Man...my Templar is MUCH easier to solo.

[standupwookie]

I have a 28 or so Templar.....figured I would try the healing class, as I NEVER play healers...plus, I would be wanted for groups, which is a good thing.  Then they up and change EQ to basically a solo game.  That, plus it seems like the servers are vacant, AND the fact that Templars are boring, led me to shelve the toon. She soloed easy...I mean easy.  I could kill any mob 4 levels higher basically.  She tanked ok, and obviously the heals made it so much better.  But what really makes soloing with her easy is the HOs.  All I would do is start the HO, hit one divine damage spell and another divine damage spell to trigger yet another divine damage HO.  All of these did extra damage to undead, naturally.  As long as she had power, she was a soloing machine.  Granted, thats only at lev 28...and it got boring.  I only really needed three or four spells at adept...She meleed for garbage. So I decided to start a SK.  I could never solo the stuff my Templar did.  Not even close.  My melee basic hit is just a little bit better than my Templar.  I use shield and one-hander plus my upgrade Defensive Stance.  If I am fighting blue mobs or lower, I will use my two-hander.  All my armor/weapons are yellow or orange... But my damage stinks.  I MUST rely on HOs to do any significant damage (like my Templar)...BUT, I have to use a Taunt in there.  Maybe I shouldnt be in defensive mode but at level 23 I am ending up with low mana/health on white con solo mobs in Nek forest.  My Templar blew through those mobs like crazy. Its not the tanking, per se....both my Templar and SK basically are getting hit for the same amount...well, my SK can take a better beating.  But the damage my SK doing is so far below Preist DPS its laughable. Now, maybe my Templar is overpowered...all she does is heal and smite/smite HO....but she plows through mobs. When will My SK be able to fight even con tier 2 mobs without falling below half mana/health after every fight.  I like being a SK...basically Im still a crusader, as I dont use any SK specific things in battle (cept HT) because they are worthless.  I am thinking I made a mistake though.  I should have picked a beserker.  I want to be able to solo well, not have it be a 50/50 chance of running.  Are the level 20s a "slow" period...I dont feel like a SK.  In fact, you could line me up against a Paladin and I bet we would be using the exact same crusader skills.  25 levels...half the game and I have YET to feel like a SK.. SUW <div></div>

[Thoth7]

<DIV>never played an sk, but to be honest, 25 levels isnt half the game, more like a third i'd say experience wise. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>BUT i do agree with you that i dont like being generic for the first 30ish levels.</DIV>

[PhozFa]

Other than the fact i wanna point out about the MAJOR COMBAT REVAMP comming soon that you haven't taken into account before you made this "my class is useless" post. I had no trouble solo'ing in my 20s. Honestly before you blame the class make sure its not the user. the 20s were a slow time for me as an SK going from crusader to shadowknght but one problem i never had was the ability to solo better than the average class. ~Kymi - Avatars Of Might - 50 shadowknight <div></div>

[Soupnuts]

Don't know what you're doing wrong. I can solo any yellow and most oranges. Unless they're hard hitting casters. As far as DPS, I don't parse, but I've been in groups where other people do and I'm usually towards the top of the list in DPS, (if I'm not mt that is, then I just do enough to keep aggro).

[espmrred]

<DIV>Yeah, i'm going to have to agree with the previous poster, are you sure it's not a user issue instead of a character issue? I'm one of the first to point out our class has serious issues (I make a great MT, up until that moment when I lose aggro, then it isn't coming back for at least a minute, usually 2 (30 sec recast on blashmey hurts)) but i've never had a problem taking yellow, or orange mobs with my SK -- and I rarely rely on HO's.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I think you just need to give your SK a few more levels.</DIV><p>Message Edited by espmrred on <span class=date_text>08-28-2005</span> <span class=time_text>11:32 PM</span>

[joeygopher]

The 20s were a tough time, but post-30 the SK really comes into its own for soloing.  Pre-CC of course.

[Rylight]

<P>Yeah im not totally sure what you are fighting exactly, even back then I could easily solo at least whites and solos. but take it from me and the other guys that the early 20's are difenitly slow.  hit about lvl 26 when you get your pet and things will change, hit 30 and you cant start soloing up to reds if you know what you are doing.  honestly between about 28-40 I never had much trouble fighting reds (except for some of those caster type evil eye/glare lord things in EL, those things charm to much) but it just took to much mana and downtime. anyways one you really get a feel for your class you'll have an easy time soloing you really got to know the tricks.</P> <P>for instance did you know that the sk ward last 24 seconds??? did you also know that you can cast it before battle, wait 5 seconds, and let your power regain back to full?? basically this makes you invincible the first few seconds of the fight, and cost NO POWER because it regens so quickly. with this technique you can take out an entire bar of life off the mob or more without taking ANY damage, which sets your hp apart from the mobs, giving you an automatic head start.  this technique is also great for pulling caster mobs when you have to run them back to your group.</P> <P>anyways there is no way you can compare a lvl 28 temp with a low 20's sk</P>

[Soefje]

I agree with the other posts.  I can take on blue and white Heroics as a solo quite easily at lvl 25.  I fight MOBs that I would never even consider looking at as a lvl 25 warlock. <div></div>

[EnraptureE]

<P>Until you get into your mid 30's do you really get a feel for your class & what its end result or potential will be like.  Alot & I mean alot of people have trouble with SK's high 20's to low 30's.  I didn't personally, but I've seen & heard that mentioned lots of times.  I can remember taking on lots of higher con stuff.  Zek solo stuff outside of the gates are great examples of oranges that were great xp & easy to kill, at high 20's.  It depends on the mobs your taking on, but I had 0 trouble with these.</P> <P>Higher lvls our Taunts do a couple different things. The single target does 100 dmg total in 4 tics.  I can also use the AE taunt & get a chance to do a lifetap & I've noticed more times then not, that it goes off at least 1 time per use (sometimes it won't, other times its 3 procs).  Point being, our taunts are not just a taunt, which seemed to be one of your gripes.</P> <P>I've found that we do awesome against groups of mobs & I'm not talking the type where the mobs are weak, but normal grouped.  We get some nice AE's (1 that heals when used) & add in our taunt dmg / heal, we can do some pretty great stuff.  By the time I'm on the last mob, its usually 2/3rd dead & I hadn't focussed on it.  Add in our pets dmg & its all good.</P> <P>Do we have problems? Sure, just like every class at some point.  Just cause yer templar excelled against some mobs at a paticular lvl, doesn't mean yer SK would have the same experience. Honestly, it would seem rather bizarre if it did.  Did you try different mobs?  Different zones?  Extrapulate a ratio against different types of mobs, like castors to melee, keeping in mind that 1 castor fights different than another etc...</P> <P>I find it rather amusing that an opinion is being made of a class, at only 3 lvls into it, you haven't gotten 3/4 of the first version SK spells yet...  As I mentioned earlier, you don't really get a class feel till around mid 30's.  As you lvl up, you'll come to times where you feel superior & others where you don't.</P>

[standupwookie]

I dont know what I am doing wrong. All of my core armor is yellow to orange, so I grow into it with each level.  My weapon is an orange con imbued carbonite, and my shield is a yellow con kite. I cannot find upgrades to any of my spells, period.  Oh, sure I get adepts as drops, but they are never SK.  I /auc them all the time, no one wants them....well, they want them for like 50 silver to 1 gold...Im talking tier two adepts from Nek Forest...anything tier I I just sell for like 50 silver. There are NO reasonably priced spell upgrades on my bazaar (AB).  Everything is overpriced.  I cannot make 10 gold per level. My blessed weapon is adept I, so s that first crusader nuke.  I just hit 25, so I got anothe rnuke and Grim Whatever...that other weapon proc.  I think you can only have one spell proc and one weapon proc...I tried both plus my imbued blade, but I never saw three different procs.  But that is just eye candy.  I cant rely on procs, cause they seldom happen. I have a bunch of skills I can use, but those net me around 36 damage on white or higher mobs.  The damage output I am doing is just downright laughable. I basically spam HO, using my stuns to interupt or knockthem down as well as my ward, which is still AP1 cause I have yet to see it being sold. Things I can solo with ease that get me experience:  Any solo green con mob (not epic or one of those super tough named).  I do a little better in the damage dept cause they are green cons...but they dont hit me.  Of course, the EXP is pretty much zilch.  I sould do grouped heroic green /cons in fallen gate and get pretty good exp....sure, it took forever to kill, but I was never in any real danger. I can solo those really wimpy groupd mobs up to white con.  I simply miss too much on yellow cons with my specials and my regular attacks, plus they do tough damage. Any regular mob marked as solo up to low yellow con I can solo.  Two levels is max...meaning, at 25 I can BARELY take down a 27...and thats a tough fight. I dont know how you all can solo orange con mobs...I cannot even hit them, and forget it if they are caster mobs. Two reasons...I either suck at this game, or its my spells.  I cannot find upgrades on the market/no one sells SK upgrades for some reason. My Templar on the other hand seems built to solo, and efficiently.  She can take any mob that her spells can land on....non-epic.  I think its the way her HO works.  Start off with a non-power HO trigger, then two divine damage spells to trigger another divine damage HO.  My SK has to use a taunt, which causes no damage as of yet. Chipping away at monsters for 30 a pop just seems wrong when My Templar does a 80/80 150 HO in the space if a couple of seconds. All these little spells I have are rather pointless if they use a ton of power and only do like 20-40 damage on yellow con mobs... Maybe I'm spoiled with my Templar.  She is built to fight undead.  I just dont think a preist class should be soloing better than a fighter...or doing way more damage. SUW

[PhozFa]

<div></div><div></div>I cannot find upgrades to any of my spells, period.  Oh, sure I get adepts as drops, but they are never SK.  I /auc them all the time, no one wants them....well, they want them for like 50 silver to 1 gold...Im talking tier two adepts from Nek Forest...anything tier I I just sell for like 50 silver.There are NO reasonably priced spell upgrades on my bazaar (AB).  Everything is overpriced.  I cannot make 10 gold per level.<hr>First off /auc? eww sell in your inn or use offline sellingI find it a little wierd that all the adepts you get are worth less than 1gp while SK adepts are 10gp? I mean if your server is SK heavy to the extreme it could cause this but like i said it sounds a little wierd.See an expensive adept you want that has been for sale for awhile.. send an e-mail asking to sell it for a lower price. worst thing someone will do is refuse.Anyway i doubt the diffrence between app4 and adept1 makes that big of a diffrence where it makes it impossible to solo. I still think it has to be the tactics since it seems every other SK on the forums has been able to solo at your level.But pre combat changes at mid 20s how hard is it? Buff up, fight(use pet if you have it at your level), use wards, got more power use HOs, still have power throw in more dps spells. Anyone disagree with that? edit : If your temp does more dps than your SK you are seriously doing something wrong. there is a reason our dps is being cut so much with these combat changes. We are powerful dps. If you think you have low dps now stick with the templar cause your gonna hate the combat changes. seriously. lower dps, lower HPs, more skill, may not be for you.<div></div><p>Message Edited by PhozFate on <span class=date_text>08-30-2005</span> <span class=time_text>06:49 AM</span>

[Soefje]

Definitely use the wards, it will save your butt in a tight fight.  I didn't realize until recently how effective they are  I have started using them while tanking and it appears to me they act almost as good as the lower level taunts. Don't be afraid to experiment.  Take on a MOB, try a stratagy, if it works keep going, if you die, then go back, try again with a new strategy.  Sometimes a simple change in strategy will result in a dramatic change in the fight. Good luck. <div></div>

[EnraptureE]

<P>Hang in there, it does get better.  You're really getting to the point when most people have the trouble with SK's.  By 29ish, I'd go to zek & you'll find those grunts very easy compared to the mobs your taking now.  By then, you'll have yer pet, lifetap ward & 2 more lifetaps (though small, it helps) etc.., that it'll greatly increase your lasting power.</P> <P>As for adepts, What I did was bind meself at the docks in EFP inbetween city & outside bell (for ease of travelling).  I go & check the broker upon log in & before I log off every single day.  I check FP first obviously, as its cheaper markup, then jump in the water to the Qeynos Fence broker by the giant torch.  What I've noticed in months of doing this is, Qeynos has 2+ times the amount of adepts of SK's than FP.  This is due to 2 factors, 1) more qeynos players than FP  2) SK's are FP only, so the FP side are snatched up quicker then people move to qeynos.  It depends, but you can find some outrageously overpriced with the reasonable at the same time, it might take some time, but I'd keep doing it.  What I did was focused on the atks that did dmg & healed me, cause well any bit of healing will help, even though alot of SK's say it doesn't matter, I disagree.  I adeptized as soon as I could; tainted caress / sacrement (start looking now for yer sacrement, even before you can use it, its dps hps is huge to non adept), infernal pact, consume vitae, painbringer.  I then went & started picking up the other dmg ones like decrepit slam, consuming spirit etc.. & then the AE's.</P> <P>If you're short on money, then focus on sacrement followed by the healing dmg spells & you'll do fine.  At your lvl, I had crap weapon, quest armour & I had hardly any trouble with alot less than you.</P> <P>Also, all castors are not bad, if its healers, they easy, just dmg one of its friends & it'll be so busy healing it, it'll go oom & then do no dmg.  Groups of greens or blue mobs are great, they go quickly & even though they not higher lvl, they are grouped & you get group xp.  They also have less hps than their melee buds.  Not all castors of course, wizards can be bad, but it changes with time.</P> <P>I try not to solo in dungeons, as the mobs seem to be inherently stronger than overland mobs & if you go in, it should be with friends.</P> <P>I can 100% say with certainty, that with each lvl, you get more & more powerful.  By the time I was 30, picked up a full set of feyiron imbued armour for 40G, imbued axe, I was laughing & now wearing imbued fulg working on ebon, I'm the same to me relative mobs.  I think you'd find as you got higher in lvl with your templar, you'd start having more problems.  mobs hps go up & it takes more & more power to be able to knock em down, the mobs dps goes up, your getting stunned & soon spending more time healing yourself than dmg it.  You'd find it reverses itself, but again, not on everything, there's always an exception to everything ><</P>

[standupwookie]

Well, just for kicks I decided to brig my Templar to Nek Forest ad fight the asme mobs.  Both are level 25 (though Temp was 28 but I was wrong...heh). The SK skills/combat arts are much faster to cast than the Templar...which was my first surprise.  I thought, hmmm maybe I was wrong.  I WAS fighting undead.  But the Templars HOs do 150 damage compared to the SKs HO which does like 50.  HOs are on the same timer, so its not a speed issue.  I use Admonishing Smite for about 100 damage that triggers the HO and another Smite that does around 80-100 to trigger the HO which will do about 150...all are divine damage and do extra damage to undead.  I pull mobs with two spells that debuff their resistances to divine spells (both stack).  So while it takes longer for my smites to casts, I ONLY have to use three or maybe four HOS until the mob is dead.  Thats maybe one or one and a half little blue mana bubbles. Both classes wear plate, but the SK tanks better...but the Templar's heals counter that easily.  The Templar only has difficulty when the spells resist....which happens, but less so when both debuffs land. The Templar wasnt as good as I thought, but still mowed through more solo mobs (regardless if undead) than the SK. Its the damage that really ticks me off.  My SK nicks away for 30 here, 50 there...maybe a HO for 80, while the Templar does a round that can do over 300.  I just dont see the reasoning behind that. So, as of now, I am convinced that Templars (maybe Preiests) are doing far too much damage than they should be.  Its not that she is so superior, but preists shouldnt be that high on the DPS list. As far as spells, Im on AB which is a heavily (supposedly) populated RP server.  Now, team evil is obviously on the short end of the population stick...but I have a Templar, which can get money for evil spells on the good side and a SK which can get money for the evil side. I check both sides a few times a day.  I saw a adept I Harm Touch on the good side for like 2 gold and some change....so I immediately logged my SK and sent a good guildie to grab it (I didnt have 2g on the Templar)....by the time he got to the broker (he was in Oakmyst forest.....so it took like a minute) the spell was gone. There is an abundance on evil spells for low money on the good side...Im talking HIGH level adept Is for under 1 gold.  Sure, some spells may suck  abd will never be used, but they are there.  There was literally 30 pages of necro/bruiser/coercer stuff from all levels.  The SK side had a few grim coils....nothing else. On the evil side, its the same thing.  The broker page doesnt change on the SK side.  The stuff there is the same stuff that was there three or four days ago.  Its either 10gold for Blessed Weapon or that first nuke (I have both at adept I anyway) or AP IV spells for that first life tap...which is so mana in-efficent, its not een funny.  It just seems that SKs are the class that when something is dropped, people will charge much more.  I dont know the numbers, but I would guess that SKs are either very popular, or very popular alts of players who have enough gold to scoop up all the adepts even if they are over priced....seeing as the goodside has no SKs Adepts, I tend to believe the alt theory. I will be honest, I have thought about going the station exchange route, but I really dont wanna trasnfer and its much more fun to get things on your own. I think I am playing the game wrong.  I am a powergamer, though I dont want to admit it.  In WOW I plowed to 60, doing every quest etc....I think I am trying to play EQ2 with my WOW mentality, which just doesnt work.  EQ2 is slower than WOW. My cheif complaint about EQ2 is the spell upgrade situation.  Adept I drop in same tier zone....it sounds good on paper.  But you have like 25 or so classes and literally dozens of spells for each class, every 10 levels....then you factor in other loot drops and the various other things that can be gotten in chests...then you factor in the fact that their are differnt size chests, and usually you wont even get a chest....and I think its saf to assume that every Adept you will get will probably not be for your class.  Meaning you MUST play the market and MUST deal with people who oversell...or the people who scoop up stuff that is lower or reasonably priced then sell it back 10x....that just isnt me.  I always sell everything at a fair price.  I dont like to rip people off cause I know how it feels.  This game is TO player dependant. And the other thing is this.  There is not a big difference between APIV harm Touch and Adept I....so when you FINALLY scrape together 5 to 10 gold to get a spell upgrade, you look and compare what you have with what you will have...and you say "Is an extra 8 damage really worth 5 gold...."  I know everyone must do this. EQ2 has too many numbers.  I would up the drop rate on adept Is across the board.  Use adept I as the standard.  People will still pay for Adept II and III.  Master can remain. Ok, Im gona log in and chaeck the broker.... SUW

[standupwookie]

Ok, just checked the good vendor....there is a Adept I Harm Touch for 14gold...../sigh SUW

[EnraptureE]

<P>I'm more confused than before ><.  Your Templar is killing things in 4 HO's, but yer SK isn't.  First off, those 3 lvls your SK to be of equal lvl to the Templar are huge.  You get your dps pet, lifetap dd, ward, dd, slam.  Thats a huge boon to your SK & of these, only 2 are an upgrade.  So your arsenal is getting bigger & bigger.  Also bare in mind, that fighter's power is always more used than castors, as when castor goes oop, they toast, whereas we can keep fighting.</P> <P>I'd start a battle with ward self, pull with tainted caress (lowers dmg potential), then pet so its dmg will be most efficient.  Start doing HO's rotating between lifetap & whatever high dd I have.  Add a slam & its dead.  I rarely ever have mobs that last longer than 3 HO's unless its a tough one.  I'm rotating AE taunt & single target, for dmg / lifetap.  On an average fight, I proc dmg / lifetaps an average of 1 every 10 sec.  Also, 3/4 our attacks, minus the obvious weapon focused are range.  I can sometimes get 2 high dmg nukes before mob hits me.</P> <P>Have you done a comparison of mobs to say TS giants?  No undead divine bonus, mob has lots of hps, hits hard.  I'd be curious to see how your numbers would round out there.  Hopefully your SK would be closer to yer templar lvl on an attempt like this, as mob con is a huge thing.  SK's don't really have a bonus per mob, unless using mastery which well until I got 30+ did I notice it really working well heh.</P> <P>You got me curious thats for sure <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />.</P> <P>Adepts, Adepts & Adepts.  I think I spent 2 weeks looking for HT, till I found one that was 5G.  No way & I mean no way in hell, was I paying 10G for 1 [Removed for Content] spell, that at 30, I get a trait thats half the recast time.  I barely now spend 5G on adepts & these are 43+ (I buy a couple lvls ahead in finding them cheap).  If by some chance, I'm having a hard time to find it, I give up & buy an app4,  I've had to do this a total of 2 times & then like usual, in 3 days I find a cheap adept ><.  It could just be bad timing.  I've noticed some days in a row, where there's not 1 SK adept, & then the next day 30.  Weekends seem to be the big days, as most people have hours to play & raid & then sell all their surplus, unlike weekdays where its hit & miss.</P>

[standupwookie]

Well, Im only 25 so no pet. And yes, I did tests on basica non undead mobs, and the Templar (assuming everything lands which it usually does) blows away my SK.  Now, the Templar doesnt have the defense or shields use of a SK, but whats the point if a one mob fight only lasts 3 HO rounds. Her melee is nothing...like 18 a pop....but my SK's basic melee is like 30 a pop. Also, it takes a little longer for her spells to cast, but like I said, she has two smites that both do 80-100 against non-undead and the HO is a diving damage one that does like another 100.  Now, add her two divine debuffs that raise the damage a bit, and add the fact that if you fight undead, everyone of her attacks does even more damage...then you can she she outdamages my SK by a bit. Now, she doesnt tank like an SK so I never fight multiple mobs...her spells would get interupted plus she has no real AEs...but at this point my SK has cry of convition which is AP1 (never seen a reasonable priced adept) that does 30, plus a long disease based AE sword attack that does about 30-40....30 damage to a mob at level 25 is insignificant....especially when I am trying to use an HO that will give me at the best 40 more damage than the AE.....but I do use them. Its not even a question on solo orange mobs...my Templar can easily do them, my SK has trouble with even cons and sometimes blue.  Its not my equipment or weapons.  I dont think its a matter of tactics either.  Either I spam whats available, or use my stuns and knockbacks at appropiate times to interupt casters. I use a one handed imbued plus a shield, and I usually stay in defensive mode....I have tried a two-hander without any defensive mode and the damage trade-off VS damage taken is just not worth it. I am not saying SKs cannot do damage...Im sure properly equipped, and with good spells they DO some good damage at higher levels....but what I am saying is up until this point, My Templar (using THREE spells mind you, that are APII) is outdamaging my SK... I first started as a Templar, and I was a bit weary as in EQ you couldnt really solo as a preist.  But, everyone on the Templar borads kept saying "shhh, we can solo"....like it was a big secret.  I really dont think other classes know just how effective a Templar can be against solo mobs. And I dont see this changing with th combat revamp.  Supposedly melee will do less damage and so will mobs....what this means is fights will last longer, grouped mobs will beat you a little longer, and your power drain will be even greater.  The combat revamp doesnt really affect my Templar.  I have already decided she will only fight solo mobs (as in one mob per fight).  Her melee doesnt matter....her damage comes from those 2 divine damage spells triggering another divine damage HO. It sounds like I am whining, but I am just saying that for the first half of the game, SK (and I suppose Pally) are getting spanked in the damage dept....I suspect ALL tank classes are being out damaged by Preist classes.  Does this change at higher level...I dont know, Templars spells scale pretty well with levels....and like I said, she is only using TWO damage spells per fight and TWO debuff spells...everything else is trivial. I think its also a case of not knowing how a fight will end up.  With my Templar, I know what she can kill.  So as long as I get a solo mob pull, Im good to go...with my SK its a gamble...sometimes I end up 1/3 health 1/3 mana on blue con mobs...heck, I had to run from about 13 grey gnolls and one low green Grovel Chiptooth (betrayer mob)...I just cannot sustain damage....though, My Templar would have never even attempted that pull....I was power-legendlore/language-leveling. and both characters are the same level...25.  I thought my Templar was 28, but I havent played her for a few months. SUW

[EnraptureE]

<P>Aaah, well, not sure what to say heh.  Its hard for me to remember exactly what I did those lvls, months ago.  I'm so used to having 3-4 AE's that even though they do smaller dmg, times 5 mobs its better ratio at an average of 2 mob power cost, it wouldn't be something you have till 29 for 3 to use.  If I can take on multiple mobs over single, I'll do it, as I have more fun doing it ><  I do it quite often, tanking 5 average (not weak) mobs at once, doing HO's through them (sorrow & baleful smite) & then the 2 main others over n over.  Fight lasts like 2-3 mins long, I'm oop at the end or close, but its great xp & the most fun for me.</P> <P>How is your Templar on Heroic hard mobs?  SK should be able to kill these with little to no problem or maybe in your case be a bit hurt, which I think I was back then?  I find I kill heroic mobs about half the time (for quests).  Sometimes, I get the paticular mob that I just can't do well, IE the murkwater vets in edgewater drains for AQ, were quite underconn'd & would rip me a new one, even at green heroic single.  That was high 20's, when I was just finding me true power.  I didn't give up, till I had died 5 times to kill 3 lol, then got help.  Once I got pet, I found mobs died alot faster, overall.</P> <P>Have you done a couple Harclave runs?  This is a good test for chars to solo & get a good feel on things.</P>

[PhozFa]

I don't think harclave is a good "test" for people to solo. You have an uber buff, what you can do in harclave means nothing in every other zone. in harclave everyone is a tank. <div></div>

[standupwookie]

I switched from one-hander and shield to a two-hander (one hander was imbued, two hander was executioner axe).  I seem to be doing a little better on solo mobs with the two-hander.  What bugs me is the regular melee hits do more damage, but the specials dont seem to scale with weapon damage.  Like, a melee attack that does divine damage pretty much does the same damage if I am using a one hander or a two hander.  Maybe I am just mistaken though. I still cannot take anything higher than plus2 my level.  A monster one level above me will give me a bit of trouble, but I will win...just end up with low power/mana.  A monster 2 levels over me (still yellow) will obviously be tougher.  This is primarily because more of my attacks miss...I still tank the same against each mob.  Plus three levels is a no-no.  They actually will do a "little" bit more damage, and my attacks wont land....Sure, I could probably do one melee orange solo mob with HT ands a little bit of luck, but its not very cost effective nor is it EXP effective. Bottom line on my SK testing is that Im fine on the tanking side, regardless of stance/shield/armor.  Its my damage. I dont do enough damage.  I have noticed another thing...and that is, I have yet to have ANY attack go over one hundred damage (cept HT).  Now, I know Im melee and NOT a caster so this may be nit-picking.  But my Templar was doing over 100 damage before she was even a Templar.  I know its hard to compare the two classes...but its just something I noticed. I am beginning to think that my SK is probably fine, or average...and tha tmy Templar is vastly overpowered.  Heavy armor, plus very mana efficient reactive heals basically means she can "out-tank" any solo mob that my SK fights.  That really doesnt mean that much, as is she spends all her mana on heals then obviously she cannot use her smites.  But her smites are also very efficient on mana as well. Caster mobs are much easy to deal with as a Templar than a SK.  I have trouble against those green healer-type mobs as a SK....sure they cannot hit me, but I can rarely finish them off before they pop a heal.  I try to time my stuns/knockdowns but more often than not I am waiting for my stun to refresh and they just cast a heal....its a slug fest with those greenies, and my SK always wins those fights..which is good. My Templar laughs at caster mobs.  I would just turn off my melee if they cast a reactive on themselvs.  If they cast a damage spell on me...I pop off a reactive heal for like 8 power..... As far as heroic mobs go, its just a matter of a mob having more HP and POWER then normally.  With both toons, I would not fight a double-up grouped heroic encounter.  My Templar wouldnt have enough power (no AE HOs) and my SK could not out-tank that encounter.  Single double up heroic greens are fine with either class.  All my spells will land, so the Templar can mow through them...just takes a few more HOs, and my SK can tank them.  A single double-up blue con is a no-no with my SK.  I have trouble with the beginning mobs in edgewater, and they are green-con.  Again, that mob/con wont matter much with my Templar as the spells will still land, and any melee damage can be EASILY countered by a cheap reactive.  Even con mob is the same way. A yellow double-up will give me trouble as a Templar....I would run out of power as I would get too many resists and my power would be drained..though there would be a chance that I would win.  My SK would already be zoning. Of course, it all boils down to strategy.  In Nek forest, adds are everywhere....so its always an adventure.  But if I can choose my fights, my Templar out performs my SK. The Templar is just a very efficient, undead solo machine.  And this game has TONS of undead mobs in every zone.  So its just a matter of picking a spot on the map, pulling solo undead melee mobs (or caster mobs) and just going to town. My SK uses a variety of skills, some of which are very mana intensive.  My Templare will uses two spells, and a low power reactive...thats it.  Add nice buffs and heavy armor and extra damage against undead, and you have a potent (though boring) solo machine. I like both toons....its not fun playing the healer 24/7...and it gets frustrating not doing enough damage as a SK...so Ill prob just switch. I have realized that this game is not WOW...and its not a race to 60.  There is so much content that I would be missing a lot.  The problem is groups.  Rarely are there pick-up groups for dungeons (and this is AB server)....ok, Im old school and I know what type of groups to advoid.  There just seems to be a lack of players at my level, or everyone is racing to 60.  I would like to do dungeons like Edgewater, or Varsoons...I mean complete them, unlock the extra parts, kill the boss guy and the boss of the boss guy, and check out his loot...its just not feasable in this game. WOW doesnt have this problem.....as there are only so many dungeons, but the population is so vast compared to EQ2.  I feel as if 60% of EQ2 is not even being used...everyone is bypassing content, and its not like you can come back when its grey.  Obviously, my Templar is in prime demand for ANY group (dungeon or EXP) my SK (or tanks in general) are a dime a dozen, but I knew this going in. Both toons are 25, and I might just park them at 25 for a while IF I can find fellow dungeon crawlers on AB....but I dont think that will happen.  Whats the point of getting to level 60 if you bypass 80% of the content.  Are the end game raids THAT much fun that people will blow off Varsoon or Netropos just to power grind on above-world mobs..../shrug SUW

[PhozFa]

Maybe at that level temp can solo faster but at T5 when it really counts and takes the most time my SK solos so much better than any temp. Also if you have a gripe with your dps now i just have one word of advice. /delete toon If you haven't read the boards at all then you aren't aware we are getting a huge dps nerf. while you don't have alot of your good AEs and your pet still. Quit. You won't be happy. I ain't sure whats exactly going on with your temp but in less than 2 weeks everything you know about your class will change. <div></div>

[Galn]

<DIV>Adept I??? What ever happened to Apprentice IV? If you look close you'll see that there isnt a lot of difference and the App IV are a LOT les money. Also if yu look there are trainers and scribes that sell Apprentice II updates that are at least good enough if you cant find an App IV at the time. Update your skills to App IV on the SK and see what it does.. just keep your eye out for adept I's and if they are enough better for the price difference then go for it.</DIV>

[DwarvesR]

<P>My 35 SK soloed for most of it.  I never noticed any real problems.  I take on groups of 3-4 yellow (non-heroic) mobs all the time.  And I guess my server is different than yours for the spells.  It's pretty rare that I can't gain a new spell at level or level+.6, then hit the broker or fence and find that spell available in App4 or Ad1 for 2 gold or less.  Guess I'm just lucky.</P> <P>FWIW, I generall only use my ward in a group to build hate to keep aggro.  Otherwise I find it burns a ton of power for very little protection (though in the revamp with it now taking my mitigation inot account it will probably  be much more worthwhile).  Like others have said, though, pull with Tainted Caress.  It's a very nice debuff.  Once you grit your teeth and get to level 26, add the pet immediately following.  After that, I just do HO's, alterating my lifetap with my DD's.  And then hit another DD while waiting for the HO trigger to reset.  And since the taunt does over 100 damage too. . . .  My dps is really good.  I've surprised a lot of people with it -- especially since I'm a high elf.  Not too many HE SK's out there. . . .  </P> <P>I used to duo a lot with a templar, so I know where you are coming from on the DD spells and HO's they get -- she did really well with them, and sometimes I was content to just tank for her and let her be a pseudo-wizard, because yes, she really did that well.  But that's not to say that if we fought a group of 3 mobs that I wouldn't kill 2 of them in the time it took for her to kill the 3rd -- and that was with her being anywhere from 4-7 levels higher than I was.</P> <P>I haven't played my SK in a while, since I've been working on my warlock and doing tradeskilling, but I plan on going back to her soon.  I'm especially looking forward to the improved lifetaps after the revamp.  I'll see how it goes then.</P>