At a glance-
Accuracy in Death Shroud looks pretty low. This will mess with your streakbreaker, making your other attacks miss more often than they might.
You'll want some end redux in darkest night if you plan on using it.
Smite > Shadow Punch, with Gloom I don't think it's higher recharge will be a problem but I haven't looked closely at attack chain requirements.
You want a Theft of Essence proc in Dark Regen.
8 pts of kb protection is little better than 4 pts since most sources of kb come in mag3 or mag 10. Either build to 12 pts or leave it at 4 pts.
You don't want Summon Widow. The pet is weak, does little damage and dies if you look at it funny. Exchange it for Dark Obliteration and increase your AoE. Also check my sig for more info.
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."
I honestly don't believe that one build suits all. One person will sacrifice something for another. It could be sacrificing Fire/Cold def from this build to softcap Smash/Lethal despite their being enough -tohit from Darkest Night, because they value the ability to go against something that hits with Smash or Lethal mainly and resists the -tohit anyway.
I did a middle of the road build. I wouldn't have it but its easy to make ones own personal choices from it, I thought, sacrificing one thing for another. The slotting is odd in order to be interchangeable. From this build it might be that people are half way to anything, hence middle of the roadness. You have 30% def to all but Psi which tickles anyway, you can use the darkest night to stack with the def resulting in softcapping or screw that and easily change to be 45% S/L or even 45% S/L/E/N.
Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.952
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Level 50 Magic Brute
Primary Power Set: Dark Melee
Secondary Power Set: Dark Armor
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Soul Mastery
Villain Profile:
Level 1: Shadow Punch -- KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(9), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(9), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(11)
Level 1: Dark Embrace -- Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(A), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(3), Aegis-ResDam(3), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(5)
Level 2: Smite -- KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(5), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(7), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(7)
Level 4: Murky Cloud -- Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(A), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(11), Aegis-ResDam(13), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(13)
Level 6: Shadow Maul -- C'ngBlow-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngBlow-Dmg/EndRdx(23), C'ngBlow-Dmg/Rchg(39), Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(46), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(46), Erad-%Dam(46)
Level 8: Siphon Life -- KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(15), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(15), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(37)
Level 10: Obsidian Shield -- Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(A), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(17), Aegis-ResDam(17), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(23), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(36)
Level 12: Combat Jumping -- Krma-ResKB(A)
Level 14: Super Jump -- Zephyr-ResKB(A)
Level 16: Dark Regeneration -- Nictus-Heal(A), Nictus-Heal/HP/Regen/Rchg(25), Nictus-Acc/Heal(25), Nictus-Acc/EndRdx/Heal/HP/Regen(27), Nictus-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(29), Theft-+End%(29)
Level 18: Dark Consumption -- C'ngBlow-Acc/Rchg(A), C'ngBlow-Dmg/EndRdx(19), C'ngBlow-Dmg/Rchg(19), Erad-Acc/Rchg(21), Erad-Dmg/Rchg(21), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39)
Level 20: Cloak of Darkness -- Krma-ResKB(A)
Level 22: Death Shroud -- C'ngBlow-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngBlow-Dmg/EndRdx(36), C'ngBlow-Dmg/Rchg(40), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(40), Erad-%Dam(42)
Level 24: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(37)
Level 26: Soul Drain -- Erad-Acc/Rchg(A), Erad-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(27), Erad-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34), C'ngBlow-Dmg/Rchg(34), C'ngBlow-Acc/Dmg(36), C'ngBlow-Acc/Rchg(39)
Level 28: Boxing -- Empty(A)
Level 30: Tough -- Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(A), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(31), Aegis-ResDam(31), RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(31)
Level 32: Midnight Grasp -- KntkC'bat-Acc/Dmg(A), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx(33), KntkC'bat-Dmg/Rchg(33), KntkC'bat-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33)
Level 35: Weave -- GftotA-Def/EndRdx(A), GftotA-Def(37), GftotA-Def/Rchg(43), GftotA-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 38: Taunt -- Mocking-Taunt(A), Mocking-Taunt/Rng(42), Mocking-Rchg(45), Mocking-Acc/Rchg(45), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg/Rng(42), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg(50)
Level 41: Gloom -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(43), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(43)
Level 44: Darkest Night -- DarkWD-ToHitDeb(A), DarkWD-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx(48), DarkWD-Rchg/EndRdx(48), DarkWD-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(50)
Level 47: Soul Transfer -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 49: Oppressive Gloom -- Acc-I(A)
------------
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Mrcl-Rcvry+(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), P'Shift-EndMod(45), P'Shift-End%(48)
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Fury
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run
Code:
Touch of Fear, Cloak of Fear and Oppression are something few take for whatever reasons so didnt include them. I did a build on test once which was a literal black cloud of death with these powers. Enter tough mob and using control and dark regen let death shroud do all the work. Soloing many it makes sense to attack chain bosses and let Death Shroud deal with the minions. Death Shroud can roughly equate to doing half your overall DPA, a must have.
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He will honor his words; he will definitely carry out his actions. What he promises he will fulfill. He does not care about his bodily self, putting his life and death aside to come forward for another's troubled besiegement. He does not boast about his ability, or shamelessly extol his own virtues. - Sima Qian.
Over on the VB Facebook page, a question was posted asking about suggestions for a Dark/Dark/Soul brute. I put together a build that I might use for such a toon, and thought I'd share it here for perusal by all. Explanation of the various power choices, slotting, sets, etc down below. Questions? Comments? All feedback welcome!
Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.952
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
DarkDarkDark: Level 50 Magic Brute
Primary Power Set: Dark Melee
Secondary Power Set: Dark Armor
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Soul Mastery
Villain Profile:
Level 1: Shadow Punch -- C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(34), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(36), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(36), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(36)
Level 1: Dark Embrace -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(9), TtmC'tng-ResDam(11), ResDam-I(15)
Level 2: Death Shroud -- C'ngBlow-Dmg/EndRdx(A), M'Strk-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(19), Sciroc-Dmg/EndRdx(19), Sciroc-Dam%(27), Erad-%Dam(27), Oblit-%Dam(31)
Level 4: Shadow Maul -- Oblit-Dmg(A), Oblit-Acc/Rchg(33), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg(33), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), Oblit-%Dam(34)
Level 6: Combat Jumping -- Krma-ResKB(A), LkGmblr-Rchg+(7), DefBuff-I(7)
Level 8: Super Jump -- Winter-ResSlow(A), Zephyr-ResKB(9)
Level 10: Obsidian Shield -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/EndRdx(A), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(11), S'fstPrt-ResKB(13), ResDam-I(13)
Level 12: Murky Cloud -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(15), TtmC'tng-ResDam(17), ResDam-I(17)
Level 14: Boxing -- Acc-I(A)
Level 16: Dark Regeneration -- Mrcl-Heal/EndRdx(A), Mrcl-EndRdx/Rchg(40), Mrcl-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(40), Numna-Heal/EndRdx(42), Numna-Heal/Rchg(42), Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(42)
Level 18: Dark Consumption -- P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(37), P'Shift-Acc/Rchg(37)
Level 20: Cloak of Darkness -- LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(21), LkGmblr-Def(21), LkGmblr-Rchg+(23)
Level 22: Tough -- TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(23), TtmC'tng-ResDam(25), ResDam-I(25)
Level 24: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31)
Level 26: Soul Drain -- C'ngBlow-Dmg/Rchg(A), C'ngBlow-Acc/Rchg(40), Erad-Acc/Rchg(43), Erad-Dmg/Rchg(43)
Level 28: Weave -- LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(29), LkGmblr-Def(29), LkGmblr-Rchg+(31)
Level 30: Taunt -- Mocking-Taunt/Rchg(A), Mocking-Taunt/Rchg/Rng(50)
Level 32: Midnight Grasp -- C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(37), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(46), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(46)
Level 35: Gloom -- Dev'n-Acc/Dmg(A), Dev'n-Dmg/EndRdx(43), Dev'n-Dmg/Rchg(45), Dev'n-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45)
Level 38: Maneuvers -- LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(39), LkGmblr-Def(39), LkGmblr-Rchg+(39)
Level 41: Darkest Night -- DarkWD-ToHitDeb(A)
Level 44: Summon Widow -- ExRmnt-Acc/Rchg(A), ExRmnt-Dmg/EndRdx(46), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(48)
Level 47: Touch of Fear -- Cloud-Acc/ToHitDeb(A), Cloud-ToHitDeb/EndRdx/Rchg(48), Cloud-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(50), Cloud-%Dam(50)
Level 49: Soul Transfer -- RechRdx-I(A)
------------
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Mrcl-Rcvry+(A), Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(3)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- P'Shift-EndMod(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(3), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(5), P'Shift-End%(5)
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Fury
Level 1: Sprint -- ULeap-Stlth(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run
------------
Set Bonus Totals:
When it comes to brutes, my default goals in a build are: 1) Damage (usually via nice Fury), 2) Survival, 3) Ability to Tank. Those might switch around a bit in certain cases, but it works well enough for this case. So the power, slotting, and IO choices reflect these three priorities.
Powers
Dark Melee has good single-target damage but the AoE powers are a bit sub-par. Shadow Punch and Midnight Grasp will do plenty of damage to single targets. Soul Drain is nice for the buffs and should be used at every opportunity, but don't expect huge damage. The wild card power is Shadow Maul, which can either do huge damage if lined up correctly for multiple enemies, or be a very expensive and slow single target attack if not. I chose to skip Smite because Shadow Punch is better for Fury building, and attack chain shouldn't be too much of an issue because of the Dark Regen/Shadow Maul/Soul Drain activations. Thrown in an occasional Boxing if needed. You may have to use some Vet powers to fill in the chain at low exemplar levels, though. Dark Armor can help with the damage a bit with Death Shroud, which is awesome at both Fury generation and damage over time. Endurance shouldn't be any issue with Dark Consumption, even with non-stop attacking.
On the survivability side of things, the resistance armors are all important, and the fact that they resist psionic damage, fear, and end drain as well as all the usual stuff is pretty awesome. You really want to have Tough/Weave to harden your defenses, also. The build only has around 20% defense, but that's still going to block a good number of attacks, especially when facing hordes of minions. You will get hit and take good chunks of damage at times, which is why you have Dark Regen, which is downright awesome. Even without Hasten going it'll recharge every 12.2 seconds, so use it liberally. I skipped both Cloak of Fear and Oppressive Gloom primarily because they only really affect minions, and minions shouldn't worry you in the least. Let your Soul Drain/Shadow Maul/Death Shroud kill those while you go after the bigger fish. Soul Transfer was thrown in for the fun of it at the end, but you could easily switch it for something else if you like.
For tanking, there's the taunt in Death Shroud, and Taunt. Also remember that your AoEs can draw a lot of attention - not as much as a tank, but enough to matter. Sometimes a Soul Drain/Dark Consumption/Dark Regen at the right time, followed by a hop into another group of enemies, can keep attention focused on you enough to keep teammates alive.
Slotting/IOs
I focused on two things with the slotting and IOs: +HP and +recharge. The recharge plays into all three of the goals: more attacks = more damage, more Dark Regen and Dark Consumption = more survivability, more Taunt and AoEs = better aggro control. The +HP is very important for a melee toon with no inherent +HP power. Almost every set has +recharge, +HP, or both.
In addition to that, IOs are also where this build gets its knockback protection. I have three slotted, which is a bit overkill in most cases, but it's helpful against some higher level bosses. You may still get the occasional knockback against Longbow Ballistas, Siege, and other high-knockback enemies, but it should be rare.
Finally, I've included a good number of other buffs in the IOs. Extra regen and recovery in the Miracle and Numina uniques in Health. Extra damage with the damage proc IOs in Death Shroud. Slow resist with the Winter's Gift IO in Super Jump. Stealth with the Unbounded Leap IO in Sprint (that's total invisibility combined with Cloak of Darkness, useful if you want to stealth a mission sometimes). All useful stuff that contributes to overall usability of the build.
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