oedipus_tex

Plant would be my choice.

It's an auto-hit Hold, so that's something. It would be considered insanely overpowered except for the Repel function. Oddly it's best when used on enemies significantly higher level than you, because you don't have to roll ToHit and Repel is affected by level differences, so you Repel +4 enemies at half the speed of +0s, and at around +6 they're barely repelled at all. Not that you'd be likely to be able to kill them anyway.

The discussion about the "tax" had to do with whether being heavily encouraged to slot KB to KD is a burden or an advantage. The argument that its a burden/tax is that without that slotting the powers are pretty annoying. The argument its not a tax is that if there was some Knockdown proc out there you could put in normal powers that had a 50% chance to knockdown each mob in the area of effect (or 100% in the case of Nova) practically everyone would slot it, because that's an amazing proc rate. Energy is "forced" into the proc in the sense that you're converting what's already there, but its worth it.

I used to have an Ice/Rad on live. I enjoyed it, but it should be said it's a concept build. Prior to incarnate Alpha slots coming out late in the live game's history, his endurance was close to unmanageable. His damage was so poor that it almost pointless to solo, though I did occasionally manage. The Cardiac slot was a godsend when it came out. That said, some changes to procs since then, and the lower price of some IOs that were prohibitively expensive on live has made this combo somewhat more viable these days. On the pessimisstic side though, Ice Control was largely designed for a game that no longer exists: where bringing along a teammate with very low damage could be worth it because enemies were dangerous enough that control powers were a necessity. They are still useful, but IMO not like they used to be. I miss that version of the game. (I blame the Destiny incarnate ability personally for making us all just a little too survivable.)

Each of the pets is hard to rate on its own because they're all closely linked to the kit they come with. So, like, Jack Frost's slows aren't that great, in part because Ice already slows stuff. With that criteria in mind, the Dark Control pets stand out as among the best, because they stack relevant debuffs (-ToHit and Fear). I've had fights with Dark characters where I get mezzed and stay that way for a full minute but the pets end up taking out the enemies. Gravity's Singularity is pretty tank-like and has good control powers.

BTW one hilarious thing I've discovered about Savage Assault is the teleport in Feral Charge doesn't care if you are Hovering/Flying. So the weird synergy is I can turn Hover on and still be able to quickly teleport right on top of enemies to attack them at melee/cast Heart of Darkness.

It's been years since I played Dark Control to 50 (and never on a Dom) and the is also my first trip with Savage Assault. It took me a while to come up with a concept. I wanted something with clean lines that contrasted drastically with the "evil mcdark" mood of Dark Control. Finally I arrived on this: (Ignore the AT listed in that description, I rerolled the character several times with different powersets until I found a good match for abilities/graphics and concept). I'm looking for some help with his build. I made a couple of assumptions in this build: The pet is firing its cone power, which offers -ToHit. Combined with Fearsome Stare and other general -ToHit flying around, this should hopefully softcap me to Ranged and Slash/Lethal in most situations It sure looks like Call Hawk recharges as fast as it animates, which if I'm not mistaken means I've satisfied all my Ranged ST attack needs with a single power. Is that a correct assumption? I went with the Ice epic pool, not sure if that's a wise double-down on a Defense armor. Since I didn't take Tough either, my Slash/Lethal resists are very low. Big mistake? On the plus side, Hoarfrost adds +HP which is effectively Resist All, though I am not certain how far that carries I'm still figuring out ideal places to put procs. I feel like I could trade some Defense for procs, but where? Should I swap the slotting on Fearsome Stare and Heart of Darkness? Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.962 http://www.cohplanner.com/ Click this DataLink to open the build! late Fee 2: Level 50 Natural Dominator Primary Power Set: Darkness Control Secondary Power Set: Savage Assault Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Flight Ancillary Pool: Ice Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Dark Grasp -- BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(3), BslGaz-Acc/Rchg(3), BslGaz-Acc/Hold(5) Level 1: Call Swarm -- Acc-I(A) Level 2: Living Shadows -- Rgn-Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/Rng(5) Level 4: Maiming Slash -- SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg(A), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(9), SprBlsCol-Rchg/HoldProc(9), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx(11), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(11) Level 6: Possess -- CrcPrs-Conf(A), CrcPrs-Conf%(13), CrcPrs-Conf/EndRdx(13), CrcPrs-Conf/Rchg(15), CrcPrs-Acc/Conf/Rchg(15), CrcPrs-Acc/Rchg(17) Level 8: Fearsome Stare -- SprDmnGrs-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear(A), SprDmnGrs-Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/Rchg(17), SprDmnGrs-EndRdx/Rchg(19), SprDmnGrs-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx(19), SprDmnGrs-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx/Rchg(21), SprDmnGrs-Rchg/Fiery Orb(21) Level 10: Unkindness -- PstBls-Acc/Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(23), PstBls-Dmg/Rchg(23), PstBls-Dmg/Rng(25), PstBls-Dam%(25), AchHee-ResDeb%(27) Level 12: Heart of Darkness -- SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear(A), SprAscoft-Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/Rchg(27), SprAscoft-EndRdx/Rchg(29), SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx(29), SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx/Rchg(31), SprAscoft-Rchg/+Dmg%(31) Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31) Level 16: Spot Prey -- GssSynFr--Build%(A) Level 18: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), Ksm-ToHit+(33) Level 20: Super Speed -- BlsoftheZ-ResKB(A) Level 22: Haunt -- ExpRnf-Acc/Rchg(A), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg(33), ExpRnf-Dmg/EndRdx(33), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34) Level 24: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(46) Level 26: Shadow Field -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(34), BslGaz-Acc/Rchg(34), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(36), UnbCns-Hold/Rchg(46) Level 28: Blood Craze -- DctWnd-Heal/Rchg(A), NmnCnv-Heal/Rchg(36), Mrc-Heal/Rchg(36) Level 30: Hover -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A) Level 32: Umbra Beast -- ExpRnf-Acc/Rchg(A), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(37), ExpRnf-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg(37), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg(37), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39), SlbAll-Build%(39) Level 35: Call Hawk -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(39), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(40), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(40), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(40), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42) Level 38: Feral Charge -- Obl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Obl-%Dam(42), Obl-Dmg(42), Obl-Acc/Rchg(43), Obl-Dmg/Rchg(43), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(43) Level 41: Sleet -- RechRdx-I(A) Level 44: Frozen Armor -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(45), Rct-ResDam%(45), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(45), LucoftheG-Def(46) Level 47: Ice Storm -- Rgn-Dmg/EndRdx(A), Rgn-Acc/Rchg(48), Rgn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), Rgn-Dmg/Rchg(48), Rgn-Knock%(50) Level 49: Hoarfrost -- DctWnd-Heal/Rchg(A), NmnCnv-Heal/Rchg(50), Pnc-Heal/Rchg(50) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Prestige Power Dash -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Slide -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Quick -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Rush -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Surge -- Empty(A) Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A) Level 2: Health -- Mrc-Rcvry+(A), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(7) Level 2: Hurdle -- Empty(A) Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), PrfShf-End%(7) Level 50: Musculature Radial Paragon ------------ ------------ Set Bonus Totals: 17% DamageBuff(Smashing) 17% DamageBuff(Lethal) 17% DamageBuff(Fire) 17% DamageBuff(Cold) 17% DamageBuff(Energy) 17% DamageBuff(Negative) 17% DamageBuff(Toxic) 17% DamageBuff(Psionic) 12.88% Defense(Smashing) 12.88% Defense(Lethal) 6% Defense(Fire) 6% Defense(Cold) 24.75% Defense(Energy) 24.75% Defense(Negative) 6% Defense(Psionic) 12.25% Defense(Melee) 24.75% Defense(Ranged) 6% Defense(AoE) 8% Enhancement(Stunned) 8% Enhancement(Held) 8.8% Enhancement(Terrorized) 12% Enhancement(Confused) 16% Enhancement(Immobilized) 55% Enhancement(Accuracy) 16% Enhancement(Sleep) 98.75% Enhancement(RechargeTime) 6% SpeedFlying 30.52 HP (3%) HitPoints 6% JumpHeight 6% SpeedJumping Knockback (Mag -4) Knockup (Mag -4) MezResist(Confused) 42.5% MezResist(Held) 42.5% MezResist(Immobilized) 42.5% MezResist(Sleep) 42.5% MezResist(Stunned) 42.5% MezResist(Terrorized) 42.5% 24.5% (0.41 End/sec) Recovery 20% (0.85 HP/sec) Regeneration 15% ResEffect(SpeedFlying) 15% ResEffect(RechargeTime) 15% ResEffect(SpeedRunning) 8.25% Resistance(Smashing) 8.25% Resistance(Lethal) 14.25% Resistance(Fire) 14.25% Resistance(Cold) 3% Resistance(Energy) 3% Resistance(Negative) 0% Resistance(Smashing) 0% Resistance(Lethal) 0% Resistance(Fire) 0% Resistance(Cold) 0% Resistance(Energy) 0% Resistance(Negative) 0% Resistance(Toxic) 0% Resistance(Psionic) 6% SpeedRunning | Copy & Paste 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Hmm. Not to sound too negative, because the game allows you to play however you want. and I am sure the AA-less build is nice. However, my general feeling about Ice builds without Arctic Air is that you would be much better off rolling Earth Control and coloring the powers like Ice. Earth gets Earthquake, which is a very similar power to Ice Slick. It also gets Stalagmites (ranged stun) Volcanic Gasses (ranged pulsing hold) and a much sturdier pet. Plus can be made to look very similar to Ice. Arctic Air is really the only unique thing about Ice Control other than that is that Ice Slick also contains a slow effect, which is a nice touch. But then Earth can slot a +100% Recharge IO in Earthquake and for some reason Ice cannot do that in Ice Slick, which is frustrating. So, other than maybe the sound effects and the look of Jack Frost I think you'd be much happier going with Earth if Arctic Air isn't on the menu.

You could do something like Kelvin Klein or Kelvin Bacon.

I made some potential revisions to the build, shared here: A couple of comments overall: Apocalypse is an expensive purple. Unless you desperately need the +Recharge you can often get away with Thunderstrike, which sells for pennies and provides Ranged defense Impale should be slotted as an attack, not a control power You will need Knockback protection somewhere, I put it in Super Speed Hasten probably needs at least 2 slots Its better to put Positron's Blast in cone powers (Fling Thorns) and Ragnorak in spherical powers, because Posi has a +Range IO and Rag does not This build is very nearly capped to Smash/Lethal. Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.962 http://www.cohplanner.com/ Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Mutation Dominator Primary Power Set: Ice Control Secondary Power Set: Thorny Assault Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Leaping Ancillary Pool: Ice Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Block of Ice -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Acc/Rchg(3), BslGaz-Slow%(3), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(5) Level 1: Thorny Darts -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(5), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(7) Level 2: Frostbite -- Rgn-Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(7) Level 4: Fling Thorns -- PstBls-Dam%(A), PstBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(11), PstBls-Dmg/Rng(11), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(13), PstBls-Dmg/Rchg(13) Level 6: Arctic Air -- CrcPrs-Conf%(A), CrcPrs-Conf(15), CrcPrs-Conf/Rchg(15), CrcPrs-Acc/Conf/Rchg(17), CrcPrs-Acc/Rchg(17), CrcPrs-Conf/EndRdx(19) Level 8: Skewer -- SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg(A), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(19), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(21), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(21), SprBlsCol-Rchg/HoldProc(23) Level 10: Impale -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(23), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(25), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(25), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(27), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(27) Level 12: Ice Slick -- RechRdx-I(A) Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(29) Level 16: Aim -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), RechRdx-I(29) Level 18: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 20: Thorn Burst -- Erd-Dmg(A), Erd-%Dam(31), Erd-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(31), AchHee-ResDeb%(33), Erd-Dmg/Rchg(33) Level 22: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(33), Ksm-ToHit+(34), LucoftheG-Def(34) Level 24: Super Speed -- BlsoftheZ-ResKB(A) Level 26: Glacier -- SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear(A), SprAscoft-Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/Rchg(34), SprAscoft-EndRdx/Rchg(36), SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx(36), SprAscoft-Acc/Conf/Hold/Immob/Sleep/Stun/Fear/EndRdx/Rchg(36), SprAscoft-Rchg/+Dmg%(37) Level 28: Tough -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(37), GldArm-End/Res(37), UnbGrd-Max HP%(39) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), RedFrt-Def(39), RedFrt-EndRdx(39), RedFrt-Def/EndRdx(40), RedFrt-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(40), RedFrt-EndRdx/Rchg(40) Level 32: Jack Frost -- ExpRnf-Acc/Rchg(A), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42), ExpRnf-+Res(Pets)(42), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg(42), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(43), SlbAll-Build%(43) Level 35: Sleet -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A), UndDfn-Rchg/EndRdx(43) Level 38: Thorn Barrage -- FrcFdb-Rechg%(A), Thn-Acc/Dmg(45), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(45), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45) Level 41: Frozen Armor -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(46), Rct-ResDam%(46), LucoftheG-Def(46) Level 44: Ice Storm -- Rgn-Knock%(A), Rgn-Dmg/EndRdx(48), Rgn-Acc/Rchg(48), Rgn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), Rgn-Dmg/Rchg(50) Level 47: Hoarfrost -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Pnc-Heal/Rchg(50), DctWnd-Heal/Rchg(50) Level 49: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Prestige Power Dash -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Slide -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Quick -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Rush -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Surge -- Empty(A) Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A) Level 2: Health -- NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(9) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), EndMod-I(9) ------------ ------------ Set Bonus Totals: 13% DamageBuff(Smashing) 13% DamageBuff(Lethal) 13% DamageBuff(Fire) 13% DamageBuff(Cold) 13% DamageBuff(Energy) 13% DamageBuff(Negative) 13% DamageBuff(Toxic) 13% DamageBuff(Psionic) 11% Defense(Smashing) 11% Defense(Lethal) 6% Defense(Fire) 6% Defense(Cold) 25.38% Defense(Energy) 25.38% Defense(Negative) 6% Defense(Psionic) 8.5% Defense(Melee) 25.06% Defense(Ranged) 6% Defense(AoE) 1.8% Max End 4% Enhancement(Held) 4% Enhancement(Stunned) 4.4% Enhancement(Terrorized) 8% Enhancement(Sleep) 8% Enhancement(Confused) 46% Enhancement(Accuracy) 8% Enhancement(Immobilized) 85% Enhancement(RechargeTime) 6% SpeedFlying 122.1 HP (12%) HitPoints 6% JumpHeight 6% SpeedJumping Knockback (Mag -4) Knockup (Mag -4) MezResist(Confused) 31.25% MezResist(Held) 31.25% MezResist(Immobilized) 31.25% MezResist(Sleep) 31.25% MezResist(Stunned) 31.25% MezResist(Terrorized) 31.25% 27.5% (0.46 End/sec) Recovery 20% (0.85 HP/sec) Regeneration 15% ResEffect(SpeedFlying) 15% ResEffect(RechargeTime) 15% ResEffect(SpeedRunning) 11.5% Resistance(Smashing) 11.5% Resistance(Lethal) 25.75% Resistance(Fire) 25.75% Resistance(Cold) 11.5% Resistance(Energy) 11.5% Resistance(Negative) 10% Resistance(Toxic) 10% Resistance(Psionic) 0% Resistance(Smashing) 0% Resistance(Lethal) 0% Resistance(Fire) 0% Resistance(Cold) 0% Resistance(Energy) 0% Resistance(Negative) 0% Resistance(Toxic) 0% Resistance(Psionic) 6% SpeedRunning | Copy & Paste this data into Mids' Hero Designer to view the build | |-------------------------------------------------------------------| |MxDz;1459;684;1368;HEX;| |78DA6594CB6F125114C6EF3083A5140A14282D94B6D017058AA5CF184D1AD3AAD19| |4A489C6955A272D69499021CC34B14B17EE8D8FB8F2B973E3CA477D2D5CF81F68A2| 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I suppose Ice/Traps could work. One thing about Arctic Air that is incredibly annoying is that it drags aggro to the user if you reach the mob faster than the tank can grab aggro. I've long wished the developers would flag the power as a non-notify power. It's a confusion power and a lot of similar powers are flagged that way, including the World of Confusion aura power.

TA honestly has some cool potential that was just never realized. The way I always wished this set worked is you loaded up a bunch of arrows ahead of time, and then you fire them into the crowd all at once. So, there would be some prep time before you fire, but when you launch your assault all the debuff hit at once.

I don't believe this is a perma-dom build but I'm not a perfect expert. General stuff: Overall: Drop any"Chance of -Recharge" procs. They are terrible and you won't need any extra -Recharge anyway, Ice has more than enough to exceed caps. Block of Ice: Change to x4 Basilisk's Gaze. If you'll be using this as an attack add 1 Hami O Acc/Dam and one Damage IO from wherever Fling Thorns: Probably should be x5 Positron's Blast (plus its cheap) for +recharge Arctic Air: Swap to Coercise Persuasion x6 Assault: Drop completely, not worth the end cost Ripper:/Thorn Barrage Why skip these? I'm not familiar with the powers but it looks like at least one would be a good place for a Force Feedback: Chance for +Recharge. Are the DPAs that bad? Flash Freeze: If you must take this, put a Chance to Placate here so at least it has a chance to do something interesting. Won't matter much with Arctic Air running though, I guess., since AA cancels Placate (annoying 😛 ).

I find Arctic Air has a weird window of usefulness. It's incredibly strong in the very low levels, until around level 25, when most teams are running at around +0/+1 and prior to a lot of enemies gain mezzes. Then it gradually retreats in usefulness, only to drop into total obscurity in battles with Carnival, Malta, and Rikti, who seem designed specifically to wreck a PBAoE player relying on a toggle control. Then it later return in usefulness once you've got your mezz protection situation figured out, though its still never as strong as that first stretch. Unfortunately those low levels are now obscured by Death from Below, so you really don't get to see how Arctic Air is one of the best control powers for a Kings Row/Steel Canyon team. The main thing to remember is to just let it run and avoid the temptation to hit buttons for the heck of it. Your damage sucks but if you stand around just mezzing stuff it can transform teams at that level range because no other control power has that kind of up time and does not roll ToHit.

I love hearing these perspectives. I also notice Force Field, Empathy, and Pain haven't been shipped by anyone., which is interesting. Must be lonely on love island.

What's really interesting to me is the evolution of public opinion on Ice Control. I remember the forums on live where a lot of people would state that Arctic Air was an optional power, rather than the signature power. In fairness though, that was back when the purple confusion graphic didn't show up on mobs affected by Arctic Air, so a lot of people just assumed it was a slow/fear aura and nothing else. Back then I used to hear people say that Shiver was a viable alternative to Arctic Air, which is a statement on how much the game has changed.

That's an excellent build for one so quickly put together. I know you built it quickly, but just so OP knows, I'd not put the 4 slots in Boxing. The power isn't great and you don't need the extra Smash/Lethal defense. Reactive Armor in Tough can also be scaled back. I'd drop Super Jump and replace with Flash, then move all the extra slots opened up by the above suggestion to there, possibly with 4 slotted Basilisk's Gaze and 1 slotted Lockdown: Chance for Hold, which has a big chance of firing in this power and Holding bosses. Great build overall though for such a quick design.

There are far less synergistic combos than Illusion/Kinetics out there. Kinetics is a set available on Defenders and Corruptors, who have very limited control powers, and they still manage to do okay. Illusion is in a better position than most of those sets to distract or occupy enemies. The main drawback of Ill/Kin is the army can't benefit from Fulcrum Shift. But the Phantasm still can, as well as any Patron Pool Pets you happen to pick up. I would concentrate on getting Ranged defense. Here's a basic recipe: 6 slot Coercive Persuasion in the Confuse power: +5 ranged def 6 slot Superior Will of the Controller in the AoE hold: +5 ranged def 4 slot the single target hold with Basilisk's Gaze: +1.25% defense 6 slot Spectral Wounds with Thunderstrike: +1.25% for 3 slots, +2.5% for 6 slots Steadfast Protection proc in a resistance shield: +3% Gladiator's Armor proc in a resistance shield: +3% That recipe is a pretty basic Controller formula for Controllers who get a Confusion power. It will provide 21 Ranged defense, which is a very healthy starting number. You can stack this with a combination of Hover, Combat Jumping, Maneuvers, and Weave. Illusion Controllers can cast Group Invisibility for an additional +1.8% defense. There is also Superior Invisibility, but it is an expensive. Maybe not a big deal for a Kinetics Controller though, because of Transfusion. The soft cap is 45% and will make you very hard to kill. But just getting to 35% or so will often make a huge difference, especially if you are good at using inspirations.

I recommend Ice Control on a Dominator over a Controller. Although Arctic Air isn't strengthened by Domination directly, Domination provides mezz protection, which is critical to using Arctic Air. The only Controller secondaries with mezz protection are Force Field, Sonic Res, and Traps, and none of those are super attractive combos for Ice Control (to me). Especially Sonic Res because of huge endurance costs on top of Ice Control's already steep cost to run Arctic Air. I had an Ice/Fire Dominator I used to main. Fire is one of the higher damage Dominator sets, making up for Ice's low damage. Other good options are Psi Assault (Drain Psyche gives you regen that helps you survive at close range) and Savage Assault (it contains a teleport attack that lets you instantly close distance and has a reliable heal). I suppose Dark Assault might work as well, though I've not played it much. If you are intent on playing Ice on a Controller, I recommend a secondary that has good endurance management, a reliable heal, and some defense. Dark Affinity would probably be my top choice. I'd try to get mezz protection for the character as early as possible (Psi pool or from the Sorcery set).

I wonder if you've considered Savage Assault for your melee-centric character. I recently got my first Savage to the lower 40s and its the first Dominator where I've felt the melee attacks contribute enough to make the build viable. It's mainly due to the level 38 power, Feral Charge. It recharges in 10 seconds and is technically a PBAoE, although it operates like a standard melee attack in the sense that you need to reticle an enemy to use it. The attack contains a teleport that ports you right next to the enemy, then the punch animates. So in other words, this power lets you quickly jump from enemy to enemy punching them in the face. With Savage Melee you'd be losing less utility than you would as a Energy Assault skipping the blasts. The ability to port in also pairs nicely with Electric Control's PBAoE aura.

Gravity has very respectable single target damage. Fire or Plant for AoE. Plant is the smoother ride of the two because Fire takes a while to come into its own, often not being a great soloist until the mid 30s.

The proc used to be amazing in Arctic Air under the old proc rules. These days its mediocre. But far better than World of Confusion. I really hope the devs take a look at Ice Control/AA sometime in the future. This used to be one of my favorite powers.

One sometimes overlooked feature of sets like Thermal, Empathy etc paired with Illusion is that because most of their powers do not affect enemies directly, and some of Illusion's powers do not alert enemies and/or divert their attention, it is possible to play on a team without taking very many risks (enemies will not even bother to attack you if you are invisible). This may appeal to players with slower reflexes or who have an impairment that makes it difficult for them to play.

Arcane Bolt from the Sorcery pool should also light it.

Here are my thoughts. Wormhole is a key power, the #1 reason to pick Gravity Control in most eyes. I would definitely not skip it. I would slot a KB to KD IO in to make the knockback in it less of a factor. Then slot for Accuracy/Stun/Recharge. Drop Crush and replace with Gravity Distortion. Gravity Distortion animates slightly slower but does the same damage and is a Hold instead of an Immobilize. It also sets up Impact mechanics so you do extra damage. In other words, its a critical power. I would 4 slot with Basilisk's Gaze and then possibly slot damage. Drop the proc in Tar Patch. Crushing Field should be slotted for Damage and potentially for procs, not for Immobilize. Mental Blast needs damage slotting. Put some recharge in Indomitable Will. KB to KD IO in Singularity isn't required but is very helpful. Then you can Wormhole enemies on top of him for the amusement of all. Make sure you slot the one that applies to all powers, not just damage ones. World of Confusion absolutely sucks. Avoid at all costs. Psionic Tornado will need slots. Put a Force Feedback Chance for 100% recharge in this power, it will trigger very often.