Convert this Blaster into a Stalker

So here's the story, made short.

My main was an Energy/Energy Blaster. Mainly soloed. My tactics and playstyle continued to evolve over the course of his career until about level 35. It was then that I picked up SuperSpeed, even though I'm a flyer. Because it matched my concept. Well. When I used it in tandem with Stealth everything changed.

This guy went from struggling to get through missions, to being my ultimate boss killer. His concept allowed me to RP it as he would hurt as few as possible to reach his goal. So, needless to say his style was refined to such a degree that he became a stealth assasin.

Fast forward to GR. I rolled up my Praetorian clone Eng/Eng blaster to roll redside. He's currently at level 30 and automatically became a stealther.
Bringing back such fond memories...

I digress.

So while I was running past the black market I realized I'd basically turned my Blaster into a Stalker and it got me to wondering if I'd enjoy one of them as much.

So...

To the Stalker experts out there.
Which combo would you advise for a longtime Blaster, sometimes scrapper, that prefers to be a boss killer?

Any tactics or strategies I should be aware of? I've never used Placate before...

100% solo 1-50.


(as an aside; my usual goto tactic is to stealth to the boss. Then stand in his face and hit Aim+BU and then Bonesmash>TF> mop up with Burst. Then wipeout the minions with Torrent and blasts.)

um....with the stalker i play currently the most....that is exactly what i do.

My set of choice lately have been Kinetic/Energy

In this case i use an Assassin strike with a build up...sometimes putting in extra damage or accuracy and kill the target. Kinetic also gives me a area of effect power called burst....which if you want you could then clean up just as you described.

Kinetic is a tad slow but looks really neat also has some cool sound effects.

The thing with placate is to use it when you are attacking something that isnt going to die from one single hit.....also strategic usage can eliminate potential threats and problems.

I admit that stalker damage isnt as great as Blaster damage most of the time..and no this is not some hate on stalkers its how it is.....but stalkers do get some good defenses and hide doesnt have to get turned off and runs even when you run out of energy which is a big plus and stalker get a bonus to perform criticals when they are on a team.

I dont know....sounds like you should have no trouble making and playing a stalker....oh one more thing though...you might at lower levels feel like you are alot weaker then when you did your blasters....thats normal....the health for stalkers goes up differently....eventualy you should have a little bit more health then you did as a blaster.

Only thing you wont be doing is big area of effect mass kills....you will only be able to pull off smaller area of effect attacks and most of the time wont kill but will some serious damage....but on the bright side you wont lose all your energy right off for doing that....
and you will go back into hide mode fairly fast.

I personaly will suggest that what ever powers you choose....dont give up if they dont work the way you think they should....keep trying and playing....becasue eventualy you will reach a certain threshhold on a stalker with any of the power choices that yes you will still feel weak but you will be able to handle alot more then any of the other charcter archtypes....becasue of your hide and placate and the differing things each power set has to offer...and at that point you will start to feel more capable then anyone else...and laugh when they try to mimic you.

>>>-----Its becasue i am a Stalker....its what i do....i do the things no one else seams to be able to.<<<<

Kinetic Energy/Nin?

That might be what you are looking for or even Kinetic/SR. Kinetic/Energy Aura can work too.

Concept work:

-Claws could be your Blaster manifesting his "pompoms of doom" into deadly razor-sharp points...of energy. Use the Vanguard Claws and an aura to get the effect. You've got Focus and Shockwave as your throwback 'blasts' from his other style.

-Kinetics does the same but it'll look different. Hey, but it's still a ranged blast with consistent KD.

-Energy Melee is kind of 'gheh' for concept but since he had energy melee attacks as a blaster, you can dip into Force Mastery for blasts like Energy Torrent.

-Martial Arts with the proper combat auras. MA is actually a particularly good ST set because it's fast and hits hard. No AoEs though so you might have to look elsewhere for something to take down groups.

Of the armors, I enjoy Willpower, Energy Aura and Dark Armor. Each of those melee sets pair pretty well with any of those armors. No glaring holes or anything. If you enjoy the style of an assassin, you might enjoy Stalkers.

But if you *rely* on the style, you might get frustrated. There are lots of ambushes that will home in through your stealth and there are enemies that can see through invisibility. You might be aware of this, but it's there. Just don't be afraid to stop hiding and get your hands dirty and I think you'll have lots of fun.

Thanks for the advice. Think I'll give Kin/Nin a try.

I can relate. I've typically played my Blasters and Stalkers the same way
from a tactical standpoint - It works for me, and I enjoy them.

It's nice to come across someone who views it similarly.

You may also want to give Electric Melee / * some consideration. While
it's not Energy, per se, it is *energy* It's also a pretty cool looking
set and comes with plenty of AoE. Maybe try it as your 2nd stalker.

Yeah, I toyed around a bit last night. Was worried that the sound of Kin would be grating but I actually enjoy it. The visual flare makes me think of a Kung-Fu Grandmaster. But I'm not sold on it for a Stalker concept.

I tried a few various concepts but the Kinetic set just screams 'show me off' so I'm now thinking of a few Scrapper concepts with the set in mind.

Which brings me to Electric/Ninjitsu. Rolled up a concept character that just seemed to mesh right off. Picked Nin because it seemed to offer the best array of tools, while not feeling like a scrapper secondary. Quickly got to level 4 for Ninja Run and off we go!


Still loving my Villainess Blaster, the SS+Stealth aspect and Blasts keep them different enough that I'll enjoy rolling both!