lightpunch

I'm pretty unfamiliar with MA. Can anyone explain to me why it performs so highly across all 3? Is it the fast activation times?

This happens to be my current project as well. I don't have hard numbers for you atm on scourge for beam rifle, but I'll say I haven't found the buffs/debuffs to be lacking as I'm leveling her, and I appreciate the damage she can do. At high levels/end-game, maybe I'd appreciate the advantages of a defender more, but I'm enjoying the experience of leveling a beam/rad corr more than I did my poison/beam defender.

Dark/Storm Controller with presence pool.

Thanks for the feedback y'all! What would you recommend I take in its place? Still seems like a better pick than dual wield or empty clips on damage (and on range). Won't my attack chain be lacking without it or some other attack in its place? With the recharge in HoB, aren't the -res proc's odds of firing very low? Same with OSA and bullet rain? And if Acid Arrow has so fast a recharge that procs aren't useful in it, why put the -res procs in it? I thought procs in powers that you were also slotting +rech into had very low chances of firing -- aren't I better off pursuing set bonuses like +def or +rech for those? Flash Arrow was one of the picks that benefitted from me not seeing a more obvious place for those slots. Even if it's autohit, the accuracy and sm/l/m slotting bonuses seemed more valuable than any bonuses from other -tohit or acc -tohit sets. But I swapped in 4 slots of Clouded Senses and will try to find that +def elsewhere. Alright I took Mezmera's recommendations for OSA slotting, unsure where to put Scourging now though. I stuck it in Piercing Rounds, which I'm willing to drop, but not sure for what at the moment. Any patron/epic picks you'd recommend here? In that original build I'm at the soft cap for all positional defenses without a patron armor (well I think just shy for melee, but with the -tohit I think I'll be ok) -- am I seriously gimping myself with the +def set bonuses I have? If I'm not, why force in an armor toggle I don't need -- BS has the only +def armor, and it's typed versus positional, which I'm much closer to softcapping with this build. Here's an edited version, looking for answers on replacing Piercing Rounds, which patron/epic y'all would recommend, and clarification on why I'd want procs in Bullet Rain/HoB/OSA etc.

I wanted to add a trick arrow character to my lineup for some ultimate late-game debuffs, and have a concept I enjoy -- a vigilante former Knives of Artemis assassin hunting down the KoA/KoV/ToV. I thiiink I've committed to Dual Pistols as her primary, and wanted feedback on the build I've attached here. Couple questions: Is DP viable enough on a corr to be worth it? I don't have an issue with the double weapons when I set them both to no redraw, and I like the natural concept for the character. But I'm not opposed to something also in line with the KoA/KoV/ToV theme, and could consider seismic/sonic/water/fire/beam/psy with enough encouragement. Diamagnetic interface -- worth it? Thought it'd be helpful to add -regen to this build, but if it's not significant in practice, I'll pivot to Reactive or something else. I felt stretched for power picks on this build, but weirdly had an abundance of slots -- if some of these picks seem weird, it's because I didn't have a better idea for where to put them! Definitely open to slotting feedback. Other than Ice Arrow, have I procc'd the right powers? Thanks in advance!

Tried to keep your notes about what you're looking for in mind, and to create the most "balanced" builds, tried to think about how I'd match sets to counteract the criteria they fail the most at. Also tried to go for not necessarily obvious combos, but some classics are that for a reason. Energy Melee + Shield -- Energy melee is the ST king, but if you're going to solo not just effectively but satisfyingly, it needs AoE help, and I find waiting for ancillary/patron powers for AoE on a damage AT to be frustrating. Yes, Shield Charge is available at the same level you get access to ancillary/patrons, but requires no additional pick investments. You'll be one of the ST kings in the game with acceptable AoE. You won't have a click heal, but the only heal-possessing primary is better paired with a different secondary. Dark Melee + SR -- SR is the king of defense, resisting defense debuffs, and not much else. To stay interesting (to me), it wants utility and some options in case those two strengths fail it. Dark melee has -tohit, helping to make you the GOD of can't-touch-this. If that fails, you get the one primary set with a reliable self-heal that wants to be a part of your regular attack chain. Basically, this might be the most unkillable pairing possible of these 8 sets. And the mechanics of soul drain, dark consumption, and even the new ToF (yes I know the damage isn't top tier, but I enjoy it as a melee aoe soft control, and at max soul drain, it's a fun time) keep the playstyle interesting. Claws + Radiation Armor -- I don't love Claws. I know it's one of the top performing sets, but I've just never enjoyed the animations or feel of the set. So from my perspective, it's about giving claws what it wants (+rech) and giving me what I need (something to make it enjoyable), so I'm bringing in maybe my favorite set in the game, Radiation Armor. Your +rech will help you reach claws' ideal attack chain; you have multiple means to heal/boost your health; you've got one of the best armor set tier 9's in the game, with a navigable crash. And proc'd out? Forget about it. Claws/SR will be an ST buzzsaw with fantastic AoE too. A kill-before-you're-killed pairing, but Rad has several oh shit buttons to keep you going. Dual Blades + Energy Aura -- For those who think WM/EA isn't pretty enough. EA may take a sliiight hit with the new patch, but it's still a well-balanced, well-performing set. +Rech will help DB reach the recharge heights it wants to be a top performing DPS set, while DB's combos and fun EA utility powers will keep the playstyle dynamic and interesting. The flourish of the DB animations and glow of EA will also make it a very visually appealing character to play, assuming none of the animations bug you. Katana/Broad Sword + Dark Armor -- Swords bring your +defense to add some extra mitigation to Dark, while not being overly taxing on endurance compared to some other primaries. Swords also lack mitigation in most of its attacks, which DA can help with through CoF or OG. Dark regeneration has some fun proc opportunities, and in general the breadth of slotting options available across both sets will allow you to have fun with slotting unconventionally, if that's what you're interested in doing. Staff + Bio Armor -- Here are two sets I want to love, and have tried to love, but whose limitations or playstyle just haven't clicked for me. So why not try them together? Bio will give staff the damage boost it needs to get its ST closer to other primaries, while staff's +def and mitigation will help occupy foes you want to keep nearby to take advantage of bio's draining/aura abilities. By the time you're reaching 50, endurance shouldn't be a problem, so you'll be able to stick with the +dmg stances for both of these sets. Martial Arts + Ninjitsu -- These last two pairings lose some of the flair of previous pairings in terms of playstyle, but make up for it in thematic coherency, which can satisfy some of those "fun to play" feelings. MA/Nin is the pseudo-stalker of the Scrapper world -- Shinobi-Iri + Eagles Claw have extra high odds of critting, while the KB, stun, and -def powers of the primary and blinding powder give you some fun proc options. Nin doesn't need much help -- it's got good defense, a stealth ability, a heal, and an end booster. They're two solid flavors that taste extra-solid together. War Mace + Invulnerability -- For those who like the prettiness of DB/EA but want something a little more understated. Like MA/Nin, neither of these sets needs much from the other to work. WM packs a heavy punch and has a good mix of ST and AoE, while Invuln offers everything except protection against Psi to keep you going. WM's mix of disorients and KB will also help Invuln take fewer hits, never a bad thing for a hybrid or resist-based armor set. Much briefer thoughts on the also-rans, though I do love some of these sets: Street Justice + Fiery Aura -- StJ has a good mix of mitigation techniques, and its fast playstyle will work well with FA's "kill before you're killed" style. Stone Melee + Electric Armor -- Stone has endurance issues and wants recharge to keep its AoEs going. Electric needs mitigation to make up for its total lack of that and protect its resist-only nature. Radiation Melee + Ice Armor -- Three offensive auras (two damage, one debuff), endurance assistance to support RM's cost. Savage Melee + Stone Armor -- Savage offsets Stone Armor's intense energy costs. Savage's DoT damage + Mud Pots + Brimstone seems fun (not an expert on savage). Last tidbit, not as a recommendation because we're already on part 2, but just my own journey: I've been trying to find a forever scrapper myself, as most of mine just don't compare to my favorite tank (and it pains me to say that). Right now, slow though she may be, I'm really enjoying the experience of leveling my radiation melee/bio armor scrapper. The DoTs and contamination and the siphon heal, it all just makes for a very enjoyable build that I'm confident is going to hit like a bomb by the end. Maybe my 3rd lvl 50 with bio armor will be the charm! Global: Thermostata

I feel like Johnny Sonata and that Praetorian opera singer villain will be getting some new powers with this, neat. Wasn't on my list of dream controller sets but I'm intrigued -- looks like a lot of the powers deal damage, very curious to see what numbers it puts out. Also, cone-heavy, very different from most offensive sets in the game.

Here's the build again with some adjustments.

Thanks, I'll look at those sets in those powers. And thanks for your affirming feedback! Completely forgot about Wormhole's KB, so thanks, will look at correcting for that. Regarding Sing's repel, does having a KB to KD proc in Sing not prevent that? Totally meant to have the Steadfast Protection unique in Rune, not the KB unique. Thanks for flagging it. Thanks y'all for the feedback, I'll post a revised build sometime tonight.

After some time with other ATs, I'm feeling an itch to play my home AT again. I have a concept for a magic/spellcasting character in mind, and Grav/Dark (+ leviathan purely for water spout) fits perfectly and seems like a powerful combo. But! I've never gotten Grav to a high level, so I'm unfamiliar with strategies concerning wormhole and singularity, and just in general how it feels to play them. Couple thoughts: Current battle plan: wormhole-->tar patch-->crushing field-->tp'ing enflamed Sing into mob-->water spout-->kill. I know this setup will be fun, but is it too rigid? Does this build have enough flexibility to still be powerful outside of this sequence? What powers are worth proccing in this build? Specifically, should I proc out crushing field and water spout, or nah? I've always wanted to use water spout, and never had a good reason to before this build, where it works for theme, dmg, and extra cc from fear and kd. Is it just not worth the tradeoff of a +def armor though, like scorp or ice have? I'd love to get more +rech and +def into my IO sets, so any tips on achieving that would be appreciated. Bonus concern! Should I reconsider this concept as Ill/Dark? I don't currently have an Illusion controller, and do have a mid-level Grav/TA that I think will be powerful, has a great build/look/concept, etc. But I'm really seduced by how I can use Grav powers to seem like magic, and I've heard enflame + tp'ing Sing is a really fun way to play. I know how powerful and sturdy Ill/Dark is, but I worry I'll miss the cc element of being a controller too much. I also don't wanna shelve my Grav/TA, so I'm hoping her all-ranged leadership-heavy playstyle will differ from Grav/Dark's battlefield manipulation style. Below is my first crack at the build. Any comments or critiques are appreciated!

I've always wanted an option that gave you access to some selection of all the powers of one element/type. The term I had back in the day for this concept was Incarnate, but hehe that's taken now, so I don't know what you'd call it. Elemental is fun but wouldn't perfectly encapsulate things like psychic or radiation powers. In this concept you'd have access to (a curated selection to prevent too much game breaking) the following: Fire Blast/Fire Control/Fire Melee/ Fiery Aura/Thermal Radiation Ice Blast/ Ice Control/ Ice Melee/ Ice Armor/ Cold Dom Seismic Blast/ Earth Control/ Stone Melee/ Stone Armor/ maybe sonic resonance but wouldn't really be in the spirit of the ability, so no fifth set unless one is designed. Elec Blast/ Elec Control/ Elec Melee/ Elec Armor/ Elec Affinity Psychic Blast/ Mind Control/ Illusion Control/ Psychic Melee/ same as earth, could do FF or Empathy hypothetically. Dark Blast/ Darkness Control/ Dark Melee/ Dark Armor/ Dark Miasma Plant Control/ Nature Affinity/ Storm Summoning/ Spines/ Bio Armor Radiation Blast/ Radiation Melee/ Radiation Armor/ Radiation Emission I really just want to play a character that feels like a complete master of their 'element,' without having to make alternate versions as a different class. Even with a restricted power selection, I think playing something like an all-around-radiation character would just be fun as shit.

My NA defender is /water, and I think she's a great boon to teams between her buffs and water's solid (for a blast set) soft control in the form of knockdown and slows (and its -def allows for some procability). She's not a defender that lets you neuter AVs, but she's definitely a great and fun team support character. And for me, water blast is just the most fun blast set. Looks great, feels great and powerful, does good damage, etc.

Has anyone tried a staff/stone scrapper? I'm wondering if the AOE/KD of staff compliments stone well, and if the damage-boosting powers of Stone help give staff an extra lift.

Thank you, I was looking for ways to get to the soft cap for energy. Thanks for the link. I was familiar with that rule -- I think the only place I didn't follow it was in Psy Tornado, and I figured I'd take the lower odds of the FF proc firing as a trade-off for the slotted purple set's benefits and its +10% rech. I thought I could really leverage Burst of Speed's three uses for a great procability? Or did I misunderstand how that power works? I'd been hoping to get away without Acrobatics (not sure why it's needed with the KB protection slotted in SJ) and Manuevers, but I can see how they'll be helpful to reaching the defense goals. Damn the 4 power pool limit. Thanks for your feedback!

Hi folks, Recently came up with the idea for a psy/martial blaster. Not sure I've seen one in the wild and on paper, it looks like it could build into something interesting/fun. Just hit 30 with her and the combo of tornado-->triple burst of speed-->dragontail is very satisfying, and I expect it will get more satisfying once I've got the nuke. Below is the weird build I've whipped together. My goals are s/l/melee defense cap, recharge, and proccing where possible. That being said, I'm not a proc master, and I'm also at a loss what to do with the end of the build in general. Here's the build for anyone that wants to critique/refine it. My main questions/areas of concern are: Where are the best places to proc out this build? Did I choose poorly? I'm pretty sure Psy Tornado isn't a good place for procs because they only fire on the first hit, but is that wrong? This build trades some set bonus recharge for FF +rech procs and the weird rech from reaction time. Is there a way/place to get more recharge into the build that I'm missing? Am I overusing/misusing FF +rech procs? There are some powers listed below that I'm not at all married to but didn't know what else to pick. Any suggestions on what else I should pick, or how to make better use of these? Storm Kick All TP pool selections (it's a fun perk but not necessary) Throw Sand Will Dom Is my ranged attack chain too lacking? She's intended to be a blapper who bursts into melee, but I don't want to be limiting the build's potential from range too much. Any other input would be much appreciated. Thanks!