Cognito

UPdate!

Firstly Realised that Dusk allready has badge, so could I change to my controller, Molecuman (Grav/Sonic level 34)

Secondly, looking pretty good that im on for it - however, I may need a few afks and brbs for the first hour or so. If this is bad karma for you - I dont want to muck up yer mojo and I'll bow out.

(Hopefully) Dusk Dancer, Spines/Dark Scrapper and AoE maniac.

RL predictions are not accurate however!

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And be sure to include the Medicine pool in your build. This enhanced my survivability by tons!
You are about to get your epics. I chose Force Mastery. Mostly for concept reasons, being energy/energy, but it happened to bea great epic for me.
If you see the fight going badly for you (lots of damage sustained), you can always
Personal Force Field + Power Boost + Aid Self

Power Boost doubles the healing and thanks to the PFF you are protected and the activation of the Aid Self won't be interrupted.

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Or, alternatively, replace Aid other, Aid self, and Personal Force feild with three powers that cause huge AoE damage (and for which you get a far better bang for your buck being a blaster) so you dont get into trouble in the first place, and earn faster xp...

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(please let there be an empath in my teams)

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Not on sure why on "earth" you would say that. They may rule the hollows, but come the late levels...

Id say go with what looks and feels cool. No set is gimped or uber although some require more finesse than others.

Im currently pondering an earth / sonic... Buff your hyper resistant pet up to spectacular resistance for instance, then put disruption feild around him (no aggro for you in issue 9) and you have a mini tankette with a -resistance debuff (and -resistance may well be the key to AV's these days since issue 9). Throw in quicksand to lockdown those enemies in the debuff zone... Add to that AoE mez resistance (including yourself) and clarity buff... which in late levels is worth its weight in gold... Earthquake AND liquify? I wonder how those would stack...

Cryotherapy, Ice/Ice tanker (lvl 35) would love to come

Ill put my AoE machine, Dusk Dancer, a SPines/Dark scrapper in for this, RL permitting.

I9: I strongly suspect AoE will be the way to go. To pick up salvage/recipes most effectively the trick will be to kill as many low level villians as fast as possible - and thats best done by whipping of AoE as fast as possible on whites or lower level.

Who knows what the future may hold, but my suspicion is that AoE will be very popular. /Kinetics will obviously be nice, but you may seriously want to consider Fire as a primary. If not, Radation or Dark. Sonic is groovy, but has only one AoE cone damage and a nove (and a piddling AoE cone knockback that is just going to annoy people by stopping further AoE attacks - and its damage is unspectacular at best)

Im not sure about skipping smoke. Smoke would stack with Flash Arrow for an extremely nice -perception.

Aside from the utility in terms of pulling made very easy, this allows you to ghost missions easily.

Wheras clicking on a glowy causes stealth suppression, it doesnt cause -perception supression. Hence, no probs.

Idle speculation, but ghosting may be popular in issue 9... it allows prompt completion of mission, which means promptly getting the mission salvage drop (or at least the chance of one).

Mental Blast has been recently patched. It is now a pretty decent attack chain - Im certainly not dissapointed with it with my Plants / Psi. Activation is about, or under 2 seconds. Dont beleive the myth its gimped - it was, it isnt now.

"Must Haves" in the set:

Drain Psyche for a marvellous end recovery power (and a regen scrapper feeling at times)

Psychic Wail - a marevellous AoE cone psionic damage. If you team a lot, you can end up outdamaging the stalker

Teir 9 power - I forget its name and Im one level away from it but from people i speak too and its description... its gotta be the "money shot" of the set...

I'm a firm beleiver in Flash Arrow as a Team Saver at higher levels (for -perception, not -accuracy).

Aim is ok, but you wont need the +accuracy really - not as a Archer running tactics anyway . THe +damage whilst nice, isnt high enough, or up long enough, to really make a whole hill of beans. THe only reason to take it is for the nuke.

Really, comparing tactics and aim for a defender... its a bit of a no contest in my book. Flash Arrow is perversely useful solo... -perception is excellent for stealthing missions. You know about the old click the glowy causing stealth supression so you cant just complete missions without risk (and i think stealthing will be popular in issue 9 due to the rare salvage drops at mission ends)... well, clicking a glowy dosent supress -perception of enemies...

Only up to lvl 37 on my plants/psi... but...

Get stamina at level 20... this really cant be delayed for any dominator IMO.

Depending on your playstyle and team, think about hasten to get domination up faster?

TK Thrust I found very skippable. Not sure why you are getting stealth either.

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EMP is a good 'oops' power, I try not to use it too much, it has a long recharge and the loss of end can be a major blow. But in a team it can save the day if you bit off more than you can chew.

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Huh?? I use it everytime it comes up, as an opener. EM means a mob for free!!

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There is a debate in my mind about many slow recharging powers (and this includes domination)...

If you use it as soon as it comes up it does mean "mob for free", BUT it means it probably wont be available when the S hits the F - and therefore it can mean a "team wipe for free".

Personally, I tend to use these when the odds start turning against the team. The team should be playing against an enemy that it can overcome reasonably often without needing recurse to these powers - for the simple reason that these powers will not always be available.

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If Invuln has AoE potential then SR does (Quickness increases attack rate) and so does Regen (Quick Recovery allows you to both fight for longer and slot for more recharge/acc).

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They work differently, but I take your point.

Invun has one direct AoE power (invun) which is an AoE taunt and to hit buff. In fact, this power works both directly (by augmenting defence and taunting) and inderiectly (by augmenting your primary due to its to hit buff).

/SR and /Regen augment your potential for using AoE in your primary (IMO /SR augments moderately, and /Regen augments in slightly but thats subjective). So it depends on what your primary is. However, the link between /Regen and AoE is rather minimal - in the days of ED it seems entirely reasonable to have a 2xacc, 3xdam, 1xend slotted attack chain which wont leave you gasping for breath even if you are a spines scrapper. Of course, you could replace end with recharge. Sorry this is getting long winded... In essence, /SR and /Regen multiply your AoE potential in your primary (IMO not greatly) - a MA/SR still has terrible AoE potential, whilst a Spines/SR will have significant improvements to AoE potential.

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I'd personally add Invuln to the AoE potential list.

Invincibility has a built in Taunt aura, and once mobs get close it boosts your accuracy and defence.

My Claws / Invuln scrapper loves this handy effect (which isn't noted in the power description, so not everyone knows about it) as it gathers things round nicely for Spin and Eviscerate.

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Invun does indeed have an excellent AoE effect. It is, however, only one effect.

Invun has 1 AoE effect
Regen has none
Dark has stacks (umm... of top of me head, 4... at least)

SR has no direct AoE effect, but will slightly speed up the AoE recharges of your primary if you get quickness. Therefore its a little hard to judge. IIRC it speeds up recharge by about 20% so I suppose you could aproximate its "AOE potential" by multiplying your primaries "AoE potential" by 1.2 - although this is pretty crude.

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Why are Regen and SR on that list? They don't have any damaging powers, it's like saying Energy Melee has bad healing potential...

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AoE dosent have to mean damage. For instance, Dark has an AoE disorientate and an AoE fear / acc debuff. Both very useful.

There is no answer.

The answer is more -

If you are a biggish team scrapper stuff as many AoE in as you can.

If you are a purely solo scrapper stuff as many single target effects in as you can.


Good AoE Potential

Spines
Dark Armour
(to a lesser extent) Claws


Bad AoE Potential


Regen
Super Reflexes
Martial Arts
(To a lesser extent) Dark Melee



Bear in mind this is POTENTIAL. You could, for instance, have a claws/dark scrapper with no AoE effects, or alternatively make a Martial Arts / Invun scrapper with both single target effects.

A few thoughts:

This is really a team blapper - and you will almost certainly need a strong team to function (a good tank would be very helpful)... although in such a team you will function extremely well.

Given you are going to be almost exlusively teaming, I would personally drop the medicine pool - its highly inefficient in a team.

Rain of Fire may well be feasible in this build... by slotting Hot Feet for slow enhancers... by doing this you can drop a burn patch and rain of fire and your poor victims will only run out slowly... should be plenty of damage to kill at least minions by the time they run out (Befreinding a good ice tank would, however, be advisable!)

Dont skip fireball and firebreath... good AoE attacks. And its hard to skip Blaze (an excellent single target attack)

Get Psychic Scream, 6 slot it, no question an excellent AoE attack. Same goes for Psychic Wail (the level 38 power Im not sure if i can remember the name properly)

Incidently, I am finding these days that Hover does perfectly well as KB protection, with the advantage of far less end cost, a slight def bonus, requiring 1 less power, and the ability to hover out of mellee range. The only disadvantages are -fly powers (a pain, but not so much as one might think when your attackers are being held) and speed problems (again, not as bad as one might think with the hover base speed increase and swift bumping speed still further)

Add to that Hover also allows you to bypass several ground effects such as caltrops/ice slick/sandpit.

Im seriously begining to think that acrobatics is rather over-rated when it comes to KB protection when hover can do the job nearly as well.

(This only applies to PvE, not PvP of course where everyone and his uncle has a -fly power)

There is no "uber" stalker. Each set has its advantages and disadvantages.

Varation in "uberness" occurs between chair and keyboard as far as I'm concerned.

I will say that stalkers seem the least valuable AT to a team out of any hero or villian team. Not useless, but the least valuable. In a large team I struggle to say that any other AT would not be more valuable. Again, such comments are generalisations and are not applicable to every scenario.

I dont think its helpful to say "EM/Ninj" is "Uber" in all aspects of play. Firstly, because I disagree, secondly, because it fosters the kind of FoTM cookie cutter building that is a significant minus to CoX (E.g. /Regen scrappers on CoH).

As regards AoE damage. In large spawns, AFAICS, AoE damage will be far more mathematically efficient in terms of DPE and DPS than single target attacks irrespective of what AT you are. The only question is - is it safe enough and do you have the courage to use it?/.

Oh, and as for those stalkers that only AS, run and hide?. They can get a warning, a second warning, and a swift kick from any team I run, thats for sure. This is basically "I will not suffer any significant risk of debt to self, and am quite happy to perform sub-par so the rest of the team picks up the slack and the risk". I cannot abide such behaviour in any AT.

Energy is entirely single target effects. Great for PvP and arch-villians / elite bosses, or solo PvE.

If you are thinking (biggish) team PvE, where you will be facing large mobs, AoE wins the day - So again Spines would be my first choice, maybe claws. Ninja blade has as third choice. Energy and MA as my last choices.

Playing a Spines / Dark Scrapper (the king of scrappin AoE) I presume you are following the team PvE logic of AoE... in which case I would go for a Spines/Dark stalker - although as you have done those sets allready I reckon a Claws/Energy stalker is the next best thing.

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I prefer entangling arrow. I use it with glue to keep mobs in the AoE debuffs. I used to have Flash and found that people thought i was attacking when i used it and one or two charged in too their deaths lol...

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That is, it must be said, a problem.

One quite open to remedy, in farirness.

I'm speaking as a level 50 Bots/TA mastermind...

Personally I can't do without either!

Entangle arrow I actually started to find useful vs pesky EB's/AV's - it stops them running around (at least when they are vulnerable to immobs) and it actually has a small -recharge debuff (IIRC) that stacks with glue arrow.

As you say, it also has its place vs. fliers.


Flash Arrow, however, is marginally better. The -acc debuff is unimpressive, at best (although everything helps). It may take the edge of incoming damage, but don't expect significant protection.

HOWEVER, I am noticing a significant trend in both CoX game and in when there is a team-wipe. Its called engaging two groups at once. Sometimes this is sloppy, but more an more often its due to ambushes or triggered spawns. And I can tell you a -perception debuff is an absolute life saver at this point.

I dont know if that helps but you may wish to ponder and reflect. My own observation is once you get into the 30's, people are generally pretty slick and have a shed load of ways to incapacitate / arrest enemies. Team wipes (even individual deaths) tend to only occur when you get too close to that second group. A flash arrow can really save your bacon at that point.

-perception is becoming one of my favourite debuffs. My plant dominator often teams with a /TA mastermind, and I can tell you its a lethal combo. THe Flash Arrow allows me to sneak right up to a mob and let loose a perfect seeds of confusion. Things would be a lot harder without that -percep.

Very breifly:

Stone Armour:

Pro's: Defence to psionics (unique), Granite Armour (makes you the toughest tank there is, at expense of much reduced damage)

Cons: Least mobile tank there is. As a consequence of this making sure everything hits you and not the vulnerable (i.e. your main job) is your challenge. As a consequence, teleport is the travel power of choice.


Fire:

Pros: Most damaging tank there is.

Cons: Least tough tank there is. And you probably need acrobatics (or at least hover) to stop yourself getting knocked about all over the place.



Ice:

Pros: Best at making sure you get hit (i.e. your main job) and protecting the vulnerable... because of best mobility and excellent aura's. Gets slightly tougher the more enemies it faces.

Cons: Not much these days. Vulnerable to fire but thats about it. Quite possible the FoTM. You are potentially open to "unlucky streaks" of high damage because you are defence based, not resistance, but this is (in reality) a rare problem.



Invun:

Pros: Extremely tough against smash / lethal damage (the most common and often the hardest hitting). Get's more tough the more enemies it faces.

Cons: Nothing in particular. Can be slightly weak vs all other types of damage but not hideously so.




As regards to secondaries:

EM/Superstrength: Excellent at high damage to single enemies. Which is not good if you are in big teams with lots of enemies around you.

Fire: Excellent at damaging lots of enemies around you. Which is good in big teams.

Mace/Axe: In-between Fire and SS/Energy.

Ice: Weakest damage, but significantly increases your toughness, as it can make enemies around you fallover / slow / freeze.

Stone: Mixed bag. Some very high damage single target (although slow to recharge) attacks mixed in with some of Ice control-type powers.

Weaponeer

Bots / TA / Mace Mastermind

Oil Slick Arrow ready for new Hami raid!

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Out of interest, what is the set like to play? It looks like a 'chaos' controller with damage. I have to say I haven't seen many fire/storms around myself either.

I've got to add, it looks like a fun set to play with great visual effects.

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I rolled one a while back. Idling at level 17 (its altitis im afraid).

I was thinking you could do some very imaginative things with bonfire and hurricane.