A good friend wants to get into DCUO again but vastly prefers villain side. I'd considered leveling my lowbie mental troller to play with her (I have no 30 villains), but I wanted to get a feel for the current trolling atmosphere. When I played a troller near launch, expectation was keep PoT up, power dump when you can, keep up debuffs, don't totally neglect DPS. This was fun for me. When I quit about a year ago though (after swapping to heals), the atmosphere was one of "If you ever have more than a tiny bit of power in your bar as a controller, you're doing it wrong." Debuffs seemed to be ignored and few people seemed to make any effort to manage their own energy, putting it all on trollers. I'm not sure I want to deal with that if that's the accepted "best" way to run content. Seems hella boring. Input please?
Im a hero but trolling is fun in A&B. At least in the end we have something to do with the manhunters. Otherwise its PoT, recharge and buffing.. and some damage too if everyone isn't empty. I also have fun building my supercharge b/c event horizon comes in very handy.
I think there is a a disconnect between what controllers think and what everyone else thinks. Personally, I've thought defense debuff is only worth the power cost on bosses, unless I'm using it to also crowd control a group of adds. It's probably a good idea to keep the defense debuff up on bosses. I don't recall the last time I gave a loadout spot to a damage debuff or a heal debuff in pve, though I recall the heal debuff being beneficial on Prime and Gates's first boss. Most non-controllers expectation of controllers is that they keep power-of-time up (preferably getting the double tick), defense debuff the boss, rally fallen group members, drop supplies on healers or damagers, do clutch CCs or when mechanics require (like Assault and Battery's last fight), and do other random things as required (hit switches, carry spears, etc). This is all while doing the instant power heal (defib/recharge/psychic empowerment/temporal extortion)the moment it's off cooldown, though at least once every so often (30 seconds or so) you should get up to at least the second tier of weapon combo power regen, higher if possible. (An expert controller that literally wrote the book on controllering suggested handblasters or rifle for this reason, but I've always like brawlers for Light too.)
This is what I do in every instance. PoT if I am high vit. Instant recharge depending upon situation...meaning whether i must spam it or not. And I defense debuff everything I can if it doesnt hurt the healer and tank...or top dps. I always keep defense debuff on the bosses. I will negate attack damage buffs, use supply drops, and even orbital strike if I can. It does depend upon the group, the dps power set, the healer powers and whether I am PoT or not. I never say anything, I listen to advice...and then I do everything I can, use everything I have to try and help the group get through the content. Yes, there are instances in which all u do is PoT and recharge but it isn't all the time, especially with good experienced groups. I actually love trolling.
Controlling is not fun anymore. The content was not built to utilize controllers. It needed a power battery. AnB was refreshing, but with the power costs of higher level gear constantly increasing, it kills the fun you could have in that room. It's a step in the right direction though. Yes, I stopped controlling. Like what people say, "if you hate it so much, why play it?" Because I loved the class, just not the abuse and lack of role needed. Been DPSing and keeping tabs on content for now. Hope you find a good Villain league. Pugging is a nightmare on that side. But controllers are always in demand.
If you want to get a good idea of the Controller community and the current state of the Controller role, check out the thread in my sig. It also has a lot of good advice for new Controllers and those looking for more advanced tips. Personally, I always do damage, CC adds and Debuff when I feel like while making sure to put out a ton of power. I have more than a few tricks to increase my power output enough to do whatever I want without anyone noticing a difference in power. From my experience, I have never had any complaints about the power I give even when I'm running with pugs. That being said, there does seem to be a general sense that the multitudes of inexperienced DPS just want Controllers to be battery trolls that just spam power but on the USPS3 Villain side, I've barely gotten in from anyone in the past 2+ years other than a couple noob DPSs. If you do decide to become a Controller, my thread and a couple others are good places for information and tips. If you happen to be on USPS3/PS4 feel free to add me and I'll be happy to help you out in person. Btw, don't listen to BumblingB. He may be experienced but he's a nub when it comes to Controlling. I believe power costs only increase per tier and as we are still at a T5 max, they should not have increased since Origin Crisis.
Only controllers in LFG are mostly the cr 90 trollers who want to be carried through Assbattery/DOx/Nex
I've been LFGing a shizload bud. Had to catch up on the 2-3 weeks of A&B I missed. I can openly say that I have not have a single bad experience as far as harping at me for MOAR POWAH! And at this point, my Vit is now pretty OP. Critting an Instant power for well over 600 power is ridiculous.
^That sounds more like what I was used to near launch. That, I'm fine with. I don't mind acting as a battery, I just mind being expected to ignore all other aspects of the class. Thanks for the responses guys!
I am afraid you are mistaken here. It increases more and more as you get a new piece of gear. Full 90IL gear gives you a 65% power cost increase. It originally was going to be 75% until everyone requested to Crafty to lower it. So nope, the power cost is an issue. Calling people nubs shows ignorance on your part. Edit: And so you know, it was 25% increase upon the beginning of T5.
Well that's what I get for not being on PC and being absent from the forums for a couple months. Thanks for the info. Although, the increase hasn't been noticeable to me through my 35+ runs of A&B so I wouldn't have a problem if it was an extra 10%. I could see how it might have an effect on players that just get through the CR cap though. I apologize for my comment. I do reserve that term for new players and/or people that aren't constructive about something and rather negative. That was the kind of post that I'm used to seeing from you which is why I used it. Your last post was actually informative though so I thank you for it. I think A&B was a great step in the right direction for Controlling. Controllers have to be happy about a fight where players are saying they NEED to CC the adds. Once a Controller gets up to 100 CR or so I'm sure they'll be able to handle the power costs quite well. I had no problem doing it.
I sounded negative in my post because it is true. The content was not designed for a "controller" in mind. It was designed for a "battery" and thus we got it. The abuse we received from it resulted in what we have now and you may have been away for a while, but there are countless threads talking about the "controller" role. Whether it be controllers asking to not be 3rd class citizens or players saying "shut up and be my battery." AnB was definitely a step in the right direction. (So is the rest of the DLC, there are some good controller parts in it.) I said that in my initial post, but the power cost is an issue and in the end, still makes you a battery with "oh look, see you can control" added on. The devs have stated they are working on a change, but power feed will still remain in a form. Just be a while before we get it. Ultimately though, they need to build content that requests controlling. Where if you overgear it you can get through w/o one, but to fully utilize a controller for content. I may be negative, but you should not press judgement on a person for their beliefs and views. Especially when you are blinded by your own beliefs and views. Good day.
It's of ironic how you put a comment about not judging someone based on their beliefs and then tell me that I am blinded by my beliefs. That a whole lot of the pot calling the kettle black. And just so you know. I wasn't judging you. I was making a comment on your actions and attitude. That's not unfounded judgement, that a comment about the facts. I understand your beliefs even though you know I believe they are a bit jaded as my experience as a Controller has been much different than yours. In any case, the fact is that the devs are working in the right direction to help Controllers CC and I'm sure we are all looking forward to further changes to help us out. Have a good night.
When I usually Control, it's PoT, Defense Debuff, Damage Debuff, and Instant Power when applicable, then Weapon Attacks. I know my league appreciates it. I always keep debuffs in my loadout. Some people may frown upon them, but I always do debuffs whenever I have the power to do so. I only know of one or two people in my league that is 'power-hungry', but at least they know they have a weapon and it does its job quite well. Her power is Quantum, but I've played all the Controller powers and that's the power that fits my play-style perfectly. I do chuckle a little bit when this topic comes up because...well, it's just funny to see both sides argue their points and not one is willing to find middle ground.
Tachyon Burst [PoT & 'hard' CC] Singularity [Defense Debuff & 'soft' (knockup/back) CC] Alcubierre Wave [Damage Debuff & soft CC] Quantum Tunneling [breakout, aggro drop, self protection] Einstein's Ray [single-target pull & hard CC] Event Horizon [group shielding/PoT/damage shield] or Closed Loop [self heal] depending on current role Working fine for me so far.
Your basic job is to keep pot up, make sure healers and tank have enough power, make sure bosses are debuffed. The better trollers are those that are always watching the group and are the first ones to go pick up someone after he dies. They are the ones who will CC what needs to be CCed, but not more than that because at that point, you're wasting time, and power that could be used for extra burn. Don't bother debuffing adds, DPSes have become so strong that adds will die in seconds. And don't fall for the NEED MORE POWER from one dps when the rest of the raid is full. It's okay to make them wait if you judge it necessary.
The only content that I spam power dumps in anymore is raids. I understand that that is what is needed. In 4 man and under content I will only use my power dump when it is needed and I act more like how a "Controller" should act by using my abilities to stun and root enemies (one of which has the added bonus of being a defense debuff too). I think you really need to get in with a good crowd who are not just people that expect you to spam power dump the whole time, or at least that is my experience. Having extensively played as DPS, Healer and Troller (not tried Tanking) I can definitely say that Troll is my favourite and most fun.
