Crysis

I have an AFK farmer well over 1000, but I don’t think that counts as I’m only playing it 2m out of every 15-30 at most. But wow....that’s something.

The thing about +4/x8 missions that many “I’m the 50+3 Incarnate leader, and if I can handle this so can everyone else” leaders don’t get is how MM’s play. If I have an MM on my team I -always- note how their henchmen are holding up. Their T1’s in many cases won’t be surviving a single spawn let alone contributing much, and their T2’s not much better. But again, I take it personally that the MM might not be having a good time teaming because of the feeling of lack of contribution. If you want that kind of XP and really won’t be able to contribute much just go hang out in AE, plenty of sitting opportunities abound there. But again, as a leader, I feel that pressure to shepherd the weaker players while still catering to the stronger ones. And that subtracts from my fun factor for the night. I end up feeling like I’m playing Sim-Hero rather than playing a Super-something myself. Maybe this all just goes back to the original “Sidekicking” mechanism in this game, something that attracted me at first and still sticks with me to this day. Likewise, I have great admiration for regular TF, Trial or mission leaders. They go on my friends’ list in a hurry, especially the regular League operators (looking at YOU @Oklahoman). It takes a special kind of heart to stuff your tray full of helpful instruction macros, assemble the league, deal with the drama and otherwise just LEAD something. I’m glad they are here, but in total honesty, at a 1:7 ratio for full teams, they are the rarest of Supers we have in the game. Thank you from the bottom of my introverted little black heart.

At some point I must’ve modded mine because all the glowies basically say over and over in a maniacal voice “OVER HERE OVER HERE OVER HERE OVER HERE...” and it’s uh....quite obvious where they are.

I just snagged “Honeypot” on the first try last night, wanting to create an undercover police officer who basically convinced some of the felons she snared in an undercover sting operation working for her as her henchmen Thugs. I was actually surprised it was available. I’ve had a great many that also were surprisingly available over the years, both on Live and on HC. However, the opposite has also happened. In both Live and within the first couple of days of HC being released I tried to snag my REAL LIFE nickname (which, also, was my main in PnP Champions and D&D before that). And in BOTH instances, not only the actual spelling, but all the various “133T” spelling variations of my nickname were ALL taken. It’s not even all that common and is actually a foreign-language word. But my doppelgänger must be out there somewhere.

I can only speak for myself, but I take it personally when I’m leading a team and people are getting clobbered. Then, if I try to turn down difficulty, everybody INCLUDING THE PEOPLE GETTING CLOBBERED drops team looking for a +4/x8 group. And if you actually try to lead, there’s always the players who don’t even read in-game chat box, who don’t speak/read English natively or who for other reason are just in steamroll mode. So ultimately, I tend to only lead if it’s a series of missions to accomplish a very specific goal (like, Maria Jenkin’s AV arc, for example) or just blind radio missions where I know the PUG will be forming/reforming/dropping/adding as the night goes on and none of us are really in it other than for XP and giggles. So basically, leading gains you almost nothing and actively deducts from the fun-factor of what is and always has been a very non-competitive, casual gaming experience for me. It’s a co-op game for the most part (at least for PVE) and I prefer to not place or have placed any expectations on my playstyle accordingly.

I got all excited at title thinking someone had figured out a way to play this game in VR mode on a Quest.......

This Redside vs Blueside (and sometimes Goldside) has been a dead horse beating for a long, long time. Personally, I like having options for the early game (thus Gold side) and for some variety in mission structure, maps and enemies. But yes, in general, you’ll find much less teaming available Redside than Blue. But on the other hand, when a team IS available on Red it usually tends to hold its cohesiveness better IMO. Maybe its because people had to make a tiny bit of effort to switch sides to join, or perhaps because it’s a player who just prefers that side. Blueside PUG’s tend to form/disband/reform quickly, sometimes in just one or two missions. Redside teams tend to last longer. Might just be me, dunno.

Wow, exactly the kind of answer I was hoping I’d get. Thank you!

Was flipping through some old posts and ran across this little gem from Pax... I know how BG mode works, and always considered it the same as Resistance for damage calculation purposes. Of course, it's dynamic based on the number of pets you have out and whether or not they are all in the appropriate stance, etc. In fact, BG mode is why I generally build for Defense caps on MM's first to have layered mitigation capabilities. Rune or Hybrid Melee or even one of the Epic +RES shields was my backup if I needed more RES than what I could natively attain from my secondary and BG mode combined. But my question is....does the BG damage-sharing effect basically always come out to the same as +RES for damage-taken purposes? In other words, it's a +RES to all damage types and thus 'stacks' with whatever other native +RES I'm already running? Finally, I don't suppose there's anyway to show this in MIDS is there? I may be grossly overslotting some of my builds for +RES that don't really need it once you factor in BG mode.

One mans OP is another’s “Totally Awesome!!!!”

It’s not like this game is particularly difficult for any AT to play, assuming you work the Notoriety scale and/or understand the baseline mechanics of the AT you are playing. But I guess we look at the game a bit differently. I view Scrappers (and to similar extent Brutes and Tanks) as the lower end of the difficulty slider. Their playstyle is arguably the easiest in that you just wade in and start swinging. There’s room for some tactics (eg; take out the debuffers first) but in general, there’s not much more to it than move and hit. Ironically, I don’t think Blasters (and to some extent Corrs and even Defenders) are all that different. They just don’t have to wade into battle to do it. Build for Ranged capped Defense, zip in and nuke, zip out and AOE/ST from range. But that definitely is a -slightly- more difficult playstyle tactic than “wade in and start punching.” This game is not difficult, not even on the highest setting. So the only thing to add any degree of difficulty to cater to the various players out there is the AT you use and how to maximize it’s own DPS. Can I agree Scrappers put out more DPS and survive longer? Solo, against almost any +4/x8 PVE content, yes I can. Can I take down an AV faster with a Beam/Traps Corruptor than many scrappers? Yup, most certainly can. How about with a Water/Plant Blaster? Properly tuned for that activity, maybe. But I have all three of those and can choose to do the deed in very different ways and survive them all. I have no desire to delete those three and just have one Scrapper that does everything because then I’m done with the game and walk away.

Since last years exemplaring nerf, most influence farming shifted to AFK farming running multiple accounts at once. I generally do so only while I’m at work using my ShadowPC account and operating the game sessions from my iPhone. Maybe 20-25 mins per run (sometimes shorter if I’m sitting at my desk and can more frequently check into the AFK fleet), times multiple accounts, and a typical 8 hour session of not really playing adds up daily. I don’t vend anything during the day other than during my lunch break. Total time needed to exit/reset the various farmers per run is seconds so not like I’m really focused. I still “active farm” but any more it’s just to quickly PL an alt up to level 27-32 or so. 27 in about 15 mins, 32 in about 25 mins.

I may have just duplicated a bug I discovered once before, but thought perhaps it was just bad memory on part. In short, it allows you an unlimited supply of Enhancement Catalysts. How do I report the details without revealing what is essentially an exploit?

Speaking of changes on Beta..... I have a number of MM’s who used Rune of Protection from the Sorcery pool. There’s huge changes inbound for RoP in particular, but that entire pool in general. While I wish they had left RoP alone, I must say that the changes they’ve made to the remainder of the pool appear to be a bit of a buff for MM’s in particular. Spirit Ward and Enflame are now toggles, and Arcane Bolt know can do significantly more damage. I was on Test server yesterday and I’m actually -VERY- pleased with how everything else has been adjusted, although I’ll miss the uptime/duration of RoP. But be sure to check it out if you’ve not been paying attention.

I find with Arachnos the trick is engagement play style. Ironically, while I’m not in favor of herding tactics, it works -exceedingly- well for Arachnos since the majority of their nasty stuff is delivered from range. Jump in, grab aggro, duck behind something and let them come to you, having team lie in wait until they are bunched up. This seems to work far better than chasing Psi resist/def bonuses. And, as stated, inspirations or temp powers when needed. But once I started herding Arachnos, they ceased to be an issue for me.

By no means top-tier but this is what I've been running with. Durable, can skip Hasten thanks to AM and puts out some decent damage. S/L softcapped to DEF, just as smidge under Energy as well, which is more important for the 45+ game. All this with just Agility Core and not a crazy investment in purples, although I do make use of WinterO's since I'm sitting on a pile of them. Tweak as you will but maybe it will give you some ideas. Hero Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 3.0.0.0 https://github.com/Reborn-Team/Hero-Designer Click this DataLink to open the build! Gamma Cop: Level 50 Mutation Corruptor Primary Power Set: Dual Pistols Secondary Power Set: Radiation Emission Power Pool: Flight Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Fighting Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery Hero Profile: Level 1: Pistols -- Thn-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), Thn-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(36), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(37), Thn-Acc/Dmg(37), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(39), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39) Level 1: Radiant Aura -- Prv-Absorb%(A), Prv-Heal/Rchg/EndRdx(3), Prv-Heal(3), Prv-Heal/EndRdx(5), Prv-EndRdx/Rchg(5), Prv-Heal/Rchg(21) Level 2: Radiation Infection -- DarWtcDsp-Slow%(A), DarWtcDsp-ToHitDeb(17), DarWtcDsp-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx(19), DarWtcDsp-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(19), AchHee-ResDeb%(21) Level 4: Accelerate Metabolism -- EffAdp-EndMod(A), EffAdp-EndMod/Rchg(15), EffAdp-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(33), EffAdp-Acc/Rchg(33), EffAdp-EndMod/Acc(34), EffAdp-EndMod/EndRdx(45) Level 6: Dual Wield -- SprScrBls-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(7), SprScrBls-Dmg/Rchg(9), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(9), Thn-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(11), Thn-Dmg/Rchg(11) Level 8: Bullet Rain -- SprMlcoft-Rchg/Dmg%(A), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(17), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg(23), SprMlcoft-Dmg/Rchg(23), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(25), SprMlcoft-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(48) Level 10: Swap Ammo Level 12: Fly -- Frb-Stlth(A) Level 14: Hover -- BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(A), BlsoftheZ-ResKB(15), LucoftheG-Def(46), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(46) Level 16: Enervating Field -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 18: Executioner's Shot -- SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg(A), SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(25), SprScrBls-Rchg/+End(27), Thn-Acc/Dmg(29), Thn-Dmg/EndRdx(29), Apc-Dam%(31) Level 20: Lingering Radiation -- CrtSpd-Acc/Slow(A), CrtSpd-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(31), CrtSpd-Acc/EndRdx(42), CrtSpd-Rng/Slow(43) Level 22: Afterburner -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 24: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(27), LucoftheG-Def(36) Level 26: Kick -- Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A) Level 28: Tough -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(33), UnbGrd-Max HP%(36), UnbGrd-ResDam(37), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(43), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(31), LucoftheG-Def(34) Level 32: Hail of Bullets -- SprAvl-Acc/Dmg(A), SprAvl-Dmg/EndRdx(34), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(39), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), SprAvl-Rchg/KDProc(40), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(40) Level 35: Mutation -- RechRdx-I(A) Level 38: Scorpion Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(45), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(45) Level 41: Tactics -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(42), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(42), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(43) Level 44: EM Pulse -- Lck-Acc/Rchg(A) Level 47: Choking Cloud -- NrnSht-Dam%(A), NrnSht-Acc/Hold/Rchg(48), NrnSht-Acc/Rchg(48), NrnSht-EndRdx/Hold(50), NrnSht-Acc/EndRdx(50), NrnSht-Hold/Rng(50) Level 49: Vengeance -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Dash -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Slide -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Quick -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Rush -- Empty(A) Level 1: Prestige Power Surge -- Empty(A) Level 1: Scourge Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(7), Mrc-Rcvry+(13) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(13) Level 6: Chemical Ammunition Level 6: Cryo Ammunition Level 6: Incendiary Ammunition Level 50: Agility Core Paragon ------------

Agreed, and you don’t HAVE to use gimmicks if you don’t want to. Just mash the button when it comes up. If you min/max, sure....play the gimmick. But otherwise, just ignore it.

Personally, I can’t wait to get onto the test server tonight to try these changes out. I see everything but the RoP changes as a buff to the full set, if mainly a QOL buff for Spirit Ward (although with its CD lowered significantly, this too could be considered a buff situationally). But the changes to Arcane Bolt are definitely a buff and for my MM’s who dip into the Sorcery pool, I’ll definitely take those upgrades. Enflame has always been “meh” to me, but the upgrade to Mystic Flight’s performance will actually save me a slot to use elsewhere (likely in AB). On the balance, even with reducing the usefulness of RoP, the buffs to the remainder of the set encourage me to believe we may see similar things with the other sets as well. And since this release was primarily about QOL improvements for travel powers (YAY TO JET BOARD NOW WORKING WITHOUT DETOGGLING EVERYTHING ELSE!) the ‘theme’ of this release sorta all fits now. And relative to the first beta release when we just had RoP nerfed, it’s a nice offset to offer some improvements to the other powers. I don’t like having forced respecs, but I can certainly find more to like with Sorcery pool now than I would have.

Note that it’s not that hard to up your DDR on a /Nin....it won’t equal what you can do with /SR, but it is a nice second place relatively speaking especially once you start looking at Incarnate Radial branch DDR bonuses and double stacking what /Nin has natively. But I tend to play them a bit differently overall. /SR is the classic no-fuss/toggle-up-and-forget-it kind of set. It synchs very well with primaries that require a lot of clicking or that utilize combo’s. /Nin is a far more active set for damage mitigation and I prefer it for simpler primaries that just let me mash buttons. And, of course, for themed builds.

While I remain firmly in the camp of “not happy with RoP changes” the logic behind the way they are coding it makes some sense. On most of the AT’s that have RoP it serves two purposes: 1) An “OS!” Button in case I’m taking cascading Defense failure and need to survive, or in some cases a “Hold my Beer” button if I’m going to run into the fray to trigger a PbAoE and know stuff will be aggroing on me. In either case, it’s for the +RES effect more than the status protection. 2) As a pocket break free, but in those instances I need it to function as such, I’m usually detoggled on one of my primary powers and/or I’m taking fire WHILE mezzed. In this situation, while it’s purpose is a break free the added “couple of small oranges” is a nice benefit as that gives me time to escape after shaking the mezz and retoggle, counter with my own attacks or whatever. So honestly, reducing cooldown makes it more available for both of those duties and the 40s duration -typically- gives me enough breathing room to survive....as long as I retreat and/or am not otherwise Endurance constrained. But as a cornerstone of a +RES build, or as a means of alternating between Hybrid Melee or gap-filling Barrier....not likely going to suffice any longer. I also wonder if by taking away ability to slot +RECH enhancements it also takes away ability to slot any IO sets that include +Recharge components in the set? But it still allows me to slot in stuff like Steadfast I’m guessing?

I’ve seen the arguments but having played many kinds of each it’s not universally true. A War Mace scrapper will deal a lot more ST damage than an AR blaster using just their respective ST attacks perhaps but that’s not the entire story. And since it’s a very old argument I’ll leave that subject for other threads to tackle. But I play my blasters for the unique play style that they enable. Fast, agile, dash in for blipping, spin and throw a bolt of something over your shoulder as you kite around corner, drop a nuke/rain on the mobs that are dumb enough to follow, then BuildUp and snipe that one fool that is thinking he will get away. There’s not much else I’ve found that even closely resembles this play style other than maybe Corruptors and Defenders built for DPS but even they don’t feel the same as a well tuned blaster. And vs my scrappers, the ability to engage equally at range and melee adds a whole third dimension to game play. I mean we have virtually unlimited slots for alts available to us, and every character can have a second build. I just keep a big library of tricked out AT’s and some nights I feel like just punching things and then others I want the edge-of-my-chair feeling of playing a Blaster full-on carnage while waiting to get two shotted. Nothing prevents anyone from having whatever they want in this game short of a tank mage.....and even that’s possible with Sentinels (if you can stomach the lower damage output, aggro limit etc). AT’s should -feel- different to me and necessitate differing types of gameplay. Otherwise why not just have a single chassis and let players just build Controlling-Tanker-Kheldian-Blasting-Crabbermindominators with full-time autoCrits? We had those once upon a time but LOLnerfregen.

Way I've always viewed Blasters was high risk and high reward. You have all these high damage powers that, coupled with fairly low Health, puts you constantly in a state of kill or be killed. Unlike my scrappers who just wade in and smash things with little concern for tactics or even self preservation since the high defense and high damage basically make those cruise-control kinds of toons. However, with the last couple of Live releases and the IO sets, plus a bunch of stuff Homecoming tweaked, Blaster's are far more defense oriented. I don't think I have single blaster in my stable of AT's that isn't at least softcapped to S/L/E or Ranged, and most have very high resists and regen/recovery as well. So blapping is NOT the risk it once was. Blasters still aren't scrapper-easy AT's to play, but they are far more durable than they were pre-issue 15 or so.

Mainly because the builds are spread all over the forums. Case in point....if you are looking for top-tier MM builds, be sure to check out the SCRAPPER forums for the famous Pylon Damage Thread. There’s some classic builds in there like Demon/Storm from Frosticus, Ninja/Cold and many more. Most of the better builds I’ve found have been in that thread in fact.

Can’t speak to your Beast slotting, not my area of speciality. On my MM’s, I usually try to build for softcapped DEF for S/L or Ranged (never been able to do both personally). But that’s because I tend to Tankermind, taking the alpha while in BG mode. In BG mode, you already will have high resists because of how the damage is spread across you and the henchmen. But once the alpha is out of the way, I switch stance to Aggressive mode or even Attack my Target if down to just a boss or two. Thus, the Softcapped DEF is important for my play style. If you don’t Tankermind (with or without Provoke, I’ve done it both ways) then perhaps it’s slightly less important. But still, you can already achieve very high Resists (or simulate same) via BG mode. You can’t simulate Defense with any of your stances, but between high DEF and high Resists...even without DDR....you have layered mitigation for incoming damage, mezz, etc. Keep in mind with /Storm you have additional mitigation with all the KD you can be delivering, and with high +Recharge a LOT of that is possible. In general, with any MM build that uses Storm, my set bonus and slotting goals are S/L softcapped DEF (even if just high enough you need a single small purple to softcap), then +Recharge (lots of FF +Rech procs make this easy) and THEN damage from henchmen. /Storm offsets any damage slotting you can’t achieve on the henchmen anyways.

Buffing MM’s is, I’ll admit, going to be a challenge. Increase sturdiness/HP’s of henchmen too much and you basically have done same for MM as you’ve enhanced BG mode. Reduce END costs for MM too much, and with a high +Recharge build MM’s secondaries can rival other AT’s just from double/triple stacking stuff. Eliminate level shifts and having an MM on the team effectively can double/triple the team size, and DPS with it. Ultimately I’m not sure how to buff the MM AT without breaking it to the side of OP. Perhaps not all builds but many. I have several Thugs/, Demon/, Bots/ and /Time or /Storm MM’s already that easily solo AV’s or +4/x8 content. You could hand select certain primary or secondary sets for some buffs perhaps but not all.