Bringing a /Psi out of retirement?

I have a level 50 Grav/Psi dominator that I retired some years ago. Now that there is content for level 50s to do, I'm tempted to play him again. But there are some issues.

First of all, he's dirt poor. He was retired before merits existed. He has only the IOs I could afford with infamy, and has a savings of about 4 million inf left over. I could mail him a cash infusion from my other characters, but obscenely priced items are not going to happen.

Second, his build is totally *****. He did not have stamina; he relied on Drain Psyche and Dark Consumption for endurance. He has end slotted all his attacks, with no thought to recharge and little for damage. And worst of all, the entire /psi powerset has been radically changed from what it was before, so I'm questioning all his power picks. I mean...4 PBAoEs and no status protection? His only defense is Stealth? I'm not even sure what to do with a character like that.

I'm a big fan of learning how to play an AT by actually playing it. But this isn't the guy I played up to level 50.

So I'm asking for opinions and advice. Is it worth it, do you think, for me to puzzle out a build for this old relic, just so I can play it like a clueless newbie? Or should I leave him in retirement, give up on the /psi powerset, decide that he's not worthy of being an incarnate, and go play my other level 50s instead?

I just worry that it's going to be a lot of work and a lot of inf to get this guy playable again, and his concept and powersets may not be as fun as they used to be.

you investments will be dependent on what you want to do with your character. if you want high recharge like the 190% (w/ hasten) my mind/psi has. it will be quite expensive. however, with alignment merits, you can essentially trade your influence for investments in time running tips and morality missions to get the alignment merits. most expensive IOs are 2 merits, the exception being pvp IOs. 2 alignment merits is essentially 4 days worth of work (can only do 5 tips per day) and they can also be purchased with reward merits - 50 merits+20mil inf = 1 alignment merit.

if you plan out a build you'd like to work towards and post it, i'm sure others would be happy to advise you on the easier routes to get what you need.

What QuiJon said. Within a week you can be respec'd, IOd, alpha'd, earning A merits, and have a few million infamy in your pocket.

Download Mids Hero Planner. Decide on a target build.

Respec your toon for free with freespec and use whatever enhancers you have, plus fill in with SOs until you have enough money/merits to get the stuff you really want. Sell anything useless. Take a look at the new APPs available to dominators. You could take fire or ice mastery for more damage, or psi to fit your theme and get permanent mez protection, or power for more attacks.

Head to Ouroborus. Unlock your alpha slot. If you haven't unlocked Cimemora, then run Ashley McKnight's arc first. Also, run the Welcome to Vanguard arc so you can start earning Vanguard Merits (can use 150 of them to buy an incarnate component called Gr'ai Matter).

Run the high level SFs (Imperious, Lady Grey, Lord Recluse, Barracuda) to earn incarnate shards and specific components. Slot your alpha. I suggest you go for Spiritual Core (rech/stun boost). That'll make you more powerful.

Run tip missions (solo set to minimum for speed, or team to help earn more shards). Confirm your villain status. Earn 50 reward merits. Roll for rare recipes with those and whatever other merits you may have. Sell anything you don't need.

Run more tips. Start earning A merits. Buy the super rare recipes like LotG or Obliteration quad with 2 A merits. You can also get 5 rare rolls with a single A merit if you want to take a chance. Sell anything you don't need.

All of these activities will earn you infamy. You can build a strong character with 10-20 million depending on what you're slotting.

I'm sorry, guys. I should just let this thread die, but you're misunderstanding me so completely that I feel the need to make myself plain.

Money is not the problem. It affects how I'll reslot him, and it eliminates the option of high-priced builds (including permaDom), but I know that I'll be able to afford the basics for my guy. I even know how to do it. Check my start date; this is not my first rodeo.

The problem is the playstyle. I don't remember it, and even if I did it won't play the way it did before. I wanted some assurance that Grav/Psi is still fun to play, and maybe some hints on how to play it.

For example: I took my guy for a short spin the other day and remembered his solo attack chain. I'd Wormhole (if it was up) a group of mobs, then run into the midst of them, hit PSW, Drain Psyche, Soul Drain, then PSW again, then clean up whatever was left with Subdue and Mind Probe and more PSW. If anything got near me I'd hit them with TK Thrust (which is slotted for knockback) and throw holds and (unslotted) Crush. Domination and Phase Shift (!) were my emergency buttons.

That attack chain is no longer valid. PSW does not recharge fast enough, and no longer has a 100% chance for stun (is that correct?). TK Thrust is now a damage attack that is wasted for knockback. The attacks I didn't take (Lift, Propel) now look like the best available.

I haven't remembered how he plays in a team yet. He has 6-slotted Psionic Lance. I think I stood back and threw Lance and Subdue, and went into my solo chain if anything got close or if I needed endurance. That's a laughable strategy now -- level 50 content is too full of enemies to rely on a sniper attack. I honestly don't see what my guy brings to a team. Certainly not control -- all he has is Wormhole and the single-target hold. I don't think he contributes much to damage from range, either.

More importantly, the level 50 game has gotten a lot more dangerous, and I don't know if a character with zero defenses can run into a horde of mobs anymore, even with Drain Psyche. I have never played a Blaster who worked at melee range. I have a scraptroller; she has capped S/L resistance and some defense, not to mention her controls, so she can survive in melee. I do not know how to build a melee Dominator. ('Scrapinator'?)

This guy was, somehow, a scrapinator. Probably because he was relying on the broken PSW. It don't work like it did no more.

So what is a successful play style for a Grav/Psi dominator? Probably one using the powers I haven't taken or haven't slotted. If I had played him up to 50 in the current era I'd have discovered the correct attack strategy for him. But his current attack strategies are suicidal and unfun.

I don't know how to respec him until I have an idea of which powers and strategies to rely upon, and that's why I came here. But there probably aren't many Grav/Psi players around to give playstyle and build advice.

It's probably best that I shelve him. Don't worry too much about it. One dominator retires; another one rises in the ranks. It's the circle of life.

I just died a little bit inside.

I understand your play-style concern. The good news is you can have some that back again..but you're going to need to let go of being strongly dependent on PSW.

My Suggestions:

Add Psychic Scream into your attack chain. Yes it's a cone..but with practice you master effectively positioning yourself to hit as many mobs as possible.

Consider dropping Soul Mastery and picking up the Ice APP instead. Get Sleet (30% resistance debuff) It's going work really well with you AoE immobilize, as I believe it doesn't mitigate the knockdown.

My suggestion for an attack chain.... Drop Sleet, Wormhole mobs on to the debuff patch, slap down your AoE immobilize (so they can't run away)...fire off drain psyche...initiate Ice Storm finish off the mobs with Psychic Scream.

If you go with the Fire APP instead..then you can combine Rain of Fire with your AoE immobilize and pepper with Drain Psyche, PSW, Psychic Scream and Fire Ball.....

Hope this is helpful...


Edit.....

What are you bringing to the team....
+ Regen debuff
+ Resistance debuff (if you go ice)
+ Massive Slows (Grav/Psi/Ice will be a -movement -recharge monster)
+ Damage...damage...and more damage.

I use a plant/psi/fire and I can tell you right now that your playstyle doesn't need to change all that much. Right now you can use wormhole, run in, DP, AoE Immob, PSW, Rain of Fire, Fire Ball and wait for stuff to die. Use PSW when it's back up or jump out to throw the cone attack.

If money isn't an issue then build for good recharge and PSW will be back as often as you need it. It's not stupidly OP like it was before, but it's still very awesome when you get enough recharge. Grav isn't a set that provides a lot of safety so... that's your biggest problem.

/Psy's AoE his been shifted from psy shockwave to Psy Scream/PsyShockwave.

Psy scream was boosted: it now outdamages psy shockwave. Skipping it will significantly reduce your AoE capabilities.

Also note that TK thust is almost as damaging as Mind Probe, and Mental Blast is just as good as Subdue now.

If you like melee, open with a control to stop the return fire, then use psy scream, run in for the psy shockwave/drain psyche combo, and use your melee's on things nearby. Does that help?