Frostweaver

We have gone through several. Started out in Aberrant, translated to champions, translated again to Mutants and Masterminds, and then to Fudge. The thing is, in narrative vs. power levels, non-combat threats are not considered part of the combat equation. Moving a small moon, (more of a giant asteroid really, it's one of Jupiter's thousands of junk moons) while it requires some flexibility, is not really much of a challenge in game terms....If you are capped at a Legendary+3 attack, it doesn't matter if that attack is a target pistol with lots of damage mods, or opening a singularity that's compressed to the size of a single person. And in the game system we are using, Legendary+3 damage is vastly more than enough to Kill a normal, unpowered human. Said baton-weilder could, in a straight fight, probably tromp her butt. Not to mention, being able to scourge the surface of the Earth doesn't help you much if you are hunting a rogue Vampire through the Old Chicago steam tunnels. You could ABSOLUTELY create superman in Fudge or M&M as a low-level level character and have him do nearly every single thing that superman can do in the comic books, up to and including knocking moons out of orbit, flying fast enough to travel through time, and cut planets in half with laser-beam eyes. Sometimes you do have to practice restraint, or simply tell the character you will not allow them to do something because it's stupid and would wreck your game. Like dropping a moon on the east coast. They either agree to do it or you eject them from the game. Obviously the latter option should not be necessary (especially if said character is your wife or best friend) but they are in the realm of 'narrative events' not dice pools. What can do is make the character 'immune' to a limited number of special effects, because that is roleplaying, or narrative, Even in Mutants and masterminds, a level 1 character could buy 'immunity' to kinetic damage for 7 character points and still have 8 left to make his (otherwise rather unskilled) character concept. That will not protect him from a levin bolt fired by a master mage. That's the thing about superheroes compared to almost any other hero Genre. Power Level does not connect to Narrative level in any meaningful matter, except for advancing the story.

Yeah, the sky is blue, too. Oh, and sticking your hand in a blast furnace might hurt a little. But please, keep missing the point. Narrative threat level and power threat level are completely unconnected. Case in point, the circle of Thorns in the Hollows are trying to take over the world. At level 40 I got a mission to protect a senator from Malta trying to stop a bill to help supers. Totally different power levels, vastly different narrative threat levels. Street Level vs. Universe level threats are entirely, 100% narrative threat levels, and thus don't bear the slightest relation to what power level your character is. The ONLY cases where they may impact is when there is a mechanic in place which increases a character's VERSATILITY. For instance, doctor strange gets more and more different spells as he gets more powerful, and thus a larger and larger number of lower-narrative-level threats are no longer really a threat to him... because he has a magical answer to every possible scenario lower level narrative threats present. But in a video game, that is very difficult to simulate, to the point where it's a mistake to even try. Thus a narrative threat can occur at ANY power level. Heck, the tutorial involves a planet-scale narrative threat at level 1, with the Galaxy city invasion. I have been running a superhero RPG for almost 20 years. The same party contains a girl who is the galactic emperor's ex-fiancee, who is capable of literally ripping one of Jupiter's moons from orbit with her mind and rotating it around the earth for a superhero base, and a guy who regenerates and beats up bad guys with a pair of police batons. and despite their vast difference in narrative threat levels, they are the EXACT SAME power level. And they can coexist very nicely in the same supergroup. Their recent adventures include both an invasion of undead from a parallel dimension ruled by Cthulhu, and a group of ex-alphabet agency operatives running a superhero organ bootlegging operation. The Narrative level of the invasion was obviously world-scale, while the second was only the scale of a DNPC who was kidnapped and injected with a superherocreation drug specifically to be parted out for organs. The second adventure was VASTLY more challenging to the group despite it's far lower narrative threat level, because the power to turn the entire surface of the reath into a ruin doesn't necessarily make you immune to a government operative who can inject himself into your dreams can cause hallucinations.

Stop trying to explain mechanics. I develop video games, I know full well concept has to take a backseat to mechanics sometimes. I am talking about narrative. And Narrative is why your character looks like a guy in a costume, instead of a text $ symbol in the middle of a square on the screen made up of aascii # symbols. Narrative engages the Player's imagination, and imagination is why many people spend hours and hours in the costume creator for a character they may never take past level 5. Narratively, a minor exercise of your imagination makes your pistol blaster taking on Hamidon make complete and utter sense. And about superman? Prove that 50's serial superman was less powerful than modern superman. He was just as immune to bullets, He flew with those funky noises, just because 50's serial superman never TRIED to knock the moon out of orbit doesn't 'prove' that he was incapable of it. Narrative threats have ZERO relation to power level. They may have some relation to power 'versatility' but a character with enough versatility to trivialise a vastly higher narrative threat is 'taking advantage of an exploit'

Nonsense. I specifically recall superman tangling with thugs VERY frequently in the 50's serial. And sometimes, narratively, they were a real and credible threat. And again, spider-man (street level) vs. Firelord (world scale threat). Starlord (a couple of blaster pistols and jet boots) Vs. Ego (Universe scale threat) Yes, sometimes their power gets temporarily 'boosted' to match the threats, and usually it is their cleverness and creativity that win the day, but even James Bond used to face off against world-scale threats on a regular basis with nothing more than a toy pistol and a few gimmicks and the superpower of seducing just about every girl that crossed his path. My pistol blaster is extremely street level. and often he faces off against world-class threats by sneaking into a mission, through the lines of powerful henchmen, and then sneakily shooting the boss in his vulnerable areas... That giant suit of power armor? well, my bullets find a weak point in the left knee and go whanging around inside, tearing up the circuits and critically injuring the runt inside giving orders.

Bleah. Street level is an attitude, not a power level. In my M&M game, I have flipping terrorists that are PL 15. Sure, an assault rifle is only 8 damage, but they hit rank 15 with powers like 'sniper' and 'autofire burst' that give them an extra 7 ranks of damage to compete with the 'big boys' without having a single 'super power'. You want a street level incarnate? just don't bother slotting your Judgement. Or slot it and explain it as 'electric disks' like the street-level Character, Black Widow, uses to fight Aliens invading the streets of New york. The rest of it? Who cares what the power is CALLED. If you are street-level, the power is a street-level skill. I have a rad/fire brute. You know, Radiation kills people, and Fire burns them alive... You don't 'arrest' people by dosing them with rads and burning them alive. Guess what? My description says I am surrounded by a cloud of fire-like Nanites that sap the strength from my opponents. A little aura-work and they tend to clump into cubelike structures, a quick recolor and BOOM! I am now a nanite manipulating powersuit character. To hell with what the 'buttons' say, they are metagame anyway... your real character isn't running around with a bunch of Macros stuck on her chest (unless she is, some superheroes are weird and meta like deadpool) Spider-man beat Firelord. Squirrel-girl beat Thanos. The fantastic 4 regularly beat Doctor Doom and Galactus. Starlord beat Ego. Heck, Daredevil beat the BEYONDER. Street level characters facing world-class threats, and defeating them, is a core concept in comic books. The problem is not the incarnate system. The problem is your lack of imagination. Try thinking outside the box. Or maybe taking on Crimson's mission chain... these Malta guys are street level MERCS and anti-superhero religious fanatics... and except for the occasional bit of 'superhero current' era technology, like big robots, they use guns and knives like other street-level enemies... Sappers are one of the most feared enemies in the game, and they are ABSOLUTELY as street level as you get. AND they can be level 50. Power man got kicked into a coma by a shotgun blast under his chin. That invisible guy with the diamond skin got a bit of c4 stuffed up his butt and exploded by a bunch of dudes that aren't even very good fighters, let alone 'street level' supers. Street level is a description, not a power level. If you don't want to be connected to the well of power, just don't do the quest... Those extra abilities? Who cares what the game labels them, they are just the natural result of your training and experience, and are absolutely street level if you want to call them that.

Don't forget the Legend Pets too! I played an Ill/Rad pack on live, and several MM's but Ill/Traps has much of what you look for in ill/dark and ill/rad, and feels dramatically more 'masterminderly'. Of course, you have to play like a controller instead of a pocket Healzor, but is that really a bad thing?

My problem with it is that I don't know whether to build for defense, recharge, damage bonus, or what. This is what I am currently working on. Influence is not really a problem when you have a fire farmer, but frankly I have NO idea what it is best utilized for. Critiques are quite welcome

Helencarnate: Made the Toon last saturday (A week ago) before I posted the first build message. within the first 8 hours of playtime, I got the character to level 50 Within the next 8 hours (of playtime) I got it up to the point where I could safely fire farm at +4/8 Within the next 8 hours I completely finished the build. 100%. down to the last superior avalanche. 100% solo. No fellow player or base resources. (although I did get a portable crafting table and like 60 stacks of stuff for sale in the AH) and incarnate 3's across the board. No teams, no assists, nada. 24 hours total from naming her to total completion (although I still have a ton of incarnate and mission content to do... ran a bunch of quick chains, including the whole who will die storyline, for merits) tons and tons of buying or making stuff and using enhancement convertors like crazy to fill out the sets. Thank you so much for the build help.... She is utterly badass.

Thank you. Got it.

Thank you very much, you did see where I was going with it. I am....considering... shifting the set out of irradiated ground to another pbaoe, and then semi-frankenslotting IG because it has different slotting options than spines aura... but I need to do some calculations first before I commit to that. And yes, the changes definitely take me more to the place I want to be...being actually useful on high-end content and against AV's and GM's without sacrificing farming utility. I have seen a ton of 'farming builds' that are great at clearing trash but are just a placeholder or dirtnapped against anything outside of AE. I am confused, though... there's no KB protection? I guess...I could replace the second kismet with a zephyr kb reduction? I lose a little recovery and like a quarter percent in defense, that way? Or maybe dump assault and put in acro... Oh, it's in sj....nevermind. does that work when SJ is turned off? Thanks for your time.

ahh, okay, thanks so I am in better shape than I thought. I was wondering if I was adding in a stupid bonus from someplace and hadn't noticed... The build seems to work great in-game (although I don't have all the superiors yet) but I haven't tried to do much in the way of incarnate trials yet.

I based this build off of Helencarnate's general spines/fire brute build, with a little shifting around to compensate for the particular vagaries of radiation melee. While possibly not quite as optimized as the original, the knockdown from irradiated ground and occasional pokes from siphon SHOULD generally make up for the lack of softcap defenses, and it has a little extra kb protection and +per to deal with arachnos and Malta. I don't have an epic pool because I feel it really doesn't need one, although I admit I could be wrong. I admit it still has a giant psi hole, but who doesn't? Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.962 http://www.cohplanner.com/ Click this DataLink to open the build! Holly Caust: Level 50 Natural Brute Primary Power Set: Radiation Melee Secondary Power Set: Fiery Aura Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Speed Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leadership Villain Profile: Level 1: Radioactive Smash (A) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage (36) Superior Blistering Cold - Damage/Endurance (37) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance (37) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge (37) Superior Blistering Cold - Damage/Endurance/Accuracy/RechargeTime (46) Superior Blistering Cold - Recharge/Chance for Hold Level 1: Fire Shield (A) Aegis - Resistance (3) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance (3) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge Level 2: Blazing Aura (A) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage (19) Superior Brute's Fury - Damage/Recharge (21) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge (21) Superior Brute's Fury - Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime (23) Superior Brute's Fury - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge (43) Superior Brute's Fury - Recharge/Fury Bonus Level 4: Healing Flames (A) Preventive Medicine - Heal (5) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Endurance (5) Preventive Medicine - Endurance/RechargeTime (7) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime (7) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime/Endurance (19) Preventive Medicine - Chance for +Absorb Level 6: Fusion (A) Recharge Reduction IO Level 8: Radiation Siphon (A) Overwhelming Force - Accuracy/Damage (9) Overwhelming Force - Endurance/Recharge (9) Overwhelming Force - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance (11) Overwhelming Force - Damage/Endurance/Recharge (13) Overwhelming Force - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge (15) Overwhelming Force - Damage/Chance for Knockdown/Knockback to Knockdown Level 10: Temperature Protection (A) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All) (11) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3% Level 12: Combat Jumping (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed (13) Shield Wall - Defense (15) Shield Wall - +Res (Teleportation), +5% Res (All) (46) Kismet - Accuracy +6% Level 14: Hasten (A) Recharge Reduction IO (36) Recharge Reduction IO Level 16: Plasma Shield (A) Aegis - Resistance (17) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance (17) Aegis - Psionic/Status Resistance Level 18: Irradiated Ground (A) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage (23) Superior Avalanche - Damage/Endurance (33) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance (33) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge (33) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge (43) Superior Avalanche - Recharge/Chance for Knockdown Level 20: Consume (A) Mocking Beratement - Taunt (40) Mocking Beratement - Recharge (40) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Range (48) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge (48) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge/Range (48) Mocking Beratement - Accuracy/Recharge Level 22: Boxing (A) Empty Level 24: Tough (A) Aegis - Resistance (25) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance (25) Aegis - Resistance/Endurance/Recharge Level 26: Weave (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed (27) Shield Wall - Defense (27) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance (31) Shield Wall - Defense/Endurance/Recharge Level 28: Burn (A) Superior Unrelenting Fury - Accuracy/Damage (29) Superior Unrelenting Fury - Damage/RechargeTime (29) Superior Unrelenting Fury - Accuracy/Damage/RechargeTime (31) Superior Unrelenting Fury - Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime (31) Superior Unrelenting Fury - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/RechargeTime (40) Superior Unrelenting Fury - RechargeTime/+Regen/+End Level 30: Super Jump (A) Blessing of the Zephyr - Knockback Reduction (4 points) Level 32: Maneuvers (A) Luck of the Gambler - Recharge Speed Level 35: Fiery Embrace (A) Recharge Reduction IO (50) Recharge Reduction IO Level 38: Devastating Blow (A) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Endurance/Recharge (39) Kinetic Combat - Accuracy/Damage (39) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Endurance (39) Kinetic Combat - Damage/Recharge Level 41: Atom Smasher (A) Armageddon - Chance for Fire Damage (42) Armageddon - Damage/Endurance (42) Armageddon - Accuracy/Recharge (42) Armageddon - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge (43) Armageddon - Damage/Recharge (50) Armageddon - Damage Level 44: Taunt (A) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Range (45) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge/Range (45) Mocking Beratement - Recharge (45) Mocking Beratement - Taunt/Recharge (46) Mocking Beratement - Taunt (50) Mocking Beratement - Accuracy/Recharge Level 47: Assault (A) Endurance Reduction IO Level 49: Tactics (A) Rectified Reticle - Increased Perception Level 1: Brawl (A) Empty Level 1: Sprint Level 50: Spiritual Radial Boost Level 50: Void Radial Judgement Level 50: Diamagnetic Core Interface ------------ ------------ Set Bonus Totals: 11% DamageBuff(Smashing) 11% DamageBuff(Lethal) 11% DamageBuff(Fire) 11% DamageBuff(Cold) 11% DamageBuff(Energy) 11% DamageBuff(Negative) 11% DamageBuff(Toxic) 11% DamageBuff(Psionic) 29.75% Defense(Smashing) 29.75% Defense(Lethal) 31.63% Defense(Fire) 31.63% Defense(Cold) 8.5% Defense(Energy) 8.5% Defense(Negative) 6% Defense(Psionic) 25.38% Defense(Melee) 7.25% Defense(Ranged) 18.82% Defense(AoE) 3.6% Max End 66.25% Enhancement(RechargeTime) 15% Enhancement(Accuracy) 3.75% Enhancement(Max EnduranceDiscount) 30% SpeedFlying GrantPower Preventive Medicine (10% chance, if Scourge) 179.9 HP (12%) HitPoints 30% JumpHeight 30% SpeedJumping Knockback (Mag -8) Knockup (Mag -8) MezResist(Confused) 98.75% MezResist(Held) 98.75% MezResist(Immobilized) 98.75% MezResist(Sleep) 98.75% MezResist(Stunned) 98.75% MezResist(Terrorized) 98.75% 20% PerceptionRadius 16% (0.27 End/sec) Recovery 48% (3 HP/sec) Regeneration 30% ResEffect(SpeedFlying) 30% ResEffect(RechargeTime) 30% ResEffect(SpeedRunning) 23.75% Resistance(Smashing) 23.75% Resistance(Lethal) 33.5% Resistance(Fire) 33.5% Resistance(Cold) 11% Resistance(Energy) 11% Resistance(Negative) 11% Resistance(Toxic) 16% Resistance(Psionic) 30% SpeedRunning 1 Null hmm... the export says 31% defense, but the total is 40%. weird.

I have run claws on scrappers, stalkers(not so good), brutes, and finally just got a claws tanker to 50... List of Pros and cons, Cons: Simple slotting: Most of the attacks are very, very simple... which means IO slotting options are limited to mostly ST and PBAOE. Not a whole lot of extra options from out-set procs. No Burst: Because of the lack of build-up, you don't have as much burst damage (snicker) as other tankers. Lethal: a LOT of stuff resists lethal damage. very few things resist a LOT of lethal, though...mostly malta gun turrets, other players, and some other robot type enemies. Few secondary effects: Not much additional mitigation, special effects, or other sorts of debuffs except for a bit of knockback and slash -defense. Slightly lower st dpa than some other sets. Pros: Ranged: Unlike many melees, it has some decent range in two attacks AOE: It has a LOT of aoe in it... Perhaps not as much as spines, but it's not as slow as spines either. Follow-up: Probably the crown jewel of the set, FU adds +30% damage to pretty much everything you do. While it sacrifices BU for this ability, tankers are not as desperate for burst as most other AT's. This meshes extremely well with powers like damage auras from your primary, and raises the overall non-built-up damage to 'higher than most tanker sets' DPE: the attacks are both fast and decently low endurance. dropping a few slots from your attacks are not going to cripple your build, if you need them for set slotting. Fast: Because of their speed, recharge, and endurance costs, hasten is optional, and you don't have to spend half your build just trying to drag your recharge up. I found myself using sets that gave other bonuses and even looking at some sets I never usually consider. Spin: Spin does twice the damage of spine burst, with only 2/3rds of the animation time. In fact, it is one of the fastest cast, fastest recharge, highest-damage, and lowest end costs of all melee set pbaoe's. It does not, however, get spine's secondary poison dot's In short it is a very very solid set, Ideal for farming and very very good at holding aggro, and offers a more varied set of power options, without the fuss of combos. Powers Rundown: swipe: typical rank 1 mandatory power. great for filling minor gaps in your attack chain. Strike; solid ST attack, nothing special. Kind of a workhorse, since it has a shorter animation time and faster recharge then most of it's contemporaries. slash: another workhorse, although it has lower damage than a lot of tier 3 attacks, it gives a nice -defense and is good for slotting achilles heel Taunt: Taunt spin: helps you do your job as a tanker. nice DPA, DPS, and DPE. Great for slotting avalanche proc for a little extra mitigation, or obliteration for defense. Follow-up: Get it, use it, set it on auto. It slightly lowers your dps because of it's short animations and low damage, but raises dps for everything else. the best place in the game for a gaussian proc. focus: a decent ST attack, but skippable if you hate range. It has a 40' range, and moderate damage for the level you get it. fast recharge and a good place for a force feedback proc Eviscerate: This is your workhorse aoe. with a 90 degree arc, fast recharge, and the best daamge in the set, it's worth taking a step back from combat to catch several in the cone. good place for fury proc. Shockwave: definitely not my favorite tier 9. It has moderate to low damage, a 90 degree arc. However, it also has 30 range... This is a good and bad thing, especially since slotting a KB to KD is almost mandatory. while some may be better at specialty tanking, but claws is a solid generalist, that's good at every job a tanker may face, and as marcus has mentioned, it's much lower concentration than many sets.

Ludicrous speed

If your tanker is already at the resistance cap, and can full heal from almost 0 every 10-15 seconds, is trying to push her to reach the defense softcap still important? Or is it time to look for more important things to slot?

This is what I have for him currently, but I am sure there are glaring holes. Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.962 http://www.cohplanner.com/ Click this DataLink to open the build! Axel: Level 50 Magic Tanker Primary Power Set: Radiation Armor Secondary Power Set: Stone Melee Power Pool: Leaping Power Pool: Fighting Power Pool: Leadership Power Pool: Speed Hero Profile: Level 1: Alpha Barrier -- UnbGrd-Rchg/ResDam(A), UnbGrd-EndRdx/Rchg(3), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(3), UnbGrd-ResDam(5), UnbGrd-Max HP%(5), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(7) Level 1: Stone Fist -- KntCmb-Acc/Dmg(A), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx(7), KntCmb-Knock%(9), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(9), FcsSmt-Acc/Dmg(23), FcsSmt-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(34) Level 2: Stone Mallet -- Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg(A), Mk'Bit-Dmg/EndRdx(11), Mk'Bit-Dmg/Rchg(11), Mk'Bit-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(25), Mk'Bit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(25), Mk'Bit-Dam%(27) Level 4: Heavy Mallet -- SprMghoft-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), SprMghoft-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(27), SprMghoft-Rchg/Res%(29), SprMghoft-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(29), SprMghoft-Acc/Dmg(31) Level 6: Gamma Boost -- PrfShf-End%(A), EndMod-I(13), Pnc-Heal/+End(13), Mrc-Rcvry+(15), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(21) Level 8: Super Jump -- Jump-I(A) Level 10: Fallout Shelter -- UnbGrd-ResDam(A), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(15), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(17), UnbGrd-EndRdx/Rchg(17) Level 12: Proton Armor -- UnbGrd-ResDam(A), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx(19), UnbGrd-EndRdx/Rchg(19), UnbGrd-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(21), ImpArm-ResPsi(31) Level 14: Radiation Therapy -- TchoftheN-Acc/Heal(A), Mlt-Dmg/Rchg(45), Mlt-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45), Mlt-Dmg/EndRdx(45), TchoftheN-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 16: Beta Decay -- ShlBrk-%Dam(A) Level 18: Kick -- Empty(A) Level 20: Build Up -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg(43), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(43), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(46) Level 22: Fault -- RopADop-Acc/Rchg(A), RopADop-Acc/Stun/Rchg(43) Level 24: Particle Shielding -- NmnCnv-Heal/Rchg(A), NmnCnv-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(46) Level 26: Ground Zero -- SprGntFis-Acc/Dmg(A), SprGntFis-Dmg/Rchg(31), SprGntFis-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(33), SprGntFis-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprGntFis-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprGntFis-Rchg/+Absorb(34) Level 28: Tough -- TtnCtn-ResDam(A), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(34) Level 30: Weave -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(42), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(42) Level 32: Combat Jumping -- Rct-ResDam%(A), LucoftheG-Rchg+(36), Ksm-ToHit+(36) Level 35: Tremor -- OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg(A), OvrFrc-End/Rech(36), OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg/End(37), FrcFdb-Rechg%(37), ScrDrv-Dam%(37), ScrDrv-Dmg/Rchg(40) Level 38: Seismic Smash -- OvrFrc-Dmg/End/Rech(A), OvrFrc-Acc/Dmg/End/Rech(39), OvrFrc-Dam/KB(39), Lck-%Hold(39), Lck-Rchg/Hold(40), Lck-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(40) Level 41: Taunt -- PrfZng-Taunt/Rchg(A), PrfZng-Dam%(42) Level 44: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Rchg+(A) Level 47: Spring Attack -- Obl-Dmg(A), Obl-Acc/Rchg(48), Obl-Dmg/Rchg(48), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(48), Obl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(50), Obl-%Dam(50) Level 49: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(50) Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A) Level 1: Gauntlet 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 -- Empty(A) Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A) Level 1: Health -- RgnTss-Regen+(A) Level 1: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A) Level 1: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(23) Level 1: Swift -- Empty(A) ------------ http://www.cohplanner.com/mids/download.php?uc=1429&c=681&a=1362&f=HEX&dc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

I currently have a rad/stone tanker (Axel Cormac) that is approaching 50, and I know that a lot of people have fun in Pine's... Right now I have 3 sets of Unbreakable guard slotted, but he has never respecced. I like using fault for aggro and the only power I skipped was hurl boulder... I don't much care for a single target ranged attack. I could probably skip an ST attack if needed. currently I am at about 80% resist, and would like to slot for psi resist and capped resistances, as well as higher DPS in my aoe's. Recharge is nice, but not terribly important, Beta decay offers huge recharge bonuses in a herd, and small groups don't offer enough challenge to need a continually-recycling seismic smash I prefer the jump pool but do not expect to softcap s/l even with CJ. I also exemp down a LOT. Money is not really a huge problem, but a lower-level option over purples would be highly appreciated until I can get more expensive sets. I don't mind using beast run at the earliest levels. I would like to be able to do a minimal amount of farming (In mission stuff +2/+8, Not comicon or fire farm.) in ouro, and running merit missions at various levels. Thank you very much for your assistance.

first time I did it was via twilight, might have been 26 after that, Why? Then again. "Who will die" has proven far more efficient. some of them I can do in less than 8 minutes, for 20 merits or ten threads.

I would like to throw out an honorable mention for /nature. Corrosive enzymes is what you use to solo the envoy of shadows... with -res and -dmg it is an all around great debuff against bosses and above. regrowth- best aoe heal in the game... Not in numbers (it is quite a bit lower than some others) but once you get used to FACING your minions, you will seldom miss a heal again... and it helps your teammates enormously since they tend to spread all over beyond the confines of a normal radius or targetted heal. Wild Growth- adds resistance and regen... what's not to like? Slotting it up and making it perma can be a little challenging to early characters, though. Spore Cloud- HUGE survival aid. Very valuable to teams and it adds what you need for taking down AV's, -regen. It also reduces incoming damage significantly from most of a spawn. It's kind of like having two rad toggle debuffs rolled into one. Lifegiving spores- While it is stationary, the radius is HUGE, and it gives your pets healing and endurance in long fights, as well as your team (if you have one)... The recharge is also extremely fast, so you can throw it up and KEEP it up every single fight. wild bastion- give yourself, your team, and your pets more HP. what's not to like? Except for that recharge, of course. Ugh. rebirth- I take it, but mostly to use it as a single target heal when the other stuff just isn't enough to keep your bruiser alive. Yes, teams will like it, but it's will top your bruiser off almost every time. entangling aura- Pure crap. Every set has a skippable power. (Edit- I have been informed that it is EXTREMeLY useful for tankerminding, and as a set mule... as I have not experimented with this myself, I will allow you to judge for yourself) Overgrowth- Basically a massive short term buff for everything, along with a massive heal. Usually I rotate this, wild growth, and wild bastion, giving priority to getting this one out first, because it actually adds real damage and accuracy. Yes, there are sets that have some fun stuff you do not, like +recharge, but pets don't GET +rech from buffs. Nature affinity is a very attention-demanding secondary, but thugs, in general, tend to be far less attention-demanding than many other sets except, perhaps, mercs. Unlike many secondaries, YOU get just as much buffing from most of your powers as you give to others. You don't get defense from your secondary, but you aren't stuck only buffing others either... tankerminding with almost tanker-level resistances at times (as well as -damage to enemies) will make bodyguard mode a brick coated in titanium. And of course, Teams love healzors.

Here's an issue: I run into way too many 40+ MM's who have no idea what pet control means, or even what Bodyguard mode is. It gets HARD to get into a team when all they have experienced from MM's is those idiots that summon their pets and then run around whipping stuff and clogging doorways and roar-spamming Miss Liberty. I wish I had a solution.

both are pretty close, /rad seems to keep things a little closer and has fewer 'click to not die' defenses that interrupt tw/ momentum, while Bio just has moar damage overall. IMO, Rad is a slightly better general set, but Bio's ability to adapt to various types of teams/farming makes it selectively more useful in the hands of a skilled player. They both have obnoxious graphics.

Okay, if you want really boring and repetitive merits, do who shall die #1... 20 merits about every 8 minutes. Of course, you ex to level 20, and it gets REALLY boring very very quickly, but hey, if you have a half an hour free, do 3-4 runs. But I was looking for runs with some actual variety.

I know that on tankers, TW/Rad works wonders... albeit very very slowly. I would think that on a brute, Rad/Rad would make an exceptionally good farmer, what with all the aoe's, endless energy and regen, and a neccessity to slot far fewer defense IO sets. However, a good question is, what do you intend to farm? AE comiccon? Psychic clockworks? magmites? DE?

I am still trying to find decent higher-level alternative arcs for speedy merit gain. 'to save a soul' is actually really, really nice, at 62 merits for 1 hour twenty minutes... but I imagine that there might be some stalkers that have a problem with the constant sapping from killing carnies. Also waiting for illusionists to phase in requires patience. "The eternal Nemesis' is not too bad either, as long as you can drop fakes before they go invulnerable. However, fair warning for chain soloers... Unai Kemen's chain, "To save a thousand worlds", is a total NIGHTMARE for a stalker to solo... even the rewards (72 merits) aren't worth the hours of poking around in rocks looking for hidden scientists, the clear alls that are not clear alls, and the gigantic open-air defeat alls filled with tiny, almost invisible clockworks flying around like headless chickens. I am never doing that shitshow solo stalker again. It might be worth it for a brute or something, or in a team, but solo stalker? just hours and hours of pure misery.

Never forget teams, if you have a soldier/widow or people with boosted leadership or buffs, it can be instant without buildup Also, Stalker snipes can crit from hide/hide proc which makes them do an insane amount of damage for an instant power What's funny is that I play my stalker a lot more like a high-damage scrapper... but if you finish one group and immediately launch the snipe at one of the next group, the animation finishes just as 'hidden' pops up... a nice 600 point crit usually is a decent fight starter.