If you don't like single-target focus then quite honestly I have to ask are you sure you want to play a stalker at all?
Your best bet will be Electric or Spines and of the two I recommend Electric over Spines. But even then all stalkers are more single-target focused than scrappers or brutes.
As for the secondary, your goal with dark armor is to ensure you live long enough to get the heal off. With half-way decent slotting you can heal to full off of two targets reliably. You want not only end reduction but you really, really want to get the endurance proc for theft of essence. It only costs two villain/hero merits if you have someone who can run them.
Some oppose it, but I do recommend picking up the self-rez, when it goes off it is a long-duration Mag 30 stun that will hit an AV through the Purple Triangles. I have found it worthwhile dying just to stun an AV long enough to get the team back up after a problem.
Opinion on the stun and fear auras varies. I like the fear because while the stun will only get minions, the fear will at least give every enemy an -acc penalty (though against AVs and GMs the penalty is very small). Also the stun causes enemies to stagger away, the fear causes them to stand still and cower, if they start to run, it will stop them.
Adding some defense (I recommend S/L) makes a huge difference. Mine is missing Murky Form which is one of the key defense toggles, does not have maneuvers, combat jumping, toughness or weave and I can hold my own against +1x6 spawns easily and depending on the enemy group sometimes +2/x8.
"Hmm, I guess I'm not as omniscient as I thought" -Gavin Runeblade.
I can be found, outside of paragon city here.
Thank you everyone at Paragon and on Virtue. When the lights go out in November, you'll find me on Razor Bunny.
Thanks for the reply, and yes, I realize the Stalker archetype is very single target oriented, I suppose I was originally trying to come up with a scrapper-like stalker, but I understand the folly of this now. xD I just love the stalker playstyle.
The main worry I had was related to endurance with /DA, but I really appreciate the tip with theft of essence, a very good idea. After further research, I think I'm going to go with Dual Blades as a primary. It looks like a good set, and the few cones are icing on the cake. Endurance might be a hassle, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there. Thanks!
Quote:
There is nothing wrong with that. But when I think of 'scrapper-like stalker' I'm thinking of one that just jumps in and hits stuff...nothing to do with AoEs.|
Originally Posted by Weather Lord
Thanks for the reply, and yes, I realize the Stalker archetype is very single target oriented, I suppose I was originally trying to come up with a scrapper-like stalker, but I understand the folly of this now. xD I just love the stalker playstyle.
|
And the comment that Stalkers are more ST focused is kind of a generalized statement. Yes, the AT has a means of dishing out higher ST damage but that doesn't mean it cannot do meaningful (or just as much) AoE dmg as the other melees at the same time. You just have to pick the right sets for what you want to do.
From what I can tell, you want a balanced set with some AoE and good ST damage:
Katana- You'll be pretty hard to kill with a Kat/DA. With Divine Avalanche to buff your defense, resists to back up when you get hit and a heal that fills you back up, there's really not that much that will put you down except ToHit debuffs and/or high defense foes. It's got solid ST damage and some AoE in Flashing Steel and Golden Dragonfly.
Kinetic Melee- Probably what I'd suggest for you. With the PBAoE, just maximize slotting that power for your AoE needs and enjoy the stuns of the rest of the set. Pick up Oppressive Gloom and frankenslot your attacks for a bit of a stun sting while reaping the rewards of -dmg softening the blows on your resist shields.
Dual Blades- Eh, I've heard DB can be endurance hungry. From my experience with it, it can be mitigated with proper slotting. However, trying to fit the combos in with your other forms of mitigation is up to you. Can't really think of a good synergy there. But of the melee sets, it is the most balanced. It has *very* nice ST damage and burst that puts it up there with other ST sets yet has several AoE options in Sweeping Strike, 1kCuts and Sweep combo.
Claws- Isn't actually as bad as you think. The ST damage of the set is good yet comes out fast, BU recharges quickly and Shockwave is a great mitigation tool and damage built into one. But if you have played it on a Brute/Scrapper, you'll probably miss Follow up/Spin.
Electric Melee- The main reason I'd suggest it is to stack stuns with Oppressive Gloom. It's ST damage is pretty slow and moderate but it's AoE dmg is just as good (if not better) than the other melee ATs. If you like the set, you'll still like the set on Stalkers.
That said, Dark Armor still has downfalls you want to get past. Endurance will drain quickly if you have to use Dark Regen a lot, so defense or soft control will help a lot (also IOs). Low max HP will make those resist less noticable...so buffing your max HP, debuffing the enemy or stacking other types of mitigation will help there. Lastly, the complexity of the set with all its debuffs/controls is the selling point of the set. Find some means to exploit them for your benefit otherwise they might hinder you.
Don't forget Broadsword; all the benefits of Ninja Blade without looking like a ninja.
My guides:Dark Melee/Dark Armor/Soul Mastery, Illusion Control/Kinetics/Primal Forces Mastery, Electric Armor
"Dark Armor is a complete waste as a tanking set."
Broadsword is dead to me >_>
Hmm, thanks for the advice. I'm really beginning to lean towards either Ninja Blade/ or Kin/ now. Personally, I never really liked the animations for Kin/ so much, but I've never tried the set before so I can't say much about that.
I've always loved DB and claws on all my scrappers, but I simply can't stand playing a Claws/* character without Follow Up and Spin. Those two powers make the set for me, and I know changes had to be made for the Stalker version, but still... =/
Even so, just my opinion.
As far as Broadsword is concerned, I love the theme (especially on a Stalker), but... the set simply isn't for me.
Thanks again.
Quote:
I feel the same way. It is slower than nin/ or kat/ and does less damage over time and uses more endurance. All in all inferior. Has some advantage for PvP with being more bursty, but in PvE, it is, not gimp but almost. Certainly there is no mathematical reason to choose it over nin. By the numbers it is flat-out inferior and the more inf you put into your build the farther it falls behind.
|
Originally Posted by Leo_G
Broadsword is dead to me >_>
|
"Hmm, I guess I'm not as omniscient as I thought" -Gavin Runeblade.
I can be found, outside of paragon city here.
Thank you everyone at Paragon and on Virtue. When the lights go out in November, you'll find me on Razor Bunny.
Well I was mainly talking about Broadsword's animations...but I can kind of see it that way too.
BS's advantage, burst damage, kind of isn't what a Stalker lacks. What a Stalker needs more of is plain DPS which you can get from Katana. For burst? You've got placate and Assassin's Blade sitting right there...
....and also, BS's attack is called 'Assassin's Slash' but there ain't no slash! I *might* have played it if there was a slash (and it looked cool) but NOOooooOOOOo...
I have a Kin/DA Stalker I took to 50 and I really liked the combo. Having just the one PBAoE isn't so bad since that one has a 100% crit chance from hide, so a BU->Burst from Hide does some decent damage.
If you want to squeeze a little more AoE from /DA you could try proccing up Cloak of Fear. I have two damage procs in mine and while it's not exactly going to wow you, it is a nice source of a little extra passive damage. Every now and then I see a minion I'm not attacking just fall down and I smile.
Hello fellow Stalkers,
I'm looking for some advice and opinions for an upcoming Stalker concept I have. Although some have mixed feelings when it comes to Dark Armor as a secondary set for Stalkers, I have my heart set on trying it out.
Basically, my question revolves around what primary set would go well with Dark Armor? I have played several */Nin Stalkers, and have some experience with how the Archetype works. I like the way Dark Melee looks and the cones from Dual Blades are very appealing, however endurance management could be a problem. I refuse to use Claws/ or Energy/ because of how Single-Target focused the sets are, but I try to keep an open mind. Any and all opinions would be appreciated.
Thanks for your help and time!