Maelwys

FWIW it's quite possible for a Primary like Bots/ to end up with softcapped personal and henchmen Defenses regardless of your Secondary powerset (and in Bots' case you only really need either Power Boost or Radial Clarion Destiny; with both being total overkill)

576 HP in regular endgame content (Lv48+1) +MaxHP can boost that up to 864. /Marine will not only get its current HP up to 864, but also layer Absorb, Defense and Resistance on top. And many of the Primary MM powersets now get enhanceable Resistance via their T1 upgrade. Throw in the Aura IOs, ATOs, Maneuvers and Barrier Destiny/Support Hybrid and the little buggers actually become quite Tanky.

It does indeed.

The Force Feedback +Recharge Proc isn't an offensive one. As long as a power takes Knockback set IOs you can stick a FF Proc in it and that Proc will then get a chance to trigger "on power activation" (instead of "on inflicting damage" or even "on inflicting knockback/knockdown"). Therefore if you're using Trip Mine as a PBAoE attack (and you should) then you'll be granting yourself a rather hefty regular recharge buff... and getting your Nuke (e.g. Rain of Arrows) up faster whilst inflicting decent AoE damage? More than worth it IMO. The fact that you can't Damage Proc it up stops it from being overpowered; but it's still a good power pick if you're utilizing it as a set mule + a FF Proc.

Trip Mine on a /Devices Blaster is actually decentish because it's uninterruptible. Trip Mine on a /Traps (anything except a MM) is total whittle. Unfortunately neither are worthwhile for offensive procs because they self destruct and vanish before damage procs get a chance to activate. But they're a decent spot for gaining set bonuses (5 piece Armageddon minus the proc?) and can make good use of a Force Feedback +Rech.

Then check AA's "Active" Spines/FA Brute build here (I linked the thread above already but this is likely the specific post you'll want)

It's that time again... "DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-(inhale)-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!"

I'm without access to a PC until Friday, but you really need to decide if you want to AFK Farm or Active Farm (the two have very different build goals) and also if you're completely wedded to the idea of a Brute or not (since Tankers are considerably more effective for farming in all but a few specific powerset combos and Spines/FA isn't one of them) Further Reading:

There are different base stats based on rank but you can can always boost your henchmens' HP a fair bit before it caps out (by +50% in fact... but remember that your lower tier pets spawn at -1 and -2 to you). That's part of what makes /Marine so effective on MMs. They also get to cap their damage resistances out at 90%. So you can get some really tough bricks by capping out their MaxHP plus layering up their Defense and Resistance.

There's a bit of synergy there. Slotted FFG will give about 16% def to all; throw in the Aura uniques and Maneuvers and that'll be pushed to ~30%... so you'll only need 15% more from the -ToHit and Barrier Destiny/Support Hybrid to Softcap. No DDR, but that's less of an issue for pet builds as the attacks are more distributed and you'll have some CC (Poison Trap + Caltrops) plus reasonable levels of healing (with a Panacea Proc slotted into Dark Empowerment plus the Siphon Lifes). Getting your own Defence up so you can reliability ToeBomb Trip Mines will also enable you to shore up Necro's somewhat lackluster AoE capability. And the huge -Regen debuff from Poison Trap and stackable -Res from multiple Acid Mortars will help vs GMs. However at the end of the day... it's just not on the same level as a Necro/Time let alone a Necro/Marine. And getting FFG and Maneuvers to remain active on mostly melee pets is tricky. Expect to be micromanaging henchmen positioning a lot.

Some of the other ATs/powersets have similar stuff - an example that pops into my head is the Sentinel Super Reflexes powers "Master Brawler" and "Practised Brawler" (which are each coded to exclude you from taking the other one). Usually this is specified in the Power Description in-game; and usually Mids will stop you from being able to take impossible power combinations when you're planning your build out. But if in doubt, the Test Server is your friend.

https://cod.uberguy.net./html/power.html?power=controller_control.mind_control.telekinesis&at=controller

There's a little synergy in Elec Mastery: I've got a few Sents that use the AoE Immob (Chain Fences) to keep stuff in place. (and in at least one of those builds it's not even procbombed...) 100% agree that there are much better "utility" pools out there though if maximum damage output isn't your schtick.

Plus the fact that the biggest hitter abilities like Havoc Punch actually come online at level 35 (and so remain available at level 30). It wasn't so long ago that your Primary and Secondary powerset capstones only became available at levels 32 and 38 respectively, and there's only a comparatively small number of taskforces and Ouroboros arcs that cap out below 30.

Fair point, even if a lot of swill ends up with more than one iteration through the pig. (Warning: do NOT google "coprophagia" from your work computer.... although if a coworker is dumb enough to leave theirs unlocked, have at it!) 💩 🐽 ((and yes, it was actually dumb enough to give the pig two sets of ears and no visible eyes by default))