Crysis

I’ll test it again some this AM. I have a Soulbound proc in there and I can see the soulbound up the damage when it procs (which is frequently), and that may be throwing off my ability to see it -always- proccing Containment damage. Will test some more. EDIT: Weirdness. I'm lvl 50. In RWZ against even-conned training dummy, if I do nothing, just summon the Tri Cannon inside the area with the training dummy, it will trigger "CONTAINMENT" three times over the dummy consistently. It throws out 13 damage 3x each time. Often, the Soulbound Proc I have in there will trigger and it will do 18 damage 3 times. Then back to 13. Not sure why the pet is triggering containment by itself? I'm not throwing out any holds, etc. If I do throw out holds, Cryo Freeze, Flash Bang, Smoke, whatever....I'll see the damage from THOSE powers get the Containment boost, but the Tri Cannon keeps throwing 13 damage per round x3...unless it procs Soulbound again, then it throws out 18 damage. Maybe I need to go test on live critters. BUt for me, TriCannon is creating it's own Containment. And 13 damage isn't any different than what I was seeing when I was testing this a week or so ago, before the latest change. Again...could just be I'm a bad tester and not understanding what I'm seeing.

This is also why /Storm is quite potent on a Thugs/ or Demons/ MM built for high +Recharge. All those FF +RCHG procs can easily bump the MM itself up to 250% recharge and sustain that. This allows you to get out not only all the storm powers twice as often (I’ve easily had 3 Tornado’s on the field at once, and always double Lightning Storms), but also lets you throw out the additional DPS of Gang War and Hell on Earth twice as often. Throw in Burnout and double Gang War on a Thugs MM with high recharge is possible every third spawn. I’ve firmly arrived at the camp that the one remaining tweak needed for MM’s isn’t to up the recharge of our pets powers, or even up their damage. Just eliminate the silly level shifts and make them play like they do in Incarnate content. Tie it achieving both upgrade powers if you want. But you get rid of that level shift and MM’s will become highly potent throughout the entire game.

Just had a chance to log in and try out new Tri Cannon Containment. So from what I can tell, it now has a -chance- to proc Containment. It doesn't get Containment damage automatically? Maybe I'm just reading results incorrectly.

Yeah sorry, I meant it’s cool to get containment double dmg from Tri-Cannon after this patch for -its own damage output- on top of the sweet Enflame damage (which is standard proc’d damage output, regardless of containment status). Sorry if I wasn’t clear.

I saw this just as you were posting. This is SWEET. I’ve already been using Enflame on the taunting Tri-Cannon, and slotted it with a couple of different procs, including the Soulbound proc. That was already firing off noticeably and since it draws aggro, it was spreading the procc’d out Enflame a bunch (and each target gets a chance to re-proc as it spreads). Throw in Containment damage, and this is a -meaningful- contribution to my DPS now. (to be perfectly clear, yes, I know that Enflame doesn’t do any containment bonus damage…just that this upcoming change adds to the neat DPS tricks I’ve already gotten out of my trusty Red Ryder BB Gun buddy).

Tri-Cannon changes are REALLY nice! Throwing Enflame on a taunting sturdy pet that can proc double damage and dragging it’s rickety butt into the middle of a contained spawn…..yesssssssssss please and thank you!

Really enjoying my Arsenal/Storm/Ice. With so much knockdown and slows you don’t miss an AOE Immobilize, the extra damage from procced out Freezing Rain, Tornado, Lightning Storm and Ice Storm plus procced out Enflame, all while getting out almost everything double to triple thanks to sustained +Recharge in excess of 250% is pure carnage. One of the higher DPS controller builds I’ve played.

Don’t forget with all this number crunching that MM Supremacy adds +25% damage and +10% ToHit as long as henchmen are in range of MM.

All of this is why the level shifts pre-Incarnate need to be adjusted. T1 henchmen should be perma boosted up a level so they are -1 to the MM and the T3 should be even leveled to the MM. Then boost the lot of them to even leveled to summoner in Incarnate content as it is right now and call it good. I really feel the nerfs to Freezing Rain after this last patch on my MM’s. They dealt enough -Res or -Def to help me offset the big level shifts native to primary henchmen right now. Taking that away made it harder to hit stuff and when they do it’s not much damage. I hope the Devs are listening and will just remove a level from the level shifts from MM’s and call it good for PvE.

I always wanted Malta as a replacement for Mercs. But Crey would be a fun alt power set as well.

OMG this was me also until like level 10 of my first ever character during Live days. I felt sooooo stupid once I realized the button was there.

On my controller, soloing, I did likewise. I often found myself with a transformed Dark Wolf following me for two additional spawns until fully downed, and by that time, the second spawns boss was joining in so I’d end up with three bosses to deal with by third spawn. It’s not difficult, I was never in any danger, but it is annoying. As others pointed out…the implementation here needs some work, but I’m fine with the changes, even at +4/x8.

I respec every alt at least once, sometimes twice, during their initial run up to T4’s. First, take them from a leveling build to their late game build. Then, depending on Incarnate powers chosen, their end-game build. For example, I play a lot of Stormies and they are all END thirsty so there’s a build with just about every possible +Recovery power I can take then there’s a build once they have achieve Destiny>Ageless and no longer need all those +Recovery powers. But once they are T4’d out, they get shelved for the most part and even if some of their powers no longer function the same after a fresh round of nerfs, I just leave them be, nothing more than another alt in the library. I can think of a few times where a really deficient powerset got tuned up and I’ll go through the process of a respec on even a T4’d retired alt. But that’s super rare, mainly because the devs tend to tune down more than tune up. I have a handful of Sentinels I’m likely to respec if the class ever gets tuned upwards. Likely the only ones I’m watching closely for potential respecs. I find the respec process takes quite awhile though unless you are slotting most powers with same IO sets more or less.

*Edited because I misread @Uun's post above. Yes, Soul>Soul Drain got buffed to 10 targets from 7. Given how much this last patch worked hard to basically water every epic pool down to be identical to each other, I'm not sure why Spirit Drain was nerfed to 5 targets vs. Dark's Soul Drain to 10. But whatev's....just makes me choose a different pool entirely since they gutted Dark Mastery's signature power.

I’ve respecced out of Soul Drain in every build that had it. Spirit Drain is not worth the effort to attain/slot it now. If you have no other choices to make, sure maybe. But it went from top-tier for Corrs to pretty much just a yawner now. I know that was the Devs intention as Soul Drain was more OP than they wanted. But it really took a bit out of damage for most of my builds that were built around perma-Soul Drain, and caused me to rethink proc’s in some of my damage powers as I can’t count on Soul Drain to allow me to follow creative slotting strategies for damage, knowing it would easily give me two-three slots’ worth of +DMG to every damage power while it was up. Sniff…..the good old days.

Have one, retired it at 50, didn’t find it was versatile enough (for me, YMMV) to continue achieving Incarnate powers. Your playstyle may differ than mine, but every /Storm anything I’ve ever built was built for high +Recharge and with that as many +Recovery tools as I can muster until I get Destiny>Ageless. Now do keep in mind that from what the brighter minds than mine have discovered, anything that gives you global +Recharge will negatively impact the chance of a Proc firing off. I don’t mind that much as I’ve found insane +Recharge gives me more of what I want than procs firing off more frequently than they do, but overall attacks moving slower than I’d like. So again…YMMV. So on my Storm/Storm/Dark Corr (retired before the big change to Soul Drain so I wont discuss slotting for that), I’ve got procs in the following powers: Jet Stream: Sudden Acceleration: Kb2Kd, also good spot to split the 3 Scourging Blast ATO’s if you don’t put Apoc’s into Lightning Storm Direct Strike: I tend to put the five Apocs here if I’m not putting them into Lightning Storm (see below), but by time you can slot purple sets, Judgement is just around the corner and thus you might not be interested in purples here. Chain Lightning can take pretty much the same procs as Freezing Rain (see below), but I found I liked the Malice of the Corr ATO full 6-slot set in here, and then Catalyzing them to Superior versions at 50. So while you can proc it out, I didn’t. Category Five is very similar to Chain Lightning and Freezing Rain in what procs it can take. Personally, at 50, I five-slotted it with Ragnarok’s, including the damage proc, and then threw in a sixth slot for FF+Recharge. Storm Secondary, however, is very procc’able: Gale: FF+Recharge, plus Sudden Acceleration Kb2Kd, and Achilles -RES Freezing Rain: Achilles % for -RES, Annhilation Chance for Res Debuff, Bombardment Chance for Fire Damage, Touch of Lady Grey, Chance for Neg Damage, Ice Mistral’s Torment Chance for Cold Damage, Ragnarok Chance for Knockdown, Frozen Blast Chance for Immobilize….many many others, I’m just listing some of the more popular ones. Tornado: Sudden Acceleration: Kb2Kd, FF +Recharge, Shield Breaker Chance for Lethal Damage and literally a dozen other procs. I’m only listing the ones I prefer to use but since this is a pet-like power, it takes most of the pet procs also (not that you likely need them). Lighting Storm: Superior Scourging Blast, % for Minor PbAoE +End/+Health (usually 3 slot this with two other Sup Scourging Blast Corr ATO’s), FF+Recharge, Gladiator’s Javelin, Chance for Toxic Dmg, Performance Shifter, Chance for +END. Can also take an Apoc Chance for Neg Energy, a Devastation, Chance for Hold, an Explosive Strike, Chance for Smashing Damage and several other different kinds. Personally, at 50, I typically just slot 5 slot it with Apoc purple set (including the Neg Energy proc) and a sixth slot for FF+Recharge. So to answer your question….tons of procs will fit into a Storm/Storm corruptor build. Whether or not it’s enough damage output to satisfy you is something I can’t answer. And I can speak for the FF+Recharge procs…I averaged about 220-250% +Recharge at all times with the build. But I just found the mechanics of the Storm Blast set to be severely lacking. I did try a respec build on Beta before this release, and it showed some improvements for sure, but still….not a top tier set for my tastes, even with crazy recharge.

Yeah still strong +DEF numbers. Keep in mind that while teaming it’s not uncommon to gain stacked Maneuvers or team buffs or when teaming with Incarnate players perma-Barrier. Defense is pretty easy to softcap in this game. You also aren’t likely to pull a lot of self-aggro with the build given the nature of /Traps and your Tri-cannon mechanic. And you’ve got quite a bit of -TOHIT going for you also to further mitigate. So for me, I’d say these numbers are great!

It’s a few posts up, Mids Reborn file attachment. The only thing I really changed was I took Victory Rush instead of Vengeance for lvl 50 choice and slotted a D-Sync ENDMOD/ACC in there. I’ve been playing with both Cardiac and Vigor for Alpha, but went with Destiny Ageless to fix my END needs end-game. Alpha slotting is kinda up for grabs as you have few holds with this Build. I focused more on Slows and Confuse duration instead.

Long before Null the Gull…. I can still remember my first time having to go hero>vigilante>rogue>villain and back again over a couple of weeks just to earn an unlock of Patron Pools and get Shadow Meld on my nerfed Regen scrapper. The missions were MUCH darker compared to blue side and actually required me to kill/assassinate certain targets rather than arresting them. I felt very…..dirty.

It’s goofy but it’s happened to me on MJ’s arc, MLTF, ITF and a half dozen other TF’s or Trials. I honestly think people just don’t understand game mechanics sometimes.

And sentence structure matters when recruiting! Them:”Running 50+3 MJ arc, PST for invite!” Me: “I’m already in zone, invite to MJ arc plz?” Invite sent and accepted. Them:”Sorry but you gotta be 50+3 to run this, was in my announcement.” Me:”I’m a 50 with two T3’s, and we are doing this in +3/x8 right?” Them: “Nope only wanting 50+3 players. YUNOREEDGUD?” Has happened to me more than a few times. Advertise what you are running first and then any specific AT/LVL requirements you are seeking for your team.

Back at OP: You’ll note from many of the responses here that it’s a broad spectrum of players. People who enjoy the story/dialogue versus min/maxed players who want to level quickly. As I stated, I have AT’s of every type that can comfortably do +4/x8 solo, many with AV’s turned on. That said, I find solo AV battles to be a slog and seldom play that way because by that point in the mission its almost always the end of same and I just want to move on to the next. I’ve also got several AT’s that while they can do +4/x8 they seldom do because the effort to defeat spawns is so much greater than with a similarly-leveled melee or blaster toon. Not all AT’s nor builds are equal in this game, they never have been and never will be. So really, don’t compare what you define as fun to the next persons’ definition of same. If you are comfortable with the notoriety level, you find yourself leveling at an acceptable speed and your risk vs reward is balanced enough to give you a good challenge without becoming obnoxiously easy/hard….then that’s your groove. Go with it. That’s the beauty of this game really. There’s no set “must have” builds to complete missions/game for the most part. Some AT’s are far easier to play than others, and those often can handle more difficult content. But that’s why we have so many open character slots. Some days I wanna run an MM and manage the battlefield, and am OK with taking a bit longer to whittle down most foes. Other days I just want to Nuke stuff non stop with a high recharge blaster, and live with my health meter in the red for several spawns at a time to feel the adrenaline rush of “almost dying.” The Notoriety settings can literally be adjusted -per mission- if you’d like, a feature I haven’t found in many other games that require you to set your difficulty rating up front and stick to it throughout the game. So if you set it too hard for your enjoyment, dial it back…you can even do this in a single mission instance by ducking out of the mission, changing your notoriety, selecting a different mission to “reset” things and then re-selecting the original mission and start it over with the new difficulty settings. All from the comfort of that little thought bubble icon on your chat bar. Seriously….play how you want. That’s the beauty of this game.

This should have been a poll. Played since Beta on Live, although ducked out a few months here and there when RL intervened. Then been back on pretty consistently since Homecoming. Would be interested to see a poll of those who played on SCORE during the "secret wars" years.

Varies widely based on AT, slotting, level range and faced opponents. But if I had to average it out….. Melee (Tankers/Brutes/Scrappers/Stalkers and some Sents): +2/x6 from levels 32+. Grow to +3/x6 by late 30’s. Move to +4/x8 by early 40’s. Ranged/Ranged Support (Blasters/Corrs/Defenders): +2/x5 until nuke obtained/slotted around level 35-38. Then same as Melee. MM’s and Controllers: usually +2/x5 until mid 40’s, then jump to +3/x6. Typically capable of +4/x8 by level 50. VEAT/HEAT/Doms: Really depends on build and slotting. But typically follow Melee progression or Ranged/Ranged Support. So looking at the above, I’m playing most of the pre-45 game on average at +2/x5. Post 45 it’s mostly +3/x8 until you get to 50. Then it’s always +4/x8 regardless of AT. I tend to “rank” AT’s by the level at which they are fully capable of +4/x8 without much effort. Some get there faster than others, and some get there but with more effort/time. If I cannot get them there, I park them at 50 and/or melt them down and delete them as they have no place in my library of alts. I’ve more that CAN/COULD than those that met the melting process.

Solo’d a bunch of new Council and new COT missions on +4/x8 on my newly built Arsenal/Storm controller. Didn’t have much problem, although the dark wolves were annoying if allowed to pop into that form. Of course, as a Controller, I spent many, many levels having difficulties soloing a bunch of stuff. The trick with the new critters, just like hard targets before them, is holds and debuffs so they can be killed quickly before transforming into their harder forms. If you were a melee character having difficulties with them, its because you’ve finally been presented with a critter type that will make you feel like a level 28 controller soloing. You’ll have to dial down difficulty for theses mobs or team with others who can help. These new spawns are working as designed to add some difficulty to the game. And @DrunkFlux you made a comment early on that struck me as odd. You mention being able to “Carry a Team.” As a farmer, I’m used to doing that. But when I invite a bunch of lowbies into an actual mission, I’m by no means doing so to farm them but rather to give them higher rewards relative to the risk they’ll face. You shouldn’t be trying to ‘carry’ the team or you aren’t really being a good leader. I suspect there’s more psychology to the issues you have with the new spawn types than you are admitting. You sound like you are accustomed to being the “center attraction” in your teams and that’s simply not going to be viable in every mission against every spawn.