Six-Six

These two, IMHO and preference are closely related. Leading is more than just calling the contact. I feel it should be about tactics and strategy. There was one team I was on that I really enjoyed (for the particular reason above). Leader was a Defender; she gathers the group in LFG. Once everyone was there, she asked someone to take the star... primarily because it is basically just calling the contact. Meanwhile she explains what to expect in each mission/door and goes over the general strategy (this one we need a stealthy guy to get to the end and assemble team or this one we hang back behind this corner while tank herds the mob to us, this one we spread out and look for glowies in teams of 2, here are the pairings... etc.) all the while she barely engages in attacks but focuses on making sure no one dies. I know it's easy to get into a pull-herd-mop up routine, but some missions require different approaches. And even on the aforementioned style of playing, a little heads up to the other team members won't hurt. Sorry for going off on a tangent for a second. Back to our regular programming 😃

It is. She's a wily one, often sitting on a ledge and popping a confuse on unsuspecting mobs. I don't earn XP for mobs killed in the confusion, but the sheer fun of making mobs fight amongst themselves is reward enough. Also used the combat slime aura and coloured it red so it looks like blood dripping from after her claws do their thing. And with beast run, she leaves bloody paw prints on the floor. simple joys of life. Actually, I'm just content with finding another concept to seamlessly use the Leviathan Patron Pool on. 😃

As they say, Dominators gonna dominate, potaters gonna potate 😃

Just got into Dominators myself. I honestly had to rewire my brain coming from armoured ATs like Sentinels, VEATs, and Brutes. at first, I couldn't fathom how an AT that's not packing like a Blaster can survive. After reading about them quite a bit, I found this one post here in the forums that "dominators finish the fight before it starts." I like that. Also, the concept of not being armoured grew on me. My toons tend to be B and C-listers who have some power/skill, but not very strong. I now have: Dark/Martial. I like the dark power in general in any AT. And I wish shuriken throwing would be more prevalent in other ATs. Primarily made the toon purely for shuriken throws. quite fun and different. She's a ninja, and sadly none of the patron/epic pools will let her use a katana or other ninja tools like caltrops. but still decided on levelling her up to 50. Fire/Fire. the animation for fire is one of my favourites as well. I made it a point to create a fire toon in almost all ATs. that said, this bloke has been created ages ago, and dusted off the shelves just today. Still as enjoyable as I envisioned. Update. This toon has since reached 50, my first dom. very happy with him from powers to animation to concept and costume. 😃 Now awaiting play time for his incarnates. Ice/Ice. I like the concept, I like the costume. I'm not a huge fan of the power in most ATs. Just a personal thing. also parked at level 10. Update. This toon has also reached 50. Ice grew on me and I really like the power now, thanks to this dom. and her costume won 2nd place in a contest, bagged 1 mil inf. 😃 Also awaiting play time for incarnates. Grav/Energy. Made this one because of a request from an SG mate. While I like the powers, I'm currently having trouble with concept (RP-wise). so he's parked for now at level 21 until I can figure him out. I have trouble playing a toon if the concept and costume are not fleshed out. Update. Revamped the concept and costume. I've made him into my first melee dom. quite fun, though I'm still trying fumbling with the Grav powers. This bloke just dinged 49. Earth/Earth. Just rolled this one yesterday. An SG mate urged me to try it (as it's his fave). haven't played her after the test drive to Level 10. seems promising. Earth sounds and feels strong. Mind/Savage. Probably my favourite atm because the toon concept is fleshed out and I know what direction her character is going. Also, I enjoyed my Savage Brute very much, so this is an extension of that. (chanced upon an invite to unlock Patron pools the other day, so she now mind controls mobs, bees, birds and later sharks!) this toon just edges ahead of the Dark/Martial. Update. I found that I didn't enjoy Mind so much, so I re-rolled her into Dark/Savage, because I really like Dark. They're all around level 10-20ish primarily because I got enamoured by Doms so much that I can't decide which one to play when I log on. These guys will burn through my cache of IOs and inf have made me extremely poor! Update: Just added an Elec/Elec and Plant/Thorns (based on Swamp Thing). Not too original, I know, but hey. Will be taking them out for a test drive later 😃 I suspect I will be playing the Earth next... as soon as I think of a concept for /Rad.

Hey Dana, I have a human only PB and they are quite fun... and tanky. I think coming from a Sentinel, what you might notice is the absence of Mez/Psi resistance in the low to mid levels. Other than that, the PB is as versatile as the sentinel in the sense you can build it several ways as you see fit. Also as a PB, you now have melee attacks (one nuke will kb everyone across the room), so it sort of progresses from the Sentinel being dubbed a "ranged scrapper" into being a hybrid range AND scrapper. Another thing that might catch you off guard with the PB is the fact that you're a Quantum magnet. Whether you team or solo, you will almost always encounter a Quantum in every mission. Just think of Quants as Malta Sappers to other ATs -- take them out first then kill the rest at your pleasure. Finally, you'll find out that you don't and can't get access to Epic/Patron pools. I like how one PB guru put it: You don't need Epic Pools when you're an Epic AT. 😃 Enjoy your PB.

I was going to chime in on the LFG thing, but I think you guys covered it enough. I suppose the biggest thing to push my buttons is similar to Bentley's regarding the people who "suggest" a change to the game. I'm all for discussion on how to move things forward, but only if it's for the greater good of the community (like nerf regen... jk). If a person wants to change implemented solely because they don't like it or it doesn't fit in their view of how the universe should please them, then I view it as simply selfish and inconsiderate. A lot of people take it for granted that it's a miracle we can even play this game at all. @Hexquisite. Can I just say that your name is simply AWESOME. 😃

I'm not as hard core as the post might have led you to believe. The operative line is "he keeps dying" 😃 I have other non-traditional ways to mix things up: 1) Pure Vigilante/Rogue. This means the toon's on his own and not part of the mainstream Paragon/Isles. So he's limited to street sweeping and radio/paper missions and tips. Every now and then one of my toons helps out in invasions or shadows a lowbie to heal them or offer support (slows, sleeps, confuse) while remaining undetected. I try to dress them up as commoners as well 😃 2) Architect. I'm keen into getting into making custom maps and arcs. So a couple of my toons just does AE content in a sort of internship manner. Learn by copying??? Yes Fire Farms are part of the learning experience. 3) Pure Sidekick. This guy has a bit of inferiority complex. He won't go and talk to contacts on his own (in his head, the contacts don't recognise him). So he tags along on higher level heroes/villains. I limit his attacks and powers on purpose (don't want to overshadow the hero). Sometimes, I'm cannon fodder, sometimes I'm the distraction, or the sneak that finds the glowie while the stronger ones duke it out. I don't tell them what's going on, but they're usually friends rather than total strangers and they put up with me. 4) Forge your own path. One thing I like about this game is that it's designed like the "choose your own adventure" books where one choice will give you a different path/fork of choices to follow. The consequence isn't always there, but it's immersive enough that each toon lives their own story through the contacts they take. So I try to remember which contacts I've taken, and with other toons, I make it a point to choose the other contact.

May I chime in that I, too, have had no significant lag before or after Derek's doings (and the server crash). I'm on a decade old computer running on third world internet. The only trouble I had within the past week can and is attributed to a scheduled and documented ISP maintenance in my district.

And may I add that the Angelic costume does not strike me as very angelic at all. I teamed up with Jesus once, brought it up with him as well... he said to just forgive such trespasses.

Another way to get inf is to do ITF, Market Crash, Tin Mage/Apex. With the right team, it becomes a nice balance of casual chat and just the right amount of difficulty to remain interesting. One run averages me about 16mil, excluding salvage, IOs for converting and flipping (with an occasional purple drop). @ThrillMill, if you enjoy Psi, I urge you to try a Fortunata. Very stronk and IMHO realises the full potential of Psi. While I love Sentinels, my Psi Sent was eclipsed by my Fort. It's a rather late bloomer, though, and quite a slog to level up; but really shines in the higher levels. And if you've got the funds for it, Forts can slot a buttload of purple IOs. Just a suggestion.

Hmm. I never thought of it falling under Role-playing, but you're right. I am taking the playing the role of the particular character at the time 😃 Thanks, Vile. Seeing as I alternate 3 or 4 toons at any given time, I bet I'm inching my way towards a multiple personality disorder XD forgot to mention that by level 9, most of my toons request... nay demand... a costume change (and sometimes a name change) that is more fitting to their personalities

@Ukase, I've been doing this on an off for the past few months. Same toon as he keeps dying. But my rules are slightly different. No deaths, no respec, no purchasing from AH or recipes (only selling), no help from alts (inf/IOs), no AE farms, no DFB, no XP boost TFs are allowed only if they are equal or lower than my current level... but I find them risky I do allow temp powers from P2W lady like frag/stun grenades, jet pack, reveal (which I don't use unless there's a straggler I really can't locate). 1-19 = +0x1, 20-29 = +1x1 - x2, 30-39 = +2x2 - x4, 40-49 = +3x3 - x6, 50-T4 alpha = +4x4-x8. it ends when I've equipped T4 alpha. After the first couple of deaths, I grew tired of transferring his assets (inf, IOs, recipes, salvage, merits) so I just start from scratch every time. same toon, Soldier of Arachnos. PS. In one death, I got one-shot by a Rikti drop ship in Port Oakes. In another, I thought I exited the game, but the toon stayed on and got pummelled while I was busy doing RL stuff. 😃

This may sound funny, but how I play depends on the toon... not the AT, not the power sets, the character. I create them, but soon after I get into them (around level 8 or so) they start to develop a personality of their own. Most of the time, I solo with each toon forging a different path of contacts and hence a different story for itself. some toons like team play whether or not they're "built" for it. Some like AE content, some like to stealth, some kill all; some like +4x1 others +0x1 or +2x6... they all have their preferences. Build-wise, I'm not a fan of expensive builds. I try to keep it on the cheap with yellow IOs rather than purples. (then again, one or two didn't like set bonuses at all) I tend to like weak characters as it makes the achievement of defeating enemies/completing a mission that much sweeter.

Hi guys. Not an MM player... yet, but I can relate to the sentiment of being too slow. I suppose it just happens with certain teams. No matter what AT I bring, I usually find myself bumbling about and being the last person to the fight, most times I get there and the mob is already dead. My solution is to be picky with teams. Yes there are a lot of people who speed run. But there are also those of us who like to take their time, enjoy the content, be cautious and strategise (like for certain missions I prefer to be sneaky and not kill anything but still get the objective completed... without stealth... just an added challenge). Hopefully you'll find people that are like-minded in how they want to play the game. I'm lucky enough to find a few that I regularly team with that isn't all steam-rolling through maps or stealthing-assemble team-kill the final boss runs. They (we) are out there, just a matter of our paths crossing. Best of luck to ya. 😃

Someone's been busy. 😃 Awesome work as always. Now I have the urge to roll a bunch of alts for which the mods apply. You, sir, ROCK!

Hey MadCrytter I'm on Reunion as well. Global @Six-Six. Too many characters to name, but currently levelling up 4 atm: Bloodmane (39 Sav/Dark Brute) Ultramarine (40 AR/Dev Blaster) Sal (11 DP/Martial Blaster) White Widower (28 Night Widow) plus a few 50s working on their incarnates as the opportunity arises. 😃 I play mostly redside... and on odd hours. Hope to bump into you.

If you like AR and are quite comfortable with the game, go for a spider. your teammates will love you just for showing up with double leadership buffs. AR+nades (and a few melee attacks) go very well thematically with the AR. 😃 And to further skirt around the Sentinel vs Blaster debate, here are MY experiences with the power sets: AR/Dev Blaster (L40). AR in general disappoints me. I like the concept, but the power itself seems to lag far behind the other powers in most ATs. The only decent one I've come up with that I can thematically reconcile as well as one strong (and fun) enough for me to reach level 40 on. (I do supplement his attacks with the frag and stun grenades from P2W lady). I haven't tried AR on a Sentinel. Beam/SR Sentinel (L50). I think Beam Rifle shines with the Sentinel version more than the blaster because of one power: Refractor Beam. basically the Sent version is a slightly better AoE attacker and the Blaster is a superior ST killer. I've always felt that BR is a bit slow to animate, and the sentinel's Super Reflexes makes up for that slack. I'm trying out another angle to see if the other way will work: slowing things down to your speed--BR/Time Blaster. still too low level to give any feedback. Energy Blast/Rad Sentinel (L50), EB/Atomic Manip Blaster (L10). Very fun, very stronk. If kb's your thing, that is. It'll be hard to slot for KB-KD until late 30s if you plan to team a lot as KB tends to annoy some people who do their best to herd mobs. Instead of KB-KD, I like to slot mine with Devastation +Chance to hold... works on green??? Hami Mitos as well 😃 and finally, very cosmetic but could be a deal breaker: Beam aims and shoots from the shoulder like a real rifle--very cool. AR shoots from the hip, like a 1940s gangster.

@Thundercap, Now this is a valid and very good point. Thank you for the caveat in the argument. It's not so much "getting players to play lower levels" but more of getting them to bite into the meat of the game, get a feel for the game and what it has to offer, which ATs they might like. Not an easy task since the bulk of it depends on the player "wanting" to. Maybe an entirely new section (for lack of a better term) comprised of a few levels is necessary... like the tutorial part of most games on consoles. It takes a few minutes/levels to explain the potential of the AT you picked, the pros and cons etc. Kinda like the Breakout/Galaxy City but a bit more depth (maybe until level 10???) Then before it lets you loose it asks whether you want to try other ATs (go through the tutorial again) or stick with the one you have but try different powers??? I don't know. It could even be just a rework of the splash screen in Costume Creator, the part that has the write up of the ATs.

Between here and Discord's opt-in channel, there is a crap-tonne of help, advice and builds for you. Of course, there is no one way to play a PB/WS. I started out with a "guide" build somebody provided in the Discord, then slowly transformed it to how the character wanted itself to be played (my toons have a habit of doing that, taking on a personality). Thoroughly enjoying my human only. On my way to trying out tri-form WS. Enjoy your journey 😃

As a newb, I fell in love with Sentinels. My first toon ever to 50. I thought Blasters were much too tough on someone learning the ropes. But now that I have a couple of dozen 50s and incarnates under my belt, I'm starting to lean towards Blasters. Sentinels are very forgiving. The secondary armour sets all make you very survivable (even if you don't know what you're doing... like me). Even a faultily-slotted sentinel secondary will see you walk out of a +2x8 solo fight. Damage-wise, it's there. you can build it up with your favourite IOs. But 1) there will always be someone with more damage than you, 2) sometimes damage isn't everything. The sentinel brings a few debuffs and a few other tricks to make up for the lacking damage. Blasters are not the glass cannons they're made up to be. Defiance is a very strong inherent. And while most people will throw in a power pool to slot def and res, I have some blasters that don't and are still quite tough (besides you don't need a lot of defence when everything is dead 2 seconds after you arrive). It would be unfair to compare Sentinels and Blasters, as their similarities end with the fact that they're both ranged and have similarly-named power sets. They play different roles in a team and different play styles (blasters have a handful of melee attacks that hurt as well). If I were you, I'd try both to see which one fits your style. Everyone's style is different, and the only one who can decide for you is you. 😃

I don't have mids so can't really share builds (plus, I build on the cheap), but I would like to share that I've slotted the End Mod (forget what it's called atm) Chance to Stun IO in almost all my attacks, even the aura. And it basically makes my Elec/Elec/Elec Sent strong enough to tank (minus the taunt, of course, but the aura makes up for that).

I'm the opposite. Started with heroes, but found my home in the Rogue Isles. I do have a few true-blues in the mix, but the exception rather than the rule. Most of my "bluesiders" are villains who think it's healthier for them to be around heroes because of the enemies they've made redside. The rest are red-blooded through and through. And a handful are the "true" villains, the ones bent on global domination, not just C-listers who want to enrich themselves or be someone else's lackeys. Gold side, I can't get enough of Cole. Primal Earth needs more Cole, as Praetor Duncan stated. (and I'm sorry, but resistance is futile) 😃

baby seals are also called pups. at least now you're clubbing

Yes, yes you can. But you're right, it's not enough to get to 50... well with a crap-tonne of patience, I suppose. 😃

Awesome! I, too, have two dedicated Praetorians. One Loyalist and one Resistance (who can go to hell, Resistance scum!) Haven't been on them for a spell. I'm trying to figure out a way the have them reach 50 without leaving (because the Gold Star icon on the toon list is awesome).