Newbie looking for a strong solo character - Rad/Rad Brute or Arachnos Soldier?

[Treadstone]

Hi! I played CoH very casually when it was live, but I never got past level 25 or so. I still feel like a total newbie.

 

I really like being as self-sufficient as possible in MMOs. I'll group up when I have a nice solid block of time to dedicate to it, but that's kind of rare for me, so I like to be able to go it alone if possible. Even if it takes longer!

 

I've looked through all the ATs and powersets, and there are two that have really caught my eye - Rad/Rad Brute (or Scrapper, I guess) and Arachnos Soldier. I love nuclear/radioactive stuff, and I also like how Arachnos Soldiers can spec out in different ways that let them play ranged, melee, support-ish, or even with pets.

 

So I guess it comes down to which of these characters would have an easier time doing some of the really hard stuff in the game, which I guess would be soloing Task Forces and AVs.

 

Any guidance or build suggestions would be fantastic. Thank you!

 

(And if you have any recommendations outside of my two candidates, feel free to recommend them - with some caveats: I don't want to play as a Controller, Dominator, or Mastermind. They're a bit too finicky for me. I also don't want to do Titan Weapons/Bio Armor, even though it's apparently extremely good - I just don't like the aesthetics of those two sets. Thanks again!)

Edited December 3, 2020 by Treadstone

[Ignatz the Insane]

I can't speak for the Soldier, but the Brute will be just fine(I have a level 31 Rad/Rad scrapper).  It'll be a bit squishy until the mid to late 20s though.  You do get a nice passive regen and recovery boost early.  Radiation Armor develops into a top tier set.  Radiation Melee is fine...not my favorite but I'm only 31.  

 

For a 1st character solo project, I went with a Mace/Willpower Brute, and I'm glad I did.  He was self-sufficent early and the lack of Influence wasn't painful at all.  It was a powerful and satisfying combo.  

Edited December 3, 2020 by Ignatz the Insane

[Six-Six]

Hello fellow newb.

If this will be your first toon, I would suggest an armoured AT like a Tank, Scrapper, Stalker, Brute or Sentinel (if you prefer range attacks). The armours will keep you alive long enough to enjoy the game. And melee is quite straight forward: find a target, hit it until it dies, repeat. I would say Sentinel play style is fairly the same, but you now have the option to hit things from afar.

The other range ATs may have a steeper learning curve, at least they did for me. Blasters and Dominators trade armours for a more diverse set of attacks. you have melee, AoE, PBAoEs or nukes and mini-nukes. Instead of being tough-skinned, you rely on your tool set, positioning and target switching. Corruptors and Defenders are similar, but have powers for allies. This could be harder to solo (but not impossible) since those powers will not benefit you.  

I have not tried Controllers or Masterminds in a capacity to offer advice on them.

Soldiers of Arachnos and Widows/Fortunatas are Epic ATs. They are slightly harder to manage for a first toon, but again, not impossible. They are a bit more complex in the sense that they have melee, range, control, buffs, armour and pets. So if you think about it, they're all the ATs combined. But while they offer a wide range of powers, you simply won't have enough power picks to choose them all. So it is up to you to specialise. They start off fairly weak compared to most ATs (and a slog to level up solo). But once you reach the "path choosing" at level 24 when you get a forced-respec to your specialisation, you start the journey to become an unstoppable god! SoAs are my current favourite AT.

I only started playing when HC came online early last year. I learned the ropes with Sentinels, then tried Brutes. After which I moved on to SoAs, Blasters, Doms, Corrs and Defenders in that order. I tired a Peacebringer and I'm currently learning how to tri-form a Warshade and keep my Mastermind's pets in order.

Whatever you do decide on, there are tonnes of peeps here in the forums, in the discord and in-game that are quite nice and would be happy to help you learn. Enjoy.

[Snarky]

The Brute is about the strongest solo player, especially for a new player who is learning the city, the enemy tactics, and the content strategy.

 

I am probably prejudiced, I play Brutes as my mains.  But I do it because it is so enjoyable.

 

Whatever you choose GL and welcome.

[biostem]

I also recommend playing a brute, but with some additional caveats:

 

1. If I'm looking for a solid, but straightforward build, I take radiation armor.  It has good resist, a self heal, and gamma boost, which is a power that provides an additional buff to your recovery and regeneration.

 

2. A primary set like claws, while not the strongest, has some useful ranged attacks mixed in, and follow-up, which provides a good damage and tohit buff, that can pretty much be made permanent.  Savage melee is also good for the endurance cost discount and recharge buff that it provides.

 

3. Don't focus too much on the high-end and costly invention-based builds at first, but rather read some guides on how to build some wealth easily via the Architect Entertainment system.  I'm not suggesting you farm your way to 50 or anything, but accumulate enough influence/infamy to buy up the salvage, recipes, and then craft basic invention-origin enhancements starting at level 22, so your powers hit more reliably and you don't have to worry about replacing all those enhancements as you level.  You can worry about better stuff later.

 

4. Depending upon how strictly you want to adhere to a character concept or just beef up your character, consider dipping into the various power pools.  I wouldn't pick such powers if there's a better choice in your primary or secondary power set, but here are a few once to consider:

 

  a. The new "combat teleport" power from the revamped teleportation pool provides a 10% tohit buff for a few seconds after using it.  It's a great way to quickly engage a group of enemies and make extra sure those initial hits land.

 

  b. The "mighty leap" power from the Force of Will power pool includes a "free" additional power call "takeoff".  While it provides a temporary jump buff, it also has you perform a foot stomp that can knockdown nearby enemies.  It's on a fairly long 2 minute timer, but knocking all nearby enemies on their butts can really be useful if you're in a pinch.

 

  c. If you like the freedom of movement being able to fly grants you, also consider "mystic flight" from the Sorcery power pool, since in addition to said flight power, you also gain access to "Translocation", which is a teleportation power.  You can't enhance the latter aspect of said power, but being able to both fly and teleport with 1 power pick is great.  Similarly, the "Experimentation" power pool has the "Speed of Sound" power, which is like super speed, but also grants you the "Jaunt" power, which is a teleport power that comes along with it.

 

5.  Lastly, and most importantly, play what you find fun.  I don't like waiting for that endurance bar to tic so I can use my next power, so I go with sets that have ways of replenishing it easily and quickly.  I don't like standing there waiting for a power to come off of cooldown. so I play sets with faster recharges or dip into power pools to fill in any gaps in my attack chain.  Maybe you like attacks that feel strong and really tear out chunks of an enemy's health bar, so perhaps Titan Weapons or War Mace would appeal more to you.  Maybe you want sets that provide more utility/secondary effects, so something like Dark Melee, with its additional self-heal, fear power, and other buffs/debuffs would be more to your liking.  You get like 1000 slots per server, so try them all out!  Again, I'm not advocating that you spend all your playtime farming, but you can run one of the many Architect Entertainment "Tunnel Farms" to quickly get up to level 6+ after just run, and at least get a feeling for how a set performs.

[Turric]

I have a rad/ rad brute at veteran level 60+. He is the second character I made on Homecoming last year and is able to do all content without problems. I used to farm with him also before I made slightly more efficient farmers (spines/bio, ss/fire, rad/fire). As a farmer, rad/fire is better, but my rad/rad brute was just fine, though I went for s/l farms rather than fire farms. In any case, my only complaint to my build is that I can never figure out how to squeeze Taunt in, which I wanted. Both primary and secondary have a lot of must have abilities. FYI, I have 35 toons all twinked out so I know some, but not all about this game. I also have a crab spider soldier which is fun for doing group content because he has some good AoE attacks, but solo is weaker than the brute by a fair margin. His pets are interesting but I am not a fan of pet classes and find them temperamental. 

 

TLDR --> Yes, rad/rad brute is perfectly fine. Probably better choice than Arachnos Soldier for an all-around explore all content character IMO.