You're the DMG, what do you bring?

[Latex]

I realize City of Heroes is about party strength, not particularly solo strength. There are classes that can not only support but make missions ten times easier than just going raw damage, a Tanker's taunts, a Defenders Buffs & Debuffs, a Dominators Domination so on and so forth.

The game has had plenty of time to mature by now and I really wonder who the Kings & Queens of DAMAGE are. That when all is provided by a team, tanking, control, buffs, debuffs which AT is there to capitol on it all and bring the biggest damage?

Of course there is caveat even to damage, Single Target and Area of Effect then you've damage where Ranged might excel more than melee.

SINGLE TARGET MELEE
From my (limited) knowledge Energy Melee/Energy Aura Stalker would bring the biggest numbers.

AOE TARGET MELEE
I'm not so sure on this, I'd have to guess Electric Melee/Shield Defense Scrapper.

SINGLE TARGET RANGED
I've even less knowledge on Ranged (part of the reason I made the thread!) Fire Blast/Rad Blaster seems like the strongest single target ranged nuker.

AOE TARGET RANGED
I've heard great things about Water Blast/?? Blaster I've not much clue what would make a good AOE focused secondary for that big damage.


What do you think would fit the scope here baring in mind you're in a well made team with the buffs and debuffs all primed for you to focus purely on damage. Feel free to share builds too, I'd love to see some ideas!

[BZRKR]

When my group asks me to "bring DPS" I reach for my Ice Blast /Cold Domination Corruptor.

 

27 minutes ago, Latex said:

I've heard great things about Water Blast/?? Blaster I've not much clue what would make a good AOE focused secondary for that big damage.

I have a Water Blast/ Fire Manipulation/ Flame Mastery Blaster that is an absolute joy to play.

[Apparition]

You're thinking in the "Blasters = ranged" misconception that too many people have.

 

Single Target Melee - Energy Melee/Stone Armor Stalker.

 

AoE Target - Dual Pistols/Atomic Manipulation Blaster, Fire Blast/Fire Manipulation Blaster if you want to be boring.

 

Single Target Ranged - Beam Rifle/Devices Blaster, Ice Blast/Tactical Arrow Blaster

 

 

[InvaderStych]

I wouldn't over-think it.

 

Want to bring damage? Bring a damage focused AT. 

 

Want to be durable at the same time? Bring melee. 

 

Want to glass cannon and lean on your team for support/survival? Bring a blaster.

 

I rarely pick the toon for the team, just the one I want to play in the moment.  In moments where we're doing something scheduled and difficult I'll glance at what we've got on deck and refer to the two conditions above to make my choice.

[Doomguide2005]

The 8th defender ... 😜

[Psyonico]

a Kin defender or corruptor would be my choice.

[Without_Pause]

/ea only adds recharge so /bio is going to be better. I would say EM/bio Scrapper. I haven't looked at the Stalker version in terms of pylon times though.

Edited April 28, 2022 by Without_Pause

[Troo]

if all you need is damage it is likely a mastermind. i don't play em but respect the damage they can bring.

[Latex]

29 minutes ago, Troo said:

if all you need is damage it is likely a mastermind. i don't play em but respect the damage they can bring.

Thugs/Storm with Burnout and double Gang War does seem like hellish fun and probably the best burst damage in the entire game?

[Cancrusher]

My NRG/SR Sentinel and BR/NRG Sentinel boost the morale of any team they are on, because their wimpy dmg makes the rest of the team feel like conquering gods by comparison. 

 

You're welcome.  😁👍*

 

*Except for the knockback crybabies, with regard to my NRG Sent.  To you guys, I say... oh, wait.  Nevermind- You're welcome.  😁 👍

[Redletter]

Ha! What pathetic estimates. Truly, you must be new, because, as we all know, proven time and time and time again that the single most powerful character, in this entire and perhaps any other, is the Mercenaries/Empathy Mastermind.

 

Single target melee? Your pets get various various rifle smacks that can deal upwards 30 damage at max level. That's 30, MULTIPLIED by the number of pets you have, who land their hits, PLUS that's not even accounting for your contributions, in the form of BRAWL 

 

AoE melee? No problem. Move over Spine/Fire brute, the REAL king of damage has arrived. Just take your rifle and spin around in a circle really really fast. Eventutally, youll reach turbo velocity and just cleave everything in twain! Obviously, your mercs can do the same, since they ALSO have guns, and since theyre pets, an exploit in their A.I allows them to get stuck on level geometry to maximize theyre single area rotation coverage.

 

Single target ranged shouldnt need an explanation, but, this is where Empathy really shines. You deal SO much damage that the game cant even compute it, it throws your numbers into the negatives, and youll HEAL whatever youre targeting! It even lets you revive a player from 0 hp to FULL hp. It's so busted, trolls (the internet kind, not the green kind) abused it so the devs had to make it so it can only target players now.

 

And Ranged AoE is just as simple. Every single one of your pets has ranged AoEs, with the mainstay pets getting cones that hail bullets in all directions.

 

There's just no competition. Mercs/Emp is among the least played classes in the game FOR a REASON. NOBODY wants this much power. There's just simply NO need for it.

[Latex]

On 4/28/2022 at 5:56 PM, Without_Pause said:

/ea only adds recharge so /bio is going to be better. I would say EM/bio Scrapper. I haven't looked at the Stalker version in terms of pylon times though.

I've been playing an EM/Bio Stalker, an old alt I ditched before the EM changes. It took a while to enjoy it, but getting more defense made it so I can play like a scrapper. Got to say I've been having a lot of fun on that character, the numbers it puts out are crazy and getting a 'double buildup' is so satisfying.

[Seed22]

On 4/28/2022 at 9:27 AM, Latex said:

I realize City of Heroes is about party strength, not particularly solo strength. There are classes that can not only support but make missions ten times easier than just going raw damage, a Tanker's taunts, a Defenders Buffs & Debuffs, a Dominators Domination so on and so forth.

The game has had plenty of time to mature by now and I really wonder who the Kings & Queens of DAMAGE are. That when all is provided by a team, tanking, control, buffs, debuffs which AT is there to capitol on it all and bring the biggest damage?

Of course there is caveat even to damage, Single Target and Area of Effect then you've damage where Ranged might excel more than melee.

SINGLE TARGET MELEE
From my (limited) knowledge Energy Melee/Energy Aura Stalker would bring the biggest numbers.

AOE TARGET MELEE
I'm not so sure on this, I'd have to guess Electric Melee/Shield Defense Scrapper.

SINGLE TARGET RANGED
I've even less knowledge on Ranged (part of the reason I made the thread!) Fire Blast/Rad Blaster seems like the strongest single target ranged nuker.

AOE TARGET RANGED
I've heard great things about Water Blast/?? Blaster I've not much clue what would make a good AOE focused secondary for that big damage.


What do you think would fit the scope here baring in mind you're in a well made team with the buffs and debuffs all primed for you to focus purely on damage. Feel free to share builds too, I'd love to see some ideas!

Top AoE ranged is Ice/Fire, Water is it's followup from my experience. Wonder if Ele/Shield Stalker is AoE Melee(though I suppose scrapper is kinda the same thing?)

[Seed22]

18 hours ago, Redletter said:

Ha! What pathetic estimates. Truly, you must be new, because, as we all know, proven time and time and time again that the single most powerful character, in this entire and perhaps any other, is the Mercenaries/Empathy Mastermind.

 

Single target melee? Your pets get various various rifle smacks that can deal upwards 30 damage at max level. That's 30, MULTIPLIED by the number of pets you have, who land their hits, PLUS that's not even accounting for your contributions, in the form of BRAWL 

 

AoE melee? No problem. Move over Spine/Fire brute, the REAL king of damage has arrived. Just take your rifle and spin around in a circle really really fast. Eventutally, youll reach turbo velocity and just cleave everything in twain! Obviously, your mercs can do the same, since they ALSO have guns, and since theyre pets, an exploit in their A.I allows them to get stuck on level geometry to maximize theyre single area rotation coverage.

 

Single target ranged shouldnt need an explanation, but, this is where Empathy really shines. You deal SO much damage that the game cant even compute it, it throws your numbers into the negatives, and youll HEAL whatever youre targeting! It even lets you revive a player from 0 hp to FULL hp. It's so busted, trolls (the internet kind, not the green kind) abused it so the devs had to make it so it can only target players now.

 

And Ranged AoE is just as simple. Every single one of your pets has ranged AoEs, with the mainstay pets getting cones that hail bullets in all directions.

 

There's just no competition. Mercs/Emp is among the least played classes in the game FOR a REASON. NOBODY wants this much power. There's just simply NO need for it.

I'm so dumb, please OP, disregard my previous post. This...this is the true path to DPS

[Seed22]

On 4/28/2022 at 10:41 AM, InvaderStych said:

I wouldn't over-think it.

 

Want to bring damage? Bring a damage focused AT. 

 

Want to be durable at the same time? Bring melee. 

 

Want to glass cannon and lean on your team for support/survival? Bring a blaster.

 

I rarely pick the toon for the team, just the one I want to play in the moment.  In moments where we're doing something scheduled and difficult I'll glance at what we've got on deck and refer to the two conditions above to make my choice.

Blasters do not need to be glass cannons. In fact if they are, that's a build that needs severe revisiting. Mine tanked +2 Reichs and can, and(with the lack of taunting tanks it seems these days) will do it again.

 

I gotta make a PSA one of these days :P, blasters=weak=build is bad

[Errants]

On 4/28/2022 at 9:27 AM, Latex said:

What do you think would fit the scope here baring in mind you're in a well made team with the buffs and debuffs all primed for you to focus purely on damage. Feel free to share builds too, I'd love to see some ideas!

 

Me.

All of my toons are build to kill stuff. Surviving doesn't earn exp.

[Seed22]

I’ve never made mercs on a sidenote. Just how bad are they, really? 
 

EDIT: What I mean is, is it worse than say, petless kin MM with no SB or Fulcrum who only uses brawl?

Edited May 4, 2022 by Seed22

[Bill Z Bubba]

17 hours ago, Seed22 said:

EDIT: What I mean is, is it worse than say, petless kin MM with no SB or Fulcrum who only uses brawl?

 

Will even that overcome the mastermind inherent endurance nerf? (C'mon, devs, get rid of it. It's as dumb as the original kheldian inherent nerfs.)

 

On topic, if I know a team is already balanced and all they really need from me is more damage, I bust out my claws/bio scrapper. If I think for a second that debuffs will be more useful than MOAR DAMUGE!!! then I bring my fire/rad corruptor and if I think they need to be made a bit safer, it'll be the time/fire defender.

 

And if I want to get the same job done but do it solo, there's that completely broken shield/nrg tank ready to go.

[roleki]

For ranged AoE meltation, I prefer a Fire/TA Corruptor.  So many "Scourge!" messages! 

 

Almost 100% ranged (except the dang PBAoE nuke), slinging AoE Fire all over the place, along with some decent ST fire, a truckload of debuffs to lay out while you're waiting for OSA to recharge, opportunities for very high ranged Def via IOs, then, to top it all off, a Dollar Tree Clarion in EMP Arrow. 

[Doomguide2005]

On 5/1/2022 at 2:58 PM, Seed22 said:

Top AoE ranged is Ice/Fire, Water is it's followup from my experience. Wonder if Ele/Shield Stalker is AoE Melee(though I suppose scrapper is kinda the same thing?)

Rereading through this thread having a vision of a team of 8 Elm/Shield stalkers --> they enter in Hide/Hidden of course.  Then proceed to Lightning Rod and Shield Charge through the mission.  Hide never breaks.  Baddies literally never know what hit them. 🤪

[Linea]

Optimally /Kin. But I would probably pick Self Damage Capped Nature/ instead due to personal preference, even if it's only half as optimal.  I'd probably put EAfn/ third on the list.

 

Solo ST DPS actually goes to scrappers.  Stalkers are easier to build to dps, but scrappers can peak higher.

 

AoE is also Scrappers, but due to running and taunt mechanics probably ends up going to the Brute Instead.  The scrapper potential is higher, but due to the running and taunt mechanic the applied damage goes to the Brute.

 

Ranged would go to either Fire/ or Ice/ Blaster.  Personally I say Fire/ for potential, but Ice/ for application, similar to the issues with scrapper vs brute for AoE.  Ice/Fire Blaster is probably top applied damage.

 

So for the last two, put them on a team with heavy taunts, and let them hug the tanks to get full damage potential applied, then you'd swap back to the other answer.  But these days, that team would be very very rare, and the coordination to pull it off even more rare. 

[Seed22]

On 5/23/2022 at 1:20 PM, Linea said:

Optimally /Kin. But I would probably pick Self Damage Capped Nature/ instead due to personal preference, even if it's only half as optimal.  I'd probably put EAfn/ third on the list.

 

Solo ST DPS actually goes to scrappers.  Stalkers are easier to build to dps, but scrappers can peak higher.

 

AoE is also Scrappers, but due to running and taunt mechanics probably ends up going to the Brute Instead.  The scrapper potential is higher, but due to the running and taunt mechanic the applied damage goes to the Brute.

 

Ranged would go to either Fire/ or Ice/ Blaster.  Personally I say Fire/ for potential, but Ice/ for application, similar to the issues with scrapper vs brute for AoE.  Ice/Fire Blaster is probably top applied damage.

 

So for the last two, put them on a team with heavy taunts, and let them hug the tanks to get full damage potential applied, then you'd swap back to the other answer.  But these days, that team would be very very rare, and the coordination to pull it off even more rare. 

I'd say taunts aren't needed at all to maximize damage, most Ice/Fires, or Fire/* have enough defense to be tanks themselves. I know for a fact mine has the melee hybrid with taunt to purposely tank, as I'm finding more tanks w/o taunt, or who for some odd reason see me charge/nuke ONE mob ONE time( I'm gonna do it again but that's not the point :P), and figure they can cowar behind me  let me lead the charge for the rest of the mishs. Still do crazy levels of damage, yet now I am also the tank, and the support partially [Ageless for the low end buddies].

[Linea]

3 hours ago, Seed22 said:

I'd say taunts aren't needed at all to maximize damage, most Ice/Fires, or Fire/* have enough defense to be tanks themselves.

It has nothing to do with armor levels.  Stuff runs.  Running reduces applied DPS. 

There's a reason all the fire farmers are Brutes instead of scrappers.  Rommy running can literally halve your applied ST dps.   The same applies to other situations, just not as dramatically.   Ice/Fire/Flame  goes a long way to alleviating the running problem, but Fire/Ice/Flame does not go as far, Water/Ice/Flame might get halfway there but I've not seen anyone test that one.  Pack them in tight with heavy taunts, then let a Fire/ loose on them and you'll apply even more dps than the Ice/Fire/Flame which outside of taunts applies the nearly most AoE dps.  I'm not sure exactly which version of Fire/ I'd use in that situation.

[Gobbledigook]

Certain Tankers can put out some impressive AoE with the increased radius.

[arcane]

I have approximately 107 level 50’s, how do I answer this thread? 🙂