Paladin Strategy, tactics, and critiques

[TorturedOne21]

<DIV>First, let me establish some parameters</DIV> <DIV>- I love EQ2 and aside from a few minor, almost inconsequential quibbles, I think it is a fantastic game. I wouldn't be playing it if I didn't think otherwise, and I certainly wouldn't be putting up 16 of my hard earned beans every month if I didn't think I was getting the bang for my buck.</DIV> <DIV>- I love my Paladin. I have no complaints with the class. In my mind, shortcomings are challenges to be overcome, not barriers to bang my head against. Currently I am lvl 51. It's taken me over a year, but that is because of periodic breaks, and the fact that I like to stop and smell the roses <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I wanted to start this thread as an intelligent discussion regarding combat techniques. I want to find out any tips and hints that the community might offer to another player in order for them to get the most out of their toon. Need Before Greed has always been the unwritten rule in EQ2 (to which I give great credit towards SOE for fostering an environment that promotes this) so I can't wait to hear from other Pallys about their battle tactics.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I need to be on top of my game in combat because that is the only way I can remain effective. I have always struggled because, as a casual player, I'm always low on cash and time so I can't afford to A) buy Master I spells or equipment, or B) go raiding for fabled equipment.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> To demonstrate my situation, Since I was lvl 40 I had fulginate armor (until I did the Desert Chitin quests,) because I could not afford Ebon (that and I vastly preferred the look of fulginate over Ebon <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> .) Now that I have reached 50, I was faced with the rather daunting prospect that Cobalt Armor has practically become the Standard for any plate class over 50. I solved this problem by grinding my mining skills up, and have put adventuring on hold until I have mined enough Cobalt to get a full suit. Only three clusters to go.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I've never owned over 2 plat. I have known people in their 30's having over 10 plat, but money acumulation is a topic for another thread.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The challenges for me become obvious when I am MT. My Mit and damage output (I use the Bone Bladed Claymore when I want to do damage, Rallosian steel and Shiny Brass Shield when I want to be defensive) is average. My taunts are at adept one, and it can be a struggle to maintain aggro sometimes, even when I am spamming taunts as fast as they refresh. Especially in a group with a lot of DPS classes. My strategy consists of explaining to the group that Aggro control is a group effort, and to wait a few moments for me to grab some aggro before unleashing the heat. I have found that once I loose aggro it stays lost unless I hit Rescue, which obviously, is only to be used in an emergency. So I tell the group that if you pull, you are accepting the consequences. The best groups that I have ever been on understand this perfectly, and those are the groups where I never loose aggro. Groups where everyone wants to be the hero are the groups that get upset when I loose aggro.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>That being said, I have found my favorite role to be AT. As the AT I assume a more leadership role, because I am in a position to be monitoring the situation and to react accordingly. The MT is focused on whatever mob he is taunting at the moment. DPS classes are focused on assisting the MT. Healers are keeping him healthy. I can jump to where ever I am needed. If all is good I'm right next to the MT, assisting him and contributing to the overall damage output. If one of the mobs drops back to attack a mage, I can fall back and pull him away, keeping the mage safe until the MT can take over. If the healer is overwhelmed I can step up with wards and heals, and on more than one occassion I've had to rez the healer in the thick of combat, or pull the tank from out of the red with a LoH. I can be watching for wandering mobs and warn the group accordingly if one drifts too close. I have no problems swallowing my pride; Guardians and Berzerkers usually steal aggro from me, when they are, I offer the MT position to them. There's more to playing football than being a lineman <img src="/smilies/8a80c6485cd926be453217d59a84a888.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>this is my strategy, critiques are more than welcome, they are encouraged. If anyone has their own strategy, I would love to hear it.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Cheers!</DIV><p>Message Edited by TorturedOne21 on <span class=date_text>04-21-2006</span> <span class=time_text>01:45 PM</span>

[Seidhkona]

<blockquote><hr><font color="#ffff00" size="3">TorturedOne21 wrote:</font><div><font color="#ffff00" size="3">The challenges for me become obvious when I am MT. My Mit and damage output (I use the Bone Bladed Claymore when I want to do damage, Rallosian steel and Shiny Brass Shield when I want to be defensive) is average. My taunts are at adept one, and it can be a struggle to maintain aggro sometimes, even when I am spamming taunts as fast as they refresh. Especially in a group with a lot of DPS classes. My strategy consists of explaining to the group that Aggro control is a group effort, and to wait a few moments for me to grab some aggro before unleashing the heat. I have found that once I loose aggro it stays lost unless I hit Rescue, which obviously, is only to be used in an emergency. So I tell the group that if you pull, you are accepting the consequences. The best groups that I have ever been on understand this perfectly, and those are the groups where I never loose aggro. Groups where everyone wants to be the hero are the groups that get upset when I loose aggro.</font></div><hr></blockquote>Like you, I've been mining my own cobalt.  I'm now equipped mostly in cobalt, plus vambraces and gauntlets and help from the broker with better stats.  I had both the cuirass and greaves imbued.  (You can see <a href="http://eq2players.station.sony.com/en/pplayer.vm?characterId=423074109" target=_blank>all my equipment here</a>)I'd suggest doing some lumberjacking also until you get a chunk of ironwood, and have a woodcrafter turn it into an imbued kite shield.  The stats are better than the SBS, and it procs damage vs. your opponent.<img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/9610/image/ShinyBrassShield.jpg"><img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/16743/image/prisimbironwoodkite.jpg">While you're harvesting, go back and bang on more rocks, the soft-metal ones this time.  Keep harvesting hard metal so you can sell any cobalt you get and don't need!  The rares from the soft-rock ore (Vanadium and so far I haven't gotten the gemstone) you give to your friendly alchemist and have them craft for you some nice Adept 3 spells upgrades for your taunts first, then your other spells.  Get those taunts up to Adept 3 and you will have a much better time of it!I took one chunk of cobalt and got an imbued cobalt longsword because I prefer 1H + shield. It does almost as much base damage as BBC, but the proc boosts the damage a lot.  The cobalt greatsword also has some nice stats, and the imbued version has the same gleaming strike proc as the longsword.<img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/10345/image/BoneBladedClaymore.jpg"><img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/14666/image/gsword.jpg"><img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/9875/image/rallosiansteel.jpg"><img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/16742/image/prisimbcobaltlongsword.jpg">Oh, and harvest roots. When you get the rare root (saguaro root) and some lambent extract have your tailor make you some <a href="http://eq2.eqtraders.com/articles/article_page.php?article=g58&menustr=040000000000" target=_blank>imbued hex dolls</a>.  I use INT and WIS, YMMV.  They boost a stat by +12 I think and give you a debuff - different ones depending on which stat the doll boosts.I'm currently working towards getting a prismatic sword... my guild is doing <a href="http://eq2.ogaming.com/db/quests/FireandIce.php" target=_blank>Fire and Ice</a> tonight.<img src="http://dbms.ogamingmedia.com/eq2items/9203/image/PrismaticLongswordoftheScale.JPG"><div></div><div></div>

[Leawyn]

<DIV>^^^</DIV> <DIV>I agree completely!</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Get a new sheild, SBS is nice, but ironwood will do you better. Once you get to about 54-55ish, you can start doing Roost runs to get yourself the sheild from there (totally blanking on the name right now, I'm at work).</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>DEFINITELY get your taunts to adept 3. And Amends. And Sigil. You won't regret it!</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>And look for new weapons. BBC has FAR lost its potency by 50. Cobalt is a nice place to start, or just hit the broker and buy the nicest one you can afford.</DIV>

[Kale]

<div><blockquote>Leawyn wrote:<div></div> <div>I agree completely!</div> <div> </div> <div>Get a new sheild, SBS is nice, but ironwood will do you better. Once you get to about 54-55ish, you can start doing Roost runs to get yourself the sheild from there (totally blanking on the name right now, I'm at work).<font color="#ffff66">You're thinking of the <a href="http://eq2.ogaming.com/db/items/CrimsonRockTarge.php" target=_blank>Crimson Rock Targe</a></font></div> <div> </div> <div>DEFINITELY get your taunts to adept 3. And Amends. And Sigil. You won't regret it!</div> <div> <font color="#ffff66">I consider Amends that absolute necessity for Adept 3. It is in play all the time. Then taunts, then Sigil. </font></div> <div>And look for new weapons. BBC has FAR lost its potency by 50. Cobalt is a nice place to start, or just hit the broker and buy the nicest one you can afford.</div><font color="#ffff66">There's a nice 2HS that drops in Sol Eye now, but I can't find it on OGaming so they must not have it updated yet. It's very common drop. Every SK and Paladin in my guild has one. It is dropped from a giant way down near the translucent walkways. Also, look into the Etherial Shield of Silence, it's<a href="http://eq2players.station.sony.com/en/pplayer.vm?characterId=225644109" target=_blank> what I wear</a>. If you can't get a hold of a Crimson Rock Targe it's a good substitute. Finally: I know this will draw harsh criticism from certain players, but I don't consider Cobalt to be a must. There's only two pieces that I wear, the boots and shoulders, because they are the only two pieces that have Stamina on them. I MT all the time. I am very selective about my gear. Like you, I am a casual player. I have one piece of equipment from a raid. To me, survivability is crucial. I have worked very hard to get the most out of my equipment on my limited funds. I look very carefully at STA and mitigation above all else. Both of those stats are pretty good for me and it allows me to MT without a sweat (I've got about 800 more HP than other Paladins my same level, with pretty much identicle mitigation). I don't have to worry about aggro much unless I'm just outright being lazy about it. Your goals differ from mine though. I would offer this advice: be certain about your goals, and then be very selective about your equipment so you get gear that augments the stats that are important to your role. Don't just go after Cobalt because it's what everyone wears. Some of those pieces suck and you can do better with some thought, research and very little money. Oh, and pay special attention to non-armor pieces that have +vs crushing/slashing/piercing. When you can add mitigation on non-armor pieces it is a nice bonus. Being a great Paladin is about figuring out what you want to do, how to achieve it, and then gearing yourself up to specialize in that task. Too many Paladins I run into think it's ok to just slap on Cobalt and do whatever, when there's other gear out there that will help them achieve their specific mission a bit better. </font></blockquote></div>

[TorturedOne21]

<DIV>That's some wonderful advice, guys! I'm glad to see you all sharing your money saving tips <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Kalera, you seem very focused with your character, and that is to your credit. What I would like to know is, what is it you focus on when selecting equipment? When you sit down to upgrade your character, what axioms do you hold as absolute that follows in the spirit of what you are trying to accomplish?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Ok, here's another topic. Which Stat to focus on? STA, STR, INT, or WIS? I'm not sure about agility being important, so correct me if I am wrong. Which stat affects spell potency? total power? Which one have you chosen to focus on, and why?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>and can someone verify if it is STR or WIS that is more important in total power? I hear about tanks focusing on WIS gear to great effect. I wonder if anyone can back that up.</DIV>

[robusticus]

<P>I like your approach and I like your analogy.  Reminds me of the Eddie Van Halen analogy one of us posted a while back.</P> <P>For the MT part - Adept 1 land is harsh any way you slice it.  Been trying to think of all kind of things to help you but I can't really comment because my stuff's at adept 3, though for most of 60-70 I was adept 1 - think I got like 3 adept 3s at 65 or so, then more and more but most after hitting 70.  All I can say is dps like a fiend.  Care about it.  Jump the mobs and gain as much hate as you can before the others in your group realize they are in a fight... <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />  Burn mana like there is no tomorrow.  Know that certain group set ups will go well, others will not.  Generally a warlock or a summoner plus a scout is all you need - more will cause you problems.  Think about the fact that amends gains you hate as well as taking it away from your target.  Know that many scout types have hate transfers of their own.</P> <P>For the AT part - don't neglect your wards and heals... they are our strength and what differentiates us from other tanks and makes us the most valuable AT in the game.  Use your avoidance check on the MT - offensive vs defensive stance will determine that spell's effectiveness.  Use Armament for the tougher mobs but not for the trash where you have to herd mobs.  Particularly our wards- they are great in conjunction with a warrior's temp self mit buff... they boost healer morale and save them mana as well.  Don't be shy on using amends in this role either - for a mage you might have to slack on dps a bit, but for a shaman it is just plain all good.</P> <P>Most of all, find a group of friends and mold your toon to their needs.  We have the gift of self determination - use it wisely.</P> <P>Hope this stuff helps.</P><p>Message Edited by robusticus on <span class=date_text>04-22-2006</span> <span class=time_text>12:24 AM</span>

[CrimsonValerian]

Might want to think about upgrading rescue its i think a tier 3 spell, so getting a rare for it shouldnt be too pricey, and it'll be getting a lot of use up through level 70......my rescue is always smoking.  Get your defensive stance upgraded to adept 3 if you can, any of your group buffs are pretty much alright at adept 1, except the str/wis group buff at master 1 its one point lower than the tier 7 adept 3 str/wis buff.  If you can find it in master ...buy it!  If you can afford it. 

[MeridianR]

<div><blockquote><hr>CrimsonValerian wrote:<div></div>Might want to think about upgrading rescue its i think a tier 3 spell, so getting a rare for it shouldnt be too pricey, and it'll be getting a lot of use up through level 70......my rescue is always smoking.  Get your defensive stance upgraded to adept 3 if you can, any of your group buffs are pretty much alright at adept 1, except the str/wis group buff at master 1 its one point lower than the tier 7 adept 3 str/wis buff.  If you can find it in master ...buy it!  If you can afford it. <hr></blockquote>Don't bother upgrading Rescue <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> - I still have an App2 version and it works whenever....lol  The main part of the art that you want, is the raises hate position by 3...the extra hate is just the cherry on top <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></div>

[Anzak]

<blockquote><hr>MeridianR wrote:<div><blockquote><hr>CrimsonValerian wrote:<div></div>Might want to think about upgrading rescue its i think a tier 3 spell, so getting a rare for it shouldnt be too pricey, and it'll be getting a lot of use up through level 70......my rescue is always smoking.  Get your defensive stance upgraded to adept 3 if you can, any of your group buffs are pretty much alright at adept 1, except the str/wis group buff at master 1 its one point lower than the tier 7 adept 3 str/wis buff.  If you can find it in master ...buy it!  If you can afford it. <hr></blockquote>Don't bother upgrading Rescue <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> - I still have an App2 version and it works whenever....lol  The main part of the art that you want, is the raises hate position by 3...the extra hate is just the cherry on top <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></div><hr></blockquote> Yeah I was given a master of rescue but I refused to pay the 10P the people were asking for it.  Some how they think that because it is a good ability that scales that it is worth something but honestly the extra hate is just icing.  The 3 positions is what is really important.  Just like Guardian's renforcement the position move is what makes it useful.<div></div>

[TorturedOne21]

<DIV>ok, here's a theoretical question. If you could take a Master II book for either your solo taunt, group taunt, or rescue, which would you choose and why?</DIV>

[Anzak]

Group Taunt. The threat increase is slightly less on a single mob over the time but when you add it up over a total of mobs it is much more effective.  Not to mention the debuff that it has.  Actually so far I have gotten the master II of my group taunt twice and I think it was well worth it. Now If I could just get a master of amends I would be happy since all my other taunts are master I or better. <div></div>

[BlueMustang]

<DIV>In response to the issue of cobalt:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The mitigation on cobalt is some of the best in T6, excluding fabled. There is some good equipment that's dropped in non-raid instances, but at level 50, I think cobalt is king. In my opinion, if you're going to MT, mitigation > STA. Extra hitpoints mean squat if you're getting pummeled. And with the coming of KoS, DoF zones are much less crowded, so you should have an easier time finding nodes.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>That said, I agree that you should pick gear to suit your playstyle. All your gear choices will be trade-offs. Should you take the piece with +10 mitigation, or with +5 STR? Should you go with the jewelry that has extra WIS, or more resists? It's up to you and what you want your role to be. Or, if you're like me, you'll carry around lots of extra gear so you can switch out depending on your role.</DIV>

[Sydias]

<DIV>I'm in my 40s right now and am in Adept land as well.  The only tip I can give that I haven't seen here yet is this:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>When you are the MT in a group with a lower level tank class in the group (i.e. 50 pally with 46 Guardian in group).  I put the Amends on the lower level tank and tell them to taunt and gain a lot of hate with the DPS.  I have found that with your hate generation along with a % of the other tank's hate will hold agro off of almost anyone.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Most say to put it on a high DPS character, but I've found that hate stealing from someone else generating hate works for me.</DIV>

[OrcSlayer96]

<P>Just some numbers to help you on stats: The maximum amount of a stat that will give you power is 420, after that the stat is not giving you anymore power but will still give you other benefits. For us that means that STR and WIS will give you power up to 420 on each stat then their other benefits will only apply.</P> <P> STR: 10 points equal 28 power(2.8 power per point) 100 points of it equals around 10% melee and combat art bonus damage. Soft caps at around 510 at level 70 and power benefits cap at 420. </P> <P>AGI: 100 points of it equals around 10% bonus on avoidance, soft cap of around 510 at level 70 and effects not only your avoidance but how accurate your melee hits are. The higher the better when taking on plus white con mobs, I see many paladins ignore this stat to boost the other 4 but it is a needed skill. At the cap of 510 you are recieving a max benefit of additional 45% avoidance added to whatever your shield protection/defense parry numbers are. Remember that the higher your parry skill the better your chance and repostes to the mob. </P> <P>STA: 1 point equals 4.8 health with a soft cap of 510 at level 70, if you wish to be MT, this is a important stat to max out, but be aware that alot of gear can give you more of a bonus to health than sacrificing all your stats to stamina. </P> <P>WIS: 1 point equals 1.8 power and around 3 points of all 7 spell resists. Also boosts your native resist ability to avoid most spells. Like STR it softcaps at 510 and power benefits cap at 420 at level 70. </P> <P>INT: 100 points of INT equals around 10% bonus to all your spell damage and procs from gear/secondary effects from spells. Our DPS is greatly influenced by how much our AOE and DD damage spells/procs do so this is another important stat to improve.</P> <P> ok armour is displayed as : (numbers made up for display purpose) mitigation :4k slash 5.9% crush 6.3% pierce 5.5% the slash / crush / pierce is capped at 8% thats what i meant with the 8% post yes your mitigation is capped at 80% so once you hit the 8% cap on the sub cat's of mitgation then id look at getting gear that directly add's max health yes i know for highercons the cap is in effect increased but the op doesnt give a frame of reference for what area hes asking about .......solo / grouping / raiding or all 3 hence why i said to get in effect 2 suits as its only really raid mobs that justify and need that much extra mitigation anything else doesnt live long enough for it to be a concern. </P> <P>Item Health and Power regen rates now all use the same regeneration standard and cap out at the following currently: </P> <P>* In-combat HP regen cap is (3 x Level ) IE 3X 70=210 health regen</P> <P> * In-combat Power regen cap is (1.5 x Level) IE 1.5X 70=105 power regen </P> <P>* In-combat item HP regen cap is (3 x Level x 0.5) 210X .5 = 105 health item regen </P> <P>* In-combat item Power regen cap is (1.5 x Level x 0.5) 105X .5 = ~52 power item regen </P> <P>Native Power regen for character is: </P> <P>Levels 1-9 1 </P> <P>Levels 10-19 2 </P> <P>Levels 20-29 3 </P> <P>Levels 30-39 4 </P> <P>Levels 40-49 5 </P> <P>Levels 50-59 6 </P> <P>Levels 60-69 7 </P> <P>Level 70 8 </P> <P>Old Battlement of the Mind gear was power regen of 7 and did not stack with others like it. All Flowing thought gear stacks with each other no matter the flowing thought number up to the power regen cap(I have 4 FT4 pieces on me). (Prismatic 1.0) 12 power regen will not stack with (Godking Prismatic 2.0) 14 power regen but one will stack with Flowing thought gear. </P> <P>Guardians have a post that is helpful here: </P> <P><STRONG>Avoidance</STRONG> Total Avoidance used caps at 70% against green to red mobs and at 80% against Grey mobs. 3 things affect Total avoidance. 1- Base avoidance, 2- Parry, 3- Block </P> <P><STRONG>Base avoidance</STRONG> affected by the defense skill and the ammount of agility. Agility, Hard capped at 510 @ lvl70 Defense, Soft capped at 420 @ lvl70 vs even con. With both Agility and Defense at Max cap, you get a max 45% to your total avoidance. (can go higher vs higher con mobs due to soft cap of defense) </P> <P><STRONG>Parry</STRONG> Parry, Soft capped at 420 @ lvl70 vs even con. With parry at max cap, you get a max 30% to your total Avoidance. (can go higher vs higher con mobs due to soft cap of defense) </P> <P><STRONG>Block</STRONG> Shield factor and the brawlers deflection is calculated here I think. Not sure what or if there’s a cap for block. A shield of 1400 will add 22% to total avoidance. </P> <P>Now, back to this 70% cap. This is where people get confused (or me). The way I understand it is, that 70% cap in avoidance is never showed to you, which mean that your avoidance can go pass 70% displayed to you in your persona window (seen bawlers at 80+) if you have the right gear and buff, but you will always only use 70% of it against green to Red mobs. What Moorguard is talking about is that it's only the skills Defense, Parry and Block themselves that scales up with the mobs levels. The formula is (6x lvl of mob) Example: Against a lvl 70 mob, my Defense is capped at 420, (6x70=420) Against a lvl 74 mob, My defense is now capped at 444, (6x74=444) So to sum up, you will never use more than 70% avoidance against green trash up to max lvl raid mobs. Going higher than 420 in parry or Defense vs a lvl 71+ mob, will only help you if you have not reach 70% total avoidance already. So as for myself, I can gear up to 444 defensive and I will do so when tanking a lvl74 x4 because my max avoidance is 59%, but when doing other stuff, I ll gear down to 420 def, and equip for more HP instead.</P><p>Message Edited by OrcSlayer96 on <span class=date_text>04-24-2006</span> <span class=time_text>05:51 PM</span>

[OrcSlayer96]

<DIV>As far as gear goes it is up tour preference, if you tank alot, make sure you go for the mitigation and health/defense/parry when you can to help absorb the damage.  When you are not in the spotlight, try putting on gear that may help your play style.  For me i have a set of gear that is flowing thought heavy and another that is offensive mode friendly with str/sta/int.  My normal gear is  heavily in favor of Mitigation/health and i mix and match while going thru the content.  I will be looking seriously at the use of wands in tier 7 and see how that helps (or doesnt) when i get my hands on more ebony.  Tier 7 unlocks more choices for gear than any other tier and i truely hope this means they change the other tiers to reflect the godd things in the tier.  Still miffed that rare weapons and armor are treasured in tier 7 but some of the choices are nice for making a well rounded pallie. </DIV>

[Kale]

<div><blockquote><hr>TorturedOne21 wrote:<div>That's some wonderful advice, guys! I'm glad to see you all sharing your money saving tips <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></div> <div> </div> <div>Kalera, you seem very focused with your character, and that is to your credit. What I would like to know is, what is it you focus on when selecting equipment? When you sit down to upgrade your character, what axioms do you hold as absolute that follows in the spirit of what you are trying to accomplish?<font color="#ffff66">My only absolute axiom is: if it doesn't have STA on it, I don't want it. The lone exception to that rule is this if the raw Hit Points on the item are greater than the STA + Hit Points of my current item, then I would wear it. Like OrcSlayer points out, 1 STA = 4.8 Hit Points. Some quick math on an item and you know whether it's worth the switch. I have yet to find an item with raw hit points that I would take over a STA item I have. I'm sure some Fabled items exist, but it's going to be a while before I see them and have to make that choice. Keep in mind - I am a CASUAL player. I don't raid 24/7, I have limited access to Fabled gear, so I watch the broker really close and I pay attention to single group instances and mobs that I can get good loot from. Now, someone is going to say "but there's a STA cap". I've found that reaching that cap with a common stat like STR is pretty easy. I have not found that to be the case with STA. Even fully buffed I don't hit the cap, and my base STA with my gear is 273 at level 58. I don't belong to a raiding guild where I can ideally put myself in a group where all five members have a STA and HP buff. Would be nice. As for the Cobalt comments. Yes, Mitigation is great. Mitigation is king. Not getting hit rules. But I honestly believe that people who recycle that mantra about Cobalt haven't looked at all the armor available. You can get comparable mitigation with other armor that has better STA/HP. By compariable I mean - within a 100 points of mitigation. So what you have to ask yourself is: do I want 3100 mitigation and 4,000 hit points, or do I want 3,000 mitigation and 5,000 hit points. I'll take the extra hit points myself. The only way you can know what works for you is to field test it. I have chosen my path based on my EQ1 experience. We learned the hard way there that hit points were king, because eventually the raid mobs were so tough that your AC (mitigation) didn't matter. They ate through it. So mitigating damage was less important that sheer survivability. And raw hit points meant survivability. And I see this in groups and raids every time I tank. I survive. I get comments about this all the time. Healers say I am the easiest Paladin they've ever healed. <i>They don't see my hit points drop fast like other tanks. </i>That psychological advantage with the healers cannot be discounted, IMO. </font></div><hr></blockquote>"make sure you go for the mitigation and health/defense/parry when you can to help absorb the damage."<font color="#ffff66">To me, this is the most important advice in this thread. It is not about just mitigation or hit points. It's about parry, block, dodging, defense, etc. It is the whole package. Granted, I focus on STA a lot, but that is because I believe it gets too little focus among Paladins in general. I look at the whole picture. Parse yourself sometime. Count the parries and misses by the mob you're fighting. Pay attention to the number of 'hard' hits you're taking. Look at how your hit points drop in combat and do they drop sharply? Does your lack of hit points panic healers? It's a total picture thing if you're going to MT. There isn't ONE stat that rules them all. It takes several. </font></div>

[ElctSocket]

<blockquote><hr>Sydias wrote:<div>I'm in my 40s right now and am in Adept land as well.  The only tip I can give that I haven't seen here yet is this:</div> <div> </div> <div>When you are the MT in a group with a lower level tank class in the group (i.e. 50 pally with 46 Guardian in group).  I put the Amends on the lower level tank and tell them to taunt and gain a lot of hate with the DPS.  I have found that with your hate generation along with a % of the other tank's hate will hold agro off of almost anyone.</div> <div> </div> <div>Most say to put it on a high DPS character, but I've found that hate stealing from someone else generating hate works for me.</div><hr></blockquote>What an excelent idea! I have to try that next time I'm in a group like that.<div></div>