New Dawn

Having just completed the first patrol mission in Warburg on one of my villains I then returned to the contact on the hero boat.

Looks simple enough.

I personally like this change. What was wrong was the way things were, more than are now. When people started getting into all this everyone can see that building up to the best possible enormous base wasn't achieve-able without looking for exploits and in trying it seemed to immorally aim to cost people too much in real terms.

I don't know whether you can sell and buy back in or over your own time or have to hit it within a window of opportunity.

Longterm, with what maybe the only solution this is better. Whether or not its in a place where someones SG can achieve "everything" I wouldn't know, but it's definitely better!

I go into most peoples bases and find that they're not utilizing the plot in the most economical manner. Space costs prestige and people are throwing it away on unused space every month. Could be a good time to spring clean.

I would if I was them offer another 20000 prestige bonus per member when it comes out again so that there is a little more arm twisting, palm wetting, back handing for villains and simple <3 <3 <3, deal sweeteners, perks, for heroes for any unfortunate inconvenience.

For me though the change is good!

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Does anyone get any usage out of it except a Dark/Dark?

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Anyone can get usage out of it.

Happy Sapphic Neko Day!

I imagine that there is going to be a few tanks with no grant cover. I would take it. If for any reason it keeps someone out of trouble and able to do their job it can have a positive impact on the team. If without it someone is in trouble a negative ripple can happen meaning the deck of cards fall. I do think that, especially as I think its going to be on the weak side leveling up its going to matter slightly.

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Why the hell should a blaster speed off ahead and start attacking when no one asked them to pull? why did the controller lock down a group thats all over the place?

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Because they're out to give the enemy everything and take from them nothing?

Because they're really batting for the other side?

Because by knowing that everything is ranged, the ranged attack will be energy instead of the lethal melee you wanted and at the same time your Invuln will have reasonably low def?

They wanted that extra guy at the end to not be taunted as yet to kill someone?

Because that's how they've always played and somehow been alright..nvm the bubbler...

Its pretty much how I play villains.

Anything I do with scrappers or any AT is largely a result of everyone around me ie if I am tanking an AV for VEATS and they all move back so they're atleast 61ft away things are probably not going to be as good XD.

I think looking at the slots alone without the rest of the build is half a story. You may not need 73% Acc in a power because you have +Acc bonuses from elsewhere or you may be tohit buffing yourself. I think I am 1 sec rechg better than the OP and gave myself extra regen otoh and lost some accuracy but with the rest of the build that accuracy was superfluous.

Its all very adorable.

Drain Psyche[/b] -- Numna-Heal/Rchg:50(A), Numna-Heal:50(29), Efficacy-EndMod/Rchg:50(29), Efficacy-Acc/Rchg:50(31), Efficacy-EndMod/Acc:50(31), Numna-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg

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A scrapper can easily out tank a tanker (as in get more aggro) against a single target, if they have a taunt power active, because they do far more damage. This skill is to not take the aggro off the tank, if a tank is available.

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I don't really see that as a skill, I see that has using ones noddle, "leave that power alone". A tanker should be thinking like a tanker and in terms of survivability shaping the battlefield and scrappers should really let it happen unless they can shape it better. 99% of the time to shape it better as a scrapper you'd have to tell the tanker to go sit down.

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If there is no tank in the team, then a scrapper can perform as a backup tank, but they don't really need Confont to do that against a single target (a multi-target taunt would be useful though). If a scrapper takes confront, then they have to forgo an attack, or attack supporting power, so they gain a little flexability at the expense of not being so good in thier primary role.

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Sometimes you do need a single target taunt against a single target in order to tank for the team and keep all of the team alive so they do damage and team damage is maximized. You can get a situation where people are asking for the spammer of heals to stop. This game, is so balanced in places that the entire teams survivability can be made up of relying on secondary effects alone. I am not talking about ones AVs resist I am talking about ones AVs don't resist and should they resist you can either make that secondary effect better in duration or look to some other limitation an AV has. In doing such things though, sometimes another AT or same, providing the damage mainly, may need to not do certain things so as not to be considered a greater threat, dislodge the dynamic and/or create a zone of unsurvivable splash damage. The threat calculation is out and known now but no one as yet has got into just how that can be used to an advantage by putting figures into it. People are still cherry picking powersets for teams, still needing granites and kins in the team for certain things denying toons like Firetanks and Trick Archers a place and a set up with which they can shine.

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That's why most scrappers skip Confront (I don't think I have ever seen a scapper use it in fact).

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I don't think you have either. You can keep other people from getting hit at all. What was the defender for? What was the controller for? Who needs tanks? Why are people running their toggles and losing end recovery? Are all valid questions in some of the most "seemingly" extreme circumstances.

I move towards not cherry picking people of certain powersets in getting anything done and seeing that as the goal. Icetank -> Lord Recluse -> get Sonic + Emp in team? or Anyone in team? I think the game is balanced when one way or another any type of tank can overcome obvious odds someway. Can a SR tank a Lord Recluse with no defender/controller in the team for a small bunch of blappers? To be or not to be? That is the question. I am leaning towards "yes".

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My Ice Tank is not tauntless.


Regardless, a scrappers job is to do damage, not take it. If they are taking aggro of a tanker they are doing something wrong. It's easy enough for a scrapper to get lots of single target agro simply by virtue of doing lots of damage. They only need Confront if they want to step on the tankers toes.

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OK, then I can show the difference between a well slotted taunt and a poorly slotted taunt and out tank the Ice Tank anyway...(key words, coming up)..."at times" particularly against certain AVs.

"At times" is a given because ultimately and overall nothing beats a Tanker at Tanking.

Regardless any AT on heroside is a hero doing "whatever it takes" as long as "whatever it takes" is "the right thing to do" and being flexible to create advantageous standpoints or conditions is to me, by design.

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how many classes out there have a power that just isn't useful?


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Scrappers/Night Widows: Confront.

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I plan on tanking Statesman with it on the Night Widow and with a Scrapper can probably tank any AV in the game.

There is probably a lot you can do with figures by throwing them around. Not just your own but other peoples and the enemies too.

At times I will out tank your tauntless Ice tank with an SR with confront.

I can demonstrate.

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Well my favourite scrapper moment is either tanking Lord Recluse in an MoSTF on my DB/Regen for the duration of the fight or soloing Siege(as an AV) , both moments were achievements for me as far as pushing my builds capabilities. (The scrapper is named Sereta, and yes the emp and kin who helped keep me toe to toe against lord recluse were excellent)

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I 100% believe you but think that the whole team contributed in some way for making possible for you doing what you did. It can be for something they helped in previously doing or for not doing something that could of created issues. Great job anyhow!

I don't follow your way of looking at things. Firstly I would never consider a team of 8 tankers as that is 7 tankers in one team too many. I will wait to see what the finished product is like. With all the changes in RL my mind is elsewhere.

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-75% range.

Case closed.

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I can see that dumbing the game down some in PvE. I am not too worried about it in PvP.

Whilst I consider power choices down to peoples themes. 4 slotting defense toggles with defense is wasting a slot that could be better spent elsewhere.

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I totally disagree. This is a defense set without the secondary effect resistances or the soft control of Ice. Its survivability is all at the front end with little to prolong a streakbreaker. The longer in a fight the worse it gets. It needs to cut a fight duration down.

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It's a fair point, but I would say it applies more to scrappers and brutes than to tankers. A tanker would normally only be doing a small proportion of the whole team's damage output anyway, so buffing that wouldn't make much difference to how long the mobs to take to die, so it wouldn't help suvivability very much.

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Define the team then. Are you making one? And why aren't you limiting yourself to thinking about typical in mission mobs? A cut in fight duration is always useful.

You can play in a way not to need extra mickey mouse taunts I think. If you were Granite its alright, but I don't think the dynamics in teams need to be so dire they're needed but I do see timing and placement of other peoples powers as detrimental to how well a tanker can operate though. I can't see how and when you become less effective without. People should play to each others strengths where possible not force each other into power picks imo.

Doesn't matter how or why you've avoided something, its still avoided.

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Making the basic shields 17% (same as Ice), would be a start, and then buffing Phalanx Fighting to something worth taking. It should be something like 2% base + 1% per team mate within 15'. That would also increase effectiveness at lower levels.

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So you get 9% from having 7 people up your butt? I hate the idea of people within a certain area and the fewer to needed for a buff the better otherwise its a undesireable power. All shield teams will only last so long. Only with people like scrappers would it be reasonably okay but I usually ain't swimming amongst them. Be it that most people take powers they get the most mileage of. I'd be on their side. I would only get a power or slot a power for little mileage if it enables to me to better keep most of a concept. A lot of people of a typical team make up next to me is asking for AoE deaths. Fewer numbers would be better no matter what.

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As for the damage buff from the taunt aura, does anyone disagree with me that this really doesn't have to be much at all, say 2.5% per mob?

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I totally disagree. This is a defense set without the secondary effect resistances or the soft control of Ice. Its survivability is all at the front end with little to prolong a streakbreaker. The longer in a fight the worse it gets. It needs to cut a fight duration down. In order to make the grant cover viable and even contemplate squishies in it, it needs to cut a fight duration down. It lacks in secondary effect to soft control therefore it needs to aid its own survivability by finishing fights sooner and it lacks a damage aura which contrary to what people may think can add up to considerable DoT. 2.5% per target would be pants. Less than SOs worth in a damage buff on average is [censored]. Put fort on a firetanker for damage and we ain't talking about a dramatic change.

I don't think many people are taking into account AVs and how defenders support powers stack with this set. I wouldn't want to have a crutch. For some people Granite tanks is their crutch, other people laugh about it despite them needing a Kin as their crutch..."We don't need tank, let alone granite, we survive most of the time if there is a kin in the team". Screw crutches. I am looking at the build and thinking "what if?". I don't want to see it play second fiddle in tanking, at any point, if it does it ain't equal. 120 secs of not even G mode from a tier 9 that has a 240 downtime, so little resistance put it against higher mobs for longer fights without a perfectly picked fotm team that is typical of having people that don't even understand their powers and let them sit in the tray when they're needed and I'd still expect it to perform.

I deffo getting Aid self on this with current figures but stepping outside of reasonably pure builds is something I hate to do when it comes to tanks.

I was thinking Hammer/Shield

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I can't say I've ever been seriously bothered by toxic damage. I have done Positron TF once, and that is quite enough thank you. Since I usually level via Hollows and Faultline, I rarely encounter vaz in missions.

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I've done Positron well over ten times and the problem with me and TFs is that I don't really concern myself with ghosting stuff and would happily spend hours annihilating everything. I practically leveled Shannon up on Vahzilok for first 20 levels as well. I think that being able to avoid content doesn't make a reason for not having something that can matter a lot early.

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Only vaz i encounter is in the sewers and prepping my build for encounter a handful of vaz on my way to level 8 seems redundant.

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On your way to lvl 8? There is nowhere else to put it between 8 and the time your 26 and most of the vomit to worry about, would be history by 26. At lvl 10 you could join Positrons TF and get it very first mission, lots of it. I wouldn't want to wait to 35 for it on a Brute. I think the low levels are probably harsh due to the number of people who can't put a balanced team together more than anything though. You'd get 6 Regens all +4 to you and a controller empath with heal aura and resurrect all expecting to you to Tank more than one group at a time of +5s for them XD. Luminous Eidolons do a vast amount of -def I think, until SOs that can be bad, that, and Zombie Vomit was the main reasons.

I bet that the +HP power is enhanceable ain't it. I forgot to factor that in so there is more than enough HP to my way of thinking. The biggest thing for me is Toxic Resistance in early.

I thought about altering the figures to what I'd rather have.

Lvl 1

Deflection:
+15% Defense to Melee
+10% Resistance to Smashing and Lethal
End Cost: .21/s

Lvl 1

Battle Agility:
+15% Defense to Ranged and AoE
+17.3% Resistance to Defense *
End Cost: .21/s

Lvl 2

Phalanx Fighting:
+3.5% Defense to All for self with each friendly entity within 10' (Max of 2)
End Cost: Auto Power

Lvl 6

Active Defense:
Protection to Sleep, Disorient, Fear, Immobilize, Confusion, Repel, Knockback, Hold
Resistence to Defense Debuffs (21.63% and is enhanceable) This power now correctly shows that is is mez protection rather than resistance
End Cost: 0.12/sec toggle

Lvl 8

Against All Odds:
Taunt
+15% Damage Buff (For each enemy within 8', max of 10)*
20% Res to Toxic.
End Cost: .21
(This power's damage buff was changed from 25% to 15%.)


Lvl 12

Grant Cover:
11.7% Range Defense to All teammates within 15'
11.7% Melee Defense to All teammates within 10'
(The "Does not include self" tag was removed)
End Cost: .19end/s

Lvl 18

Shield Charge:
~1.3 Smashing Damage (Damage Scalar)
Activiation Time: 2.87s
Recharge: 90s
Endurance: 13.52
Attack Type: Cone-- 60ft radius, 30 degree arc. Ten targets max. 70% chance for .64 mag knockback.

Lvl 26

True Grit:
+140.56 HP
+5% Resistance to Fire, Cold, Energy, Negative Energy
End Cost: Auto Power

Lvl 32

One With the Shield:
30% Resistance to Smashing and Lethal
15% Resistance to Fire, Cold, Energy, Negative Energy,
+30% of Recovery
Protection from Disorient, Immobilize, Hold, Knockback, Repel, and Sleep
Endurance set to 10 end for 0.5 secs after 3 minutes.
Duration: 180 seconds
Recharge: 360 seconds
End Cost: 2.6