Replacement

Power Build Up is actually closer to Aim already. It's 50% ToHit (vs 17% in Dominator>Electric Assault's Build Up) and 34% damage (vs their Build Up's 68%)

I love you.

This is actually where I've been leaning. It means we could remove mez protection from the passive, which is janky. This still gives us a scaling +stealth and +power boost, which gets sacrificed (maybe completely, maybe halving, maybe minus a static amount -- that's not something you can know without testing and tuning) to give mez resist/break free and placation. Just using this as a point of reference and contrast, my current goals are: T1: Defensive toggle OR placate T2: Aoe Immobilize or similar (e.g. Dark gets a cone instead) T3/4 (dependent on set): Defensive toggle OR placate T4+: attempt to stay as true to Manipulation as possible. Now, @Steampunkette has brought me around to the idea of the class needing "direct" survival built-in, but I continue to be resistant towards putting multiple powers into it, because I think it's important for them to rely on the thing that truly sets them apart from Blasters: Ninja Vanish! But it does bother me that they will simply "not be covered" towards non-S/L stuff. I wonder how awful it would be to give them, e.g. a special version of Charged Armor that has something like 19% to the main resists but 11% to other resists (leaving the 1-2 typical "holes). I would like to note, here: tier 4 secondary is level 10. This is not a long time to go for either the placate or the survival skill. And this also means you could actually have different sets him them in different orders. Hell, /Ice's Sustain move comes at level 10 instead of the standard 20, which means you'll have all sorts of fun figuring out the power order. I'm also not adverse to simply bumping up the Mag of some of their control-y powers. There are a few in the Manipulations that are Mag 2s that I think an Operative would make more sense to have at Mag 3 (or 75% chances bumped up to 100%, etc). Minor tweaks that keep the power the same but the potency increased to help them survive. One final Note: I'm pushing for Assaults giving Power Boost and Manipulations giving Build Up, because that's the least amount of work. That could be swapped (because it honestly makes more sense) but the point is there's a clear delineation. And I also still think Psionic/Psychic should be the last set ported.

I like the absorb shield sentinel-regen gets. Granted, absorbs are my fix for everything, but I'd love to see it on the other sets. A way to stem the tide on too much damage at once, to give your health bar a moment to catch up, but without being a true effective health multiplier (as is the case for resistance). In other words, every bit of +defense and +resistance multiplies the effectiveness of your HP, and therefore regeneration. Absorb is nice because it adds a nice chunk of mostly-linear survival.

When I see people against nerfs, I see "these are my toys and if you take them I'm going home." Imagine a scenario where an FPS game buffs all the guns to compete with the best gun. Congratulations, you just nerfed everyone's health. Nerfs prevent the game from losing its core gameplay loops. It's really the heart of the cottage rule: no one wants to log on and find the game isn't what it was supposed to be. And you do that by reigning in abuses before they distort the game. I wish the gaming community writ-large would grow up and realize it's good for a game. But hey, continue on with your popular +10 likes posts.

Creating a Tanker > Kinetic Melee shows Quick Strike as the only valid choice, but it's T2. Causes unplayable character:

I would also like to see the thought-process, here, but I do believe it's intentional (probably because Tankers actually have access to a lot of -Defense abilities). Here's the patch note: Tanker modifiers to debuff enemy ToHit and Damage and Resistance with support abilities in epic pools have been increased, in addition to their modifiers to buff other's damage, to-hit and defense have been increased, making Leadership Assault stronger when used by the AT. Those are some seriously specific call-outs. I know CP doesn't wanna talk about it, but if you wanted to nerf Brutes in a way that would barely be felt, numerically, but would further diversify them from Tankers? Lower all of these same modifiers for them slightly to extend the gap.

Just to cut through the hyperbole and the swings one way or another, let's state for the record what does apply and for how much: AVs have a powerful debuff resistance, but it specifically does not apply to resistance debuffs. The +5 shift AVs get for conning purposes is just visual. This was what I screwed up before, and I actually did some quick research on my own, reverse-engineering results others put together, to confirm this. This means a +0 AV is Purple Patched just as hard as a +0 minion -- which is not at all. For 50 levels, +4 mobs are common, results in a 9.6% Resistance debuff, and I'm confident this is accurate. @Auroxis says an endgame tanker is going to see more of a 13% resistance debuff, and I trust your data. Your screenshot actually shows the Purple Patching going in your favor; treating an even-con enemy as -1 to you. I didn't realize the bit about GMs. I suppose it makes sense if they're always considered "level=player level." Ergo, the un-hyperbolic truth sits in the middle (as always): On average, Bruising will not be "reduced down to nothing." On average, Bruising will not come close to its full 20%. All of that said, with all the caveats about increased damage scale not applying to Epics; about Bruising only affecting one target, that it's basically impossible to let multiple tankers' Bruising stack... I think the build on Pineapple just plain makes more sense. It creates a Tanker that is simply more enjoyable to play (this is a "subjective majority" sort of deal. Most people would rather the things they hit fell over; most people would at least like the option of soloing now and again, etc). I want to send this live tomorrow, but I don't get upset when things get nerfed down the road.

I've been defending these changes for 46 pages. I don't think I need any lessons in standing up for myself, I just really hate being the source of misinformation. I've edited the correct post to reflect that the level bonuses are still accurate.

THAT CHANGES EVERYTHING BRB EDITING OUT MY MISINFORMATION.

Yeah, I mentioned the +4 scenario. You and I discussed this earlier; your numbers say something much larger than my 6-9% expected, because you're assuming level shifts. You are right -- it's worth remembering Alpha slots are part of the game, and perhaps I overstated the idea that we should disregard it. But it's not the sum total of the game, or even the standard play. Or maybe I'm just in a huge minority of folks who alt and never finish.

So first off, what level are you? 53? I assume that's how that works out: 50+5-3 = 2 levels of shift. Even that should be 16%; not 22%. Hell, against a +0 white minion, you should only be debuffing 20% instead of 22.2%. What the heck are you doing and can I come play at your table?

And of course, remember: Bruising gets resisted down to nothing. Same-level AV is treated as +5 to a player; some content will spawn them in as +4 to the player as "level-appropriate." +5 drops Bruising from a 20% resist debuff to a 6% debuff. I understand Incarnate stuff twists that, but I don't really think it's intelligent or advisable at this point to make any balance decisions around the "let's give everyone a t9 nuke that ignores AT modifiers" system. This whole post is wrong and I need to go contemplate all of my life's conclusions.

Dear sweet Statesman. Because Bruising gets resisted down to nothing. This is wrong. AVs have no special resistance to damage resistance and they don't affect conning the way I thought they did. You do, however, get a lot of resisted Bruising vs higher-level mobs. Also: Because Bruising makes a 2nd tank the literal-worst addition to any party layout. And you cannot fix this by allowing it to stack, because then instead you have a party of bricks with stacking debuffs which immediately sends it the other direction. And the +damage does not instantly turn them into a Brute. It makes playing as a tanker more fun, and lets you get to enjoy half of your powers.

Tesla AT confirmed. All the lightning powers, all the time.

EDIT: This post was just stirring up shit and offered nothing constructive. My apologies; move along.

I remember when IOs launched, we didn't bother with these lowby IOs even then. It felt like a trap to pull together all that salvage and recipes and have a build that was DO-power. I mean, sure, the level 25s are SO-ish, but by then, you have better sets to choose from.

I'm ok with, and agree with, gating powers behind picks that come before it. I am not ok with forcing players to take intentionally-underwhelming powers to get there. In a vacuum, Boxing/Kick are intentionally weak, yet they're considered equivalent to Hasten. Riiiiight

I like this and I feel like I need to start an Internet Argument here just to give it the false traffic that facilitates the illusion that this is a popular suggestion, increasing the likelihood that Homecoming will also see and enjoy the idea.

Well... Have you ever complained about this game becoming too easy? Edit - I guess I'll wait a week or two before posting my "swap Hasten and Burnout" thread...

...what if it's shitposting?

Your whole slew is apparently only 10% of the population. But fine, that's not "everyone."

One thing's for sure: I really want more power pools. I can't help but think the reason Hasten is picked so much is because we only have 10 pools, and functionally, we only have 7-8 (because most "travel" selections are nearly mutually exclusive -- characters with flight don't typically dip into leaping). If we added another 4 pools to the mix, with varying effects, maybe we'd break that reliance on Hasten (which I have frequently grabbed solely because "I couldn't think of anything better").

I... think you know very well that's not an accurate comparison. Particularly the Empathy Defenders. Hasten isn't a power you take because it's part of your fiction. Hasten isn't specific to one AT or power set. Everyone can take it, and more importantly, everyone does take it. I think if Homecoming staff held a serious poll and said "if you vote yes, we really will replace hasten with a free passive +recharge bonus"... I would hesitate. I don't know which way to swing on this. But be honest with yourself. Also, I would have nerfed spines/fire 12 years ago.

I think it made sense in 2004. I do not think it made sense in 2008, or 2011. The reality is, you don't need to make Force Field Defenders "solo only" to get them to party. In the same way a Brute is fantastic at soloing, but it's still the excruciating path to 50. Self-counterpoint: buffs are not resisted, which gives them an inherent advantage against content. So I can understand if they decided that "weighed" the same as solo-incompetence. I just don't agree or think it's reasonable anymore.