Dark/Dark pool powers?

[Genericface]

So I've decided Dark/Dark for my first controller. It will be played mostly solo and I'm too new to have the money for IO sets yet so I can't count on them to fill gaps until I'm better equipped. Consider this a leveling build, I'll respec into an end game build once I'm there. There are quite a few guides about which powers do what so I feel confident in my ability to build that part of it.

 

I'm wondering what power pools to be looking at, and why. I'm particularly curious if using the presence pool to stack fear is viable and worthwhile, suggestions for 'one slot wonder' powers since I will need a lot of enhancements for the controls themselves, and if any certain travel power (or associated pool) pick is somehow better. Common examples being air superiority, hasten, acrobatics.

 

Thanks in advance for your input.

[praxidicae]

As a support/control AT Hasten is always useful a lot of your primary powers have long recharges, and with /dark a number of your secondaries likewise. It would probably be worthiwhile 2/3 slotting it for recharge.

 

Air superiority probably isn't worthwhile, most of the pool power attacks have largely been rendered obsolete by the veteran power attacks you pick up from the P2W vendor.

 

Acrobatics isn't a power I've ever taken but IIRC the +Res (KB/Hold) values aren't exactly massive (and +Mez Resist can be picked up fairly easily through IO set bonuses).

 

For Travel they're all pretty good, though if you are interested in either Teleport or Flight I'd suggest looking at Sorcery's Mystic Flight (buy one get the other free), though if you are looking to invest more heavily in either pool (to pick up Hover or TP Friend for example) you'll need to weigh up the need to use another of your 4 pool choices.

As you have Shadow Fall, Superspeed might be a good choice (either as a primary travel power, or as an extra one picked up for the additional bonus), it includes a minor +Stealth component that stacks with Shadow Fall's to give improved stealth (though it means you need to be careful when leading a team around as you can easily move too fast for them to keep up (Bear in mind also that SS doesn't help with vertical movement, so Combat Jumping or Superjump might be a worthwhile addition).

 

Leadership is always useful and will buff both yourself and any team you join, though of the powers there only Vengeance and Assault are really useful with a single slot (and even then Assault would really want 2 End Redux).

 

For Presence, the fears should stack (though I don't know about the viability of building for it specifically as Fear is very much a 'soft' control - it  doesn't detoggle shields or powers, and although the targets do cower in fear each time they are attacked they can either make a counter attack or run away), bear in mind that in order to get Invoke Panic (which I presume is what you are working towards) you would need two other powers from the set (intimidate and either pacify or provoke).

 

[GuiltTrip]

I highly recommend Hasten, a travel power of your choice (but Super Speed + Shadowfall is fantastic for stealthing some missions) and Assault and Tactics.

 

You can have 4 pets out at a time with Dark/Dark so the leadership pool is not wasted (but you do have it if you do end up teaming).  Maneuvers is pointless solo as nothing will attack you once you level up.  If you teamed more often and take Super Speed, I would also recommend Recall Friend so you can teleport the team after you sneak around the map.

 

 

[Balanced]

Late to respond, but:

 

My experience with Fearsome Stare has been with the Defender version, but even there, without the crit chance, the Presence pool was not remotely worthwhile. A reasonably slotted Fearsome Stare can keep the rabble mostly neutralized on its own, so you'd be spending at least two power picks and a pool choice to stack a soft control on bosses. Remember that Terrorized mobs can and will attack when they take damage, so fear powers are most effective as a divide-and-conquer tactic--you can use them to shut down a crowd of minions and lieutenants, then deal with the boss using your hard controls.

 

GuiltTrip makes a good point about Super Speed; combined with Shadow Fall, it lets you run around maps with near-impunity (though watch out for snipers--they can see through double stealth). Since Hasten is another very good pick, you'll probably already be taking the pool. If you prefer a different travel power, you could look for a stealth IO to slot in Sprint to get the same effect (or you could take Super Speed and respec out of it later, when you do get the stealth IO). Recall Friend is also a solid choice if you play sneaky, as well as for general team utility.

[Erydanus]

Take Sorcery.

 

Arcane Bolt is a good filler attack, I'm using it all the time on my Dark/Dark controller. To achieve knockback protection I purchased a Blessing of the Zephyr: Knockback protection with merits and put it in Mystic Flight. I intend to eventually get Rune of Protection to be a click mez protection but carrying some break frees has been adequate so far closing in on 30. The knockback protection is your priority as so many foes have knockdown powers that can interrupt you - shotguns seem to all have it!

 

Presence pool is not needed for fear stacking. Fearsome Stare is a S-Rank as a fear/accuracy debuff power and you'll also have fear coming off the shades summoned by Haunt. (They taunt and fear...!)

 

As already noted Leadership is your friend, especially once you have multiple pets. For controllers the preference is usually Assault and Tactics; since you have shadow fall (3.75% defense to all, base) and thus bring some defense to the table already you might be tempted to also grab maneuvers (for another 2.6% defense, base). I wouldn't though, unless you really want to go heavy on support. You get Fade which is a nice defense buff which drops a whopping 9.4% defense to all , base.  As a controller I think you should focus first on the control aspect; since you get great defenses in your secondary already that will apply to you and your pets I would certainly use them and slot them but I would hold off going further until you know you have room for it.

 

If Sorcery just doesn't work out I will say that taking Combat Jumping and Acrobatics is a very good alternative. CJ gives you immobilize protection and you can slot a karma knockback protection into it as low as level 7. KB protection IOs have 4 points of protection and knockdown is just knockback rated less than 1 so all knockdown will be cancelled. Acrobatics used to be level 20 minimum, and it has knockback protection too and also 2 points of hold magnitude resistance.  It's now level 14 so you could in theory take combat jumping, super jump, and then it at 14 but wow that would squeeze out a lot of your other options. Hold protection to me is something you want when you start dealing with large numbers of mobs who can zap you that way like Tsoo Sorcerers and certain Circle of Thorns mages. You start really encountering them in the teens but not in such great numbers a few break frees won't cut it. And if you do get held you won't get killed real fast from it at those levels. So I like to have that kind of option more up around the 30s.

 

Hope you have fun with this set. Look forward to Possess ... it's the absolute best.