StratoNexus

[ QUOTE ]
Of course, they benefit significantly from having a team around (although many in the Scrapper forums would argue that it's not needed)

[/ QUOTE ]
Until I16, when we'll be able to do it ourselves, teams bring more enemies to kill. Every scrapper appreciates that.

[ QUOTE ]
Rise of the Phoenix ?

[/ QUOTE ]
While awesome, it would be better if I could get it around, say, level 8.

A self-rez type thing was actually one of the serious suggestions for blaster improvement when Castle asked for discussion pre-I11.

[ QUOTE ]
Actually Synapse and I have been puzzling over the dark sets.

[/ QUOTE ]
Woot. Go my favorite Dev team!

[ QUOTE ]
So in the end, it's not designing one powerset. It's designing 3 different powersets:

Dark Control/Dark Miasma for Controllers
Dark Control/Dark Assault for Dominators
Dark Blast/Dark Manipulation for Blasters

[/ QUOTE ]
More Woot! Glad to see the tease.

[ QUOTE ]
Blasters are easier, however the powers that go to blasters would likely be included in Dark Assault, which goes opposite dark control.

[/ QUOTE ]
Dominator Assault sets are always a bit different from their blastery counterparts anyway. I defy your need to hold back the blaster Dark proliferation until a later time.

Hope springs eternal and you have brought some sun into my dark places.

[ QUOTE ]
Maneuvers (6 slots)
Tactics (6 slots)
Assault (2 slots)

[/ QUOTE ]
I would definitely recommend only leaving the base slot in Assault, one end reduction in that should be all you need.
The other two powers only need 4 slots as well, unless you are shooting for specific set bonuses.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
<QR>

As I'm on my ice/ff controller I am reminded why I dont tend to play controllers much. To me the damage they have is lower. A FF/Ice blaster feels much more damaging.

Thats even with Jack.

[/ QUOTE ]

Did you try domitrolling with it? Take that fighting pool, punch them in the nose and kick them in the nuts!!! Air superiority in the neck once they bend down!!!!

[/ QUOTE ]
Bah. You want Hasten to bring back Ice Slick faster. Since you're in the Speed pool anyway... Flurry FTW! (I have Flurry on my Ice/Sonic, because I can afford the long animation on Held enemies ).

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Have we heard if we can change the powers customization based on the costume slot, or is it going to be one set of power color customization for one character?

[/ QUOTE ]

Powers can be individually customized per costume slot, but not supergroup mode.

[/ QUOTE ]
Awed.

We're all losing focus on the important issue here. Convincing someone in NCSoft to write up the full proposal for the Dark Manipulation secondary for blasters.

1) Gravimetric Snare (it needs a name change)
2) Shadow Punch
3) Smite
4) Soul Drain
5) Dark Consumption
6) Shadow Maul
7) Midnight Grasp
8) Cloak of Darkness
9) Fearsome Stare

Go Sunstorm! Go Castle! Go someone else!

[ QUOTE ]
Just out of curiosity....

If fire control didn't have imps, and illusion didn't have phantom army, would we be having this discussion?

[/ QUOTE ]
I find Hot Feet to be more impressive than Imps, but that is not an empirical study, just an observation.

Lakanna said:
[ QUOTE ]
Controller damage, even capped, is still fine. it's when you add containment that things get to be overboard.

[/ QUOTE ]
I might say that the other way around. Controller damage is fine, even with containment. It's when you add damage capping that it can go overboard. I am not sure how much of a problem that is since buffing like that is generally encouraged in a team. The fact that Kins can do it solo is something I have long expressed concern over, although I do not care if it stays as is or gets changed (I mildly prefer a change, and not just for controllers).

[ QUOTE ]
Maybe making containment into a damage buff instead of an extra packet of capped damage? Been saying this for years.

[/ QUOTE ]
I do not think that is technically possible. Damage buffs are global to the character, containment damage must be applied situationally per power.

[ QUOTE ]
Controllers are hindered in those by not being able to rely on either controls, or containment.

[/ QUOTE ]
Most AVs are trivially immobilized, allowing for containment.

[ QUOTE ]
oh, and I'm not the one who used "shocked" to describe people. You were quoting someone else.

[/ QUOTE ]
Fixed the attribution in my post. Thank you for pointing out my error.

[ QUOTE ]
Anything an RO type defender team can do an RO style controller team can do too. I'd venture to say that the controllers do it faster, safer, and just as ridiculously as the defenders do.

[/ QUOTE ]
I have never run with RO (that I know of), so maybe they would agree with your statement.

I do however run theme teams pretty frequently. All one AT teams are very common. My SG generally does not design characters for our members (the only time we really did that was for our Rad/Ice defenders; our all Electric blast defenders team happened by accident, we just happened to have a bunch of people make some on the same server, and then invited others to join us once we realized it, which was months after some of the characters had been made).

So when we run an all scrapper event or an all controller event or an all defender event (etc.), it is not with a plan or design. We grab whatever we have of that AT and mix it up and go. We might try to have a kin, or maybe hope to have a bubbler or possibly would like 4 Fire blasters, but no one is really under any pressure, its just play what you want. Planned Fire control teams slaughter fast. Hell, accidental Fire control teams slaughter fast. But an Ill/Storm, Fire/Storm, Grav/Storm, Ill/Kin, Plant/FF, Ice/Sonic, Fire/Kin, and Earth/Emp team is only extremely good.

In my experience, throwing together random controllers, who all just want to play, does not become stupid amazing (its merely amazing). Too many tanks, too many people trying to do the same lockdown. In my experience, throwing together random defenders is always stupid amazing. Can you really have too many AoE blasts hitting a spawn, when recharge and endurance are a non-issue? Teams of all controllers use buffs/debuffs, then controls, then kill. Teams of all defenders use buffs/debuffs, then kill. One less step. Its like being on a team of psycho scrappers, only with some of the members buffing as needed in addition to killing.

On more balanced teams, we normally have a Tanker. At that point, almost all need for controls except as an emergency valve are gone. I'd rather have the (even if only slightly) higher buff/debuff values and AoE blasts. I'd never say no to a controller (play what you want), but they just do not bring any value over a defender.

YMMV.

[ QUOTE ]
AoE stuns, holds, and immobilizes all do damage

[/ QUOTE ]
They do not all do damage (I think the majority of the hard controls do no damage). Of the ones that do damage, the vast majority are negligible, even with containment. The few that do reasonable damage (Roots is honestly the only one I can think of, but I might be forgetting one), are the exception.

[ QUOTE ]
Powers like Carrion Creepers and Hot Feet blow the best defender AoEs out of the water.

[/ QUOTE ]
Hot Feet is very good. Carrion Creepers recharge is too long to be very good, but it is nice when up.

[ QUOTE ]
The outliers GREATLY outdamage defenders, even in AoE. the "midrange" sets like stone and plant still have an advantage though.

[/ QUOTE ]
I disagree with your assessment.

[ QUOTE ]
And how some people will refuse to acknowledge that controller sets are right at that level, while still adding to the team.

[/ QUOTE ]
Controllers are fine. I acknowledge that without issue. Most defenders can out damage most controllers on teams. Whether or not that happens in game is debatable, since many defender players seem to skimp out on their AoEs.

[ QUOTE ]
I would bet that controllers are a lot closer to defenders than you're admitting.

[/ QUOTE ]
I'll take that bet (of course, you'd have to try to figure out how far behind I think controllers are first, since I haven't stated a magnitude of the difference I feel exists. I did parrot Peacemoon's shocking phrase, but that was a bit on the side of parody). Obviously, Fire control has gobs of damage in contained Hot Feet, but that damage is actually relatively slow to happen (some secondaries can speed that up, naturally). Plant is respectable, thanks to Seeds, and Illusion can also do well. I'll take Archery, Dark, Rad, and Sonic over all but Fire control (and late game Archery probably gives Fire control a good run). The other blast sets are all at least on par with Plant and Ill, and better than the other control sets.

As an aside, let me take a moment to discuss spawn collapse. One of the biggest drawbacks that controllers bring to a team is the fact that they have a tendency to control enemy spawns. "Everyone" LOVES lockdown. Disoriented, Held, Feared, Slept, Confused, and Immobilized spawns all have one thing in common. They fail to collapse (disoriented or confused spawns will occasionally collapse by random chance) and remain spread out. Controller players see their lovely controls and are all proud of themselves and feel good about those orange 3s and 4s flying above the spread spawns head. I die inside everytime (and I am sometimes guilty when I play a controller). Controllers (subconsciously) like that spread, it lets them leverage their containment damage, because the AoErs can't kill everything before they get a chance to attack.

The magnitude of difference on a team between a defender and controller is really pretty small. It is however these minutia that we seem to be fretting over, so I discuss it with people for the joy of discussion. I think it is personal preference as opposed to any performance issue. Will spawn collapse and fast recharging AoE blasts go a bit faster? Probably. So much so that its any kind of issue? Probably not.

[ QUOTE ]
You can use my earth/rad/earth?

[/ QUOTE ]
How about a Rad/Dark/Dark defender?

[ QUOTE ]
I'll have a plant/storm that will leave the most AoE-centric defender wondering where all that damage came from.

[/ QUOTE ]
Plant/Storm is very fun to watch; an SG mate leveled one to 50 when Plant was first proliferated. I'd rather have a Cold/Archery/Elec or Storm/Dark/Dark.

[ QUOTE ]
Originally, FA (Weap Mastery Targeting Drone is simply an animation tweak clone of FA) was friggin' huge +tohit coupled with the +per and resistance to tohit buff. The cost was actually commensurate to the benefit.

[/ QUOTE ]
It was still just a copy of Targeting Drone, as far as a I recall. I know most APP powers have penalties (longer recharge, higher end cost, etc.), but 2.5x the end cost seems like it was always steeper than it should have been. As far as I know, none of the other APP powers saw that steep an increase from the base version.

[ QUOTE ]
Just a personal pet peeve when people misquote so they can one up

[/ QUOTE ]
I think you misunderstand. You were saying you believed that blasters were whining and thus got attention (i.e., new defiance). That is not the case. You are not being one-upped, but an attempt is being made to educate. You should consider believing something different about that time period.

The blaster forums were stunned when Castle brought up the potential to change Defiance. The blaster community had pretty much accepted their state of affairs. Naturally, Castle's post re-invigorated conversation, but before his request for input, blasters had been pretty quiet (about AT wide changes) since after ED and I6. Some of us (rather foolishly or ignorantly, in hindsight), didn't even realize there was a problem, thinking the extra fast kill speed made up for the (probably more often than we realized) occasional extra defeat.

[ QUOTE ]
Any plans to fix ITF lag or it is with us forever?

[/ QUOTE ]
Lag? That's just slow-mo / matrix-effect / freeze frame awesomeness!

[ QUOTE ]
knowing the dev's, i'm guessing it wont be anything all that useful such as a self heal or build up ... i'm thinking it'll be something like ... Defibralate - self rez

[/ QUOTE ]
self rezzes are just big self heals and self +end!

[ QUOTE ]
Have the power cause all affected targets to disappear completely for five seconds. When they reappear, have the targets all be randomly...
Heck, I don't even care if that fits the gravity theme or not.

[/ QUOTE ]
Gravity already randomly tosses objects from out of nowhere, it fits fine.

[ QUOTE ]
I've been thinking that Focussed Accuracy seems rather overpriced myself. It doesn't seem to me that it should cost any more End than Tactics for what it does.

[/ QUOTE ]
In my opinion, TD and FA should cost 50% more than the Blaster TD they were originally copied from (although some changes have been made to them since). That would put them at .47 end/second base (.234 per tick).

I am not sure why it was decided to make them cost 2.5 times as much as blaster TD, but it is excessive.

I chose Tactics, TD/FA are so bad, its almost a no-brainer.

[ QUOTE ]
Am I completely missing something?!

[/ QUOTE ]
Yes.

[ QUOTE ]
We established that Defender Buffs/Debuffs = Controller Buffs/Debuffs. Or in some cases have a small variation which is generally unnoticable. (Exception: ForceFields) This is fact.

[/ QUOTE ]
We established that? Fact? If the variance is unnoticeable, I'd rather have defender AoE blasts over controls. If you prefer controls, have fun. Neither is right or wrong.

[ QUOTE ]
We established that Controllers Damage > Defender Damage in most cases, and similar in best case scenario's. This is fact.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is extremely dubious. It is only in the outlier cases where controllers out-damage defenders on teams. Solo, controllers can do well, but on teams, I'll take Ball Lightning and Howl, thank you.

[ QUOTE ]
We also established that Defenders = An archtype that solo's very poorly and slowly.

[/ QUOTE ]
Slowly, maybe. Poorly, not so much.

[ QUOTE ]
Defenders offer nothing to a team that a Controller can't offer instead.

[/ QUOTE ]
It devastates me that so few people understand how good most defender blast sets are in AoE output.

[ QUOTE ]
Defenders are not "team orientated" AT's anymore then Controllers are. In fact, Controllers are MORE team orientated then Defenders with both primary and secondary sets geared for teaming. Defenders secondary is geared for soloing, else why have it?

[/ QUOTE ]
Defender secondaries are BLAST sets. Blast sets which happen to be loaded with AoE powers. AoE powers are much better on teams than solo. Having a blast set does not in anyway imply that the AT was designed to solo. Blasters have a blast set and were also designed to function much better on teams than solo. The three ATs in the game with Blast sets are all designed with teaming in mind. If anything, having a blast set is more a indication of defender's being team oriented than having a buff/debuff primary (Solo designed ATs tend to have buffs, but those usually are only self-affecting ones).

[ QUOTE ]
The disparity in damage between Defenders and Controllers is shocking.

[/ QUOTE ]
I agree. They gave controllers AoE damage in their APPs to try to help make up for it, but the longer recharges make it a bit hard. I guess controllers will have to console themselves over their lack of damage with "excellent survival skills through powerful single target and AoE control."

[ QUOTE ]
Please do not use Rad/Sonic or heck, Anything/Sonic as a baseline measurement of performance for Defenders when soloing.

[/ QUOTE ]
OK. Please do not use Fire/Kins or heck, Anything Fire/ as a baseline measurement of performance for Controller damage output.

[ QUOTE ]
Scrappers should get used to sharing "their terriroty" and complaint-wise have no leg to stand on as long as they can stand up to foes they were not intended to be able to and polish them off faster than the guys who were.

[/ QUOTE ]
Very few scrappers actually do what you suggest. Almost every scrapper I play with in game dreads being asked to tank AVs and even still fewer would ever consider going near them solo.

Tankers have very little to fear from scrappers treading into their territory, because tankers are staggeringly better at surviving and aggro generation. No buff yet made can make a scrapper generate and hold aggro like a tanker.

[ QUOTE ]
The chance is much smaller than knockdown of course

[/ QUOTE ]
Why a smaller chance, much less a MUCH smaller chance? Its OK for Ice Slick and Earthquake to work; but you want to replace a crappy AoE control with another crappy AoE control? I'd rather keep DS instead of a half powered Ice Slick.

[ QUOTE ]
No AT depends on a team as much as a Defender.

[/ QUOTE ]
By design. No AT does as well on a team as a defender.

[ QUOTE ]
When I play a Defender, I feel more like a sidekick than a hero. I need the team because I can't defend myself, and I need the team to defeat my foes for me because I'm barely able to do it for myself.

[/ QUOTE ]
When I play a defender I feel like a god-maker or god-destroyer. Very few things in the game are as satisfying as buffing a team into a killing machine or debuffing enemies into mewling kittens. You do not have to play defenders if those things do not appeal to you. Go hit something with a stick and enjoy, that is fun too.

I play in a lot of different fashions, so I am looking for a general build that will do well on teams, in Task Forces, and will have some fun solo ability.

After my buffs were taken care of, I looked for +HP, +Damage, and +Recharge. I haven't really found a need for Hasten, but added a bunch of +Recharge into the build to simulate it without having it.

Any comments?

Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.401
http://www.cohplanner.com/

Where Am I?: Level 50 Mutation Defender
Primary Power Set: Empathy
Secondary Power Set: Electrical Blast
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Power Mastery

Hero Profile:
Level 1: Healing Aura -- Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg:50(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(3), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(3), Dct'dW-Heal:50(5), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx:50(7)
Level 1: Charged Bolts -- Decim-Acc/Dmg:40(A), Decim-Dmg/Rchg:40(9), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:40(39), Decim-Build%:40(39), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx:40(39)
Level 2: Absorb Pain -- Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg:50(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(31), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(34), Dct'dW-Heal:50(37), Dct'dW-Rchg:50(50)
Level 4: Ball Lightning -- P'Shift-EndMod:50(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg:50(5), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc:50(7), AirB'st-Acc/Dmg:50(9), AirB'st-Dmg/Rchg:50(31), AirB'st-Dmg/EndRdx:50(37)
Level 6: Combat Jumping -- LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(A)
Level 8: Clear Mind -- EndRdx-I:50(A), Range-I:50(43)
Level 10: Short Circuit -- P'Shift-EndMod:50(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg:50(11), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc:50(11), Oblit-Dmg:50(15), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg:50(15), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:50(31)
Level 12: Fortitude -- LkGmblr-Def/Rchg:50(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:50(13), LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(13), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx:50(36), AdjTgt-ToHit/EndRdx/Rchg:50(36), AdjTgt-ToHit/Rchg:50(37)
Level 14: Super Jump -- HO:Micro(A)
Level 16: Heal Other -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx:50(A), Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg:50(17), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(17), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(25), Dct'dW-Heal:50(25)
Level 18: Recovery Aura -- P'Shift-EndMod:50(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg:50(19), P'Shift-Acc/Rchg:50(19), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc/Rchg:50(21), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc:50(34)
Level 20: Maneuvers -- LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(A), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx:50(21), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx/Rchg:50(40), LkGmblr-Def:50(40)
Level 22: Tactics -- Rec'dRet-Pcptn:20(A), GSFC-ToHit/EndRdx:50(23), AdjTgt-ToHit:50(23), AdjTgt-ToHit/EndRdx:50(40)
Level 24: Acrobatics -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
Level 26: Regeneration Aura -- Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg:50(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg:50(27), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg:50(27), Dct'dW-Rchg:50(42), Dct'dW-Heal:50(42)
Level 28: Tesla Cage -- G'Wdw-Acc/Rchg:50(A), G'Wdw-Acc/Hold/Rchg:50(29), G'Wdw-EndRdx/Hold:50(29), G'Wdw-Hold/Rng:50(33), Lock-Acc/Hold:50(34), Lock-Acc/Rchg:50(42)
Level 30: Resurrect -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 32: Adrenalin Boost -- P'Shift-EndMod/Rchg:50(A), P'Shift-EndMod/Acc/Rchg:50(33), P'Shift-Acc/Rchg:50(33), Mrcl-Heal/Rchg:40(45), Mrcl-Heal:40(45)
Level 35: Voltaic Sentinel -- ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg:50(A), ExRmnt-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:50(36), ExRmnt-Dmg/EndRdx:50(43), ExRmnt-EndRdx/Dmg/Rchg:50(43)
Level 38: Vengeance -- LkGmblr-Def/Rchg:50(A), LkGmblr-Rchg+:50(45)
Level 41: Power Build Up -- AdjTgt-ToHit/Rchg:50(A), AdjTgt-Rchg:50(46), RechRdx-I:50(46)
Level 44: Conserve Power -- RechRdx-I:50(A), RechRdx-I:50(46), RechRdx-I:50(48)
Level 47: Lightning Bolt -- Decim-Acc/Dmg:40(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx:40(48), Decim-Dmg/Rchg:40(48), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg:40(50), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg:40(50)
Level 49: Assault -- EndRdx-I:50(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- HO:Micro(A)
Level 2: Rest -- RechRdx-I:50(A)
Level 1: Vigilance
------------

[ QUOTE ]
The trick would be more getting the pets to focus on Rommy and not all the pets/ AV nictus floating around.

[/ QUOTE ]
The more I think about it, the more I am pretty sure it would be better to go after the Nictus instead of Rommy. The healer or autohit one first, not sure which would be best.

[ QUOTE ]
Raising the defender base damage modifier from 0.65 to 0.70 would at least help out the other blast sets and close the gap a bit better without trumping corruptor damage for the most part.

[/ QUOTE ]
I am not entirely opposed to buffing defender damage. I even stated back before I11 that the only reason I could see increasing blaster ranged damage was that it gave room to buff dominator, defender, and corruptor ranged damage without infringing. Doms got their buff, it would be nice to see the others improved as well.

Would a 7.7% increase help? How many fewer attacks will I need to kill various +1 enemies with a defender at level 25, 35, and 45 using Energy Blast?

[ QUOTE ]
1: Hold, stun, and confuse are 100%, perfect mitigation when they hit. The knockdown patches of Ice Slick, FR, and earthquake are perfect mitigation. Controllers bring these to the table: you don't need defensive buffs when the enemies aren't able to hit back.

[/ QUOTE ]
Overused controls that keep the enemy spread out and make it take longer to kill spawns. KD patches are NOT perfect mitigation (but they are very good). You don't need controls when you have defensive buffs/debuffs.

[ QUOTE ]
Defender damage is comparable to controller damage pre-pets. once pets are involved, defenders aren't even close. All pets except imps ALSO add more control to the team- more mitigation and more offense, all in one.

[/ QUOTE ]
Most controller AoE damage pales in comparison to what defenders can do, especially on teams.

[ QUOTE ]
There is really nothing a defender brings to a team that a controller can't do better, including protecting the entire team while increasing the damage output of the entire team.


[/ QUOTE ]
I disagree.

[ QUOTE ]
Unique is good. Some of the unique suggestions for Vigilance I've seen have been smashing the cottage rule and making it inspiration related. My suggestion: defender insps are PBAoE buffs. Another suggestion I've seen: defenders get a copy of the buff whenever a nearby teammate pops an insp.

[/ QUOTE ]
Aren't defenders already awesome on teams? If any buff for a defender should be made, I would think solo performance is where you would want to look.