Maelwys

Here's an example: Mastermind - Bots - Marine.mbd 25.4722% (Radial Clarion'ed PB Bubbles) +10 (Aura IOs) +6.19% (Barrier Reef) +4.19% (Maneuvers) = 45.8522% Defense to henchmen 25.4722% + 19.61% = 45.0822% Defense to self The three personal Robotics attacks each inflict -200% Regen for 30s; which is about the only thing Marine actually lacks (even if Tides shreds things just fine without it!) Pulse Rifle Burst can take another FF +Rech if you feel the need (spoiler: it won't overly matter). Swap the Travel Power to whatever.

Requires less attention but far lower performance ceiling.

Fair enough - personally I disable rez insps (and sometimes breakfrees!) and combine everything else.

Agree that it's much more reliable that Protector Bot Healing. But it depends if I've got a secondary powerset that has an allied heal. On FF? It's fantastic. On Dark/Kin/Marine? Meh, hard skip. Traps? It depends. But I'd far sooner skip it than skip Whitecap. (Just Defensive Goto the pets to the same location and you Teleport into the mob in full Bodyguard mode...)

Nope. The three -res procs (Achilles, Fury of the Gladiator and Annihilation) Stack with each other; but multiple copies of each proc won't stack with itself from any source. What it will do is make it more likely that you have a copy of the Achilles Heel -res proc active on your target at any one time.

Of those three it'd be Bots for AoE, Mercs for ST (assuming you're sticking damage procs in the pets). Bots aren't as utterly horrible at Single Target damage as they used to be, but they still lag behind the other primaries. Necro and Demons are both higher ST damage than Mercs FWIW, but Mercs can leverage Serum very effectively with extreme levels of global recharge. Thugs isn't half bad at damage either, but the bulk of its AoE damage output comes from the T1 Arsonist, which spawns at -2 to you and vs higher level foes will be hit very hard by the Purple Patch. Thugs does have Gang War though, which makes a good dumping spot for the Pet Aura IOs.

Never blindly trust Mids whenever it comes to power boosting effects. It can't tell the difference between Fade and Cold Domination's bubbles (which aren't affected) and Farsight and Force Field's bubbles (which are) let alone pet abilities like Protector Bot Force Shield (which won't inherit power boost effects on the master but is affected by allied power boost effects... and which has also had the wrong base defence value in Mids since forever). And it's not wonderful when it comes to separating toggles/autos (which get buffed for the duration of Power Boost) from long duration clicks (which get buffed until the effect of the click itself wears off) either.

The only thing that inflicts knockBACK these days is the Assault Bot's Swarm Missiles. Which can be converted to Knockdown easy enough via an Overwhelming Force IO. Thier models are still pretty big and tend to block line of sight in some indoor maps, but you can usually shove them out of the way (unless the geometry gets very wonky) Mercs is almost as well behaved as Bots. And Thugs only really has the Bruiser (and Arsonist) to watch out for. But neither of them can vastly improve their master's survivability like Protector Bot bubbles (plus Power Boost and/or Radial Clarion).

Easiest thing to do is likely just combine the yellows into reds. That build is defcapped and recapped so you shouldn't need any assistance from purple or orange insps either, just convert all your insps into reds and chug them (e.g. via the macro in the first post of this thread!)

It doesn't. It works well for Henchmen that happen to be in melee range. It's perfectly possible to use GOTO commands on your ranged henchmen so that they move to (and remain in for the duration of each fight) a melee location. My Bot/Kinetics does it all the time to leverage Fulcrum Shift. My Bot/Marine does it all the time to leverage Shifting Tide and Tide Pool. In fact, IMO ranged pets are actually better suited to /Marine because they tend to stay exactly where you put them rather than chasing off after runners.

Once you get your Alpha slot up to Tier 3 or higher you become level 50+1 and the mobs go from being +4 to you to being +3 (which should solve your accuracy problems if you're following the above builds). Endurance issues will be solved once you get your Destiny slot. The other Incarnates are just there to buff your damage output. Note though that only the level shift from your Alpha slot applies outside of Incarnate Content, so you won't be level 50+3 in AE farms!

Alternatively, just slot 2x Recharge IOs in Fold Space and screw the accuracy aspect. IIRC it brings the same number of mobs to you either way; as long as there are a sufficient number of extra critters in range to use up all your "misses". (Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure I don't have any outstanding bids on those particular DSyncs right now...)

True, but it can make a notable difference in recovery time after almost having your block knocked off. Assuming you don't just pop a green insp or two. (In the old days most of my Blasters used to take Aid Self though; so I'm probably biased...) GET OUT OF MY HEAD 🙉 🙈 🤯 ...yeah, my /TA is Ranged positional softcapped with Hover. Whilst they haven't exactly skimped on their attack selection (they've 9x 6-slotted attacks plus an extra 5-slotted set bonus mule) they had 2-3 floating slots left by the end of the build; and I get a better return from using them in Health/Stamina than in Repulsion Field or FoN.

FWIW, the actual regeneration benefit from slotting it for Healing Aspect will be about roughly 8 HP/Sec. (My /TA Blaster's sustain has exactly the same numbers; and removing the two Heal IOs drops their passive regeneration from 41.68 HP/Sec to 33.65 HP/Sec...) That's a greater average return than two Power Transfer Procs in passives/toggles; so personally I think it's worth it if you have the slots free.

What 20F said. The Preventive Medicine Absorb is the only special enhancement that functions as a Global in the Healing IO Sets.

Asteroid Maps (both the smaller and larger one), "Boomtown" Tunnel map, Carnie map (the one with the Circus tents), Behemoth map (Outdoor with multiple skyscrapers), Adamastor map, Dreck/Freakshow map... honestly, anything outdoor works. As Warshades says, Asteroid Maps tend to throw you straight into combat so there isn't a "safe zone" for lower level allies to stand and they're a common pick for AFK farming runs... but they're quick and easy to spam through with no chance of an enemy running too far or getting lost, and the countdown timer can help give you an idea of how fast you're mowing through mobs on active Farming runs. Play different maps and see what you like best. Just maybe steer clear of the underground CoT cave ones unless you're feeling particularly masochistic... 😛

The Asteroid Maps are the same size and mob density regardless of damage type... but yes; you could. Brute (Battle Axe - Radiation Armor) v3.mbd Smidge less global recharge and a hair less raw damage in a few of the AoEs; but only one small purple insp needed to reach the F/C defense softcap.

That's much better than the original and would be perfectly playable in an Active S/L Farm; if a little tricky to juggle defensively. Still major room for improvement though (and I assume you meant to use Common +5 IOs instead of even-level SOs in the regular slots!) Try this tweaked version: Brute (Battle Axe - Radiation Armor) v2.mbd Note: With Ageless running your AoE attack cycle should be pretty seamless, but you can swap one of the damage procs in Axe Cyclone for a 2nd FF +Rech if required. Realistically with Rad's clickies and 90% resistance you shouldn't have any survivability issues despite mid-20s defense; just pop a small/medium purple insp if needed. If you find you're never in any danger then you can trade a bit of survivability for more global recharge by swapping Swoop's slotting to 5x Hecatomb.

https://cod.uberguy.net./html/power.html?power=blaster_support.ninja_training.kuji-in_toh&at=blaster It's primarily a Long-Duration +Recovery and +Regeneration Buff. IMO you ideally want ED-capped Heal enhancement aspect in it; plus a decent chunk of EndMod aspect. I'd go for Preventive Medicine Heal + Preventive Medicine Absorb Global + Lv50+5 Heal IO; plus 1-2x Lv50+5 EndMod IOs. The other Healing set uniques are Procs (although I guess if you had enough global recharge to reliably get it down to 120s or les you could put the Numina in there!) The Performance Shifter +End proc is decent in passive/auto powers but not in a 200s recharge clicky. It'd give you a tiny fraction of the benefit of an EndMod IO here.

The AE Custom Critter version of Evasion , just like the regular Player Character version of Evasion just grants AoE positional defense; not Fire and Ice typed defense. Most defensive powersets provide either typed or positional rather than both. It's Pool Powers and Defensive Set bonuses that grant both (+Area Defense Set Bonuses are the ones that grant Fire and Ice typed defense and vice versa!). The reason AA's original post in the thread I linked above recommends not giving custom mobs Evasion is down to common sense: Evasion increases AoE positional defense; and the most efficient way to farm is to constantly spam multiple procbombed AoE attacks (in the case of a BA/Rad it'd likely be Electrifying Fences, Ball Lightning, Axe Cyclone, Pendulum and Ground Zero)... so you really don't want those AoE attacks to be "deflected". FWIW; the stats of AmericasAngel's mobs inside her Fire Farm AE missions look like this: Common alternative methods are either to not give your mobs a defensive set at all (e.g. Fiery Assault + Fiery Melee) or to cherry pick mechanically weak powers from sets like Regeneration. My own AE mobs; for example; look more like this: If you're no longer getting enjoyment out of it; my advice is to take a break. Speaking from experience real Burnout (e.g. not the Speed Pool power!) is definitely not fun. I'm certainly not trying to join a dogpile here... just addressing the aforementioned claim about "the point of a fire farm" which the newbie OP was apparently taking to heart. What matters for choosing a 'Fire' Farm over an 'S/L' Farm in AE or vice-versa is what damage type you're best at withstanding; not what damage type you inflict.

The way Staff works is that if you build up three stacks of Perfection and then activate either Sky Splitter or Eye of the Storm, it'll do a bit of extra "bonus damage". Both these instances of bonus damage got a slight increase in i28p2; even if the Eye of the Storm one was extremely small and barely makes it into the double-digits. There was no flat damage increase to Staff Fighting as a whole in i28p2 outside of the Combo System finisher bonus damage. One of the Perfection stacks (Body) provides a small damage buff; but that's not a new thing. https://cod.uberguy.net./html/power.html?power=temporary_powers.temporary_powers.perfection_of_body_level_3&at=tanker FWIW; I know it's a meme thread; but the Devs are definitely aware that the sets we're talking about here are underperforming. And i28p2's changes to Staff were comparatively minor (although I definitely appreciate that a single miss doesn't utterly mess up your perfection stacks any longer!) so I suspect it'll get a bigger balance pass at some point.

That build is not going to provide you with a fun or efficient AE farming experience. And I don't see Hasten there either. For Active Farming, you primarily want lots of global recharge and at least three AoEs that look like this: (the empty 6th slot is for a -Resistance debuff proc, a Force Feedback +Recharge buff proc, or another damage proc) - - - - - - - - - - If you just want a build to copy; then look here: Active Farming Brute and Tanker builds are usually set up in much the same way; it's a little trickier to reach 90% res and 45% def on the Brute... but remember that for "Active" farming maximum survivability is much less important (I have a RadArmor Scrapper that can Active Farm just fine with only 75% S/L resistance and 15%-ish Defense!). The main considerations are always Mu Mastery and an offensive Primary powerset with at least one KB-inflicting AoE; all procbombed. Having an ability that can slot an Achilles' Heel -res proc is a bonus (e.g. Beta Decay or Corrosive Vial). Stone Armor and Fiery Aura are slightly better on Brutes due to Fury affecting Brimstone Armor procs and Burn. Passive ("AFK") Farming requires a vastly different setup; and realistically you'd be better off just copying someone else's RadM/Stone Brute or X/RadM Tanker builds. (One of my RadM/Stone AFK-farmer Brute builds is listed here in the above Farming Microguide thread)

I appreciate the time you put into making builds; but the above statement is blatant misinformation. On AE Fire Farms the enemies you encounter INFLICT fire damage; they're not weak or strong vs a player character's fire or ice damage. (and similarly, the enemies on AE Smashing/Lethal Farms merely inflict Smashing and/or Lethal damage - they don't care what type of damage the player dishes out!) The custom critters in all of the popular AE farming maps are specifically crafted to have zero damage resistance; MaxHP boosts or defense of any kind... and that's because the whole point of those farms is to provide the player with an enemy group that (i) deal a specific damage type with little/no CC (ii) die as fast as possible whilst still giving full XP. If the player knows in advance exactly what damage type they'll be facing, they only have to mitigate against incoming damage of that type (and can ignore debuffs or CC other then Knockback). Which gives shedloads of build leeway that can be used to boost damage output, maximizing your influence and/or exp gain per hour. Prior to the advent of AE; the older traditional farms did indeed contain enemies that were stronger/weaker vs specific damage types. If memory serves the usual culprits were Freakshow (e.g. "Dreck") which are strong vs Cold and weak vs Energy, Council which have no particular resistances (other than mekmen and warwolves), Praetorian Behemoths which are strong vs Fire and weak vs Cold and Carnies which are weak vs Lethal and strong vs Psychic. But AFAIK about the only farming that happens these days outside AE is Mapserver events and the Labyrinth; neither of which will overly care about your damage type. And regarding Incarnates for AE farming: Assault Core is more useful than Assault Radial for Active Farmers because they will be using the Inspiration-combination keybind from the above farming thread and spamming it so that they convert inspiration drops to Reds and chug them as they go (which effectively lets them constantly sit at the damage cap, therefore additional +damage buffs from Assault Radial stacks would get wasted). It's possible to swap the Alpha to something other than Musculature on Active Farmers for the same reason. "Passive/AFK" farming has the same Incarnate setup as above but much stricter survivability thresholds (90% res, 45% def and 35+HP/Sec Passive Regeneration) and is currently most efficient on either a X/RadM Tanker or a RadM/StoneArmor Brute.

Which power set? Spines? Battle Axe? Either way; why on earth would they be better against enemies that deal Smashing/Lethal damage?? Your offensive powerset has virtually zero bearing on farming; because the mobs in an AE farming map won't have any damage resistances. The only time it'd matter is if the set has a defensive clicky that is stronger against a specific damage type (such as Katana's Divine Avalanche vs incoming Lethal damage). If you meant Radiation Armor... it provides no defence to any damage type. Proton Shelter and Alpha Barrier both give identical % resistance boosts (so it's the same vs Smashing/Lethal and Fire) however Fallout Shelter also gives a bit of Fire resistance and it's trivial to get 5x"+6%" Fire resistance from Purple and Winter IO Set Bonuses. All that said... if you're active farming then you really don't need to cap your resistance and defence to whatever type of damage is being dealt by the mobs; because you'll be behind the wheel to activate defensive clickys, insps + temps. - - - - - - - - - - EDIT: Ah. You've been listening to JJDrakken. Go here instead. The point of running a S/L or Fire farm is NOT for you to wield S/L or Fire damage against your enemies; it's to allow you to have an easier job of surviving the incoming damage dealt by the enemies. You run a Fire farm if you're better vs incoming Fire damage; and an S/L farm if you're better vs incoming S/L damage. If you know exactly what type of damage you'll be encountering; then you can build your toon specifically to mitigate ONLY incoming damage of that type - which allows you to devote more effort (enhancement slots/power selections/set bonuses/etc) to increasing the raw damage you can dish out; which vastly speeds up your farming runs.