Ice/Cold - Should I get Bitter Freeze Ray?

Hey guys,

I've been thinking of respeccing into the build below. The one I'm using now is similar, but uses Maneuvers and Tactics instead of Frostwork and BFR. (It also uses Mace Mastery, but I haven't gotten anywhere near that level; I'm only about 26 or so.)

This is my first crack at either of these powersets. I've never been interested in /Cold before now because I'm not a huge fan of single-target buffs; now that the shields are AoE, the set has piqued my interest as an easier-to-manage adaptation of /Storm.

The build below is a bit of a Hodge-podge and, admittedly, prioritizes franken-slotting over set bonuses. It's rather different than my usual build, and I feel sure there is room for significant improvements.

I picked up Frostwork because it's a nice buff and I sometimes duo with my buddy who's a Shield Scrapper, and I figured this would help a lot. I also went with Leviathan Mastery partly because it's the only "ice-related" epic pool, and partly because I thought Hibernate would come in handy to survive the mad aggro this guy should be able to generate with all the rain powers and such. (I've never actually had Hibernate, so this is a bit speculative.)

Also, I could use some advice regarding Incarnate choices. I don't know much about those because I haven't explored that. That "mez protection" one sounds useful, but beyond that, I'm not sure.

(Also, this is intended as a level-up build, as I'm 26 as I mentioned. Teaming whenever possible.)

Any ideas? Am I way off base here?


Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.954
http://www.cohplanner.com/

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Ice-Cold v2: Level 50 Technology Corruptor
Primary Power Set: Ice Blast
Secondary Power Set: Cold Domination
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Leviathan Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Ice Bolt -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(9), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(27), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34), ImpSwft-Dam%(43)
Level 1: Infrigidate -- Acc-I(A), AnWeak-Acc/DefDeb(5)
Level 2: Ice Blast -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(5), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(11), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), ImpSwft-Dam%(43)
Level 4: Ice Shield -- DefBuff-I(A), DefBuff-I(15)
Level 6: Frost Breath -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(7), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(7), Posi-Dmg/Rng(11), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), ImpSwft-Dam%(40)
Level 8: Freeze Ray -- EoCur-Acc/Hold/Rchg(A), EoCur-Acc/Hold(9), GladNet-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(25), Lock-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(25), Lock-Rchg/Hold(37)
Level 10: Glacial Shield -- DefBuff-I(A), DefBuff-I(15)
Level 12: Ice Storm -- Dmg-I(A), Dmg-I(13), Det'tn-Dmg/EndRdx(13)
Level 14: Fly -- Zephyr-ResKB(A)
Level 16: Aim -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(17)
Level 18: Bitter Ice Blast -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(A), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(19), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(19), Thundr-Acc/Dmg(21), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(23)
Level 20: Arctic Fog -- Krma-ResKB(A), ImpArm-ResDam(43), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx(45), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
Level 22: Hover -- Flight-I(A), Flight-I(23)
Level 24: Frostwork -- Heal-I(A)
Level 26: Bitter Freeze Ray -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(A), Ruin-Acc/Dmg(27), Thundr-Acc/Dmg(29), Hold-I(31), Lock-Rchg/Hold(34)
Level 28: Benumb -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(29), RechRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(36)
Level 30: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(37), RechRdx-I(37)
Level 32: Blizzard -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(33), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(33), Posi-Dmg/Rng(33), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(45)
Level 35: Sleet -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(36), RechRdx-I(36), Achilles-ResDeb%(46)
Level 38: Heat Loss -- Acc-I(A), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc(39), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg(39), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(39), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(40), RechRdx-I(40)
Level 41: Shark Skin -- RctvArm-ResDam/EndRdx(A), RctvArm-ResDam(42), TtmC'tng-ResDam/EndRdx(42), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(42)
Level 44: Hibernate -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(46), RechRdx-I(46)
Level 47: Spirit Shark Jaws -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(A), Ruin-Acc/Dmg(48), Decim-Acc/Dmg(48), Lock-Rchg/Hold(48), Hold-I(50)
Level 49: Snow Storm -- TmpRdns-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(A), P'ngTtl-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(50), Slow-I(50)
------------
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Mrcl-Rcvry+(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(17), EndMod-I(21)
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Scourge
Level 1: Sprint -- ULeap-Stlth(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run

The problem with your build is that there's no real underlying theme to it, so it's hard for people to respond with constructive suggestions. You're not going for defense, or recharge, or anything in particular that people can help you maximize. You're Frankenslotting some powers, not really aiming for any particular design point except perhaps having high recharge on particular powers, and ignoring global recharge for the most part. Basically, you have an idiosyncratic build optimized for what you want, and only you can answer the question of what's right for you.

It seems like you're also minimizing cost. I notice that you've included a Steadfast: +Def, but you've only got 10% max defense. When your defense is inherently low, 3% doesn't really buy you anything. When you're at 30 or 40% defense, 3% defense is worth chasing. But at 3 to 7%, it's not really doing anything for you. You can also get by just fine with the cheap Karma: -KB IO; anything more than -4 KB is generally overkill for squishies. Also, you've got two slots in Hover, which is something I'd never do, but is obviously what you like to do for the way you play.

As far as whether you should take Bitter Freeze Ray, I always do. It's very useful because you can basically hold bosses immediately by hitting them at max range with BFR, then taking a couple steps and hitting them with Freeze Ray. Depending on what slots I need in other powers, I might not dedicate many to BFR.

I have a Cold/Ice defender on a server I don't play much on, and if I were respeccing now I'd build for more ranged defense (the current build is somewhat like yours, except that I've got 52% global recharge). I also have damage procs in Sleet and Snowstorm, so that's something you could look at.

Imo bitter freeze ray is a waste of space if you've got good duration+recharge on freeze ray. I would also take an app/ppp hold before bitter freeze ray because they animate faster, last longer, and cost less endurance (the recharge doesn't matter because you only really need a second hold to quickly stack magnitude on a boss). I also wouldn't slot them like attacks since they're poor enough that they're not worth fitting into your attack chain (they don't do enough damage per animation to compete with your most basic attacks).

More and more frequently I find myself foregoing APP/PPP theme choices on my squishies and taking Mace Mastery just for Scorpion Shield, then building them to the S/L/E softcap.

There is a degree to which it annoys me to not actually gain utility from my epics, but the durability provided by softcapped S/L/E defense is immense, especially with all the IDF/Warworks thrown around at max level lately.

I24 Proc Chance = (Enhanced Recharge + Activation Time) * (Current PPM * 1.25) / 60*(1 + .75*(.15*Radius - 0.011*Radius*(360-Arc)/30))
Single Target Radius = 0. AoE Non-Cone Arc = 360.