Vladof allegiance SiC thoughts

Borderlands 2 Gaige the Mechromancer
#1

I haven’t mess around with DT as a major damage dealer, so with this build I’m thinking of going down BFF for a change.

Realistically, I don’t see absorb shields doing the job in OP levels in every situation, any thoughts on choices beyond the Neo or Evo? Anshin and Pangolin are allowed on this build

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#2

There’s always the classic, the Blockade. Quite an amazing defensive shield if I don’t say so myself. Like you said the Neo and Evo are fantastic choices, but if you don’t mind using Roid shields they’re awesome on DT as well.

http://bl2skills.com/mechromancer.html#550054100551500050000000415150121051
Here is a good spec in case you wanted one. This is a pretty versatile OC-focused tree with lots of crazy DT action. A LBT build might be good if you really want MiS but honestly if you’re doing Vladof it isn’t worth it imo.

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#3

It’s somewhat in the air right now, this run is on the UCP so DT is a little beefier and wanted to see how he could do.

Blockade I’ll save for OP levels most likely

Thanks

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#4

Np, glad I could help.

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#5

In the higher OP levels, I find that Robot Rampage produces his highest damage output. Therefore, I build around that:

  • No other skills that take time away from Robot Rampage (skip the following, but note that at least at OP3, and especially with the UCP, they work fine):
    • Explosive Clap
    • One Two Boom
    • The Stare
    • Buck Up
  • Enhance skills that buff Robot Rampage
    • Make It Sparkle (that elemental damage works)
    • Strength of Five Gorillas (flat melee buff)
    • Upshot Robot (mandatory)
    • Sharing is Caring (pick your favorite: is it breaking allegiance if Deathtrap wears the shield and not you? :wink: Just put it on right before you fire him off, then switch back to your regularly scheduled shield.)
      • Love Thumper (it’s easy to dodge if you’re playing solo, and it’s brutal with Robot Rampage).
      • Hide of Terra (Spike damage :arrow_right: nova :arrow_right: roid damage)
      • Black Hole (combine with Shock Storm if you’re otherwise going to light up the Little Big Trouble tree: the singularity should help pull them within range of each other)
      • Flame of the Firehawk (almost not fun how much damage this puts out with Deathtrap… I might add some Annoyed Android if using this shield so he can get the novas on target faster)
  • Keep that guy alive as long as possible: I’d put a point or two in these just so the Legendary Roboteer hits them: you’re mostly after the cooldown rate and points in 20% cooler:
    • Made of Sterner Stuff
    • Potent as a Pony
    • 20% Cooler

If you wear a Bone of the Ancients on top of this, and further decide to break allegiance by packing a Little Evie (great shock weapon, and helps the cooldown further), he can be up pretty constantly.

In fact, I think I’ll play this tonight! Conveniently, one of my Mechromancers is a Maliwan allegiance, so she’s got access to some epic shields and shock equipment.

For the record, the mad scientist in me wants to make Shock Storm hit as hard as Bloodsplosion with the UCP. It doesn’t stack, but I want everything within range to die if I have 11 points in it.

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#6

Hehe, I was hoping you’d see this

Current build looks like this

http://bl2skills.com/mechromancer.html#501130140500050050100000410152151051

The Anarchy tree on the UCP version doesn’t work right, but her skills on the version I’m using are from version 3; and I have a Swift Anarchist with +6AA/+Fancy Math com. I know Buck Up reduces his total DPS, but as I’ve been pushing through UVHM with green and blue absorbs it has come in quite handy more often than I thought (don’t tell Hattie) :stuck_out_tongue:

My aim is to keep her to at least a soft allegiance through OP levels, but will consider some leniency on DT shields depending on how they treat me. Sadly the Roboteer is verboten completely for this build, but I have been cooking up an idea for a weird DT focused melee hybrid Hyperion allegiance…

Let me know how the experiments go!

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#7

What’s not working?

I wouldn’t mind the loss in DPS if he could keep it together for friend and enemy. I caught him trying to recharge a Spiderant. :roll_eyes:

I can’t seem to find a mob with the right density to really see Shock Storm in action. The one time I did, I used a weak Singularity grenade to keep a bunch of low-level enemies (Spiders in this case) within range of Deathtrap’s attacks (although this was pre-UCP damage radius buff). I need to figure out how to buff the damage and see if that’s the direction I want to go. An Ionized Catalyst is great for this: team elemental damage increase helps Deathtrap, it gives points to Wires Don’t Talk, Evil Enchantress, and Shock Storm. Shock Storm is always buffed by Evil Enchantress, so this COM is where I go for that sort of combat.

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#8

I meant for the skill calculator; the UCP version derps out on Typecast, for me anyway on Safari iOS and Chrome desktop.

I’ve been meaning to retool my LBT Gaige to goof with Shock Storm, I’ll have to give it a go soon

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#9

The UCP skill calculator isn’t working too well for me either when I try to respec the OC tree. Probably just a bug.

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#10

Ok, after much ado, I figured out how to buff Shock Storm damage. As part of the testing process for balance, I overshot with high values, and have been backing them down to where I think they’re fair. I’m currently at quadruple radius and quadruple damage… still a little overpowered, but I’m psyched to actually see it doing its thing.

I don’t think it’ll chain like Bloodsplosion though (since I’m testing with critical kills - subsequent kills from Shock Storm aren’t critical, so don’t trigger further storms). If Deathtrap fires the kill though, maybe Shock Storm kills would count as sourced from him and would? We’ll see.

edit - I also have the “faster enemies” enhancement, and had them charge at me for the first time with this on (when a Nomad gave the order). That was actually pretty sketchy.

2nd edit - in addition, I have the “enemies have good gear” enhancement, and someone came at me with a shock Interfacer. :grimacing:

3rd edit - I may leave the damage where it’s at and drop the radius to 3x. With a Legendary Catalyst that has More Pep replaced with Shock Storm, an OP8 shock Railgun (with UCP removing the crit nerf) in hand with a handful of Anarchy, slag, a shock Bone relic, 20% BAR, extra damage from the UCP hitting Make It Sparkle (I turned off the overall UVHM DoT buff), and a bunch of points all up in the Little Big Trouble tree (including Electrical Burn, which these flesh-based enemies will feel as well), I’m stacking as much shock damage as I can, so I expect high damage. Backing any of these off (using a different COM, relic, gun, no slag, etc.) will make this hit much more lightly.

Two Bone Crushers (on level), two Scavengers and one Rugged Marauder (all three levels above me) who got too close together died in two applications of Shock Storm from their dead buddies.

Here’s the very first hit from Shock Storm as this guy dies:

Shock
Shock.jpg1843×1037 1.04 MB

Here’s a bunch of the resulting DoT (with Electrical Burn just starting):
Storm

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#11

Loving the fireworks, LBT Gaige will be pressed back into service soon…

While I have your attention, can you think of any reason I’d be better off with a Leg Anarchist over a blue Swift Anarchist like I’m using (6/5 AA/FM) with the buffs DT is getting off AA?

One point to FM for an extra shield buff is worth it imo

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#12

I personally don’t care for Fancy Mathematics because I’m already packing Blood Soaked Shields and Unstoppable Force: this combination might be one of the tankiest shield setups in the game? As much as it’s only one point in Fancy Mathematics, the larger restriction is your COM if you’re using that to feed it (as only a few COMs hit FM). If I had to choose between Legendary Anarchist or Swift Anarchist, I’d go Legendary: that extra, what, seven percent damage Deathtrap gets for the single extra point in Annoyed Android vs. all the other buffs that come with the Legendary version seems to favor the latter. As I type this… did they add Fancy Mathematics to the Legendary Anarchist? I skipped that alteration, but don’t think it’s part of the stock COM?

If you’re not in love with Fancy Mathematics but still want to hit Annoyed Android, try a Punk COM (besides AA, you get either The Better Half or Smaller Lighter Faster) or a Legendary Roboteer (which hits much more).

On that note, and on the subject of the Anarchist COM, have you tried the improved Death From Above in the UCP? It hits pretty freakin’ hard (plus stuns enemies with increased radius). My Bandit Mechromancer uses a custom Anarchist COM with +6 Death From Above and +5 Typecast Iconoclast (specifically for feeding Death From Above), now that it’s been toughened up. I think I changed the damage type back to explosive from shock, but the increased radius and damage… it’ll kill things now, and I love that combat mechanic.

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#13

Oooh, I haven’t played with improved DFA yet, didn’t even catch it was buffed in the notes. The stun alone might make it worth a point, I’ll have a few to play with after hitting SiC.

The leg Anarchist I picked up in the Slaughterdome pretty much made my mind up for me already.
Running around with 10/5 UF isn’t strictly necessary but it sure is fun. My rational with prioritizing AA was the 7% (I think) DT damage per level, kind of a weird hybrid DT/OC thing going.

But if DFA is hitting hard these days an Airborne Anarchist might be worth taking for a spin as well. Thanks for the tip.

I’m committed to getting up to 72 with only Vladof kit at this point. Not the most amazing feat, but still something. If nothing else it’s been a fun run for playing Gaige in a somewhat different style than I’m accustomed to, and learning to love Vladof launchers.

#14

As I think about it, that Death From Above alteration may have come from a different source than the stock UCP (in case it doesn’t seem that great).

#15

I need to snag the filter tool and start playing around with it.

Does it work with any version of the patch, or would I have to rework off the latest?

#16

I think it works with any version? I’d still get the latest (both patch and filter tool); you can just disable what you don’t like out of the latest patch.

I prefer to maintain my patch manually, and use the filter tool mostly for a sanity check to see if I mis-tagged something. There are very few options that I keep that I would turn on or off with the tool (so I just get rid of them entirely), and some of the one-off customizations come with a lot of weird version information and or aren’t as descriptive as I’d like in their header.

The object explorer in the filter tool is way easier than the in-game console for object dumps too, if you’re so inclined.