[Combat Jumping or Hover?]

My opinion: "Hover Blasting", as a purely defensive strategy, is generally not worth pursuing... it is from an earlier era of the game. It is pretty easy to get +6% Defenses early and with P2W and DFB boosts nobody should really need to plan to 'hover blast' (as a defensive trick).

 

There are times I will have a blaster 'hovering' to get a better view of the battlefield, and there are times when facing certain AVs that it will be smarter for some ATs to stay out of the range of their melee attacks, but generally most maps don't really favor this tactic.

 

I do prefer Flying (via Flight, Mystic Flight or Temps) as a travel power, and I will often simply just use the higher-speed flying power (usually taken before level 10) to zip around maps. I usually only take Hover if (a) I have taken the Flying pool (b) sometime in the 40's as a mule.

 

It is rare that I take Combat Jumping, but I won't deny I think it is a pretty good power choice in terms of both utility and slotting potential. I also like jumping around the zones... but I feel like the Leaping pool is somewhat vanilla compared to other power pools which include travel powers.

[Has anyone played Water Blast / Tactical Arrow Blaster?]

I have not played Archery/Arrow on any AT, but I have played a variety of Water Blast characters. Water Blast is IMO an exceptional AoE set... on Blasters I absolutely would pair it with a secondary that offers a strong ST melee option. I'll describe what I did later...

 

My opinion on Water Blast primary powers:

 

T1 Aqua Bolt / T2 Hydro Blast: either is fine, I chose only to take the T2. Basic Blaster choices to 6-slot an ATO.

T3 Water Burst: I put the 6-piece Annihilation set in this.

T4 Whirlpool: Not a %damage power, this is a debuff/DoT power that is a good choice for set bonuses. I used Winter's Frozen Blast here.

T5 Tidal Forces: Delay, but don't skip. I find this to be inferior to the secondary sets' "Build Ups", so I usually work this into the build later if I have another option. It works best IMO when the build has a smoother attack chain that comes with slotting.

T6 Dehydrate: This is a single-target attack with utility IMO. I usually split this 3xTouch of Nictus and 3xGladiator's Javelin, with two %damage pieces.

T7 Water Jet: I always skip this. There was a recent Homecoming fix which addressed my biggest concern with the power (consuming Tidal Power on a Miss!), but I still find it to be a very unreliable source of damage. There are other opinions, I am simply stating mine.

T8 Steam Spray: Classic AoE cone. I also have this 6-slotted with the Annihilation set.

T9 Geyser: The Nuke. Very strong, good extras.

 

I use the Annihilation set multiple times: I like the bonuses, I like the possibility of applying -Resistance in AoEs to speed up clearing of larger spawns (with fewer button clicks). Tidal Power takes some getting used to, I think it works even better if Water Jet is not part of the attack chain. kudos to those who love Water Jet and make it work, I found that trying to use it broke up my typical attack chain in unpredictable ways.

 

Now, about the secondary: I picked Atomic Manipulation as my 'favorite' (so far) pairing because it offers two (combo) Melee attacks, several good utility powers, and two PBAoE. After opening up with the water AoEs, I can Combat Teleport up to the next round of targets and either single-target smash (finish off a hard target) or PBAoE (any surviving scrubs). I skipped the single-target "control" powers for MOAR OFFENSE, adding %damage to Radioactive Cloud.  Tactical Arrow doesn't appear to offer as much in the way of similar types of offense. My impression is that you would probably want Water Jet for single-target on this pairing.

[Power Pools and DEF for Blasters?]

IMO: Personal Force Field is worth little more than as a mule for a Defense IO; this is because of the 5% chance enemies will always have to hit you. Also... you can't do much useful while it is toggled on. Force Mastery isn't a terrible choice of an epic Blaster pool for mule powers, although if taking it I would plan to toggle on Temp Invulnerability.

 

If the goal is to be an "AoE Blaster" (*1) and stay only at range, you want the global IO pieces and set bonuses rather than grabbing every possible pool power with a toggle. I don't always use the Fighting Pool (--/Tough/Weave) because I don't like burning a power pick on a melee attack I an unlikely to slot or use, but mileage varies. The one choice I almost always make is to 6-slot the Reactive Defenses set in some defensive toggle (and occasionally a click; e.g. Link Minds / Mind Link) because (a) Scaling Damage Resistance is a great global piece and (b) the 5 and 6-slot set bonuses a great for button mashing.

 

(*1) I haven't found too many DPS characters that actually work best at only range. Sometimes this is because of available power choices, sometimes it is because of critter AI. Of the Blaster primaries I've played, I would say a cone-oriented Dark/--- Blaster may be what you want. Much of the set is DoT, but the reduction in enemy ToHit will be sort of like boosting your Defenses. The Dark nuke is a PBAoE of course.

[Proc priority for my attacks]

On 9/23/2023 at 4:00 AM, MythsnWraiths said:

Context: I am playing a melee focused Energy/Energy Blaster (Blapper). I have near perma hasten (4 seconds off) and minimal dead space on my attack chain (Energy Punch > Snipe > Bone Smasher) with just IO sets.

 

Question: For my three primary attack powers, would it be better to put a single Nucleolus Exposure, 4 x damage procs, and a FF + Recharge Proc to improve recharge time on Nova, Buildup, and Aim or would the return on FF procs not be worth the loss in damage and accuracy from a second Nucleolus Exposure? 

 

 

Blasters have a Melee Damage Scale of 1.000 and a ranged Damage Scale of 1.125. I would not be so quick to try for 4x %damage, even with Hami-Os to cover Accuracy and Damage. I can almost see the thinking behind this approach (if somehow the Blaster is at/near the damage cap) ... but I am almost always looking at some set bonus that could be gained in the attack powers... for example the Very Rares which often boost global Accuracy and Recharge (each is important for %damage).

 

I'm not an advocate of the FF +Recharge pieces. When I was investigating their use to help long-recharge time powers I turned on the power timers and monitored the recharge times with and without the %+Recharge proc slotted (unslotters are cheap). I won't argue against their use in theory, but I do encourage some in-game monitoring to verify they are paying off as expected.

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

5 minutes ago, EnjoyTheJourney said:

Single target plinking is for ATs afraid of drawing a lot of aggro. That is not how a sentinel needs to be played in the clear majority of situations. Bring on the aggro, with more aggro almost always being better because it means less fire directed at the rest of the team.

 

This play style is where I landed, both for solo and team play. Once the character had strong survivability AND had good recharge for the (smallish) AoE, I found that diving into spawns (and dragging survivors to other spawn) to be a more optimal method of play than just shooting at range.

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

My First Sentinel (Beam Rifle/Energy Aura) hit 50, here is my first pass at a level 50 respec:

 

Spoiler

Primary Power Set: Beam Rifle

Secondary Power Set: Energy Aura

Power Pool: Flight

Power Pool: Leadership

Ancillary Pool: Leaping

 

------------

Level 1:                 Kinetic Shield    

 (A) Kismet - Accuracy +6%: Level 30

 (*) Shield Wall - +Res (Teleportation), +5% Res (All)

 (*) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance: Level 50+5

 (*) Shield Wall - Defense: Level 50+5

 

Level 1:                 Single Shot         

 (A) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Accuracy/Damage

 (*) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Damage/Recharge

 (*) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Damage/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Accuracy/Damage/Endurance

 (*) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Superior Sentinel’s Ward- Recharge/Chance of Absorb

 

Level 2:                 Cutting Beam    

 (A) Ragnarok- Damage: Level 50+5

 (*) Ragnarok- Accuracy/Damage/Recharge: Level 50+5

 (*) Ragnarok- Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50+5

 (*) Ragnarok- Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5

 (*) Ragnarok- Damage/Recharge Level 50+5

 

Level 4:                 Flight    

 (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

 (*) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range/Endurance

 (*) Blessing of the Zephyr - Run Speed, Jump, Flight Speed, Range

 

Level 6:                 Disintegrate      

 (A) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Damage/Recharge

 (*) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge

 (*) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Accuracy/Damage

 (*) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance

 (*) Superior Opportunity Strikes - Recharge/Chance of Opportunity

 

Level 8:                 Aim       

 (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff

 (*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge

 (*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Recharge/Endurance

 (*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Recharge/Endurance

 (*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - To Hit Buff/Endurance

 (*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance of Build Up

 

Level 10:              Energize              

 (A) Preventive Medicine - Heal

 (*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Endurance

 (*) Preventive Medicine - Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Recharge

 (*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Recharge/Endurance

 (*) Preventive Medicine - Chance for +Absorb

 

Level 12:              Power Shield    

 (A) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance: Level 50+5

 (*) Shield Wall - Defense: Level 50+5

 

Level 14:              Lancer Shot       

(A) Apocalypse - Damage: Level 50+5

 (*) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge: Level 50

 (*) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50

 (*) Apocalypse - Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5

 (*) Apocalypse - Damage/Recharge: Level 50

 (*) Apocalypse - Chance of Damage (Negative): Level 50

 

Level 16:              Entropy Shield  

 (A) IO Endurance: Level 50+5

 

Level 18:              Refractor Beam               

 (A) Hami-O Centriole (Damage/Range): Level 53

 (*) D-Sync Guidance (Accuracy/Range): Level 53

 (*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage (Lethal)

 (*) Bombardment - Chance of Damage (Fire)

 (*) Shield Breaker - Chance of Damage (Lethal)

 (*) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance of Damage (Negative)

 

Level 20:              Power Armor    

 (A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance

 (*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance

 (*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Recharge

 (*) Unbreakable Guard - +Max HP

 (*) IO Health: Level 50+5

 (*) IO Health: Level 50+5

 

Level 22:              Piercing Beam  

 (A) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage

 (*) Annihilation - Damage/Recharge

 (*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge

 (*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance

 (*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Annihilation - Chance of Res Debuff

 

Level 24:              Repelling Force

 (A) IO Defense: Level 50+5

 (*) IO Defense: Level 50+5

 

Level 26:              Overcharge

 (A) Superior Frozen Blast - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Javelin Volley - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge: Level 50+5

 (*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage (Lethal)

 (*) Bombardment - Chance of Damage (Fire)

 (*) Shield Breaker - Chance of Damage (Lethal)

 (*) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance of Damage (Negative)

 

Level 28:              Kinetic Damping              

 (A) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)

 (*) Gladiator's Armor - Resistance: Level 50+5

 (*) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)

 (*) Aegis - 5% Psi Resist / 20% Mezz Resist

 

Level 30:              Maneuvers        

 (A) Reactive Defenses - Defense

 (*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/Endurance

 (*) Reactive Defenses - Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/Recharge

 (*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/Endurance/Recharge

 (*) Reactive Defenses - Scaling Resist Damage

 

Level 32:              Power Drain      

 (A) D-Sync Conduit (End Mod/Recharge): Level 53

 

Level 35:              Combat Jumping             

 (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

 

Level 38:              Assault

 (A) Endurance Reduction IO: Level 50+5

 

Level 41:              Overload             

 (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

 

Level 44:              Hover   

 (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

 

Level 47:              Evasive Manuevers        

 (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

 

Level 49:              Vengeance        

 (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

 

Level 1: Brawl    

 (A) Empty

 

Level 1: Sprint   

 (A) Endurance Reduction IO: Level 50+5

 

Level 1: Vulnerability     

 

Level 2: Rest      

 (A) Interrupt Reduction IO: Level 50

 

Level 2: Athletic Run      

 

Level 2: Swift     

 (A) Run Speed IO: Level 50+5

 

Level 2: Hurdle 

 (A) Jumping IO: Level 50+5

 

Level 2: Health  

 (A) Panacea - +Hit Points/Endurance

 (*) Miracle - +Recovery

 

Level 2: Stamina               

 (A) Performance Shifter - Chance of +End

 (*) Performance Shifter - EndMod

 (*) Power Transfer - Chance of Heal

 

------------

 

This was NOT the ordering of powers (or slotting choices) while leveling... beyond Superiors/VRs... as there were some globals I wanted earlier in the build.

 

Energize is on auto-fire.

 

One thing I did here that I generally don't recommend was going heavy with %damage in Overcharge (the AoE nuke), but I was motivated by:

• Cutting Beam felt like an inferior %damage power (mostly due to the small number of potential targets), and
• I wanted to mix up different damage types over as many targets as possible. See also Refractor Beam choices.

I'm somewhat uncertain about the Endurance consumption (and recovery) profile. Because of mission rewards, this character has some Endurance/Recovery boosts... but I found myself rarely needing to use Power Drain, such that I delayed picking it and pulled a slot from it. I added that slot to Power Armor to boost HP. I may pull the D-Sync and replace it with a boosted EndMod piece. (Non-scaling) Resistances are generally around 30%, with Psi the lowest at 21%. I could boost Toxic/Psi with the last Ragnarok piece, but I felt boosting the HP in Power Armor was a smarter choice.

 

When I have all the toggles (up to level 35) running, the "standing still" typed Defenses are something like:

Smashing/Lethal: 40%

Fire/Cold: 42%

Energy: 47.6%

Negative: 38.7%

Psi: 22%

Toxic: 17.5% (the only type lower than each positional)

 

I was surprised at how well the T9 Overload works. I found myself using it in circumstances when I got into hairy situations but that I could extract myself from (via pew-pew) within the 3 minute active time. With only the global Recharge (around 110%) it has a somewhat reasonable downtime. I only delayed it because I felt the other powers offered more general utility.

 

[Full Procs vs. Limited Procs: A Pylon DPS Comparison]

On 9/11/2023 at 6:10 PM, Without_Pause said:

Oddly enough its AoE is worse.

[Officially Unofficial Weekly Discussion #46: Power Enhancement (what do you prioritize when slotting a toon?)]

Generally I go in three phases:

 

Zero phase (before I have anything like an attack chain that doesn't rely on P2W powers)

• I slot the 'freebie' %damage pieces

Initial Phase

• I slot Accuracy, then Endurance in attacks
• I slot Endurance in toggles
• I don't add slots to Defense or Resists
• I generally just slot with drops, because 'Beginner's Luck'

Coming into shape phase (around level 10, certainly by level 16)

• I slot (an attuned) PVP Panacea %+HP/%+End ASAP into Health
• If the character has a power that takes Resists I will slot (attuned) globals PVP Gladiator's Armor and/or Steadfast Protection for more Defense (I will add a second slot)
• If the character has a toggle or auto that takes Defense I will slot (attuned) Kismet +ToHit
• If the character has any power that will take Defense, I will slot (attuned) PVP Shield Wall
• At this point, I usually try to three-slot a power that will take ATOs. I am merit-rich and ATOs are generally a good investment so I just use the merit vendors.
• If I have a travel power, I almost always slot an (attuned) piece of the Blessing of the Zephyr set (depending on what I need either Endurance Reduction or KB protection)

Turn on the gas...After level 20 (level 17 for some attuned)

• Since I want crafting badges for 25/30 (MOAR salvage slots) I will craft these IO recipes and slot IOs for Running, Jumping, Endurance, Recharge.
• QoL choices: This is the point when many (attuned) sets become viable. The ur-example is Performance Shifter for Stamina, Gaussian's %Build Up, Miracle +Recovery, etc.
• I will usually try to 6-slot one of the ATO sets. Often I have the other ATO set split between two other powers.
• I will replace the %freebies with attuned %damage (or ATO pieces)

By Level 50, my priorities are:

• Accuracy in attacks (some Global accuracy can come from set bonuses)
• Endurance reduction (to support button mashing)... some sets offer +MaxEnd, Global Endurance Discounts, +Recovery
• Global Recharge (although I don't often take Hasten)
• Defense over Resistance

It is rare for me that I will prioritize slotting for secondary effects when:

• The secondary effect is so short as to not be noticeable
• The secondary effect is "all there is"
• The secondary effect is single-target and requires a ToHit

Occassionally I will take a T1/T2 power and try to turn it into a %damage "attack" (many damaging/slow single-targets are good for this) but if it is a single-target mezz/debuff I usually just have it slotted for accuracy while leveling and then switch to a HamiO Acc/Mezz (they are cheap) or a boosted 50+5 piece (even cheaper).

 

When it comes to some slots: In the final build I will almost always pick a Quality-of-Life slotting choice that scales across levels than trying to eek out MOAR (whatever). Sometimes a little more recharge/defense/resistance just isn't adding as much as more travel speed (for example).

 

[EPP pains]

I agree with @Uun thinking. I found Primal Forces to be a good Epic choice for my Mind/Poison Controller, specifically to add more 'I do damage options and knock enemies around' to the build. For this character, Power Boost wasn't important (It would help some things, but not so much as I would notice). I could have added to the build, but it would only have the single default slot.

 

My picks were:

 

Level 35:    Power Blast    
 (A) Apocalypse - Damage: Level 50+5
 (*) Apocalypse - Damage/Recharge: Level 50
 (*) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge: Level 50
 (*) Apocalypse - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50
 (*) Apocalypse - Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5
 (*) Gladiator's Javelin - Chance of Damage (Toxic): Level 50

 

Level 38:    Temp Invulnerability    
 (A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%: Level 30

 

Level 41:    Energy Torrent    
(A) HamiO:Centriole Exposure (Damage/Range)Level  53
(*) D-Sync: Guidance (Accuracy/Range) Level 53
(*) Positron's Blast - Chance of Damage (Energy): Level 50
(*) Bombardment - Chance of Damage (Fire): Level 50
(*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage (Lethal): Level 50
(*) Explosive Strike - Chance for Damage (Smashing): Level 20

 

For this character, I didn't invest many slots in several early power picks in order to have them for use as shown. I mention this only because I'm 50/50 on each character on going thick or thin on Epic/patron slotting. With these extra attacks (plus what I was doing with the primary/secondary AoEs and debuffs) I found that I could clear +0x8 maps in a reasonable amount of time.

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

4 hours ago, A.I.D.A. said:

 

You can absolutely make an endless chain with three single-target attacks, especially if two of them are T1 and T2. But you shouldn't need to. You only need the disintegration spread to proc once. Even if it's a pseudopet for the chaining mechanic, it should inherit the accuracy slotted into Disintegrate (the power). Is there any reason why Disintegrate -> Lancer Shot -> T9 isn't working for you as an opener? In my experience, enemies don't scatter the moment they're tagged with a ranged attack, the group of enemies all aggros and bum-rushes me. Certainly they don't scatter enough to outrange the disintegrate spread, and you don't need the status to be on every enemy before it's time to hit the nuke button.

 

 

Neither the T1 nor T2 is a 100% chance to (try to) spread. IIRC each is under 50%. The accuracy on the pet that does the spreading is 1.8 IIRC, so it also has to make a ToHit roll after both the T1/T2 attack (ceiling 95%) and the chance to spawn.

 

What I typically observe at range (with a standard x1 spawn) is that targeting one spawn with Disintegration will typically start that spawn moving (away from nearby allies). By the time Lancer Shot actually goes off, the spawn is often more than 15' away from any allies... and then the hyper-speed Stun takes over, which makes the placement of that (now Stunned critter) completely unpredictable... the smallish Sentinel AoEs do not help here. These powers all have non-zero cast times. I don't think we should count on the T9 attack being up for every spawn when considering set balance.

 

This is less noticeable if I change the spawn size (after the late-30s I was typically running the Sentinel at +0x3) OR the critters in a spawn stay at range. The latter should be obvious (spawn normally doesn't move, so it stays put... modulo Stun behavior) and with larger spawn sizes I simply worried less about opening with a Disintegration unless there was some sort of target I wanted 'softened up'. Larger spawns typically have more pockets of closely grouped enemies; the standard +0x1 3-critter spawn almost always has two critters within 15' of each other and the 3rd standing apart.

 

It was this standard spawn size where I was noticing the clunkiness of Beam Rifle's Disintegration (compared to Defender), because the Sentinel (a) has fewer attacks that could even spread try to spread Disintegration and (b) the AoE attacks basically end up being used against single-targets... at least for 'default' spawn sizes. The Disintegration effect is often (casually) mentioned as needing to be factored into 'DPS calculations' for the Beam Rifle set... but in the case of Sentinels it really feels like this barely moves the needle (without upping spawn sizes) because of the fewer available attacks to possibly spread Disintegration.

 

16 hours ago, FupDup said:

One possibility for an AOE enhancement could be turning Refractor Beam into a true chain attack, because right now the description is a lie. It's actually just a standard 15 ft circular AOE attack like Ball Lightning, M30, etc. This would further distinguish the set from not only its other AT counterpart but also other blast sets (right now the only chain blast attack is in Storm Blast). 

 

I'm ok with Refractor Beam as is (i.e. NOT a chain) for a couple of reasons:

• AFAIK, chain powers work via (pseudo)pets. If so, the accuracy of the pet would end up being 'fixed'. This could result in unintended consequences.
• as a 'Standard' ranged AoE power, it has better %damage options than it would as a straightforward ranged attack... also I think %procs would only really work against the initial target.

While the effect would look cooler, I think it would make choices for slotting the power a lot less interesting. This sort of change feels like it might break more than it fixes. I'd just update the power description!

[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.