Psylenz

I am going to Icon. I don't like how my boot looks.

Yes, I would go for that idea. It's very sound.

1. First things first, I have had a nitpick since the game started about the way targeting cycles. There are two obvious and separate ways that the Devs developed their interesting interpretation of the word 'next'. I know there is a target nearest foe/friend, but next is broken. Currently, if you target a foe in the nearest spawn that is physically the farthest from you, clicking target next will jump your target reticle to the nearest foe in the SECOND nearest spawn, potentially hundreds of feet away. If you use a power that was limited to 10, 15, 18, whatever maximum targets affected (targeted area of effect), the concept of 'next' doesn't function (when counting the nearest/next 10, 15, 18) anywhere near the way it does when you click 'target next' -- thankfully. Targeting the next foe also gets dicey when targets are moving.

2. I would also like to revamp some zones. There could be a lot of rich new content in the Shadow Shard. Rebuilding Baumton could provide a lot of story content with level 11-19 foe groups like the Vahz, Council, 5th, clocks, Outcasts, and Trolls. Dark Astoria could use a make-over like Faultline received. Nerva needs a make-over, too That zone has a lot of dead space in it that players jump, swim, or fly through.

3. I like the previous ideas of new zones - European zones for exploration of the Fifth column and Council origins; these could be a historical progression of the Cimeroran arcs not to bash any Earth prime cultures. An Egypt zone would be wonderful, too. To balance this, a new zone with Asian flavors would also garner a lot of interest. Dare I mention the moon zone?

4. I like proliferation, but there could be more powersets, too. I am thinking of something along the attacks of the Snakes, Coralax, maybe some Praetorian epic sets (instead of arachnos think Imperial Defense Force).

5. A whole task force of fighting evil/opposite duplicates of yourself is interesting. This could be an expansion on the Protean story arc. It could fit nicely as an alternative to Citadel, which I find to be dull, and of course it could be ported over to the Red side as well.

I don't remember how long ago the changed occurred, but you can't slot a Force Feedback chance for recharge proc in the Assault Bot and get any benefit. In fact, with the change, there is NOTHING you can do to affect the recharge rate of pet powers.

http://www.globalgiving.org/projects...sunami-relief/

In addition to donating to sites such as the above, I am inspired to go back and purchase a couple booster packs I deferred purchasing - just to show my support for a classy organization like NCSoft.

PLEASE, give to a charity, the ones listed in the original post are superb! Sacrifice a latte, a coke every so often, buy some clothes at Goodwill/Salvation Army/etc instead of label brands and use the savings to donate to help our friends in Japan.

I, too, am very impressed and very pleased with the generosity of NCSoft.

Fellow community members, I would encourage you, if you are able, give to a charity involved in helping our economic and political friends in Japan. The country is in DIRE need of any assistance. The list of charities that received donations from NCSoft is a great place to start looking for a charity to donate to.

Perhaps you didn't take snowstorm, but it has -travel speed, -fly, -recharge. It is a very hefty debuff that you can take very early in your career.

I just don't like the fighting pool. I am really flexible on the patron/epic powers. I kind of made this for level-up slotting, but I couldn't resist putting some place holders in for LotG, which DO contain a nice defense component, too. Ember demon heal, ember demon resist shield, shadow fall, twilight grasp (soonTM to be improved upon) frozen armor and hibernate should keep you upright without the fighting pool. I threw in some tasty resist and defense bonuses in manuvers and shadow fall to give an idea of how you can really stoke up the protection.


Villain Plan by Mids' Villain Designer 1.91
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Click this DataLink to open the build!

DSDM: Level 50 Natural Mastermind
Primary Power Set: Demon Summoning
Secondary Power Set: Dark Miasma
Power Pool: Flight
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Chill Mastery

Villain Profile:
Level 1: Summon Demonlings -- Acc-I(A), Acc-I(3), Dmg-I(3), Dmg-I(5), BriL'shp-Dmg/EndRdx(5), BriL'shp-Acc/EndRdx(7)
Level 1: Twilight Grasp -- H'zdH-Heal/EndRdx(A), H'zdH-Heal(7), H'zdH-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(9), H'zdH-Heal/Rchg(9), H'zdH-EndRdx/Rchg(11)
Level 2: Tar Patch -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(11), P'ngTtl-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(13)
Level 4: Darkest Night -- DarkWD-ToHitDeb(A), DarkWD-ToHitDeb/Rchg(13), DarkWD-ToHitdeb/Rchg/EndRdx(15), DarkWD-ToHitDeb/EndRdx(17), DarkWD-Slow%(17)
Level 6: Enchant Demon -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(15)
Level 8: Lash -- Acc-I(A)
Level 10: Howling Twilight -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(19), Stpfy-Acc/Stun/Rchg(21)
Level 12: Summon Demons -- Acc-I(A), H'zdH-Heal(19), BriL'shp-Acc/EndRdx(21), Dmg-I(23), Dmg-I(23), H'zdH-Heal/EndRdx(25)
Level 14: Hover -- Flight-I(A)
Level 16: Fly -- Flight-I(A)
Level 18: Hell on Earth -- Dmg-I(A), RechRdx-I(27), RechRdx-I(27), ToHit-I(29)

EDIT FOR STUPIDITY! FOUR SLOTS OF PET/RIP bonuses go in Hell on Earth

Level 20: Fearsome Stare -- Abys-Acc/Rchg(A), Abys-EndRdx/Fear(31), Abys-Acc/EndRdx(48), Abys-Fear/Rng(48), Abys-Acc/Fear/Rchg(50)
Level 22: Shadow Fall -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(A), LkGmblr-Rchg+(25), Aegis-Psi/Status(34), ImpArm-ResPsi(36), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx(36), ImpArm-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(46)
Level 24: Maneuvers -- Ksmt-ToHit+(A), Krma-ResKB(29), Ksmt-Def/EndRdx(36), LkGmblr-Rchg+(37)
Level 26: Summon Demon Prince -- EdctM'r-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(A), Dmg-I(31), P'ngTtl-Acc/Slow(31), P'ngTtl-Acc/EndRdx(33), P'ngTtl-Dmg/Slow(33), P'ngTtl-EndRdx/Rchg/Slow(33)
Level 28: Crack Whip -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(34)
Level 30: Tactics -- AdjTgt-ToHit(A), AdjTgt-ToHit/Rchg(37), AdjTgt-ToHit/EndRdx/Rchg(40), AdjTgt-EndRdx/Rchg(46), AdjTgt-ToHit/EndRdx(46)
Level 32: Abyssal Empowerment -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(37)
Level 35: Petrifying Gaze -- BasGaze-Acc/Hold(A), BasGaze-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(39), BasGaze-Acc/Rchg(39), BasGaze-EndRdx/Rchg/Hold(39)
Level 38: Dark Servant -- Cloud-ToHitDeb(A), Cloud-Acc/ToHitDeb(40), Cloud-Acc/Rchg(40), Cloud-ToHitDeb/EndRdx/Rchg(42), Cloud-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(42), Cloud-%Dam(42)
Level 41: Flash Freeze -- IComa-Acc/Sleep/Rchg(A), IComa-Acc/Rchg(43), IComa-Sleep/Rng(43), IComa-Acc/EndRdx(43)
Level 44: Frozen Armor -- RedFtn-Def(A), RedFtn-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(45), RedFtn-EndRdx(45), RedFtn-Def/EndRdx(45), RedFtn-EndRdx/Rchg(50)
Level 47: Hibernate -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(48)
Level 49: Assault -- EndRdx-I(A), EndRdx-I(50)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I(A)
Level 1: Supremacy
Level 47: Ninja Run
Level 2: Swift -- Run-I(A)
Level 2: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
Level 2: Health -- Heal-I(A)
Level 2: Stamina -- EndMod-I(A), EndMod-I(34)

You can stand around and chat alot. You can be prone to profanity. You can use brawl instead of headsplitter. I usually don't pay attention. A little extra aggro, (but I do hate when a player consistently tries to solo other parts of the map separate from the team) but the one thing I do NOT tolerate is AFK for more than a quick bio in a TF or trial.

I have seen very good, attentive and beneficial teamwork from very young and/or very new players, and I have seen abusive, ignorant, and inattentive 'experienced' players.

I usually team with global friends.

I picked up the whip attacks on my demon summoners. I would suggest you try to fit in lash and crack the whip. Crack the Whip especially has a nice AoE with a -resist component.

As a new player, you have picked up on a lot of the preferred powers and enhancement slotting tactics. Dark miasma itself has a lot of different strategies to maximize its usefulness. Demon summoning has some wrinkles in set IO usage different from its cousin mastermind sets.

Twilight Grasp is a superb heal as well as a debuff. Soon(tm), the radius of heal on the mastermind will be increased to match the defenders and corruptors twilight grasp. The set bonus from six slots of tohit debuff, IMHO, is not enough of a consideration to avoid enhancing the heal of your mastermind.

I didn't even realize that darkest night could take accurate to-hit debuffs - no accuracy check.

Shadow fall needs to be slotted for resistance buffs to some extent because it is one of few powers that protect against psionic damage type. The buff aura is big and will be greatly appreciated on teams especially. Think Psychic Clockwork King in the Lady Grey Task Force.

Your middle tier and top tier pets, ember demon and demon prince have special slotting concerns for endurance. Ember demon heals, has a resistance buff aura and the demon prince has shiver and chilling embrace which are non-damage debuffs. Since the Demons were in beta, players have reported that endurance buffs from pet damage IO enhancements sets DO NOT reduce the endurance cost of the heal, buff, and debuff powers. Fortunately the pet damage IO sets aren't that dazzling to start with. For my demon masterminds, I franken slot some heal, resistance, and slow IO sets pieces in the pets. For example 4 Pacing of the Turtles does not really sacrifice much since you can get enhancements to accuracy, slow, end cost and even damage. The 9% accuracy set bonus is nice, too.

Even so, if you toggle on oppressive gloom before running in to TC, you afford yourself some protection while you stun > build up > end replenish. Toggle off when you finished the melee sequence, kind of reverse in flavor to your hurricane. This could probably be set up as a macro. The end replenish and build up are good enough to consider dark mastery. There is also a self-rez!

I don't run mids at work or I could open your build probably.

I can't open the OP's two sample builds at my alternate secret location in the real world (work). I would suggest if you do decide to go the dark pit/thunderclap route, that you should go all in. Take the Dark mastery hero epic pool. Oppressive gloom will stack even moar stun in AoE fashion. By applying thunderclap, most likely you are toggling hurricane on and off for the stun. Dark mastery also has a damage buildup type power and a PbAoE endurance refill power. All of these features along the stun route are benefited by extra stun and extra recharge in the spriritual alpha. Also note, if you are not fully slotted for the slows, freezing rain and snowstorm should benefit from the spiritual partial radial revamp. That's not a shabby approach at all.

I just got my Notice of the Well, and some shards and pieces for my alpha slot. I am working on my first mastermind; he is Robots/Poison. I am REALLY torn over three options. First is Musculature tree for Damage, Defense Debuff, ToHit debuff, and immobilization (in the mace mastery web envelope). Second is Nerve, also very appealing, Accuracy for the 3rd tier pets, defense also from the protectors and the mace mastery shield, but also the hold is appealing for paralytic poison and the mace mastery hold. Third option is the Spiritual. Poison benefits from recharge in Noxious Gas and to some extent the faster recharging features. Poison also has a nice wide cone of Slow which benefits from Spiritual. Robots benefit from extra recharge (and heal) on repair, more heal from the protector bots, and additionally more stun from the seekers and photon grenades.

Come to think of it... buffing the amount of heal enhancement of protector bots is unwise after additional thought, but the more frequent repair (and alkaloid) might offset that.

I do run tactics and have my robots well-slotted for Accuracy. Extra defense for the protector bots and mastermind is still appealing.

Bah, I am still quite torn.

Huh, my alzheimer's must be progressing.

I have to agree that Freezing Rain is still pretty amazing, even if you can't kill Hammy from max altitude anymore with a flying storm crew...

... but the power that still sends chills down my spine, even without the uber sound effect, is FULCRUM SHIFT!

Many people love their huge damage cap pushing buffs, but it also is a great debuff, too.