Hello, friends! I've been a Paragon City citizen since the original beta, if you can believe it. Throughout my 20+ years (!) of playing this thing, the one powerset I always return to is Assault Rifle. Man, it just feels good to blast foes onto their backs with a giant swiss army knife gun.
Over those years, I've experimented with every secondary option for AR blasters. I have long believed that Energy is the best possible secondary for AR (sorry, Devices fans) and with Homecomings new archetype specific enhancer sets and some upgrades to powers, I just respec'd my blaster build, fully slotted him out and ran some testing with the results.
In short: this blaster can clear S/L farms at 8/+4 with low risk in 17 minutes. As good as a fire tank in a fire farm? No. But the fact that the build can achieve this so handily while not being specialized in farming and being a blaster, is interesting. The build brings soft capped defenses (ALL) 75% of the time (using power boost... doesn't rely on incarnates for this), soft capped ranged defense 100% of the time, 74% s/l resist, a static 220% damage bonus from sets, a personal force field allowing him to escape/avoid sticky situations, extended cone attacks (boost range), and a ton of mobility with some juiced up hover and fly speed.
The SL farm performance is particularly interesting because it showcases the fun "scoot and shoot" playstyle this build relies on. With a tad of slotting, hover let's you:
-Boost Range, Build Up, Power Boost
-Flame throw at a much safer distance
-Buckshot
-Move back
-M30 Grenade Launcher
-Full Auto
The only survivors are +4 Bosses and Elite bosses which you can now easily finish off with Slug, Total Focus and Sniper Rifle while moving around to avoid much of their melee attacks
It's an incredibly fun play style that is highly interactive and requires you to judge distance and constantly move around the battlefield to set up cone attacks and avoid getting mobbed. I find this so much more engaging than jumping my scrapper into the middle of a pack and just hitting things from one spot and, because of the aforementioned defenses (both all around defense and resistances) which rival less wealthy SR scrappers, the build is highly forgivable, especially when one includes the Rebirth destiny incarnate healing and regen power.
The one drawback is the one AR has always faced: most damage is lethal, aside from flamethrower and the energy component of total focus. I need to test how soloing an AV would work, but I imagine it will be a tad slow.
This build makes up for all of the faceplanting I've done as an overzealous blaster over the years. Wait for the tank? Ha! Not any more!
Build:
This Hero build was built using Mids Reborn 3.2.17
https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn
Click this DataLink to open the build!
HK-99: Level 50 Technology Blaster
Primary Power Set: Assault Rifle
Secondary Power Set: Energy Manipulation
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Force Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Slug -- Apc-Dmg(A), Apc-Dmg/Rchg(3), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(3), Apc-Acc/Rchg(5), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(5)
Level 1: Power Thrust -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Buckshot -- Bmbdmt-Dam(A), Bmbdmt-Acc/Rech/End(7), Bmbdmt-Dam/Rech(9), Bmbdmt-Acc/Dam/Rech(9), Bmbdmt-Acc/Dam/Rech/End(11), Bmbdmt-+FireDmg(11)
Level 4: Hover -- ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(A), BlsoftheZ-Travel(13), BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(13), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(15), LucoftheG-Def(50), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(50)
Level 6: Build Up -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 8: M30 Grenade -- SprDfnBrr-Acc/Dmg(A), SprDfnBrr-Dmg/Rchg(15), SprDfnBrr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(17), SprDfnBrr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), SprDfnBrr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(19), SprDfnBrr-Rchg/+Status Protect(48)
Level 10: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(A), LucoftheG-Def(19), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(21), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(21), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(23)
Level 12: Sniper Rifle -- OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg(A), OvrFrc-End/Rech(23), OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg/End(25), OvrFrc-Dmg/End/Rech(25), OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg/End/Rech(27), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(27)
Level 14: Fly -- BlsoftheZ-Travel(A), BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(46)
Level 16: Energize -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 18: Flamethrower -- SprBlsWrt-Acc/Dmg(A), SprBlsWrt-Dmg/Rchg(29), SprBlsWrt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(29), SprBlsWrt-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), SprBlsWrt-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(31), SprBlsWrt-Rchg/Dmg%(31)
Level 20: Tactics -- GssSynFr--ToHit(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg(33), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(33), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(33), GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(34), GssSynFr--Build%(34)
Level 22: Kick -- Empty(A)
Level 24: Tough -- Ags-Psi/Status(A), Ags-ResDam(34), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx(36), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(36), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(36)
Level 26: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(A), LucoftheG-Def(37), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(37), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(37), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(39), Rct-ResDam%(50)
Level 28: Evasive Maneuvers -- BlsoftheZ-Travel(A), BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(43)
Level 30: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(48)
Level 32: Full Auto -- Rgn-Dmg(A), Rgn-Dmg/Rchg(39), Rgn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39), Rgn-Acc/Rchg(40), Rgn-Dmg/EndRdx(40), Rgn-Knock%(40)
Level 35: Boost Range -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 38: Total Focus -- TchofDth-Acc/Dmg(A), TchofDth-Dmg/EndRdx(42), TchofDth-Dmg/Rchg(42), TchofDth-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(42), TchofDth-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(43), TchofDth-Dam%(43)
Level 41: Personal Force Field -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 44: Temp Invulnerability -- GldArm-End/Res(A), GldArm-RechRes(45), GldArm-RechEnd(45), GldArm-Res/Rech/End(45), GldArm-ResDam(46), GldArm-3defTpProc(46)
Level 47: Power Boost -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 49: Force of Nature -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Defiance
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Swift -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Health -- NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(A), NmnCnv-Heal(7), Mrc-Rcvry+(48)
Level 1: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A)
Level 49: Quick Form
Level 14: Afterburner
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https://www.midsreborn.com/builds/download.php?uc=1409&c=657&a=1314&f=HEX&dc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