mcdoogss

Bio armor is another armor set that leverages regeneration as one of the layers of mitigation. Worth a 50 or two at least

Beheader for sure, taunt if you are the type to skip taunt. One of gash/cleave could be dropped (although both are good powers on their own). Swoop, pendulum, axe cyclone are must haves

I'd agree with that. Even then though, ML isn't numerically exceptional in any way compared to other sets T9 pbaoe. Mechanically in real use I'd rank it near the bottom actually, especially during most of the game where the only other AOE is a cone. This is due to the way it throws mobs around which causes constant repositioning. ML is fun, but psi melee overall is one of those sets that desperately needs help from it's epic pools (both ST and AE imo). Psi is just an awkward set. Insight is a mechanic that is both numerically mid AND not fun to manage. The rng nature of acquiring it, plus the rng nature of the very weak psi dot, plus the long lockout period....The extra GPB dmg just does not compensate. The lack of a secondary effect unifying theme is also not great (-recharge, disorient, hold, KD, KU) and just act to expand proc options. Oh and Boggle isn't very good on a tank at least that probably won't need/want the kind of 'control' that can send mobs all over. I dunno, psi melee needs a lot of work.

i generally slot the FF proc in one ST and one AOE attack at end game. The reason being is my lvl 50 builds have a decent to very high level of global recharge already, and slots/set bonuses are at a premium. while leveling though i’ll slot more FF procs than that, global recharge will be lacking and purple sets won't be available so there is more upside. In your case, i’d slot in foot stomp for sure. Shield charge is on too long a CD imo to get a ton of utility out of it (plus you’ll prob be chaining with FS anyways) so it’s not a clear winner over more dmg procs imo. KOB is a good choice (but I like the entomb +absorb proc in KOB more, especially with armor sets that don’t have heals/absorbs of their own). Haymaker is the SS ST attack i most often slot the FF proc in.

Bio/Axe is amazing, but probably doesn’t qualify as a ‘hidden gem’ lol. Likewise Rad/fire (4 pbaoes!) and stone/ss. fire/ice is rly fun and i think could be a hidden gem, especially for folks who like to level solo. i personally do not care for psi melee, but it’s better on scrappers than on tankers. The lack of crits exposes how anemic the dmg is, the aoe is lacking, and insight continues to suck as a mechanic. Im currently toiling in the 40s on a shield/psi tank. Im leveling this one right after leveling stone/ss and its a huge downgrade lol

This is a fairly comprehensive guide to incarnates for HC that is still mostly useful and relevant: the incarnate system is very obtuse, that guide has some historical context for why its so confusing, arcane, and seems only partially finished (spoiler: because it is!). tldr as i understand things, back on live incarnates were cooked up as a premium endgame content option to keep people playing. This was very close to the end of coh’s run, and in typical fashion was released half baked but the game shut down before the dev team could go through their typical iterative improvement cycles. So we have a bit of half baked post 50 content and mechanics

I don't have that exact combo, but I have played both sets. You are going to have exceptional damage, especially AOE. Axe is a top tier damage set, and Shield while being a top tier armor set also has some tools (AAO for +dmg and Shield Charge for an extra AOE) to add to that damage. Pretty much every power includes knockdown, so you will be able to have a very high percentage of uptime on the FF +recharge proc. The flip side of this is that both sets are pretty endurance hungry and neither includes any endurance recovery help. You'll want to prioritize sl0tting the perf shifter +end proc and an end mod IO in Stamina, panacea +hp/+end proc in Health, and Miracle + recovery proc in Health. Along with that, slotting end reduction in your attack powers especially the aoes. With Shield I like to slot the power shifter +hp proc as soon as possible, as the set lacks any sort of heal or even +regen and while leveling you are going to be under defense softcap for a little bit. So you'll be taking damage. The preventative medicine +absorb proc is also a priority. A couple of guides to understand the benefits of +recovery, +end, + regen and +hp procs:

The shell does appear but then it disappears. Its only visible for a second or so

FA does give you tohit debuff resistance, but then again double stacked rage gives quite a toHit buffer. Anyways, -toHit is super annoying. I took psionic mastery on my SS tank, but his primary is Stone with a ton of toggles so harmonic mind is very useful. Beyond that though dominate and psionic tornado when properly procced out are awesome supplements to SS’s attack chains. The entomb absorb proc can slide in either KOB or dominate which is effectively a decent heal.

tanker can meet all those goals. Of the recent 50s i’ve made: Bio/Axe Rad/Fire Stone/SS All can be built to be extremely durable but also pretty decent damage particularly area damage. That AOE will have pesky minions like sappers dead in seconds, before they can get a second shot off and without you having to even target them. Alternatively they will be durable enough to ignore entire groups while you burn down the sappers first.

Cloak of fear is a very expensive toggle, with terrible base accuracy and magnitude. At the least I’d recommend deferring until after 28 when you can select dark consumption from dark melee. the +end proc in dark regen is key, as is + end perf shifter in stamina. Panacea and miracle +recovery are the best options in health for end management. iirc the theft of essence +end proc is decent in siphon life

SS is a good, but unbalanced melee set. Rad armor has a couple of procbomb powers that help SS by supplementing the AOE. Same can be said of EM, but I think Rage tilts the board in the SS direction. Another hilarious rad combo is rad/fire. FSC -> combustion -> ground zero -> rad therapy -> combustion -> FSC is joyous aoe rotation

Remind me what happens to snitches again?

I'm leveling a Stone/SS tank (currently 46) and I use CP for most of it so far. I just strongly dislike that power, even though it's probably necessary for maxxing SS dps. The cone is so shallow it barely counts imo. I've been experimenting with Hand Clap instead, and it's actually pretty useful as a mitigation tool during the frequent rage crashes and as a FF proc power. Not optimal, but more fun than cross punch that I just can't stand for some reason.

My main point was that Bio needs ablative, dna siphon, and PA for survival more than Rad needs rad therapy, PS, and meltdown. Especially in -defense environments as bios resistances wont be nearly as comprehensively hard capped, especially if like me you are running in offensive as much as possible. Meltdown isn't really a survival power on a built Rad tanker as you can already be hard capped with a stack or two of res procs to all damage but cold. On my rad/fire i also click rad armor powers more often than i click bio powers on my bio-axe, but thats largely down to rad therapy (and ground zero) being proc bombs. As I said before, Meltdown is mainly an offensive power from the mid 40s or so also a fully saturated PA means you generally don’t need ablative/dna for 45 seconds at least, that really cuts down on clicks. Unless the content is trivial, I'm using ablative or PA every spawn proactively to avoid Sudden Bio Faceplant Syndrome. With Rad generally PS/RT is reactive outside of proc bombing RT with much slower HP loss due to higher across the board resistances