Where do people usually slot Ascendency?

[ZorkNemesis]

Just wondering as I ponder the bevy of Dominators I keep making, rolled a Fire/Dark and Elec/Earth in the last two weeks while also revisiting my Dark/Martial.  Where do people normally slot the Ascendency of the Dominator set?  I can't figure out if it's better to use it in a high-use power like the ST hold or if it's better going in an "opening" AoE control like a fear or sleep.  I know the set is worth having for the purple tier set bonuses (especially if the power lacks a purple set, like fears), but the proc of the stacking damage buff is kind of making me wonder if my choices are optimal or not.

 

As it stands my Dark/Martial has it in Fearsome Stare and my Elec/Earth has it in Static Field, but my Fire/Dark has it in Char (she uses Dominating Grasp in Flashfire for the extra stun magnitude benefit of the Fire Orb).

[Chelsea Rorec]

In my Elec/Elec i also have it in Static field.

So for me in general it is what ever power i am six slotting.

Generally i don't 6 slot the single target hold so it often goes in another power.

More often that not it goes in a 6 slot power that has not got a set that gives +def.

[oedipus_tex]

You ideally want Ascendancy in a power where you can reliably trigger the +Damage proc, and where the power doesn't also need +damage, and where better slotting isn't already available.

 

In general for me this is where I'd put it:

• Dark: Heart of Darkness
• Earth: Stalagmites
• Electric: Static Field, assuming you plan to spam it 
• Gravity: This one is hard. There's no easy answer because in Wormhole I want KB to KD. Anyway this is part of why I don't favor Grav Doms, access to controls is too limited.
• Ice: Again no easy answer. Best choice is probably Flash Freeze. 
• Mind: Probably Mass Hypnosis
• Plant: No easy answer. Spore Burst perhaps. This is the one area where Plant isn't a leader.

[FM5]

I tend to put it in the mass AOE hold since that usually needs lots of slots to be worthwhile due to accuracy, recharge, and duration.   I consider the +damage process irrelevant for such slotting and only care about the recharge and set bonuses.

 

Lots of people skip the mass AOE hold, so they'll have to think of something else.

[KingofMonkeys]

My plant/dark's build curiously found a way to skip the Dom ATOs entirely, too many dmg procs needed elsewhere, other purple sets that could easily fill the gap when you take Ice Armor and are going for S/L def anyway. I'd definitely take it on a build that needs ranged defense though.

Edited February 15, 2021 by KingofMonkeys

[Mezmera]

I typically like putting mine 6 slotted into my ST hold since I use that control most so I constantly run 1-2 stacks of the damage boost.  My AoE hold I like to slot the purple set with the proc along with another proc for some pretty nice damage.  

[nihilii]

I slot the proc, along with 5 damage procs, in the single target hold. You get double stacks fairly easily with that setup, which is equivalent to an extra level 50 IO of damage beyond the enhancement diversification limits, or like a free tier4 Musculature Alpha slot.

 

I put the remaining 5 pieces in an AoE mez.

[FM5]

This thread got me thinking about this more again. It's hard to give up +5% ranged defense for one slot especially on a ranged character, and extra recharge is always welcome on a long power like mass AOE hold, but now this thread has me thinking about respecing.  haha.

 

I'll use my elec/dark as an example.When I tested the +dam Ascendency process on the test server, it was nice, but it only adds to base damage and acts like a weak build-up process.   That doesn't add much damage to my control attack powers such as ST hold which is one of my two main spam attack powers.  Though putting it in there means the Asendency is in effect a lot, and double stacks a decent amount of time. 

 

Oh, but wait, that Ascendency process has +recharge that hurts the +dam processes in my ST Hold.  So it would hurt that power to help other powers.  With the 20% or so recharge from that Ascendency in my ST hold, I lose 24 points of damage in my ST Hold, and that's if the Ascnedency buildup is in effect. It's even worse when it's not in effect.  The ST Hold or similar would be a good spot for it for someone who doesn't use that attack with lots of processes.

 

During testing, I was considering how slow my secondary attack powers are, and that Ascendency buildup wouldn't help them much due to that.  But, with lots of recharge, the attacks are fairly spammable.   The ascendency buildup without doublestack adds +50 damage to my snipe attack.  Pretty nice.   My AOE cone attack gets +15 damage, which isn't much if it were a single target attack, but it's an AOE cone, (though only a narrow 20-degrees), and I also like to spam it because it looks and sounds pretty cool.

 

  So maybe I won't respec after all since whatever spammable power I put the process in hurts that power's damage due to the recharge   Someone said they put it in Static Field, and I only have that 5-slotted and tend to use it a lot because why not, so I'll look more into that. If memory serves, the Ascendency buildup does last a pretty long time.  13 seconds?  Though something like Static Field is too slow to doublestack it.

 

All of that is about the Ascendency build-up process.  The Ascendency set bonuses themselves are good and are the main reason I fit the set in somewhere.

[BZRKR]

I have it 6-slotted in the single-target hold on both of my Dominators. I am only concerned with the set bonuses and the fact that I can slot it at level 7. However, I almost always play on a team so that factors into my build plans.

[Harakh]

16 hours ago, Mezmera said:

I typically like putting mine 6 slotted into my ST hold since I use that control most so I constantly run 1-2 stacks of the damage boost.  My AoE hold I like to slot the purple set with the proc along with another proc for some pretty nice damage.  

I second this. Last weekend I played 3 respecs on my mind/nrg dom. The last spec I slotted 6 - ascendance in the single target hold. It procs real often. Seeing as it's the fastest casting single target hold, other power specs will proc a tiny bit better. I can concur I'm often running 1-2 stacks, and really not uncommon to stack 3. 

[Mezmera]

12 minutes ago, Harakh said:

I second this. Last weekend I played 3 respecs on my mind/nrg dom. The last spec I slotted 6 - ascendance in the single target hold. It procs real often. Seeing as it's the fastest casting single target hold, other power specs will proc a tiny bit better. I can concur I'm often running 1-2 stacks, and really not uncommon to stack 3. 

This also lets you use the two confuse sets into your confuses.  Malaise and Coercive have some great bonuses.  I like to put Malaise into the aoe confuse since I'm not intending to be sneaky and the added proc damage is nice then Coercive suits the sneakyness so in that goes into the regular confuse.  

[Harakh]

9 minutes ago, Mezmera said:

This also lets you use the two confuse sets into your confuses.  Malaise and Coercive have some great bonuses.  I like to put Malaise into the aoe confuse since I'm not intending to be sneaky and the added proc damage is nice then Coercive suits the sneakyness so in that goes into the regular confuse.  

True, I had this at one time. Felt like I was robbing myself of mass confuses no aggro feature. Switched mass confuse to 5 mal + contagious proc. And tuned down the single target confuse to just 2 slots. Thought I'd be old schooling confuse more often but find I'm not. Gave me slots for an extra attack in my  case without losing any purple bonuses (recharge) as I kept the source max at 5. 

[VV]

Ugh, I do not use the Dominator ATO sets. That is one of the real problems with Doms is that their ATO sets are such garbage. The last thing a Dominator needs much of is extra mezz duration.

 

I slot most all attacks with damage sets, except the really low base damage ones. Low damage powers I mostly don't slot. One or two slots for Acc/Rech is pretty much all they get. They might get some procs, if the math works out.

 

The one common exception to this rule is the AOE hold, which generally gets a 5-slot of Unbreakable Constraint. That is mostly for the set bonuses. But, also because I save it for my "oh shxt" power. I only use it when things go south and we need a breather. So, it really needs to hit and hold for a while.

 

I do slot the procs, usually. The energy font is actually a pretty good little helper and still smarter than a MM pet. The +damage is not much, but doesn't hurt if you can slide it in.

[Mezmera]

1 hour ago, Harakh said:

True, I had this at one time. Felt like I was robbing myself of mass confuses no aggro feature. Switched mass confuse to 5 mal + contagious proc. And tuned down the single target confuse to just 2 slots. Thought I'd be old schooling confuse more often but find I'm not. Gave me slots for an extra attack in my  case without losing any purple bonuses (recharge) as I kept the source max at 5. 

You're robbing yourself of some fabulous bonuses in the confuse sets.  Every little increment adds up, I hardly use the ST confuse but the aoe one gets tons of use.  Who cares if the confuse reapplies itself?  Considering that you should have Domination and maybe Powerbuild Up running that mob should be well controlled longer than it should take to eliminate that group.  

[Mezmera]

21 minutes ago, VV said:

Ugh, I do not use the Dominator ATO sets. That is one of the real problems with Doms is that their ATO sets are such garbage. The last thing a Dominator needs much of is extra mezz duration.

 

I slot most all attacks with damage sets, except the really low base damage ones. Low damage powers I mostly don't slot. One or two slots for Acc/Rech is pretty much all they get. They might get some procs, if the math works out.

 

The one common exception to this rule is the AOE hold, which generally gets a 5-slot of Unbreakable Constraint. That is mostly for the set bonuses. But, also because I save it for my "oh shxt" power. I only use it when things go south and we need a breather. So, it really needs to hit and hold for a while.

 

I do slot the procs, usually. The energy font is actually a pretty good little helper and still smarter than a MM pet. The +damage is not much, but doesn't hurt if you can slide it in.

Ascendancy of the Dominator is a very good set.  The Fiery Orb one not so much, it could get some rework to be allowed into your attacking powers.  I do have that one 3 slotted though for the hp buff plus the guy does aggro some targets even though it's a pretty underwhelming quasi pet.  

[Machariel]

On Plant, I 6 slot it into the AoE immob.  If you want to max out on the damage bonus, the AoE immob recharges fast enough that you can fire it off 3 times quickly and with so many targets available at the start of the fight the proc goes off very reliably with each cast.  There's also nothing else I'd rather really slot into the AoE immob since I'm not slotting it for damage.  Mostly I'm just after the set bonuses and the AOE immob is the best place for me to put it.

 

I guess if I were to slot Roots for damage I'd probably put the +damage proc in the ST hold with a bunch of damage procs and the other 5pcs in the AoE hold.  Currently I have 4pc basilisk's gaze in both of those powers instead.

[Harakh]

4 hours ago, Mezmera said:

You're robbing yourself of some fabulous bonuses in the confuse sets.  Every little increment adds up, I hardly use the ST confuse but the aoe one gets tons of use.  Who cares if the confuse reapplies itself?  Considering that you should have Domination and maybe Powerbuild Up running that mob should be well controlled longer than it should take to eliminate that group.  

The reasoning for contagious proc isn't reapplied fear but to spread fear to missed mobs. The damage proc is very little in the scheme of aoe dmg. The plus side to a damage proc in mc would be the player application of damage to receive xp if you're not going to cast any other damage skills. I enjoy soloing 4/7 or 8 and the aggro free cast from it as well as mass hypnosis really pulls through on spread mobs. Having terrify procd covers anything mass confuse would attempt to bring via dmg proc. If playing a controller I'd definitely damage proc the skill. Doms generally have that covered tho. 

Edited February 16, 2021 by Harakh

[Mezmera]

26 minutes ago, Harakh said:

The reasoning for contagious proc isn't reapplied fear but to spread fear to missed mobs. The damage proc is very little in the scheme of aoe dmg. The plus side to a damage proc in mc would be the player application of damage to receive xp if you're not going to cast any other damage skills. I enjoy soloing 4/7 or 8 and the aggro free cast from it as well as mass hypnosis really pulls through on spread mobs. Having terrify procd covers anything mass confuse would attempt to bring via dmg proc. If playing a controller I'd definitely damage proc the skill. Doms generally have that covered tho. 

Okay but if you use the benefits afforded you in these sets with the defense you can attain it won't matter if you happen to miss some of the group and need a gimmick proc to save you or a waste of a power pick in mass hypnosis.   I'd think 56+ positional and elemental defenses would push you faster through your soloing but what do I know, to each their own.  

[oedipus_tex]

On Mind Control I like it in Mass Hypnosis because you can proc the damage proc before the enemy knows you're there. It won't alert them.

 

I can see the argument for putting it in some of the single target immobiizes. Basilisk's Gaze is usually the better slotting there IMO but with Plant or Gravity your hand may be forced. Thing is I don't actually cast the single target Hold that much.  

 

I'll usually slot it in an AoE Hold as a last resort. The Superior Ascendancy set is better than the Purple Hold set. But that means only getting the damage proc every 60 seconds at most, and with the AoE Holds there are better ways to time it.

 

Really wish these sets went in Assault powers and not controls. Other than Controllers most other Archetypes don't struggle to slot their ATOs like this.

[PainX]

aoe immobilize on my plant/savage either that or the aoe hold far as i can tell sometimes if i just go S&L i entirely skip the set it aint exactly very good due to the limited slotting options imo

[DreadShinobi]

On 2/14/2021 at 11:14 AM, oedipus_tex said:

 

• Plant: No easy answer. Spore Burst perhaps. This is the one area where Plant isn't a leader.

Seeds of Confusion is a clear winner. +dmg with your opener works just like anything else you're putting it in, and it is on a base 60 recharge vs 90.

 

I slot SoC with both ATO procs (+rchg), cacophany dmg proc, malaise dmg proc, malaise confuse/range, and a boosted range IO

[mbre2006]

Man for the dom AT sets I always always always frakenslot those. 32% boost to most your abilities? I'll take that. Although the downside to that is if you're a permadom none of that matters anyway lol. 

 

As for the proc as most ppl said i put it in the aoe immob.

Edited February 16, 2021 by mbre2006

[oedipus_tex]

3 hours ago, DreadShinobi said:

Seeds of Confusion is a clear winner. +dmg with your opener works just like anything else you're putting it in, and it is on a base 60 recharge vs 90.

 

I slot SoC with both ATO procs (+rchg), cacophany dmg proc, malaise dmg proc, malaise confuse/range, and a boosted range IO

 

Seeds would be the clear winner for me if Coercive Persuasion weren't such a fantastic set. Between Coercive and Ascendancy you get +10 Ranged defense and +20 Recharge which is pretty much the best of the best. Proccing it out isn't necessarily a bad choice, but it's something I'd be more likely to do with a Controller. If you can stay a permadom without it I might go for it though.

[DreadShinobi]

57 minutes ago, oedipus_tex said:

 

Seeds would be the clear winner for me if Coercive Persuasion weren't such a fantastic set. Between Coercive and Ascendancy you get +10 Ranged defense and +20 Recharge which is pretty much the best of the best. Proccing it out isn't necessarily a bad choice, but it's something I'd be more likely to do with a Controller. If you can stay a permadom without it I might go for it though.

That slotting I use only works for me on plant dom not controller because controllers get more value out of the coercive persuasion proc, doms dont need it at all. Coercive persuasion also offers zero range enhancement. The difference between a 50 ft SoC and 75 ft is pretty large. With control+assault set slotting opportunities I never have a hard time getting all 5 10% recharge bonuses as a dom, and my doms build s/l def with ice mastery for sleet. The ranged def from CP goes farther with a resist shield on a controller.

Edited February 16, 2021 by DreadShinobi

[Harakh]

18 hours ago, Mezmera said:

Okay but if you use the benefits afforded you in these sets with the defense you can attain it won't matter if you happen to miss some of the group and need a gimmick proc to save you or a waste of a power pick in mass hypnosis.   I'd think 56+ positional and elemental defenses would push you faster through your soloing but what do I know, to each their own.  

??? What bonuses are you referring to? I'm skipping 1 bonus being the 6th slot bonus in our above example, and thats with a non purple set because my build is maxed on purples bonuses.

 

Where are you getting your defence numbers? I'd love to see the build cause those numbers and I assume perma dom would be a pretty gimped build imo, if you can actually achieve them.

 

 

Mass hypnosis is by far not a waste of a power pick for MY play style.

 

"...to each their own"

 

...

 

I regret ever using this statement toward another cause it reads like such bs. The convo was healthy enough without useless sentiment.

Edited February 16, 2021 by Harakh