Rigged

Honestly I think a lot of the survivability issues with SR could be alleviated by giving it slow ticking absorb, possibly in practiced brawler. Seriously, I am running ranged ATs with more passive survivability than SR. Not a bad idea, but will benefit mostly lowbies. Won't change anything at the endgame where everyone packs ageless... Energize in /EA for example does not really help much on the END front - the real END power in that set is Power Sink. Mind you, SR's toggles are already very light on END. Nothing wrong with this idea, but really, this is not a big deal at all. At the earlier levels it is in fact quite rare that you really need it up 100%, since you only need to click it when a mez actually gets past your Defense, so a single SO (or two later on) will get you all the uptime you need, especially since HC hands you SOs right at the start. I don't exactly object to it, but maybe we should conserve buffs for elsewhere. The issue with increasing scaling resists is that it is in fact very easy to get another 8% resist across the board with two global IOs and another bunch for smash/lethal using Tough, a whole lot of set bonuses with fire/cold resist, leaving the only real slightly-harder hole on resists at low health as energy/neg. Look, I'm not saying it's a bad idea (and in fact it is a very good idea for tanks/brutes). I'm saying that we might want to address that in a different way because it is not going to help a lot for scrappers/stalkers once they get low, and a big problem with SR is that a single attack hitting at max health can drop you to 1HP. I do expect though that some purists will object to the idea of SR getting better resists. OK true, but the thing is that if you compare the sets purely on their performance without IOs, SR is actually one of the best. You can softcap (or more practically, come close to softcap) everything without IOs, giving you a solid 90% (or 85ish%) mitigation to all damage. This is more than many of the other sets with no egregious holes except for the fact that you lack a heal power, which can be alleviated using a pool or an offense powerset with a self-heal. It is a far better argument to compare the performance of SR with just a small amount of IO slotting - one of SR's biggest problems is that it overdoses on defense that other sets can use IOs to equalize, meaning that their other mitigation such as resists and self-heals put them ahead on survivability. Look, I am all for buffing SR or at least making its mitigation more consistent, but the argument for doing so is much better when you consider the practical modern IO environment, is what I'm saying. Completely true that that power seriously needs a revamp. In many cases it does nothing but give you a bit more defense debuff resist- which is pathetic for a t9. At least for resist sets, the T9 will often at least partially cover resist holes. Now I know this is going to be controversial, but I seriously think SR should get more offense in order to compete with /Shield or the sheer utility spread of /energy aura. Would it really be so overpowered to remove the crash and give Elude a sizable damage buff (or the recharge buff OP suggested) for the 2/3 uptime at the practical recharge limits, while reducing the superfluous defense a bit? Overall, please don't mistake my critique of your suggestions as trying to pooh-pooh them. If nothing else, I think you are in fact being too reserved in your buff suggestions.

That's fine, too - but I am giving a suggestion on how to go about buffing brutes in the event that a tanker nerf is not on the cards, which is in line with the OP. I have no objection to tanker nerfs, but it is hard to say whether that will be the avenue chosen by the devs, especially since the main tanker buffs have been allowed to continue for three and a half years now. My point is that doing the buff/nerf treadmill on pure damage is not the way to go for balancing brutes. If brutes must be buffed, we should look towards AOE or mitigation as possible other avenues for balance, because raw melee damage is the schtick of stalkers and scrappers. The issue is that, since Brutes and Scrappers and Stalkers all use the same mitigation scale, the main way they are currently differentiated is through their damage output and HP. Brutes need some buffing in the direction of the tank role to better differentiate them from the others and HP alone is honestly not enough. Even if tankers are nerfed, consideration should be given towards increasing brute mitigation at least marginally or giving them a mild buff to AOE radii/target caps. Do consider that your kneejerk aversion to power creep and relentless harping about it in this forum belongs more in an i24 purist server rather than HC, which has long ago abandoned the Live balance status quo. HC has upended the entire balance equation in multiple ways, which are now going to be very difficult to revert, especially since they have allowed them to stand for long enough to seep into the status quo. We have power creep in multiple high-performing ATs which the rest have to work alongside and quite frankly the pace of range AT buffs do not look like they are going to slow even though it is clear that those ATs were overbuffed entire issues ago. If you want to complain about power creep, kindly direct that at the dev balance philosophy and not player suggestions to keep up, because it is very clear that avoiding power creep is not in the dev priorities. Like I said earlier, shutting down discussion by wishing for a tanker nerf is not going to be productive considering the HC devs have let those buffs stand for three and a half years now. This is longer than the lifespan of some MMOs. If you do not mind, you can go on wishing for them while the rest of us work with the reality we're in.

If the devs are very afraid of clipping, may I request that they consider allowing the bolero to be used with short capes, where the clipping issues are minimal. I would also be very much in favor of any option that allows us to use backpacks with the bolero, since those largely do not clip, as well as the addition of the Arcane collar to backpacks, for those of us who want it without the cape.

This is actually a very good point - I am not particularly affected by this because I run a lot of procs, but top-end Crey have very poor mob diversity which is very clear when you do the missions only to find a sea of grey. A much better solution than nerfing their resists might simply be to create high-end crey agents and scientists so that not every Crey enemy in the 46-50 bracket is a tank.

With respect, I am actually convinced that the way to balance brutes is not by increasing their damage - this is a futile endeavor because there are four melee archetypes (not including EATs) and the bare second one outdamages any of the others all of them will complain. Instead, because Brutes are supposed to be a hybrid of Tanks and Scrappers, I really feel that the correct way forward would be to provide some of the overpowering advantages that tanks are getting to Brutes. Consider: Increasing the cone/AOE radii and target caps to match tankers. Increase the base brute mitigation scaling from 75% to 85% (a bit less than halfway in between scrappers and tankers). But no increase to the fury buff numbers or base damage. If you feel that fury drops too fast (been awhile since I played a brute), perhaps we can reduce the rate of decay so it is more consistently on the high end. This would make Brutes the king of large scale melee AOE in a way that scrappers would never be able to compete against while allowing scrappers and stalkers to retain their position as the top single target and small-group DPS. It would also improve Brute resist and defence base numbers to help reach breakpoints easier. If we meddle solely with raw damage, the only result is that brutes would end up being nerfed back down when scrappers and stalkers complain.

I suspect it is because Dark Blast has an unusually large number of cones, and they want to increase the synergy. Regardless, it is not so cool for people who are not Dark Blast and are not already lining up the cones as part of their normal attack cycle. This is particularly pronounced for Blasters, who get Soul drain from their secondary (rather than the APP/PPP like Defenders and Corruptors) where there are likely to be lots of people who take the Dark secondary without the Dark Blast primary. Blaster Dark blast also has one less cone, so there isn't that much synergy for them. So for Blasters at least, where you are supposed to blap for maximum effectiveness and the synergy is not so much a factor as it is for defenders and corruptors, I hope they do not change it. There is a bit of an argument for changing the Soul Drain in Defender and Corruptor Soul/Dark Mastery though, since it does force a ranged defender to close where they may not otherwise have to. Few Defender/Corruptor APP/PPP powers require you to close - although Dark Mastery specifically has all the powers other than the armor being PBAOEs. One possibility is to change the Soul Mastery version (since the rest of the powers are ranged; also the Soul Mastery version has twice the cooldown) to a cone while leaving the Dark Mastery version as it is, which would provide greater distinction between the Dark and Soul Mastery sets. I myself have no opinion for or against changing this.

I hate to jranger this idea but having seen what it does to every community, I feel I have to. I get that elitism is already a problem here, but that's precisely the issue: I am against any idea that would encourage it. That elitism also encourages a defensive attitude in the opposite faction, those who are proud of how unoptimized their playstyle is. This division does not need to be exacerbated. The only game I have played where it doesn't come up regularly is FF14, because it is strictly against the rules to even use a DPS meter - though unofficially the GMs close a blind eye unless you try to whine about another player's performance using one. And while correlation does not imply causation, FF14's community is better than most and I cannot help but think this is at least one of many reasons for it. It pains me because I myself am a massive min/maxer and build tweaker and would love to be able to see statistics in a group setting. But I have to content myself with timing solo runs instead. Apologies to those who support this with the best of intentions, but there has been a demonstrable history of how DPS meters affect player psychology.

Y'all know that frankenslotting and boosting set IOs will get you to almost the same values as most hami-o's, right? There are only a very rare few powers that benefit fully from a hami-o, mostly those that have multiple control effects or both tohit and defense buffs/debuffs.

Sadly I do believe that with the current antiquated tools for creating animations (from what I understand COH's engine is not compatible with ANY modern animation programs) a single second of animation takes days of active work to create. The example given was the innertube emotes. The devs have said this is not an efficient use of their volunteer time. Hopefully a better solution is discovered so that we can import or create new animations more efficiently. Until then, recycled animation are the best option.

Just FYI, that's Statesman's cape. It's a reference to the fact that they are different-time counterparts. And yes, the cape at the back is separate from the shoulder drape, so theoretically you could use it with any of the existing capes. I don't object to it being added for players, however. It's just that I suspect the reason it hasn't is because they would have to adapt it for the female and huge bodytypes and they haven't got around to it yet.

Everyone can slot 5 purple sets with the 10% recharge bonus just from pools. The fighting pool alone gives everyone access to 3 - Boxing slots Absolute Amazement, Kick slots Hecatomb, and Cross Punch slots Armageddon. Experimentation's Toxic Dart slots Apocalypse and Corrosive Vial slots Ragnarok. Force of Will's Project Will and Wall of Force, respectively, can do the same. There are a smattering of other pool powers with which to mule purples, but I am just showing you can do it solely with two pools - Fighting and either Experimentation of Force of Will. Even if you are not inclined to take either Experimentation or Force of Will because you want to take the holy quad of pools, every AT has access to at least one ranged damage power (at least from your epic pool) to slot Armageddon. Every AT will also have access to at least one more control power (Immob or Hold) or a ranged AOE. Add that to Fighting and you have five. This isn't even including ATOs. And just in case people say this kind of extreme muling is not practical, I want to point out that a lot of endgame builds mule Absolute Amazement in Boxing. Add your ATOs and no one can make the excuse of not having full access to 50% recharge from purples. The real reason we tend to have less is because these days we spend slots on procs instead and Hasten/LOTGs/Force Feedback proc are usually sufficient when paired with Ageless. For heaven's sake people here talk like they have no experience minmaxing every day. Nonetheless I have no objection to there being more sets with the 10% recharge bonus. This is not because I want them. It is because having that 10% recharge bonus as the main star of a new set's bonus will cap power creep - as I said, everyone has full access to at least five sets with that bonus already. I am in favor of lateral improvements - basically giving people more options to attain the same level of power, rather than adding new levels of power that will upend the gradually normalizing balance work that the HC power team is doing.

Feels like technically, this might not be so hard. By "void" would you accept the model of an unbound Nictus, the fluffballs that buff Rommy? The models are in the game and they already use blasts very similar (if not identical) to the squid form. The main difficulty might be creating a whole bunch of story arcs for the EAT, but perhaps the devs might consider contributions made in the AE to be made official for the purpose of the EAT's arcs. Feels like mechanically your Nictus is going to be very similar to a Warshade, with mostly cosmetic changes? As long as those cosmetics are already in the game for the devs to repurpose it seems entirely doable. Not sure about manually controlling an enemy (we don't know if the engine can support this, and if turns out it can, we'd better share this with Mind controllers or face a revolt), but a confuse power looks pretty viable.

Okie dokes.

Then consider a peacebringer, which is as "light" as light gets. Nope. This is a forum, and we are here to help. We're happy to volunteer, and we can do the job whether you like it or not. The glacial pace of content releases means it is highly unlikely your desired changes will come out soon, if ever, and as a result there are tons of people here trying to suggest alternatives that will work in the meantime. In any case, the suggestions were originally being made to the OP, not you, and you decided to run out and spit in the faces of those trying to help the OP. This is why people are reacting so negatively towards you. Not at all. It is very helpful in this specific case, because it is extremely easy to play a light blast character in this game. Perhaps you are taking offense at the general sense of negativity on this forum, but in this specific thread, I have found no cause for your prickliness.

Dear devs, please consider adding the Mastermind Demons whip animations as alternate animations for Fire powerset swords in Fiery Melee and Fire Manipulation. Here's a suggestion on the animation times along with the numbers: Fire Sword animation: 1.33 sec Corruption animation: 1.233 sec Greater Fire Sword animation: 1.367 sec Lash animation: 1.8 sec Fire Sword Circle animation: 2.67 sec Crack Whip animation: 2.33 sec The fire sword animations are generally longer than the whip animation, so it's mostly a matter of extending the cast time lockout (FYI for non-devs, cast time and animation time are not the same thing - they can be changed independently) to match them, except for Lash/Greater Fire Sword. I'm not familiar with the viability of shortening the whip animation (I am told it is unusually complex), but if this is a problem, please consider reusing the Corruption animation for Greater Fire Sword. Alternatively, consider using the Lash animation for Fire Breath (extended to match the Fire Breath animations of course). Please also consider extending this to other sets with a viably fiery theme, such as Radiation or Psychic Melee. The reason I ask for this is not because I want the whips. It is because I hope it will reduce the number of petless masterminds on Everlasting.

Personally, I have found every single one of the new HC sets to be generally uninteresting. Not a problem since I am usually far more interested in balance chances to old sets - for instance I was pretty happy with the AR changes even though I think they should have swapped Beanbag for Aim (let's not argue it; devs have decided). It does not help that the HC devs specifically designed Storm Blast to "not be the best" at quick damage. For those unfamiliar with PR-speak, let me translate: it sucks in practice and is meant for those hard-mode purists who think the game is too easy. This means it is not meant to appeal to many of us. That is actually okay, since we should not expect every single addition to cater to our playstyle, but it does mean we'll pass on this set. Hopefully a later set will fit our playstyle more. Seriously - we can't expect every single new set to cater to us. Just let it slide. The devs have promised smaller, faster Page releases, so hopefully we'll get a new addition soon.

I was actually not aware of the test server menu. Your answers are sufficient for me support your suggestion.

Speaking of this: I really hope the devs will consider a generic Mez IO purple in the vein of the Controller/Dominator ATOs. Some powers have multiple mez effects and I feel dirty contaminating my build with filthy Hami-Os. Rebirth server (one of the other servers we are not particularly hostile to) also has a generic debuff IO set, for tohit/defense debuff and slows. I think it would be nice also to have a combination healing/endmod set. While this is not strictly part of the OP's suggestion, to prevent people from stacking their builds with these they could be implemented as unique purples.

Yes and as I said it would be much easier and convenient to just summon a vendor. Please answer the rest of the question. Are you suggesting a massive 26-option menu like the insp combine menu - keeping in mind that for 26 options you are looking at a window several columns wide and rows long (2x13, 3x9, 4x7, 5x6), keeping in mind that there are in fact 130 actual origin/type combinations which will have to be coded in. Or are you asking the devs to code in a special combination window similar to the enh converter window? This is your suggestion and you have to flesh it out. Also, please address why you think a summonable vendor is not a much better idea anyway since it would be much easier to code and is more useful since it can be used for selling recipes and salvage too. Convenience is after all your goal, right?

My point is not moot. I certainly don't object to an addition of what you suggest, but my point is to inform people about this discrepancy in the sell prices between regular vendors (26% or less) and these specific ones (40%, which means you can buy a new SO for every 2.5 SOs you sell). This serves two purposes: 1) it provides an option for everyone to use just in case the devs do not implement your suggestion and 2) it helps your case by refuting everyone above who states it would be unbalanced or be too beneficial, because as I said a cheaper alternative already exists (2.5 SOs vs 3) with even less restrictions (no gatekeeping by type/origin/level), it's just less convenient. This is why I suggest gaining access to a player base with the vendor, by the way - convenience. There is a base portal in every PVE zone except Cimmerora/Ouroboros/Midnight Squad (which have their own vendors anyway - and I sometimes pop into Ouro specifically to sell to Roebuck), or you can just use a base teleporter. Using your base teleporter also has the added convenience of putting you back at the exact spot you teleported from, if you exit by the entry portal. I certainly would support even more convenience, such as a temp power that summons a vendor in the same manner that we have the portable workbench, but how convenient things get is not my decision. Seriously though, a summonable vendor would be incredibly convenient, much more useful, and much easier to implement than an enhancement combine system. I'm just going to guess though that this kind of convenience is going to be opposed to all the difficulty purists who complain the game is too easy now. I do have to ask you to clarify the implementation of your suggestion though - for your 3 enhancements, do you get a random type for an enhancement of the same origin/level or do you get to pick? I presume it's the latter - how would it work if the latter? There are 26 enhancement types, so are you suggesting we put in a gigantic menu (similar to the 8-option insp combine one, just gigantic with 26 options) from which you click? Or are you suggesting a combine window where you drag 3 enhancements in, click a specific enhancement type to output (again from a gigantic 26-option menu) and then click "combine"? Either way sounds very cumbersome as far as the UI goes, because the devs will have to code in output options for each of the 5 origins, so that would be 5x26=130 in all... why not just do a summonable vendor? See, I don't want to put down your suggestion, but you have to clarify what the implementation is going to look like.

As I said, you can certainly ask. But if you are asking the devs very specifically for a new powerset with light blasts with -tohit in all attacks called Light Blast, I am just going to guess you are destined for disappointment. In the meantime consider Radiation Blast instead, which has no knockback. Light is after all a type of radiation. This is not "imagine it is light". Light is radiation. No imagining needed. Alternatively, you can also play a Peacebringer which has entirely light blast attacks, you just have to tolerate the fact that their powerset is called Luminous Blast. Again, please consider not being so attached to the powerset name. Consider the animations, power FX etc that best matches the idea you want. Just because the devs used a broad, generic name for the powerset does not mean it cannot represent your concept. This is like complaining that Martial Arts is not good enough for you because you insist on using a powerset called Karate.

Thank you for confirming that you solely want to argue for the sake of arguing and not to actually discuss the point. As I said, I have no desire to discuss lore with you. Oh well, that's not a problem then, since we can't use any NPC supers' names! Not at all. The only way you think it could apply to player characters is if you consider players and their experiences no more important than the unintelligent NPCs. Because players see their own characters a lot more often than "briefly on your screen". Also, whether you are in favor of the OP does not change what I said about you /jrangering everything you do not have personal interest in. And I am saying that the old rule isn't relevant because the HC devs don't have the same direct connection with the NPCs the way that Positron was literally Matt Miller's old Champions character. In any case, the HC devs clearly did not object to adding Infernal's Axe to the available weapons along with the once-forbidden Malaise colors. Perhaps they made special exceptions for those, but it's more likely that the actual restriction on adding more pieces is either technical difficulty or quality control, issues that the two mentioned staves do not suffer (since neither axe nor pattern require color customization or adapting to body shapes, being a weapon and texture respectively). This can be overcome, but it's man-hours they have to prioritize. Although for all we know maybe they are saving these spears for a future x/x/spear epic (hero patron) power pool. Valkyrie does after all have a neato spear-throwing animation to hijack.

This is already in the game, and is not restricted by SO type, origin or level. It's called selling to the right vendor and buying what you want. Julia Pria in Cimmerora, Mender Roebuck in Ouroboros, the Midnighter Store, and the Vanguard Quartermaster (the latter two can be placed in player bases) will buy ANY SO at 40% sell price. Additionally Origin store contacts will buy the respective Origin SOs at 40% sell price. Most other vendors buy SOs at 26% or less. So in fact, you can not only convert 2 1/2 SOs to another, but you get to pick the specific SO you want. The OP's suggestion (3 SOs for a random SO?) is in fact a bit of a nerf. I advise creating your own player base to sell to. Put up the vanguard quartermaster and sell everything to them.

You are just being pedantic for the sake of it. You know exactly what I mean. Even if we accept your idea that there are a limited number of alternate dimensions (I have no desire to debate lore with you), there is no such thing as one-of-a-kind items in an infinite multiverse. Perhaps you should tell the Flash about the case he has against Professor Zoom, I'm sure that'll work out. Even in the comic book genre, characters rip each other off constantly. You are free to inform the current players of the old reasons but there is literally no reason we have to adhere to them. Saying "No we can't change it because maybe the HC devs want to keep the same old rule as Live" is not a valid refutation. The entire point of the suggestion forum is so we can make our case to the HC devs why a silly rule like this should be abolished. Well, that's a very interesting admission that you consider every other player's experience to be unimportant, on par with NPCs. That response does explain your "If it isn't something that I want personally I'll /jranger it" attitude towards everything in this forum. Yes that's what a suggestion forum is actually for.

This is a poor argument. You can certainly ask for stuff. But when someone else says "You know, light is energy and you can color energy blast white so it's light, and light is also Radiation and you can color Radiation Blast light too", it is not reasonable to say "well then no one should ask for anything ever again". If you are telling me that you must have a powerset called Light Blast and you cannot use a powerset called Radiation Blast even though Radiation blast does EXACTLY what you would expect Light Blast to do and LOOKS exactly like what Light Blast should look like, then I have bad news for you because I suspect you will find yourself very often disappointed. Yes this. The key is the animations and the power effects.