7 Years of Scrappers

My fellow Scrappers, it has been a pleasure enforcing violence and chaos with you for these past 7 years.

I've enjoyed comparing Pylon times, reading about how someone soloed multiple AVs, working on Mids' builds with the community for your characters and mine, getting into the nitty gritty of any maths that are relevant to our interests, hosting and participating in "All Scrapper" runs, squeeling like a little girl when new toys arrive (new sets and proliferations), and many, many other fun and lively discussions we've had here.

Scrappers, you're a helpful community, you're an engaging community, you're a community that seeks challenge just to break it, you're my favorite community on these boards.

Thanks for being so awesome. Here's to another 7 years of Scrappers!

I approve. If it weren't for the Scrapper forums, there is no doubt in my mind I would have left the game for good by now.

My first character back in CoH pre-release was a Kat/SR Scrapper. I still have him. He's all of level 30. SR sucked for a long time, and I never really got attached to him as a result. He could be awesome these days if I'd just get 'round to him.

My second character was a BS/Invuln Scrapper. He's level 50, and I still play him, often. Back when I created him, Invuln was pretty crazy, even though you had to be rooted to have mez protection. He didn't get mez protection until he was 30+ because of that. Back then, that wasn't nearly such a big deal. When he got mez protection, he became a tele-scrapper. Man, I do not miss how Unyielding used to be Unyielding Stance.

Characters three through five were a Blaster, Tanker and Defender. I still have them all. There may have been an extra Blaster in there which I deleted.

My next character, created just before I2, was a DM/Regen Scrapper. Those were the days for Regen.

I'm a melee man for sure. Most of my L50s are melee characters. The largest group of those level 50s, though, are all Scrappers.

Edit: By the way. Scrappers - the most popular level 50s, and the richest AT in CoH.

My best stories are of saying, "F IT!" and trying to see what I can spawn-dive and stay up to beat.

My DM/Regen soloed my first AV (Nightstar, at that), and is my first 50. Leveled him up when all of my family was still playing instead of just my wife.

My DM/Shield is just stupid powerful and growing (I am not even finished slotting him yet, and have soloed AVs, put down Pylons in good time and gotten to the point where I kill time with RWZ challenges).

My DM/SR has become my go-to tip guy. He just blitzes through them seemingly no matter what they are, and has gotten a few Glad +3s for my Shieldies.

And, last, but not least, my Elm/Shd/Fire. Oh, ode to my walking nuke.

I remember when I was PuGing portal missions in PI about 2 years ago on my newly softcapped DM/SR(my first 50), and a controllers imps aggroed two spawns at once. I Jumped in to a spawn of 20 or so +3 of the old Praetorian clockwork, and the rest of the team took the other. I had no aoes other than Soul Drain and Shadow Maul, but I was able to take the spawn down to 5 from 18 in the time it took the rest of the team to finish the other spawn.

I got three tells from other team members asking what my secondary was. Since then I have mostly stopped playing SR since other secondaries can surpass it's survivability, but that was when I knew I was a scrapper at heart.

Well my sig says it all...
My very fist character is the BS/Inv




But those others below are really scrappers

My second character was MA/SR, after my Energy/Energy blaster. I've seen MA/SR through every issue, every patch, and every release. After seven years, its practically a completely different character. I believe that combination has seen the wildest swings in performance up and down in the history of the game.

At the beginning of time, it was common to see SR scrappers street hunt in memorized raceway tracks in and around contacts. Why? Because we needed insps to stay alive. Our toggles were practically glorified combat auras. At a time when teams were going up against +4s and +5s, our defenses were like gasoline-soaked tissue paper. Keep in mind the "soft cap" didn't exist back then: to floor a +4 boss required 90% defense. That's hard to get even today.

Then I2 comes along and everything changes. Elude goes from being the whoopie cushion of scrapper powers to one of the most powerful. Its crash kept sucking all your endurance away, but it was pure unadulterated evasiveness, and you can't see anything like its power today: back then you could drive most foes right down to the 5% floor if you had enough defense, and today the best you can do is "only" 90% mitigation with defense. In real terms perma-elude back then was like having soft-capped defenses today plus 48% resistance.

Then ED comes along and SR ends up being the only scrapper secondary which can't actually diversify slotting. You can slot Dull Pain for heal and recharge. You can't slot any of the SR toggles or passives for anything except defense (and endurance reduction). Positron says, in response to my complaint about this, that this is an advantage for SR because SR can't use very many slots, you can use them in your primary. I miss the opportunity to invent facepalming.

Then DDR and inventions comes along, and perma-elude makes a spiritual comeback with the soft-capped build, which always existed prior to that point but was fragile due to cascade failure and generally extremely expensive - in endurance - to run.

I have many scrappers - Katana/Invuln, DB/Will, DM/Regen, Claws/Regen, KM/Fire, etc - but my MA/SR is still my favorite. I feel like she's fought the good fight with me. The game owes her a lot: she's ultimately responsible for helping to change how defense is used in the game, finally fixing the bad labels on lucks and insights, even Arcanatime comes from tests conducted partially with her. She's even directly responsible for why Luck of the Gambler: Defense/+GlobalRecharge isn't tagged unique, which means practically every min/maxer and alignment merit farmer owes her big time (send all influence donations to Violet Rumble, c/o @Arcanaville).

My main was and still is the first character I rolled and played seriously, my En/En blaster. She's my main badge hunter, the character I do everything with first, the character I play all content on, the character I first leveled to 50, the first character I threw at Incarnate content. But my MA/SR has always been my journeyman character: she does everything, never complains, adapts to changing conditions, finds a way to win. Even in the incarnate trials where tohit is boosted and autohitting cannons are sniping her and critters are using vengeance as a stacking toggle and burst damage is ludicrous, she finds a way. I was worried the Incarnate content would be frustrating for her, but she's a joy to play in the trials. Even when she dies: she bounces back up, loads up on lucks, and throws herself back into the fight.

Seven years of Eagle's Claw doesn't get old.

Wow, I just found a saved copy of a post I made when American Steele (my BS/Inv) hit 50 ... on 04/22/2006.

I took my time with him on purpose. Back then, I avoided hitting 50, because it felt like "the end". I did it with him before any other, even though I got others much closer first, because he's always been my concept favorite, it not always my favorite performer.

Back then, I used to avoid 50, because back then, there wasn't really much to do then. Back in the day, there wasn't any repeatable content, not even TFs. Nowadays that's all radically different, of course, and Inventions breathed new life into me getting all sorts of characters to 50. But I got Steele there first.

Ah, for the days of 3.75% defense per foe in range of Invincibility, when foes could be stacked infinitely, and there was no aggro cap.

Speaking of stacking infinitely, I recall herding a ton of level 42-ish Nemesis Jaegers on the south end of PI, and hitting them all with Head Splitter. Despite pre-ED defenses, the resulting explosion(s) nearly killed me. Amusingly, people not on my team were passing by, and they actually stopped and looked because of the loudness and shaking of the blast. They said they thought that someone had used Inferno until they took a look at this bloodied Scrapper standing there with a Broadsword out. They actually did the chat version of cheering for me.

My own first toon was a BS/Regen. Can't remember the issue, pre-i6 anyway.

Oddly since I quit then returned I've been playing Tankers more than Scrappers. Still right now I have a high level (41) BS/SD Scrapper on a side burner and new Elec/Elec that seems promising. Although in mids I can only get her S/L Def to 35%... Not sure if that's common for scraps or not with a non-def based toon. Maybe I'll post the build for review sometime.

Anyhow, all said if I main Tankers then Scrapper's what I use when I feel different.

Who remembers when Scrappers were the gimp AT?

Here's a 2-Scrapper story. Back in one of the phases when Elude was useful but not perma-able, I was running an MA/SR Scrap on a team with a Fire Tanker and another /SR Scrapper (and some other characters as well). We were doing pretty well against reds and purples and having good team chemistry.

In one of those rooms where aggro can come from overhead, a whole crap-ton of bad guys start dropping down onto the Tanker, and he goes down like a sack of potatoes. The Zerg-swarm of red and purple standing over his body had juuuuust started to move toward the rest of us when I hit my Elude panic button.

The other Scrapper was standing next to me, and we both executed the Elude backflip animation at the exact same instant, perfectly synchronized.

And then it was ON.

and of course you cannot forget this!

Written by CaptainAdept
On the Care and Feeding of Your Scrapper (V2.0)

So, you've decided to make a scrapper a part of your team, congratulations! Not everyone is suited for the time and care required by a scrapper, however, so it is necessary to understand your scrapper in order to gain the most appreciation and enjoyment from your association. So, before you enter into such a commitment, do your research! Make sure this is the right thing for you!

Section 1: Varieties

Many people will tell you that the most important choice in a scrapper is his inherent powers. Some will tell you a Spines is better than one with Claws, or those who demonstrate tool-using abilities are favored over those who simply use the gifts of Nature in their work. Still others will argue that the scrapper's gifts of survival are more important; that those who can reduce or avoid damage are inferior to those who have learned the abilities to heal more rapidly (and thus, reduce trips to the vet for cases of the snuffles).

This is, in a word, untrue. The scrapper is a creature which, by nature, thrives in the madness of melee combat, and the method of that survival is irrelevant provided they have learned HOW to survive. The different varieties of scrapper, therefore, are more a psychological matter than physiological. In general, there are three main varieties of scrapper:

1. The Wild or Savage Scrapper (Scrappus Devastatus, sometimes known as Scrappus Solous): The Wild Scrapper is a truly unique creature, and the second most rare type of scrapper. Scrappus Devastatus is the scrapper which has never teamed to any significant degree, and is utterly unprepared for the dynamic of a team. The Savage Scrapper is so completely rare due to the nature of Task Forces and Trials: situations which force a team experience upon anyone who attempt to take them on. The solution for Scrappus Devastatus is obvious; he can opt to avoid them entirely, which is more common, or, in a particularly aberrant and extreme example, will ask others to join him solely for the purpose of starting the Task Force, which he will then proceed to finish alone. A similar difficulty for Scrappus Devastatus is the existence of the Arch Villain, that most notorious of opponent. These adversaries are inevitably met by one of three responses: He is either avoided entire, much to the scrapper's annoyance; he is taken on in a straight up-fight, which will either send the scrapper to the hospital, repeatedly, or else serve as a point of pride throughout the scrapper's career, or he will be outlevelled and summarily trounced. Note that this creature is not stupid by any stretch of the imagination. Due to experience as a young hunter, Scrappus Solous has little difficulty knowing when to retreat from a losing battle, and will do so if he feels it necessary.

2. The Feral Scrapper (Scrappus Paranoicus): This variety of scrapper is, by far, the most common of scrappers. The Feral Scrapper is that creature which has soloed for the vast majority of his career, only teaming for one of three reasons. Firstly, a Feral Scrapper may have felt the call of the Task Force, and thus joined in a team fora greater cause. Second, a Feral Scrapper may have run across an Arch Villain and, lacking the patience and utter and complete psychosis of the Savage Scrapper, chose to take the simpler solution and call together a team for the purposes of taking out this annoyance. Third, the Feral Scrapper is not completely without compassion, and he may have taken pity on another archetype which is unsuited to combat without assistance. As a result, the Feral Scrapper often has a good idea of the proper behavior in group settings, though he may take some time to adapt to the new settings.

3. The Civilized Scrapper (Scrappus Domesticus): The Civilized Scrapper, sometimes referred to derisively by the other varieties of scrapper as the "pet" scrapper or the "housescrapper," Scrappus Domesticus is the rarest breed of scrapper, although he is somewhat more likely to be noticed than the other two varieties. Whereas Scrappus Devastatus and Paranoicus avoid teaming unless there is some overriding compulsion, Domesticus has spent his entire career surrounded by other heroes and thrives in social settings. As a result, this breed has developed a "team sense" far in advance of his contemporaries, and is willing to do whatever is required for the good of the team. He is equally content playing the role of tanker or melee powerhouse as he is protecting the less resilient members of the team from stray villains, and whatever role he is given, he will likely still maintain this "guard dog" mentality, should any villains manage to escape him and go after the less offensive members of the team.

A note of Caution: It is IMPERATIVE that you determine exactly what form of scrapper you have adopted. It is not always a simple matter to determine from superficial appearances or short-term experience. There is many a Wild Scrapper who has been mistaken for a Civilized simply because he displays patience in the initial stages of team forming, or is capable of chatting amiably to pass the time. Likewise, it is possible for a Civilized to be mistaken as a Feral or even Savage due to impatience in beginning the task, simply because he is so eager to prove his worth.

Note also that it is possible for a Scrapper to spend time duoing extensively and still maintain his Wild nature. The dynamic of a duo is radically different from a full team, and that a scrapper participates in a long-term, successful duo is only proof that even a Wild Scrapper is capable of adapting to the particular idiosyncrasies of the partner he has taken as his own. Indeed, it is not at all uncommon for the Wild Scrapper, in a display of paternal or maternal instinct, to "adopt" another scrapper or even a "lesser" archetype for protection and guidance.

Section 2. On the Care of Your Scrapper.

Note that Scrappus Domesticus is an inherently team-oriented creature, and most of the following information is, therefore, inapplicable. However, it should be noted that all scrappers are capable of fulfilling many roles, from bodyguard and "boss assassin" to light tanking duties. Therefore, one should not assume that even a Civilized Scrapper automatically knows what you expect of him; in ANY team setting, it is imperative that all members know the proper tactics and roles of all members.

Scrappers tend towards loners and soloists; indeed, many aspire to solo even archvillains by themselves. This is not due to any inherent antisocial nature, rather it is a state of independence and self-sufficiency. Properly cared for, a scrapper can be quite jovial and friendly. The result of this nature, though, means that scrappers are, in many cases either unwilling or unable to admit the need for support on a team.

In recognition of this unusual nature, it is important to follow several guidelines.

1. First one in. In this case, should you have a Tank in your team, it should be made clear to the scrapper that the Tank is the point man. Scrappers are used to being the ONLY person on a team, so when they are ready, everyone is. Likewise, they are used to being the sole point of attention, and many regard themselves as a form of tank, or, more often, as a living blender. In this case, communication is required. Note that this is more pronounced among the Wild Scrappers than the Feral. Ferals will usually take the time to check everyone's health and endurance before charging in, although they will likely be out-of-practice in the beginning of the team experience. Watch your scrapper in the early stages of any team and make sure he knows not to leave until you are ready. It is best to prearrange a signal (such as "ready") so that he will not mistake a pre-fight checkup for being prepared to assault.

2. Defined roles. Also resulting from the scrapper's tendency of soloing is his tendency of thinking of himself as the "everything man." He grabs aggro, destroys bad guys, and in many cases, takes care of healing and buffing himself. In teams, therefore, it is not unusual for a scrapper to play exactly as he would outside a team. Again, communication is critical. First, the scrapper must know what you expect of him, and you must find out what he expects of YOU. This might seem obvious, but I have found that in many teams, the players are so used to the roles of different ATs being so well-defined that the wild-card nature of the scrapper is overlooked. Note that this rule applies even to the Civilized Scrapper, and is a cardinal rule of teaming with a Scrapper of any breed.

3. Scrapperlock. This, then, is probably the most important aspect of the scrapper to account for in a team. Scrapperlock is a nearly-constant and utterly incurable condition. This condition ranges from the need to be smashing thugs nearly constantly to gunning for that ONE GUY that put him down regardless of the cost. As a result of this condition, it is necessary to allow the scrapper to cause havoc in his own fashion. In many cases, this is simple: Scrappers are designed to take on bosses, so let them handle the boss.

However, the issue arises when there is no boss in a particular fight. In this case, blasters take especial note, a scrapper will choose a "lesser" target, usually a Lt, and designate it has his own. It is imperative that no one else fire upon this target AT ALL. This is "the scrapper's;" terminating it or assisting can injure the self-sufficient pride of the scrapper. If "assistance" is rendered repeatedly, disgruntlement can be fostered leading the scrapper to do something dangerous, such as hare off on his own, simply so he can find and terminate a target without interference.

Note that there are three conditions where firing upon the target of a scrapper may be forgiven.
A. If a target is nearly terminated and it would be a waste of both time and endurance to finish the target, it is permissible to finish the target of a scrapper. In many cases, this tendency will around the scrappers paternal or maternal nature; it is not uncommon for scrappers to come to an informal agreement, sometimes unspoken agreement, with a defender for the purposes of terminating nearly-defeated targets. The defender feels that he is contributing to the team, while the scrapper spends more time taking care of the important targets.

B. If a scrapper is taking a long while about terminating his target, to the degree that it is impeding the team, then it is permissible to join in. Note that the scrapper will become annoyed if there are a number of targets still active when a person decides to "help out." If there is another target to engage, do not attack the scrapper's target! Not only does it waste team resources, but a scrapper who is repeatedly "assisted" in this manner will begin to feel that he is not trusted to finish his own chosen targets. This lack of trust can be fatal to a team's cohesiveness.

C. If a scrapper is in extreme danger and may be defeated by his chosen target, it is permissible to fire upon the scrapper's target. Note that it is rare for a scrapper to be outmatched by a single target, and he is more likely to run into trouble by being outmatched by a great many targets. In this case, it is generally more efficient and acceptable to terminate those targets the scrapper is NOT engaging over the one that he is. Regardless, saving a scrapper's butt is rarely something to foster discontent.

Addendum: Massive targets, such as monsters and Archvillains, are fair game. Few scrappers save the most utterly Wild will consider "claiming" one as his own.

Section 3: Misconceptions.

1. The primary misconception for scrappers is "they don't care about debt." There is nothing further than the truth; scrappers of all types are as frustrated and annoyed by debt as anyone else. However, there are some mitigating factors. Firstly, scrappers tend to be used to debt. The joke is that blasters are used to debt, but a smart blaster can quickly learn the art of "snipe and run." in this manner, any blaster can whittle down an overwhelming pack over time to something more manageable with minimal risk.

The same cannot be said of scrappers. In the early game, a scrapper's defenses are no better than a blaster's, and while he may have more hit points, it is nowhere near a tanker's level. Thus, a relatively defenseless scrapper has to charge headlong into melee with multiple enemies and hope he comes out on top. This can produce a wisdom of when to cut and run for a scrapper, as well as how to hunt down the villains on the fringe of a group. It should be noted that this tendency can be a dangerous affair for a Wild scrapper. Unused to the team dynamic and knowing that "running away" is a workable solution, Scrappus Devastatus will often take this solution. This can, obviously, both take the scrapper away from the support of his team and draw bad guys straight toward the team members they should be kept from. Be aware.

However, on teams, scrappers are capable of amazingly heroic feats. Ferals and Civilizeds are usually aware that experience flows heavily on teams, and are thus more willing to make a personal sacrifice for the good of the team, especially since they tend to be more familiar with debt than other types. In truth, it is the time kept from combat that annoys a scrapper more than dealing with debt. A teammate who can teleport and resurrect will go a long way towards ameliorating this issue.

2. A secondary misconception of scrappers is that they're all "freaking psychotic." To that, I can only say, it's true. But it's not true that they're stupidly psychotic; a Scrapper will rarely attempt anything that is beyond his capability. A scrapper, by nature, is a creature that pushes the limits of his capabilities, so he often knows exactly what he is capable of. When he dives into a group of bad guys that should be well above his capabilities, teams often fear for his safety, and rightly so. But on the razor's edge is where a scrapper, especially Devastatus and Paranoicus, belong, and that is where they truly shine. So it is important that a team learn the strengths and nature of their scrapper, as well as the reverse, and learn to trust his judgement. When a scrapper tells you to stand in a certain spot and "let him try something," you might just be surprised.

If you follow these guidelines, you AND your scrapper will lead a longer, healthier, fuller life!

Disclaimer: while this post is intended to be informative and useful, it is also intended to be humorous. Laugh a little.

Claws/Regen (1st 50), Katana/Regen (2nd 50), MA/Regen, DB/WP (3rd 50 and currently namesake), MA/WP, FM/WP, DB/SR, DM/SR, Spines/DA (4th 50), ELM/FA, and MA/Shield!

Out of 30 level 50's (at least one of every AT except the two HEATS), and a Spines/ELA working it's way up, seeing as how over 1/3 of my 50's are Scrappers, yeah, I'd say Scrappers are the best AT

And now with the Vanguard Pack, I'm making a new Claws/ Scrapper! \o/

Some of that list are actually me still trying to find the perfect fit for my namesake!

*Glares at the Devs* Give me /Ninjitsu already! I want a Agile/Regen feeling scrapper! GIVE IT TO ME!

I remember my first created character was a Claws/DA Scrapper. Back in i3, Winter Event was going full swing. I knew I had screwed up my power choices/slotting something FIERCE, and that's what brought me to the forums.

Been a fun ride and doesn't look to stop.

I continue to love Scrappers more than any AT. They always have that perfect comicbook superhero feel to me!

It all began with a 50. A Blaster 50, to be precise. And once that Blaster hit 50, I thought, what now? Well I'd never gotten a Scrapper past level 10, so I decided to take another crack at it.

I picked MA because it looked so freaking cool, and Regen because of Quick Recovery. This was right after i5, so IH had just become a click, and the rage was legendary. Cranked up the leg slider, put on a bikini and heels, and thus Steel Rose, my very first real Scrapper, was born. A few hours later, I was level 14. A few weeks later, I was 50. After the Blaster, this was easy mode.

Fast forward a few months. Dawnrazor, Katana/Dark Armor. I still remember a comment made on the forum around that time: Dark Armor is Australian for "dude, where did all my end go?" Well I dragged her up into the late 20s, when my husband pointed out that he had a Fire/Kin Controller (before they were cool) around that level. SB meh! A friend of ours grabbed his bubbler, a bunch of other friends grabbed whatever, and I Scrap-tanked that group all the way to 50. It was the first character I did an IO build for...wow, did I mess that one up.

Fast forward a few more months, and we get Dual Blades. Flashy. Finally I can do that one character I've had kicking around in my head properly. And so I create Viper Calhoun, DB/SR. Once I got around the late 30s, and started building up some IO sets....I think that was the beginning of the end. By this point I knew what "softcap" meant. So awesome, and so much fun to play. It didn't help that the devs gave me a mission where I was ambushed by hordes and hordes of nazis (for a character whose backstory involved a dedication to exterminating the Council, and by extension the 5th from existence) that I could repeat as many times as I liked...if you don't love that mission I think you should have your Scrapper card revoked. It was the beginning of the end.

And then I rolled Darkfire Avenger, a DM/SD. See, the custom shields were really freaking awesome, but some of my friends who had spent time on test said Shields was a bit underwhelming and squishy. But the custom shields were really freaking awesome, and I wanted one. So I thought, "hey, I know! I'll pick the set with the self heal and to-hit debuffs, that's help me not get squished!" Right.

Anyway, there wasn't much more to her than that, I put her in a gothy costume but never came up with much of a backstory or characterization or anything, so she didn't get played much. And then came AE. And I wrote an arc. And I needed an NPC noob hero who would hang out with reformed Freakshow, and then I realized, hey, I have a noobish hero who....yeah, it would make sense, one shameless author insert coming up. And now I had a character. I played a ton of arcs with her, got her to 50 mostly through AE, and at some point found out that DM/SD was actually really awesome and great for Stupid Scrapper Tricks. I was only level 47, but I'd hit the softcap so I took a crack at a pylon anyway. I did not die. And then I hit 50 and took a crack at Hrod'tohz, because he was there. I did not die. He did. And it was then that I realized I was going to have a problem.

Hello, my name is Eva Destruction and I am a Scrapper.

I have a DB/SR scrapper and was the last one standing on a Rikti Mothership raid after a wipe. Some people went to the hospital, some people rage quit and others lay there in the center of the bowl chatting about what went wrong. I was surrounded by Rikti but wouldn't retreat cuz I really wanted to kill this one Magus.

My chat window starting filling up with broadcasts like, "You can do it!"

"Avenge us!"

"Join us on the ground, it's comfy down here!"

I whittled the Magus down to a hair of life then killed it with the 1000 Cuts, followed it with the Sweeping combo knocking surrounding Rikti on their backs and ended it with the Showoff emote just in time for the cavalry to make it back and see.

After it was over, I received a few tells saying how great I was on the ship. I replied back to one of the dead who wouldn't hosp it, "You did great too! I saw a few rikti tripping over your dead body."

Where was that gem buried, MeiLiLan? I had been trying to find it for the longest time to save for myself.