What are the WORST Armor sets?

[Linea]

We always talk about the best armors.  What's are the Worst Armors?  And why?

 

Edited May 21 by Linea

[tidge]

[Snarky]

It will tend to depend on AT.  resist armors favor Brutes and Tanks, with higher resist caps.  There is going to be an armor by armor trade off when moving to a scrapper.  Some will be less effective, more than others.

[Yomo Kimyata]

For scrapper, my choice for worst the way I play would be Willpower.

[GM Impervium]

Any set can be the worst if you only pick one power and don't slot or enhance it =D

[aethereal]

Regen.

 

I think Fire is Real Bad for scrappers.

[Triumphant]

I think a lot of people will agree that Regen and Fire are both pretty lackluster compared to other options.  Willpower (IME) has endurance drain resistance issues.  While I otherwise enjoy how Willpower performs, this single issue has caused me to abandon it, in the long run, as I find it too frustrating.

 

Beyond this, it may be largely subjective.  I personally prefer defense sets with locational defenses (Super Reflexes) to defense sets with typed defenses (S/L, Nrg, Fire, Cold, etc.) as they are much easier to slot for, and so prefer them for this reason.  For players that are good at calculating bonuses and slotting for typed defenses, they may find sets like shield or stone better, because they provide better mitigation via resists, heals, and other effects.

 

Having said all of the above, I am a creature of habit and have not extensively used all of the armor sets enough to authoritatively speak on which is worst, though I do feel very confident that Regen and Fire probably qualify (I have played them both enough to know they underperform in many ways, compared to the other armor sets that I've tried).

I also prefer to flip the question on its head and ask, "What is the best armor set for me?"  The answer (and I think the answer also for most other players) is the one that I'm most comfortable playing with and/or the one that best fits the character concept I have in mind (which, as it turns out, is sometimes a sub-par armor set).

 

As with all such topics, though, YMMV. 

[Erratic1]

1 hour ago, Triumphant said:

I personally prefer defense sets with locational defenses (Super Reflexes) to defense sets with typed defenses (S/L, Nrg, Fire, Cold, etc.) as they are much easier to slot for, and so prefer them for this reason.  For players that are good at calculating bonuses and slotting for typed defenses, they may find sets like shield or stone better, because they provide better mitigation via resists, heals, and other effects.

 

Shield is positional. It also does not offer healing or other utilities. 

[Uun]

I think everything is relative. While an armor set may be the worst, that doesn't make it a bad armor set, just not as effective as another. The resist armors (Dark, Elec, Fire and Radiation*) don't perform as well on scrappers, stalkers and sentinels as they do on tanks and brutes due to the lower resist caps. I don't feel like Fire is materially worse than Dark or Elec, although it depends on what faction you're facing. The recent buffs to the set have improved it significantly.

 

Willpower and Regen have no protection against end drain or recovery debuffs and only limited protection against regen debuffs (Radiation has more -regen protection than either). Willpower and Regen perform very well against foes without debuffs as long as you're mindful of how many foes you take on. Sets that rely on regeneration can survive indefinitely until they hit the tipping point where incoming damage surpasses their regeneration rate. I would probably rank these sets lowest, with Regen below Willpower.

 

*Radiation is a hybrid armor combining resist, absorb and regen

[Triumphant]

1 hour ago, Erratic1 said:

 

Shield is positional. It also does not offer healing or other utilities. 

No, shield is a combination of Positional and typed defenses (Grant Cover) and offers resistance and hp buff (True Grit), a combination def/resist power (deflection), and has the crashing T9, which offers all sorts of things (granted, may people skip the crashing T9's, myself included).  These things (IMO) make it more complicated to slot and use than SR.  It also has an attack power (Shield Charge).

 

SR, by comparison, is a set it and forget set, that is very easy to slot and use.

 

Understand, I do not make the argument that SR is a better set than shield- only that it's simpler to manage

[BrandX]

27 minutes ago, Triumphant said:

No, shield is a combination of Positional and typed defenses (Grant Cover) and offers resistance and hp buff (True Grit), a combination def/resist power (deflection), and has the crashing T9, which offers all sorts of things (granted, may people skip the crashing T9's, myself included).  These things (IMO) make it more complicated to slot and use than SR.  It also has an attack power (Shield Charge).

 

SR, by comparison, is a set it and forget set, that is very easy to slot and use.

 

Understand, I do not make the argument that SR is a better set than shield- only that it's simpler to manage

 

Grant Cover doesn't give the user any defense.  So, Shield is only a Positional Defense set.  Grant Cover does give defense to your teammates, so they did put in Positional and Typed Defenses so it works evenly on all teammate builds.

 

What Grant Cover does for the user is Defense Debuff Resistance and -Recharge (not -speed) Resistance.

[Triumphant]

2 minutes ago, BrandX said:

 

Grant Cover doesn't give the user any defense.  So, Shield is only a Positional Defense set.  Grant Cover does give defense to your teammates, so they did put in Positional and Typed Defenses so it works evenly on all teammate builds.

 

What Grant Cover does for the user is Defense Debuff Resistance and -Recharge (not -speed) Resistance.

Fair enough.  My point though, is that SR is simpler.  Which it is.

[Linea]

The problem I'm seeing is:  I'm effectively agreeing with all of you.  I would say, so far, Willpower, Regen, and Fire(scrapper) are all on my list.

• Regen - If any armor should have -regen resistance, it should be regen.  IMO regen should be effectively immune to -regen.
• Willpower - Should probably have a half measure of both -endurance and -regen resistance.
• Fire - I feel subjectively I agree with this assessment, but have NO idea what I'd do to fix it.  The one thing fire has going for it is "Taunt Into Burn", and the scrapper version loses that.  But at the same time, ANY buff to /Fire on Brute or Tank would be unwarranted.

And as to the reason I'm asking the question:  So far I'm leaning toward Willpower. 

I have no desire to play Regen or Fire ever again.  I've played way to many Regens, and have never really liked fire outside of farming where I tolerate it.

[Uun]

1 hour ago, Triumphant said:

and has the crashing T9, which offers all sorts of things (granted, may people skip the crashing T9's, myself included)

The crash on One with the Shield is comparatively mild (-60% endurance) and very manageable. 

[Erratic1]

4 hours ago, Triumphant said:

Fair enough.  My point though, is that SR is simpler.  Which it is.

 

You wrote:

 

8 hours ago, Triumphant said:

  I personally prefer defense sets with locational defenses (Super Reflexes) to defense sets with typed defenses (S/L, Nrg, Fire, Cold, etc.) as they are much easier to slot for, and so prefer them for this reason. 

 

How can SR be simpler than Shield when they give the same trio of defenses--Melee, Ranged, and AoE?

 

All you have to do with Shield is get the recharge on Active Defense sufficiently reduced that you can set it to auto-activate. Two Recharge SOs gets you there assuming absolutely no global recharge. If you have more than 33% global recharge, you need only the inherent slot in the power with a Recharge SO, and of course if you have 67% or more you could leave the inherent slot empty.

 

Liking SR more than Shield is perfectly fine as that is subjective. But let's not play like developing  Shield is rocket science.

Edited May 22 by Erratic1

[Triumphant]

8 minutes ago, Erratic1 said:

 

You wrote:

 

 

How can SR be simpler than Shield when they give the same trio of defenses--Melee, Ranged, and AoE?

 

Look, I don't want to have a debate about it.  Shield is more complicated for me to slot.  It's just my opinion.  Feel free to disagree.

[Sancerre]

By what metrics are you defining 'worst'?  I feel like this topic is less subjective than people make it out to be.  There are easily identifiable objectively bad performing armor sets that have terrible survival and offer little to no utility or offensive power to offset that.  This comparison is all relative to what other, objectively better armor sets offer.  The high bar is going to be bio armor for having the best offensive capability while still being sufficiently 'survivable'.  The adjacent comparison is something like invulnerability or energy aura for just being able to literally survive the best, generally, while also offering some sideways utility and a taunt aura.  Some armor sets are at least 'close' to these 3... others are light years below (hello /regen).

 

Fire armor is probably the one and only oddball in the mix because it does have substantial offensive power to offset its terrible survival, but not enough to warrant its use in SOLO play.  The one and only buff Fire Armor needs for people to like it on scrapper is a passive taunt aura -- this one single change alone would instantly shuffle scrapper fire armor up to the top of the table next to bio armor.  not advocating for scrappers to get even more taunt auras though... im personally in the camp that scrappers shouldnt even have taunt auras in the first place.

 

Also -- Dont need people coming out of the woodworks to claim that regen is actually sleeper OP top tier if you mail 10000 purple/orange inspirations to yourself and always party with a bubble defender.  regen sucks.  it does not perform anywhere near any of the other sets in terms of survival.  it offers some of the absolute worst debuff protection.  it offers no taunt aura.  it offers no offensive utility at all.  it is bad.  if you want to say otherwise, you are wrong and delusional.  if you still want to play /regen for theme, you do so fully understanding it is a meme or a challenge.

[Thraxen]

Regen is the answer. 
 

I like my wp scrap but he has divine avalanche which helps a lot. 
 

I personally hate energy. I’ve tried it many times all the way to full incarnated and can’t get into it. The lack of no fx I don’t like. The huge psi hole. The lack of much ddr. The heal is kinda cool but meh. 
 

I love rad on a scrap. The t9 should be treated as a build up power and used as much as possible. It gets an extra aoe which is unique and also heals teammates. 

[Erratic1]

33 minutes ago, Thraxen said:

I personally hate energy. I’ve tried it many times all the way to full incarnated and can’t get into it. The lack of no fx I don’t like. The huge psi hole. The lack of much ddr. The heal is kinda cool but meh. 

 

Having a heal, endurance reovery, +Recharge Stealth,, and +Defense, it might have been considered to be overpowered giving it high DDR.

[Heatstroke]

No armor set is going to be good against everything. This is by design. 

However one of the worst sets I have come across and one that really needs help is Ice Armor for Sentinels. It really needs a Dev to look at it. 

[Thraxen]

24 minutes ago, Erratic1 said:

 

Having a heal, endurance reovery, +Recharge Stealth,, and +Defense, it might have been considered to be overpowered giving it high DDR.

Eh. Sr doesn’t need recovery or heal. It’s only 3 toggles. Sr has the recharge too. Energy just gets wrecked in ITFs if you get too much attention. 

[Spaghetti Betty]

My vote is for Willpower.

 

It has zero protection against cascade of any sort. Once its protection fails, it's done.

 

This is not a problem that Regen has, since it heavily leans on active mitigation. I also think people still rate Regen too poorly. Even on a Scrapper, it's still a really strong set!

Edited May 22 by Spaghetti Betty

[Erratic1]

25 minutes ago, Thraxen said:

Eh. Sr doesn’t need recovery or heal. It’s only 3 toggles. Sr has the recharge too. Energy just gets wrecked in ITFs if you get too much attention. 

 

  Yes, I am sure you never take damage at all while using SR. Not exactly my experience with it, but I am sure I was doing something wrong.

 

[Thraxen]

3 minutes ago, Erratic1 said:

 

  Yes, I am sure you never take damage at all while using SR. Not exactly my experience with it, but I am sure I was doing something wrong.

 

Sounds like you are honestly. If it’s not a few unlucky rolls in a row you live through anything. A couple lucky rolls and you resist it all after that. 

[biostem]

On 5/21/2024 at 4:03 PM, Linea said:

What's are the Worst Armors?  And why?

In a very general sense, any armor set that you, as an individual, cannot make work for you, is "the worst".  Now, there are many reasons why one may not be able to get a set to work for them - like constantly running out of end, a set having holes you cannot or just aren't yet able to patch, or just not liking the style of play a particular armor set "wants" you to use, (like switching between bio armor's modes or maybe having a backup source of healing for SR, when hits do get through).