Smashing/Lethal...really that bad?

[Rinwen]

Hello, folks.

 

Like many here I'm a CoX returnee.

 

Two of my favorite concept characters are SS/Inv Tanker... smashing dmg, and Claws/Inv Scrapper... lethal dmg.

 

I'd never gotten either past lv 25... due to being busy with my SG on my Rad/Rad Defender most of the time. 

 

However, I remember  always hearing that past lv 30, lethal & smashing are so often resisted that playing those dmg types past lv 30 is an exercise in frustration.

 

I have very little playtime, so I'd rather not waste it enjoying a character to lv 30'ish, only to get very frustrated playing them later. 

 

So... can anyone tell me how bad it is?

 

Would I just be better off playing a non-S/L character... and I have tons from which to choose... to avoid this frustration?

 

Thanks for any insight you may have.

[Generator]

As happens frequently, I think optimizers have overstated the case.

 

Is it resisted more?  Yes.

 

Enough to make those sets unplayable?  God, no.

 

Play what you want.  Enjoy.  Life's too damn short.

[catsi563]

Smash and lethal are not bad at all I had an Incarnate SS invuln tank and it was no problem getting incarnate done.

 

Its more that Smash and Lethal are just very common and thus one of the more resisted damage types but if you know your rotations anything you hit drops as much as if it were hit by a rad blast ot fire ball or lightning bolt

[Tankshock]

S/L tends to do more dam as compensation, so just like any set they shine against certain opponents.  But definitely never unplayable.

 

[Heraclea]

And even the melee damage sets that do exotic damage or debuffs also do smashing or lethal damage as well.  So the problem does not go away.  On the other hand, one of the best thing that debuffs in attacks do is to enable Frankenslotting: you can get your accuracy, endurance reduction, and recharge buttons from sets that are in very low demand and sometimes have interesting procs. 

[Jaguaratron]

it depends, against Reichsman? Yes, you may as well be throwing balls off cotton wool at him.

 

Otherwise they all do the job and the downsides against certain mobs dont make any set worthless.

[Pixie_Knight]

I've long ran a claw/super reflexes scrapper. I've fought all (or at least most) of the AVs and many of the giant monsters too. And despite claws having low damage (for a scrapper), I've never really felt unable to hurt my foes. Okay, some have a panic button power which I might have to wait to wear off to hurt them. But most things drop quickly, even if they resist smash/lethal.

[Solvernia]

S/L damage is more resisted, but players who do S/L damage do more of it than players with other damage types, so it balances out.

[Adeon Hawkwood]

My main is an AR/Dev blaster. I'll admit some groups are more of a pain in the ass than others but it's not that big of a deal. If you're looking for a perfectly optimized AV killer than it may not be the best option but for general play it's not that big an issue.

[Gobbledygook]

I've long ran a claw/super reflexes scrapper. I've fought all (or at least most) of the AVs and many of the giant monsters too. And despite claws having low damage (for a scrapper), I've never really felt unable to hurt my foes. Okay, some have a panic button power which I might have to wait to wear off to hurt them. But most things drop quickly, even if they resist smash/lethal.

 

I can second this. I had a claws/sr that I used to hunt AVs with.

[Solvernia]

also worth noting that AVs and etc usually have huge resistance to everything except in the case of specific weaknesses, so just about any damage type works well on them

 

my bane has no problem dunking on everything with his big dick smashing damage (and toxic dots)

[Tannhauser42]

S/L damage is more resisted, but players who do S/L damage do more of it than players with other damage types, so it balances out.

 

That, and if you're in a group then someone is sure to be rocking some buffs/debuffs that help balance it out even more. 

[Zolgar]

I've long ran a claw/super reflexes scrapper. I've fought all (or at least most) of the AVs and many of the giant monsters too. And despite claws having low damage (for a scrapper), I've never really felt unable to hurt my foes. Okay, some have a panic button power which I might have to wait to wear off to hurt them. But most things drop quickly, even if they resist smash/lethal.

 

I can second this. I had a claws/sr that I used to hunt AVs with.

 

Used to hunt GMs with a titan... something scrapper. Titan may be super high damage, but it's all smashing/lethal.

[THEDarkTyger]

it depends, against Reichsman? Yes, you may as well be throwing balls off cotton wool at him.

 

That's simply not true. Never had any performance issues against him.

[_NOPE_]

As happens frequently, I think optimizers have overstated the case.

 

Is it resisted more?  Yes.

 

Enough to make those sets unplayable?  God, no.

 

Play what you want.  Enjoy.  Life's too damn short.

[Razia]

I ran a CEBR (Claw/Elec Brute) Incarnate back in the days and never had any issues.