Some newbie questions.

[Bellstian]

<p>1.  Should I buy a mount?  I'm level 25 right now and my run speed buff is only 22%.</p><p>2.  Are slow or fast weapons better for our dps?</p><p>3. I'm running a static group with friends, so most of my leveling will be in a group.  What AA's are a must-have for grouping?</p><p>4. I read the FAQ but I'm not 100% sure which stats should be prioritized.  For example, the FAQ says Strength can increase your auto-attack damage, but when I highlight it in-game it says it only increases weight allowance.  What stats besides agility should I be looking for?</p><p>5. Any other tips?</p>

[Iamken]

<p><cite>Bellstian@Antonia Bayle wrote:</cite></p><blockquote><p>1.  Should I buy a mount?  I'm level 25 right now and my run speed buff is only 22%.</p><p><span style="color: #ff6600;">Nobody can answer this for you. If you prefer to go faster right now then buy a mount.</span></p><p>2.  Are slow or fast weapons better for our dps?</p><p><span style="color: #ff6600;">4.0 speed weapons are considered to be the best choice for us.</span></p><p>3. I'm running a static group with friends, so most of my leveling will be in a group.  What AA's are a must-have for grouping?</p><p><span style="color: #ff6600;">You may want to start off with the Agility line until you have some points in the poison proc for more self dps. After that maybe the Wisdom line to get DKTM and then Stamina line to Max out Fortissimo which is double attack.</span></p><p>4. I read the FAQ but I'm not 100% sure which stats should be prioritized.  For example, the FAQ says Strength can increase your auto-attack damage, but when I highlight it in-game it says it only increases weight allowance.  What stats besides agility should I be looking for?</p><p><span style="color: #ff6600;">Pretty much just Agility. Strength does nothing for us now except how much we can carry. Stamina would be second in importance (more hps). </span></p><p>5. Any other tips?</p><p><span style="color: #ff6600;">Not many tips at low level. Just learn the class well. =)</span></p></blockquote>

[Arondur]

<p>related to #2, agreed 4 second delay weapons are the prevailing wisdom, just make sure you get two with the same delay. assuming you are DW. Different delay weapons will really mess up your spell timing.</p>

[Aaramis]

<p>Fyfe covered most of the basics, so I'll just add a few things.</p><p>1 - Just to clarify why we aim for 4.0 speed weapons, they are ideal so that you can time your auto-attacks and use your spells/CAs in between so that you're constantly putting out damage.  Not sure if you've experienced it yet or not, but if you spam all of your spells/CAs and have to wait for them to recharge, you're going to hit some "dead areas" in melee where you're sitting there auto-attacking and 3 or 4 seconds goes by where you're doing no damage.  That's what we try to avoid.  And using slightly faster weapons makes it harder to time things, meaning you'll lose some auto-attack damage whilst casting your spells, which you also want to avoid.  Hope that makes sense?   So, that being said, while levelling up I tried to use 3 or 4 second delay weapons, usually the mastercrafted weaponry from rare harvests (at levels 12, 22, 32, 42, etc.), and one piercing weapon and one slashing weapon - just to keep both skills maxed.</p><p>2 - for low-level AAs, I found it was best to fill out the Bard tree ASAP.  You'll want the stamina line (for fortissimo), the agility line (for don't kill the messenger), and maybe a point or two into Bump in the agility line.  You can then create a macro for Bump + Night Strike, which will boost your dps significantly.  Cheap shot to stun the mob, then quickly run into a flanking position and use dancing blade, followed by your bump + night strike combo should do a whole lot of damage.  Once you get this down, you'll find soloing is a bit easier.</p><p>3 - regarding runspeed, I wouldn't worry too much about it.  As mentioned, if you want a mount, go for it.  But honestly, as a Bard, it's not overly needed.  The best mounts are about 65%ish run-speed, which you'll be able to reach by endgame.  If you want speed ASAP, keep in mind you can use totems of the wolf (+25% speed for 30min I think?) as well as Journeyman's Boots soon (around level 40ish).  That'll help out, as will a few extra %speed once you do your Wisdom AA line (from Harbinger's Sonnet).</p><p>4 - be sure to keep your gear up to speed (Bard joke, get it?).  Bards are a bit squishy at lower levels, and having the best armour and weaponry really helps out.  I tended to get the rare armours for tunic and legs, and then used the non-rare harvest versions for the rest of the body parts, and did very well with that levelling up.  Prices will vary from server to server, but you should make enough coin to afford these.  If not, make friends with a crafter! <img src="/eq2/images/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" /> </p>