Hiya, so I should preface this by saying that I play on the Switch server (only choice I have) so this may be a Switch only issue. I recently remade a fire tank and have been learning to make it better and what not and now I'm at a point where I am really considering making fire tank my main and finally having a character I can fully commit to, but I've noticed when doing alerts and raids that there have been quite a few tanks in groups, to the point where they kinda feel almost as common as dps sometimes and now I'm wondering if I really should commit to tanking as it seems like there is a ton of the on Switch and I feel like having groups of tanks would just make content just as hard to do as groups of dps, so I'm wondering if tank groups are actually ok or if I should just give up the idea of tanking and go back to being a dps since it seems like the Switch version has just as many or more tanks as dps (or at least it's feeling that way. What do you guys think, stick to my gut and go tank main or run back to dps and not add to flood of tanks?
For reg alerts especially, having a tank who is in 'battle' role is more handy than having a full heal. Let's face it, some healers barely do more than the heal buff, and a self healing tank (like fire) who's set up in DPS gear will take a lot of the pressure off the 3 DPSs and likely do close to as much damage as the 2nd or 3rd place DPS (I've seen some battle tanks even do 'top' damage while tanking). In Elite alerts many are done as 'no heal runs' because of a good tank. This can be true in raids, but there, it's much more likely to be a 'full' tank, and there is very little need for 2 of those in most regular raids, except when doing a feat where separation is key. To me, maining a tank is NEVER a problem. But, I'd say watch LFG. What are people shouting for the most? I know over on PC/PS, tanks are still in high demand, then it seems healers, then trolls. DPS are a dime a dozen until you get into the 'lete player category where swapping, running meta and having high SP CAN separate you from the pack.
From what I've seen, people don't really call for any specific roles unless it elite content, but that is very rare and it does seem like heals and dps are asked for the most with the rare troll asked for and tanks usually least asked for from what I see, but the vast majority of group requests in LFG/shout usually don't specify anything. I have a dps that is about a year old now with quite a bit of progress on it and my Fire tank is basically a few weeks old as I got a free cr boost thing and figured I'd use it on a tank. I dunno, I guess I'm still a bit attached to my dps since it has the most progress I've made in the game, but I also want to be a benefit to groups and not feel like I'm just a waste of a group slot. I have a few people compliment my dps and I feel like I do alright, but I also have the mindset of "no one cares about good dps, only tanks and healers" so that is where I guess I'm coming from in making a tank thin considering it as a main.
On your DPS, what's the power? Maybe start adding in that role use for that toon. Of course if it's a tank power, obviously you are in the same boat.
It's munitions, but controllers seem to be the least asked for role in the game so I never really considered it. Also I worried about doing open world content as a controller since I don't have a second armory to swap stuff on the fly easily.
Well, I am the first to say that spending money in this game is kind of a black hole at this point, but one of the few things I'd say is worth it is a 2nd armory, especially if you can get it with loyalty points (it would be nice if Dr Fate sold them) or on a good sale in the MP. It does open up a whole new aspect of gameplay while allowing you to use an established toon. Yeah, trolls aren't the highest in demand, but trolling can be fun. Obviously more artis and new gear can be an issue, but there's no saying you need that stuff on day 1. You CAN set up a troll build on your toon and use the 'switch role' out of combat to use that while still using DPS gear. Obviously this isn't a great idea in 'real' content, but in event, omni or at this point...probably JLDC even, just having a good loadout and using your powers can still be a decent start and it would allow you to play that role and get a taste. Keep a 2nd set of gear on you, and hold it in your inventory to swap before going into a run if you want to go a bit further. Some arts are even useful in role, like trans, strat or a few others. Again, this is NOT for using in elite runs, or maybe even endgame reg. You'll get called out there for sure. But Omni?...event? You hardly need hands and eyes to run those runs...much less a full set of gear or armory.
Well the dude is still a couple years from having enough sp for elite content since I only have about 177 on him and since I've spent a chunk of this year making alts and trying to be a healer and then a tank as well as sorcery dps since Munitions kept feeling very power hungry and I was running out of power in content, so that had me start down the spiral of alts that led me to this point. How would controller play in current content? I only really know of it's old days when they were regarded as power batteries, which is part of the reason I never played them as the idea of the group's battery didn't every appeal to me. Also I never could figure out if controllers can restore their own power and effectively get infinite power (like how healers can self heal to be immortal in open world content). I'm used to mmos like World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy 14 where there is really only the 3 roles and classes/jobs have a sprinkling of supportive skills built in.
Well a big expectation for trolls now is buffing the DPSs, potentially supplying Supercharge and providing shields so people can avoid mechanics (or at least not pay as MUCH attention to them). Battery and debuffs are the minimum, but if you do those and aren't in Elite or a feat run that requires additional burn, most people will still be ok with what you do. You might get asked when joining a group, but if you queue in and do those things, it's doubtful you'd be kicked. It's up to you, but with those expectations, you will be spending some money. Make sure to think about it before jumping in with both feet.
I'll take it into consideration, thank you. When I can finally get another armory, I'll look more into it. Perhaps for now, it would be best to just stick to dps and focus on getting sp and actually maining my character to make progress instead of making alts left and right because I start to panic about being useful.
Yes, controllers power over time effects them as well. Their burst power ability does not target themselves, though, so that one is strictly for other people. Their power battery supercharge also effects them. (The green lightning bolt icon under your health bar indicates you have PoT active) They don't quite have infinite power, though. They will just drain slower than dps mode using same abilities. There are some allies secondary perks that can assist with power generation, such as Cyborg and I think Oracle. The omegahedron artifact also assists with power regen. Also make sure you're obtaining mainframe generator mods to bolster your power pool, as well as adaptive augments from episodes as you progress to boost power further. As you hit different CR ranges, your power costs start increasing, and they are balanced around also having these additional pieces of equipment in tow. If you don't have them, you'll notice the same abilities you've been using are suddenly wiping out your power bar faster and faster. The Flashpoint episode vendor sells v40 mainframe mods, which is much needed as you cross that CR threshold. I also want to say that power regeneration rates from the super powered character trait works off percentage, so the more power you have the higher regen per tick it will achieve. Could be wrong though. Been a long time since I bothered with the details there.
well dps is a common role and easy to get now however this where it gets a lil tricky yes you can lfg for a dps but sometimes you dont know what kind of arts/allies or are they a good dps some content requires burn not saying you have to have elitist kind of burn since its regular/elite but at least have a few dps able to burn if you feel like you have burn then ill say stay dps or just get a second armory also same with tanks not gonna say their common like dps but some are not the best and will have you stuck at certain boss which will require you to find another tank and 99% of the time in groups people blames the tank for failure of the group and people don't like to get blamed
On the dps side, I feel like I do alright. I mean I'm usually in the top 3 in raids and 1st or 2nd in alerts, so I feel like I'm competent enough, but at the same time, it is just a dime a dozen role, so I doubt I stand out enough to be regarded as an exceptional dps. As for tanking, I am thinking I may not be cut out for it. I don't know alerts and raids beyond the little bit I learn when doing them first hand, and with the lag, I usually end up getting hit by stuff that was probably intended to be dodged. I do keep myself alive though and usually only die to mechanics that are guaranteed to kill, but I usually dodge those (except for eyebeam spins, the lag and lack of a beam to see always kill me). I dunno, there is also the fact that I am autistic and prone to meltdowns when stressed or unable to process a situation, so I do worry that I may not be able to handle tanking since the community on Switch is not exactly the friendliest.
Depends on the instance. Raids, having a tank makes it easy to succeed, period. Alerts, the heal from the roleless buff isn't bad. Just gotta know when to block. Tanks get all the damage on them and if you are moderately good and know your limits, it can make a run go faster than 3 dps and a heal. (TD anyone?)
My problem isn't the lack of a tank, it's having more tanks (or only tanks) than dps in a group. For example, I went into Coast City as a dps and was in a group of 1 dps and 3 tanks. Usually in most group content I enter (either as a tank or dps) there tends to be at least 2 or more tanks and if I'm one of the tanks, I end up feeling like a wasted slot then.
I've always maintained that the best support player should be the one playing support. If you have 3 tanks, but one is better suited for it with better gear/arts/allies/augs and the others aren't, it's kind of a waste to have 2 extra tanks. That said, not everyone is capable of switching roles on the fly. An extra Armory is beneficial to have a semi-capable DPS build as a back up. If you don't have one, use group chat and communicate it. Maybe the others do and can switch over, or they'll completely ignore it and you guys will all fight for aggro with each other. It's a toss up. Regardless: Can you get through content this way? Yes. Is it going to be quick and efficient? No. That's pretty much why it's always been better to form your own group than to gamble on the queue system. I believe there are some queue settings that will try and match you up with a full group of various roles, but it doesn't always work or it takes forever if it does.
Again, in omni (EEG) runs, I'll often run tank role, but DPS gear and 'battle' tank. I can put out almost as much damage as most dps and the fact I'm in tank role makes life easier on the other players who sometimes are squishy or don't know what they are doing, especially if there is not a heal in the group already. It also means I'm pretty much indestructible in most alerts and if need be can finish many raids even if we get down to only a few players. Just last night I was in an LnW run where most of the group kept dying on Carol because they didn't seem to have a block button in their loadout that night. We had a full complement of roles, but I ended up going into battle tank as I got tired of wiping doing pickups or if the heal/tank went down and crap went south. I also noticed another guy went into heal...and I'd guess 'battle' heal. In the end, it was the 2 of us, a DPS and the troll who finished it up after 3 or 4 wipes. I just wanted to get out of there and get paid. Does this mean ALL dps who are capable of tanking should go tank (like in your case of 3 tanks and 1 DPS)? No, not really, but if these guys are just covering that base, maybe they didn't feel like changing once they got in. Although Coast city IS a long alert, so honestly I'd have gone full DPS if I saw someone else was tanking. In the end, it just is a way of helping make sure the run finishes successfully. You might just be seeing a more extreme situation there on switch. If people get used to running in groups where heals or trolls don't show, or where people fail due to getting KO'd, they might just be defaulting to what works best for them. BTW. There is a solution for this...as Grim said, form your own group...or turn off 'role optional' toggle in your settings, but that might make getting in a LOT slower.
If it's heal or tank, I usually ask (though I usually don't need to; a lot of people queue as a role but go in as DPS, and stay that way, even when other players are calling for them to play their support role the queued for). If it's troll and there is another troll, I'll ask if they're buff or debuff (as I play debuff), and I rarely get an answer. In the end, it just is a way of helping make sure the run finishes successfully. You might just be seeing a more extreme situation there on switch. If people get used to running in groups where heals or trolls don't show, or where people fail due to getting KO'd, they might just be defaulting to what works best for them. BTW. There is a solution for this...as Grim said, form your own group...or turn off 'role optional' toggle in your settings, but that might make getting in a LOT slower.[/quote] The main reason, imo, that it takes longer, at least on PC, is either because everyone wants to DPS, or probably more commonly because no one wants to troll. It sounds like, on Switch, it would probably take longer because everyone wants to tank.
