Pool Power Attacks Inquiry

[Nyghtmaire]

What is your opinion about the new pool power attacks in sorcery, experimentation, etc..? Are they worth taking early to create an attack chain when soloing? I’ve taken Arcane Bolt on my Plant/TA and have not been too impressed so far. Thank you!

[EmperorSteele]

Well first, Sorcery is the only "archetype" pool actually in the game. Experimentation, gadgetry, etc aren't actually active.

 

Second, Plant is one of the higher-damaging Control sets (It's AOE Immob does twice the damage as other sets', for some reason), especially compared to sets like ice, earth, and even fire (before level 32, anyway). So it's hard to say that arcane bolt isn't a help when you're already doing a lot. Especially since you're TA, which is a very "active" secondary and you're choosing between doing more debuffs, more holding, or more damage.

 

For the other sets, especially Illusion which just has one attack, Sorcery can be a VERY welcome addition to your attack chain. Most of the other control sets have immobs which do damage over time. Mind already HAS an attack chain in Dom/Lev/Mes, And Grav has Gravity Distortion/Crush and Lift, so I wouldn't recommend it there.

 

That said, I haven't really dabbled with the pool, so I really can't say.

[Nyghtmaire]

Thank you very much. I didn’t realize that Sorcery was the only pool available as of yet (still getting used to all the changes that ARE present, versus those that are not)!

 

I do like the fact that arcane blast benefits from containment damage. With one of the P2W powers, it makes a nice single target attack chain when I solo. But you are spot on about how busy TA is. Thanks again!

[Erydanus]

Basically there's only 2 pool attacks (tier 1 that you can just buy) that are really good for a controller filler attack: arcane bolt from sorcery, and air superiority from flight.

 

Arcane bolt is the only ranged pool attack, the cast time (and animation) are relatively slow but for a controller starved for another attack it can be a very good thing indeed. And it has a chance of knockdown so that can be control. It does a little more damage than a single target hold or immobilize would but is behind something like Gravity's Propel.

 

Air superiority is a punch, so not every controller is going to be in a position to use it. But, it's a very fast clean animation and the power is 100% knockdown (and -fly) so it can be leveraged as a control. It does as much damage as a single target hold does.

 

Flurry in Speed isn't bad, it does a little more damage than Air Superiority but it's the same attack animation as the Sands of Mu temp power (but smashing not dark, and not a small cone).  For what it does, how long it roots you in a punching animation is awkward for controllers. If you were desperate for an attack without using another pool up (because there is a limit to how many pools you can tap) it would be a viable option.

 

The two attacks in the fighting pool do a lot less damage than a single target hold but if you're doing Tough/Weave anyway you might be tempted to use one of them. They are really not what I would call pleasant even as fillers. I tried them out on a lowbie controller for comparison and did not like them at all.

 

Jump Kick in jumping is the most awkward attack animation in the entire game I think. You basically do a handstand and kick the target in the face then flip back. It's AWFUL. It could be the highest dps power in the game and I wouldn't use it.

 

There is an AoE attack in  Fighting (Cross Punch, a cone) and Jumping (Spring Attack, a knockoff of Elec Melee's lightning rod) but as they're not tier 1 choices and I have heard a few people say they used them but they're too specialized for everyday controllery.