New Dawn

Whilst hidden unslotted Hide and Combat Jump is almost 45% and he still hasn't toggled on danger sense. When suppressed the level of defense drops to a low figure doesn't it?

Slotting low figures is something I'd do if I saw no where better to slot and in this case I'd even recharge caltrops more.

In PVP, anything can happen but how likely your going to need to worry about AoEs of great accuracy is something I can only wonder but yet plausible.

Omg don't tell me this is for PvP.

*slaps forehead*

My DM/DA (live) is staminaless and the one I had on test had stamina but didn't use a single primary power in a test of making good use of the toggles buying time for dark regen thats super recharged and defeating everything in a street group solo. My first go wasn't great mind you because stacked stuns got me XD but that made me aware that I needed to use CoF better to reduce attack rate and this made the fight take longer.

I tend to do things like Energy/Energy, Elec/Elec, DM/DA. Prior to stamina the nrg/nrg and elec/elec have proven the most painful because hastened Dark Consumption is as good as stamina if you play it alright -> hit plenty with it. In fighting an energy melee EB solo in the early 20s staminaless, I had to lead him through more and more groups XD . Leeching and defeating them as I go but Death Shroud is such a great power that whilst hitting on the EB its doing everything else for me...fury builds faster in a group and how much damage I do for endurance stays up more, eventually I need to use less attacks overall.

The energy/energy starting out (being pants at aoe) can't handle the groups that elec/elec and dark/dark can. Often in groups the elec/elec finishes up in need of both a heal and end recovery (think unstoppable crash) but I would of just done enough aoe to an end bar and the dm/da would had a similar fight duration, had to of healed in it and of been able to move on to the next group sooner.

The energy/energy I found needed aid self more than stamina early on. The elec/elec could do with aid self just as much as stamina, but both can live without stamina later. The DM/DA can live without stamina sooner and isn't crying out for aid self but could more likely do with stamina for the highest of ranks.

I actually see leveling as one long experiment of pain, going without the "essentials" and therefore damn well in need to have to get as much out of what i got, then add the essentials and have a better understanding of what my characters about. Sadly altitis kicks in and has me learning and unlearning all the time. A good at nothing fumbler.

For me the main bits of end slotting DA with IOs is:

Dark Regen 2acc, 2 end,2 rechg
Cloak of Fear 2 acc, 2 end, maybe 2 to of whatever is to taste.
Death Shroud 2acc, 2 end, 2 dam.

CoF is great for reducing attack rate to self but death shroud counter acts it reducing the reduction in attack rate. I may just CoF to buy time for Dark Regen. Hastened Dark Regen recharges back in so few seconds and I would look to ST the higher ranks to the hp levels of the lower ranks. That way I hopefully finish the last 4 of the group about the same time for Dark Regen and Dark Consumption have slightly more than minimal numbers to effect for full bars and death shroud is hitting its cost effective minimal amount till the end. Normally, surprisingly everything is gone at the same time.

In teams you get people who use powers that act against yours. Someone in an attempt to save a DA that looks like they are about to die may say knock mobs away from them or from habit of playing with an energy brute or whatever prevent mobs from ganking the brute; but DM/DA; imo; is a sick set; because its somehow thrives on getting mullered and makes the greatest comebacks from near death experiences. Spread groups is why DM/DAs could do with stamina at times as you can't always leech enough end. I think in some teams with a control aura that works well, you could probably stand a better chance of survival and personally do more economical damage per end, if they all just stood at the door. CoF maybe a more useful power in soloing. I rarely see teams on CoV when I play. This is because its normally when people have gone to bed. So my experience with it in teams is still limited, even nigh non existent on it.

Dark Melee.

Well lookin at ya build, dya need all that def in hide?

The rest of your build is curious too

I can't grumble too much. I make the worst kinetic ever XD

Empathy is a reactive set. Offensiveness is alright. Most of the Offensive empaths I have seen get lost in the attack chain. They are still chucking out super weak blasts while a proper damage dealer is in need of help. As a Tank I often do a attack, check on people, attack, some empaths are just so completely lost in their tickling I wonder why they didn't make a blaster. I find taking the time to CM people within a fight costly on much needed reactions.

My Dark Armour is one of the strongest ones I have got and I have every set..I think XD (no not Invuln..not that again!). It is probably about knowing numbers and playing to suit. It's not "make a dark and think and play like everything else". Without using a single primary power, with the right pools I could build to and play through defeating +3 groups, solo..but I didn't level up building to play that way.

Leveling up the first half I didn't put a single resistance slot in the build XD (Tanked though) This was to first work out just how to get off on offense. This meant relearning to play the character exactly right after every long spell of not playing. Movement, timing, selecting the first main pain in groups and duffing them etc all mattered. I respeced out hasten once and that made it painful to play when relying on offense..regretted it!

If you level to 20 and have vet respecs I would recommend hitting 20 with all the good powers and then respec in stamina. 20 is 2 slots from SOs which change much also, SOs can make a power that looked bad in the teens to something great in the forties.

You get level spells of poor performance but it takes till 50 to complete a build and DA on scrappers is the strongest there is imo.

You can actually build a character that seems like only you can play; with Dark Armour; as opposed to what most sets offer; a set that anyone can jump on and play.

Cloak of Fear is not like Burn. As a herding Dark/Dark Brute I am very happy with it. I don't cause any wander with it on.

I went on test respecing in CoD into my Brute and got close enough to effect with my damage aura almost before any response. I would worry about the people who would be up some Dark Tanks butt.

Extra tohit is a bit of something on my wishlist and you get +per with powers that give that. I have been playing around with finding out just how much tohit I'd really prefer in PVE....45% XD

Dark Armour is a great Brute set. Not for everyone; but great in the right hands in PVE.

I think Energy Melee is a bit fast in action time meaning there is a lack of end recovery time over each attack; not good with several toggles needlessly running. You only need to run enough in toggles to survive a fight duration.

Dark Armour toggles need to be selectively activated. I would run one for part of a fight duration, turn another one on, maybe swap one toggle for another etc etc. I would most likely love Oppressive Gloom more with EM but there is wandering.

Oppressive Gloom is 0.08 eps. I'd just acc it.

With all your fully SIO'd out builds I get suspicious! Are you rich or what?

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Not all tankers take auras or Taunt anyway

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Then why roll a tanker?
See, that's quite an statement, a tank with no taunt and no taunt auras is more useless than a tanking Kheldian, in fact, not even sure it is a tank anymore, but hey ho, that's just my opinion.

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And mine, agree with Night completely. I'd feel *very* unsafe on a team, with a 'tank' who has no intention of holding aggro effectively

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My DPS drops. Where I'd normally unleash hell expecting nothing to want me I would simply pick my targets carefully.

So sonic blast gave you a headache? Sonic Resonance had been changed to prevent people getting headaches. Maybe too few had sonic blast. I don't like the idea of deleting, I normally make another although I have been so close to deleting after thinking that my concept was completely ruined. In a way it still is, but the powers were actually changed to make sure other people don't get headaches XD .

20 levels is quite a few hours play I might of simply had a break from the character but headaches are uncomfortable.

Relying on having to actively provide your own survivability is imo better than passively relying on it. Your challenged more because in order to survive you have to act and make the right decisions in time. You can enter groups, select the enemy that will cause the first main negative effect and take them out before proceeding to the next and gain survivability that way.

Stone Melee is a quick set and because it's a quick set your attacks don't allow much time for end recovery. As far as cons are concerned that's it. Its possible that your more like a 100 metre sprinter.

Dark Armour has a end thirsty heal and you can run too many enemy affecting toggles (except oppressive gloom) at once to really counteract end recovery. So if you can 2 end slot anything, 2 end slot the self heal and 2 end slot the damage aura. If you take CoF of which I'd imagine might be a mag 3 fear then 2 end slot that too.

What I didn't think of taking was Cloak of Darkness (I wonder if they'll change it). Def to all, stacked to the tohit debuff of CoF and stacked to another +def, its notsobad and the additional perception is always good but the stealth I regard bad and as it is with my Brute the res to immob can come from combat jump anyway. I'd still fancy the additional perception...perception helps you make better tanking decisions and act against blinds.

A problem with relying on utility with dark armour is that there is a lot that you rely on which needs a tohit check. As a Tank, one can be debuffed to hell, and I know it and the now and again instances of build up don't cover all of those times. So without something extra your relying on yellows. Plus tohit powers also give me my plus perception Seeing as hastened conserve energy would be nice (dark regen at less than half price!); I would also get Foc Acc. I won't have Foc Acc on all the time though but instead use it as and when needed which will automatically be the start of any fight.

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Kinda worried, just been reading and saw controllers are going to be geting thermal?

Is thermal going to render sonic kinda pointless? aren't the shields almost the same, plus all those other heals and buffs, i'm kinda worried I would be obsolete?

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Many characters end up looking relatively pointless when there is a certain something else in the team. On a single foe a mind controller could use dominate and a earth controller could use fossilize. The only person that looks like they have done anything is the earth controller. Who will get nominated as controller of the mission? I do wonder..not. Even graphics can make one person look as if they are pulling weight more than another.

Obviously some players because of how they are set up or do things will prefer someone who can say; heal . On villain side I have had a /Sonic Corrupter from day one and there has been /Thermal Corrupters from day one. I think some players fear to team with one more than the other when it comes to playing with...yes the one without the heal.

I won't insist that players worth their salt will succeed with a sonic for support more than a thermal. There is the thing where some support sets do more for some characters than others but in terms of support the Thermal would be seen as the more helpful/useful. Even because of how people play the level of possible support can change.

Many people in game have been saying that Controllers are superior to Defenders already...so no matter what defender you have, you maybe seen as rather unnecessary.

Figuratively speaking you'll either be balanced or in need of a tweak. In game speaking, people like to have what they consider the better sets in the team. If people like pace they will go with their hunches.

I have seen someone delete their sonic defender to be an empath defender..*facepalms*. I find that kind of thing sad. You should have a concept, play the toon and just enjoy it. You may come across teams whose plan A, B and C is to dive in and do the same stupid thing and say I will get my "insert here" afterwards but any giving up on a concept isn't going to make anyone else a better player.

I am going to create a story arc that brings about my own characters origin if its possible!!

Possible Farm mission idea. Hell Gates and waves of ambushers that keep coming. Have the "300" feel to it. Oh hell you just go back in time to meet the spartans.

Gratz, Well done!!

I got my first one two bars away and had her sit there for several months! Well no rush till now..

cos the VEATs are looking like a good incentive. I have heard people talk of having 6

Threat level is just part of a bigger calculation.

Aside from a concept I have no idea why anyone will want to choose /elec over anything else..well maybe one..because it's new?

If there was Short Circuit, then, I could see why.

That could then be a tad too good.

There should still be a crash.

I find some scrappers do better than some kheldians but not all. Yes to Invuln, Willpower and Dark but no to Regen and SR. Ofc I find that some enemies have a higher resistance to taunt than others. For a scrapper without the ability to taunt, trying to gain aggro through damage instead, may see that some enemies seem to have a slightly greater aversion to someone of another AT and that ones damage doesn't gain immediate attention (ofc taunt will). Against AVs I will say overall Scrappers with confront can have greater flexibility and ergo better survivability.

I find the ability to triform in a single fight duration and fire off as many AoEs as possible makes the warshade fun.

But in some teams:

1) Pretty much no sooner have I double mired there is nothing left to hit or;

2) Mobs are left or made spread which considering that some of the most die hard anti-herding players love to see herding when they play a Warshade that really isn't good;

3) You enter a team and either they are better off with you tanking or you are!

The as and when of things is situational. I'd rather get to double mire and use lots of AoEs.

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As this would be your first tank, I'd advise not jumping in at the deep end.... Stone/Stone needs a lot of patience, as before stamina is available, you'll get frustrated with endurance problems (constant resting between mobs at times, especially when soloing).

As mentioned previously stone melee is very end heavy, at least until slotted with SO enhancements.

Mind you an invul/SS tank is far too soft an option for 1st tank... so I'd advice you to take a fire or ice primary (defence) at first, just to make sure tanking is for you... then go for stone....! I say this as my stone/stone is only just at level 27 now (altitus and boredom being the main reasons), after 18 months or so...!

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Invuln/SS is far too soft an option for a first tank? Ice can have you tanking well early, easiest one I will ever play I bet! I think it differs with different people but Fire strikes me as the most challenging but I think Ice is a good first to quickly understand what a Tank actually does because it almost naturally does it . Stone Melee blows through end because of its low cast times not allowing much end to recover over the course of the attack chain.

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Other than "son of a window-dresser" (clicky)...

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Your not Maelwys on a second account are you?

Generally for an Invuln; I would knee jerk and say if I were to complete an IO set in slotting I'd go for Mocking Beratement. I'd actually mix it myself 4 Mocking 2 Perfect but it depends on what you want and what the rest of your build is like.

In some ways the Praetorians are harder than Arachnos. I think thank "" they aren't 54.

You can as a tanker find yourself completing the MoSTF, join another team and dying to a 52 Praetorian. We are what people in the teams help make us and allow us to make of ourselves..as sometimes your forced into a teamwipe position trying to save a chipmunk that you needn't of been in.

I have seen tankers tank +5 as low as in their 20s but its not the same when they have people that are +5 to them controlling. Somehow they think it is and in some cases I didn't really see them with aggro, they were on the team and had a portion of it. Taunt duration as well debuffs have a much lesser impact above certain levels against certain enemies (no set level for all I don't think). Sometimes its safer to have a virtual sense of control than an actual sense. I think its good do know just how much your level of control is worth.

Ofc I generalize across different types of tanks.