EM/Fire build.

[Sovera]

My attempt at a full on damage character. The results are pretty nice though without -res involved it does not look so at first glance.

 

2:49

2:32

2:30

2:15 with Assault clicked.

 

When we see times of 1 minute (pre nerf TW) and 1:30-ish and less for Scrappers a 2:30 does not stand out in particular, but without -res it achieves the time through brute force.

 

Spoiler

I'm not putting down people who use -res procs, but keep in mind if enemies don't live long enough like AVs (or pylons) then its value is almost zero. A pylon also exaggerates how good the -res effect is because it is considered a +0 enemy. This is not something that needs to be taken at face value though and can be tested versus +3 enemies or even clearing a map with and without the -res procs slotted in.

 

The pylon test also does not reflect the ease with which this build can approach a spawn and terminate it with a Build-Up + Burn + Whirlwind Hands and then mop up with Total Focus and Energy Transfer. Even while leveling I was killing +1 bosses with Total Focus + Energy Transfer + Burn without red inspirations or using BU.

 

While this is nothing particularly extraordinary I just mention it to say that the AoE keeps up with the single target damage which is something EM lacks.

 

 

The build makes use of a Brute's higher cap and has 85% resistance to S/L and 40% to S/L as well. Barrier finishes capping both. Unlike the Tanker the E/N remains a weakness with a mere 58% (62% with Barrier) but there is nothing new there. Keep trucking and once it gets sour use Barrier to survive. Otherwise just kill them first which this build is very well equipped to do.

 

The unsung hero is the ability to stack stuns. Even AVs stagger drunkenly and it was the very rare PP who managed to pop their T9 when TF + ET landed on their face and kept them stunned. While this is not on the level of an Ice Patch it does have value.

 

 

 

The build has a slow start until ET. It picks up with Burn that gives it the AoE edge it needed while giving the single target an extra oomph but it's definitely ET that gels things together.

 

Some small tips:

 

•  Don't feel forced to waste Energy Transfer on something that would die to Bone Smasher or Energy Punch.
• Total Focus is pretty slow so pretty much find a target at full health for it. Anything not at full health will probably die to Energy Punch + Bone Smasher. Once getting a feel for this it can be played with and it greatly minimizes hitting corpses after that long wind-up.
•  I found it a good approach to TF one mob, ET a different one, then Burn would kill both. If there is a boss do focus on it though.
• Jumping into a spawn and using TF + ET gives time for the mobs to wake up from their stupor and approach. Now's the time to hit BU + Burn + WH.
• What looked like the best use of BU would be BU , TF (2.8 seconds), ET (1.2 seconds). That makes 4 seconds. Using Burn straight away falls within Gaussian's proc 5 second buff time (even if the buff falls before the animation has ended it will still count). The ST rotation can be easily made into: TF, ET, Burn, Energy Punch, Bone Smasher, Energy Punch. The last energy punch will happen with TF already almost up but it lines Burn to come after ET.
• Alternate BU and Fiery Embrace on a fast team. BU for one spawn, FE for the next, BU is back for the third. Fourth spawn will have neither. Start over at the 5th. For solo just abuse FE when ever since it is common for BU to be back for the next group.
• Burn followed by Whirlwind Hands lines up both AoEs to come back up at the same time. It avoids playing the piano with the AoEs when we can rest assured both can always be used together.

 

Spoiler

This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.0.6.0
https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Level 50 Magic Brute
Primary Power Set: Energy Melee
Secondary Power Set: Fiery Aura
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Energy Punch -- SprBlsCol-Rchg/HoldProc(A), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx(3), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(3), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(5), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(5), TchofDth-Dam%(7)
Level 1: Fire Shield -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(7), TtnCtn-ResDam(9), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(9), StdPrt-ResKB(13), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(29)
Level 2: Bone Smasher -- KntCmb-Acc/Dmg(A), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx(13), KntCmb-Dmg/Rchg(15), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(23), TchofDth-Dam%(23), GldStr-%Dam(25)
Level 4: Blazing Aura -- SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg(A), SprUnrFur-Dmg/Rchg(11), SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(11), SprUnrFur-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(29), SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprUnrFur-Rchg/+Regen/+End(33)
Level 6: Hover -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(27)
Level 8: Whirling Hands -- SprAvl-Rchg/KDProc(A), SprAvl-Dmg/EndRdx(42), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(43), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
Level 10: Healing Flames -- Prv-Heal(A), Prv-Heal/EndRdx(17), Prv-EndRdx/Rchg(19), Prv-Heal/Rchg(19), Prv-Heal/Rchg/EndRdx(21), Prv-Absorb%(21)
Level 12: Build Up -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), RechRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(39)
Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31)
Level 16: Plasma Shield -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(31), TtnCtn-ResDam(31), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(33)
Level 18: Total Focus -- Hct-Dam%(A), Hct-Dmg/Rchg(27), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39), Hct-Acc/Rchg(47), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(48), TchofDth-Dam%(48)
Level 20: Consume -- SynSck-EndMod(A), SynSck-Dam/Rech(36), SynSck-EndMod/Rech(36), SynSck-Dam/Rech/Acc(36), SynSck-Dam/Acc/End(37), SynSck-EndMod/+RunSpeed(37)
Level 22: Fly -- WntGif-ResSlow(A)
Level 24: Evasive Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A)
Level 26: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A)
Level 28: Burn -- SprBrtFur-Rech/Fury%(A), SprBrtFur-Dmg/Rchg(40), SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Obl-%Dam(40), Arm-Dam%(42), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42)
Level 30: Boxing -- Empty(A)
Level 32: Energy Transfer -- SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg(34), SprBrtFur-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), TchofDth-Dam%(43), GldStr-%Dam(39), Mk'Bit-Dam%(43)
Level 35: Focused Accuracy -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 38: Fiery Embrace -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 41: Tough -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(46), TtnCtn-ResDam(46), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 44: Physical Perfection -- PrfShf-End%(A)
Level 47: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Rct-Def(50), Rct-ResDam%(50), Rct-Def/EndRdx(48)
Level 49: Temperature Protection -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A)
Level 1: Fury
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A), Clr-RunSpd(37)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(15), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(25)
Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(17)
Level 1: Energy Focus
Level 1: Prestige Power Dash -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Slide -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Quick -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Rush -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Surge -- Empty(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run
Level 50: Born In Battle
Level 50: Invader
Level 50: Marshal
Level 50: High Pain Threshold
Level 22: Afterburner
Level 50: Musculature Core Paragon
------------

 

 

 

 

If there is need I can whip a leveling build for this.

 

[Bill Z Bubba]

41 minutes ago, Sovera said:

Don't feel forced to waste Energy Transfer on something that would die to Bone Smasher or Energy Punch.

 

I wish my brain would grok this but the fingers are in control. Can't yell you how many times I've used ET on a minion with 1% health left just because it was the next attack in my chain.

[Carnifax]

1 hour ago, Bill Z Bubba said:

 

I wish my brain would grok this but the fingers are in control. Can't yell you how many times I've used ET on a minion with 1% health left just because it was the next attack in my chain.

At least they're arriving at the Medi-teleport facility in chunks. 

[Outrider_01]

I ha e considered a /Fire scrapper, without Burn.  Basically just high recharge, Firery Embrace, and using the proc affect along with procs + scrapper ATO for a massive spike damage with critical.  EM might work, except for those limitations on crits with TF or ET, forget which one.

[Sovera]

3 hours ago, Outrider_01 said:

I ha e considered a /Fire scrapper, without Burn.  Basically just high recharge, Firery Embrace, and using the proc affect along with procs + scrapper ATO for a massive spike damage with critical.  EM might work, except for those limitations on crits with TF or ET, forget which one.

 

Might as well take Burn tbh. It is still a chunky attack that double dips into procs and if you're following a Tank they are providing the agro aura so mobs don't run off. And with Scrappers and Fire Armor being squishy dropping Burn that makes mobs run away is a form of CC.

 

Not being an -actual- CC but rather a coded thing even the romans with their uber CC resistance shouldl be fleeing. Great to get a breather and drop some trucks of pain via TF and ET. Then they return and Burn's up again 😄

Edited October 13, 2021 by Sovera

[Outrider_01]

5 hours ago, Sovera said:

Burn that makes mobs run away is a form of CC.

Thats kind of the reason, they run.  Burn was kind of bugged early last year, had one boss run half way across the Atlas city map and lost aggro.  Idea is more just like a rapid damage dealer, actually have a build for Savage/Fire scrapper....idea is to follow a tank and hit them like an A-10 Warthog Bzzrrrrrtt!!!

[Sovera]

Quick update. I've been climbing the vet levels and incarnating. The character behaves very very well. It's become a favorite for max level play though lower than Yin and I'll still take the Fire/Ice melee since nothing beats low level Burn + Frost at Synapse and lower.

 

The squish of Fire Armor is not altogether too different than on a Tanker in that throwing Barrier when things are going badly works the same between both ATs with the bonus that the greater damage of the Brute plays well in the Brunker spirit of killing before being killed. I've been doing ITF for vet levels and it's silly how a build that makes big booms in ST also razes a spawn by BU + Burn + WH.

 

Fire Armor covers EM's AoE weakness and balances it out. The squish remains but I'm holding point in whatever TF and yet to die (almost did the last one when the squid ocean showed up and I delayed Barrier trying to squeeze more damage). In AoE situations Total Focus + Energy Transfer + Burn + Whirlwind is -this- close of being a loop but sometimes I need to throw an Energy Punch as a filler.

 

It's honestly pretty good since AoE's nice but bosses need murderizing so I can drop my super heavy hitters. Most of the time it's just a ghetto Rad Melee gameplay though. If I count 3-5 mobs around I just do the ST rotation and let Burn kill the extras.

[Sovera]

I wasn't sure which Assault to take since Br00ts don't much care for +damage buffs, so I've tested both and since it's tested I'll leave the findings here for others.

 

+damage assault:

2:10

2:05

 

Double Hit:

2:20

2:20

 

Welp, minimal difference and what there was might have been from whiffing.

 

I'll take the +damage.

[Sovera]

As a follow-up from the previous post it makes me ponder if Assault is really a good use for the Hybrid slot. I am all for damage increases but T4 and all I got was a 15-20 second improvement?

 

Not particularly interesting or decisive. As a whole I have not found Assault impactful.

 

I will run some tests but like Degenerative it might not be something with a huge impact outside of niche situations. The one that does regen could be useful but 90% of the time survival is already good.

[SeraphimKensai]

I used to use an em/fa brute in i6 PvP when playing cov. It allowed for some truly devastating damage output.

[Sovera]

After some more exploring I can't say I got a good answer.

 

The best option seems to be Melee Radial Embodiment as it adds defense and regen. With a saturated 10y 10 person aura it pushes defense to 55% and regen to 700%. That seems like it has a use as a possible second panic button when Barrier is on its last legs but not yet recharged. At a more conservative 5 person in the aura it still leaves defense at 47% and regen at 479%.

If I was to do another solo ITF on buffed enemies (but screw that with the new defense values the romans got) it would be a good choice.

 

It's definitely a possibility as a second anti-squish button for a squishy-ish build.

 

The truth is that the game is not (yet, page 3 when??) hard enough and I'll be the first to say I wander around eating alphas and face tanking things even as a squishy Fire Armor on a squishy(er) Brute. That means there is a good chance using it just has no purpose since the build is already surviving well enough on its own.

 

 

On the other hand despite in a test that favored it (two minute ish test for something that has a two minute duration) the Assault test was only a 25-ish second improvement. Once we add jumping from group to group, the need to build up stacks, the two minute downtime, the impact of Assault appears minimal. Things are already melting anyway?

 

 

Overall it's not very complicated though. Like Degenerative the long term effects appear minimal. This is doubled because we either use the power on CD instead of when needed and then it's not available when needed (it speeds up killing AVs or helps surviving when in danger, unless we used it at random and when we reach the AV or need to survive after Barrier's initial boost is over it is not available) or we save it for when we need it and then there is a good chance it gets little or no use (wait for the hypothetical panic that requires a button but it never comes).

 

So because of this I'm just going to take Assault. I'm surviving well enough. If I was just... 20% squishier then I feel the Melee Radial would be a good option to alternate with Barrier much like squishies used to alternate Rune of Power with something else. As it is best leave the Hybrid slot be a mindless clicky minor damage boost.

 

[SomeGuy]

oh hey I have one of these. I definitely play this brute like a scrapper, especially since I get x/bio scrapper pylon kill times with it. The AOE is a lot better though. If I want to go high damage and hard to kill I'll play my tw/elm brute. I'm leveling a EM/SD scrapper right now, and I highly suspect it will be a lot more survivable than this FA brute. I've been doing FA since issue 2. I play the armor set for what it is. It's a very high damage output armor set.

 

On AVs with a LOT of adds (think final AV fight in ITF) I don't bother with Whirling Hands and Dark Obliteration. Burn is a part of my ST rotation, so everything is gonna die anyways. I HAVE tested the DPS difference of Gloom VS Bonesmasher and the difference really isn't much, so exemping down isn't painful at all. I do keep Recovery Serums with me for this, since I run Ageless at the end game.  If I need the extra survivability I'll just chew some oranges/purples then go wade in.

 

As for Hybrid? Why do more people not consider Support? It's a PASSIVE universal end discount, and when activated, gives you + to EVERYTHING and to your team.  Four people on a team pop T4 support and the entire team just went god mode.  I used to solo apex/tin mage with this one. It would give +12 to EVERYTHING for my pets, +6 to myself. So, pop lore then pop support. And I'd get -10% end to EVERYTHING. Clicks, toggles, it doesn't matter. If you're on a full team, or in a league, popping support is a massive team buff. I'm a big fan of building a hybrid that is going to be noticed outside of just a measured test.

 

I am going to build Melee Defense for my TW/ELA. He's SLFCE resistance capped, but only SL defense soft capped. I do have a EM/ELA that is the same stat wise, but I have no need to play that guy.

[Sovera]

3 hours ago, SomeGuy said:

As for Hybrid? Why do more people not consider Support? It's a PASSIVE universal end discount, and when activated, gives you + to EVERYTHING and to your team.  Four people on a team pop T4 support and the entire team just went god mode.  I used to solo apex/tin mage with this one. It would give +12 to EVERYTHING for my pets, +6 to myself. So, pop lore then pop support. And I'd get -10% end to EVERYTHING. Clicks, toggles, it doesn't matter. If you're on a full team, or in a league, popping support is a massive team buff. I'm a big fan of building a hybrid that is going to be noticed outside of just a measured test.

 

Probably because anyone who has endurance problems beelines for an incarnate that will fix it. Regular choice is Ageless for the recharge as a bonus but Cardiac as well. Anyone who does -not- have endurance problems will not notice an endurance boost.

 

I did look at those numbers and they seem like a nice compromise considering neither Assault nor Melee add much to us personally. Yes, it's worth considering as a third choice. Damage boost is negligible but unlike Melee and Assault the numbers are shared for the team. And 12% defense is nothing to sneeze at.

[SomeGuy]

I was curious how much one -RES proc was contributing and I was getting times averaging 2:20. Yeah, that proc is going back in there. It wasn't huge, but obvious enough. And it definitely gives enough outside pylons that it's a no-brainer for me. It gives way to much in normal play. Doing AOE -RES is nice.

 

But it is funny you mention bee-line. It's the first T4 I go for on characters that will need it. Literally what I'm doing right now on a EM/SD scrapper I made. I wanna see how it compares to EM/BIO. I go Ageless because it frees up a lot of slots I can use elsewhere for the build. I use Ageless for almost 99.9% of my melee characters. Not always for my others. My Crab is Barrier and Corruptor is Clarion for example. I do notice I don't have endurance issues exemping down with characters that use Ageless at that level. My biggest end hog is a DB/BIO who I exemp with perfectly fine. I just sometimes can't do SS in EVERY rotation on long fights (which is rare exemping). And recovery serums are a thing if I remember to get them.

 

I'm so glad you looked at Support. I remember having a weird moment going "why does no one talk about this more?" when I first took a look at it. It was only Assault and Melee people talked about.

 

God, this is a fun character. ❤️ Broots

[Bill Z Bubba]

On 10/19/2021 at 8:24 PM, Sovera said:

I wasn't sure which Assault to take since Br00ts don't much care for +damage buffs, so I've tested both and since it's tested I'll leave the findings here for others.

 

+damage assault:

2:10

2:05

 

Double Hit:

2:20

2:20

 

Welp, minimal difference and what there was might have been from whiffing.

 

I'll take the +damage.

 

This is odd to me. I recently re-tested Assault Radial vs Core to see if the old belief of AT Dam Mod 1 or higher gets Core and <1 gets radial, and my pylon times improved by 30ish secs with radial's doublehit on my claws/sr brute. Course, claws has to dish out a ton more attacks than em/fa to get the same job done so that may be a factor.

 

EDIT: Retested with my shield/nrg tank, radial 3:03, core: 2:53. Hell, now I have to retest the claws/sr tank.

 

EDIT2: Claws/sr tank; 5:57 with radial, 6:04 with Core. That 30 sec spread mentioned above must have been a complete fluke. I'm also embarrassed by posting these times.

Edited October 21, 2021 by Bill Z Bubba

[Sovera]

2 minutes ago, Bill Z Bubba said:

 

This is odd to me. I recently re-tested Assault Radial vs Core to see if the old belief of AT Dam Mod 1 or higher gets Core and <1 gets radial, and my pylon times improved by 30ish secs with radial's doublehit on my claws/sr brute. Course, claws has to dish out a ton more attacks than em/fa to get the same job done so that may be a factor.

 

Whiffing is terrible. Two runs is not nearly enough. I was testing the Support Hybrid to see the damage difference and kept getting worse times than the usual. Almost as if using it made times -worse- but I know it's just whiffing.

[SomeGuy]

On 10/21/2021 at 11:33 AM, Sovera said:

 

Whiffing is terrible. Two runs is not nearly enough. I was testing the Support Hybrid to see the damage difference and kept getting worse times than the usual. Almost as if using it made times -worse- but I know it's just whiffing.

Oh, I never believed it was great for personal/solo DPS. It does give a flat DMG % boost when active, but that is across your team. Whereas the dmg pumps from assault are for you only and a lot stronger.

[Sovera]

Some more testing, and since I tested I might as well share.

 

So the Melee Radial that gives +defense and +regen did make a difference when testing using an ITF +4. Not enough to stop dying, but definitely an upgrade in survival. The regeneration made a difference even though the defense got quickly whittled out.

 

Also tested Rebirth in Destiny. That one did not do nearly enough as -60% defense easily overwhelmed the decaying regeneration.

 

While at it I also tested Ageless with the debuff protection just to see how it compared to Barrier. The answer is not well at all. The decaying debuff protection did not stop the defense whittling for an appreciable enough amount of time to count as a panic button. Being able to combine Barrier and Ageless would be otherwise a good pairing were they not in the same Destiny slot but a bit of coordination with a regular team mate allows for it.

 

Also in practical testing I prefer the double hit Assault to the +damage one. While the numbers on a pylon were about the same the double hit added a burstier effect. Math may not back me up but it felt better in terms of killing things faster in the shortest amount of time.

 

 

So to conclude and to no one's surprise the combo of Melee Radial and Barrier will be very very tough to take down. We are merely stopped by what in the game actually asks for it when outside of extreme debuffs like the ITF the build already survives pretty well. On the other hand I was in a lowbie ITF team and we started a +3 and I had to kite to survive. Then we went down to +2 and again I had to kite (the extra defense the romans got messes up with things and our poor Controllers felt useless as the +resistance shouts relegated them to second string DPS and buffers).

 

On the third hand a Brute, especially a Fire Armor + Energy Melee, already sweats damage and Assault does not seem to add much.

 

 

My recommendations are thus:

 

- You are playing an Energy Melee/Fire Armor Brute, you feel you have the damage part covered. You solo or do difficult content (next patch is also meant to bring more difficult content) = Barrier as a panic button/team wide buff + Melee Radial for dat scaling defense + regen (Melee Radial is more of a group thing since a single enemy in range only gives 1.5% defense and 45% regen. Jumping into the middle of a group bumps this to 15% defense and 430% regen. If not for the 430% regen then Support could give 12% defense, but the 12% damage and accuracy are negligible. Upside is that it would give it to the full team).

- You are playing a Energy Melee/Fire Armor. Come on, you picked this combo to do damage! There is no such thing as enough damage until you can one shot an AV! Teams usually bring buffs and debuffs to help stay safe and things die fast anyway = Barrier as a panic button and kiting is free + double hit Assault.

 

 

Tbh with the all the incarnate materials that we get you can also just craft both and slot according to the situation. It is not a life long ultimate choice.

[Sovera]

I went to look for the same Shepherds that crushed my Fire/Ice Tanker and got crushed again, but this time without Ice Patch to save the day it is safe to say that doing it at +1x8 was going to be impossible (I stopped after dying twice to the first group of mobs I found, both times under ten seconds). I wanted to test to see if the extra damage would make a difference and if my first experience had been a fluke, but it wasn't, and it didn't.

 

 

It has to be said that Shepherds are a bit insane. Just look at all that they can do:

 

https://archive.paragonwiki.com/wiki/Shepherds

 

Broadswords attacks to -def, Tar Patches to -res, Vengeance when killing enemies, World of Pain. And on top of that stacking -tohit from regular attacks. Booyah.

 

Cimerorians are a joke compared to these guys. An ITF with them instead of romans would not make an ITF a walk in the park.

 

 

For someone who wants bragging rights the only place I found them was in the First Ward first chapter. Bracket 24-29:

 

 

Got to do a bit of talking first then two quick missions. The third one is all Shepherds.

 

Eagerly waiting for tales of victory or defeat!

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by Sovera

[McOz]

This is a great looking build, thanks for sharing both it and your continued testing. I'm keen to give it a go and wanted to ask how tight the 225% recharge is? I'd like to replace Hover, Fly and Evasive Maneuvers with Combat Teleport, Teleport Target and Fold Space - I love 'blinking' to mobs and smacking them in the face. Gathering the mob for an AoE is also fun. Doing this, I'd lose 15% recharge from the LotG mules and wanted to check if that would screw the attack chain?

 

 

[McOz]

Also wondering how you find the 'fun' factor of this versus the claws/fire build you posted? I love the big damage numbers of EM, though the Energy Transfer animation feels particularly ... meh.

 

[Sovera]

45 minutes ago, McOz said:

Also wondering how you find the 'fun' factor of this versus the claws/fire build you posted? I love the big damage numbers of EM, though the Energy Transfer animation feels particularly ... meh.

 

 

Well, fun is subjective. In this case the 'fun' is in throwing big omfg punches which is something Claws does not. EM blooms much later though where Claws is ready to rock and roll by level 8. Even if non-subjectively it needs more levels to get more slots it's still a set that has a strong AoE and a complete ST chain under level 20.

[McOz]

Thanks for the response 🙂  I realise that I didn't understand the 'builder/spender' dynamic of EM. Once I figured out that TF then ET gives you the quick animation, it became fun again for me.

 

Any thoughts on the Question I posted above on the min amount of recharge needed to sustain the attack chain?

[McOz]

So i built it and tested it - losing 15% recharge hasn't made a noticeable difference for me. This build feels really tough. I can survive Farm 125 @ +4x8 without much worry. Regular missions and TF's have been a survivable with pretty great damage. Need to try an ITF next.

[Gobbledygook]

On 10/12/2021 at 10:10 AM, Sovera said:

My attempt at a full on damage character. The results are pretty nice though without -res involved it does not look so at first glance.

 

2:49

2:32

2:30

2:15 with Assault clicked.

 

When we see times of 1 minute (pre nerf TW) and 1:30-ish and less for Scrappers a 2:30 does not stand out in particular, but without -res it achieves the time through brute force.

 

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I'm not putting down people who use -res procs, but keep in mind if enemies don't live long enough like AVs (or pylons) then its value is almost zero. A pylon also exaggerates how good the -res effect is because it is considered a +0 enemy. This is not something that needs to be taken at face value though and can be tested versus +3 enemies or even clearing a map with and without the -res procs slotted in.

 

The pylon test also does not reflect the ease with which this build can approach a spawn and terminate it with a Build-Up + Burn + Whirlwind Hands and then mop up with Total Focus and Energy Transfer. Even while leveling I was killing +1 bosses with Total Focus + Energy Transfer + Burn without red inspirations or using BU.

 

While this is nothing particularly extraordinary I just mention it to say that the AoE keeps up with the single target damage which is something EM lacks.

 

 

The build makes use of a Brute's higher cap and has 85% resistance to S/L and 40% to S/L as well. Barrier finishes capping both. Unlike the Tanker the E/N remains a weakness with a mere 58% (62% with Barrier) but there is nothing new there. Keep trucking and once it gets sour use Barrier to survive. Otherwise just kill them first which this build is very well equipped to do.

 

The unsung hero is the ability to stack stuns. Even AVs stagger drunkenly and it was the very rare PP who managed to pop their T9 when TF + ET landed on their face and kept them stunned. While this is not on the level of an Ice Patch it does have value.

 

 

 

The build has a slow start until ET. It picks up with Burn that gives it the AoE edge it needed while giving the single target an extra oomph but it's definitely ET that gels things together.

 

Some small tips:

 

•  Don't feel forced to waste Energy Transfer on something that would die to Bone Smasher or Energy Punch.
• Total Focus is pretty slow so pretty much find a target at full health for it. Anything not at full health will probably die to Energy Punch + Bone Smasher. Once getting a feel for this it can be played with and it greatly minimizes hitting corpses after that long wind-up.
•  I found it a good approach to TF one mob, ET a different one, then Burn would kill both. If there is a boss do focus on it though.
• Jumping into a spawn and using TF + ET gives time for the mobs to wake up from their stupor and approach. Now's the time to hit BU + Burn + WH.
• What looked like the best use of BU would be BU , TF (2.8 seconds), ET (1.2 seconds). That makes 4 seconds. Using Burn straight away falls within Gaussian's proc 5 second buff time (even if the buff falls before the animation has ended it will still count). The ST rotation can be easily made into: TF, ET, Burn, Energy Punch, Bone Smasher, Energy Punch. The last energy punch will happen with TF already almost up but it lines Burn to come after ET.
• Alternate BU and Fiery Embrace on a fast team. BU for one spawn, FE for the next, BU is back for the third. Fourth spawn will have neither. Start over at the 5th. For solo just abuse FE when ever since it is common for BU to be back for the next group.
• Burn followed by Whirlwind Hands lines up both AoEs to come back up at the same time. It avoids playing the piano with the AoEs when we can rest assured both can always be used together.

 

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This Villain build was built using Mids Reborn 3.0.6.0
https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn

Click this DataLink to open the build!

Level 50 Magic Brute
Primary Power Set: Energy Melee
Secondary Power Set: Fiery Aura
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Energy Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Energy Punch -- SprBlsCol-Rchg/HoldProc(A), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx(3), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(3), SprBlsCol-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(5), SprBlsCol-Dmg/EndRdx/Acc/Rchg(5), TchofDth-Dam%(7)
Level 1: Fire Shield -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(7), TtnCtn-ResDam(9), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(9), StdPrt-ResKB(13), StdPrt-ResDam/Def+(29)
Level 2: Bone Smasher -- KntCmb-Acc/Dmg(A), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx(13), KntCmb-Dmg/Rchg(15), KntCmb-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(23), TchofDth-Dam%(23), GldStr-%Dam(25)
Level 4: Blazing Aura -- SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg(A), SprUnrFur-Dmg/Rchg(11), SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(11), SprUnrFur-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(29), SprUnrFur-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), SprUnrFur-Rchg/+Regen/+End(33)
Level 6: Hover -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), ShlWal-ResDam/Re TP(27)
Level 8: Whirling Hands -- SprAvl-Rchg/KDProc(A), SprAvl-Dmg/EndRdx(42), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(43), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(45), SprAvl-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
Level 10: Healing Flames -- Prv-Heal(A), Prv-Heal/EndRdx(17), Prv-EndRdx/Rchg(19), Prv-Heal/Rchg(19), Prv-Heal/Rchg/EndRdx(21), Prv-Absorb%(21)
Level 12: Build Up -- GssSynFr--Build%(A), RechRdx-I(34), RechRdx-I(39)
Level 14: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(31)
Level 16: Plasma Shield -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(31), TtnCtn-ResDam(31), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(33)
Level 18: Total Focus -- Hct-Dam%(A), Hct-Dmg/Rchg(27), Hct-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(39), Hct-Acc/Rchg(47), Hct-Dmg/EndRdx(48), TchofDth-Dam%(48)
Level 20: Consume -- SynSck-EndMod(A), SynSck-Dam/Rech(36), SynSck-EndMod/Rech(36), SynSck-Dam/Rech/Acc(36), SynSck-Dam/Acc/End(37), SynSck-EndMod/+RunSpeed(37)
Level 22: Fly -- WntGif-ResSlow(A)
Level 24: Evasive Maneuvers -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A)
Level 26: Combat Jumping -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A)
Level 28: Burn -- SprBrtFur-Rech/Fury%(A), SprBrtFur-Dmg/Rchg(40), SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), Obl-%Dam(40), Arm-Dam%(42), Obl-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(42)
Level 30: Boxing -- Empty(A)
Level 32: Energy Transfer -- SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(A), SprBrtFur-Acc/Dmg(34), SprBrtFur-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(34), TchofDth-Dam%(43), GldStr-%Dam(39), Mk'Bit-Dam%(43)
Level 35: Focused Accuracy -- EndRdx-I(A)
Level 38: Fiery Embrace -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(45)
Level 41: Tough -- TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx(A), TtnCtn-ResDam/Rchg(46), TtnCtn-ResDam(46), TtnCtn-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 44: Physical Perfection -- PrfShf-End%(A)
Level 47: Weave -- LucoftheG-Def/Rchg+(A), Rct-Def(50), Rct-ResDam%(50), Rct-Def/EndRdx(48)
Level 49: Temperature Protection -- GldArm-3defTpProc(A)
Level 1: Fury
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Clr-Stlth(A), Clr-RunSpd(37)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Swift -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Health -- Pnc-Heal/+End(A), Mrc-Rcvry+(15), NmnCnv-Regen/Rcvry+(25)
Level 2: Stamina -- PrfShf-End%(A), PrfShf-EndMod(17)
Level 1: Energy Focus
Level 1: Prestige Power Dash -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Slide -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Quick -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Rush -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Prestige Power Surge -- Empty(A)
Level 4: Ninja Run
Level 50: Born In Battle
Level 50: Invader
Level 50: Marshal
Level 50: High Pain Threshold
Level 22: Afterburner
Level 50: Musculature Core Paragon
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If there is need I can whip a leveling build for this.

 

I'd appreciate a lvl'ing build. When you have a chance, of course.