tidge

I still hold out hope that we could get a Very Rare set for Fear powers. I imagine a set similar to Coercive Persuasion (for Confuse) that can amplify the effectiveness and utility of single-target fear powers. Despair of Mot: Fear (Superior) Fear/Recharge (Superior) Fear/Recharge/Accuracy (Superior) Fear/Accuracy (Superior) Fear/Endurance (Superior) Contagious Fear (Superior, 4.5 PPM AoE Fear) Strawman set bonuses: 2: 7% Recovery 3: 5% Fear Duration 4: 15% Accuracy 5: 10% Recharge 6: 5% AoE Defense, 2.5% Psi Defense

I think of this thread everytime someone suggests that Tough and Weave be made inherent.

Unfortunately I don't think that sapping Endurance from enemy mobs would be all that effective in the grand scheme of things. My preference is to eek damage out of the T8/T9 choices, but a true Taunt is the next most obvious effect that comes to mind. If nothing else Taunting would slightly synergize with the other (offensive) traps in addition to providing some relief for the Defender/Corruptor/Mastermind... I just don't think that taunting alone would necessarily be worthy of a T8 or T9. I suppose if we were too look for something besides a Gun drone, there are the Support pets from Lore Incarnate powers.

I grok this approach. I am biased perhaps because I run Heather Townsend's DA1 arc at x8, and occasionally RWZ missions as well... I find tabbing my Dominate attack around assorted mobs (e.g. Tsoo Sorcerers) to be a major consideration. If Dominate were reliably KOing Lieutenants which heal and buff allies, I'd agree with going the pure damage route. I'm less trying to stack the Hold on a single hard target than I am spamming a single-target Hold across many Lieutenant classes. This is just my play style of course. I'm slightly biased against the Ghost Widow %Damage proc in Dominate because it is more Psi damage... and things which resist Psi damage resist it HARD. The level range on the Ghost Widow set stops it at 17, which probably isn't much of an issue. Even though the damage is Lethal, assuming I want a proc I'd switch to Gladiator's Net's %Damage instead. I like leaning on the boosted damage (I've done it myself) but given that 2-pieces of Unbreakable Constraint add a Recovery bonus, and Fortunata builds will run HOT, I'd consider slotting the Hold/End piece in place of the second damage boost. I enjoy reading the different choices on Dominate, as it is very flexible.

Se my comment about Omega Maneuver, which has a Taunt component to it. My request for Gun Drone has an additional selfish component to it: Mastermind primaries without 'recharge intensive pets' could slot it with the defense/resist IO pieces, allowing for more options in the primary pets. Ideally I'd prefer the mastermind primary pet upgrade powers be altered to accept those IO pieces, but I'll take whatever I can get.

My comments are based on the Mastermind secondary. 1) I hate the Web Grenade T1. A T1 single-target immobilize it nigh useless at low levels and gains nothing via slotting or enhancements at higher levels. The little use it has is -Fly, which besides being limited in applicability, is still single-target and still requires a ToHit check. Contrast with... 2) I love T2 Caltrops. An AoE Damage and Slow is useful right out-of-the-box, and it is improved via enhancement slotting, especially with IOs. I know that not everyone like Caltrops, but it has so many more pros than cons. Caltrops maintains utility across the entire game. Please switch the order of these two powers in the secondary. I suppose they can also be swapped in the primary as well, for no net effect. I would still prefer them swapped even if Web Grenade was changed; e.g. if it were to be made a targeted AoE. 3) My MM has always skipped T8 Trip Mine and T9 Detonator after having tested them. Neither power feels like a 'nuke' to me, and I have found a high level of inconvenience with each power. If I was going to suggest alternate powers from the existing game, I would seriously consider taking either the T8 and T9 if: T8: The Omega Maneuver at level 32 (just like for Crab Spider Soldiers, even if it is a 'primary' choice for the VEAT) T9: The Blaster Gun Drone from the secondary /Devices at level 38. 4) I am completely comfortable with the design and role of T3 Triage Beacon. I understand that some folks would prefer a direct Heal, but there has to be some variety in the game. The utility of this power improves greatly with larger spawn sizes. 5) I am perfectly happy with T4 Acid Mortar, T5 Force Field Generator, T6 Poison Trap and T7 Seeker Drones. I would like to be able to 'flood the map' with Seeker Drones, but that's just me wanting to have more pets buzzing around me.

At a quick glance, the only thing I'd say you did "wrong" is the slotting of Mind Link. 3-Slots is fine, but with 3-slots you want a Adjusted Targeting (Recharge) and 2xLotG (Def/Global and Def/Recharge). The tiny fractional bonuses from the Red Fortune set won't be missed. Things I would do differently, YMMV. I tried to avoid wholesale changes to power choices, but I can't help myself. I don't know that I've ever taken Combat Training: Offensive. While leveling up, I usually have a Kismet Accuracy (ToHit) Global in an auto power. At level 50 I usually have plenty of +Accuracy bonuses from sets. If it was an IO mule I'd consider it, but as is I've never needed it. I wouldn't focus on trying to get piecemeal S/L resistances (see Indomitable Will). My Fortunata(e) pass on the Fighting pool, but by taking Tough I feel like that should be all the S/L you need, given that your (positional) defenses can be made extraordinarily high, even without Mind Link. Because of Combat Training: Defensive, the Melee Positional will be the highest and won't need focused attention. Mileage varies of course. My own approach to Defense & Resist slotting on defense-based builds (like Fortunatae) is to use minimal slotting for Global IOs (Shield Wall, Gladiator Armor, Steadfast Protection, Unbreakable Guard, LotG), and then consider adding one more slot to boost Defense (usually with a 2nd LotG piece but sometimes Shield Wall, which can be boosted to 50+5). I don't like to use extra slots in defense powers if I am up against Enhancement Diversification penalties. The one exception is that I try to 6-slot Reactive Defenses for the Endurance Discount and Global recharge bonuses (and the Scaling Damage resistance piece). Note that Foresight takes both Resistance and Defense sets. I won't fault anyone for taking Tactical Training: Leadership, and your slotting choice is fine if you are going to be in large teams. However, if you are looking to make yourself more of an offensive threat I recommend moving the 6-piece Gaussian set from Tactical Training: Leadership into Aim instead. You definitely want the set bonus from the 6-piece set, but spamming Aim (with the Build Up proc chance at 90%) before you unleash your attacks will improve your offense much more than relying on the (passive) triggering of Build Up from the Leadership toggle. Aim should be available every 25 seconds or better (I didn't check your total Global recharge bonus) as long as you are still getting the set bonuses. I would add a %Damage proc to Psychic Wail. This is your nuke, it will be proc friendly with your Armageddon slotting. Even if you don't take my advice on Gloom (keep reading) the %Damage proc is better used in the PBAoE than in a non-snipe single-target attack. I like the Coercive Persuasion set, but not in a PBAoE. I realize you may be slotting this for the (very good) set bonuses. Aura of Confusion is a GOOD power for defense), but if you want to be an offensive threat you should consider slotting it with the two available %Damage procs (Malaise, Cacophony) and the Acc/Recharge from Malaise. I wouldn't give up on the set, but it would mean making a different power choice (and having 6-slots). This advice is breaking my rule about not changing power choices, so disregard. I won't fault the slotting for Dominate, but I will say this: I have never been impressed with the Superior Entomb proc (3PPM IIRC). I think with this slotting it should proc around 41% of the time but I don't think the power stacks with itself, which would also cut into its visibility. If going for a 2-piece set bonus, I would consider a little extra recovery from Gladiator's Javelin before the extra resistance from Superior Entomb (but as I wrote, I de-prioritize resistances on defensive builds). I would move the Apocalypse % Damage proc here, and replace the 6-pieces in Gloom with a 6-piece Thunderstrike for more ranged defense. I see what you are shooting for with the current Gloom slotting, but generally I find the single-target ranged attacks from Patron pools (for Widows) to not be great contributors to DPS, if you don't need a 6-piece set bonus I wouldn't add a 6th slot for a %damage proc to such a power. This touches on my own preference for Dominate slotting. I don't fault this proc-approach at all, but I use 4-slots of Basilisk's Gaze and the two 4.5 PPM %Damage procs. This gives a nice Global Recharge contribution, boosts hold duration and adds enough extra single-target damage for my needs. 7.5% Global Recharge (Basilisk;s 4-piece bonus) v. 10% Global Recharge (Very Rare 5-piece bonus).

I developed a mnemonic system for the salvage racks in my base, but at one point I had considered leveraging the ability to use the alphabetics to help. I think they can be placed on the floors/walls. It was only the salvage storage that I was concerned about, and it was because I was looking for a mechanism to discriminate between rarities and names. I eventually landed on a system of geographical positioning within the base. I'm aware that it is trivial to purchase most salvage from the auction house, but I prefer to keep ~10 each of the non-rare pieces for quick crafting of uncommon recipes and SG buffs.

As if we ever needed evidence that certain people don't play redside (enough): I simply can't imaging anyone who would complain about a 'stack of pancakes' cave wouldn't have a Chernobyl-level meltdown over this room. I love the aesthetic of that room, but I hate that it appears in *defeat all* missions. I can't recall ever having to find a glowie objective in that room, but that scenario would also be a nightmare.

I definitely remember when we reached that point in the Tanker changes. I don't know if the resistance to -Res was motivated by the prevalence of AoE attacks? I'm sure a lot of the issue is that any one source of -Res doesn't stack with itself. My EM experience is with a Tank. Even with (some) Disorient slotting only occasionally have I gotten enough Magnitude to visibly affect a very tough single-target... I think it was one of the big bad Summer Blockbuster enemies. Even then, that barely provided much of a breather for my arena mates. I keep coming back to the idea that going mano-a-mano with a big bad (with Energy Melee) ought to feel different than just dancing with the big bad after evaporating the others mobs with AoE (as with other sets).

Nothing wrong or unusual here. I'm not entirely convinced that most solo players are running lvl 30 (and below) content at +4/x8.

It's been a while since I posted in the thread. I've been trying to sprinkle 'likes' on the posts which match my views: I don't need (or want) AoE in Energy Melee. There are enough other sets for that. If I want pom poms on another set, it's one visit to the Tailor/Facemaker. I don't want any new extra mechanics. No "splashes". No "combos". No "stacking" (except for existing Stuns), keep reading. I like the Stuns and I would sacrifice them in PvP to keep things 'balanced', if that is even an issue any more. I want the classic set returned to single-target dominance. I'm ok if the set has to have some balancing for Stalkers v. Tanks, but honestly in a game with Titan Weapons, I'm not sure I'd care if Energy Melee Stalkers became the dominant ST class, as you can only defeat a mob once. (Freakshow, CoT, Valkyrie, et al. not withstanding) I'm open to discussions on how to achieve #4. I don't know if "cranking up the DPA" is the fix. At the risk of breaking my #2, I don't know if adding a -Res to the EM attacks would have the same effect (and be a rationale for not adding AoE) given the Purple patch. Like I wrote... I'm open to how to get to #4.

I don't have the stamina to write anything like a 'complete guide' to VEAT powers, mostly because even within a single VEAT there are many different ways to play them! A power that works well for one play style (or build) may not work well in another. For example, the Arachnos Soldier VEAT stirs up a lot of strong messaging around different opinions on AoE/Single-Target/Pets/Debuffs/Buffs (to name a few). Here are a couple of thoughts I have on Fortunata powers that I don't think are particularly controversial, YMMV: Mind Link: The optimal slotting for Recharge (assuming that you don't already have 5 LotG Global +Recharge pieces in other powers) and Defense is 3 slots: Adjusted Targeting Recharge Luck of the Gambler: Def/Global Recharge Luck of the Gambler: Def/Recharge It is possible to get higher values of both Defense and Recharge with more slots, or by replacing #3 with a boosted Shield Wall piece, but the point of diminishing returns kicks in. Many folks shoot for 'perma' Mind Link, but my experience has been that since Fortunata (positional) defenses can already be made quite high that it is not as important to have Mind Link perma for yourself; teammates may feel otherwise, but since they will still need to be somewhat close to you to get the benefit I'm less motivated to make it 'perma' specifically for teammates. Dominate: I believe the general consensus is that of all the Fortunata powers, this is the one that should be slotted with %Damage procs, for the following reason(s): As a Ranged Damage set with a Hold component, it can take 2 different Very Rare (puple) Procs. Very Rare %Damage procs have a higher proc rate and do 50% more damage than non-Very Rare procs. The inherent damage is Psi, which is uneven against a variety of enemies. The inherent damage is (by my calculation) only slightly better than the %damage from non-Purple procs, so if you eschew any recharge in Dominate, you should be able to reliably get more damage from the procs (against neutral resistance enemies). Personally, I have Dominate 6-slotted with 4xBasilisk's Gaze (all of the /Hold pieces) for Global Recharge and 2 Procs (Apocalypse and Unbreakable Constraint). I find the Hold to be an important piece of my Fortunata's 'control' strategy, and I appreciate the Global recharge bonus from the set. Some thoughts on Confuse and Aura of Confusion: The Very Rare Coercive Persuasion %Contagious Confusion is better used in the single-target Confuse. The PBAoE Aura of Confusion has a radius of 25 feet, so it will already be hitting most mobs in a spawn. Confuse set %Damage procs (Cacophany, Malaise's Illusions) are better in the PBAoE. Scoring damage against the mobs in a PBAoE will make you eligible for Inf, Exp and drops even if you let the mobs defeat each other. You can also destroy property in Mayhem missions with it :). Here are my thoughts on Leadership and Build Up type powers (e.g. Aim), which I think are applicable to all VEAT: You should be aware that slotting the Gaussian's %Build Up proc in a toggle power like Tactical Training: Leadership will have an increased chance to fire due to your pets and teammates (assuming they are close to you). You should also be aware that most powers like Aim have a long enough inherent recharge (typically 90 seconds) that the Gaussian's %Build Up proc will have a (clamped) 90% chance of triggering upon activation. This is an incredible boost (for 5 seconds). The recharge time is long enough that you can invest in a lot of recharge (from IOs) or simply 6-slot the set to get the recharge time down to 21-ish seconds and still have the same chance to proc the (extra) Build Up. This means that if you were auto-firing Aim, one-half of the time you are getting the benefit of the inherent Aim boost and one-quarter of the time you are getting the enhanced Build Up. I don't necessarily suggest auto-firing Aim on all VEAT, but there are a few cases where it could be a valid choice. Some comments on three-slotting Defensive powers: generally, VEAT (especially Widows) have the opportunity to slot many Defense sets. All players should plan to slot the global %Resistance Shield Wall piece. IF a Defense power is going to have three (or more) slots in it AND one of those slots is going to have a LoTG Def/ Gloabl Recharge piece in it AND the second slot is holding the Shield Wall global, it is a better choice to slot a boosted piece from the Shield Wall set rather than the LotG set... unless you specifically want the 4- or 5-piece set bonuses from LotG.

I keep several in email. I also have them disabled and make the one in email by combining others.

Ah yes, thanks for reminding me. I put it in a fast recharge power... Presumably because it is a Global.

I can grok what you are doing with Crushing Uppercut, but I want to point out a couple of things: Crushing Uppercut may not be the best place to put the Build Up proc. I have it in a much lower level power, with the intent of triggering it to help the higher damage powers. Crushing Uppercut should be able to take the Very Rare (Hold) Unbreakable Constraint %Smashing. Very Rare damage procs do 50% more damage that any other type of proc. 5xHecatomb + the Unbreakable Constraint proc is what I have currently slotted in my StJ Scrapper. If you will be running Weave all the time: You may not need the (partial) End reduction moving the Shield Wall Global to Weave would allow you to replace the LotG Def/End with a Shield Wall piece that you can boost for the same set bonus.

QFT. Incarnate content is especially prone to 'rush to the end'. For non-incarnate content (especially TFs), I have tried to get into the habit of asking 'how fast do we want to run?' because not every player actually wants to speed missions. Incarnate TFs (for a variety of reasons) are likely to be sped no matter what. As a MM, we rarely have the chance to speed to the end of a mission and (re)spawn pets in order to defeat the boss/EB/AV before the rest of the team appears. It may be best just to remind the team that you and your pets will be marching through the map defeating the mobs in the way. Some teammates may be more than happy to stay close to you.

I consider my /Bio to be somewhat skimpy on defense power slotting: Hide: (2 slots) LoTG (+Recharge) and Kismet (+ToHit) Hardened Carapace: (4 slots) Unbreakable Guard (including the +HP) Boundless Energy: (6 slots) 5xPanacea and 1 EndMod Environmental Mod: (3 slots) 2xShield Wall, 1 LotG Ablative Carapace: (6 slots) Preventive Medicine (w/ %Absorb) Tough: (2 slots): Steadfast Protection, Gladiator's Armor Weave (6 slots): Reactive Defenses (including the Scaling Damage Resistance) I have 3 more single LotG (+recharge) in powers I rarely toggle/click: Shadow Meld, Hover, Maneuvers The one thing I'm not crazy about my build and power choices is that I delayed DNA Siphon to level 41. When slotted, if the toon has high enough recharge it can be a wonderful PBAoE attack as well as a healing mechanism.

I can share what I did with my Stalker. This isn't very different than any of my other toons, all of whom exemplar down (occasionally to the Hollows, but definitely to Positron 1.. and similar Red side content). 1) Main goals (for the Stalker) are: A Travel power by lvl 14. You can get by with the P2W, and while many toons have a travel well before this point, this is as late as I will put off an actual travel choice. 3 Primary attacks before lvl 14. Build Up ASAP. I happen to 6-slot Gaussians' here, but that set only kicks in at lvl (17?) 18. If you only 2-slot it, use 1 slot on a Recharge IO for help at low levels. Take Mez/Knock resists ASAP. I suppose you could delay this pick a little (i.e. by 1 pick) but quality of life improves with it. You can 'make do' with Prestige and P2W attacks in lower content, but I am frustrated when I don't have a core attack chain by level 20. 2) Slotting: I lean heavily into ATO and Purple (Very Rare) sets for my attacks. My Stalker's first attack pick was 'good enough' to merit slotting... it is where I have the Assassin's Mark set. The Assassin's Strike attack should be at lvl 6... this is where I have the Stalker's Guile set. In general, I try to have all my attacks below level 32 slotted with a set that will exemplar down. I only occasionally use Winter sets and PVP sets typically get replaced once Very Rare sets can be slotted (at level 50). On damage-dealing toons (like Stalkers) I prefer to get set bonuses over chasing procs, but I do have Very Rare procs in lower level attacks. I try to avoid putting a high-level proc (e.g. from a level 30 set) in a low level damage power. Often I can find a better use of the slot somewhere else. For defense/resistance: My stalker has the Global pieces which exemplar down 'all the way', and low level content doesn't demand much more than that (+6% Defense, +5% Resistance). Being controlled is far worse for an exemplared toon, so KB reduction or Slow Resistance (Universal Travel IOs) in a travel power is a must. 3) See #1. Take your Assassin's Strike and Build Up ASAP. 4) Mileage varies, but aside from having a travel power by level 14 (to make TF/SF less painful) the content in the game is very forgiving. This is more of an issue with Blue side missions than Red side (not counting Mercy Island). A piece of exemplared content that can catch people off guard is that Circle of Thorns (who appear at almost all levels) have debuffs which can seriously mess with players' chance to hit them. It is possible to get +%Accuracy set bonuses from (one of) the ATO and (most) Purple IO sets... these will stay with you as you exemplar, so mileage varies if you need this piece just for final chance to hit. My Stalker has a Snipe as well, and the ToHit bonus helps with that. On my Stalker, I put the Kismet +6% Accuracy (really ToHit) global in Hide. I'd prefer to put this particular piece in an Auto power, but Hide is a forced pick at level 1 and it will almost always be toggled on anyway. If you use this piece and don't have an Auto power for it, be aware that the bonus is only active when the toggle power is active (at least last time I checked on my Blaster).

There is one bend in Council maps where I will frequently get stuck under a pipe. I realize that the pipes are actually there to serve as visual reminders (of T-junctions, etc.) but I get frequently get stuck at the point where the pipe is at 'head level'.

A point about /Bots: Unless you want to lean heavily into Knockback... ...I have found that the DPS from Bots improves with KB->KD slotting, as the enemies will stay in the Assault Bot's AoE attacks.

Why so many slots of LotG in Hide? Is the extra S/L resistance worth it? I wouldn't think so while Adaptation is available.

Folks may not feel this way, but I think the 'pancake' cave rooms are actually well designed, and a clever game element. Here's my reasons: Those rooms have means of moving between levels for grounded toons. I can't recall (at least not since the level limit for a travel power was lowered) ever not having a travel power by the time I was given a mission with such a room. The spawns are pretty much always in the same spots in the room. On point 3, I agree that (like many other maps) if the spawns 'wander' it can be annoying to track them down. I believe that the glowing objectives are often in similar places in that room, but (thankfully) there are not that many missions I can think of which place objectives in such a room. As a very long time player, I feel like these rooms are just one of those things a player can eventually come to understand. In life, not everything that frustrates you requires that you 'speak to the manager'.

I generally agree that long recharge times on powers is the primary reason for taking Hasten (although I believe that the Endurance refill on PermaDoms is at least as important as fast-cycling through high-MAG powers) I wanted to chime in that I've made toons with deep investment in the Presence, Teleportation, Flight, Concealment, Sorcery and Medicine pools. Obviously not all at once on a single toon, but my Mastermind went deep in Flight, Teleportation and Concealment (while the 4th pool was a shallow dip in Medicine). If there is any common theme among my characters with deep power pool investment it's this: For those characters I placed character concept over raw numbers. One of the things that always makes me happy about a (travel) power pool is if the attack (a) isn't terrible and (b) fits the character's theme. For example: my blaster is a magic-user and with slotting Arcane Bolt is roughly equivalent to the T1 blast. I don't always slow down my attack chain to use it, but if it is going to be a finishing move I enjoy tossing it in for flavor.