that you can activate while mezzed, giving you a nice resist boost, a handy heal and more mez protection.

Resistance, Resistance, Resistance - Dwarf is very resistant when slotted to everything but Psionic damage. And you'll still be able to use Light Form, though it locks you out of Dwarf.

Teleport - In dwarf form, that is. Immobilized? Pfft.

Another heal!

Cons

Sensitive to slows - To me, at least, Dwarf feels more sensitive to any -rech you're hit with.

Synergy? What synergy? - Dwarf doesn't even have the "At least you're flying" of Nova. Swap to dwarf in the air, and you're going down.

More slot hungry. 6 powers as opposed to Nova's 4, plus slots in the form itself. Plan ahead. Though don't assume they all need heavy slotting....

No Autopowers in forms - so, again, END management is paramount.

Special PVP note - Don't plan on staying in dwarf while PVPing and being able to teleport away if things go south. Since I13, Teleport's "suppression" has been "It doesn't work at all."


Slotting - Dwarf

Unlike Nova, you'll want to slot Dwarf. I assume 5 slots if possible - three for Resist IOs (I don't care about END or recharge, just bumping that resist up,) one for a Winter's Gift (stocked up on a few last winter to fight off slows) and one, if possible, for a PS +End IO.

You'll also really want to watch your attacks. Recharge and END reduction most of all. You only have three. You'll also have your heal, a taunt (that can use accuracy,) and Teleport. At least Teleport doesn't need to be six slotted - one to two slots at most (set, or END, or ENd/RANGE.) You can, of course, put PSI damage in the taunt via proc to try to turn it into another attack.

Powers and slotting - Humanform

Feeel the crunch. You'll really want to start frankenslotting with one of these, as many of the powers you want hitting hard are going to not have six slots. You can still fit in Tough and Shining Shield and have them slotted pretty decently. You'll like having Light Form later on, though it locks you out of Dwarf's heal. You can, if you choose, underslot one of your ranged attacks (such as Gleaming Bolt/Eye) to move those slots into the melee.PBAOE attacks. Just be sure you're not going to be sitting around offering nothing to your target but conversation. If you're not punching face, tweak a bit.

See my Guides and Tutorials

The Triform

Ahh. Now here's flexibility - the accuracy (er, tohit) of Nova, the buffs of Human, and the toughness and mez protection of Dwarf, all rolled into one nice tasty package. This is the MF Peacebringer!

Well, no. If you've been reading along, you know why I'm not using that name. A Warshade can really take advantage of the forms to buff itself eight ways to midnight. They work together, powers and forms weaving a tapestry of death, destruction and purple fuzz. The Peacebringer - not so much. Yes, you can leverage your strengths by shifting when necessary, but you can also consider each form a separate entity.

Where they do overlap (and this is true of Warshades as well) is in set bonuses. Bonuses, unlike toggle buffs, stay active between forms. If you've got Thunderstrike slotted in Nova's two attacks, don't ignore them if you're looking for bonuses in Human form's attacks and watching your stacking (the 5 similar buff/percent rule.) Use this for some flexibility.

The only (click) buffs you really keep an eye on as a triform Peacebringer are human - since that's where they all live. You have a heal in Dwarf, and its built in protections. But it doesn't give you anything (save HP from that heal) to carry over to Human or Nova. Human's buffs - Conserve Power and Essence Boost, plus hasten (you are taking hasten, right?) carry through.

Be very, very picky about any toggle you consider. For instance, the shields as I've mentioned before detoggle as you switch forms - you may choose to completely ignore them, or just take Shining. Pools like Leadership? Forget it. Imagine toggling up your tank or scrapper, then accidentally hitting Walk and having to do it all over again. Every few minutes.

I was also going to say think about Stamina here - but with the announcement that the Fitness pool is becoming an inherent in I19 (as I was writing this guide,) that's less of an issue (other than one of slots.) With Fitness inherent, though, you will have more power picks. Remember, though, that while it's one pool you won't have to take (yay! More powers to choose!) you're still stuck with the same number of slots. And as a triform, slots are at a premium. Plot them out carefully - and be prepared to use a second build and re/freespecs, especially on your first Triform.

On a Triform, if you have anything six slotted, take a close look at what's underslotted. Something quite likely is, or you're low on attacks (or have great recharge.) You're going to love to learn two things - IOs, whether you frankenslot or go for sets, and single slot/skippable powers. If they give you some utility (take Combat Jumping for the immob protection, put a single KB IO in or a LOTG Recharge, same with Stealth) grab them first. Put the next two slots someplace - typically an attack or buff - that need it. (This could also be a reason to take the shields - just take them off of your tray.)

Single-Slot Gems

Build Up. Yes, you want some recharge in this. But, if you're going to look at sets, see if you can squeeze in some recharge somewhere via globals and bonuses.

Conserve Energy. Another with a single recharge.

Quantum Flight. I really tend to use an END reduction, but that's habit from when it used to have its END ramp up over time.

Bright Nova. Remember, slot the powers, not the form. (And consider strongly the Performance Shifter +END.)

Restore Essence. Yeah, you might need it - fit whatever you think will work, or a global/proc that works. Say, a Miracle unique.

Combat Jumping. Immobilize protection in Human form, though it is a toggle. Useful enough overall to consider.

Stealth. I know I put it down before, if you're looking for it for the stealth *power* there are other ways to go about being sneaky. But if you're looking for something to put another Defense set unique/proc/etc. in, here you go.

Thoughts on leveling and powers

If you're sure you're going triform, plan on a respec at 20. At worst, run a respec trial at 24 (make sure you're in SOs or decent IOs and that the highest person is the leader.) After the respec, when slotting concentrate on Nova first (until you're at least four slots per power,) then Dwarf (I'd alternate between the form and power until you have four slots in the form - three resists, one ENDMOD proc. Remember, stamina doesn't work in form.)

Don't forget, with Dwarf, that your taunt is NOT auto hit. You'll want ACC in there. (I tend to try to fit acc and recharge, at the least, but it's a very weakly slotted power when I do it.) You also do not have a taunt aura (such as Blazing Aura, Icicles, etc.)

Personal preference on Nova - I like fitting a Range into Nova Scatter, just to get it more in line with the other three powers. No need to duck in and out to maintain damage output.

Must have powers

I'm going to repeat myself here, but there's good reason for it.

Don't skip or underslot Essence Boost or Reform Essence. You want these up and boosting or healing you as much as you can. You are squishy, when you're not in Dwarf form (and don't forget to slot your dwarf heal.)

Don't skip or underslot your two heavy melee hitters of Radiant and Incandescent Strike. Give strong consideration to how you're going to slot Solar Flare, as well - not only is it PBAOE (fits as Peacebringer AOE, too, doesn't it?) damage, but if you need a breather, this will knock whatever is around you away.

Hasten. Especially when you're in light form, you're going to be very aware of having a limited number of attacks. Hasten, even with its crash, is a godsend for you. Low to medium slotting, and your attacks and heals are up faster - carrying over to forms? Yes. You want it.

Build Up, Conserve Energy and Quantum Flight. Yes, these were in the single slot gem list, as well. They're useful enough utilies to be considered "must have," as well as letting you shuffle slots where you need them.

Light Form. Yes, it locks you out of other forms. But if you're going to spend time in human, get it. It's got pretty decent resist right out of the box. And pulling numbers from Mids, a single SO there, stacked with unslotted shining shield and unenhanced Incandescence will give you some very nice resists - 85% smashing/lethal, 74% En/NE, 63% to everything else but Psi.

Other power considerations

I'm looking specifically at human form here. As you plan your build, consider just how much knockback you want. If you MUST have two AOEs, you're going to find yourself spreading slots thin. Decide if you want more KB or not, and decide between Proton Scatter (cone) and Luminous Detonation (Ranged AOE with KB.) If you start chasing sets, though, having both is a good source of recharge at 50, both with five slots - give one Ragnarok (if you can afford it) for 10% Recharge at 5 slots, give the other Positron's Blast for another 6.25%.

Photon Seekers - the Peacebringer's pets. Unlike a warshade, these are not long lasting bringers of doom. If you've played traps and are used to seeker drones, you'll find these very familiar (and somewhat dumb - I've had them float around a valid target and do nothing for a fight.) They're best used as a melee attack, as they do hit pretty hard and do some serious knockback on their own. Slottable with both Pet Damage and Recharge Intensive Pets.

Dawn Strike - This is a nuke. You will feel an endurance crash. That said, there's little more enjoyable than just walking up to someone and exploding. It won't tend to kill everything on its own from full health - effect wise, it's more like a Defender nuke instead of a Blaster's - but as a followup AOE (such as after a Dwarf Flare, Photon Seeker, etc.) it can be quite impressive. Have some blues handy for afterward, though.

A triform Kheld is all about making those trade-offs. By the time you're done - well, a triform Peacebringer is, among other things, a learning experience. You'll probably find yourself looking at slotting your normal characters differently afterward, as well - having to decide just what every slot is for can really open your eyes to things like frankenslotting. It can be a difficult road as you level, but it's very rewarding.


The Triform and binds

Binds (also useful as macros) will be a big help to any Peacebringer that uses forms. As many powers as we get, I set these up long ago to have form-specific trays and switch between them as I switch forms. My setup uses the keyboard numpad - 1 for Nova (powers in tray 9), 2 to drop to human (and immediate flight, powers in tray 8,) 3 for Dwarf (powers in tray 7,) 0 for Quantum Flight. You can adjust them for whatever preference you have.

Essentially, I save this as a file (I have a c:\binds directory) called pbbinds.txt. When I make a new Peacebringer, I just /loadbindfile c:\binds\pbbinds.txt and they're all set up.

NUMPAD0 "powexectoggleoff Bright Nova$$powexectoggleoff White Dwarf$$powexectoggleon Quantum Flight$$goto_tray 8"
NUMPAD1 "powexectoggleon Bright Nova$$goto_tray 9"
NUMPAD2 "powexectoggleoff Bright Nova$$goto_tray 8$$powexectoggleoff White Dwarf$$powexectoggleon Energy Flight"
NUMPAD3 "powexectoggleon White Dwarf$$goto_tray 7"

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Well, there it sits. I see I've gotten a few reads while hammering this out. Comments, corrections, "What were you thinking?"

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Well, I haven't ever made a Peacebringer (My Warshade is only 21), but nice work on the guide. This is a great addition to the community!

I play the inhuman build, and while I am sure that I am far from the best player, I felt like I should chime in with my 2 inf about what works for me seeing as you did ask for people to do so.

As you have suggested my human form is mainly a buff platform. Conserve Energy, Hasten, Essence boost, Photon Seekers, Build Up, followed by shifting to which ever form the situation needs makes my PB rather mean for the first part of a fight.

I end up with alot of powers that I want to preform with little to no slotting and some of my picks are directly because of this. I took Pulsar with a single ACC enhancement and all the IO bonuses to ACC I have it hits fairly well and can give me a bit of time to fire off some human buffs ( or heals ). Glowing touch along with the full medicine pool all work well enough with no extra slots and teammates like to see green numbers pop up over their heads. The added fact that it may actually be saving their lives made it worth the picks to me. I end up taking fitness but don't slot it, the extra end helps cover the fact that I have no End Redux in the human powers and I was struggling to find powers to take in later levels. I also took the Conceal pool. 3 powers to slot in LotG for some nice recharge and I can invis other players and myself which has come in handy.

Quantum Flight is I think about the only one I disagree on and that is probably more of a play style issue. I had it for a while and used it as a last resort defence and it did save my life from time to time. But I came to realize that in most situations that I ended up using it I would help myself or my team just as well or better if I shifted to Dwarf earlier in the fight and become resilient enough to stay in the fight, and pull some of the aggro away from the squishier team members if on a team. With fitness becoming inherent soon this may make it back into my build but leadership for some IO muling and vengeance is also tempting.

Slotting for the most part was simple, Nova and Dwarf are fully slotted except for the dwarf teleport. It works well enough in combat situations with no slots and if I need to travel any real distance I'll switch to human or nova and fly. Hasten, Essence Boost, Build Up, Conserve Energy, and Photon Seekers all have extra slots devoted to them as I found them to be the human form powers I used most.

I didn't build my PB is mids or go into anything to intensive it came about naturally and I have selected and slotted the powers I found myself using most. I don't really frankenslot and tend to go for the full 6 piece set in my powers So I'm guessing that there are places that my build could still be improved on. I picked sets with an eye toward recharge with the low number of powers available to me in each form having them up as much as possible helps a great deal. Also End was rarely a problem, I could already cap my HP with Essence Boost and Dwarf. Resist bonuses don't seem large enough to be worth the effort ( and on teams could be wasted when in Dwarf ) and at the time I started buiding up IOs for my PB I didn't think I could get enough defense to make a noticable difference ( having seen some other players builds I think it is possible now ).

You note End as being a concern but to be honest I rarely felt it on my PB. putting the +end proc into both the nova and the dwarf solved almost all my problems. Until I got the +End accolades and a couple of random bonuses while sloting IOs I could burn myself out of End by hitting hasten without conserve energy and then go nova and constantly fire off my AoE attacks when they were up and ST attacks as filler. Even this would take a minute or two of constant fire before my end bottomed out though.

Lastly a bit on how I play, as I find knowing the context of what a player wants out of a PB helps me make more sense out the powers taken. Solo I play simply. start in human, throw up the buffs that are up (with the amount of recharge I have now days build up is almost always up every mob and the others are up fairly often). Then switch to nova, fire off my AoEs then start working on the remains. If I get held or start taking to much damage I'll drop down to dwarf and then ground and pound the rest of the mob. Rinse and repeat with the next mob. Note I love photon seekers. Both AoEs along with some blasts from them is a wonderful way to open up a fight against a large group. And alternately against a tough melee target/group I will summon them and then engage from range, when the bad guys get close to my squiddy self the seekers generally will home in cause some good damage and more importantly have a chance to send them flying away giving me more time to blast in nova before having to drop down into dwarf for the resistances.

On teams I fill the gaps. If they need a tank I just happen to do fairly well at that job. I have just enough heals to keep a slightly squishy tank alive ( I admit at 50 this isn't as big of a deal but while leveling a suprising number of tanks struggled and the extra heals kept them going ). And with Nova I put out a decent amount of damage. In most groups tanking is covered and my small amount of healing is not needed constantly so I get to play in Nova alot. So human form before the fight, throw up my buffs, switch and then blast away. I also look to play a protective role. being ranged dps gives me a good view of the fight so I can see problems developing and move to counter them. The most common one being ambushes or extra spawns getting aggroed. fly over blast a couple times then drop to dwarf and hold them up until the group gets around to dealing with them. Fill in tanking also comes up from time to time when the RNG decides it doesn't like the main tank and they drop to a bad string of attacks. Spot healing and mez breaking fall under this umbrella as well. A buffer/debuffer/controller that is mezzed can quickly turn the tide of a bad situation if I can get a stimulant off on them. I don't use the heals alot most times I float merrily along shooting bad guys all day long but having the extra support options on hand for the rainy day is always a good thing.

So there you go my thoughts and ideas on the inhuman build and playstyle. The forms are what first atracted me to Kheldians to start and the inhuman lets me fill the gaps of a party better than the other builds I have tried, which is what keeps me playing my PB.

Thanks for the look. I grabbed a chunk of it to put into the guide - I might summarize a bit, but first read through seems to give just what I was looking for - an overview of how this plays.

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Excellent and comprehensive guide, Bill. Well Done!

I played Inhuman (Nova/Dwarf) way back when (I3,I4), and I've been getting
around to revisiting these toons these days (finally), and I'll share some ideas
that I think are important to playing that particular style.

1> As folks mentioned, Human is for two things: Buffs and Recon. I don't
fight in Human form - at all. Solar Flare is the only human attack that I
have slotted - to bounce mobs so I can switch forms and/or escape
(although, I occasionally 2nd guess a little about I-Strike now and then).

I do scout my battles from stealthed human form: Plan, Buff, Execute.

- Like Bill, I'm a big fan of Stealth, although I prefer Invisibility (no $$$ IO
required, you're stealth capped, no movement penalty) - it does need
a couple Erdx slots though. Stealth + IO is a very viable alternative if you
prefer and you can save a power pick (I usually prefer Phase Shift to
Quantum Flight, so I don't personally mind the extra pick).

Nova is my primary offense (purified Blaster) as it has more range, better
damage and dps typically, and enough safety to handle the job. I agree
with adding a +Range IO for Nova Scatter.

Dwarf is the fallback for those infrequent occassions where Nova doesn't
have the staying power (mezzes, tough Bosses, etc). He's my "Can't Kill
Me" melee fighter and pocket Tank. Slot the ST attacks well, because
that is typically all that's left after Nova the barrage is done.

- Buffs: Essence Boost, Build-Up and Conserve Power are (imho) must
haves. Hasten, Stamina are optional, but useful - more on this in a bit.

One other pool I like is Medicine - PB's can store up a lot of HP & self-heal
capability, and I've found that very helpful at times. Take as much or as
little as you like.

2> Binds: No other toons I have utilize (and need) as many binds as my
PB. I feel that binds are a critical element that is the difference between
struggling with a forms-based Kheld vs excelling with one.

At the very minimum, I recommend binds for form and tray switching, and
a target bind or two (that encompass Voids, Quants, Cysts and other high
priority targets). I also use binds for certain powers (ie. Phase/Q-Fly) and info
binds for teammates (many folks are unfamiliar with Khelds and how they play).

3> IOs: Frankenslotting is a gift from the Heavens for Khelds - for two
vital reasons: First, you can max the key attributes of a power in fewer
slots. Second, you can boost additional attributes in your powers and get
set bonuses that apply in forms.

If you're playing this style, learn to Frankenslot - Seriously. You'll never
reget it.

I mentioned earlier that Hasten & Stamina can be optional for Inhumans.
This point is the reason why. While slotting your Nova attacks for
instance, you can get 60%/90% improvement to Acc/Damage and still get
30-50% in Erdx and/or Rch within FIVE slots. If you still want to have
Hasten and Stamina, this slotting approach will make them even more useful
and effective.

I rarely slot entire sets, but just 2 or 3 IO's from a set with useful bonuses
like +recovery, +hp, +dmg. If you opt for full sets, you can often get +acc
and +rch with 4-6 IOs from a set.

I also advocate a Performance Shifter +END in each form. Other good ones
are Steadfast -KB, Reticle +perc, Kismet +Acc.

For me, the fun of Khelds IS the forms - that's the key distinguishing feature
that other AT's don't have. The consideratons I listed above have been very
helpful for making that approach more effective, viable, and fun for me.


Regards,
4

Very nice guide, Bill! Got me thinking about a possible rework to my second build into a human form based on your advice!

Might want to mention a bit about binds, since Peacebringers rely on them even more than Warshades (IMHO) to pull off some of those epic combos.

Ordinarily I'm a dedicated Tri-Former with an emphasis on melee, with opportunistic blasting from nova thrown in when necessary or on melee-heavy teams.

Two powers that I think deserve consideration on your Tri-Form's optional powers list are photon seekers and dawn strike. Together with white dwarf flare, they make an awesome reset button for those times when your pocket tank is getting a wee bit overwhelmed.

In heavy spawns (like tanking the ITF) you can - while waiting on dwarf attacks to recharge - combine inspirations to make a break free and a blue, pop the BF and whatever oranges and purples you like, hit flare to knock everyone down, then drop to human and hit build-up, photon seekers and dawn strike. Dead spawn. Pop the blue and hit conserve power, then it's back to it. If you've got the +end proc in dwarf, you're back and rolling by the time you've mopped up the stragglers.

Only time ever my PB made a fully-kitted scrapper stop and say "WTH was that?!"

Brightstorm went boom.

EDIT - that seems a bit covoluted, but the point is really that the mobs that are knocked back by Photon Seekers are generally still in range (even though they're in the air) of the Dawn Strike when it fires, and so finding a strategy that combines them could serve tri-formers well if used from a tanker form that can cluster the mobs together.

Yeah, binds. I knew I forgot something! (And it's been mentioned at least twice so far.) Editing them in. Fortunately a PB doesn't have to worry about two different teleports....

Photon seekers I'd mentioned earlier (up in Human form,) but if someone skips down to the triform portion I can see them missing that bit. I'll fit that in as well.

Thanks for the comments so far, keep them coming. End of the week sometime I'll probably copy the results and put them in the player guides section.

Edit: Links added, as well.

See my Guides and Tutorials

Thanks, Dechs...

.... and did I really say leadership is becoming inherent. Gah. Brain no work. Brain replaced with cheerios. Brain soggy from sitting in milk. And yeah, need to tweak those sections about taking stamina. Frigging announcements, can't they do them *before* I start actually writing?

Cosmic balance is... one of those other things (like binds) I had in mind while writing and promptly forgot to put in. >.< More editing! But that's why I threw it here for comment first.

Thanks!

Edit: Cosmic Balance added, Leadership changed to Fitness, and I think all Stamina references updated (from if to when, really.)

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OK. Copied over to Player Guides (with mention of BillZ's conversation with castle, hopefully stamina working while in form will actually work.)

Further comments, please leave them there, and thanks for the look-through and comments from everyone.

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