Invulnerabilty Tank

Okay, I am settling into my new server comfortably. I have picked Virtue, mainly cause I found a very nice group to hang with. There are good groups on every server, and good luck finding a group you like.

I have set up my Main, a SS/Invul Brute that is a tribute to all the SS/Invul Brutes I have run in past years. A monster, and should be based on the cash I threw at him.

I am leveling a Dark/invul Brute (now 39) with the plan to also I/O him to the gills (I can just do this, i ain't that rich) Then i got to thinking. 2 Maxed out Brutes. Hmmm. Even both with same armor. Hmmm. Yep, one has to go. Too much cash invested to have almost the same character twice.

So, which of these should be the Tank? Invulnerability/Dark or Invulnerability/Super Strength?

And what I am really asking is on a very expensive I/O'd out build which of these secondaries brings the most survival opportunities to Invulnerability? That is including the vagaries of which melee I/O out better of course.

Thanks for the help in advance.

Though the difference will be small, I'd give the edge to Invul/DM for a couple of reasons.

For one, IMO your goal should be to soft-cap S/L/E/NE with one foe in range of Invinc. This will be much easier on a tank than a brute in general, but it'll be a bit easier to soft-cap E/NE with DM since it has more powers that can be slotted with AoE sets for Eradication.

The second reason is that DM has a secondary heal and an endurance recovery power, which will add some additional survivability and playability.

One thing in SS's favor is that you might be able to slot less accuracy because of Rage, but personally I don't think that's as big an advantage as DM brings to the table.

Hope that helps!

As Finduilas mentioned /Dark Melee will allow you to be more survivable. Dark Melee is more Single target focused with "one" cone attack. (It's hard to call Dark Consumption and Soul Drain "attacks" because of their very long recharges.)

/Super Strength will allow you to do more Dmg because of Rage, and is a better on AoE once you get Foot stomp.

Neither will get close to the same dmg as a similar brute.

I'd say take whichever one piques your interest more.

Invuln tanks, when built well, are so crazy survivable that talking about an extra heal making them "more survivable" is basically comparing the ground zero blast damage of a 100 kiloton nuclear detonation with the blast damage of a 101 kiloton nuclear detonation.

Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.

A kiloton is a kiloton... Speaking of which I think I'll invest in the +3% Res I/O. I already have the +3% Def slotted on the Brute. Since I'm going whole hog Tank I might as well get, well, another kiloton.

PS, anybody got a lvl 10 +3% res they wanna sell :-)

Yeah, only I got this thing about numbers. Ever watch the Aqua Teen Hunger Force episode where Karl was sanding his car.... That last spot is just starting to vex me....

Well, 30% to 33% is not that big a deal. 30 to 33% on all resist types is cool, but still nothing to shoot fireworks off over. I haven't looked at the build for it yet, but I was thinking that 3% would make it that much easier to hardcap S/L resist, saving me that 1 enhancer slot or better yet, allowing me to choose a different set of enhancers that helps the build rather than chossing a set for S/L bonus. So, a crap ton of cash for a little efficiency. And that efficiency is the "last spot" I keep looking at. But, as I said, i have yet to start planning the build. Heck, i just had the idea this morning.

Here's a bit of expensive slotting I like on my Tank:

Invincibility: Luck of the Gambler (Def), Luck of the Gambler (Def/+Rech), Shield Wall (Def/End), Shield Wall (Def)
Tough Hide: Luck of the Gambler (Def), Luck of the Gambler (Def/+Rech), Shield Wall (Def), Shield Wall (+3% Res)

On top of the powers themselves, that combo gives you 15% Recharge, 40% Regen, and +3% Resistance.

Old fashioned....

Lately I've decided I like two Cyto's, one membrane, and the LotG: 7.5% recharge in Invincibility.

I'm going whole hog, with an extra hog stuffed in it, then a turducken stuffed in that. I can afford maybe 3 high end builds at any one time. My Brute is up and running, this Tank will be my second, and my base is stuffed with enhancers for the dark/dark Dom I am itching to try.

But for now this Tank is my project. I am badging as I level him, and trying all the new storylines blueside. I expect him to 50 before the New Year, even at this (for me) slack tactic and with the Holidays (we are entertaining, etc.) I am getting the Candy Cane Respec for his big shifting around at 50, and will be working to solid up a build that i want to throw on him over the next week or so. (And yes, i will be begging for help. its X-mas, give lol)

Okay, with a Brute as your basis for comparison, I believe you will get more pleasure from Invulnerability/Super Strength, particularly once you get Footstomp. Make your **/Dark Melee Tanker a Fire/DM and you'll have another fun ride.

Be Well!
Fireheart

Yeah, I know you guys (referring to the old hand big posters) are rolling in the enhancers. I've seen some of your builds, even had the pleasure of watching one or two of you in action. Building a toon, knowing how to run it, it is amazing. I have never solo'd a Pylon, an AV, or a GM. I do not particularly like farming (except for grinding exp for new toons, a particularly horrid way to make cash). I don't like marketeering (I actually do auctions in RL, and do not want to do them in game) I alt (a lot) because I love a new character. One of the reasons I am in the cities is my wife got tired of the endless character concepts I have for her over the table RPGs lol. So I do most of them in the cities now. But I have accumulated a little war chest of my own. And a couple times a year I will 50 one of these, outfit it, and see what driving a Ferrari is like. Wow. It is fun. Then I am off to my next character concept. I am trying to get 1-2 big characters parked permanent, and still have the cash on hand for 1-2 characters changed out for my current favorite. I'm about there. Wish me luck!

I've found that the difference in performance between a fairly basic soft cap Invuln build and one with billions invested in it are really pretty small; the first hundred million or so gets you 95% of your performance and the other 4 billion gets another 5% or so.

What I've gotten for my money is about another 35% global recharge, 35% more recovery, a bit more regen and a few percent more accuracy. Frankly if I didn't have the inf to burn and it wasn't my namesake character and first level 50 I probably wouldn't have bothered... it's been a slow process over the last several issues of acquiring a few purple sets then gradually respecing them in while modifying things to maintain my defenses while replacing some other sets. There's a few areas still where I could improve slightly but it's WAY past the point of diminishing returns.