page 3 [FOCUSED FEEDBACK] New Melee Set - Sonic Melee

[Wravis]

On 11/15/2025 at 1:22 PM, GM_GooglyMoogly said:

 

Untrue.  Many changes are made every page in closed and open beta, and sometimes even live, based on player feedback.  But sometimes we hear you and disagree.

 

This is a focused feedback thread on Sonic Melee.  Please keep your focus on the set.  Opinions are fine.  "I like/dislike it because ______ " is great.  "I tested and found _______" is even better.  Complaining about the past does not belong here.  You can start a new thread for that if you wish.

  
AFAIK we're not allowed to discuss closed beta outside of closed beta, but since you brought it up, no. Very few changes were made in closed beta because Sonic Melee was fast-tracked with only a single week of testing. And the consensus then was the same as the consensus now. Attune is not fun. It's not a good power. It's interesting, but it doesn't work well in practice.

And that's the same feedback you're getting in open beta too. But heels are being dug in, because it's a pet project with a specific unassailable vision.


In case you're having trouble finding the ignored feedback.
 

On 11/10/2025 at 6:02 PM, Alchemystic said:

Attune seems as though it's in a very perculiar place, it's feels like a combination of Follow Up (Claws), Molten Embrace (Fiery Aura) and Power Siphon (Kinetic Melee), while also having to compete internally with Sound Booster as the means of increasing the damage output of the set (albiet one that is far more restrictive). Not only that, but it's another gimmick ontop of the already present 'Migriane' mechanic which should probably be the focus here instead, as it already was present in Sonic Assault and works just fine as is.

 

SNIP

All in all, the rest of the powerset seems fine, it's just unfortunately burdened by being pulled in too many directions at once. I think if we want it to thrive, we need to focus attention on streamlining it, and that means getting rid of the dead weight.

 

 

  

On 11/10/2025 at 9:12 PM, Sarigar said:

I'll say it as I said it on CB : Attune need more interactions outside the T1/T2. Tying the set's mechanic to two incredibly low impact abilities around Attune which is janky in itself to reapply in moment to moment game play feels terrible.

  

On 11/10/2025 at 9:31 PM, Kaika said:

Bringing it into a mission though, I'm not really a fan of attune, I don't think it's *bad* or anything but for all the effort you have to put into it, it really didn't feel all that impactful, especially with AS and crits in the mix, It's the kinda thing where the numbers probably add up to it being worth it, but just barely, but that's only a hunch, I'm sure someone will do the math. Honestly I think it would be alot better as just a melee based DoT toggle with no other interactions, thats already really unique and something thats not in the game, the interactions with the T1 and T2 just feel like they over-complicate things and sorta force you into taking powers that are normally somewhat skippable. It kinda feels like the old tank gauntlet issue again, and I would rather the T1 and T2 be strong enough to stand on their own then have to have this awkward interaction to make them worth it, as they feel very weak on their own.

 

Another issue I was having was losing my attune target in the mix of things, there is no VFX on the main target effected which makes them really easy to lose if you are switching around targets. Sure yo u can see damage numbers over their heads, but in alot of situations it's still hard to line it up, specially if it's a group like council and many of the enemies look identical. Also on stalker I kept having a issue with the DoT damage would cause the enemy to quickly start fleeing forcing me to chase or lose attune, which kinda just sucks, since it would happen very quickly. This isn't a issue unique to sonic melee, but it feels worse since you lose attune and have to set it up again.

 

All and all it works fine, just feels really over-complicated single target DPS wise, and not really great in normal misions due to how much setup it needs. AoE feels great at least. It's current state is fine, but I don't think I'd play it.

 

  

On 11/11/2025 at 12:37 PM, Shin Magmus said:

   Did anybody ask for a melee set with a single-target toggle that you have to put on the enemy repeatedly?  Anyone?  Does anyone like this idea?  Put me down as a hard "No" for Attune as it currently works: not fun.

  

On 11/11/2025 at 12:22 PM, Psi-bolt said:

 

 

My first and biggest piece of feedback is that Attune needs to change.  I get the idea behind it.  When I read the descriptions, I wanted to play the set in the early game to see how it performs and it's very effective, but feels incredibly off.  First it is incredibly clunky.  It seems you want us to initiate with Attune, then the T1/T2 to juice the DoT damage.  That's great on bosses, but you're switching targets a lot in the early game.    I will say that I really liked in when doing the early King's Row arcs with the Elite Bosses.  Fury plus Attune just melted them.  Later game it falls off.   But there's still the need to move it around constantly.

 

As for the rest of the set, I'll have more to say, but I like that Clap is worth taking, that's a really good cone.   The AoE is great.    I think this has the potential to be a really popular set, but the feel of Attune is holding it back IMO.  

  

On 11/11/2025 at 12:55 PM, JKwervo said:

As a player, why in the HECK do I want to manage toggles as a MELEE set? 

 

As a Melee character, im not looking to do the same damn things as a debuffing defender/controller, etc does. I go in, smack, taunt, smack some more smack harder, and smack even more hard. 

 

This set is just mind boggling. It is NOT good. The system, the mechanic, to me, is just NOT WORTH the time and effort because why? It's not fun. 

  

On 11/11/2025 at 3:16 PM, High_Beam said:

Okay so yeah, Attune is clunky as hell.  Still testing but its annoying.  Reapplying is a PITA, an unnecessary PITA.

  

On 11/11/2025 at 4:27 PM, Lockpick said:

I'm playing a Sonic / Psionic Stalker.  I'm only lvl 12 at the moment, but my early impressions are not so good (unfortunately).  I don't like the Attune mechanic or the DOT nature of the attacks.  Maybe it gets better.

  

On 11/11/2025 at 6:39 PM, Sovera said:

Attune is annoying to reapply but it does do upfront damage (not a lot though, around 40 damage as a level 50). The upfront damage does compensate for the reapplying since it is the same as just hitting the target, and then each subsequent hit is boosting the DoT.

 

The problem with DoTs is the quick nature of the game. We rarely go into a group of enemies and take more than 30 seconds to lay them all down between BUs and AoEs. So, outside of pylons where we place the toggle once and don't need to re-apply the quick nature means having to reapply all the time on low HP enemies like anything under a boss.

  

On 11/12/2025 at 4:24 AM, JayboH said:

I also find it interesting and I like having sets play differently too.  Retoggling 16 times a mob is not fun for some of us and we are giving feedback as requested.

  

On 11/12/2025 at 9:05 AM, Psi-bolt said:

Back to the topic.  I've tried this on every AT now, and I've come to the conclusion that Attune just isn't fun so I decided not to take it or respec out of it once I have a decent attack chain.  I started a Scrapper as the last test and just didn't take Attune at all.  I'm sure that there was some DPS loss in the early game, but I can't say I missed it much.  After getting to 20, I leveled instantly to 50 and at high levels, Strident, Sandman and Earsplitter was a more than sufficient attack chain for me.  

 

If some folks dig Attune, then more power to them.   I think the set is fun and will be leveling it on live.  

  

On 11/12/2025 at 12:34 PM, drbuzzard said:

However as others have mentioned, the fact that the set is very reliant on DoT means it doesn't really front load and much of the damage will be wasted on steamrolling teams unless you are on a hard target like at least an EB or AV. The T1 and T2 attacks feel fairly soft by themselves and only really serve to charge that DoT (which is good when it gets going, but doesn't mean much on soft stuff). I'd prefer it if they got some love since right now they are among the most feeble early attacks among stalkers. 

 

My approach to use is ignore the toggle nature of attune, and just keep attacking with it on a give hard target. 

  

On 11/12/2025 at 12:54 PM, Lazarus said:

Spent some time on a brute, the set as a hole is the same as all other sets, 4-5 single target attacks a cone and an aoe.

 

What irritated me was the constant reapplying of ATTUNE.

 

My suggestion, make it a toggle in which any target hit by the T1 or T2 attack has a short 10-15 second dot applied. That way it can be applied to more than 1 target and is easier to use.

  

On 11/12/2025 at 1:21 PM, Championess said:

I'm most interested in the stalker/scrapper version which I trust people are giving it a good testing to find quirks.  The one thing I do agree with though is tying the attune gimmick to both first attacks. 

 

Conceptually it sounds neat if not a bit extra management.  After you get a few attacks in your chain those first 2 attacks get to be awful weak.  I'd only take and set mule the t2 attack and rarely use it in any attack chain, I could never imagine having the room to take and use both the t1 and t2 attack unless the later attacks are truly awful, which would be a whole other issue.  Depending how strong this attune thing is I'd find better functionality afforded the set if the t1 attack and a later attack were able to benefit from attune.

 

This is just a suggestion purely from a general build efficiency standpoint.

  

On 11/14/2025 at 2:43 PM, WindDemon21 said:

That's part of the problem. The tier 1/2 are, and should generally be a "get now to level and respec it out later for better damage" powers. They should NEVER be a requirement for a set's mechanic to work (yes there is dual blades but thats another issue). We learned this issue with opportunity on sentinels, so it still boggles my mind it was ever even implemented like this.

 

As it is now you do have to take all 5 powers to maximize the ST damage. and you use only attune and sonic thrust once for the whole duration of the single target kill, so ends up being really way too invested in slots and powers for two powers you basically don't even use, which again, it makes more sense for attune to just be more of a self toggle that adds more damage the more you use any sonic attack on the same enemy (similar to -resistance but instead of debuffing resistance increasing the damage your sonic powers do to the target). Then still the issue of sandman's whisper being on too short of a rech/damage value which is also odd, having 3 other attacks that are 6s or less, as well as the same issue with sonic clap. There is just so much wrong with the stats on the powers in this set, hopefully it's fixed before it goes live.

  

3 hours ago, Catalyze said:

I tried this power set after doing a Live/Beta direct leveling comparison on MMs (which makes me sad to park them next to my Plant Controller). At level 1 -5 things fell over 

with Attune applied before or after any of the other 2 Required or It Don't Work Attacks. Next I ran the Shauna arc in Kings Row at 17. I tried it on a +1 X 2 setting. I gave up

and deleted the toon. I spent my attack time applying DOTs and re applying DOTs.... While waiting for the DOTs to slowly defeat anything, you are getting wailed on with

full damage. On a Scrapper, I don't want to play like a World of Warcraft Warlock. I want things to take damage fast.... in large chunks....and fall over. I want to be a Fury

Warrior with blood lust not a Apply DOTs......Tab enemies to see who needs more DOTs..... Mezzing stops damage but this "gimmick" of  :

Step 1. Apply T1

Step 2. Apply T2

Step 3. Apply (toggle now or not depending on day) Attune

Step 4. Ignore all the other enemies wailing on you because at level 17 your target isn't dead yet and the other 5 are mezzed (hopefully) or knocked down (hopefully it hit

all of them)

Step 5. Don't think about Axe....Frost...etc all the other Scrapper attacks that leave things defeated in faster times. Nope, just stand here toggling away with your DOTs in a

powerset that I refer to as Road Rage Karen screaming at some perceived slight to you giving other enemy motorists a migraine.

 

Character deleted at 17 and power set left for more talented players.

 

Edited 14 hours ago by Wravis
Fixed typo

[Shin Magmus]

     Good job compiling that Wravis.  I think it's fine to actually just call this out right now: specific ideas become set in stone very early in Homecoming testing/feedback cycles and then all feedback requesting changes to those ideas functionally gets ignored.  They don't want us to bring up previous powersets or patches but this is a pattern of behavior.  This has happened before, multiple times, and we are justified in bringing it up.

 

     Don't let Sonic Melee end up like Cone Devour Psyche on Psy Armor Scrappers.  Psy Armor players universally hate dealing with it as a cone AND it has mechanical anti-synergy with the rest of the armorset: you need to hit the enemies in melee range first to utilize the bonus effect of Mask Presence, then jump back out of melee range to try and line up the cone Devour Psyche... that's genuinely bad design and it's because 2 ideas are clashing with each other.  It's okay to admit you were wrong.

[GM_GooglyMoogly]

34 minutes ago, Wravis said:

AFAIK we're not allowed to discuss closed beta outside of closed beta, but since you brought it up, no. Very few changes were made in closed beta because Sonic Melee was fast-tracked with only a single week of testing. And the consensus then was the same as the consensus now. Attune is not fun. It's not a good power. It's interesting, but it doesn't work well in practice.
And that's the same feedback you're getting in open beta too. But heels are being dug in, because it's a pet project with a specific unassailable vision.
In case you're having trouble finding the ignored feedback.

You started by saying we (Homecoming) do not listen to feedback.  Not just on sonic melee, but at all.  At least now you are admitting that some changes were made to sonic in closed beta, presumably based on feedback.  Additional changes have been made in open beta based on feedback.  People didn't like the toggle so it was made a click.  Unfortunately, the way the click was set up was causing other problems so it was reverted to a toggle.  By the way, have you seen the latest patch notes on Sonic Melee?

Quote

• Sonic Melee Adjustments Attune:

  • This power is again a toggle (moved back to Tier 3)

  • Now provides a flat scale 0.1 per second damage over time

  • Toggle no longer drops regardless how far away from the target you move

  • All attacks now provide a bonus effect against the Attuned anchor

    • Strident Echo and Sonic Thrust: Non stacking bonus scale 0.1 per second damage over time over 16s

    • Sandman's Whisper, Earsplitter, Sonic Clap, Deafening Wave: +10% base damage

And it is certainly possible if not probable that additional changes will be made

It's fine for you to say you don't like it, that's it's terrible, that you will never play it.  It's not OK to say we ignore feedback, because that is demonstrably untrue.  Do we make stuff that everyone always likes.  Hell no, we don't.  I'm not sure if that is even possible.  For every player that says we are nerfing this or that there's another saying we have too much power creep and another saying we are making things too hard.  We can't please everyone so we don't try, EXCEPT that we do try to add a variety of things so that everyone can at least find something that they like in each release.

 

I, like Shin, appreciate that you took the time to compile all of that.

 

However, @Shin Magmus, I don't appreciate you bringing up your past grievances here when I just asked folks not to.  Start another thread outside of focused feedback if you want to.  Not here.

[Crimsanotic]

2 minutes ago, GM_GooglyMoogly said:

It's not OK to say we ignore feedback, because that is demonstrably untrue.

 Is it fair to say that Homecoming simply ignores most feedback then?

[GM_GooglyMoogly]

4 minutes ago, Crimsanotic said:

 Is it fair to say that Homecoming simply ignores most feedback then?

You'd have to show me the math - how do you get to 50%+1?. 

 

And again, hearing your feedback is different from agreeing with it and making changes in accordance with that feedback.  I think it is accurate to say that we do not follow most of the advice given.  If for no other reason that the advice given by different players is frequently contradictory.

 

But we are getting off topic again.  What do you like . . . or not like . . . about Sonic Melee?  Have you tried it?  What did you do?  What happened?

[Wravis]

15 minutes ago, GM_GooglyMoogly said:

You started by saying we (Homecoming) do not listen to feedback.  Not just on sonic melee, but at all.  At least now you are admitting that some changes were made to sonic in closed beta, presumably based on feedback.  Additional changes have been made in open beta based on feedback.  People didn't like the toggle so it was made a click.  Unfortunately, the way the click was set up was causing other problems so it was reverted to a toggle.  By the way, have you seen the latest patch notes on Sonic Melee?

And it is certainly possible if not probable that additional changes will be made

It's fine for you to say you don't like it, that's it's terrible, that you will never play it.  It's not OK to say we ignore feedback, because that is demonstrably untrue.  Do we make stuff that everyone always likes.  Hell no, we don't.  I'm not sure if that is even possible.  For every player that says we are nerfing this or that there's another saying we have too much power creep and another saying we are making things too hard.  We can't please everyone so we don't try, EXCEPT that we do try to add a variety of things so that everyone can at least find something that they like in each release.

 

I, like Shin, appreciate that you took the time to compile all of that.

 

However, @Shin Magmus, I don't appreciate you bringing up your past grievances here when I just asked folks not to.  Start another thread outside of focused feedback if you want to.  Not here.

  

2 minutes ago, GM_GooglyMoogly said:

You'd have to show me the math - how do you get to 50%+1?. 

 

And again, hearing your feedback is different from agreeing with it and making changes in accordance with that feedback.  I think it is accurate to say that we do not follow most of the advice given.  If for no other reason that the advice given by different players is frequently contradictory.

 

But we are getting off topic again.  What do you like . . . or not like . . . about Sonic Melee?  Have you tried it?  What did you do?  What happened?

I know this is technically feedback about the (perceived?) lack of listening to feedback by the Homecoming Team, but I'll tailor it specifically to Sonic Melee, so hopefully it's not crossing any lines.

I was, speaking generally because I do feel as though in general, feedback is by and large ignored. But I was also saying it, specifically, because it is a major issue with Sonic Melee. It might not be as prevalent or egregious at other times, but it is a consistent pattern of behavior that is really showing itself during the testing/feedback period of THIS SET.

I can go through all of the feedback on the discord, and the forums, of people commenting on Attune, if that's needed. If it's truly not being ignored, and just missed. But it's plainly obvious that the overwhelming majority of people do not like how attune works. It is clunky. It is counter intuitive. It forces uncomfortable power choices just to make it work. It creates a very underwhelming, frustrating level up experience.

It's been stated over and over again. Attune is unpopular. Not all constructive criticism is about giving good, viable suggestions to fix what isn't working. Sometimes it can just be saying "this is bad, and isn't working". Then it's up to the creator to figure out how to fix it, or if it has to be scrapped. Some people have offered suggestions. Some just point out they don't like it. Both are valid. 

Yes, some people enjoy it. They are a very very small minority. And I am willing to go through and collate the feedback to prove it, if you (the homecoming team) are going to claim you see otherwise. Latching on to the smallest amount of praise and ignoring the overwhelming criticism is not uncommon. It's natural to want to hear the positive feedback when you are proud of your ideas and creations. But that is not going to create a fun experience for players. Sometimes you have to step back and admit your big idea isn't working.

[Drakwatch]

Does anyone else feel like the animation for Earsplitter is pretty lackluster? It's a T9 power and always look forward to the T7, 8, and 9 powers having an epic attack animation. It's just the same animation as Shout from Sonic Attack.

 

I feel like there's a lot of other attack animations like Energy Transfer, Psionic Tornado, Dreadful Wail.... I can see an opportunity for additional attack animations to be added here for Sonic Melee and Sonic Manipulation.

[Darkkinoto]

Aightio, took some testing, But Sometimes when Attune is up and you get the Critical Strike proc and I would hit Sound Booster => Earsplitter will hit, but not deal damage, other then the Proc which can be seen. This not a consistant bug, but i was able to replicate it several times. Scrapper: Sonic/Psy (Aura of Insanity is on) target is a lvl 54 Vanguard IDC in RWZ.

[Shin Magmus]

     Well Earsplitter is a shared attack from some other sets so it's just using the same animation as those.  If they made an alternate animation for it, I'd like to see that backported to Sonic Manipulation and Sonic Assault as well.  Ultimately, I don't think the animations are ever going to please most people because you are in fact just yelling at people with this set.  The animation doesn't bother me as much as the more pressing mechanical issues.

[Captain Powerhouse]

14 minutes ago, Darkkinoto said:

Aightio, took some testing, But Sometimes when Attune is up and you get the Critical Strike proc and I would hit Sound Booster => Earsplitter will hit, but not deal damage, other then the Proc which can be seen. This not a consistant bug, but i was able to replicate it several times. Scrapper: Sonic/Psy (Aura of Insanity is on) target is a lvl 54 Vanguard IDC in RWZ.

 

Most effects in Attune are Autohit, but the damage is not. This means that only procs that have a forced hit check (mostly damage procs) will potentially proc in situations that the damage component of the power (or any other proc) cant.

[GM_GooglyMoogly]

Here are clips from the patch notes regarding Sonic Melee from Monday to Friday.  It's not like it hasn't been changing.

11-10-25 - 

Quote

• New Melee Set for Brutes, Tankers, Scrappers and Stalkers
• Sonic Melee lets you use the power of sound waves to damage your foes with devastating close range sonic attacks that can inflict Migraines, debuffing their resistance to multiple debuffs, and holding foes for a short hold. This can be dramatically increased by using Sound Booster. With the ability to Attune your frequency to your target's, your single target attacks can trigger powerful reverberating damage over time, helping you quickly bring enemies to their knees. 

•  

• Sonic Thrust - Melee, DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Knockdown, -Res(Debuffs)

  • A focused attack of intense sonic power with high chance to violently knock a nearby foe off their feet. Deals minimal damage, but can be very effective. If used in conjunction with Attune, you will match your frequency with the target's resonance increasing Attunes damage over time.

  • This power's highlight icon indicates the last application of it's effects is about to expire or has expired.

• Strident Echo - Melee, DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe -Res(Debuffs), Chance for Hold
  • Strident Echo deals minor damage over time. It has a low chance of causing a migraine, leaving the target shaking in pain and helpless. If used in conjunction with Attune, you will match your frequency with the target's resonance increasing Attunes damage over time.
  • This power's highlight icon indicates the last application of it's effects is about to expire or has expired.
• Attune - Melee Toggle, DMG(Energy), +Special
  • A high-intensity sound wave that matches the resonant frequency of your target. This power does not inflict much damage but can be sustained for continued damage over time that will be boosted if you strike the target with Sonic Thrust or Strident Echo. Each of these attacks will further increase the strength of the damage over time.
• Sound Booster [Tanker/Brute/Scrapper only] - Self +DMG, +To Hit, +Special
  • Greatly boosts your attacks for a few seconds. Slightly increases chance to hit. Moderately increases the duration of mez effects. Moderately increases the chance for Sound Manipulation powers to induce migraines.
• Build Up [Stalker only] - Self +DMG, +To Hit
  • Greatly increases the amount of damage you deal for a few seconds, as well as slightly increasing your chance to hit.
• Sonic Clap - Melee (Cone), DMG(Energy), Foe Disorient, Knockdown
  • You generate a powerful sonic wave that damage foes in front of you with a decent chance to stun and knock them down.
• Sandman's Whisper [Tanker/Brute/Scrapper only] - Melee, DMG(Smashing/Energy), Foe Sleep, -Res(DMG)
  • You whisper on your foes ear with a slumbering effect. Foes affected might fall asleep and will have their resistance to damage lowered.
  • This power's highlight icon indicates the last application of it's effects is about to expire or has expired.
• Assassin's Whisper [Stalker only] - Melee, DMG(Energy/Smashing), Sleep, -Res(DMG)
  • A signature Stalker attack. This attack does superior energy and smashing damage on its own as a frontal attack and cannot be interrupted. However, if it is executed while you are Hidden, this attack will do tremendous damage, as you whisper at your unsuspecting foe. Affected target is likely to fall asleep and have their damage resistances lowered. This attack may be interrupted if you move or are attacked while executing this power and are hidden. Using this power while not hidden has a chance to critically hit equal to 33.3% times the number of stacks of Assassin's Focus. Using Assassin's Strike when not hidden will remove all stacks of Assassin's Focus regardless if you critically hit or not.
• Deafening Wave - PBAoE Melee, DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe Chance for Hold
  • You create a large field of sonic waves, causing damage to all foes around you. It has a moderate chance of causing migraines, leaving them shaking in pain and helpless.
• Earsplitter - Melee, DMG(Energy/Smash), Foe -Res(Debuffs), Chance for Hold
  • You generate an earsplitting sound wave right in the face of your foe, inflicting great damage. It has a good chance of causing a migraine, leaving them shaking in pain and helpless. Earsplitter will inflict 10% bonus damage for each attuned power against the main target: Sonic Thrust and Strident Echo.

11-11-25 - 

Quote

• Sonic Melee:
  • Default color tinting for Sonic Melee powers has been adjusted
  • Fixed an issue where Sonic Thrust and Strident Echo were not doing crits from hide
  • Fixed an issue where Sonic Thrust was granting 2x Assassins Focus
  • Sonic Thrust: Fixed a bug where this power was costing double endurance
  • Strident Echo: Fixed a bug where this power was costing double endurance
  • Stalker: Removed an odd delay on critical damage
  • Fixed an issue where Earsplitter on brutes was buffing enemy debuff resistances instead of debuffing them
  • Continuous FX for Attune's target added (should get more tweaks in future builds)
  • Attune should now only detoggle if you move beyond 80ft from your target.
  • Assassin's Whisper no longer accept sleep sets (still accepts sleep enhancements)
  • Corrected tooltip text for Scrapper version of Sonic Thrust
  • Fixed a bug where the Stealth version of Assassin's Whisper was not working correctly

11-12-25

Quote

• Sonic Melee
  • Fixed errors in the powerset description
• Attune
  • This power is now a click.
  • The debuff of this power can only be sustained on one target at any given time.
  • Due to this power no longer being a toggle, procs can now only trigger on initial power activation.
  • Level moved to Tier 2
• Strident Echo Level moved Tier 3
• Sandman's Whisper (Tanker): Corrected this power's level of availability
• Sonic Clap (Tanker): Corrected this power's description
• Deafening Wave (Tanker): Corrected this power's Gauntlet target cap increase and power description
• The following powers all will now inflict 10% bonus damage for each attuned power against the main target: Sonic Thrust and Strident Echo.
  • Sonic Thrust
  • Strident Echo
  • Sonic Clap
  • Sandman's Whisper
  • Deafening Wave
  • Earsplitter

11-13-25 - 

Quote

• Sonic Melee Fixes

  • Fixed Attune on Brutes, Stalkers and Tankers still being a toggle

  • Fixed overcap parameters in various AoEs

  • Fixed Attune/Strident Echo level of availability on Scrappers

  • Brutes, Scrappers and Tankers version of the set should now be able to trigger Fiery Embrace

11-14-25

Quote

• Fixed a bug where Attune's dot was breaking hide
• Fixed a bug where Tankers's Sonic Thrust and Strident Echo were not applying the necessary mode bits for Attune's damage increases.
• Sandman's Whisper animation has been updated

11-14-25 - 

Quote

• Fixed a bug where Attune's dot was breaking hide
• Fixed a bug where Tankers's Sonic Thrust and Strident Echo were not applying the necessary mode bits for Attune's damage increases.
• Sandman's Whisper animation has been updated

 

[Darkkinoto]

14 minutes ago, Captain Powerhouse said:

 

Most effects in Attune are Autohit, but the damage is not. This means that only procs that have a forced hit check (mostly damage procs) will potentially proc in situations that the damage component of the power (or any other proc) cant.

Sorry, I should clarify, the Damage of Earsplitter's Smashing/Energy was not dealt, which is shown in the combat logs, it shows it Earsplitter roll to hit,  the Stun hitting, and the proc hitting for NErg damage. But the 248 smashing and 248 energy damage is not there nor was it seen via floating numbers. which is what lead me to seeing it missing in the combat log

[Captain Powerhouse]

8 minutes ago, Darkkinoto said:

Sorry, I should clarify, the Damage of Earsplitter's Smashing/Energy was not dealt, which is shown in the combat logs, it shows it Earsplitter roll to hit,  the Stun hitting, and the proc hitting for NErg damage. But the 248 smashing and 248 energy damage is not there nor was it seen via floating numbers. which is what lead me to seeing it missing in the combat log

 

I see. Potentially a timing issue... sure this is not in the logs but do you recall if the blue ring was gone from Attune at all? Might help narrow down things.

[AustinSmith]

Finally had an opportunity to sit down and thoroughly test the set's numbers and overall feeling, and I am wholly underwhelmed by Sonic Melee.

 

Before I talk numbers, just going off the feel of the set in the costume creator and running around, I find this set suffering from the Poison problem of being thematically inconsistent. Sonic Thrust, Strident Echo, Sonic Clap and Deafening Wave are projections of sonic energy via arm thrusts usually, and the other half of the set, Attune, Sandman's Whisper, and Earsplitter are very clearly vocalizations or mouth projections. So I can't make a character that's purely something like a banshee that screams at my enemies, or some kind of tech guy in a suit that blasts sonic energy from my arms. So that's kinda frustrating.

 

By reverse-engineering numbers by comparing to CoD, here's what I see for the set in its current state:

 

Sonic Thrust
0.76 DPA (0.912 DPA fully attuned)

 

Attune
0.5988 DPA

 

Strident Echo
0.7904 DPA (0.9485 DPA fully attuned)

 

Sonic Clap
0.6372 DPA (0.7649 DPA fully attuned)

 

Sandman's Whisper
0.9266 DPA (1.1119 DPA fully attuned)

 

Deafening Wave
0.4183 DPA (0.502 DPA fully attuned)

 

Earsplitter
1.3198 DPA (1.5838 DPA fully attuned)

 

Keeping in mind the caveats that you HAVE to execute Attune, and then Strident Echo/Sonic Thrust to reach maximum attunement, so you're locked into those powers no matter what, and that only one target can be Attuned at a time so you're only getting the bonus damage on a single target with your AoEs, those are extremely bad numbers for top possible performance. At the very best, I have to execute three other powers before I can lay down a fully attuned Earsplitter... and I'm doing slightly less DPA than a Martial Arts Storm Kick. That really, REALLY sucks.

 

Overall, this set feels like a crappy version of Psionic Melee; at least there, I'm not forced into picking Boggle (attunement) to gain insight, any Psionic Melee powers can gain insight, and the attacks are just better at base.

 

Other miscellaneous annoyances I found while testing; Sonic Thrust doesn't play any sound or FX at all on a miss, Strident Echo seems incapable of firing off procs, and Strident Echo's attuned damage isn't a DoT like the base version of the power.

 

Nearing the end of this testing cycle, unless some radical changes are in store for this set, I won't be bothering to build a Sonic Melee character at all.

[Darkkinoto]

10 minutes ago, Captain Powerhouse said:

 

I see. Potentially a timing issue... sure this is not in the logs but do you recall if the blue ring was gone from Attune at all? Might help narrow down things.

that I don't recall, Sorry, I was trying to figure out the skill interaction that caused the above issue. I limited it down, to having Aura of Insanity on, Attuned on the target, Attacking with T1>T2>Sandman till Critical Strike Proc>Sound Booster>Earsplitter. Which the visual happened about 50% of the time (guessing due to the amount of DoT's flying up) and the combat log it didn't show 30% of the time. remove one of those skills and it worked just fine.

[Wravis]

  

1 hour ago, GM_GooglyMoogly said:

*This is Wravis' abbreviated reinterpretation of the quotes I listed from the Patch Notes*

Here are clips from the patch notes regarding Sonic Melee from Monday to Friday.  It's not like it hasn't been changing.

11-10-25 - Attune introduced

11-11-25 - Detoggle range adjustment

11-12-25 - Made a click power

11-13-25 -  Made a click power for real this time

11-14-25 - Fixed it breaking hide

11-14-25 - Fixed it breaking hide for real this time.

But attune was made a toggle again, right? I don't see anything changing attune that wasn't undone.

And it doesn't change the fact that it's a core power that feels really awkward to use. It addresses part of one of the concerns. But then it was undone, anyway.

Edited 12 hours ago by GM_GooglyMoogly

[Captain Powerhouse]

20 minutes ago, AustinSmith said:

Keeping in mind the caveats that you HAVE to execute Attune, and then Strident Echo/Sonic Thrust to reach maximum attunement, so you're locked into those powers no matter what,

 

Keep seeing this come up today:

 

The last patch changed this. Attune does not need the Strident Echo or Sonic Thrust any more. Each power gets a bonus of either applying additional DoT or bonus damage based on the target being attuned or not. 

[imzadi]

9 minutes ago, Wravis said:

  

But attune was made a toggle again, right? I don't see anything changing attune that wasn't undone.

And it doesn't change the fact that it's a core power that feels really awkward to use. It addresses part of one of the concerns. But then it was undone, anyway.

it was changed because it couldn't be made to work, it was bugged out, the attempt was made though. Im not a fan of the set whatsoever personally but they only undid it because they had to.

 

From CPH on page 5

"Sadly the implementation of Attune has to go back to a toggle. There will be a few more mechanical adjustments on how it all works though, but Attune will have to be a toggle. Double click accidents is something that will have to be addressed via engine tweaks at some later time. "

Edited 12 hours ago by imzadi

[Sovera]

19 minutes ago, AustinSmith said:

Finally had an opportunity to sit down and thoroughly test the set's numbers and overall feeling, and I am wholly underwhelmed by Sonic Melee.

 

Before I talk numbers, just going off the feel of the set in the costume creator and running around, I find this set suffering from the Poison problem of being thematically inconsistent. Sonic Thrust, Strident Echo, Sonic Clap and Deafening Wave are projections of sonic energy via arm thrusts usually, and the other half of the set, Attune, Sandman's Whisper, and Earsplitter are very clearly vocalizations or mouth projections. So I can't make a character that's purely something like a banshee that screams at my enemies, or some kind of tech guy in a suit that blasts sonic energy from my arms. So that's kinda frustrating.

 

This is good feedback as well. 'Sonic' melee with hand motions doesn't fit. It might if we change it to 'Vibrations' (we do have a couple iconic 'vibration' based characters and they did their thing with hand/arm motions). But those who did did not scream at their characters because, well, vibrations.

Then we have the iconic sound characters from comics and their thing is screaming at enemies, not do arm motions. This mix of both doesn't solidify the theme.

 

My own choice on this would be having two sets of animations, one with arms, one screaming, even if there is only so many ways to scream at someone.

 

 

At this point in time the set doesn't scream (heh) Sonic to me and could just as easily be moved to Vibration. Even the resonance effect is nothing more than vibration (sound is a vibration) so the Attune idea could stay as is, and other than some roleplay name changes (Migraines wouldn't even need to be changed).

The good thing is that Vibration *could* let characters scream (again, sound is a vibration), but Sonic waves from hand thrust is harder to match.

[Psi-bolt]

26 minutes ago, Captain Powerhouse said:

 

Keep seeing this come up today:

 

The last patch changed this. Attune does not need the Strident Echo or Sonic Thrust any more. Each power gets a bonus of either applying additional DoT or bonus damage based on the target being attuned or not. 

 

Tested this implementation today.  Did it the same way I did all other tests, leveled some low level content and then high level content. 

 

Attune is fine at low levels for dispatching Lts and Bosses more quickly.  On the Sonic/Regen Brute I made to test this implementation, I found that it was just quicker and easier to avoid using Attune against minions.  This is all solo.  In groups where large groups of enemies are defeated very quickly, I do wonder what the purpose of using it at all will be.

 

At high levels, I suppose that it does what it's intended to do.  Against, EBs, Archvillains, pylons, etc. it seems to me to be a nice booster to your ST damage.  I'm not the best at building for very high DPS but I could definitely see a difference from using it.  I regret that I won't be able to test it in the way I normally play.  I mostly play in Task Forces and I suspect that I will not find much use for Attune there because outside of Archvillains/Monsters, everything else tends to die quickly when the whole team is focused on it.  

 

To be honest, it feels bad to play the set.  I hate saying that because I enjoy the AoE on the set and I like how it feels otherwise.  I suspect like many new sets, I will power one to 50, then it will mostly be abandoned for the legacy sets. 

 

As I said earlier in the thread, I understand the idea.  I understand that the developers don't want to create the same set over and over again.   But an enemy targeted toggle is always only going to be useful in limited circumstances.   As we've been testing this set I've been thinking about where else in the game we have enemy targeted toggles.  Before Sonic, these are mostly in the buff/debuff sets.  Even there I find myself only using those powers when you're dealing with bosses and above.  That's more in keeping with those ATs playstyle though.  With Defenders/Corruptors these powers aren't part of their basic attack chain.  With melees I feel like the set is just having its damage potential held hostage in service of making the set different.  

Edited 11 hours ago by Psi-bolt

[ExeErdna]

18 minutes ago, Psi-bolt said:

 

Tested this implementation today.  Did it the same way I did all other tests, leveled some low level content and then high level content. 

 

Attune is fine at low levels for dispatching Lts and Bosses more quickly.  On the Sonic/Regen Brute I made to test this implementation, I found that it was just quicker and easier to avoid using Attune against minions.  This is all solo.  In groups where large groups of enemies are defeated very quickly, I do wonder what the purpose of using it at all will be.

 

At high levels, I suppose that it does what it's intended to do.  Against, EBs, Archvillains, pylons, etc. it seems to me to be a nice booster to your ST damage.  I'm not the best at building for very high DPS but I could definitely see a difference from using it.  I regret that I won't be able to test it in the way I normally play.  I mostly play in Task Forces and I suspect that I will not find much use for Attune there because outside of Archvillains/Monsters, everything else tends to die quickly when the whole team is focused on it.  

 

To be honest, it feels bad to play the set.  I hate saying that because I enjoy the AoE on the set and I like how it feels otherwise.  I suspect like many new sets, I will power one to 50, then it will mostly be abandoned for the legacy sets. 

 

As I said earlier in the thread, I understand the idea.  I understand that the developers don't want to create the same set over and over again.   But an enemy targeted toggle is always only going to be useful in limited circumstances.   As we've been testing this set I've been thinking about where else in the game we have enemy targeted toggles.  Before Sonic, these are mostly in the buff/debuff sets.  Even there I find myself only using those powers when you're dealing with bosses and above.  That's more in keeping with those ATs playstyle though.  With Defenders/Corruptors these powers aren't part of their basic attack chain.  With melees I feel like the set is just having its damage potential held hostage in service of making the set different.  

 

This is something I've noticed about the game as a whole something on paper maybe OP in solo situations end up weak in a group and vice versa. This is how I feel about Sonic Melee until we get Sonic Armor

[Bionic_Flea]

I just noticed that Sandman's Whisper on a brute adds -res but only with Fiery Embrace.  Is that accurate?  Seems odd to me.

 

[nightchrome]

The "chance for hold" that is Migraine is neat and all, but I think literally everyone would prefer the standard -res instead.

Is there a reason this is not being considered?

[High_Beam]

I didn't have a problem with it as a anchor toggle, Ive been playing toons with anchor toggles for a while (Rad, Cold Dom, etc).  I had a problem having to reapply it against the same living target.  When they expanded the toggle drop range out it was good for me.

[ScarySai]

This set either needs a ridiculous amount of buffs, or a delay.

 

This set is so bad that it makes the non-stalker versions of KM look good by comparison.