List of Underperforming Powers (and possible ways to improve them)

aesica · June 2017

So, while going through various powers to outfit my latest 40, I can't help but notice that there's several powers that look neat, but I always end up skipping over them anyway because they are just flat-out inferior to everything else. It'd be nice to lift them up to give players more choices.

Examples: Being able to choose Storm Summoner instead of Lightning Storm, making Blasts/Guardian Mastery not suck, etc.

Snowstorm

This power is so weak it could almost be a click-to-activate area DoT.
Perhaps a click-to-activate area DoT is exactly what this needs to be--click-to-activate, 10 sec cooldown, up-front energy cost, persists for 12 seconds.

Storm Summoner & Invocation of Storm Calling

The strength of these is really low and it almost seems like they were meant to tick every 0.5 seconds instead of every second.
Ticking every second is fine, but the damage per tick really needs to go up. Crushing Wave is an example of about where these should be in terms of damage/cost.
Storm Summoner has no proper interaction with Negative Ions and thus, cannot trigger Ionic Reverberation. It should probably get the standard "arcs to another target if affected by Negative Ions" feature other powers in this framework have.
Some interesting cross-framework advantages for Storm Summoner include: Light Up The Sky (same thing as Invocation of Storm Calling), Plasma Bolt (Fully maintaining applies a stack of Plasma Burn to targets).
Consider upgrading "Strong Winds" to "Freezing Winds (Repel + 25% chance to Chill targets)" as the Repel by itself isn't worth 2 advantage points.

Blasts and Guardian Mastery

Generally, Blast powers seem too weak to really justify using any of the Guardian specialization options related to them, including Guardian Mastery.
Suggested improvement for Make It Count (Guardian): Increases the damage of your Blasts by 10/20/30%. Remove the almost-nonexistant charge time reduction.
Suggested improvement for Guardian Mastery: Once every 15 seconds, reduces the charge time of your next Blast power by 100%. Hitting a foe with this empowered Blast grants you Alacrity (nonstacking) which increases your dodge rating by 27 and reduces the cost of your abilities slightly. Alacrity lasts 20 seconds.

Focused Shot

This power seems like it wants to be a carbon copy of Sniper Rifle...except it's grossly inferior.
Boosting both the cost and the damage to match those of Sniper Rifle would fix it. Gaining Sniper Rifle's Stun would be a nice bonus.
As an added thought, this is one of those powers that other ranged sets could use copies of: Mind Blast for Telepathy, Ice Spike for Ice, Smite for Celestial, etc would make sense and add diversity.

AoE Clinging Flames appliers

For some reason, Flashfire is the only option available for an "instant AoE Clinging Flames applier." (Not counting Fire Patches)
For greater theme diversity, Incendiary Grenade and Will-o-the-Wisp + Ghost Fire could also provide an AoE Clinging Flames instead of being reduced to single target.

Holy Water

While neat in theory, it's both clunky to use and underwhelming in effect, especially given its rather large cooldown and event-gated exclusivity.
This would feel less clumsy to use if it would affect both allies and enemies, regardless of whether an ally or enemy was targeted.
The cooldown should only be about 12 seconds.
Its dependency on Illuminated for secondary feels forced and doesn't really make sense. Instead of it requiring Illuminated to apply Disoriented, why not just have it apply Illuminated? Especially for the new Impure Waters advantage, paying 2 adavntage points should net the player a no strings attached poison application.
A new advantage, "Exorcism (applies Clinging Flames to targets)" would be a neat addition.

Energy Builders

They're weak, they look unimpressive, and people generally try to avoid using them.
Abolishing ranks on these, and having them function at Rank 3 by default, would be a nice quality of life improvement for lower-level players. Higher-level players generally don't use them, so that gameplay wouldn't be affected much, if at all.
Barring the above option, applying the Rank 3 visuals to all ranks would certainly make the game look prettier to someone just starting out.
Many EBs have advantages like, "your EB now has a 20% chance to apply ___ on every hit instead of just the first." This isn't worth 2 advantage points, and should probably just become a baseline feature.
In line with the above, all "bonus" advantages on EBs should just become baseline for them. Players generally aren't going to turn to their EBs to apply these effects anyway, so there's no reason to gate them behind 2 advantage points.

Illumination

This ability actually manages its namesake worse than other abilities (such as Will-o-the-Wisp + Guide) that apply the buff/debuff to multiple targets. Its up-front heal is grossly underwhelming and it does nothing againast enemies aside from placing its debuff.
Using Will-o-the-Wisp + Guide as the gold standard, it should buff allies and debuff enemies near the target, regardless if the target is friend or foe.
When used on a friend, the heal should be bigger. It's a cooldown ability, after all.
When used on a foe, it should deal damage on par with Will-o-the-Wisp.
Increase cooldown slightly if necessary.
Regarding the ally buff effect: Abilities that apply Illumination should probably just apply Light Everlasting instead, and "Illumination" (the buff) should probably just be retired. A 3% buff to healing is barely noticeable, not very interesting, and artificially forcing its usefulness by requiring it for other abilities to function properly (Celestial Conduit, etc) is unpleasant. Note that the debuff version is fine as is.

Shuriken Throw

Has some really cruddy advantages.
Chained Kunai is a weird advantage that should probably be removed. There's an actual Chained Kunai ability right beside it that does the same thing with less clunk.
New Advantage to replace Chained Kunai: Shuriken Barrage: Shuriken Toss can now be maintained.
Poison Shuriken's 10% poison chance is unreliable and not worth 2 advantage points. Change to: Applies Deadly Poison if not already affected. Also refreshes existing Deadly Poison stacks.
Serrated Edges has the same problem as Poison Shuriken. Change to: Applies Open Wound.

Nuclear Shockwave

This power, ugh. For an unlock, it's weak to the point of being useless.
Damage needs to go WAY up. Could also use a short cooldown.
New Adantage - Fallout: Applies a stack of Plasma Burn to targets and refreshes existing stacks of Plasma Burn.

Gravitic Ripple

Damage is really low.
Needs a sizable damage increase.

Fire Strike

Damage is awful, utility is nonexistent.
This power should probably be scaled and chargeable like other blasts. 25-100% based on charge time to apply Clinging Flames.
Remove fiery escalation and replace it with Unstable Accelerant (the same effect found on Fireball) - applied regardless of charge time.
Superheated: Also applies a stack of Plasma Burn.

So yeah, that's just at a glance. I know there's whole frameworks (Earth, Telepathy, Gadgeteering, and Celestial DPS) that need a full-on overhaul, but have I missed any other individual powers? Or have I gotten any of these wrong somehow?

Unknown · June 2017

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blockwave · June 2017

I use Shuriken Throw to keep my focus stacks up in Eido when I can't hit the boss in melee, and to knock down an ennemy who coming towards me, It's pretty useful. For everything else, I agree some powers are really not powerful.

chaosdrgnz43 · June 2017

Nuclear Shockwave

Extremely underwhelming for an OV power unlock
Boost damage to be on par with Earth Splitter
Add a knock-to adv
Possibly add a Furious or Reckless adv buff

roughbearmattach · June 2017

Vapor Form

Damage is too low to be useful, and resistance is not high enough to just having no powers/block
Remove the CD, so it can be used as a tertiary travel power
Add a Chill effect to foes damaged by this power
Change Advantage to grant Cold Snap buff--energy gain for this power just isn't useful

aesica · June 2017

Definitely agree on both the Vapor Form and Nuclear Shockwave suggestions. Vapor Form especially, I guess that power is so bad, I forgot it even existed.

gradii said:
Why isn't manipulator on this list by the way, or almost every telepathy power?

I mentioned Telepathy at the bottom. It needs a lot more help than the scope of this thread is intended for.

blockwave said:
I use Shuriken Throw to keep my focus stacks up in Eido when I can't hit the boss in melee, and to knock down an ennemy who coming towards me, It's pretty useful. For everything else, I agree some powers are really not powerful.

So Shuriken Throw isn't mean to be a full fledged ranged attack, but rather, an auxiliary attack for situations like what you described? I guess I never thought of it that way. Still, the part about its advantages (chained kunai, poisoned shuriken, serrated edges) still stands. All 3 are maximum cringe at the moment.

rtma · June 2017

Force Cascade's Energy form strip, cause it's just one of the biggest gimps to it's own frigging passive to think stripping it for 8 secs for a cheap shot is so worth it... maybe if it doubled the damage but no, get rid of it or make it count as a internal cooldown on cost discount if you're using a Energy form but doesn't strip it.

thekrazzee · June 2017

Snow Storm [TIER 2]
+Power damage slightly increased.
Advantages
Eye of the Storm [2 Points]
+Snow Storm slowly pulls foes towards your target.
(New) Icicle Maker [2 Points]
FX Change: Ice Objects akin to an Ice Barrier periodically form in the area of the Snow Storm.
+Snow Storm has a 25% chance to create an Ice Object within in radius.
+Ice Objects created by your Snow Storm explode after 8 seconds, dealing Cold damage in a 10 foot Sphere.
(New) Nor'Easter [2 Points]
+Snow Storm deals 25% bonus base damage while you are affected by Cold Snap.

Storm Summoner [TIER 2]
Storm Summoner channels electricity to gather around you, shocking foes that come near you. When enough
electricity is gathered, you unleash it into a devastating burst of lightning.
FX Change: Now has sound when used.
+Changed description.
+Power damage slightly increased.
-Now has a 10 second recharge.
+Full-maintain burst damage slightly increased.
+Fully maintainign Storm Summoner applies Negative Ions to targets.
Advantages
(New) Neurological Shock [2 Points]
+Fully maintaining Storm Summoner consumes your Negative Ions effects to Paralyze targets.
(New) Storm's Fury [2 Points]
+Fully maintaining Storm Summoner Snares targets.
+Fully maintaining Storm Summoner on targets affected by your Negative Ions deals additional Electrical damage.
Strong Winds [2 Points]
+Storm Summoner Repels targets.
+Fully maintaining Storm Summoner Knocks Down targets.

Invocation of Storm Calling [TIER 2]
Invocation of Storm Calling is an incantation that calls upon natural forces to summon primal lightning to
strike down your foes, leaving them at the mercy of your eldritch energy.
+Changed description.
+Power damage slightly increased.
-Now has a 10 second recharge.
+Full maintain burst damage increased.
-Mystical advantage removed.
Advantages
(New) Shamanic Revelations [2 Points]
+Invocation of Storm Calling has a 10% chance to apply Mystified to you each pulse.
+Fully maintaining Invocation of Storm Calling applies or refreshed the duration of Mystified on you.

Penetrating Arrow [TIER 3]
Penetrating Arrow fits your arrow with a powerful tip capable of flying at unparalleled speed that goes
through your foe's defenses.
+Renamed from Focused Shot and changed description.
+Power damage greatly increased.
-Energy cost increased.
-Now has a 20 second recharge.
+Focused Shot deals 15% of its damage as Penetrating Damage.
+Focused Shot Knocks Down your target.
Advantages
Ballista Bolt [2 Points]
+Penetrating Arrow's Penetrating Damage is increased by 50%.
+Penetrating Arrow has a 20%-100% chance to remove a Shield from your target, based on charge time.
(New) Hunter's Moxie [2 Points]
+Fully charging Penetrating Arrow applies Hunter's Moxie to you. Hunter's Moxie increases the damage of
your next Ranged power by 10% for 10 seconds. This bonus is doubled if that power is an Archery power.
(New) Stalk your Prey [2 Points]
+Penetrating Arrow deals 50% bonus base damage while you are in Stealth.
+Penetrating Arrow generates 75% less Threat.
(New) The Hunt Begins! [2 Points]
+Penetrating Arrow deals 30% bonus base damage if your target has more than 90% Health.

Holy Water [TIER 2]
Holy Water splashes water blessed by a higher plane that heals the innocent and harms the guilty.
+Changed description.
+Power damage increased.
+Healing strength slightly increased.
Advantages
(New) Sparkling Water [2 Points]
+Holy Water has a 20% chance to Illuminate targets each pulse.
(New) The Power Compels You [2 Points]
+If targeting a friend: Holy Water has a 20% chance to remove a random Debuff from your target.
+If targeting a foe: Holy Water has a 20% chance to apply Clinging Flames to your target.
(New) Generosity [2 Points]
+Holy Water affects all units in it radius.

Guiding Light [TIER 1]
Guiding Light shines a celestial light upon your target that empowers the healing your friends receive and forcing your foes to provide safety for your friends.
+Renamed from Illumination and changed description.
-Power recharge increased to 20 seconds.
+If targeting a foe, Guiding Light deals Dimensional damage to foes in a 15 foot Sphere.
-Brilliance advantage removed.
Advantages
(New) Enlighten [2 Points]
+If targeting a foe: Guiding Light Stuns targets.
+If targeting a friend: Guiding Light breaks targets free from Holds.
(New) See No Evil [2 Points]
+If targeting a foe, Guiding Light applies Blindness to targets. Blindness lowers Perception and Stealth Sight by 50% for 10 seconds.
+Blindness is a type of Curse.
+If targeting a friend, Guiding Light applies Clarity to targets. Clarity increases Perception and Stealth Sight by 50% for 10 seconds.
+Clarity is a type of Enchantment.

Shuriken Throw [TIER 1]
+Innately scales with Strength instead of Ego.
-Now has a 5 second recharge.
-No longer Knocks Down targets.
+Shuriken Throw has a 50% chance to Interrupt your target.
-Chained Kunai and Strong Arm advantages removed.
Advantages
(New) Fan of Shurikens [2 Points]
FX Change: The user throws shurikens in a fan.
-Shuriken Throw's recharge becomes 8 seconds.
-Shuriken Throw's range becomes 50 feet.
+Shuriken Throw has a 60 degree Cone.
Poison Shuriken [1 Point]
+Shuirken Throw applies or refreshes the stacks of Deadly Poison your target has.
Serrated Edges [1 Point]
+Shuriken Throw applies or refreshes the stacks of Bleed your target has.

Nuclear Shockwave [TIER 3]
Nuclear Shockwave unleashes a cataclysmic wave of nuclear energy in front of you, eradicating foes and leaving a trail of devastation.
+Changed description.
+Power damage drastically increased.
-Energy cost greatly increased.
-Now has a 30 second recharge.
-Must be fully charged.
+Knocks Down targets.
+Snares targets.
Advantages
(New) Fallout [2 Points]
+Nuclear Shockwave Stuns foes.
+Nuclear Shockwave applies Radiation to targets. Radiation has a 25% chance to apply Plasma Burn every 2 seconds over 10 seconds.
(New) Half Life [2 Points]
+Nuclear Shockwave leaves behind irradiated ground for 10 seconds, dealing Particle damage and Snaring foes that walk onto it or stand on it each second.

Gravitic Ripple [TIER 3]
Gravitic Ripple distorts the gravity around you, causing nearby foes to become nexuses of gravitic force and pull other foes near them.
+Changed description.
+Power damage increased.
-Energy cost increased.
Advantages
(New) Disrupted Harmonics [2 Points]
+Foes affected by your Gravity Well have their Knock and Repel resistance reduced by 30%.
(New) Epicenter [1 Point]
+Foes affected by Gravitic Ripple are slowly pulled towards you.
(New) Gravity Collapse [2 Points]
+When you stop maintaining Gravitic Ripple, foes affected by your Gravity Well are Knocked Down.
(New) Kinetic Distribution [2 Points]
+Foes affected by your Gravity Well who are trapped by your Containment Field have a 20% chance to apply the Containment Field effect to foes within 5 feet of them each second. Containment Field Paralyzes the target and lowers Knock and Repel Resistance by 25%.

Scorch [TIER 0]
Scorch channels fire into a concentrated ball of volatile flames at your target, leaving them burning and empowering your flames for a short period.
Animation Change: While charging, fire emanates from the user's hands. While attacking, the user performs the Fire Strike attack animation.
+Renamed from Fire Strike.
+Changed description.
+Becomes a Charge power.
+Power damage and Energy cost scaled for a charged Blast power.
-Range decreased to 50 feet.
+25%-100% chance to apply Clinging Flames, based on charge time.
+Fully charging Fire Strike applies Fiery Escalation to you. Fiery Escalation grants Fire Offense by 3% for 3 seconds.
-Kindling advantage removed.
Advantages
(New) Devouring Flames [2 Points]
+Fire Strike deals 15% bonus base damage to your target if they are affected by your Clinging Flames effect.
+Fire Strike has a 15% chance to return 50% of its Energy Cost to you as Energy.
(New) Volatile Flares [2 Points]
-Fire Strike costs 10% more Energy.
-Fire Strike no longer applies Fiery Escalation on you.
+Fully charging Fire Strike instead applies Accelerant to your target. Accelerant lowers Fire Damage Resistance by 6% for 6 seconds. Stacks up to 3 times.
Wildfire [2 Points]
+Fire Strike affects targets in a 15 foot Sphere of your target is affected by your Clinging Flames effect.
+Fire Strike refreshes the duration of your Clinging Flames effect on affected foes.

Hunter's Instinct [TIER 1]
The thrill of the hunt presses you on as you close in on your prey.
+Changed description.
+Generates Energy whenever you deal damage with a direct damaging Ranged power. Scales with your Intelligence.
+The Energy Gain is increased by 25% if the damage was dealt by a fully-charged Ranged power.
-This can only occur once every 3 seconds.

Twister [TIER 2]
Twister imprisons your foe within fast moving winds that rips them apart.
+Twister deals Crushing damage over time while the target is Paralyzed.
+Damage dealt by Twister doesn't affect the durability of the Paralyze.
+Disorients and Erodes your target once the Paralyze expires. (Erode's my idea for a central Wind debuff. It's a 5% damage res. debuff)
Advantages
(New) Nullifying Winds [2 Points]
+Your Twister applies or refreshes the duration of your Trauma effect on your target.
(New) Supercell [3 Points]
FX Change: A storm cloud appears above your Twister
+Your Twister arrives from a storm cloud, dealing Electrical damage to a random enemy within 25 feet of your target each second while the Paralyze persists. The storm has a 30% chance to apply Negative Ions and deals additional Electrical damage to foes affected by Negative Ions.

Unstoppable [TIER 1]
+Damage absorption slightly increased.
+Grants a small amount of Damage Resistance. Scales with your Super Stats.
+Grants a small amount of Energy when you Knock a foe. Scales with your Strength. This effect can occur once every 3 seconds.

Rocket Launcher [TIER 2]
The Rocket Launcher is a fearsome weapon that fires an explosive warhead at your foes, demolishing them.
+Renamed from Rocket and changed description.
+Energy cost scales with charge time, with the current Energy cost being the cost of a full charge.
-No longer innately deals Fire damage.
-Power recharge increased to 10 seconds.
+25%-100% chance to apply Furious to you.
Advantages
(New) Anti-Tank Rocket [2 Points]
+Rocket Launcher has a 25%-100% chance to apply Armor Piercing to targets, based on charge time.
Concussive Rocket [2 Points]
+Fully charging Rocket Launcher Knocks Back targets. Targets Knocked Back by your Rocket Launcher are Disoriented.
(New) Incendiary Rocket [2 Points]
+Rocket Launcher deals 50% of its damage as Fire damage.
+Rocket Launcher has a 25%-100% chance to apply Clinging Flames, based on charge time.
+Fully charging Rocket Launcher creates a Burning Patch at your target's location.

Intensity [TIER 2]
-Becomes a Tier 2 power.
+Grants 1/2/3 stacks of Focus, based on Rank. Only occurs if you have a Martial Arts Form active.
Advantages
(New) Against All Odds [2 Points]
+Intensity grants you 4% Damage Strength for each foe within 15 feet of you, up to 20% Damage Strength while there are 5 foes near you.

vorshoth · June 2017

On older powers, I'd suggest the player (nonvehicle) tractor beam needs something. It was one of the first reverse repels afaik, great for pulling people into mines and sigils, but right now there's powers that does what it does far more reliably.

My best guess would be to add an additional control effect to stop an enemy using powers, or add plasma burn so it has a DoT.

It doesn't need to be especially powerful in damage, but the thing it does best isn't reliable, often feeling like pot luck whether you can tug anything other than a henchman towards your zone of death.

Unknown · June 2017

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erile · June 2017

I still find that Focused Shot does zero damage and never triggers any associated effects. Perhaps it is underpowered because it never works as it is supposed to?

avianos · June 2017

since you already mentioned Snowstorm and Vapor form

Ice Burst

LONG Cooldown (30 seconds) for a power that has barely does anything
Damage is weak and deals exactly the same damage when Shattered like other
Utilities are weak and almois
Rank 3 barely adds any damage

Reduce the Cooldown to 10-15 seconds
Add Restoration ADV
Add healing Rune ADV to give ICE a support power
Improve the Paralazy synergy
Change the Knock Back into either Knock DOWN or UP so it can be less obnoxious in team play
Give this power some gosh darn utility

Seriously why wasnt this power touched at all? but again neither did the Vaping form did on ice revamp

raighn · June 2017

Binding shot
Power armor cc ability that is virtually unusable by power armor.
Make it count as a hand slot power

Energy wave
The power itself is fine... it just cant be used with its own power set and its special advantage is severly underwelming.
Tag as chest slot
Hardened particle matrix provides a stronger shield and nolonger scales with enemies hit.

sterga · June 2017

Did I miss something? Mend is a 15% chance to give out a pitiful heal on hit... That sounds pretty rubbish to me. Especially when you think about how often that won't trigger with charge up attacks. Or that we have Sentinel Mastery which is sooooo much better and super easy to apply.

aesica · June 2017

sterga wrote: »

Did I miss something? Mend is a 15% chance to give out a pitiful heal on hit... That sounds pretty rubbish to me. Especially when you think about how often that won't trigger with charge up attacks. Or that we have Sentinel Mastery which is sooooo much better and super easy to apply.

Given how fire-and-forget the effect is, it's fine being a weaker heal since you can stack it with other HoTs for semi-decent gains. The 15% chance is pretty trash though and should probably get bumped up to 50% at the very least. 100% ideally, because that way, RNG stops being a factor.

raighn wrote: »

Binding shot
Power armor cc ability that is virtually unusable by power armor.
Make it count as a hand slot power

Energy wave
The power itself is fine... it just cant be used with its own power set and its special advantage is severly underwelming.
Tag as chest slot
Hardened particle matrix provides a stronger shield and nolonger scales with enemies hit.

Seems like a good chunk of Power Armor has this problem. The charged individual-use powers were completely neglected in the power armor pass, and it'd be really nice to see them go back and clean that part up at some point.

avianos · June 2017

aesica wrote: »

Seems like a good chunk of Power Armor has this problem. The charged individual-use powers were completely neglected in the power armor pass, and it'd be really nice to see them go back and clean that part up at some point.

Not to mention, the DEVs never bothered making a new PA energy unlock and self heal if you intend to use those powers

so Overdrive and Reconstruction Circuits have zero synergy for non-toggle PA

List of Underperforming Powers (and possible ways to improve them)

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