Help choosing character

[Tegren]

<p>My wife and I recently decided to start playing EQ2 and I am trying to choose between a monk and bruiser to best suit playing with her warlock or magician. We plan to duo mostly. I have read a lot of information on these forums regarding the differences between a bruiser and a monk. It sounds like a bruiser has an edge on soloing with more heals, and also maybe does more damage? But the Monk can heal others and cure some ailments. I also read about the monk having enough self haste to reach the haste cap on his own. Does the bruiser have the same? We want to rely mainly on self buffs. As far as my gaming background goes, I am very familar with Vangaurd and EQ1, but this is my first monk type class as a main. Thanks in a advance for your help. Any and all advice, suggestions, and information is welcome.</p>

[Madmoon]

<p>I'm very biased, as a bruiser, but...</p><p>Bruiser is better suited for duoing with a mage.  The whole point of mage/fighter is to bring it down, and bring it down fast.  With no healer, you don't want a long, drawn out fight, even if you're a platehead.  The bruiser is better at quick fights, as we do more damage with our CAs than monks, but with longer recasts.  Again, that favors a fast fight, over a monk, which might favor a long fight, except as fighters, we're not built for long fights.  The monk <i>could</i> heal the mage, but it is not for some massive amount, and it's one time, with a long recast.  At the end of a fight, to save the mage for one last cast, it might be useful, but you're not going to pull that trick that often.  Meanwhile, the bruisers self-heal IS rather large, and comes much more quickly.  I don't know what ailments a monk can cure.  A monk self-caps haste, but monks and bruisers parse similarly, despite that.</p><p>That being said, the differences between any two sub-classes are large to the members, miniscule to outsiders.  If you like Qeynos better, and like the idea of being, I dunno, an aesthetic monk, go for it.  If you're more of a I-take-what-I-want-where's-the-nearest-barfight thug, then come on over to  Freeport.</p>

[Bobbette]

Upcoming changes will make monks better for duo'ing with mages.  They'll be buffing casting speed which will significantly help your mage duo partner.  I've also heard something about an aggro-vent (not sure what that is specifically) that will work well for mage classes. Add to it things like group feign death, you can heal your partner, and so forth ... I'd go monk to duo with a mage. Now if she was going to play a scout class, I'd be saying go bruiser all the way ... dps mod, upcoming taunt/detaunt buff, so forth and so on.  Bruisers are going to be great for duo'ing with other melee based classes. I love the bruiser class but given what you want to do, it seems monk would be better in the long run.

[Madmoon]

Velda@Antonia Bayle wrote: <blockquote>.... Add to it things like group feign death.... </blockquote> That is so unfair!  GROUP?!?  And here I have always been taunting monks about my shorter recast on FD, while they just nodded smugly at me.... grrrrr.....