Zeraphia

I'd +1 to SD/WM Tanker. Great AoE, better than BS Stalker, the Tanker changes make it completely manageable, there is always lore + envenomed blades to fill in your ST damage against high targets. I think that the Tanker will bring you greater pleasure in terms of live gameplay overall for a lot of content especially with its AoE components to where it will make the Stalker seem lackluster beyond high damage, also as a general rule, Smashing damage is less resisted than Lethal damage, WM is Smashing damage, BS is Lethal (although it gives -def so there are Achilles procs, but still). I think for terms of theme it will just work strictly better as WM/Shield, the "paladin" theme is pretty in your face, always there, dealing decent damage, the center of the battlefield. Stalker is striking your foes from behind and swamping them evilly. Paladins typically don't do those types of things. Sorry if my post is a little bit of an echo of @oldskool.

If you want to "cave" to the meta, you're going to have a very tough time beating Rad/TW Tanker... -High as hell ST (the highest ST set in the game) -Amazing AoE with proc monsters from Rad Therapy + Ground Zero & TW's overperforming AoE -You shore up Rad's lower defenses with Titan Sweep for things like ITF -Great control as well for teammates to not die because of how often you'll knockdown enemies which also helps you survive as well. -Gives a hefty amount of -res (-50%) with Achilles proc in Rend Armor + FotG in Arc of Destruction, another benefit to your entire team. -Solos AV/GM very well -Rad Armor HELPS TW with TW's end hog tendencies. -Rad Armor has the best "hole" for a resistance in the game, Cold, which is rarely ever seen in the game and is much more forgiving to have a hole to than hard Psionics enemies. -Rad Armor provides recharge to help TW recharge its damage potential -Rad Armor excels late game -Can afk for minutes at a time for almost every enemy group and not end up even close to dead -The absorb makes your effective HP around 3,700 once properly IO'd and gotten accolades, that's more than Invul with Dull Pain, doesn't even factor if someone drops something like Frostwork on you. In short its only shortcoming is that it makes the game so easy you might get bored.

I'd argue that Rad may be the next pick, it can use its heal as a proc-monster immediately after momentum fall-off and use Meltdown to improve its overall damage for a good portion of itself.

My suggestion with badges would be that some badges should be less "team-reliant" and more self-reliant. For example, the Preservation Specialist badge has been often failed in iTrials due to general ignorance or lack of team direction, getting 16-24 people to stay behind the entire league and listen the entire time is arduously difficult, especially with PUGs. I think there is a time and a place for team and league wide coordination, but I think the coordination should also not be failed because one "Turbo Man!" Tanker with the huge body type decides to "LEEROY!" across the corridors without looking at the league chat. I don't know of a great compromise or fix to this, but this can be extraordinarily annoying.

I'm about to make a thread actually on the absurd synergy of a beasts/kinetics MM. This poster is accurate for general cases, but NOT the specialized case of Beasts/Kinetics. -Beasts are unique in that is is the *only* MM primary that can softcap itself. Every single pet has 11% base positional defense. Fortify Pack at 5 stacks (it is stupid easy to get 5 stacks) gets to around 23.6% and can be made permanent with high recharge (more on this later). Further, the two unique pet IO's that provide 5% defense to all, Edict of the Master and Call to Arms bring in 10% defense as well. All of this combined gives you 44.6% defense, they legitimately SOFTCAP themselves. Right off the bat, this user is completely inaccurate about defense numbers being "bad" they're actually quite exceptional and makes them able to run a secondary that does not provide defense or -to hit mitigations whatsoever. -Beasts have actually pretty nice innate resistances. Howlers (T1): 18% Smash/Lethal/Cold Resist Lions + Dire Wolf (T2): 29% Smash/Lethal/Cold Resist Tankiest off the bat? No, but they don't really need to be because once you slot up Increase Density you can have your pets receive 28.9% S/E resistance. You can also slot the following sets to make them tankier: Superior Mark of Supremacy (MM ATO gives 15% resistance to all), Sovereign Right (10% resistance to all), and Expedient Reinforcement (another 10% resistance to all)... That leaves them with: T1: Psi-35% Fire-35% Cold-53% Negative-35% Toxic-35% Lethal-53% Smashing-81.9% Energy-63.9% T2+: Psi-35% Fire-35% Cold-53% Negative-35% Toxic-35% Lethal-64% Smashing-90% (overcapped) Energy-63.9% -Considering this is one of the few instances where the pets actually receive great Energy resistance and still manage to keep the softcap at all times, this makes this combination extremely tanky but that is not all, you also deal -dmg another form of damage mitigation beyond even just defense and resistance that works on *everything.* -15% damage in addition to all the defense and resistance... these pets are not only going to be at the damage cap permanently, they're also going to be extremely tanky. -The T1's are indisputable proc monsters for Achilles heel. That damage easily spreads to a mob of enemies and they have a huge amount of proc damage off of their hits, arguably better than even Thug's Enforcers. -This Kinetics' Speed Boost helps these wolves immensely, it allows them to very quickly run into mobs at the run speed cap and it allows them to easily receive the Fulcrum Buff. -The attacks Beasts offer is supplementary but VERY worth it in comparison to EVERY other primary bar absolutely none. Even Demons. The immense amount of procs they can receive and improve on the MM to help you feel more "active" is definitely no joke. -I do not see how Demons pairs better than Wolves with Kinetics for the reasons above. Demons are quite decent, but they cannot softcap themselves in the way Fortify Pack can nor can it apply the procs with their T1's nearly as well as Beasts can.

It can be worked with but it isn't synergistic. Immobolizes allow the powers to reach their highest AoE potential damage, working together well rather than allow the enemies to scatter when they aren't being knock'd down. When speaking AoE, this does not have synergy in comparison to the immobolizes that keep them in place to reach their maximum potential. It has great single target damage, I agree, but if you are not on a team, that AV will move around guaranteed, unlike with other sets that have a much easier time keeping the enemy within the powers maximum potential ranges. I am not new to this combination nor other /Storm combinations. I'm not disregarding your opinion, but I am pointing out the flaws in this that there are better options for synergy with a storm secondary to reach a live gameplay best AoE performance rather than a pylon.

You picked the classic single most irritating build that can ruin many a player's lives on teams when used horrifically. I applaud you! Muahahaha! On a more serious note, this can also be quite a fun combination to spam knockdowns for your teammates and keep them very safe with your FF shields, here is a build I made for a Corruptor with this combination that deals decent AoE damage, gives a ton of defense to teammates, has good defenses to range, and has capped S/L res, with lots of proc'd out hits to make them deal maximum damage. Villain Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.6.0.7 https://github.com/ImaginaryDevelopment/imaginary-hero-designer Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Magic Corruptor Primary Power Set: Energy Blast Secondary Power Set: Force Field Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Leaping Ancillary Pool: Psychic Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Power Blast -- Apc-Dam%(A), Apc-Dmg(3), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(3), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(17), Apc-Acc/Rchg(17), ExpStr-Dam%(25) Level 1: Personal Force Field -- Rct-ResDam%(A) Level 2: Energy Torrent -- SprScrBls-Rchg/+End(A), SuddAcc--KB/+KD(19), SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg(34), SprScrBls-Dmg/Rchg(37), ExpStr-Dam%(37), PstBls-Dam%(40) Level 4: Deflection Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(5), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(5), LucoftheG-EndRdx/Rchg(7), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(7) Level 6: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(19) Level 8: Sniper Blast -- StnoftheM-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), StnoftheM-Acc/Dmg(9), StnoftheM-Dmg/EndRdx(9), StnoftheM-Dmg/ActRdx/Rchg(15), StnoftheM-Dam%(15), ExpStr-Dam%(25) Level 10: Insulation Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(11), LucoftheG-Def(11), LucoftheG-EndRdx/Rchg(13), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(13) Level 12: Aim -- GssSynFr--Build%(A) Level 14: Super Speed -- BlsoftheZ-ResKB(A) Level 16: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 18: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(43), Ags-ResDam(48), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx(50), Ags-ResDam/Rchg(50), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(50) Level 20: Dispersion Bubble -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(21), LucoftheG-EndRdx/Rchg(21), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(23), LucoftheG-Def(23) Level 22: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 24: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 26: Explosive Blast -- OvrFrc-Dam/KB(A), PstBls-Dam%(27), JvlVll-Dam%(27), ExpStr-Dam%(31), FrcFdb-Rechg%(31), HO:Nucle(31) Level 28: Repulsion Field -- SuddAcc--KB/+KD(A), FrcFdb-Rechg%(29), EndRdx-I(29) Level 30: Tactics -- HO:Cyto(A) Level 32: Nova -- SprMlcoft-Rchg/Dmg%(A), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg(33), SprMlcoft-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), SprMlcoft-Dmg/Rchg(34), SprMlcoft-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34) Level 35: Repulsion Bomb -- PstBls-Dam%(A), JvlVll-Dam%(36), ExpStr-Dam%(36), HO:Nucle(36), FrcFdb-Rechg%(37), HO:Nucle(43) Level 38: Dominate -- UnbCns-Dam%(A), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(39), GldNet-Dam%(39), NrnSht-Dam%(39), GldJvl-Dam%(40), HO:Nucle(40) Level 41: Mind Over Body -- Ags-ResDam(A), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx(42), Ags-ResDam/Rchg(42), Ags-Psi/Status(42) Level 44: Power Burst -- SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(A), SprScrBls-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45), SprScrBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45), ExpStr-Dam%(45), GldJvl-Dam%(46), FrcFdb-Rechg%(46) Level 47: Victory Rush -- EndMod-I(A) Level 49: Combat Jumping -- ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Quick Form 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 -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(48) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(43), PrfShf-EndMod/Rchg(46), PrfShf-EndMod/Acc(48) Level 50: Musculature Radial Paragon ------------

I really love your analysis of it as an old set and I really appreciate the perspective back to the times that are different from now! It brings back wonderful memories! 🙂 Cheers!

Ill/Storm is fun but it is a very anti-synergistic combination. In AoE damage, it would fair much better if it had an immob AoE, unfortunately because it doesn't, the "Afraid" mechanics make the enemies run away and scatter from the Nado and LS. Fire/Storm Dark/Storm and Plant/Storm are extremely synergistic and work very harmoniously with each other, the Immobilize guarantees the high damaging Storm powers are not wasted by mob scatter and allow you to safely attack without taking the damage from enemies. Fire is extraordinary in its ability because it knocks down enemies with kb-> kd in Bonfire with Nado, overtime ensuring mob death fairly quickly. A much more synergistic variation with Illusion is Illusion/Time, you can proc monster one of its AoE powers (the hold one) and while it may not fire multiple times after initial cast, its initial cast has a very high chance to proc the damage procs giving it considerable AoE, the pets also help the DPS quite a lot and it keeps mobs very tightly knit together. Brings lots of team benefits and can very well take down AV/GM's with -regen and a proc'd out extra hold which is not something that should be lightly passed up by any means. /Storm IMO is not one of the better AV/GM soloers but it is great once you have a team going and you can surge DPS against an AV, without a team and strictly solo, it is quite bad, AV's will run away from you and it is just a mess, not saying it is impossible, but it can be a great source of frustration.

-res NEVER stops being "necessary" it ALWAYS makes you deal more damage, it works outside of damage caps and is the reason you occasionally see crazy things like this: Now this is a totally different character, you're not going to take KB, but the principle is still there that -res is what makes damage spike through the roof. -Regen can be debatable but against +4 AV and iTrials, absolutely makes a visible difference. The -def is excellent for proc damage and additional Achilles -res procs. -Disintegration is much like Contamination (from Rad Melee), it gives a chance for additional ST energy damage of time. If another target is already suffering from its effects and you use the Disintegrate power, it has a high chance to have the Disintegration proc to up to 3 other nearby targets. -Charged Beam can be skipped if you take the T1, the rest are all very worthwhile to grab.

Beam. Go Beam. 100%. -Most of Beam's damage is in Energy damage which is straight out the box less resisted than Lethal damage which is the majority of AR's damage type. -AR's animation times and the fact they're in DoTs really kill the performance of the set. The T9 is a 4 second cone with Lethal damage that is a long DoT. BR has a Targeted AoE T9 that deals energy damage wtih only a 2.9s cast meaning this is a lot less likely to kill you. -Beam provides substantially better secondary benefits than AR, Beam actually gives -res and -regen, you can put the Achilles proc into AR's powers but you can put Achilles into BR as well therefore BR has the higher -res (more beneficial to teammates). -A lot of the base damages in AR look high but a lot of it also deals with fear (the enemies will hardly ever really take as much damage as the power indicates) and/or is in a DoT which also makes enemies not take as much damage as a power that is frontloaded and unavoidable once it hits you will be.

The effect isn't always on mobs or in group play, it's mainly on AV targets where you stack the confuses to have said AV attack another AV or you can become neigh-invincible with the confuses stacking.

Little bit of an MM vet here, I've definitely had my share of FF MM's, hehe throwback to the good ol' days when you have to equip and train all of your pets, and then cast both shields on each pet, what a doozie that was! I personally do not recommend FF for an MM. In my honest opinion, Time just outclasses FF for MM as a secondary right now. With Power Boost, it gives enough defense to easily softcap your pets with IO's and has *much* better tools to keep them alive than even FF does. FF is a defense pony realistically. Time has heals, -to hit, defense, -dmg, -regen, excellent proc options all baked into its toolkit. FF can work, but it is very hard to argue FF over Time in the current state of the game (although that's not to say it is impossible to be good as an FF, or that FF is even bad, it is just not going to give you the bells and whistles that Time will and it makes a huge difference.) I'd say you should choose for a first time MM Demon Summoning. They are tanky from the start without a primary, they give a variety of damage types so you're not going to feel pigeonholed with one particular damage, they have good resistance inherents, and they give -res which is helpful for the entire time, and they're an easy slotting option because of the 4 pet powers allowing you to take advantage of the recharge time bonuses given by the MM ATO's. Thugs is a top tier MM primary undoubtedly, but it is quirky and it is resisted because it is a lot of lethal/smashing damage, that said, it is perfect at late game and does very very very well. This set more than others really does need IOing, but once it gets there, it's a streamroller. I don't think it's the best one to start out with, but it is definitely one of the best ones (if not THE best one) in the end. Robots is an honorable mention but their base damages are so low 😞 especially early on... once you get the Assault Bot though, it becomes a pretty great set. In terms of secondaries, Time, Nature, Dark, Cold, and Thermal are *very* good. It is hard to go wrong with any of those. If you choose Demon Summoning, Nature or Thermal go very well with it. If you choose Thugs, Time goes exceptionally well with them, as does Cold. Robots pair extremely well with Time as well and Cold. Why do those combinations go well together? -Demons have very good resistances off the bat, enhancing their resistances with healing goes a LONG way with Thermal/Nature. -Thugs have okay resistances, but very good defenses with the enforcer's double Maneuvers, therefore a defense secondary that softcaps them makes them very good. Cold and Time are the best ones. -Robots have okay resistances, but very good defenses with the T2 bot granting Deflection and Insulation Shields to the other bots and themselves. Softcapping them makes them much more survivable. Cold and Time are the best ones.

I have nothing to really add here other than I am glad that you and your team are committed to keeping the game updated and bringing about positive changes in light of old sets! You may not always see the support from forum posters, but your work is valued! 🙂

I think the choice whether or not to skip an AoE hold largely depends on the primary chosen, for some it is absolutely vital and for others it is largely skippable. Highlighted in blue are the "best" AoE holds, red being don't pick it unless you have a set mule for it, yellow being "most of the time skipped, but not horrible," and the rest being "sometimes" cases. -Fire's AoE hold is 100% skippable, flashfire + fire cages is legitimately the same effect as the hold, and then you have bonfire with kb-kd, makes the hold really redundant, also is a PBAoE, negative IMO. It is almost never taken for anything beyond a set mule. Not a bad power, just not needed by any means. -Darkness' AoE hold is glorious, you *can* skip it, but I find it honestly worth the pick and quite great at what it does, has range. -Earth's AoE hold is again glorious, I would almost never skip it but you can forgo it with high recharge to just do Stone Cages + Stalagmites, also has range. -Elec's AoE hold is debatable, it's a "sometimes" case where you sometimes do want it, but there are definitely builds you can make that will function well if not better than with the hold, that said it's not a "bad" choice, it has range which is a huge plus for a hold IMO. -Gravity's AoE hold is largely in the same boat as Elec's, but Wormhole will largely make it feel "outclassed." -Plant's AoE hold is debtable, but most of the time skipped. It is ranged which is good, it can be good in some situations, but you have by far the most broken AoE control in SoC... I could see this being used by groups who really hate the exp loss over confuses (there is debate on if it is even a loss over time due to the fact it can be a net gain). Overall, SoC is just going to be used so much more often and will amount to much greater things than its hold will. -Mind's AoE hold is again debatable but actually usually taken. It is often rotated with Terrify + Mass Confusion. It is a ranged hold which is a huge positive IMO, and it is the only power that mind has that truly keeps an enemy locked into place (assuming no knockback). -Ice's AoE hold is sadly taken more often than not because of lack of other options. The really good AoE control in this set is Ice Slick which is its bread and butter, the hold helps it keep rotation from group to group.

Oh trust me, I get it! Dominators are noticeably late-bloomers, but I think if you just chase the Dominator AT trying to do "everything" they will fail in some aspect. Design the dominator for something you really like, I play my Dominator much like a Blaster soloist with a lot of control. Their pylon times are not far off (like maybe 10-20 seconds off of the Blaster, both are well under the 1:40 mark), my combinations are fire/fire Blaster and fire/fire Dominator, I love both equally. The Dominator is well-respected on teams for a lot of special purposes (hami, keeping people from dying with controls, etc.) and I've never felt unwelcomed. I had a much smoother experience with her than I did my Blaster, but I love my Blaster for its sheer AoE carnage and lack of expectations to do anything but destroy. In terms of soloing, I prefer the Dominator much more due to the fact that when I use Hot Feet, they're totally trapped in the Flashfire + Immob and have absolutely no ways to escape, it is a very satisfying death to watch and very safe, she easily clears +4x8 absolutely no issues at all and has a much easier time with AV's due to the fact she can pretty consistently hold an AV enough of the time. But alas, that may not be your style, you should design a Dominator in such a way that it accomplishes your goal whether that be AoE wreckage, soloing hard TF's, or completely mezzing AV's through purple triangles. Dominators are a "life's what you make of it" type of AT.

Coyote gives very solid advice for early on with Dominators. I use this same method (link below) and it has made an enormous difference to me as I feel no longer obligated to try to keep up with clicking one or the other and unintentionally lose my perma-dom. This apparently for some reason does not work for Active Defense (which I find... very... odd...) but it does actually work for other powers like Ablative Carapace (the absorb, so you always have a huge health prevention barrier), it's one of the things I used for my TW/Bio Scrapper. I also would like to say that Coyote's advice in mezzing the higher rated enemy first then going in on the minions is always the best method to go as a Dominator early on. The minions themselves are not going to most likely outright kill you (unless we're talking +4 x8 w/ bosses), but you should always start a battle with either a stun/hold/sleep/confuse on the higher rated target because they are typically tougher and deal more damage, and progress on the minion, the minions will often provide inspirations to help you with the higher rated foe if you even need it (your mezzing can become that good.) As for primaries, I know that Fire Control has been poo-poo'd on Dominators and I really don't think it's deserved (at all). Fire Control with domination makes Flashfire near permanent on mobs, it gives a wonderful soft but very hardcore control in Bonfire that also deals damage, the minions help you slice through content as well, it has one of the fastest holds that also works well with procs. This primary really keeps up well for damage. It may not be as hardcore in its ability to control an AV, but it actually can do this easier than others with how fast the hold casts. Plant control is also a huge contender, SoC is just... godly... that is a godsend power that I think pretty much every control set would give up and arm and a leg for to get. With Domination, this confuse actually lets you outright confuse bosses in an AoE. If you wanted, you could literally finish the game (sans confuse protected enemies and EB's) by confusing crowds of enemies, let them kill themselves before do a single thing, and only crunch down on the bosses. Mind Control is also very good it offers a confuse which can be made into an almost AoE with contagious confusion. I quite love that power, it actually enables you to pretty easily stack confuses on an AV and let an AV attack its own allies instead of your team/you, it also has one of the fastest holds in the game and is the only set that has a single target 3.5 magnitude Sleep (this easily sleeps AV's). Dark Control mostly the same tools Mind does but has a PBAoE stun that works really well with crowds. Has a better AoE hold than Mind, but doesn't have the AoE confuse (to be fair, Mind's AoE confuse is on a very long CD), also comes with more direct pets than Mind, really excellent primary. I think those primaries are the "overperformers" in some particular category, but that said, Earth, Gravity, Electric, and Ice are still wonderful primaries. Earnestly, pick the primary that fits your theme and your overall design choices the best and enjoy the game! 🙂

I was aware that Achilles didn't stack, but it will reapply itself in a continuous loop, this makes it very worthwhile because there are 3 dogs that are continuously attacking giving near permanent -res, there's also a ton of proc options in the personal attacks from Beast Mastery to give legitimately permanent -20% res (Call Swarm and Call Ravens). The dogs will often attack enemies so quickly and maw at them, given there are 3 of them, that the Achilles proc may as well be an actual AoE. This may possibly be the most consistent set to keep the -res in the Achilles proc on enemies. For a lethal set, the -res is exceptionally handy given the enemies that resist it. Keep in mind, this started in my head as one of the "worst" mm sets, almost purely melee, lethal damage, and very little information online at my disposal to properly slot it. Honestly, when I started the testing for this I was saying in my head "I don't believe that there is anything to be truly gained from this, it seems like a very basic set," and then I actually tested them with as many procs as I could against the Rikti test dummy, and I was very very very wrong.

Total Focus isn't actually used it's totally a set mule for the S/L defense, you want to use other powers and only use TF if you've got absolutely no other choice in the ST attack chain. Also, don't ever follow my builds level-by-level, use judgement in what should be taken first, I do not recommend slotting this build in the levels they appear. Power Bolt isn't used either, it's taken for the recharge bonus. ST attack chain would look like: Dominate -> Sniper -> Bone Smasher -> Power Push -> Dominate -> gap (filler attack) -> Bone Smasher -> Power Push -> Sniper. It may seem that way, but it actually does not, these are compared by DPA and by how it would be used in combat, I personally don't feel great having to use PB on your enemy knocking it back, having to go back into melee, or to avoid this lose another bonus by being forced to use KB->KD, it also is one of the worst ones by DPA because of its 2 second cast. There are attacks in AoE slotted up so you don't feel weak in that department either. This build attempts to set you up with good AoE and 300+ ST with lots of wonderful FF procs to help with chains and get your two big AoE mezzes up faster.

So Beast Mastery on initial observation to me seemed... "meh," melee-oriented pets, lethal damage, etc. It seemed to be "weak" to me... I judged it fairly prematurely unfortunately and shelved any thought of a Beast Mastery MM I really had, which is a regrettable mistake. The phrase, "don't judge a book by its cover" applies heavily here. I scoured information online, tried to get info from sites that were taken down from the "wayback machine," all to no avail. There is such staggeringly few literature about this primary that it is concerning. I found almost none of the secondary effects of the attacks anywhere online, so I set this morning aside to test their proc ability... Oh dear lord, did I find some treasures! The strength of this set lies in... The T1. Undoubtedly, the T1 pets are "proc monsters." There are two regular Howler wolves, and one Alpha wolf. The Howler wolves are the monsters, the Alpha wolf is still very good but not as delirious as the Howlers. The Howlers have 3 attacks, Vicious Bite, Maiming Bite and Feral Charge. The Alpha Wolf has Vicious Bite and Maiming Bite attacks. Howler Wolves -Vicious Bite Achilles -Maiming Bite (Train Beasts) Achilles Touch of the Lady Grey Maiming Bite -Feral Charge (Tame Beasts) Achilles Lady Grey Shield Breaker HOLY ****!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MONSTERS!!!!!! To summarize: the T1 Howler wolves (there are 2 of them) AND Alpha wolf on EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEIR ATTACKS proc Achilles!!!!! Top that off, 2 out of 3 of the Howler's attacks REGULARLY proc BOTH Lady Grey AND Shield Breaker, the Alpha Wolf procs both on one out of its two attacks... This means you're going to see these procs SWARMING on enemies. The proc opportunity on these things is... ABSUUUUUUUUUUUUURD!!!!!!! The Lionesses: I tested the Lionesses with the Stun procs and they're just unfortunately abysmal. I do not recommend slotting them with procs anyways, but this is a blessing in disguise as it leaves room to put in the +res and +def IO's all into these minions, they're also probably the best ones for the Soulbound Allegiance procs. The Dire Wolf: minion is not as exciting as the T1's, but it does benefit from proc's. The minion has 4 attacks, Vicious Bite (works the same as the T1 Wolves' version), Chilling Howl, Maiming Bite (works the same as the T1 Wolves' version), and Freezing Roar. -Freezing Roar (note, this is an AOE) Impeded Swiftness -Maiming Bite Achilles Lady Grey Shield Breaker -Vicious Bite Additional Notes: -Glimpse of the Abyss was also tested in the T3 and was found to not proc at all in testing, much have very low proc rate. -Vicious Bite does trigger Achilles’ Heel but does not trigger Touch of the Lady Grey or Shield Breaker. In closing, the T1's are monsters, the T2's are good for dumping +def and +res IO's, the T3 is "meh" with procs and is probably best given Impeded as it is an AoE and works in the ST attack chain 🙂

Sir, you do not need to build "godlike recharge" as you previously stated, the highest DPS surge in a TW rotation is to get a second Follow Through in your momentum swing which is roughly iirc, 250% recharge (about 100% from ED, there is Hasten which alone is 170%, so you really only need to come up with 80% recharge from IOing, Agility makes this even easier). On Scrappers, this set regularly recharges the 400-600+ DPS range without additional inspirations, Kinetic boosts, etc. People are not saying TW is in itself a complete reason to not rebalance other powers, but they are pointing out flaws in the logic to do so when other powers are not known to be outliers that are nearly as "broken" or "imbalanced" as TW is against the melee sets, given a "rebalance" pass. I do not believe you have this correct because I do not think that these powers were given incorrect AT numbers, I believe the power was set the way it was because they wanted the power to function properly across ATs to where it was used as a viable power choice. They had the opportunity with Dark Miasma as @ROBOKiTTY pointed out to nerf the values then and refused to in 2012 before sunset*. People have now built around the numbers that these builds/sets have. IO's and sets that once were used for builds will now likely be affected and Dark Miasma will likely have a cascading effect on lots of builds, if you change even one power in a set, yes you can indeed make the entire set suffer a dramatic decline in its performance (said set can be made to where the numbers have made IOing it completely unfeasible, you have to reallocate slots to other powers that are weaker, you get a lesser return on investment for IOing the set, certain bonuses that allowed to reach caps can be affected by having to overspend on certain powers to make them "usable" again, etc.) Also, @Doomrider's f-bomb wasn't directed toward the Devs themselves it was a more "reaction" he didn't state anywhere in his post the direction toward devs, anyone in particular, he only said "what is this, are you kidding me."

I think there is a difference here between "easy" versus "best" especially where secondaries are concerned. This is your first time, so you may not way to pick the "best" combination (there is debate as to what the "best" is whether it is most damaging, soloing AV's, doing it "all", able to run +4x8, etc.) the "best" combinations are for the majority harder to play or have an advanced skill set that gets exponentially better when IO's are concerned. For "easy" you will really want to slot in healthy combinations of damage and accuracy into your minions when running SO's or basic IO's. Accuracy is key, especially early on, sure an attack may deal 20-40% more damage (I'm ignoring ED cap for a second here) but it is more damage lost sometimes to give the powers the accuracy to hit the target (put it this way, you deal more damage doing less damage to a target that's hit very often than a target that has more enhanced damage but misses constantly) I want to especially stress this to you early on. The "easiest" starting set in my opinion despite how the pets run into melee is Demon Summoning, they start off with a base of 25% S/L res or more (minus the Prince who has extra S/L defense), they provide -res for a team and yourself, they also give even more res to 10% S/L/T 6% /C 13% /F because of the Ember Demon casting Ember Shield to all of your minions (so really it becomes 35% S/L). This makes them very tough starting straight out the gate and makes them much more manageable to be healed. With the above set, the best "easy" pairing is either going to be Nature or Thermal (because both give resistance). Thermal will actually be easier, as you do not need IO's to make its shields permanent and the cast is 4 minute duration (much less active than Nature's minute and a half duration), to be fair, Nature gives resistances like Psi that Thermal doesn't offer, Nature also gives absorbs (its main advantage), however Thermal gives mez protection (this is not a "small" thing to pass up). They both give -regen, but Thermal's is stronger once you make it permanent however Nature's is a toggle (no IOing required). For your **FIRST TIME** I'd recommend Demons/Thermal, it is an extremely strong synergy, can indeed do endgame content just as well as most builds, very thematic choice, and it really doesn't need too much IOing at all to make it "work."

Here's my build, healthy number of procs used and it should hit pretty great. It may not make quite the pylon times other builds may, but /Energy was kind of a blessing and a curse. Achieves permadom, softcaps S/L/E w/ barrier, 40% w/o barrier, Terrify, Whirling Hands, and Total Focus have been turned into proc monsters. You can mez AV's with confuse and Dominate pretty easily paired with Power Up, good AoE and ST damage. Villain Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.6.0.7 https://github.com/ImaginaryDevelopment/imaginary-hero-designer Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Magic Dominator Primary Power Set: Mind Control Secondary Power Set: Energy Assault Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leaping Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Mesmerize -- HO:Endo(A) Level 1: Power Bolt -- Apc-Dmg(A), Apc-Dmg/Rchg(43), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45), Apc-Acc/Rchg(45), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(45) Level 2: Dominate -- GldJvl-Dam%(A), UnbCns-Dam%(3), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(3), NrnSht-Dam%(5), GldNet-Dam%(5), HO:Nucle(13) Level 4: Bone Smasher -- Hct-Dam%(A), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(13), Hct-Acc/Rchg(15), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(15), Hct-Dmg(17), TchofDth-Dam%(43) Level 6: Confuse -- CrcPrs-Conf%(A), CrcPrs-Conf/EndRdx(7), CrcPrs-Conf(7), CrcPrs-Conf/Rchg(9), CrcPrs-Acc/Conf/Rchg(9), CrcPrs-Acc/Rchg(11) Level 8: Power Push -- Apc-Dam%(A), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(37), FrcFdb-Rechg%(40), ExpStr-Dam%(40), HO:Nucle(42), GldJvl-Dam%(42) Level 10: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(11), RechRdx-I(23) Level 12: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 14: Tactics -- GssSynFr--Build%(A) Level 16: Power Up -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(17) Level 18: Total Domination -- SprEnt-Rchg/AbsorbProc(A), SprEnt-Hold/Rchg(19), SprEnt-Acc/Hold(19), SprEnt-Acc/Hold/End(21), SprEnt-Acc/Hold/End/Rchg(21) Level 20: Whirling Hands -- Obl-%Dam(A), Erd-%Dam(23), ScrDrv-Dam%(25), Arm-Dam%(25), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(31), HO:Nucle(31) Level 22: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 24: Tough -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(34) Level 26: Terrify -- PstBls-Dam%(A), JvlVll-Dam%(27), GlmoftheA-Dam%(27), HO:Nucle(31) Level 28: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Rct-ResDam%(43) Level 32: Mass Confusion -- MlsIll-Dam%(A), MlsIll-Acc/Conf/Rchg(33), MlsIll-Acc/Rchg(33), MlsIll-EndRdx/Conf(33), MlsIll-Acc/EndRdx(34), MlsIll-Conf/Rng(34) Level 35: Sniper Blast -- StnoftheM-Dam%(A), StnoftheM-Acc/Dmg(36), StnoftheM-Dmg/EndRdx(36), StnoftheM-Dmg/ActRdx/Rchg(36), StnoftheM-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(37), GldJvl-Dam%(37) Level 38: Scorpion Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(39), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(39), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(39), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(40), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(42) Level 41: Super Speed -- BlsoftheZ-ResKB(A) Level 44: Disruptor Blast -- PstBls-Dam%(A), ExpStr-Dam%(46), JvlVll-Dam%(46), FrcFdb-Rechg%(46), SuddAcc--KB/+KD(50), HO:Nucle(50) Level 47: Total Focus -- KntCmb-Acc/Dmg(A), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx(48), KntCmb-Dmg/Rchg(48), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(48) Level 49: Assault -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Domination Level 1: Quick Form 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: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(29) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod/Rchg(29), PrfShf-EndMod(50) Level 50: Musculature Radial Paragon ------------ --Revised after Coyote's comment

Here's a stab at it, your minions should be pretty meaty with high res and defense and the -to hit as well as the -dmg, there's an excellent array of procs to help you squeeze out great DPS with this char from both yourself and your minions and the dark servant. Villain Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.6.0.7 https://github.com/ImaginaryDevelopment/imaginary-hero-designer Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Science Mastermind Primary Power Set: Thugs Secondary Power Set: Dark Miasma Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leadership Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Call Thugs -- ExpStr-Dam%(A), SprMarofS-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(3), SprMarofS-EndRdx/+Resist/+Regen(3), CaltoArm-+Def(Pets)(5), HO:Nucle(5), SvrRgh-PetResDam(7) Level 1: Twilight Grasp -- Pnc-Heal/EndRedux(A), Pnc-EndRdx/Rchg(11), Pnc-Heal/Rchg(11), Pnc-Heal/EndRedux/Rchg(33), Pnc-Heal(34), TchoftheN-Acc/Heal(34) Level 2: Tar Patch -- PcnoftheT-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(A), TmpRdn-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(43), RechRdx-I(43) Level 4: Darkest Night -- DarWtcDsp-ToHitDeb(A), DarWtcDsp-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(7), DarWtcDsp-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx(45), DarWtcDsp-Rchg/EndRdx(45) Level 6: Equip Thugs -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 8: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(9), RechRdx-I(9) Level 10: Howling Twilight -- RechRdx-I(A) Level 12: Call Enforcer -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A), TchofLadG-%Dam(13), SprMarofS-Acc/Dmg(13), SprMarofS-Dmg/EndRdx(15), HO:Nucle(15), SlbAll-Build%(17) Level 14: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 16: Shadow Fall -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), UnbGrd-ResDam(17), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(23), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(25), UnbGrd-Max HP%(25), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(33) Level 18: Gang War -- SprCmmoft-Rchg/PetAoEDef(A), SprCmmoft-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(19), SprCmmoft-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(19), SprCmmoft-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(21), EdcoftheM-PetDef(21) Level 20: Fearsome Stare -- GlmoftheA-Dam%(A), CldSns-%Dam(23) Level 22: Tough -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A), Ags-ResDam(34), Ags-ResDam/EndRdx(36), Ags-ResDam/Rchg(36), Ags-Psi/Status(40) Level 24: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Rct-ResDam%(50), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(50) Level 26: Call Bruiser -- ExpStr-Dam%(A), SprMarofS-Dmg(27), SprMarofS-Acc/EndRdx(27), HO:Nucle(29), ExpRnf-+Res(Pets)(29) Level 28: Petrifying Gaze -- UnbCns-Dam%(A), GldNet-Dam%(31), NrnSht-Dam%(31), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(31), HO:Endo(33) Level 30: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(36), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(37), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(37), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(37) Level 32: Upgrade Equipment -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 35: Tactics -- HO:Cyto(A) Level 38: Dark Servant -- CldSns-%Dam(A), TchoftheN-%Dam(39), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(39), NrnSht-Dam%(39), GldNet-Dam%(40), TraoftheH-Dam%(40) Level 41: Scorpion Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(42), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(42), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg(42), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(43) Level 44: Web Cocoon -- ImpSwf-Dam%(A), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(48), NrnSht-Dam%(48), GldNet-Dam%(48), HO:Endo(50) Level 47: Super Speed -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 49: Victory Rush -- EndMod-I(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: Sprint -- UnbLea-Stlth(A) Level 1: Supremacy Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(45) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod/Acc(46), PrfShf-EndMod(46), PrfShf-EndMod/Rchg(46) Level 1: Punk Level 1: Arsonist Level 12: Enforcer Level 26: Bruiser Level 50: Musculature Radial Paragon Level 50: Ion Core Final Judgement Level 50: Degenerative Core Flawless Interface Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany Level 50: Support Core Embodiment ------------

Here's my build for this, it softcaps S/L/E/N w/ barrier and caps S/L res with high E/N/F/C res. It also is heavily proc focused to give you more ST and AoE damage. Inferno is not as meaty as yours, but you get FSC as a proc monster to be just as devastating. Villain Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.6.0.7 https://github.com/ImaginaryDevelopment/imaginary-hero-designer Click this DataLink to open the build! Level 50 Mutation Sentinel Primary Power Set: Fire Blast Secondary Power Set: Invulnerability Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Leadership Ancillary Pool: Fire Mastery Villain Profile: Level 1: Flares -- SprSntWar-Rchg/+Absorb(A), SprSntWar-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(13), SprSntWar-Acc/Dmg(48), SprSntWar-Dmg/Rchg(48), SprSntWar-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), SprSntWar-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(50) Level 1: Temp Invulnerability -- UnbGrd-ResDam(A), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(29), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(29), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(31) Level 2: Fire Ball -- SprOppStr-Rchg/+Opportunity(A), SprOppStr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(3), SprOppStr-Acc/Dmg(3), SprOppStr-Dmg/Rchg(5), SprOppStr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(5), SprOppStr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(7) Level 4: Resist Physical Damage -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A) Level 6: Blaze -- SprWntBit-Acc/Dmg(A), SprWntBit-Dmg/Rchg(7), SprWntBit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(9), SprWntBit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(9), SprWntBit-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(11), GldJvl-Dam%(11) Level 8: Aim -- GssSynFr--Build%(A) Level 10: Durability -- PrfShf-End%(A) Level 12: Dull Pain -- Prv-Absorb%(A), Prv-Heal/Rchg/EndRdx(13), Prv-Heal(15), Prv-Heal/EndRdx(15), Prv-EndRdx/Rchg(17), Prv-Heal/Rchg(17) Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(23) Level 16: Unyielding -- UnbGrd-ResDam(A), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(40), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(43), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 18: Blazing Blast -- Apc-Dam%(A), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(19), Apc-Dmg(19), Apc-Acc/Rchg(21), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(21), GldJvl-Dam%(23) Level 20: Environmental Resistance -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), UnbGrd-Max HP%(25), UnbGrd-ResDam(25), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(27), UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(27) Level 22: Super Speed -- EndRdx-I(A) Level 24: Boxing -- Empty(A) Level 26: Tough -- UnbGrd-ResDam(A) Level 28: Invincible -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-Def(31), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(31), ShlWal-Def/Rchg(34), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(36), Rct-ResDam%(37) Level 32: Inferno -- Arm-Dmg(A), Arm-Dmg/Rchg(33), Arm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), Arm-Acc/Rchg(33), Arm-Dmg/EndRdx(34), FuroftheG-ResDeb%(34) Level 35: Tough Hide -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-Def(36), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(36), ShlWal-Def/Rchg(37), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(37) Level 38: Cremate -- Hct-Dam%(A), GldStr-%Dam(39), TchofDth-Dam%(39), Mk'Bit-Dam%(39), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Hct-Dmg(40) Level 41: Char -- UnbCns-Dam%(A), GldJvl-Dam%(42), UnbCns-Acc/Hold/Rchg(42), GldNet-Dam%(42), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(43), NrnSht-Dam%(43) Level 44: Fire Sword Circle -- Arm-Dam%(A), Erd-%Dam(45), Obl-%Dam(45), ScrDrv-Dam%(45), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(46), Obl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 47: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 49: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Opportunity 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: Sprint -- UnbLea-Stlth(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 4: Ninja Run Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A) Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A) Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A) Level 50: Agility Core Paragon Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany ------------