Build advice for a newer player using Axe/Shield Scrapper!

[WeAllFall]

I subject myself to the advice of the forums! I have been recently introduced to this awesome mmo, and I have no real build experience in the game. Using some of what I have seen or heard I have been playing an Axe/Shield scrapper. I know only a bit so feel free to lay on the advice for builds! 
The desire and goal of the build is a Beefy crit monster with some decent AOE and CC. Trying to be in the group of main pull enemies dishing out damage and not being wiped out by it.  I love using Axe Cyclone>Pendulum to pull/clear mobs. Just want to ensure leveling that I haven't ruined myself with my misguided build attempt! So for a Melee bruiser, if I am missing anything, please let me know!  
Edit: Friend helped my polish a bit. 
Mids build round 2. **Updated!**

Edited Friday at 01:19 PM by WeAllFall
Build update

[Uun]

Frankly, I don't know if you're serious or this is a troll post. 

• You're going to have massive endurance issues running Tough, Weave, Assault, Tactics and Focused Accuracy. Drop the Leadership pool.
• There's no reason to take both Beheader and Chop. Drop Beheader and take Gash if you need another ST attack.
• No idea what your doing with your slotting of Beheader, Chop and Swoop. These should each have 5-6 slots of a Melee Damage set. Don't skip the scrapper ATOs, especially the procs/globals.
• Slot Build Up with the Gaussian's Chance for Build Up proc and a rech/tohit piece.
• Battle Agility needs end reduction.
• 2-3 slots in True Grit should be converted to healing (for the +HP).
• Active Defense is your status protection and shouldn't be skipped.
• Conserve Power, Hasten and Burnout should get two 50+5 recharge IOs. The 3rd (and 4th) IOs do almost nothing due to ED. Burnout also needs end reduction.
• 6-slotting Phalanx Fighting is a waste. Enhancements only affect the buff received from nearby allies. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• 6-slotting One with the Shield is a waste. Its recharge can't be enhanced. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• 6-slotting Panacea in Physical Perfection is a waste. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• The 3rd and 4th slots in Health and Stamina do almost nothing due to ED.

https://homecoming.wiki/wiki/Enhancement_Diversification

[WeAllFall]

42 minutes ago, Uun said:

Frankly, I don't know if you're serious or this is a troll post. 

• You're going to have massive endurance issues running Tough, Weave, Assault, Tactics and Focused Accuracy. Drop the Leadership pool.
• There's no reason to take both Beheader and Chop. Drop Beheader and take Gash if you need another ST attack.
• No idea what your doing with your slotting of Beheader, Chop and Swoop. These should each have 5-6 slots of a Melee Damage set. Don't skip the scrapper ATOs, especially the procs/globals.
• Slot Build Up with the Gaussian's Chance for Build Up proc and a rech/tohit piece.
• Battle Agility needs end reduction.
• 2-3 slots in True Grit should be converted to healing (for the +HP).
• Active Defense is your status protection and shouldn't be skipped.
• Conserve Power, Hasten and Burnout should get two 50+5 recharge IOs. The 3rd (and 4th) IOs do almost nothing due to ED. Burnout also needs end reduction.
• 6-slotting Phalanx Fighting is a waste. Enhancements only affect the buff received from nearby allies. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• 6-slotting One with the Shield is a waste. Its recharge can't be enhanced. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• 6-slotting Panacea in Physical Perfection is a waste. Redeploy those slots elsewhere.
• The 3rd and 4th slots in Health and Stamina do almost nothing due to ED.

https://homecoming.wiki/wiki/Enhancement_Diversification

Was terrified at first when I read the top line wondering if I was trolling. I am just very inept on how builds on this server come together, and you good sir are a blessing. 
Don't mean to seem like I'm trying to waste time! Every piece of advice you put here will be taken to heart tonight and I will redo the entire build. This is genuinely my first time on this game and my first toon to 50, and I am in love with the game and server and build ascetic. So I really wanna make it work!

I am beyond grateful you took the time to type this out my friend! I promise to come back with a re-visited build with these improvements. Thanks again

[Due Regard]

30 minutes ago, WeAllFall said:

Was terrified at first when I read the top line wondering if I was trolling. I am just very inept on how builds on this server come together, and you good sir are a blessing. 
Don't mean to seem like I'm trying to waste time! Every piece of advice you put here will be taken to heart tonight and I will redo the entire build. This is genuinely my first time on this game and my first toon to 50, and I am in love with the game and server and build ascetic. So I really wanna make it work!

I am beyond grateful you took the time to type this out my friend! I promise to come back with a re-visited build with these improvements. Thanks again

 

Take a look at some other builds here on the forums for ideas/notions of slotting goals.

Remember, you don't NEED to slot IO's to be able to enjoy the game, it just helps to make your toon even more overpowered.
Most content in the game is balanced around SO slotting, and there's nothing wrong in using just that.

Basic slotting goals, and my personal order of importance (Note, slotting will be in SO's. Level 25 Common IO's are a little under white SO's, Lvl 30's are a little over. Any of the three are interchangeable.):

Enough Accuracy to reliably hit what you want to hit - this is ~33% or 1 SO
Max Damage on attack powers - dead mobs don't hurt you - this is ~95% (due to ED) or 3 SO's worth of enhancements
Max Strength on defensive powers - Now that you can kill them, make yourself tougher to fight tougher foes - ~95%/3 SO's of appropriate enhancement: +Def for Defense powers, +Res for Resistance powers, +Recharge for long recharge powers, +Heal for +HP/Absorb/Healing powers
Endurance! - Stamina and anything +End/+Recovery in your Secondary - ~95%/3 SO's of Endurance Management
Endurance Part Deux! - Everything else gets EndReduction! - ~33%/1 SO of Endurance Reduction in toggles, and any attack (usually start with the most expensive/heaviest hitting and work my way down)

At this point, you should have a fairly functional toon, either as you level or a respec from a farmed 50. This is when you get to pick and choose - grab pools that help your toon/concept/ fill in weak spots, drop extra attacks/secondary powers that you never use, etc.

This will help to avoid some of the common pitfalls that beginning builders make... I remember 20+ years ago when my Kat/Regen was slotting Defense Debuff into my attacks... *sigh*

[WeAllFall]

34 minutes ago, Due Regard said:

 

Take a look at some other builds here on the forums for ideas/notions of slotting goals.

Remember, you don't NEED to slot IO's to be able to enjoy the game, it just helps to make your toon even more overpowered.
Most content in the game is balanced around SO slotting, and there's nothing wrong in using just that.

Basic slotting goals, and my personal order of importance (Note, slotting will be in SO's. Level 25 Common IO's are a little under white SO's, Lvl 30's are a little over. Any of the three are interchangeable.):

Enough Accuracy to reliably hit what you want to hit - this is ~33% or 1 SO
Max Damage on attack powers - dead mobs don't hurt you - this is ~95% (due to ED) or 3 SO's worth of enhancements
Max Strength on defensive powers - Now that you can kill them, make yourself tougher to fight tougher foes - ~95%/3 SO's of appropriate enhancement: +Def for Defense powers, +Res for Resistance powers, +Recharge for long recharge powers, +Heal for +HP/Absorb/Healing powers
Endurance! - Stamina and anything +End/+Recovery in your Secondary - ~95%/3 SO's of Endurance Management
Endurance Part Deux! - Everything else gets EndReduction! - ~33%/1 SO of Endurance Reduction in toggles, and any attack (usually start with the most expensive/heaviest hitting and work my way down)

At this point, you should have a fairly functional toon, either as you level or a respec from a farmed 50. This is when you get to pick and choose - grab pools that help your toon/concept/ fill in weak spots, drop extra attacks/secondary powers that you never use, etc.

This will help to avoid some of the common pitfalls that beginning builders make... I remember 20+ years ago when my Kat/Regen was slotting Defense Debuff into my attacks... *sigh*

Solid crash course! Thanks a ton, I did indeed have the ideal of using lower CD attacks moves to debuff their defenses, but I can see now the flaw in that.  I was too focused on getting my res and defense to a good point on paper I got lost in execution. My toon is actually only level 29 atm. But I like to be prepared for the future! I plan to do as you suggest and do some build surfing tonight.  Already have ripped the build down in mids and started anew. 

Thanks for taking the time to respond my friend! I am grateful.  

As mentioned above after some serious re-tuning I will repost the build here. 

Edited Friday at 05:55 PM by WeAllFall

[Uun]

2 hours ago, WeAllFall said:

Was terrified at first when I read the top line wondering if I was trolling.

Didn't mean to attack you, but it wouldn't be the first time somebody posted a build with lots of issues to stir things up on the forums.

[WeAllFall]

The time has come! I did a bit of research and took all the advice to heart. This is my next best shot at the build! I think I took some of the core issues and solved them. I also tried to handle the issues of slotting things in-efficiently. (Save the one extra Recharge in Hasten to change my down time from 36 seconds to 25 seconds. I know its a small difference, but considering I want close to 100% uptime. I felt like it was worth for the few extra seconds back online. Please let me know what you think! o7

[Uun]

Rather than posting screen shots, attach the Mid's file to your post so we can open it.

• Your defense levels are too low. You've only got 30.6% melee and 26.2% ranged. Ideally, you want to be at (or over) 45%. You're skipping both the Steadfast Protection and Gladiator's Armor 3% uniques (which need to be slotted in a resist power). Fury of the Gladiator in Axe Cyclone and Armageddon in Shield Charge provide no defense bonuses. They could be replaced with Obliteration, which provides 3.75% melee defense. Aegis could be replaced with Unbreakable Guard. Avalanche could be replaced with Superior Avalanche. Mako's Bite could be slotted in a melee attack for 3.75% ranged defense. 
• Not sure why you dropped Swoop. It has the highest DPA in the set.
• Deflection provides both melee defense and S/L resistance. You need to enhance both. It's better to 3-slot a defense set and 3-slot a resist set.
• True Grit provides both F/C/E/N/T resistance and +HP. You need to enhance both.
• Instead of 3-slotting Hasten, slot 2 IOs boosted to +5. I also think your math is off. There's no way going from 2 to 3 slots would decrease your down time by 11s.
• Don't skip Phalanx Fighting. While the self-defense buff can't be enhanced, it's still 3.75% to all.
• Don't skip Grant Cover. While the defense buff only applies to allies, the defense debuff resistance and recharge resistance applies to you.
• I wouldn't bother with the Medicine pool. You would be better served with powers like Maneuvers and/or Combat Jumping that increase your defense. 

[WeAllFall]

20 hours ago, Uun said:

Rather than posting screen shots, attach the Mid's file to your post so we can open it.

• Your defense levels are too low. You've only got 30.6% melee and 26.2% ranged. Ideally, you want to be at (or over) 45%. You're skipping both the Steadfast Protection and Gladiator's Armor 3% uniques (which need to be slotted in a resist power). Fury of the Gladiator in Axe Cyclone and Armageddon in Shield Charge provide no defense bonuses. They could be replaced with Obliteration, which provides 3.75% melee defense. Aegis could be replaced with Unbreakable Guard. Avalanche could be replaced with Superior Avalanche. Mako's Bite could be slotted in a melee attack for 3.75% ranged defense. 
• Not sure why you dropped Swoop. It has the highest DPA in the set.
• Deflection provides both melee defense and S/L resistance. You need to enhance both. It's better to 3-slot a defense set and 3-slot a resist set.
• True Grit provides both F/C/E/N/T resistance and +HP. You need to enhance both.
• Instead of 3-slotting Hasten, slot 2 IOs boosted to +5. I also think your math is off. There's no way going from 2 to 3 slots would decrease your down time by 11s.
• Don't skip Phalanx Fighting. While the self-defense buff can't be enhanced, it's still 3.75% to all.
• Don't skip Grant Cover. While the defense buff only applies to allies, the defense debuff resistance and recharge resistance applies to you.
• I wouldn't bother with the Medicine pool. You would be better served with powers like Maneuvers and/or Combat Jumping that increase your defense. 

Thanks for the tips! I tried to apply as many as I can but I am still looking into what I need to adjust. Thanks again for takin the time to check these builds. I will upload a file with edits to my knowledge that I think mostly line up better for my defenses. I am super willing to take more criticism, advise, and general tips for builds as well. I will keep polishing as I go, but I figured posting a file would be better than leaving it as just a screen shot lol 
(Im literally holding onto a respec until I can get a fixed and functional end game capable build to have as a push goal)

WeAllFall - Scrapper (Battle Axe - Shield Defense).mbd

Edited 14 hours ago by WeAllFall
typo

[Due Regard]

10 hours ago, WeAllFall said:

Thanks for the tips! I tried to apply as many as I can but I am still looking into what I need to adjust. Thanks again for takin the time to check these builds. I will upload a file with edits to my knowledge that I think mostly line up better for my defenses. I am super willing to take more criticism, advise, and general tips for builds as well. I will keep polishing as I go, but I figured posting a file would be better than leaving it as just a screen shot lol 
(Im literally holding onto a respec until I can get a fixed and functional end game capable build to have as a push goal)

WeAllFall - Scrapper (Battle Axe - Shield Defense).mbd 48.39 kB · 0 downloads

 

Freespec every 10 levels... And you can earn 3 more from trials, and purchase extras from the market. No need to hoard.

And here's a build idea - not fully budget, but also not just common IO's. Doesn't really lean into set bonuses, and any of the non-unique/non-proc Set IO's can be swapped for commons, if your budget is that lean. Slot level and enhancement slotting as a result are my recommendations as if this was an actively leveling build from 1-50... So, it can be worked on while still playing the toon and still having something functional to play.

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[WeAllFall]

11 minutes ago, Due Regard said:

 

Freespec every 10 levels... And you can earn 3 more from trials, and purchase extras from the market. No need to hoard.

And here's a build idea - not fully budget, but also not just common IO's. Doesn't really lean into set bonuses, and any of the non-unique/non-proc Set IO's can be swapped for commons, if your budget is that lean. Slot level and enhancement slotting as a result are my recommendations as if this was an actively leveling build from 1-50... So, it can be worked on while still playing the toon and still having something functional to play.

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Totally flipping and trying this out! Toon is currently level 45 (almost first 50 on Excelsior! 😄 ). Thanks for letting me know the respecs weren't as limited as I thought! I am eyes wide over the damage numbers on Psionic Lance! I want to try it out even if it gets changed! I will have something a bit more functional than what I am working with and I might get some ideas! Thanks a ton!