Incoming Trick Arrow buffs - This is not a drill!

[Luminara]

2 hours ago, ChetManly said:

I had just gotten mine to 50 right before the issue went live

 

I'm glad to see so many people experiencing that thrill of having "made it" before TA was improved.  It was 2005 the last time anyone could say they did that.  Enjoy that, you've earned it.

[ChetManly]

3 hours ago, Luminara said:

 

I'm glad to see so many people experiencing that thrill of having "made it" before TA was improved.  It was 2005 the last time anyone could say they did that.  Enjoy that, you've earned it.

Thanks for recognizing that. I'll bolster that with this; I had this toon to 50 on live. When the game came back , he was one of the first I rerolled, name and everything. I enjoyed the set on live, never cared for what various detractors said and enjoyed slowly leveling him up here over the last year and a half. Friggin ' great set. My love grows for it daily. Just rolled a NIn/TA MM.

[KaizenSoze]

12 minutes ago, ChetManly said:

Thanks for recognizing that. I'll bolster that with this; I had this toon to 50 on live. When the game came back , he was one of the first I rerolled, name and everything. I enjoyed the set on live, never cared for what various detractors said and enjoyed slowly leveling him up here over the last year and a half. Friggin ' great set. My love grows for it daily. Just rolled a NIn/TA MM.

I made one of those on beta. The changes to flash arrow and PSG make is very viable.

 

Apparently, there is an old rant on the MM that this is the worst MM combo ever. Clueless me was able to solo quite a bit +4 content with it on beta.

 

All hail trick arrow!

Edited December 1, 2020 by KaizenSoze

[ChetManly]

18 minutes ago, KaizenSoze said:

I made one of those on beta. The changes to flash arrow and PSG make is very viable.

 

Apparently, there is an old rant on the MM that this is the worst MM combo ever. Clueless me was able to solo quite a bit +4 content with it on beta.

 

All hail trick arrow!

All hail!

 

 It's funny. I read that post of yours this morning and smiled thinking how fun and easy its been to play that MM combo. With the new Flash arrow numbers, my henchmen are hardly taking any damage; and I'm talking... I'm at lvl 19 with just one slot with an ACC SO in it. I've been doing an even mix of soloing and teams at +1/+3. It's tremendous.

It's like having your own little team to test and use the buffs on.  I didn't take the damage powers in the primary, Just fistfull with an Acc and I procc'd Entangling and Ice for damage.

I just got PGA and it's that much better. Again only one slot.

Edited December 1, 2020 by ChetManly

[ChetManly]

On 11/27/2020 at 2:19 PM, Force Redux said:

Would anyone mind posting a build? This seems  to be a very slot heavy combo... So I'm probably missing something 😛

Not /AR, I know, but it's got half of what you want anyway for contrast. 

 

Hero Plan by Mids' Reborn : Hero Designer 2.6.1.25
https://github.com/Crytilis/mids-reborn-hero-designer

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Major Brass: Level 50 Natural Defender
Primary Power Set: Trick Arrow
Secondary Power Set: Archery
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Leadership
Power Pool: Speed
Ancillary Pool: Mace Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Entangling Arrow -- TraoftheH-Dam%(A)
Level 1: Snap Shot -- Dcm-Build%(A), Dcm-Acc/Dmg(3), Dcm-Dmg/EndRdx(3), Dcm-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(13), Dcm-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(15)
Level 2: Flash Arrow -- DflEgo-ToHitDeb/Rchg(A)
Level 4: Combat Jumping -- UnbLea-Stlth(A), BlsoftheZ-Travel/EndRdx(5), LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(5)
Level 6: Glue Arrow -- PcnoftheT--Rchg%(A), PcnoftheT-Rng/Slow(7), ImpSwf-Dam%(42)
Level 8: Fistful of Arrows -- Artl-Acc/Dam(A), Artl-Dam/Rech(9), Artl-End/Rech/Rng(9), Artl-Acc/Rech/Rng(11), Artl-Acc/Dam/Rech(11), Artl-Dam/End(13)
Level 10: Ice Arrow -- ImpSwf-Dam%(A), GhsWdwEmb-Dam%(21), BslGaz-Acc/Hold(40), GldNet-Dam%(42), NrnSht-Dam%(42), Lck-%Hold(46)
Level 12: Poison Gas Arrow -- CaloftheS-Heal%(A), IndCom--Rchg%(15)
Level 14: Acid Arrow -- AchHee-ResDeb%(A), Bmbdmt-+FireDmg(19), PstBls-Dam%(40), TchofLadG-%Dam(43), ShlBrk-Acc/DefDeb(43), Ann-ResDeb%(46)
Level 16: Blazing Arrow -- VglAss-Acc/Dmg(A), VglAss-Dmg/Rchg(17), VglAss-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(17), MlsFur-Acc/Dmg(19), MlsFur-Dmg/EndRdx(21)
Level 18: Kick -- Empty(A)
Level 20: Disruption Arrow -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 22: Explosive Arrow -- PstBls-Dmg/Rng(A), PstBls-Acc/Dmg(23), PstBls-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(23), PstBls-Dam%(29), PstBls-Dmg/EndRdx(34)
Level 24: Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(25), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(25), ShlWal-Def/EndRdx(27)
Level 26: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(27)
Level 28: Oil Slick Arrow -- PstBls-Dam%(A), Bmbdmt-+FireDmg(34), TchofLadG-%Dam(37), ImpSwf-Dam%(37)
Level 30: Ranged Shot -- StnoftheM-Acc/Dmg(A), VglAss-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), StnoftheM-Dam%(31), StnoftheM-Dmg/EndRdx(31), VglAss-Rchg/+Absorb(33), VglAss-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(37)
Level 32: Tactics -- GssSynFr--ToHit(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg(33), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(33), GssSynFr--Rchg/EndRdx(34), GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(43), GssSynFr--Build%(50)
Level 35: EMP Arrow -- BslGaz-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(A), BslGaz-Acc/Hold(36), BslGaz-Acc/Rchg(36), BslGaz-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(36)
Level 38: Rain of Arrows -- DfnBst-Acc/Dmg(A), DfnBst-Dmg/Rchg(39), DfnBst-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(39), DfnBst-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(39), DfnBst-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(40), DfnBst-Rchg/Heal%(48)
Level 41: Scorpion Shield -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx(45), LucoftheG-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
Level 44: Tough -- StdPrt-ResKB(A), GldArm-3defTpProc(45), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(46), GldArm-End/Res(48), GldArm-Res/Rech/End(50)
Level 47: Focused Accuracy -- GssSynFr--ToHit/EndRdx(A), GssSynFr--ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(48)
Level 49: Assault -- EndRdx-I(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: Sprint -- Qck-EndRdx/RunSpd(A)
Level 1: Vigilance 
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run 
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Prv-Absorb%(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(29), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(50)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-EndMod(A), PrfShf-End%(7)
------------

 

Couple notes...

Kick is empty because it has a FF + Rech in it and in Mid's it throws the numbers out of whack.  This is a budget build with some proctology based on Myshkin's work and build's.  I built this literally days before the Issue went live.  It transferred well, although i will be tweaking based on playing with it a bit... 

Already assessing re-taking Entangling again, although the build is monsterous as is, solo and on teams, and i've hardly noticed it's absence.

I'll repost this in Kaizen's build share thread.

 

-Chet

 

Edit: During the respec build, i decided I HAD to have Aim still. 

Edited: I have Ageless Alpha slot(I think, the one with the across the board End discount and Range boost) as I found the insane amount of toggles(I guess I think 6 is insane on a Defender) was giving me too many End problems, even with sets and End Redux in many of the powers.

Edited December 2, 2020 by ChetManly

[Force Redux]

Geez, you guys are gonna make me roll another alt with all this talk!!! Ninja/TA... Who knew the day would come???

[Luminara]

3 hours ago, ChetManly said:

With the new Flash arrow numbers, my henchmen are hardly taking any damage; and I'm talking... I'm at lvl 19 with just one slot with an ACC SO in it.

 

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check.  Give it a ToHit Debuff, Recharge Reduction or Endurance Reduction.

[KaizenSoze]

10 minutes ago, Luminara said:

 

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check.  Give it a ToHit Debuff, Recharge Reduction or Endurance Reduction.

Yes, max -tohit and a little recharge is good. Until you can put a complete -tohit set in.

 

I prefer Siphon Insight.

[ChetManly]

1 hour ago, Luminara said:

 

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check.  Give it a ToHit Debuff, Recharge Reduction or Endurance Reduction.

Yea, I misspoke, sorry. The hover over says it takes Acc enhancements and I can't seem to get it out of  my head. There was a Rech in it and I just swapped it for a toHit Debuff.

[Force Redux]

On 12/1/2020 at 7:43 PM, Luminara said:

 

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check.  Give it a ToHit Debuff, Recharge Reduction or Endurance Reduction.

Are there any other TA powers that do not require a to hit check, other than disruption arrow?

 

Glue Arrow doesn't need a to hit check... Any others?

Edited December 4, 2020 by Force Redux

[Force Redux]

On 11/28/2020 at 11:13 AM, Force Redux said:

I leveled up a TA/Archery to 34 this weekend. I find it to be very busy. Maybe too busy for my taste. I might try this as a Beast or Ninja MM instead. Let the pets do their thing while I debuff. Sadly the numbers won't compare to Defender numbers. 

 

My old Illusion/TA on Live was also pretty similar to MM I think, as PA covers the busy work of interactive with the mobs woke you debuff and control as needed. 

 

Do others find TA combos this busy? Could just be me... Maybe I need to keep at it and find my rythym? 

I moved to TA/Dark and its much more enjoyable. Plus I found a nice concept for Flechette Noir, my magical archer. I think it feels less busy alternating dark stuff with arrow stuff. Plus I'm learning to prioritize the debuffs/attacks with experience. Its been ages since I ran my Illusino/TA back on live. I forgot so much. 

[Luminara]

9 hours ago, Force Redux said:

Are there any other TA powers that do not require a to hit check, other than disruption arrow?

 

Glue Arrow doesn't need a to hit check... Any others?

 

PGA apparently still does, but it also has significantly higher base accuracy now, 112.5% (used to be 75%), and the pulses are frequently enough to practically guarantee that critters are affected.  I used it extensively while I was leveling my Grav/TA to 40 (have to go back and finish her...) and was quite satisfied with how it worked in comparison to how it used to work.  OSA has hit checks for the KD and damage, but it also debuffs Defense by 25% (that part is auto-hit), so it's quite reliable (note, though, that the KD chance is low, but checks are frequent, so it still tends to popcorn critters).

 

Flash, Glue and Disruption are the only true auto-hit powers.  Everything else has hit checks, but the critical ones, PGA and OSA, might as well be considered to be capped against anything +2 or below.  I've never actually needed to slot OSA for Accuracy, and only slotted PGA with Accuracy as a side effect of using Call of the Sandman or Fortunata Hypnosis.

 

You can always use Acid to debuff Defense and skip slotting Entangling, Ice and EMP with Accuracy/accumulating large amounts of global +Acc/+ToHit.  Just be certain to slot Acid for Accuracy.

[Force Redux]

35 minutes ago, Luminara said:

 

PGA apparently still does, but it also has significantly higher base accuracy now, 112.5% (used to be 75%), and the pulses are frequently enough to practically guarantee that critters are affected.  I used it extensively while I was leveling my Grav/TA to 40 (have to go back and finish her...) and was quite satisfied with how it worked in comparison to how it used to work.  OSA has hit checks for the KD and damage, but it also debuffs Defense by 25% (that part is auto-hit), so it's quite reliable (note, though, that the KD chance is low, but checks are frequent, so it still tends to popcorn critters).

 

Flash, Glue and Disruption are the only true auto-hit powers.  Everything else has hit checks, but the critical ones, PGA and OSA, might as well be considered to be capped against anything +2 or below.  I've never actually needed to slot OSA for Accuracy, and only slotted PGA with Accuracy as a side effect of using Call of the Sandman or Fortunata Hypnosis.

 

You can always use Acid to debuff Defense and skip slotting Entangling, Ice and EMP with Accuracy/accumulating large amounts of global +Acc/+ToHit.  Just be certain to slot Acid for Accuracy.

Thank you. I appreciate the certainty of the breakdown. I can't always trust the slotting categories in game, or the inherent accuracy rating to mean its not 'auto hit'.

🙂

[JayboH]

Help me decide on a Hybrid for my TA/AR defender

 

Control Radial sounds pretty good.  Support is okish as I already have Maneuvers and Tactics running.  Melee Core could add some resist and regen - I run Clarion for Destiny if that helps.

[Force Redux]

Are you in melee enough with your powers to justify Melee? I might go Assault myself...

[KaizenSoze]

4 hours ago, JayboH said:

Help me decide on a Hybrid for my TA/AR defender

 

Control Radial sounds pretty good.  Support is okish as I already have Maneuvers and Tactics running.  Melee Core could add some resist and regen - I run Clarion for Destiny if that helps.

I would go for assault. The one with the chance for an extra hit, not the damage buff.

[JayboH]

On 12/5/2020 at 1:50 PM, KaizenSoze said:

I would go for assault. The one with the chance for an extra hit, not the damage buff.

Do you ever go with anything else on any other ATs?

[KaizenSoze]

14 minutes ago, JayboH said:

Do you ever go with anything else on any other ATs?

I have gone with control on my controller.

 

Melee on a concept Night Widow tank. 

 

Other than those, assault for everything else.

Edited December 6, 2020 by KaizenSoze
mistake

[JayboH]

1 minute ago, KaizenSoze said:

Other than those, hybrid for everything else.

You mean Assault? 

 

You answered without knowing what my build is like so I was just curious if it's all about 'moar damage' automatically for you.

[KaizenSoze]

1 minute ago, JayboH said:

You mean Assault? 

 

You answered without knowing what my build is like so I was just curious if it's all about 'moar damage' automatically for you.

You're correct. I fixed it.

[Force Redux]

I go like this with Hybrid:

 

MMs: Support

Controller: Control

Defenders:  Assault double hit

Tankers: Assault double hit

Stalkers: Assault damage buff

Sentinel:  Assault damage buff

 

I don't play the other ATs, but you get the idea.

Edited December 6, 2020 by Force Redux

[Soyuz]

On 12/1/2020 at 11:16 PM, KaizenSoze said:

Apparently, there is an old rant on the MM that this is the worst MM combo ever.

If it's an old rant, I can understand why. TA's numbers were terrible before the patch and Ninjas are apparently made of paper, so keeping them alive would have been... problematic.

 

I had a Bots/TA MM on live and to be honest, it was a bit of a grind. I was slotting my henchmen and their upgrade powers for recharge, they died so often - and Bots are considered a durable set. A couple of SG-mates playing a Bots/FF and Necro/Dark (back when CoV was new and MM's were the new toy everyone wanted to play with) commented on how quickly I got my henchmen up and running at the mission door one day and asked why I'd slotted that way. "For when I have to resummon in combat", I said.

 

"You have to resummon?" was the reply.

 

And it was true, they didn't have to all the way thorugh that session, while I was spamming arrows and resummoning like a mad thing. That brought home to me just how badly TA lagged behind the other sets.

 

(Eventually you got OSA, which the bots would light up almost instantly, but it was the only bright spot in an otherwise lacklustre set.)

 

TA works now, though! While it synergises well with defence-based sets, I'd be willing to bet it's solid mitigation for just about any flavour of henchman or team-mate you care to mention.

On 12/2/2020 at 2:43 AM, Luminara said:

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check. 

Good to know, thanks. I had suspected, but wasnt sure.

[KaizenSoze]

On 12/1/2020 at 9:43 PM, Luminara said:

 

Flash Arrow doesn't have a hit check.  Give it a ToHit Debuff, Recharge Reduction or Endurance Reduction.

Also, the -perception is over looked, but you cannot enhance it. You can easily fight groups near each other without chain aggro.

 

Very helpful on Masterminds or soloing.

 

Remember flash early, flash often. 🙂

[brasilgringo]

7 hours ago, KaizenSoze said:

Remember flash early, flash often. 🙂

Dibs on naked-under-trenchcoat toon called The Flasher 😉

[Golden Azrael]

On 12/6/2020 at 11:17 PM, Force Redux said:

I go like this with Hybrid:

 

MMs: Support

Controller: Control

Defenders:  Assault double hit

Tankers: Assault double hit

Stalkers: Assault damage buff

Sentinel:  Assault damage buff

 

I don't play the other ATs, but you get the idea.

...and you find that makes a significant difference on a Defender's damage?

 

I currently have Hybrid Support.  But I already have plenty of defence in my build.  

 

It could stand a bit more damage...

 

Azrael.