Adept 3s - What would you sugguest for a soon to be Paladin

[Neko]

<DIV>Greets,  I am a level 18 Crusader that might have an opportunity to purchase an Adept 3.  As a casual player, I do not see myself reaching level 50 (let alone level 30) anytime soon.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- I can only purchase 1 skill.</DIV> <DIV>- I would like one that I can get alot of 'bang for the buck' and longevity.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Given this info, which Combat Skill would you sugguest purchaseing as an Adept 3 skill?   </DIV>

[Iustus]

<DIV>Take a look at this thread first, so you know what you are looking at:</DIV> <DIV><A href="http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=10&message.id=7852" target=_blank>http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=10&message.id=7852</A></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Since I have the most trouble with getting and keeping agro, I would probably recommend going with those if you group.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Inflame (level 17.6) lasts until you get Noble Tone at 31.</DIV> <DIV>Blinding light (22.6) lasts until you get Smite Prayer at 36.</DIV> <DIV>Redepmtion (level 21) has no upgrade ever.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>That said, you probably get less bang for your buck with these taunt upgrades than you get with some of the attack upgrades.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Oath Strike will be your biggest attack from level 28 when you get it, until it is replaced at level 42 with Sworn Strike. Of course your biggest attack is not the most power effecient.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Divine Vengeance (25, replaced at 39 with shatter will) and Omen of battle (27, replaced at 41 with Divine Judgement) are your best damage/power spells. Great for low power situations when you trying to work HOs with a group, or when soloing and trying to conserve power.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The price of adept3s is going down still. Hopefully you can find someone to make them for you for a small fee given a raw from that tier, so you can get more than one.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>-I</DIV>

[Dwergux]

I have a charge Adept III because I liked the skill so much (was my first adept III) my second Adept III was Oathstrike (those are my only adept III skills atm, but i hope to have an alchemist make me a new adept III pretty soon) <div></div>

[paladinwa]

<DIV>If you mean you have the cash to purchase an Adept 3 or a rare raw, I would advise you to wait until you get Blessed Aid at level 22 and upgrade that to Adept 3. I upgraded it to Adept 3 and it was a great choice. I have used it over and over, and it is still a mainstay spell at lvl 30. My guild knows that they can even go into all but the toughest situations without a healer as long as I am there. (And heals (and wards) help keep aggro too.)  In short, if there is one spell to get to Adept 3 from level 1-30, I strongly recommend upgrading Blessed Aid. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If you have a T2 raw, you could sell it and save the money to help buy a T3 later, but if you want to make an Adept 3 out of it rather than sell it, I believe there are 2 you can consider. Charge and Knights Stance. Many people on these boards have suggested Charge because you will use it for a long time, and it gets frequent use in every battle, however, the Adept 3 does only a little more damage, so I was not convinced it was worth upgrading and did not do so. The real benefit of Charge is its knockdown/stun. As for Knights Stance, it is highly useful for both soloing and tanking, and you will use it for a long time, but the incremental benefit of Adept 3 is pretty small. I upgraded Knights Stance early on, before much was known about the stats of Adept 3's. Hard to say if it was worth it, but I use it so much that I am glad I have it at Adept 3. I am at level 30 still using it regularly for soloing and tanking.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Whatever you do, be careful and research. Most Adept 3's don't really do that much more than Adept 1's (or even app4's). For example, Vigor of Trust is an awesome buff, but the difference between Adept 1 and 3 is negligible, so I didn't bother. I suggest you look for spells you will use a lot or that can make a big difference. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[GilfalasElaandrin]

<DIV>The two BEST choices for Adept III in the 20's are 1) Blessed Aid and 2) Oath Strike.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Since you say you level slow and want the most bang for your buck, I would say Adpet III Blessed Aid. I have done both and have never, EVER regretted the choices. The heal boost from B. A. is SIGNIFICANT and has saved me and my group members more times than I could ever count. Additionally Oath Strike is a seriously heavy hitting power and a major combat art. Adept III also makes it far more efficient and powerful, but it comes late in the tier.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>For your situation do Blessed Aid. I still use it regularly at level 33 and it is a great spell. It will grow as you level and it is a great effect for soloing and grouping. Plus you can heal others which can be a real group saver.</DIV>

[paladinwa]

<P>btw, I agree with the others who suggested Oath Strike and Div. Veng as being good to upgrade. Both are good, but since you are still a good deal away from getting them, I didn't mention them. </P> <P>And I would still upgrade Blessed Aid first over any other choice.</P> <P> </P> <P> </P>

[Karlen]

I've been quite happy with my Adept III Demonstration of Faith which I upgraded in my low 20s when it was starting to wear pretty thin.  It wards for 284 and is still very useful at level 28 (although I think Faithful Zeal will surpass it soon).  <div></div>

[Oakbr]

OK, I've had a pretty good run of luck harvesting rares and selling dropped loot, so I have a bit of coin available.  So far,  at level 32, I have adept 3 of Blessed Aid, Penitent Sacrement, Oath Strike, Divine Vengence, and Omen of Battle.    Listed them in order of what I consider to be usefulness, others may differ.  Really like Penitent Sacrement, it heals for over 700 at adept 3.  Blessed Aid is healing for about 440ish, but has only a 5 second recast. Thought about upgrading Faithful Zeal too, but I almost never use it.  For the same power, I can heal as much as it would prevent.  Once in awhile, I'll toss out Faithful Zeal to a nuker that gets a little too high on the aggro list, but during a fight, I'd rather heal him  and take that aggro.

[SunT]

<P>I would suggest you do not do any adept 3.</P> <P>I think they are overrated.</P> <P>IMO there is too little difference between adept 1 and 3.  Yes three is better and I have many, but not one of them made a REAL difference in how well I fight.  My gear however, makes a tremendous difference.  Plus 30 or 50 heal will not save you and plus 10% dps willnot take down a bigger target.  Plus 400ac might out mitigate the mob.</P> <DIV> <P>Put your money into gear.  At 30 get a set of feysteel.  At level 44.9 I still can't find better upgrades than feysteel in two of my slots.  Almost 15 levels of use now.  Each piece is about the same cost as an adept 3.</P> <P>If you have an Imbued oak shield and imbued feysteel armor and great right side items, and you still have money, then do what the above posters suggest and get a few adept 3's, or do the smart thing and save for Ebon.</P> <P>EDIT:  Just realized your level, all the same but get Steel and Fir rather than Oak and Feysteel.  Steel and fir are cheap.</P></DIV><p>Message Edited by SunTsu on <span class=date_text>04-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>01:02 PM</span>

[SanJ]

<P>There was a long ongoing debate regarding a training upgrade to either Blessed Aid or Lay on Hands.  Both sides of the argument had very valid points that mostly centered around play style.</P> <P>Lay on Hands upgrade if you tend to group a lot and have healers tending to your wounds.  The reduction from 30 minutes to 15 minutes is very attractive for saving a buddy in combat.</P> <P>Blessed Aid upgrade if you solo a lot and usually don't have a healer tending your wounds.  Why?  The power cost on the adept 2 training version cuts the requirement down to 90 power.</P> <P>I selected the Blessed Aid upgrade because I duo a lot with a scout friend (no healer) and most of the time we can put down blue or white ^^ with me healing myself, doing some damage and managing aggro.  The lower power cost in a drawn out battle means I can use the spell at least 2 to 4 extra times before running out of mana.  I'm quite pleased with my selection and now keep both the Blessed Aid adept 2 training upgrade and the adept 1 of my Devout Aid side by side.</P> <P>I couldn't begin to list the number of times I've bit off more then I can chew and reverting back to my now capped 499 heal (training) at only 90 power.  It has saved my rear several times costing only 90 power instead of the 130ish power requirement for my adept 1 Devout Aid.  At level 43 my adept 1 Devout Aid is doing around 560ish per heal while my old training is capped at 499.  However, that mana savings is significant at times solo or duoing when both players are out of power and the damage is creeping in at a moderate pace.</P> <P>I list this information based your question about adept 3's.  If you plan to take the Blessed Aid training upgrade you'll see a lower power cost at adept 2 then 3 even though the heal might be slightly higher at adept 3.</P> <P>I agree with another poster that adept 3 upgrades should likely come well after all your equipment (armor and jewelry), weapons, shield, etc. are orange.  I always have app 4's waiting for me when I level which are usually replaced when available at reasonable prices via the blackmarket or qeynos market to adept 1.</P> <P>Most of my comparisons of adept 1 vs. adept 3 are not signifcant enough to merit 40 gold to 1.5 plat depending on your tier.  If you can adept 3's and have good equipment--go for it!  Some upgrades are very nice while others are marginal at best.</P> <P>Thanks,</P> <P>Kalen</P>

[Oakbr]

I chose the upgrade to LoH at 30, even as a primarily solo player.  I tend to really push the envelope on mobs I solo, when a saner guy would probably not attempt as often.  Mana free  instant heal, don;t know the number of the top of my hand, but it is pretty hefty, and a 15 minute recast really work out well for my playstyle.  Of course, I made the choice fully planning on grabbing Adept3 blessed aid as soon as possible.

[SanJ]

<DIV>I don't think you can make a bad decision with either Blessed Aid or Lay on Hands training upgrade.  Both upgrades have nice features.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>However, keep in mind that you will soon get Blessing of the Devout to replace Blessing of the Penitent.  The Sacrement spell will still consume an essense but they come in droves and very quickly so keeping a stack or two of 50 is quite easy to do.  At 43.85 my Sacrement is now pushing close to a 1K heal at adept 1 with only a 10 minute recast timer!   It does require power, so my strategy is to use Blessed and Devout Aid until I visually notice I have about 1 cast left until I'm out of mana--at which time I fire off the big dog sacrement and pickup 1K health.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Thanks,</DIV> <DIV>Kalen</DIV><p>Message Edited by SanJun on <span class=date_text>04-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>06:24 PM</span>

[paladinwa]

<P>You may not want to wait until level 30 to get an upgrade for Blessed Aid. I didnt want to wait that long to get a better heal, so I upgraded Blessed Aid to Adept 3 early. That gave me the better heal for an extra 7 levels. And IIRC, the extra healing the Adept 3 did was a lot more than 50 points, and because the spell can be cast multiple times in a fight, the extra healing of an Adept 3 can really add up and make a difference. For me, the upgraded spell has definitely been the difference between life and death for either myself or others in my group on a number of occasions. You know it made a difference when you see yourself or others you have been healing left with only a sliver of life at the end. Without the extra healing of an Adept 3...</P> <P>Part of the reason for my strong support for an upgraded Blessed Aid is that I often solo or group in small groups, sometimes without any healer at all. And there have been other times where our group's only healer has run OOP and only my heals have saved the day. But if your style is to play in large groups where healers are abundant, upgrading Blessed Aid to Adept 3 may not be right for you, and you can always choose the lvl 30 upgrade.</P> <P>I would still spend my money on upgrading Blessed Aid before getting any rare armor, since it is so valuable, and it will help even when you are off-tanking.</P>

[Oakbr]

<P>/agree Palidinwayy.</P> <P> </P> <P>Just last night, I was in CoD helping a guy with some quest mob...tough fight for a single group...Captain somebody.  Mob has about a jillion.5 hitpoints.  We got the mob to maybe 60%, and the only healer went link dead on us.  I immediately went into "main healer" mode, slinging heal on the main tank, even tossing a ward on that hard nuking Warlock, while still swinging my axe in the heart of the fight.  Ended up blowing LoH, Sacrement, and all my power, but when the smoke cleared, the mob died, and all the players lived.  No way I coulda done that without adept3 Blessed Aid.</P>

[Syf]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Neko wrote:<BR> <DIV>Greets,  I am a level 18 Crusader that might have an opportunity to purchase an Adept 3.  As a casual player, I do not see myself reaching level 50 (let alone level 30) anytime soon.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><STRONG>- I can only purchase 1 skill.</STRONG></DIV> <DIV><STRONG>- I would like one that I can get alot of 'bang for the buck' and longevity.</STRONG></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Given this info, which Combat Skill would you sugguest purchaseing as an Adept 3 skill?   </DIV><BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE><BR> <DIV>Since you can only choose 1, I think you'd get the most use out of upgrading Redemption.</DIV>

[Oakbr]

<P>Redemption????</P> <P> </P> <P>Don't think I've ever even cast that.  Definitely would not take it above any of the heals, damage, or even taunts.</P>

[Vaelorn]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Oakbrow wrote:<BR> <P>Redemption????</P> <P> </P> <P>Don't think I've ever even cast that.  Definitely would not take it above any of the heals, damage, or even taunts.</P> <BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE><BR> <DIV>The point about Redemption is that it NEVER gets an upgrade (barring future expansion skills), so bumping it to Adept 3 will last you virtually forever.  Also, Redemption can greatly change the way a group works when you keep it active on the howitzer in your group (Assassin, Warlock, etc.), because they don't have to wait as long to start dropping big bombs, and they actually help you hold agro by doing more damage.  Ask any power hitter what happens when they drop a bomb too early, and they'll probably tell you they never drop bombs too early because it will get them killed.  With Redemption active on the power hitter, you should actually encourage them to drop their bombs earlier, because since they will generate much less agro than normal it is not necessary for them to wait as long for you to establish agro, and because the more damage they do with Redemption active on them, the better you can establish agro to begin with.  The sooner they can start dropping big bombs, the more big bombs they can drop through the course of the fight, and just one Back Shot or Dark Distortion can save you a TON of trouble.</DIV>

[Vyava]

<DIV>Yeah upgraded redmetion can be great as main tank...but if you can only upgrade one right away blessed aid is a great choice. the higher the rating the more efficient it is, not only as a heal but to regain hate. It helps in solo and group, it also helps you solo thing you couldn't otherwise for amazing loot. This upgrade alone can be massive in your xp gain, tanking , and money making. Although other upgrades are better for tanking, or farming, i can not think of one that helps all aspects as much.</DIV>

[Karlen]

<span><blockquote><hr>SunTsu wrote:<div></div> <p>I would suggest you do not do any adept 3.</p> <p>I think they are overrated.</p> <p>IMO there is too little difference between adept 1 and 3.  </p><hr></blockquote>I would disagree that all adept 3s are overrated.  While I haven't upgraded many (only DoF and Blessed Aid), I can report that with both wards and heals, it makes a substantial difference.  My adept 1 DoF warded for 243 points of damage while Adept 3 does 284.  and extra 41 points per 15 seconds (I think the recast is 15) is quite a bit.  Once I was in my low 20s, the Adept 1 ward began to start running out before I could recast it.  Upgrading to Adept 3 has kept it useful much longer -- I still use it at 28 and it prevents most damage.   You don't want to be warding AND healing if you can avoid it.  I prefer warding (although I recognize it is not quite power-efficient) because it leaves all of my health as a buffer in case I get stunned/lagged/mezzed/interrupted. It's also great in a group because you can throw it on someone who has grabbed aggro (or on the main tank).  It's best to cast it before the pull if you aren't tanking though, because it also generates a lot of hate. Another advantage of wards over heals is that it prevents you from getting interrupted when you are casting other spells.  The downside is that you don't generate many penitent essences. I suspect that at adept 1, it would have stopped being worth casting around level 23-24.  Adept 3 has kept it alive through level 28.</span><div></div>

[Troillus]

<DIV>Well you have to think about it this way, The spell you're going to use NEED's to be a viable option for a very very long time with the amount of cash you're going to drop on it.  I'm a big time soloer due to the times. Mind you i'm lvl 37 and i still use "penitant sacrement" it's spell you get at lvl 26 and uses those penitant essences that "blessing of the penitant" summons to you. They are lifesavers. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>IMO it's well worth the adept 3 .</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>These are the replacements</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><A href="http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=10&message.id=7852" target=_blank>http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=10&message.id=7852</A></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><STRONG>Blessing of the Devout </STRONG>(38.6, mastery at 38.6) <B>(bugged mastery)</B> <BR>-Adept1 (41.7): 60 power, 5% chance to summon devout essence, Increase health by 129<BR>-Adept3 (41.7): 60 power, 5% chance to summon devout essence, Increase health by 133</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><STRONG>Devout Sacrament </STRONG>(40.8, mastery at 50.<img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /><BR>-App1 (40.<img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />: 65 power, Heal target for 755<BR>-Master1 (40.<img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />: 78 power, Heal target for 1333<BR>-Master1 (41.7): 80 power, Heal target for 1367</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>hope this is useful to you</DIV><p>Message Edited by Troillus on <span class=date_text>04-16-2005</span> <span class=time_text>09:52 AM</span>

[Karlen]

<strong>>>>Devout Sacrament </strong>(40.8, mastery at 50.<img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /><<< Is it possible to become level 50.8? <div></div>

[Vyava]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Zotar99 wrote:<BR><STRONG>>>>Devout Sacrament </STRONG>(40.8, mastery at 50.<img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /><<<<BR><BR>Is it possible to become level 50.8?<BR> <BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE> <P><BR>Pre release info suggested the game was designed with a possible, note possible, lvl cap of 200 eventually. This isn't to say that will happen, that depends on the interest propelling lvl cap increases. I do believe FFXI was designed with a possible limit of 100, but they have stated it will not go past 75 numerous times now. I do expect EQ2 to go beyond 50 with either the first major expansion pack, or some point not too far beyond that. Adventure packs i doubt will affect lvl caps.</P>

[Arleonenis]

blessed aid is grate to have at adept 3, good heal is almost must have, especially when fighting solo 2 yellow mobs simultanously, righteous anger is nice long range spell to pull mobs and give enough starter dmg to help keep aggro (this one i have at master 1 lucky me<img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> 120dmg average at lvl 22-24 ) <div></div>