Focused Feedback: Storm Blast

[WindDemon21]

55 minutes ago, biostem said:

Unless those 2 powers aren't able to benefit from acc slotting, then 1.1 should be fine - you should, after all, have to slot for acc in powers that you want to actually hit higher level enemies...

I mean, that's not true as we've already discussed. 1.1 is enough for up to about +2s maybe but beyond that you have to slot a lot of accuracy for it to hit higher, and won't help any bit with enemies with defenses. Plus the main issue too where they can't really benefit from most combos who don't have a long duration to hit since they're pseudopets. It's definitely going to be noticeable when fighting +3s and 4s, and as a result will also mean you're going to have to get a ton more accuracy slotted than most other builds/powers have to deal with exhausting the slot issue even more on them. 1.1 is definitely not enough for these two powers. Really hoping this is upped before this hits live.

[biostem]

3 minutes ago, WindDemon21 said:

won't help any bit with enemies with defenses.

Patently false;  Players routinely use powers with 1.0 or lower base acc against higher level enemies all the time.  You want it to hit +4s reliably?  Gonna have to invest in those acc slots.

 

3 minutes ago, WindDemon21 said:

main issue too where they can't really benefit from most combos who don't have a long duration to hit since they're pseudopets

That I can agree with;  If they are going to permit various IO set slotting, but can't benefit from them, then that needs to be looked at.

 

3 minutes ago, WindDemon21 said:

you're going to have to get a ton more accuracy slotted than most other builds/powers have to deal with

See my 1st point;  There are many other powers with a lower base acc that get used against +4s all the time.

 

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by biostem

[WindDemon21]

1 minute ago, biostem said:

Patently false;  Players routinely use powers with 1.0 or lower base acc against higher level enemies all the time.  You want it to hit +4s reliably?  Gonna have to invest in those acc slots.

 

That I can agree with;  If they are going to permit various IO set slotting, but can't benefit from them, then that needs to be looked at.

 

See my 1st point;  There are many other powers with a lower base acc that get used against +4s all the time.

 

 

I mean beyond what you can slot, obviously SLOTTING accuracy into the power will help it hit, but it's not enough since for most combos that is the only source of helping the power you can do. Players with 1.0 base hit all the time, BECAUSE they have bonuses, tactics, kismet unique, aim, build up, and other stuff. NONE of which will be able to help these two powers because they are long duration pseudopets and most sets don't have access to anything that can help those out in the long run for each.

 

You are VERY much missing that point that set bonuses, kismet, tactics and such, won't carry over to these two powers, so they for most combos ONLY have their base acc+slotting.

[Puma]

Ok, so I rerolled, thinking maybe my concerns with end and complexity were due to being a Corruptor with a secondary that really didn't offer any passive buffs.  I decided to try Storm Blast/Energy Manip Blaster, because I thought it had the best ways to mitigate my concerns with the set from previous testing: it offered excellent endurance cost reduction, allowed for an AoE Stun that would help with the Cat 5 mitigation issue, and even allowed for Boost Range so I could stay far away from Storm Cell and Cat 5 and blast from a distance where it should lower incoming damage.  I levelled it up to level 50, fully slotted with sets that I would usually slot with, used Mace Master patron pool for the added defense which would pair well with power boost, and had alpha slotted to tier 4 so I was actually 50 (+1) and ran the first Maria Jenkins mission at +2x4, which is a very normal for even a mid tier build at that level.  

 

The end cost of Storm cell WAS better.  It didn't bother me much at all at that level.  So that's good.  And I was able to clear through the mobs rather easily by starting off dropping Storm Cell, then using boost range +power boost and stun to stun the mobs, then dropping Cat 5 and attacking with storm cell attacks.  It wasn't "fast" but it worked, and relatively safely.   Slower and more difficult than most blaster primaries, where you quickly nova and then clean up the stragglers and hard hitters, but it was working and I could see me doing it on a character on live. 

 

When it came to the AV, I faceplanted twice. I never got him below about 80% HP.  But it's an AV, and I wasn't as experienced with this set as normal, so maybe I just needed to slow down, right?  So...I lowered the difficulty to +1x4, so even con with me.    And I still faceplanted twice.  I really couldn't handle the AV.  The problem I kept finding was the same as before:  there is a DEFINITE tax on Storm Cell AND Cat 5, and it goes beyond the Endurance cost which is the problem at low levels.  There is also a tax on the use of your secondary powers. 

 

Storm Cell and Cat 5 require you to keep spamming your primary attacks for them to really do damage, which you need desperately against higher level enemies since none of the single target attacks are actually very powerful.  They look AWESOME, but they're almost all DoT and not really heavy hitters.  Every time I went to use a secondary power like Stun or Total Focus, I felt like I was losing damage because then Storm Cell wasn't doing anything but minor debuffing.   "But how is that different than ANY powerset" you ask? Easy.  If this were a normal AoE, I'd fire and it would do its full damage, regardless of what I do next.  If I fire off Explosive Blast it does its full damage even if I switch to Ice Sword afterward, and then drop an Ice patch.  If I drop Rain of Fire, it does its full damage even if my next attack is The Lotus Drops.   With this set, if I take time to fire off a secondary attack, then Storm Cell's total damage output is lowered.   It makes using secondary powers of ANY kind cost more than just their end cost.  They cost damage loss from the AoE attack in your primary.  And if you have Cat 5 going too, it's even worse.  That's a problem. A big one, for me at least.  Defenders, who struggle to do damage as it is, now have a primary that does even less damage if they stop to heal someone or buff them etc.  

 

:My final thoughts: as of now, anyway, are that the set's design is really cool, but really flawed.   If it was either cat 5 OR storm cell that had the weird mechanic tied to the other attacks it might be bearable; but with BOTH of them requiring your other attacks for THEM to really function to their potential, it makes the set more difficult to utilize fully and makes your secondary powers feel like a burden to use that costs you.   Right now, I'd skip this set on live for anything other than a role player toon, or maybe a sentinel that has a secondary armor set that doesn't require any active power use.  

 

Changes I suggest are needed:  

1.  Storm Cell REALLY needs to be different in how it functions. If you really want to have it tied to your other attacks, have an attack in storm cell work sort of like "bloom" in Nature.   Each attack in the cell creates a stack of Intensity that lasts for 5 seconds, which triggers the storm to start attacking.  Each stack increases the storm's attack rate, accuracy, and debuff power. The more stacks you have the higher the damage/debuff of the storm.  Have it cap at 4 stacks of "intensity" which gives maximum attack rate and debuff, and I'd suggest making that maximum be about 10-20% higher than current levels would be if you spammed attacks.  Then have Intensify version of AIM grant the normal To Hit and Damage bonus, and  4 stacks of Intensity to the player.   This way you still can lay the storm without aggro until you start attacking, but once you start, you can still throw in secondary powers as you fight without the storm then becoming useless while you do.  This would also allow lower levels to use things like blue insps, or end boost powers, etc.  while the storm keeps attacking so you aren't feeling like you've left some of the damage on the table or let mobs get away while you do.  You can pace your attacks better without feeling like Storm Cell is weakening instantly. 

  

2.  Some of the single target attacks need to hit harder, and it needs fewer DoTs.  There is no way to take down an AV with this set right now, which is crazy to me on a blaster.  When you have a lock out on the attacks from Storm Cell and rest of your attacks attacks aren't hard hitters, the AVs can just regen faster than you can dish out damage unless you're using powers your secondary which deal more damage, only as discussed above, that means storm cell isn't doing any damage while you do so, so you basically end up with NO heavy hitters in your  primary against these kinds of targets.  

 

I think if you did these two things, it would probably be OK.  Right now, for me, it really just isn't fun...and damn do I want it to be, because I love the visuals and concept.  

I'm sorry, I'm sure this is frustrating to hear this this close to launch, but it's my experience, and I've tried it now on several combinations and multiple archetypes and keep coming back to the same problems.  

Edited April 25, 2023 by Puma

[biostem]

12 minutes ago, WindDemon21 said:

You are VERY much missing that point that set bonuses, kismet, tactics and such, won't carry over to these two powers, so they for most combos ONLY have their base acc+slotting.

I have a few level 50 characters with ONLY generic IOs and NO tactics, and they take part in end-game content without issue.  If you think that the only way to hit +4s is with set bonuses, then YOU are very much mistaken.  I've already stated my agreement that if the powers cannot benefit from set bonuses, then that need to be looked into further...

[WindDemon21]

1 minute ago, biostem said:

I have a few level 50 characters with ONLY generic IOs and NO tactics, and they take part in end-game content without issue.  If you think that the only way to hit +4s is with set bonuses, then YOU are very much mistaken.  I've already stated my agreement that if the powers cannot benefit from set bonuses, then that need to be looked into further...

I never said it was the only way, I said it was part of something that helps.

 

As does tactics (which end game stuff lots of teammates will have tactics as well to help YOU hit, but they will not help these pseudopets hit).

 

As does even just aim and build up which won't help for more than 6-8 seconds on it. Other powers and combos CAN do so because there are other abilities that help you. None of which as mentioned will really carry over to these pseudopets.

 

Going back to the main statement, having a higher base acc on these powers is NOT going to change anything to OP them, but just help them compete in line with other blast sets, but not increasing the base accuracy is most definitely going to hurt most storm combos. And I really don't want to feel straddled to having to pair storm with those few combos that offer enough help on that front to make a difference to hit what every other blast set can do.

[Saiyajinzoningen]

Hey guys there's a lot of pages here so i apologize if this has been asked, addressed answered and or discussed already. I've noticed the new storm power effects are affected by other abilities. Will choosing the storm secondary also affect the effects of the storm assault powerset? 

[Glorificus]

Did a bit more testing today and I absolutely agree with Puma.

 

The clearing speed and DPS output of this blast set feels lacking.  I think given the lockout seconds between Storm Cell's focused/spread/split Lightning, the damage on those lightning strikes need to be upped significantly - like the Focused lightning should do as much as the Snipe power's damage, the Split do as much as the Tier 8 attack's damage, and the Spread Lightning strike should do at least as much as the T2 attack's damage at minimum. 

 

[LordTenma]

On 4/5/2023 at 4:51 PM, Wravis said:

One step closer to wind control, I guess.

Still surprised they don't have it but rebirth does.

[kwsapphire]

2 hours ago, Saiyajinzoningen said:

Hey guys there's a lot of pages here so i apologize if this has been asked, addressed answered and or discussed already. I've noticed the new storm power effects are affected by other abilities. Will choosing the storm secondary also affect the effects of the storm assault powerset? 

 

No, powers from Storm Summoning (the buff/debuff set) do not interact with Storm Cell and Category 5 from Storm Blast. I am still going to make a Storm Blast/Storm Summoning Corruptor for thematic reasons. 🙂

Edited April 25, 2023 by kwsapphire

[ScarySai]

2 hours ago, Saiyajinzoningen said:

Hey guys there's a lot of pages here so i apologize if this has been asked, addressed answered and or discussed already. I've noticed the new storm power effects are affected by other abilities. Will choosing the storm secondary also affect the effects of the storm assault powerset? 

No synergies are present this time.

[WindDemon21]

2 hours ago, Glorificus said:

Did a bit more testing today and I absolutely agree with Puma.

 

The clearing speed and DPS output of this blast set feels lacking.  I think given the lockout seconds between Storm Cell's focused/spread/split Lightning, the damage on those lightning strikes need to be upped significantly - like the Focused lightning should do as much as the Snipe power's damage, the Split do as much as the Tier 8 attack's damage, and the Spread Lightning strike should do at least as much as the T2 attack's damage at minimum. 

 

Or remove the lockouts..

[Puma]

8 hours ago, WindDemon21 said:

Or remove the lockouts..

Removing the lockouts would help, but it doesn't alter the "tax" this set imposes on the use of your secondary powers, which no other set in the game has.  The fact that the set is relatively weak without Storm Cell and Cat 5 at full strength only makes that tax heavier.  

 

Lemme show you a comparison between this set and Ice Blast:

 

Side by Side comparison

Power (Ice)	Cast time	DMG	Power (Storm)	Cast Time	DMG
Ice Bolt	1 sec	62.56	Gust	1.17	75.07 (DoT)
Ice Blast	1.67	102.6	Hail Stones	1.67	102.60 (DoT)
Frost Breath	2.67	87.59 (DoT)	Jet Stream	1.67	50.05
Aim	---	---	Storm Cell	2.03	Dependent on cont. attacks from primary
Freeze Ray	1.0	137.64	Intensify	----	-----
Ice Storm	2.03	116.78 (DoT)	Direct Strike (snipe)	3.33	281.53
Bitter Ice Blast	1.07	142.64	Chain Lightning	1.17	76.45 (DoT)
Bitter Freeze Ray	172.67	2.5	Cloud Burst	1.67	142.33
Blizzard	2.03	417.8 (DoT)	Category 5	2.5	316.98 (Dependent on cont. attacks from primary)

 

 

As you can see above, Storm Cell has a lot less direct damage potential, especially in regard to hard hitting attacks, outside of Storm Cell and Cat 5.  It does include the snipe, but otherwise, it only has -ONE- other attack that does over 110 points of damage, and only has two other "AoE" powers (Chain Lightning and Jet Stream), both of which aren't big damage numbers themselves outside of the storm cell.  That really means you need to up the damage of Storm Cell and keep it up and get Cat 5 amped up as quick as possible. Which makes using your secondary powers a detriment.   

 

So lets look at that in real world action against an AV or Pylon, etc.  We'll go with Dark Manip Secondary.  

 

With Ice Blast, I can toss Ice Storm And Blizzard which immediately start dealing their full damage potential and debuffs, and then cycle through Freeze Ray (137), Bitter Ice Blast (142), Bitter Freeze Ray (172.67) and then throw in Midnight Grasp (180) .  When necessary for end or damage boost, I could use Soul Drain and Dark Consumption. In cycles where I'm not using Soul Drain or Dark Consumption, I'd do a total of  631.67 dmg per cycle OUTSIDE of my AoEs with no penalty to their total damage/debuff output.  And honestly, the SMART attack chain would be to START with Soul Drain because then ALL of those attacks are doing a TON more damage in the fight.  

With Storm Blast, I can toss Storm Cell and Cat 5, which don't start doing thier real damage until I start attacking with primaries.  So I start...But I really only have three attacks over 100 dmg points to cycle through:  Direct Strike (180 since it would be fast cast), Cloud Burst (142.33), and Hail Stones (102).  I cycle through those but then if I add in Midnight Grasp (180) that weakens my Storm Cell since it doesn't trigger the additional attacks.  And I assume three primary attacks are enough to full ramp up Cat 5?  I dont quite know how to tell.   Oh, and lets not forget that if I'm fighting an AV, there's a lock out between attacks from the cell anyway, so while Ice Storm continues to pelt away at him, Storm Cell and Cat 5 may not.  Now, If I start with Soul Drain after I drop the Storm Cell to boost the damage of the rest of my attacks up front, my storm cell isn't doing anything, and Cat 5 isn't amping up either.   So I probably won't do that, because I'd be aggroing the whole mob then stand there for 5 seconds dropping Storm Cell and Cat 5 with no real damage going on.  So I take Soul Drain out of the equation till later in the fight, at which point it is, again, seconds where I'm not getting the full benefit of Storm Cell as I use it.   So in this method I have somewhere around 30-40 less pts of dmg per cycle, but also less AoE damage going because unlike Ice storm and Hurricane, my AoEs require me boosting them with my other attacks, and I'm taking time out of that to use the heaviest hitter I have from my secondary since my primary really only has 2.  I suppose, theoretically, you could use the secondary powers during the "lock outs" where those powers cant hit the AV, but it's impossible to tell when that is or plan for that since the powers are, by design, "chance of" anyway.  

 

The point is, the set is already mild WITHOUT Storm Cell and Cat 5 being full strength, so if you go into your secondary for anything it feels like it  just makes you weaker.  And based on my experience, while this is OK against normal mobs and the visuals and chaos are fun, against harder targets like AVS it really suffers.   This is why I REALLY think the primary attacks boosts to Storm Cell need to "linger" even after the attack, giving you a chance to do other things without feeling like it's wasting potential there.  I really think an "Intensified" effect like "bloom" would help, and get rid of the lockout.  

 

Now...there are some archetypes (Sentinels) and some secondary sets (Storm) that can make up for this but doing their thing on their own and freeing you up to totally focus on boosting Storm Cell and Cat 5, but I don't think we want a powerset that really locks you into a very limited set of options to perform as well as most other sets can generally, do we? 

 

 

Edited April 25, 2023 by Puma

[Isulkian]

1 hour ago, Puma said:

Removing the lockouts would help, but it doesn't alter the "tax" this set imposes on the use of your secondary powers, which no other set in the game has.  The fact that the set is relatively weak without Storm Cell and Cat 5 at full strength only makes that tax heavier.  

 

Lemme show you a comparison between this set and Ice Blast:

 

Side by Side comparison

Power (Ice)	Cast time	DMG	Power (Storm)	Cast Time	DMG
Ice Bolt	1 sec	62.56	Gust	1.17	75.07 (DoT)
Ice Blast	1.67	102.6	Hail Stones	1.67	102.60 (DoT)
Frost Breath	2.67	87.59 (DoT)	Jet Stream	1.67	50.05
Aim	---	---	Storm Cell	2.03	Dependent on cont. attacks from primary
Freeze Ray	1.0	137.64	Intensify	----	-----
Ice Storm	2.03	116.78 (DoT)	Direct Strike (snipe)	3.33	281.53
Bitter Ice Blast	1.07	142.64	Chain Lightning	1.17	76.45 (DoT)
Bitter Freeze Ray	172.67	2.5	Cloud Burst	1.67	142.33
Blizzard	2.03	417.8 (DoT)	Category 5	2.5	316.98 (Dependent on cont. attacks from primary)

 

 

As you can see above, Storm Cell has a lot less direct damage potential, especially in regard to hard hitting attacks, outside of Storm Cell and Cat 5.  It does include the snipe, but otherwise, it only has -ONE- other attack that does over 110 points of damage, and only has two other "AoE" powers (Chain Lightning and Jet Stream), both of which aren't big damage numbers themselves outside of the storm cell.  That really means you need to up the damage of Storm Cell and keep it up and get Cat 5 amped up as quick as possible. Which makes using your secondary powers a detriment.   

 

So lets look at that in real world action against an AV or Pylon, etc.  We'll go with Dark Manip Secondary.  

 

With Ice Blast, I can toss Ice Storm And Blizzard which immediately start dealing their full damage potential and debuffs, and then cycle through Freeze Ray (137), Bitter Ice Blast (142), Bitter Freeze Ray (172.67) and then throw in Midnight Grasp (180) .  When necessary for end or damage boost, I could use Soul Drain and Dark Consumption. In cycles where I'm not using Soul Drain or Dark Consumption, I'd do a total of  631.67 dmg per cycle OUTSIDE of my AoEs with no penalty to their total damage/debuff output.  And honestly, the SMART attack chain would be to START with Soul Drain because then ALL of those attacks are doing a TON more damage in the fight.  

With Storm Blast, I can toss Storm Cell and Cat 5, which don't start doing thier real damage until I start attacking with primaries.  So I start...But I really only have three attacks over 100 dmg points to cycle through:  Direct Strike (180 since it would be fast cast), Cloud Burst (142.33), and Hail Stones (102).  I cycle through those but then if I add in Midnight Grasp (180) that weakens my Storm Cell since it doesn't trigger the additional attacks.  And I assume three primary attacks are enough to full ramp up Cat 5?  I dont quite know how to tell.   Oh, and lets not forget that if I'm fighting an AV, there's a lock out between attacks from the cell anyway, so while Ice Storm continues to pelt away at him, Storm Cell and Cat 5 may not.  Now, If I start with Soul Drain after I drop the Storm Cell to boost the damage of the rest of my attacks up front, my storm cell isn't doing anything, and Cat 5 isn't amping up either.   So I probably won't do that, because I'd be aggroing the whole mob then stand there for 5 seconds dropping Storm Cell and Cat 5 with no real damage going on.  So I take Soul Drain out of the equation till later in the fight, at which point it is, again, seconds where I'm not getting the full benefit of Storm Cell as I use it.   So in this method I have somewhere around 30-40 less pts of dmg per cycle, but also less AoE damage going because unlike Ice storm and Hurricane, my AoEs require me boosting them with my other attacks, and I'm taking time out of that to use the heaviest hitter I have from my secondary since my primary really only has 2.  I suppose, theoretically, you could use the secondary powers during the "lock outs" where those powers cant hit the AV, but it's impossible to tell when that is or plan for that since the powers are, by design, "chance of" anyway.  

 

The point is, the set is already mild WITHOUT Storm Cell and Cat 5 being full strength, so if you go into your secondary for anything it feels like it  just makes you weaker.  And based on my experience, while this is OK against normal mobs and the visuals and chaos are fun, against harder targets like AVS it really suffers.   This is why I REALLY think the primary attacks boosts to Storm Cell need to "linger" even after the attack, giving you a chance to do other things without feeling like it's wasting potential there.  I really think an "Intensified" effect like "bloom" would help, and get rid of the lockout.  

 

Now...there are some archetypes (Sentinels) and some secondary sets (Storm) that can make up for this but doing their thing on their own and freeing you up to totally focus on boosting Storm Cell and Cat 5, but I don't think we want a powerset that really locks you into a very limited set of options to perform as well as most other sets can generally, do we? 

 

 

Could nt agree more.

This set is definitly not ready for realease imo.

After the WOW effect, the flows would appear quickly and generate frsutration.  the concept of the set is really nice but the consequencies haven t been studied enough. 

many things should be rethink. I like your idea "intensified" idea; and the removal of lockouts would have the benefit to erase the issue of multiple blast storm user in the same team.

 

[Sovera]

2 hours ago, Puma said:

So lets look at that in real world action against an AV or Pylon, etc.  We'll go with Dark Manip Secondary. 

 

I was interested when you mentioned pylons and AVs because of prospective numbers. But then you veered into maths.

 

 

Not aimed at Puma but it would be interesting to have more numbers posted. Back in the Fire Armor tuning page after each patch I'd either hit some pylons or do a Trapdoor and report on my findings. I feel this to be a bit lacking with Storm testing currently.

 

On one hand we've had some mention of Blasters killing it in Trapdoor (under three minutes) but was that because of Storm or despite Storm? Blasters are a mixed bag for these tests because Storm is pretty defensive so it gives them leeway to go ham with their secondaries.

 

But any other AT that has access to it lacks a damaging secondary. And yes, I know, Storm Summoning is there, but despite the brouhaha about it being so amazing it's a slow DoT based low numbers set. What it does great is adding bonus damage on top of the blast set, but no one will go around using Storm Summoning and expect to kill mobs at any decent clip without the help of their blast set.

 

 

Not to mistake Storm Summoning with this thread's Storm Blast.

[WindDemon21]

4 hours ago, Puma said:

Removing the lockouts would help, but it doesn't alter the "tax" this set imposes on the use of your secondary powers, which no other set in the game has.  The fact that the set is relatively weak without Storm Cell and Cat 5 at full strength only makes that tax heavier.  

 

Lemme show you a comparison between this set and Ice Blast:

 

Side by Side comparison

Power (Ice)	Cast time	DMG	Power (Storm)	Cast Time	DMG
Ice Bolt	1 sec	62.56	Gust	1.17	75.07 (DoT)
Ice Blast	1.67	102.6	Hail Stones	1.67	102.60 (DoT)
Frost Breath	2.67	87.59 (DoT)	Jet Stream	1.67	50.05
Aim	---	---	Storm Cell	2.03	Dependent on cont. attacks from primary
Freeze Ray	1.0	137.64	Intensify	----	-----
Ice Storm	2.03	116.78 (DoT)	Direct Strike (snipe)	3.33	281.53
Bitter Ice Blast	1.07	142.64	Chain Lightning	1.17	76.45 (DoT)
Bitter Freeze Ray	172.67	2.5	Cloud Burst	1.67	142.33
Blizzard	2.03	417.8 (DoT)	Category 5	2.5	316.98 (Dependent on cont. attacks from primary)

 

 

As you can see above, Storm Cell has a lot less direct damage potential, especially in regard to hard hitting attacks, outside of Storm Cell and Cat 5.  It does include the snipe, but otherwise, it only has -ONE- other attack that does over 110 points of damage, and only has two other "AoE" powers (Chain Lightning and Jet Stream), both of which aren't big damage numbers themselves outside of the storm cell.  That really means you need to up the damage of Storm Cell and keep it up and get Cat 5 amped up as quick as possible. Which makes using your secondary powers a detriment.   

 

So lets look at that in real world action against an AV or Pylon, etc.  We'll go with Dark Manip Secondary.  

 

With Ice Blast, I can toss Ice Storm And Blizzard which immediately start dealing their full damage potential and debuffs, and then cycle through Freeze Ray (137), Bitter Ice Blast (142), Bitter Freeze Ray (172.67) and then throw in Midnight Grasp (180) .  When necessary for end or damage boost, I could use Soul Drain and Dark Consumption. In cycles where I'm not using Soul Drain or Dark Consumption, I'd do a total of  631.67 dmg per cycle OUTSIDE of my AoEs with no penalty to their total damage/debuff output.  And honestly, the SMART attack chain would be to START with Soul Drain because then ALL of those attacks are doing a TON more damage in the fight.  

With Storm Blast, I can toss Storm Cell and Cat 5, which don't start doing thier real damage until I start attacking with primaries.  So I start...But I really only have three attacks over 100 dmg points to cycle through:  Direct Strike (180 since it would be fast cast), Cloud Burst (142.33), and Hail Stones (102).  I cycle through those but then if I add in Midnight Grasp (180) that weakens my Storm Cell since it doesn't trigger the additional attacks.  And I assume three primary attacks are enough to full ramp up Cat 5?  I dont quite know how to tell.   Oh, and lets not forget that if I'm fighting an AV, there's a lock out between attacks from the cell anyway, so while Ice Storm continues to pelt away at him, Storm Cell and Cat 5 may not.  Now, If I start with Soul Drain after I drop the Storm Cell to boost the damage of the rest of my attacks up front, my storm cell isn't doing anything, and Cat 5 isn't amping up either.   So I probably won't do that, because I'd be aggroing the whole mob then stand there for 5 seconds dropping Storm Cell and Cat 5 with no real damage going on.  So I take Soul Drain out of the equation till later in the fight, at which point it is, again, seconds where I'm not getting the full benefit of Storm Cell as I use it.   So in this method I have somewhere around 30-40 less pts of dmg per cycle, but also less AoE damage going because unlike Ice storm and Hurricane, my AoEs require me boosting them with my other attacks, and I'm taking time out of that to use the heaviest hitter I have from my secondary since my primary really only has 2.  I suppose, theoretically, you could use the secondary powers during the "lock outs" where those powers cant hit the AV, but it's impossible to tell when that is or plan for that since the powers are, by design, "chance of" anyway.  

 

The point is, the set is already mild WITHOUT Storm Cell and Cat 5 being full strength, so if you go into your secondary for anything it feels like it  just makes you weaker.  And based on my experience, while this is OK against normal mobs and the visuals and chaos are fun, against harder targets like AVS it really suffers.   This is why I REALLY think the primary attacks boosts to Storm Cell need to "linger" even after the attack, giving you a chance to do other things without feeling like it's wasting potential there.  I really think an "Intensified" effect like "bloom" would help, and get rid of the lockout.  

 

Now...there are some archetypes (Sentinels) and some secondary sets (Storm) that can make up for this but doing their thing on their own and freeing you up to totally focus on boosting Storm Cell and Cat 5, but I don't think we want a powerset that really locks you into a very limited set of options to perform as well as most other sets can generally, do we? 

 

 

Right, that was my thought as well. I  just hate lockouts in general. The only point where it "feels" ok to do this is if the damage is up enough with the lockouts so that it's more "oh they're locked out may as well use my secondary till the lockout is over" but you're right currently it feels like a lose lose damage wise to do anything but.

 

I'd almost more like to see storm cell as a self toggle that would just proc the effects when you use your attacks, and maybe have an "initial burst" like how targeting drone does more damage out of combat first, and then like a fury kind of bar where the procs happen more and more as you use your powers kind of like an actual storm intensifying (this could even be how intensify changes to instead be a toggle?)

 

I think this would work a lot better than the patch anywho but I'm sure far too far in development to change this.

[Captain Fabulous]

Well this was fun. Let's (not) do this again the next time a new powerset is made.

[honoroit]

667th reply, kupo.

 

i still like storm blast, and solved my name problem: LVCK VOLTIA

 

but... elec affinity empowering circuit should self stack. youd need to spam it to get the numbers up, and it would provide an alternative to kin on corruptors.

Edited April 25, 2023 by honoroit
affinity for electricity

[ScarySai]

3 hours ago, Sovera said:

On one hand we've had some mention of Blasters killing it in Trapdoor (under three minutes)

Any vids for that? Either insps were used or they lyin'.

[Isulkian]

oh it s live.......with all those flaws still present....

i hope we were wrong about all the things we reported

[WindDemon21]

22 minutes ago, Isulkian said:

oh it s live.......with all those flaws still present....

i hope we were wrong about all the things we reported

Or they just wanted it out there but will be a patch next week to fix issues? I'm fine with that as long as it's not "that's it, it's out, we're done with it"

Edited April 25, 2023 by WindDemon21

[ScarySai]

Storm's not a bad set at all. Could be better, I hate the lockout, but it's performance despite proccing poorly is fairly good.

[Ruin Mage]

47 minutes ago, WindDemon21 said:

a patch next week to fix issues?

I wouldn't try to gas yourself into thinking they'll do anything that quick. There might be a bugfix patch but its likely progress will "soon" begin on Page 7.

[Solvernia]

20 hours ago, WindDemon21 said:

I mean, that's not true as we've already discussed. 1.1 is enough for up to about +2s maybe but beyond that you have to slot a lot of accuracy for it to hit higher, and won't help any bit with enemies with defenses. Plus the main issue too where they can't really benefit from most combos who don't have a long duration to hit since they're pseudopets. It's definitely going to be noticeable when fighting +3s and 4s, and as a result will also mean you're going to have to get a ton more accuracy slotted than most other builds/powers have to deal with exhausting the slot issue even more on them. 1.1 is definitely not enough for these two powers. Really hoping this is upped before this hits live.

 

Alternatively, you can just not worry about having 95% to-hit vs everything. Especially vs +4, which is a boring damage sponge grindfest that no reasonable person would specifically build for.

Edited April 25, 2023 by Solvernia