And speaking of
not feeling sorry for $Targets ... Time Crawl, Time's Juncture, Distortion Field and Time Stop got updated in this build, along with Slowed Response.
Note for Time Crawl:Time Crawl is one of the two "out of the box" T1 secondary powers that offers a 90% proc chance to any proc slotted into the power so long as there is
NO RECHARGE enhancement added to the power (the other is Infrigidate in Cold Domination which can slot even more procs!). With a 90% chance to proc, Time Crawl is capable of delivering more damage per casting of the power than Snap Shot, Aimed Shot or even Fistful of Arrows can deliver to a single $Target ... and the damage proc in Time Crawl gets magnified/multiplied by -Resistance debuffs, of which this build incorporates THREE procs in addition to the resistance debuffing offered natively by Slowed Response (ouchies!).
However, it's putting a Pacing of the Turtle -Recharge proc into Time Crawl that makes it utterly devastating against single $Targets, because this stacks the recharge debuffing deep enough to make most powers on most $Targets take 4x longer to recharge ... effectively denying them offensive capability for long stretches of time, rendering them substantially helpless to inflict damage on either yourself or your Ninja pets. This slotting of Time Crawl essentially turns Time Crawl into something of a "neutralizer" power that can take single $Targets out of the fight for extended periods of time. The combination of dealing damage while neutralizing offensive capacity at the same time is really quite potent ... but then Time Crawl enables the Delayed mechanic for Time Manipulation debuffs and mez powers, making them all 20% more effective (and increasing mag on some of them).
So the addition of slots to Time Crawl allows use of Time Crawl for very explicit Divide and Conquer strategies that allow both you and your Ninjas to take on fewer foes in parallel by ordering them in a more sequential fashion, dramatically reducing the risk of to any one Ninja at your command. After all, foes that can't fight back are easy prey for Ninjas to gang up on (safely!).
Remember kids, you can use a Break Free to neutralize Mez Debuffs ... but a Break Free DOES NOTHING for Recharge Debuffing(!). Most NPCs will have little resistance to Recharge Debuffing, while they can potentially have significant resistance to Mez (especially with
PToD in play) ... which is something to consider when it comes to multi-path neutralization of threats. Sure, Recharge Debuffing isn't a "HARD" lockdown like many Mez powers offer, but in plenty of situations it's for all intents and purposes the next best thing if you can stack "enough" Recharge Debuffing to prevent Foes from taking actions (for a long long time). Something to consider, I would think.
The trick here is that Time Crawl + Pacing of the Turtle 90% proc chance is basically going to smash the recharge times of your $Target into the FLOOR ... and keep them there for a good long while. It's not a "proper HOLD" power, but with a Pacing of the Turtle proc it you might as well start thinking about Time Crawl being as "effective as a HOLD" with respect to denial of actions ... and no, I'm not bluffing on this point.
Note for Time's Juncture:Time's Juncture created a unique opportunity for slotting in that it debuffs both Speed and ToHit, making this power the ideal multi-purpose debuffer for the Universal Debuff set, Witchcraft. So rather than needing to choose to slot for Slow OR ToHit Debuffing, just slot Witchcraft and get BOTH. Combine the ToHit Debuffing of Time's Juncture with the Defense Buffing of Maneuvers plus Farsight and you're looking at living in the realm of
NO GET HITSU!! Defense Softcap within 25ft around your Mastermind, before even needing to add an Incarnate Alpha slot into the build.
Note for Distortion Field:Distortion Field underwent a major revamp from previous versions of this build, primarily due to the existence of the Winter Storm Slow set. While Distortion Field does have a chance to Hold $Targets within its radius, that is only like 10% chance of a MAG 2 and remarkably unreliable (all things considered). Slotting in a Lockdown proc can help that, but you're still looking at a circumstance in which Distortion Field, as Hold AoE, isn't terribly reliable.
By contrast though, as a Recharge and Speed Debuff it is an EXCELLENT power, capable of creating "defeat zones" that Foes find it remarkably difficult to escape from. It's not exactly an Immobilize, but slotted up with Slow enhancements (and despite appearances in Mids, the Winter Storm set is a really good Slow set!) you can Recharge and Speed Debuff entire piles of adversaries into the ground ... and keep them there (for as long as they live).
Did I mention I don't feel sorry for my $Targets anymore?
I did?
I have?
Okay, moving on ...
I'm not entirely certain about the Entomb proc "working properly" in the Distortion Field power. What I expect to happen is that every 10s (so upon casting, then @ 10, 20, 30 and 40 second of duration) a chance to proc will be checked against every $Target within the AoE (so multiple rolls of the dice for multiple targets!) and if any of them proc Entomb, a +Absorb shield will be cast on the Mastermind. If it doesn't work out that way (I haven't tested this on Rebirth) then alternative slotting can be any Slow or Hold proc, although I'm thinking that the Impeded Swiftness proc for Smashing damage might be the best option (although the Lockdown proc remains an option).
Note for Time Stop:Time Stop received the proc MONSTER treatment in this rebuild, mainly because an AoE damage power isn't necessarily "needed" with swarming Ninjas providing a lot of the damage production on multiple $Targets simultaneously (who are all going to be Debuffed INTO THE GROUND by Time Manipulation powers!). However, having the means to use a heavy hitting proc monster power like Time Stop (particularly in combination with Time Crawl) to "remove foes from the fight" via a combination of Hold plus actual high damage production was simply too compelling an option for this build overall. Depending on what you're up against, you can either split Time Crawl and Time Stop to neutralize 2 separate $Targets, or combine the two to suppress a single $Target VERY effectively (while hitting them with
up to four 90% chance damage procs in the process!). This then gives the Mastermind the "heavy hitter" needed to control/shape/sculpt the flow of battle in a way that favors taking even more pressure off your Ninja pets by reducing the opportunities for incoming damage even further!
And just in case it wasn't obvious, you're often times going to want to do a 1+2 combo of Time Crawl followed by Time Stop for a guaranteed Hold on a Boss, due to how the Delayed mechanic converts Time Stop from a mag 3 Hold to a (stacked) mag 4 Hold. Both Time Crawl and Time Stop recharge in about 6-7 seconds(!), with Chrono Shift being the variable, so there's no excuse for NOT using Time Crawl and Time Stop to bring the pain when these powers are recharged. USE THEM to protect both yourself and your Ninja pets!
And in between uses of Time Crawl+Time Stop you can have fun casting Snap Shot, Aimed Shot and Fistful of Arrows (if you've got nothing better to do for 7 seconds) while Time Crawl and Time Stop recharge.
Note for Slowed Response:The changes to the slotting for Slowed Response happened because I finally realized that it was actually possible to turn Slowed Response into something of an AoE proc monster power that would not only inflict a lot of damage on $Targets (plural!) but also apply a pretty severe amount of -Resistance debuffing very reliably. The slotting that I've chosen for Slowed Response is a mere 0.03% Recharge shy of causing the procs slotted into the power to fall below the 90% proc chance clamp. The
specific and exact slotting you see in this build produces a +59.11% recharge from slots, and the "breakpoint" of 90% chance for 3.5 PPM procs is at ... +59.14% recharge from slots. To put it mildly, I did a "Price Is Right" effort of squeezing in as much recharge into the power as possible "without going over" so as to sustain a 90% proc chance on all 3 procs (2 damage, 1 resistance debuff) ... and I'm kind of surprised that I managed to find (and settle on) the exact Level numbers for each set IO like I did, since it looks so stock 'n' standard for how I usually do things. But make no mistake! The levels on the slotting in Slowed Response are VERY DELIBERATELY CHOSEN to yield maximum return on investment AS IS ... meaning that if you attune (or buy as attuned) the enhancements to be slotting into Slowed Response, you'll only be hurting/gimping yourself. Same deal with boosting these slots. DON'T DO IT. Trust me on this one.
With the Shield Breaker and Touch of Lady Grey damage procs, along with the Achilles' Heel resistance debuff proc, Slowed Response becomes the GO TO opening bid power for use in alpha strikes ... since it debuffs Defense (which helps Ninja pets hit their $Targets), debuffs Resistance (making everyone deal more damage) and actually inflicts AoE damage into the bargain, all in one Click. Follow up with Distortion Field to apply Movement debuffing so $Targets cannot flee the (now) Defeat Zone and you can basically just move in with your Time's Juncture aura and your Ninja pets and proceed to make a mess of any who dare to stand against you. Best of all, the -Resistance debuff proc in Fistful of Arrows can stack(!) with Slowed Response AND the Achilles' Heel proc for a total of -62.5% Resistance debuffing ... which is nothing to sneeze at. Add in the Resistance debuff of the Witchcraft proc in Time's Juncture and you're stacking somewhere around up to -82.5% Resistance debuffing.
No, I'm still not feeling sorry for my $Targets ... why do you ask?
Preliminary Notes on Build Up and Resistance Debuff procs:And this is then where you start getting into two different strategies for dealing damage ... the Build Up procs in Snap Shot and Tactics advantage base damage on powers but do not enhance damage from damage procs, but the -Resistance debuffing WILL in fact increase the damage throughput of both methods of your Mastermind dealing damage personally (and by your Ninja pets as well). So what you wind up with is a sort of hybrid single target + cone repeating attack chain that just "burns them all down" into the ground with extreme prejudice.
And obviously, that damage production gets magnified by any Build Up procs and Slowed Response (with Achilles' Heel proc) and Fistful of Arrows (with Annihilation proc) and even Time's Juncture (with Witchcraft proc) stacking some pretty serious -Resistance debuffing ... and that's not even including what your Genin, Jounin and Oni will be delivering in terms of damage(!).
So ... yeah ... all three of these changes to the secondary powerset in this build makes the entire build SO MUCH STRONGER and more capable than the previous iterations that it's not even funny.
And speaking of not even funny ...
Notes on Temporal Mending, Temporal Selection and Smoke Flash:Temporal Mending and Temporal Selection received some serious reworking in this build revision.
Temporal Mending is now slotted with the Panacea set ... and the Preventative Medicine set was moved into Temporal Selection.
These changes mean that Temporal Mending ought to apply the Panacea proc for +HP and +Endurance to everyone affected by Temporal Mending. I haven't confirmed if the Panacea proc is coded as Self Only, which is why I want to verify which way it works when slotted in this power ... but if it does apply to everyone, that buffing alone to Ninja pets will help them survive taking hits even better, in addition to reducing downtime for healing them back up to full. It would basically be a "heal on top of a heal" when it happens. Also, I've found that in practice (with Ninjas) use of Temporal Mending before, during and after combat tends to become relatively routine, so even though the Panacea proc is getting slotted into a Click power instead of a Passive or a Toggle here, I honestly feel that this is the "best" location within the build for this specific set. Of course, it's going to be "pricey" to acquire a PvP Heal set like this, but it certainly makes for a good long term "sink" of both INF and Reward Merits that might otherwise wind up going to waste.
Likewise, the transfer of Preventative Medicine to Temporal Selection has turned this power into a SERIOUS contender as a support power! For one thing, with all the global recharge buffing from set IOs, the recharge time on Temporal Selection has been brought all the way down to under 45 seconds (without Chrono Shift, it's down to under 38 seconds with Chrono Shift) ... which means it is therefore possible to have Temporal Selection applied to up to THREE Allies (and your Ninja pets count as allies!) simultaneously, since the power has a duration of 120 seconds! This means that with this slotting it is possible to cover up to 3 of your 6 Ninja pets with Temporal Selection, which then adds the Accelerated status buff which in turn increases the healing delivered by Temporal Mending in addition to the benefits of buffing Damage (by +18.75%!) and Recharge (+30%!) and Regeneration (a whopping +300.3%!).
Oh and did I mention that Smoke Flash will recharge in less than ~10 seconds, and can be alternated between any of the 3 Ninja pets who aren't being covered by the 3 durations of Temporal Mending?
What's that?
I just did?
Well okay then ...
Notes on Defense Buffs combined with ToHit Debuffs:Combine these powers with Farsight, Time's Juncture and all of the Pet Defense Aura IOs slotted into the build and your Ninja pets ought to be MIGHTY STURDY INDEED! Layer on top of all of that NO GET HITSU!! factor the Defense debuffing, Resistance debuffing, Recharge debuffing and Health "debuffing" (via damage procs) this build is going to be delivering and you'll be "directing traffic" as a Mastermind from a position of strength with the ability to recover and keep rolling with relatively little difficulty.
I believe that the best way to describe how this build feels to me with this combination of powers and slotting (and how they can all be used in mutually supporting ways) can best be summed up, I think, with the following maxim of how the build ought to play ...
You have already been defeated.
You just haven't gotten the memo yet ...
Hey, I'm a Ninja Mastermind who manipulates time ... figure it out already ...
Okay … with that minor bit of business/preamble out of the way (and no doubt making your heads explode from info dump overload right about now) … the other thing I need to explain about this build is that, ironically, this isn't a build aimed at winning a Rikti Pylon Challenge (although it might do well now, I don't know). You can tell because the build skews more towards being a more Controller-ish type to play, relying more heavily on hard/soft controls to "neutralize" $Targets as an enabling tactic so as to keep my Ninjas alive (and kicking) longer. Pretty much everything I'm doing with this build is angled towards increasing the survivability of my Ninjas, rather than aiming for insta-gib
DPS-ness Of Doom™! (+3) for fastest possible face planting of $Targets (although proc monstered Time Crawl plus Time Stop plus Slowed Response really go a long way on helping out this side of things too). This build is all about making the fight unfold on MY terms, rather than trying to end it as fast as inhumanely as possible.
Notes on Putting It All Together™:So, ideally speaking, when you're playing solo, what you want to do is open with Snap Shot from long range to attract the attention of only a few (preferably 1) $Target(s) who will then try to bumrush towards you and your Ninjas (that you've got on Bodyguard Mode). As soon as you're attacked, your Genin will respond by throwing Shurikens. This can potentially faceplant a Minion charging towards you before they even reach you, even if you aren't following up with Aimed Shot and/or Fistful of Arrows to take them down. If your $Target brought "friends" with them (who noticed that you Snap Shot-ted the first faceplanter) then you can pincushion them too while your Ninjas get to work on delivering the necessary BEATdownage.
I personally have found Time Crawl to be almost invaluable as a soft control/neutralizer of Lieutenants (and up) while soloing, because once they've emptied their attacks it takes them a LONG time to recharge … often "too long" for them to be able to attack ever again. This then lets me take them out of the fight while mopping up any other opposition with near impunity. The Pacing of the Turtle proc in Time Crawl only makes this "neutralizer" function even more dramatic.
For ease of reference, for those not steeped in the mechanics of -Recharge debuffing … the way the recharge formula responds to debuffing looks like this:
RechargeTime = BaseRechargeTime / ( 100% + Buffs - Debuffs )
What this means is that a -75% Recharge debuff will cause a power to take 4x as long to recharge as normal (if it wasn't already recharge buffed). In a lot of contexts, this kind of -Recharge debuffing is as good (or even better!) than a Hold, because you can Breakfree out of Hold ... whereas you CANNOT Breakfree your way out of -Recharge debuffing! Consequently, against "most" PvE $Targets, sufficient -Recharge debuffing can feel an awful lot like a "harder" soft control, especially when you can stack it somewhat effectively.
So the Recharge debuff of Time Crawl makes powers take 2.5x (4x with a Pacing of the Turtle proc at 90% chance!) as long to recharge on most PvE $Targets, which is quite the damage mitigator, particularly if you like to "kite" your $Targets so they can't melee you (which having personal attacks using your Bow makes this VERY easy!). $Targets that "can't fight back" effectively are basically Test Dummies for my Ninjas use as combat practice while I stuff them full of pointy sticks. It's not a pretty picture (FOR THEM!) ...
I often times find myself using Temporal Mending either right after finishing a fight, so my Ninjas start the next one "fresh" and full up on their green bars (and to start the recharge countdown "early" before the next fight), or I'll use Temporal Mending after the first few hits have been exchanged so as to "negate" the value of the alpha strike(s) that were taken at the opening of the combat. Temporal Mending is a HUGE boost to the survivability of pre-folded origami rice paper thin Ninja survival rates, particularly since it effectively "multiplies" the damage mitigation by division offered when using Bodyguard Mode to share out the damage that your Mastermind takes (think about it...).
Likewise, Time's Juncture with its -ToHit debuffing affords a remarkable increase in protection to Ninja Pets … enough so that it's actually rare to want to keep your Mastermind more than 20-25 feet away from what they're engaging on your behalf (so as to keep them within the PBAoE of Time's Juncture). However, despite this factor, I still wanted to make sure that Fistful of Arrows got at least some Range buffing on the power (in this build, enough to reach out to 59.63 feet away) so as to get the power to better be able to reach the limits of your inherent Supremacy radius of 60 feet (eh ... close enough).
Anyway, I think that's enough pontificating on this subject for the time being (don't you?) … let's get down to the actual build itself, shall we? Also, I'll be posting my bindloadfiles afterwards too, so look forward to that.
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