According to Jens Andersen, DCUO’s Creative Director, the first part of DCUO’s DLC Packs will feature new 4-man and 8-man Operations, new Legends characters, and a new power – Rage.

Rage Powers

First, let me say I was blown away by the job Spord and company did with this new power. I think you’re going to love it. Rage is a Tank/Damage power, and offers a whole new tanking mechanic that simply looks amazing. It’s a unique power with a unique twist that is new to DCUO.

Rage powers are inspired by the Red Lanterns, who draw heir power from the Red Light of the Emotional Spectrum – a light associated with Rage. Heroes and villains will be able to wield this light using a special type of power ring only found in DCUO, which was first introduced when we created Light powers for the game. This new red power ring will tap into the the Rage of the emotional spectrum to create energy blasts, deadly blood plasma attacks, and even some vicious constructs. Most importantly, it allows player characters to retain control of their reason, much like Atrocitus or Guy Gardner, so that they can make their own moral choices – will they wield this light with righteous fury or be driven by vengeance and petty anger? That choice will be yours.

Rage offers players the usual Damage stance that comes with all powers, and this one is might based, so spec your characters accordingly if you like to lay down the damage. It also has a Tank stance, with the exciting new mechanic called “Rage Crash.” Players can activate certain abilities to send them into a state of extreme rage. When in this state, any damage taken is instantly healed. This effect lasts for the duration of the ability, and once the ability fades, all of the damage taken during that time is instantly reapplied to the character. This event is called “Rage Crash.” Other powers can be activated to mitigate the damage hit when the Rage Crash occurs or, even better, skilled players can activate rage combos that will render them immune to the effects of Rage Crash.

If you truly master rage powers, and everything goes right, you are a beast of a tank. But it’s a system fraught with danger, so deciding whether you want to go for complete Rage Crash immunity or mitigation will lead to a variety of new tactics for players (and for their healers!). It is extremely cool and really represents the emotions of the power it seeks to emulate. I know you will enjoy it.
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