The Scrapper - Subarchetypes
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While the Scrapper appears to be a fairly straightforward role, and some may even think of the Scrapper as similar to a monk or thief in some other MMORPG, in fact the Scrapper has a number of different roles, and can choose a number of different strategies. The Power Sets that a Scrapper chooses will effect his abilities both in a group and solo, and will make him very different from other Scrappers. Some Scrappers may even specialize with powers in the Pool, making them very unique.
Martial Artist: The Martial Artist uses speed and agility to protect himself, while he attacks with deadly precision. His speed may be supernatural in nature, the result of a remarkable "sixth sense", or just a matter of training and determination. He may fight unarmed, or with a weapon such as a sword, which may have mystical qualities of its own. He may even have hardened skin due to his martial arts training, but will still rely on speed and strategy to avoid damage, instead of absorbing damage like a Tanker. Super Reflexes, specifically, is a very high Defense-based set, which means that you will not be hit often, even though you tend to take a lot of damage when you do. This makes it somewhat difficult to tank, but can take advantage of long streaks of luck. The Martial Artist is usually a skill-based hero, without any fantastic powers like flying or invisibility. Leaping is a good movement power for this subarchetype to choose instead. There are a number of other good powers in the Power Pool which can be used as well, especially Flurry in Super Speed, to add some punches to the kicks which seem to dominate Martial Arts. Usually, this subarchetype will use his speed and leaping abilities to close with his opponent quickly, and to escape when his health starts to run low. In a group, he is useful for taking out large numbers of weak minions quickly.
Stealth Scrapper: Although a variation on the Martial Artist, the Stealth Scrapper actually calls for strategies all his own. As his name suggests, this subarchetype uses stealth and cunning to single out his foes, striking without warning, then vanishing back into the shadows when his task is done. He can also use fear and intimidation to his benefit, which is why the Presence pool is suggested. Unfortunately, the Stealth Scrapper is unable to use many of the devices that you might expect from this kind of hero, like bolos, gas bombs, and nets to snare his enemies. Still, the Stealth Power all by itself can be very powerful, and cut down on the amount of aggro that the Scrapper draws. The Stealth Scrapper is mainly a solo archetype, and relies on his Stealth to be able to split up groups of villains. However, a group could do well to let a Stealth Scrapper "scout" for them, and make the first strike to catch their enemies unawares.
Dark Scrapper: The Dark Scrapper draws his strength from the powers of darkness, and drains the strength of his enemies in order to defeat them. He is similar to the Stealth Scrapper, in that he uses darkness and stealth to hide from view until he can strike. However, his dark powers give him unique abilities to drain the life from his foes and use them to feed himself and his power. This makes the Dark Scrapper a frightening, and therefore fun character to play. Dark Powers as a whole do huge amounts of damage, greater than Martial Arts, but also drain more Endurance. The Dark Scrapper has powers that allow him to draw Endurance from his enemies, as well as health, but he can still be hard pressed to keep up the pace of a hard battle when surrounded. Therefore, the Dark Scrapper must pace himself, almost like a Tanker, not moving too fast to outpace his defenses. Dual Blades and Katana are listed as faster alternatives, but you give up part of the fear and regeneration advantages provided by both Dark sets.
Swordsman: The Swordsman, as his name suggests, weilds a sword. Unlike the Martial Artist, who relies on skill and speed to defend himself, the Swordsman is usually armored, although some macho heroes may go around in their loin cloths. Although most Swordsmen won't have travel abilities, it is not unknown for mythological heroes to have flying steeds or cloaks or shoes that enable them to fly. So the Flying Power Pool is not "off limits". The defense used by this type of Scrapper would depend on what type of swordsman he is. A medieval knight type would likely wear armor and carry a shield, giving him Shield Defense. A magic or high tech weapon that provides its wielder with protection would be Invulnerability. While the barbaric type that just survives on toughness and grit would be Willpower. Note I do not include Dual Blades here as it cannot be combined with Shield Defense. I would consider Dual Blades more of a Martial Artist concept. Shield Defense offers very high Defense, but lacks a self-heal. Willpower is more of a resistance-based Defense set, offering more predictable protection, but also lacks a heal except for the rapid regeneration of Rise to the Challenge. It is very similar to Invulnerability in many ways, and sometimes can be better, allowing the Scrapper to take on more of a tanking rule. This works very well with the slower, high damaging attacks of Broadsword. Check out the Tanker section for more details on Willpower (the Action Hero) Invulnerability (the Brick) and Shield Defense. (the Mystic Warrior)
Healing Totem Animal: This type is more commonly called the "Regeneration Scrapper", but just about every example from the comic books is based on some kind of animal. Thus, this subarchetype is similar to the Agile Totem Animal, below. In this case, the animal most used is a wolf or other vicious creature, so in many ways this character is similar to a werewolf. Claws and Spines are both very fast, efficient Melee sets, as you would expect from a wild, savage animal, but their main advantage is in strong AoEs, and even limited ranged attacks. Spines, specifically, does a LOT of AoE damage, including a toggle damage aura. (Much like the Elemental Defense sets described below) The Regeneration Power Set, however, requires a special strategy all it's own. Instead of actually being a defense, it is more about recovery AFTER the battle. The Regeneration Scrapper has very little downtime, but has to be very careful not to get overwhelmed. Like Wolverine, a hero with this defense usually ends up bloodied and on the verge of death by the end of the fight. Fortunately, his enhanced Endurance recovery means he can usually do quite a bit of damage prior to that point.
Agile Totem Animal: Like the Healing Totem Animal, the Agile Animal is better known by another name: the "Catgirl". Just about every example of this subarchetype is female, and has cat-like features. While many males play this subarchetype just to be able to look at a cute girl, the character actually can be very powerful. As with the Healing Animal, the speed of the Claws and Spines power sets means that a lot of damage can be done quickly. And with Super Reflexes, the catgirl will usually not be beaten up so badly. Both Claws and Spines also have ranged attacks, which can give additional advantages. And because the player will usually choose Speed or Leaping to complement the character's natural agility, they can usually close with opponents quickly. As with the Martial Artist, this is a good archetype for cleaning up minions. Note that although Spiderman uses his fists, not Claws, and thus is Super Strength, and I mention I would probably call him a Powerhouse, from the Tanker subarchetypes, a spider is really an agile totem animal, and so Spidey could fit into this concept. The Powerhouse is kind of a bridge between the Tanker and Scrapper anyway, and the difference between the two is really only a matter of degree. Spidey is best known for his taunts and jibes, which I think make him a Tanker, but a spider or bug type of hero could easily be made as a Spines/Super Reflexes Scrapper, or even Martial Arts/Super Reflexes.
Elemental Scrapper: In the early days of the game, the Elemental powers were limited to Tankers only, a Scrapper could not use Fire or Ice. This has changed with Powerset Proliferation, but there is still the issue of the similarity between Scrappers and Tankers, and given the same Power Set, what differences still distinguish them. Although I describe the Elemental sets in some detail in the Tanker section, I am going to group them here as a single subarchetype. You can consult the Tanker section for the individual details in the Defense sets that make them somewhat unique from each other. So far, only Fire and Electricity are available as Elements for use by Scrappers. Firey Aura, as described for Tankers, is an extremely offense-oriented set, even moreso with a Scrapper. All Elemental Defense sets have a damage aura that damage all foes standing near, and for a Scrapper this damage is even greater. Electric Armor gives a bit tougher protection than Fiery Aura, but Energize, its self heal, is not as powerful as Healing Flames. Electric also provides a number of powers to recover or conserve Endurance, so even though it does not boost damage directly (as with Fiery Embrace) it does allow you to deal damage longer. The Elemental Melee sets usually do damage of their respective type, which can be useful against foes that are Smashing or Lethal resistant. This is a trait shared with Dark Melee, but few other sets. Another advantage is that these sets have some ranged attacks and AoEs, almost like Spines. Chain Induction, for instance, although it starts as a melee attack, jumps from foe to foe at range. As mentioned with the Tanker subtype of the Armored Flamethrower, this can tend to make him more like a close combat Blaster. If you are looking for a concept that is made of fire and throws fire, the Fire Scrapper might be a closer fit than a Fire Blaster.
Speedster: The Speedster takes the speed and agility of the Martial Artist or Agile Animal and takes it to its natural extreme. This is the first of the subarchetypes that draws its power primarily from a Power Pool. The player who chooses to play this character will likely put as many Enhancements on Super Speed as possible, trying to make himself the fastest character in the game. With most of his Enhancements on movement powers, the Speedster isn't particularly powerful in combat. However, with Hasten to accelerate his attack speed, and possibly Stamina from the Fitness Pool, he can do a great deal of damage in a short period of time. It's important to note that Swift stacks with Super Speed, so the Speedster has plenty of reasons to draw from the Fitness Pool. And with his incredible movement speed, he'll probably come close to a Blaster in his ability to engage the enemy quickly. (Of course, Super Speed isn't actually Flash-level speed, but it can be boosted pretty far) Martial Arts may not be the best Power Set for this subarchetype, but Electrical Melee is kind of a stretch as well. See the Electric Brute and Brute Speedster, though, for some of the similarities between Electricity and the Super Speed power. The Power Customization options for Martial Arts, also, could be used for the speedster that wants some punches instead of kicks. Even Dark Melee has a "flurry" like attack in Shadow Maul, and it is a better attack overall than the actual Flurry. For defenses, though, the "pure" Speedster will probably want to use Super Reflexes, as his defense will be built entirely around avoiding attack, not absorbing damage like Electric or Dark Armor.
Flier: Just as the Speedster is the master of Super Speed (and to be honest, the Stealth Scrapper is the master of Concealment) the Flier is a Scrapper that specializes in the mastery of Flying. Just being able to fly doesn't give a hero an innate attack or defense, and so the player must choose the closest Power Sets, Martial Arts and Super Reflexes, to give his character fighting ability. As with the Speedster, Martial Arts is a bit of a compromise, although a weapon like a sword or claws could also be chosen. (In fact, if the Flier wants a Mace, he may wish to switch to Tanker) The Flier's strategy in combat will depend on his choice of secondary set. Super Reflexes is more logical as a choice, although Hawkgirl and others have been shown to be remarkably resiliant, due to their alien constitution. The Flier cannot actually fly in combat, as he does not actually have ranged attacks, and thus must close to hand to hand range. In the comics, the usual tactic is to "dive bomb" the opponent, but this isn't possible in CoH. However, with Hover the hero can hang in midair in front of his opponent, which will give him a defensive bonus. A particularly sneaky player might set up keybinds that will allow him to switch to Flying and shoot out of range of his foes, when he gets in trouble. |
