Question About Accuracy Enhancements in Pet Summoning Powers

[Nyghtmaire]

 

On Live, I always followed the advice to max out accuracy enhancements for the Tier 1 and 2 pets, and aim for two SOs worth on the Tier 3. I’m trying to dive down to calculating MM pets’ ToHit chances now in Homecoming. Anyone know if this is the correct procedure?

 

It looks like Pets have a 75% to-hit chance against even level critters. (See https://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Attack_Mechanics). This is their “BaseHitChance,” which decreases by about 9% for each level the target exceeds your pet. That means for an even level critter, Tier 1 starts at ~57%, Tier 2 ~66%, and Tier 3 at 75%. To increase this chance, a MM can slot accuracy IOs and/or run Tactics. The HitChance formula is AccMods × (BaseHitChance + ToHitMods – DefMods ).

 

AccMods

Accuracy enhancements in Pet Summoning powers

 

ToHitMods

Supremacy = 10% ToHit (when in range)

Tactics (at ED) ~11.8%

 

Assuming target has no defense modifiers, an unenhanced Tier 1 pet with Supremacy and Tactics running on the MM has a HitChance of 78.8% against targets that are the same level as the MM.  A +1 Target = 69.8%; +2 = 60.8%; +3 = 51.8; and +4 = 42.8%. Enhancing the accuracy (Base accuracy being 1.00 for Pets) to ED cap (~95% with three Acc/Dam HOs) in the pet summoning power boosts those numbers to 153.6% (even level to MM), 136.11% (+1), 118.56% (+2), 101.01% (+3), and 83.46% (+4).

 

Without Tactics for Tier 1 Pet with 95% Accuracy (level of target in relation to the MM):

 

0.      130.65%

+1.    113.10%

+2.    95.55%

+3.    78%

+4.    60.45%

 

A critter’s native defense and any -ToHit debuffs will reduce the pet’s hit chance (the -DefMods of the equation).

 

The max effective ToHit is 95%, meaning there is always a chance that an attack misses. https://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Limits

 

So, accuracy slotting in the pet summoning powers should look to get the pets to at least 95% ToHit, taking into account the buffs you expect to have, the level of the critters you expect to fight, and the debuffs you expect to encounter. The above really suggests Tactics is critical if you are fighting +4 enemies solo, especially for the Tier 1 pets.

 

Is the above correct? Are accuracy enhancements in the proper place for the calculation? What am I missing? Thank you very much for any insight!

[Adeon Hawkwood]

You're basically correct. The math is slightly off because you're using a 9% estimate rather than the actual values from the table but you've got the basic concept (for example in the case of a tier 1 pet without tactics you'd actually get a 58.5% chance to hit against the +4). One other thing to keep in mind is that not all pet attacks necessarily have a base accuracy of 1.00x. You can check the base accuracy for powers in the detailed info window, it's possible that some pet attacks have a different base accuracy (for example Assault Rifle attacks mostly use a 1.05x base accuracy, I don't know if this applies to Mercenaries or not though)

 

One other thing to keep in mind is that the base to hit is also capped at 95% before accuracy is applied. That isn't really relevant here but it's worth remembering.

 

You statement about Tactics is correct, having that or an equivalent To Hit buff (such as Farsight) is a really good idea for MMs, especially if you want to fight higher level enemies. Defense debuffs can help a bit but since higher level enemies resist them they are least useful when you need them the most.

[Nyghtmaire]

Thank you very much! Time to make a spreadsheet with the precise values.

[Some Random User]

Time to make a spreadsheet with the precise values.

Please share when completed.