Renatos1023

This is what I was going for. For most of the Buff/Debuff sets you wait in anticipation of the T9....but then you get Melt Armor and it is kind of 'meh' compared to similar powers (all of which are not even T9). It really does need some recharge reduction and maybe a base to-hit bonus. I have enjoyed my playing so far with my Thermal, and I know that I am useful on the majority of teams. But I also know that this character will likely never match what my Cold/Ice defender brings to a team - and that is fine too, I just wish the performance gap wasn't so evident. I also suppose that I will love Thermal once I continue my ride of getting a 50 of every Defender primary and have to roll a Traps/.

I know you can't compare one power to one power and decide that one set is OP or another is bad. But you can go ahead and compare all of Cold Dom. to all of Thermal Rad. Generally, defense shields are better than resist shields. While Cold doesn't have a heal, it has the +HP. It also has the Stealth with +Def, that Thermal has no counter for. Thermal has a Rez and Thaw, both of which are generally useless late game. Cold has perma-Sleet and close to unlimited Endurance with Heat Loss (plus more -res). My main gripe was that Thermal's biggest debuff (which has lower numbers than Sleet and FR, and no slow or KD) seems to need accuracy slotted. And, as you pointed out, this holds for Time's Slowed Response (which is also -30% res, and -25% def, same as Melt Armor). I guess I'm not sure why Time and Thermal have to suffer that built in debuff of not being auto-hit when they are already worse (number wise) and don't have the side effect of slow and KD (one would think a power named Slowed Response would have some slow built in, no?). Also, Slowed Response, while the same debuff numbers as Melt Armor, has a 90 second recharge compared to Melt Armor's 150 second. So, Melt Armor is even worse off than Slowed Response due to the extra minute of recharge. As I said, all of my mains are Defenders. I love all the sets in their own ways. I'm just trying to point out certain weaknesses as I move through all these journeys to 50. I don't see how giving both Melt Armor and Slowed Response the same auto-hit capability would make either set OP. They could pulse like Earth Control's Earthquake (minus the KD), giving them that multiple chance to hit that both Sleet and Freezing Rain have. Just my thoughts while leveling up. Hit 43 on him today and can't wait to start getting some recharge slotted. He is fun, but I can't see him breaking alphas in an ITF like my Cold/Ice Defender.

In my quest to get a Lv.50 of every Defender primary, I am now on Thermal (Traps, Trick Arrow, Kinetics, Poison, and Pain left). I just hit 40 on my Thermal/Fire Defender. It has been a fun ride and Thermal is a mixed bag. I've enjoyed it so far, but can't help but notice that the T9 seems underpowered compared to other powers (that aren't even T9). Here is my gripe, please let me know if I am wrong, always happy to hear opinions: Melt Armor: Base Debuff: -25% Def, -30% Res; No slow, or any other debuff Needs accuracy (not auto-hit per the two powers below) (This is my perception, if the debuffs are auto-hit, please let me know) Base Recharge: 2:30 Sleet: Base Debuff: -30% Def, -30% Res; good slow, +KD Due to mechanics, might as well be auto-hit, no Acc needed Base Recharge: 1:00 Freezing Rain: Base Debuff: -30% Def, -35% Res; better slow than Sleet, +KD Due to mechanics, might as well be auto-hit, no Acc needed Base Recharge: 1:00 Melt Armor is worse off in every category. Its debuff is slightly lower, it needs acc, it has a significantly higher recharge, and it has no other side debuffs. I have kitted out Cold Dom/ and Storm/ Defenders. And while the Thermal journey has been fun so far, it just doesn't seem to measure up. I am going to push to 50, because I want a 50 of every primary, but Thermal/ just seems confused. Maybe if Melt Armor's recharge was lower so that it could be popped off more, even with the need for slotted Acc., that could help the situation.

Thank you for ensuring that I wasn't going crazy. The Blaster version of Stunning Shot is quite crap. On a happier note, I did a respec to drop Lotus and pick up Explosive. It was a fantastic decision. Aim+RoA+EA+Fistful is a great opener -- and most things are either dead or on their butts with the KB-to-KD in Explosive. Which allows me to run in and hit bosses with my two melee attacks, mixing in Smoke Flash for the debuff. This a definitely a Blaster with survivability, IMO. Granted I am building for defense. But the ride has been very fun so far. Thanks yall!

Interesting, I didn't realize that Lotus Drops had such a small AoE and that Explosive didn't deal lethal damage. I think I'll swap them out at some point when I respec and give EA a try. I also didn't realize that CP had such good damage -- I thought single target holds were usually crap damage (outside of Freeze Ray) but I guess I have been wrong. And the debuff on SF is also what I was going for, figured I could run up to a boss drop SF, hit my single target attacks and fade back out. Thank you both for the feedback!

I rarely venture outside of my beloved support ATs (Defender/Corrupter/Controller) and their forums. But I wanted to try something different and decided to roll a Blaster. Wanted to do Archery and it came down to either /TA or /Ninja, and guess which one won out. Just dinged 33 and so far this character has been a blast. Its...a change of pace when I only have to worry about dealing damage and keeping myself alive -- I'm used to playing team support 95% of the time. I feel like the ranged damage is pretty good, especially now that I have Rain of Arrows slotted. I feel like the melee damage is on point -- I love that they left the AoE portion of Golden Dragonfly in. The fact that Shinobi lets me crit as a Blaster feels like it really helps the damage (esp. since i'm all lethal, all the time -- love seeing the "Critical" tag pop up). Anyone else run this pairing and have thoughts? My main opening is Aim+RoA+Fistful, then run in and tag bosses with some melee; then jump back and shoot things that are left standing. Has been pretty good so far. Just had a few questions about powers that I wanted to get some opinions on. Archery Primary: 1. Explosive Arrow -- I've always thought this was useless (even back on live). It has low damage (IMO) and huge KB. IMO it isn't useful without a KB to KD IO. Is this usually a skipped power? Curious as to what others thinks it adds to Archery's AoE potential, because my opinion is very low. 2. On top of Explosive, I've also skipped Snap Shot and Stunning Shot for usefulness and minimal damage reasons. Ninja Training Secondary: 1. The stats on Immobilizing Dart and Choking Powder seem crappy. I've skipped. Has anyone found them useful? 2. I debated between Smoke Flash and Blinding Powder. I took SF and slotted with a single Acc IO. Not sure if it does much. Are these powers actually useful for minor crowd control? 3. I've taken all 3 melee attacks, Shinobi, Kuji, and Smoke Flash so far. I feel like this pairing leaves a good amounts of slots open for pool powers. I'm currently going into Leadership and Fighting because I do enjoy the Blapping powers here, so I am looking to build up defense (I also take CJ and SJ as my travel set). I will likely grab Hasten at some point. Hoping to see some other opinions, especially on the Ninja Training power set!

Somewhere up above I had Dark/ as my 3rd fave defender primary. It is a solid Defender set -- my mistake was paring it with /Water which just isn't working for me. One of my main heroes on live was a Dark/Rad defender....I think I am about to re-roll my Dark/Water into Dark/Rad (or maybe Dark/Dark to capitalize on the -to hit). Dark/ is fantastic -- its one of my favorite original sets. It was actually bomb back on live. But some of the newer Defender sets do outshine it (Cold and Nature to be specific -- I do hate playing Electric). I understand why it is underplayed -- it is a nuanced set and you really only shine if you know how to use it well. It has the best rezz power and the best targeted heal (number wise I believe, correct me if i'm wrong). Well back to my Dark/ drawing board to replace /Water.

Just back to update, cause I am now working my way through getting all my Incarnates from T3 to T4 (2/6 of the way there!). Gotta say I have enjoyed the end game content and running with this character. I've invested heavily in +rech and +def. She currently sits at: Defense: 35.4% Rng/37% Melee/36.6% AoE Resists: 75% sm/l res.; 41% psi; 37% EN/Neg; 33% Fire/Cold; 30% Tox. Recharge: 55% global (+70% when Hasten is up for a total of 125%) (I also just got Ageless Core Epiphany which gives 10-40% more based on timing) I'd have to say she's pretty friggen sturdy. The recharge lets me Nuke close to every other mob and Liquefy also doesn't seem like it takes too long to come back around. The one thing that I miss as a defender is a good solid, AoE debuff. I find that Disruption Field (the ally-targeted AoE-res) seems to de-toggle often, especially on missions with elevators. This gets annoying on fast-paced teams (aka all 50+ teams) cause if you're like 3 seconds behind someone on an elevator, it goes down. This should just be map-wide, so I don't have to keep re-toggling. Otherwise, this character has been a blast! I think teams appreciate the 58-60% +Res to all (but Psi). Incarnates currently are: Alpha: Cardiac Core Paragon (needed the end. reduction, plus the extra range and +res never hurt) Interface: Reactive Total Core Conversion (needed to find some more -res somewhere) Judgement: Ion Total Core (easily shot from any range) Destiny: Ageless Core Paragon (totally solves all end. issues plus the extra +rech -- at some point may reconsider the +def destiny power since I don't seem to have end. issues anymore even without this running) Lore: Banished Pantheon Total Core (totally random tbh) Hybrid: Support Total Core Graft (extra +def onto the already high numbers stated above) Just wanted to share my Sonic/ journey and hope to see others do the same.

Also wanted to reply to @Without_Pause because they do make a good point: Thanks for showing me that there are other T9s with absurd recharge times! I do appreciate it. However, I do think there is one big difference -- especially between Sonic/ and Trick Arrow/. TA is all debuffs, to the point that all 9 powers are actually SOLID debuffs. Whereas Sonic/ has no solid debuffs imo -- yes, we have the single target -30% (whoop /s) and the Ally Targeted PBAoE debuff...but I need a team for my best debuff (the PBAoE one). TA doesn't. And the Sonic/ buffs are good, but only if you can keep everyone in your Bubble. There is a massive discrepancy between Sonic/ and all other primaries that I've played (as I said in the first post I don't have a Thermal/ or Traps/ defender). I think fixing the T9 to make it a useful debuff, can help this. Especially when there are already 3 other powers in the set that shouldn't currently be taken. Hell, I can argue that the T9 is a 4th power that shouldn't be taken because of its recharge, which leaves Sonic/ with only 5 powers that are necessary. I'm not trying to shit on Sonic/ -- I wouldn't have played it and given my feedback if I truly hated it. But I do feel it needs work. Will I continue to run ITFs --yup! Will I wish that Liquefy was useful, also yup.

I'm happy to see some Sonic/ discussion going! Lets make sure the Devs see it. As an update, I am currently at Vet lv.10. I absolutely love this character so far. With the slots I currently have I give about 60% Res to all (except Psi.: ~35% from shields, and ~25% from the bubble). I actually think these numbers are pretty solid. I also have 27% Rng./28% Mel./29% AOE Def.; capped S/L res, 39% res to Psi, and 30% to res to all else. And this character isn't even fully slotted yet. She's pretty solid -- especially for what I consider a bottom-of-the-line primary (maybe its not so crappy after all?!) To respond to a few posts: This is what I was going for! Thank you @Onlyasandwich for putting into words what I couldn't. I have a habit of comparing AoE debuff powers to my two favorite ones: Freezing Rain and Sleet. In comparison, Liquefy sucks. Especially as a T9. And especially in a set that should specializes in -Res. Why TF is there a hold and -Acc. In my opinion, and as someone who has a maxed out Cold/ fender (and multiple Storm Fenders/Corrs)...this is the discrepancy. Maybe Sleet/FR is OP (i don't think they are), but I am damn sure that Liquefy is shiite. Sonic/ has no quality AoE debuffs. As I said, I'd be happy if this T9 went down to 3, hell even 4, minutes, lost the hold, and then lost either the Acc debuff or the Def debuff and replaced one of them with a solid Resistance debuff.

This is typically what I do too, especially when it comes to melee characters. However, I realized that most people are always going for at least soft-capped def (myself included). So, I figured, why not go for a bottom-of-the-bin set (at least the common consensus) that offers a ton of Resistance. I've really had a blast so far. I hit 50 the other day and am slowly slotting her up. But I currently give about 55% Res+ (no Psi) to my team as long as they're under my bubble (If not under the bubble it is more like 33%). Honestly not shabby either way, as we know most of us are out there capping defense. I'm still trying to figure out some slots, and my endurance, but I think that will come with time and more incarnates. Do I have some fixes I'd make to the Sonic/ primary, duh. We all do. I always thought that Sonic/ did a good job of upping its own Team's resistance (which is only 3/9 powers) yet did crap when it came to de-buffing resistance. And that is why I'm going to list my desired tweaks to Sonic/ here. Sonic/ isn't terrible, but it isn't Cold/ (which IMO is my best performing Defender). Obviously, you're free to disagree with me (and I know you will 🙂 ), but I just want some Sonic/ love from the Devs lol. T1. Sonic Siphon: as the T1 it seems to have a larger recharge than other Defender T1s. I'd reduce recharge by 2 seconds. T2/3. Sonic Barrier/Sonic Haven: I think these are fine. Would I like to see like 2.5% base increase on resistance, yes. But, no complaints. T4. Sonic Cage: Either remove and make totally different or make a toggle (that you can drop when you want or that drops after 30 seconds max). No one wants a crappy intangible power that they can't control. Sonic is supposed to be the king of -res but this does nothing to get us there (and honestly, we have little to get us there currently imo with the Sonic/ primary). I'd prefer it not be an intangible power. I think it should be an actual big cage of sonic energy, similar in area to Ice Slick, that just moderately lowers resistance, say -10%. It can be a click or a toggle (like the Elec. Aff. mez resist). This would allow sonic defenders to do what they're supposed to, aka lower Resistance (Sonic/ by itself only has the single target (T1) that lowers Res on a single target by 30% and the toggle discussed below, which is a heavy endurance cost centered on an Ally at -30% Res). Having this cage would allow a Sonic/ to actually have some -Res in an AoE when they are solo. T5. Disruption Field: No complaints again. Just a basic cast-on-ally power. I just slot with 2 end. redux. T6. Sonic Dispersion: Also, no complaints. Would I like to see an extra 2.5% Res added, sure. And some Sleep resistance, definitely. But that is not going to happen so I'm happy with what I have. T.7 Sonic Repulsion: Does anyone actually take this? I know you can slot a KB -to-KD enhancement in it, but who wants to pay that monster amount of endurance. This should be a one-off click like the power in Fire Control (Bonfire?) or Force Field (Force Bomb?) that just knocks a group down. I'd be more than happy with that, as long as it had like -7.5% Res (hell I'd take -5%). Thats my fix for this one. T.8 Clarity: This never made sense to me in Sonic. I have my anti-Mez bubble like FF does, yet FF isn't given a crappy power like this (yes, I know it gives some sleep protection, but that is not worth a whole power pick). Honestly, this could be anything. I think Sonic/ should be the both the best -Res, and +Res of all sets. I think Clarity should be a single target, long recharge buff: say +25% Res to all, +To-hit, +Dam, -Res (-7.5% in a circle around the target) -- make it on a timer like Adrenaline Boost -- idk but make it useful. T9. Liquefy: This power has two issues: recharge and too many debuffs. I think the recharge should be lowered from 5 minutes to 3 minutes. 5 minutes is a ridiculous time and no other Defender T9 (or any other AT T9 that I can think of) is that long. It can lose the hold that that it has (why is it there? it is useless) and we can lower the Def. Debuff Percentage and the To-Hit Debuff percentage to like 25% base (pretty sure it is high 30s right now). I'd actually prefer to lose the To-hit debuff, and actually make it do -Res in its place -- like Sonic is supposed to do. I think more of a focus on +Res for allies and -Res for foes would pull Sonic out of the near bottom position that I know that it is in. I am curious to hear other's thoughts on how to improve Sonic/. I'm pretty sure this is one of the few sets that hasn't been modified since live. Thanks! Renatos

Let me preface this with I played Sonic/ once on live. I know the downfalls. I just haven't seen any recent Sonic/ posts and was looking for the community's thoughts. I've rolled every Defender primary except for Traps, Thermal...and Sonic. The 3 that I've always felt were weakest. So, I decided to try out Sonic/ today. I got up to 21 and it has been a fun ride so far! Without slotting, adding 35% res to all but Psi (for teammates), plus some status resist doesn't seem terrible. All the powers I've taken so far have been good. But I've always had an issue with the later Sonic powers...they all look like they suck. After 20, it doesn't even seem like I need to take anything else. Sonic Repulsion seems useless; why would I bother with Clarity when I already have Dispersion. I will obviously take Liquefy since it is the T9...but by god, why a 5-minute recharge. I played Sonic on live briefly, so I know what I was walking into. But I've always wanted either a Sonic/ defender or a /Sonic Corr (for theme reasons), so I went the Def route. I do like Seismic. The cone that knocks everything down, once the seismic power is built up, is pretty good damage mitigation. I'm going to keep pushing forward with this character because the lower levels have been fun. I assume with basic IO slotting I should be giving my team ~50% resist to all but psi, plus mez resist for us squishies. I also hope (fingers crossed) that maybe Sonic/ is better in upper levels since most people seem to go for maxing out defense with IO sets, so plugging the Res gap is what I'm going to accomplish. I also have a (maybe false) hope that if any set needs a buff it is Sonic/, and when it comes mine will be at 50 lol. Does anyone actually appreciate a well-built Sonic/ at end-game or am I just too optimistic?

As Nihilii says above, Cold/ and Nature/ would be my two choices. I run a tricked out Cold/Ice Defender and it is by far my favorite character. Perma-Sleet keeps everything on their butts and provides a good amount of -def and -res; Heat Loss means no one has to worry about endurance plus more -res debuff; She also gives 39% defense to all (but Psi and Toxic I believe). I also have a Nature/Sonic Defender who is a beast. Entangling Aura is a fantastic defensive power and keeps the riff raff held. The cone heal comes in handy, plus the two click buffs for +Res and +Absorb make you and your team pretty sturdy. The T9 buff also provides good +dam, +to-hit, and -end. cost. It also has some potent debuffs. All around, a very versatile set. A third favorite of mine is my Dark/Water. Provides good -res and -to-hit. Also has my favorite heal and rez in the game. Dark is very controller-y with Fearsome Stare and Howling Twilight (it is your rez, but also serves as an AoE stun). The T9 pet also helps with more healing and debuffage. Tbh, I don't think you can go wrong with any Defender primary, but these are my top 3 for both fun and utility.

I just created an Illusion/Energy Dom yesterday and got him up to the mid-20s. I wanted to have a "light" theme, and I thought the energy blasts and colorful pom-poms went well with that. Seems to have pretty decent ranged and melee damage so far. This is the first Dom i've enjoyed playing, (I only have one other Dom (Mind/Psi) that I got to 50 and then shelved). I do have to say I think the Dom version of Illusion is more control-y than the Controller version. It really did make a difference to get rid of the crappy group invis power and replace it with a useful AoE stun - now I don't feel bad not taking Flash.

On my Stormie I put the Sudden Acceleration: Knockback to Knockdown IO in Tornado and, if you take it, Gale. This turns Tornado into a knock-up power, and Gale into a knockdown cone, which can be useful for putting a group on their butts. I didn't put it into Lightning Storm, cause I just don't find the KB to be that detrimental from it. As Captain mentioned above, don't slot it in Hurricane - I generally use hurricane to create a safe zone/repel area for ranged characters, or if it looks like a team wipe is coming, toss it on and charge in to apply the to-hit de-buff and knock things around. Yes, there are other ways to use it, like kiting in and tapping baddies to apply the de-buff and then jumping back out, (the de-buff stays for like 10 seconds I think, maybe 12) but that's generally too busy and I feel more effective blasting and making sure Freezing Rain is liberally applied.

I don't have a Storm build to share (others here are much better with that) with you but can give you my opinion on secondaries and how I shaped my defender. I think /Ice and /Water, are good fits thematically. /Ice is a single target beast and provides decent mitigation with all the slow and recharge debuffs, plus it has 2 single target holds (although I skip Bitter Freeze Ray due to long animation). You also get Ice Storm and Blizzard to stack with Freezing Rain. /Water would give you better AoE damage and a self heal, along with some small defense debuffs. /Elec would also work thematically, but I am just not a fan of the set and I think its -end/recovery debuff is not as useful as the debuffs in Ice or Water. If you want straight damage /Fire is your best bet, no debuffs there though - secondary effect is just more damage (I have a Fire/Storm Corr who is pretty fun to play). In terms of building your primary, you'll want to focus on recharge because you want to have Freezing Rain up every mob and get Lightning Storm and Tornado up as often as possible too. I always slot the Knockback --> Knockdown IO in both Gale and Tornado, making them much more team-friendly. Rather than scattering everything everywhere, mobs just fall right on their butts. When I play a Stormie I typically take everything but Snow Storm and Thunderclap. 02 Boost can also be dropped, but sometimes it can come in handy and if I have the power slots I try to fit it in. Hurricane is a very good situational power with a huge -to-hit debuff and it also repels nearby mobs - a nice power to create a safe zone for a squishie that has over-aggroed. You can also use it to quickly touch a mob and then back away, as the debuff will stick around for 10 seconds (I'm pretty sure) after the mob is outside of the radius. I find that my Stormies burn through a lot of endurance - in pretty much all of my characters I slot a Performance Shifter +End in Stamina plus another Endurance Mod enhancement; then a Numina's Convalescence +Regen/+Recovery and a Miracle +Recovery into Health. Dark, Flame, and Electric Mastery all have endurance replenishing powers if you feel you need that once you get into the upper levels. Incarnates can also be used to fill any other gaps you may want filled.

Just wanted to post this final build here for anyone who is interested. Based on the feedback, I made some slotting changes and swapped some powers around. Currently running at 51.9% AoE, 51.3% Ranged, and about 34.7% melee defense. Plus 55.8% s/l resist w/o tough. I took the incarnate that gives +Def/Res for when it hits the fan, which helps push those numbers even higher. There's no endurance issues (thanks Heat Loss) and Sleet/Ice Storm are up every mob (currently at like 22 secs w/out hasten - if Mids is to be believed). This is easily the defender that I've had the most fun with in a while. Definitely feels like it brings a lot to a team and is a blast to play. 🙂 Liza Frost - Defender (Cold Domination).mxd

Hi @Zect, thank you for your feedback. It is appreciated! You are 100% right when it comes to my Alpha power. I always went Spiritual in the past for +recharge, I did not realize that Agility also offered the same +recharge buff, plus other buffs that I can use...I have switched to the Agility T3. Thas brought my def up to 42.92% ranged/AoE and 26.3% Melee. Thank you for pointing that out! I'll be honest, I hated going the 5 Serendipity slots for the AoE def, but as you said, that what I was chasing at that point. I have a hard time dropping 3 powers to get to Weave - especially since I'm not sure I need it now. I went the Destiny Barrier route, which will perma cap me to Ranged and AoE, and put me over 30% for Melee. I'm sure I'll get slack for not going the Ageless route, but I just don't feel like it is necessary on this build, as I have 0 endurance issues (I know, I lose the +recharge; people may disagree, but I have no probs so far). I honestly don't have an issue with my recharge and endurance. I know I could easily drop Vengeance and Frostwork, as they are rarely used, but I am hesitant to drop Ice Blast. I will put some builds into Mids and see what I can do there with the slotting examples that you gave me. But thanks for your honest feedback, it is appreciated. I am curious to see if I can up those defense numbers even more. Thanks again! I'm always looking to improve. -Renatos

I've read most of this thread (so forgive me if I've missed something). But I've run the ITF with my Cold/Ice Def and think it's pretty prime. It brings about 34% def to all (except psi) and perma-Sleet + Ice Storm (+Blizzard when up). I've never felt that I had a stronger Defender. This is coming from someone who almost solely plays Defs. My Nature/Sonic and my Dark/Water are fantastic -- but this Cold/Ice just seems to edge them out. Just personal opinion ofc.

On live, my main was an Emp/Electric. Was fantastic back then. On Homecoming, I went Emp/Radiation and have not regretted it. Rad has fantastic debuffs (esp. with Def modifiers). So imo, Emp/Rad is a fantastic buff/debuff combo if you want Emp as a primary.

Hi y'all! I've been playing a Cold/Ice defender recently. This has become my favorite character so far! I've heard that this combo is better on Corrs but I have had the hardest time playing my Water/Cold Corr, so I decided to remake her as a Defender with /Ice. I have not been disappointed. This combo has been as tanky as my Nature/Sonic defender. I wanted to share my build and get feedback before I started drafting a Cold/Ice Defender guide. As always, constructive criticism is welcome. Let me know if this build loads correctly, I've been having trouble with Mid's recently. This build has 41.3% def to Ranged and AoE and 24.75% to Melee; plus 50% res to sm/l; before incarnates. I didn't use purples, but still have Sleet up every mob (+also Ice Storm) and I tend to be the first person in the middle. This build has been very tank-fendery (at least at normal +4 TFs and missions). **Editing to say: I'm sure there are 'better' Cold/Ice builds. But I am just putting forward one that works for a Defender minded, support build -- that also likes to semi-tank. Perma-Sleet and Ice Storm are not to be trifled with. I am curious to see other builds. Liza Frost - Defender (Cold Domination).mxd

Hi all, I am not good with the numbers, my experience here is just based on my subjective gameplay. My question is: Does Dark Consumption require a to-hit check to grant endurance? When I play my Rad/Fire Brute (yes, I know, not a Def) Consume seems to be auto-hit for granting endurance. But on my Defender, I seem to hit one target every time I hit DC, even with multiple around me. Is the Defender Consume auto-hit like Brute? Is that a better ancillary option for endurance mitigation? I was looking through these Def forums and couldn't find this answer. Thanks for any help! -R

Hey all, This is my first attempt at putting a build together in a long time. I was able to get Melee/Ranged/AoE defense all to slightly over 37%. Would just like to get feedback to see if anyone has any other ideas, preferably on eeking out more defense, although I feel like 37 shouldn't be terrible. I didn't realize how slot intensive it was to get some of those def numbers so high (especially melee). This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.2.17 https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn Click this DataLink to open the build! Draco Renatus: Level 50 Mutation Corruptor Primary Power Set: Fire Blast Secondary Power Set: Storm Summoning Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Sorcery Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Speed Ancillary Pool: Dark Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Fire Blast -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(3), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(3) Level 1: Gale -- SuddAcc--KB/+KD(A), Acc-I(5) Level 2: Fire Ball -- Ann-Acc/Dmg(A), Ann-ResDeb%(5), Ann-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(7), Ann-Dmg/Rchg(7), Ann-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(9), Ann-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(9) Level 4: Combat Jumping -- Ksm-ToHit+(A), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(11), LucoftheG-Def(11) Level 6: Rain of Fire -- Artl-Acc/Dam(A), Artl-Dam/End(13), Artl-Dam/Rech(13), Artl-Acc/Dam/Rech(15), Artl-Acc/Rech/Rng(15), Artl-End/Rech/Rng(17) Level 8: Mystic Flight -- Flight-I(A) Level 10: Steamy Mist -- RedFrt-Def/EndRdx(A), RedFrt-Def/Rchg(17), RedFrt-EndRdx/Rchg(19), RedFrt-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(19), RedFrt-Def(21), RedFrt-EndRdx(21) Level 12: Aim -- GssSynFr--ToHit(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg(23), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(23), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(25), GssSynFr--Build%(25), GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(27) Level 14: Arcane Bolt -- Acc-I(A) Level 16: Freezing Rain -- ExpVln-DefDeb(A), ExpVln-DefDeb/Rchg(27), ExpVln-DefDeb/Rchg/EndRdx(29), RechRdx-I(50) Level 18: Blaze -- Thn-Acc/Dmg(A), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(29), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(31), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33) Level 20: Hurricane -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 22: Rune of Protection -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A) Level 24: Boxing -- RzzDzz-Acc/Rchg(A), RzzDzz-EndRdx/Stun(33), RzzDzz-Acc/EndRdx(33), RzzDzz-Stun/Rng(34), RzzDzz-Acc/Stun/Rchg(34) Level 26: Blazing Bolt -- ExtMsr-Acc/Dmg(A), ExtMsr-Dmg/EndRdx(34), ExtMsr-Acc/ActRdx/Rng(36), ExtMsr-Dmg/ActRdx/Rchg(36), ExtMsr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(36), ExtMsr-Acc/Rng/Rchg(37) Level 28: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(37), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(37), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(39) Level 32: Inferno -- Obl-Dmg(A), Obl-%Dam(39), Obl-Acc/Rchg(39), Obl-Dmg/Rchg(40), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Obl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(40) Level 35: Tornado -- SuddAcc--KB/+KD(A), ExpVln-DefDeb(42), ExpVln-DefDeb/Rchg(42), ExpVln-DefDeb/Rchg/EndRdx(42) Level 38: Lightning Storm -- Rui-Acc/Dmg(A), Rui-Dmg/Rchg(43), Rui-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(43), Rui-Dmg/EndRdx(43), Rui-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(45) Level 41: Dark Consumption -- ScrDrv-Acc/Dmg(A), ScrDrv-Acc/Rchg(45), ScrDrv-Dmg/Rchg(45), ScrDrv-Dam%(46), ScrDrv-Dmg/EndRdx(46) Level 44: Dark Embrace -- RctArm-ResDam(A), RctArm-ResDam/EndRdx(46), RctArm-ResDam/Rchg(48), RctArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(48), RctArm-EndRdx(48) Level 47: Soul Drain -- RctRtc-ToHit(A), RctRtc-ToHit/Rchg(50), EndRdx-I(50) Level 49: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Scourge Level 1: Sprint -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 1: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 1: Health -- NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(A) Level 1: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 1: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A) Level 14: Arcane Power Level 49: Quick Form ------------

I have a lv.50 Ice/Ice/Psy thats one of my favorite characters to play at the moment. I know people tend to hate on ice armor, and it does have its holes, but I've enjoyed my run with it so far. I did drop the two +3% defense IOs into it and run Maneuvers and Hover. With energy absorption up I run at around 37.5% defense to s/l/e/n and capped resist to cold. I took the alpha slot that boosts end. mod/recharge/defense. I only play on teams and usually theres multiple maneuvers or other buffs so I'm often over the 45% defense cap. I open with aim and blizzard+ice storm so theres usually not much return fire. I'm in the process of leveling up an Elec/Energy and its been pretty fun too. I think sentinels are my new favorite class to play when I don't want to play my usual support characters.

Thanks for that breakdown! I had assumed it would work as the original tanker version and that the defense buffs would stack. I guess I would more so look at this as an endurance bar refill power that gives 4.4% defense to all once slotted. Thanks again!