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I also have a Bots/Traps (but w/ Mace) that performs well enough... but I still consider many MM sets to be an under-performing is that the era of crafted Enhancements as the most straightforward way to make the henchmen perform well is to use the global Defense/Resist pieces.. and several sets ONLY have summon henchmen powers to take those pieces, so the T1/T2/T3 henchmen end up not being as well enhanced. MM secondary /Traps specifically allows for a LOT of debuffing, but that doesn't mean that primaries are performing in a reasonable manner. For larffs, I have a "one big Robot" build where I don't summon the T1 or T2 and only rely on the Assault Bot, so the big guy has the sort of aggressive enhancement slotting that I'd like to have in all three henchmen (because I dropped the globals in the summon powers I don't use)... and the mission clear times are terrible. They aren't as bad as a "no henchman" build, but whatta painful experience.

The Bio Armor secondary is very friendly for solo in 1-50. The auto powers and the 3-in-1 Adaptation, cover a lot of areas that early builds (which lack slots) will have. It offers Mez resistance early. It has an Absorb click. DNA Siphon can become a rapid-cycling AoE attack with very good %proc options, It's really a thing of beauty when fully slotted. If you have Inf (or merits) from another character, I have a few general Stalker Enhancement recommendations for the solo leveler (subject to level limits): Put the Kismet +Accuracy (really +ToHit) in Hide. You will almost always have this toggled on (curse you Kidnap/Rescue missions!) and the bonus is too important to pass up. Add the global PVP pieces from Shield Wall and Gladiator's Armor asap, as every little bit helps, especially when soloing the entire game. Don't bother with a Stealth Enhancement in Sprint, you won't need it except in very specific circumstances and even in those it will be of marginal benefit.

The Spiderlings should at least be 4-slotted for the Set bonus from Expedient Reinforcement. Being able to resummon the pets when they expire is important. Mileage varies if you want to put any of the pet global pieces in them.

My original Tanker is Inv/Energy Melee/Energy Mastery. I don't use latest MIDS, so any build wouldn't be much help. (sorry) I play all levels of content, here is the rough baseline I use. I have a couple of builds with the character, the primary is basically: Resist Physical Damage: (2 slots) Steadfast Protection, Impervium Armor Temp Invulnerability: (5 slots) 4xUnbreakable Guard, Impervium Armor Dull Pain: (6 slots) 6xPreventive Medicine Resist Elements: (1 slot) Impervium Armor Unyielding: (4 slots) 4xUnbreakable Guard Resist Energies: (4 slots) 3xGladiator's Armor, Impervium Armor Invincibility: (4 slots) 3xShield Wall, Impervium Armor Tough Hide: (4 slots) 2xLotG, Kismet, Reactive Defenses (%Scaling Resistance) The secondary is basically: Barrage: 5 slots (Superior) 5xMight of the Tanker (NB: the ATO %+Resistance is not really effective here) Bone Smasher: 5 slots (Superior) 5xGauntleted Fist Whirling Hands: 6 slots: Nucleolus (HO), Fury of The Glad (%-Res), Superior Gauntleted Fist (%Absorb), Armageddon (%Fire), Perfect Zinger (%Psi), Eradication (%Energy) Taunt: 6 slots 6xMocking Beratement Build Up: 6 slots 6xGaussian's Total Focus: 6 slots 4xMako's Bite, Perfect Zinger (%Psi), Touch of Death (%Negative) Energy Transfer: 6 slots 5xHeactomb, Touch of Death (%Negative) The Epic is Focused Accuracy: 1 slot Cytoskeleton (HO) Laser Beam Eyes: 6 slots (Superior) Winter's Bite Physical Perfection: 1 slot Power Transfer (%Heal) Hopefully you can figure out which Globals and %procs are used when not called out. I try to add more Global +Recharge from LotG mules. That base has room for 6 more power picks, with IIRC 15 more slots. I typically have 2 in Health (Panacea, Numina) and 2 in Stamina (Performance Shifter) and a travel power (With Slow Resist). I usually don't have slots to dedicate to Energy Torrent (it would come at either level 47 or 49 anyway), and I would want to %proc it. I also don't have a good spot (or slots) for Power Crash, which I would also try to %proc (and put the Might of the Tanker ATO %+Res in it) . I like Taunt, and I like the 6xslot bonuses from Mocking Beratement, but those slots could be freed up. If the Travel power is skipped, that frees an extra power pick. Many folks recommend adding the Gaussian's %Build Up piece to Invincibility, which can also free slots... but I greatly prefer it in a (high recharge) Build Up, because it is usually in one-on-one combat that I want the reliable boost (Bosses, AVs, GMs). I'd never have less than 3 slots in Build Up if I can help it (the Gaussian's %Build Up, plus max recharge). I usually grab Leadership powers for LotG Mules, and I try to have a 2-slot Hasten for those times when the build will be tanking something REALLY hard (to help with Dull Pain recharge time), otherwise I find that Hasten really isn't needed. 3 picks from the Fighting pool can add more Resistance and Defense (and opportunities for set bonuses), but except for very difficult content I don't find those to be that necessary. I think there is a balance to be decided on... if you want to solo, hard, high-level content with large spawns... then powers like Taunt and the Leadership pool are probably less important that more Res/Def and more AoE (Power Crash, Energy Torrent) would probably help more. I may use the third build to experiment with such a build!

Tough is just 4x Unbreakable Guard (I like the 2-piece bonus), and the tiny bit of Smashing/Lethal Defense (4-piece) is fine, plus the Enhancement values are fine for when I actually use the power. I use three instances of 4x Unbreakable Guard in that build (Temp Inv, Unyielding)... ED (for Resistance) is hitting Unyielding hard, but I accept it. Weave is trivial: One LotG Global +Recharge, with a second LotG piece for more Defense. Tankers are one of the few ATs for which I can believe the little bit more +Regeneration (2nd piece of LotG) makes a difference, because of the Tanker HP cap. Ultimately my build is objectively less AWEZOMBE than others (with 1 enemy in range, no ATO %procs, no scaling resistances) because defenses are below the non-Incarnate cap, and aside from S/L the Resistances are ~37% (Psi/Tox) to ~46% (S/L/F/C/E/N) ... which just means I have to pay more attention when playing "hard" (50+, Incarnate) content... that Tank still has the Master of MLTF badge, which is not quite the hardest job to Tank but is what I would say is the metric for Tanks. (cue every non-Tank player who has "tanked" Lord Recluse) Even so, that build has yet to have problems with ANY Ouro +4/x8 content (provided enhancements are in play!) aside from "kill speed". Frankly: I would prefer to run exemplared missions with level 50s instead of running Incarnate content with the same team.... which is why I am always on the bubble about going "all in" for Leadership buffs... I simply have too much fun running Penny Yin TF PUGs at max diff!

One of my Inv Tanker builds has the Fighting pool (for Tough & Weave)... they are primarily for Enhancement purposes. For a lot of content I also run with several of the powers toggled off. I am always tempted to use an alternate build that doesn't have the Fighting pool (to have more Leadership pool powers for teammates) but what stops me is (selfishness!) I feel like the Enhancement bonuses from slotting Tough/Weave offer noticeable improvements to the build I'm not sure PUGmates would notice my support (from Leadership pool) as much as they would notice my Tank suffering (in hard content).

Nerf Energy Blast.

Springboarding from this post, without joining that particular conversation. I definitely take my 'solo' plays through content, and generally it is my melee characters for which I can turn up spawn sizes soonest. Once I can exemplar down from level 50+, the lower level missions can be run at x8 with far fewer issues, but I don't think this represents the intent of the OP. For Scrappers and Stalkers, it is typically more of a problem in "defeat all" x8 missions that one of the MOBs in a spawn has run off or wandered away and I have lost track of them. I don't think that arc completion bonuses (as far as Inf) are anywhere close to matching simply turning up the spawn size.

Say what you will about trudging uphill (both ways) in daily blizzards; I happen to think that playing a Tanker somewhat 'old school' (i.e. don't shoot through levels 15 - 40) offers lessons that are valuable about game mechanics and AI, even in this era of cheap and easy Defense caps. I think there is also something to be learned by playing HEATs, VEATs, and Masterminds. The VEATs are very flexible, and in some ways the easiest to play... as players can fall into familiar patterns with them (close or range or control or pets). Masterminds are tricky for many different reasons: getting control of the henchmen is just one aspect, the real challenge IMO is to make the MM work when flipping between solo and team play. Masterminds will teach players who favor DPS just what all the other players are doing with their buffs & debuffs. HEATs are in a weird (perhaps under-powered) place. They can be frustrating to both build and play... I find their challenge to be (aside from custom enemies) getting into a rhythm when playing them.

I love seeing stuns in builds. One thing I was messing with in my Fortunata builds was that I had typically been slotting: 6 pieces of Reactive Defenses in something like Mask Presence (enjoying Endurance reduction, and some Defense) "minimal" slotting in Mind Link (adjusted Targeting Recharge, LotG Def/+Recharge, Shield Wall Def/Recharge) As I wrote above, I really like the Reactive Defenses set bonuses.... but Mask Presence is not particularly a power that needs many slots, so the "mess" has been to move the 6-slots of Reactive Defenses to Mind Link and then free up a precious few slots. One of the powers that I'd like to include earlier in my ranged/control Fortunata build... and dedicate more slots to is Weaken Resolve (Force of Will pool). The Fortunata doesn't need to proc it with %damage (yes to Achille's Heel!), but it is an extra layer of enemy debuffing that I like to have available. If someone is going for an explicitly more of a team-player role, I think this is work investigating. The animation feels very much like a Fortunata's.

If I had to guess, the OP may have seen the +4x8 solo ITF that relied on a flight power to keep distance from some of the spawns. Perhaps ironically, the linked build is my Fortunata that I play the least! I enjoy my Ranged/Control build the most. I haven't settled on an end-game team friendly build yet because I mostly solo mid-game content. I also enjoy the set bonuses from attacks, so it is hard (for me) to sacrifice a smooth attack chain to get more team-friendly powers. For a self-heal, I prefer Unrelenting... the first three powers in the Presence pool are quite mediocre (Intimidate offers the best synergy with Invoke Panic, but Provoke offers the best set bonuses), but Unrelenting and Invoke Panic make for a fun play experience. In the new Doc Aeon arc, it's my ranged/control Fortunata that plays the best in PUG... my instincts for "team-friendly" are that the VEAT Soldier/Bane may be a better choice because of the potential for AoE enemy debuffs, as so many players will already have personal buffs. My opinion of Defense Enhancement set bonuses (not the Global pieces, which are awesome): Reactive Defenses is pretty much the only set defensive set bonus I chase, because of the Endurance Discount and Global Recharge effects. I will use Shield Wall pieces as set bonuses (wherever the global +Res is slotted) only because they can be boosted to +5, but often I try to conserve slots in Defensive powers by using Global pieces backed up by (boosted) IOs or HOs. IIRC many of the 2-piece set bonuses for Defense sets is a small Regeneration bonus... I suppose this could make a difference on a Tanker or Brute but in practice I don't see this effect... because of play style, or because of Scaling Damage Resistance, who can say?

...when not fighting fires.

I'm assuming 'for levelling' : Enhancements are not endgame build quality Not using AE If there is a 'trick' it will be to do as much AoE as soon as possible...typically by 25+, so you can face as many MOB as possible in missions. Masterminds and Damage Aura types should get there sooner, but practically Stalkers, Scrappers and Blasters will probably overtake them by the mid 30s. I want to recommend VEATs, but that level 24 Respec will slow you down!

Dark/Time Blaster. You can fit Arcane Bolt (Sorcery pool) early in the Build.

I distrust the water, and some traffic patterns look nightmarish. I'd look for someplace like King's Row or Brickstown. If I had to live somewhat close to water, I think maybe Cap Au Diable.

From my PoV there are basically two categories for seeking MOAR DPS: AV/GM fights How many hits does it take to defeat a single MOB (any class) As written above, AV/GM will need a certain amount of DPS (in the absence of certain debuffs, purple triangles, blah blah blah fishcakes) to defeat. If the DPS can't be increased to the point that the character requires one fewer attack to defeat the MOB in question, from my perspective I don't sweat marginal differences in DPS.

There are a handful of niches that look like folks are flipping to drive up prices; folks can sell into those niches.

I haven't tried that many Tanker secondaries on Homecoming... primarily because if I am playing Melee I feel like I can (eventually) 'level up' a Scrapper or Stalker (I don't like Fury as a mechanic, YMMV) to satisfy my solo urges and be plenty tough for team play... but... I like the faster-cycling melee sets, both for aesthetics and punch-voke. I was OK with Energy Melee prior to the most recent HC upgrade (although I preferred the original flavor) but the HC update is an improvement. I felt that War Mace was too slow for me, so I rerolled that character as a Scrapper instead... it didn't improve the flow but it did improve the DPS. War Mace really only became tolerable for me after I had significant Global Recharge. I like Street Justice on Scrappers and Stalkers, I assume I'd like it on Tankers. Super Strength never appealed to me, nor have any of the secondaries with Aurae. Dark has always looked like it would be fun to explore.

The advice so far has been scattershot, so I thought I'd contribute a little to the chaos, specific to: Masterminds, not at level 50 Who want to run missions Who aren't 'tricked out' In my experience: a mid-level MM (say 20s, 30s) who has the low-level powers slotted (especially henchmen) can build up their 'bank' by running blue-side missions like Aaron Thiery's in Atlas Park and mid-arc duck into Perez Park to street sweep Hellions. The drops from the Lts and Bosses are quite good, and the exemplared henchmen can handle the Hellion spawns (with effort). This is NOT as quick or painless or rewarding as simply leveraging the auction house but it can be a fun distraction, especially if you want to work on some defeat badges (including Doorbuster).

Your point stands (no evidence of bias) but it is more like a pseudorandom even distribution, no opportunity for a normal distribution AFAIK.

I definitely remember the "gold sellers" back in the day, and for whatever reason I always seemed to run into them in the CoV zones (St. Martial is where i was when I felt they were the most aggressive).

I actually like the ambiguity of the phraseology on that one, as players will soon be clamoring to have motorized roller blades as a travel power!

I found myself browsing the short descriptions of old television show episodes (think "TV Guide") and I was struck by the Warhol-esque simplicity of some of them, and I wasn't sure what to think if I dropped the names of some of our characters into the text. For example, all of these are from Night Man Season 2: @Yomo Kimyata accidentally resurrects a mummified Egyptian queen, with predictably disasterous results. @Bill Z Bubba fights a gang using high-tech, motorized Roller Blades. @Saskia has been kidnapped by Keyes, and @Raleigh fears House of Soul will be destroyed. (Actual user names match the episode description for this one!) Let's get the AE team together to see that mission with enemies on Roller Blades!

@Uun wrote nothing wrong, but there are exceptions to #2 (which is one reason why I try to distinguish between "global" effects and "%procs". For example; The Preventive Medicine %Absorb piece does NOT have to be in an active power to trigger, but it is still subject to the rules re: levels. For myself, I have that piece in some pool powers I rarely ever use (Sorcery) or from some secondary set power that only works on teammates (but the %Absorb will still trigger if I take enough damage). AFAIK, I only have a couple of characters that have that piece slotted in a power taken significantly below the minimum level for the set, and those characters don't take enough damage in low level content that I think I'd even notice if it was triggering (think Dull Pain on an Invulnerable Tanker).