New player, have questions

[Oginth]

I am lurking around the forums...

 

#1. What are "AT", "ST", "AV" & "TF" & "PB" & "VEAT"? Saw these two popping up a lot of times, can't figure out what they mean.

 

#2. What is "soft-capping" a resistance/defence?

 

#3. I saw that a lot of builds are min/maxing to get the best results. What class is good that I don't have to min/max (because it will trigger my OCD to be the best, and that is not enjoyable, haha), can afford to slip up (in building the char), and do range (because personal preference)? I don't need to be the best, challenge in combat is welcome, useful for solo.

Edited May 24, 2020 by Oginth
Adding more acronyms to #1

[Coyotedancer]

Archetype… your character class, more or less.

Single Target... doing damage to one goon at a time

Archvillain... very tough goons

Taskforce... a set of missions typically run with a team

Peacebringer… one of the two hero Epic archetypes

Villain Epic Archetype... There are several variations

 

I'll let some of the numbers people explain soft-capping to you. It involves picking particular powers and enhancement sets to make a character harder to hit, or harder to damage. 

 

And Sentinels are very forgiving as far as ranged characters go. They don't do as much damage as blasters, but are less fragile.

Edited May 24, 2020 by Coyotedancer

[Hyperstrike]

Okay quick tutorial:
This is not a perfect explanation.  But it gives you the basics of how the stuff works.

Resistance works by essentially taking a flat percentage of damage off.  If you have 50% Resistance to Fire, and you get hit for 100 points of Fire damage, you only take 50 points of damage.

Straightforward, right?

And there are multiple types of Resistance.  Smashing, Lethal (cutting technically), Energy, Negative Energy, Fire, Cold, Toxic, Psi


Defense is more of a binary option.  Either they hit you, and you take damage, or they miss you and you take NONE.
You also have two means of calculating Defense.

Typed: Smashing, Lethal, Energy, Negative Energy, Fire, Cold, Psi  (Notice there's no such thing as Toxic Defense)
Vectored: Melee, Ranged, Area of Effect (AoE)

Now the way Defense is doled out, accumulating Typed Defense means you accumulate some Vectored Defense too.  And vice-versa.
If damage coming in is Smashing/Lethal/Melee, and you're sporting 30% S/L and 25% Melee, the game automatically uses the HIGHER number.
Very few attacks in the game are a singular damage origin.



Soft-capping.

For Defense and Resist, you have a maximum level of Defense and Resist that you can accrue.
If you rack up MORE, the game still treats it as the lower number.

For Defense, in non-Incarnate play, the soft-cap is 45%.  This leaves an enemy with a floored 5% chance to hit.  The enemy will ALWAYS have that minimum chance.  Whether you have 45% Defense or 200% Defense.

 

For incarnate level content, the softcap is higher (either 57 or 59%, can't remember).
This is taking into account some large To-Hit buffs that incarnate enemies possess.  And that's the number it takes to mitigate their chance to hit you back down to the floored 5% chance.


For Resist

For all Archetypes BESIDES Tanks and Brutes and HEATS (Hero Epic Archtypes, Peacebringers and Warshades), the soft-cap is 75% Resistance.
For HEATS, it's 85%
For Tanks and Brutes 90%

Doesn't SOUND like a huge difference, but when combined with higher hit point totals, certain levels of regeneration, high defense, it can make a HUGE difference in how you play.

Also, that percentage measures how hard your Resistance resists Resistance debuffs.

Now it's called a soft-cap, but technically it's the hard cap for how high your Resistance can go.  A tool like Mids' Hero Designer will show you your TRUE, uncapped Resistance (so if you're a Tank and you're rocking 130% Smashing/Lethal, this indicates you're either over-slotted, or if you are chasing set bonuses, that you can turn something like Tough off and STILL be at 90% Resistance AND saving Endurance!)


How these things work together.

Okay, say you have 45% Defense and 90% Resistance to Smashing/Lethal.
Someone tosses 1000 points of Smashing/Lethal.

You have TWO outcomes:

1: They miss you and you take NO damage.
2: They hit you and you take 1000-(1000*0.9)=100 points of damage.


Hopefully this was informational and I didn't bollocks it up too bad.
 

[Cutter]

Not a numbers person by any means, but I'll take a stab at a very simplified explanation of Defense and Resist capping. To begin, Defense is what you "soft cap", and Resistance is what you "hard cap".

 

Defense first:

A basic, even-to-your-level Minion, in normal content, has a 50% chance to hit you. Each % point of Defense your hero has essentially subtracts from that value to give a final to-hit chance for that Minion. However, that chance cannot go below 5% for any enemy no matter the rank or level. You would achieve this by attaining 45% Defense. This value is the same for every archetype.

 

Hence, "soft cap" - you can push your Defense higher than 45%, but it's never going to reduce the enemy's chance to hit you below 5%. Attaining higher than 45% Defense is useful for resisting debuffs, as well as in Incarnate level content where the enemies' minimum chance to hit is higher. There are different flavours of Defense (typed vs positional) to consider, but they all work with the same numbers.

 

Also consider that some classes start with powersets that increase their Defense, while others start from zero, so the ability to reach Defense caps varies.

 

Resists:

Each archetype has a maximum value ("hard cap") of Damage Resistance that they can never exceed: the highest is 90% for Tankers and Brutes, down to the lowest cap of 70% for Sentinels. Resistance is always typed.

 

Again, consider that some classes start with powersets that increase their Resists, while others start from zero, so the ability to reach Resist caps varies.

 

Edit: Ninja'd by @Hyperstrike! That's what I get for breaking to put children to bed 🙂

 

I'll also second the suggestion of a Sentinel as a good, beginner-friendly ranged class. Some of their armour sets are Defense-based, others are Resist-based, and still others are some combination.

Edited May 24, 2020 by Cutter
sneaky ninjas

[Hyperstrike]

58 minutes ago, Oginth said:

(because it will trigger my OCD to be the best, and that is not enjoyable, haha)

Honestly?  Go ahead and trigger.
You can be godlike with pretty much ANYTHING in the game.
It all depends on the type of playstyle you enjoy.

You want to just stand there, metronomically mashing people into walls, floors, ceilings, EACH OTHER?  Shrugging off damage like water off a frog's butt?
Tank or Brute depending on your preference for durability or damage.

Wanna just beat something up and don't care if it hurts a lot afterward?
Scrapper.

Want to blow ALL THE THINGS up?  But might initially have a problem with smootching floors until you become a walking/flying nuclear bomb?
Blaster.

Want to cover your teammates and keep them alive when things go south?
Defender.

Want a mix of Blaster/Defender?
Corruptor

Want to be a somewhat self-sufficient shooter and aren't concerned about max damage?
Sentinel

Want to lock everything down?  Have your enemies so busy choking, frozen, bedazzled, wigged that they can't attack, while you slice them up and cook them for dinner?
Controller or Dominator

Wanna be a sneaky little shite?  Creep up behind the Big Bad and give him a SWORD SUPPOSITORY?  Essentially you're a melee-range Blaster.
Stalker

Want to have minions go in and do your dirty work?
Mastermind.

Want to play something that's a mix of all of the above?

The VEATS and HEATS do that for you.

Get a couple avatars in your pantheon.  Work on them some so you know what the basic setup plays like.

Once you've got that, you can work on tricking out one of your guys and turning them into an absolute combat monster with an IO build.

It's just nice to have a grounding in the baseline first.  Then you can appreciate how truly ass-kicking some builds actually are.


I concur with Cutter's suggestion.  A sentinel is a pretty good all-around and easy-to-learn mix (HEATS and VEATS are something it takes TIME to wrap your head around).

Finding my tricked out Dual Pistols/Invulnerability Sentinel to be a combat MONSTER right now.
 

Edited May 24, 2020 by Hyperstrike

[Oginth]

Thanks for your kind replies. Happy to learn that it only took me an hour for helpful people to answer my questions. Knowing what is def/resis works too, make it easier for me to choose when I read each skill.

[MTeague]

also:  Welcome aboard!   CoH is a great ride.  You should have a blast.

 

It's probably easiest to start Blueside (as a Hero), but at some point, after you have your feet wet, I would encourage you to try out Redside. 

Villains are fun!

[Nemeroff]

My advice for a new player, don't start with a Peacebringer or Warshade. They're a bit more complicated. Originally those ATs were unlocked after someone hit level 50.

[Troo]

https://hcwiki.cityofheroes.dev/wiki/Main_Page

 

https://hcwiki.cityofheroes.dev/wiki/Category:Definition

[Hyperstrike]

1 hour ago, Oginth said:

Thanks for your kind replies. Happy to learn that it only took me an hour for helpful people to answer my questions. Knowing what is def/resis works too, make it easier for me to choose when I read each skill.

Also bookmark this:  https://archive.paragonwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page
 

It's the wiki that was built during Live.
Has about 99% of everything you might have a question on.
The remaining 1% is stuff that's been tweaked/fixed/added since close.

[Liam Neeson's Wet Socks]

8 hours ago, Hyperstrike said:

Also bookmark this:  https://archive.paragonwiki.com/wiki/Main_Page
 

It's the wiki that was built during Live.
Has about 99% of everything you might have a question on.
The remaining 1% is stuff that's been tweaked/fixed/added since close.

The link that Troo posted in his reply right above yours leads to a 'clone' of the Paragonwiki that's being updated with the changes that have been made since Homecoming's release.

[Oubliette_Red]

10 hours ago, Oginth said:

Thanks for your kind replies. Happy to learn that it only took me an hour for helpful people to answer my questions. Knowing what is def/resis works too, make it easier for me to choose when I read each skill.

Welcome to CoH:H!  We always like to see new folks here and I doubt you'd find a friendlier, more helpful community.

 

Honestly, I'd say just pick an AT and powerset combo that speaks to your desired playstyle.

 

Like to wade into the thick of it? Go for Tanks or Brutes, some of the other ATs can also manage this as well depending on the chosen powersets. Sentinels to, though they are a melee/ranged combo.

Like to stalk your prey, slink in, strike and fade away? Stalkers are your go-to, depending on powersets chosen you can also stay and go to town on your enemies.

Want to stay at range? Blaster, Corruptors, Defenders

Want to buff your friends/debuff the enemies? Controllers, Corruptors, Dominatiors, Defenders.

 

There's a lot more and are tons of combinations, I suggest just reading through the descriptions for the ATs in the Character Creator to get a rough idea, then check out the various powersets.

 

I would recommend staying away from Masterminds (MMs), Peacebringers/Warshades (EATS) and Arachnos/Widows (VEATS) as first characters. MM's are a pet class that require a lot of micro-managing and don't really work like pet classes in other games, you can't just spawn and forget. EATS/VEATS have odd builds and are not really a good first character.

 

You can also provide a little detail here on the type of character you'd like to play and people will happily give you AT and powerset combos that would work.

 

Enjoy!

 

[Bastille Boy]

Welcome to the game, @Oginth !  Some thoughts on your last question:

 

You don't have to min/max anything to have a good time in the game. It's a cooperative game. You can play a toon with powers and enhancements that aren't optimized for anything, and you can still contribute to a team. That said, some ATs and powersets are friendlier to new players, and some are friendlier to soloing. I think you are most likely to have a good time with your first character if you choose a sentinel, a defender, or a corruptor. (All the melee types are newbie-friendly, but you said your preference is for ranged damage.)

 

Sentinels have a reputation for being suboptimal for high-level team content. But they are perfect for what you want: to enjoy the game without min-maxing your build, while doing a mix of solo and team play. Pick whatever combination of powers appeals you thematically. The only powerset I'd steer you away from is energy blast. Powers with knockback can be problematic on teams if not used skillfully.

 

Another good choice would be a defender or a corruptor with a buff/debuff set that includes some ability to protect yourself (a self-heal, a self-shield, or both). You'll be valuable on teams, and you'll be able to solo (though it may be slower than it would be on other ATs). There are many good choices for the buff/debuff set. Time Manipulation is a good choice for what you want, if you like it thematically. It gives you and your team a lot of defense, and it's not very clicky, so you can use the set effectively while still making lots of attacks. I'd steer clear of Traps if you want to play on teams. I'd be careful with the sets that include knockback powers (Storm, Force Field); Storm is a great set, but it typically needs knockback-to-knockdown enhancements to play well with others. For the blast set, pick whatever you like thematically, except energy blast.

 

The choice between a defender and a corruptor is subtle. If you aren't min/maxing, it doesn't matter that much. If you want Sonic Attack as your blast set, defender is probably the better choice. If you want anything with a rain power as your blast set (e.g. Ice or Fire), you probably want a corruptor.

 

If you want to play with controls (hold / immobilize / sleep / fear / confuse / stun), I would pick a controller rather than a dominator. Solo controllers tend to be safe but slow. Solo dominators can be great, but there is a dramatic difference between a basic build with single origin enhancements and a carefully-made IO build with lots of global recharge. Without "perma-dom," dominators tend to face-plant a lot.

 

I would advise against playing mastermind for your first toon. A lot of people really like playing masterminds, but the controls are complex. I'd also recommend against playing a blaster for your first toon, given that you want to play solo a lot. Blasters are a fine for choice for new players who mainly plan to play on teams. They can be challenging to play solo if they aren't built carefully.

[Dazl]

Welcome to Homecoming hero. Since you pointed out you prefer range, as a new player I would also recommend sentinels. They are ranged with great defense, making them a good starter character to get your feet wet and understand the game mechanics. Once you learn more about the game you will probably have a better idea of what you really want to play ultimately. You have 1000 character slots per sever, so skies is the limit.

[Hyperstrike]

2 hours ago, Liam Neeson's Wet Socks said:

The link that Troo posted in his reply right above yours leads to a 'clone' of the Paragonwiki that's being updated with the changes that have been made since Homecoming's release.

And I'm going to wait a while before I give another site that sort of nod.

I TRUST Paragonwiki.

I don't know enough about the mods and editors of the other site (yet) to say the same thing.

[ArchVileTerror]

Well, for what it's worth, Jimmy trusted them enough to make them the officially unofficial Homecoming Wiki.

*points to the "Wikis" drop-down at the top of the page*

https://forums.homecomingservers.com/topic/18887-unofficial-homecoming-wiki/page/2/?tab=comments#comment-217958

Used to just be "Wiki."

 

[Troo]

None of the wikis are going to be perfect (there is simply too much content). While I also trust paragonwiki, I linked to the new wiki just to show it was available.

 

@Oginth it appears I forgot to greet you. Welcome home.