[To all the Original CoH players]

I really don't remember the guy in question. I have three sorta-memories of Live PvP:

 

My first HEAT in Bloody Bay.... I can't quite recall what level it was, but I took advantage of a respec to shuffle slots such that both the non-human forms had decent slotting. Just shifting to Dwarf form when things got brutal wasn't OP, but it was frustrating for opponents. Teleport Foe wasn't really a thing IIRC in Bloody Bay. I recall at least one time when someone tried to mess with me during a meteor run, but that was a basic 1v1 stalemate.

 

I dueled in Warburg, and I remember getting missiles to launch, but no solid memories. We can assume I probably lost some characters to PVP and may have scored a couple.

 

Similarly, I think my (must have been) Level 50 Invuln/Energy Tanker was doing some time in Recluse's Victory and got "jumped" by a Villain Team of 6?. They were trying the Teleport Foe trick... but I also had that power, plus a LOT of stun potential. No one was defeated from that long and brutal encounter, but 1vMany was something to see. I'll admit, I teleported myself away a couple of times! I want to say this was before Energy Melee changes, but the timeline is cloudy in my memory. I sort of remember Energy Melee stalkers being a thing before the changes... I simply felt good that my slow-to-defeat-critters Tanker was actually able to semi-frighten PVPers with Stun.

 

I definitely had one 2-person team punk one of my characters is Siren's Call using Teleport Foe and Controls. From memory: that team did some camping in Siren's Call as I ended up dodging them many times when I was in that zone.

 

I do remember chat jibber-jabber about shenanigans in PVP zones, and some of the forum brouhaha, but otherwise PVP wasn't my thing.

[So... My First Sentinel...]

1 hour ago, Spaghetti Betty said:

I'll always recommend Psi epic just for the amount of offensive power you can pull from it.

 

After derping my Sentinel around with large spawns... I grok this.

[Beam Rifle: Disintegration (Attack Power) Question/Suggestion?]

2 hours ago, Rudra said:

This has nothing to do with the OP and I apologize for that.... however... am I the only person that always takes both their T1 and T2 attacks and makes it part of their attack chain?!

 

 I did exactly this on my FF/Beam Defender; the attacks were part of the theme of the character! On the Sentinel... not so much.

[So... My First Sentinel...]

One playstyle change I am experimenting with (I still don't have a level 50 build, but I have more Global recharge) is to open with this attack chain (especially against enemies resistant to Energy): Disintegrate -> Refractor Beam. After this, I usually have the coordinated attention of most of a spawn... which often means they are clustered (or I am in their faces) I can either followup with Lancer Shot against the original target or switch targets and adjust strategy on the fly.

 

This feels somewhat sloppy, but it is slightly less frustrating then missing either Disintegrate or Lancer Shot, and even if the original target critter scampers away from any buddies that might be hit from the AoE, it feels less like a core strategy has been flummoxed.

 

I was noodling over what else is different for Sentinels in Beam Rifle. I suppose what is foremost on my mind ATM is that the other sets get a T7 Snipe (that can spread Disintegration) whereas the Sentinels get the smallish AoE (that cannot spread).... I came to the Beam Rifle Sentinel partially because I liked how the Disintegration was spreading via the Defender's ST attacks.

[Beam Rifle: Disintegration (Attack Power) Question/Suggestion?]

17 minutes ago, A.I.D.A. said:

Is your chain not fluid enough with the single-target attacks Sentinel Beam Rifle has? That means you need more recharge, not that it needs a change.

 

It is getting there (via slotting and globals), but keep in mind one the single-shot attacks is Disintegrate (which doesn't "spread" Disintegration). Discounting that power, the other 7 Sentinel attacks are split 4-3 in favor of AoE (with no possible 'spread')  while the other Beam Rifle ATs are split 4-3 in favor of single-target attacks. For all AT, two of them are the T1/T2 attacks... and I think we can all recognize that taking both T1/T2 attacks is generally a sub-optimal choice. The only 100% chance for spread is on Slow Snipes (which really shouldn't occur anyway, for reasons explained above) or Lancer Shot. Even fast Snipes have a better than 50% chance, and those aren't available for Sentinels.

 

I'll add: I don't know that sets are supposed to be balanced around anything but IOs (for better or worse), so considerations of Global recharge bonuses should be set aside.

 

I have been adjusting my Sentinel playstyle to open with Disintegrate -> Refractor Beam, just to get as many critter's attention as possible and then start thinking about (maybe) spreading Disintegration, should they cluster. With large enough spawn sizes, there is almost always a couple of targets still worth doing this.

[Unique pairing for every set]

The combos I have run (on Tankers) are:

 

Invulnerability / Energy Melee: Originally from Live day 1, this was "stands in place, takes hits, hits back". I felt the power effects went together. It wasn't long before changes to both the primary and secondary made the original concept obsolete (although for a brief time, this was the one character I had that could laugh off PVP zone griefers... and Stun them for their trouble. I still miss the original Energy Melee, but I am ok with the current Homecoming version. Upon reflection, my immediate thoughts about this character is that I've still got him built for one-on-one, even though I now leverage %damage in Whirling Hands to clean away scrubs at a better pace. I feel like the simplicity of Energy Melee lets me monitor more of what is happening on teams (and combat attributes). This guy is pretty much the only one of the three I have that I don't care if he's got the attention of an entire room (with or without actually having aggro) or if he's standing toe-to-toe with an AV. Maybe I care if he's got an entire cave of Rularuu targeting him.... but that's what Dull Pain is for!

 

Shield / Battle Axe: This was my spin on a "low fantasy fighter"... who jumps all over the place, tossing enemies hither-and-yon. Fully-kitted this feels like a scrapper. This is the only character for which I have used either Shield or Battle Axe... I do have a War Mace Scrapper but he feels clumsy to play, even with hefty Recharge.

 

Dark / Electric: Originally I was going to make this a character that uses as many possible "BAMFing" attacks/options, and even though it does still have a couple of the ones I intended to use, I grew to love too many of the powers in both the Primary and Secondary to stick with my original plan. In particular, I like the AoE Lightning Clap (slotted with KB->KD) and only Stun pieces. This attack provides a little bit of PBAoE Control (on top of the Dark Toggles) on critters I may soon be BAMFing away from, and it the knockdown makes it easy to see which enemies are still alive... in case I shouldn't be BAMFing away. The AoE Stun lives up to the promise of what I always wanted from the original Energy Melee Stuns.

 

I've played Bio, SR and WP defense sets on other characters which leaves: Electric, Fire, Ice, Rad and Stone to try. A have a slight bias against Fire and Rad (defenses) because of my perceptions from the original days of live: Fire as "easy mode" (versus Devouring Earth Swarms, among others); Rad jealously because by itself it seemed to do what I wanted to do with Inv/EM! I felt like Stone would end up a little bit too much like Invulnerability, but if I had a concept that I liked I'd give it a try. These all have been waiting for some concept.

[Modern Force Fields Guide]

On 9/16/2023 at 9:46 PM, MonteCarla said:

I'd swap the slotting on Dispersion Bubble and Manouvers.

If you're going to underslot one of them, Manouvers has much smaller base values for Defence. (3.5% vs 10%)

 

And the underslotting of ally shields will only drop ally's defence by... 5% or so? You're still going to be protecting your team really well despite the "selfish" build 🙂

 

The Dispersion Bubble slotting is for the peculiar reason I want to have the Kismet +ToHit piece active for low level content. I felt it was my best option given the powers I was picking and at what level I was taking them.

 

As @Doomguide2005 noted: at more extreme settings, the extra defense for teammates would be valuable. I run with teams that don't mind turning up the enemy levels on low-level content.  The 'selfish' build was just fine for a team running an even level Master of Khan run; I need to try it for some other similar content.

[HIDE]

I think Hide is perfectly fine as is; changing it seems to fall into the "solution in search of a problem" category.

 

As it is now: Hide is a perfectly good power to slot with any one of the many good Defense Enhancements. I would hate to lose the ability to slot Defense pieces into Hide, my favorite is to start with the Kismet +ToHit piece, even if Hide needs to be toggle on to get the +6%. That choice is a real blessing for Stalkers as they level up, YMMV if it is kept in a "final build". I believe I always have done so.

[Willpower: Heightened Senses]

On 9/19/2023 at 3:35 PM, biostem said:

Of all the armor sets that need improving, I'd argue that Willpower is way toward the bottom.  That being said, the lion's share of the S/L resistance comes from mind over body, not heightened senses...

 

On 9/21/2023 at 12:04 PM, Greycat said:

 

I've got to agree with this. WIllpower's such a hands-off, don't-need-to-think-about-it set. I don't do "builds," I'm not perma-anything capped-anything (at least on purpose) and my WP characters are still exceptionally durable, to where I have to check the map and make sure I haven't split off at some point if I notice my teammates not around.

 

I'll add my voice to this chorus. For a while, my Street Justice/Willpower Scrapper was also leveraging Unrelenting, pretty much so that I'd have a reason to monitor the Health bar. This choice ended up not being worth the power picks or slots, so I haven't missed it after respec.

[Beam Rifle: Disintegration (Attack Power) Question/Suggestion?]

While leveling up several different Beam Rifle ATs (Defender, Sentinel) I found myself adjusting my play style for the set. I mention this because what I will ask about is not coming from a place of "revise set to match my preferred play style"... I actually enjoy adapting my style to the power sets/choices! I have a Beam Rifle Blaster as well, but I haven't played it very much as the character concept wasn't working for me.

 

The origin of this thread is that (again while leveling) the Beam Rifle set (primary for Sentinel, secondary for Defender) felt 'clunky' with respect to the Distintegration power (and effect) particularly for Sentinels. I have zero issues(*1) with or suggestions for any of the other powers in Beam Rifle. The clunkiness I feel (especially on the Sentinel) comes from this:

 

1. The only powers in the Beam Rifle set that can spread the Disintegrate effect (via a spawned pet) are the single-target attacks except for Disintegrate itself.
2. Blasters, Defenders, and Corrputors get one more single-target attack (a Snipe) than Sentinels get (Refractor Beam, an AoE)

 

For reference: The single target powers have some chance (on hit) to spawn Pets.DisintegrationSpread.Disintegrate_Spread (link is for Sentinel version, AFAIK only damage scales per AT) with a rather high pet accuracy (which I mention only because I believe this means that Disintegration spread is never guaranteed, even if there are targets with a 15 foot radius when the pet spawns)

 

Observation 1: The Sentinel has to take both level 1 Beam Rifle attacks  (Charged Shot and Single Shot) to have as many single-target attacks capable of spreading Disintegration as any of the other ATs who take only one of the first two ST attacks (Charged Shot and Single Shot), Penetrating Ray (the Snipe), and Lancer Shot (the 100% chance to spread Disintegration)... basically this comes down to picking either T1 or T2 instead of the T7 Snipe... in order to capitalize on the "bonus feature" of the Beam Rifle set.

 

Observation 2: Right now, my attempts to spread the Disintegration effect with the Sentinel go: Disintegrate -> Lancer Shot, preferably followed by AoE that might hit multiples.... but Sentinel beam Rifle AoEs are more like AoE... so even trying to spread Disintegration feels like a wash. I'm often toggling between targets anyway (that is, not sticking on an original target of Disintegration) because I need to soften up other targets for when AoE are ready.

 

Questions 1 and 1.5: All AT get Disintegration as a single-target attack; If the Pets.DisintegrationSpread.Disintegrate_Spread was spawned on using Disintegration (on a target that already has the Disintegration effect applied) would this be too OP? Would it even work?

 

I am very poorly versed in the balancing potential damage output for a particular (primary/secondary) set among the different ATs that can use that set... so be gentle... but it feels to me that since Blasters/Corruptors/Defenders get access to a single target Snipe (with Snipe damage) that can spread Disintegration (I think: 55% chance if Fast, 100% if "Normal",  for up to 3 targets) in 15 foot radius... whereas the Sentinel Refractor Beam has the same AoE (15 ft radius, albeit with a max 10 target cap). Trying to crunch numbers on the maximum potential damage between a Defender "Fast" Snipe (for simplicity) and a Sentinel Refractor Beam in the following scenario:

 

• 4 targets, one which has the Disintegration debuff applied (the "target" chosen for the attack), the other 3 do not
• All mobiles are within a 15' radius of each other (and the "target", obviously)
• All targets are hit (by all effects)

 

My calculations show that Sentinels do roughly twice the damage of Defenders for the same attack, but without the Disintegration spread it feels like the Sentinel gets the extra damage but surrenders the ability for future "bonus" damage.  I'll put my math here, to show where I may have gone wrong (I find "Fast Snipe" calculations hard... but Normal Snipes wouldn't be used if a target had just been hit with Disintegration):

 

Spoiler

Defender Hits 1 (debuffed) target with Fast Snipe Penetrating Ray; 3 others critters are within 15' radius

• Normal Damage on "target"= 82.414 (ignore ToHit bonuses, I think this is the floor for fast snipe?)
• extra Delayed Damage on "target" = 2x 0.11  x82.414 from the original Disintegration (I think this is floor for Fast Snipe?)
• "original" ongoing Disintegration damage (on original "target") is ignored

Defender spreads Disintegration to 3 others (55% chance, using it seems 'fairest')

• 3 x 5 x 6.3147 x 0.55

 

Defender Total damage = ~152 damage

 

Sentinel hits 4 targets, chosen "target" of Refractor Beam is debuffed, the other 3 are within 15' radius

• Normal Damage on all targets =  4 x 55.0541
• Delayed Damage on all targets = 4 x 2 x 6.0559
• extra Delayed Damage on (originally debuffed) "target" = 2 x 5.1287 from the original Disintegration
• "original" ongoing Disintegration damage (on original "target") is ignored

 

Sentinel Total Damage = ~ 279 damage

 

 

Obviously I am ignoring the maximum target cap of 10 on Refactor Beam, which could hypothetically boost the Sentinel's damage output by ~403 damage, but as a practical matter when I turn up the spawn size on the Sentinel I have a hard time getting more than 5 potential targets within 15' radius of each other for Refractor Beam(*2), due to the inherent initial stances of critters in a spawn, and the AI for different types of critters in a spawn.

 

Question(s) 2+: Is the math roughly correct? Is the larger target cap of Refractor Beam the main thing I am improperly ignoring? Can someone explain what I've missed?

 

Question 3: Would it be outrageous to add some chance to spread Distentegration to Refractor Beam?

 

As for what makes sense for a chance to spread from this AoE... I don't think 100% is the right answer (because "AoE"); and I think a ceiling of 55% (equivalent to the Fast Snipe chance) makes sense, but reducing it (again because "AoE") might be warranted. I think 20% would be the absolute floor (the same as Sentinel's Single Shot), otherwise on 3-critter spawns it would be very unlikely to see the effect. As a practical matter, it's already rare for my Sentinel to have:

• multiple targets suffering from Disintegration concurrently (5.5 second duration)
• switching between targets (or hitting multiple with AoE) to get "boosted" damage

 

 

(*1) I will add that the small number of targets and reduced AoE of the Sentinel attacks takes some getting used to, because of the inherent spatial distribution of mobs in a spawn, as mentioned elsewhere.

 

(*2) I'm trying to "get gud" at balancing single-target attacks, Disintegration (as an actual attack, and as an effect) and the AoE... but I typically experience that starting at range usually just breaks up/scatters a spawn. On the Sentinel: I can wade into a large spawn, but when I do so I feel like I'm losing the ability to pick targets wisely (which is something I associate with ranged attacks).

 

There was a similar thread suggesting adding the Disintegrate pet to Cutting Beam... but I think that "raises all boats" rather than addressing the Sentinel's lack of a fourth single-target mechanism to spread Disintegration.

 

[So... My First Sentinel...]

I'm still a ways from level 50, so the build isn't quite "done"... certainly not with a final slotting, and I'm still using the 'leveling-up' order of the power picks.

 

I am finding the Beam Rifle primary to be clunkier on the Sentinel than it is on my completed FF/Beams Defender. I haven't quite put my finger on why I feel this way, but I think the feeling is due to more than just not having level 50 slotting. Some things that are sitting wrong with me, individually or in aggregate:

• The smaller number of possible targets in the AoE attacks.

This is probably what I find the most annoying, as mob(ile)s that aren't initially positioned closely to one another, or move away from other mobs in a spawn lead to a lot of attack inefficiency. This get exacerbated when trying to both spread Disintegration effects and hit new targets that may have picked up Disintegration. I'm used to mobs traveling at warp speed once stunned, but trying for a chain like Distintegrate -> Lancer Shot -> AoE rarely performs how I want because of the animation times and smallish AoE. I have found myself often skipping the use of Lancer Shot... I will admit I don't have that attack well-slotted yet.

• I'm shifting between single-target and AoE more than I prefer, and RNG is a cruel mistress.

The single-target attacks I have are: Single Shot, Disintegrate and Lancer Shot. The AoE attacks are Cutting Beam, Refractor Beam, Piercing Beam, Overcharge. My bad feels are hard to describe, but here goes: I'm almost always sitting at a +90% ToHit against chosen targets. When I miss with a single-target attack, the single-target Streakbreaker guarantees the next single target attack will hit. AoE's slightly confuse matters, as they lead to more ToHit rolls (modulo the smaller AoE).. but they can also target (for Streakbreaker purposes) enemies against which I don't have the same ToHit chance, which moves me to the 'worse' Streakbreaker category. Of course there is some perception bias, but the heavier use of single-target attacks from the /Beam Defender (because it includes a Snipe instead of Refractor Beam) feels like I am seeing less "MISS!" during any given spawn fight. I like Refractor Beam, but I feel like I need to get some more Range in it. I want to believe that level 50 slotting (which also includes global Accuracy and Recharge bonuses) will help here.

• The lack of attacks in the Sentinel secondary (as opposed to having Repulsion Bolt from the Defender FF primary)

Part of this is because the FF/Beam Defender almost uses Repulsion Bolt as the opening attack against the hardest target in a spawn. The solo-play opening salvo for the Defender is usually Repulsion Bolt -> Disintegrate -> Lancer Shot -> AoE. In contrast, the opening chain for the (not-yet-level 50) Sentinel is often Vulnerability-> Disintegrate -> Lancer Shot -> AoE. I find Repulsion Bolt does a LOT for the Beam Rifle set:

• I have it slotted for Knockdown, keeping the target in its original location in a spawn. See discussion above about mobiles moving away from a spawn.
• It has 20% -Resistance (in PvE). This is different than Sentinel's Vulnerability. It is inferior in terms of level shifts, and requires a ToHit of course. It is ends up being more available than Vulnerability.
• It falls into the Single-Target 'streakbreaker' discussion above... I find I generally don't care/notice if one-of-the-three opening ST attacks from the Defender miss before the AoE.
• It offers (a little) Smashing damage as opposed to Energy/Energy/Energy/Bacon, Eggs, Sausage, %damage and Energy (but without the Bacon, Eggs and Sausage)

I apologize if these observations come across as scatter-brained, if I am missing somethings (obvious or subtle) please let me know. I'll be sticking with the character as I want to see how it shakes out with a level 50 build.

[Back after a year or two... help me get to grips with Fold Space, best travel powers and the best new set combos please!]

19 hours ago, Andreah said:

If the player is just spamming Fold Space, it can make quite a mess, which is probably responsible for some of the sour attitudes about it. They're justified in that sense. But if you are aware of where you are, where your teammates are, where the mobs are, and have a tactical sense of the situation, it can be awesome, or even a game changer.

 

I think "sour attitude" is a good descriptor. In some ways it Fold Space similar to how folks view Knockback. In Solo play, nobody really cares. In team play, everyone else has to adapt to it. I can imagine when Fold Space might make sense to use, but it's the required ToHit check (and RNG) on top of the long Recharge time that contribute to my own attitude of it as a sub-optimal power.

 

I've played with plenty of Tankers/Brutes that would on 8-player teams (eventually, randomly) get around to casting Fold Space yet would not Taunt. One of these powers has a base 2 minute recharge and requires a ToHit check for possible 16 targets; the other has a base 10 second recharge and is an auto-hit of 5 targets... of course the -Range debuff in Taunt doesn't actually position enemies but neither does a missed enemy with Fold Space.

 

I'm guessing that Fold Space doesn't work on bosses above a certain level?

[Back after a year or two... help me get to grips with Fold Space, best travel powers and the best new set combos please!]

4 hours ago, Tux said:

As the title suggests...

 

Quick bit about me; I enjoy end-game content and speed TFs/trials mainly. Minimal interest in PVP. 

 

1. Fold Space - what is it exactly - how do I best use it, seems to be the most effective thing these days? Seen a few people using and it and had a little read around; looks almost vital for speed TFs!

 

2. Is Teleport the best travel power now? I always been an SS/CJ guy...

Feel like I'm going to need some new macros 😄 

 

 

I am not a fan of Fold Space. I see it as a niche power. I don't like it on my builds, nor do I appreciate teammates who use it. For the former point... it's easier to build such that ANY character can teleport in an out of enemies. Common options I use include Combat Teleport and/or Speed of Sound... each with appropriate macro/mousebind support.

 

For the latter complaint: Moving (some of) the mobs in a spawn does mess up location powers... not just controls but also AoE attacks. The cooldown (and choice of targets) of a teammates' Fold Space is also completely unpredictable, which makes for clumsy team play, YMMV.  My hot take: In almost every circumstance where Fold Space might be a good choice, I think some other power pick would probably have been just as good in that circumstance, as well as being a more useful power in other circumstances. I already mentioned self-teleports (for aggro, offense or PBAoE shenanigans) but since Fold Space requires a ToHit check, why not pick a pool attack like Wall of Force instead?

 

Teleport is usually the power pick that gets the least amount of forum love. It's my least favorite travel option... I do love Combat Teleport!

 

Homecoming has plenty of options for travel powers: There are the classic four (Flight, Leaping, Speed, Teleport), three mutually exclusive Specialized pools (Sorcery, Experimentation, Force of Will), P2W powers, not to mention that Infiltration (Concealment pool) can be a respectable "running" travel power thanks to slotting options and travel speed bonuses from Enhancement sets.

[POLL: Tanker - best of AT 2023]

I'm not criticizing, simply spring-boarding off of this post:

 

On 9/17/2023 at 2:27 PM, JStacy337 said:

 */Staff, because of the Homecoming buff to Tanker Cone/Damage, is just way too OP to not enjoy

 

I know Staff gets a lot of attention as an (PB)AoE secondary for Tankers... but is it really the most OP of the Tanker secondaries for AoE? This is a legit question... I haven't played a Staff Fighting Tanker, so I don't have a baseline for comparison. Is there increased radius or range specific to Staff Fighting?

 

I rolled up a /Electrical Melee Tanker, and not counting the primary (or pools), this character has four damaging "hits multiple enemies" attacks, plus Lightning Clap (not slotted for %damage on my build, but could be). I think Staff Fighting looks cooler than some of the Electrical Melee.

[So... My First Sentinel...]

19 minutes ago, twozerofoxtrot said:

One interesting pool power I dont see picked a lot but is really strong is Mace Mastery's Coordinated Targeting, which is a team version of Focused Accuracy. The cost is still high but hey, all Sents get some End sustainment, and you can't beat the amount of ToHit and Perception Resist you give to your team. No more whiffing against Arachnos or Circle of Thorns.

 

I rather like Sentinel's Mace Mastery options, certainly for a build that has only a small number of slots 'left over' at the high levels. ToHit is never bad (especially if %damage is part of the build)... do any Sentinel primaries get an actual Snipe that could get a damage boost from +ToHit (when Fast)?

 

For 'minimal' slotting, I'd probably go with:

 

Web Envelope (@35) with Acc/Immobilize at 50+5 or HO Endoplasm at 53

Coordinated Training (@41) probably just IO Endurance Reduction

Summon Tarantula (@44) probably just IO Recharge Reduction

 

I'm not a great fan of the Patron pets, but sometimes I don't have a particularly good option... and with the standard sort of global Recharge I end up with the 'downtime' on them is on the order of just over 1 minute with no extra slotting.

[So... My First Sentinel...]

1 hour ago, FupDup said:

The main thing Sent epics are there for is a strong ST melee attack (aka min-max).

 

I was surprised to see Sentinels with a Melee Damage Scale of 1.1, only to realize that I'd be leveraging Epic/Patron/Power pools to get them.

 

I have a love/hate relationship with %damage in single-target Holds... tending more to "hate" than "love" for characters that have damage scales of 1.0 (or better) with actual damaging attacks. I was eyeing Psi for Link Minds... but looking how it compares to the Dominator Epic Mastery version (it isn't just raw values being worse, but also that Dominators can take it at level 35 as a first pick in the pool) makes me somewhat meh on it. At least the target cap on the Sentinel's Psychic Shockwave is 16 (per City of Data). That's the power from the set that I would leverage for %damage.

[So... My First Sentinel...]

I'm still noodling around with the order of taking powers, slotting options, etc... I am mildly annoyed at the reduced target caps for Sentinels, particularly Cutting Beam. On one hand I feel like this cone attack became a terrible power to try to leverage %damage, on the other hand it simplifies some of my eventual slotting choices.

 

Because of my (silly? definitely not min-max) approach to my Beam Rifle project... I will have 8 of the 9 powers from the primary... at this point I'm not even sure I'll be taking an Epic/Patron pool. I've gone this route on other characters when the Primary/Secondary is satisfying all the flavor needs, I don't have any obvious gaps in the build (aside from some min-max I suppose) that hold me back from the content I'll play, and I won't really have slots/power choices to go hard into an Epic pool. The work is in progress, as I level into that range I will probably pick one anyway to see what I can do with it. I can see why Psi would be a common choice.

[What does it mean to proc out a tanker?]

[So... My First Sentinel...]

40 minutes ago, FupDup said:

The main thing to look forward to is getting your nuke every 30 seconds or less once the build has sufficiently matured, and it's especially nice on Beam since the set is known for its extreme lack of AOE on every other AT. The ATO set bonuses for range also help with QOL a lot. 

 

I was initially somewhat meh on the ATO special effects, but I can't argue against the actual bonuses. I suspect that I will end up with a 6-slot Sentinel's Ward and 2x3-slot Opportunity Strikes.

[Best way to help lower-level players in-game?]

16 hours ago, FupDup said:

Before I log off I like to drop an Ouros portal so that somebody who doesn't have it unlocked on that alt yet can grab it. 

 I used to do this, but now I just remind Heroes that they can visit Atlas Park City Hall / RV and get trusted with a secret themselves. Red side has it slightly harder for lower level characters.

 

The main thing that I do is that when I am playing solo, I try to keep a TAB open that has Help/General/LFG messages. Sometimes a low level character needs help with a mission (like against the Honoree 😉 )

 

 

[So... My First Sentinel...]

Let me get this out of the way: I've previously never considered a Sentinel. This personal bias is almost entirely due to a mild feeling of "did the game really need these?" with tiny bits of "but what do they do?". There have also been a LOT of things I wanted to try with the more "classic" ATs as well. I overcame my hesitancy because I've been on entirely silly project involving Beam Rifle. I was satisfied with my Beam Rifle / FF Defender, and was looking at the next possible AT and decided to pass on both Blasters and Corruptors (for now), basically because I'm too comfortable with those AT.

 

So... my first Sentinel is a Beam Rifle / Energy Aura character. The secondary set is also new to me, and is more-or-less a concept-driven choice. I've been playing it through 'normal' content (with XP boost) and it feels fine. I'm up to level 18 and I can see why this AT would be appealing... certainly in an earlier iteration of the game with fewer of the bells-and-whistles we have now, especially for covering shortcomings in other ATs. I feel like I'm damning with faint praise, as I rather like (at these low levels) being able to just stand in place and dish out the damage. I also like the inherent ability to toss a mild debuff. I am somewhat surprised I haven't seen this used more often when teamed with Sentinels.... could be perception bias I suppose.

 

I'm committed to seeing this character through to 50+... I don't have any reason not to do so. What do I have to look forward to? I'm not exactly intending to "tank mage at a distance" (as I enjoy melee), but I wouldn't be at all surprised that this is how the character develops. Any and all cheerleading would be appreciated, as well as any advice on the Epic/Patron/Ancillary pools I should be considering.

[Is Market Inefficiency Causing Salvage Price Spiral?]

17 hours ago, lemming said:

And it's not like it really does much since even if you don't have the right uncommon, you can throw one onto the market, get 12k and buy one for yourself at 12,001.  costing a little extra.  I just don't get why someone would do it.

 

This is the eternal mystery. *If* the player putting in all these bids on uncommons has complete knowledge(*1) of how the market works, how salvage is fungible, etc. then I tend to believe that there is an irrational motivation... something along the lines of "I did it for the lulz".  12 Kinf is roughly the vendor price of a level 50 SO enhancement (or one-eight the average vendor price of a level 50 IO recipe)... so this price isn't exactly hurting folks that only want a handful of yellow salvage at a time.

 

(*1) and inf. They also need inf.... and characters with AH slots.

 

I have a hard time quantifying my own assessment of how much value (lulz?) someone could actually get from this sort of exercise. I find it easier to believe (also without evidence!) that this sort of market behavior is being driven by player(s) with incomplete market house knowledge and a willingness to basically follow some "fire-and-forget" strategies for generating income. For example: if someone had a "classic AE farm character" they could generate a lot of Inf across several characters, and then might simply use that kitty to place bids on recipes and salvage in an effort to "generate" more Inf.

 

I have to say: I haven't noticed radical price swings on any fungible commodities (i.e. Enhancements, Recipes).... except that the period of really cheap Very Rare recipes seems to have passed! There are enhancement pieces I simply don't buy on the AH, mostly because I've stockpiled (from converter roulette) the types of pieces that go into most of my builds, and I am merit/catalyst rich. Converter prices are more-or-less at the low end of what I would consider to be "historically typical"... without converters it isn't really possible to leverage the AH to bring in a lot of Inf.

 

The only other dimension that I can think of is that there may have been a radical change on the supply side. I don't want to speculate (out of ignorance) on this because I have no idea about the relative numbers on either side (supply/demand) of the equation.

[Upgrade, replace or retire?]

I'll springboard off of what others have written.

 

The Warriors: I think this faction suffers from two things. The first is that the levels they occupy are easy to shoot past, and don't offer much in the way to motivate players to revisit them... with the exception being Stephanie Peebles arc (the first one) in Striga. The second problem IMO is that as potential spawns they don't offer enough variety/challenge in the current game.

 

Historically, the Warriors always struck me as being primarily "resistant melee" types... they can provide problems to some (blueside, where they mostly appear) AT... but otherwise they are cannon fodder. I would upgrade them to include some new mobs that are doing things like Taunting or Confronting players, and also add mobs that are leveraging "artefacts"...sort of how Vanguard can be a PITA when they are using their "powers".

 

The Warriors could also use an actual TF that is easier to revisit than just scrolling through Oroborous (and/or Mortimer Kal).

 

The Family: Like the Warriors, I think the suffer for being the level at which they (mostly) exist. I like the energy weapons they get for higher levels. I really wouldn't make any changes to them, although I'd like to actually get some Nathaniel Frost missions. AFAIK he's only mentioned on the exploration stuff. In my head canon, he's some combination of Walt Disney (is body being cryogenically preserved) and/or a CoT-adjacent Cold Demon seeking immortality. The Lore implies that Mayor Spanky and the Frost Family had some inkling about what the banished Pantheon was up to... I could see them making deals with the Circle of Thorns.

 

Knives of Artemis: I rather like these as high-level (pre-Incarnate) enemies. I like that Indigo was one of them. I dislike that we never get a (non-incarnate) IMO satisfactory explanation of their organization and how they could possible stand apart from the Malta Group. Is it wrong that I think the TIP missions featuring them are generally better than any of the contact missions using them? The one obvious upgrade I would give this group would be to introduce some mobs that can benefit from things like Assassin's Strike and/or use Placate. I also think that it wouldn't be unreasonable to add at least one additional trap to their arsenal.

 

I have mixed feelings about the Council. Part of me dislikes that they are the default blueside punching bags for level 50.... but this role has to be somebody. If this really bothered me, and I really wanted to add a challenge for players, I'd put Void Hunters, Quantums, Cysts, and/or Ascendents in the mix for Radio missions at level 50. There is the one blueside Tip Mission that features Void Hunters, but AFAIK that's it for non-Kheldians.

[Electrifying Fences]

3 hours ago, Greycat said:

Not sure if still valid, but I *vaguely* recall extra damage or some such for a stalker's AS on a held target at one point.

 

 Per City of Data, there are some powers that have these sorts of possible extra pieces of damage (link provided for Toxic Dart as an example)... I haven't specifically checked for any immobilize powers.

[Officially Unofficial Weekly Discussion #45: Travel Powers and speeding tickets.]

I may or may not have written out my thoughts about the specialized pool powers (avec travel) on Homecoming... But I am quite impressed with each of them.

 

Sorcery: Mystic Flight is a perfectly suitable flying power... importantly it allows teleportation (err... Translocation) in situations when I've really needed it. There isn't a stinker power in the pool, although not every AT leverages each power the same. If this set has a drawback, it is the lack of "minimal" effects on all the powers. Often the set fits my builds' need perfectly, but the animations often do not.

 

Force of Will: I actually prefer Mighty Leap (and Takeoff) to Super Jump... Super Jump is somewhat gimped IMO because it is barely (in my play) superior to the jump Pack P2W power. If I want any of the other powers in this pool, I never flinch about taking Mighty Leap as a travel power.

 

Experimentation: With Jaunt a part of Speed of Sound, this is a great set for melee characters. The only power in this pool I haven't tried to make work is Toxic Dart... and that's because I haven't been able to think of a build where I'd want that power before (or instead of) any of the other powers in the pool. I'm mentally ok with it, it's just that it is so dull compared to Arcane Bolt or Project Will... maybe if it had an immobilize (or -Regen) effect I'd feel tempted to take it? Otherwise it just feels like an inferior attack (for most AT).

 

For the classic travel pools: The only one I haven't taken (and respeced out of) for travel since the revamps is Teleportation. In earlier times (especially at the end of Live, and the early days of public Homecoming) I went deep into it to get the ability to transport across zones. This is now available for every player, more-or-less as early as they want it, without investing in that pool. I appreciate the players who take the powers early enough to help teams move between missions and across zones/maps. I love Combat Teleport, I just haven't taken any other powers from the pool. Personally, I think that Fold Space is over-rated... I can almost see the reasons to take it, but if I'm already taking Combat Teleport to unlock Fold Space... and I have to slot Accuracy to hit the targets... I kinda feel like I should maybe just teleport myself instead. Mileage varies obviously. Eventually I will come up with a build that wants to do exactly this.