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Survivor Build (Please Help)
mlmii
Posts: 111 Arc User
I'm trying to build a hero that can survive where angels fear to tread and hopefully have enough passive energy management to keep up the AoE DPS.... However, I have a little voice in the back of my head that is telling me that I'm going about it the wrong way, so any help is welcome.
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Recovery (Secondary)
Level 15: Ego (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Command Training
Level 12: Field Ops Training
Level 15: Negotiator
Level 18: Academics
Level 21: Brilliant
Powers:
Level 1: Psi Lash
Level 1: Rebuke (Admonish)
Level 6: Vengeance (Rank 2, Redemption Denied, Challenging Strikes)
Level 8: Defiance (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Devour Essence (Phlebotomist)
Level 14: Force Shield (Force Sheathe)
Level 17: Sparkstorm (Electric Personality, Challenging Strikes)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Protection Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 26: Support Drones (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 29: Ego Storm (Malevolent Manifestation)
Level 32: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 35: Immolation (Blazing Body)
Level 38: Palliate (Absolve)
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight
Level 35: Teleportation
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Revitalize (1/3)
Intelligence: Tinkering (2/2)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Recovery (Secondary)
Level 15: Ego (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Command Training
Level 12: Field Ops Training
Level 15: Negotiator
Level 18: Academics
Level 21: Brilliant
Powers:
Level 1: Psi Lash
Level 1: Rebuke (Admonish)
Level 6: Vengeance (Rank 2, Redemption Denied, Challenging Strikes)
Level 8: Defiance (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Devour Essence (Phlebotomist)
Level 14: Force Shield (Force Sheathe)
Level 17: Sparkstorm (Electric Personality, Challenging Strikes)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Protection Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 26: Support Drones (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 29: Ego Storm (Malevolent Manifestation)
Level 32: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 35: Immolation (Blazing Body)
Level 38: Palliate (Absolve)
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight
Level 35: Teleportation
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Revitalize (1/3)
Intelligence: Tinkering (2/2)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Post edited by mlmii on
0
Comments
Do you intend on being a full tank? Cause you lack a crippling challenge adv, didn't SS Con (so you'll have low HP- and low DR & energy return form Defiance), and picked up a threat wipe. Are you just trying to build a durable aoe hybrid? Cause then the crippling strikes adv are giving you unneeded aggro, you piled on too many heals and defensive abilities that you're damage will be lacking, and you'll probably have energy issues when not getting hit (lacking an energy-giving toggle or an energy unlock). Its also somewhat a waste of points to rank up Defiance (force of will is alright, though).
It seems you want to have both aoe toggles avail (Ego storm's and sparkstorm's) in addition to another aoe spell. Okay, that's quite energy intensive, but could be made to work (keep in mind ya can get high aoe dmg w/ even just one aoe ability if you pick right; would prob be more efficient and less clunky than combining the lower dmg ego/sparkstorm toggles).
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
I guess if I had to choose between DPS or surviving I'd rather wage battles that took longer to wage and not be in any real danger of dying (Providing of course that I'm able to do enough DPS to actually win of course.). Since I don't plan on teaming with people except when I have no choice agro itself isn't really an issue for me as I'll generally have all of it anyways, I found Challenging Strikes appealing for the damage debuff aspect.
Energy management is perhaps the biggest thorn in my side that I honestly haven't been able to wrap my head around very well, as far as I can tell the energy unlock powers tend to tie a hero to a single one trick power set. (Molecular Self-Assembly sounds interesting but I've never been quite sure how to milk the most of it given that most of the "timer" powers tends to be longer then most of the battles I've seen.)
Perhaps the best way to sum up what I want to aim for but haven't been able to pull off is that I want to be able to enter an alert or an "elite" mission, promptly pull a "Jenkins" and then actually survive and win.
(Shortly after Hero City went live I had a character --force field/energy blaster-- that I accidently fell into a room full of red minion baddies, (Clockwork King) and although I couldn't do any real damage to them, they also couldn't kill me. I spent the rest of the mission trapped in that room joking in team chat while the rest of my team finished the mission. I want to try to recreate that feeling in Champions Online.)
I'm just not quite sure where to start....
P.S. I almost forgot, I typically use Rebuke as my first strike to draw the mobs towards me, plus to allow me to pick my main attack, Vengeance at level six to use against the Qularr in the MC Crisis Zone.
*EDIT*
Palliate is basically there just in case I bite off more then I can chew and need to run, hopefully with everyone's help I'll be able to manage to create a character where it becomes completely redundant...
Eh, problem is that's still not very specific cause there's a plethora of ways to make a sturdy hero w/ decent aoe (almost any decent pve tank build can work for that, by default, for example).
W/o a theme as ur guide, you can cherry-pick some of the many different tools like Masterful Dodge, Lightning Reflex + Bountiful Chi/RR, Invuln or Defiant or Regeneration, Ascension, Conviction, Ebon Void w/ Voracious Darkness, Resurgence, Eye of the Storm, Devour Essence, or Unbreakable to stay alive pretty easily (I usually pick one low-cd heal like Conviction or BCR/RR and 2 active defenses- usually MD and Resurgence.. though palliate/absolve can replace one of these if needed). Inertial Dampening Field can also greatly lower henchman dmg.. though I tend to dislike IDF w/o something like Defiance because it hampers energy generation & damage, and its one of the only toggles you'll want to rank up.
After that you just pick an easy-to-use and/or powerful AoE du jour like Epidemic, Lead Tempest, Hurricane, Shuriken Storm, Sword Cyclone, Lightning Storm, Conflag, Avalanche, Ricochet Throw, Strafe Run, or Brimstone (some are melee/str scaling, most are ranged/ego scaling- pick appropriately). You can add an ego storm toggle on top of this if energy allows, though its not necessary from a dmg aspect the aoe disable is nice.
Regardless of what you pick, you'll want Con as one of ur SS's (not necc the primary SS, though fuel my fire, Adren Rush, and knock resist are quite nice), and either warden/vindicator or guardian/vindicator for the spec trees (good ol wardicator/ gaurdicator..).
Not gonna give ya a build cause there's too many options (and I personally don't like making theme-less builds), but hope that helps some.
Oh, and as far as energy unlocks: most universal one is MSA w/ Int as a SS- easy to pair it w/ short cds like Conviction, Strafe Run, Thunderclap, melee lunges, etc etc (there's a ton of em). Another popular choice is Thermal Reverb w/ Flashfire. Overdrive w/ decent Recovery can also work w/ toggles like ego storm- and w/ most AoEs since they are maintains.
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
In my mind at least, although I apparently missed the mark in the execution thereof, I was aiming for a "theme lite", the hero in question was a magi-tek tinker/weapons tester who was infused with the energy of a collapsing timeline (temporal/dimensional/force).
So I guess the theme lite could be described as an immortal energy vortex with an inclination towards tinkering on the side (I envision the fx behind both psi lash and devour essence to be the direct manipulation of the raw temporal energy from the target their "thereness" if you will.).
Ah well, back to the drawing board....
Well that's something a bit more concrete to work with. My problem isn't as much w/ making a build w/ non-coherent abilities (ur free to do that, and it can be done 'effectively'.. most 'cookie-cutter' pvp-style builds are accused of this, for ex) its more like.. w/o such an outline there's waaayy too much to choose from and I can't make my mind up about a build to recommend.
I can def support the idea of a 'magi-tech' type character, though (I have one myself, though he uses mostly arcane spells; the 'tech' part comes from him being a cybernetically infused to amp magic energy, and not actually using 'tech' abilities).
So, fitting 'magic' trees for you would be telepathy, celestial, force, or arcane.. maybe electricity if ur going for the 'unstable energy' thing? That and some tech or futuristic weapons?
Here's a quick build I threw together for that concept:
http://tinyurl.com/mgpyjp8
Hex is in there to keep MSA going on single targets (can also be used in aoe). For aoe, I took lightning storm as ur main spell- use a charged energy wave if you need to clump up enemies, and ego storm for the aoe hold. Use conviction as ur main heal to patch up, and resurgence/unbreakable and ebon void for bigger pulls. I kept palliate/absolve in there as you seemed to want the safe-fall. I also kept 2 points free for the travel powers so you can rank up both or rank one up to r3.
'Tech' abilities here are PBR, Invuln, Energy Wave, Unbreakable, and MSA; rest are 'magic' sampling from dimensional, celestial, and electricity (ala unstable energy). Hope that ties it together as you liked (or at least, gives you more guidance when building).
(oh, and you can switch Int primary to Con primary if you'd like to be a bit more durable and knock-resistant, though you'll lose a bit of dmg and overall stats; if taking Con primary then pickup Resilient, Fuel My Fire, Adren Rush, and Armored and/or Tough, as well as Constitution mastery)
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Ego (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Intelligence (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: Matter Manipulator
Level 6: Enduring
Level 9: Indomitable
Level 12: Brilliant
Level 15: Healthy Mind
Level 18: Ascetic
Level 21: Academics
Powers:
Level 1: Force Bolts (Energy Refraction)
Level 1: Rebuke (Rank 2, Admonish)
Level 6: Vengeance (Rank 2, Redemption Denied, Challenging Strikes)
Level 8: Defiance (Force of Will)
Level 11: Ebon Void (Voracious Darkness)
Level 14: Molecular Self-Assembly
Level 17: Masterful Dodge (Unfettered Strikes)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Hex of Suffering (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 26: Flashfire (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 29: Ego Storm (Malevolent Manifestation)
Level 32: Resurgence (Rank 2)
Level 35: Implosion Engine (Inverse Polarization Field)
Level 38: Rebirth
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Teleportation
Specializations:
Ego: Force of Will (2/2)
Ego: Insight (3/3)
Ego: Follow Through (3/3)
Ego: Sixth Sense (2/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Make It Count (1/3)
Guardian: Ruthless (2/2)
Guardian: Retribution (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Protector: Beacon of Hope (1/3)
Protector: Unrelenting (2/2)
Protector: Bulwark (2/2)
Protector: Exhausting Strikes (2/2)
Protector: Resolute (3/3)
Mastery: Protector Mastery (1/1)
To get a little more to brass tacks, I want to talk about a few of the powers/changes I made. Keep in mind, I basically did all the changes to come around with "Visually cool"
First off, IIRC Defiance ranks just give you more passive Defiance stacks. Pass.
Second, because you want to "roll" abilities, what I did was give you Hex of Suffering and Flashfire to coincide with Ego Storm. I also added in MSA which lets you swap out Defiance (if you want), but if you have no energy issues it can be easily replacable.
Next, I scrapped Sparkstorm/Electric Personality but instead gave you Implosion Engine with Reverse Polarity Field for a nice visual effect. I figured gathering everything together for a nice amount of "oomph" would feel more impressive then constantly throwing everything away (this is just a change born of personal taste, nothing else really).
Beyond that, I also scrapped Vindicator for Protector so you have a near constant heal going on (knocked/held) and the mastery basically lets you cackle insanely if you ever fall below a given threshold since you can effectively pop one or both Active defenses at any given time and know they'll be up when you need it.
Cuttable/Changeable powers include: Implosion Engine, MSA (energy allowing), Rebirth and Hex/Flashfire.
By the by, Immolation's Blazing Body doesn't work. Sadness =(
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name: Abstruse
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Constitution (Primary)
Level 10: Intelligence (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Paramilitary Training
Level 21: Command Training
Powers:
Level 1: Psi Lash
Level 1: Force Blast (Field Inversion)
Level 6: Force Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Force Sheathe)
Level 8: Defiance (Force of Will)
Level 11: Hurricane (Perfect Storm)
Level 14: Devour Essence (Phlebotomist)
Level 17: Overdrive
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Lightning Storm (Stolen Thunder, Nailed to the Ground)
Level 26: Unbreakable (Better You Than Me)
Level 29: Ego Storm (Malevolent Manifestation)
Level 32: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 35: Implosion Engine (Inverse Polarization Field)
Level 38: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Specializations:
Constitution: Unyielding (2/2)
Constitution: Fuel My Fire (3/3)
Constitution: Resilient (2/2)
Constitution: Adrenaline Rush (1/2)
Constitution: Armored (2/2)
Sentry: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Sentry: Twist Fate (2/2)
Sentry: Sentry Aura (3/3)
Sentry: Fortify (2/2)
Protector: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Protector: Unrelenting (2/2)
Protector: Defensive Expertise (3/3)
Protector: Resolute (2/3)
Mastery: Protector Mastery (1/1)
*EDIT*
I'm thinking about maybe changing out f-shield for t-shield and its' better blocking defenses (Besides, I think the FX looks cooler.), also I'm wondering whether or not the extra healing from Devour Essence is going to be all around better then having the star insurance and not having to respawn in the middle of a mission or alert...
-r3 in Force shield shouldn't really be necessary. If you are blocking often, then Ebon Void w/ its adv provides the most DR when stacked by far. If you dun block too much, then force sheath can give you good energy return, otherwise most blocks are pretty similar.
-I'm unsure why you took Field Inversion on Force Blast, since you dun have any containment field effects. The blast is not great for single target dmg, but it can double as a knock if needed.
-Although Implosion Engine is decent, I probably wouldn't use any adv points on it, given its longer cd. Its one of those cds that's fun for the utility, but at the core isn't needed at all.
-Better You Than Me w/ Unbreakable probably isn't going to add much since ur primarily using ranged abilities. Although Unbreakable is good, Masterful Dodge will probably be stronger if ya dun mind taking a MA skill.
-Perfect Storm on Hurricane is, iirc, a 3-point adv- may be more efficient to just go to r2 and save one point.
-Its also a bit redundant to have 2 strong aoes (Lightning Storm and Hurri)- Hurri's a bit easier to use and less costly, but somewhat lower base dmg, and you'll have to be close-range and deal w/ the enemy repel.
-Ego surge w/ HM gives you some nice crit for adren rush heals, some extra damage, and another hold breaker (Resurgence w/ EE being the other).. so I'd prob keep it around.
-You were probably having energy issues before because you took Regen (which is a good choice in itself) w/ IDF- a non-energy granting toggle. I'd either go w/ Defiant + IDF, or Regen/Invuln/LR + Concentration- not mixing the two types. The Defiant option gives you easy energy (just for getting hit), but is lower dmg; the Concentration options give you energy based on offensive ability use (so energy isn't as easy to gain, though by no means difficult, and doesn't require you getting hit), but gives more dmg w/ Int scaling.
You seem to be set on Devour Essence. That's fine- its kinda clunky to use on a non-melee character, but it does work w/ Overdrive. Ya may want another heal that doesn't require melee range, like Conviction or Bionic Shielding, just in case though (cutting one of the aoes and implosion engine gives ya 2 free power slots to work w/- one for a heal and maybe another for more single target dmg).
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
One of the habits that I've seemed to pick up which may or may not actually be conductive is that I throw an attack or two and then block until either f-shield or t-shield's "lasting block" kicks in and then repeat the process, the idea is that even while I'm attacking I should be getting at least some extra "free" block time.
*EDIT* The few times that I've been on a team with a good "tank", I've tended to find myself planted right next to him spamming the same powers that I use while solo, although that may be my lack of practice playing with others...
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Constitution (Primary)
Level 10: Intelligence (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Glacier
Level 6: Quick Recovery
Level 9: Healthy Mind
Level 12: Negotiator
Level 15: Impresario
Level 18: Coordinated
Level 21: Acrobat
Powers:
Level 1: Psi Lash
Level 1: Infernal Blast (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 6: Devour Essence (Rank 2, Phlebotomist)
Level 8: Defiance
Level 11: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenging Strikes)
Level 14: Overdrive
Level 17: Telekinetic Shield (Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Ego Storm (Malevolent Manifestation)
Level 26: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 29: Bionic Shielding (Rank 2, Overloaded Circuits)
Level 32: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Level 35: Unbreakable
Level 38: Defile (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Specializations:
Constitution: Fuel My Fire (3/3)
Constitution: Tough (1/3)
Constitution: Resilient (2/2)
Constitution: Adrenaline Rush (2/2)
Warden: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Warden: Ruthless (2/2)
Warden: Elusive (2/2)
Warden: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: Merciless (3/3)
Vindicator: Focused Strikes (3/3)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (2/3)
Mastery: Constitution Mastery (1/1)
I changed ur block to TK shield by request, added Bionic Shield for another heal option (that doubles as a damage reflect), and gave you Defile for single targets (against lone opponents, use defile for the debuff and channel devour essence in between). Infernal blast was included as a cheap way to put up poison so DE's phlebotomist adv heals you more- though I think defile's debuff works for that too.
I also changed ur spec around since Wardicator will give you better dmg, higher crits and crit rate for Adren rush, and some nice aoe resistance (could consider putting 1-2 points into rush of battle for the heal on kill, as well), and not much a difference in tankiness. I kept CS on Hurricane since you said you wanted the debuff.
Defile isn't necessary, but I figured you could use the extra single-target dmg since ur already fine on heals, tank cds, and aoe.
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Command Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Psi Lash
Level 1: Infernal Blast (Virulent Propagation)
Level 6: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 8: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 11: Devour Essence (Phlebotomist)
Level 14: Epidemic (Outbreak)
Level 17: Overdrive
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Lightning Storm (Stolen Thunder, Nailed to the Ground)
Level 26: Hurricane (Rank 2, Perfect Storm)
Level 29: Masterful Dodge (Unfettered Strikes)
Level 32: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Level 35: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 38: Rebirth
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Flight
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Revitalize (1/3)
Intelligence: Tinkering (2/2)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
What do you guys think of this tweak? It seems to do fairly well pulling a "Jenkins" against all three MC Powerhouse gangs (Had more trouble against Demon, and oddly enough, PSI was the easiest instead of Purple as I had expected.), and as long as I stuck to alternating between Epidemic and Hurricane with Devour Essence as needed (Only against Demon and then rarely.) I didn't seem to have any of the energy troubles that I expected, although when I started using Lightning Storm on the blasters that refused to swarm me did it hurt.
But, as it has been pointed out to me in the past, Powerhouse can only give you a single gauge of a build's survival ability, how do you think this build would fair against actual bosses and real content?
A couple of notes:
I'm pleasantly surprised at how strong Lightning Reflexes felt, even when compared to my old favorite Unbreakable...
Given that my two main swarm attacks are self targeting, is the stealth detection and passive stat bonuses that having INT as a primary are giving me worth the tradeoff as opposed to sticking with CON as my primary?
As much as I hate to admit it, I'm not exactly too happy with psi lash anymore, if I stick a melee power in there and switch my options for my energy builder to never turn off does the auto taunt actually work at forcing the npcs to swarm me that otherwise wouldn't? Or would it instead just mess up my pacing for rolling between my two PBAoEs?
*EDIT*
Oh, and as usual, Rebirth is the power that I mainly used as star insurance in Powerhouse, I'm always open to suggestions on something to replace it with for utility purposes...
Maybe I've just gotten stuck into a rut of trying to build for cooldown timers that don't actually exist in this game....
Well, anyways.. Epidemic is one of the highest dps aoes, yes, and partly due to the poison. Despite its fame, I dislike Epidemic simply because it gives no CC/defense options whatsoever. Its like a giant 'Kill me now' sign when dps use it on big crowds cause its damage makes it an aggro magnet, and when channeling it you aren't controlling the mobs at all (amazing aoe for a tank or hybrid dps/tank, though).
I wouldn't get a melee end builder- for anyone- unless there's no avoiding it. The taunt feature doesn't return energy, and I find w/ the wonky targeting in this game that it can be really annoying getting energy w/ one when mobs are scattered.
And by 'lightning reflexes' I assume you meant MD? Yeah its a good cd- can be stronger than Unbreakable.
You shouldn't judge a build solely by its aoe performance against somewhat easy trash mobs in the powerhouse, either. You seem to be doing that and that's going to give you a skewed, somewhat impractical build when you go to do anything other than aoe trash
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
Thanks...
My main concern right now is you've focused so much on the aoe tank aspect that you won't be much a help vs. bosses. What do you intend to do in an extended fight against one?
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Command Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Power Bolts (It Burns)
Level 1: Telekinetic Assault (Explosive Potential)
Level 6: Overdrive
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 14: Devour Essence
Level 17: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenging Strikes)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Vengeance (Rank 2, Redemption Denied)
Level 26: Unbreakable (Rank 2)
Level 29: Empathic Healing
Level 32: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Level 35: Masterful Dodge (Rank 2, Unfettered Strikes)
Level 38: Rebirth
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: 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: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Took this build out for a test drive last night, managed to whittle the 28th level Mega D in MC down to ~600K before the timer ran out and then made what I thought would be a quick run through Resistance on Elite... The good news is that with the exception of when I wasn't playing attention and got curb stomped in the psi level of the prison the only time that I died was when I was forced to take on one of the Mega D Overseers and it's pet clone at the same time (It had managed to agro on the resistance team's spawn point and the dumb bomber refused to carry on with is mission in favor of shooting at the thrice damned thing.), and although I did manage to beat it in the end, it took several rebirths to do it (Some of those was me learning the cue for the big attack.). The bad news is that the "quick" run took 4 1/2 hours.
So honestly, I'm not sure what I'm going to do against the actual Big Bads of the game, but I need to figure something else out...
Some notes:
As long as I stuck to Hurricane and Devour Essence I felt like I was doing fairly decent damage most of the time (However given how long it took I doubt the numbers would bare that out.), although I'm not quite sure what to think of TK Assault, sometimes it felt ok but most of the time it was "meh", even with the extra little AoE tacked on. (Maybe it is the goofy looking FX that is throwing me off a bit...)
Found myself actually avoiding using Vengeance on this build so I suppose that power needs traded out...
Maybe I had a bad run but Masterful Dodge didn't seem to work that great compared to Unbreakable this time...
Didn't seem to have energy problems at all, whether I had my energy builder on or off, and that is kind of making me wonder what would happen if I dropped Rec as a SS all together in exchange for something else...
CC is a gaint thorn in my arse, but INT as a primary felt slightly more powerful overall then Con, although I'm not quite sure whether or not to trade my point of Def Pen for the Cooldown Reduction...
Is Rebirth the only rez that you can use on yourself or can the other rezes be self targeting? (They don't mention it in their description so I'm guessing not.)
The fact that Empathic Healing roots you took me by surprise (Love the FX though.), enough so that for escort missions and the like I'm thinking that I need another heal, I'm actually considering Radiance of all things, hopefully you'll have something better in mind...
You could add TK Lance as a finisher and that would pretty much fix any single target dps issues you'd have, but if you go that route I'd also add something like TK maelstrom for faster ego leech stacking (Maelstrom is a really strong aoe/cc in its own right- if it fits the theme). General idea is to use TK Assault/Maelstrom to 5 leech stacks, full-charge Lance, repeat.
If you need to free up points, you almost never need to rank up end builders (I mean the whole point is that ur energy management is so good you dun often need to use them anyways), and ranking up active offenses or defenses doesn't give much extra benefit (considering their uptime.. though bonus advs like nimble mind can be worth it).
Can't blame you for not liking Vengeance; its radius is only decent when full charged, and full charging an aoe can get impractical or annoying pretty quickly.
Empathic healing will be pretty weak on a non-Support toon w/o decent Pres or +healing items, esp when unranked and w/ a lower crit rate. Its good for patching up if you invest in it, but in-combat the long channel can be impractical (esp if you get interrupted). Like Vengeance, I'd consider dropping it. Also, Empathic healing doesn't actually root when casted on urself, but it will root you if used on an ally.
I think w/ the changes to Unbreakable that it and MD will be pretty comparable for you at this point. May as well stick w/ Unbreakable, imo, since it meshes more w/ ur theme than an MA ability. MD could be swapped for Resurgence- for when you just need a big heal and dun have the time or the range to channel DE.
Yeah, Rebirth is the only self-res power. Other means to that are via devices (recovery packs being the easiest to get).
You mean Revitalize? Eh, this isn't a cd-centric dps build, and you shouldn't have to use the end builder that much. I'd stick to the defense pen if you want better damage from Int as a primary (its comparable to- or arguably better than- crit severity talents other trees have if you are fighting a higher ranked mob or boss w/ higher defenses or a defense passive). The most important cds to you have are the tank cds, and those can be reduced via gear.
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Command Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Radiance
Level 1: Telekinetic Assault (Rank 2, Explosive Potential)
Level 6: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenging Strikes)
Level 14: Overdrive
Level 17: Devour Essence (Rank 2)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Telekinetic Lance (Rank 2, Id Infusion)
Level 26: Unbreakable
Level 29: Sonic Device (Deafening Dissolution)
Level 32: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Level 35: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 38: Rebirth
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Flight
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Detect Vulnerability (3/3)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
From what limited testing I've done, Radiance is mostly going to be used to keep the NPCs healed on escort missions once I grow out of needing an energy builder on all of the time. I'm not quite sure about Sonic Device, on paper it seems like a nice little boost to my opening attack, but I'm wondering if Illumination might be a better tanking option, especially since it has no cooldown and can be made an AoE buff. (Hmm, wonder if Regen counts as healing for that purpose?)
I do agree with you, I think I've fallen in love with AoE too much, I can't quite bring myself to give up adding it to TK Assault since most mods that I'd be attacking from a distance are still going to be grouped close enough for both it and TK Lance's AoE to get...
Something that might bite me in the arse is trading Tinkering in favor of maxing Detect Vulnerability to help when it comes time to take on some of the bigger bads... Still, with the Debugger's free gear, the difference was 9% Damage / 34% Defense vs 9.7% Damage / 37% Defense so I think the tradeoff should be worth it...
Illumination is alright, but the small HoT on it w/ the debuff isn't that large (esp on a non-healer). Its nice when paired w/ Celestial Conduit, but I probably wouldn't worry about taking either on a tanky non-support.
Sonic device strikes me as more a pvp move or a move that toons w/ Arbiter/Concussion take to help keep up that debuff. if ya want a close range stun cd that meshes well w/ Hurricane and stuns more than 1 target, then Thunderclap does that quite well.
Yeah, the Tinkerer boost is nice, but not really that huge. As you get better gear the DR on defense and offense make it matter a bit less.
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
Since my daughter has decided that she wants to play with her old man sometimes I figure that in a small two man team I'm probably going to mesh best with whatever hero she creates by acting as a typical meat shield, do you have any suggestions on teaming that won't demish my solo survival abilities?(I've never done much team play either, I've always loved soloing so my "play nice with others" skills hasn't been developed much beyond; "Try not to pull a Jenkins and manage a TPW." Of course, one of my dreams is to be able to pull a Jenkins and win. :cool: ) I haven't had a chance to even look at thunderclap on the Test Server yet but will as soon as I'm able.
Thanks
Well, if you wanna help her by tanking a bit then you'll want to use Hurricane to round up mobs heavily since it also has crippling strikes on it. Just have her hang back and wait for you to engage first, giving you some time to threat up the mobs. Otherwise ya play just like ur solo taking care of urself, but periodically watching where she is to make sure a loose mob hasn't gunned for her or something (she could pick up a threat wipe and some self-heals and crowd control to keep herself up, and/or you could pick up a crippling challenge adv for a 'taunt' of sorts). Ofc, don't aggro multiple packs of mobs w/ her around- just take it slow as she's learning; give enough out-of-combat time to recover health/energy and pick out the next pull. Make sure you both are stocked on some healing devices too, in case.
This game has now-free Adventure Packs (Whiteout, Resistance, Serpent Lantern, etc- most are at Defender or Until HQ) where it could be just you two doing instanced content at ur own pace and difficulty setting (normal-elite). I'd be a good way to break her in to grouping and general gameplay before you start to worry about other random players (the APs are also fun to play/experience the first time around anyways, and are broken up into mini-series for easier digesting).
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
I did trade Sonic Device out for Thunderclap with the advantage which turns it into a 15ft attack instead of a 10ft, not sure what to think of it yet to be honest. It may be a mistake but I'm about half tempted to think about trading it out for something on the defensive or healing side of things as I had to remind myself that I had it and generally wasn't quick enough hitting it to interrupt baddies charge attacks anyways...
Still, on a regen build I'm kind of wondering whether I could use one of the shield powers to buy enough breathing room to let regen patch me up or if finding a good tap heal would be the better route to take. (I assume that it should be possible to set up a bind to <1> target myself <2> tap heal.)
People grouped with me would hate the tactic, but I'm almost wondering if Palliate/Absolve would work to give me enough breathing room for my regen to patch me up before attacking again when the stealth aspect wears out... Or am I misunderstanding how the power actually functions?
Well, I have solo'd Mega D in time on some of my dps toons in the past (though its been a while), but yeah that may be harder for you to do in time. It is good practice for ur boss-rotation though, so I'd consider it valuable even just attempting it.
Okay. TC is handy for the aoe stun/interrupt that's not as log a cd as the device, but if ya not comfortable w/ using it then by all means.
Nah, Regen already does its own healing by and large, so getting a no-cd heal would be inefficient and the time/energy you take to use it probably would be negated by the incoming dmg. You already have DE in melee anyways, so channeling that w/ Regen will make ya tough to kill. Are you regularly finding that ur Regen is not keeping pace? Because the two tank cds, DE, and IDF should be helping w/ that.
Also, not sure if it helps, but there is a clear all target option in the key bindings menu. Using that will make any adjustable target heal target you w/o you having to actually target urself.
Palliate w/ Absolve is a complete and permanent threat wipe on the target (though it wipes current threat, can still gain threat after using it)- not something you'd want to throw on urself as a tank unless ur solo and need a last ditch escape move 8)
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
You know, I just realized that I've been only testing while in Hybred Mode and not Tank in part because of the damage and healing penality (I assume Regen is affected by that at least...), perhaps I should try switching over and see if that solves my problem, although doing so will lower my overall dps... Tradeoffs, tradeoffs... :cool:
Name:
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Command Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Radiance
Level 1: Telekinetic Assault (Rank 2, Explosive Potential)
Level 6: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Challenging Strikes)
Level 14: Devour Essence (Rank 2)
Level 17: Overdrive
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Telekinetic Lance (Rank 2, Id Infusion)
Level 26: Unbreakable
Level 29: Palliate (Absolve)
Level 32: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 35: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Level 38: Rebirth
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Teleportation (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 35: Flight
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Detect Vulnerability (3/3)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Modified Gear (2/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (3/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Ran her through Elite Resistance last night while in Tank Mode, took along time, although part of that was the fact that I went hunting for Mega Ds this time, and next time I'll listen to the warnings about the ones in town square... :rolleyes:
A few thoughts:
Since I just have TK Assault and TK Lance as Ego Damage, I don't think Id Infusion is actually doing what I thought it was going to do for me so I'm going to trade it out for (Rank 3).
I'm not quite sure whether or not I'd be better off trading Modified Gear (+20 Offense from armor) for Focused Strikes (+4 Crit Chance on single target attacks)
Although it was very niche, I did use my upgraded Palliate a few times, I think it might have saved me from using Rebirth once or twice, but honestly, unless I can think of something that I really need the power slot for, it is just more of a "fun" power for me for the most part. -- Besides, if I ever do venture into the area of light tanking, I'm thinking that it might be useful to shed someone else's agro on occasion...
I did find myself falling into the trap of trying to keep Ego (5) on myself as much as possible even against the trash mobs, I'll have to watch myself on that as I'm pretty sure that I could have cleared the missions much faster if I had just waded in...
I tend to favor Flight over Teleport unless I'm disengaging from the enemy for whatever reason. But since I do have a hoverbike for jaunts across the city I tend to use that. Still, I'm seriously debating on whether or not to flip the two travel powers around and take Flight first...
Speaking of which, my basic tactics turned out to be:
Swarmers...
Fire a volley of TK Assault to trigger overdrive and then Hurricane everything until I'm the only thing in the room still moving. Try to remember to use Ego Surge for the increased crit (I typically forgot though...) and fall back on my active defenses as necessary. (I've found myself favoring Unbreakable.) If I'm getting curb stomped than hit Palliate and wait a few seconds to recover before wading back into the fray... While in a "Jenkins" I tended to pause my attack just long enough to keep the lingering block effect up between Hurricane volleys.
Blasters....
Once I deal with the swarmers I usually sit back and alternate between TK Assault and TK Lance, although my energy reserves did suffer doing that and honestly it probably would have been faster and easier to simply bum rush them. Even when not necessary I found myself blocking to keep my lingering shield up, although that might have been to keep from having to use my energy builder. (For some reason tonight, Radiance wasn't playing well with my other powers when I had it toggled on.)
Big Bads....
I open with just enough TK Assault to get my Ego (5) and then I tended to alternate between Devour Essence and TK Lance once the power auto buffed me back up to Ego (5). I'm not totally sure if the numbers would bare me out, but it "felt" like I was doing more DPS using that combo. Unless I was really hurting, I kept Resurgence in reserve just in case I needed to break a hold and tried to time using my Ego Surge for when I was ready to blast a TK Lance out for the increased crit chance... I need to practice my timing some more because I kept losing my Ego stacks from time to time and would have to start all over again.
Of course, I've found that although my builds have the same powers/advantages in the end, my leveling scheme never survives my gameplay.
Afaik, Regen scales w/ superstats primarily and the hybrid's +heal doesn't change its healing.
Sounds like a good idea.
The latter. Offense form gear is pretty small, esp if its already high due to the best defense.
Yeah, it is nice for keeping others from tanking.. to an extent
Yeah you only need 5 leech for TK lance. If ur just aoeing trash its not that important to keep rolling.
No real need for the TK Assault opener- since Hurricane will trigger overdrive anyways
Yeah I'm not a huge fan of Radiance for non-healers. Its anim bugs, the sound fx gets annoying, and hitting urself w/ it supplies no energy.
For 1-2 stragglers left at range, prob just wanna TK Assault and Lance when you get 5 stacks. If its more than 2 mobs then just approach them and Hurricane em all.
Sounds good; just work on Lancing off the 5 stacks before they drop (buff lasts for a decent while, just get used to what else you can afford to do in the meantime).
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name: Abstruse
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Command Training
Level 18: Covert Ops Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Radiance
Level 1: Telekinetic Assault (Rank 2, Explosive Potential, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 6: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 14: Overdrive
Level 17: Devour Essence (Rank 2, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Telekinetic Lance (Rank 2, Rank 3, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 26: Rebirth
Level 29: Unbreakable
Level 32: Palliate (Absolve)
Level 35: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 38: Bountiful Chi Resurgence
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Teleportation (Rank 2)
Level 35: Flight
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Detect Vulnerability (3/3)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: Merciless (1/3)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Focused Strikes (2/3)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (2/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Some thoughts...
Decided that I *really* don't like Radiance, although it helped a little in the beginning escort missions, at higher levels it just doesn't do much for me at all.
Honestly, Teleport can be fun, but I don't think I'd take it again, it's too easy to overshoot my target and wind up somewhere I don't want to be, like in the fricking clone tanks when I'm supposed to be on mob duty in Telios' Tower... Flight however, is ALOT more useful than I gave it credit for before going 35 levels without it...
There is no way I could ever solo Gravitar, although I don't always end up dead, I die at least 1/3 of the times I que for her... I can solo normal Alerts just fine. (This concerns me, although maybe I'm trying to overshoot with that goal.)
I'm not quite sure why, but "DEMON" still kicks my butt more than other groups, I have to pay attention or end up dead.
In PvP I can generally hold my own in "duels", but against the actual PvP map crowds I tend to die, quickly and painfully. (Considering that this is supposed to be a solo build I'm not that surprised, can't be good at everything.)
Even without the "tanky" advantages, I can usually hold agro enough to be an off tank, although any "real tanks" take it from me...
Does the better gear actually make much of a difference? I'm currently using just dropped loot plus a single Nem Primary (All I can afford yet, working on getting the whole set for my next char...) I really hope Nem Con grinds faster then waiting for the 6 hour timer....
Crowd Control *really* sucks....
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
I'm thinking AoPM at the start of the battle and then switching over to regen as I start getting hurt? (Or does the game not quite work the way I think it does?)
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!
PowerHouse (Link to this build)
Name: Mandate
Archetype: Freeform
Super Stats:
Level 6: Intelligence (Primary)
Level 10: Constitution (Secondary)
Level 15: Recovery (Secondary)
Talents:
Level 1: The Hero
Level 6: Jack of All Trades
Level 9: Field Ops Training
Level 12: Survival Training
Level 15: Covert Ops Training
Level 18: Command Training
Level 21: Paramilitary Training
Powers:
Level 1: Kinetic Darts (Leeching Strikes, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 1: Telekinetic Assault (Explosive Potential, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 6: Telekinetic Shield (Rank 2, Rank 3, Telekinetic Reinforcement)
Level 8: Regeneration (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 11: Aura of Primal Majesty
Level 14: Hurricane (Rank 2, Rank 3, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 17: Devour Essence (Rank 2, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 20: Inertial Dampening Field (Rank 2, Rank 3)
Level 23: Overdrive
Level 26: Telekinetic Lance (Rank 2, Rank 3, Accelerated Metabolism)
Level 29: Rebirth
Level 32: Bountiful Chi Resurgence
Level 35: Resurgence (Evanescent Emergence)
Level 38: Ego Surge (Nimble Mind)
Travel Powers:
Level 6: Flight
Level 35: Metallic Ooze Tunneling
Specializations:
Intelligence: Enlightened (3/3)
Intelligence: Tactician (2/2)
Intelligence: Detect Vulnerability (3/3)
Intelligence: Expertise (2/2)
Guardian: Fortified Gear (3/3)
Guardian: Locus (2/2)
Guardian: Tenacious (2/2)
Guardian: The Best Defense (3/3)
Vindicator: Aggressive Stance (2/2)
Vindicator: The Rush of Battle (3/3)
Vindicator: Focused Strikes (2/3)
Vindicator: Offensive Expertise (1/2)
Vindicator: Mass Destruction (2/3)
Mastery: Intelligence Mastery (1/1)
Honestly, I've found that in PvE I generally only really have to pop my ADs when held, so I switched to just Resurgence (Evanescent) & picked up Ego Surge (Nimble Mind) to help handle holds on two separate timers, although considering that my build isn't really crit based I'm wondering if the "Nimble Mind" advantage points could be better spent elsewhere or even if another AO might be better suited.
Aura of Primal Might is basically there as a "just for fun" to be able to pick up and throw cars around (At one point I had it Rank 3 but couldn't see any real difference in the powerhouse weights, I'll probably wind up modding some STR gear just to be able to juggle more weight and set it up on a "fun" build. Also quite frankly I couldn't justify "wasting" 4 points on ranking it up.) -- Besides, my daughters have informed me that you can't be a superhero without being able to throw cars around. -- Also, I'm honestly not sure what other power I could stick in there that would actually make a difference.
On the PTS I've messed around with making her STR / CON / REC and although she does feel very slightly more survivable, the tradeoff is that my energy management goes out the window so I think I'm actually better off keeping INT / CON / REC.
Travel power wise, I'm probably going to use Ninja Vanish instead of melting into ooze, (Powerhouse doesn't seem to have Ninja Vanish though.) if nothing else both powers serve as a "panic button" of sorts considering that they both completely shed agro at will. (From an effective standpoint, I think ooze wins since it doesn't have the annoying "drop out of stealth mode every 20 seconds, but "melting" is going to stretch my theme somewhat.)
Well, actually being less crit-based means that the boost from ES/NM is more marked than for someone that already has high crit; crit% is one of those stats that diminishes in return as you stack more. It still a nice boost even if ur severity isn't that high.
Eh, ya can get the results you want w/ one Strength mod at lvl 40- no need to take up a power slot swapping to AoPM.
If ya want a replacement ability.. how about an ally res? Then ya can pick ur daughter's toon back up should they fall (though you'll have to not be getting hit during the cast for it to work), so they don't have to recover themselves.
Other choices: For a dmg increase, Mental Storm is good; the +ego dmg stacks to help ur TK powers (can also paralyze foes w/ it if you charge it). Could alternatively get Shadow of Doubt to lower enemy dmg going out (also by stacking).
Again, if ya want more Strength for Knock resist (not a bad idea) just mod it once or twice.
I don't have or use those TPs, so I couldn't say.
- Be safe and have fun, champs - for science!