How is Personal Force Field supposed to be used?

[VashNKnives]

I agree with other posters that reactively using PFF is fine if you like to keep an eye on your defense anyway via monitored combat attributes.  If up against debuffing enemies it gives you time to outlast some debuffs/counter with inspirations/pop another power/leave the fight.  I think it is balanced nicely with hibernate, which heals but roots you and doesn't take a defense I/O.

 

However, I believe I have had it detoggled maybe due to endurance sapping, and like others have said, cascade failure is still a thing. Don't wait until you are deep in negative defense numbers to use it.

Edited August 1, 2021 by VashNKnives

[Snarky]

Also, no "O Crap" power is guaranteed in this wild game.  I just took a level 14 and badged every zone possible for it to get into.  The hardest parts were Shadow Shard and The Abandoned Sewer Network.  This is due to the floating eyeballs and Rikti drones.  

 

I had a build set up with Flight, Stealth, Super Speed, Teleport, and Phase Shift.  Phase Shift I think of as Personal Force Fields better looking cousin.  Still got killed when I had that up. Should not have happened since i was "out of phase" with enemies.  versus Rikti.   (You can buy a temp power Phase Shift "Ethereal Shift" from the P2W vendor as well...)

 

When the RNG hates you then your ticket is pretty much punched.  But I personally like the odds of getting out of hairball situations with PFF and Phase Shift.  Not that I use it as much as I could.  If I know I can Rez easy or there is a quick way back into the fight I will sometimes blast away with 3% health trying to burn down more mobs.  

 

If however the goal is not to kill or it is horribly difficult to get back to the fight when I die then I love options like PFF and Phase Shift to *usually let me break the rules and survive otherwise really crappy tactical situations.

Edited August 1, 2021 by Snarky

[oedipus_tex]

While I agree that PFF can be a "panic button" on a non-IOed build or if you get it from an APP in a non-Force Field set, in effect its only as good as soft capping and giving yourself 40% resistance. If you've ever been soft capped with 40% Resistance you're probably aware that tough enemies can easily kill you through that.

 

For some clarity, as a Force Field player, you get a hefty Defense bonus from Dispersion Bubble that makes it possible with relatively low effort to soft cap to most positions that matter and then can run around in what is essentially PFF al the time.

 

 

Here's a Force Field Defender's base Defense given minimal effort with Dispersion Bubble, Tough, and Weave:

 

 

 

 

With this slotting you can be effectively capped to Slash, Lethal, Energy, Negative, Melee, and Ranged and still have 43 slots still left to go.

 

 

 

A lot of Force Fielders will elect to go with Soul Mastery, in order to pick up Power Boost. For 15 seconds after clicking Power Boost their Defense looks like this:

 

 

 

PFF isn't worthless on a Force Field character. The Defense stacks with the Defense above so it can help you survive Defense Debuff, and it can also cover you with some added exotic resistance. However while you are inside it your pets/teammates won't get Dispersion Bubble or (in this build) Maneuvers. Its incredibly easy and cheap to IO yourself to the point where you're basically PFF'ed all the time without using actual PFF, and that's why it's a situational power.

Edited August 1, 2021 by oedipus_tex

[Gentoo]

It is a handy power for taking alphas for a team, especially at low level (you get it at level 1). You jump in before anyone else, can gather them into a clump if desired, and then your team mates can open fire without taking the initial enemy attacks. You can't hold aggro hardly at all (once they get attacked, enemies will switch from you to who attacked them), but the mere going in first allows other players to do so much. Get off nukes safely, get off PBAOE controls easy, etc.

 

Later on there are better tools for this sort of thing (Controllers have pets now; you can IO yourself to high defence anyway, tanks can get in there and hold the agro, etc), but in the early game this is a really really useful power.

Edited August 30, 2023 by Gentoo

[Spaghetti Betty]

[Troo]

[WumpusRat]

I have a couple of characters with PFF, and what I generally use it for is one of two things:

 

1) A panic-button for when I need to get the heck out of a situation.

2) An alpha-strike soaker. Turn on PFF, jump into a pack of mobs, let them dump all their big attacks, controls, and other things, then drop PFF and fire off my own.

 

<edit> Wow, necro thread. Neat.

Edited September 3, 2023 by WumpusRat

[Snarky]

After years of research ( thanks for allowing the necessary time ) i can say when to use personal force field: when you realize ( before death ) the enemies dps will overtake your dps and they will kill you before you kill them.  1) activate PFF 2) reposition or get inspiration from email, do something to change the situation.