Socks10

I don't have much to add, other than to say @Sir Myshkinand @Doc Ranger made some excellent points and always do. Since I have been back I make a point to pay special attention to their posts when discussing character builds. I have an Ice/Atomic Blaster that I have at level 39 and enjoy him quite a bit. But, I did notice similar things to the OP regarding /Atomic while leveling up. But, one I got past level 32 and got Blizzard, I basically started playing how @Sir Myshkin discussed above (only because I saw him mention it in another post). I got into a radio mission group the other day and kept alternating Blizzard and Ice Storm/Atom Smasher. It was great. There were times where I'd break off with a single Brute during the mission and we would clear whole areas. I know I'm not on my final build most likely, but I have almost all of the /Atomic powers picked aside from the tier 9 melee attack, which I doubt I take. I also don't use Shackles at all really, but no choice there. I didn't pick up Bitter Freeze Ray, but I have on another character and I absolutely love the animation...it's just way to slow. Freeze Ray is amazing though. Slotted it for damage and it's perfect.

This is kind of funny (to me). My first two main characters since I've been back are an Ice/Ice Tanker (50) and a Grav/Time Controller (45). Now I have a ton of alts, but that's another story.

I do this too. It’s a nice power to have ready when things get out of control. I actually did a mission with this same friend last night. I used my Controller and he had a Mind/Psi Dominator. He definitely enjoyed this pairing. We did a high level mission in PI where we had to fight Infernal. We had zero issues until Infernal, where my friend got one-shotted. I had to use all of my powers and it was a very tough fight, but we prevailed. I just had to kite the boss away a couple of times to get my friend some Rez inspirations. :)

I love Wormhole, but I can definitely see how it could bother some melee. There were times when I'd go to pull a spawn, and while I was casting, the melee characters ran up. I had to say "Umm, not there.". I also can see how Singularity would be annoying as well. It's a very good pet, but absolutely has no problems flinging mobs every which way. This is especially noticeable when I'm using Wormhole to drop the spawn groups on a pin head near it. 🙂 The thing is, I have a lot of powers available to me with my Grav/Time Controller. I just need to remember I don't need to use all of them all of the time. 🙂

I didn't even think about Singy. There were times when I'm sure my pet threw mobs in ever direction and I laughed it off. Maybe I'm more of a "hindrance" than I thought. Haha.

Haha. I reread my original post and I definitely made it sound like I'm a pretty special Controller. 🙂 Truth be told, there is so much to this game I feel like I could constantly be learning. I do feel like I have an idea how to play this class and not be a hindrance. I know not to immobilize or hold mobs before they surround the melee. Mostly, when playing with my small group of friends, I wormhole a large group of (completely stunned) mobs directly on top of my tank. They couldn't be more tightly packed. I think all I could do to make it better is to increase the recharge on my Wormhole. I think the issue my friend might have is that even if I can keep casting Wormhole as soon as we get to the next spawn group, the casting time alone is slower then the melee just jumping right in. And he's kind of right. If Wormhole is not needed, I probably shouldn't be using it on all spawn groups. Now, I haven't been in a ton of large groups with my Controller, but when I have been and the group has been streamrolling, I only use Wormhole to add an extra group of spawns on top of he already engaged Tank. @Golden Azrael - I think you hit the nail on the head. When I'm playing my Tanker, I take the lead. I move the group by continuously pushing spawns and aggroing whatever I can. When I'm playing my Controller, I know I'm a support class. However, I may not play like it always when I'm in my small group of friends. I sometimes push spawns and grab mobs to through back towards my group. When maybe I should just be more of a support and let the Tanker do his thing. Especially if we do not need to have the group of mobs stunned completely before attacking...

Aside from a large number of alts, I currently main a Grav/Time Controller and an Ice/Ice Tanker. Both in their 40s. The friend in question loves when I play my Tanker, but you can almost hear him groan through the Internet when I suggest I'm going to be playing my Controller. I even got him to admit that he's not a fan last night. Now, I'm an awesome Controller. I buff everyone with Farsight when it's up, same with Temporal Selection. I Wormhole huge mobs right to us, completely immobilized, then I debuff them, immobilize them some more, drop a slow on the floor under the entire group, and hold the troublesome mobs until the team is ready. Doing damage as much as I can with my powers as well. He appreciates none of it. The buffs, I'm sure he'd miss, but probably doesn't notice half the time. All of the controlling? He'd rather I run in with my Tanker, aggro everything, and get healed occasionally, if needed. I'm worried he'll grow tired of my Tanker later too, when he realizes there are probably other ATs that can hold the aggro and do more damage. Now, I'm not really that concerned about my friend. I'll play what I want and he'll like it! But, is this something that Controllers notice when grouping up in general at higher levels? Are other ATs preferred much more in groups because they deal more damage? Will my Tanker have trouble as well because of low damage output?

I've been playing this build through the levels. Currently level 46 and it plays so well. I don't plan to mess around with anything until I hit 50, but some powers that I could see being swapped out would be Build Up (mainly because I always forget to use it), Injection, and Aid Self. Injection and Aid Self are handy occasionally, but I have not used them a ton leveling up. I have no idea what swapping these powers out would do for set bonuses, as I have not looked into making my own plans yet. That will be a whole new area of addiction that opens up at 50 for me I'm sure. 🙂 Ice Patch is another power that I could see getting swapped out at 50, but I love it. Also, if I plan on doing any exemplaring (and why wouldn't I) having this power available at the lower levels will be helpful.

Thanks for the explanation. I will definitely consider this build when I hit level 50 (currently 44). I do absolutely love my Ice/Ice Tank.

Thanks for posting. This build has some big differences from the one I'm using. Very interesting. It looks like there is a way to have multiple builds for a single character. Do people do this? Is it practical? It looks like it would be a good way to test out one build against another.

I completely missed this when it was posted. I would love to see your build if you're still willing and able to provide it. 🙂

No worries. I know all about demands on time. I'm thoroughly enjoying this build currently and maybe I'll start looking into changes myself. Once I hit 50 anyway. I currently can't see where I would make any changes.

I know I've been in your other post about your Grav/Time Controller build (I'm still working on getting his set pieces), but my other main character I'm playing is based off of this build. I've used both characters with my group of friends and the Ice/Ice Tanker just seems like the best fit. He's such a joy to play. I took my group of friends through missions set at +2*8 last night and had no issues. This group included Emp and Storm defenders, a Claws scrapper, and a level 1 Rad Corrupter. All characters were at least 10 levels below me (I'm now at 42). I really love this build, so it's not needed, but any chance you have any updates lying around? 😉

I'm leaning towards maintaining a v2.0 build for the remainder of my trip to level 50 (currently 40), but making some adjustments as I test some things before a probable respec at 50. I have been continuing my tests of using Dimension Shift to proc an Energy Font, but with mixed results. I have not been able to get it to proc very often. I'm probably only seeing an Energy Font on less that 20% of my casts. Now, looking at your v3.0 build, you suggest that if you're not comfortable, you can slot the Overwhelming Presence proc enhancement in Crushing Field instead and drop Dimension Shift from your build. I have no idea what my final build will be, but I do like having Dimension Shift. Also, while I can see Crushing Field being used a lot in a large group (I use it on almost every spawn), I rarely use it solo, so the proc would not even get a chance when not with a group. As you stated, Dimension Shift does not even require a target, so there are more opportunities in all situations. I do see that in the v2.0 build, the Overwhelming Presence proc enhancement in slotted into Wormhole. Maybe this is worth testing...

I did play around for one mission that contained blue and white spawns. It was mostly about 12-15 spawn groups of two. Now, I'm not into the v3.0 build yet, so I only have a the Overwhelming Presence set IO in Dimension Shift and all other powers are using regular IOs. I only got the Energy Font to proc once. I also am not optimized for endurance because I was running into some issues. But, this is partly because of my build and partly because I wasn't doing the quick toggle on and off of Dimension Shift...I just let it run its course. Really like the idea of practicing on some low level enemy spawns. Will do this for sure to get more comfortable with Dimension Shift.

I've decided to start at least testing some of this out. I'm still on v2.0 for the time being, but I added an Overwhelming Presence into Dimension Shift to proc Energy Font. Might as well start using the power more to see if I like what's happening. I looked into Entomb, and I could afford it, but that is a pricey piece to buy for a test. I may still check it out though...

I am still using v2.0 of your build pretty much and just hit level 40. I did a lot of grouping with randoms last night and do not think I have the confidence (yet) to use Dimension Shift regularly with large groups. I actually enjoyed just sitting at the back, casting Slowed Response and Distortion Field into the current group, using Wormhole to bring adds into the main group, casting Crushing Field, and then moving to my single target chain. While I do see the benefit of using Dimension Shift here, I'm not sure it is worth the added explanation to these random groups and I'm not sure the Energy Font would add enough to a group to make it worthwhile. If I was soloing mostly or grouping with my small group of friends, I can see me going straight to the v3.0 build. I would like to still group with random groups though because I did enjoy it quite a bit. So, I have a decision to make. Do I stick with the v2.0 build, do I take the leap to the v3.0 group, or do I use the modified v3.0 group with Crushing field? I'm going to start buying some attuned sets soon, so I am going to be spending the next couple of days rereading all versions of these guides to land on something. Plus, hopefully, playing more with my Grav/Time to get a feel for what I'm using mostly.

A new build refresh from @Redlynne for me to read during game downtime? Yes, please! I found out about this game being back only about a month ago. I started with finding your Grav/Time v 1.0 build and using it as a guide, only to realize later that a v 2.0 build refresh was available. I used that for my level 38 Grav/Time controller before being completely sidetracked by your Ice/Ice Tanker build. That is currently what I am using with my small group of friends when we get to play. I do want to get back to my Grav/Time controller and this might be a good reason to do it. With your v 2.0 build, I played this character with my small group of friends. My typical attack chain, if I remember correctly, was to Wormhole a good chunk of a spawn to my team, set out a Distortion Field, followed by Crushing Field, and then cast my single target gravity powers, Crush, Life, Propel, Gravity Distortion. I did have Dimension Shift, but like you said, it came out about 0-1 times per playing session. If I get back to my Grav/Time character, it will mostly be solo, with a single friend if they're online, or with random groups. Aside from complications with random groups, I could see Dimension Shift being very useful solo or with my small group with some explanation. My Grav/Time controller currently has a bunch of IOs slotted, but I could work towards these set pieces. I look forward to trying this out as soon as possible.

I don't need a reason to create another alt. 🙂 I do get your point about more damage. The Corrupter mentioned above is mostly a Elec Blaster though, so we have some damage. Even so, with a healer and someone to lock things down, I do feel like a tank-lite with some damage could be a good idea. I do have a Natural MA/SR Scrapper already planned out that looks exactly like a buddy of mine. 🙂 Update: Well, I did end up making an MA/SR Scrapper and got him into the 20s. Played a mission with a Dominator friend and he was fun, but ran into end issues without having anything really slotted. I did noticed something when I looked at the P2W Vendor with this character though. There were new utility powers I hadn't seen before. Mainly Self Destruct, Reveal, and Self Revive. So I immediately logged in and picked these up for my Tanker. Now, onto my Tanker. I have been trying to slowly work towards Accolade powers. I decided to take him over to Crey's Folly solo yesterday to run around and try to arrest Freakshow Tankers for one of the Accolades. They were all grey and man it was still a slog. It takes forever for me to take them down still and I'm always running into end issues. He does not seem to be very good at soloing (which I would expect), but does it get any better? Once my friends came online, we switched to finishing off an Ouroboros mission we were working on. We were minus the healer though, so it was just me with a controller and a blaster. It was so fun. This character really shines in a group. We moved onto the signature arc in Brickstown to work towards one of the Accolades. I had to look up how to change the mission to -1x8 (it's been awhile) and we tried it out on the second mission in the arc. Tons of mobs, but we didn't really have any issues until the boss at the end. He starts by sending wave after wave. We were doing fine and not really having any issues until the boss starts attacking and sends in the final wave. So many mobs. I was surrounded, was barely keeping up and a miss click put me down. There were still so many mobs up and the blaster immediately went to the hospital and started running back. He called for us to do the same and I said, nah. I fired off the self resurrect I picked up earlier and immediately used Hibernate. Once I was full, I popped out, fired off my toggles as quickly as I could, and got right back at it. The others eventually joined me and we finished everything off. It was such a fun moment. He may have trouble soloing, but I can't see me not playing this character any chance I can get.

No need to apologize. I have had more revelations and been more confused by this one topic than I care to admit. 🙂 For a more general question regarding set IOs, will slotting my powers with them be really noticeable? I've been figuring out what prices I'll likely be spending to slot my powers in attuned set IOs and am starting to think I'll have a hard time parting with my hard-earned cash. Now, about my (now level 39) Ice/Ice Tanker. I'm slowly trying to work towards my Accolades for the bonuses, so I brought my small team to Ouroboros to work on some missions there. I'm not sure I'm doing the right ones, but I'm having a lot of fun. We ended up doing one string of missions that involved werewolves and vampires, with three bosses at the end. I absolutely loved jumping into a group of guys, tanking everything, while my teammates stayed on the outside and picked on the mobs. It's such a fun feeling that I'm sure is what all Tankers must play like. This mission involved us getting swarmed by multiple waves of mobs and I just stood in the middle doing what I could to take aggro. I was not always able to keep them off my friends and my friends did die multiple times...sometimes all at once. It was so fun to keep tanking the mobs while my teammates all discussed how they could pop a rez and get everyone back in the fight...while I kept going. 🙂 With how fun this was, I do realize I could be better at taking absolutely all the aggro. It can be difficult to get your bearings when surrounded by mobs, but there are probably some things I could have done better. Besides filling out my slots for some powers with more Taunt (or getting the set IOs going), are there common Tanker practices I should be doing? Should I be running to a teammate and dropping a Frozen Aura? Or just running around the room more to pickup adds?

Thank you everyone for the information. The boosting does confuse things for me, as does having levels in the builds beside each enhancement. To me, just buying the attuned pieces, whenever I can, takes levels out of it and makes things much simpler...so this is probably what I'll do. I'll also be rereading the last several posts over and over again until I am sure I didn't miss anything. 🙂 Edit: And I found this quote from an earlier version of Redlynne's Grav/Time Controller build I have been looking at: "I am Ye Olde Skool when it comes to build planning. Attunement of enhancements didn't exist in Issues 1-23. This meant that the best compromise balance point for Set IOs was, in most cases, at either Level 27 (for Exemplar Level 24 content due to Flashback level brackets) or at Level 31 (for Exemplar Level 28 for the Moonfire Task Force). With attunement it's less of an imperative, but I still write up my builds "the old way" for people who aren't rich enough to be able to afford attunements for every Set IO they've got yet." This clears up those numbers in the builds that were confusing me.

Thanks for this. This is another great option.

Thank you @Bopper and @Call Me Awesome for the two posts about Attuned Set IOs. This is the exact topic I have been trying to research for the past couple of days. I have learned some things, but still have more questions. I have been using builds by @Redlynne for my two main characters (an Ice/Ice Tanker and a Grav/Time Controller). Great builds and information. Like most builds, each power is slotted out with set IOs. Now, they are listed with levels beside them. Redlynne tried to explain this to me in this post, but I still had some road blocks to understanding this concept (I still might). I thought that when a low level, of say 27, was beside a set piece. This was the earliest you could slot it. What I think I understand now is that you actually want to buy an set IO for that power of that level (27). This allows for you to exemplar down to as low as level 24 and still have your set bonuses active. You will use this level 27 set IO all the way to level 50. These builds are not using attuned set IOs. Level 27 must be considered a good enough power level that you can use it all the way to 50. I was assuming that you always wanted the higher level gear, so attuned would be what you wanted. Not always the case, especially if you expect to exemplar at all. So, my questions still are: 1. If the above is true, is the only time you want attuned set IOs when you do not care about exemplaring at all? 2. If you are using attuned set IOs, will the lowest level the set bonuses be active be your level - 3 levels? 3. Or, is the level of an attuned set IO not based on your level, but the level you purchased it? This would mean you kind of messed up your build if you didn't buy the piece as soon as you could. I hope these questions do not make me seem like too much of a dunce. I'm really trying to get a grasp on these sets before I take the plunge and start buying. 🙂

Haha, thanks again. I learn something about this game every day. I never considered attunement. I should have, but I didn't. 🙂

My leveling has stalled a bit (still at 34), but I'm doing pretty well on the money front. That's got me thinking about sets again and what Redlynne said below. In my ventures into the AH, I have come across a lot of level 31 set pieces. Some of them, Luck of the Gambler, are pieces I know I want for my build. Now, I know that I can start buying and equipping some pieces at level 24 according the the build I'm following by Redlynne. But, what are the exact thoughts with this? Am I eventually going to put level 50 pieces in every slot and the 27 pieces (or 31 pieces) I'm buying now are good enough to do me until then? Isn't it more cost effective to just use regular IOs and wait on the set pieces until 50? I think I know the answer because checking in the AH for the differences between a 31 Luck of the Gambler piece and a 50 shows only a 3-4 percentage difference, but I don't want to mess up. 🙂 The AH has been fun, but I'm looking forward to getting back to leveling tonight with some friends.