biostem

There are those firms that go for cutting-edge, high-tech programs, with price tags in the billions. Then, there's the firm behind "The Atomarksman" project - using well-established compact nuclear technology and small arms able to accept a variety of ammunition, this powered armor suit provides good protection and reasonable firepower at a relatively low cost!

For me it's about time vs reward. I can accept challenging content, but if loss is caused by "artificial stupidity", which is to say game mechanics that are "cheesy", (auto-hitting enemies, insta-deaths, mez effects that knock everybody out regardless of status protection powers, etc), which end up forcing you to suffer a defeat and incur debt, thereby just drawing out the experience, then it's a pass for me. I don't want every mission to be a cakewalk, but there needs to be a meaningful sense of progression for the amount of time you put in. This also goes for content which quickly gets repetitive, (mainly in the vain of same enemy group, same maps over and over again). The perfect difficulty would be where there is still a margin for error, but it's just small - not teamwipingly bad because a long animation meant you couldn't get get off a heal, thereby causing a cascade of deaths. No game content should remove agency from a player, either - nothing should ever take control of your character away from you.

So when thinking about powersets in this game, don't think about where the powers come from, but what the resulting effect of those sets are. For instance, the invulnerability set mainly deals with reducing the amount of damage you take - you'll still get hit pretty often, only you won't take as much damage. If, instead, you want your armor to be so good that attacks bounce off you harmlessly, then you need to go with a defense-based set, like super reflexes or ice armor, (use the minimal FX option for the latter). Don't get hung up on the look or name of a particular powerset, and instead focus on what each set has to offer. Take a look here as a good place to get started. Hope that helps!

Y'know... if someone hadn't let all those Shivans in on the AE farms, Galaxy City might still be around today...

Just to be clear - is your FPS still very low, even with the settings at their lowest? Could we get some specs for your laptop? Maybe there's some X-factor here that we're missing. If said laptop doesn't have a dedicated graphics card, it is possible you were using something like the -usetexenvcombine launch option for simpler rendering, and it may have gotten removed inadvertently...

So I have a 50 BS/Shield Brute and an EM/EA Stalker, so I can speak to each set individually. Since you're going with a defense-based secondary, parry is going to be a key power for you; It provides a solid defense buff and recharges quickly. Because almost all the attacks apply a defense debuff, you'll want to look into slotting at least 1 of them with the Achilles Heel: Chance for Resistance Debuff unique IO to further enhance your damage. Then there's the Steadfast Protection & Gladiator's Armor uniques, which apply a global defense buff when they are slotted into a damage resist power, (so dampening field or energy protection). Additionally, energize, while being a self heal power, also applies a sizable power cost discount. Energize is good for both end recovery and extra defense, on top of all other sources. Also, if possible, I like to fit maneuvers & tactics from leadership, as well as tough & weave from fighting, (you'll have to take boxing or kick first, which may not mesh too well with the BS primary, but se la vie). If you want to push your defense even further, there's combat jumping. Whatever you decide to go with, best of luck to you!

You asserted something about me without evidence... Please show where I said "each and every" with regard to this? Remember, we're talking about people that don't know where the tram is, or how to get from zone-to-zone. If you mean those that were solely power leveled and don't know what the trams are, where they are, or what they do, then yes. Yeah - I expect understanding of basic game mechanics for high-level/end-game content... silly me. *I* don't run off ahead of everyone else. The 7 of us that are ready to go are just probably going to start, while the 8th person is still trying to figure out where the trams are and what they do. I haven't provided any specific anecdotes, though. I've spoke in generalities, sure, but I have not provided any specific instances or examples. Who is max level, having been PL'd to that point? Remember the situation we're talking about. in that case, there is no excuse. If we were talking about a level 1 or 10, who is willign to learn, then that's a completely different scenario. Then stop arguing. Seriously!? A toddler? Is this what you're arguing now? You keep trying to argue these weird edge cases, which really don't apply. A person doesn't understand English, but somehow managed to advertise that they were looking for team via chat? If they can do this much, then they can understand "Press M, go to the T symbol". *I* am open to team with anyone, and will give them the benefit of the doubt until they prove otherwise. If that circumstance arises, then they have removed themselves from the pool of competent players, not the other way around. The lack of ability or knowledge is precisely the discussion at hand. Who mentioned forcing anyone to team with anyone else? If you advertise that you are LFG, then you did that of your own accord. No one forced you to accept my invite. No one forced you to enter the mission. No one forced you to remain with the team...

Yeah... there was a reason his art was called "erotomechanics"... That being said, I honestly prefer the look the xenomorphs took on in Aliens over the original movie...

Remember that the scenario is about the person not knowing how to get around joining an existing team, not the other way around... Why do you keep going on about how knowing basic, core game mechanics, is elitist? You seem to have your wires crossed. The burden of proof is on you, buddy. Oh? Have we teamed before? if not, then maybe try not to prejudge people. Because, when it does happen, it puts a big old STOP on everything everyone else is doing. That single person has just wasted a chunk of time for the rest of the players on the team. Anecdotes =/= evidence. I don't think "accumulate" is what you're looking for, but moving past that, I'm not looking for a particular build, or you being all IO'd up or have max Incarnates - what I'm looking for is familiarity with core game mechanics, or at the very least, a willingness to recognize that you don't yet have this knowledge, and be open to learning whilst respecting everyone else's time - you see, if there's a team of 8 with 7 of them already in the zone and ready to begin, but you're still figuring out how to get there, then maybe the issue is you...

First off, you may be used to the extra damage controllers get from containment - your single target immobilize is strong enough to affect a boss, thereby triggering the extra damage, so you may be missing that. Second, you have to leverage the assault secondary more - don't just spam your mezzes and expect enemies to die quickly. Third, besides your single target hold, 9which needs 2 applications to lock down a boss), your toolbox is very limited. While those lower level enemies may be weaker, you are as well, so keep within that mindset. While the -res on some of the sonic assault attacks is nice, you don't have many other tools to make your life easier....

When you create and lead the team, you can dictate the rules. When you join someone else's team, YOU need to adjust to their manner of play. YOU, especially as the "new guy", do not get to dictate how that team behaves. How little you know. Nice projection, though. I really only ask a few things of those I invite to teams I run: 1. you actually try (participate regardless of how low level you are), 2. you be able to make your way to us, (sometimes someone may have recall friend or ATT, but every player's time is precious to them, so you wasting everyone else's is selfish), and 3. if you need to AFK, (which we all need to do from time to time), either make sure you are back before we finish the instance, (so we can all move on to the next mission, or send a tell when back, because I will have kicked you - again, because holding up everyone else is selfish on your part). For starters, not in higher level or end game content - maybe you shouldn't have been PL'd or done nothing but AE if you want to team with others elsewhere. The time to learn is in a safe parking lot, not in the actual race. What does being deaf have to do with not knowing where the tram is or possessing some form of faster-than-sprint travel? If the person is handicap, then just say so, and we'll make accommodations. Why would you lump handicap people in with PL-ers or AE farmees who are ignorant of core game mechanics? The 2 groups are not the same. It's funny - I form PUGs almost daily, and the number of genuinely ignorant players I come across is extremely rare. Even then, the number of those that are not open to constructive instruction on how to get to where we are and possible play/build advise is smaller still. If I say to you "press M, look for the little T icon, go there, then come to zone X", and you still can't understand that, then that's on you...

It's a matter of how the game handles adjusting your level in order to permit you to play the content that you've outleveled, and it would not be a small matter to work around that. think of it like this - Is there any mechanism in-game to adjust your level downward in a stable manner that does not rely on another player to exemplar down to and re-enable the relevant contacts?

Granted. Here's where the issue arises - as soon as you team with others, it is no longer "your" thing - it is now a shared experience, and you have to take into account that there will be some expectations placed upon you - among them, knowing how to get from zone A to zone B. Again, though - if they are a returning player, they'd probably recall having to use some building or map location to get form one place to another. The trams are literally marked on the map with a big T... It's not a race, but if you are teaming, you really should respect other people's time. If you never took a travel power or one of the other methods for quickly getting around, don't get indignant if you get kicked for holding everyone up. And as long as you are solo, or only playing with likeminded players, that's fine. The moment you team with others outside of those areas, all that has to go by the wayside. If you are advertising that you are LFG, I invite you, and you don't know how to get to the zone we're in, I'll give you some basic info on how to reach us, but beyond that, I 'm not going to hold everyoen else up just to teach you have to read the in-game map or pull up a wiki link...

Honest question: What is it about the brute that allowed you to pull that off, and were your tanks also able to accomplish said feats? For me, it's more about the margin for error with each AT; On my tankers, I can pretty much just casually stroll into any fight and defeat the enemies at my own pace, whereas my stalker, scrapper, or brute live more on that knife's edge...

I don't know how else to convey my point - I suppose it's a matter of different mindsets. To me, it's like this particular subset of players are being placed in the drivers seat of a racecar already crossing the finish line, without ever having learned how to drive - they get all the rewards and powers, but don't know what they even are or what to do with them, and when they encounter other players in the endgame content, they can't properly contribute or even be arsed to check a wiki link if provided with one...

But that's my whole point - it seems like a huge oversight on the part of those players that they don't know basic game mechanics/systems; We're not asking for folks to know what enemy groups or monster is in every zone, but at least know how to get around. Like whatever content you want, but familiarize yourself with the basics...

Weren't we talking about things like not know where the tram was or how to otherwise travel between zones, not whether you liked the endgame more than the pre-50 stuff...

The only issue I have with this proposal is that those running the raids tend to permit going AFK if you notify them and don't abuse it...

"Privy" may have been the wrong word. "Not interested in spending hours being a beta tester" would have probably been a better phrase to use. So, in short, it's an attack power with a confuse buried in it, or as others have pointed out, "skippable". Please don't try to sell me on the set having "a unique and different playstyle to it", because all the other controls work as expected, and the set in no way advertises that it is different or intended to function differently than others. Play your 'special set" however you like, and just keep patting yourself on the back that you have the "special knowledge" about how it's really meant to be played...

All this tells me is that they was us to finish them off with ranged attacks only. I've never been a fan of autohit powers vs players... are the increased rewards worth it?

Right, but if damage comes just a bit AFTER the confuse, that enemy may already be aggro'd onto someone else, and your damage may not be enough to make them switch to you...

Why not just delay the damage component an extra second or so? Seems like a very simple solution, IMHO. Unless the power clearly states "the correct" way to use it, why would anyone assume it should be treated differently from any other confuse? Not all of us were privy to the testing discussion...

In general, I like the idea of mixing armors w/ support. The problem arises in figuring out how or what powers to swap out for those armor toggles. If we figure a s/l toggle, an en/neg/c/f, and a status protection one, that's at least 3 power that'd have to go. Some sets would be easier to do than others, but it'd still. be a challenge, IMHO...

So there are a few ways to approach this, IMHO: I dislike "anchor" powers while solo, as it is infrequent that enemies would live long enough. I also generally want either status protection or multiple mezzes to lock down enemies so they don't mez me. Powerful enough debuffs could compensate for this, but then you really have to be on your toes. I'm also rather fond of -res effects. To that end, may I suggest Poison/Ice or Nature/Sonic...

I fondly remember running around Brickstown and Crey's Folly on my DM/Regen Scrapper, when IH was still a toggle, street-sweeping for hours... fun times!