Best AT for a soloist starting with nothing?

[Dao Jones]

2 hours ago, Sovera said:

 

Wait, nvm, you speak of Sentinels. Then it's Bio all the way. The only reason not to go Bio is if you absolutely hate the aesthetics, otherwise it's sturdy AND increases damage AND has a heal AND has an endurance tool.

 

One you didn't mention is Stone Armour. Also zero clicks, very strong defenses AND resistances, comes with built-in recharge, a damage boost, regeneration (instead of a heal) and recovery (instead of an endurance clicky). That's the second best in my opinion. It only sins for being hefty in endurance demands due to being so toggle heavy.

 

Only reason I skipped those is that I tend to favor powers that don't lean heavily into a visual that defines the character. If I have a thematic idea for a character that uses stone (or fire, or water/ice, dark, etc) then it's usually a pretty straightforward choice to consider power options. But good to know they're solid sets if the theme fits.

 

Okay! I really appreciate everyone's awesome feedback. Now I need to come up with a hero idea, and find where they land in theme and powerset. See you in Atlas Park!

[Sovera]

1 minute ago, Dao Jones said:

 

Only reason I skipped those is that I tend to favor powers that don't lean heavily into a visual that defines the character. If I have a thematic idea for a character that uses stone (or fire, or water/ice, dark, etc) then it's usually a pretty straightforward choice to consider power options. But good to know they're solid sets if the theme fits.

 

Okay! I really appreciate everyone's awesome feedback. Now I need to come up with a hero idea, and find where they land in theme and powerset. See you in Atlas Park!

 

Stone Armor is a darn hard fit for pairing thematicaly. Oh you throw storms and lightning? You're encrusted in stone. Oh you've got two guns you're firing akimbo? You're encased in stone. Oh radiation blasts? Stone armor.

 

The FX options do have some flexibility though. The 'crystal' has been shamelessly used to simulate ice for my Storm Blast-ers and the lava option marries well for Fire Blast (which is still the strongest blast set for Sentinels though I'd go with Elec Blast).

 

Bio, other than Ablative, still allows to faff around with glows instead of the native carapaces the set has.

[Dao Jones]

3 hours ago, Sovera said:

 

Oh radiation blasts? Stone armor.

 

"Candice Jones was a mild-mannered scientist at Wonka's Chocolate Factory until the day the particle accelerator she was using to unlock the secrets of Quantum Flavor^tm exploded - dosing her with powerful irradiated sugar crystals and delicious, long-lasting elemental flavor. In that fateful moment a new hero was born: ROCK CANDY - slayer of evil, poor taste, and OSHA violations!"

 

3 hours ago, Sovera said:

Oh you've got two guns you're firing akimbo? You're encased in stone.

 

"When adult film star Rock Hardshaft was sold a bag of crack laced with the deadly CHEMICAL X the resulting high broke his mind, but encased his body in impervious Cracktanium^tm Alloy! With his dealer's twin silver-plated .45s, a chip on his shoulder, and a stalagmite in his pants, he swore to take over the city as its newest villain: ROCK HARD! Beware doers of wrongdoing! You have stiff competition from a man who is always "up" for a little mischief!"

 

Edited February 16 by Dao Jones

[FupDup]

3 hours ago, Sovera said:

Stone Armor is a darn hard fit for pairing thematicaly. Oh you throw storms and lightning? You're encrusted in stone. Oh you've got two guns you're firing akimbo? You're encased in stone. Oh radiation blasts? Stone armor.

I've got a Beam/Stone Sent waiting in my alt queue and the theme is a miner with a mining laser who drilled into some radiative or otherwise "unsafe" rocks and got mutated by them. Inspired by Lego Rock Raiders/Power Miners, but with a few artistic liberties taken on the details. 

 

For Radiation Blast, maybe you could say that you came into contact with uranium ore to explain both the stone armor and the radiation blasts. 

Edited February 16 by FupDup

[StarseedWarrior]

On 2/14/2024 at 12:10 PM, Etched said:

My 2  cents. I've been extremely  partial to Senttinals. Blaster meets Scrapper. Slightly less damage then a Blaster and less def/resist then a Scrapper but great to solo with.

 

Fire/Rad is a great starter toon.

 

Also, welcome back. Post your global and I'll email so starter funds.

 

@Etched

I was about to recommend this, I also recommend ele/ele for a really good soloer and amazing on team use for the end draining.

[JasperStone]

10 hours ago, Sovera said:

 

Stone Armor is a darn hard fit for pairing thematicaly. Oh you throw storms and lightning? You're encrusted in stone. Oh you've got two guns you're firing akimbo? You're encased in stone. Oh radiation blasts? Stone armor.

 

The FX options do have some flexibility though. The 'crystal' has been shamelessly used to simulate ice for my Storm Blast-ers and the lava option marries well for Fire Blast (which is still the strongest blast set for Sentinels though I'd go with Elec Blast).

 

Bio, other than Ablative, still allows to faff around with glows instead of the native carapaces the set has.

Tempest Stone...

Bulletforge...

Radiant Sentinal

[Random Axis]

On 2/14/2024 at 11:46 AM, Dao Jones said:

So I'm hoping you experts and vets might advise an old dog on some new tricks? Specifically, I'm looking for advice on an AT that provides:

 

1. The tools needed to solo most/all of the game's 1-50 content. (Obviously the end game assumes extensive farming for the right gear, but by then I'll remember everything I've forgotten over the past ~17 years.)
2. A reasonably smooth leveling curve without excessive need for sugar daddy slotting.

I would go with a tank. Willpower, Invulnerability, or Shield as the primary. Those are set it and forget it sets (shield gets neat toys later), so you can focus on your attacks and positioning instead of fiddling with toggles refreshing abilities. I'd take dark as secondary. If the dark emo look doesn't fit the character theme, you can make it bright pastels if you like. Any secondary works though, so it's more important that you pick something that looks cool and you want to play. Some with more complex mechanics/behavior you may not like: Dual Blades, Kinetic Melee, Titan Weapon. Those are perfectly viable attack sets, but need extra attention and timing to get the most out of them. 

 

A brute is a viable choice too. They just have a different playstyle than the other melee classes where they greatly benefit from continuously attacking. You be continually using inspirations to keep up health and end so you can Keep. On. Attacking. All. The. Time. to keep your fury up. You'll also slot your powers slightly different that the other ATs. A brute doesn't care about damage. You just need accuracy to hit more, recharge to hit faster, and endurance reduction to keep hitting longer. 

 

Also, since you're soloing here are some guides on seeing lots of story content in the game. I've done both and liked them a lot.

 

Blueside: 

 

 

Redside: 

 

[Perfidy]

My opinion is a brute/scrapper/stalker  or blaster/sentinel/corruptor - just depends on your playstyle. 

Scrapper's damage is awesome. Pretty sturdy. Brute's damage is also good, particularly at early levels, because Fury seems to be a big boost. 

I love blasters and think they're awesome at every level. 

Sentinels are okay, but for a first-timer, a great experience. It was the first thing I made when HC first opened up - before I found out the damage was lower (been some adjustments since then) I never noticed the lower damage. 
Corruptors are amazing when build properly. Starting from nothing, not sure I'd go that route, but, you could do worse. 

You have 1000 slots. Make one of everything, lol. But I'd start with a brute.