Are Assassins hard to solo from lvl 20 on?

[ede772]

<DIV>I have read a few post from people that stated they were having a hard time soloing after making Assassin.  I'm sure that keeping your techniques past Adept I  has alot to do with it along with good gear.  Do piercing attacks work very well?  I will most likely be soloing most of the time with him.  I am getting ready to decide to go either Swashbukler or Assassin (will have to figure out if I will be doing betrayal quest), so I'm curious if there is also a difference in the Swash's and Assassin's ability to solo.  Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.</DIV><p>Message Edited by ede77220 on <span class=date_text>06-30-2005</span> <span class=time_text>04:40 PM</span>

[khalysta]

<P>Both classes will solo in a similar fashion.  Most rogue/pred attacks are from behind which is hard to do solo obviously which makes things a bit more difficult than a plate tank who can use their attacks from any direction.  The big benefit that the swash has is the ability to mez if things get really bad which would give you time to run or a few ticks to regen or position yourself.  The assassin is probably the better kiter though with an extra bow skill that can be used from the front. </P> <P>When it comes to piercing this really only comes into play on raids which you won't be doing for a long time.  There are a few creatures here and there which seem to be more pierce resistant than others like skeletons have always seemed more pierce resistant than say an orc or goblin but its nothing that is too major.</P>

[EQoobTa]

<DIV>Soloing for xp is pretty decent as an Assassin.  I can still solo stuff up to 2 levels higher than me with relative ease.  Even con mobs is pretty much an all day thing as long as I can isolate them and not train myself.  Adding poison to your blades helps immensely and using your Stealth or Bow attacks to open up usually takes that first bub of life off the mob.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Soloing for uber kills is real easy as an Assassin so long as the mob can't nuke.  Just hit them with Back Shot, snare, and run backwards in circles while using your bow and Open Shot combined with poison.  Refresh snare whenever possible.  I've taken down mobs 5 levels higher than me and only lost about 20% health during the fight.  Kiting multiple mobs is probably not wise though.  Basically if you can stand to get hit by the mob every now and then and you can snare it and do dmg to it you can kite it as an Assassin.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>We're probably not the easiest class by far to solo with in either case but we definitely can get the job done when needed.</DIV>

[Jan It]

Wow, the above poster seems to be quiet positive about soloing. I cannot share that opinion. Yes, it´s true, we can solo. We can solo mobs a few levels above. I even soloed a con yellow heroic once. But: We kill extremely slow. If we have no space for kiting a con white mob can take us down if  the fight is running bad. Soloing is power inefficient, I can blow 90% of my power for a single con yellow mob. Fighters/Mages are much, much stronger and faster on solo runs. Additionally the costs for poison and arrows are quiet high in the beginning. Take a look at the Splitpaw zone, it´s stuffed with mobs, no place to kite anywhere. It´s not possible for me to play there and having fun. I consider Assassins a group class. If you want to solo, don´t play one, simple as that, every other class is more efficient and more fun. <div></div>

[Rahs]

<P>I can only speak as a 26th Assassin. I solo most of the time. Killing singles so far is cake. If I isolate a single mob, use Assassin's or Ebon Blade, they are typically down to yellow or orange (occasionally red) on their hp bar before they can strike at me. From afar Head Shot and my Poison can take them to the same lvl before they reach me. For the fastest and most exciting xp I have found normal groups of 2-3 mobs 3 lvls above me or heroic groups of 2-3 mobs 3 lvls below me are the best xp. Playing Ripr is just plain fun. His DPS is amazing. The only thing is I wish we had one more frontal attack. I do find at the end of my initial attacks sometimes I have to wait a few seconds before another one comes up to be reused.</P> <P> </P>

[Craien]

I would tend to agree with Jan Itor.  We can solo, but you have to be smart about which areas and which mobs you are fighting.  His point about efficiency is worth noting; ours is much higher in a group setting. <p>Message Edited by Craien on <span class=date_text>07-01-2005</span> <span class=time_text>04:39 PM</span>

[Kelst]

Assassins are pretty good at soloing i think.   Im not the biggest fan of going solo but if need be we can.    Currently I am lvl 40 and solo level 45 stuff fairly easy and downtime between each kill is less then 1 minute, closer to 30 seconds.    You just need to know how to make the most of your skills, including your bow witch is essential to soloing. 

[Rivelyn Cypre]

<DIV> <DIV> <P><FONT size=3>At the lvl of assassin I am at, I can't seem to punch my way out of a wet paper bag!. I am starting to hate my assassin. I have a lvl 15 enchanter that I think could beat mobs that at 36 my assassin would get his [expletive ninja'd by Faarbot] kicked. I really wish I had a little better ability to solo. I realize this game is meant for groups and I am fine with that. However, when I am only on for a short period or no one else is on, I would like to be able to go kill something other then grey single down Fallen Orcs in the common lands, and at that, if there are more then 2 grouped forget it. </FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3>Now I know why the scout class can run the fastest in this game.</FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>"It’s only a little bunny," the assassin said to himself, as he stalked his prey. </EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>As the light glistened from the setting sun off the deadly blades of the assassin, the small bunny with his one good eye never saw what was coming, and with cat like reflexes, the assassin struck. </EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>In an epic battle of blade vs. bunny paws, the fight lasted hours, and the sound of a thousand screaming children echoed throughout the Common Lands and into the city streets of Free Port as the battle raged on. All who heard the horrid sound, still to this day are unable to forget and dream often waking in fright.</EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>The battle was said to be so violent that the dust took a full day to settle. No one would venture into the cloud for fear of being mistaken as an enemy of the victor.</EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>When the northern winds began to blow gently from the sea across the green grass of the Common Lands, the dust began to clear. Only the most seasoned adventure would have the courage to travel into the battle torn area. One such brave sole was a Paladin by the name of Mithris, small in size but gargantuan in ego and his ever so faithful mount Sparky. </EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>To this very day, as the gods are my witness you can still clearly see and hear the effects of what Mithris and Sparky saw. Mithris now blabbers endlessly making no sense in anything he says, and as for Sparky the pigment in his beautiful black flowing main and hair turned pink. As well rumor has it Sparky will never be put to pasture to stud because he has no interest in the female breed.</EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>It has become distorted from the mindless blabbering of Mithris but I still remember clearly what he said when first came from the battlefield. He described a sight so terrible that the hair on my neck stood tall and my knees quivered. </EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>"The river near the battle is red with blood.....Oh my gods the humanity......It's terrible.....I wish I had never ventured into that hell.....Sparky I'm so sorry....."</EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>What he described to me was a tail so terrible it took me a long time to gather the courage to tell the story to you.</EM></FONT></P> <P><FONT size=3><EM>On a small hill in the middle of the battlefield, proud and without a scratch sat the victor taking count of the spoils of his great victory. Surrounding the victor running down the hill through the grass and into the river was blood, so much blood, and at the foot of the hill torn to pieces lay the slain. So terribly disfigured that one could not recognize that only a short time before, it was a living breathing creature. Mithris claimed he was about to challenge the victor, for the spoils of the battle where great and within Mithris’s reach. However before he could draw his sword from his sheath a Common Lands crow swooped down with grace and ease, and with one single sound “Crunch” carried the bunny away in his claws.</EM></FONT></P></DIV></DIV><p>Message Edited by Rivelyn Cypress on <span class=date_text>07-05-2005</span> <span class=time_text>07:01 AM</span>

[Bjerde]

Assassins are not too bad at soloing. Get a good bow, with good arrows.....and use them. An assassin cannot solo well in a dungeon, it must be an outdoors zone with room to kite. I am lvl 33 and have been tooling on the faeries in EL while I am lfg (blue to yellow con). Also get some good food (jerky or steak,  adds str +7 or so at my lvl) and get some drink, this will help with downtime. Must have poison, I use two, in case one doen't proc, the other will (hopefully) I start out with the big back attack if it is up, if not...I use cloaked barb. Then I run backwards and fire off Head shot, and Open shot. Stop do a quick HO, with pierce or something else with no DoT. Now I Stun them...stop melee....run behind and get off an Ebon Blade or whatever other back-attack is up, (most of the time). Hit the mob with your DoTs and then Numbing Strike, fall back and Head Shot and Open shot should be up again. My equip is good, imbued short sword, str hex doll, good armor, no Adept III's though (all Adept I's). There are so many Adept I's for Assassin out there you should not have any trouble finding most of them (still can't for assassin's mark). My assassin has gotten way more Adepts than my other classes either in drops or at broker. Solo'ing these mobs gives me lots of loot too...most of the armor that drops ends up being vendor fodder, but I got shoulders last night in EL from a faerie...it had str and agi (+4 and +7 or somehing like that)...conned yellow, enchanted shoulders, I equiped em right away. It isn't great xp doing solo mobs, but at least I am killing stuff and having fun....do quest mobs while you are lfg. Gawd knows there are enough quests out there, esp at EL docks. You will get a little coin and some xp for those repeatable quests (halfing under dock in EL). It is kind of expensive, arrow in EF are not that expensive though...stock up when you go. <div></div>

[Dragonsviperz]

Kiting is amazing, i get a kick out of kiting, i kited most my 40's. Its kinda expensive though, buying arrows and poisons, but its well worth it. The best place to kite is Everfrost. Kiting the lepords is easy, and can give good loot. Get the quest from Marta Terilon for killing lepords, and you can get a good amount of money from kiting. Also, you can kite Undertow, the Bloodthirsty Lepord, Broodmother, Cheiftain Icerburn and the Congregation of Screams if you get good. Thats for lvl 40's though, thats when i learned the art of kiting.

[ArchZin]

<DIV>Excuse me for sounding like I know what I'm talking about, but I'm just recently returning to the game and would just like to speak a bit myself.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I stopped playing with my lvl 28 assassin about a half year ago... and recently started playing again. From what I remember about playing and what I have been playing again recently, Assassins still feel exactly the same. I could say that they are probably the busiest class, in terms of you always need to be posistioning yourself, stopping attacking, and have many attacks well planned and all your keystrokes well thought out. Assassin is by far not an easy class to play successfully, and does require a bit more skill then other classes. Assassin isn't just one of the "just press flashing buttons" class.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Now as far as soloing goes? That is even more so the case. the whole deal with stunning and moving in the back in order to get a stealth back attack in and everything, you need to use great timing and precision with all your moves. Assassin is by far one of the most difficult to solo with, just due to the fact that it requires a certain degree of finesse. An assassin can solo great, it just depeneds on the player.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>-Sentia, 28 Assassin, Nektulos</DIV>

[My]

<P>I have a guardian friend who can seemingly solo anything that moves. Assassins are not that class, but thats what I like about them.</P> <P>It takes a lot of thought and effort to solo effectively. You need to plan a bit, and know what you are doing, but to me, that is the reward of soloing. It is, as the other posters have said, not a passive class to solo with.</P> <P>My wife is an Inquisitor, and she and I can do a lot of things in the game, and while we are an unconventional duo, it has been challenging and fun as well. </P> <P>The things you will want to consider is how to equip yourself. A good bow is a must, and armor seems a toss up. Some go for mitigation, some for avoidance. I find mitigation works best for me. Poisons are also vital. They add a ton of damage over the course of an encounter, so dont overlook them.</P> <P>The drawback is, between poisons and loads of arrows, it costs a bit more to be a soloing assassin than some other classes, but I dont see that it would be much different from a swashbuckler in that regard.</P> <P>Anyway, my two copper. Good luck and have fun, either way!<BR></P>