Parry vs Defense

[Acsodeputy]

Hey Pallies!I've been out of the game for a while now.. about 7 months or so.  Upon returning.. wow!  I feel like I forgot how to ride the bicycle!  lol  When I left the game, I was a member of a higher tier raiding guild, and the majority of my gear is fabled though not all by any means.  I'm no longer a member of any guild and really don't see myself as having the time to dedicate to the type of raiding I had done before (though I do miss it soooooo much!)  Finding guilds with room for raiding pallies  is a pain in the rear anyway.The raiding background and current scenario lead to my question.  In doing the starter quests so far in Kylong Plains and in Fens, I see a lot of the quest rewards have +parry  on them as well as a ton have +in combat regen on them.  While the other stats aren't as well on this legendary quest stuff.. some of the +parry stuff looks nice.  But all in all .. how does it break down?  Is giving up +3 defense going to even out with a gain of +3 parry?  Doesn't parry check differently than avoidance? I haven't really followed any of the LU's since I've been gone, so I'm not really sure how it all breaks down anymore.  I re-read some of the older posts on mit vs defense vs parry ..Just wanting some updated opinions is all!See you all in game!Punjo

[Valphine]

Greetings! Not sure.. but I think you get out more of Defense then parry. Correct me if im wrong. cheers!

[Kahling]

<p>As our def stance has no parry on it and there are more items with def than parry you will find it harder to get parry up.   As these things work on almost an expanential curve (ie the higher u get it the less u get out per point) You will find that you get more out of parry items than def.</p><p>Hmm at least i think they work same as str etc and work on the curve?  Even if not u will still get more out of parry just cos your def is already boosted by def stance and items.</p>

[Kahling]

<p>Also correct me if Im wrong but Parry is rolled on as it were seperately to the avoid (def) so the higher the better in that respect also.</p><p>Shield block is king though as it is uncontested (doesnt matter what level mob is)</p>

[gatrm]

Last I heard, both parry and block were uncontested....making both better than defense

[Acsodeputy]

Thanks guys!Helps alot!  Gonna give it some tinkerin' and see where it leads.

[Tames]

<p>% parry is much better than +parry, +7 parry is about equal to 2% parry i think so go for % if you can. +def will give you more than +parry unless you are past the soft cap on Def.</p><p>I use the % parry adorns on gear and the % ripost/parry on weapon.</p>

[Kahling]

I thought parry was contested?

[Tames]

<p>Yup, so did I <img src="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" width="15" height="15" /></p><p>Its what makes Block so good its the only uncontested def stat.</p>

[Caetrel]

Make sure when looking for soft cap numbers you consider dirge parry buff, Guard raidwide defense buff etc...solo numbers can be misleading. 

[Wyvernblade]

<cite>Kahling@Kithicor wrote:</cite> <blockquote><p>Shield block is king though as it is uncontested (doesnt matter what level mob is)</p></blockquote><p>This statement is incorrect.  </p><p>As per the GU29 Update notes</p><p>- Block Check:  (Shield Required).  The quality of the shield determines the block chance.  Block is only modified by mob level and is not a contested roll vs. mob skill.</p><p>The only thing uncontested about block is that the quality of the mob does not matter.  Block works as well against a solo, heroic, and epic mob.  There is no penalty.  It does matter what level the mob is.</p>

[Kahling]

<p>Wow now thats news to me, thanks Wyvernblade for clearing that up.  Still good as it doesnt matte the quality of mob, but a real eye opener.</p><p>Regards the parry vs def question, personally if I had a choice between an item giving +block / +parry / +def  I would pick block parry def in that order.  Block cos of the above.  Parry cos we find it harder to increase and def last cos its on our def stance so we need the other 2 more.</p>

[Tames]

Using Queynos Guard my block has dropped from 28% to 23% now that I am 80, yes I need a good 80 sheild <img src="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/images/smilies/2786c5c8e1a8be796fb2f726cca5a0fe.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" width="15" height="15" />

[Wyvernblade]

<cite>Tamesan wrote:</cite><blockquote>Using Queynos Guard my block has dropped from 28% to 23% now that I am 80, yes I need a good 80 sheild <img src="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/images/smilies/2786c5c8e1a8be796fb2f726cca5a0fe.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" width="15" height="15" /></blockquote>I had a lot of people argue with me in the Paladin WW channel on crushbone.  So, I dug til I found the Dev response.  Then I stumbled on this post.  Mit works the same way.  Level of the piece vs level of the mob determines the effectiveness of the armor vs that mob.

[Fatuus]

<cite>Kahling@Kithicor wrote:</cite><blockquote>I thought parry was contested?</blockquote>It is hes just a noob

[Karlen]

Am I right that if your defense is below the maximum for your level, that points in defense would be particularly useful?  I solo in offensive stance and find it hard to keep my defense above the level max (in fact, I think I've dropped several points below by swapping armor around).  If your defense is below max, would I be right in saying that getting it up to your max would be preferable to points in parry?

[Arno24]

<cite>Wyvernblade wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Kahling@Kithicor wrote:</cite> <blockquote><p>Shield block is king though as it is uncontested (doesnt matter what level mob is)</p></blockquote><p>This statement is incorrect.  </p><p>As per the GU29 Update notes</p><p>- Block Check:  (Shield Required).  The quality of the shield determines the block chance.  Block is only modified by mob level and is not a contested roll vs. mob skill.</p><p>The only thing uncontested about block is that the quality of the mob does not matter.  Block works as well against a solo, heroic, and epic mob.  There is no penalty.  It does matter what level the mob is.</p></blockquote>The statement you quoted is incorrect. It should read player level. Mob level does not effect block to any noticable degree.

[Tames]

<p>When I went from 70 to 80 with the same Queynos Guard equipped my block dropped 5% against 80's compared to 70's, so levels of mobs must be important.</p><p>If I equip a not so good level 80 Tower sheild block jumps back up 5%.</p><p>I think these Dev responses and GU notes on game mechanics for Pals should be collected and stickied <img src="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/images/smilies/283a16da79f3aa23fe1025c96295f04f.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" width="15" height="15" /></p>

[Wyvernblade]

<p>The reason gear turns grey is due to the fact that because of gear level is compared against the level of the mob.  The bigger the level difference is, the less effective it is.  This works the same with mitigation on armor.</p><p>The reason that you see the change is in the persona window is due to the fact that it shows your avoidance vs an even con mob everytime you level.  So, using a level 70 shield at level 70 vs a level 75 mob will give the same %block (but unseen via in game stats) as you would see when you were 75 with the same level 70 shield.</p><p>There's just no way to see what your effectiveness is vs a mob over the level cap.  </p>

[lich1313]

<p>Avoidance is what we're really talking about here.  Parry > Defense when it comes to Avoidance.  I.E. +3 parry vs. +3 Defense.  +3 Parry will yield more Avoidance.  Not by much.  Really it's %.1.  But if you're swapping gear and and have that choice, parry > defense.  And all those little %.1 added up is what gets "teh win" during raids.</p><p> Of course, get as much as both as you can. <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />  Oh, and don't wear Devout MC armor.  Pointless for a pally and I see so many wearing it.</p>

[Tames]

Yup mitigation on plate/sheilds drops as you level if you dont get higher level gear but does the jewelry bonuses drop also eg resists, parry etc if level 70 vs an 80 mob?

[Wyvernblade]

<cite>Tamesan wrote:</cite><blockquote>Yup mitigation on plate/sheilds drops as you level if you dont get higher level gear but does the jewelry bonuses drop also eg resists, parry etc if level 70 vs an 80 mob?</blockquote>As far as I am aware, anything that is stat booster IE +## to something is not effected by level change.  The only thing I am not sure of is resists on jewelry.  A +Parry item would work similar to +AGI.  It adds a flat number to parry.

[Tharinor Degaulle]

<p>Bear in mind that Block is frontal avoidance only, and except for Brawlers, so is Parry.  If you're getting pounded with a mob in tow, or have adds behind you, this is the reason why.</p><p>Base avoidance (defense & agility) are 360.</p><p>You should still strive for parry over defense, IMO, especially % avoidance like % dodge, %parry/riposte, %block over their non percent counterparts in most cases, as they are uncontested and more effective.</p>