Umbral

Well, the big question is where you start seeing "tangible benefits". You'll start seeing tangible survivability benefits starting at ~15% +def wherein the average mitigation is high enough that you'll actually take a couple more hits (and thereby a few more seconds) to take out.

Either way, is your question pretty much whether */SR has anything going for it now that, thanks to set bonuses, people are packing in quantities of defense that would make an */SR proud? Sure, it's got enough defense debuff resistance to laugh at any defense debuffs that show up. It's also got a lot more +def as a foundation to build off of so you can build for other stuff more easily. It's also got +rech. */SR isn't really the one trick pony that a lot of people have come to expect it to be. It's got other stuff going for it and, even more importantly, it doesn't have to hurt itself in every other department to make itself softcapped.

I'm still curious as to why you switched terms in your questions. It's painfully ambiguous, especially when it wasn't exactly clear what you were asking in the first place. In general, when you're asking a question that is based upon semantic terminology and the difference between the two (*/SR defenses v. */SR-like defenses), it's best to simply go with the least ambigious terms, especially in the questions themselves.

There's also the problem that the terms "*/SR defenses" and "*/SR-like defenses" are painfully ambiguous. It could refer to just plain defense (ignoring the debuff resistances and scaling resistances) and normally would when you say "defenses" because we're talking about defense. It could also (as you tried to use it) apply to all of the damage mitigation and debuff resistance that an */SR brings to the fore.

There may not be any stupid questions, but there are questions that are just worded so poorly it's almost impossible to comprehend the original intent.

First off, I'mma slap the notion that DB/* is a gimp set right out of your head. Bad scrapper newbie! Bad! DB/* is actually quite the performer. It's perfectly respectable. Whoever told you it was a gimp set needs to be led to a tribe of starving cannibals so they can refuse to eat him because even they have standards as to what they'll put in their bodies.

As to the original topic, Kat/WP is a very strong performer. It'll give you strong ST damage, decent AoE damage, high survivability (even in common IOs, my Kat/WP is capable of incredible feats of tankery and scrapperlock), and excellent playability. DB/WP will do pretty much the same in all of those categories. The only difference is that DB/* provides survivability with the Sweep combo (which is crazy awesome) whereas Kat/* does it by spamming the crap out of DA. The DB/* option will hurt your DPS less, but it's not as effective against single targets. They're both utter monsters though.

Here's how it works. The +regen procs in powers benefit from the +heal slotting in that same power. Since Integration has a 100% +regen buff that is enhanceable (the other 50% is unenhanceable /em shakefist at Cryptic) and Fast Healing has a 75% +regen buff, it's better to load Integration with the procs to benefit from the more effective +heal slotting rather than splitting it up between the two.

Maths:
My Slotting: Integration + Fast Healing + set bonuses = (50+(100+20)*1.799) + (75*1.424) + 12 = 384.68% +regen
Split Slotting (procs in FH, 3 Numina in Int): Integration + Fast Healing + set bonuses = (50+(100)*91.78) + ((75+20)*1) + 12 = 348.78% +regen

I've already done the math for all of the Perf Shifter slotting in both QR and Stamina here.

You're forgetting what the actually meaning of the current Scrapper hit point cap is. It's close to 1337, but it's higher and thusly better. Scrappers are thereby better than 1337.

One of the reasons why you can run the aura is probably that you're using a cheaper attack string (twice as much DA). If I built for a double DA attack string (allowing me to significantly lighten up slotting for melee defense), I could probably get completely endurance sustainable and get big numbers on my other positionals. I actually built a positional softcapped Kat/WP just to prove that it's possible to positionally softcap with any Kat/* or BS/* Scrapper. I was simply willing to sacrifice a bit more endurance focus and other defense focus in order to make the set a much greater offensive beast.

Steelclaw lost his/her title when the forums migrated, as did everyone else with a special title (like Guide Contributor, PERC Representative,etc.). All of titles were reset to their default (which, for players, is based off of number of posts).

Those are the representation of your reputation. People can click on the scales under your forum handle when you post to either give you positive reputation or negative reputation (supposedly depending on whether you were useful/intelligent/funny/etc, but more often simply based off of your preexisting forum popularity). It can be turned off via your Control Panel, as is it possible to see your own reputation gains.

Fast Healing (75% +regen) and Quick Recovery (30% +recov) have higher base modifiers than Health (40% +regen) and Stamina (25% +recov). Enhancements act as a multiplier to the base value so FH and QR will always provide proportionately greater returns than Health and Stamina assuming you give them the same slotting.

From a pure DPS standpoint, Storm>Crane>Storm>CAK is the best dps you can get without significant amounts of outside help (re: stacked Speed Boost). You could get by with just Storm>Thunder>Crane>Storm>Thunder>CAK or Storm>Thunder>Crane>Storm>EC because they have much lower recharge requirements but they're not going to do as much damage as the first attack string listed.

Honestly, the answer is that it depends. If you're going to be running a lot of toggles (re: all of them from */WP, the Fighting pool, and Focused Acc/Targeting Drone), you're going to want Stamina especially if you're trying to build for a long haul fight like an AV. If you're not going to be running many toggles outside of your secondary, then it's not really needed, especially if you've got the 10% +end from the Atlas Medallion and Portal Jockey (which are ridiculously easy to get).

Of course, what attack string you're using also has a pretty significant effect on what you're going to need. Most top tier attack strings require either significant amounts of end redux (re: Conserve Power in a high recharge build or heavy end redux in the highest DPA attacks), significant amounts of endurance recovery, or a combination of the two simply because they cost so much endurance to run.

My general recommendation for most people is to have 2 endurance assistance tools in your build so that you can still slot your attacks decently. DM/*, */regen, */WP and */Fire have it easy simply because they've all got some significant endurance tools within the power sets already. They only need to take one (or in the case of DM/Fire, DM/Regen, and DM/WP don't need to take any at all). Everyone else, for running at the absolute top end, they generally need to get their endurance assistance through the traditional means: heavy IO slotting for +end and +recov set bonuses, Conserve Power, and Stamina.

Since */WP has so much +regen already, you're better off going with +def, +hp, and +regen, in that order. Stacking up the damage mitigation will do more for your survivability than more damage recovery will since it allows the damage recovery to act on smaller amounts of incoming damage.

As to +rech, */WP doesn't get any additional survivability from it. The only benefits it extends are for generating better attack strings. My recommendation would be to get just enough +rech to run what you find to be an acceptable attack string (Storm>Crane>Storm>CAK might be a little beyond your reach simply because it has high requirements for Storm) while getting all of the +def and +hp you can muster. Luckily, a lot of +def and +rech go hand in hand (Obliteration has +def melee and 5% +rech, LotG +rech goes in defense sets, etc) so it's not too hard.

Your biggest problem is going to be getting that defense though. */WP has a decent bit of typed based defense going for it so its more efficient form a build standpoint to aim for typed based set bonuses. The problem with this is that typed base set bonuses are generally harder to find and are in lower enhancement value sets. Still, whichever way you go, packing in the +def is going to help your survive more than any amount of +regen you get from set bonuses.

We're Scrappers. We show love by trying to kill you.

Was MoG on recharge? Because I know you didn't just ignore MoG in favor of DP + IH for taking an alpha...

AFAIK, Werner was building that toon more to be a mega tank and less to deal gobs of damage. It could probably solo AVs, but it wouldn't do so as fast as other builds could. It was also very precariously balanced from an endurance perspective.

I generally click DP>Recon>MoG>IH. IH is almost always the last thing I click simply because it's on such a long timer. I wait until everything else is up before I use it (especially making sure to have DP up) so that they'll all be recharged whenever it drops and then click it before I expect an extended period of pain. DP gets it first (activated as a heal) simply because it gives me more hp and thusly more +regen (so I have to click less from that point on). Recon gets next because it's back so fast and MoG gets the dubious honor of being third on my priority list, though it can quickly get promoted to a higher place in the list if I'm expecting some burst soon (re: I see the AE AV pop build up).

Yes. It doesn't have the +rech to run it otherwise but the downtime on Hasten should be low enough that you will only have to run a worse attack string for maybe a single run through.

So does the fact that my build eschews the Medicine pool allow it to pass the Billz-test of Scrappitude?