Powers set that aren't particularly good if you don't proc them to the gills

[oedipus_tex]

The usual issue with procs in a damage power is that powers that tend to proc well also often benefit from lowering their recharges so you can cast them more often. For example, the Dominator Savage Assault Power Unkindness can takes up to 6 procs. However, actually doing this provides only a modest increase in damage while also making it take longer for the power to recharge and making you miss out on set bonuses.

 

I'm not sure if there's a community term for this, but to settle the difference, I often find myself "two-procc-ing" powers. That is, slotting a set with a good bonus and a damage proc, like Positron's Blast, and then using the sixth slot for another proc of some kind. That way you fall somewhere in the best of two worlds.

 

I'd argue where powers benefit the most from procs is when the proc is transformative of the power in some way. In particular, turning a power that does no damage into a modest to heavy hitter. Trick Arrow's Ice Arrow is a standout example for this. It's an amazing debuff that transforms into a very good attack.  

 

 

 

Anyway you asked about sets that start off not great but become great because of procs. While I'd say it's more an issue of overall build than procs specifically, I think examples of this are any of the control or support sets that rely on big recharge powers. Cold Domination isn't a great set IMO until you get some IOs. Same with Nature Affinity and Thermal Radiation. They all seem like sets built on the assumption that players can build up a bunch of Recharge to make the powers recharge fast enough to be powerful. They're all mediocre at best sets prior to IOing.

IMO Empathy is an example of a set built on the same assumption that players will build up a ton of Recharge, but the payoff doesn't really work there. 

 

Edited May 5, 2022 by oedipus_tex

[Crysis]

12 hours ago, arcane said:

Still a tiny bit exaggerated considering some of the better sentinels are still forced to do well with few procs (Fire mainly, Beam), but yes this is probably the best example. Plant Control? Trick Arrow? Pfft, top tier sets before a single proc gets involved. Sentinels on the other hand… yeah they mostly need procs. My fav damage-wise is my DP/SR/Psy with Vigor Alpha. I want to say I have 4 or 5 powers with 6 procs in that case.

Don’t disagree and have the exact same builds.  A Fire/Rad/Fire Sent doesn’t need many damage Procs to be effective but my DP/SR Sent is literally more Procs than set bonuses.  If they ever nerf Procs most of my Sents get stripped of IO’s and deleted unless they buff the entire AT.

 

And that’s not an exaggeration.

[Crysis]

On 5/3/2022 at 9:29 AM, KaizenSoze said:

I was talking about all procs.

 

For instance, some powers need a ton of recharge to highly effective. Storm Summoning for example w/o lot of recharge falls off pretty badly. Though it is still effective due to other powers, so I wouldn't say that it requires procs to be successful.

Yup I play a bunch of different stormies and all are riddled with FF +Rech Procs plus as many +Rech set bonuses I can work into build…..plus almost always Burnout on top of that.  Storm minus Recharge is just a blowing air.

[tidge]

On 5/3/2022 at 10:19 AM, arcane said:

Every reply here is about sets that are good with procs, but not a single one appears relevant to the OP request of sets bad without procs.

 

I would find playing my Mind Controller solo to be VERY boring without (%damage) procs. Folks can feel free to spin this as "punching outside the AT class", but I see it as more of an opportunity to get mission clear times within an order of magnitude for all ATs.

 

Even without the %damage procs, Mind can also benefit from "utility" %procs as well.

 

While I wouldn't necessarily describe certain ATs (or primaries, or secondaries) as BAD without certain globals, I think a majority of folks would agree that the global +Recharge pieces make Dominators MUCH more playable, and pieces that provide +Defense/+Resistance (including Knockback/Knockdown, and Scaling) while great for everyone benefit certain builds more than others.

[Snarky]

Every Tank attack.  ALL of them.