You will definately notice a change in damage the higher level you are when using Martial Arts....it has very nice animations but its smash damage starts getting resisted by everything....in comparison to the Dark Melee you mentioned...you will notice with dark melee you do both smash and negative energy damage....thus it will continue to improve as you level.
All in all though...when playing a stalker you should take a set based on its graphic and play feel more then on statistics and numbers....
As any stalker will tell you...especialy ones that have played alot of the choices...they are all pretty much the same...with small difference...like Martial Arts is single target only for example.....and claws is a tad weaker for damage but hits faster and uses less energy....
As for the Armor.....the Nijitsu Armor set gives you a heal and you dont have to use as many toggles as Superior Reflexes....but they both have the same defenses mostly....but you will find the added toys in Ninjistsu a little more useful...thus the reason most people recommend the ninjutsu defense set.
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I thought it was recommended more because it's unique to Stalkers |
Originally Posted by PsychicKitty
You will definately notice a change in damage the higher level you are when using Martial Arts....it has very nice animations but its smash damage starts getting resisted by everything....in comparison to the Dark Melee you mentioned...you will notice with dark melee you do both smash and negative energy damage....thus it will continue to improve as you level.
All in all though...when playing a stalker you should take a set based on its graphic and play feel more then on statistics and numbers.... As any stalker will tell you...especialy ones that have played alot of the choices...they are all pretty much the same...with small difference...like Martial Arts is single target only for example.....and claws is a tad weaker for damage but hits faster and uses less energy.... As for the Armor.....the Nijitsu Armor set gives you a heal and you dont have to use as many toggles as Superior Reflexes....but they both have the same defenses mostly....but you will find the added toys in Ninjistsu a little more useful...thus the reason most people recommend the ninjutsu defense set. |
Ninjitsu also has lower defense than /SR by a noticable amount.
Ninjitsu, EA or WP would be my choices. And EA on a Stalker looks to be quite nice. Easy to softcap, self heal, +RCH, and +END Power. Yummy!
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Try whatever sounds interesting. Despite what some min-maxers say, it's hard to really gimp yourself.
I'd also recommend trying out multiple characters. Just about all the powersets have some interesting aspects that make them different to play, don't just try the 'best' ones. I'm not saying avoid them, Ninjitsu for example is a nicely designed set and well worth trying, just remember that everything is quite playable. Most of all, have fun! As long as you're doing that, you're never playing the wrong way.
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Difficult to define "good". Once IO'd out I think you'd find both perform similarly. One downside of SR is that no matter how good your defense, you WILL want a self-heal because what gets past your defenses tends to hurt... a lot. You are incredibly more survivable with high defense AND a self-heal than just with high defense. Fortunately, this is about to get easier for SR when you'll be able to take Aid Self without first taking Aid Other or Stimulant.|
Originally Posted by Dal
I always hear that Ninjitsu is likely the best secondary there is for Stalker. How good is Super Reflexes in comparison to it?
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Still, Ninjitsu with a bit more effort can be soft-capped and has a great uninterruptible heal. It lacks knockback protection but for PvE this is as easy as slotting a KB IO in Hide which will protect you from probably 80% of all knockback.
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| Do you guys use the Ninjitsu "gadget" powers very often after reaching high levels, or are they just a little bonus? What are the pros and cons? |
Blinding Powder is second most useful, but also skippable. It's nice to dust a spawn with it prior to attacking because it will debuff their tohit, effectively adding to your defense. And it won't aggro them. Might even confuse a few. But by the time you can get this power you'll probably be close to soft-capping with IOs anyway. It gets better at 50 when you can slot the Purple Confuse set for really great bonuses and a proc that makes it much more likely to confuse enemies, especially if they are bunched together. But again... skippable. I find I don't even use this as often as it is available, but I DO still use it. Usually when things are going from bad to worse.
The nice thing about both Caltrops and Blinding Powder is that they can help your teammates as much as yourself. That's rare and valuable on a stalker. Same can't be said for Smoke Flash. Its AoE placate does not put you in Hide so you get no extra critical from using it. Solo, this amounts to a short duration, very long recharge AoE sleep. On a team it is a "attack my teammates!" power. Skip it. It's so bad it's now available as a temp recipe to anyone.
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| In general, how does MA perform in comparison to DM? I have a DM Scrapper already, and I really would like some new animations for this new character. Is MA much worse in terms of damage in comparison to DM later in the game, taking into account the smashing resistances of most foes? Or is it just a small difference? Is the -toHit caused by DM good to have after you've capped defense, or is MA's stunning effect more useful? |
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Oh, by the way since we're talking about new characters here it's worth mentioning that starting a new Stalker in Praetoria can be pretty annoying. While the missions are much better written, they also feature a great many ambushes and, escort missions WITH ambushes. About the most annoying things you can do on a Stalker since they require you to drop Hide to escort and the ambushes will see through Hide anyway usually. Getting Caltrops as early as you can helps tremendously with ambushes or... just find a team.
So unless you're okay with the Rogue Isles or with Ambush-aetoria for your first 20 levels you might also want to delay your plans until I21 hits. They have really redone Atlas park and you'll be able to start your new stalker in the new tutorial and then move on to the bright and shiny new Atlas where there's a low level trial in the Sewers. Might be worth waiting for.
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My personal favorite Stalker to level was a DM/Nin specifically because it had all the toys to play with. I ran him all the way to 50 on SOs and could still solo EBs/AVs with enough diligence. I picked Soul Mastery for Shadow Meld and never felt the need to look back other than to count the bodies my stalker left in his wake. It also has one of the most incredibly cool AS animations. SKULL WEDGIE!
One of the more overlooked powers for DM is Touch of Fear, in my opinion. Great for debuffing ToHit and blocking attacks. Apply it enough and even an EB will start to cower.
Other great Stalker primaries are KM, Ninja Blade and MA, though this is just a personal list.
I've seen a KM/EA Stalker do incredible things, and it's also quite pretty to look at.
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I do have one power i suggest you avoid....when you get to higher levels and if you decide to get a patron power set....and you choose ghost widow....
avoid Shadow Meld.
As you will see your defense inspirations actualy work 5 times more effectively.
Its duration is long enough to allow you think you are activating something real cool...then it just goes away super fast....
It also doesnt actualy give you the defense it says it does to all.....area of eeffect and toxic seam to bypass it...though not really sure if they where bypassing it becasue the power disapeared very quickly.
I'd strongly recommend avoiding a pure smashing or lethal damage set due to how well resisted those damage types are in higher levels. If you want a punching set that isn't DM, try Kinetic Melee.
I've done spines/nin to 50, and if I were going to role another stalker with the sets available today it would be KM or DM with Nin.
I am sort of new to the game, and I intend on creating a Stalker. I've read quite a few threads here but I still can't decide on my power choices.
I always hear that Ninjitsu is likely the best secondary there is for Stalker. How good is Super Reflexes in comparison to it? Do you guys use the Ninjitsu "gadget" powers very often after reaching high levels, or are they just a little bonus? What are the pros and cons?
In general, how does MA perform in comparison to DM? I have a DM Scrapper already, and I really would like some new animations for this new character. Is MA much worse in terms of damage in comparison to DM later in the game, taking into account the smashing resistances of most foes? Or is it just a small difference? Is the -toHit caused by DM good to have after you've capped defense, or is MA's stunning effect more useful?
Thanks a bunch for the help.