New Dawn

Hehe thanks for the direction i'd be sure not to lose my way again and yep those links are very useful and very worth it imo.

I liked it, i felt though a bit more history and darker description about the place could of been integrated in but i thought some clever writing was in there.

The title to the story dont quite tie up just yet for me unless i read more. It could of more easily of been "Wrong part of Town" or "The Slums of Devil Island". If its a title for a chapter then something in the story could of been used like "Candy for Gold".

I am so far guessing that Tenebrean is the Stalker. The Goldbrickers perhaps dont even know hes about despite a man down (The Arachnos know about it first) and so have no reason to be on their guard and take to some foolish prank with the girl. Whatever Tenebrean is upto i am expecting Sally to meet him again. He left her as a witness so his identity cant be an issue.

For me the story is about the girl and i am suspecting she will meet that stranger again, maybe something could of been left as a reason so as the story doesnt seem so ended or complete.

Hope to read more though.

On my invuln superstrength i am very haste-->superspeed biased.

Superspeed in and knockout blow sappers etc followed by footstomp. Anything in the air upto 80ft away throw a rock at them for haymaker damage. To travel to them thru flight and air sup them may take longer. Hurl and ss in or stay where i am and hurl if i dont ideally want to move. If i am kiting an AV for any reason i can still contribute damage aswell.

On an energy melee id want air sup without question (no energy punch) and cos whirling hands can be used mid air unlike footstomp (which needs you on the ground) flight isnt too bad an idea. I look at CoP trial with a spawn in the air and think damn hurl isnt an aoe! If i was an energy i could fly right in and whop them with whirling hands.

Stone, superstrength and ice melee are the more grounded sets but always put concept first.

With superspeed i have more chance for leaving a taunt duration on an AV (it cant hit no one else) then disappear good and far for an unstoppable crash and get back before taunt runs out in theory and it has worked when needed in practise.

Conceptually travel powers never really come into most my toons. I usually do whats powerchoice saving.

The value of any power is based on concept, how you play and who you team with.

Def is definately good. I have a super reflex scrapper, you can in not getting hit miss out on secondary effects and it is better to not get hit than to get hit. The higher the level you face the more likely you are to get hit and the more damage they will do and in an unlucky streak did you trade res for def? Was the tohit of the mobs being floored anyway so that you didnt need in any def? Was you granted a def boost of someone that made you hit the soft def cap anyway? Whatever you feel comfortable about do that.

If i had a mace or axe tanker id have a def based invuln by taking weave, people may say go figure. Id also maybe a def based flying tanker with energy melee. For me to take med pool id need a secondary with secondary aoe effects as its not the complete problem to me whether id be able to get it off to heal myself because i'd have an issue as to whether i keep the enemies dps down in the group for the sake of others whilst i do so.

Trying to use aid self when it would be better to keep in control of a situation kills the idea for me but i have it on my SR and it rocks but you do effectively have more healage over time from it.

No advice on powerchoice is wrong its just that there are so many factors that you'd have to consider that no one can for you as only you play your toon with the people you play with.

Go on test and play with them all, i have tested them and the epics.

Sorry to butt in, well sonic shields on winnie the poo sound cool but in this combo how do earthquake and liquefy numerically compare?

Its a nice concept, i am thinking bout it now too.

6 slot it and go nuts with it, the only time to worry about being defeated is when its still recharging..well if ya lvl 50 that is.

Id really love to see more of them about personally.

My sonic sonic is a corrupter though so when it comes to advising on the sonic sonic defender no can do. Id imagine aid other being useful just so that you can remove some down time from the waiting for peoples health to get back up as you dont really stop people from gettin hit, you just make them last that extra mile and make fights take that bit less in time for a meet in the middle. I have heard some people say liquefy is pretty pointless and i guess it could be. I have it on my corrupter tho and i am still despite finding some benefits judging its overall worthwhileness myself.
I also use repulsion rarely as it depends on if a person would benefit from the kb on them or not. Kins repel is awesome in the right hands and poo in the wrong ones but with repulsion ya may not know who your adding it to so sometimes it maybe just to get that person out from being in over their head, again though its overall worthwhileness is something i am sceptical about.

Out of the sonic secondaries i think shockwave to kb mobs into nearest wall (-dps) would be nice on a defender, as would screech on a ST. Howl is a multihit for -res so thats good too especially after shockwave for safety. Dreadful wail is a nice get out of a jam power imo.

My fire/fire tank loves sonics anyway, unstoppable and more damaging, need i say more?

Hasten does improve dps (-fight duration) and it in combo with an outside recharge boost makes dull pain perma allowing you the highest hit points you can get all of the time and atleast without a recharge boost something like 15 seconds from perma. Which is nothing.

You do have to be aware of your endurance to not allow it past a certain point so that haste doesnt detoggle you when it crashes. i think its 15 endpoints of the top of my head and i cant be geeky enough to check but its nothing compared to the benefits.

The return in damage and secondary effects over time terms far outweighs the end cost imo and is of great benefit especially if you feel more comfortable with extra hitpoints more often and contributing in damage as i do for a lower fight duration.

You could be speed,fitness,fight and med pool if ya wanted and just forget the low def boost from cj. On average i think the four pools i have mentioned are all better than leap pool for survivability played and slotted right especially taking into account the survivability coming from the secondary effects your secondaries have to offer. With the most likely types of outside support which most often unavoidably help you, added, then even more so.

Only problem then is vertical movement or lack of -fly attacks but no matter what you do, you cant have it all anyway.

Use this site to help ya as well as herobuilder.

http://www.nofuture.org.uk/cox/

Think of how you play, if ya always playing with any certain sets then what do they offer? as taking some powers could be a wasted power choice with them but most of all make something you'd enjoy.

Both very good pictures, but i have to say i do like the first one for the cute fairy dust but the second is definately a bit more sophisticated.

I like the poster, its very cleverly done. If anything dont quite fit its the look of the character within it to the time in history it reminds me of, but the logos, colours and slogan are great.
On the war poster of "your country needs you" the focal point for me is dead centre on the guys face and pointed finger and its dead easy to read the text around it but in your case i am so much more interested on whats around the character in the middle as its so much more meaningful and interesting.
But for me its still really good poster, impactful too, i think you could go places in that.

Helpful links to parts 1-5 could be nice too so its easy for the newcomer to pick it up right.

I dont know if thats very clever actual artwork on the real environment in which case "WOW" or 2 pictures super imposed on eachother in which case "very clever and convincing".

I barely ever enter this section...ok never lol but i do think its worth getting into. Sometimes when i am bored at work i daydream alittle and just get imaginative but i have yet to find that one thing, that impossibly hard to find "something" thats original and new.
The first chapter or even the first three pages of any story has got to make people go "okay i want to read more!".
I am reading The Da Vinci Code at the moment. I was told to read the book and then 'maybe' see the film but the first chapter I wouldnt say is great but had made me think "Well I'll read a bit more".
Its worth sticking at, despite any spelling mistakes, I mean just ask J.K. Rowling how much gratification (and money ) can be achieved.
I'd say step outside the boundaries of city of heroes and put something new and edgy in there. If i went into a mission and wrote a story about it, it'll be a little bit too "been there, done that! seen that kind of plot before. Hell, anyone could of wrote that".
One chapter by some of the pro's might of been rewritten atleast seven times. Alot of people get knocked back by others for alot of things but the key thing is to keep coming back and say well "What about this!"
Spending time with roleplayers like i dont (no eye candy action scenes at the same time ya see ) could be worthwhile as sometimes you can come across some really good wordsmiths as some have a certain style or flair that makes me want kick them in the balls out of jealousy .
I think ya have the one greatest key ingredient and thats "balls". You put a story for others to read on the forums when some people including myself daren't. I might one day but it'll take a hell of alot of refinement with the help of close friends as proof readers because my skills are non-existant.
Imo key ingredients of a story can be:

What happens next!!!! (ya went for that)
Who did it??? (ya went for that)
Well this is a fresh new and clever plot (alot in game are variations of eachother and i want to already feel like you are going for this from what you have already written).
or a charismatic and clever use of the english language for literature geeks (which takes rewrite time and practise).

I'd say step outside of coh a bit, invent something, be darker, check that the same use of words isnt repeated. Pick an author whose book you liked and pay attention to their style, what they offered in every chapter, what they gave in every paragraph and what was special about any particular line and adopt it (No dont plagiarise it ). Just do something similar until you can make it your own and it should make your writing better.

When and if i do one, i wont expect it to be great and would prefer honest criticism cos my skin is granite-like. I would rather make a story great from peoples advice no matter how i deem it. To have people with something, anything to say, no matter what it was, try to be nice in order to not hurt my feelings will get in the way of perfection .

I got 2 D's in english so i admit i could be talking out of my hiney.

Oh and ya handwriting is shoddy!

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"pulling to here behind this corner"
"inc mobs to here behind box"
"boss, charging in"


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Yes ok we can see that also, congratulations on learning how to waste time by typing.
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You dont have to type, you can use a macro or a bind and usually with the really good players you dont even have to say anything.

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You seem to think the people you are teaming with are blithering idiots who are blind thus not being able to see the screen.

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I wont really give to much of an audience to this assumption because its false and flawed in its conception but the point is you can go to lengths to try and keep "some" people from being hit and yet they still willingly or unknowingly make an effort to faceplant.

As a tanker i get irritated by people up my $%^&. Do i need to draw a picture? People seem to be aware of their own cone attacks and aoes and pbaoes but do not take into account that the enemy might actually have them too

Do i need to draw a picture?

-------AV
-----/TANK\
----/LINEOF\
---/__FIRE__\ <--- ITS A CONE RIGHT?

Nobody in the taking down an AV other than the tanker has to be in that cone. There are plenty of other beauty spots to stand. It could be a gunslinger just because a tanker is standing in front of one doesnt mean a good place to stand is behind the tank. A tank is not that kind of meatshield.

If the tanker gets aoe'd upon then all those close get aoe'd upon so whats the point in you taking hits for the team if your gonna bring the one-hitter-to-team aoes upon them anyway? Perhaps you took taunt so that you can control the placement of attacks and so ya kite to make those aoes land upto 70ft away or make cones of 60ft range not happen and what does someone do? They come and stand next to you! Was your view worth sharing? Was you lonely? Did you need some company? Its just like all those people at hamidon ya may of seen they have to run up to the hami taunter for their picture taken.

Jaegers pbaoe when they BLOW, ya got a mate whose on their last bit of hp and so ya stop yaself from hitting the jaegers that he is close to, so that he may back off but whats he do? He hits them! Then he asks why and what hit him and this is him on his way to getting his 3rd 50.
I knew a hovering empath who hovered above jaegers spamming heal aura who kept moaning about being in debt all the time yet still rinsed and repeated the hovering low over jaegers mistake.

I know some people support the Darwinian theory to survival but after 2 years of playing this game ya think some people would of worked stuff out by now. A tank can redirect the LoF as much as possible but its upto the individuals in the team to not keep jumping in it. Sometimes you cant even taunt without thinking your in a packed night club, getting to the herdpoint is like trying to make it to the bar.

The lack of understanding with cones, aoes, pbaoes, range and the word "Ready" really gets to me. Why range? well if ya could taunt from so many ft nothing can touch you and anything taunted cant actually try to hit anyone else. What range you can get may make you untargettable with the heaviest attacks as well as minimise likelihood of pbaoes.

Why Ready? cos so few people have a clue when to best time their powers of intervention for their own safety and mess herding. They either attack or are seen by untaunted and get hit for no reason. Basically they cant keep their xp pants on for that extra second or have that need to poke their head out of the train window to see if their is a tunnel up ahead. I worry about those that shoot round blind corners crossing the road.

Tanks irritate me too:

Now a tank going toe to toe with an AV may seem the more macho thing to you but if its doable without the blappers (who do more damage than you, and so in terms of dps are more important) from being defeated then maybe the defense set is taking the hardship out or the lvl of AV isnt that extreme so...machoness gone. If the blappers are being defeated cos you like to use your jab, then you with your low dps must for some reason come before their high dps...i think brains over brawn wins, its better for the damage dealers to be able to maintain the damage without defeat than for you to show what ya can take.

Or what about "oh that AV i can take it!" *runs straight in, team follows without the defender getting a chance to buff the team...

Its just a game it shouldnt annoy me but its $£%^ i have seen so many times before.

The idea of the tank, is not to have someone that can be cheered at for being the last one standing it is to help prevent the squishies from being in debt and one of many things like make aoe debuffs more effective by allowing the defender survivability to not only add more debuffs but keep groups in them and make the team more efficient. You could make squishies built like tanks too but that just removes challenges to the game that people might appreciate and make the game even more mindless and unchallenging than it was before ED for most.

I think the damage per endurance is poor on the attacks so i wouldnt think you would do well at all really. Possibly the longest road to 50 if ya solo.

The rest of the team arent necessarily weak and can handle the odds however if one person, in an attempt to show off, and show how good they are supposedly are, is doing things in a way that compromises someone else or makes them less effective I get annoyed.
Yes the game is meant to be fun but its about the team too, all of whom matter and are key to and equally responsible for success and are equally responsible for failures. Someone playing in a way that makes someone else less effective (usually comes from nobody knowing what the other person in team actually does) or put at greater risk from saving their n00b behind isnt very considerate.
Some things done by a scrapper could look like showing off but isnt because maybe for example they are basically running into next mob early to build up hate to keep aggro long enough for when team join in but in a team with a tanker its wholly unnecessary and possibly more beneficial for others in the team for the tank to group up and get as many in a debuff zone under taunt control as possible and let the teams aoes multihit and stack so well you all end up wondering why ya took stamina.

I said "normally" you would get the damage per endurance up. The damage lowers fight duration and reduces the amount of times you will need to use the power for it.

To explain myself more (not necessarily to you Maelwys)

The 3 most beneficial slots on most attacks (not long recharge with say a heal or end boost for example or really other life saving heavy secondary effects) are damage slots.

In terms of dpe over time 3 dam slots are worth 3 end slots and 3 rechg slots put together.

To save me time i will use brawl index as it dont matter what i use but

Knockout blow 3 end 3 rechg is 9,89 damage every every 12,68 secs at a cost of 9,39. So thats 1,05 damage per 1 end every 12,68 secs. Now spammed in a space of 600 secs you could use it 47 times and do a total of 464,83 damage per 441.33 endpoints.

Now we just slot knockout blow for damage and sticking to BI even tho its outdated we do 19,50 damage per 18,51 end every 25 secs which is still 1.05 damage per 1 end, but every 25 secs in a timespan of 600 secs you can use it 24 times to do a total of 468 damage for 444.24 end.

Now the difference in figures from having knockout blow 3 end and 3 rechg or just 3 dam doesnt vary much but its took 3 slots of end and 3 slots of rechg to get what just 3 slots of dam roughly gets you.

In terms of dps, a rechg slot is usually = to a dam slot cept you use more end overtime.

But despite all that, i said "normally" people would get damage per endurance up and then worry about endurance slots which doesnt = change it.

Air sup is in damage per endurance over time terms an uneconomical attack (due to kb costing end points) and with the amount of spamming he may use with its +survivability bonus from kb 2 end slots is fine if the overall endurance cost of the build during the attack cycle is at its best for it and its actually needed.

Id like to slot my K/blow for dam but the holds in combination with my attack chain work better in terms of my survivability. Now i could think lower fight duration with it but it doesnt quite work with my chain in practise. By having twice the hold duration i get to do more damage before i get a chance of being sapped for example. Whilst beating up a 53 sapper it meant the difference of k/blow->attack chain and k/blow->drink some coke->attack chain . (I am prone to exaggerrate but its more comfortable).

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However at higher levels nearby mobs were occasionally turning away between my taunt aura's ticks, so I put 2 Taunt duration SOs into Invincibility and haven't had any problems since.

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Yeah thats what could happen with taunt versus an AV that resists taunt whom may of -rechgd you. If your teamed with a kin its not a prob, if your hastened its not a prob, ab'd or am'd (with rads or kins or dark there maybe no real need to kite unless you are debuffing the team as an anchor) and its not a prob. The 2 rechg was my first 2 slots just to spam it in different directions quick without leaving a debuff zone and taunt mostly allows (each to their own) comfortable time at which to use it again. 3 slots for me is bare bare minimum after what i have experienced though despite spamming it.

Tanking +5s with low or no aura taunt slotting is off and on tanking (now they want you, now they dont) type thing and in a moment any one foe can get away and take someone down. To fight higher than what i cant taunt control well simply wouldnt suit me as a taunt controller regardless of anything else.

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Sure, I could spend my allocated blasting time by keeping every team member constantly buffed with density (although hardly anyone but the tank is ever attacked) and spamming heals (although it´s only for the tank who has just lost staggering 3% of his health bar)

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This is exactly the dynamics i like to see, the defender (if a single target anything) doesnt have to lose time retargetting and can also target through the tank with their attacks without getting aggro but it takes the whole team to cooperate in getting the dynamic right.

Id never disagree with anyone for making a pacifistic concept of their choosing, the difference could go from being the type more suited for team against +5s than +1s (with +5 ya likely to have to knock ya self out on the primaries and get leaderships maybe) and with +1s its easier to find the time from not having to buff to blast.

Of course any of the less reactionary sets (like ff or sonic) id definately like to see blasting/epic controlling or something other than watching.

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Also the rechg and duration of taunt is not offering much in the being flexible to handle aggro and keep damage of teams in various team make ups especially under -rechg circumstances with +lvls.

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Can you clarify this a bit? I dont understand what youre after here..

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Different enemies give of different secondary effects and how you have to tank for the people in the team to keep them safe enough may require a bit of change to tactics on your part as there is only so much on some things that the other support people in the team can help you and the team with.

You may have no one to help boost recharge when -rechgd and it would have to come from you at a time when you need the team to keep up the dps but you also need to keep damage away from the team.

I dont know who people will be teaming with and i dont particularly become choosy on who i team with, just the flexibility on making do with what you got from having taunt is there. Taunt duration can be resisted and so reduced heavily in duration that its gone prior to the next recharge when under -rechg effects.

When you are tanking for a team who could be subjected to more incoming damage per second than the outgoing healage per second can handle it pays to be away from the team to shift the direction of damage and placement of area of damage to buy time but if you cant keep the taunt control you have only helped so much.

Suggestions are just there to make ya think about whether or not you are sure about the build you have.

No future isnt necessarily misleading but how people may read it might be, and 2 rechg 1 taunt would be how i'd go to place it about quickly in 2 different directions and maybe only 'just' keep a grip on a kited AV.

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One res and unyielding caps it

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Only smash and lethal is capped.

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The 2 end reds in air sup may look odd, but I found it to be my highest EPS usage power, and end reds are very handy in there!

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Its normally worth getting the damage per endurance up then judging the end use, but when in constant use its not as economical as your secondaries.

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Aid self for that.

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High burst attack chains and one hitters do exist although in general for herding with a high def toon i think its good.

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I've only got one acc in attacks, so I'll probs just run this against higher levels for the accuracy, or things like night widows and stuff.

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Certain types of hard kills are best for the other damage dealers to deal with. Of course you can still keep taunt control on anything you like and even if you only spent time hitting the minions you are contributing in damage against group of foes. I dont have any tohits in mine and i dont have probs versus arachnos, in fact i went "wow my epics come through here with the +per" which was the important thing.

Id sooner lower the eps of temp invuln, weave and tough after any commonly used attacks prior to having tohits for what my overall need as a tanker requires.

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I use taunt quite alot, being a teamer.

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I think the taunt slotting is tight in terms of flexibility.
More duration is ideal on higher levels and those of higher res to taunt types. Even in the aura you may atleast put one taunt in there (i know people with 3 so they dont "allegedly tank"). Also the rechg and duration of taunt is not offering much in the being flexible to handle aggro and keep damage of teams in various team make ups especially under -rechg circumstances with +lvls. I think atleast 3 slots is on average better but preferably 4 (2 rechg 2 taunt) You slot to the allowances you are prepared to make after all. Barrage is poo damage and poo gauntlet and so "no where near" as worthy of slots imo in comparison.

Your def goes down in front of 1 AV. Anyway a good couple of good shots on a low res toon that doesnt have the high hp as often as it could have (no haste) is all they could want.

All in all I think this build is a bit more selective of types of defense set required in a team vs AVs as its not a great kiter to keep damage completely off the team if and when needed (due to defense set perhaps) especially if vs AVs.

01) --> Barrage==> EndRdx(1) Acc(23) Dmg(23) Dmg(43)

2 dam slots can be spared for taunt imo providing the min of 3.

08) --> Unyielding==> DmgRes(8) DmgRes(9) DmgRes(9) EndRdx(37) EndRdx(48)

Unless you bury boxing so that you never use it i'd move an end slot from here to it or

26) --> Tough Hide==> DefBuf(26) DefBuf(27) DefBuf(27)

see what the 3rd slot means in numbers and go meh i wouldnt notice the difference!

30) --> Aid Other==> Heal(30) Heal(50)

i like the power on the tank as you use your healpoints but maybe stimulant and a slot saved be better, clearmind a defender/controller who does the actually buffing or debuffing that helps the whole team.

41) --> Focused Accuracy==> EndRdx(41) EndRdx(42) EndRdx(42) TH_Buf(42) TH_Buf(43) TH_Buf(43)

Even in pve the greatest thing is the +per imo, alot of tanks dont really require this amount of tohit (due to one thing or another) so even the tohit buffs are a bit optional.

44) --> Whirling Hands==> Acc(44) Dmg(45) Dmg(45) Dmg(45) EndRdx(46) Rechg(46)

Aoe control and damage to the group. What it does to 10 foes adds up, i dont look at the amount of damage it does to one and its also a great opener. I just think 44 is late but its upto you, superstrength doesnt get footstomp till 38 and killed my xp/rate in comparison to other tanks for it. Energy is the poorest of sets when it comes to aoe imo so not too much of a cry over.

49) --> Unstoppable==> Rechg(49) Rechg(50) Rechg(50)

ideally 2 res to cap res in your case but i think ya may already realise that.

There is no win win build depending on who ya play with and who ya up against, the good thing is to enjoy it.

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4. Is it a "taunt" effect, meaning that the boss will now stop killing the blaster that has made a big hole in his chest and hit me instead?

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Yes if it connects which i an awfully big "if" especially if it was the one person other than you who was keeping the team and/or you alive or you alive and therefore team however things maybe.

If your in melee range then a taunt pulse from aura may connect anyway "if" its not already taunting another 10 and ticks in time.

As for durations it will vary (you cant just go ill come back in 10 secs!) and gauntlet is also "subject to" acc, tohit, rechg and endurance. If someone in jeopardy is far from you then its "subject to" range/travel also but ultimately your reaction, vision and vigilance.

If your relying on the radius of gauntlet to save the blaster by hitting another then good luck with that.

I personally would sooner rely on low/no end auto-hitting taunts as much as possible (as at the very least i can be a bag of hitpoints even without or with next to no end) but would much rather consolidate first than have to make recoveries.

Its just a game, you could not care and as most ppl dont rp and therefore dont actually play a hero, they may love the anarchy and so might not mind.

Of course if deep down you bought the game to play a hero in some rp sense in which case, trying to use gauntlet as a means of saving someone guarantees nothing, my question is how can heroes save anyone if they cant even save eachother and possibly even as a result of, themselves? With no guarantees gauntlet becomes no real substitute for autohit fast pulse aura, auto hit ranged taunt and tactics but i still wouldnt want to be without it. Especially as doing damage is an important part of tanking as sometimes you only have so much time before defeat.

Gauntlet for me (being rp) is just there to help with taunt control and is not the best key maker of it.

In a good team a simple signal of running to a point and back from it and out simply suffices because they have got the picture after a couple of runs unless its a pull not too similar. If someone isnt too bright ya just have to start telling people nicely your intentions again.

I like the tanks with whistle combined macros as its well cute.

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I'd definitely take it if I was making an invul tank.

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and I thought you had it on everything as it is