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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.

Just one small expansion on a well-written post: Homecoming Tankers now get Defender level buffs in the Leadership pool, so for both AT Maneuvers is an excellent single-power pick, especially for team-oriented tanks.

If you are only dropping the Absorb proc in place, it won't matter where it goes. If I was only slotting Healing procs, I would go in this order: 1) Panacea (always) 2) Preventive Medicine (as @SuperPlyx wrote, getting an Absorb buffer can be a lifesaver. I actually use it more to tell when I am taking damage!) 3) Miracle +Recovery (assuming I have the Performance Shifter %+End proc in Stamina) I usually caution players about the diminishing returns from slotting Regeneration procs. IIRC, just having the inherent Health (unslotted) is a big boost to Regeneration. I think slotting an extra 10% Regeneration only reduces the time between healing ticks from something like 8.5 seconds to 7.5 seconds , assuming no other Regeneration bonuses except inherent Health. You are generally better chasing fractional Defense boosts. Diminishing returns applies to Endurance/Recovery as well, but increasing your Endurance spending is (generally) something you WANT to do... especially as a Blaster. EDIT: I updated my numbers on the time between ticks for healing. My original numbers were from my memory of a toon with already high regen.

Preventive Medicine's %+Absorb will proc even if it is in a power that is not active (or automatic) as long as the toon is lvl 17+. It will proc only after you have taken some amount of damage, so don't expect to idle around with an extra Absorb barrier. Writing only for myself: I typically chase Endurance and Global Recharge bonuses, and since Preventive Medicine gives both at 6-pieces, I prefer to put that set in a power (that accepts Healing sets) other than Health.

I had read on one of the guides that for 'direction:distance', that direction was supposed to accept degrees (of a circle), but I never got it to work with a number. I believe the intent of 'forward' was to make it relative to the 'camera', but my experimentation was limited: Bonfire, as shown Pet Summoning, which I never quite got to do what I wanted to do.

My opinion: making Tough and/or Weave inherent would (for many players) would simply become places to drop Global IOs. I have several toons for which I (greedily) would accept three more power picks (dropping the entire Fighting Pool)... and on a significant number of those toons I'd FIRST be looking at how to min-max another stat (Defense? Global Recharge?) with a different power pool. Certainly not every player is going to slot every Global IO, but asking for an inherent Defense boost power (even as a toggle) is basically just asking to lower the ToHit of enemy mobs. With the investment of a second slot in an (inherent) Tough, it is possible to get +6% Global Defense without even toggling a power on by using IOs. No inherent Tough or Weave. The slope is simply too slippery.

I'm with Bopper on request 2 (and 3): There are a few pools where the first 3 powers simply don't synergize (enough) to require FOUR picks to get both the final two powers. Keep reading... I really like the Presence pool. Provoke is superior (if you accept the ToHit requirement) to Confront. With the ability to 'soft-cap' defenses, this is a great tool to help out teammates in trouble. Invoke Panic is one of the few PBAoE controls available to all ATs. Unrelenting is an awesome panic/self-heal button (I use it mostly as an offensive boost with high Recharge characters). My only complaint with the Presence pool is that Pacify and Intimidate are strategically orthogonal to Provoke, and that Pacify and Intimidate are not really strategically different enough. Pacify has uses (albeit very limited ones)... that it can't duplicate Placate I understand, but shake my head as this would be an easy way to improve utility. The single-target fear of Intimidate can be useful while leveling up, but like many single-target T1 'controls' its utility is severely limited... and quite frankly it is outclassed by the PBAOE. I don't agree with @Zepp suggested changes to Presence, but I think the Teleport pool suggested changes should be considered. My opinion: Teleport is far-and-away the stinker of the Power pools.

"Escort/Kidnap the NPC"...said no one, ever.

Here is an example of the powexec_location in a macro: /macro_image "BanishedPantheon_Pain_WorldOfPain" "Burn" "powexec_location forward:5 bonfire" This is the macro I use to drop a Bonfire patch 5 (units? feet? quatloos?) in front of me. "Burn" is the 'hover over' name of the macro image. You should be able to adjust it to your taste for your power.

Two-off.

The game has plenty of minor annoyance maps, this is one of them. See also: Pool Rooms, torches and trees which snag players, curbs. Be a hero.