Hey, don't laugh at me

[km094]

I'm getting close to level 50 and things are becomming more permanent. Its not like tearing through the 20s where it didn't matter what decisions I made, they'd be replaced in a week. I got a couple questions that have been bothering me since this is my first character.

 

1) I'm currently wearing some of the best possible gear a level 46 could be wearing... But its all level 37 (zek demolition). Do I still get the mitigation from them as long as they do not turn grey on me? Or is it based on the level of the mob I am fighting?

 

2) I'm a sucker for proccing items and weapons. At level 40 I invested in imbued strength and stamina rings, but I've never really paid too much attention to how helpful they are. Are these things worth the money? How good are the DPS and hp regen bonuses?

 

3) Regarding stances, has anyone ever tried using a 2 hander in defensive stance, or a sword and board in offensive stance? And is there ever a situation where I should use no stance at all?

 

4) When soloing a single mob for the purpose of loot (as in, trying to survive not kill with speed), is it best to spam CAs? Is it best to use a 2 hander? Is it best to simply ward in defensive stance and win a battle of attrition? How do you guys solo really tough mobs?

 

5) I've been helping a much lower level Swashbuckler friend of mine level up. Somehow, despite 2 taunts, the aggro transfer spell, 14 levels, and a master shield bash, he still gets aggro for about 3-5 second spurts a couple times every fight. How can I stop this? Its with ALL swashbucklers too, not just him.

 

6) What is your opinion of the screaming mace? I can't realistically get it until level 50, is it worth the effort? Might I even be better off shooting for the Sceptre of Rahotep?

 

7) Has anyone ever done research on mana efficiency of pally spells? I'd be curious if maybe spells I don't use much like our two ranged nukes aren't more efficient then spamming kick and sworn strike.

 

Thats all for now, but stay tuned. I'm positive I'll think of more. I wish I didn't have to bother you guys about noob questions like this, but general chat is even less forgiving then a message board.

EDIT: My attention starved girlfriend snuck an "imgay" in the first paragraph.

Message Edited by km09480 on 04-08-200605:46 PM

[Leawyn]

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km09480 wrote:

EDIT: My attention starved girlfriend snuck an "imgay" in the first paragraph.

Message Edited by km09480 on 04-08-200605:46 PM

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AHAHAHAHAHHA That rocks Sorry! I had to laugh.As for your other questions, I often go sword and board in offensive when i'm soloing. But I never really try to solo "hard" mobs, I only solo when I have to, and generally I go for stuff I know won't kill me, but still gives OK exp.

[Turb]

Board = shield bash = stun = easier heal/ward cast, so it can be handy...

[Jorel7]

4) When I'm soloing a tough creature my experiance is that it's best to save all the power to stun/ward/heal. Maybe use the big dmg ability every minute when it's up, also use the grouptaunt since it lowers the enemys divine resistance pretty much.

 

[Turb]

Regarding 4, it depends on the enemy. If it's a healer, you want to grind it down and keep a 'burst dps' (as much as we have it) for when it hits orange and it starts to heal, so you can down it before that happens.I do what the poster above does, except I don't debuff if I'm not using divine attacks. I use a good 1h (cobalt) and shield (crimson targe soon!), in defensive stance, and melee the sucker to death. It may take 5-10 mins but I can solo most green nameds safely that way. If you have trouble re-warding, throw in a shield or boot stun first, or use your STA AA hammer stun if you have that.If the enemy isn't damaging you too much, consider dropping def stance, if you're still OK try off stance but against a green named mob that's brave Stick in def stance against casters in particular, as the +WIS helps your resist rolls a lot.I suspect for such solo grinds the INT line may be nice for heal bonuses (not tried yet to see how a 'critical' ward works), and you can use your shield and still get the +crit chances. Depends on the opponent.One thing that really also helps is the manastone. Do Stiletto's HQ to get this if you don't have it; it's a nice source of mana every 60 seconds.Good luck!

[dozier]

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km09480 wrote:

 

5) I've been helping a much lower level Swashbuckler friend of mine level up. Somehow, despite 2 taunts, the aggro transfer spell, 14 levels, and a master shield bash, he still gets aggro for about 3-5 second spurts a couple times every fight. How can I stop this? Its with ALL swashbucklers too, not just him.

Make sure he doesn't have his hate transfer on you, and make sure to put yours on him. I don't know if this was ever fixed, but it was bugged/broken at one point so I always do this. Furthermore, if you are fighting multiple mobs, use your AEs, because they Swashy will be using his. What do you mean by  '14 levels'? 

6) What is your opinion of the screaming mace? I can't realistically get it until level 50, is it worth the effort? Might I even be better off shooting for the Sceptre of Rahotep?Screaming Mace procs a hate reducer, I never could understand why a tank would want it. I never got it. Sceptre of Rahotep is very very nice, procs a 200 pt group heal now.

 

7) Has anyone ever done research on mana efficiency of pally spells? I'd be curious if maybe spells I don't use much like our two ranged nukes aren't more efficient then spamming kick and sworn strike.It's all about the situation really. If you don't have to be dishing out DPS in your group, then don't bother, unless you are having trouble holding agro and need the extra damage output. If you are solo'ing or otherwise need to help with damage, then use them, they are efficient, just make sure you've divine debuffed the mobs.

 

EDIT: My attention starved girlfriend snuck an "imgay" in the first paragraph.

Hehe.

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[SirRock]

In regards to #6.

 

I finished the quest for Screaming Mace and used it for a couple weeks.  Then I did Rahotep and I currently use the Sceptre of Rahotep instead.

 

I am only lvl 56, but I found that while the Screaming Mace is a nice weapon, it reduces hate and isn't the best choice if you are MT.

 

If you are guilded, do both heritages for the status.  But I think you'll find that the Sceptre of Rahotep is significantly better.

[Graven55]

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km09480 wrote:

 

3) Regarding stances, has anyone ever tried using a 2 hander in defensive stance, or a sword and board in offensive stance? And is there ever a situation where I should use no stance at all?

 

Depends mostly on what you're fighting.  If it's a blue ^^^ 2her isn't probably going to protect you enough, but if you're fighting green ^^^ it helps move the fight along a lot faster.  As for stance, I pretty much use defensive stance all the time except when I'm raiding when I'll use offensive if I have no chance at offtanking a mob.

 

4) When soloing a single mob for the purpose of loot (as in, trying to survive not kill with speed), is it best to spam CAs? Is it best to use a 2 hander? Is it best to simply ward in defensive stance and win a battle of attrition? How do you guys solo really tough mobs?

 

Depens on the mob type.  For green heroic melee mobs I just beat em down with a 2her as fast as I can.  For healers it's a bit tougher...I usually keep my 2her hotkeyed and pop it on when the mob starts chain healing, for that extra damage.  Also I do nothing but heal (ward mostly) for first half of mob.  Beating healer mobs is all about saving mana for the burst at the end (and stuns!).

 

6) What is your opinion of the screaming mace? I can't realistically get it until level 50, is it worth the effort? Might I even be better off shooting for the Sceptre of Rahotep?

 

I got my screaming mace early, and it was pretty nice for soloing for quite a while.  The deaggro isn't good for tanking with a group but it's meaningless when soloing and the extra mana is nice.  Once you can get a cobalt, though, upgrade.

 

PM

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[Jam]

I still use SM quite a bit including when I'm MT, the de-agro proc is so small it hardly makes any difference, one single target taunt generates more agro than the mace procing 5 times in a row.

 

In groups I find the proc can go off anywhere between 2-5 times per encounter and sometimes more which is 360-900 more power.

 

With a chanter in group and using SM I find it difficult to even use up power, sure I could swap it out for a higher damage weapon but I'd be surprised if our auto attack damage in a full group accounts for even 1% of the dps.

 

I was worried it wouldnt work since it greyed out, but it seems to land hits on mobs right up to level 74 including epics and the proc still goes off, so not sure how the grey out effects weapons.

[OrcSlayer96]

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km09480 wrote:

I'm getting close to level 50 and things are becomming more permanent. Its not like tearing through the 20s where it didn't matter what decisions I made, they'd be replaced in a week. I got a couple questions that have been bothering me since this is my first character.

 

1) I'm currently wearing some of the best possible gear a level 46 could be wearing... But its all level 37 (zek demolition). Do I still get the mitigation from them as long as they do not turn grey on me? Or is it based on the level of the mob I am fighting?

You still get mitigation from it even if it does turn grey.  Turning grey does not reduce your armor mitigation but it is a visual notice to let you know that the mitigation is porr compared to a higher level armor, the rule of thumb on armor is try to keep it up on level/mitigation and look at your mitigation percentage versus a mob at your level on the personae screen.  A treasured plate piece that is 8 levels higher than a crafted legendary maybe better for you than you think, switch them out and compare your effective mitigation percentage to get a clearer picture.  Plus higher level armor has more stats/resists/health/power than lower levels so look at that also.

 

2) I'm a sucker for proccing items and weapons. At level 40 I invested in imbued strength and stamina rings, but I've never really paid too much attention to how helpful they are. Are these things worth the money? How good are the DPS and hp regen bonuses?

All depends, the rare rings imbued are a good starter versus alot of the lower tiered items but when you find legendary and better rings from quests and instances you will probably replace them.  Dont forget to look at your rare hex dolls in your charm slots, besides the stat bonuses they can yield some very nice debuffs to mobs.

 

3) Regarding stances, has anyone ever tried using a 2 hander in defensive stance, or a sword and board in offensive stance? And is there ever a situation where I should use no stance at all?

Generally speaking i use 2 hander in offensive mode when tackling easy mobs and switching to defensive it many adds or dots start hitting me.  Also when in a raid/group where i am buffing another tank i will usually go 2 hander in offensive mode or defensive if ae are bad.  When tanking it is usally my mace/hammer type weapon and shield in offensive mode and switching to defense if i am taking too much damage or need the resists.  I personally have never been in no stance because that means giving up too much power on my player.

 

4) When soloing a single mob for the purpose of loot (as in, trying to survive not kill with speed), is it best to spam CAs? Is it best to use a 2 hander? Is it best to simply ward in defensive stance and win a battle of attrition? How do you guys solo really tough mobs?

When soloing a tough encounter is usually mace/hammer and shield and i open it up in offensive mode with array of stuns and wards.  If the mob appears to be doing minimal damage and taking a decent amount i will start HO chains for further damage while keeping the stuns and wards/heals up when needed.  If the mob is hitting too hard i go defensive and stick to wards/stuns when needed and conserve power.  I like using mace/hammer for the hammer ground AA that stuns all mobs for 2.1 secs on rank 4 and i still love to use my screaming mace for the power regen proc.  the taunt reducer is minimal at best and the damage it does outbalances the deagro point of it.  I have a hotbar devoted to manastone/health/power potions and other charms/skills that are usefull and use those constantly.  I highly recommend getting rare hex dolls for the debuffs and using them on tough encounters as your pull tactic, debuffing a mob by 900 mitigation or slowing its attack speed by 20% is no small thing.

 

5) I've been helping a much lower level Swashbuckler friend of mine level up. Somehow, despite 2 taunts, the aggro transfer spell, 14 levels, and a master shield bash, he still gets aggro for about 3-5 second spurts a couple times every fight. How can I stop this? Its with ALL swashbucklers too, not just him.

I would agree with a previous oster that the swashies are using their hate transfer on you while you are amends to them.  Make sure you amends them again after they die or either your they mentor somebody.  They also maybe using some special ability that is bursting their dps to quickly for your transfers to account for it and your taunts.  Are your taunts and shield bash adept 3 or higher?  What about your AE ones?

 

6) What is your opinion of the screaming mace? I can't realistically get it until level 50, is it worth the effort? Might I even be better off shooting for the Sceptre of Rahotep?

I rank Screaming mace as one of the most useful heritage weapons i have obtained, the proc rate is good enough and us pallies can always use more power in fights.  The Scepter of Rahotep is nice but is a group heal and i have used it sometimes when i am not tanking but protecting the group.  Usually a power proccing item trumps a group heal for my playing style.

 

7) Has anyone ever done research on mana efficiency of pally spells? I'd be curious if maybe spells I don't use much like our two ranged nukes aren't more efficient then spamming kick and sworn strike.

I havent done any offical research but would have to guess that we chew thru power about the same as other tank classes.  The other day i was with a bruiser, monk, guardian,berserker, and warlock.  I seemed to use power the quickest but with the oddball group i was considered the healer and our heals/group heals suck up the power.  I have always thought our ward is power efficient and when you get your single and group heal up to master 1 they are not bad either.  Probably our largest power burners are our AE spells like castigate and consecration, but some of the other ae's are not bad at all.  Make sure you have and upgrade your doom judgement spell to adept 3 and try to get the others upgraded also.  I find it funny that some classes underestimate the damage we can do in group situations with adept 3 and Master 1 AE spells.  By allmeans make sure you get your manastone and later on work on the manastone 2.0 for triple the power.  Many players forget about stocking up on power potions and power regen when a friendly alchemist can easily supply them at little cost.  Most important thing is to have fun and pay attention to how your class performs and try to improve them.  Everything else falls into place after that...

Thats all for now, but stay tuned. I'm positive I'll think of more. I wish I didn't have to bother you guys about noob questions like this, but general chat is even less forgiving then a message board.

EDIT: My attention starved girlfriend snuck an "imgay" in the first paragraph.

Message Edited by km09480 on 04-08-200605:46 PM

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[Majorminor]

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SirRocky6 wrote:

 but I found that while the Screaming Mace is a nice weapon, it reduces hate and isn't the best choice if you are MT.

 

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The amount of the hate reduced by the SM, just off set's the amount of hate gained by the proc going off.  So Your really not loosing any hate.  Other than what is casued by the proc going off.

 

At 65 I still carry SM with me, I don't use it all that much, but there are times when In a long fight I'll pull it out and try to get some power back, When MT for taunts, or a ward of whatever.

And anyone notice that the Rahotep sceptre will proc like an sob, while soloing, and when you don't need the heal.  But let the group start taking some damage and the dam thing doesn't want to proc /sigh hehe oh well.

[OrcSlayer96]

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Majorminor wrote:

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SirRocky6 wrote:

 but I found that while the Screaming Mace is a nice weapon, it reduces hate and isn't the best choice if you are MT.

 

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The amount of the hate reduced by the SM, just off set's the amount of hate gained by the proc going off.  So Your really not loosing any hate.  Other than what is casued by the proc going off.

 

At 65 I still carry SM with me, I don't use it all that much, but there are times when In a long fight I'll pull it out and try to get some power back, When MT for taunts, or a ward of whatever.

And anyone notice that the Rahotep sceptre will proc like an sob, while soloing, and when you don't need the heal.  But let the group start taking some damage and the dam thing doesn't want to proc /sigh hehe oh well.

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I hear ya bud, i also have noticed in guild groups in KOS that i seem to have screaming mace proc more than ever before, it hits mobs at whatever their level and the extra power coming in allows me more use than the melee damage i lose on a lower dps rate weapon.  I tried the scepter of rahotep and had the same issues, procs alot when i was soloing on some quests and once in a blue moon when i was in a group and needing the thing for a little extra health back.

[Wargod1968]

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km09480 wrote:

 

 

5) I've been helping a much lower level Swashbuckler friend of mine level up. Somehow, despite 2 taunts, the aggro transfer spell, 14 levels, and a master shield bash, he still gets aggro for about 3-5 second spurts a couple times every fight. How can I stop this? Its with ALL swashbucklers too, not just him.

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I have a Swashy character. Make sure your friend has his Avoid Blame (hate transfer) up, plus his Distraction line buff up (proc to reduce hate). Additionally, he will have to work with you, too. If he unloads all his arts up front, he's going to grab aggro unless you outclass him with your Taunts vs. his Damage arts (ie, you are Adept 3, and his are Adept 1). 

I rarely (1-2 times, I can ever recall) have ever grabbed aggro from my tank. As someone suggested, if this happens with all Swashies, you may need to upgrade your Taunts, or find out a weakness in your strategy. Either that or ask all your Swashy buddies to let you gain aggro for a few seconds before plunging in.  Or check your strategy for a better method of aggro gain.

Don't be content to body pull, make sure you get a taunt off first, plus an HO off, before the dps starts in.

Lastly, Swashies aren't made of tissue. He can take a hit or three if need be before using Evade or Lie Low to bounce it back to you.

Good luck!

[Leawyn]

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Wargod1968 wrote:

Lastly, Swashies aren't made of tissue. He can take a hit or three if need be before using Evade or Lie Low to bounce it back to you.

Good luck!

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Haha! Last night I was with this ranger that just WOULD NOT stop stealin agro. He assured me he had the hate transfer on me, but he would consistently attack the mobs i was not on in a group, and then pull agro. It was driving me crazy. After about 30 mins, I just let him tank them and would only taunt off after the mob I was on was dead. After an hour, I didn't even bother taunting. If he wants agro that bad to do that all night long, he can tank em!

[Wargod1968]

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Leawyn wrote:

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Wargod1968 wrote:

Lastly, Swashies aren't made of tissue. He can take a hit or three if need be before using Evade or Lie Low to bounce it back to you.

Good luck!

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Haha! Last night I was with this ranger that just WOULD NOT stop stealin agro. He assured me he had the hate transfer on me, but he would consistently attack the mobs i was not on in a group, and then pull agro. It was driving me crazy. After about 30 mins, I just let him tank them and would only taunt off after the mob I was on was dead. After an hour, I didn't even bother taunting. If he wants agro that bad to do that all night long, he can tank em!

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Heh heh.. he never learned his lesson?  Did he take any dirt naps? I like the attitude. You gank it, you tank it!

[Seidhkona]

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Heh heh.. he never learned his lesson?  Did he take any dirt naps? I like the attitude. You gank it, you tank it!

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My sister plays a mystic and we play together a lot. If we have a DPS-type consistently pre-pulling by shooting arrows early, or a wizzy ice cometing over and over on the first attack out of the chute before hate is established, or people not assisting the tank and being mavericks, after a while she quits healing them at all, ever.  When they've died enough, they go away. (Note this is after one or both of us have tried reasoning with teh person).

[Leawyn]

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Wargod1968 wrote:

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Leawyn wrote:

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Wargod1968 wrote:

Lastly, Swashies aren't made of tissue. He can take a hit or three if need be before using Evade or Lie Low to bounce it back to you.

Good luck!

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Haha! Last night I was with this ranger that just WOULD NOT stop stealin agro. He assured me he had the hate transfer on me, but he would consistently attack the mobs i was not on in a group, and then pull agro. It was driving me crazy. After about 30 mins, I just let him tank them and would only taunt off after the mob I was on was dead. After an hour, I didn't even bother taunting. If he wants agro that bad to do that all night long, he can tank em!

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Heh heh.. he never learned his lesson?  Did he take any dirt naps? I like the attitude. You gank it, you tank it!

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Nope, he never learned. All night he did it (at least 3 hours!) but for some reason the healer who would constantly keep me in the yellow or orange (with me healing as much as i could!) was always quick to heal him... :smileyindifferent: I didn't have much fun in that group last night. I wanted to leave after the first mob but i couldn't find another tank to replace me the whole time!