Need advice to pair with en/inv brute

[beradical]

In old days, I exclusively played Stalkers, playing with my brother's En/Inv Brute. I'd let him draw attention and add some dmg. Fun pairing in PVP, but at end game no one wanted Stalkers and my brother quit playing, so I rolled a Rad/Son Defender and loved it. Could solo GMs and AVs, had no problems finding teams, always in demand.

 

Well, thanks to Homecoming, we're back! Brother rolled his same Brute, so now I'm torn. I think I'll avoid Stalker, despite my love of them. Being a creature of habit, I am considering Rad/Rad Def again, but is there another combo or even class I should consider that would pair well with his brute? I know Ill/Rad Trollers were super popular before game was ganked from us. Son/Rad Corr's were also super popular.

 

Any alternatives to consider before diving into another Rad/Son Def?

 

(edited to fix Rad/Son, because I'm an idiot and it was years ago.)

Edited August 26, 2020 by beradical

[KaizenSoze]

Poison is a good choice for the speed of the current end game. Power fire quickly, lots -resist and -hit. Later bloomer than Rad.

 

Paging: @Frosticus

 

 

[beradical]

Thank you so much KS, reading that guide now... Much appreciated!

[Psylenz0511]

The knee jerk reaction I had was to pair up with a kinetic/sonic defender. Hellooo damage cap.

 

Second thought was something with good -resistance like a storm or a cold defender.

 

Then I thought of a novel idea. Try a sonic/sonic defender. The hula hoop of doom is designed for a dedicated melee teammate. You have the dispersion bubble for your own mezz protection, and with the sonic shields, the brute can slot more towards damage and less towards resistance in theory teamed with the sonic. Then of course you can proc out what can be proc'd and blast away to add to the duo's output damage total. Sonic/rad or Sonic/water may lend themselves to increased proc damage. Howl is hard to resist though.

[beradical]

@Psy, that's actually kind of brilliant lol. K, I'm going to look at the build options, considering I've never considered it...

[Without_Pause]

I'll add in Dark for a primary. Why? You get to add in control. You also add in def for all and +res to psy which is Inv's biggest weakness. While Inv has a Dull Pain type of power, Twilight Grasp can fill in nicely if they need extra help. Secondary can be up for grabs pending on if you duo a lot by yourselves or not. If you go lower mob count, then something more single target focused is fine. If you want to join teams, going a bit more AoE is fine. /rad and /beam are some of the few secondaries I would look at as IOs/procs make them a bit more interesting in today's game.

 

My only complaint is them going Energy which a bottom feeder for melee damage although fixes are on their way. Depending on when you stopped, Savage might be worth a look. I personally rolled a Savage/rad, but haven't officially kicked the tires on the build yet. It works in my head though base on previous characters, 

[Hops4]

On 8/20/2020 at 1:28 PM, KaizenSoze said:

Poison is a good choice for the speed of the current end game. Power fire quickly, lots -resist and -hit. Later bloomer than Rad.

 

Paging: @Frosticus

 

 

Just keep in mind! This set offers no sustain! One of you will have to take The END power for your incarnate if you two just solo with each other

[beradical]

So I rolled a Poison/Fire, only lvl 32, but it is certainly a challenging character. I think I'll eventually get a feel for it, but it definitely plays wildly differently than my other defenders. I'm sure it will get better with levels and my own personal comfort with charging a ranged squishy into melee....currently all I can say is I'm glad we have universal health care for my frequent trips to the hospital.

 

Right now end drain is a real problem, so I have to avoid a lot of the toggles until I get them all slotted better.

 

With a team or duo, it seems to make a noticeable difference to overall success if I just focus on debuffing instead of attacking - it's a lot of active powers to drop, so I'm still sorting out how to be most effective.

[Tsuko]

On 8/20/2020 at 7:09 PM, beradical said:

In old days, I exclusively played Stalkers, playing with my brother's En/Inv Brute. I'd let him draw attention and add some dmg. Fun pairing in PVP, but at end game no one wanted Stalkers and my brother quit playing, so I rolled a Rad/Rad Defender and loved it. Could solo GMs and AVs, had no problems finding teams, always in demand.

 

Well, thanks to Homecoming, we're back! Brother rolled his same Brute, so now I'm torn. I think I'll avoid Stalker, despite my love of them. Being a creature of habit, I am considering Rad/Rad Def again, but is there another combo or even class I should consider that would pair well with his brute? I know Ill/Rad Trollers were super popular before game was ganked from us. Son/Rad Corr's were also super popular.

 

Any alternatives to consider before diving into another Rad/Rad Def?

IMHO, one of the best endgame defender : Kin / sonic.

 

Kin is the brute's best friend with thier off the charts damage cap.

 

Easy heal on mélée, outstanding buff dmg, best dmg debuff and 100% -resist with sonic. Who cares of regen when people hit like berzerker heavy marine canon on "naked" targets 😛

 

Build 45% def range / 45% def aoe with lower Barrier Core T4 buff with resist armor, able to buff and follow any mélée in any content :

 

 

Hero Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.7.2.10
https://github.com/Crytilis/mids-reborn-hero-designer

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Level 50 Magic Defender
Primary Power Set: Kinetics
Secondary Power Set: Sonic Attack
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Soul Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Transfusion -- TchoftheN-Heal(A), TchoftheN-Heal/HP/Regen/Rchg(3), TchoftheN-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(3), TchoftheN-Acc/Heal(5), TchoftheN-Acc/EndRdx/Heal/HP/Regen(5)
Level 1: Shriek -- SprDfnBst-Rchg/Heal%(A), SprDfnBst-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(7), SprDfnBst-Dmg/Rchg(7), SprDfnBst-Acc/Dmg(9), SprDfnBst-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(9), SprDfnBst-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(11)
Level 2: Siphon Power -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(11), RechRdx-I(13)
Level 4: Howl -- SprFrzBls-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(A), SprFrzBls-Rchg/ImmobProc(13), SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg(15), SprFrzBls-Dmg/EndRdx(15), SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(17), SprFrzBls-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(17)
Level 6: Siphon Speed -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(19), RechRdx-I(19)
Level 8: Scream -- Apc-Dmg/Rchg(A), Apc-Dmg/EndRdx(21), Apc-Dmg(21), Apc-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(23), Apc-Acc/Rchg(23)
Level 10: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(25)
Level 12: Speed Boost -- BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(A), BlsoftheZ-ResKB(25)
Level 14: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(27), RedFrt-Def(27), Ksm-ToHit+(29), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(29), Rct-ResDam%(31)
Level 16: Super Speed -- Clr-Stlth(A), BlsoftheZ-Travel(31), BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(31), BlsoftheZ-ResKB(33)
Level 18: Shout -- SprVglAss-Rchg/+Absorb(A), SprVglAss-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprVglAss-Acc/Dmg(33), SprVglAss-Dmg/Rchg(34), SprVglAss-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), SprVglAss-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(34)
Level 20: Amplify -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg(36), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(36), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(36), GssSynFr--ToHit(37), GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(37)
Level 22: Increase Density -- UnbGrd-Max HP%(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(37)
Level 24: Hover -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(39), RedFrt-Def(39), BlsoftheZ-Travel(39), BlsoftheZ-ResKB(40)
Level 26: Transference -- PreOptmz-EndMod/End/Rech(A), PreOptmz-EndMod/Acc/Rech(40), PreOptmz-Acc/Rech(40), PreOptmz-EndMod/End(42), PreOptmz-EndMod/Rech(42), PreOptmz-EndMod/Acc/End(42)
Level 28: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def(43), RedFrt-Def(43)
Level 30: Inertial Reduction -- BlsoftheZ-Travel(A), BlsoftheZ-ResKB(43)
Level 32: Fulcrum Shift -- Acc-I(A), RechRdx-I(45), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 35: Screech -- AbsAmz-Acc/Stun/Rchg(A), AbsAmz-Acc/Rchg(45)
Level 38: Dreadful Wail -- Arm-Dam%(A), Arm-Dmg/EndRdx(46), Arm-Dmg/Rchg(46), Arm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(46), Arm-Acc/Rchg(48)
Level 41: Dark Embrace -- StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(A)
Level 44: Soul Storm -- Lck-%Hold(A), Lck-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(48), Lck-Acc/Hold(48), Lck-Acc/Rchg(50), Lck-Rchg/Hold(50), Lck-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(50)
Level 47: Assault -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 49: Tactics -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Brawl -- PndSlg-Stun%(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 -- Run-I(A)
Level 1: Vigilance 
Level 2: Rest -- Heal-I(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run 
Level 2: Swift -- Flight-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A)
Level 50: Diamagnetic Radial Flawless Interface 
Level 50: Ion Core Final Judgement 
Level 50: Agility Core Paragon 
Level 0: Portal Jockey 
Level 0: Task Force Commander 
Level 0: The Atlas Medallion 
Level 0: Freedom Phalanx Reserve 
Level 1: Quick Form 
Level 50: Barrier Core Epiphany 
Level 50: Assault Radial Embodiment 
Level 50: Banished Pantheon Core Superior Ally 
------------

 

Enjoy 🙂

[beradical]

13 hours ago, Tsuko said:

IMHO, one of the best endgame defender : Kin / sonic.

 

Kin is the brute's best friend with thier off the charts damage cap.

I've never played Kin myself, though I recall from way back when it being super popular because it made runs so much faster and was a buffing machine. Have end game players gotten so tough they just don't need -regen anymore? I keep reading it's all blasters, brutes and scrappers running amok, which supports your argument for Kin/. The Rad/ toggle debuffs are great for bosses, but a bit slow and impractical for quicker missions and runs. By the time you drop your 3 debuffs the mobs are dead and the group has moved on. So I can see the argument that Kin/ will be more useful in every fight and scenario. I'm still on the fence about Poison/, it seems like devs just hit the random button when making Poison Def...

[Tsuko]

23 minutes ago, beradical said:

I've never played Kin myself, though I recall from way back when it being super popular because it made runs so much faster and was a buffing machine. Have end game players gotten so tough they just don't need -regen anymore? I keep reading it's all blasters, brutes and scrappers running amok, which supports your argument for Kin/. The Rad/ toggle debuffs are great for bosses, but a bit slow and impractical for quicker missions and runs. By the time you drop your 3 debuffs the mobs are dead and the group has moved on. So I can see the argument that Kin/ will be more useful in every fight and scenario. I'm still on the fence about Poison/, it seems like devs just hit the random button when making Poison Def...

With a brute as fixed mate in mind and his devastating 775% damage cap, all he will need at some point is more recharge / more damage and some heal support in case  of multiple unlucky hits (auto hit here and there in the game) but mainly : Invulnerability has a hole in recovery / stam management and provide almost everything but damage.

 

If by "En" you mean the old school Energy mélée, he will have a devastating single target burst and weak multitarget : thing fix by soul or Mu patron powers.

 

So this Kin sonic defender will help him to wreck absolutly everything by caping him in damage, his recharge, filling him with stamina and reducing target's resistance and damage to almost nothing 🙂

 

Poison is a strong choice, but no heal can be tricky, for the brute but even for you 😕

 

if i was you 2, i would go with a NRj / shield brute to buff you too in def and adding Shield charge to complete the area possibiliies of the brute. Once geared, you two could "solo" the whole content (but trials :p) in master and harder notoriety with quite ease and fun 🙂

 

Don't get me wrong, rad is a great set, but i know for supporting friends with this very build, the sonic part of the build is more than enough to debuff high endgame builds : who care of 200ish regen per second of an AV when your teammate hit a 50% (with purple patch) res debuff target at damage cap and cant die cause you can spam heal him ? 🙂

 

and if you really want some -regen, take the longbow core Lore incarnate pet, he spams 2 attacks at -500% regen 😛

Edited August 25, 2020 by Tsuko

[Without_Pause]

Rad toggles won't get all used on a team going at a decent pace. They do remain on a target for a time even after it dies, which helps, but yeah, I found I rarely used all of them unless it was a EB/AV/GM.

[beradical]

Alright you big beautiful bastards, your advice was very much appreciated, and both my brother and I rerolled. I liked the Kin powerset, but ended up going Rad/Kin Corr, while my brother rolled Savage/Shield Brute. I'm hoping this duo has good synergy, and both will still be useful for end game content.

 

I've never played a Corr, and am sick of Sonic, as much as I love the -res. I hope Rad wasn't a bad choice, I just liked the dmg, it has such as nice AoE set and strong ST 1-2 punch with Proton > Cosmic.

 

My brother loved his OG Main, but EN's main 1-2 combo got nerfed. He wanted Titan, but no-go with Shield. Not enough arms I guess... Shield is probably softer than any brute he's played, and he's old school, so he's used to prioritizing RES over DEF, but paired with my Kin's dmg debuffs, and his Grant Cover def buff for me, I think this duo will have legs.

[Without_Pause]

Still softcap def on /shield. I won't protest going Savage, but War Mace would be a good sub for TW.