Focused Feedback New Powerset - Psionic Armor (Brutes, Scrappers, Sentinels, Stalkers, Tankers)

[Warshades]

I did my testing with a psi/ma tank, so this may skew the results because of Storm Kick, but it did relatively fine for me. It certainly wasn't jaw dropping performance, but it was a solid tank for most content. Storm Kick absolutely helps with layering some extra positional defense, but the set unfortunately doesn't have any DDR and it won't help against mobs that heavily debuff. I actually didn't struggle much against Arachnos, but this was an IO'd build. The few instances where I took heavy damage was usually against any toxic damage (that's where the real resist hole is and Arachnos have several toxic damage dealing attacks and mobs, like Tarantulas). I would see noticeable drops in HP against +4/8x Arachnos radio mission, but nothing that the tank couldn't handle if doing 1 mob at a time. The amount of lethal resist felt fine to me, but again, definitely higher values on a tank compared to other ATs. With 2 stacks of SMoT, I'm hitting near hard cap to most resists. It also gets a solid amount of regen with fully saturated CP.

 

 

[Warshades]

This was fighting against +4/8x Arachnos. The armor does a lot better against other mobs that don't deal toxic damage. Endurance drain can be an issue against Mu as others pointed out. 

 

[Videra]

This is, quite possibly, the most Homecoming set of all time.

[Lazarillo]

3 minutes ago, Videra said:

This is, quite possibly, the most Homecoming set of all time.

Nah, no janky special mechanic that all powers have a random chance to add, nor new poptext.

[Videra]

Just now, Lazarillo said:

Nah, no janky special mechanic that all powers have a random chance to add, nor new poptext.

 

You know, good point - we need to add the status effect: 'Wet' to this set. Surely that will solve the issues that are currently rendering it an aggressively, murderously calculated degree of mediocre.

[ScarySai]

Hypothetically, if I was a power dev, and my new set was being unironically compared to stalker willpower, I would scrap the entire goddamn thing.

[Lazarillo]

13 minutes ago, ScarySai said:

Hypothetically, if I was a power dev, and my new set was being unironically compared to stalker willpower, I would scrap the entire goddamn thing.

I continue to nickname it "We Have Dark Armor at Home" Armor.

[Seed22]

18 minutes ago, ScarySai said:

Hypothetically, if I was a power dev, and my new set was being unironically compared to stalker willpower, I would scrap the entire goddamn thing.

Holy fucking shit, STALKER WILLPOWER? 
 

God, wow thats bad. I only tested on tank and obv tank stats carry harder than sisaphus but jeez…

[Videra]

Just now, Seed22 said:

Holy fucking shit, STALKER WILLPOWER? 
 

God, wow thats bad. I only tested on tank and obv tank stats carry harder than sisaphus but jeez…

 

Yeah I'm glad that it seems like everyone can recognize that this set is a shambling mess that absolutely cannot go live in the state it's in. 

[ScarySai]

5 minutes ago, Lazarillo said:

I continue to nickname it "We Have Dark Armor at Home" Armor.

 

Oh come on, even sentinel dark armor isn't this bad.

[Warspite]

Neither of the taunt auras on Psionic take Threat Duration sets, which seems to be an error. This is for Impose Presence & Aura of Insanity; and applies to both the Tanker & Brute versions.  All other taunt auras currently on live take these sets.  This includes the 2 auras Ice has and 3 that Dark has.

 

Unless this is a reverse in direction and this has also been removed from some of the reworked defense sets in this patch.

 

Also, just noticed that Aura of Insanity is a toggle that doesn't appear to use endurance.  Not complaining mind you.  Just interesting.  Not just in the description, doesn't show in game under Combat Attributes.  Similar power to Oppressive Gloom which has also mezzes and has a self damage, which has a very low endurance cost (.08/s) so maybe they just did away with it?

Edited Thursday at 02:28 AM by Warspite

[Warshades]

26 minutes ago, Warspite said:

Also, just noticed that Aura of Insanity is a toggle that doesn't appear to use endurance.  Not complaining mind you.  Just interesting.  Not just in the description, doesn't show in game under Combat Attributes. 

 

There are other toggle powers that have no endurance drain. Bio armor's Adaptation toggles, dual pistol's Swap Ammo, etc. Oppressive Gloom actually does have a 0.08 end drain. This might be one of the few powers that affects enemies without an endurance drain whereas the others that I can think of like Adaptation and Swap Ammo only directly affect your character.

[Warspite]

As I try and figure out the best way to slot Memento Mori, shouldn't this set be able to slot Accurate Healing sets as well?  Or is this some concern about Theft of Essence Chance for +Endurance?

[rwmagpie]

14 hours ago, Cheli said:

Honestly it feels like "I would never play this outside of theme" is the balancing point they're going for with new sets.

 

A lethal hole might be mechanically 'different' or 'interesting' but it's the most common damage type in the game and you're going to be struggling from level 1 if your toggles don't cover lethal adequately. Very silly decision. 

i'm not disagreeing with you here, just adding a thought that someone might find worth their read:

 

making powersets for people on everlasting (the unofficial roleplaying shard) is not going to appeal to people on excelsior (the unofficial not roleplaying shard); making ineffective sets for "theme" reasons rather than sets that have a clear, identifiable niche gives people reason to play it and consider it for certain powerset combinations. i was floating electric melee + psi armor until i actually looked at the numbers and realized i'd be better off on dark armor for control and survivability with mechanics very similar to psi armor's.

it's bleak!

[Warspite]

By the way, of course Lethal has weaker resistances...

[Videra]

12 minutes ago, rwmagpie said:

i'm not disagreeing with you here, just adding a thought that someone might find worth their read:

 

making powersets for people on everlasting (the unofficial roleplaying shard) is not going to appeal to people on excelsior (the unofficial not roleplaying shard); making ineffective sets for "theme" reasons rather than sets that have a clear, identifiable niche gives people reason to play it and consider it for certain powerset combinations. i was floating electric melee + psi armor until i actually looked at the numbers and realized i'd be better off on dark armor for control and survivability with mechanics very similar to psi armor's.

it's bleak!

 

To be honest? I genuinely don't think there is a balancing metric at play. Every set Homecoming has made - outside of Marine - has been hamstrung in a number of incredibly strange and legitimately creative ways. Simply look at The Entirety of Arsenal Control, or how Storm Blast has a bunch of weird restrictions that make actually playing it feel bad. Psionic Armor, as it appears to me, is simply . . . a continuation of that unfortunate trend. They'll do something like, say, nerf Plant Control's big powers (one of which cannot be meaningfully used at endgame) while allowing Fire Blast to continue existing unmarred!

It's sad, but that's HC for you.

[BuildsAllTheThings]

20 minutes ago, rwmagpie said:

i'm not disagreeing with you here, just adding a thought that someone might find worth their read:

 

making powersets for people on everlasting (the unofficial roleplaying shard) is not going to appeal to people on excelsior (the unofficial not roleplaying shard); making ineffective sets for "theme" reasons rather than sets that have a clear, identifiable niche gives people reason to play it and consider it for certain powerset combinations. i was floating electric melee + psi armor until i actually looked at the numbers and realized i'd be better off on dark armor for control and survivability with mechanics very similar to psi armor's.

it's bleak!

I promise you, we on everlasting do not claim this set either lmao.

 

 

[JayboH]

As far as closed beta goes, I don't believe a focused feedback thread exists/existed for Psionic Armor

[Ukase]

12 hours ago, Warshades said:

but the set unfortunately doesn't have any DDR

You're speaking of Psionic Armor on the tank?

 

Spoiler

 

 

The screenshots of the power took up a bit of room, but there is a power that does provide some ddr. At least, that's the way I read it. Lord knows I've misread things before. 

[Warshades]

4 minutes ago, Ukase said:

The screenshots of the power took up a bit of room, but there is a power that does provide some ddr. At least, that's the way I read it. Lord knows I've misread things before.

 

I was referring to defense debuff resist. Psychokinetic Barrier provides resistance to recharge debuffs, recovery debuffs, endurance drain, and regen debuffs. Even then, it's relatively minor and you can get drained of endurance when fighting specific enemies. 

 

DDR would be nice for the set to have as it provides a decent amount of positional defense that can be soft capped when paired with something like MA and Storm Kick, but as it is right now with 0% DDR, that soft cap positional defense can quickly get neutered into the negative values. 

[BrandX]

Besides Aura of Insanity not taking Scrapper ATO sets (but takes damage sets)...and I say this to remind it's an issue...is the stealth supposed to lose defense when you attack?  I thought the stealth powers in armor kept their defense numbers in and out of stealth.

 

Edit:  As I used the same slotting as my live Dark Armor Scrapper...they have the same Defense, but the Psi Armor loses part of the defense when attacking.

 

Also...Psi Armor looks to give to Typed Defense, is this supposed to do that?  Or just the three positionals?

 

More Edit: 2.99 to all types...then 5.98 to all types.  What it looks to be doing is giving both defenses the character, than then taking away the 5.98 when attacking.

On live...I get the 5.98 all the time with Dark Armor's equal stealth armor.

Edited Thursday at 03:50 PM by BrandX

[BrandX]

I can understand the possibility you don't want the set to have a minimal FX option, but can we have a minimal FX for Impenetrable Mind?

[KittyEater88]

Tested on a BA/Psi/Psi Scrapper to get a better idea of how the set performs. To echo what many others have said, my first thought is that this should be a defense-based set. That’s not just based on my own subjective opinion of what a psionic armor would conceptually look like, but also on precedent already in-game: Psionic-themed epics, Fortunatas, Arachnos units, and other NPCs that lean heavily on defense as their first layer of protection.

The damage aura does a laughable amount of damage, coupled with random mez effects. While clearing Cimerorans on the wall, I initially thought it was contributing—until I realized they weren’t mezzed at all; they had just run out of endurance. The set needs to commit—either go all in on mez or go all in on damage. Right now, it’s not leaning toward the controller-esque side like Dark Armor, or the offense-heavy side like Radiation Armor. As a result, the set lacks a clear identity.

At present, Psionic Armor feels like it’s trying to do too much and failing to do any of it well. Other hybrid-layered sets succeed because they still have a clear emphasis. For instance, Willpower combines resistance, defense, and +HP, with a generous dose of situational regen to make those middling layers work together. It’s passive, and when you’re going down, you usually know it’s coming to react accordlingly. Psionic Armor, in contrast, feels like the active version of Willpower—except you’re supposed to have more control over your survival.

But here’s the issue: if you use your active clicks to boost/refresh regen, your absorb is down and Mori is on cooldown, you’re out of luck. And those clicks were wasted. Because the set lacks DDR, what little defense it does provide is quickly stripped away, leaving you reliant on middling resistance and absorb. Once those are gone, the regen won't save you.

I also tested the new Regen set alongside Psi Armor and found it just as viable in most situations, despite all of Psi’s supposed "layers." Regen is known to be vulnerable to burst damage and alpha strikes, but the rework has improved it significantly. If I’m going to rely on active clicks and get no added offensive benefit, I’ll stick to the classic.

[StarkWhite]

12 hours ago, JayboH said:

As far as closed beta goes, I don't believe a focused feedback thread exists/existed for Psionic Armor

Someone's psi armor was making me hallucinate that I posted in it an awful lot, then.

[Wavicle]

3 hours ago, KittyEater88 said:

Psionic-themed epics

Psi epic shields are resist based.