Is Regen poor or simply challenging (Psi/Regen build request)?

[Steyrharquebus]

Hi all,

 

I'm considering making a Psi/Regen Scrapper with whom to complete all 1-50 Blueside content (solo). I've been browing the Scrapper forums for Regen guidance and the secondary seems unpopular and often maligned. It seems to be considered one of the poorest performing Scrapper secondaries out there, but I've also seen more than one person opine that Regen is more a tough secondary to actually play and/or master.

 

Is either true? Are both? If so, why?

 

I'd appreciate people's takes on the matter before I take the leap. I'd really appreciate a Psi/Regen build I could follow as I level too. That would be swell!

 

Thanks and have a great weekend!

Edited February 17, 2023 by Steyrharquebus

[Astralock]

If you don’t mind keeping one hundred+ large or super inspirations stored in your in-game e-mail, and/or tank Hamidon with it (which a Brute would be better for anyhoo), then Regen is good.  Otherwise, you would be much better off playing Bio or Willpower instead.

[lemming]

Regen has very little downtime, but it is not as tough as many of the other sets.  For doing solo stuff it will work well.

I did enjoy my Psi/Regen scrapper, though the build is mostly generic IOs.

[SeraphimKensai]

Regen honestly works better as a Brute, because it has a higher HP cap, as it regens more health per tick than a scrapper.

 

Back in the olden times, I used to play a ton on a scrapper that could run Perma MoG. If the alpha strike didn't one shot you, you weren't going to die back then. I actually solo'd 4 mitos before the rest of Guardian server jumped in to "help" me on my solo Hami attempt.

 

Now a days, you'll want to keep Dull Pain Perma, build for HP cap, and also lots of recharge and get your slow res up to 100% as you'll often live and die by your click powers.

 

It's possible to do that while still building a reasonable layer of defense, but note that you'll have no DDR to protect that defense from debuffs.

 

The set can still be salvageable, but has become the butt end of a number of jokes considering the multiple nerfs that the original devs did to the power set.

 

 

Edited February 17, 2023 by SeraphimKensai

[Steyrharquebus]

1 hour ago, Astralock said:

If you don’t mind keeping one hundred+ large or super inspirations stored in your in-game e-mail, and/or tank Hamidon with it (which a Brute would be better for anyhoo), then Regen is good.  Otherwise, you would be much better off playing Bio or Willpower instead.

I'm guessing that the inspiration you're referring to is Luck, which I can kind of understand as Regen offers no damage resistance (please correct me if I'm wrong, of course).

 

If that is a genuine strategy for playing a Regen Scrapper effectively, then I already find myself a little dissuaded. Surely that can't be the expected way to play for people who do want to team/do Hamidon/ITFs/etc?

 

10 minutes ago, lemming said:

Regen has very little downtime, but it is not as tough as many of the other sets.  For doing solo stuff it will work well.

I did enjoy my Psi/Regen scrapper, though the build is mostly generic IOs.

My intention is to do 1-50 solo and then start doing content with teams, so I'd prefer not to invest a whole lotta time into a powerset that will underperform in its maturity by default. Knowing that is can handle 1-50 solo is reassuring though.

 

I''ve also been considering a Psychic Blast/Regen Sentinel - Regen seems a little better on that AT - I just love those Psi Melee animations. Most people's endorsement of the powerset in general seems to be...lukewarm, to put it mildly, and on Scrappers is seems like the bottom of the barrell?

[UltraAlt]

1 hour ago, Steyrharquebus said:

I've been browing the Scrapper forums for Regen guidance and the secondary seems unpopular and often maligned.

 

I can't remember for sure but I think my 2nd 50 on live was a spikes/regen scrapper [First character I made in CoH based on a Champions character that had made for the so-called table-top or pen-and-paper RPG several years before the release of CoH]. (My first 50 was a katana/super reflexes scrapper [One the first 10 characters I made in CoH]).

Back in those days it was hard to level up unless you were a damage dealer,

 

It's always a matter of playing to a sets strengths and be weary of a sets weaknesses.

And, if you are having fun playing the set....

 

I do suggest getting recall target.

It helps alot with scrappers. Easier to pull a single target than the scrapper "confront" (the scrapper single target pull/agro power) because you can be out of sight when you use it.

 

I haven't made a Psi scrapper on Homecoming  yet. I know I had one on live, but I can't remember how it played.

 

 

 

[Spaghetti Betty]

Regen is an interesting case. A lot of the criticisms leveraged at it have merit, but it can also be underestimated. It's a set that relies completely on your reaction time and precognition during combat. If you're wanting a "set and forget" powerset, this ain't it.

 

One thing to consider when rolling a Regen is not necessarily what is already available in your toolkit, but what you can pull from other sources in order to bolster your defenses so that Reconstruction and Instant Healing become important padding instead of perceived critical mitigation tools. Things like Rune of Protection, Unleash Potential, Shadow Meld, etc. that offer massive protection for a short time will be vital.

 

Another big piece of the puzzle that is Regen is Slow Resistance. You need your clicks to come back, so if mobs are debuffing your recharge, you're gonna be in a bad spot.

 

The last thing to consider is various forms of soft control that are present in your chosen Melee. Luckily, you'll have good quality of life with Mass Levitate being able to toss mobs around like Godzilla shaking a bouncy castle.

 

All of that being said, here's a fairly simple take to get your tinker tinkering.

 

This Hero build was built using Mids Reborn 3.4.7
https://github.com/LoadedCamel/MidsReborn

Click this DataLink to open the build!

I think I'm invincible therefore I win: Level 50 Technology Scrapper
Primary Power Set: Psionic Melee
Secondary Power Set: Regeneration
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Sorcery
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Fighting
Ancillary Pool: Soul Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Psi Blade

• (A) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Accuracy/Damage
• (31) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Damage/Recharge
• (33) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (33) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (34) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance/Recharge
• (34) Superior Scrapper's Strike - Recharge/Critical Hit Bonus

Level 1: Reconstruction

• (A) Panacea - Heal/Endurance
• (9) Panacea - Endurance/Recharge
• (9) Panacea - Heal/Recharge
• (11) Panacea - Heal/Endurance/Recharge
• (11) Panacea - Heal

Level 2: Telekinetic Blow

• (A) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage
• (34) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (36) Superior Blistering Cold - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (36) Superior Critical Strikes - RechargeTime/+50% Crit Proc
• (36) Force Feedback - Chance for +Recharge

Level 4: Quick Recovery

• (A) Performance Shifter - Chance for +End
• (5) Synapse's Shock - EndMod/Increased Run Speed
• (5) Synapse's Shock - EndMod
• (7) Synapse's Shock - EndMod/Recharge

Level 6: Hasten

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO
• (7) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 8: Psi Blade Sweep

• (A) Superior Avalanche - Recharge/Chance for Knockdown
• (40) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage
• (40) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (40) Superior Avalanche - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (42) Superior Avalanche - Damage/Endurance

Level 10: Concentration

• (A) Gaussian's Synchronized Fire-Control - Chance for Build Up

Level 12: Dull Pain

• (A) Panacea - Heal
• (13) Panacea - Heal/Endurance
• (13) Panacea - Endurance/Recharge
• (15) Panacea - Heal/Recharge
• (15) Panacea - Heal/Endurance/Recharge

Level 14: Mystic Flight

• (A) Winter's Gift - Slow Resistance (20%)

Level 16: Integration

• (A) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime/Endurance
• (17) Preventive Medicine - Heal
• (17) Preventive Medicine - Heal/Endurance
• (27) Preventive Medicine - Heal/RechargeTime

Level 18: Combat Jumping

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Increased Global Recharge Speed
• (19) Shield Wall - +Res (Teleportation), +5% Res (All)
• (19) Reactive Defenses - Scaling Resist Damage

Level 20: Resilience

• (A) Gladiator's Armor - TP Protection +3% Def (All)
• (21) Steadfast Protection - Resistance/+Def 3%
• (21) Unbreakable Guard - +Max HP
• (23) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance
• (23) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance
• (27) Unbreakable Guard - RechargeTime/Resistance

Level 22: Spirit Ward

• (A) Preventive Medicine - Chance for +Absorb

Level 24: Rune of Protection

• (A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance
• (25) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance
• (25) Unbreakable Guard - RechargeTime/Resistance

Level 26: Greater Psi Blade

• (A) Hecatomb - Chance of Damage(Negative)
• (42) Hecatomb - Damage/Endurance
• (42) Hecatomb - Recharge/Accuracy
• (43) Hecatomb - Damage/Recharge/Accuracy
• (43) Hecatomb - Damage/Recharge
• (43) Unbreakable Constraint - Chance for Smashing Damage

Level 28: Instant Healing

• (A) Panacea - Heal
• (29) Panacea - Heal/Endurance
• (29) Panacea - Endurance/Recharge
• (31) Panacea - Heal/Recharge
• (31) Panacea - Heal/Endurance/Recharge

Level 30: Mass Levitate

• (A) Armageddon - Chance for Fire Damage
• (37) Armageddon - Damage/Endurance
• (37) Armageddon - Recharge/Accuracy
• (37) Armageddon - Damage/Recharge/Accuracy
• (39) Armageddon - Damage/Recharge
• (39) Force Feedback - Chance for +Recharge

Level 32: Moment of Glory

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Increased Global Recharge Speed
• (33) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 35: Moonbeam

• (A) Superior Winter's Bite - Accuracy/Damage
• (46) Superior Winter's Bite - Damage/RechargeTime
• (46) Superior Winter's Bite - Accuracy/Damage/Endurance
• (46) Superior Winter's Bite - Accuracy/Damage/Recharge
• (48) Superior Winter's Bite - Damage/Endurance/Accuracy/RechargeTime
• (48) Cloud Senses - Chance for Negative Energy Damage

Level 38: Shadow Meld

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Increased Global Recharge Speed
• (39) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 41: Boxing

• (A) Superior Blistering Cold - Recharge/Chance for Hold
• (48) Superior Blistering Cold - Damage/Endurance/Accuracy/RechargeTime

Level 44: Tough

• (A) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance
• (45) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance
• (45) Unbreakable Guard - RechargeTime/Resistance
• (45) Unbreakable Guard - Resistance/Endurance/RechargeTime

Level 47: Weave

• (A) Luck of the Gambler - Defense/Increased Global Recharge Speed

Level 49: Revive

• (A) Recharge Reduction IO

Level 1: Brawl

• (A) Empty

Level 1: Critical Hit 

Level 1: Sprint

 

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Spoiler

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Edited February 17, 2023 by Spaghetti Betty

[lemming]

1 hour ago, Steyrharquebus said:

My intention is to do 1-50 solo and then start doing content with teams, so I'd prefer not to invest a whole lotta time into a powerset that will underperform in its maturity by default. Knowing that is can handle 1-50 solo is reassuring though.

 

I''ve also been considering a Psychic Blast/Regen Sentinel - Regen seems a little better on that AT - I just love those Psi Melee animations. Most people's endorsement of the powerset in general seems to be...lukewarm, to put it mildly, and on Scrappers is seems like the bottom of the barrell?

Regen on Sentinals is a better set and iirc, the Psi sentinel has slightly better range.  I might even try that combo for the next perma praetorian.

 

For my own 1-50 all content char, I'm doing a Bio/Energy Tank.  Paused for a bit, but now finishing off red level 19.  (Doing both sides)  Figure I'll be running this for some months.

[Captain Fabulous]

It all depends upon how difficult and/or enjoyable you want your play experience to be, and how complicated a build you want. Regen is broken, plain and simple. That some people can figure out ways to make it work using set/global IOs and various pool powers doesn't mean it's not in desperate need of attention and is vastly inferior to every other protection set. If your plan is to level up solo on +4/x8 I don't think you're going to find it all that much fun. But at -1 to +1 and a team size of 1-4 you'll probably be OK. I have a Regen Scrapper and Stalker and honestly they just aren't all that fun to play at higher levels/difficulties (tho I think the Stalker fares better than the Scrapper).

IMHO you should probably pick something else.

[Steyrharquebus]

16 minutes ago, Spaghetti Betty said:

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to put this build together; I really am very grateful!

 

Your rationale has also really got me thinking about how much I would enjoy the playstyle that Regen demands. I'm fine with a certain amount of squishiness for sure, but it sounds like Regen isn't for the faint of heart. I'd also really only be interested in taking the Body Mastery ancilliary (concept is king).

 

5 minutes ago, Captain Fabulous said:

It all depends upon how difficult and/or enjoyable you want your play experience to be, and how complicated a build you want. Regen is broken, plain and simple. That some people can figure out ways to make it work using set/global IOs and various pool powers doesn't mean it's not in desperate need of attention and is vastly inferior to every other protection set. If your plan is to level up solo on +4/x8 I don't think you're going to find it all that much fun. But at -1 to +1 and a team size of 1-4 you'll probably be OK. I have a Regen Scrapper and Stalker and honestly they just aren't all that fun to play at higher levels/difficulties (tho I think the Stalker fares better than the Scrapper).

IMHO you should probably pick something else.

I think you've really hit the nail on the head here. Character concept comes first for me, always. That said, I am not looking to make my slow solo journey to 50 any more arduous than it already will be. I thought I had struck gold with the Psi/Regen Scrapper combo but, as you say, Regen seems to be poorly optimised and several concessions need to be made elsewhere in order to make it a truly viable powerset.

I don't think I've really seen people speak (not just in this thread) about any other powerset, across any AT, so despondently. Regen really seems to have few redeeming qualities - at least as a Scrapper secondary.
 

[Yomo Kimyata]

Over the years I've come to believe that the perceived "problems" with regeneration are twofold.

 

1.  It used to be a lot better (and massively overpowered, which was why they changed it), and that is an inherited memory that many people have even if they have never played the set before.  "It sucks now because it was better then!"

2.  It requires a lot of active management.  That in and of itself is not terrible (so do bio and radiation armor, two fan faves) but the issue is not that the management helps you debuff things quicker or kill them faster.  The issue is that the management keeps you upright, and the perception is that any keystrokes that are "wasted" on survival rather than on killing faster are considered to be wastes.  You will, in fact, kill faster on most other sets than you will on regen.

 

It's a fine set, but one that is greatly rewarded by knowledge on the player's part.  Knowledge of how enemies work, knowledge of pool power sets, knowledge of the IO system.  Is it the best set in the world?  Probably not at this exact point in time, with the meta being damage oriented rather than survival oriented.

[Captain Fabulous]

56 minutes ago, Steyrharquebus said:

I don't think I've really seen people speak (not just in this thread) about any other powerset, across any AT, so despondently. Regen really seems to have few redeeming qualities - at least as a Scrapper secondary.
 

It was heavily nerfed, repeatedly, in the first year of the game (prior to ED), and it never got any significant improvements since. There have been no shortage of very good suggestions on how to improve the set without significantly changing its nature (I have made a few myself 💅), but the devs need to want to fix it. The closest we've gotten is the slightly reworked Sentinel version that most consider superior to the others. Honestly I find it just as underwhelming.

Willpower is the better option if you want a set that has +regen.

[Captain Fabulous]

59 minutes ago, Yomo Kimyata said:

Over the years I've come to believe that the perceived "problems" with regeneration are twofold.

 

1.  It used to be a lot better (and massively overpowered, which was why they changed it), and that is an inherited memory that many people have even if they have never played the set before.  "It sucks now because it was better then!"

2.  It requires a lot of active management.  That in and of itself is not terrible (so do bio and radiation armor, two fan faves) but the issue is not that the management helps you debuff things quicker or kill them faster.  The issue is that the management keeps you upright, and the perception is that any keystrokes that are "wasted" on survival rather than on killing faster are considered to be wastes.  You will, in fact, kill faster on most other sets than you will on regen.

 

It's a fine set, but one that is greatly rewarded by knowledge on the player's part.  Knowledge of how enemies work, knowledge of pool power sets, knowledge of the IO system.  Is it the best set in the world?  Probably not at this exact point in time, with the meta being damage oriented rather than survival oriented.

The problem with Regen is that it's a set that was designed for a game that hasn't existed since 2005. By every conceivable metric it is demonstrably inferior to every other protection set in the game. It *could* be a fine set with some tweaks, but as it currently exists, no, it's not a fine set, for all the very same reasons you listed.

[InvaderStych]

5 hours ago, Steyrharquebus said:

Is either true? Are both? If so, why?

 

Don't worry about it.  For a solo project that is content oriented you can basically make any Scrapper you want and it will do just fine.  Manage your expectations, if you're looking to do the entire run at +4x8 and burn down every AV in the MJ arc on your own, then maybe not with Regen.  If you just want to run content, check out missions, and read stuff you can - probably literally - run any combination in the entire game.  Hell, there's someone doing a blueside run using just Brawl.  Not every toon needs to be built to top-tier-up-to-the-minute-meta standards.  Game isn't built that way save for Hard Mode or other specific types of Challenge runs. (Old School Challenge, for example).

 

Some stuff to know about PM:

 

Psi Melee doesn't have much AoE even with Mass Lev coming earlier after the Page 5 update.  Running x8 with Psi Melee solo (without additional AoE) can be a slog anyway (damhik), so once you get into the mid 20s or so just set diff to like x4 or less and set relative level to whatever is most comfortable for your desired level of challenge. At later levels you can add more with Mu or Blaze mastery, or shoot for Shadow Meld if you want to be more durable.

 

Powers that are not boosted by Insight each have a variable chance to trigger it.  TKB is your highest chance to trigger it.  MS will outperform PB over time unless PB gets all three tics of Insight DoT.  GPB, once you get to 50 can slot two Rare (Purple) %Chance for DMG procs, and/or the %Absorb piece from the Winter Hold set.  I've only run the latter as a test, my Psi/SD gets more out of the %dmg pieces.  On /Regen the little absorb shield might be interesting.

 

This might be an interesting use case for Boggle.  I don't care for the way it interrupted the flow of my Psi/SD, but with Psi/Regen while solo where one is approaching encounters with more forethought than BU -> SC -> ML -> (slaugh... er defeat whatever is left) one might find interesting uses for it.

 

Don't sleep on the Hold in GPB.  I added a pair of %Hold IOs to my Psi/SD's attack chain on a whim and it is hilarious to have a Scrapper with enough Hold power to lock down an AV when its purple triangles of doom are down.  The duration of the Hold in GPB gets a massive boost when Insight is up; that's what makes this possible.

 

If you've got the budget, throwing some of the standard unique IOs onto the build would be a good idea and increase the difficulty you could play at. At the very least Prioritize getting Crit Strikes +50% after crossing level 10.  This can be easily done by racking up a few Reward Merits, cashing them in for Boosters or Converters, and then selling those on the auction house. I never did find a place on my toon where I was completely happy with the placement, but when Insight is up and GPB gets a Critical the damage is just ludicrous. Crits from Mass Lev are also very good. Definitely a piece worth prioritizing, even if every other slot on the toon is filled with SOs.

 

 

Edited February 17, 2023 by InvaderStych
clarity and missing words

[Yomo Kimyata]

Regeneration as a set has four things going for it:  regeneration (passive healing), active healing (reconstruction, dull pain, instant healing), endurance recovery out the wazoo, and two built in oh-shit buttons (MoG and Instant healing so long as you don't wait too late before activating it).  Psionic Melee has three things going for it:  insight mechanics for extra damage, -rech on many attacks (which I don't find useful unless you can stack it with other effects), knockup from Mass Levitate and Telekinetic Blow.

 

A problem some have with Regen is that they don't feel they have a decent window to activate their heals when they are in danger.  Once you get Mass Levitate (which to me completely changes my play at 26), you will now have a few seconds to heal up, either directly or indirectly, before your enemies are able to attack you again.

[SomeGuy]

To answer the subject line's question I'll ask another question...

 

Why do you think the best melee players in the game fervently avoid the regen secondary?

 

People don't get that the best mitigation is layered. And then prioritize stats:

 

Defense (not get hit) - Resistance (get hit for less) - More HP (this also increases regen btw)) - then wayyyyy behind those is regen, or HP/s.

 

When you have a resistance based set that can soft-cap defense it is going to be really hard to kill (or vice versa). Combine that with a Tanker and it's crazy high HP and whoo boy.

 

Psi Melee is neat. It has some fun gimmicks. I just wouldn't pair it with regen since when you hit 50 you are for sure going to scrap it since regen just does NOT scale a fraction as well as any other set.

 

My first 50 was claws/regen. I tried my damndest to make it decent all the way until shutdown (I started playing in issue 2). The only saving grace was the claws part of that combo.

Edited February 18, 2023 by SomeGuy

[Steyrharquebus]

I just wanted to thank everyone for their measured and thoughtful responses to my question. I'm especially grateful to @Spaghetti Betty for taking the time to create and post a build that I could play with on the test server.

After much consideration, I have decided to give Regen a wide berth. I'm certain it has its merits, but it just seems to kind of suck.

 

Thank you again!

[Sir Myshkin]

Pishaw! Regen is awesome! Don't listen to any of them! I did (more or less) exactly what you're talking about doing with a Titan/Regen, even more so in the principle that it was deemed the riskiest option with Titan Weapon's animation lengths out of momentum (or even then just getting lost in momentum moments). I can roll around with that character in +4/x8 content pretty willy-nilly without much care in the world, and he is able to solo some of Linea's fabled 801 content at +2 (which for a Regen is well enough).

 

It does take some commitment to get used to the timing and pattern of things, sure; I've got Shadow Meld > MoG > Shadow Meld > Instant Healing > SM > MoG > SM > Rebirth on recycle with SM in other areas as may be needed, Dull Pain on 'auto' and Reconstruction... well I often forget it ever exists because it doesn't get used that often. But this is all if I need to. I can run through Council missions all day long on my base stats and regen and never look back, so the content can play a part too.

[Captain Fabulous]

32 minutes ago, Sir Myshkin said:

Pishaw! Regen is awesome! Don't listen to any of them! I did (more or less) exactly what you're talking about doing with a Titan/Regen, even more so in the principle that it was deemed the riskiest option with Titan Weapon's animation lengths out of momentum (or even then just getting lost in momentum moments). I can roll around with that character in +4/x8 content pretty willy-nilly without much care in the world, and he is able to solo some of Linea's fabled 801 content at +2 (which for a Regen is well enough).

 

It does take some commitment to get used to the timing and pattern of things, sure; I've got Shadow Meld > MoG > Shadow Meld > Instant Healing > SM > MoG > SM > Rebirth on recycle with SM in other areas as may be needed, Dull Pain on 'auto' and Reconstruction... well I often forget it ever exists because it doesn't get used that often. But this is all if I need to. I can run through Council missions all day long on my base stats and regen and never look back, so the content can play a part too.

Now do it without Shadow Meld and any +defense IO sets. 😲

[kelika2]

games so easy 1000 character slots jusburself

 

but regen sucks on a mechanical level.  even with max hp and max regen you can still go down easily

[Doomguide2005]

Yes, go for it.

Pretty much any AT in this game can solo the vast majority of normal content and quite a bit of 'harder' stuff.  If my Empath can solo Cimeroran maps on what was then called Invincible with early IO sets and no incarnate abilities I'm pretty sure any scrapper can do it.

 

The biggest issue as such is a lot of Regeneration's mitigation in its power set happens after you're hit.  With most sets most of the mitigation occurs prior to damage being dealt.  Their regeneration and healing is generally far weaker than what Regeneration is capable of doing (even without its active clicks).  And that's one reason my Empaths could handle Invincible.  Once they fired off Regeneration Aura they were much harder to kill.

[ClawsandEffect]

My main was a claws/regen for 7 years. Some of you old timers might remember me from the forums back then. 

 

In order to be successful with /regen, you really need to know what the enemies can do. -recharge will get a /regen killed faster than anything else, especially since the things that do it are difficult to get defense to from set bonuses. Back in the day I was arguably the most successful /regen scrapper on my server (Pinnacle, so big fish/small pond), and it was entirely because I knew exactly what every enemy I was facing was going to throw at me. 

 

I had also managed to softcap S/L defense, which covered probably 70% of the attacks most enemies threw at you. Most of the time that defense was enough that my stupid high passive regen could carry me through most fights. 

 

Major caveat here: This was after playing the character consistently for 7 years and a LOT of trial and error with getting the build just right. I did not start out that good by any stretch of the imagination. It also meant I was not killing things as fast as other scrappers, because I dedicated so much of my build to keeping me on my feet. I justified that to myself with the knowledge that a living scrapper kills 100% faster than a dead one. 

 

Regen can be good, but pretty much every other set is better with the same level of investment. That much is true. 

 

Come to think of it, I kinda want to try and build a Regen to that level again. The good sets are so much more accessible now than they were when I did it before, and ATOs didn't even exist yet. 

 

Challenge accepted. 

 

 

[Blackjoy]

I realize the OP may have already made up their mind, but I'll add some perspective.  I've played /WP /Regen/ /SR up to 50 and am now doing /Rad at lvl 40.  I've solo'd this toons with non-Set IO's and no Tough/Weave/Combat Jumping.   At level 50I I've run ITF and other TFS.

 

On 2/17/2023 at 9:05 AM, Steyrharquebus said:

I'm considering making a Psi/Regen Scrapper with whom to complete all 1-50 Blueside content (solo)

 

I can tell you, unequivocally, if you want to solo from 1-50 and you actually want to play those levels and do content, /Regen is by far your best choice.   /Regen will fall off after 40 due to debuffs, but if you want to invest in Set IOs, you can compensate.   If you want to do solo 4x8, then go /Shield or /Rad and be prepared to spend around 200-500m on a build.  /Invul is probably really good on some mobs, but Psi and Toxic will be problematic.  You can do pretty well running /SR, but Shield and /Rad have higher ceilings.  The best build I've seen is /Rad.  If you want to solo +4 AV's, don't go /SR.    

 

For anyone who reads scrapper threads and is looking for people giving advice on primaries or secondaries, one thing that you have to recognize is that 97% of the opinions  you hear, are about what happens at lvl 50.  The experience people have with the 50+ content is what dominates the popular opinions, this includes the trashing on /Regen.   If you are more about the journey to 50, then most of the advice on these forums is demonstratively wrong.  If you want to power level to 50 and solo 4x8 content, then the opinions on the forums are more instructive.

 

On 2/17/2023 at 11:36 AM, Spaghetti Betty said:

Regen is an interesting case. A lot of the criticisms leveraged at it have merit, but it can also be underestimated. It's a set that relies completely on your reaction time and precognition during combat. If you're wanting a "set and forget" powerset, this ain't it.

 

One thing to consider when rolling a Regen is not necessarily what is already available in your toolkit, but what you can pull from other sources in order to bolster your defenses so that Reconstruction and Instant Healing become important padding instead of perceived critical mitigation tools. Things like Rune of Protection, Unleash Potential, Shadow Meld, etc. that offer massive protection for a short time will be vital.

 

Another big piece of the puzzle that is Regen is Slow Resistance. You need your clicks to come back, so if mobs are debuffing your recharge, you're gonna be in a bad spot.

 

The last thing to consider is various forms of soft control that are present in your chosen Melee. Luckily, you'll have good quality of life with Mass Levitate being able to toss mobs around like Godzilla shaking a bouncy castle.

 

 

This is probably the most accurate understanding of /Regen that I've seen on these forums.

On 2/17/2023 at 12:36 PM, Yomo Kimyata said:

2.  It requires a lot of active management. 

This is also accurate and it is one reason to not like /Regen.  Unlike /WP or /Shield, which you can put on cruise control.  /Regen has to be driven. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood for it.

 

On 2/17/2023 at 12:36 PM, Yomo Kimyata said:

You will, in fact, kill faster on most other sets than you will on regen.

This is actually false until other sets solve their endurance problems.  /Regen is the fastest killing set when it comes to clearing a missions because of the endurance.   You can't kill things when you have no endurance.   But around 40+ when sets can solve their endurance issues, other sets will give more benefit to killing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[aethereal]

It's weird to act like Regen has some kind of great endurance management that's a big advantage.  That was once the case, but it hasn't been true for a long time.

 

Bio gets Inexhaustible as its second-tier power, which is more +recovery than Regen gets if you're in Efficient mode.  It also gets DNA Siphon at level 24.

Electric gets Energize at 20 and Power Sink at 28

Energy Aura gets Energize at 24 and Energy Drain at 28

Fiery Aura gets Consume at 20

Ice Armor gets Energy Absorption at 20

Ninjutsu gets Seishinteki Kyoyo at 16

Radiation Armor gets Gamma Boost at level 1 (and Meltdown at 30)

Stone Armor gets Crystal Armor at 20 (and Geode at 30)

Willpower gets Quick Recovery at 20

 

Armor sets that don't have endurance tools are vastly outnumbered by those that do (just SR, Invul, Dark, and Shield don't), and many of the armor sets have significantly better endurance tools than Quick Recovery.  Most (but not all!) armors get their endurance tools a little later than Regen, but in return they get better tools and with the latest page, they get them a bunch of levels earlier than they used to.

[Blackjoy]

2 hours ago, aethereal said:

It's weird to act like Regen has some kind of great endurance management that's a big advantage.  That was once the case, but it hasn't been true for a long time.

It was true then and it still true now.   The advantage that /Regen has is that it only has one toggle.  And that toggle serves as both its Mez protection and extra +Heal.  The other sets you mention run one or more toggles and/or have click Mez protection.  I've been running /Rad and it doesn't have near the efficiency of /Regen.  I've had to slot Gamma Boost with End Mod and I still run out of endurance in boss fights.    /Regen wastes the least amount endurance on mitigation.  

 

Now, if you're bankrolling your alts from level 1 and running with full time temp powers buffs, then you might do better than most.  But I'm assuming you're buying what you can afford from just playing from 1-20.

 

And again, by lvl 50, everyone seems to solve their endurance issues with Set IO.  For /Regen's to keep up, you have to find sets that give something else and I'm not sure there is an equivalency.   /Regen would have to get that much extra  +RES or +DEF instead of +Recovery and I'm not sure if it's out there.