Is Evasive Maneuvers worth it?

[Sweetriver1983]

So my understanding (which is very minimal) is that you have to have Evasive Maneuvers toggled on, as well as, Flight or Hover to get the benefit. I already take Maneuvers from Leadership, and on my Dark/Sonic defender I also have Tough/Weave. Is having another toggle in Evasive Maneuvers that good, or did we kind of get screwed a little in the last patch (granted free Afterburner is great, but I wonder if Evasive Maneuvers could be respecced out for something better)?

 

Please help me understand exactly what this power does and what everyone's thoughts are on how to best use or lose it.

[ZorkNemesis]

Evasive Maneuvers is basically the flight control benefit Afterburner used to have, but without the "Only Affect Self" status.  It also provides some immobilize and knockback resistance (you don't go as far if you get knocked, less so than being in flight already offers) and you're also not as likely to be grounded by -Fly effects.  The defense benefit is negligible, and really only applies out of combat, though it is a fairly strong bonus so it helps dodge attacks if you're just passing through hostile areas.

 

Ultimately I feel it's up to you if you want to keep it or not.  My reasoning for keeping it is simply because it still accepts Defense sets and can be used to mule a Luck of the Gambler if your normal powers lack space for one.  It also takes universal travel, so if you don't already have it it can fit the Winter's Gift Slow Resist, or the Blessing of the Zephyr set for some more positional defense.

[Ankhammon]

the question becomes can it be exploited. I think the answer will be a solid maybe.

 

for those who have aoe aura's like Ice trollers or nat/ or rad/ defender primaries can use the defense boost to survive in melee until the holds/confuses/whathaveyou kick in and slow down the incoming damage. 

 

I actually think it will be a good pickup for my Nat/DP fender. tp in with those up and my heals going. wait a sec or two and unload my bullets once things start to become held. Did some minor testing of it and it should work. 

[Ynaught]

I was told that the +Def goes away entirely if you do anything that doesn't strictly affect self. Attacking, buffing allies, clicking glowies, commanding pets, etc. all turn the defense off. So basically any action that affects anyone else would mean that EM is doing nothing for you, defense wise. Still get the -Fly res, +Flight Speed and -KB so not entirely useless but...

[Rathulfr]

36 minutes ago, Ynaught said:

I was told that the +Def goes away entirely if you do anything that doesn't strictly affect self.

 

For squishies like me, Yes, it is worth it, if only for the additional control and defense while traveling and for muling IOs.  I'm not sure that the +Def goes away entirely: I think half of it suppressed, not all of it.  But I could be wrong.  I'll test that later, unless someone else knows for certain.

 

edit: found the details at https://forums.homecomingservers.com/topic/27807-travel-power-updates-in-issue-27-page-2/?tab=comments#comment-347727

 

 

•  Evasive Maneuvers
  • Replaces the old version of Afterburner as Flight's tier 5 power
    • If you previously had Afterburner, you now have Evasive Maneuvers
    • Note that if you previously had Fly, the speed bonus previously given by Afterburner is built into Fly for free, and you'll get the new version of Afterburner as a free popup tray power
  • Evasive Maneuvers is a defensive toggle with moderate endurance cost (0.26/s), aimed at providing you with excellent airborne combat mobility
  • Provides the following effects whilst another Flight pool power (Fly, Hover or Group Fly) is also active:
    • -Fly and immobilize protection
    • Knockback resistance
    • Significant air control
    • Some unsuppressed flight speed (allowing you to fly much faster during combat)
  • Also provides the same level of defense as old Afterburner while out of combat, but this is removed while in combat
    • This bonus is suppressed for 10s when entering combat (the same as Stealth's out-of-combat defence)
    • The defense bonuses will suppress if the user attacks, heals or buffs an ally, commands a pet, or interacts with a mission objective

Edited June 7, 2021 by Rathulfr

[kikyoku]

I tend to be high mobility in combat so the added speed /control is totally worth it. It lets you in and out of combat much faster, and you can stay with the head of your group and go through mobs to assist someone who went ahead pretty effectively.

 

And yes, lotg mule is good. Also more or less makes older mids builds continue to function.