tidge

July 25, 2023

If a player has a single character with mini-mode purchased, they can visit the facemaker/bodyshaper to test a new costume and/or body type on that character using one of the many free costume slots.

July 25, 2023

15 hours ago, StriderIV said:

I’ve ran an Elec Armor/Dark Melee tanker, but have been really interested in running the inverse of the combo! Would love to see your builds to use as a base!

Here is my current noodling:

Spoiler

Primary Power Set: Dark Armor
Secondary Power Set: Electrical Melee
Power Pool: Experimentation
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Concealment
Power Pool: Leaping

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

Level 1: Dark Embrace
(A) Gladiator's Armor - End/Resist: Level 50+5
(*) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)
(*) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%

Level 1: Havok Punch
(A) Superior Gauntleted Fist - Accuracy/Damage
(*) Superior Gauntleted Fist - Damage/RechargeTime
(*) Superior Gauntleted Fist - Accuracy/Damage/RechargeTime
(*) Superior Gauntleted Fist - Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime
(*) Superior Gauntleted Fist - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime

Level 2: Murky Cloud
(A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance
(*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance
(*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance/RechargeTime
(*) Unbreakable Guard - +Max HP

Level 4: Jacob’s Ladder
(A) Superior Might of the Tanker - Accuracy/Damage
(*) Superior Might of the Tanker - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Superior Might of the Tanker - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Superior Might of the Tanker - Recharge/Chance for +Res(All)
(*) Perfect Zinger - Chance for Damage (Psi)
(*) Scirocco's Dervish - Chance for Damage (Lethal)

Level 6: Speed of Sound
(A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Travel/Endurance: Level 50+5

Level 8: Dark Regeneration
(A) Touch of the Nictus - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Touch of the Nictus - Accuracy/Endurance/Heal/HitPoints/Regeneration
(*) Touch of the Nictus - Chance for Damage (Negative)
(*) Scirocco's Dervish - Chance for Damage (Lethal)
(*) Eradication - Chance for Damage (Energy)
(*) Theft of Essence - Chance for +Endurance

Level 10: Obsidian Shield
(A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance
(*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance

Level 12: Cloak of Darkness
(A) Shield Wall - +Res (Teleportation), +5% Res (All)
(*) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance: Level 50+5
(*) Shield Wall - Defense: Level 50+5
(*) Kismet - Accuracy +6%
(*) Reactive Defenses - Scaling Resist Damage
(*) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

Level 14: Taunt
(A) Mocking Beratement - Taunt
(*) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Range
(*) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge
(*) Mocking Beratement - Recharge
(*) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge/Range
(*) Mocking Beratement - Accuracy/Recharge

Level 16: Thunder Strike
(A) Multi-Strike - Accuracy/Endurance: Level 50+5
(*) Superior Gauntleted Fist - RechargeTime/+Absorb
(*) Scirocco's Dervish - Chance for Damage (Lethal)
(*) Eradication - Chance for Damage (Energy)
(*) Perfect Zinger - Chance for Damage (Psi)
(*) Explosive Strike - Chance for Damage (Smashing)

Level 18: Death Shroud
(A) Superior Avalanche - Damage/Endurance
(*) Scirocco's Dervish - Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5

Level 20: Experimental Injection
(A) Preventive Medicine - Chance for +Absorb

Level 22: Corrosive Vial
(A) Positron's Blast - Chance for Damage (Energy)
(*) Bombardment - Chance for Damage (Fire)
(*) Javelin Volley - Chance for Damage (Lethal)
(*) Touch of Lady Grey - Chance for Damage (Negative)
(*) Javelin Volley - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge: Level 50+5
(*) Ragnarok - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50+5

Level 24: Chain Induction
(A) Hecatomb - Damage: Level 50+5
(*) Hecatomb - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Hecatomb - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Hecatomb - Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5
(*) Hecatomb - Chance for Damage (Negative): Level 50
(*) Gladiator's Strike - Chance for Damage (Smashing)

Level 26: Cloak of Fear
(A) Siphon Insight - ToHit Debuff
(*) Siphon Insight - Accuracy/ToHit Debuff
(*) Siphon Insight - Accuracy/Recharge
(*) Siphon Insight - ToHit Debuff/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Siphon Insight - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Siphon Insight - Chance for +ToHit

Level 28: Lightning Clap
(A) Absolute Amazement - Stun: Level 50+5
(*) Absolute Amazement - Stun/Recharge: Level 50+5
(*) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Stun/Recharge: Level 50+5
(*) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50+5
(*) Absolute Amazement - Endurance/Stun: Level 50+5
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback to Knockdown

Level 30: Lightning Rod
(A) Armageddon - Damage/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Armageddon - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Armageddon - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Armageddon - Damage/Endurance: Level 50+5
(*) Armageddon - Chance for Fire Damage: Level 50
(*) Range: Level 50+5

Level 32: Build Up
(A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up
(*) Recharge Reduction IO: Level 50+5

Level 35: Adrenal Booster
(A) Recharge Reduction IO: Level 50+5
(*) Recharge Reduction IO: Level 50+5

Level 38: Maneuvers
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

Level 41: Combat Jumping
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

Level 44: Soul Transfer
(A) Power Transfer - Chance to Heal

Level 47: Super Jump
(A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points)

Level 49: Stealth
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed

Level 1: Brawl
(A) Empty

Level 1: Gauntlet

Level 1: Sprint
(A) Empty

Level 2: Rest
(A) Empty

Level 1: Athletic Run

Level 2: Swift
(A) Run Speed IO: Level 50+5

Level 2: Health
(A) Panacea - +Hit Points/Endurance
(*) Numina's Convalesence - +Regeneration/+Recovery
(*) Numina's Convalesence - Heal

(*) Miracle - +Recovery

Level 2: Hurdle
(A) Jumping IO: Level 50+5

Level 2: Stamina
(A) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
(*) Performance Shifter - EndMod

I suppose there are two personal motivations for this build:

I wanted to try some powers I haven't used (or didn't work as well as I liked on other ATs)
I wanted to make a scrappy tank (so leverage larger AoE and %procs)
I wanted the build to be "essentially complete" by level 32

For example: I've never used Dark Armor, and I was disappointed with Electrical Melee attacks on my Dominator. Electrical Melee (and Corrosive Vial) seem to work pretty well for this Tanker.

To those ends, I recognize that this build is committing (at least!) a couple of "Tanker sins":

I did not make an effort to maximize either Defenses OR Resistances (sorry Fighting Pool!)
I did not pursue +Max Health/HP (also there may be some room for more Regeneration)

Frankly: I don't mind living on the edge and allowing teammates to provide buffs. I can sort of see which enemies are going to be problematic. I will consider a second build that leans into those things missing from this build for when a sturdier Tanker is needed.

I haven't actually settled on the powers (order, choices) for levels 38+. I was initially going to not include the Leaping pool and simply leverage the Concealment pool as LotG mules, but I figured "What is one more toggle for some more defense?" and slipped in Combat Jumping, which casually allowed Super Jump as a mule for some KB protection (or Slow resist).

Some noodling on Lightning Rod may happen. As of right now I have a Range IO and the Armageddon %Fire... but I have considered doing this instead:

Swap out the Range IO for a Centriole 53 (I have them cluttering storage!)
Swap the Armageddon %Fire for the Damage piece, and then boost each to 50+5

The second swap would allow me to add the %Fire to an earlier-level power (like Thunder Strike or Dark Regeneration). I need to get more practice using Lightning Rod... I think once the global Recharge is higher I will leverage Lightning Rod more than I have been while leveling.

I also haven't made a final decision on the slotting of Cloak of Fear and Build Up. Normally I'd 6-slot Build Up with Gaussian's (if not going with the 2-slotting as shown) but I kind of want the -ToHit (and Fear) effect, so improving Accuracy and Endurance consumption in the aura seems like a better investment ATM.

July 24, 2023

1 hour ago, Yomo Kimyata said:

If I were making a tanker like this, I'd probably consider not even worrying about melee defense and just looking at ranged defense.

The workshop version of my Dark/Electric Tanker has poor (positional) ranged defense! Type defenses are better, and AoE is fine. After I've got it leveled up I will have more to say... I'm skipping the Fitness Pool and making some set choices that have put me in this (poor) position(al). This character is about trying some new things, such as the Experimentation pool(*1).

2 hours ago, Nyghtmaire said:

I like the stacking with Oppressive Gloom. Depending on global accuracy...

I planned to skip Oppressive Gloom! On other characters, I've never been satisfied with this type of aura, even if they seem to be what the cool kids are wearing. Global Accuracy is vitally important for my take on the build... The finished build will have the Kismet +ToHit piece in Cloak of Darkness! This is weighing heavily on the "play-up" period because I don't yet have those set bonuses for Accuracy, and I'm slotting for Endurance management pre-50.

Sidebar: The "wanderers" are something I worry about for this character. For example: I am leveraging Dark Regeneration as a(nother) PBAoE source of damage... it's just that the Endurance cost for this is so high I ended up taking out a %damage and put the Theft of Essence %+Endurance piece in to mitigate it's use!

(*1) I'm liking the Experimentation pool so far. My thoughts:

Experimental Injection was going to be skipped, but I worked it back in to use as a mule.

Toxic Dart was in the build (to provide an extra ST attack, and for a set bonus) but with more Recharge I don't need it so it was pulled from build (freeing many slots)

Speed of Sound is my Combat Teleport replacement, and the travel power. I feel like I will have to mock up a set of macro/rotating bindfiles to toggle it on/off and TP to target on demand, since I don't like to keep it on during heavy combat.

Corrosive Vial is crazy good, either as an opening attack and especially once I have clustered enemies near me.

Adrenal Booster it is planned but not yet taken.

July 24, 2023

I am workshopping a Dark/Electric Tanker. and I am looking at the T8 Secondary Lightning Clap.

Originally, I had planned to franken-slot this with 4xAbsolute Amazement (to get 15% Accuracy Bonus) and some %damage. As I've been playing (solo) I'm confronted with how I actually use the power:

I like the PBAoE Stun aspect
The knockback (because it is a PBAoE on a melee character) is problematic, even for me (a player who tolerates KB)

I'm just about committed to slotting a KB->KD piece, but I'm wondering if I should go 5x for the little bit of extra Recharge? The build will have a couple of powers/slotting choices where the extra 10% Global recharge can help. This power is consuming 6 slots, and it is an AoE that I'd otherwise like to keep.

I'm wondering what the collective thoughts are on Lightning Clap?

July 21, 2023

20 hours ago, Without_Pause said:

See Arbegla's response above. I ran /traps MM on live. So you put down less stuff down on each mob. It really isn't that big of a deal. In the current meta, there pretty much isn't a build which on the right team you can't go half-speed and feel like it is fine or even hell just standing around and soaking up the rewards.

I agree 100%. with no Hasten in the build my Robotics/Traps can toss Caltrops on every spawn, have two Acid Mortars out at a time. Posion Trap is under 30 seconds recharge IIRC. I've skipped Seeker Drones, Trip Mine and Detonator. I wonder if it an old-school thinking about setting up Trip Mines has confused players that think MM /Traps is "slow"?

The only thing that actually slows down my deployment of traps are those maps where the map construction itself defeats my ability to use targeting macros to deploy traps. (Folks in the know will know what I am referring to.) Off the top of my head the ONLY enemies that provide an inherent aggravation for /Traps are Caleb (gotta get it close to the ground) and Diabolique (because she will fly far away, often while intangible)... and to a much lesser extent the Arachnos Flier (not a big deal, but the short period when it has its shields down and isn't close to the ground mitigates the usefulness of some Traps). I find that /Traps is a great secondary against groups like Knives of Artemis, Carnies, as well as any group that is inclined to make a mad scramble away from the action. If this bothered me enough, I wouldn't have skipped the immobilize!

Of those last three powers: the only one I'd consider adding back into the build are the Seeker Drones, but Robotics/Traps doesn't need a -ToHit (and the other effects aren't worth it IMO) and my MM has plenty to do with its primary/secondary. As I wrote above, an immobilize would serve me better... but even with AoE options in the Patron pools I won't make the change.

July 20, 2023

Which link(s) are you checking?

July 18, 2023

Traps has some of the best debuffs in the game, and the -Regen from Mastermind Robotic attacks is golden. The FFG is a team Defense (all) with a base of +10%.

Henchmen (not Pet) Builds are incredibly tanky, and can also be used to chase down runners, soak alpha strikes, or draw more enemies to a kill zone.

July 18, 2023

43 minutes ago, honoroit said:

water jet is a super fast cast, and doubled up, is probably comperable to a quickcast snipe'ish?

Water Jet is only "fast (immediate re-) cast" when Tidal Power is accumulated (for the first cast, and it hits). Assuming both casts of Water Jet hit, on paper this is a theoretic doubling of damage... subject to the inherent recharge of the initial cast of course. In contrast the (Blaster) Snipes I am most familiar with:

Are a much earlier attack choice in the Primary
Can get a constant +6% damage increase (for Fast) by having the Kismet +6% ToHit piece active
Are more reliable %proc damage (usually there is good choice of some enhancement set that includes a %damage piece) power

For me, I always feel like I am getting more (and steadier) damage output from a Snipe. Part of what turned me off from Water Jet (I tried it, for a good while!) was that it felt like "I waited until level 18 for this?" Even with slotting, I was unimpressed. As I was growing disenchanted with Water Jet, I started paying close attention to other Water Blast characters on PUGs, looking for "ENHANCED WATER JET!" and even those characters who had the power (I love the animation!) I wasn't seeing it that often... and it was making much less of a splash (pun intended) than the AoEs.

As I wrote, Water Jet "feels" like it is reasonably balanced if:

Tidal Power is always accumulated when casted
BOTH Water Jet attacks hit

Those conditions are almost enough a deal breaker by themselves (hi RNG!), but it doesn't offer enough synergy with the rest of the set for me, in terms of DoT or AoE.

July 18, 2023

Acid Mortar could be a reasonably easy power to test (against even/higher level enemies):

Don't bring out pets
Take the SG Invisibility Buff, run with +Stealth so that the MM is not a target
Drop the Acid Mortar near enemies, let it do its thing.
Don't attack, allow the enemies to attack the Acid Mortar

Review the combat logs.

Change slotting, repeat. The main confounding factor will be how many potential targets the Acid Mortar has, but many enemies should group around it for melee attacks.

July 18, 2023

On 7/15/2023 at 11:47 AM, honoroit said:

with regard to water jet i couldnt disagree more. its a double cast with tidal power thingy, and quick cast at that.

if you git gud and dont miss (skill issue), which apparently consumes the charge without resetting the cd... or doesnt... i only know its awesome... then that sound wonderous!

RNG says "Hi". I'm a no-sell on Water Jet because it takes both a power pick and slots just to sometimes get a second cast of a single-target attack (that may or may not hit).

For my blasters, the take Water Blast primary breaks down as:

Aqua Bolt / Hydro Blast : Two single-target attacks. Pick one and slot it with the Defiant Barrage ATO, skip the other.

Water Burst: The first AoE, and an important one. Take it.

Whirlpool: an AoE Debuff, that includes -Speed. Take it, unless you are completely giving up on AoE.

Tidal Forces: The set's Build-up, easily delayed (or even skipped) if the secondary has a better Build-Up.

Dehydrate: Single target attack, self-heal, debuff. Take it.

Water Jet: Sometimes fast-cast single target attack. It's on the bubble as it isn't radically different than other powers... and it is the only attack that needs Tidal Power to stand out.

Steam Spray: A decent cone, with off-brand damage type. Take it.

Geyser: The AoE Nuke. Take it.

I suppose that if no attacks are being taken from the secondary, Water Jet could fit into an attack chain. Running through a no-gap attack chain is pretty important! Usually I'm doing something with the secondary in the course of making attacks (including blapping, which can also be single-target!). Build-wise, I'm usually trying to balance choices of enhancements to slot for set bonuses; one more single-target ranged attack on a Blaster doesn't excite me.

I'd feel very differently if this was a Snipe. I see what the set is doing differently (as opposed to it being a Snipe). It's just that for my taste, the specific mechanics of getting the most out of Water Jet are a lot more convoluted and conditional than Snipes, and using Tidal Power for Water Jet means I'm not using Tidal Power for another attack power. For Snipes, I can run fast or slow, I can boost damage on Snipes with passive (or active) +ToHit bonuses, and Snipes can take a greater variety of Enhancement sets. The recent fix to not auto-burn Tidal Power on a miss has improved Water Jet, but its still not teh choice for me.

Frankly: I'd sooner pick the other single-target ranged attack available at level 1 first and slot it before I'd take Water Jet, since then I'd have a second attack that could be cast when mezzed. I wouldn't need to rely on Tidal Power to improve its performance. As things stand, I have better used for not just the power pick that would go to Water Jet but also any slots I would dedicate to it.

July 18, 2023

15 hours ago, wRECk69 said:

I'm looking for something that I can solo up through the game at a leisurely pace. However, I'd like it to stand up to whatever challenges await--AVs in arcs and TFs, mobs (though I don't care about soloing +4/x8 at level 2), and perhaps even GMs once I am able build-wise.

2 hours ago, evetsleep said:

When it comes to soloing "at a leisurely pace" I am hard pressed to not recommend (bots/thug/mercs)/traps mastermind. Bots and Thugs are a classic well tested SOLO set and mercs, with the recent changes, are very much improved.

There are a LOT of AT that can tackle almost all the content in the game; if you want leisurely, I think Robotics/Traps is probably the path you want to take. My reasoning:

Robot henchmen attacks are almost entirely ranged, which makes them a lot less frenetic than other henchmen
The Robotics primary's recent rework is quite good (especially with Maintenance Drone, a no-think henchman heal), Triage Beacon is not required.
The Traps secondary is a solid debuff set, and FFG is a great no-think buff power
The Traps secondary's last three powers are entirely skippable, which allows for team buffs (Leadership pool) or travel options (Group Fly for rocket boots!)

Mastermind henchmen do suffer level shifts, and AoE can be a shock... but no one is obligated to run +3 content if they don't want to. The most "active" that a Robotics/Traps MM has to be in my experience is:

Against most Giant Monsters and AVs, the MM will have to make attacks to apply -Regen
Against large spawns, especially those that apply -Resistance, you may have to be respawning the henchmen.

July 18, 2023

Why does the Paragon City department of roads use names like "Dark Astoria" on road signs, but "Woodvale", "Baumtown", and "Overbrook" on others? And why does the Hazard sign in Steel Canyon read "Boomtown", but the hazard gate in Atlas Park for the Hollows reads "Eastgate"?

July 18, 2023

53 minutes ago, macskull said:

I don't quite understand how the AH history bug came into being, since it wasn't there on live. I suppose maybe bucketing things together did something, but I can't see any obvious connections.

The AH itself relies on a database; it is very likely that the different views/ways-into the database aren't entirely 'robust'. The mechanism Homecoming uses to 'bucket' items could certainly be contributing, although I suspect the problem is more fundamental.

July 17, 2023

1 hour ago, Arbegla said:

One thing to consider, is Caltrops is autohit, so Acc isn't really that useful in it. Acid Mortar does need some Acc, but if I remember correctly it already has a decent Acc bonus (1.10?) and once you hit with it, the -def helps you hit again. Plus it stacks on itself, so multiple Acid Mortars means you're bound to get the debuff to land.

IIRC, every %proc in an attack requires a ToHit, which is why I have the Accuracy piece slotted, and why I often with look for combination pieces that include Accuracy on powers that I slot with %procs

Originally, I had a second %-Resistance debuff in Acid Mortar, when I swapped in the Accuracy piece I felt like I was seeing a much more even application of the %-Resistance. I was almost never seeing both %-Resistances.

July 16, 2023

10 hours ago, Chance Jackson said:

Bots no longer do KB?

What is better to slot for procs caltrops or acid mortar?

I want to say there is only one attack (from the robots) that still does Knockback. Otherwise they now do Knockdown.

Acid Mortar is pretty bad for %procs. I have the Annihilation %-Res piece in it only because several of my other AoE attacks include the same piece and I'm hoping for an extension of the -Resistance. Caltrops isn't a particularly good %proc power, but it has a larger area of effect than Acid Mortar (although IIRC it has a max target cap of fewer enemies) so the MM has more control where the power lands. I spent a long time fiddling with different choices of slotting (mostly testing to see how %proc helps); the slotting of each power I landed on is:

Level 1: Caltrops
(A) Annihilation - Damage/RechargeTime
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment - Damage/Recharge
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment - Chance for Damage(Cold)
(*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage(Lethal)

Level 14: Acid Mortar
(A) Undermined Defenses - Defense Debuff
(*) Undermined Defenses - Defense Debuff/Recharge
(*) Undermined Defenses - Recharge/Endurance
(*) Undermined Defenses - Recharge
(*) Annihilation - Chance for Res Debuff
(*) Accuracy: Level 50+5

Personally: Recharge is the most important for each, followed by Accuracy (especially if %procs are being leveraged!) The Damage slotting is simply because of what pieces were available in a given set; I treat these as primarily debuff powers.

I wouldn't fault anyone for substituting 4 pieces of Shield Breaker in place of Undermined Defenses in Acid Mortar; in my build positional defenses are soft-capped without that set bonus. Since Shield Breaker has a max level of 30, the final Accuracy IO would probably be something like a boosted Ragnarok Accuracy/Recharge piece instead.

July 15, 2023

I don't play either of those sets, but per CityofData it looks like Buckshot is still a 30° cone; Full Auto is 20°.

July 13, 2023

For Robotics, DPS went up. The straight-up changes to the henchmen were easy to notice when I took the "one big robot" build for a spin. Prior to the changes, it was painfully slow to defeat large spawns. It is better now, but still not recommended! Higher-order effects have also improved defeat times, as it is no longer strictly necessary to slot the robotic henchmen for KB->KD.

Defeat times for (open-world zone) Giant Monsters has mostly improved. The caveat is a little tricky to explain, so bear with me. With the -regen portion of the henchmen attacks being moved to the Mastermind's attacks, it means that the Mastermind has to be attacking (more-or-less) constantly. Prior to this change, it was possible for a Mastermind to go AFK and eventually (some) GMs would be defeated simply by the Robots. This is not (regularly) the case; eventually even the weakest of the GMs will score some good rolls and then the 'bots won't be able to finish them off. Maintenance Drone is a HUGE improvement for Robotics, but it won't keep henchmen alive if the boss is AFK. The one type of GM that now gives me MUCH more trouble are the level 50 Peregrine/Monster Island/Hive GMs. Previously, I found it straightforward to floor their Regen, apply resistances and do enough damage to defeat them solo. Now, even with the improved damage on the henchmen they can usually run "for help" and overcome damage being dealt from just regenerating. I suppose I could make some different build choices to handle these, but solo-fighting random PI GMs is not the type of content that I find particularly rewarding. I see the same type of trouble when soloing some "event" GMs in high-level zones (Nemesis, April's Fool).

Was this a big change? It wasn't for my Robotics build or playstyle... I had all along been using the primary (and epic) attacks for grabbing aggro, soft control via knockdown, and %debuffing. I think I moved up one of the attacks earlier in the build, and added Maintenance Drone, and some changes in slotting... the performance was improved and my build choices were not radically different. For players that had made different choices (like skipping all primary attacks), I can imagine them feeling some changes for some content like AVs and GMs.

July 13, 2023

Bah, I should go back and edit the post above, but this is more of general comment:

I usually don't recommend to try to put %damage pieces in Mastermind attacks, unless:

They are part of a set that will be slotted anyway
They are AoE

Masterminds have a terrible damage scale, so the %damage will improve the damage output of (only) the Mastermind... but it is IMO far better to improve the DPS of the Henchmen (and Pets). When looking at my proposed slotting for Howling Twilight, I think I would recommend swapping out the Positron's %damage piece for the Annihilation %-resistance. The +MaxEnd from Annihilation is something I consider valuable enough, I might swap out the other %damage piece for another Annihilation piece for some more Endurance and or Recharge improvements.

July 13, 2023

11 hours ago, StrikerFox said:

Overwhelming Force KD IO is great in Battle Drones. It gives all their attacks a chance to KD. Most of the Assault Bot's attacks knockback anyways. The Sudden Acceleration KB-KD IO would be a good replacement.

Not bad advice, but MOST of the Robotic attacks now do Knockdown, not Knockback. I put the Soulbound Allegiance %BuildUp in the Battle Drones.

I haven't looked at the proposed build (sorry no MIDS) Here is my (page 5) Robotics/Traps build for reference:

Spoiler

Primary Power Set: Robotics
Secondary Power Set: Traps
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Concealment
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery

------------
Level 1: Battle Drones
(A) Superior Mark of Supremacy - Damage: Level 50
(*) Superior Mark of Supremacy - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Soulbound Allegiance - Chance for Build Up: Level 50
(*) Expedient Reinforcement - Resist Bonus Aura for Pets: Level 50
(*) Sovereign Right – Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Sovereign Right - Resistance Bonus: Level 50

Level 1: Caltrops
(A) Annihilation - Damage/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment –Damage/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment –Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Ice Mistral’s Torment - Chance for Damage(Cold): Level 50
(*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage(Lethal): Level 50

Level 2: Pulse Rifle Bursst
(A) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback to Knockdown: Level 50
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback/Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback/Accuracy: Level 50
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback/Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback/Damage/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback/Recharge: Level 50

Level 4: Fly
(A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points): Level 50

Level 6: Equip Robot
(A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance: Level 50
(*) Unbreakable Guard - +7.5% MaxHP: Level 50

Level 8: Photon Grenade
(A) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Damage/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Chance for Res Debuff: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/RechargeTime: Level 50

Level 10: Hover
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50

Level 12: Protector Bots
(A) Superior Mark of Supremacy - Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Superior Mark of Supremacy - Accuracy/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Defense Buff IO: Level 50+5
(*) Edict of the Master: Defense Bonus: Level 40
(*) Call to Arms: Defense Aura for Pets: Level 30
(*) Call to Arms: Accuracy/Damage: Level 30

Level 14: Acid Mortar
(A) Undermined Defenses - Defense Debuff: Level 50
(*) Undermined Defenses - Defense Debuff/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Undermined Defenses - Recharge/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Undermined Defenses - Recharge: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Chance for Res Debuff: Level 50
(*) Achilles' Heel - Chance for Res Debuff: Level 20
(*) Accuracy: Level 50+5

Level 16: Force Field Generator
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50
(*) Luck of the Gambler - Defense: Level 50
(*) Defense Buff IO: Level 50+5

Level 18: Maintenance Drone
(A) Preventive Medicine - Heal: Level 50
(*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Preventive Medicine - Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Preventive Medicine - Chance for +Absorb: Level 50

Level 20: Poison Trap
(A) Gladiator's Net - Accuracy/Hold: Level 50+5
(*) Gladiator's Net - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Gladiator's Net - Chance of Damage(Lethal): Level 50
(*) Unbreakable Constraint Chance for Damage (Smashing): Level 50
(*) Entomb: Chance for +Absorb: Level 50

Level 22: Assault Bot
(A) Superior Command of the Mastermind - Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Superior Command of the Mastermind - Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Superior Command of the Mastermind - Damage/Endurance/Recharge: Level 50
(*) Superior Command of the Mastermind - Recharge/Pet +AoE Defense Aura: Level 50
(*) Superior Mark of Supremacy: Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Superior Mark of Supremacy: Endurance, +Resist (All) +Regen(Pets): Level 50

Level 24: Group Fly
(A) Winter's Gift - Slow Resistance (20%): Level 50

Level 26: Upgrade Robot
(A) Healing IO: Level 50+5

Level 28: Maneuvers
(A) HamiO:Cytoskeleton (Endurance / ToHit / Defense Buff): Level 53
(*) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50

Level 30: Tactics
(A) HamiO:Cytoskeleton (Endurance / ToHit / Defense Buff): Level 53
(*) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up: Level 50

Level 32: Evasive Manuevers

(A) Shield Wall: Teleportation Protection, +Res (All): Level 50

Level 35: Scorpion Shield
(A) Reactive Defenses - Defense: Level 50
(*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Reactive Defenses - Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Reactive Defenses - Defense/Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Reactive Defenses - Scaling Resist Damage: Level 50

Level 38: Kick
(A) Force Feedback - Chance for +Recharge

Level 41: Mace Beam Volley
(A) Sudden Acceleration - Knockback to Knockdown: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Damage/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime: Level 50
(*) Annihilation - Chance for Res Debuff: Level 50

Level 44: Tough
(A) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%: Level 30
(*) Aegis - Psionic/Status Resistance: Level 50
(*) Unbreakable Guard - +Max HP: Level 50
(*) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance: Level 50
(*) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All): Level 50

Level 47: Weave
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50

Level 49: Grant Invisibility
(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50

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

Level 1: Brawl
(A) Empty

Level 1: Sprint
(A) Unbounded Leap - +Stealth: Level 50

Level 1: Supremacy

Level 2: Rest
(A) Interrupt Reduction IO: Level 50+5

Level 4: Athletic Run

Level 2: Swift
(A) Flight Speed IO: Level 50+5

Level 2: Health
(A) Miracle - +Recovery: Level 40
(*) Panacea - +Hit Points/Endurance: Level 50
(*) Panacea - Heal: Level 50

Level 2: Hurdle
(A) Jumping IO: Level 50+5

Level 2: Stamina
(A) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End: Level 50
(*) Performance Shifter - EndMod: Level 50
(*) EnduranceMod IO: Level50+5

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

/Traps has more skippable powers than /Dark Miasma IMO, so choices would have to be made.

The Traps secondary changes that come to mind immediately are:

Caltrops ->Tar Patch, slotted with only 2x 50+5Recharge IOs (saves 4 slots, but costs some set bonuses)

Acid Mortar -> Howling Twilight

(A) Positron's Blast - Chance of Damage(Energy): Level 50

(*) Javelin Volley - Chance of Damage(Lethal): Level 50

(*) Absolute Amazement - Stun/Recharge: Level 50+5

(*) Absolute Amazement - Accuracy/Stun/Recharge: Level 50+5

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

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

Force Field Generator -> Darkest Night, with similar slotting (as a baseline)

(A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed: Level 50

(*) Luck of the Gambler - Defense: Level 50

(*) Defense Buff IO: Level 50+5

EDIT: I overlooked that Darkest Night is a toggle, so it should get some Defense/Endurance slotting, certainly in that third slot.

Poison Trap seems like a simple swap to Petrifying Gaze, but I would replace it with Fearsome Stare, that will double as a type of AoE immob:

(A) Cloud Senses - Chance for Negative Energy Damage: Level 30

(*) Cloud Senses - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge: Level 30

(*) Cloud Senses - Accuracy/ToHitDebuff: Level 30

(*) Cloud Senses - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 30

(*) Glimpse of the Abyss - Chance of Damage(Psionic): Level 50

Now: The new powers from /Dark Miasma that I would want are:

Dark Servant

(A) Cloud Senses - Chance for Negative Energy Damage: Level 30
(*) Cloud Senses - Accuracy/ToHitDebuff: Level 30
(*) Cloud Senses - ToHit Debuff: Level 30
(*) Cloud Senses - Accuracy/Recharge: Level 30

Twlight Grasp

(A) Theft of Essence - Chance for +Endurance: Level 30

(*) Touch of the Nictus - Chance for Negative Energy Damage: Level 50

(*) Touch of the Nictus - Accuracy/Healing: Level 50

(*) Touch of the Nictus - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge: Level 50

Normally I only include the %+Endurance while leveling, but MMs can burn Endurance at a rather high clip. I want to note that the Robotics new Maintenance Drone is absolutely fine for the henchmen, so skipping this Dark power would seem odd, but I think for the Robotics Primary it is justifiable (sorry teammates!)

Petrifying Gaze

(A) Gladiator's Net - Accuracy/Hold: Level 50+5
(*) Gladiator's Net - Accuracy/Endurance/Recharge/Hold: Level 50+5
(*) Gladiator's Net - Chance of Damage(Lethal): Level 50
(*) Unbreakable Constraint - Chance for Smashing Damage: Level 50
(*) Ghost Widow's Embrace - Chance of Damage(Psionic): Level 50
(*) Neuronic Shutdown - Chance of Damage(Psionic): Level 30

The important differences between the /Traps Poison Trap and the /Dark Petrifying Gaze are that Poison Trap is AoE and provides -Regen, making it IMO superior for almost all content. I am not sure I would dedicate as many slots to this power (on Dark) in a final build. I would probably want it for solo play.

To fit three new powers in the build, my initial thoughts on what to probably sacrifice:

Mace Beam Volley (even though it gives up a %-Resistance chance). Rather than give this up...

....I would probably have to NOT go into the Flight travel pool, giving up Hover, Fly, Group Fly, Evasive Manuevers, and using either Infiltration (Concealment pool) as my travel power, or... knowing myself... I might just make these choices (not saying what level to take them, just the power swaps)

Hover -> Mighty Leap (Experimentation)

Fly -> Twilight Grasp

Group Fly -> Dark Servant

Evasive Maneuvers -> Weaken Resolve (Experimentation)

Mace Bean Volley -> Wall of Force (Experimentation)

I have found a key to success with Robots is the application of -Regen (for hard targets) and -Resistance (for both large spawns and single hard targets). Tar Patch will go a long way to cover the -Resistance, yet I would still try to work the same %-resistance piece (I use Annihilation in ranged damage AoE) to help the henchmen stack damage. The experimentation pool helps with this. I also like the AoE cone of Wall of Force to keep aggro on the user (here, Mastermind). I also appreciate that Wall of Force can be taken at a much lower level than an Epic attack!

The single-target Hold is not considered for the reasons I outline above. Again, about me: on a Mastermind I don't think I would be able to leverage the single-target attack to as great an effect as I would by picking a different power. If you are down to a single target, I imagine it is better to debuff it for the henchmen than try to control (or even %damage) it myself.

July 13, 2023

9 hours ago, smnolimits43 said:

So I just went and saw Dead Reckoning. I'm thinking of making a Traps/Dual Pistols Defender. I haven't come up with a name though, maybe you guys could help me there ??

The Disavowed.

July 12, 2023

It's hard to tell from the video, what I *think* I saw was:

A patron pet was out/summoned (i.e. 'not dead')
The summon power recharged while the pet was still alive
The summon power was clicked while the pet was still alive
The pet died when its original timer (from previous summons) expired, frustrating the player because now they have to wait the whole cooldown period again.

If this is what happened: It's not a bug, as it is the default way many pet (not henchmen) powers work. This is particularly noticeable with Crabberminds: if you have summoned 3 Spiderlings (*1), 1 dies and you resummon to get the full roster of 3 again, all three will expire when the original batch go kablooey.

This is different than how henchmen work, and obviously this is not observed on other pets that don't have an inherent self-destruct timer. If the new summons destroyed all of the (remaining) original pets (like how respawning a FFG before the old one blows up gets you a brand new one) then we wouldn't see this. A potential workaround is that the controlling player could create a macro to toggle between destroying the old patron pet and summoning a new one. (of course, macros won't show cooldown timers)

I suppose it is fair to make a suggestion that this be changed (to force destruct then summons), but I don't think it is a bug.

As a practical matter: this is only observed for players that have an embarrassingly huge amount of global recharge... and whose patron pets don't get defeated before they would naturally expire... so it feels like a 'first-world problem' to me. YMMV. Without considered potential (enemy) slows; whenever I have a patron pet in the build I try to have just enough global recharge so that the patron pet summon power is a couple of seconds shy of (what might be called) 'perma'... specifically to avoid this potential frustration.

(*1) I suggest Spiderlings is the easiest to observe this phenomenon because the cooldown for Spiderlings is inherently short enough that slotted recharge plus global recharge bonuses can easily have the power recharged before the Spiderlings self-destruct by themselves. IIRC the Disruptors have the same timers as the Patron pets.

July 11, 2023

On 6/10/2023 at 8:07 AM, drgantz said:

Thank you for this research.

One thing that surprises me is that someone once told me that the best blasters are Fire, Ice and Water. Fire and Ice are at the top, but Water is near the bottom.

On 6/11/2023 at 6:33 PM, Maris said:

Water doesn't rank great on single-target testing but absolutely excels at AOE

I agree with @Maris; Water Blast is crazy good for AoE damage. I'd go so far to write that putting Water Jet in a build is probably hurting total DPS against anything except single, high-HP targets (which is a small fraction of gameplay for most circumstances)... for most ATs and pimary/secondary powerset choices, I can always find a better power to take in its place... and that is certainly true for the slots I would otherwise put in Water Jet.

Furthermore: The Homecoming Devs recently implemented a further improvement to Water Blast in that Tidal Power isn't wasted on a miss. For me, this was a previously a relatively minor annoyance (and was the biggest reason to skip Water Jet, IMO), but after this change I find myself paying slightly more attention to Tidal Power.

July 11, 2023

I always use (key/mouse) binds for things like:

target nearest (alive) enemy (within view, obviously)
quickchats
teleportation type powers (to get to someplace close by that I can see)

Rarely: I will set up keybinds for combining Inspirations, or for Mastermind controls. I used to set up keybinds to target teammates (for support), but in the current Homecoming such a trick yields only marginal benefits and varies too much between 'support' powers and classes for me to optimize.

I always use macros for things like:

location-target (powers, pseudopets); the default is almost always 'my selected target' with the non-select backup being 'at my feet'
Teleportation powers (always a 'TP to selected target', characters with ranged cone attacks also get a 'backwards ~20')
Kheldian form switching

I will occasionally add macros for emotes, tells based only on whimsy.

As I wrote above: Many quality-of-life changes have either eliminated the needs for macros, or marginalized whatever play improvement I used to get from them.

July 10, 2023

I don't ever remember using Placate (or its equivalent) on AVs, but in a different era of the game (when it was harder to have set bonuses) I would definitely use Placate when solo against Elie Bosses, just to get a breather. This was typically for lowish level characters that burned through their Inspirations. It's a perfectly fine power to have when leveling, kudos to those who keep and use it in their finished builds.

July 9, 2023

3 hours ago, Bionic_Flea said:

I can't think of any more off the top of my head. Can anyone else think of another predictable fluctuation?

All the ongoing factors were accounted for, except for the past sales on Winter packs (no longer going to happen), I think.

The only other 'one-offs' that I think have broadly affected the market have involved what I would characterize as "farmers 'vocal quitting' farming", as a result of some game change. The Vanguard Merit Change, the double-Inf/noXP change, the Empyrean Merit Change all had some 'vocal quitting' (no judgement, honest!), and I saw some market fluctuations (both up and down) in Recipes, Salvage, Converters. I couldn't begin to guess (or predict!) what any of those changes actually had on the market, if any. The only on-going (upward) fluctuation I have noticed is that Enhancement Converter prices on the AH are holding steady above where they had been. Since Emp Merits -> Converters -> Inf was probably the simplest raw conversion for Farmers, I want to believe that the Emp Merit change is partially responsible.

There may be occasional fluctuations in holiday salvage, or Prismatic Aethers... but I haven't noticed. EoE are at rock-bottom prices (as they should be). Maybe Ambrosia when the Eden Trial is the Weekly?

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