evetsleep

I've been running poison/storm and with some basic slotting in the 30s it's a pretty sold defender. Storm Cell actually has a -ToHit baked in which goes nicely with poisons various -ToHit debuffs. I've been playing this defender aggressively in melee and didn't take Jet Stream (the cone) and so far it works out quite well.

I'm not at my computer, but I am pretty sure Storm Cell from storm blast includes a -ToHit debuff (unenhanceable -9% I think) which would stack nicely with FF. My FF/Storm defender is a lot of fun and spends very little time buffing thanks to the AOE nature of FF buffs and their long duration. I spend the vast majority of my time dropping Storm Cell and AoEing everything. It's a lot of fun. Another unusual pairing that I run is FF/sonic. With the recent pass on Sonic and FF together they can apply a LOT of -RES on both single targets and groups. It's a lot of fun if you can get passed Sonics sounds.

If you haven't tried it the Theft of Essence +END proc works wonders in Twilight Grasp when you heal multiple targets.

I've created a few like everyone else, but so far I'm really digging my 2 defenders: Dr. Weather - Force Field/Storm blast Poisonous Cloud - Poison/Storm Blast I really like to play really aggressive with poison and that works out really well with storm since I didn't take Jet Stream (blasphemy maybe.. I've been repsecing out of it on most of my builds). It's taken a bit to find a grove with storm blast, but now that I've found a playstyle that works for me I'm loving it. The animations are awesome..I just wish Storm Cell was a little faster. With the poison defender I treat it like an aura where I drop it and get right in the middle with noxious gas running and unload with debuffs and storm procing attacks. It's a lot of fun!

I have both a fire/inv brute and an inv/fire tank. You can make brute invul super tough, but the tank is just easier, so then I looked at fire melee and the bigger AoE's and additional AoE really do make a big difference. I'm playing both and I find the tank version easier and more effective.

While Trick Arrow may not have +DEF, it does indirectly via really awesome -ToHit from Flash Arrow. It does top shelf debuffing (of just about every kind) and also does AoE via Oil Slick. Beast/trick arrow is a fantastic combination.

Ninjas are good, but they don't have any resistance to back them up when they do eventually get slapped. That said now that they all get a heal after the second upgrade, if they do survive getting hit they can heal it back. They're not paper dragons anymore, more like cardboard. My baby ninja/ff MM (lvl 34) with basic slotting has the pets at 60+% to ranged\melee\aoe (the value depends on the tier, but they're all over 60). I haven't decided yet if I'll go for power boost or stick with fire for Bonfire yet. I'll probably do power boost though because -DEF is super annoying and having high enough shields that it doesn't matter will probably be better. So they're pretty darn tough, but anything that has serious -DEF (CoT) or drops burn patchs\caltrop just ruins everything.. Some creative macro'ing to make the Jounin target annoying mobs helps a lot though.

Can confirm that necro/FF is pretty darn tanky. The pet heals and -ToHit goes a really long way. I also have a necro/time that is honestly just as tanky, but it feels a tad bit stronger. Could be the debuffs and the heal. The slows and -damage from Time go a long way to keeping the undead .... alive. Now here's an unusual thought... necro/traps (or trick arrow). I have both in the mid-30's with just the pet uniques and endurance QoL procs and they're both pretty darn solid. So if you are looking for something different give them a try. I am really loving my necro/traps though. As is always the case, traps isn't great for teams (that's where Trick Arrow shines), but solo I drop my traps, fold space, and then soul extraction..not much lives after a few moments which isn't bad for zombies w/o a heal from the secondary (don't have Triage beacon at the moment and don't really feel I need it).

I have one I am growing. Drop freezing rain first (to help with pit and claps accuracy issues) and toss pit, then run in and clap. It's fun on big teams with big spawns. Animation times leave something to be desired though.

I put this in all my zombie MM builds and it does work quite well. Especially when they are puking everywhere and things start falling down all over. It's a nice add-on to give them some damag mitigation.

In this case my build is not really well designed (i.e. I haven't really put it down to paper\MIDs). But that said, given how unstructured it is I imagine a properly thought out build would be even more effective. It doesn't really solve the end-game mastermind problems with level differences and such, but other than that it is a pretty solid combination that offers a lot of opportunities to just blast away with debuffs.

I have a special place in my roster for my many trick arrow toons. One the absolute strongest is my thugs/ta MM's. The lack of a heal used to be problematic, but now that pet summons are quicker it's not a big deal and I go sans-Aid Other. Trick arrow brings a lot to the table that meshes really well with pets like thugs (and bots).

That seems pretty decent to me :).. need to get on one of my electric's for a bit.. those guys are fun!

You're in luck! Electric armor does have a heal these days in Energize!

Nopers.

I have a Ninja/TA MM that rips through things after the recent ninja buff. Have you tried it recently? Not saying ninjas are OP. I like to call them cardboard dragons instead of the paper dragons they used to be, but with the updated defense, heals, and critical mechanisms it's been a solid performer for me.

Generally speaking any primary would do. To get the most enjoyment concept sould come first. That said, I personally like to pair blast sets with Regen that have some kind of mitigation. Someone mention sonic blast and if you don't mind the sounds, that's a solid choice so you can chain the 3 cones (-Res, Kb (with FF proc), then sleep). I have a dark/Regen that is pretty dang durable as you'd expect, but requires melee to fire the nuke. It's got a few proc`able powers to help boost it's damage thanks to having -ToHit, Holds, and KB. I haven't tried it yet, but I've heard a number of folks say they really enjoy assault rifle with Regen.

This is a proverbial buzzsaw combo. It is pretty darn strong and can really tear into things.

Just took a look and the defender version of Disintegrate has the same -regen as the others (-150%). I only bring it up in the context of Sentinels (not comparing with other AT's) primaries and what might be good for fighting things that have enough HP to make -regen worth it.

Something to consider for big game hunting might be beam rifle. It can hit like a truck and it brings (pretty sure) Sentinel's only -regen via disintegrate. I have a few beam Sentinel's and I'm always surprised at the single target damage they can dish out. It does come off as a little END thirsty, so a secondary that can take that edge off might be a good idea. Beam/bio and beam/stone can be a lot of fun if you're looking to push the damage capabilities a bit.

Thugs are, in my view, a fantastic implementation from the start and why they've always been so popular. That said, at 18 when you get the arsonist just remember to keep an eye on him. He's almost always is the first one to crumble because of his kamikaze mentality, but he also is responsible for a lot of your damage (i.e. balance). Overall a fantastic set and goes with just about anything.

Clearly this is you since the OP was asking about /rad armor 🙂

Is there a way to save window configuration and placement so it is setup for each new alt?

The mercs get insanely tanky on my /elec MM (Shock Commander). Between faraday cage, serum, and the RES uniques plus electrics +ABSORB I plant them with an aggressive posture and a stay and they act like a high dps turret. The mez & kb resistance is also a nice benefit. I've been really happy with how he's turning out. Also I have a merc/trick arrow that is surprisingly tough with all the debuffs TA can dish out (including -DMG which is basically +RES which goes really well with Serum). I'd you're looking for a new spin on mercs I'd recommend these for a change of pace.

My only real problem with Jack is he doesn't take Ice Mistrel damage proc. I was super let down by that the first time I got him. He's ok but it's really strange he can't take slow procs.