SaintTzu

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  1. SaintTzu

    A DP question

    Pistols/Traps Corr. Got one at 50, very nearly capped vs range. Great combo.

    For the other, consider a Pistols/EM blaster. Go light on the EM, focus on the utility powers from the secondary and pool powers.
  2. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Eiko-chan View Post
    Is Kinetic/Energy Aura the new Strong and Pretty?
    This seems like a natural pairing. I never really paid much attention to /EA, was somewhat surprised that it hadn't proliferated blue-side at all. Also, really wish Repel wasn't stalker-only. I know it can be counter productive and is situational, but it really fits the concept and could be fun when used just right.

    So now I must wait and see if I approve of the Stalker version of KM. I'd like to get back to Stalkers, loved my Claws/Nin until the Eviscerate change (just my take, but it really made the set feel a lot different and less attractive in the late game).

    Bah, didn't intend to get off-topic. Somehow proliferate Repel!
  3. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Castle View Post
    I'll admit, I had a bit of cognitive dissonance when it came to Brutes and this set. I figured, though, that it was better to give it to them now rather than hear a bunch of complaints of "Why don't Brutes get this?" or "Why are Brutes the only base AT to not get a new Powerset with Going Rogue?"

    That said, people are creative. I'm sure they can come up with rationals to make it fit.
    I think my only cognitive dissonance would be with the actual words 'brute' and 'fury'. The idea that a Kinetic Melee-er might get more powerful as more energy/force/damage is absorbed and generated in a short period of time... well, it makes really good sense to me.

    So I appreciate your attitude and approach, Castle. Thanks for making it available to Brutes.
  4. It's been while since I've played my Thugs/Dark heavily, but let me see what I can remember.

    Call Thugs - You just need Acc and Damage. Three Hami-Os if you can afford 'em, could probably do 4 slots with two IO Acc and two IO Dam. I also put the +Def and +Res uniques in here in favor of a full set of the higher level Recharge Intensive Pets (the name escapes me right now, (something) Reinforcement, I think).

    Twilight Grasp - 4 or 5 from Touch of the Nictus.

    Tar Patch - two recharge.

    Darkest Night - 4 from Dark Watcher's Despair

    Empty Clips - 5x Posi, Ragnarock proc.

    Enforcers - three Acc/Dam hami-os, two Tohit/Defense hami-os, Achilles Heel proc

    Shadowfall - LotG global recharge, Kismet +6% tohit, Aegis Res/End, Aegis Status-effect resistance, Aegis Resistance, Karma KB protection... if I'm remembering that right.

    Howling Twilight - recharge

    Health - Numina's unique and Heal, Miracle unique and Heal

    Stamina - 4 from Performance Shifter including the proc.

    Fearsome Stare - full set of Glimpse of the Abyss

    Petrifying Gaze - I ended up skipping this one but I might well reconsider if/when I get 'round to another respec. I'd love to have enough slots for a full set of Lockdown in there.

    Bruiser - 3 Acc/Dam hami-os, Soulbound's chance for build-up, Force Feedback proc... I think a smashing damage proc as well.

    Dark Servant - 2 recharge, 2 to-hit debuff, 2 Acc/Mez hami-os

    From the patron pools I only took an armor which is mainly a mule for all three from Steadfast Protection. I took Maneuvers (4x LotG), Tactics (just 2 slots from Gaussian's as I recall), and Vengeance (LotG global recharge).

    ...

    Not sure how helpful that really is, but perhaps it'll give you an idea.
  5. Let me make a different suggestion. Having a somewhat passive secondary (FF certainly, Traps a bit and Dark a little) allows you time to become very good at positioning and controlling your minions.

    Figuring out the optimal distance and location to open a fight, shifting locations and stances on fly, and taking the broad view to control the whole fight not just what you're currently targeting; these things are valuable and rewarding even if most of your teammates may never really understand what you're doing.
  6. Recharge is the most important thing, followed by accuracy and tohit debuff.

    The mastermind Fluffy is on a longer timer than any other ATs version and it can't help you if it's not out. Once it's out you want whatever it does to hit. Everything the Dark Servant does debuffs accuracy (with the exception of the hold, I think), and it's chill aura is a powerful acc debuff (to the point that, when facing melee-heavy enemies putting Fluffy on follow in the middle of a fight can be a very good tactic).

    You can't really rely on it holding what you need held, immobilizing with any real intelligence, or healing at the right moment, but you can rely on that acc debuff and it combined with yours will improve your survivability by a hefty margin.

    If you can afford it, two Lysos (the Hamidon Origin +Acc/+Mez), two IO Recharges, and two tohit debuffs.
  7. The Henchmen example was what concerned me.

    I figured based on how the Swap Ammo power is described to work (that it adjusts probabilities of secondary effects that are always present, even when at 0%) that it probably worked how Schismatrix described. But, I'm happy to have that confirmed.

    Thanks for the responses.
  8. Has anyone figured out how these work yet?

    For example, if an Achilles' Heel -Res proc is slotted in, say, Empty Clips, will it proc with any selection of ammo, or only with Standard?

    Or, if the smashing damage proc from the slow set (I forget which set at the moment), will it only proc if Cold ammo is active?
  9. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Castle View Post
    Shield Charge was supposed to be something like this. Unfortunately, our engine did not like it in the least, which is why it was turned into a teleport. In other words, we *can't* do it, currently. Sorry!

    Hmm. Ok.

    The power is something like Thunder Strike or Tremor, long-ish animation, PBAoE effect. However, the animation does not root the character in any way, and the attack checks for hits at the *end* of the animation (like the second check of a patron pool snipe) rather than when the attack button is clicked.

    Just a thought.
  10. Quote:
    Originally Posted by beyeajus74018 View Post
    so smoke flash, really crappy or misunderstood?
    It's certainly misunderstood by many but it's also the most skippable power in the set.

    It's attempts to placate every enemy around you, but does NOT put you back into the Hidden state. There are a few issues that make it a less desirable power choice. First is that the animation time is long-ish, a second and a half or so. That doesn't *seem* long on paper, but you're usually trying to use to shed a bunch of agro when you're in a tight spot, and then that animation time feels teeth-grindingly long. Its not auto-hit in PvE like Placate is, so you may miss some, and you can't instantly tell who it's hit, which can be an issue in some scrappy situations.

    But, I think the real issue (and the reason why it isn't in my build even though I like the concept) is that it's largely redundant with Caltrops. What I mean is that they both do pretty much the same thing tactically: slow down or temporarily halt incoming melee damage. Between the two, Caltrops is the clear winner by virtue of it being usable in more situations if nothing else.

    Once I thought I had found a really good use for Smoke Flash: get in the middle of a really big mob and drop the Smoke *before* the AS. The idea being that since Smoke's Placate has a duration, that many of the mob would still be affected and not instantly alpha-strike the stalker. This nice idea was broken down by an ugly fact, the to-hit check required by the power caused agro in anything it missed. Ugh.
  11. Tough? Certainly. Extra resistance is never a bad thing.

    Get Boxing, but don't bother to slot it. It's somewhat annoying to have to waste a power that way (and I don't get it conceptually either, but that's another issue). From there you have a choice between Tough and Kick as your prerequisites before you can choose Weave. Between those two it's really no contest, get Tough.

    Heck, even if you don't run it and just use it as an IO mule it's still the better choice.
  12. I think you'd be hard-pressed to do it before the mid 30's.

    Hmm, well, I lie a bit. As a Nin/ you can probably get Melee capped earlier with perma'd 'Avalanche.

    Softcapping my Claws/Nin involved the purple confuse set in Blinding Powder, the Steadfast 3% global def in 'Sha, scattered Touch of Death and Mako's Bite sets, and either Maneuvers or the Fighting pool for Weave depending on the exact build.

    Considering that my ranged def relies upon the purple confuse set, I couldn't hit that until 50. That was fine for me, I leveled up on SO's and scattered IO's then built for the cap after hitting 50. I'm sure it could be done earlier with a more focused build.

    My guess would be that if you wanted to really cap before 40 you'd need to fit both Maneuvers and the Fighting pool into the build.

    Hope that helps a bit.
  13. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Weatherby Goode View Post
    Placate the Singy, break LoS with the boss, and kill him as he runs around the corner.
    This is the method, yes.

    You can do it almost as well without placating the Sing. They tend to trail after their caster, so if the Singy is blocking you just break LoS and make 'em move. Then you can usually get a pretty clear shot at your target.
  14. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Schismatrix View Post
    (...) but Combat Jumping is much better while fighting.
    'better' is SO relative. I just ran a few missions on a well-IOed (enough to compensate for the End cost and still go full speed) Claws/Nin Stalker. Left Ninja Run on the whole time, tapping the space bar every so often in the fights just for fun.

    Oh, yes. Good, good stuff.

    Big thanks to the developers.

    Please note: I wouldn't scream too loudly if it didn't suppress in PvE...
  15. I would love to see Banes get Serum and Whirling Mace, and happily lose a ranged attack or two. That would even things out nicely.

    The animation changes put forth by Frosticus would get my whole-hearted approval as well.
  16. Darkest Night is agro-generating. That means it will have largely the same effect as if the target were under a damage-over-time attack.

    So, yes, it will break the placate. And, yes, if you placate something under the effect of Darkest Night it will re-agro to you quickly.

    That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. Darkest Night is an excellent debuff, and the Placate will still likely net you a controlled crit.
  17. Dark
    Storm
    Force Field

    ... and one to grow on:Traps
  18. SaintTzu

    Claws/Ninjitsu

    Just to provide something else to kick around.
    Its a respec build, just to be clear. I wouldn't push a travel power back that far otherwise.


    Alt 2: Level 50 Magic Stalker
    Primary Power Set: Claws
    Secondary Power Set: Ninjitsu
    Power Pool: Leaping
    Power Pool: Fitness
    Power Pool: Leadership

    Villain Profile:
    Level 1: Strike -- T'Death-Acc/Dmg(A), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx(3), T'Death-Dmg/Rchg(3), T'Death-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(5), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(5), T'Death-Dam%(7)
    Level 1: Hide -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), Ksmt-ToHit+(7)
    Level 2: Ninja Reflexes -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(9), LkGmblr-Def(9), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(43)
    Level 4: Danger Sense -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(11), LkGmblr-Def(11), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
    Level 6: Assassin's Claw -- T'Death-Acc/Dmg(A), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx(13), T'Death-Dmg/Rchg(13), T'Death-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(15), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(15), T'Death-Dam%(17)
    Level 8: Build Up -- GSFC-ToHit(A), GSFC-ToHit/Rchg(40), GSFC-ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(40), GSFC-Rchg/EndRdx(42), GSFC-ToHit/EndRdx(43), GSFC-Build%(43)
    Level 10: Combat Jumping -- ULeap-Stlth(A), Zephyr-Travel(17), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx(48), Zephyr-ResKB(48)
    Level 12: Placate -- RechRdx-I(A)
    Level 14: Slash -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/Rchg(36), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(40), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(45), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(46), Achilles-ResDeb%(50)
    Level 16: Hurdle -- Jump-I(A)
    Level 18: Focus -- Thundr-Acc/Dmg(A), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx(19), Thundr-Dmg/Rchg(19), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(21), Thundr-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(21), Thundr-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(23)
    Level 20: Kuji-In Rin -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(23)
    Level 22: Health -- Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(A), Numna-Heal(25), Mrcl-Rcvry+(25), Mrcl-Heal(48), RgnTis-Regen+(50), Empty(50)
    Level 24: Stamina -- P'Shift-EndMod(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg(27), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc/Rchg(27), P'Shift-Acc/Rchg(29), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc(46), P'Shift-End%(46)
    Level 26: Eviscerate -- T'Death-Acc/Dmg(A), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx(29), T'Death-Dmg/Rchg(31), T'Death-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(31), T'Death-Dam%(33)
    Level 28: Kuji-In Sha -- Numna-Heal/Rchg(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(33), S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(33), Aegis-Psi/Status(34), ImpSkn-Status(39)
    Level 30: Maneuvers -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(42), LkGmblr-Def(42), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg(45)
    Level 32: Shockwave -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(34), Posi-Dmg/Rng(34), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(36), Posi-Dam%(36)
    Level 35: Blinding Powder -- CoPers-Conf(A), CoPers-Conf/Rchg(37), CoPers-Acc/Conf/Rchg(37), CoPers-Acc/Rchg(37), CoPers-Conf/EndRdx(39), CoPers-Conf%(39)
    Level 38: Kuji-In Retsu -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A)
    Level 41: Super Jump -- Jump-I(A)
    Level 44: Caltrops -- RechRdx-I(A)
    Level 47: Swift -- Run-I(A)
    Level 49: Smoke Flash -- Acc-I(A)
    ------------
    Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
    Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
    Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
    Level 1: Assassination
    ------------
    Set Bonus Totals:
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Smashing)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Lethal)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Fire)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Cold)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Energy)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Negative)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Toxic)
    • 16.5% DamageBuff(Psionic)
    • 9.88% Defense(Smashing)
    • 9.88% Defense(Lethal)
    • 7.38% Defense(Fire)
    • 7.38% Defense(Cold)
    • 12.1% Defense(Energy)
    • 12.1% Defense(Negative)
    • 3% Defense(Psionic)
    • 16.8% Defense(Melee)
    • 17.4% Defense(Ranged)
    • 11.8% Defense(AoE)
    • 58.8% Enhancement(RechargeTime)
    • 4% Enhancement(Confused)
    • 50% Enhancement(Accuracy)
    • 14% FlySpeed
    • 153.6 HP (12.8%) HitPoints
    • 14% JumpHeight
    • 14% JumpSpeed
    • Knockback (Mag -4)
    • Knockup (Mag -4)
    • MezResist(Confused) 7.5%
    • MezResist(Held) 15.8%
    • MezResist(Immobilize) 18%
    • MezResist(Sleep) 7.5%
    • MezResist(Stun) 7.5%
    • MezResist(Terrorized) 7.5%
    • 16% (0.27 End/sec) Recovery
    • 42% (2.11 HP/sec) Regeneration
    • 1.58% Resistance(Fire)
    • 1.58% Resistance(Cold)
    • 2.25% Resistance(Psionic)
    • 14% RunSpeed
    ------------
  19. I'll add Howling Twilight & Footstomp to the list.
  20. Pretty much, yes.

    I was happy to respec out of it when I moved to my softcapped build. It was useful at times, but I often found it annoying.
  21. And when you can afford 'em, three of those recharge/to-hit/def-buff hami-Os are the way to go. Saves you a slot that way as well.
  22. Quote:
    Originally Posted by GuyPerfect View Post
    My Soldier didn't take the Tactical Training powers, so he has Endurance to spare regardless of what he's doing...
    It's people like you what cause unrest.
  23. SaintTzu

    Carrion Creepers

    Another question: Since it can be slotted with Immobilize IOs, that makes the 'Chance to Hold' proc from the purple set an option.

    Anyone have any experience with this, or educated guesses as to how it would work and whether it would be worth slotting?
  24. I believe Douglas Adams said it best:

    In the beginning, the universe was created. This has made a lot of people angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move.