The Synergist is an archetype for City of Heroes that combines damage and support in all-new ways. It was developed by malonkey1 and is available to the public so that any server can use it. So far there aren’t any servers that have started using this archetype, but when one does I will update this article to reflect that. There also aren’t any images of the AT yet but as soon as a server starts using the archetype I’ll be able to get some. Below is a word for word copy of all the information there is to know about The Synergist. If you want to use this AT for your server then you can find it here on GitLab.
THE SYNERGIST
“As a Synergist, you are strong alone, but unstoppable with a partner. Maybe you have attracted the patronage of a Lich, acquired the services of Demons, or simply have a strong bond with a local Bruiser. With your access to a mix of ranged and close-up offensive capabilities and the ability to support others in combat, you are a natural leader and combatant.”
The Synergist is a mixed Damage/Support archetype, designed to work alongside a pet, and can even grant the pet some of its Assault powers!
INHERENT: PARTNERSHIP
The Inherent power of the Synergist is Partnership, which provides a boost to Damage and ToHit chance to both the player and pet while they remain within 60 feet of each other.
PRIMARY: ASSAULT
The Primary powerset of the Synergist is Assault, a mix of ranged and melee damage. Their attack damage numbers are pretty much the same as the Dominator’s. The Synergist’s Primary Power Sets include:
- Dark Assault
- Earth Assault
- Electricity Assault
- Energy Assault
- Fiery Assault
- Icy Assault
- Martial Assault
- Psionic Assault
SECONDARY: SUPPORT
The Secondary power set of the Synergist is a mixture of Defensive and party support powers called Support. If you’ve played the Guardian Archetype that was briefly available on Rebirth, you’ll be familiar with the concept. Additionally, the first power of each set is a pet power, summoning a commandable pet similar to a Mastermind’s third-tier pet (or second-tier pets in the case of Ninjitsu and Hellfire Aura). They use roughly Stalker numbers for the defense powers and roughly Mastermind or Controller numbers for the support powers, I think. Also important to note that the self-only powers in these sets also extend to your pet.
- Hellfire Aura: A combination of Fiery Aura and Thermal Radiation, with Demons as the pets.
- Natural Instinct: Combination of Bio Armor and Natural Affinity. Has Dire Wolf as pet.
- Nether Force: Combination of Dark Armor and Dark Miasma with the Lich as the pet.
- Ninjitsu: Pretty much the Stalker Ninjitsu with the two Ninja as pets. Turns out it fits for a Synergist Support set pretty well out of the box.
- Robotics: A combination of Force Fields and Traps with the Assault Bot pet. If we want it to be more defensive, I could add an option for the Protector bot instead.
- Streetwise: Willpower with a couple of Leadership-flavored powers. This one has the most new powers and is also the least-tested right now. Bruiser is the pet.
- Super Serum: A combination of Invulnerability and Poisons, with the Commando as a pet.
- Mental Projection: A combination of soft controls, plus some abilities culled from Fortunata Teamwork and including a modified form of the Phantasm from Illusion control, the Doppleganger! This uses newly-developed doppleganger flags to create a look-alike of its master with illusion powers.
ARCHETYPE ENHANCEMENT SETS:
The Synergist has two unique ATO sets: Synergist’s Coordination and Shared Victory. Both are damage sets that can be slotted into your Assault powers OR your pet powers.
Synergist’s Coordination has the following Enhancements, set bonuses and proc:
| Enhancement | Set Bonus (base) | Set Bonus (catalyzed) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damage/Accuracy | 2 slots: | Moderate +Accuracy | Ultimate +Accuracy |
| Damage/Endurance | 3 slots: | Large +Max HP | Ultimate +Max HP |
| Damage/Accuracy/Recharge | 4 slots: | Gargantuan Toxic and Psi Resist | Ultimate Toxic/Psi Resist |
| Damage/Recharge/Endurance | 5 slots: | Gargantuan +Recharge | Ultimate +Recharge |
| Damage/Accuracy/Recharge/Endurance | 6 slots: | Huge +Mez Resist | Ultimate +Mez Resist |
| Damage/Chance for Build Up | Proc: | Chance for Build Up (Special) |
The Build up is special in that it triggers for you if it’s in your attack, but it triggers for your pet if it’s in a pet power.
Shared Victory has the following Enhancements, set bonuses and proc
| Enhancement | Set Bonus (base) | Set Bonus (catalyzed) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Damage/Accuracy | 2 slots: | Moderate +Damage | Ultimate +Damage |
| Damage/Endurance | 3 slots: | Large +Recharge | Ultimate +Recharge |
| Damage/Accuracy/Recharge | 4 slots: | Large Fire/Cold/AoE +Def | Ultimate Fire/Cold/AoE +Def |
| Damage/Recharge/Endurance | 5 slots: | Huge +Recovery | Ultimate +Recovery |
| Damage/Accuracy/Recharge/Endurance | 6 slots: | Large +Accuracy | Ultimate +Accuracy |
| Damage/Chance for Pet Level Boost | Proc: | +1 Level shift on all pets |
The proc for this set functions the same in your attacks as your pet powers: When it fires, it applies a +1 level shift to all of your pets for 30 seconds.
IMPORTANT THINGS TO NOTE:
- This is free for use on any server with credit, but it is based on Issue 24 data from Ourodev, so if you use a different data set, there will probably be issues.
- Some parts of this archetype require alterations to the client and server code to function. Specifically, the ability to share inspirations and rename the pets, bodyguarding, and the doppleganger code for Mental Projection. These alterations can be found in a branch on Ourodev linked in the repo and here. (you will need a login, which you can get from the fine folks at the ourodev discord, reachable from https://ourodev.com).
- If you can’t or don’t want to incorporate the code changes, there are instructions in the readme to alter the data files for use without them.
- This archetype will see release on the Sanctuary Server eventually, so those of you not running a server will absolutely still get to play this archetype even if no other servers use it. We just have to iron out some beaconserver bugs before we can start doing content updates again.
- This has been tested for functionality with baseline i24 data, but it has not been rigorously balance tested. Part of the reason I’m posting this is to possibly get people playing it on their servers and providing feedback.
- I cannot guarantee compatibility with any other custom content on your servers, but the things it touches are fairly minimal. You may need to merge in the boostset files, as well as some of the power pools, as I had to add in logic to the pool attacks to tell the game which damage numbers to use.