Builds

Builds for a fire blaster are fairly simple. They're straight damage so there isn't a lot you have to think about as far as which powers to pick (unless you want to get creative with pool powers). Here's my build up to level 30.

01: Ring of Fire

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01: Fireblast

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02: Fireball

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04: Combustion

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06: Rain of Fire

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08: Swift

08

10: Fire Sword Circle

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12: Aim

1213

14: Health

14

16: Build Up

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18: Fire Breath

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20: Stamina

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22: Blaze

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24: Fire Sword

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26: Blazing Bolt

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28: Consume

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30: Hover

30

You might have noticed that I don't even have a hint of a travel power until level 30. If you're wondering why, read my Advanced Travel Tips guide. Keep in mind that if you do take Fly as a travel power, change the enhancement in Swift from Run to Fly.

Anyway, you can totally make up how you build your fire Blaster. It all depends on the powers you use. If you use mostly single target, slot them first. If you're an AoE monster like me, slot them. Note that at level 30, I had the choice of two fire powers I didn't want or pool powers so it seemed like a good time to get my prequisite for my travel power (which I decided would be fly for Shazel).

Note that I did a Repec at level 24, but only so I could sell all my enhancements when I hit level 27. The only reason you'll probably need to respec is to make minor changes or shuffle travel powers into lower levels for situations where you're Exemplaring

Play Tips and Combos

The AoE monster combo goes like this:

The AoE Combo would make a pyromaniac wet his pants with joy. Notice that these purple enemies are nearly dead, and I haven't even fired Combustion or Rain of Fire yet.

1. Use accuracy, damage, and clear mind inspirations as needed
2. Aim (Skip this step if you don't have it yet)
3. Build Up (Skip this step if you don't have it yet)
4. Stand at a good distance where you know you'll hit most of the enemies: Fire Breath (skip this step if you don't have Fire Breath yet)
5. Run into the very center of the crowd making sure to target someone very close to the circular center of the group on your way in.
6. Launch Fireball (which will hit your targetted enemy)
7. Launch Fire Sword Circle (if you don't have FSC yet, skip this step)
8. Launch Combustion. Click the icon before FSC completes its animation for maximum speed.
9. Quicky click on Rain of Fire and target it for your current location or the center of the group if you're not quite in the center.
10. Run. Depending on how much damage you've taken thus far, you might be able to skip this step
11. Mop up survivors (if any)

If you're alone it's harder because you'll be taking all the Alpha Strike. If you're with anyone else who fights in melee range and is willing to rush in and take the Aggro, this works much better. If you're with someone who can herd like a Tank or a Storm Defender, you can drop piles of enemies at once. The tighter the crowd, the better your combo works.

Important notes about the combo

• It's fun. Hella fun
• It's powerful. Hella powerful
• It really pisses off enemies. If at all possible, let a tank take the alpha strike.
• The reason you use fireball second in the attack chain instead of Fire Sword Circle is because of it's fast activation. Your Aim+BU combo is fading by the second so you need to get your powers in fast. Also, you need a target for Fireball, but not FSC. If you used FSC second and killed your target, you would have to pick another target first greatly slowing down your combo (I've done this on accident. It is not smooth).
• The reason you use Rain of Fire to end the combo is because it doesn't fit anywhere else. It has a slow activation so it could go first, but you'd scatter your enemies making the rest of the AoE combo fail. Also, as soon as you hit Rain of Fire, the enemies will stop attacking and try to run. This gives you a chance to escape and heal if you need it (which you probably will since there's no tank in the universe that can keep Aggro with a Fire Blaster around). Lastly, Rain of Fire will quickly finish off any enemies that are clinging to life by thin margins. That leaves you to focus on enemies with significant life totals.

One very powerful variation on this combo requires another player with a strong group slow or group hold effect. If they launch their power first, you can use Aim+BU then open with Rain of Fire instead. Because the enemies can't scatter, the rest of your combo works perfectly.

The advantage to doing it this way is first that it slows the enemy (if they're not held that is) which makes the rest of the combo go smoother. Second, Aim, Build Up or both will normally wear off before you can get to Rain of Fire. By doing it first, RoF get's the full immpact of both Aim and BU. Using the combo this way, I've seen 5 damage per tic on enemies up to two or three levels above me. At the rate of tics on Rain of Fire, this adds up to a lot of damage very fast.

Though I technically haven't tested the math of it to decide if it's better this way or not, it looks SO DAMN COOL!