Gearing this tank.

ryokoryu

Ok so here is the build Salamina - Freeform
v2.2.3-24

Super Stats
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Dexterity (Secondary)

Talents
Level 1: The Glacier (Con: 10, End: 10, Dex: 8, Int: 10)
Level 6: Enduring (Con: 8)
Level 9: Boundless Reserves (Con: 5, End: 5)
Level 12: Quick Recovery (Con: 5, Rec: 5)
Level 15: Acrobat (Dex: 5, Con: 5)
Level 18: Coordinated (Dex: 5, Int: 5)
Level 21: Covert Ops Training (Str: 3, Dex: 3, Con: 3, Int: 3)

Powers
Level 1: Throw Fire
Level 1: Fireball (Unstable Accelerant)
Level 6: Fire Breath (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenge!)
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Concentration
Level 14: Conflagration (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenge!)
Level 17: Resurgence
Level 20: Flashfire (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenge!)
Level 23: Shadow Shroud (Terrifying Visage)
Level 26: Molecular Self-Assembly
Level 29: Rebirth
Level 32: Conviction (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Force Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Force Sheathe)
Level 38: Masterful Dodge (Unfettered Strikes)
Adv. Points: 36/36

Travel Powers
Level 6: Fireball Roll (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Phoenix Flight

Specializations
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Detect Vulnerability (1/3)
Intelligence: Tinkering (2/2)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Ruthless (2/2)
Guardian: Find the Mark (2/3)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: Merciless (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Now right at the moment I have a merc defensive with impact prism 4 and 2 con armor 4 in it and the rest is armadillo gear. What should I be going for on my other primaries assuming that I will get Qstore secondaries thjat grant 44 int each and eventually replace those with con onslought? Both in the interim and the eventual replacement.

flowcyto

I'd prob use Con PSS here, for the extra knock resist and defense boost, and for Adren Rush heals. Could also maybe try a STR/Int/Con setup instead if you want to take adv of Juggernaut + Con SS and Brutality, and still get some knock resist.

If you want a Regen + Fire tank, here's how I'd edit it:

Salamina - Freeform
v2.2.3-24

Super Stats
Level 6: Constitution (Primary)
Level 10: Intelligence (Secondary)
Level 15: Dexterity (Secondary)

Talents
Level 1: The Glacier (Con: 10, End: 10, Dex: 8, Int: 10)
Level 6: Covert Ops Training (Str: 3, Dex: 3, Con: 3, Int: 3)
Level 9: Healthy Mind (Con: 5, Int: 5)
Level 12: Acrobat (Dex: 5, Con: 5)
Level 15: Coordinated (Dex: 5, Int: 5)
Level 18: Quick Recovery (Con: 5, Rec: 5)
Level 21: Negotiator (Int: 5, Rec: 5)

Powers
Level 1: Throw Fire
Level 1: Fireball (Unstable Accelerant)
Level 6: Thermal Reverberation
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Concentration
Level 14: Conflagration (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenge!)
Level 17: Conviction (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 20: Incendiary Grenade
Level 23: Resurgence (Rank 2)
Level 26: Masterful Dodge
Level 29: Force Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Force Sheathe)
Level 32: Pyre (Rank 2, Backdraft, Challenge!)
Level 35: Lock N Load (Rank 2)
Level 38: Rebirth
Adv. Points: 31/36

Travel Powers
Level 6: Fireball Roll (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Phoenix Flight

Specializations
Constitution: Unyielding (1/2)
Constitution: Fuel My Fire (3/3)
Constitution: Resilient (2/2)
Constitution: Adrenaline Rush (2/2)
Constitution: Armored (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Ruthless (2/2)
Guardian: Find the Mark (2/3)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: Merciless (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Constitution Mastery (1/1)

Though its not strictly necessary, Pyre can tag in a wide area, and/or proc TReverb (and Conc) if charged at any time. Absorb Heat can be another nice power to consider taking (keeping in mind its 25ft limit for working). Flashfire works alright, though if theme permits you could replace it w/ Incendiary Grenade w/ adv in Muni to put up CF and a Fire dmg debuff at once. Gears mostly for Con and some Int, w/ a bit of End on the side for TReverb. I may consider using R1 Defiance instead of Regen for the passive, but that's up to you.

Regardless of the 'tier' of primary and 2ndary gear you can get, I'd prob use crit rating in at least one slot of ur offensive gear (more Adren Rush + heal crits, more dps and threat gen), defense and/or maxHP boosts for defensive gear, and a mix of cd and cost reduction in utility (maybe also get the +Fire dmg utility mod.. I think its Qwyjibo's Fury). Once you can afford Onslaught gear, I'd prob get the defender gloves first for tanking.

ryokoryu

problem is if I use con SS I lose agro a lot more often and in either case I barely have the damage for it and Adr rushwhen I had it wasn't making a difference. I have been getting much better performance out of all areas except for raw HP from con and I suspect that that will come back when I get more gear. In terms of the grenade she is a salamander and it would not be in theme. I do believe in the end I will end up with more raw health with int PSS since every 10 con will be like 13. All I really need to know is how much int to throw on top of it.

flowcyto

If you want to use a PSS that's not Str or Con or as a tank, then I'd highly recommend getting CoPD, so you have a way to boost ur knock resist (and threat gen) w/o relying as heavily on blocking for that. Regardless, changing ur PSS shouldn't result in too drastic of a change in threat gen that proper gearing can't overcome, and Int PSS's extra health scaling from Con is somewhat countered by it not boosting defense much (or at all) vs other options. But its up to you.

pwestolemyname

So it looks like you basically have a Fire Tank there, which is one of my mains. First of all, dump Fire Breath, no reason to have it if you have Conflag and it underperforms badly. Then swap Defiance in for Regeneration. Put in Thermal Reverb instead of MSA. Instead of Fire Breath, I would actually recommend a lunge. Yes, you are technically a ranged tank, but remember that aggro is also distance based, so to keep aggro more successfully, it is best to be in their face.

I took her EGO/CON/DEX and then stacked CON. It works well for me. Only time I get in trouble is if I miss a block on a Cosmic, but that is true of all but the most toughiest builds (those that sacrifice everything to durability).

As far as gearing up, which I think was the original question, you can use that to help hold aggro. Grab some OV Defender Gloves. They are easy, if tedious, to get. If that does not do it for you, pick up a good Confront Mod.

For Primary gear, both Virtuous and Distinguished gear have some built in KB resist. Obviously, of the two, you want to take Distinguished. You can also get more KB resist with mods, but I don't recommend that, really. Better to have Impact mods in there.

I actually use Justice gear on my Fire Tank (because that was all we had when she hit 40). It's good, but has no built in KB resist. So, what do I do about KB? Pretty much nothing. Well, R3 Acrobatics. If I see a big knock coming, I'll block. Otherwise, I just don't really care. I take the knocks and get right back up. This is when being a ranged tank comes in handy because you do not even have to run back to the fight, just burn them down from where you fall. In Alerts and Story content, knocks just aren't that big a deal.

KB in Cosmics is essentially irrelevant, as well. You can see it coming a mile away, and it barely moves you if you block.

Hope that helps!

ryokoryu

Regen is part of the theme, she is a salamander. I usually end up rolling right up to mobs so distance is usually not an issue. Fire breath is there for particular spots in AP's where conflag hits too few at a time. Thermal was not giving me enough energy to keep me swinging before which is why I swapped over to MSA. It worked fine on large groups but when it came to single bosses I was just not able to keep enough energy even being hit to keep attacking and lose agro a lot without the damage. Will just stacking all con really give enough damage to hold agro?

pwestolemyname

In general, my Fire Tank does fine holding aggro. Might lose it for a second against top kek DPS, but other than that, it's fine. I only use 1 R5 Confront mod (along with Challenge, of course). I do have to pour on the damage to keep aggro, but that's fine. This is only in Cosmics, in any other content (Alerts), I have no trouble at all keeping aggro.

flowcyto

The issue may be that ur not getting extra energy from Defiance by using Regen. If you still have to end build then that will tank ur threat gen. Not to say that you can't make it work w/ Regen, but then you'll want higher investment in energy-related stats.

ryokoryu

wish they would spplit the energy gain from defiance and unstoppable into energy unlock passive instead of tieing them up in the ability.

flowcyto

Well, in that case you may not be better off here, as any Might/Brick-specific EU wouldn't necc mesh w/a ranged dps set like Fire (when it already has its own EU anyways). Defiance is in a strange/unique position as a passive, but changing it could potentially break many current tank builds.

ryokoryu

most of my ranged tank designs do not work in theme with defiance and unfortunately every one that doesn't has energy problems. Even force sheath doesn't quite make it work as well, this is the problem in the first place with designing energy shortages into the tanking role but then giving only one tanking passive the workaround energy it needs.

rtma

Have you tried CON,Ego,End for Fire Build? cause with Thermal Reverb scales with End, and for a Tank is decent, cause you draw aggro, block for a few seconds, you'd fill up most of your energy to fire again, thanks to Tank Role Bonuses.

flowcyto

Yea, End SS + TReverb is great for energy return. I'd say its better than Int + MSA since the latter depends on rolling cds constantly to be decent.

ryokoryu

I had end before but while I had a huge energy bar (236) IU couldn't use anything beforeI energy built for a few hits and even while taking hits I ran out of energy before a full maintain of fire breath. As it is in order to maintain conf with int instead I have to have energy sheeth up and be taking hits. Flame breath however only takes 2 or 3 E-builders to get a fulkl maintain from near empty.

flowcyto

If using TReverb you can target an object w/ Flashfire or use charged Pyre w/ adv (or Brimstone w/ adv) to set down a patch to trigger the EU and gain some energy before combat. Regardless, you shouldn't be running out of energy just from a breath, unless ur toggle and EU's stats (and cost discount) really are that low.

ryokoryu

problem is I couldn't even use flash fire without a few energy shots

ryokoryu

then the energy I got back was like nothing

flowcyto

So it sounds like ur Rec and End were too low, and the toggle stat (Int, I assume) could prob also have been better. All the EUs that scale w/ End or Rec (save maybe for Wind Reverb, cause its poopy) now give good returns over time, but it'll matter more if you've invested stat points in them or not.

ryokoryu

I was using con ego end and it was full armadillo variable gear. It set my end about 200ish and my ego was also about the same.

ryokoryu

rec I had all SS+rec talents as well as the +8 con +8 rec +8 end it just wasn't enough.

flowcyto

Full Armadillo? Well that means ya didn't have any cost discount, so that's prob the main culprit there.

If using full Arma and TReverb, I'd prob take a Con/Int/End setup- Int for Conc and cost discount, End for TReverb, and talent for Rec. Problem w/ those gear sets is they lack in derived stats and in flexibility.