Messages

46

Tanker / Re: SR/MA = NO GET HITSU!!

« on: February 16, 2023, 11:13:47 am »

Well, the build in this post is no longer the build that I am currently using at the end of RI4 prior to RI5 going live.

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon reformulating the build plan into a new configuration that dropped both the Medicine and Sorcery pools(!) ... reclaiming 6 power picks and their associated slots. Replacing those power picks are:

• Hover @ 4 ... 1-slotted with LotG: Def/+Recharge (25)
• Dodge @ 14 ... 4-slotted with Shield Wall: Def/End, Def/Rech, Def, +Res (27)
• Agile @ 16 ... 2-slotted with common Def (50)
• Lucky @ 18 ... 2-slotted with common Def (50)
• Maneuvers @ 22 ... still 6-slotted with Reactive Defense (22)
• Crippling Axe Kick @ 28 ... 6-slotted with Superior Vampire's Bite (50)
• Tactics @ 24 ... 1-slotted with Adjusted Targeting: To-Hit/End (50)
• Assault @ 30 ... still 1-slotted with common End (50)
• Elude @ 32 ... 5-slotted with Doctored Wounds (31)
• Conserve Power @ 41 ... 1-slotted with common Rech (50)
• Physical Perfection @ 44 ... 2-slotted with Numina: Heal/End, Heal (31)
• Stealth @ 47 ... 1-slotted with LotG: Def/+Recharge (25)
• Vengeance @ 49 ... 1-slotted with Kismet: +Accuracy (10)

Here is what the build I've now moved to looks like:


And here's what the throughput yield of that build computes to:


The net modification winds up being an exchange of:

• -100 Max HP
• -40% Regeneration
• +22.5% more global Recharge
• Elude uptime of over 50%(!!!) with a massive +Absorb bonus (among others) while up, (90s duration, 173.5s recharge)
• Stealth + Sprint (with Stealth IO) enables "mission ninja" capability (need to toggle off Evasion to avoid Taunt aura aggro)
• Conserve Power can be alternated with Elude for Endurance management, essentially on cooldown
• 4-slot Sheild Wall + 6-slot Superior Vampire's Bite adds +10.5% Energy/Negative Resistance, improving from 14% to 24.5%
• Smashing/Lethal Resistance improves from 23.75% to 25.25%
• Fire/Cold Resistance improves from 20% to 21.5%

Hover+Stealth are required to reach 59% Defense vs Melee/Ranged/AoE (they add +3.3% Def each while toggled on) when solo and unbuffed by a Team/League ... which is the Incarnate Trial soft cap for Defense (59%).

So far, the rebuild has been tested against the Lambda, Dilemma Diabolique and Minds of Mayhem iTrials with reasonable success (although Penelope Yin gave me some blue bar problems last night causing a complete drain and detoggle while trying to set up for a dogpiling by the League). Haven't had an opportunity to test this new formulation out against the Underground Trial yet, but I figure that should probably happen tonight/over the weekend/next week sometime. I would like to think that the reformulated build I've got going on here will enable me to withstand Lethal Force Authorized attacks (lower Max HP vs higher Energy Resistance with more +Absorb available) from the Extinction War Walkers unsupported from now on (including no longer needing to use inspirations to temporarily cover gaps in the build). Of course, the adds around the Extinction War Walkers are attacking too, chipping away at the margins I've got configured into this new build, so we'll have to see if I've "closed the vulnerability gap" sufficiently or not.

One parameter that I'm especially interested in validating is the choice of using the T4 Paralytic Core Interface to see if it will add "useful margin" of mitigation against Main Tank threats for myself and others (Extinction War Walkers, Sentinel, etc.). Being able to keep a stack of 4x -5% Damage Debuff sustained on a $Target ought to help relieve some of their damage output pressure, both on myself and on the League as a whole.

I've also swapped from using T4 Ion Core Judgement over to using T4 Ion Radial Judgement because I feel like having a 25% chance of a Mag 4 Hold for 12s is a more useful crowd control neutralizer than a 20% chance of a little extra damage (which, in practice, will almost never be a deciding factor in how quickly a pile of mobs can be defeated). In terms of offense/defense, I've already found in the Lambda trial that on balance the Radial version is more "useful" than the Core version of this Judgement (both during the collection phase and when confronting Marauder+IDF support).

The choice of T4 Support Radial Hybrid stems from the fact that although Assault is "better" in the individual (soloist) use case, Support winds up being better in the league use case (which is most of what I do with Redlynne now). It's similar to the "force multiplier" effects of Leadership toggles ... subpar for the soloist, multipler for a group (and leagues are Big Groups!). The "always on" global Endurance Discount also helps mitigate any endurance issues my build may encounter in heavy combat where I'm needing use Dragon's Tail on cooldown a lot to deal with swarms of aggro.

Also, the higher global recharge in the rebuild means that Eagle's Claw now has a (native) 4.63s recharge time(!). This means that Eagle's Claw animates and recharges in 7.402 seconds ... but it delivers an 8.2s Mag 3 Stun (with a 51.84% to stack another 8s Mag 2 Stun on top of that!) ... meaning that Eagle's Claw can be used to perma-stun. Additional stun support comes from Thunder Kick (10% proc chance), making the throughput remarkably relaible (all things considered).

Crippling Axe Kick with 6-slot Superior Vampire's Bite has a 58.16% chance to proc a heal (requiring no diversion of animation time) and will easily outpace the amount of healing I ever spent animation time of securing via Aid Self.

Also, my theorycrafting of the value of Aid Self+Field Medic "healing blue bar" performance was decidedly lackluster in actual practice. The main use for Field Medic is removing the Interrupt Time from Aid Other, allowing you to cast Aid Other while in motion ... which is way more useful than it sounds, given that Aid Other has such a short range. But since I actually used Aid Other/Aid Self/Field Medic SO RARELY in actual gameplay, those powers functionally wound up as being little more than set mules and novelties, rather than powers that saw routine use or were frequently used as clutch moves ... so sacrificing the Medicine pool was less of a hassle than it might have otherwise been.



Overall, I'm really happy with where the v2.0 of this build has landed, especially since the global recharge is enough to bring Focus Chi close to 30% uptime (10s duration on 31.32s recharge) as well as Elude to over 50% uptime (90s duration on 173.5s recharge). Even Vengeance gets a really good uptime potential (120s duration on 146.3s recharge, although friendly corpses are required to use this power, which in iTrials seems to happen a lot more frequently than I would have assumed) and Vengeance offers some really good buffs (+Damage, +Defense(All), +Mez Protection/Resistance) which can turn things around for the survivors of someone else's misfortunes.

The other really nice thing about this rebuild is that you can still "throw away the Secondary" and slot in something other than Martial Arts ... and still wind up with a remarkably viable attack chain comprising 5 attacks (all 6-slotted) plus Tanker Taunt (1-slot wonder) and Build Up (6-slotted with Gaussian's). The rest of the build is relatively tight on power picks and slotting ... but there's still some room left over to work with if you want to go in a different direction (can swap Hover for Combat Jumping, for example, if that's your preference). But all things considered, I have to say that I think the basic framework of this build is the best that I can do until RI5 drops ... and even then, I'm hard pressed to think of anything I would really want to change, since there would be tradeoffs in edge case functionalities involved (such as reaching for Fly+Aerobatics=Group Fly at the expense of Stealth and Vengeance).



Anyway, I'll make a Proper Repost of the updated build once RI5 goes Live and Mids Reborn updates to the new paradigm (just in case).

And I would attach the .mxd file for the build to this post, but the forum software doesn't appreciate anything that isn't a doc, gif, jpg, mpg, pdf, png, txt or zip file format. Pity we can't add .mxd to that list of formats ...

47

Player Help/Guides / Re: A Guide to Utilizing Set Enhancements

« on: February 16, 2023, 09:08:31 am »

Aye, there's a LOT of Frankenslotting trickery that you can get up to with partial catalyzation to superior.

48

General Suggestions and Feedback / Re: FOCUSED FEEDBACK: Power Revamps, Force Composition and Experimentation

« on: February 16, 2023, 12:31:35 am »

Acrobatics
Toggle: Self +Jump, +DEF(All), +Res(Knockback, Hold)

• Added moderate Defense(All) on par with Weave.  Acrobatics now accepts Defense enhancements.
• Added moderate Jump height/speed.  Acrobatics now accepts Jump and Universal Travel enhancements.
• Increased endurance cost from 0.26/s to 0.33/s.
• Effects will suppress while Aerobatics (Flight) is active.
• Weave will suppress while Acrobatics is active.

Aerobatics (formerly Group Fly)
Toggle: Self +FlySpeed, Res(-Fly), +Def(All), +Flight Control

• Aerobatics now occupies the former Group Fly power in the Flight pool.
• While Aerobatics is active, Acrobatics and Weave will suppress.
• Group Fly
• Obtaining Aerobatics now unlocks Group Fly mode for Fly.
• If you previously had Group Fly you will now have both Aerobatics and Group Fly powers.

Just to confirm what ought to already be apparent ... it is perfectly possible (and indeed intended!) to have Acrobatics OR Aerobatics toggled on instead of Weave, even if not jumping or flying. It's not as if the +Def(All), etc. mods suppress when not jumping or flying ... correct?

In other words, Acrobatics/Aerobatics can be taken as "set and forget" toggles, much like how Weave is handled in that regard (no dependencies, it's just ON).

Granted, if you aren't jumping/flying around, having extra jump speed/height or extra flight speed/flight control isn't really "doing anything for you" until you move around "that way" ... but it's not as if the +Def(All) buff gets suppressed while just standing around (or fighting on the ground) ... right?

49

Player Help/Guides / Re: Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

« on: February 15, 2023, 04:41:43 pm »

If you're going to the +absorb route and you're no longer tied to Sorcery, have you considered gadgetry for Force Barrier.  That would give you another source of massive absorb.

I'm considering multiple things ... nothing is nailed down yet.
But yes, I have given thought to switching from Sorcery to Gadgetry. Whether or not such an option "makes sense" depends on how the rest of build and how everything fits together holistically.

50

Player Help/Guides / Re: Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

« on: February 15, 2023, 02:58:16 pm »

I'm curious to wee what you find, but I suspect Energy resistance is really going to turn out to be the only bath.

Maybe, but I'm not so sure.

Right now I'm entertaining a respec rebuild during RI4 (without waiting for RI5 to go Live) that would drop the Sorcery and Medicine pools (both!) entirely from my current SR/MA build, giving me 6 power slots and 9 slots to reorganize.
What I'm investigating is whether it is possible to leverage Energy Mastery (for Conserve Power and Physical Perfection @ 41, 44), put Elude in @ 32 (for a massive +Absorb buff when wanted), and still have 3 powers left to play with. Dropping Aid Self means that the Preventative Medicine set shifts over into Practiced Brawler (increasing the +Absorb gained there substantially), thereby yielding enough of a "rebalance" mix to be able to survive direct hits from Lethal Force Authorized with better margins, even if Energy Resistance can't be improved all that much.

It kind of depends on how all the parts and pieces fall into place after throwing them up in the air like that.

One side effect of ditching the Sorcery Pool like that would be that instead of putting the +3% Defense procs (and +Max HP proc) from Resistance sets into Rune of Protection (which I barely ever use, except during UG Trials) ... I could instead use Hover, Stealth and Victory Rush. Hover and Stealth would increase Endurance costs ... but Physical Perfection would offset that additional endurance budget drain, and a combination of Elude, Conserve Power and Victory Rush would effectively offer something along the lines of more than 100% combined uptime on endurance buffing. Agility Alpha slotting adds +20% global Defense buffing ... which on +2.5% Defense (base, when attacked) powers like Hover and Stealth, that turns into 2.5*1.2=+3 Defense ... exactly matching the "value" of the Resistance set procs being lost, even without any additional slotting (effectively trading slots for endurance toggle power picks).

Side effect of making this shift would be that Max HP would come down(!) ... but +Absorb would go up(!) ... a combination that offers greater margin buffer against Lethal Force Authorized, even if Energy Resistance stays the same (which it probably won't in a rebuild).



So I definitely agree with you.
Needs more research! ^_~

51

Player Help/Guides / Re: Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

« on: February 15, 2023, 12:34:03 am »

Well, tested out the Preemptive Core Flawless Interface during tonight's iTrials on Redlynne (a Tanker).

I could see Endurance being subtracted as the procs landed on mobs, but there just wasn't enough throughput (from me solo) to overwhelm blue bars on mobs. However, we did have an Electric Sapper and a Kineticist in our small league (of 12) and their combined debuffing was able to "floor" blue bars on Big Bads pretty effectively, which in turn limited the quantity of "Major Attack Havok" we needed to deal with. It was pretty subtle, overall ... but draining blue meant we needed to heal less green on our side of the ledger, which was interesting to see.

We took on Lambda (and went No Grenades At All against Marauder).
Then we killed MoM.
And last, we took our fight into the "belly of the beast" to stop Mot in DD.

In all three iTrials, (actual, honest) sapper builds for draining away Endurance seemed to me to make things easier for everyone else (fewer Nova Fists getting thrown, Sentinel couldn't hit us with as many Heal/Regen debuff DoT attacks, etc.).

However, the effect of my own Preemptive Core Flawless Interface was pretty negligible when I wasn't near our sapper(s). Even with a 75% chance to proc, in a solo context I just couldn't usefully drain enough Endurance (reliably/fast enough) to overcome native Recovery. So for a Main Tank (melee), this doesn't seem to be the throughput solution I was hoping it might be.



So ... next up ... T4 Paralytic Radial Flawless Interface with a 75% chance of a 5% Damage Debuff (8s duration), which presumably COULD be stacked fast enough to mitigate a Lethal Force Authorized in order to make it "insufficiently deadly" to my SR/MA Tanker build, enabling a more reliable path to surviving this particular threat.

52

Player Help/Guides / Re: Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

« on: February 14, 2023, 03:16:36 pm »

Hrmmm ... I wonder.
Looking more in depth at the Lethal Force Authorized (City of Data v2.0, for Homecoming, link) problem ... and I'm wondering if there's another angle to attack the problem from.

Specifically ... Interface slotting choice.
Which one would be the most "broad spectrum useful" in terms of Elite Boss+ shut down potential?



For a Main Tank ... I'm thinking it would be T4 Preemptive Core Flawless Interface.

The rationale here is that the heaviest hitting attacks from the three flavors of Extinction War Walkers and the Avatar of Hamidon during the Underground Trial all require expenditure of significant amounts of Endurance by the EB+.
When I say significant, I'm talking like 20-30 Endurance per attack for a 1-2 combo punch (setup, then the heavy hit).

So against the Extinction War Walkers, casting the Targeted condition costs 20 Endurance.
Casting the Arrest Mode (hold), Crowd Dispersal (terrorize) or Lethal Force Authorized (4x 30% Max HP DoT over 4s) requires an ADDITIONAL cost of 20 Endurance for those attacks.

In other words ... so long as Endurance can be debuffed below 20 (and sustained below that threshold) ... the heaviest and most dangerous attacks from the Extinction War Walkers can be rendered "unavailable" and therefore moot. This in turn would make the Main Tank's job MUCH easier!

The same apparently holds true for the Avatar of Hamidon (20 END to set up for Cripple, 30 END to actually cast Cripple) ... and even for Maelstrom at TPN Campus (14 END to cast Marked For Death, another 14 END to follow through 7s later on a 4x 50% HP over 2s).



Against the major scripted bosses of Trials, they're going to have an 87% Debuff Resistance to Recovery Debuffs ... so the -5% Recovery for 4s debuff from T4 Preemptive is going to deliver a throughput of approximately -0.65% Recovery for 4s worth of debuffing (which is nothing to cheer for) and can only stack 4x ... for a maximum throughput of only -2.6% Recovery debuff for 4s with a full 4 stacks, which is pretty wimptacular all things considered.

No, the valuable part of a Preemptive Interface proc is that it will SUBTRACT -1 END 4x over 4s PER PROC.
That's -4 END per proc (over 4 seconds) ... with a max limit of 4 procs ... meaning that it's possible to drain away up to -16 END per 4s using (stacked) Preemptive Interface procs ... and scripted boss battles tend to "last for a while" (usually longer than 4 seconds).

In other words, an iTrial league would only need a smattering of participants with Preemptive Interface procs (for endurance drain) stacking up in order to essentially "nerf" the biggest bosses that we have to fight in those iTrials.
Yes, the biggest bosses would still have attacks that cost zero END to cast, but those are mainly the "filler" attacks (punch, kick, smash) rather than the massive heavy hitters that produce league wipes.
Yes, the benefit of this strategy is something that has some ramp up time to it, so it isn't an "instant thing" that can protect you (as a Main Tank) at the start of an engagement ... but using a "sapper strategy" with your Interface procs to suppress the biggest bosses from launching their most powerful attacks while wearing them down COULD be an alternative (backdoor?) route to enhanced survival as a Main Tank wanting to protect a league of teammates from the heaviest attacks that can be thrown at the group.

Also note that 25% chance Tempest set proc for -13 Endurance that can be slotted into Ranged attacks can also come in QUITE handy in this regard when it comes to suppression of casting the heaviest attacks by iTrial bosses when deployed by a sapper oriented ranged attack build that is invested in suppression of Big Bad Stuff™.



Now, what makes this especially interesting, is that in the case of the Extinction War Walkers their big three heavy hitter attacks have a really peculiar recharge cycle behavior to them.

Arrest Mode, Crowd Dispersal and Lethal Force Authorized all have a 9999s recharge time on them.
However, the Targeting power has a 15s recharge time on it.

Basically, when it's time to use Arrest Mode/Crowd Disperal/Lethal Force Authorized ... the Extinction War Walker will just make a to-hit roll and the results of that roll determines what attack gets used.

• 0 to <33 = Arrest Mode (hold)
• 33 to <66 = Lethal Force Authorized (4x 30% Max HP energy DoT over 4s)
• 66 to 100 = Crowd Dispersal (terrorize)

Now the clever bit the Paragon Studios devs did here is that if any of the attack powers are recharged (and therefore ready to be used) they get cast ... but if they're on cooldown, then the Targeting power will instead instantly complete the cooldown of that attack power.

This means that the Extinction War Walkers need to "roll a whiff" before they can reuse a particular attack.
They can't do ... Target > Lethal > Target > Lethal > Target > Lethal > Target > Lethal ... if that's the way the dice roll.

Instead, you can have this behavior ... Target > Lethal > Target > Instant Recharge Lethal > Target > Lethal > Target > Instant Recharge Lethal ... but the key linchpin to that behavior is being able to cast the Target power.
No Target, no recharges (and no attacks into the bargain!).

So with sufficient Endurance Debuffing (not Recovery Debuffing, actual blue bar Endurance Debuffing), I'm thinking it is perfectly possible to "take the big toys away" from major scripted boss events during iTrials ... such as Extinction War Walkers and the Avatar of Hamidon in the Underground Trial ... from Maelstrom in the TPN Campus Trial ... the Sentinel in the Dilemma Diabolique Trial ... Antimatter in the Keyes Trial ... and possibly even more (BAF and Lambda anyone?). I'm thinking it might be a good idea to test this notion out on Live and see how it plays this week, because IF IT WORKS this could be a solution to a LOT of Main Tanking threats we need to deal with on a regular basis in iTrials.



Just something to think about. ^_~

53

General Suggestions and Feedback / Focused Feedback: PTS Patch Notes - Feb 13, 2023 TEST SERVER- Ri5

« on: February 14, 2023, 10:19:51 am »

PTS Patch Notes - Feb 13, 2023 TEST SERVER- Ri5

Jaunt no longer roots, so you can teleport fluidly while running

Request proliferating this change to Mystic Flight also.

We heard the requests wanting a permanent source of extra movement control and friction in both Fly and Super Jump. We also heard the requests wishing for no extra movement control and friction in those powers. We thought about how best to offer such an option. We also considered, one way or the other, what affects this would have on future content down the road beyond anything we've revealed.

After much thinking, we decided there could be a way to have some extra movement control and/or none at all. We've added extra Movement Control and Movement Friction to Acrobatics, Aerobatics (taken back from Afterburner), and Solar Glide (taken back from Quantum Acceleration). Aerobatics and Solar Glide's movement control/friction can stack with Fly and Energy Flight. Acrobatics movement control/friction can stack with Super Jump. Null the Gull has discovered how to suppress extra movement control/friction effects in Acrobatics, Aerobatics, and Solar Glide--he thinks.

Counter-proposal.

What ought to be happening is that Travel Powers (jump and fly) for which Movement Control and Movement Friction are "relevant" factors ought to have a +Control/+Friction AND -Control/-Friction defined for those powers.
The difference is that the +Control/+Friction parameter is modified by enhancements while the -Control/-Friction parameter ignores enhancements.

Basic idea being that if you slot up your Travel powers (jump and fly) with enhancements, those enhancements not only make you "faster/higher/farther" but those same enhancements also increase your Control/Friction, making the way those Travel Powers behave feel "crisper" and more responsive than when they are unenhanced.

Teleport has been given a movement upgrade. If you have any travel power on, or Hover, Teleport's movement restrictions and flight will be negated. These effects also apply to Shadow Step while in human form

Sounds like you have set up basic Teleport to no longer root/immobilize the caster in order to use it.

However, one particular Quality of Life upgrade to Teleport (all flavors) that would be GREATLY appreciated would be a "Hover Until Move" Feature Request™.

Basic idea is similar to what Paragon Studios did to Teleport, giving it a 4 second Hover effect after casting (so you don't fall out of the sky "immediately").
The problem with that implementation is that you're basically "stuck Hovering" for those 4 seconds until the Hover effect wears off (which can be annoying). There's no way to "cancel it early" On Demand if you want to move quickly.

Ideally what you want is you want to trigger a "no speed Hover" effect when Teleporting that will last a few seconds (I'm thinking 6 seconds, so there's time to look around after arriving if you need that time). This Hover effect would be an "automatic toggle ON" (rather than a Click) Temp Power that gets cast immediately after the Teleport animation resolves (so auto chain cast built into the Teleport power, making the operation "seamless" to the Player).

The Hover effect Temp Power Toggle would be keyed to automatically Toggle OFF when any movement command is given (up/down, left/right, forward/backward, strafe left/strafe right).
Recharge time for the Temp Power would be less than animation time of the Teleport Power(s) that could invoke it ... that way you can build a "reusable code" function call that ALL Teleport Powers make use of in common (build once, use repeatedly).

Such a formulation would then enable teleporting up into the sky, giving enough time to look around (spin and camera moves are allowed, but purposeful changing of /location parameters is not) before "gravity resumes" and the character falls out of the sky absent any supporting Power. Note also that such a formulation would "not interfere" with any Flight granting powers (because extra bonus flight when explicitly not moving makes no useful difference). However, by being able to "cancel early" ON DEMAND (by commanding movement) it becomes possible to blend Teleport On The Move with other movement modes (such as running and flight, but also jumping).

Perhaps the most curious Edge Case Use™ for such a Temp Power system would be the enabling of "double jumping" ... where you jump, and at the apogee of the jump you teleport (into a temp hover effect) after which you can JUMP AGAIN (from mid-air!).



Just trying to analyze alternative implementations and game out how they would feel and perform in gameplay.

54

Tanker / Re: SR/MA = NO GET HITSU!!

« on: February 11, 2023, 10:41:12 am »

Crosslinking: Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

Just one of those things you need to figure out experimentally by actually playing the game (and main tanking through iTrials).

With only 14% Energy Resistance (base), this build is ... vulnerable ... to being taken out by the Lethal Force Authorized attack from Extinction War Walkers in the Underground Trial.

Yes, I've been main tanking them.
Yes, occasionally they drop me for Debt with almost no warning.
Yes ... that's a problem.

So far, my go to workarounds for this have been to use 2x Resistance inspirations to boost my Energy Resist up to something that can withstand Lethal Force Authorized. This lets me keep Rune of Protection and Hybrid Core Melee in backup reserve for additional margin. It also means that BOTH of the Tanker ATO procs for +Resistance and +Absorb take on heightened priority when main tanking the Extinction War Walkers (all three flavors). I'm going to be shifting my strategy over to one of Thunder Kick+Storm Kick+Warrior's Challenge exclusively so as to be able to build up additional reserves of +Resistance and +Absorb (because those attacks are where I've slotted my ATOs) in order to be able to better "weather" the incoming Lethal Force Authorized hits when they land without faceplanting.

I will no doubt be reworking my build strategy for RI5 once it goes Live (and Mids Reborn gets updated to match the release), and one of the priorities for that update to the build strategy will be less of an emphasis (to the exclusion of all else) on maximizing Regeneration so as to have some better baseline Resistances and Absorb margins to protect against outlier edge cases such as the Lethal Force Authorized attack in the Underground Trial.

55

Player Help/Guides / Main Tanking vs Lethal Force Authorized

« on: February 11, 2023, 10:24:02 am »

For the last few months, I've been off and on main tanking iTrials with my SR/MA Tanker (Redlynne) ... and one of the most cantankerous duties I've had to endure as a main tank is ... the Elite Boss Warwalkers in the Underground Trial.

Targeted -> Arrest Mode (an AoE Hold), I can handle.
Targeted -> Crowd Control (an AoE Terrorize), I can handle.
Targeted -> Lethal Force Authorized (an autohit 4s DoT) ... has been a struggle. Sometimes I make it through, sometimes I don't ... so I wanted to know WHY.

Well, I think I've found the answer.

City of Data v2.0 (for Homecoming): Lethal Force Authorized (link)

• PvP or PvE 100% chance
• 30% max health Energy damage (all affected targets) every 1.0s for 4.1s (100% chance)
• if !target.VillainName>RoguesGallery_Desdemona_Underground && (target>enttype eq 'player')

What this means is that the Lethal Force Authorized attack is autohit (so Defense is helpless against it) when you are Targeted (which, as the main tank, YOU WILL BE, and since you're the main tank, YOU CAN'T RUN). The damage the attack deals is "30% max health Energy" ... meaning that powers like Dull Pain (and its equivalents) WON'T HELP YOU, because the damage that Lethal Force deals will simply scale upwards as your max health gets boosted upwards.

And since Lethal Force Authorized is deliberately designed to inflict 4x30% max health damage onto anyone (and everyone who has been Targeted) ... that means that no matter what you need to be able to endure taking 120% of your max health in Energy damage over 4 seconds(!).

There are two basic strategies for being able to pull this off.

• ENERGY RESISTANCE
• ABSORB

The resistances option is going to be the "more reliable" method, since the damage from Lethal Force Authorized is NOT unresistable. So resistances will rather directly reduce the amount of damage being taken.
This means that a 20% Energy Resistance will be sufficient to make ... 120% max HP / 1.2 = 100% max HP ... a reality.

In the case of Super Reflexes, with scaling resistances as HP goes down, the Lethal Force Authorized is a double whammy ... because the scaling resistances won't "kick in" against a DoT that is already in progress (the damage per tick does not recalculate after every tick). So whatever damage throughput is determined for damage tick 1 is the same amount delivered for damage tick 4, meaning the scaling resistances "don't get to apply" as the damage (rapidly) flows.

Net result ... as a Super Reflexes Tanker ... Lethal Force Authorized is yet another form of "kryptonite" to my protection scheme.
Defense doesn't stop it.
Scaling Resistances don't mitigate against it.
The DoT is fast enough that high Regeneration can't keep up with it.

So the only response that will work are Resistances and Absorb (preferably both!).

I've started using Resist Inspirations when I need to main tank the Extinction War Walkers during Underground Trials, to prevent the "faceplant potential" of getting hit by Lethal Force Authorized. One major bugaboo about the attack though is that by the time the words Lethal Force Authorized appear on screen, it's too late to do anything about it ... so you have to be buffed against the attack BEFORE it happens (and the chance it happens is random).

Needless to say, long drawn out fights with the Extinction War Walkers is decidedly dangerous for my RI4 build for Redlynne, because inspirations expire ... so if the battle drags on for too long, I'm vulnerable to getting One Shot™ by a Lethal Force Authorized attack. There are various things I can do to try and work around the the problem (Hybrid Core Melee adding +Resist for all Foes within PBAoE, Rune of Protection adding +Resist, Preventative Medicine kicking in its +Absorb proc, Resist Inspirations) ... but ultimately, in order to "proof" myself against this particular threat, I think I'm going to need to make some relatively significant changes to my build in order to increase baseline Energy Resistance and baseline Absorb so as to be able to withstand the Lethal Force Authorized attack from Extinction War Walkers (that I can't just run away from) more reliably.

Let's see what RI5 brings to the table once it goes Live (and Mids Reborn gets updated for it).

56

Base Building / Re: Autumn Knights - Blueside Soloist 8x8 SG Base (image heavy!)

« on: February 04, 2023, 06:55:24 pm »

Like I said up front, these screenshots really don't do the FEEL & AMBIANCE of the base that I've built proper justice (being able to look around freely for starters). The screenshots also don't adequately convey the sense of SPACE that I've got going on inside of my base, since every part of it can be walked to (except the Rez Rings on top of the "planet" but they're a "one way entrance" so being able to get UP to them isn't that big of a deal, and they can be jumped up to anyway). I mean, you would think that an 8x8 Base Plot would feel ... small and cramped ... TINY. I know that people who build expansively large plot bases will often times resort to using Superspeed (or other travel powers) to get around inside, simply because the map is so BIG ... but you essentially have the opposite effect inside of my SG Base that I've presented here.

You want to turn off travel powers inside ... but it still feels WAY BIGGER inside than it has any right to be ... and that's thanks to two major factors:

• Building in 3D increases the "walkable area" within each room
• Turning off the room lighting (selecting black for high/mid/low) and relying on local lighting sources for all light within the base

I'm sure that people have noticed just looking at the screenshots I've linked that the inside of my base looks DARK ... except where it isn't (and there's light). The effect of that darkness means that the "walls don't matter" as much around the rooms in a psychological sense. You just become ... less aware ... that the walls are there, which then has the knock on effect of making the spaces inside those walls feel bigger/more expansive than they actually are. Combine that with the verticality of 3D construction and an emphasis on "must be walk access to everywhere possible" (except the Rez Rings in the Infirmary, and even those are just a short hop jump) and you wind up with a Walk Topology that is FAR MORE expansive than you would otherwise expect.

My Entry Room effectively has more than 2x2 plot squares worth of walkable space in it, even with a Medium Planter plunked into the center of the room, because of the stairs and ledges leading up to the Entry Portal overhead.

Same deal with the two Workshops. Even though I'm only putting items into what amounts to "half the room" so as to leave the "hallway" clear through them, I've basically got 3 levels (ground, mid, upper) worth of usable area to put interactable stuff into. If I put everything onto the floor, I would basically need a 2x3 room to contain (side by side) what I'm putting into a 1x2 (vertically stacked) floor space.

The most "ridonculous" example of this is the 3D work I did in the Control Room, which is only a 2x2 room but which effectively has 5x2 "worth" of walkable area to it, making the room size "feel gigantic" compared to the confines of the walls (which I actually hid from view pretty convincingly, if I do say so myself).

Both Teleport Chambers have "extra 3D walkable space" in them, making them feel larger (to experience) than they actually are (and the Raid Teleport Chamber even has a beyond absurd FOUR DISTINCT LEVELS within it!).

The Energy Terminal and Containment Alcove "hangar bay" even feature ROOM CONTINUITY not only linking them to each other ... but also to the OUTSIDE WORLD beyond the confines of the 8x8 Base Plot(!) ... making them feel even larger than they actually are as well. Heck, even the "redundant" Bathrooms in the Entry Room look like they convincingly extend BEYOND THE WALLS into additional space beyond the room itself!



And yes ... I'm exorbitantly proud of what I was able to achieve in such a small base plot, which requires NO RENT, yet which is fully capable of launching Cathedral of Pain Trials (given sufficient interest participation by other Players) ... which I would like to start doing at some point (when I can figure out a good time slot for it).

One of the things that I like most about my base and how I've constructed it is that it feels like a ... HOME to return to ... rather than a storage locker to stash stuff in until I need it.

It has "cathedral like open spaces" in it, along with trees and greenery (in every room except the Energy Terminal and Containment Alcove "hangar bay").
The lighting within it is either warm and inviting (Arcane areas) or it is clean and efficient (Tech areas), illuminating what you want to see (and none of what you don't).
Different rooms have different "moods" to them, making them all individuals with their own "character and charm" to them ... rather than being cookie cutters that just endlessly repeat into monotony.



But most of all, I love being able to SHARE what I've discovered and learned building my SG Base with anyone else who cares to come and visit, have a look around (and gawp at some of the stuff I've been able to accomplish!). Being able to inspire others to make their own SG Base more than just the sum of its items like I've been able to do is some of the highest praise I can receive for my efforts.

KNOWLEDGE SHARED IS KNOWLEDGE MULTIPLIED.

So if anyone would like to come and visit my base (guided with Q&A or unguided, your choice), send me a tell when I'm online (@Redlynne) and I'll see what I can do to arrange a tour so people can see for themselves both what is possible, but also how Base Building can be a Labor of Love ... not just "toiling for naught" (seemingly) when no one really appreciates what you've been able to do with the tools at your disposal.

Sometimes you simply need to SEE something done to be inspired by it ... and want to learn the secrets of how it was done, so you can do something just as awesome too. 

57

Base Building / Re: Autumn Knights - Blueside Soloist 8x8 SG Base (image heavy!)

« on: February 04, 2023, 06:17:49 pm »

On the other side of the wall from the Energy Terminal is the Containment Alcove, which is used as a hangar bay for storage and repairs of the other Longbow Chasers that Autumn Knights has been able to acquire as a Supergroup. These are the ground floor views into the hangar bay from the Infirmary and the Raid Teleport Chamber respectively. Note the Longbow Chasers hoisted up on track winches for storage, the three levers used to control the lifting and lowering of those crane winches on the floor, as well as the big lever for opening and closing the roll up door on the upper level that opens to the Energy Terminal flight line through the top level.

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All manner of maintenance and diagnostic equipment, along with fuel tanks and other sundry flight operations materials are crammed into the ground floor spaces around the Research Terminal. Another desk for (more mundane) computer programming and diagnostics work has been placed on the "dais" of the Research Terminal, along with whiteboards on the wall to assist with maintenance issues. At present, a Longbow Chaser is currently being inspected and diagnosed in preparation for installing an upgrade patch to its onboard software suite.

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Continuing up the ramps spiraling around to the upper level, two more Longbow Chasers can be seen taxiing into position and holding for their turn to launch from the flight line in the Energy Terminal room.

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And here are some alternate views from the adjacent rooms showing the ramp system leading around from the ground floor to the upper level that passes through to the flight line in the room on the other side of the wall.

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58

Base Building / Re: Autumn Knights - Blueside Soloist 8x8 SG Base (image heavy!)

« on: February 04, 2023, 05:58:41 pm »

The Energy Terminal was a real challenge to build, especially since I completely rebuilt it multiple times before settling on the current layout and two level design.

The first thing that can be seen (all the way from the Entry Room) is the loading dock for 18 wheelers to back up to for loading/unloading of their trailers. The roll up doors are 8 ft wide and 10 ft tall ... just like a standard loading dock door. There are even pull levers between them for easy opening/closing of the loading dock doors. Also, rather atypically, the blower fans hanging down from the floor above are blowing air UPWARDS through the floor(!) into the upper level! Scanner and Tools equipment for inspections can be seen on the right where they're stored until needing to wheel them out into the hallway for use on deliveries. An enormous fuel tank hangs down from the ceiling (blocking views into the upper level). The Basic Generator can be (barely) seen on the upper floor on the right. An access ramp leads upwards from the Research Terminal station platforms up to the upper level.

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A view from the loading dock doors looking back up the Tech Wing hallway towards the Entrance Room. The Basic Generator is (just) visible to the left on the upper floor.

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The Research Stations are of course walkable space and have a few interesting details surrounding them. Can you spot all those little details?

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Ramp access to the upper level has plenty of clearance under it for the loading and unloading of 18 wheeler trailers through the loading dock doors, allowing items to be wheeled up to the upper level when necessary.

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At the top of the ramp on the second floor is ... the FLIGHT LINE! 
Roll up doors open to the outside of the base as well as the Containment Alcove on the other side of the wall(!) allow this part of the flight line to be sealed off from the outside and deeper into the base. At present, two Longbow Chasers are on ready standby, prepared for launch out of the base!

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A protective "shield" of ablative material has been placed over the end of the Basic Generator nearest to the flight line, to reduce the chances for any collateral damage that might occur in the event of an accident, mishap or pilot error during launches and landings. Hidden within an alcove in that ablative barrier are the levers used to raise and lower the flight line's roll up doors in this room. Launch and landing control can be handled from any of the Research Terminal stations below. Plentiful safety equipment is also featured on the upper and lower floors "just in case" it is ever needed (it hasn't yet, but you never know...).

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59

Base Building / Re: Autumn Knights - Blueside Soloist 8x8 SG Base (image heavy!)

« on: February 04, 2023, 05:29:06 pm »

The Tech Workshop is laid out along familiar lines to that of the Arcane Workshop (because it "just works" and it's less confusing that way). I decided that the Tech Wing needed to have a different type of lighting used in it (to differentiate it away from the Arcane Wing), hence the "harder" (bluer white) florescent lighting style in all of the Tech Wing rooms.

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On the ground floor, the Invention Table and two Enhancement Tables can be found. In my base, I'm storing "spare" crafted Enhancements (purples and other sundries) in these Enhancement Tables. You can also see whiteboards, a photocopier, filing cabinets, some A/V and music system racks along with racks of servers and mechanical diagnostic stations scattered around. There is also a desk here for computer programming that may be needed to fine tune inventions to squeeze that last little bit of performance out of them (yes, it has games loaded on it too).

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The stairs provide easy walkable access to the upper two floors.

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The first floor above ground is home to the T1/T2/T3 Common Tech Invention Salvage Racks, while the second/higher floor is where the T1/T2/T3 Uncommon+Rare Tech Invention Salvage Racks and Tech Empowerment Station are located. This arrangement helps me keep stocks of salvage "organized" by tiers and rarity, so if I need a particular piece of salvage to craft something, I know exactly which storage rack to go to in order to find it. I also added some "extra bling" to my Tech Empowerment Station to make it extra special.

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And just for shizzle, here is a view into the Tech Workshop while standing on the "planet ring" that I built into the Infirmary. 

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60

Base Building / Re: Autumn Knights - Blueside Soloist 8x8 SG Base (image heavy!)

« on: February 04, 2023, 05:12:17 pm »

Looking into the Raid Teleport Chamber from the bridges and balconies in the adjoining Teleport Chamber (above), some additional details can be seen which are difficult to discern from up close ... including the suspended deck above the arcane arches!

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The arcane Raid Telepad (which I gather remarkably few people have seen before) is ... enormous ... and intricately beautiful in the darkness.

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Once again, I have stairs leading up to an upper level in this room, but this time the complexity of the walkable space feels more like a "roller coaster" type of pathing than anything else, just because of how it can be circulated (which is extremely difficult to convey in screenshots!). Here are two views of the upper level from opposite corners within the room.

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And that concludes the Arcane Wing of the Autumn Knights SG Base!
On to the Tech Wing!