EnjoyTheJourney

Thank you both for your feedback. On reflection and after a bit of testing damage could use some improvement. I didn't try a trapdoor run before, thinking that with a quick recharging nuke and two other fast animating, quick recharging AOEs that AOE would be in a good place. But, it took nearly 10 minutes to clear a trapdoor run a little while ago. Both single target and AOE damage were responsible for that because bosses took too long to defeat and minions and lieutenants didn't fall fast enough to AOEs. It may be that force of will should go. That would make room for more and better attacks. I like the use of chain fences and lightning field in the sample build. It should noticeably improve AOE damage. I'll explore some possibilities on the beta server.

Here's a possible build. It will be quite mechanically effective and perhaps it fits with your preferences. Good luck with your character, however you decide to move forward. Edit: Sorry, forgot to toggle off the gather shadows and force of will. Having those toggled off gives you a better picture of default defenses. Pair this build with barrier destiny and melee core hybrid, plus cast gather shadows before using force of will when barrier is in its "lower defenses" cycle if you'd like your vampire dom to come closer to having the toughness of vampires you tend to see in movies and TV shows. Dominator (Mind Control - Dark Assault - Soul Mastery).mbd

It probably would have taken a fair number of hours to figure these things out on my own if I ever figured them out at all. Thank you for sharing your insights. I can empathize with why soloing AVs without insps / temps can be a phase that somebody enjoys doing for a while, but then wants to eventually stop doing. It can be a pretty big time sink. And, enjoying the game with others is usually more fun (at least for me, perhaps for a fair number of others).

Finished a practice run at -1x8. It took about 1:30 after subtracting out some afk time spent chatting with my wife. Left with mixed feelings afterward. It was a good learning experience concerning positioning and influencing AV AI. It was also a good opportunity to work on smoothing out attack chains to make them more efficient. Parts of it were quite fun. The interesting and fun parts were somewhat counterbalanced by the length of the AV fights. Also, the final four AVs sat there and did almost nothing until the first Nictus AV went down (more on that further below). For the Requiem fight I just stayed high enough in the air that his melee range attacks couldn't land (no dark regeneration for you, Req!). Also stayed quite a bit near cliffs / rock outcroppings so he would dance around trying to hit me in melee range. That cut down on running a fair amount. Running away from him as he ran away from me sometimes seemed to draw him back, sometimes not. Following in-game advice received via PM that DOTs can make the AVs run I moved electric fences and ball lightning in my power trays for the final mission AV fight so I wouldn't use them by mistake. Rom still ran, but not as much as I often see him run. The final four AVs fight started out in an unexpected way. I targeted the middle Nictus AV first from as far away as possible with only single target attacks. Shock still did light damage to the AV to Rom's left from time to time, but otherwise the middle AV was the sole target. The healing Nictus to Rom's right tried a couple of times to land an attack. But, other than that all four AVs just stood there until after the first AV (the middle AV) went down. If how I started the final AV fight was a regularly successful solo tactic it would probably be on the forums. But, I've not seen or heard of that before. Perhaps it was a quirk of this run or perhaps it's something that happens so seldom that nobody counts on it or even bothers to mention it.

Based on the damage values showing up on screen your link shows the correct powers and damage. He probably landed dark regeneration and perhaps a life drain shortly afterward to make his life leap upward from 40%-ish to near full. That gives me helpful information to consider when thinking about positioning relative to Requiem. It also makes it clear that having lore pets out in that battle can potentially backfire if he keeps healing off of them. Thank you for the link.

Tried soloing a +4x8 ITF tonight with an electric / SR / mu sentinel. Used no insps, no temps or amps or any such things. T4 musculature core, T4 ageless radial, T4 assault radial hybrid, T4 Ion radial judgment, T3 Vanguard radial lore, T3 reactive radial interface. The first two missions weren't particularly quick, taking about 30 minutes in total. But, they were straightforward and safe. Very inefficient in mission 3, took about 40 minutes to get the first four generals down and to destroy the computer. Attempted to solo Requiem by leading him to one side in the hills, well away from other mobs. Got him to about 40% hit points and then he seemed to heal up fairly quickly almost to full health. Not sure how he did that as no power with that capability was listed on the wiki. So, not sure if I made a mistake or how to correct next time if I did. Was working him down a second time when he got several hits through in a short time spawn. He may have used power drain on my lore pets, which I had summoned a little while earlier to try to speed things up, and perhaps the higher to hit total and some very good luck helped him get several hits through in quick succession. After my sentinel died to Requiem he was brought back into the mission for more practice at that fight. But, Requiem was nowhere to be seen. So, I tried soloing Rom for a little while. Eventually the hour grew late and I gave up. This time. Requiem ran a lot through all phases of the fight with him. Not sure how to keep Requiem from doing that, or at least how to minimize it. Rom ran a lot as well. Not sure how to keep Rom from doing that, either. Ideas considered include soloing at +0 a few times to get a better sense of how the AV fights go and how to manage them. Also, I may need to take a closer look at lore pets to ensure they have substantial -regen. Or not, not sure. Lore pets probably should have been used on the computer because it takes a fairly long time otherwise. Still, it could take a long time to figure things out mostly on my own, so any advice would be most appreciated. Thank you in advance.

The build in the attached PDF was requested in-game as a possible endgame sentinel build. It's not an optimized build. And, it's probably not a good build to take into 4 star or otherwise challenging incarnate content. But, it's pretty solid for regular content such as ITFs, Tin/Pex, etc, and it exemps down well all the way to Posi TFs. Hopefully reading through it sparks some helpful ideas for others. Edit: Haven't posted a build in a long time and forgot something obvious. The Mids file is now attached and it's probably easier to work with for many posters here. Electric SR sentinel build.pdf Sentinel (Electrical Blast - Super Reflexes - Mu Mastery).mbd

Poison without poison trap is nowhere near as damaging. Since venomous gas (probably) has your illusionist hanging out in melee range anyways and with so many skippable powers in poison you might as well proc up poison trap and use it for a mini-nuke every 20+ seconds or thereabouts. You can put the superior entomb +absorb proc into poison trap to noticeably improve survivability while in melee range. Illusion / poison works fairly well, overall, as long as you don't mind hanging out in melee. It's a fun build for teaming; mobs will tend to just melt when an illusionist / poison controller is on board. And, as long as your ill/poison troller is IO'd up well, you can comfortably take alpha in the clear majority of situations. Plus, you can come up with some really good thematic / roleplay characters with that powerset combination. But, functional limitations with AOE damage and the need to consistently be in melee range to get the most out of venomous gas and poison trap can make soloing higher end content more challenging (especially at +4x8 because the purple patch tends to quite noticeably diminish the effects of the debuffs). FWIW, Illusion / TA is probably noticeably stronger at debuffing and controlling mobs than Illusion / poison. Also, illusion / TA doesn't require being in melee range to get the most you can out of those two powersets in combination. That aside, illusion / poison can be enjoyable, depending on our playstyle preferences.

If you check the DPA on lift against your single target power choices in energy assault you'll realize that lift has higher DPA than power bolt, bone smasher, power push, and power blast. Also, given the longer recharge of the most damaging single target powers in energy assault, it helps quite a bit to smooth out your single target attack chain to have lift because it has such a short recharge time and such a fast casting time. If you'd like to make your grav / energy dom stronger, respec to remove the weakest single target power in your secondary and use those slots for lift instead; single target damage will probably go up quite noticeably once you do that. In fact, lift has higher DPA than the lower DPA powers in any dominator secondary. You can check Uberguy's city of data to verify that, if you'd like. Here's the link ... https://cod.uberguy.net/html/archetype.html?at=dominator For single target damage gravity / energy doms have excellent potential because the T7, T8, and T9 in energy assault are top tier single target damage powers (with energy focus engaged, of course) and lift is a top tier addition to those powers; singularity is worth taking for virtually any gravity dom build and it adds even further to already excellent single target damage. Where gravity control and energy assault doms tend to lag many other dom powerset combinations is in their AOE controls and AOE damage. Lift is not a problem for gravity control doms. It's one of the best powers in the set.

Lift has the best DPA in the absence of procs of any T1 or T2 in a dom primary. It's a good place for pick up set bonuses and it has higher DPA than most single target attacks in assault secondaries. It also has one of the most effective soft controls of any power in a dom primary or secondary. As well, having a high DPA attack with a short cast time and on a short recharge tends to improve single target damage for the whole build. Basically, just remove the weakest single target attack you would have taken from your secondary, replace it with lift, and you have a dom that does more damage than it would have otherwise. "Lift is a gift", in a sense. The main challenge facing gravity doms is a relatively weak set of AOE controls in the primary. The unusually strong pet doesn't quite make up for that weakness. Energy assault has so-so AOE and it doesn't add to AOE controls in a reliable way, so it doesn't mesh well with gravity control. Energy assault probably works better with a primary that offers good AOE controls and/or a mastery that boost AOE controls / damage. Sets that could mesh well with gravity control (and could easily be thematic) include psi assault and earth assault. Psi assault doesn't add much in the way of AOE control because the stun in psy shockwave doesn't reliably activate and it's just mag 2. But, it provides survivability through drain psyche, which helps to mitigate problems with weaker AOE controls. Also, the -50% recharge in psy shockwave can debuff up to 16 mobs at once and it slows down incoming damage quite a bit. Earth assault has two 10-target-maximum AOE attack powers that knock down mobs (and the T9 also stuns mobs, even if only at mag 2). The AOE attacks in earth assault help considerably to mitigate the AOE control limitations of gravity control. Also, lift provides the fourth single target attack on a short recharge that earth assault needs to have a smoother single target attack chain. Finally, the opportunities for force feedback +recharge IOs in earth assault improves gravity's AOE controls by making them more frequently available.

Ice / ice / ice was solid even before the buffs to ice control currently on beta. It should be even stronger the buffs currently on beta go live. There are several areas of substantial synergy, both on the defensive and offensive side. The one outstanding attribute of these sets in tandem is how mobs move and attack very very slowly, which helps both offense and defense. Hoarfrost helps to deal better with tough alphas and occasional big hits that will happen even when mobs are slowed to a crawl.

Understood. My limited experiences with the electric secondary on a dom were when it was paired with a melee-centric primary. It makes sense that you could have a quite different experience with thunderstrike when plant is your primary.

FWIW I found thunderstrike quite useful. It affects up to 16 enemies, unlike the target cap of 10 for almost all other AOEs in dominator secondaries (except psychic shockwave from psi assault). The damage for the AOE isn't great at all. But, it's useful for taking that last bit of hit points off mobs, it cuts down noticeably on runners, and knocking down up to 16 mobs at once is quite helpful to reduce incoming damage. Regarding procs and thunderstrike, the AOE is a pseudopet, IIRC, which means it's chances of activating PbAOE procs are probably very low. You may have better luck with procs intended to affect the primary target. For voltaic sentinel either as little as 2 IOs (ie: +5 dmg / end soulbound allegiance and +5 dmg soulbound allegiance, or perhaps an efficiency D-synch IO in the second slot if you have a damage alpha) or the slotting you used should work just fine. Which to choose may be best determined by how many slots you have available for it.

Before asking "What is ITF", there's a more basic and important question. How do you spell ITF?

The DnD 5e version sounds like a reasonable beginning point. Still, there's plenty to work through if the game has both confusion powers with probabilistic effects and mind control powers with predetermined effects. It would likely take a fair amount of testing to find a workable set of effects and probabilities, as well as a workable balance for the availability of confusion and mind control powers in powersets. The key in-game benefits of this kind of rework would be a game that scales more easily and better to various difficulties (especially at the high end) and a richer set of controls available for the game.

A core characteristic of how mobs labeled as "confused" act in-game is that they only attack allies and never attack their real enemies. That does not align with any common understanding of how confuse is defined. A careful examination of how confused creatures behave in the real world suggests that there is in fact no confusion power in the game. There are instead mind control or possession powers which are usually mislabeled as confuse or confusion. To minimize misunderstandings, in what follows below the phrase "mind control powers" refers to powers that replace default target AI with a compulsion to only attack, control, and debuff real allies and to only buff and heal real enemies. If somebody finds the phrase "mind control powers" unsatisfying because it overlaps with the name of a specific control set, then they can substitute the phrases "command powers" or "recruitment powers" when considering what follows. Beyond semantics, mind control powers now in the game create game balance problems, especially at the upper end of the difficulty scale. Mind control powers require careful and singular attention from designers to avoid having them trivialize content intended to be challenging. This is especially true for AOE mind control powers. One way to address this is to create real confusion powers. Real confusion powers would have probabilistic outcomes, which may include having targets attack their enemies, their allies, or everybody, having them stand around and do nothing or move randomly, or having them cast random buffs or debuffs that would have a probability of affecting allies, enemies, or everybody. The probabilities associated with events would need to be carefully considered. For example, a lot of random movement may fit thematically, but could be a frustrating mechanic if it was a frequent occurrence. Adding in an actual confusion mechanic would fill a current void in the set of controls usable in-game. It would make the game more interesting, when balanced well. It would help for rounding out and rebalancing control sets. Adding in real confusion powers would also create room for including mind control powers in a more carefully balanced way (ie: with shorter durations and smaller target caps, given their tremendous potential for altering how encounters go).

It makes confusion harder to balance when confused mobs always attack former allies. It also doesn't really fit with the usual definition of confuse. A confused mob could re-evaluate its choices every few seconds. Possible choices could include 2 or more of ... 1. Move in a random direction for the next 2 seconds. Use a movement power or not when moving. 2. Random targeting of friend or foe for whatever action(s) are taken next. 3. Random (de)activation of powers. Target could be friend or foe for buffs / debuffs / healing, as per 2 above. 4. Random choice of any attack not on cooldown. Confusion resistance could not only lower confuse duration, but also lower the probability of attacking a friend instead of a foe. Also, the use of confusion in teams becomes something to more carefully consider because a confused mob will be less likely to be influenced by taunt effects. Confuse doesn't have to always make mobs attack one another. It also doesn't need to either be extremely effective or completely ineffective. A more probabilistic AI for determining the choices of confused mobs would still make it easier to balance, still worthwhile to cast in many situations, and more interesting as an addition to the game. Another power could be added in place of confusion in its current state, a power that's sole purpose is to force mobs to buff the caster's teammates and allies and to debuff, control, and attack their former allies. That power could perhaps be named "Command" or "Recruit", instead of Confuse. It could be more heavily restricted in which mobs can be "Recruited", to make it easier to balance in light of its game-changing potential.

Another "note to self" for a build to test out in the future. Haven't played it yet, so not sure whether it's good or not. Use at your own risk. 🙂 This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.2.17 https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn Click this DataLink to open the build! Black Boulder: Level 50 Magic Dominator Primary Power Set: Earth Control Secondary Power Set: Earth Assault Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Force of Will Power Pool: Fighting Ancillary Pool: Soul Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Fossilize -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(3), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(3), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(5) Level 1: Stone Spears -- HO:Nucle(A) Level 2: Stone Cages -- SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(A), SprFrzBls-Dmg/EndRdx(9), SprAscoft-Rchg/+Dmg%(11), SprDmnGrs-Rchg/Fiery Orb(11) Level 4: Tremor -- Arm-Dmg(A), Arm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(13), Arm-Acc/Rchg(13), Arm-Dmg/EndRdx(15), Arm-Dam%(15), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(17) Level 6: Quicksand -- DS:DSyncSlowRechEnd(A) Level 8: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Ksm-ToHit+(17), Rct-ResDam%(19) Level 10: Hurl Boulder -- Dcm-Build%(A), ExpStr-Dam%(19), GldJvl-Dam%(21), Apc-Dam%(21), FrcFdb-Rechg%(23), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(23) Level 12: Stalagmites -- AbsAmz-Stun/Rchg(A), AbsAmz-Acc/Stun/Rchg(25), AbsAmz-Acc/Rchg(25), AbsAmz-EndRdx/Stun(27), AbsAmz-ToHitDeb%(27) Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(29) Level 16: Power Up -- DS:DSyncSlowRechEnd(A), RechRdx-I(29) Level 18: Earthquake -- DS:DSyncDamRech(A) Level 20: Heavy Mallet -- Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg(A), Mk'Bit-Dmg/EndRdx(31), Mk'Bit-Dmg/Rchg(31), Mk'Bit-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(31), Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), Mk'Bit-Dam%(33) Level 22: Mighty Leap -- WntGif-ResSlow(A) Level 24: Weaken Resolve -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A) Level 26: Volcanic Gasses -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(33), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(34), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(34) Level 28: Seismic Smash -- Hct-Dmg/Rchg(A), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(34), Hct-Acc/Rchg(36), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(36), Hct-Dam%(36), UnbCns-Dam%(37) Level 30: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 32: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(37), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(37), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(39), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(39) Level 35: Dark Embrace -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(39), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(40), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(40), UnbGrd-Max HP%(46) Level 38: Fissure -- PstBls-Acc/Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(40), PstBls-Dmg/Rng(42), PstBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(42), PstBls-Dam%(42), FrcFdb-Rechg%(43) Level 41: Soul Drain -- SprAvl-Dmg/EndRdx(A), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(43), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(43), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45), SprAvl-Rchg/KDProc(45) Level 44: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(45), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(46), ShlWal-Def(46) Level 47: Dark Obliteration -- PstBls-Acc/Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(48), PstBls-Dmg/Rchg(48), PstBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(48), PstBls-Dam%(50) Level 49: Unleash Potential -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), RechRdx-I(50), RechRdx-I(50) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 1: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 1: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 1: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(5), Mrc-Rcvry+(7), Prv-Absorb%(7) Level 1: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(9) Level 22: Takeoff Level 50: Intuition Radial Paragon Level 50: Degenerative Core Flawless Interface Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany Level 50: Melee Core Embodiment Level 50: Void Radial Final Judgement Level 50: Banished Pantheon Radial Superior Ally ------------

Given how versatile and how potentially fragile doms are, thoughtful choices when building them and strategic thinking when playing them are well rewarded and quite satisfying. Basically, I was drawn to playing doms pretty much as soon as they were released with City of Villains on live and that feeling hasn't changed.

What you're running into is probably that nobody frequenting the forum already has a build ready to go. In such cases it tends to help to provide a build to which others can respond. If you're really drawing a blank on putting together an initial build, then you can use builds given for fire / energy / ice and for fire / fire / fire or plant / fire / fire to help put together some puzzle pieces. You can search for such builds using the search function. You can also peruse the "Pylon times and trapdoor runs for dominators - Let's generate some data" for builds on which to draw. Incidentally, if you have a resistance shield from your mastery and energy as your assault set then you can generally make a character that's both defensively stronger and also less likely to have endurance problems by switching out the sorcery pool and opting for force of will in its place. Energy assault has a kind of "power boost" variant (power up) that boosts both damage and a bunch of secondary effects (including defense and mez duration). If you cast power up before casting unleash potential (from force of will) you'll get some very hefty defense numbers for a minute, as well as noticeably boosted endurance recovery. If you pair this combo up with a T4 barrier incarnate you end up with some really good layered defenses most of the time, as well less problems managing endurance. Good luck with your build, however you move forward.

Another experiment with a thematically interesting powerset combination. The short summary: Very good for safety, but DPS and clear speed were lower tier. earth / earth / psi mastery dominator (A sentient earth creature with pyschic powers) Pylon defeat: Defeated, 7:30 (213 DPS) Trapdoor run: 11:37 - defeated by a pylon once, 1 pylon defeat, and 1 trapdoor run T4 intuition radial alpha, T4 degenerative core, T4 barrier core destiny, T4 melee core hybrid, no judgment or lore used. No clicky accolades, temp powers, or amplifiers were used. Only insps used were yellow inspirations to nullify blind in trapdoor run. Pylon ... For the first attempt at a pylon defeat dom ended up with my dom being defeated when I forgot to re-engage hasten for a fair while, lost dom, and then lost toggles. I got stubborn about pushing through anyways, not noticing for a little while that toggles had dropped. A few big hits in a row from the pylon defeated this dom. This was the first time in a fair while to have a character defeated by a pylon and it was a bit embarrassing. The second effort to defeat a pylon was better executed. But, this particular build didn't get good single target DPS, ending up taking 7:30 to finish up (213 DPS). If some compromises had been made in defenses, such as taking ageless over barrier and probably a few other changes, then at least a somewhat better DPS total seems likely. Alternatively, if more damage procs had been used the DPS total would also likely have done better; fitting in less recharge was a viable option with force feedback +recharge IOs in fissure and hurl boulder. Trapdoor ... Despite the low overall clear speed, clear speed for mobs that were repeatedly being hit with the two earth assault AOEs wasn't bad; neither of the two earth assault AOEs have high DPA. But, they're available quite often so they were actually fairly quick at clearing the mobs they were hitting. The primary limitations on overall clear speed were the 10 mob target cap, which quite noticeably slowed down clear speed for the x8 trapdoor spawns, and the so-so single target damage, which made defeating any runners and other leftover mobs take longer. Safety was very good for this run. The "melee shield" provided by aura of confusion was very helpful for both builds for which it was tried out. After having tested out a fair number of dominator builds through pylon tests and trapdoor runs, the limit on AOE target caps of 5 or 10 for almost all dominator assault set AOEs seems to be the single most important factor in limiting clear speed for most dominators. In other respects dominators seem well suited to clearing a wide variety of content with a good degree of safety and in a very respectable time frame. The two dominator primaries that tend to be the quickest at clearing trapdoor runs (plant and fire) excel at clear speed not only because they directly increase AOE damage, but because they also each in their own way help players overcome the assault set AOE target cap limitation facing most other dominator builds. This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.2.17 https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Magic Dominator Primary Power Set: Earth Control Secondary Power Set: Earth Assault Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Force of Will Power Pool: Fighting Ancillary Pool: Psionic Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Fossilize -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(3), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(3), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(5) Level 1: Stone Spears -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(9), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(46), ExpStr-Dam%(50), GldJvl-Dam%(50) Level 2: Stone Cages -- SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(A), SprFrzBls-Dmg/EndRdx(9), SprAscoft-Rchg/+Dmg%(11), SprDmnGrs-Rchg/Fiery Orb(13) Level 4: Tremor -- Arm-Dmg(A), Arm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(13), Arm-Acc/Rchg(15), Arm-Dmg/EndRdx(17), Arm-Dam%(19), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(19) Level 6: Quicksand -- DS:DSyncSlowRechEnd(A) Level 8: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Ksm-ToHit+(25), Rct-ResDam%(33) Level 10: Hurl Boulder -- SprWntBit-Acc/Dmg(A), SprWntBit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(33), SprWntBit-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(34), Apc-Dam%(34), FrcFdb-Rechg%(34), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(37) Level 12: Stalagmites -- AbsAmz-Stun/Rchg(A), AbsAmz-Acc/Stun/Rchg(37), AbsAmz-Acc/Rchg(37), AbsAmz-EndRdx/Stun(40), AbsAmz-ToHitDeb%(43) Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(15) Level 16: Power Up -- DS:DSyncSlowRechEnd(A), RechRdx-I(17) Level 18: Earthquake -- DS:DSyncDamRech(A) Level 20: Heavy Mallet -- Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg(A), Mk'Bit-Dmg/EndRdx(21), Mk'Bit-Dmg/Rchg(21), Mk'Bit-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(23), Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(23), Mk'Bit-Dam%(25) Level 22: Mighty Leap -- WntGif-ResSlow(A) Level 24: Weaken Resolve -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A) Level 26: Volcanic Gasses -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(27), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(27), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(29) Level 28: Seismic Smash -- Hct-Dmg/Rchg(A), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(29), Hct-Acc/Rchg(31), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(31), Hct-Dam%(31), UnbCns-Dam%(33) Level 30: Unleash Potential -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), RechRdx-I(43), RechRdx-I(40) Level 32: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 35: Link Minds -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(36), ShlWal-Def/Rchg(36), ShlWal-EndRdx/Rchg(36) Level 38: Fissure -- PstBls-Acc/Dmg(A), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(39), PstBls-Dmg/Rng(39), PstBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(39), PstBls-Dam%(40), FrcFdb-Rechg%(46) Level 41: Mind Over Body -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(42), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(42), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(42), UnbGrd-Max HP%(43) Level 44: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(45), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(45), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(45), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 47: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(48), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(48), ShlWal-Def(48) Level 49: World of Confusion -- CrcPrs-Acc/Conf/Rchg(A), CrcPrs-Conf/EndRdx(50) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 1: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 1: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 1: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(5), Mrc-Rcvry+(7), Prv-Absorb%(7) Level 1: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(11) Level 22: Takeoff Level 50: Intuition Radial Paragon Level 50: Degenerative Core Flawless Interface Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany Level 50: Melee Core Embodiment ------------

It's not easy to solo and ITF. Well done. If you want you can stack confuse onto Romulus until he starts killing his own helpers. You can (hopefully) leave Imperious parked high in the air until you're ready to bring him into the fight. He does way more damage than you and your lores put together. So, if you can keep him from getting distracted and wandering all over he can help quite a bit if you bring him in at the right time. On that note, it's probably simpler to clear out a lot of other mobs while Imp is parked up high and while Rom is confused. That way Imp will be less likely to get himself killed by trying to solo the entire map. Also, when the mobs nearby have been thinned out a confused Rom is more likely to kill essence AVs on his own.

Another hand in the air here for choosing spore burst. Auto-hit powers that neutralize up to 16 mobs are helpful, as Hjarki is indicating. Also, you can put the Sandman sleep set heal proc into spore burst. It can be a one-slot 15% heal whenever it's available or you can put more slots into it to get some recharge and more sleep duration.

Many seem to find the earth assault visuals satisfying, as do I. The terms "smashy", "crunchy", and other such adjectives come up a lot for earth assault. The knockback on hurl boulder is quite strong, which by the visual you would pretty much expect because a very large boulder is ripped out of the earth and thrown at high speed at the target. That's the only power with knockback; multiple other powers have knockdown. Stone spear launches mobs into the sky quite well after a bunch of rocks thrust up from the ground underneath them. Overall the visuals match quite well with the "knock" effect of each power. You could go earth / earth / ice for a northern yeti kind of look and feel, earth / earth / psi for better defense and to run a kind of sentient earth creature, or earth / earth / soul for a literally and figuratively darker vibe. All would provide a very different visual aesthetic than a fortunata. FWIW. Ice / ice / ice tends to look quite misty by default. Ice swords (giant or usual sized) are a taste issue. You'd know if you like them or not. Bitter ice blast visuals suggest somebody throwing (or casting) ice. It's a very literal "these visuals show me doing just what you expect, given the power I'm using" powerset combination, overall.

Inspired by a post by Luminara about the newly revised aura of confusion, which can now trigger domination, a build was put together as follows: Gravity / rad assault / psi mastery dominator (conceptually, this is a scientist given psychic powers by a radiation experiment gone awry) Pylon defeat: 4:30 (270 DPS), 3:04 (336 DPS) Trapdoor run: 10:35, 10:30 - 2 pylon defeats and 2 trapdoor runs T4 intuition radial alpha, T4 degenerative core, T4 barrier core destiny, T4 melee core hybrid, no judgment or lore used. No clicky accolades, temp powers, or amplifiers were used. Only insps used were yellow inspirations to nullify blind in trapdoor run. Pylon ... I forgot to summon singularity until a little while into the first pylon defeat and got it repeatedly defeated by bad positioning. For the second pylon defeat I precast singularity and it stayed alive the whole time. This was the main difference between the first pylon defeat and the second. Trapdoor ... The functional idea behind this powerset combination was to improve upon the control limitations of gravity with aura of confusion. Another goal was to get more value out of aura of confusion by using wormhole to drop mobs on my dominator's head (hopefully near the singularity, as well, for even better herding). Radiation assault was chosen for the defense debuffs, to help with "to hit" for the dom and for confused mobs, and the heal. Also, a key goal was to avoid any powersets that would disable the ability of mobs to hit each other, to best leverage aura of confusion. Thus, no dark assault, no ice powersets with their -recharge, etc. For improving safety the addition of aura of confusion to gravity control was an unqualified success; when basically all mobs in melee range that con boss or below have no interest in hitting your dominator, your dominator will tend to live longer. For speeding up trapdoor runs this powerset combination wasn't as effective as hoped. A fair amount of this was my total lack of experience with this particular powerset combination. Part of this was that the AOE for this particular powerset combination isn't as strong as hoped. This is still a very effective combination overall, though, and it should contribute to teams just fine. This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.2.17 https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Magic Dominator Primary Power Set: Gravity Control Secondary Power Set: Radioactive Assault Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Force of Will Power Pool: Fighting Ancillary Pool: Psionic Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Lift -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(46), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(46), GldJvl-Dam%(50), ExpStr-Dam%(50) Level 1: Neutrino Bolt -- HO:Nucle(A) Level 2: Gravity Distortion -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Rchg/Hold(7), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(7), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(9) Level 4: Contaminated Strike -- SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx(A), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(9), Mk'Bit-Dam%(11), TchofLadG-%Dam(11), TchofDth-Dam%(13), GldStr-%Dam(13) Level 6: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Ksm-ToHit+(15), Rct-ResDam%(15) Level 8: Crushing Field -- SprFrzBls-Dmg/EndRdx(A), SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), SprDmnGrs-Rchg/Fiery Orb(17) Level 10: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(19) Level 12: Mighty Leap -- WntGif-ResSlow(A) Level 14: Weaken Resolve -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A) Level 16: Fusion -- RechRdx-I(A), DS:DSyncSlowRechEnd(19), GssSynFr--Build%(21) Level 18: Gravity Distortion Field -- BslGaz-Acc/Hold(A), BslGaz-Acc/Rchg(21), BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(23), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(23) Level 20: Radiation Siphon -- DS:DSyncHealAcc(A), DS:DSyncEndHeal(25) Level 22: Unleash Potential -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), RechRdx-I(25), RechRdx-I(27) Level 24: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 26: Wormhole -- AbsAmz-Stun/Rchg(A), AbsAmz-Acc/Stun/Rchg(27), AbsAmz-Acc/Rchg(29), AbsAmz-EndRdx/Stun(29), AbsAmz-ToHitDeb%(31) Level 28: Atom Smasher -- Arm-Dmg/Rchg(A), Arm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), Arm-Dmg(31), Arm-Dmg/EndRdx(33), Arm-Dam%(33), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(33) Level 30: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(34), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(34), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(34), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(36) Level 32: Singularity -- ExpRnf-Acc/Rchg(A), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg(36), ExpRnf-Dmg/EndRdx(36), ExpRnf-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(37), SuddAcc--KB/+KD(37) Level 35: Proton Volley -- Apc-Dmg/Rchg(A), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(37), Apc-Dmg(39), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(39), Apc-Dam%(39), AchHee-ResDeb%(40) Level 38: Devastating Blow -- Hct-Dmg/Rchg(A), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Hct-Acc/Rchg(40), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(42), Hct-Dam%(42), SprAscoft-Rchg/+Dmg%(42) Level 41: Link Minds -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(43), ShlWal-Def/Rchg(43), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(43) Level 44: Mind Over Body -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(45), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(45), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(45), UnbGrd-Max HP%(46) Level 47: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(48), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(48), ShlWal-Def(48) Level 49: World of Confusion -- CrcPrs-Acc/Conf/Rchg(A), CrcPrs-Conf/EndRdx(50) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 1: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 1: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(3), Mrc-Rcvry+(3), Prv-Absorb%(5) Level 1: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 1: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(5) Level 49: Quick Form Level 12: Takeoff Level 50: Intuition Radial Paragon Level 50: Degenerative Core Flawless Interface Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany Level 50: Melee Core Embodiment ------------