Erratic1

In no particular order: Footstomp Knockout Blow Shadow Maul Geyser Tombstone (snipe for the new Seismic Blast powerset) Upthrust (aoe attack for new Seismic Blast powerset) Atom Smasher

A Defender (damage scale 65%) with a 30% damage buff is effectively at 1.3*0.65=84.5% damage scale A Corruptor (damage scale 75%) effectively gets 30% more damage from Scourge, putting them at 1.3*75%=97.5% The solo Corruptor will still deal more damage (ignoring buffs/debuff) just not as much more as when looking at group play. To the OP, Water Blast is a very fun set to use. I'd lean Corruptor (I have a Water/Kinetics corruptor). The fun of it will make you want to blast things, especially once you get Geyser.

I enjoy Shadow Maul to give it up. Helps a lot to center target then take a step back before you activate it. If you can train yourself to do that seamlessly, keep Shadow Maul.

Got an Elec/Rad tank and on Rad Melee I do not take Devastating Blow. I replace it with Cross Punch.

If the Brute can maintain 88% Fury continuously, sure. In practice that is difficult even assuming not stop fighting. I took some screenshots for a post I ended up not making in another thread during the Trick or Treat event (so easy to stay in a continuous fight because working the motel in Peregrine when other people were around meant plenty of targets) and while I did grab pics of Fury reaching the 90s there were quite a bit around 85 too. Soloing, you spend time moving through the mission. In a group you cannot guarantee you will be getting all the incoming attacks on top of the decay spent moving between spawns and missions. By contrast a Scrapper does not ever need to build Fury. Their damage output varies only between them getting a critical hit and not, which is to say its spikey but generally the same thing: ____-_______-__-________-_____-_________

Neither Oil Slick nor Glue arrow require such. But like I said, TA is a bit different. Hmmm...Atomic Manipulation has a PBAoE, but no other area attack. Devices has Trip Mine and Time Bomb, both of which are non-cone area damage. Electric Manipulation has Thunder Strike as a melee AoE.....

Fair enough. People are laying out some combos which just also happen to be really good at damage.

Hast "strong" been defined here? You talking damage, survivability, or both?

Brutes have a higher cap on Resistances (which is what Electric Armor is going to provide) but they do not get higher values from the Electric Armor powers. Brutes are set to do less damage than Scrapper but be more survivable, so if doing the highest damage you can do between the two ATs is your goal, go Scrapper. If so, I'd say go Katana/EA, since Scrapper resistances cap at 75%. If you decide Brute damage is livable then either EA or Elec can be made to work.

The build which sold me on Brute back on live was a cousin, DM/Elec. No Invincibility but stronger double dipping ala Siphon Life/Energize and Dark Consumption/Power Sink. Likewise it came into its own with high global recharge.

I don't waste my time. Young people are going to be exactly what they are...young.

I will admit its wasteful, but nothing keeps you from using the AoEs you have.

Or that Gen X is mostly identified by its younger cohort than its older, leaving people like me not even considered a part of the generation. Was it here? I would have to dig back and look, but I encountered someone online who felt that "boomer" referred to anyone older than about 30. Yeah, I know terms shift in meaning and so I do not argue "roll a character" (wtf is rolling?), "power gamer" (as opposed to twink) or a whole host of other terms whose meanings have drifted from their original (do not get me started on "pay to win"). But "Boomer"...no, just not going to tolerate being lumped in with a generation whose definition is being the cohort born post WWII to returning servicemen, particularly when my parents were children (my mother was not even a year old) when the US entered WWII and would have more in common with Boomer than I would.

There is a connection but I expect a blast to go from me to them, not suck from them to me. That other power sets have zones is in line with being a "blast"er but its not really blasty--something radiating away from a fixed point or smaller volume. Of course its subjective and so nobody has to be wrong. 🙂

Geyser, Burst, Whirlpool, and Dehydrate...nearly half the powers in the set. Edit: Steam Spray is arguable but you are emitting something towards them so I will let it slide.

Gotcha. Sorta like how Water Blast eh?

??? I took out a group of 6-7 oranges while staying about 80% health. That seems quite blasty to me.

*Glances at Tactical Arrow and notes both Glue Arrow and Oil slick are Ranged (Location) AoE, not cones...and that the set comes with no melee attacks*

Thematically I would expect target with rock hanging off them to be slowed but slow and knockdown combined is probably a bit too much. The animation for Tombstone is awesome. Is it me, or does the damage on Shatter seem a bit high?* * Does seismic pressure increase damage? Edit: Clearly I am too cautious with blasters in actual play. OMG, popping Build Up + Seismic Force then following with Upthrust...its Geyser with rocks!

I would not disagree with any of that.

Having never tired Assault Rifle on a blaster, I could not say. I am definitely saying Sonic is a shining star or a top performer, just I do not think it (a) is near so bad as people make it out to be and (b) it does actually up damage for the group the Sonic blaster is with--which is worth something (at least to some people). But I am unusual in that for my, "push button, deliver damage" needs I would tend towards one of the melee ATs and for ranged I need a bit more entertainment. That my explain why it looks like Sonic/TA will be only the second Blaster I have taken to 50 (if I can get in four more levels on the character)--he's more defender/controllerish than I would expect out of a blaster and there is wicked fun in slowing a bunch of mobs with Oil Slick and then setting the entire lot not only on fire but debuffing their resistance at the same time.

I think another thing to consider is the "standard test" only looks at using the powerset's powers (at least I think that is the case....been a while since I read that thread). If so it is -=NOT=- actual gameplay. As noted upthread, the resistance debuff from Sonic benefits the other damaging powers the Sonic blaster has--what is in their secondary and epic power sets.

I am pretty sure actual gameplay would be what is the most true. https://imgur.com/jvjBu5A I was not working with a timer so it seems to me starting damage on the Sonic section a second late is actually pretty amazing. Correspondingly Sonic finishes dealing with its pair of equal level yellow and white opponents a second later than fire. One might figure that for such a horribly low damage set it might have taken longer.

Proof of what?

Somehow missed the thread at the time, but still replying.... A chunk of being able to stomp on +4/8 is getting your level shift(s) as it drops the relative level of your opponents. Not exactly the answer you were looking for I know, but its part of the equation. As for an actual build, I will in no way suggest that what I am doing is the end all, be all of SS/Bio building but when I am in a, "I don't want to think about it...I just want to punch things until they drop mood" I do turn to my SS/Bio and he does satisfy. I do not have his current build saved in Mid's, but its not far off from the revised build I am posting: I would also add that there are some "best practices" that help with surviving nasty situation, like popping Parasitic Aura (even as oddly slotted as I have it) when you run into a suitably large crowd of nasties. Ablative DNA Siphon are your reactive, "Oh crap!" buttons but Parasitic Aura is meant to stop you from getting to, "Oh crap!"