Storm Defender O2 improvement

[DrRocket]

A Storm Defender can't truly do much to help the team directly, save for the heal value of O2 which has a Status Effect relief ability.

 

It occurs to me, if O2 could be made into a PBAOE, it would be able to provide for health and protection benefits to many players at a time, thus an astute support class, would hang around a Storm Defender and get healed and have a bit of preventative protection for status effects, which overall would make the team more resilient and much better able to support the melee and especially the tank.

 

Any thoughts?

[Rudra]

Seriously? Let's set aside Gale for now since most people seem to not like KB. Storm Defenders get:

 

Snow Storm: This power slows the movement rate and recharge rate of enemies within its radius with a base -62.5% effect that can be enhanced. Slower attack rate means you and your allies aren't getting hit as often. So you're less likely to suffer defeat.

 

Steamy Mist: Aside from the stealth effect this power grants the Defender's team, it also improves their defense against all attack types and improves their resistance to fire, cold, and energy damage. It also grants the team a Mag 8.65 protection against confusion effects.

 

Freezing Rain: This handy dandy little power does a little bit of damage in area for a sustained duration. It also slows enemies' movement and recharge rate just like Snow Storm does. And the effects stack last I checked. Even better? It also near murders enemy defense and damage resist values.

 

Hurricane: This power is one people like to hate on. Slot it with a KB to KD convertor though? And all you have to deal with as a negative is its repel effect. Which is only Mag 1. Otherwise? It reduces affected enemies' attack ranges by 75%, forcing them to stay as close as the power allows to hurt you and your team, making it easier for the melees on your team to crush them.

 

Thunder Clap: I'm not a fan of this power and the others like it, but at a Mag 2 Stun effect, it can help stop some enemies from being able to attack for almost 15 seconds.

 

Tornado: I don't know anyone that hates on Tornado. Especially if slotted with a KB to KD convertor. Keep all the baddies sitting on the ground while the tornado and your team chews them up? Sounds good to me.

 

Lightning Storm: The signature power of the set, this power lasts for a whole minute and each of its lightning blasts has a range of 100 feet with a 5 feet effect area centered on the struck target, imposes a 5 second Mag 50 fear effect (though this can also be a negative depending on whether the targets just cower for those 5 seconds or try running away), slightly reduces their END value, and has a chance to reduce their recovery rate by 100% for 4 seconds.

 

So how is O2 Boost the only power in the set that 'can truly help the team directly'?

[Greycat]

I think by "directly" they're looking at "Apply directly to forehead... er, teammate." Though Steamy Mist still sort of falls under that.

[PoptartsNinja]

Skip O2 boost, slot Gale with KB to KD and the Chance for -Recharge enhancement. Enjoy on-demand -Recharge and knock entire spawns on their backsides whenever it looks like a friend is about to get overwhelmed.

[Saiyajinzoningen]

Storm is definitely a more offensive support set that's for sure

most of the powers @Rudra listed are either CC or debuff

(which btw are amazing, love me some storm)

anyway, while steamy mist does fall under the buff teammate option

rarely do folks stay huddled up near it & its extremely detrimental to "rescue" missions

also quite a few of the primary sets that pair with storm have multiple pets

changing O2 to a Pbaoe might help keep pets alive easier?

although I'm inclined to believe changing it to a targeted aoe might be more practical

[Uun]

I find the PBAoE heals (excluding Twilight Grasp) to be among the most boring and brain dead powers in the game. Even fully slotted they don't heal enough to provide meaningful mitigation if things go sideways, so people just spam them as a preventative measure. Storm isn't a buff set and doesn't need a power like that. (People keep on making similar requests for Poison/Alkaloid.) 

 

The heal is the least useful component of O2 Boost. It provides resistance to endurance and recovery debuffs, +perception and resistance to perception debuffs, and mezz protection to stun and sleep. You don't need to slot for any of these, so if you don't want Gale, 1-slot O2 Boost with a Preventative Medicine +absorb proc and call it a day.

 

The devs have made it clear that they don't want mezz protection buffs to be AoE, so those buffs would have to remain ST if the heal were made AoE. The strength of the heal would also need to be cut and the recharge increased. Also note, the only Targeted AoE heals in the game are Transfusion (which targets a foe) and Rejuvenating Circuit (which is a chain). If it became a PBAoE, O2 Boost would have its range cut from 80 ft to 25 ft.