The Trouble with slotting the Critical Strikes ATO…

[The Trouble]

...is not knowing what power to place it. I’d like to help in this quick guide.  The goal with the tables below isn't to say "Slot your Critical Strikes HERE!".  This is simply to make where you decide to slot your ATO an informed decision.

 

What the Critical Strikes Proc Does

When you fire off the power you slot it in, there's a chance to activate a brief window of time where each following attack scores a critical hit.

 

What to Consider

For a power to be a good candidate for this proc you'll want a high chance of it going off, and/or a large Crit Window.  Note that while an AoE might only have a 40% chance of activating, more targets mean more 40% attempts at once.

 

 

Explaining the Crit Window

When the Critical Strikes enhancement goes off, you will have 3.25 4.25 seconds of guaranteed crits. So consider slotting this in a power where the effect activates as close to the end of the power’s animation as possible.

 

By subtracting a power’s (A)Time Before Effect from (A)Cast Time, you’ll find how much time you have to wait before using your next attack. Subtract that number from the 4.25 seconds of Critical Strikes’ duration, and you'll find that power's "Crit Window".  (A) means the seconds listed are adjusted for Arcanatime!

 

Crit Windows have been calculated in the attached a tables for each Scrapper primary.  They are sorted by largest Crit Window, so the top 2 or 3 powers in each set will probably be good candidates to slot this ATO (within reason, there's a good argument for putting it in AoE powers that don't necessarily have a large Crit Window)

 

 

Battle Axe

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Beheader	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	15	28	3.722
Chop	Single	1.452	0.792	0.66	26	51	3.59
Swoop	Single	1.584	0.924	0.66	38	74	3.59
Gash	Single	1.452	0.66	0.792	32	63	3.458
Cleave	AoE	2.508	1.32	1.188	37	72	3.062
Pendulum	AoE	2.244	1.056	1.188	27	53	3.062
Axe Cyclone	AoE	2.244	0.66	1.584	58	90	2.666

Broad Sword

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Hack	Single	1.584	0.792	0.792	27	52	3.458
Slash	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	16	31	3.326
Parry	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	13	25	3.326
Disembowel	Single	1.98	0.924	1.056	34	66	3.194
Head Splitter	Cone	2.508	1.32	1.188	40	77	3.062
Slice	Cone	2.244	1.056	1.188	22	42	3.062
Whirling Sword	AoE	2.904	1.32	1.584	25	49	2.666

Claws

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Swipe	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	8	15	3.854
Follow up	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	37	70	3.854
Shockwave	Cone	1.188	0.792	0.396	17	34	3.854
Strike	Single	1.32	0.66	0.66	13	25	3.59
Focus	Single	1.32	0.66	0.66	22	42	3.59
Eviscerate	Cone	2.508	1.848	0.66	26	50	3.59
Slash	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	18	35	3.326
Spin	AoE	2.64	1.32	1.32	18	35	2.93

Dark Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Dark Consumption	AoE	1.188	0.924	0.264	90	90	3.986
Shadow Punch	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Smite	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	20	39	3.722
Soul Drain	AoE	2.508	1.848	0.66	90	90	3.59
Touch of Fear	AoE	2.112	0.924	1.188	27	34	3.062
Siphon Life	Single	2.112	0.924	1.188	35	67	3.062
Midnight Grasp	Single	2.244	0.66	1.584	49	90	2.666
Shadow Maul	Cone	2.508	0.528	1.98	29	57	2.27

Dual Blades

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Nimble Slash	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	12	23	3.722
Ablating Strike	Single	1.188	0.528	0.66	20	39	3.59
Blinding Feint	Single	1.452	0.66	0.792	38	73	3.458
Sweeping Strike	Cone	1.452	0.66	0.792	28	53	3.458
Power Slice	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	19	36	3.326
Typhoon’s Edge	AoE	2.508	0.66	1.848	22	42	2.402
Vengeful Slice	Single	2.64	0.66	1.98	31	59	2.27
One Thousand Cuts	Cone	3.432	0.66	2.772	42	81	1.478

Electrical Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Charged Brawl	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Jacobs Ladder	Cone	1.848	1.452	0.396	24	46	3.854
Chain Induction	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	43	82	3.722
Lightning Clap	AoE	1.452	0.924	0.528	33	63	3.722
Havoc Punch	Single	1.716	0.924	0.792	22	42	3.458
Thunder Strike	AoE	2.772	1.848	0.924	30	59	3.326
Lightning Rod	Location	2.772	1.056	1.716	90	90	2.534

Energy Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Energy Punch	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	17	33	3.854
Power Crash	Cone	1.98	1.584	0.396	21	41	3.854
Energy Transfer	Single	2.904	2.376	0.528	37	72	3.722
Bone Smasher	Single	1.452	0.792	0.66	27	52	3.59
Total Focus	Single	2.772	1.848	0.924	65	90	3.326
Barrage	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	21	41	3.326
Whirling Hands	AoE	2.64	1.32	1.32	25	49	2.93

Fiery Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Greater Fire Sword	Single	1.584	1.32	0.264	38	74	3.986
Scorch	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	12	23	3.722
Cremate	Single	1.716	0.924	0.792	27	53	3.458
Fire Sword	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	21	41	3.326
Incinerate	Single	1.848	0.924	0.924	34	65	3.326
Breath of Fire	Cone	2.904	1.32	1.584	28	54	2.666
Fire Sword Circle	AoE	2.904	1.32	1.584	65	90	2.666

Ice Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Freezing Touch	Single	1.188	0.66	0.528	48	90	3.722
Ice Sword	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	21	41	3.326
Frozen Fists	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	13	25	3.326
Greater Ice Sword	Single	2.508	1.32	1.188	36	70	3.062
Frozen Aura	AoE	2.244	0.924	1.32	30	58	2.93
Frost	Cone	2.508	0.924	1.584	28	54	2.666

Katana

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Gambler’s Cut	Single	0.924	0.528	0.396	11	21	3.854
Sting of the Wasp	Single	1.32	0.792	0.528	18	35	3.722
Flashing Steel	Cone	1.32	0.792	0.528	15	30	3.722
Divine Avalanche	Single	1.584	1.056	0.528	13	25	3.722
Soaring Dragon	Single	1.584	0.792	0.792	30	58	3.458
Golden Dragonfly	Cone	1.98	1.056	0.924	34	65	3.326
The Lotus Drops	AoE	1.98	0.924	1.056	24	46	3.194

Kinetic Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Body Blow	Single	1.32	1.188	0.132	18	34	4.118
Smashing Blow	Single	1.452	1.32	0.132	24	46	4.118
Repulsing Torrent	Cone	2.244	1.98	0.264	20	38	3.986
Quick Strike	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Focused Burst	Single	2.244	1.848	0.396	29	57	3.854
Concentrated Strike	Single	3.036	2.64	0.396	66	90	3.854
Burst	AoE	2.904	2.244	0.66	27	52	3.59

Martial Arts

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Storm Kick	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	20	38	3.854
Thunder Kick	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Crippling Axe Kick	Single	1.848	1.188	0.66	36	70	3.59
Cobra Strike	Single	1.848	0.792	1.056	34	65	3.194
Dragon’s Tail	AoE	1.716	0.66	1.056	23	45	3.194
Crane Kick	Single	1.848	0.66	1.188	34	65	3.062
Eagle’s Claw	Single	2.772	1.452	1.32	42	82	2.93

Psionic Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Mental Strike	Single	1.188	0.528	0.66	12	23	3.59
Psi Blade	Single	1.584	0.792	0.792	18	36	3.458
Greater Psi Blade	Single	2.64	1.848	0.792	51	90	3.458
Telekinetic Blow	Single	1.716	0.792	0.924	30	59	3.326
Psi Blade Sweep	Cone	1.98	1.056	0.924	23	45	3.326
Mass Levitate	AoE	2.64	1.584	1.056	30	59	3.194

Radiation Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Contaminated Strike	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Proton Sweep	Cone	1.848	1.452	0.396	23	44	3.854
Devastating Blow	Single	2.904	2.376	0.528	57	90	3.722
Radioactive Smash	Single	1.716	0.924	0.792	25	48	3.458
Radiation Siphon	Single	2.376	1.452	0.924	36	69	3.326
Atom Smasher	AoE	3.168	1.98	1.188	34	65	3.062

Savage Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Savage Strike	Single	1.056	0.396	0.66	10	19	3.59
Maiming Slash	Single	1.32	0.66	0.66	18	35	3.59
Savage Leap	Single	1.32	0.528	0.792	90	90	3.458
Vicious Slash	Single	1.848	0.66	1.188	31	60	3.062
Hemorrhage	Single	2.244	0.924	1.32	46	89	2.93
Shred	Cone	2.376	0.528	1.848	23	44	2.402
Rending Flurry	AoE	2.376	0.396	1.98	17	34	2.27

Spines

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Barb Swipe	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	11	22	3.854
Ripper	Cone	2.508	1.848	0.66	31	59	3.59
Impale	Single	2.64	1.584	1.056	31	59	3.194
Lunge	Single	1.848	0.66	1.188	22	43	3.062
Throw Spines	Cone	1.848	0.66	1.188	18	35	3.062
Spine Burst	AoE	3.168	1.848	1.32	20	40	2.93

Staff Fighting

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Precise Strike	Single	1.32	0.792	0.528	21	40	3.722
Mercurial Blow	Single	1.188	0.528	0.66	12	23	3.59
Serpent’s Reach	Single	1.98	1.32	0.66	31	61	3.59
Guarded Spin	Cone	1.98	0.396	1.584	21	41	2.666
Innocuous Strikes	Cone	2.376	0.528	1.848	26	51	2.402
Sky Splitter	Single	3.036	1.188	1.848	52	90	2.402
Eye of the Storm	AoE	2.772	0.396	2.376	27	51	1.874

Stone Melee

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Stone Fist	Single	1.056	0.66	0.396	14	27	3.854
Hurl Boulder	Single	2.64	2.112	0.528	31	60	3.722
Seismic Smash	Single	1.716	0.924	0.792	61	90	3.458
Tremor	AoE	2.772	1.848	0.924	18	34	3.326
Stone Mallet	Single	1.848	0.924	0.924	28	54	3.326
Heavy Mallet	Single	1.848	0.924	0.924	39	76	3.326
Fault	Single	2.244	0.792	1.452	24	45	2.798

Street Justice

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Initial Strike	Single	1.056	0.396	0.66	11	22	3.59
Heavy Blow	Single	1.32	0.66	0.66	18	34	3.59
Shin Breaker	Single	1.584	0.792	0.792	27	52	3.458
Sweeping Cross	Cone	1.848	0.924	0.924	23	44	3.326
Rib Cracker	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	21	41	3.326
Crushing Uppercut	Single	2.376	1.056	1.32	78	90	2.93
Spinning Strike	AoE	1.98	0.528	1.452	30	59	2.798

Titan Weapons (Momentum excluded until my patience returns)

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Crushing Blow	Single	2.244	2.112	0.132	29	57	4.118
Defensive Sweep	Cone	2.376	2.244	0.132	13	25	4.118
Titan Sweep	Cone	2.64	2.508	0.132	25	48	4.118
Rend Armor	Single	2.508	2.376	0.132	53	90	4.118
Whirling Smash	AoE	1.188	1.056	0.132	20	39	4.118
Arc of Destruction	Cone	2.904	2.64	0.264	37	71	3.986
Follow Through	Single	1.32	1.056	0.264	32	61	3.986

War Mace

Quote

Power	Effect Area	(A)Cast Time	(A)Time Before Effect	Time After Effect	Standard Proc %	Superior Proc %	Crit Window
Clobber	Single	1.452	0.792	0.66	49	90	3.59
Bash	Single	1.584	0.66	0.924	16	31	3.326
Pulverize	Single	1.716	0.66	1.056	27	53	3.194
Jawbreaker	Single	1.98	0.924	1.056	34	66	3.194
Shatter	Cone	2.508	1.32	1.188	34	67	3.062
Crowd Control	Cone	2.244	1.056	1.188	27	52	3.062
Whirling Mace	AoE	2.904	1.32	1.584	25	49	2.666

Now that you know which powers will give you the most time out of Critical Strikes, it’s time to discover what attack chain you can use in that Crit Window.

 

To calculate this, add the (A)Cast Time for every power but the last in your chain - that number should be the (A)Time Before Effect. Because no attacks follow this one, there is no need to account for it’s entire animation time.

 

Examples:

A two-power chain formula would be: (A)Cast Time for Power 1+ (A)Time Before Effect for Power 2.

A three-power chain would be: (A)Cast Time for Power 1+ (A)Cast Time for Power 2+ (A)Time Before Effect on Power 3.

 

If that total is less than the Crit Window, then your post-proc attack chain is likely maximizing the benefit of the Critical Strikes ATO!  Adjust to DPS tastes, and you're golden.*

 

*As Yomo Kimyata pointed out, don't be discouraged from slotting into an AoE, even if its Crit Window is small.  Hitting multiple targets gives your proc another chance of activating.  Even if you can only toss out one attack during your Crit Window, you could potentially have a lot more windows.

 

 

 

 

More knowledgeable folks, feel free to chime in and correct me on any gaps or misconceptions. This little project started simply because I wanted to find the best place for the ATO on my Broadsword wielder. Then I realized this information would be really helpful organized like this.

 

Enjoy!

 

Edit: @Maelwys, I hope I used your feedback correctly.  Frankly, I made these tables because all of this is deeply confusing for me.  Gonna keep trying...

Edit 2: @Yomo Kimyata noted that these tables don't tell the whole story because AoE's can be a good place for Critical Strikes.

Edit 3: Effect Area added to tables.  Proc percentages also added per @DarknessEternal's suggestion.

Edited Tuesday at 08:42 PM by The Trouble
Procs/Effect Area added to tables. Better explained intro.

[Uncle Shags]

Wow, this is awesome. 

 

Also, nice word play.

 

Edit: I'm curious about the numbers for TW when in momentum. 

Edited August 2 by Uncle Shags

[Maelwys]

10 hours ago, The Trouble said:

When the Critical Strikes enhancement goes off, you will have 3.25 seconds of guaranteed crits. So make sure you slot this in a power where the effect activates as close to the end of the power’s animation as possible.

 

By subtracting a power’s effect activation time from it’s casting time (Arcana adjusted), you’ll find how much time you have to wait before using your next attack. Subtract that number from the 3.25 seconds of Critical Strikes’ duration, and you'll find that power's "Crit Window".

 

...

 

More knowledgeable folks, feel free to chime in and correct me on any gaps or misconceptions.

(i) It's not 3.25s. It's 4.25s. (3.25 plus 0.5s ATBE for the IO plus another 0.5s ATBE for the set bonus)
(ii) There's another Arcanatime roundup that you're missing: you need to round the power that the ATO is slotted in's ATBE up for Arcanatime as well.

So the available buff time window for Scrapper ATO2 is the Slotted Attack's Arcanatime minus its ATBE rounded up for Arcanatime, plus 4.25 seconds.

Then after you work that out you indeed need to figure out how to get as much damage out of that narrow window as possible (via fitting in one or two low-arcanatime-high-DPA attacks and finishing up with a very low-ATBE-high-DPA attack; which seems to be what you're trying to accomplish here!) 👍

Full details/testing here:

 

[The Trouble]

On 8/2/2025 at 2:31 AM, Maelwys said:

(i) It's not 3.25s. It's 4.25s. (3.25 plus 0.5s ATBE for the IO plus another 0.5s ATBE for the set bonus)
(ii) There's another Arcanatime roundup that you're missing: you need to round the power that the ATO is slotted in's ATBE up for Arcanatime as well.

So the available buff time window for Scrapper ATO2 is the Slotted Attack's Arcanatime minus its ATBE rounded up for Arcanatime, plus 4.25 seconds.

Then after you work that out you indeed need to figure out how to get as much damage out of that narrow window as possible (via fitting in one or two low-arcanatime-high-DPA attacks and finishing up with a very low-ATBE-high-DPA attack; which seems to be what you're trying to accomplish here!) 👍

Full details/testing here:

 

Thanks for linking that thread.  I literally searched multiple ways to find similar topics, yet this one never showed up.  I'll brush up my Search-Fu.

Going to update my tables with this important feedback as soon as I have the mental capacity*, but at least they already help identify what powers should be considered for the ATO.

 

Deeply appreciate the help!

 

*Tables updated

Edited Sunday at 03:03 PM by The Trouble
Tables got updated

[The Trouble]

14 hours ago, Uncle Shags said:

Edit: I'm curious about the numbers for TW when in momentum. 

Me too!  Updating my spreadsheet for that will take some noodle-scratching.  I'm starting to feel like I jumped into the deep end of the pool with my boots on. 🙂

[SomeGuy]

The fact you included TBE AND TBA is really nice. Thank you for your work on this. Those two numbers combined = AT obviously, still really nice that someone already did the math. Like, the TBE and TBA on Midnight Grasp makes putting the ATO2 there just silly. Then at the other end of the spectrum is Conc Strike. Really good chance for ATO2 to go off there and a really good window for when it does. 

[Yomo Kimyata]

18 hours ago, The Trouble said:

Edit: @Maelwys, I hope I used your feedback correctly.  Frankly, I made these tables because all of this is deeply confusing for me.  Gonna keep trying...

 

Thanks to both of you for this.

 

@The Trouble I'm going to suggest you also look into scrapper secondaries as well.  On that note, remember that the Crit Strikes proc only needs to go off once, so that when it is in a power that affects more than one target, the effective chance to trigger goes up.  Example: you are looking at a choice between a single target attack that triggers at 75% probability, or you are looking at an AoE that can affect up to five targets at 50% probability (assuming 100% chance to hit for simplicity).  If you are fighting one target, the first choice seems obvious to maximize chances of the proc triggering.  But let's say there are three targets in close proximity.  The AoE power can trigger zero, one, two, or three times, but we only care that it triggers at least once.  So the odds of it NOT triggering at all is 0.5*0.5*0.5 = 12.5% and there is a 87.5% chance that it triggers at least once.

[The Trouble]

45 minutes ago, Yomo Kimyata said:

 

Thanks to both of you for this.

 

@The Trouble I'm going to suggest you also look into scrapper secondaries as well.  On that note, remember that the Crit Strikes proc only needs to go off once, so that when it is in a power that affects more than one target, the effective chance to trigger goes up.  Example: you are looking at a choice between a single target attack that triggers at 75% probability, or you are looking at an AoE that can affect up to five targets at 50% probability (assuming 100% chance to hit for simplicity).  If you are fighting one target, the first choice seems obvious to maximize chances of the proc triggering.  But let's say there are three targets in close proximity.  The AoE power can trigger zero, one, two, or three times, but we only care that it triggers at least once.  So the odds of it NOT triggering at all is 0.5*0.5*0.5 = 12.5% and there is a 87.5% chance that it triggers at least once.

I very passively addressed the issues like multiple targets when I said things like "probably be good candidates to slot this ATO (within reason)".  My hope was to give folks a direction to look in, rather than recommend powers to use outright. Many thanks for addressing such a meaningful component missing from these tables!  Directly related: Even though the Crit Window is pretty small for Broadsword's Slice, that's where I'm currently slotting the proc.  So yeah, your observation is important enough that I should include it in the first post unambiguously.

 

Including secondaries feels prohibitively daunting for now.  Consolidating this data burned me out 🤷‍♂️

[DarknessEternal]

You should be factoring in proc chance some how.

 

For example, Beheader only has a 28% chance to proc, while Swoop has a 74%.

 

Not to mention Beheader is garbage and should never be used, while Swoop is your best attack.

[The Trouble]

22 hours ago, DarknessEternal said:

You should be factoring in proc chance some how.

Well, crap.  You are correct.  

 

I'll update the tables to include regular and superior Critical Strikes proc chances as soon as my brain will allow.  Thank you.

Edited Tuesday at 04:04 PM by The Trouble
Tables updated to include procs!

[SomeGuy]

2 hours ago, The Trouble said:

Well, crap.  You are correct.  

 

I'll update the tables to include regular and superior Critical Strikes proc chances as soon as my brain will allow.  Thank you.

 

 

Just keep in mind you have already compiled a lot of data for an easy to look at spot. What you have already done is immensely useful. Don't push yourself to hard (unless this is something you want to do).

[BrandX]

Wait, does this mean that the 50% Proc in Kinetic Melee's Smashing Blow will allow you to keep that for the next 4.118 seconds?  And does it only work for the next attack or does it work for for every attack you can squeeze into that 4.118 seconds?

[ZeeHero]

Long story short, is a short animation better, or a long one? If I slot the ATO into total focus would that be best for energy melee?

[The Trouble]

2 hours ago, BrandX said:

Wait, does this mean that the 50% Proc in Kinetic Melee's Smashing Blow will allow you to keep that for the next 4.118 seconds?  And does it only work for the next attack or does it work for for every attack you can squeeze into that 4.118 seconds?

If it procs (24% chance on standard, 46% for Superior), then you have 4.118 seconds of critical strikes, not just the next attack.

 

2 hours ago, ZeeHero said:

Long story short, is a short animation better, or a long one? If I slot the ATO into total focus would that be best for energy melee?

A short animation or a long one doesn't matter as much as the Time After Effect, which you want to be as short as possible.  Once Total Focus has activated, you'll get 3.326 seconds of crits, and the ATO has a very high proc rate in this power (65% chance on standard, 90% for Superior).  On paper, it looks like a pretty good spot to slot this.

 

Tables will include proc rates Soon(TM)!  Tables updated!

 

Edited Tuesday at 04:05 PM by The Trouble
Procs added

[DarknessEternal]

Axe Cyclone and Fire Sword Circle appear to have forgotten their AoE nature in the proc chance.  Titan Weapon during Momentum probably needs its own chart since they have different animations and recharges.

[Switch8]

what about secondarys  i know some builds  a toggle will take the set

[BrandX]

6 minutes ago, Switch8 said:

what about secondarys  i know some builds  a toggle will take the set

 

I'd guess the issue there, is it would make the use of the CS Proc random, as the toggle would only have a chance every 10 seconds.

[The Trouble]

13 minutes ago, Switch8 said:

what about secondarys  i know some builds  a toggle will take the set

@BrandX hit the nail on the head.  I've omitted toggles because it makes predicting your Crit Window impossible, and the goal of this post was to steer Scrappers towards the most efficient placement for their personal build(s).  By all means, put it in a toggle if you'd like!  I'm not the Build Police. 🙂  I think that method would work best with extremely fast recharge attacks, so you could just go on your merry little berserk fury and randomly get a boost here and there.

 

You don't need to be "efficient" to have fun.  I'm sure most of us agree that a successful build is whatever leaves you standing while your enemies are in piles upon the floor.