The Hexing Beast
Ranged Mental DPS Build
Updated April 1, 2017
Overview
The primary goal of the build is to optimize DPS while providing sufficient survivability to deal with all of the game's content. I wanted a build that could do it all.. farm cosmic patrols, SSB runs, raids, etc.
Props to @Frostacus for his tanky builds, which I used when I first got into Rogue, but it left me feeling like I wanted to contribute more than simply staying alive. After several iterations of more DPS optimized builds.. going through both melee and ranged options, trying out things like Impact builds with Genius Intellect as well as other damage type versions of this build, I settled on a Mental version as getting the most out of Chaotic Hex, which had become central to my gameplay.
I was going to continue tweaking it for the next week or so before writing up a guide, but after @Thenazum went and posted a sub-1:30 TTK with a derivative build, I figured it was time to do my write-up. :)
And before I get going, many props to @Dravis for all the work we've done on this together. It started off as a solo effort of mine to develop a new build, but after many hours of brainstorming and testing with him, this build is what we ended up with. He's done a lot of the spreadsheeting/math on the rotation and value of stats and skills, as well as all of the high end TTK testing. (since he has been playing for years and has the TU synergy, etc. needed to do a real test. I'm new to the game. :P)
Stolen Powers
I've done both TTK and actual play testing of pretty much every Rogue skill, to both get a feel for their strengths and weaknesses, but also to understand any gameplay nuances that might affect using them. Every skill was picked for very specific reasons, but primarily for their damage potential and synergy with each other.
Drain Strength
Chaotic Hex (Scarlet Witch, Hero) - This is the skill that everything else is built around, and is probably one of the best skills that Rogue has. The ability to maximize the damage output with Signature use is one thing, but Rogue has even more capability between items and other skills and traits to further optimize this interaction.
Wrath of Muspelheim (Surtur, Raid) - This serves as both an Energy proc for The Power Doop, but also as one of many damage buff that Rogue can stack. The mental DoT on this is secondary for why it was picked, but it certainly doesn't hurt.
Hell Rides (Robbie Reyes, Team Up) - Many people think of this just as the skill you use in most builds when you don't yet have Wrath of Muspelheim, but thanks to its Mental DoT and physical damage, it's a great choice for getting our physical Power Doop proc.
Denizens of Otherplace (Magik, Hero/Team Up) - Summons seem to be an all or nothing option for many people/builds, but this is actually one of the best Mental DPS options that Rogue gets, outside of Chaotic Hex, of course. They are for all intents and purposes permanent, because their duration will very significantly outpace their cooldown, and allows you to refresh them if one is killed.
Psychokinetic Barrier (Cable, Hero) - One of several possible options for a Mental DoT, several of which have varied utility. Considering what they also do other than damage is of relatively minor benefit, this was picked simply because it deals more damage than the other options and can be re-cast at will with no limitation. (unlike Crashing Hail, for instance)
Recall Overload - Rogue's signature, picked for obvious reasons. The damage is good, though we're not optimizing for that here.. we mainly need it to trigger the Chaotic Hex buff as often as possible. Also good for clearing packs of Blues in Cosmic content. (such as Terminals and SSB farming)
Ragin' Cajun (Gambit, Hero) - Used primarily for the Critical Hit Chance buff and the ability to keep it up practically 100% of the time, the damage it adds is secondary and almost inconsequential in the greater scheme of things.
Molecular Transport (Mister Sinister, Terminal) - Pretty much the only option for triggering the Beast trait, it has 5 charges, no cooldown (very important) and no pre-set travel distance. (also very important)
For more trash-heavy environments like farming SSB in the Skrull Terminal, I usually swap out Psychokinetic Barrier for Flames of the Faltine. It gives almost as much DPS, but covers a larger area, has a low cooldown (not as good as no cooldown, but..) and draws enemies into the vortex. In combination with Ragin' Cajun, this is typically good enough to drop on top of a pack of trash mobs and walk away.
Absorption Augments
Clobberin' Time! (Thing, Hero) - Not entirely sure why people overlook this Trait so often when it comes to optimizing for damage, as it is one of the few multiplicative universal damage modifications available. The Crowd Control immunity also cannot be understated, as it allows for a buttery smooth rotation.
Bestial Rage (Beast, Hero) - Very important for several reasons.. restores 25% Spirit on activation, which is half of the way we avoid running out of resources. It is also Rogue's other multiplicative damage boost and only critical hit rating increase that is not subject to diminishing returns. On top of all of that, it is also subject to Power Duration, meaning it synergizes very well with buff to Chaotic Hex from the Signature. (which is also subject to PD)
Demolition (Crossbones, Patrols) - The signature damage is icing on the cake, but the primary reason we need this is to get the duration on Recall Overload down to 17 seconds, which is the sweet spot where a properly boosted Hex buff duration ends.
Talents
Total Recall - The other big signature cooldown reducer, important for the same reasons that Demolition is.. to get the cooldown down to 17 seconds.
Mimetic Mutation - Everything we use is a Stolen Power, so it only makes sense.
Loose Gloves - Often overlooked as there is nothing flashy about it, but the Attack Speed buff is very important considering our primary damage source is Chaotic Hex, and our gear generally doesn't give much. The damage add is nothing to sneeze at and the extra Life on Hit is definitely nice to have.
Gearing
Artifacts
All Artifacts have a Blessing of Hela, for obvious reasons.
Hood of the Reaper - A big chunk of Health, a big chunk of Mental Damage, a big chunk of Brutal Strike Rating and a big chunk of the Fighting stat. What's not to love?
Gem of the Kursed - Staple damage artifact, contributes to Rogue's very substantial critical stat ratings.
Crossbone's Teaching Credentials - One of the best DPS artifacts in the game right now, if not the best one.. Crossbone's Credentials gives you a bit of everything you want and a big stacking Brutal Damage Rating buff on top.
Flag of the Skrull Empire - While nothing flashy by itself, it adds stats in all the right places and helps further cement the build as having a very strong ability to land those critical and brutal strikes.
Since we've got four artifacts that can all be Cosmic, we should use four cosmic artifacts, right? :) Actually, it's kind of important that we do, because 2/4 of the Cosmic artifact affixes I picked are kind of critical for the build to function:
- While in combat, your abilities cost 15% less Spirit - We use Chaotic Hex, a lot. We need a decent chunk of spirit cost reduction to keep us in the black. This is a big chunk of that.
- While in combat, reduce the cooldown of Signature Powers by 10% - Very important, takes an additional 3 seconds off of Recall Overload and lets us get down to that 17 second sweet spot.
- While in combat, your Attributes are increased by 1 - Nothing flashy, but good. Considering our options, this gives us a bit of everything, and is worth including.
- While in combat, your Defense Rating is increased by 1500 - It was either this or Dodge, and after plenty of testing, it felt like always reducing damage instead of sometimes dodging a hit entirely was more important for staying alive.
While none of the artifacts are technically irreplacable, I do find that they are the best DPS options available for this build. If you need more survivability, there are better places to get it.
Medallion
Doctor Doom is my go-to option, it has pretty much everything we want.. huge Power Duration, Damage Rating, Health and the bit of extra Spirit is icing on the circular cake.
War Skrull is a decent second option, but the procs you get to Energy and Physical Damage are largely wasted because the vast majority of our damage output is Mental. But, the Fighting stats, big chunk of Health and big Power Duration do satisfy our requirements for this slot.
Uru
While the choice of Uru is not super important (you can use a War Plate if you really want the added defense), I went with a War Helm simply because I didn't feel like I needed the added Defense, and Mental damage is our best option for a number of reasons. Whichever Uru you do choose, The Power Doop is our go-to Runeword, simply because we have the skills to proc it and the damage bonuses it gives are huge. Nothing else comes close.
Legendary
Earlier iterations of the build had M'Kraan Crystal or Golden Bow of Apollo, but with the new Infinity patch and re-focusing the build on Mental only skills, The Warlock's Eye was the obvious choice. Well, really, the only reason I even tried a Mental build was because of the strength of this Legendary. While the Spirit is not really needed per se, it does help push us into "not needing to worry about Spirit" territory in combination with our sources of Spirit Cost Reduction and the Beast trait. The 2,000 Mental Damage Rating is obviously huge for a build with such high Critical and Brutal chance and really helps to push Chaotic Hex into the stratosphere. The wording on the Rank 5 proc seems to be wrong, because it appears to proc on pretty much anything you hit at range. Perhaps the "area around you" that it can hit is just really large.
Ring
Sling Ring of the Kamar-Taj - While not the best DPS option, it is only so by a very small margin. The 2 second Invulnerability on Signature use however is actually pretty strong, and great for re-positioning to maximize Signature damage.
Industry City Signet - Very slightly superior to the Sling Ring in terms of damage, and a great alternative.
Uniques
These are what makes the build possible. Pretty much any change here and you can expect the build to falter in one way or another. You'll notice a central theme here: Power Duration.
Fragment of Twilight - What do you want from a Slot 1 Unique? Damage. This has it in spades. And the (up to) 2,700 health is pretty significant too.
Standard Issue X-Men Uniform - Power Duration, above average Damage Rating, Attack Speed and a big chunk of Health.. this thing pretty much exemplifies what we want in a Slot 2 Unique.
Coat of the Skull - Damage, Power Duration, More Damage and More Damage. Yep, that's about it. Below average Health, but one of the sacrifices we may in the name of PD.
Skrull Military Uniform - Power Duration (noticing a trend?), big Health, Damage and a great proc.. this is a great Slot 4 and probably one of the best Uniques we use dollar for dollar.
Cobra's Hood - This thing can be a nightmare to farm for, but it's worth it. Beyond the above average Damage Rating and good Critical/Brutal Chance, it does two things that no other slot 5 can: Another damage layer occasionally (via the Poison Cloud proc) and a persistent Vulnerability on anything we're hitting. The latter is the important part, because it means we don't have to slot in a Vulnerability skill, and that means more damage overall.
For Challenge Bonuses I put Fighting on pretty much everything, but Durability can work if you really feel like you need the added Health. For Enchants, I like to use the Damage Rating or Critical Damage Rating A.R.M.O.R. Upgrade on Slots 1 and 5, while I generally put the A.R.M.O.R. Spirit Upgrade on Slots 2-4. The latter allows us to skirt by resource management requirements without dedicating any items to Spirit Cost Reduction or +Maximum Spirit directly.
Catalyst
There are a few key components of a good Catalyst, and generally speaking not much room for variation. Here is what you really need:
- Gain 418 Health when you hit an enemy - It is generally going to be your only source of notable constant healing.
- Regenerate 25% of your Health (up to 3000) and 100 Spirit when you use your Med Kit - Big chunk of healing to kick-start your med kit. The 100 Spirit is not super important as the combination of the Beast trait and your Signature generally keeps you in the black.
- +3 Fighting - Just the most damage you can get for the stat slot.
- Gain a Damage Shield equals to 50% of your maximum health when you use your Med Kit. - This is probably the single biggest reason this build works in terms of survivability. The damage shield is huge after the 25% of your Health is healed.
Everything else is up to you. +Max Spirit is a decent choice, added Movement Speed or Invisibility on Med Kit use are good as well. The Mutation bonus is up to you, but will largely be random by the time you get a Catalyst with all of these other components. And obviously you want to craft it with 4 Critical Damage Rating affixes. :)
Insignia
The important part is to get both Critical Damage Rating and Brutal Damage Rating, after that, the actual Insignia type is of lesser consequence. Some good options are Wasp, Wolverine, Scarlet Witch, Quake, Eric O'Grady and Heroes for Hire. Why don't we use Critical Hit Rating? Well, check your stat sheet, it's huge.
Pet
The Cybernetic Bonuses I picked are largely personal choice, but I think they are prety optimal in terms of what works for the build.
- +8% Base Health
- +50 Spirit
- +10% Brutal Damage
- When you critically hit gain 4% ranged damage rating + 4% critical damage rating for 12s (15s cooldown)
- +3 Fighting
Power Interaction and Synergies
What really makes this build work well is how the gear and skills work in combination. Chaotic Hex alone is definitely nothing special, and only really begins to shine when used after Rogue's Signature. But even that alone is not enough, because the buff would typically run out well before you could use the signature again. That's where Power Duration comes into play, and why it is present on a majority of the items we use. We're aiming for the maximum of 59.2% Power Duration (on the 4 items that have it), but obviously we're not going to have max rolls on everything. I've only got a total of 54.7% Power Duration currently, and that seems just about right for what we want. I think if I had an extra half a second on my Hex buff duration, I'd be golden.
So, why is all this PD important? Two main reasons: 1) Bestial Rage and 2) Chaotic Hex. They both have an 8 second duration by default. With 55% Power Duration, you end up with a 12.4 second duration on both. If you pop your Beast buff right before you use your Sig, you end up with a 7.4 second window of time where your Chaotic Hex is buffed to the limit. (out of it's own 12.4 second duration) It's not 100% of the Hex buff uptime, but it is a lot, and also covers the Signature damage as well, which is very notable. The most important part is what comes after the Signature, when you start to spam Chaotic Hex. You've got effectively 13 seconds of time from where your Hex buff starts (it seems to start slightly before the Signature animation ends) and the Signature cooldown ends, and 12.4 of those seconds are covered with the Hex buff. That's pretty good. This means that while the Signature is cooling down, your Chaotic Hex is performing at peak potential. As long as your rotation is good, you can easily maximize the Hex damage. Weave in your other CDs as necessary and the outcome is big damage.
Rotation
My typical approach to starting a fight goes like this: Lead in with 4x to trigger Bestial Rage, buff yourself with , and (Power Doop ahoy), get and out there to start dealing damage and then drop the to get this party started! Now that the Hex buff is up, your goal is to spam constantly (Stop All Movement keybind and LMB is good, since your bolts automatically track the nearest target), weaving in your CDs as they become available and waiting until your Signature comes off of CD. When is about 1 second away from being available, do 4x , use the Signature and then you start the spam all over again.
The primary reason (after testing) to activate the Bestial Rage buff right before the Signature is that the majority of the damage we deal comes from the Hex buff uptime, and we don't want to spend [even 1 second of] that uptime spamming Molecular Transport. We sacrifice some Bestial Rage uptime, but overall the DPS is improved.