What is the "general rule of thumb" of endgame builds?

ares · April 2016

By this question I mean, what are the staple must-have powers for the various endgame builds? What power frames are just better than the rest in their intended roles? What type of powers and which ones are generally considered to be a must-have for effective pvp?

If you're wondering, I did apply some google-fu and scroll through these forums as well in search for these answers, but the variety of mostly guides I did find didn't go into specifics and just explained general things and advice. What I'm looking for is more like: "Take regeneration for leveling because of x and y, but you'll want to switch it out for Aura of Ebon Destruction at level 40 because of x and y." or "If you're going for ranged damage, take lightning with this specialization tree for pve and force cascade with this specialization tree for pvp."

I hope you get the idea. Help is appreciated!

flowcyto · April 2016

I can't really answer the questions related to pvp, and the rest are a bit too general for my tastes, considering how many pwoers CO has. To me, CO has enough variety where even at the high-end there aren't that many 'must-haves', and it'll depend on ur goals w/ that build anyways.

I don't have the time/will to really go into more detail atm, but more specifies about the character ur making could help.

flowcyto · April 2016

Eh- ES/NM is good, but ya dun even need an AO at all to have a decent dps build, much less a tank or support. Some players may just use AOs for the break-free, since most of the AOs in general aren't great for FFs.

ares · April 2016

I'm not making a specific character, I'm afraid. I just wanted to know what general principles one should follow when making a build of any kind, really. For example, say, Fire is the best at AOE, but if you take Wind and do this and that, it becomes on-par, or that kind of stuff in general. But it's fine if it's too hefty of a task.

It does seem that Ego Surge - Nimble Mind and Masterful Dodge are pretty much in every single (ranged at least) build.

roughbearmattach · April 2016

Recently, a few must-have powers have gotten the nerf bat.

That being said, Ego Surge w/advantage is a common one. Conviction is also quite common, paired with Molecular Self-Assembly energy unlock. I suspect more nerfs to come for these commonly chosen powers, though.

"Wardicator" or "Guardicator" are commonly used spec combinations because of the high defense you can get. For ranged, Guardicator can be a little better. Some builds use different specs effectively, though.

I am not a PvP player, but high mobility seems quite useful. A travel power like Acrobatics w/advantage is useful.
Another strategy is to win by ringout--knocking your opponent out of the dueling area.

Finally, gear matters quite a bit. Justice or similar high-end primaries, plus Vigilante or better secondaries are things you want to have. Likewise, some of the best devices help in PvP, too: Nerculitic Elixir, Neuroelectric Pulse Generator, maybe Ice Grenades, Psychic Surge or Omicron Strength, Demonic Flesh Graft, a few others.

rtma · April 2016

Use a Passive,
Use a Block,
Use a Form,
Use a Single Target Power,
Use a AoE Power,
Use a Healing Power,
Use some Synergy,
Use some Mercenaries or Above,
? ? ? ?
Profit?

flowcyto · April 2016

rtma said:
Use a Passive,
Use a Block,
Use a Form,
Use a Single Target Power,
Use a AoE Power,
Use a Healing Power,
Use some Synergy,
Use some Mercenaries or Above,
? ? ? ?
Profit?

Though perhaps being a bit facetious, this is more along the lines of truth. Certain powers may be overused in optimal builds, but when you talk essentials you need these sort of things covered first. No FF build is going to be that good w/o a fitting passive, toggle, heal, good ST attack, good AoE attack, good gear, and in most cases a fitting EU (and/or other means of gaining energy).

The only other thing I'd add to that basic pile is Con SS somewhere, unless ur using PFF perhaps. To me that's the only other thing you'd want in nearly all high-end FF builds atm. Conviction can be replaced by other short cd heals. ES/NM isn't needed at all- its just a short burst dps button, and for breakfree dmg there's other options. MSA may be the easiest universal EU but there's others that can work well, depending on the build. MD is good as a universal AD, but the other ADs can be good too, and for certain builds ya may want a threat wipe or self res or ally res prioritized before an AD anyways. Ward/Guardicator is the best spec layout in most cases, but for certain builds other options can be better, depending on ur goals w/ the build.

If you meet most of the 'essential's above, ya can make any powerset viable at the high-end. It'll more depend on the attacks ya wanna use (and/or if Support, what kind of of support ya wanna give the team), which is why I wanted a bit more specifics before. If you just want an idea of the kind of dps duff powerset can do, Kaizerin had an older thread parsing out various attacks from diff powersets:

http://www.arcgames.com/en/forums/championsonline/#/discussion/252677/power-comparison-log/p1

Ya can also check my base dps spreadsheet, though its old and isn't up to date w/ all the recent power changes. My Themed Tanks guide uses all the powersets too, though from a tank building perspective - again some info may be outdated (both links in my sig).

roughbearmattach · April 2016

I will add, however, that builds which excel in PvE sometimes are terrible in PvP.
Builds that are good in PvP are usually good in PvE, too, especially in boss fights.

pantagruel01 · April 2016

A major rule of thumb for endgame build is "pick one or two spammable powers (unless you're a healer, that's AoE and single-target); everything else is buffs, debuffs, cooldowns, and effect-over-time".

riverocean · April 2016

In general I tend to follow this template for Free Form builds.

Powers:
- Energy Builder
- Passive
- High DPS Single Target Attack
- Toggle Form
- Energy Unlock
- Block
- Active Offense
- Masterful Dodge or Unbreakable
- Bountiful Chi, Conviction, or Bionic Shielding
- AOE Attack
- Rebirth

The key is pick attacks that synch with your energy unlock and passive. There's tons of threads on the forums that can explain how this works.

*Here's a pretty slick build by Strega Lawless that's a good study in how to mesh an EU, Passive, and Attack powers across multiple power sets*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cpt9ZlfMQaE

Specializations:

- Guardian or Warden: Select Fortified Gear, Ruthless, & The Best Defense.
- Vindicator: Select Merciless and Aggressive Stance.
Max out the indicated specs to give you great damage, crit severity and high defense for survival.

To be honest, that's all there really is to putting together a good Jack-of-All trades build. The rest depends on your Role, Gear, and Passive. And there are plenty of threads on building good tanks, dps, and healers (and more) around.

What is the "general rule of thumb" of endgame builds?

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