VoidSpawn2

Thanks very much, @Bill Z Bubba and @Doomguide2005! Cogent and most considerate advice! I think I'm going to give the "Master of ITF" +4/8 some focused attention, just so I can officially state that I've done it. Even if one has done it on all ATs at 0/8, with no deaths, it just somehow doesn't compare to doing it, even once, with one AT at the master level. (Well, it does, if one considers skill with multiple ATs as an attribute, and a composite matrix weighting this is constructed and evaluated against that of a single Master run. But, still, I get it. World of difference 'twixt the two.) If I crack the code -- if there is one -- I might try with more ATs. I don't think I'll get obsessed again, and have to do it with all ATs. But I might, if I sense that I can succeed. -void

https://tenor.com/view/thanos-fine-ill-do-it-myself-ill-do-it-myself-gif-22181201

I know that Hard Mode ITF is all the rage now, but for those of us who are still considering soloing the Master of ITF +4/8, did the somewhat recent/last Cimeroran defense buff render the run a Whiff Fest? Is it still possible to solo it now, if it's allegedly so much harder to hit them than it was prior to that buff? I was in the midst of my solo AT runs when this occurred, and I was going only at 0/8, so there was little, if anything, that I noticed at that scale. I do, however, recall that @Bill Z Bubba and @Werner mentioned it, and how it impacted their elite runs at that setting. Therefore, I'm making the query to get some advice on how do-able it is now, post-boost, and, if anyone is still doing it (along with what works best, what adjustments had to be made, if any, etc.). Thank you in advance for any advice and thoughts you'd like to share. -void

Interesting, @TungstenShark. I'm not surprised at the overlap, however. Comparing and contrasting the two builds leads to some very notable deltas.

This is a Max Health, non-Haste Binary Stone Armor/Dark Melee build that allows for a decent fantastic build without Granite, yet conserves the option to use Granite as a panic button. Rune of Protection is factored into the mix as well. Incarnates are used to fill in the holes. Not using Barrier, which could be used in place of Ageless, but I'm doing that because the benefits of Ageless smooth out some of the holes mentioned previously. (Get both, if you'd like.) These are the basic stats with Granite Off, and with the other armors on: These are the stats with Granite Off, with the other armors on, and with Rune of Protection on: So that's what 60 seconds out of 180 seconds are going to look like. And, finally, these are the stats with Granite On, no other armors on, and no Rune of Protection on: Of course, no need to show the Granite plus RoP shot, because RoP boosts that Psionic Resistance up to 90. So, actually, Granite pushes up the Resistances significantly, save for Psionic, providing a firm "steady state" of overall protection, though that is paid for by a significant loss in Defense stats, Movement, and Recharge. Indeed, as this is a non-Haste, non-Teleport build, which is not actually centered upon Granite. It's centered primarily upon the non-Granite armors, which, after our fantastic Devs showed those armors some love, are now fully capable of supporting your Stone Armor character sans Granite for 90%+ of the content in the game. Dark Consumption was the power that was removed for Granite. The Incarnates somewhat take the place of Dark Consumption, so that's okay. I used a Stone Armor/Dual Blades build by @Sovera to get my head around not having Granite as the primary, absolutely necessary power for a Stone Armor build. Then, I meshed a few of my heavy tanker builds, giving and taking to get where I thought it would work best, without sacrificing too much fun. Having the powers of a Stone Armor Tanker, and being able to stay in non-Granite form for the vast majority of the gaming experience? Most excellent. And having Granite around for a most potent panic button? Killer! Always open for your thoughts and insights into these hypotheticals. Only way to learn and improve. -void The Build:

The Sentinel version is much better.

Having 6 click powers for the /REGEN version is somewhat annoying: Instant Healing, Rune of Protection, Dull Pain, Moment of Glory, Shadow Meld, and Reconstruction. This is without Incarnates, of course. Thus far, at baseline 50, it's surprisingly durable. However, there's a lot of micromanagement occurring.

Overall concept is to affect a brief comparison between the two, insofar as build optimization, sans Barrier, is possible. The theme is that of stacked and/or phased layers of Shadow Meld, Rune of Protection, and Moment of Glory. This is just to get the conversation started. More experimentation to follow. Thoughts and feedback are most welcome, as none of this is set in stone yet. Basic build comparison is first. Energy Melee Bio Armor: Energy Melee Regeneration:

After several months of casual play, a bit of focus and devotion, and a large leveraging of build knowledge from multiple, masterful players, my self-imposed quest of cycling all ATs through a simple instantiation of the ITF at 0/8 has been achieved. With the exception of some of the tankers and perhaps another character or two, the average actual play time for any member of the group was approximately 24 hours. That might sound insane, but I have a system in place. Most of that was farm time (enough to get to all T3 Incarnates in most cases), accolade hunting for the four primary accolades, and Enhancement buying/converting/slotting time. I was able to learn the different ATs well enough to succeed on a solo ITF during that brief duration of time because I broke the pattern that serves as the Gestalt for CoX game mechanics. It would make an interesting article or post. Plus, I'm the kid with the banjo on the porch, in the movie Deliverance. Being on the spectrum is both challenging and occasionally frustrating in RL, but it simultaneously grants a few nifty powers to compensate. And those nifty powers lend themselves quite well to games and patterns (among other things). I claim nothing extraordinary regarding this. I'm certain that many others have done it, and at much higher levels of skill. My scientific curiosity compelled me to form the hypothesis, then test it. And test it I did. I'd like to thank the following folks for their many contributions to this quest, including sharing many wonderfully awesome builds and game mechanics concepts with me: @Leandro, who helped me with my first build, an INV/EM Tanker, way back during the early issues on Live. @Werner, @Bill Z Bubba, @Linea, @STiTcH, @Hyperstrike, @Infinitum, @Heraclea, @Voltak, @FUBARczar, @Sovera, @Snarky, @KaizenSoze, and so many other wonderful people, too. Next up? Just having some fun for a while. Going to sample the iTrials and higher level events, which I've not had much experience with yet. Then, I'll create another challenge and up my game a bit. Comments, feedback, constructive and destructive criticisms are all most welcome. Only way to learn. -void Warshade: Peacebringer: Mastermind: Arachnos Soldier: Arachnos Widow: Dominator: Corruptor: Blaster: Defender: Controller: Stalker: Brute: Scrapper: Sentinel: Tankers:

@Heraclea's Tanks are awesome. I've captured many of his builds. I do this with all of the legendary tankers. Only way to learn and improve. Concur with the "monster" appellation. Have fun!

Thank you for the adjustment. This build wasn't designed either for leveling or for exemplary play; however, your adjustment makes it entirely capable of doing such. As for being mathematically unaltered without incorporating Rune of Protection, that is a firm analysis, differentiated only by most subtle parsing in a bit more Status Protection, which is probably redundant, and in an approximate 8% RES in both Toxic and Psionic, for 60 seconds out of 180 seconds (Void's build is on the left): An elegant solution, @Hyperstrike. I very much appreciate both your sharing your knowledge, and your attention to detail. -void

While it certainly wouldn't be too practical, it can be done. Dull Pain is not permanent, which might be a no-no for most. Some rearrangement of IOs is possible to mitigate this somewhat, although I was using mostly the previous Incarnates to control for that deficit. Perhaps used as an alternate build for extreme situations? In which case, Dull Pain probably should be made permanent lol... This is what the updated stats look like now, at full saturation: In actual game play, the stats would vary up and down like stacked sinusoidal waves, with certain mins and maxes. Overall, and over a typical three minute/180 second window, however, they remain consistently high. I mean, really, really high. That's assuming max stacking, and max saturation, which isn't always possible. Updated build with this thread's suggestions incorporated into it. All things are initially turned on. Note: One of the Lore pets adds periodic additional buffs to both +DEF and +RES. The Build:

Quite correct, @Psyonico. I rather much used a basic Incarnate template instead of wading a bit more deeply into those possibilities. As a Tanker, using Melee Hybrid in place of Assault should have been the better "steady state" choice. Instead, I went with Assault for Doublehit, selecting it to gain more damage, as I was considering more solo action instead of team action. Duly noted. Thank you!

Concur totally, @Hyperstrike. I've got many of your awesome Tanker builds in my repository. In fact, you might notice some of your influence in my "heavy armor" builds. Your stance on personal preference is most appreciated.

@DRoddo, if I add Haste, I'd probably move it into the Combat Jumping spot. That would sacrifice a little more defense, which I could try to recover by shifting the slots around a bit. I'd slot Haste with two +5 IOs, then spread the remaining four IO slots to other powers which would help minimize the DEF loss from deleting Combat Jumping. Of course, Combat Jumping is primo for ground fighting and maneuverability, so if that's your style, it might not be worth it. I'm mostly a flyer, using Mystic Flight, because I can usually make it maneuver like Hover. A review of @Hyperstrike's many awesome Tanker builds will give you a better sense of your alternatives.

No Barrier Incarnate, too, of course...

I was going through some experimental Tanker builds when I discovered an interesting pattern: There's a way for an INV Tanker to get all 90% Resists for approximately 1/3rd of normal combat. This window requires a conjunction of the Tanker AO set that provides +RES to ALL, and Rune of Protection. This is with no normal external buffs or amps. And, yes, I know I wasn't tracking the right DEF, and it wasn't at an optimal DEF time. The "no Haste" aspect is interesting. I might have to alter it to keep Dull Pain up with no overlap (it's close now). Image and build are below. This technique might make a few of the other Tanker armor sets get close to "perfect". The Build:

Yes, @Errants. It's an inside joke regarding the Fibonacci Sequence over infinite samples. Math Nerd stuff. 🙂

Solo ITF Completion 0/8 With Warshade This time, a solo ITF completion with a Warshade, human form only. Standard +0/X8 settings. Without pets and summons, this might not have happened. And, should it have happened, it surely would have taken a few hours more. Random, liberal use of some P2W powers to expedite the process. In particular, the temp summons at the P2W of Ranged Support (Positron) was required to make the AVs die in less than a few hours each. One death was tolerated. It was trivial and silly, and no more occurred during the run. I'll avoid this in future by not turning my camera view inside out next time. No idea how it happened. The main four accolades were in effect. All of the Incarnate powers were at Tier 3. Tactics/Strategy: Directly target the mobs surrounding the chicks on the first map. Upon exiting that map, directly fly up and over to the Sybil and engage the mobs around her. Doing this directly sometimes fools the encounter logic, causing the Kheldian ambush to fail. Don't turn your camera view inside out on the Shadow Cyst map, or they will kill you faster than you can reset your camera view. On the final maps, fly to the AVs immediately, and wipe them out. Stack them all atop one another. This led to having the ones after the first one having had some damage already. Kill the auto-hit Nictus first, of course. Then, proceed in reverse to clear the objects. You know the rest of the minutiae here. I used Mystic Flight the entire time and remained in hover mode. I paid special attention, especially in the caves, to hover above casual melee contact. Like, at the top of the cave, looking down. There was virtually no down time on button pattern sequencing. All totally smooth the whole run. The Warshade is a viable combatant for any content, using this build. Yes, I remained in Human Form the entire time. Not once did I exit. The Quest to achieve a complete 0/8 ITF run with every AT is now complete. The list: ITF Solo 0/8 ITF: Void0014 Ill/Rad Controller 2:40:33 Void6661 Mastermind 2:18:34 Void1001 SD/EM Tanker 2:04:27 Only 1 Tier 3 Void9100 Warshade 1:51:44 Void0202 Peacebringer 1:50:02 Void2222 FB/INV Sentinel 1:49:38 Void0110 SD/SS Tanker 1:41:25 Only 1 Tier 3 Void7722 StJ/EnA Stalker 1:30:14 Void0077 WB/AM Blaster 1:25:53 Void3322 FB/TM Corruptor 1:25:44 Void0777 TM/FB Defender 1:19:29 Void7227 RM/SD Brute 1:14:41 Void0987 Arachnos Soldier 1:10:41 Void9100 DM/SD Scrapper 1:10:33 Void9933 PC/PA Dominator 1:10:06 Void9998 Arachnos Widow 1:09:32 The builds, with the exception of the two tanks, were all or almost all Tier 3 Incarnates. The two tanks, if geared at T3 or above, would complete this level of the ITF in times under one hour. The Build:

Solo ITF Completion 0/8 With Peacebringer This time, a solo ITF completion with a Peacebringer. Standard +0/X8 settings. Nothing special, because I'm not special. Without pets and summons, this might not have happened. And, should it have happened, it surely would have taken a few hours more. Even with a balanced damage build, PBs have difficulty taking out AVs. Random, liberal use of some P2W powers to expedite the process, as per above. In particular, the temp summons at the P2W of Ranged Support and Tank (Positron and a semi-comical Statesman, respectively) were required. As always, these are clean runs with no deaths tolerated. This was a nontrivial matter, and several times I had to bounce back and away in order to retoggle or clear DDR debuffs. No Wedding Band this time. Perma-Light Form obviates it. The main four accolades, however, were in effect. All but one of the Incarnate powers was at Tier 3. Tactics/Strategy: Directly target the mobs surrounding the chicks on the first map. Upon exiting that map, directly fly up and over to the Sybil and engage the mobs around her. Doing this directly sometimes fools the encounter logic, causing the Kheldian ambush to fail. This time, it didn't, but, even with all demons dead, I easily was able to survive long enough for the altar consultation and pass the level. On the final maps, fly to the AVs immediately, and wipe them out. Stack them all atop one another. This led to having the ones after the first one having had some damage already. Kill the auto-hit Nictus first, of course. Then, proceed in reverse to clear the objects. You know the rest of the minutiae here. I used Combat Flight the entire time and remained in hover mode. I also kept Quantum Maneuvers on, though I'm not certain that it was actually providing anything special to the mix. I paid special attention, especially in the caves, to hover above casual melee contact. Like, at the top of the cave, looking down. There was virtually no down time on button pattern sequencing. All totally smooth the whole run. The Peacebringer isn't as gimped as people commonly think. In fact, it's a great combatant solo, and even better on a team. Yes, I remained in Human Form the entire time. Not once did I exit. The Quest shall conclude with the impending run of the Warshade. The growing list: ITF Solo 0/8 ITF: Void1001 SD/EM Tanker Void0110 SD/SS Tanker Void2222 FB/INV Sentinel Void9100 DM/SD Scrapper Void7227 RM/SD Brute Void7722 StJ/EnA Stalker Void0777 TM/FB Defender Void0077 WB/AM Blaster Void3322 FB/TM Corruptor Void9933 PC/PA Dominator Void9998 Arachnos Widow Void0987 Arachnos Soldier Void6661 Mastermind Void0202 Peacebringer (Note to @Bill Z Bubba: You asked me to notify you when I accomplished this.) The Build:

The Widow does enough damage on its own against the AVs in the ITF. The Robotic Drones are just tasty icing. The daggers weren't necessary, because I worked the Psi powers into an extended hybrid rotation, and I used the Incarnate of "Degenerative Partial Radial Conversion", which has a chance both for -MaxHP and a toxic DoT; this synergizes well with the Robotic Drones. Regarding the relatively low HP, it's not as much of an issue as it might appear to be. The Widow with this build gets hit infrequently, and it has superior resists to apply after any hit. The base Health-slotted healing procs are enough to cover HP needs at 0/8. Using Mystic Flight also downgrades the incoming damage, as it usually shifts it from Melee to Range. I've not yet used the "fill up the email with buffs" trick. I might have to lean into that when I do the Khelds.

Solo ITF Completion With Mastermind This time, a solo ITF completion with a Mastermind. Demon Summoning/Nature Affinity. Standard +0/X8 settings. Nothing special, because I'm not special. As it turned out, my original plan to use Thugs/Storm fell through once I saw the Demon/Nature build mature. It looked strong. Turns out, it is an extremely durable build, even without using Bodyguard. MM can be tanky by itself, but when it's stacked with Nature, it becomes as durable as a typical Invulnerability tank. Seriously cool. Random, liberal use of some P2W powers to expedite the process, because most MM builds, and especially this one, don't leave room for too many personal attacks. As always, these are clean runs with no deaths tolerated. However, I came as close as ever to getting swarmed a few times, but that durability really helped. So did, at some points, being able to summon and re-summon tons of demons. I did run almost all of the major temp powers (including, at times, the Wedding Band), with the main four accolades in effect, and with all Incarnate powers at Tier 3 (except for Clarion; I kept it at Tier 1). Tactics/Strategy: Directly target the mobs surrounding the chicks on the first map. Upon exiting that map, directly fly up and over to the Sybil and engage the mobs around her. Doing this directly sometimes fools the encounter logic, causing the Kheldian ambush to fail. This time, it didn't, but, even with all demons dead, I easily was able to survive long enough for the altar consultation and pass the level. On the final maps, fly to the AVs immediately, and wipe them out. Kill the auto-hit Nictus first. Then, proceed in reverse to clear the objects. You know the rest of the minutiae here. And, yes, these tactics still fit into the overall strategy. There was a single, very close case of DDR. Had I not been able to fly, I would have been toast. I used Mystic Flight the entire time and remained in hover mode. I paid special attention, especially in the caves, to hover above casual melee contact. Like, at the top of the cave, looking down. There was virtually no down time on button pattern sequencing. All totally smooth the whole run. If you're patient enough, this build can take out virtually anything. The Quest continues... The growing list: ITF Solo 0/8 ITF: Void1001 SD/EM Tanker Void0110 SD/SS Tanker Void2222 FB/INV Sentinel Void9100 DM/SD Scrapper Void7227 RM/SD Brute Void7722 StJ/EnA Stalker Void0777 TM/FB Defender Void 0077 WB/AM Blaster Void3322 FB/TM Corruptor Void9933 PC/PA Dominator Void9998 Arachnos Widow Void0987 Arachnos Soldier Void6661 Mastermind The Build:

Thanks, @Sovera. I use one of your Accolade guides to help expedite the maturation of my t00ns; viz., the table listing the various locations for the badges and such for each of the main four Accolades. Really saves time. -void

Solo ITF Completion With Arachnos Soldier. This time, a solo ITF completion with an Arachnos Soldier. Standard +0/X8 settings. Nothing special, because I'm not special. This was a very fun run. A bit of pucker factor during the crystals on the cave map, due to not having enough room to maneuver while watching cascading DDR run wild. I liberally used some P2W powers to expedite the process. Nothing major this time. Even if the power is shown on my UI, it doesn't mean that I actually used it. As an example, I have Ethereal Shift up there, but I've used that 0 times during this whole insane ITF Solo Quest. As always, these are clean runs with no deaths tolerated. Yet, this time, there were at least two occasions that were very hairy, and only good luck and a certain modicum of skill saved the day. Well, skill and all of those P2W powers, temps, base buffs, etc., that I was running. I did run almost all of the major temp powers (including, at times, the Wedding Band), with the main four accolades in effect, and with all Incarnate powers at Tier 3. Tactics/Strategy: Directly target the mobs surrounding the chicks on the first map. Upon exiting that map, directly fly up and over to the Sybil and engage the mobs around her. Doing this directly sometimes fools the encounter logic, causing the Kheldian ambush to fail. (This run, however, I got too far forward--heh @Werner told me never to do that--and triggered the ambush, which I had to deal with.) On the final maps, fly to the AVs immediately, and wipe them out. Kill the auto-hit Nictus first. That's the one in the middle. Then, proceed in reverse to clear the objects. You know the rest of the minutiae here. And, yes, these tactics still fit into the overall strategy. I used Mystic Flight the entire time and remained in hover mode. I paid special attention, especially in the caves, to hover above casual melee contact. Like, at the top of the cave, looking down. This time, there was an issue due to crystal placement, and I almost got taken down by DDR. There was virtually no down time on button pattern sequencing. All totally smooth the whole run... ...except for when one of my cats knocked my Stratocaster down behind me, scaring the bejezzus out of me during the first AV fight. As with the Widow, the Arachnos Soldier is a really tough, hardy, violent character build. I ran a hybrid mace build, and it's as crunchy as mace gets. The Quest continues... The growing list: ITF Solo 0/8 ITF: Void1001 SD/EM Tanker Void0110 SD/SS Tanker Void2222 FB/INV Sentinel Void9100 DM/SD Scrapper Void7227 RM/SD Brute Void7722 StJ/EnA Stalker Void0777 TM/FB Defender Void 0077 WB/AM Blaster Void3322 FB/TM Corruptor Void9933 PC/PA Dominator Void9998 Arachnos Widow Void0987 Arachnos Soldier Only Mastermind, Peacebringer, and Warshade remain. The Build:

Solo ITF Completion With Arachnos Widow. This time, a solo ITF completion with an Arachnos Widow. Standard +0/X8 settings. Nothing special, because I'm not special. Initially, I used a build by @STiTcH, who informed me that, with his build, it was tough to solo AVs without pets. Then, after a discussion with @KaizenSoze, I decided to alter my build a bit, and go for END over DMG. Worked out quite well. Had only two incidents of END dropping below 50% the entire run. They were resolved by pausing a few seconds, letting my procs go to work to refill the END bar. I liberally used some P2W powers to expedite the process. Nothing major this time. Even if the power is shown on my UI, it doesn't mean that I actually used it. As an example, I have Ethereal Shift up there, but I've used that 0 times during this whole insane ITF Solo Quest. As always, these are clean runs with no deaths tolerated. I did run almost all of the major temp powers (including, at times, the Wedding Band), with the main four accolades in effect, and with all Incarnate powers at Tier 3. I burned a few greenies during the auto-hit Nictus phase, because I didn't like my Health bar to go under 50%. Tactics/Strategy: Directly target the mobs surrounding the chicks on the first map. Upon exiting that map, directly fly up and over to the Sybil and engage the mobs around her. Doing this directly sometimes fools the encounter logic, causing the Kheldian ambush to fail. On the final maps, fly to the AVs immediately, and wipe them out. Kill the auto-hit Nictus first. Then, proceed in reverse to clear the objects. You know the rest of the minutiae here. And, yes, these tactics still fit into the overall strategy. There was not a single case of DDR. I used Mystic Flight the entire time and remained in hover mode. I paid special attention, especially in the caves, to hover above casual melee contact. Like, at the top of the cave, looking down. There was virtually no down time on button pattern sequencing. All totally smooth the whole run. This is a really tough, hardy, violent character build. The Quest continues... The growing list: ITF Solo 0/8 ITF: Void1001 SD/EM Tanker Void0110 SD/SS Tanker Void2222 FB/INV Sentinel Void9100 DM/SD Scrapper Void7227 RM/SD Brute Void7722 StJ/EnA Stalker Void0777 TM/FB Defender Void 0077 WB/AM Blaster Void3322 FB/TM Corruptor Void9933 PC/PA Dominator Void9998 Arachnos Widow The Build: