Swashbuckler? Mauler? Name This AT! (And Help Me Flesh It Out Too.)

[UltraAlt]

On 1/29/2023 at 7:27 PM, Rudra said:

Inherent: Unstoppable:

When HP drops to 25% or less, gain +10% regen and +10% speed (recharge and movement) until above 25% HP?

 

Doesn't seem too overpowered on face value, but I think some people might think that the + regen is a bit high, but it would turn off pretty quickly if it has time to heal you ..... and below 25% really it would only have time to make much of a difference if you ran off from the enemies or had someone else pull your agro for 10-20 seconds.

 

[Zepp]

 

Instigator Take 2 (19.07.27.22.25.xx)

Assault/Armor

Instigation & Resolve: They have an inherent punchvoke ability, Instigation, similar to Tankers, they also have a secondary inherent that provides stacks of absorb while out of combat.

Instigators are mobile meat shields in the truest sense. Tankers are frontline tanks, Brutes are scrapperlocked tanks, Instigators go to where the aggro is (stupid Blaster AoEs).

 

Adaptor (19.08.29.22.14.08)

{Assault/Manipulation}/{Armor/Melee*} (it is unclear if this is Stalker Melee with Armor mixed secondary, or a Stalker Armor secondary.

[placeholder]:

A jack of all trades.
 

The Incarnate (19.10.11.18.14.01)

{Assault, Melee, Ranged, Pet, Support, Manipulation, Armor, or Control}/{Assault, Melee, Ranged, Pet, Support, Manipulation, Armor, or Control}

Undiminished: No diminishing returns on IOs, also has the inherent of the chosen primary AT

You wanted OP? I'll show you OP...

These three come to mind.

When coming up with concepts for Archetypes, I find the best ones begin with a niche, develop a concept, then find sets and an inherent that can work with those ideas. Basically the Mission-Vision-Value concept of organizational design. The Instigator (Take 2) is probably the closest to what you have in mind.

Edited January 31, 2023 by Zepp

[Zepp]

Continued:

Looking at your ideas, I think that going with Assault and Armor would offer you an easier path to what you are looking for as it simplifies the process. Also, the only way that you could avoid unbalanced combinations would be to have the primary be Melee/Resist and the the secondary Ranged/Defense (with a little regen).

 

In terms of a swashbuckler, I have a DP/Nin Blaster that has the guns and the sword and is themed as a space pirate... That can already happen with the current game. However, adding a Swashbuckler Pistol/Broadsword Assault set would be a better solution to the problem you seem to be trying to solve.

I would definitely support an Assault/Armor AT that sits between Scrapper and Sentinel with some sort of clever inherent which encourages mixing range and melee (when targeting an enemy you have +resistance and +damage, the closer you are the higher your resistance bonus and the lower your damage bonus and vice versa).

 

Edit: found this swashbuckling set proposal that you may want to get behind

Spoiler

On 10/21/2022 at 10:44 PM, PoptartsNinja said:

 

Which leads us to a reprise of my old Dominator Swashbuckling suggestion with a tighter focus and less stealing from Dual Pistols.

 

Swashbuckling Assault (Dominator Sword & Laser Pistol Assault Set)

 Tier 1 Laser Blast - Light energy/lethal damage, either repurposing the appearance of the robotics lasers, the resistance's blasts, or possibly war works?

 Tier 2 Slash - Moderate lethal, -Def

 Tier 3 Slice - Light lethal melee cone, -Def

 Tier 4 Tractor Beam - light energy damage, 6s low-mag 2(?) hold and a 2-3 second tractor that pulls the target closer to the attacker. Since Domination effectively turns this into the blast set's heavy tractor (with a better hold), it splits the difference in terms of base damage.

 Tier 5 Build Up

 Tier 6 Whirling Sword - Moderate lethal damage PBAoE, -Def

 Tier 7 First Shot - Heavy energy/lethal damage sniper attack

 Tier 8 Mind Trick - PBAoE Placate, mag2 very short duration confuse

 Tier 9 Parting Shot - Heavy energy/lethal damage, deals bonus damage to held targets (like: mini-containment just for this power)

Edited January 31, 2023 by Zepp

[UltraAlt]

18 minutes ago, Zepp said:

primary be Melee/Resist and the the secondary Ranged/Defense

 

Why?

What makes it resist or defense is based upon the power set and not if it is primary or secondary power set.

 

21 minutes ago, Zepp said:

However, adding a Swashbuckler Pistol/Broadsword Assault set would be a better solution to the problem you seem to be trying to solve.

From the original post : "Basically, I'm proposing an inverse Blaster AT. The primary pools would be more or less straight copies of the Scrapper sets. The secondary pools would be ripoffs of the Blaster's manipulation sets. With some obvious differences."

Based on this, you have it backwards. Using your example, this thread is talking about a broad sword/pistols set which is a new archetype that doesn't currently exist.

 

Over the course of the discussion so far it has more or less changed to melee primary and ranged secondary with a reduction of attack powers in both sets to make room for armor (resist/defense) and mitigation powers (challenge, mez protection, build-up)

 

It breaks the Archetype mold with the goal of trying to balance the end result with the existing archetypes.

 

 

 

 

[Rudra]

@Zepp, I appreciate your feedback and look forward to additional comments, but I'm not trying to make an actual Swashbuckler AT. That was just a possible name for the inverse blaster AT I was thinking about. (The name is currently Striker.) Blasters have lots of ranged attacks and a few melee attacks with supplemental powers. I'm trying to make an AT with robust melee attacks and a few chainable ranged attacks. The primary offensive focus of the AT is melee. And Assault doesn't do that. My original plan was just to use the Scrapper primaries as is and modify the Blaster Manipulation sets to have ranged attacks instead of melee attacks. Then to keep the AT alive in melee, also replace some of the Manipulation sets' powers with a few armors. Nothing to be competitive with even Scrappers or Stalkers, just enough to keep the AT from simply collapsing while engaged in melee combat.

 

Hopefully that helps clarify what I am trying to accomplish with this AT.

[Zepp]

@UltraAlt As per my comment on having the armor powers consolidated, the reason I suggested this was because if you have a significant amount of mitigation in both the primary and the secondary, the likelihood of an OP combo increases. The same is true of dividing the damage in the primary and secondary. I suggested the only feasible way around this was to have Defense in one set and Resist in the other to provide mitigation without the risk of being OP. I also read the entire thread before posting, which is why I formulated my thread in the specific manner in which I did.

 

@Rudra So you are talking [Melee/Ranged] primary and [Ranged/Manipulation/Armor] secondary.

For the Primaries you would want to have Assault* Powersets, wherein 1-3 of the ranged powers are switched out for Melee. That would keep it simple, yet feasible.

For the Secondary you would want Manipulation* Powersets, wherein the ranged powers are switched out for melee and the control powers are switched out for armors.  This would basically be switching 1-3 powers and make it feasible.

 

What sort of Niche are you considering?

 

What sort of Concept?

 

I have a similar proposal for an AT, the niche is as a switch hitter/penetrative damage AT with the concept of a speedster.

 

Zoomer (19.07.25.22.56.xx)

Manipulation/Assault

Zoom: Personal +SPD for ranged, enemy -SPD for melee, and increased speed cap.

Zoomers offer the feel of playing a speedster while providing access to two AT-specific power sets that are versatile an fun.

 

 

 

[Akisan]

28 minutes ago, Zepp said:

@Rudra So you are talking [Melee/Ranged] primary and [Ranged/Manipulation/Armor] secondary.

For the Primaries you would want to have Assault* Powersets, wherein 1-3 of the ranged powers are switched out for Melee. That would keep it simple, yet feasible.

For the Secondary you would want Manipulation* Powersets, wherein the ranged powers are switched out for melee and the control powers are switched out for armors.  This would basically be switching 1-3 powers and make it feasible.

 

I think they're angling more towards [Melee] primary and [Manipulation/Ranged] secondary.  I'd even go as far as to say [Armor] ancillary/patron pools.  As I see it, a Striker is a largely unarmored, heavy-hitting melee combatant - with a few light controls to keep the worst enemies off of them, and a few ranged attacks to take down runners or chip away at targets too dangerous to close with. (plus, depending on how one tweaked the secondary, a double-build-up could be really fun to have)

 

Example sets: (Fire/Ice Striker)

 

Fiery Melee:

1 Scorch

2 Fire Sword

3 Cremate

4 Build-up

5 Breath of Fire

6 Flashfire (Short range combat teleport, similar to Shield Charge.  Leaves a small burn patch at arrival and departure locations) <Different sets get different move techniques>

7 Fire Sword Circle

8 Incinerate

9 Greater Fire Sword

 

Ice Manipulation:

1 Chilblain

2 Ice Bolt

3 Ice Blast

4 Chilling Embrace (the power that was replaced by the Blaster sustain)

5 Build Up

6 Ice Patch

7 Frost Breath

8 Freeze Ray

9 Frozen Aura

 

[Rudra]

@Zepp, it is as @Akisan said. The focus is primary melee and secondary ranged. Using a modified take on the Blaster's Manipulation set to set up a ranged secondary. The armors are just to help the new AT survive. However, as I said in my second attempt at the AT, the armors are not actually necessary. I can replace the armors in the primary and secondary pools with debuffs or soft controls, and the new AT should still do well in melee. (Edit: I would just be reverting the +10% regen in the inherent to a triggered mez protection usable once every 3-5 minutes while retaining the +10% speed bonus. if the armor options were removed.)

 

Edit again: The concept is an inverse Blaster. A character that focuses on melee and supplements with ranged as opposed to a character that focuses on ranged and supplements with melee.

Edited January 31, 2023 by Rudra

[Zepp]

6 hours ago, Rudra said:

@Zepp, it is as @Akisan said. The focus is primary melee and secondary ranged. Using a modified take on the Blaster's Manipulation set to set up a ranged secondary. The armors are just to help the new AT survive. However, as I said in my second attempt at the AT, the armors are not actually necessary. I can replace the armors in the primary and secondary pools with debuffs or soft controls, and the new AT should still do well in melee. (Edit: I would just be reverting the +10% regen in the inherent to a triggered mez protection usable once every 3-5 minutes while retaining the +10% speed bonus. if the armor options were removed.)

 

Edit again: The concept is an inverse Blaster. A character that focuses on melee and supplements with ranged as opposed to a character that focuses on ranged and supplements with melee.

So something more like one of these?

Captain (19.05.27.02.57.28)

Melee/Support

Tactical Advantage: Enemies within 15' act as a power boost, allies in the range increase regeneration and defense.

Captains are frontline fighters that support their teammates from within the fray.

 

Regulator (19.08.13.12.54.xx)

Melee/Support*

Regulation: Can build regulation through engagement. Upon filling the bar, can activate either a +Res(Self) -Dam(Enemy) or +Dam(Self) -Res(Enemy) aura.

Regulators are frontline combatants that optimize their personal and team dynamic for the situation.

 

Defiler (19.06.09.22.12.59)

Melee/{Support/Armor}

[placeholder]: A defensive bonus which decreases with teammates paired with a secondary effect bonus which increases with teammates.

Defilers are focused on debuffing enemies and buffing allies from the fray.

 

Protector (19.07.25.00.33.xx)

Melee/{Support/Armor}

Honor & Glory: Glory builds stacks through melee attacks and dissipates through inaction or use of buffs, it grants increased buff efficacy.

Protectors juggle between support and dps providing teammates with much-needed support while also helping out with clearing the field.

 

Interceptor (19.07.25.19.29.xx)

Melee/{Support/Armor}

Full Force: A power boost combined with flat damage critical-like mechanism.

Imagine if a scrapper were more of a team player.

Although heading more towards the Melee/Manipulation route?

I think a lot of the feedback from these five would be useful to developing your idea.

[Rudra]

Melee/Range

 

(Edit: With the ability to survive in the preferred melee.)

Edited February 1, 2023 by Rudra

[UltraAlt]

16 hours ago, Zepp said:

As per my comment on having the armor powers consolidated, the reason I suggested this was because if you have a significant amount of mitigation in both the primary and the secondary, the likelihood of an OP combo increases. The same is true of dividing the damage in the primary and secondary. I suggested the only feasible way around this was to have Defense in one set and Resist in the other to provide mitigation without the risk of being OP. I also read the entire thread before posting, which is why I formulated my thread in the specific manner in which I did.

 

I disagree. You get all the primary and all the secondary powers on any character if you want.

There are no more "armors" in the set than other scrapper sets. 

The "armors" being in both sets takes away powers from both primary and secondary which means that there are fewer melee powers in the primary that are made up for what is a fewer number of attack power in the secondary. 

In the end, there can't be any more power rotation than what recharge allows.

 

I do not find this method of dividing up the power as being OP especially if you reduce the range of the  ranged attacks.

If the "armor" part is too powerful, the effect could always be tweaked down on that as well.

[UltraAlt]

16 hours ago, Zepp said:

So you are talking [Melee/Ranged] primary and [Ranged/Manipulation/Armor] secondary.

 

That isn't what was said at all in the preceding parts of the thread.

I have no  idea where you are getting that from.

 

It has nothing to do with your previous ideas.

[Zepp]

5 hours ago, Rudra said:

Melee/Range

 

(Edit: With the ability to survive in the preferred melee.)

Like this?
 

Kamikaze (19.08.29.22.14.07)

Melee/Ranged

[placeholder]:

Assault on crack.

[Rudra]

Sure. That post doesn't really tell me anything, but yes, melee/ranged.

[Zepp]

14 minutes ago, UltraAlt said:

 

I disagree. You get all the primary and all the secondary powers on any character if you want.

There are no more "armors" in the set than other scrapper sets. 

The "armors" being in both sets takes away powers from both primary and secondary which means that there are fewer melee powers in the primary that are made up for what is a fewer number of attack power in the secondary. 

In the end, there can't be any more power rotation than what recharge allows.

 

I do not find this method of dividing up the power as being OP especially if you reduce the range of the  ranged attacks.

If the "armor" part is too powerful, the effect could always be tweaked down on that as well.

If you have ever played Freeform on the New Dawn server, you can see how it would be possible to create a completely OP armor combo even though you have to choose from two sets.

[Zepp]

5 minutes ago, Rudra said:

Sure. That post doesn't really tell me anything, but yes, melee/ranged.

You're right, that proposal was not really developed and had little commentary. I do need to update that list, but the concept of a melee/ranged AT needs to be much more fleshed out before any productive discourse could actually be started.

What is the Niche?

What is the Concept?

What inherent will you match with Melee/Ranged to give it a unique feel?

[Rudra]

11 minutes ago, Zepp said:

You're right, that proposal was not really developed and had little commentary. I do need to update that list, but the concept of a melee/ranged AT needs to be much more fleshed out before any productive discourse could actually be started.

What is the Niche?

What is the Concept?

What inherent will you match with Melee/Ranged to give it a unique feel?

 

On 1/29/2023 at 5:27 PM, Rudra said:

New version/attempt at this AT. Kind of cludged together from previous attempts and feedback.

 

Striker:

Inherent: Unstoppable:

When HP drops to 25% or less, gain +10% regen and +10% speed (recharge and movement) until above 25% HP?

 

Primary: Melee

T1: Light damage melee attack (fast or very fast recharge)

T2: Moderate damage melee attack (fast or moderate recharge)

T3: Melee defense or resist power (theme dependent toggle)*

T4: Cone moderate damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T5: Mez Protection

T6: Confront

T7: High damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T8: Cone high damage or moderate damage+special melee attack (moderate-long recharge)

T9: PBAoE severe to extreme damage melee attack (long recharge)

 

Secondary: Range

T1: Light damage or light(er) damage+special ranged attack (moderate recharge)

T2: Ranged defense or resist power*

T3: Special power (perception increasing power [including +ACC or +ToHit] or minor enemy debuff power for instance)

T4: Moderate damage ranged attack or light damage+special ranged attack

T5: Self heal or Build Up

T6: AoE defense or resist power*

T7: PBAoE utility power (toggle or moderate recharge click; enemy debuff)

T8: Cone or TAoE moderate damage ranged attack

T9: High damage ranged attack or panic button power

 

*- Defenses may be changed to typed rather than positional depending on set theme, or may include typed damage resist/defense on top of positional at lowered values for all defenses/resists depending on power set theme (such as fire). All defenses/resists to be at lower base values than Scrappers. (Edit again: Or may substitute regeneration powers for a regen-based pairing.)

 

Disclaimer: Power order subject to re-arrangement as appropriate for power set. (See Scrapper primary powers as available for review at https://cod.uberguy.net/html/index.html for more information.)

 

So how is this?

The niche is a melee-ranged fighter, like a Blaster, except the inverse of. The concept is the fighter who also happens to have an array of ranged attacks.

 

Edit: And if the split armors are too OP or too much of a handicap, then they can be replaced with debuffs and soft controls. In which case the inherent becomes:

Unstoppable: When health drops to 25% or less, a Mag 3 Mez protection is triggered (not more than once per 3 minutes, not affected by recharge enhancements, duration 30 seconds?) and the character gets a +10% speed boost (movement and recharge) until HP is again greater than 25%.

Edited February 1, 2023 by Rudra

[dangeraaron10]

5 minutes ago, Zepp said:

You're right, that proposal was not really developed and had little commentary. I do need to update that list, but the concept of a melee/ranged AT needs to be much more fleshed out before any productive discourse could actually be started.

What is the Niche?

What is the Concept?

What inherent will you match with Melee/Ranged to give it a unique feel?

 

Well it's not so much a /Blast secondary but is more of Manipulation with ranged attacks instead of melee attacks.  Plus or minus a few things.

 

So definitely a Melee DPS AT with more built in survivability than a Blaster but not as much as a Scrapper.

 

Personally, as someone that follows Tanker vs Brute vs Scrapper balancing act, I think adding another AT on that sliding scale of DPS vs survivability but on a Scrapper vs Blaster vs Sentinel axis is a bit of a headache in the making.  An AT like this would live and die by a really clever inherent.

 

The most interesting thing I think the AT cam offer is more power theme combos.  So something like Martial Arts and Assault Rifle/Devices style combo.  

[UltraAlt]

21 hours ago, Zepp said:

If you have ever played Freeform on the New Dawn server, you can see how it would be possible to create a completely OP armor combo even though you have to choose from two sets.

 

We aren't playing on the New Dawn Server.

 

Rudra's goal does not seem to be to make an OP armor combo.

That's one of the great things about Homecoming. It is about balance.

[UltraAlt]

21 hours ago, Rudra said:

And if the split armors are too OP or too much of a handicap, then they can be replaced with debuffs and soft controls.

 

Or it could simply be armor in the primary and debuffs and shot controls in the secondary. 

Cut the armor down to simply melee, ranged, and AoE toggle options or simply a set based defense/resist click power possibly with a longer recharge time than an anti-mez power so that it could be triggered when in the thick of it for some extra protection.

 

As I indicated previously, I thought that the armor might be a sticky point for some people, but I think it is really a matter of how much protection that is versus the amount of damage that the set can inflict. I see no reason why the damage can't be less than scrapper/sentinel level and with reduced range on the ranged attacks to balance out the melee/ranged damage with more protection than a blaster has, but less than a scrapper has.

 

Without the armors, it becomes like a reverse of Dominators to some extent. Dominators are more-or-less Control/Melee (with some range attacks thrown in).

[Rudra]

Let's just alleivate @Zepp's concern about the armors. Here:

 

Striker:

Inherent: Unstoppable:

When HP drops to 25% or less, gain +10% regen and +10% speed (recharge and movement) until above 25% HP.

 

Primary: Melee

T1: Light damage melee attack (fast or very fast recharge)

T2: Moderate damage melee attack (fast or moderate recharge)

T3: Special power (perception increasing power [including +ACC or +ToHit] or minor enemy debuff power for instance)

T4: Cone moderate damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T5: Mez Protection

T6: Confront

T7: High damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T8: Cone high damage or moderate damage+special melee attack (moderate-long recharge)

T9: PBAoE severe to extreme damage melee attack (long recharge)

 

Secondary: Range

T1: Light damage or light(er) damage+special ranged attack (moderate recharge)

T2: Melee defense or resist power (theme dependent toggle)*

T3: Moderate damage ranged attack or light damage+special ranged attack

T4: Ranged defense or resist power*

T5: Self heal or Build Up

T6: AoE defense or resist power*

T7: PBAoE utility power (toggle or moderate recharge click; enemy debuff)

T8: Cone or TAoE moderate damage ranged attack

T9: High damage ranged attack or panic button power

 

*- Defenses may be changed to typed rather than positional depending on set theme. Damage resists may be added on top of defenses if appropriate to theme, but defense and resist values will be penalized accordingly. Armor slots may be universally replaced with regeneration powers dependent on theme. All values still to start with lower base than Scrappers.

 

Disclaimer: Power order subject to re-arrangement as appropriate for power set. (See Scrapper primary powers as available for review at https://cod.uberguy.net/html/index.html for more information.)

 

There. Now all the armors are together except for the mez protection. And I really don't see mez protection being separate as giving players a chance to go OP on armor.

Edited February 2, 2023 by Rudra
Multiple corrections.

[Zepp]

4 hours ago, Rudra said:

All the armors are together [in the secondary] except for the mez protection.

That is a perfectly fine way to address possible issues. It is, theoretically, possible to have armors in both sets, however that increases the difficulty of finding a balance. This would alleviate those difficulties. Interesting approach with the secondary T9s, the player can either choose the a largely skipped armor power that would be useful for this new AT even if all the other armor ATs skip it, or a nuke. I have a suspicion that nuke sets will have a higher usage rate than OhS! sets, but it would provide a meaningful choice.

I will hopefully find some time in the coming months to update my AT proposal list, I look forward to adding your AT to said post.

[UltraAlt]

32 minutes ago, Zepp said:

That is a perfectly fine way to address possible issues. It is, theoretically, possible to have armors in both sets, however that increases the difficulty of finding a balance.

 

It was fine to have them in both primary and secondary.

They are usually all in the primary or secondary and no additional armors were added to the set that other sets don't already have. The level of percentages of those armors (defense or resist) versus damage is where the balancing happens.

 

Blasters have both ranged and melee attacks. Dominators have both ranged and melee attacks.

@Rudra's concepts is simply reversing that with melee being the primary and ranged attacks being the secondary. All melee primary sets have related armor (which is usually in the secondary). 

 

It does go outside-of-the-box of the other archetypes, but that does not mean it can't be balanced.

I believe this archetype having armor can be balanced so it is not OP. I don't even think it would be that hard to do it.

 

Sure. there are people that are going to try to break anything. That is simply what those kind of players want to do.

But in the end, they are simply pointing out a nail that needs to be hammered down into position.

The Homecoming team has been balancing over time, and, in the end, it will be their call about this hypothetical archetype. 

[Rudra]

1 hour ago, Zepp said:

That is a perfectly fine way to address possible issues. It is, theoretically, possible to have armors in both sets, however that increases the difficulty of finding a balance. This would alleviate those difficulties. Interesting approach with the secondary T9s, the player can either choose the a largely skipped armor power that would be useful for this new AT even if all the other armor ATs skip it, or a nuke. I have a suspicion that nuke sets will have a higher usage rate than OhS! sets, but it would provide a meaningful choice.

I will hopefully find some time in the coming months to update my AT proposal list, I look forward to adding your AT to said post.

The T9 isn't a choice for the player. The devs won't do that again. The "or" in any given power entry is to denote that any given power set will have either the first power *or* the second power available depending on the set. So an armor could be a resist. It could be a defense. It could be both but at lower values. (It could be a regeneration power instead.) Same thing with the T9. It could be another attack. Or it could be a panic button defense of some type. Whichever is more balanced and appropriate for the AT and specific set.

 

(Edit: The AT is after all, a work in progress. I am depending on feedback from others to help refine it into something the devs will want to make, players will want to play, and still be as easy for the devs to implement as I can manage.)

Edited February 2, 2023 by Rudra

[UltraAlt]

5 hours ago, Rudra said:

Striker:

Inherent: Unstoppable:

When HP drops to 25% or less, gain +10% regen and +10% speed (recharge and movement) until above 25% HP.

 

Primary: Melee

T1: Light damage melee attack (fast or very fast recharge)

T2: Moderate damage melee attack (fast or moderate recharge)

T3: Special power (perception increasing power [including +ACC or +ToHit] or minor enemy debuff power for instance)

T4: Cone moderate damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T5: Mez Protection

T6: Confront

T7: High damage melee attack (moderate recharge)

T8: Cone high damage or moderate damage+special melee attack (moderate-long recharge)

T9: PBAoE severe to extreme damage melee attack (long recharge)

 

Secondary: Range

T1: Light damage or light(er) damage+special ranged attack (moderate recharge)

T2: Melee defense or resist power (theme dependent toggle)*

T3: Moderate damage ranged attack or light damage+special ranged attack

T4: Ranged defense or resist power*

T5: Self heal or Build Up

T6: AoE defense or resist power*

T7: PBAoE utility power (toggle or moderate recharge click; enemy debuff)

T8: Cone or TAoE moderate damage ranged attack

T9: High damage ranged attack or panic button power

 

*- Defenses may be changed to typed rather than positional depending on set theme. Damage resists may be added on top of defenses if appropriate to theme, but defense and resist values will be penalized accordingly. Armor slots may be universally replaced with regeneration powers dependent on theme. All values still to start with lower base than Scrappers.

 

Okay.

Let's game out a character at in this set.

 

Level 1 : I pick the PT2¹ and the ST1². I have the basic brawl and I also have a thrown weapon from the archetype.

I can use the ST1 to pull and then fight at close range with the PT2 and brawl and then fall back to use the thrown archetype weapon and the ST1 while the melee attacks recharge (or just stay in range and use the attacks while the melee recharge). The character likely takes fairly heavy damage and will need to take time to naturally recover between fights until they can level up and get rest.

Attacks : brawl, archetype throwing weapon, PT2 Melee medium, and ST1 ranged light

Armor - none

 

Now let's skip ahead to level 10 : (7 powers total up to PT5 and ST4 + T1-2 for power pools or T3 power pool if travel) L1) I had already picked PT2 and ST1. L2) My next power pick was ST2 (the Melee defense or resist power - to make the character a bit more resilient). L4) Then combat jumping because I want more defense. L6) Then the PT4 cone power. L8) PT5 Mez protection as early as possible seems to be a good pick. L10) ST4 because I'm going to need that armor sooner or later.

Attacks : brawl, archetype throwing weapon, PT2 Melee medium, ST1 ranged light, and PT4 melee cone

Armor - ST2 Melee, Combat jumping (defense), and ST4 ranged

Special - Mez protection

Seems okay to me. Doesn't seem to be overpowered at this stage.

 

1 - PT# - primary tier # power

2 - ST# - secondary tier # power