Buying Enhancements

[Ralphie8on]

I just hit level 11 and the only enhancements i am using are the ones dropped.  So I have a few questions about them.  First, Should I be buying them?  Second, What levels should I try to maintain them at?  Like 3 levels above me at all times or can they drop a little below my level?  Lastly, is there somewhere like a post or something that has best enhancements for builds?

[Oubliette_Red]

6 minutes ago, Ralphie8on said:

I just hit level 11 and the only enhancements i am using are the ones dropped.  So I have a few questions about them.  First, Should I be buying them?  Second, What levels should I try to maintain them at?  Like 3 levels above me at all times or can they drop a little below my level?  Lastly, is there somewhere like a post or something that has best enhancements for builds?

 

Everyone has their own preference regarding slotting enhancements. I tend to slot origin-appropriate SO's that drop and sell other origin SO's in the Auction House (in case you do not know, you can access it by typing /ah in chat). DO's I sell to a vendor. The same goes for buying SO's, I'll look in the AH for ones that fit my needs as they tend to be cheaper than buying from a vendor.

 

As for enhancements for builds, you'll want to look down in the Archetype section of the forums, people will likely have posted the powerset combo you have and their slotting setup, though usually it's their L50 build and enhancement sets, though many of the posters can be pretty thorough and will provide details on what they suggest slotting at the earliest possible level.

https://forums.homecomingservers.com/forum/43-archetypes/

 

[Ralphie8on]

5 minutes ago, Oubliette_Red said:

 

Everyone has their own preference regarding slotting enhancements. I tend to slot origin-appropriate SO's that drop and sell other origin SO's in the Auction House (in case you do not know, you can access it by typing /ah in chat). DO's I sell to a vendor. The same goes for buying SO's, I'll look in the AH for ones that fit my needs as they tend to be cheaper than buying from a vendor.

 

As for enhancements for builds, you'll want to look down in the Archetype section of the forums, people will likely have posted the powerset combo you have and their slotting setup, though usually it's their L50 build and enhancement sets, though many of the posters can be pretty thorough and will provide details on what they suggest slotting at the earliest possible level.

https://forums.homecomingservers.com/forum/43-archetypes/

 

Thank you for replying but I do not know what a SO or DO is.

[biostem]

8 minutes ago, Ralphie8on said:

Thank you for replying but I do not know what a SO or DO is.

In general, there are 4 categories of enhancements.  In order of least powerful to most powerful, they are: Training (TOs), Dual-Origin (DOs), Single-Origin (SOs), and Inventions, (IOs).  You can only slot DOs if at least one of the listed origins on the enhancement matches that of your character, and SOs must exactly match yours.  My general advice is to only use whatever drops until around level 22, at which point I typically start slotting level 25 IOs, (remember you can use enh's that are up to +3 above your current level).  Unlike regular enh's, you do not outlevel IOs, so those level 25 ones will give you a consistent bonus throughout your character's career.  They are also relatively easy/inexpensive to craft and use common salvage, so they are my go-to until I reach the level cap and start working toward set IOs or other specialty enh's.  There are more extensive guides out there on how to earn the necessary influence/infamy/information to fully slot yourself up with those aforementioned IOs right away, so check these forums...   

[Rudra]

DO = Dual Origin

     Identifiable by the possession of 2 different borders along the top of the enhancement. Can be used by two different origins.

 

SO = Single Origin

     Identifiable by possessing a single style border along the top of the enhancement. Can only be used by characters of the specific origin the enhancement is for.

 

Edit: Here is something to help you out a little more: https://homecoming.wiki/wiki/Enhancements

Edited January 6 by Rudra

[Oubliette_Red]

Just now, Ralphie8on said:

Thank you for replying but I do not know what a SO or DO is.

 

Well, welcome new person to the game.
SO = Single Origin enhancement (Like Science or Mutation)
DO = Dual-Origin enhancement (Like Science/Tech or Natural/Magic)

 

DO's will provide a lesser bonus to your stats than SO's. Further along, generally around 35, players will slot IO's (Invention Origin enhancements) that are craftable at the university or in a base. There are Set enhancements that are also IO's, but provide further bonuses depending on how many you slot into a particular power.

 

Once you hit level 10 you should get a contact at the university in Steel Canyon, which will lead you through the steps for crafting a generic IO.
 

Keeping enhancements leveled up gets expensive at the higher levels. The Homecoming devs were kind enough to provide us with a 1-buttong click to upgrade all of our enhancements (DO's/SO's) in one shot, but it'll cost. My Corruptor ding'd to 47 tonight and all her SO's turned red (which means they are too low to provide any bonus) and it cost a little over 5m influence to update them all. In the grand scheme of thing that's not that much, but I don't marketeer on all of my characters so their pockets are generally not overflowing. :)

 

[Rudra]

5 minutes ago, Oubliette_Red said:

 

Once you hit level 10 you should get a contact at the university in Steel Canyon,

The contact is not auto-assigned. (S)he will need to seek out the individual.

 

University contacts for IO crafting:

Heroes: Admissions Officer Lenk at the Steel Canyon University.

Villains: Dean John Yu at the Cap au Diable University.

Praetorians: Relations Expert Verna Arcola at the Imperial City Cultural Direction and Education Center.

 

Edited January 6 by Rudra
Edited to add 2 missing periods.

[Oubliette_Red]

Thanks for clarifying @Rudra I couldn't recall if you got a popup for the University contacts or not.

 

Now, if the OP really wanted to melt their brain and dig into enhancements, @Yomo Kimyata has a pretty detailed walk-through down in the Guides section. 

 

[Ralphie8on]

WOW!!!! Thank you all for your help.  I know I sound pretty new but it has been like 20 years since i last played the game, once I was informed it had come back I HAD to jump back in since this is the game i met my wife on.

[Yomo Kimyata]

If this is your first time through, you’re going to find that it’s tough to stay fully equipped until you hit your 40s.  See my post search “salmagundi” for some start up capital.

[A.I.D.A.]

Don't buy anything that isn't at least a basic IO. Use what you loot (along with the five prestige enhancements from P2W) until Lv. 22, when you can slot Lv. 25 IOs -- that is the level at which they're equal to at-level SO's, except you will never out-level your IOs.

 

Use the Reward Merits you get from doing arcs and task forces to buy salable salvage (enhancement boosters/converters, etc), from the Merit Vendors. Stack up that influence and save it until you know what kinds of IO Sets you want to build. I'm assuming that since you're new to the server, you won't pre-build in Mids (the character planner software) and won't know what you want until you're 50 and have had a chance to play around a bit with your character's powers.

 

But basically, don't ever buy an SO. That's influence wasted in three levels when it greys out and becomes inactive.

[Rudra]

1 minute ago, A.I.D.A. said:

That's influence wasted in three levels when it greys out and becomes inactive.

I agree with your general statement, but it is 7 levels. You can buy and slot up to +3 SOs, and they keep working down to -3, going inert at -4.

[A.I.D.A.]

Other tip: save influence by crafting your Lv. 25 IO's. Save all the white and yellow salvage you find while you're out doing arcs, because that's what you use (alongside a small fee of influence at the crafting bench) to make the Lv. 25 IOs that people sell for a profit on the auction. If you craft them yourself, the fee is far, far lower than the marketeers charge for them at Lv. 25.

[A.I.D.A.]

5 minutes ago, Rudra said:

I agree with your general statement, but it is 7 levels. You can buy and slot up to +3 SOs, and they keep working down to -3, going inert at -4.

 

Working at less and less than their schedule each time you ding, yes. That's technically true, but not very valuable. SOs three levels below you are basically TO's. And those are barely better than empty slots. XD

Edited January 6 by A.I.D.A.

[A.I.D.A.]

Oh, another tip I just thought of: don't use the XP rate boosters from P2W. They are a trap from the point of view of a character gearing itself over the leveling process, without an external source of influence. They make you level faster (doing less arcs, and thus getting less merits, over the climb to 50), and also reduce the influence you get from enemy drops accordingly.

 

The XP rate boosters are for people who are fire-farming their 600th character and buying them a build.