Help with an Elec/Dark Controller

So, this is the first controller I've been able to get past level 10, thanks in part to some high-level teams that brought me on, and a Rikti Ship raid that got me up to 22 in a day. But, playing around with it after this, I'm really liking the combo and want to keep going with it. My only problem is that I have no idea how to slot Controllers. What should I be slotting for? Defense? Recharge?

If I'm going for Defense, it seems like ranged defense would be easier to get (especially with the full set of Controller ATO that I have), but if I'm in melee range pretty often, would S/L Defense be a better grab, and can I get that up high enough?

Basically, I need a rundown of Controller basics, and especially on Elec Control, since I have no idea how to slot these types of powers.

Elec/dark can be played effectively in melee range so I'd say a case could be made for shooting for ranged, s/l, or even both depending on your budget. These days it's really not impossible to softcap all of the above if you don't mind springing for will of the controller, the glad armor global, coercive persuasion, and so on. Scorpion shield essentially makes the s/l softcap incidental to your goal of ranged softcapping, as many of the other things one would do, such as the 3% defense IOs, weave and such have an effect on all varieties of defense.

As for how to pursue defense in general, I'm of the opinion that you can typically have your cake and eat it too anymore. All of what I just said is true for controllers in general, but you're talking about elec/dark. The very same /dark that gets a permable ginormous chunk of defense in fade! My strategy would be thus: WotC wherever, CP in synaptic, steadfast and glad armor in shadow fall or tough, depending on whether you want fighting and how you want to slot either power. Assuming you do have weave, considering it, shadow fall and fade to be ED capped, you're already softcapped on ranged defense. Add scorpion shield and you're also incarnate softcapped on s/l defense. That barely took any focus at all so you're now free to fill the rest of the build with purples, lotgs and other recharge bonuses to your heart's content in the interest of making sure fade is actually permanent. Alternatively, you could push a little harder on ranged defense and incarnate softcap that as well. Hmm, this sounds like a pretty fun build...

That was some stream of consciousness posting, hopefully it's somewhat comprehensible.

How are you getting Fade perma? I'm seeing a duration of 15 seconds, and a recharge of 180 seconds. I don't think you can perma that.

I don't use mids, maybe it needs an update? That's the old fade duration: the last patch changed it such that it now lasts 60 seconds, recharges in 210 and gives 9.375% defense to all. I don't remember what the old defense number was but any way you slice it that's a huge improvement.

For any controller I'd say the top priority is sufficient recharge to get your core control powers avaliable on every group. In the case of electric, that's going to be very easy because static field and synaptic overload both have short cooldowns. After that, I'd say you'd want to get fade perma or close to it since it's your biggest source of defense. I'd suggest focusing on building up your ranged defense via set bonuses (crowd control sets tend to be an easy source of both ranged defense and recharge, so that makes life easier), and then picking up a defense shield to cover s/l (mace, ice, or stone) since electric tends to play in close quarters. Defensive toggles are also great because they can take luck of the gambler recharge enhancements and so help with everything.

So you should overall have about 20% defense vs all from fade+shadow fall and 20% vs s/l from your app/ppp shield. -to hit gets resisted to practically nothing in the harder content, but even against a +4av you should be able to get 5% easily (slot fluffy with cloud sense as he is your primary source of -to hit). If you want to go with another app/ppp it's going to be a lot harder to get good s/l defense as it's mostly found on melee attacks.
Ranged defense is easy to build through sets. Your ATO set gives 5% ranged defense, Coercive Persuasion gives another 5% (it's expensive, but imo it's the best purple set in the game and I suggest shelling out for one on any character than can slot it. If you can't manage it, malaise's illusions is still very good). Basilisk's gaze gives 1.25%, and a full set of lockdown gives 3.75%. You can also slot thunderstrikes, but you shouldn't need to. Don't forget about the global +3% in steadfast protection/gladiator's armor, and that you can pick up toggles (I like grabbing maneuvers+tactics as it also frees up slots I would need for accuracy in other powers).

Once you have all that and your control powers slotted for control, I'd say just frankenslot to do as much damage as you can.

I don't think mids has been updated with the new fade/shadow fall yet. You can manually go in and edit the powers if you like, or you can just wait.

Mids' database hasn't been updated yet, but with Shadow Fall, Fade, CJ or Hover, a Steadfast proc (e.g. in Shadow Fall... no need for Tough) and a defensive epic armor you are already softcapped to S/L.

After that, I'd build for Recharge. If you can, get the full ATO set and 6 Coercive Persuasions, once you put those in you'll see it's pretty easy to softcap your ranged defense as well.

Thanks for the help all, and the clarification on Fade. I'll have to pick that power up at level 24. And this is why you should always double-check powers' in-game numbers when leveling up.