More recharge.
Tough/Weave
Inspirations
/Fire IS very squishy. You'll have to get used to it.
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Do you have/belong to an SG with an empowerment station? You can craft -KB there.|
Originally Posted by Chrysame
My KM/Fire brute is level 22. She feels so squishy. Does it get better? The same? How do you deal with the holes in /fire? I really don't want to reroll her.
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Otherwise, carry lucks and splurge on a few -KB Steadfasts. Then try to kill stuff before it kills you.
I've been having fun with my /fire, but only because I realized the best way to stay alive is to kill things quickly...Which is working very well for me. I do die on occasion, but don't really mind. Inspirations can cover me when needed.
50s: Yumi Eryuha-Arch/Energy, Mirria-Thugs/Dark, Meyami Kitsuna-Claws/SR, Celesta Seusen-SS/Invuln, Lady Mirriella-Illusion/Empathy
Arc 503982 "Dimension Xi Epsilon 22-10" Part one of a multi-part arc.
I have my own personal SG. Seriously? You have to use an empowerment station and rely on inspirations to make up for /fires holes? Yikes.
My fire armor characters are squishy and tiresome until they get 8 points of -KB and around 30% S/L defense, then it's smooth sailing and maximum burnination.
Combat Jumping + Karma Knockback protection = All status holes blocked, more or less.
50s: Yumi Eryuha-Arch/Energy, Mirria-Thugs/Dark, Meyami Kitsuna-Claws/SR, Celesta Seusen-SS/Invuln, Lady Mirriella-Illusion/Empathy
Arc 503982 "Dimension Xi Epsilon 22-10" Part one of a multi-part arc.
I'm thinking of using stone/fire. It looks like a solid combo in Mids. Just a few certain enhancements, like Everfree_Fire pointed out, and it should rock!
I have combat jumping already. Eight points of knockback protection, got it. I'll grab that and see if that makes a difference in the way she feels. Maybe it's the pairing with Kinetic Melee that isn't working.
If I still don't like it, I can always reroll. Twenty levels isn't too bad to repeat. Thanks for the responses.
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One of the things you have to keep in mind about Fire Aura is the development idea behind the aura. The conceptual idea behind Fire is that you trade off survivability for damage. Part of that lack of survivability is represented by the lack of any native protection to Knockback effects, and the only native protection to immobilize being located in the burn power. Another part of that lack of survivability is presented by the lack of any native protections that offer Defense. Fire has nothing to keep enemy powers from hitting you. |
Originally Posted by Chrysame
I have combat jumping already. Eight points of knockback protection, got it. I'll grab that and see if that makes a difference in the way she feels. Maybe it's the pairing with Kinetic Melee that isn't working.
If I still don't like it, I can always reroll. Twenty levels isn't too bad to repeat. Thanks for the responses. |
The Issue 18 update to Fire Aura largely fixed the ability of the set to actually output damage, making a more realistic trade-off of survivability for damage. The changes listed were the removal of the Fear patch on Burn, the entire revamping of Fiery Embrace to boost all melee attack powers damage, and the addition of a recovery buff to consume.
Something else to keep in mind is Fire Aura includes a high damaging self rez. At high levels, you might as well get used to the idea that Rise of the Phoenix is going to be part of your attack chain.
You do have a significant advantage as a brute of getting access to Darkest Night. You'll be waiting until level 44 to get to the power, but it is well worth taking.
* * *
Now, as to IO slotting, there are a couple of schools of thought on the subject.
Some players go for the omgIneedsoftcappeddefensessonothingcanhitme, and yes that is typed with no spaces because that thought concept annoys me. Fact is, Fire Aura has no defense debuff resistance. According to the ParagonWiki Attack mechanics, Defense Debuff Resistance reduces how much defense a power that debuffs defense takes away. This means that all it takes is 1 single attack from a single enemy, and unless you are way OVER the soft cap for a particular damage, you are no longer at the soft-cap. Remember, Fire Armor does not have the mez aura's that Dark Armor offers, or the end-drain ability of Electric Armor armor, so there is no power that will buy time for a defense debuff effect to wear off.
My own personal preference on Fire Armor, and the one that I have found is more effective for sustained combat, is to focus on Recharge Buffs and Hit Point Buffs. Many IO sets that buff your hit points will also buff your regeneration, such as the Numina set or Luck of the Gambler set.
The higher your base recharge is, the more often Healing Flames will be back up.
The higher your Hit Points are, the more attacks you can live through.
I also recommend picking up the Winter's Gift Slow Resistance Status IO. Coupled with Temperature Protection and you'll have 40% resistance to slow. That's kind of important when you are relying on Healing Flames to be your Auto-Power, and a single slow can ruin your whole day.
Also, on the subject of Knockback IO slotting, I've got Fire Armors with 4 kb IO's apiece for 16 mag knockback protection... and there's still stuff in the non-incarnate game that can send them flying.
If you do not intend to participate in Incarnate content, then you'll probably be perfectly fine with only 3 knockback IO's. If you intend to participate in the Incarnate content you'll certainly want at least 4 KB IO's. I suggest putting a Knockback IO proc in the Temperature Protection, combat jumping, tough, and weave powers.
Also, the reason I'm not posting screen-shots from my fire auras is that they are still all slotted for I18 and aren't redone for I19 and inherent fitness.
* * *
Finally: if this does seem a little daunting... well it is.
Fire Aura is one of the hardest sets to play in the game, and it is NOT a set I would recommend for new players to try. Given the limitations of Fire Aura I would be very hesitant to approach the set on a purely Single Origin and lite IO base.
I would also be very hesitant about coupling it with Kinetic Melee, especially on a Brute / Scrapper.
The big problem in my mind is that KM has a couple of sunk animation attacks. While the -minus damage portion of KM should combo well with Fire Aura's resistances, the sunken animation costs may offset that synchronicity. The lower base HP levels of the Brute / Scrapper and the lower values of the native Fire Resistances, and the lack of any enemy mitigation effects, means you could very easily be sunk into a KM animation and find yourself dead.
S/l def is very very helpful, not sure how easy it would be to get a decent chunk of that before you are 50 though. I dont really know if i can say it "gets better" but with IOs my SS/fire has become pretty darn tough and is my favorite toon.
Anyway, just go cheat and use a fire dmg mish in AE :P
"I have ridden the mighty moon worm!"
-Al Gore
Fiery Aura is only good for farming, I'm cereal
@Caucasiafro
je saist, I really appreciate your response. I am not a new player but I've only leveled one brute before this attempt. /Fire is one of the few sets I haven't leveled. I read and read before rolling her and thought I understood exactly what to expect. I was wrong. I do plan on using the incarnate system with this character.
I'm finding the long animations of KM aren't meshing well with a squishier secondary. At least not for me. I'm sure there are others who are excelling with this play style. I don't think I can accept having to use a self-rez as one of my damaging powers. You've given me a lot to consider.
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Ok 1st off, most everything will be dead before it even hits. When i farm the wall in cim with my SS/fire only 1 in every 5 mobs survive long enough to hit me with a def debuff attack. I can basically go forever almost never having to use my heal.|
Originally Posted by je_saist
Now, as to IO slotting, there are a couple of schools of thought on the subject.
Some players go for the omgIneedsoftcappeddefensessonothingcanhitme, and yes that is typed with no spaces because that thought concept annoys me. Fact is, Fire Aura has no defense debuff resistance. According to the ParagonWiki Attack mechanics, Defense Debuff Resistance reduces how much defense a power that debuffs defense takes away. This means that all it takes is 1 single attack from a single enemy, and unless you are way OVER the soft cap for a particular damage, you are no longer at the soft-cap. Remember, Fire Armor does not have the mez aura's that Dark Armor offers, or the end-drain ability of Electric Armor armor, so there is no power that will buy time for a defense debuff effect to wear off. My own personal preference on Fire Armor, and the one that I have found is more effective for sustained combat, is to focus on Recharge Buffs and Hit Point Buffs. Many IO sets that buff your hit points will also buff your regeneration, such as the Numina set or Luck of the Gambler set. The higher your base recharge is, the more often Healing Flames will be back up. The higher your Hit Points are, the more attacks you can live through. I also recommend picking up the Winter's Gift Slow Resistance Status IO. Coupled with Temperature Protection and you'll have 40% resistance to slow. That's kind of important when you are relying on Healing Flames to be your Auto-Power, and a single slow can ruin your whole day. Also, on the subject of Knockback IO slotting, I've got Fire Armors with 4 kb IO's apiece for 16 mag knockback protection... and there's still stuff in the non-incarnate game that can send them flying. If you do not intend to participate in Incarnate content, then you'll probably be perfectly fine with only 3 knockback IO's. If you intend to participate in the Incarnate content you'll certainly want at least 4 KB IO's. I suggest putting a Knockback IO proc in the Temperature Protection, combat jumping, tough, and weave powers. Also, the reason I'm not posting screen-shots from my fire auras is that they are still all slotted for I18 and aren't redone for I19 and inherent fitness.. |
2nd Winters gift, while useful, is a waste of time. If you can fit it, great if you can't it
Doesn’t matter.
3nd, 3 KB IOs totally enough even for incarnate content. The only thing that has KB higher than mag 12 if i recall correctly is Director 11s mines and lately I’ve only been KBed 1 out of 3 times I’ve ran it.
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Originally Posted by je_saist
Finally: if this does seem a little daunting... well it is.
Fire Aura is one of the hardest sets to play in the game, and it is NOT a set I would recommend for new players to try. Given the limitations of Fire Aura I would be very hesitant to approach the set on a purely Single Origin and lite IO base. I would also be very hesitant about coupling it with Kinetic Melee, especially on a Brute / Scrapper. The big problem in my mind is that KM has a couple of sunk animation attacks. While the -minus damage portion of KM should combo well with Fire Aura's resistances, the sunken animation costs may offset that synchronicity. The lower base HP levels of the Brute / Scrapper and the lower values of the native Fire Resistances, and the lack of any enemy mitigation effects, means you could very easily be sunk into a KM animation and find yourself dead. |
"I have ridden the mighty moon worm!"
-Al Gore
Fiery Aura is only good for farming, I'm cereal
@Caucasiafro
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Yes, it gets quite a bit better if you know how to build it. My /fire scrapper runs on 45% S/L defense and 65% rchg, which makes it /very/ survivable. I don't feel the squishyness of fire that most other people complain about.|
Originally Posted by Chrysame
My KM/Fire brute is level 22. She feels so squishy. Does it get better? The same? How do you deal with the holes in /fire? I really don't want to reroll her.
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Originally Posted by ultrawatt
I disagree, i find that FA is BETTER on a brute or scrapper(and best on a brute because of just how awesome FE is) because FA gets its awesome from killing stuff, which brutes and scrappers are better at. |
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Originally Posted by Emberly
My fire armor characters are squishy and tiresome until they get 8 points of -KB and around 30% S/L defense, then it's smooth sailing and maximum burnination.
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I have two /FA Brutes at 50, a SS/Fire and a Dark/Fire.
Its a set designed for dealing damage, I mean it has a Buildup power in its armor. Melee sets with long activations on its attacks feel FA weakness the most. You will feel very squishy till you get that toon IOd up, I suggest a recharge build so your heal comes back faster. I'll also echo that Tough helps quite a bit as most attacks in the game deal s/l damage. Make sure to take your self rez if you don't plan on building some defense into your build.
Stick with it, at 22 you might feel under par compared to other sets. By 50, you'll burn through the competition. 
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Do you still have 12 points of KB protection? Ive only got 60% rech and 45.7% def.
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Originally Posted by DreadShinobi
Yes, it gets quite a bit better if you know how to build it. My /fire scrapper runs on 45% S/L defense and 65% rchg, which makes it /very/ survivable. I don't feel the squishyness of fire that most other people complain about.
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"I have ridden the mighty moon worm!"
-Al Gore
Fiery Aura is only good for farming, I'm cereal
@Caucasiafro
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In most PvE situations 12 is way more then enough, I mean my Bane has 7 and only seen him kb'd by an AV on rare occasions. One of my fire armor brutes only has 8 and he does fine.
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Originally Posted by ultrawatt
Do you still have 12 points of KB protection? Ive only got 60% rech and 45.7% def.
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Okay, I'm feeling my way through a build. I've found a few KM/FA scrap builds but they don't seem to have much knockback protection.
What happens to Fiery Embrace? It is not doing anything on mine. And on the power description page, it is empty.
It does not do anything to boost damage either.
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yes, mag 12 kb protection, and 15.5% dmg buff + assault and can run the top FM attack chain. The build's only weakness is endurance but I've still got consume+conserve power.
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Originally Posted by ultrawatt
Do you still have 12 points of KB protection? Ive only got 60% rech and 45.7% def.
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Originally Posted by Angelic_EU
What happens to Fiery Embrace? It is not doing anything on mine. And on the power description page, it is empty.
It does not do anything to boost damage either. |
Its not a flat damage bonus to everything which is why it doesn't show. IIRC it gives a 100% to Fire based powers for 30 seconds. I believe it was about 80% for 10 seconds for non fire type. You'd really only notice it on a Fire Melee/Fire Armor toon (This is a guess all 3 of my Fire Armor toons are not Fire Melee)
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The first sentence here is right, but the rest is not. You described the old fiery embrace. It isn't a damage buff in the sense most people are used to, but instead it adds fire damage to each attack. I'm not certain on the exact numbers, but I'll give an example. |
Originally Posted by Gypsy_of_Paradox
Its not a flat damage bonus to everything which is why it doesn't show. IIRC it gives a 100% to Fire based powers for 30 seconds. I believe it was about 80% for 10 seconds for non fire type. You'd really only notice it on a Fire Melee/Fire Armor toon (This is a guess all 3 of my Fire Armor toons are not Fire Melee)
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Let's say my footstomp does 200pts of smashing dmg. I hit FE and now my footstomp does 200 pts of smashing damage, and 100 pts of fire damage as well.
It will not show up as a % damage buff, because it isn't buffing the base damage, it is adding a second damage component. Think of it as having a "chance of fire damage" proc that has a 100% chance of going off on each attack for the duration of FE.
Fiery Embrace hasn't been a damage buff of any sort since I18. Instead, it adds a fully enhanceable fire damage component to all of your attacks for 20 seconds. The added damage is usually about 45% of the base damage. This is a much better deal for everyone, fire/fire included.
Yeah fiery embrace now adds a +45% fire damage boost to all of your attacks, which scales with fury. It can make for some intense moments as burn + FE + 70ish% fury does around 550 damage to the suckers dumb enough to stand by you. And with blazing aura's taunt component they'll -want- to stand by you. Paired with claw's spin (or any other amazing AE) you can tear through groups in quick fashion.
I have a lvl 50 claw/FA and even while at 45% S/L defense and a 12 second recharge on healing flames there are times I got owned hard. You will need to learn what enemy groups will give your toon problems and either lower your difficulty when facing them or just simply avoid them altogether. It is definitely a "good offense is the best defense" mindset here... and sometimes that won't even be enough.
Also, in regards to Rise of the Phoenix... it's hit or miss. Yeah it's a great rez and does good damage, but in my experience if the mobs can defeat me they will just plant my face in the dirt again after the rez. It delivers its damage in three ticks + does KB, so there will be a lot of occasions where mobs will take that innitial 111 damage tick and be knocked out of the range of the last two ticks. It stuns them too, but that really doesn't matter as you will have that untouchable state in effect (helpful for team mates I suppose tho).
Also, all of your toggles are down after you "Rise", and in your fifteen seconds of invulnerability you will need to determine one of the following: mop up the critters if only a few remain, spend that time retoggling, or run for your life. I'll admit though... it feels awesome to hit RotP and watch something actually die to it. Payback, /FA style!
Overall, the set isn't -bad-, just be offensive minded and know you aren't an invul, SR, shield brute and can't take the same licks that those defensive sets do (unless you are fighting mobs with lots of fire attacks). It's one of those things you'll probably need to determine for yourself, as some folks love it and some don't. My advice: get FE and burn before giving up on the set, those powers are what turn it into a massive damage powerhouse.
Yea I wasn't sure on the bonus itself, My two fire armor brutes are SS and DM. So with either rage or soul drain running plus fury, its just pretty numbers. lol
My KM/Fire brute is level 22. She feels so squishy. Does it get better? The same? How do you deal with the holes in /fire? I really don't want to reroll her.