Story Archer

Thanks - that's what I was trying to figure out. So straight up, without worrying about Defense DeBuffs, when fighting higher level foes you benefit directly by exceeding the soft-cap.

I can appreciate that perspective, I'm just trying to find out how the mechanic actually works, more than the best way to build various power sets. Too many subjective factors come into that. FWIW, I can't technically call this a 'defense-focused' build. It's definitely as mutli-layered as it comes... Defense: S/L - 44.8% E/N - 45.0% F/C - 45.0% PSI - 43.9% TX - 21.1% Resistance: S/L - 90% (91.8%) E/N - 20.6% F/C - 36.4% PSI - 67.4% TX - 34.1% Max HP: 2919 Healing: 1 Foe in melee range: 542% 2 Foes in melee range: 589% 3 Foes in melee range: 636% 10 Foes in melee range: 965% Darkest Night + Rise to the Challenge (AoE toggles): All foes suffer in area suffer -18.5% ToHit DeBuff and -30% Damage DeBuff

Gotcha. I didn't know if 45% was 45% against even-level foes but was maybe 42.5% against +1's, 40% against +2's , etc., so I would need to go over the soft-cap to ensure that +4's continued to only have a 5% chance to hit me.

For the purposes of this discussion, let's exclude Incarnate abilities. So, discounting Defense De-Buffs, if I've got 45% Defense it doesn't really make a difference if I'm being attacked by an even-level foe or a +4 level foe, I've gotten the full defensive benefit I can?

I understand that most power sets do not provide a great deal of resistance to Defense De-Buffs, and going above the soft-cap of 45% can be beneficial in that case. What I don't understand is what benefit it provides apart from that, which is to say that I don't fully understand all the nuances of how Accuracy / ToHit works, especially with regards to relative level between the attacker and the defender. If you are regularly battling foes who are 3 or 4 levels higher than you, does the level difference affect the calculations in such a way that you're really not at the Defense soft-cap, you're actually much lower? At the moment I'm working on a Tanker build (Willpower/) that puts me right at the defense soft-cap for S/L, E/NE, F/C and Psy, but I'm only just there. I'm trying to decide between a final set that will either grant +5 Def to E/NE, F/C and Psy bringing them from 45% to 50% OR a set that will grant a host of other useful benefits that I'd much rather gain if it turns out that I've reached the point of diminishing returns when it comes to buffing my defense (Apocalypse vs. Superior Winter's Bite). It's not just that scenario though, otherwise I'd be on the Tanker forum - the question is applicable to a broader understanding of how defense works and any future builds I might try to put together.

lol - I tend towards high defense builds for my ranged types and I love that AoE & Ranged defense you get from Lockdown, plus potentially stacking higher Mag Holds for hard targets. It's just habit though - first time with an Ice/Cold Corruptor.

Go to the effects tab for..? I've got them both six-slotted with Lockdown. On the Info tab FR still shows an unaugmented 8s and BFR shows an unaugmented 18s. On the Effects tab it shows them both at 18.59s.

Looking at Mids, slotting them for Hold Duration, they don't seem to be ffecting these powers at all. Is this the way it works (for some reason) or is it an issue with Mids?

Thanks for the response - out of curiosity, why skip Hurricane? It seems so powerful...

This is a very new power set for me and I've only seen it used a handful of times. Reading through the boards I've come across some conflicting information regarding powers and how to best slot them and I'm trying to figure out what my playstyle might be in this controlled chaos of a power set. I want to present my thoughts and some questions in the hope that some of you vets can properly educate me. FWIW, I'll probably be going Electrical Blast or possibly Storm Blast for my Primary. One of my concerns is how it will play out on teams. At mid-to-higher levels, it seems like I'd spend my time setting things up and by the time I do everything will already be dead and the group moving on. Is that a realistic concern? Gale: Seems like a decent early power, but the only long-term value I see in it would be if it were slotted with two Accuracy, a KB/KD and a Force Feedback proc. Even then, with everything I expect to be doing at higher levels, it just doesn't seem like I'd get around to using it very often. Still a decent way to soften up a potential alpha, though. O2 Boost: Feels like a relatively weak Heal and mez protection. At higher levels I'd expect everybody to be taking care of their own mez protection and the last thing I want to spend my time doing in combat is healing. Snow Storm: Another power that feels like it would be useful at lower levels but there wouldn't really be time for at the higher ones. Honestly, all three of the initial powers seem like options I'd choose initially but respec out of later. Steamy Mist: Now this power seems great, group +Def and +Res and a little Stealth over a really wide radius. Plus is seems like a potentially useful place to mule a host of Uniques. Freezing Rain: Also seems like a must take, it should probably be used to open most combats, yes? Maybe toss in an Achilles Heel proc, or should it get proc'ed out completely? Hurricane: Now this is one of the powers I have the most questions about. It seems wildly powerful and like it would be one of the foundational powers of the entire set. A couple of -Hit DeBuff IO's and you're burying their chance to hit. I'd expect to slot it with a KB/KD and a Force Feedback proc as well. Seems like it'd offer good protection for other players who want to stay back with me, and let me focus my defensive build almost exclusively on range? Is this right? I ask because I honestly can't remember the last time I saw anyone running Hurricane in-game and it makes me wonder if my evaluation of it is accurate. Between Steamy Mist and Hurricane, I'd think set it and forget it. Thunderclap: PBAoE with low accuracy, long recharge, Mag 2 effect - this power seems imminently skippable to me. Tornado & Lightning Storm: I'm including these together because they seem to be so related, pretty much my one-two drop in every group of enemies, moreso than even my primary attacks. The question becomes how best to slot them? Do they both need to be six-slotted? I'd think KB/KD and a Force Feedback procs in both - but how would FF procs work with these, would they proc off of the time that I cast them or continually while they were in effect? Do these two powers have the self-negating result of chasing all the mobs out of their area of effect? Lightning Storm takes ranged damage sets, so I'm not really sure how to read that. From a playstyle perspective, my initial expectation is that it basically consists of running around with Hurricane and Steamy Mist up, opening each combat with Freezing Rain, Tornado and Lightning Storm - possibly popping of my primary T9 - and then picking off stragglers with the rest of my primary powers. Does that sound right? Finally, not to be sacrilegious on the Corruptor forum, but is this a power set better suited towards Defenders, because we seem to focus so much more on it than on the ranged attacks? TIA for any responses, I'm really curious as to how this set plays out.

Well, FWIW, I rebuilt the pair as Fire/Kin and the results look just fine - the damage is indeed more and I actually managed to get the defenses higher (46% Ranged/AoE, 40% Melee with paired Maneuvers, slightly better overall Resistances). It's not as safe since it pretty much lacks any mitigation other than damage, but with defenses so high and the damage coming so fast, that might not actually be as much of an issue as I feared. Only one way to find out. 😉 It may well be that one of each ultimately proves to be the best option - one to provide the mitigation and one to pour on the damage. Messes up the theme, but if it leads to a more enjoyable experience, well - we'll see.

Yeah, it's primarily thematic - also, the other player is newer and has less interest in building than in playing, so the more similar we are in how we do things the better. Also, like I said, with all the damage flying around from a couple Kins, it seems like we'd get a lot more value from the mitigation provided by Shockwave and Siren's Song. I haven't played these builds up to that level though, which is why I posted on here for the input. Is that a bad take? I know Fire is a damage king - I have a Fire/Atomic Blaster, and when it comes to AoE, I rely on spamming a 5-second Fireball whenever I'm not popping Inferno and that's more than enough. At least all of Sonic's AoE's have a sub-2 second activation time.

I can understand that mindset under normal circumstances, but single-target we'll usually be piling on 3-5 -Res buffs at least, so including that should far outstrip what Fire or Ice would do. I think you're correct on the AoE front, but then having those stackable built-in mezzes will probably pay much bigger dividends than a bit more damage would.

Interesting. Since this is intended to be exclusively for duoing, I'm curious what you would suggest? We figure the -Res is the only way to get past the damage cap restriction and with three AoE's - two of which also offer mitigation through KB and Sleep, it seems to cover all of our bases.

I'm trying to figure out exactly how to build them - the only stipulation is that they be identical with the plan being that one of us is usually targeting through the other. We're thinking that more or less staying at the damage cap + the -Res from Sonic + Scourge should melt mobs pretty effectively. Thoughts/Questions: With FC up pretty much perpetually, I'm trying to figure out how much value other damage boosts will actually have; we're not planning on taking specifically Assault/Aim (not planning on taking either) and we were planning on respec'ing out of Siphon Power once FC came online. Is Siphon Speed worth taking for the debuff benefit against hard targets, considering that we'll be keeping Speed Boost up on one another? Without it we're at about +160% Recharge with Hasten. Or would Transference be better, to try and drain down tough targets? That extra final slot is still up in the air. Mobs will get Shockwave -> Howl -> Siren's Song from each of us (Shockwave will have the KB to KD IO). Single targets will get Screech -> Shriek -> Scream-> Shriek, with the thought that Screech's stackable Disorients should help with hard targets. Preliminary slotting (3 purple sets) has us over the Defensive soft-cap for Ranged & AoE, a little over 33% for Melee. We're also at the cap for S/L Resistance with everything else hovering around 25%. Planning right now on going Soul Mastery for Epic - Power Boost is nice, Dark Embrace gives some exotic damage resistance and I was thinking it might actually be worthwhile summoning a pet, given double Tactics/Maneuvers and Fulcrum Shift - plus, I like the set bonuses from Blood Mandate. Numbers are a little harder to work out in Mids because we're reliant on each other's boosts, but from a cursory glance, does this sound like the best plan for the duo? We were on the fence between this and Sonic/Rad, since we figured paired Choking Clouds would be pretty strong once everyone had been hit with Siren's Song, but this way we can keep everything out in front of us. Not accounted for in the numbers shown below are +4.15% Defense, +15.75% ToHit, +50% Recharge, +71% Recovery, +18.75% S/L Resist from my partners Maneuvers, Tactics, Speed Boost and Increased Density, respectively.

The thing is, I'm not a Blapper at all, I'm not taking any of the melee attacks from either set. Positronic Cell does pretty decent damage too and it is a ranged attack, which gives me something to pair with Char for stackable fun. Since my newest build also six-slots Radioactive Cloud, I'll definitely take Beta Decay.

But only if one or more foes are within 15', right? I work hard at staying at range... still, my newest build features a six-slotted Radioactive Cloud, so I imagine Beta Decay would start to come in useful then. I'll definitely look at it, since I'm not happy with Bonfire in the build. What do you think, just single-slot it with a -RES proc?

This mostly theory for me at this point, as I haven't played a Blaster to L50 yet. It may well be that with proper positioning and team buffs I wouldn't need a fraction of the defense I'm building here. If it plays out like that then I'll definitely reconsider and look at going proc-heavy, but I end up playing solo so often that I can't help but skew towards self-reliance a bit more.

Where would you suggest I put them? Honestly, I don't have a lot of experience with procs. The build seems pretty tight - almost every set requires 6 slots or the defenses start collapsing...

Alright, this is what I think I'm going to go with. A couple more purps than I'd normally have, but it's got my Ranged / AoE Defenses up to 45% / 42%, my universal recharge up to 70% before Haste and has all of the Hold control I mentioned before. No Rune of Protection here, but I do get Hover back, which is just too valuable a tool for ranged Blasters.

I think you still have to take either T1 or T2 at 1st level regardless. I'm actually really enjoying what I'm getting out of /Atomic. As I said, most of the powers I would take for the build are functionally identical anyway and the difference makers seem to work better on /Atomic for me. You're right, I definitely prefer a dedicated ranged Blaster. I went back at things and I'm trying something a little radical. I dropped Fire Breath, leaving me only a fast-recharging Fireball for AoE whenever I'm not nuking with Inferno. However, that has allowed me to take and six slot Positron Cell, Radioactive Cloud AND Char, giving me a host of Hold options to really stack up the control when I need to. I've got my Ranged / AoE Defense up to 45% / 40% AND this build is going the Sorcery route, letting me take Rune of Protection for a nice +20% Resist All/Mez Resist whenever I think I'm going to need it. I'm still a little on the fence about that last part, trying to decide if I'm better off with that or Hover or CJ instead.

Yeah, that's Wintered out for sure. I noticed that you had Vengeance checked on it, though - those bonuses would really only apply after ally has died, so I'm not sure you can rely on those benefits all the time. Once you toggle that off, my build actually has better Defenses, Resistances and Regeneration, so its worth considering. I made a few additional changes - I pulled the second slot and the IO's out of Ionize and Aim - they only got me 4% in damage bonuses and 3 seconds faster recharge. I dropped them into Weave and Maneuvers to get me to 4-slotted Luck of the Gambler, adding another 18% Accuracy. I'd love to plan for more purple sets - like Superior Defiant Barrage in Blaze - but I simply have too many alts and no supporting SG to speak of, so I have to assume that I'm always going to be operating on a budget.

I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. My thoughts on the two powers mentioned: I should get a pretty strong boost in accuracy from sets and powers like Tactics or Aim, so I figured I could get away with single-slotting it. My intent was to only use it in the rare instance I find myself getting surrounded (as if from an ambush or a tank wipe). Slots are at a premium in the build and Bonfire's 3 second activation time just kind of turned me off. I'll admit though, now you've got me reconsidering six-slotting Char and using those slots on Radioactive Cloud instead. I actually at one time had Beta Decay in, single-slotted just as you said with the -Res proc, but then I realized that I would basically get no benefit from either the +Recharge or the -Res unless one or more foes were within 15' of me. I'm not a Blapper, and since my playstyle is better suited to staying back and attacking at a distance, it seemed like a waste of a power slot and an unnecessary endurance drain. I've got pretty good +Recharge as it is.

Close to it, yeah. I'm fairly experienced with /Ice but I've never played /Atomic. I'm probably only going to take five powers from whichever Secondary set and three of them are essentially copies of one another (Chillblain/Electron Shackles, Build-Up/Ionize and Freezing Touch/Positron Cell). The fourth would be either Ice Patch or Radioactive Cloud which aren't the same power but I'd be using them in the same way. That leaves Frigid Protection vs. Metabolic Acceleration as the deciding factor here. I love the larger radius of Frigid Protection (30' VS. 15') but the Regeneration, Mez Resistance and Recharge benefit provided by Metabolic Acceleration seems to make it the clear winner. Am I reading that right? I'm already leaning towards /Atomic due to play-style, I like that it's hold is ranged rather than melee and I think the Gamma Burst interaction is kinda cool (makes my single-target Immob a little more useful). I don't like that I have to wait 10 extra levels to get MA over FP, but in the grand scheme of things that's not that big of a deal.

Which is better?