Onlyasandwich

To be honest I was distracted by other projects. I'll have to revisit it some time and see! Spirit ward is indeed pretty solid, though I'm not sure how I'd squeeze it in while maintaining other priorities. End is tight enough without the extra draw from here as well, even ignoring power choice. Good idea managing hench strategy differently according to tier! I have tried different binds to manage my henches accordingly, and still don't enjoy fiddling with them so granularly. Maybe this combo would be the one to motivate me to re-evaluate. I suppose if LT's and T1's stay in the same mode all the time, the management is really just for the Bruiser, so it isn't too fiddly.

Procs change this pretty phenomenally. Mind/ isn't really low damage compared to most primaries. You have a pretty averagely proccable aoe control in terrify, and the confuse powers add a sneaky amount of damage when used properly. You have better than average ST blast potential built in as well. /TA brings plenty of good damage to the table between offensive debuffs, oil slick arrow, and a wide array of aoe powers that take multiple procs. It all adds up to a pretty hefty combo. Granted, I didn't have a very satisfying churn on aoe damage until I got some solid recharge and hasten online. This really meshed around ~30ish.

This combo is certainly a grab bag of many fun things to try! My TA Defender already had some challenges mapping all his powers to easy keys. Add in all the active abilities of Mind/ and it's a whole new world of Piano play - I love it. I have to be mindful of reserving tools as needed, rather than just splorting out every arrow and control constantly. I have a constantly rotating, very powerful array of powers that can neuter an entire spawn and/or take care of "interesting" situations. Definitely not an easy cruise to drive, but not because it's particularly hard to make work. To get optimal performance I have to be aware of what I have applied, and think a bit about the order of application. Typically if solo it's Flash > PGA > Mass Hyp > Disruption > Glue > whatever whole spawn mez is up (6 of them!!!) > acid > repeat. Bosses get a quick double hold, with TK in the wings to make up for any misses or if they're right in my face.

After playing this guy to 30ish, I'm actually pretty surprised at how useful TK is! As you said, a quick extra, instant hold layer is pretty useful sometimes, especially when you really need to hit. The repel is super focused, accurate, and stronger than other effects I am used to (really just hurricane, which has weak sauce repel these days) . This makes it a very satisfying tool to reposition chunks of the spawn when needed. It's by no means a staple, but I get solid use out of it here and there. Just one more pretty powerful trick to pull out of the bag. I do think it could stand either a huge end cut, or an increased target cap though. Even so, the end cost is manageable with only an endredux SO if I slow down my other power usage for a moment. This helps me focus on proper maneuvering as well.

I've found Glue Arrow to be a bit of a sleeper all-star on this combo so far. Some solid proccy damage, and helps make up for the lack of an aoe immob. Stay in place, and stay on the ground! The -recharge doesn't hurt at all, of course. : ) I'm glad you're enjoying yours. Interested in hearing more as you go!

Thank you for the thoughtful input, Argentae! I think we're already on the same page with this one 😄. I had actually revised the build since posting, swapping out Levitate for Mesmerize, and loading it with the sandman proc. Levitate is for sure a better controller "blast," but Mesmerize is decent enough damage, and has other uses beyond. Incorporating sandman into my attack chain gives me a steady stream of regular healing that can help patch up what gets through. I had intentionally left the sandman proc out of PGA. The build would be happy for a bit of extra end, and endredux slotting for something in my opener is pretty meaningful. Ideally I'd have extra slots to spare for sandman proc in mass hyp and PGA, but there isn't really any easy slot shift to make that I can see. I appreciate you outlining out TK experience! I don't anticipate it being a staple, but it's a unique enough power that I want to run with it to play with use cases like what you describe here. If I do end up dropping it, I'll probably be picking up Entangling Arrow. Musculature's end benefit to stamina is just a little shy of being equal to an extra Miracle proc. This is a solid end bonus, and why I chose it. You're right though - Intuition provides a broader array of helpful benefits to the build. Hold enhancement and range are both very meaningful. I'll evaluate my end needs as I level and see how much I might actually value that extra end. As for Interface and Destiny, I don't generally like to plan my builds around them. For interface, I typically go with what is thematic. I might actually go spectral radial for the exotic damage type and layered immob proc that can help with containment, especially containment for my initial fireball. Destiny will most likely be Barrier if I get to that point. The build could benefit solidly from any of them, really. As much as I like ageless, I don't like leaning on it for end support even if I incarnate out a character. Clarion is nice, but Rune gives me a pretty good mez crutch for situations where I'm not being proactive enough (or unlucky) with my controls. Rebirth is just generically good.

@Argentae's recent Fire/TA build got me thinking about TA on controllers in general. I love the set on my Defender, but feel like my life could use even more TA! Some observed synergy: Stack Mass Hyp and Poison Gas Arrow for consistent opening containment. /TA's pile of tricks rounds out Mind's somewhat uneven control package. I don't at all mean mind is weak, but relying on a fear that doesn't debuff at all as your bread and butter can be troublesome at times. /TA doesn't care about positioning, so operating at range for terrify cone is easy. Mind is the only control set I haven't hit 50 on (I have a mid 30's Mind/Dark that is pretty nice). I'd love your perspective on any power choice or slotting decisions here! Goals: Super mega proccy proc. Oh my the opportunities here are pretty magnificent. Most things I throw out will be doing respectable damage, and I want to keep it that way. This does require some nontraditional slotting here and there in pursuit of accuracy bonuses, as I haven't snagged tactics. Sneak in slow resist wherever possible. Resists as a secondary layer. This is not a softcap build, but I have a few odd bonuses here and there that flash arrow will stack with to make meaningful. Juice dat recharge so I can rotate Total Dom and Mass confusion in as much as possible. Max hit chance against +3's. Where I'd most like to improve: More slow resist. 80+ ideally. Really this should only take one more slot, but perhaps you see a creative way to get there using existing slots without sacrificing the above priorities. Another slot to throw for endredux in TK. To be honest I view it as a novelty power, but want to try and put it through its paces to find good uses. A bit more end support would be nice if I could find the slots. I'd love to find a good place for Energy Font proc. Not really sure where I'd put it even if I had the free slot to be honest. Do you use this proc on your Mind/? Pointing out some obviously odd slotting choices: Glue arrow is heavily slotted here. The procs are a requirement, but if you see a better way to snag the acc, slow resist, and recharge all in one while enhancing a power more meaningfully, that would be a good shift! As it stands, Ice mistral is just a really good set. Immob proc in Terrify. Hey hey - 66% chance for mag 3 immob = pretty good chances for containment on a lot of the spawn with a tool I am constantly cycling! I like it. Controller (Mind Control - Trick Arrow).mbd Text version: Totals:

Instead of relying on stacking these, just pop a celerity stealth IO into sprint. Smoke is pretty weak, and I would judge it pretty redundant if you're taking TA as your secondary. The debuff is pretty paltry, and not really worth enhancing. Flash alone will pull the weight needed just fine, and is as @Psyonico noted, half unresistable. /TA is pretty power hungry - I want to pick pretty much all of them! Any skips you can find in the primary are worth considering. For me that would pretty much just be Ring of Fire and Smoke, though you may be one who prefers to skip the aoe hold as well. You got me thinking about /TA on controllers! I think I'm going to roll up a Mind/TA myself.

Outside of the other input in thread, which is great, I wanted to highlight your creeper slotting here. Ranged aoe procs are phenomenal here, while slow procs do almost nothing. Immob procs are ~1/2 the overall effectiveness of ranged aoe, which is somewhere in between. This is due to the nature of the psuedopet and powers it uses. Also, the creepers need native slotted accuracy to hit. They don't benefit from your global bonuses. You'll want to slot for some native accuracy, with some recharge and even damage mixed in as well. @EnjoyTheJourney's build is a good example. My own slotting is generally: Slot Level 22: Bombardment: Accuracy/Damage/Recharge Slot Level 27: Bombardment: Chance for Fire Damage Slot Level 27: Artillery: Accuracy/Damage/Recharge Slot Level 34: Positron's Blast: Chance of Damage(Energy) Slot Level 37: Javelin Volley: Chance of Damage(Lethal) Slot Level 40: Trap of the Hunter: Chance of Damage(Lethal)

This is a great build! Personally I like enflame, but it can be a bit wonky without your own melee range anchor to keep it locked to. Psionic tornado is not the most impressive epic aoe, but a consideration for swapping in if you want easier application. I agree that Doms really shine with a resist focus, given their epic resist toggles to stack. Defense as a side mission is meaningful, but more of a supplement to your primary strategy of controlling the mobs than something that keeps you up on its own. This frees you up to focus more on proccing some key powers, as Journey has done here. I think fly trap is a bit better than average for a dom pet. Skippable if you like, but pretty useful with fairly minimal slotting.

I did! I believe my response acknowledges what you said here in pretty good detail. I'm not sure why this whole conversation seems so controversial to you. Just play how you like! Clearly there is not a lot of common ground between what others have been saying about sets we have built and played many times and what you feel is useful in your own game. All that to say - carry on in strength! I don't think this conversation is leading anywhere useful at this point. It's just folks explaining their experience and perspective, then you denying the value of that perspective. I'm not certain what the goal is. If the goal is to optimize your build, that's fine! Lay out your priorities and I'm sure folks would be happy to provide feedback. If you are doing things like skipping powers they find to be vital, inevitably that will come up in said feedback. You can graciously ignore these suggestions rather than digging into them.

I'm seeing a lot of very strong opinions about Blaster playstyle here, @Akiceter. Clearly the arguments you are seeing from others aren't convincing to you! That's okay - we all have our preferred approach to the game. However, it is undeniably true that melee powers on blasters are very powerful. Blasters aren't really very squishy at all when properly built, and there are many ways to mitigate the dangers of melee (controls, timing, jousting, literally just killing them with the attack so they can't strike back, etc). I don't think real life comparisons are all that helpful. In real life, of course you would be daft to charge in with a knife when you have a gun. There is very real danger. City of Heroes is not as challenging as life, and the stakes are much lower as well. If you take advantage of the IO system, you are able to leverage these modest advantages in damage and also: Take advantage of more diverse set bonuses to achieve build goals. Proc bomb key powers (melee powers have more options as others have pointed out) to further exaggerate the damage advantage of melee. Drastically increase your survival by pursuing defense softcap or other useful IO strategies. Shore up weaknesses in certain primaries (lacking ST or aoe? Your secondary's melee attacks are here to help) In any case, all power to you if you prefer a pure ranged playstyle! You can still make viable builds, but certain secondaries will be much weaker than their potential with this focus. This is especially true if you are skipping key blaster powers like your nuke or sustain. I would encourage you to experiment with some of these powers, as well as other secondaries that you might dismiss as weak (tactical arrow is in fact outstanding), not having experienced them. Concept is king in CoH, and you are in control of your own character!

I haven't revisited this one in a while, but it still drives very smoothly when I play her. : ) Edit: Modernized the build for t1 skip, earlier power shifts. Optimized slotting for better overall ST damage. tinkertanker mk2.mbd Rad benefits from a heavy resist focus, doubling down on your strengths. The extra layer of melee defense here is nice, but aggressively stacking it leads to too many trade-offs for something with no DDR. Even so, the modest layer here is useful when not facing defense debuffs, and only a small hop to softcap with a purple or team buffs. Endurance is plentiful, and attacks are balanced between set bonuses, uptime on ATO usage, and as many procs as possible while pursuing these. Aoe damage is excellent. ST damage is good enough. Both incorporate FFback into the chain. Meltdown is here as backup for situations where you hit heavy volume on a damage type you aren't capped on. It also helps that it puts you past 100% on most everything, and therefore immune to damage debuffs of these types for the duration. Totals: Text visual of slotting: Note that FFback is toggled on in two powers right now when reviewing totals.

2 slotting it gives you more overlap for higher ddr. This is a decent argument to 2 slot.

I spun up a Rad/Atomic pretty recently, and he plays quite well solo. Survivability is more dependent on Bonfire, solid resists, and controls than a softcap strategy. I find softcap a bit too limiting in terms of proc damage potential. Plenty of hold stacking across many powers that also do excellent damage. This combo is especially ripe for procs! In any case, he can stay in the fray! He's built to easily toss out everything in pbaoe range without worrying about cones. Combat Teleport gets you a super quick engage/disengage as well to shut things down fast or pop out as needed. Ranged defense was still a secondary goal, and he has a modest baseline that is both meaningful as a supplement to survival, and makes reaching softcap on teams or with lucks a simpler task. I'm also a big fan of slow resist, so he's basically immune to slows. Blaster (Radiation Blast - Atomic Manipulation).mbd

Agree with all of the above, except I wish it were actually good for minion bowling these days! It just sort of gently nudges minions away, with the rare wooshy KB. I long for the days of yore when the tick rate was like 10X as rapid. The repel was powerfully fun! Still, I encourage anyone to take it and at least try it on for size. It has a much stronger place on corr/def versus controller. Even if you don't use it as a primary strategy, or in the specific situations @Ringo outlined all the time, it can really save the day when everything goes to hell. Just swoop around and keep the universe debuffed.

Hurricane isn't really frowned upon so much as it is very polarizing. It's still a very powerful ability. I recently revamped my Defender storm/dark, and am very happy with the results. Most if not all the slotting should port 1:1. I do have flight powers, but chose combat teleport as well, and get a lot of use out of it. Perhaps you would find CT a sufficient thematic tie-in! If not, it's easy enough to swap out for regular TP, and move around my flight pool choices to your other desired port powers, though you'll lose some lotgs. Note that I dropped Night Fall on my build. It probably does a bit better on corruptors due to scourge, so you might prefer to keep it in. It is rather lacklustre DPA even when procced, and I prefer leveraging Torrent as an actual aoe by proccing it out. It comes out to similar DPA, has a great KD effect as slotted, and juices your recharge. Note that I do have my FFbacks toggled on here - toggle off for more accurate recharge totals. Defender (Storm Summoning - Dark Blast).mbd My build here focuses on just getting a baseline of defense that is decent, and relies on Hurricane to floor -tohit on mobs. Strong resists to support. Visual:

Because of the way it summons pets that carry their own little holds, it does surprising damage with hold procs. It's probably the aoe hold I'm least likely to skip.

Bonfire doesn't take well to procs. I'd honestly love to hear feedback on how @Nemu has found procced Rain of Fire to be in practice as well. Typical wisdom is that rains are not optimal for procs, but sometimes these assumptions aren't accurate. On my own build, which has just a hair less recharge (linked above in thread), Fire Sword, Blaze, and Blazing bolt are plenty ST most of the time. Although it often just ends in a dead mob, it isn't 100% seamless for AV smashes, and Char would certainly round out an optimal chain. Meanwhile, Fire Blast is above average for a T2 blast, and I'm happy enough to use it as filler when needed.

Thank you both for encouraging me to try it! What an absolutely hilarious power. I love it. Short recharge, strongish mez effect, even if chaotic. The damage is pretty respectable given how much you can cycle it and that the control effects are mag 3. If I'm feeling silly I can just run around the room kiting everything while spamming. Also, since it does like every status effect, it technically synergizes with all my other controls! 😄

I love grabbing Evasive for extra hover speed when I have room both in power picks and end consumption. The lotg mule is a nice bonus. It makes a very noticeable difference, and allows Hover to be fully combat viable even without speed slotting. I'm okay with Hover even without Evasive, and enjoy the precision, but Evasive is a great improvement. It's also really nice to have extra control and speed layered with regular Fly as well. I use a speed on demand keybind to swap between fly/hover, and keep Evasive on the vast majority of the time unless starving for end. The Knockback resistance is nothing to sneeze at either, and almost doubles the effective mag protection for any -KB IOs you have. I usually take Combat Jumping as well, so the immob protection isn't as big a deal, but nice for pool flexibility if you aren't grabbing it.

I think it would be a mighty fine combo, and a stellar pure ranged build. You'll readily light your oil slick with procs from glue arrow or psi darts (proccy proc these out for sure) just as you say. Glue+ psi debuffs = some actual meaningful mitigation from the recharge slows as well. Beyond that, there's no special trick to success here. You are familiar with both sets, and they should work just as you expect! /TA is in my opinion the best ranged support secondary for blasters, and Psy blast has some fun range advantages like the range bonus on snipe, extra range on powers. Other than the -recharge stacking, I don't think there are any super special synergies - just all around good powers. The main thing is that /TA doesn't demand any special positioning, so you can feel free to take advantage of that range.

Thanks for the input, @pawstruck and @twozerofoxtrot! Do either of you happen to use it with procs? I know that other chain powers don't play nice with procs (only the primary target really gets hit by them to any worthwhile degree). Is Scramble Minds any different in this respect? Mine is also a Psy/Nin. The only real swap I could make is to drop Smoke Flash. I'm tempted, as it serves a sort of similar purpose while also doing damage, though the effect is less instant.

I'm putting together a Psychic/Ninja Blaster, and having trouble wrapping my mind around the potential of this power. The animation time seems a bit long, even with the chain effect, and the random nature of the status effects make it unreliable at first glance for synergy with other mez you have access to. What is your experience with this power - is it worth it? Am I missing something about the potential of the mechanic behind it?

Explosive arrow is a pretty above average aoe these days. I wouldn't skip it. Good dpa, damage diversity in an otherwise lethal set, and a good place for ffback. Get it and love it. Worth the kd IO tax. Snap is an easy skip though. Choking powder is a pretty standard blaster secondary hold, which means it's pretty strong. Proc it out for big damage, and layer with an epic hold like char for extra fun. Personally I find lotus drops a miss. With its puny 8 ft radius and nothing special to make up for it, I don't see much value. I'd swap for explosive in a heartbeat. It's a contender for worst blaster pbaoe in my book. It does the trick if you enjoy the style of course.