I can't solo at all.. just me?

[Stillwate]

Well I'm out for ever soloing. By time the charm's recast timer is over I'm dead. My old technique was to get a pair, charm one and kill the first one, then the charmed one.Now the charm ends half way through the first kill and attacks me. Well since recast timer is still down I die. So yah... the best I can do is green down arrow. So leveling on my own or doing anything fun on my own is pretty much gone now.Do I just suck or is this for everyone? Really. I can't solo at all. I'm basically forced to have to join groups for all eternity or do grey quest mobs. Popping on mez doesn't always work for me, and half the time I don't switch target in time and forget once again my auto attack went on on its own and I break my own mez. Great.Most nerfs I've never cared about. I really really don't get this one. I'm so aggravated trying to do anything. What do I do when no one wants me in group? I can't solo and no one is LFG. Or they are but don't want my troub.What am I supposed to do?<div></div>

[Jooneau]

Looking at your profile, you are similarly equipped to my Bard, and I can solo yellow down-arrows without a problem. It is touch-and-go versus no-arrows though, and I can't take one-ups unless they are green.Apparently, the SOE designer decided to balance us to be able to solo only against even down-arrows or lesser NPC's, if we were equipped with handcrafted gear and App3 spells, completely ignoring that almost every other class can solo even con one-ups or even heroic encounters without much trouble.

[Mishrac]

<P>Banking and Harvesting.. no Seriously I totaly agree with you... this is no fun at all. I remember when the groups was happy to have a bard to aid them now they are just like... " well you know we need dps or healer to help the group... not a [Removed for Content]... sorry here is a copper go and buy your self something to drink"</P> <P>This is only BS from Sonys part, we have tried and tried to addapt to the gameplay but nothing happens... at least I got one quest to do and thats the betray quest... but you will prolly have to have a group to finish it off... so no use there either.</P> <P>When will you get it SONY if you have a bard in the group the group will be greate... Get us the buffs that makes everyone shine. c mon for freaking sake. BARDS shall have the best buffs not the other classes. So how hard can it be its like that in every other game.</P> <P>ahhh why bother... sorry got off topic. No I cant solo effectivly either.</P>

[vinterskugge]

<DIV>Get some better weapons to start.  There are legendary T7 ones which should be pretty cheap on the broker that will improve your damage a lot.</DIV>

[Allowin]

i have to inform you since theres no way you can play a bard with some of the ignorant comments ive seen you make in the troubador forums (the one about you really liking the nerf to the charm/mez spells is my running favorite)but buying some crappy T7 legendary weapons wont do jack crap to help her solo. a troubs ability to solo was little to none before LU24. and now its worse, much worse. how much worse can you get than 0...ask sony.they found a way<div></div>

[vinterskugge]

<DIV>Better weapons = more damage = things die faster,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Not rocket science.</DIV>

[Bassist]

<div><blockquote><hr>Allowin wrote:i have to inform you since theres no way you can play a bard with some of the ignorant comments ive seen you make in the troubador forums (the one about you really liking the nerf to the charm/mez spells is my running favorite)but buying some crappy T7 legendary weapons wont do jack crap to help her solo. a troubs ability to solo was little to none before LU24. and now its worse, much worse. how much worse can you get than 0...ask sony.they found a way<div></div><hr></blockquote>Wow, I don't agree with everything Scafloc says, but he has a different playstyle and much better equipment.  As I've increased both I've found I agree with him more and more.  I've even disagreed on the boards in a civil manner, but I've never attacked him.  I've found him to be reasonable in arguments, and arguments are what move knowledge forward.Yes, I'm sad to see Mez and Charm nerfed.  I didn't use Charm much after I started getting better equipment/spells, but that was laziness.  It wasn't needed.  Better weapons do help.  Better armor in the weak spots.  With what I have now I can run through SoS to anywhere I want except the epic area, solo.  I do it without mez, without charm.  It's not to brag, just follow an FDer and figure out how and what you need.  It's easier when your buffs are maxxed and armor/weapons legendary or better.Our major problem is that we have our abilities spread across everything.  We can't just upgrade pet spells or sniper shots and take down a heroic^^^.  We have to do a full upgrade, across the board.  If you go to my earlier posts this year you'll see I was using charm and mez.  Go to the later ones, where I started having fabled/legendary items and Master/Adept3 spells and you'll see I was talking DPS.I complained about the changes to Mez/Charm, but they don't affect me as much anymore.  Aria's was a large loss to many people because it was our one upgrade which could boost our DPS quickly.  I found the people who said it wasn't were correct if you could afford/spend the time to get full upgrades.  Charm is a large loss because you didn't even have to upgrade it to be useful in producing solo DPS in certain areas.  They need to replace it with something more useful, because it doesn't compare to the rez of the Dirge.  My complaints were for people leveling a Troub, because that will be more difficult now.  It doesn't affect me much personally.</div>

[thorvang]

troubs are rather dependant on gear. with good gear you're able to solo green triple ups with ease. get some nice weapons and decent armor. maybe use a shield to get the avoidance. troubs are even pretty decent kiters.

[Sir Blig]

<DIV>The problem is all in where one stands and if one was in their shoes maby the same thing would have got posted <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If found I used mez and charm a massive amount, charm I started using from lu13 when they made it useful with one conc slot and wo I made lvl 50 2 hours before dof so I went into dof with both mez and charm. Trust me when I say I difference it made was out of this world, before that triple down greens had been a royal pain and blues were avoided, adds were guaranteed death regardless of what they were.<BR> <BR>Into the 50’s with mex and charm suddenly I could hold my own, and now by hacking and slashing but in long drawn out combat using mez to allow buffs to heal and mana regen. If there was more than one I pretty well had to charm one and do max dps to the other to try to burn it down before I was dead of my charm broke, mez in that case was to control any other adds or extra’s</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>What I have seen since then:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>1st Level cap is hit,</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I have noticed once on the cap there is a general lack of content, where when getting there, there was a whole range right into red at the cap whit and yellow get rare, oranges I hardly ever see and are pretty well limited to a rew raid mobs. So now running around bonmire pretty most is blue, so we end up getting the advantage from being higher than them.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>2nd Gear/Spells gets better, </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The longer you play the more likely you are to slowly upgrade all your gear and spells, while comparisons will be maid with average gear and spells getting better ones will allow one to do better.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>3rd RAIDING, groups and group instances </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Yup those places and all the sweet gear that can be gotten from there, once you get fully kitted out with fable and master/adept III or even with a few masters and gear from good group areas, things look different to very different.</DIV> <DIV>mez and charm were for a very long time my lifesavers and how I managed survive, and without it I would have given up. I have not forgotten how much I used it, and if I go up against things that would be as challenging to me now as things were back then, then I would use them or I would die.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>It can be difficult to see the forest for the trees, and short of cornering a well equipped troub and asking for a few demonstrations..</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>One has to respect that people are at different positions in terms of gear/skill/spells etc etc</DIV> <DIV>If I spot you on the server again I will wave again and we can go and test out our skill in single combat(against mobs)</DIV>

[Jaimster]

<P>Soloing is pretty sad... I'm using a fabled dual wield in primary slot, and legendary in second slot. I have almost all legendary armor and jewelry with two fabled jewelry pieces, and a few treasured.  Grouping is definitely the way to go, and I haven't discovered that I'm not wanted or needed in groups but then, I generally group with the same people. But groups are what Troubs were meant for. I'm sorry to say, but I never expected to be able to solo terribly well as a troub.  OTH, it's pretty irksome when I get to half life being attacked by a 66 basilisk and a 66 down arrow bat at one time.... but then, that tended to happen to me prior to the LU, so...</P> <P>Troubs need loving in general... and I can honestly say that I would not want to start another troub from scratch, but since I'm level 70, I'll keep playing and grouping and raiding.  The only time I really solo anymore are when I'm harvesting and can't help but be attacked.</P> <P>I'm not Cheering for these changes but they aren't going to make me quit either. With so few high end troubs out there, I know there will be a spot for me somewhere...</P>

[RoXx]

<DIV>Yep, soloing is a nightmare..</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>With my warden the splitpaw AP went like a breeze. With my troubie...well I didnt make it through the first mob :p (most con white, some con yellow)</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Luckily I dont have to solo at all anymore, since I play with RL friends. I'm doing pretty good with my troub when I'm grouping.. But yeah, I agree, soloing is not a possibility..</DIV>

[LordCalido]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE>Troubadors were not forgotten in LU24, hence the many and ongoing changes to charm being tested on the test server. Also, what is visible on the test server is often one week behind what is being tested internally. There are already more changes that will show up on the test server that reflect decisions based on the data collected from the previously tested version (and not the non-tested message board reactions to each change).<BR><BR>The charm originally was an expensive mesmerization that would hold an enemy for an extended duration and their only action would be to follow the Troubador.  Through other changes to the spell system, the charm allowed the creature to attack enemies, even though there wasn't an attack command ever allowed for the pet. Effectively, it became close to a 1 concentration cost charm available to a scout class. The new changes reflect that it is now a short duration charm that a Troubador can use to effectively remove a creature from combat and use their damage to the Troubador's short-term advantage. It won't be until next week when you can see the latest changes that were made to it on the test server.<BR><BR>Control abilities across all classes were evaluated. After these changes, Troubadors are the only non-Enchanter class that can use mesmerize to lock down a creature. It's certainly less than what they could do before, but how powerful it was before in locking up to 4 creatures had to be evaluated like all other classes and did not have a place to be so powerful in the broader control changes. I've taken precautions that Troubadors can still solo even level solo creatures and solo encounters with handcrafted gear and apprentice III spells.<BR><BR>I know this is not the response that some of you want to hear, but it is the direction that these two spells are being changed.<BR> <P></P> <DIV>===========================<BR>Jared Sweatt<BR></DIV> <P> </P> <P> </P> <P>Remember that post by Lockeye, that third paragraph just keeps getting funnier each time I read it.</P></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>

[Lachlan]

<P>Back to the OP... yeah, soloing is tough now with your charm pet's dps gone and let's not forget, Troubs were never a great solo class to begin with.  My swashie was much better although nerfing Cheap Shot by 2 seconds is going to make life a bit harder for them as well.  Anyway, it's not you except that you didn't pick a great solo class if that's what you are doing.  Maybe time to reconsider.</P> <P>I know this thread has become 'look what you can do with a few pieces of fabled gear and master spells' but as I see it, when you are lvl 70 and have all that stuff, you're working on an Alt or maybe crafting between a few raids.  The hardcore grind part of the cycle is about level 40-65, you spend a lot of time exp'ing, questing and chewing up the meat of the game.  In time of need, your only decent dps option was charm pets, you lost a lot and the little bumps to Lore's, the ranged CA and Steal Essense didn't do much for losing pets, mez and a big chunk of Aria's old pre-23 dmg.  </P> <P>It's painful to read Lockeye's post again, btw.  Troubs never intended to get pet dps with the charm?  Where have you been man?  Bards had this going since EQ1;  <FONT color=#ff6600>It's been like 6 years of the charm DPS legacy ending this week.</FONT>  Geeze.</P> <P> </P><p>Message Edited by Lachlan on <span class=date_text>06-15-2006</span> <span class=time_text>04:02 PM</span>

[Fildarum]

<DIV>actually, when the game was first launched, troubs were one of the best solo classes, then everyone cried nerf...and its been downhill since.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[Jaimster]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Lachlan wrote:<BR> <P><STRONG>I know this thread has become 'look what you can do with a few pieces of fabled gear and master spells' but as I see it, when you are lvl 70 </STRONG>and have all that stuff, you're working on an Alt or maybe crafting between a few raids.  The hardcore grind part of the cycle is about level 40-65, you spend a lot of time exp'ing, questing and chewing up the meat of the game.  In time of need, your only decent dps option was charm pets, you lost a lot and the little bumps to Lore's, the ranged CA and Steal Essense didn't do much for losing pets, mez and a big chunk of Aria's old pre-23 dmg. </P> <P>Message Edited by Lachlan on <SPAN class=date_text>06-15-2006</SPAN><SPAN class=time_text>04:02 PM</SPAN><BR></P> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE> <P>I can't speak for anyone else, but that was in fact part of my point.  I have some of that stuff and soloing is STILL tough... as far as acknowledging the fact that I am level 70, it was to acknowledge that it will obviously be easier for me to adjust because I"m not trying to level up anymore and so I think it sucks for anyone not 70 even more than it sucks for me...</P> <P>I don't think anyone is trying to say that these changes make life easier... just that from our perspective (which is at level cap) it's not quite as rough for us... we have other options should we choose to take them.... were I level 50 I might think differently.<BR></P>

[Jeger_Wulf]

<P>Time to cut Scafloc some slack. I don't think I agree with him, but it's nice to hear from someone who thinks it can work. He gives me ideas of things I can try. If you disagree with him, fine, but stay civil. </P> <P>After all, if the rest of us quit, it will be nice to have one troubadour still active. <img src="/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></P>

[LodrinSt]

<P>1) You should make a macro for Lullaby/Reverie. The first line should be a command to turn autoattack off. The second is the /useability Lullaby. Do this and you'll never break mes again. </P> <P>2) I don't have too many problems solo'ing even or one ups. My gear is weak imo (some xegonite, mostly treasured ~60-65, and maybe 3-4 legendaries from den/vaults/poa.) I have 2518 mitigation, 40.5% avoidance buffed.  185 str, 275 agi, 118 sta, 388 int (daeli's, but no raxxl's)</P> <P>My ablities are all adept or higher, that might be the real difference.</P> <P>3) I have an int build (capped solo), so almost ALL my damage comes from spells/spellprocs/ca's. I use a shield. It helps alot. I have a legendary 1hr but it has no real role in my DPS</P> <P>4) Put on your agi/int buff, avoidance, power regen, health regen. Last can be either ari's or raxxyl's.</P> <P>5) Snare, AE on the run, Shrill on the run, Triple Debuff/Dot on the run. Essence, Hymn, Cheapshot, Backstab. Now spam Sandra's, Blade, Bellow.  Mob should be at about 50% life. Tank it for a few seconds. Shrill and hymn will be back up quickj. Spam any damage hotkeys as soon as they are up. If you are having a hitpoint problem, mes and backup. I can kill blue one ups with 70-80% life left over no problem with that method.</P> <P>6) Lastly, solo'ing in general is a waste of time. If you can't get a group just log or tradeskill. </P>

[911GT3]

IMO a bard should be weak at solo, we are there to aid others and improve others. You realy should not have picked a utility class if you plan on doing soo much soloing and anyway groups are realy the way to go for getting xp and loot, this isnt designed to be like wow where every class is close to equal. <div></div>

[Reptilianb]

<P>i can't believe what you are all saying?</P> <P>A bard should have a decent charm and mez.. we should be able to solo if everyone else can... </P> <P>Charm is WHY i made a troub .</P>

[Jooneau]

<blockquote><hr>911GT3 wrote:IMO a bard should be weak at solo, we are there to aid others andimprove others. You realy should not have picked a utility class if youplan on doing soo much soloing and anyway groups are realy the way togo for getting xp and loot, this isnt designed to be like wow whereevery class is close to equal.<div></div><hr></blockquote>As long as people like this continue to play Troubadors, we will always suck at soloing. Thanks for nothing, guy.Just because you think we are good at utility (which, by the way, we aren't) doesn't mean that we have to suck at soloing. Heck, the classes with better utility than us all can solo better than we can. The ones who can take hits, the ones who can heal damage, the ones who can do damage ... the ones with actual utility, not the five concentration slots you seem to think qualify as utility.So what if I can solo better if I have Fabled gear and Master 1 spells? I could also solo better without raid gear if I played another class too and contribute more to raids than a Troubador with "utility" that actually matters: damage, tanking, healing. This whole "we are just a utility class" idiocy has got to stop. It is one of the big things holding back the class as a whole.<p>Message Edited by Jooneau on <span class=date_text>06-16-2006</span> <span class=time_text>12:20 AM</span>

[Snublefot]

<P>Its still possible to solo. Single target encounters should be pretty easy even to a less equiped bard. The mez macro mentioned earlier is very good advice indeed. </P> <P>The secret in taking on single target mobs is simple. Mez - charm - mez - mez - mez - charm. And use good drinks/food. It takes time. But anything that dont deal more damage in one hit then your hp/power/food/drink can regen is killable. It takes time. A long time. And patience. And mistakes get punished hard. So is lag. And its most certainly not a way to get xp. Its for farming quest mobs, or just for the kick of taking down something.</P> <P>I've said what I think about the mez/charm change earlier, its a nerf, one that hit hard. But its possible to go around it. In group play we've received a damage boost. So for raid play. And our burst dps is as high as ever in soloing. Believe it or not, there is other classes that are worse off when it comes to soloing then us. The mez/charm is an effective heal/regen in the right encounters. </P> <P>What I would really like is a self heal. So I didnt have to use that strategy mentioned above. It would save time and feel little less like cheating :p</P>

[Sir Blig]

<DIV>For anyone that thinks bards should be weak in any way shape or form</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The day facto standard set of word for describing bards are “Jack’s of all and masters on none”</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If an average person wandered past and saw a bard doing something they should go ooooh aaaah you are very good at whatever they had put their hands too.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If two minutes later they wander past a true master of whatever it was, they will definitely stop and say my word that is just unbelievable I thought the bard was amazing but you are out of this world.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>As per the “of all” this should nto be confined to a small set of skill that mean we are forced to always look for groups if we want to even get close to what we should be able to do.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>And people that moan that another class is doing something well need to REALY look at the big picture, if say in every situation we were doing more DPS that the mages and the mages are supposed to be the masters, then there is a problem and  valid reason for asking for it to be looked into. And don’t ever forget the old motto, if you can’t beat em join em, if you feel done that someone else is able to do something you cant, well go play that class. <BR></DIV>

[LordCalido]

<P>Where I am frustrated with Sony is the content that is meant to be soloed (and has to be) like the trials in the monk tower are overly difficult and in some cases almost impossible for us to do.</P> <P>I would be willing to put a $1000 wager that Lockeye could not beat that second floor monk tower trial with a level 70 troubador in crafted gear and app 3 songs. Especially, now that crafted armor has dropped in mitigation. Which leads me to believe:</P> <P> </P> <P>A) He's misinformed and hasn't played a troubador</P> <P>B) The "precautions to ensure we can solo" didn't work or they are broken</P> <P>C) He didn't do his job and follow thru with what he promised</P> <P>D) He's full of horse manure and posted that to keep us from raising too much hell until he could finish Project Nerf and move on to something else.</P> <P>E) All of the Above</P> <P> </P> <P>Personally, what I plan to do is start sending a PM a day to Scott Hartsman (Gallenite) and anyone else above the Devs until one responds. Honestly, what company allows it's employees to make promises to the mass public then not follow thru with them. I would suggest everyone else do the same until we get a response or the claims that an employee of Sony made are followed thru with.</P>

[Jaimster]

<P>Oh there is no way in hell i could solo a blue or white conned regular (not one up, not heroic, just regular) wearing common crafted gear and using apprentice 3 spells.  Maybe 1 out of 20 times...Except maybe at level 20 or even 30.  Perhaps that is where he tested, levelwise.</P> <P>If Lockeye believes that (I'm thinking what he <EM>really</EM> meant was, as a betabuffed toon with AD3 spells and rare crafted gear) Troubadors can do that at the higher levels, then he really has never played, nor, encountered a solo troubador. Yeah I could solo that stuff with an entire group's buffs up on me... blah.</P> <P>I don't mean to go all Jekyl and Hyde on people - I'm very torn about this update for solo Troubs. On the one hand, I have stated that it doesn't effect me, personally, so much and the reasons for it (I'm at level cap and I don't solo much unless it's necessary because I get attacked while harvesting)... on the other hand I've also stated that I think it sucks for anyone not in that particular situation.</P> <P>While no one should ever have expected a troubador to solo as well as, say an assassin or a necro, it's pretty insulting what we can currently solo, and what we need to be wearing and using in order to do even that...</P>

[LodrinSt]

<DIV>If you really really want to solo with a troubadour you still can. You can use either the method I mentioned above, or you can STILL snare kite ^^^.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>This is what I do.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>1) Find my target and make sure I have space to kite. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>2) Turn OFF aria's and any spell procs. I'd play Self int/agi, avoidance, health/power regen</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>3) Pull with AE, then Shrill, then mes.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>4) Wait for Mes to reset</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>5) Snare, Hymn, AE on the run, Shrill on the run. Mes</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>6) Repeat steps 4-5. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I do that with NO flowing thought, just my Power regen buff. I end up with 70-80% power remaining. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Obviously, having your abilities at Adept or higher helps alot. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I do admit that I have</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- Master Shrill</DIV> <DIV>- Master Hymn</DIV> <DIV>- Adept 3 Snare</DIV> <DIV>- Adept 3 Lullaby</DIV> <DIV>- Adept 3 Mana Regen</DIV> <DIV>- Adept 1 AE</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>You should be adept 3'ing certain spells. Lullaby stays with you from 50 to 70 and you use it ALOT. Excellent candidate for Ad3. Make sure you practice your subjugation, as a low subjugation skill virtually guarantee's a resist.  I don't know why, but Lullaby Adept 3 works ALOT more reliably then Reverie Adept 1. Alot more than that "10% harder" seems to suggest. Snare and power regen are good ideas as well. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[Snublefot]

<P>Thats one way to do it, and kinda twitchy, my way of soloing a regular mob is the following:</P> <P>1) make sure I find a place where I wont get adds</P> <P>2) Pull with Alin's Incadecent, this have huge range and long cast giving me more then a few procs</P> <P>3) Debuffing with Demoralizing Processional and Disheartening Discante, then add the snare (spells in 2 and 3 are pretty much queued, snare last because of its limited range). I might add a Mighty Bellow if the mob stops to cast on me.</P> <P>4) Mob should now be in range, MEZ!</P> <P>5) Sneak, burst. Midnight tempo, start HO, advance with defence debuff, jesters, shrill, stun, backstab, Sandras, Essence, noble, Elis, shield bash, backstab.</P> <P>6) If I've taken damage, mez. Charm when mez is 2 seconds from beeing ready again. This regens power and hp and is pretty much a mini-heal, and at a higher rate then your mez/charm take it away.</P> <P>7) Repeat 6 until health is 100%</P> <P><img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> Debuff the mob. Make sure you dont have proc up. You can rebuff proc song after you've debuffed.</P> <P>9) repeat 5-8 until mob is dead.</P> <P>This way even a app1 naked troub should be able to solo a even con solo mob at level 70.</P>

[Godzmodi]

I can pretty much solo anything, just takes awhile. i do have full fabled and most masters, but i can solo any named tahts not mezz proof. mezz is the key to soloing. <div></div>

[Aelfric_Runnyeye]

<P>Troubadours were the first class nerfed in beta testing and they are still coming. This is just challenging us to continue the proud tradition of bard players coming up with ever more inventive ways to use the wide variety of skills in ways not really planned for by the game designers.</P> <P>Soloing with a troub is good fun... soloing is necessary for most people at some point if you prefer not to sit around waiting for a group. Can happily solo yellow evens. I won't attempt a green ^^^ solo though. I have no masters, other than the free ones, and mostly adept 1's.</P> <P>Some tips that I find help me to survive...</P> <P>1) Make sure you take and do every quest going yep even if that means you have to wait for the ^^^ to turn grey to finish them you still get xp for finishing the quest. Try to be killing things that update three or four quests at the same time.</P> <P>2) Fire off all your spells/abilities then mezz to allow them to recharge and then repeat, this effectively raises your dps for the time that you are fighting.</P> <P>3) Fire off your snare then click the left or right movement and keep circling this will cut down the amount of attacks you receive and blast off with your shrills etc. This is slower of course but it works in the long run or if things are coming close (not quite EQ1 kiting but never let it be said bards can't kite in EQ2).</P> <P>4) Make the best use of sneak to gain as much AA experience as possible, those AA's do make a difference, bump for example makes you stealth and can be followed with a stealth attack and a backstab within the time a cheap shot lasts.</P> <P>5) Always pick your free master with soloing in mind.</P> <P>Charm seems practically pointless now.</P>

[Godzmodi]

if you have the time and the patience you can solo alot of ^^^s. also 30 yards of room prefered. i play mana regen, hp regen, arias, str/sta (for the hp), and self buff i just mezz a guy, run to max range, nuke it with shrill and smash the mezz key until he comes into range and mezz him, making sure to turn off auto attack. run to where the guy was orginally standing, rinse and repeat. if mezz gets resisted, cheap shot, root, then run till your mezz is up, and mezz him again. throwing a few maestros in there and your unstoppable. when i do this i rarely get hit, if at all. and if you do you can just mezz at the last 4 secs of a mezz and regen back to 100% hp. i have never had a problem with it. <div></div>

[Jooneau]

I could see using the new charm in the way EQ1 bards used to charm kite, if, as someone pointed out to me in another thread, you can command your pet to attack.Charm something, sic it on a group, run around until charm refreshes, repeat until your pet is close to dead. You can cancel the charm if it looks like he is going to die before the charm is up. Kill the former pet now that it's practically dead.This is also known as "reverse charming," a tactic that EQ1 Enchanters came up when SOE nerfed the hell out of their charm in the Omens of War expansion.The reason I hate coming up with BS tactics like this is that I would rather have the SOE design team actually do their jobs and design a viable Troubador class that doesn't have to resort to [Removed for Content] kiting or reverse charming to kill effectively, like practically every other class in this game can without such tactics.<p>Message Edited by Jooneau on <span class=date_text>06-19-2006</span> <span class=time_text>05:36 AM</span>

[Eladia]

<P><FONT color=#0099ff size=3>This is a copy of what I posted on a similar thread, "Has it really got that bad?"  My response would be a clear and resounding yes.  I have no idea what 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, or 70 looks like now for the troubadour, but based on my current experience, plus everything I've read on these forums, I can't find a good enough reason to try.  Honestly, my inner masochist can find about a dozen better, more satisfying ways to annoy myself *and* waste my own time....</FONT></P> <P><FONT color=#0099ff size=3>Anyway, this is my post.  And I don't care what's being tested internally or is currently on the Test server, because in all honesty, I think if those people cared anything about the troub class, they'd be reading these forums, evaluating feedback, and testing a troub themselves - and comparing it to other classes that they would test-play.  Or maybe that's just me.</FONT></P> <P><FONT color=#0099ff size=3>Anyway, here's why I'm just saying no to the quixotic and romantic notion of a troub in this game...</FONT></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>I've been reading these forums for awhile, and I always tended to downplay the complaints other players had as giving up easily, not being willing to try, or not doing the homework about making your troubadour excel.  I always thought soloing was more about the ability of the person behind the toon, as well (to quote someone in another post).  I also realized that even though the charm line was being drastically shortened, and although all the teeth have been pulled from the troubadour's other spell lines, I was reasonably confident that if I stuck it out, that eventually someone would nerf it back to something reasonably decent to play.   I played a bard alt in EQ - which I loved - and I'm a musician IRL - which I love.  This character was my second character (my main is a fury), and I very much enjoyed roleplaying a musician with this character.</FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>But last night, I reached my limit with my 21 troub.  Right before LU24, I took the second AQ quest, Ian's Forgetful Family, Part 2.  I worked out - with several deaths - a way to pull and kill single necrosis goblins all by my lonesome.  It was trial and error, strategy, and good fun all around for me.  And I have to admit, I was pretty smug and pleased with myself in guildchat after, LOL.</FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>Then after LU24, I logged her on to find that the quest is gone completely.  So I have to start over.  And guess what?  Now when I try to pull a single, non-heroic, non-grouped goblin ... all the grouped, heroic goblins who ever met my goblin in passing - even the ones standing nowhere near, all come running to try and re-enact the gunshop scene of Pulp Fiction on Tintaille.</FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>Then I went to the Caves to get a quest out of my journal, got jumped and killed by a level 16 heroic that my 21 monk would have easily kicked the stuffing out of.  And my petition about the vanished AQ from my journal was met with a 'sorry, can't help, bug report it, and let the devs know your issues with the troubadour class'.</FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>But I'm not going to bother.  Any dev who reads these forums and sees the same list of complaints from player after player should easily recognize that this class is sadly handicapped by what they've done to it.  </FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>Right now, even with upgraded gear and adept 1 spells, any fight I enter with equal or +1 non-heroic quest mobs, leaves me with a very good chance of dying.  I realize this is a 'social' class, not really a solo one - but I believe there are some things you should be able to tick off your list all by yourself, without making your buddies drop what they're doing - and non-heroic quests should be one of them.  So me, I'm going to retire this gal.  </FONT></EM></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2>Hats off to all of you who do successfully solo, or manage to complete what is, for any other class, the most basic of quests, without getting your [Removed for Content] handed to you!  <IMG height=16 src="http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/i/smilies/16x16_smiley-happy.gif" width=16 border=0></FONT></EM></P> <P>Message Edited by Eladia on <SPAN class=date_text>06-23-2006</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>05:19 PM</SPAN></P><p>Message Edited by Eladia on <span class=date_text>06-23-2006</span> <span class=time_text>05:19 PM</span>

[Godzmodi]

so you were complaining about the social agro now and not troub soloing? thats happened to everyone about the pulling.. and at certians lvls did i notice when i could and could not solo green heroics outright. the lower lvls are the hardest, dont ask me why, it just was. seemed to get easier as the lvls increased <div></div>

[LodrinSt]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Eladia wrote:<BR> <P></P> <P><EM><FONT size=2></FONT></EM></P><EM><FONT size=2>But last night, I reached my limit with my 21 troub.  Right before LU24, I took the second AQ quest, Ian's Forgetful Family, Part 2.  I worked out - with several deaths - a way to pull and kill single necrosis goblins all by my lonesome.  It was trial and error, strategy, and good fun all around for me.  And I have to admit, I was pretty smug and pleased with myself in guildchat after, LOL.</FONT></EM> <P>Message Edited by Eladia on <SPAN class=date_text>06-23-2006</SPAN><SPAN class=time_text>05:19 PM</SPAN><BR></P> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE>I remember that part of the AQ and I also remember how much of a [Removed for Content] nightmare it was. I ended up giving up after I got the boots or the gloves.<BR>

[Lilj]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Jooneau wrote:<BR>I could see using the new charm in the way EQ1 bards used to charm kite, if, as someone pointed out to me in another thread, you can command your pet to attack.<BR><BR>Charm something, sic it on a group, run around until charm refreshes, repeat until your pet is close to dead. You can cancel the charm if it looks like he is going to die before the charm is up. Kill the former pet now that it's practically dead.<BR><BR>This is also known as "reverse charming," a tactic that EQ1 Enchanters came up when SOE nerfed the hell out of their charm in the Omens of War expansion.<BR><BR>The reason I hate coming up with BS tactics like this is that I would rather have the SOE design team actually do their jobs and design a viable Troubador class that doesn't have to resort to [Removed for Content] kiting or reverse charming to kill effectively, like practically every other class in this game can without such tactics. <P>Message Edited by Jooneau on <SPAN class=date_text>06-19-2006</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>05:36 AM</SPAN><BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE> <P><BR>Aye, I know this tactics from EQ1 too, but....in EQ1 I had a much longer charm duration, I don't have that here.</P> <P>Perhaps I am not seeing what you see, but how will you manage this tactic with a charm that last 8 secs, with a recast of 45 secs?</P> <P>Charm the pet, sic it, wait 8 secs, and then what? You talk about running around till the charm refreshes, but how? Will you run in circles around a bunch of angry mobs for 37 secs?</P> <P> </P>

[terzaghi]

<div></div>I found soloing to be fairly easy most of the way to 70, and even easier after I had some better than crafted gear.  I don't mez, charm, or kite either, I just duke it out.  Now of course soloing for a bard (for me at least) equals no checks are tough, and one check up can be done but not 100% or, in some cases, even 25% reliable.  After spell and gear upgrades everything just keeps getting better.  I did pretty much all of the solo quests in Sinking Sands, TT, Barren Sky, and Bonemire without much trouble.  I needed a team for heroic quests. My buffs are: Daelis, Raxxyl, Balletic Avoidance, Aria, and Opus I try to keep my self buffed strength and intelligence roughly equal.  With common gear they should both be easily in the 300's if not 400's (in 60s-70s).  I could care less about agility, but like to see stamina and wisdom wherever possible (I carry 2 wisdom dolls in fact). I start off my fights in any of several ways, but after they are going I am pretty much doing the same thing- spamming my combat arts and spells!  I work in HO's when I am going to debuff, and try to stun/Dancing Blade whenever the stun is ready.  I generally try to hit Perfect Shrill and Eli's whenever I can, and fill in with the rest.  I always use Kian's, but seldom any other ae debuffs (unless the mob is yellow even or one up).  My dps is roughly even from auto attack (this maybe a little higher than the other 2), Perfect Shrill, and Eli's, and the next highest contributor is Kian's. For most fights I prefer to pull with Overpowering Ovation (stifle) and click off Maestro while I wait for the mob to arrive.  then I proceed with the above.  I am still debating about using Eli's while Maestro is active, but I currently do.  For grouped mobs I cycle on and off my ae debuffs while Maestro is active, then go back to my regular routine after it is finished.  Lastly sometimes I will change gear around to take advantage of resists.  If I know I am fighting something that does, say, magic damage, I change my jewelery.  This doesn't happen a whole lot though, so mitigation is still king for soloing imo. <div></div><p>Message Edited by terzaghi on <span class=date_text>08-15-2006</span> <span class=time_text>09:30 AM</span>

[Peston]

Well i can solo really well i dont know whats the problem i always debuff them first... i dont know what you do<div></div>

[Ayal]

if soe would make our mez castable on the run everything would be fine for me because it make things a lot easier they dont have to improve our dps its really enough , ok they should prolly reduce the power cost but thats it then <div></div>

[Spider]

<DIV>now while im not anywhere near 70 i gotta say using 3 mastercrafted duel weild weapons and some better then common crafted loot drop armor with  all skills adept 1 or better i can solo quite well ive taken on and taken down green ^^^ and even a blue  ^^  charm has many  nice uses in pve even when fighting jsut one momb it gives u a chance to restealth and hit him with ur big from stealth hit again as well as letting u get a few seconds for a skill rerfesh  ive gone through splitpaw solo and can breeze through it all (except the fight in the areana vs 3 people gets a bit rough) and with better armor it would be even easier </DIV> <DIV>i LOVE soloing to pvp and i terrorize q's all the time dropping yellow and orange cons on a regular basis and dropping grens and blues and even cons in seconds </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>personaly i LOVE mt troub and wouldnt trade it in for the world </DIV>

[Rogotop]

Meh, i'm a 70/50 troub without any t7 raid gear (mostly just legendary and claymore gear)soloing heroics is possible, however three conditions must be met1. the mob cannot hit you, dont even try to go toe to toe.2. no roaming aggro/social mobs3. the mob must be a melee classfor this to work, you must keep the mob perma snared.  now if it expires or you break it via nuking - you need another way to prevent the mob from hitting you.1. cheap shot until you can recast snare (and get some distance)2. mez until snare is back upas troubadors we're lucky, shrill and snare can be cast whilst running.  once the mob is snared, use perfect shrill while running away - then wait for the mob to come into range of steal essense and then thunderous drumming.  If the mob reaches you after you cast - cheap shot/mez it and run away.the buffs i use for this are: quirons (just in case i do get hit) aria, balletic avoidance, raxxyl's, daelis', if you repeat this (you can use other DD's as needed, but careful with dots - breaking your own mez is sucky.) and the first 3 conditions are met  - you can solo just about anything.<div></div>

[Pepsi19]

<div></div>my troub is almost 50, i can solo even cons, no arrows without losing too much hp, i do this with no legendary armor or fabled, i just use treasured, and i stand toe to toe with them, using my regen hp song, regen power, attack speed, inspiration, i just HO every time i can, cheapshot them, debuff the crap out of em.But anyways i didn't make this char with solo in mind, i knew that when i made this char it was group orientated, i just wish i could get a group /cries!<div></div><p>Message Edited by Pepsi1982 on <span class=date_text>09-25-2006</span> <span class=time_text>03:43 PM</span>

[Reptilianb]

<DIV>no matter what everyone is saying.. about .. oh oh i can solo this and that....</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>You cannot solo like other classses... Champion Bixie as a lvl70 Troub takes a long time mezzing regenning, ahve u been there when a swashy? brigand? monk? solos it?... troubs need UPGRADING.</DIV>

[Goris]

<P>It is hard and will always be hard for a troub to solo.... but, just get one other and can do purty darn good.  The choices made as you level for spells and attributes make a difference, gear, and spell levels... but then everyone knows this.  Additionally, the type of mob makes a difference.  Either that or familiarity with a particular type of mob will help.  Everything all of us can say here does not matter much when it is you vs the mobs...  it is trial and error....  sometimes it works, sometimes no...  sometimes what works for me.... does not work for you....  </P> <P>Coming up in levels was difficult when not able to get in a group, but that was rare...  the other thing which might help or hinder....  every server has about 50 or less level 70 troubs,  so they are in demand for high level guilds....</P> <P> </P> <P>good luck and try to get a group whenever possible...</P> <P> </P>

[anehelene]

hmm. weird. i solo very well <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> i got no problems with yellows, even 3 ups as long they arent heroic <img src="/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />. i dont use the darn charm tho... it does more damage than it helps <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

[Teneann]

<P>I would tend to agree with charm causing more problems than solving.  Wish they would change time back or make it so it is somewhat useful.  Though as others we change adapt roll another alt and try to surrive.</P> <P> </P> <P>What are you soloing that you can do Yellow Trip Ups?  and how long does it take you to do that?  I know I have a hard time with a single up green, and if I get an add, I better have evac up or I am reviving.</P>

[Rogotop]

why turn off aria?If aria procs on the mez, the proc damage hits the mob first, THEN the mez <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />so you'll see the message about waking the mob up, but its instantly re-mez'd snare kiting works, just that if snare breaks you have to cheap shot the mob and remez, which on an blue/even con mob shouldnt get you one shotted <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /><div></div>