Smashmaster

I started my Kin/Electric way back in I4 and was having a blast. I got him up to 50 eventually and set him aside.

When I9 came out I took him out and, like many of us, spent some good time rediscovering our 50s and hooking them up with IOs.

However, Vectra Bolt is getting a second run though as I am running him in a 4 man team with some local friends. With a Fire/Fire tanker and a scrapper, things would be good no matter what, but what really makes this 4 man team fly is the Electric/Electric Blaster. Dual Short Circuits/Ball Lighting FTW!

Sapping isn't dead, it just needs a bit more effort then it used to.

I started to reed this thread wondering what was going on, noticed _HAVOK_ had posted, and thought "Havok is back!?!"

No, sorry to say, this is just an oooold old thread rezzed cuz Don_Uvas was responding to something written back in I4. Please disreguard this thread. Move along, move along.

Is it true that some of the powers (like Short Circuit) that got "nerfed" by ED will get a boost in I7? I have heard some noises about this, but nothing from a primary source. Can someone fill me in?

Great bit of work there!

I am working on a young BS/DA scrapper myself, and I had pretty much given up on finding a current guide, but your's pretty much solved that!

BTW, I am trying to do this for PvP, especially against the pesky Stalkers. SR also has a +Perception power, but DA has that AND a -perception to boot.

My question is, from what I have read on the boards, the +perception powers, even when two are stacked can only see a steathed and hidden Stalker when they are 10 yards away. Can anyone confirm this? How hard is it to stalk Stalkers if you have Obsidian Shield AND Tactics?

ICE/STORM is actually very complementary. The only powers that don't really work together are Hurricane and Arctic Air. (Frostbite and ice Slick are not complementary either, but both of them are from the ICE set, so no avoiding that no matter what secondary you choose.) Arctic Air is a great power, if you want/need to get in close, but.......

ICE/STORM has great ranged powers, and those powers work great with the PBAoE defensive powers.

It is a offensively weak power set until you get to the mid 30s, but it is great in PuGs, not to mention regular teams. Ice Slick, Ice Storm, Block of Ice and Chilblain are all great pre-20 powers that can help any team, no matter the foe. Ice Storm and Ice Slick are effectively a ranged AoE Hold available every fight (or more, if the fight lasts for more then a minute). I don't take Glacier (and don't miss it) because of the effectiveness of the Slick/Storm combo. Shiver is almost overkill for flooring the mob's move speeds and recharge times.

Hurricane and Steamy Mist make a great combo. Blasters and other squishies can sit safely in the melee free zone while blasting and controlling away. If you don't move around like a caffeinated squirrel, people start to use the Hurricane/Steamy Mist area to their advantage.

Steamy mist helps keep sniping Blasters unnoticed, and myself safe while traveling in PvP zones.

In melee heavy teams, I'll park myself just so the edge of the Hurricane is touching the mobs while the Steamy Mist is giving the Tank the extra fire/cold/energy damage resistance he needs to blow off any incoming elemental hits.

When the 32+ levels finally arrive, your ability to start adding to the damage output becomes increasing realized. Tornado can cause an ungodly mess, but with Chilblain placed upon a mob that doesn't get tossed away, it just sits and tears through mobs like nothing. Toss Lighting Storm into the mix, and it's like the Wrath of God coming down on you.

With Stamina 3 slotted, I can keep Hover, Hurricane, Steamy Mist, Assault and Tactics up indefinitely. Start tossing powers around and I will run low before the fight is over, but with Hover off OR with Recovery Aura/Speed Boost, END is not an issue.

An ICE/STORM can solo, but it really shines in a team setting. No matter what, it always looks great!

My Kin/ElB Defender went the CJ, SJ, Acro line instead of the Inertial Reduction. Short Circuit, Transfusion and Transferance all need my toon to be in Melee Range, and it (Vectra Bolt is a Robot) can't do anything if it is getting off the floor all the time.

BTW, the other night while I had Wind Razor out to play I saw not one but TWO Kinetic Defenders WITHOUT Speed Boost. I almost smashed my keyboard with my head when I noticed that there were Kinetics around and no IDs or SBs being given out...... what a waste.