Xandyr

Went with Stone Melee (mainly because I haven't played it before)...and I like it. A lot.

Hey all! Help me decide on which powerset I should do for my next Bio tank. Dual Blades or Stone Melee? And bonus points for any insight/reasoning on your selection! Appreciate it! - x

Thanks for the shout out @StriderIV. Yes, I have a Rad/Staff, and your screen will be full of orange numbers. I liked my Rad/Electric as well, and it's a beast also. However, I am a little partial to Staff. - x

@Onlyasandwich glad I could help!

My first thought was DP/Dark or Fire/Dark. DP's animations are stylish, and you can choose a secondary effect with Swap Ammo. Fire is more effective (Tar Patch+RoF+Inferno+Fireball NEVER got old). Then I read your statement "I like having many pets"....have you thought about a /Dark MM?

I don't know about the "best:", but my DP/Martial blaster is sooo freakin' fun to play. Also have a Dark/DP Defender that is really good as well.

On my Mercs, I slot an Achilles': Chance for Resist Debuff in my Soldiers (T1 pets). Almost all their attacks have a -def debuff in them, so you'll constantly have that proc going off. I see you already have that proc slotted.... Anyway, on my Mercs, I always slot the Kismet: Accuracy in Tactical Upgrade, and the Impervious Skin: Status Resist/Regen in Equip Mercenary. Your pets will get those benefits.

This is still on my Christmas wish list.

Seriously?

Dark would be a good pairing if you just want another heal. The -To Hit would also help out your defenses. Can't comment on BA as I've not played it. You should be able to have soft capped F/C/E/NE Defenses while in Offensive. Packing in as much recharge, regardless of your secondary, would be benficial. Zect is the expert on all things, and on all builds. Perhaps reach out to him. - X

I have a WP/Staff tank. He has capped HP, soft capped F/C/E/NE defenses with soft capped Lethal and Melee defense with Guarded Spin. With 1 foe in range of RttC, he regens 129 HP/Sec. Staff can also increase your resists by 13.3% if you execute Sky Splitter with 3 levels of Perfection while in Form of the Body. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed playing this toon. It's kinda "no nonsense"...just turn on your toggles and fight. And fight. And fight some more. I've thought about making another and pairing it with Rad Melee for Irradiated Ground and for a Heal. As far as DM, it's OK. It's nice having the heal. Dark Consumption would almost be wasted since WP doesn't really need the End Recovery. Maybe proc Dark Consumption and use it as an attack? StJ , IMO, is a fun set as well. And as far as MA, that'll keep your defenses soft capped for sure since Storm Kick gives you like a 10% bonus to Defense. I have no experience with Stone Melee, but have read that it does decent damage and the bit of CC it has will give you a little extra time to regen. Just remember that the more HP you have, the more you'll regenerate. Keep that in mind when chasing set bonuses. And let us know what you decide to pair it with! Have fun! - X

Also, I ended up +5 boosting all the Heal IOs that I could.

Couldn't figure that out. Would screenshots help?

I'm curious to know how everyone slots Shifting Tides.

Excellent advice! Appreciate it!