[X] My Assistant

Well, I've been going on my own up until now, but I'd like to ask for some general tips on where to take my character from here. I've been playing mainly as a sword and shield melee fighter, with cure and shield spells as backup. I would like to continue with a melee focus.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Here are my stats.

Hello, I am currently level 62 with a focus on a Dual Wielding style (which, once I reach a level where I can get the maximum equipment proficiencies, I will likely change to the...Niten Ichiryu(?) style, currently with these weapons: Katana, Wakazashi. I understand by the time I am level 100 (I believe that is required for max efficiency profs), I will likely have better weapons.

Anyway, the point at hand is that I was wondering what I should spend my experience points on for this focus. These are my current stats:
[sadpanda.us] http://sadpanda.us/images/624691-1BT55BC.jpg

These are my abilities:
[sadpanda.us] http://sadpanda.us/images/624703-HK07NKY.jpg

And I am currently using these items:
[sadpanda.us] http://sadpanda.us/images/624705-9S183G3.jpg

While dual wielding, I usually use one of these:
Axe 1, Axe 2, and Shortsword.

I was just hoping someone could give me advice on what I should use my XP points on, if I should use Dual Wielding or Niten Ichiryu, and what possible equipment/abilities I should use in the future.

In advance, thank you for any and all advice you can give me.

@penelope there are currently only two routes to kill monsters. hack/slash (melee) or facemelt (mage). most beginners will go with the hack/slash and change over to mage once they hit triple digit levels

don't worry about auras, most players end up getting *all* auras eventually.

and yes, hotkeys help a lot as midnight suggested (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

and as a final fyi, most high level mages concentrate on INT/WIS while high level melee's have a tad more to concentrate on (basically everything except INT) - that said, keep your stats balanced until you hit the high level player range

@orange I think it'd be best to wait for someone more experienced to tell you yes/no since I'm not 100% sure. Most circumstances won't ever put a player in a position capable of achieving 100%+ of either though

@daibouken

Stats - they look nice for a melee. WIS will become important if you plan on fighting bosses in the future (increases magic accuracy and regen as well as mana max)

Abilities - look fine if you plan on leveling asap. keep in mind that the Overcharge boosts gives you about 0.3% ADM per 1% overcharge (so if you charge up 100% overcharge, that's roughly 30% extra attack damage modifier per hit you do)

Gear - looks like it can use some work.
it looks like you're trying to maximize action speed while keeping protection up. unfortunately those two values don't really go hand in hand. i can't really imagine any fast tanks out there so it's probably best if you choose between speed or tankage. (i'd personally recommend tank for your level range)
your available gear looks pretty bad as well - which is very understandable (i was in the same boat). check out the WTS section of this forum section and look around the shops for some cheap gear. i'd personally recommend ohmightycat and cmal's threads. they have a bunch of nice cheap stuff in their threads (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

@spartan
your stats look decently balanced. i'd say you're fine as is with the trending stats considering your current gear set up. if you wish to be more of a tank, stay on your path. if you wish to be more of a glass cannon/damage whore i'd suggest pumping some more points into dex/agi. your INT can lag a bit since you don't necessarily need it. your WIS is at a decent amount. keep it somewhat close to your level as you're doing so far.

your abilities look ok for leveling although i think the holy spells are a tad out of place. trying to blast people with those spells with your heavy suit of armor on is a little conflicting.

as for the spirit tank bonus, it doesn't really give you much of an advantage. most melee players learn the spirit tank only because it's required for the overcharge boost bonus.

DW is imo, the best set up for killing single targets ie bosses.
2handed is imo, the best set up for killing mast quantities (it's the crowd control of melee) - niten is decent as well but once you reach very high levels, i think the 2handed wins out

your current setup needs a "heavy" helmet instead of kevlar if you want to benefit from a full heavy armor set bonus

melee players in general:
perspective equipment options to melee players:
light armor with decent tanking/speed (balanced)
kevlar gear/shade gear
light armor with damage whore/speed/evade (weak tanking)
shade gear
heavy armor with damage (heavy hitter/tanking but slow)
power gear
heavy armor with lower damage (tanking in its purest form)
plate gear (can probably mix with shield gear)

what you end up going will be up to your playstyle preference.

most melee players will get boss killing abilities:
weaken/bewilder/poison/silence/nerf

they also get battle augmentation stuff like:
shield (if you go tanking)
haste (depends a lot on whether you can afford the mana)
shadow veil (depends if you're going evade intensive)
regenI and II
heartseeker <- pretty important for a melee
spirit shield

rest of their points generally go to (in descending priority):
hp tank
mana tank (more cures)
spirit tank+ OC boost or exp boosts (depends what's more important to you)

e: too much typing = damn mistakes. anyways, can't forget the *cure* spell (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/happy.gif). i think only level 1 is needed, really. some people might argue level 2 but i shudder to think who in their right mind would get level 3 (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

This post has been edited by dcherry: Aug 24 2011, 08:35

Welcome to the world of godslayer (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

Welcome to the world of godslayer (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

Gratz

Is there any downside to fleeing in Grindfests?

I was playing around with some of the settings when I remembered that I can actually handle very high difficulty settings for a few rounds. So I attempted an early round of Grindfest (with around 3 monsters) on IWBTH and managed 7.1k exp in a single round! Needless to say, this would've taken me at least 8 rounds to get the same amount of experience on Hard mode.

In short, I'm a melee in shade armor with a 2-handed mace.
Is shade and 2-h a bad combo? Are maces bad? I really like the stun, especially when it stuns several monsters and keeps them from attacking me, but the crush resists on giants, which seems to be the most common player-created monsters at my level, is really hurting my damage output.

I use the shield spell alot, but should I use the shdow veil instead? Does it stack better with shade?
How much value is there in trying to decrease the burden to get it below 20? Is there any real difference between 20 and 30 in burden?

This post has been edited by Randommember: Aug 25 2011, 02:01

@kou no signifcant downside to running away. i hold the belief that you *will* lose the stamina for that round you ran away from though - although i'm not certain of this point. in which case, if you *do* lose the stamina, you can see why there is encouragement to progress deeper so that you can "spend less stamina per monster" (due to larger monster groups)

@random i believe most shade users + 2h is a good combo. i'm skeptical about the benefit you're getting from your shade right now though. shadow veil doesn't stack with *shade*. shadow veil stacks with high evasion. there's a big difference between the two (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

with your current gear i'd say shadow veil is more beneficial than shield. *but* i think you should be using some high mitigation kevlar/leather armor/shield spell rather than shade, personally. (preferably kevlar ofc)

at normal difficulty, 20 and 30 burden don't really hold much difference imo

Is there any level 200+ melee players or do all players eventually turn mage. Just wondering because i see going 100 plus rounds later or 300 plus rounds item world to be a real turn off for melee chars.

Is there any level 200+ melee players or do all players eventually turn mage. Just wondering because i see going 100 plus rounds later or 300 plus rounds item world to be a real turn off for melee chars.

2H still clear things pretty fast.

"@spartan
your current setup needs a "heavy" helmet instead of kevlar if you want to benefit from a full heavy armor set bonus"

Does this mean that having a full set of Heavy armor grants a special bonus?


"most melee players will get boss killing abilities:
weaken/bewilder/poison/silence/nerf

they also get battle augmentation stuff like:
shield (if you go tanking)
haste (depends a lot on whether you can afford the mana)
shadow veil (depends if you're going evade intensive)
regenI and II
heartseeker <- pretty important for a melee
spirit shield

rest of their points generally go to (in descending priority):
hp tank
mana tank (more cures)
spirit tank+ OC boost or exp boosts (depends what's more important to you)

e: too much typing = damn mistakes. anyways, can't forget the *cure* spell (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/happy.gif). i think only level 1 is needed, really. some people might argue level 2 but i shudder to think who in their right mind would get level 3 (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)"

Thank you for this advice! I was only trying the Holy spells because I had heard they were very good (of course, with my stats it turned out to be not so much). I grabbed Shield and Shadow Veil (with the use of power armor, its effects aren't very noticeable for myself). I knew I would need at least Silence. Shield has worked wonders, allowing me to complete all my currently available arena challenges using 2 lesser mana potions at worst. I'm saving boss killing until 75 (so as to get more bang for my blood tokens), and got some Overcharge boosts. I also maxed HP and Mana tank. Once I get into boss killing I will probably divert the overcharges/spirits to the other useful skills as they become available to me.

Once again, thank you very much for your advice.

This post has been edited by Spartan0021: Aug 25 2011, 20:50

Does this mean that having a full set of Heavy armor grants a special bonus?
Thank you for this advice! I was only trying the Holy spells because I had heard they were very good (of course, with my stats it turned out to be not so much). I grabbed Shield and Shadow Veil (with the use of power armor, its effects aren't very noticeable for myself). I knew I would need at least Silence. Shield has worked wonders, allowing me to complete all my currently available arena challenges using 2 lesser mana potions at worst. I'm saving boss killing until 75 (so as to get more bang for my blood tokens), and got some Overcharge boosts. I also maxed HP and Mana tank. Once I get into boss killing I will probably divert the overcharges/spirits to the other useful skills as they become available to me.

Once again, thank you very much for your advice.

Yes.
Make sure you get weaken and bewilder for the girls. Poison is also good since it reduces regen. After you reach LV110 silence is the main depreciating spell. When you get spirit shield at LV190, silence won't be as effective. Use the right infusions while fighting bosses will help a lot. Personally I don't bother to do spirit attacks unless you are absolutely desperate.

Fine Oak Staff of Heimdall

So i have this, should i bother selling it to other people, or should i just bazaar it? I don't mage, so it'll be one of the two.

i think you should be using some high mitigation kevlar/leather armor/shield spell rather than shade, personally. (preferably kevlar ofc)

Dang, I should have checked before buying half a set of shade gear.

In general, how would you rank the most important stats for armor? My current set is all Shield Armor, each part with at least 4% block so I can maximize counter-attacks. I thought high evasion would be goood for light armor, but apparently that's not a good idea?

@spartan
https://forums.e-hentai.org/index.php?showtopic=38059 <- that link tells you about armor proficiency bonuses

saving bosses til later is perfectly fine. i didn't attempt my bosses until 80+ (manbearpig/etc) and then i did schoolgirls at 120+ and just recnetly i finally took a jab at Real Life. i'm not one of those guys in a hurry to kill the gods but i know others are. they become much much easier as you level though

@RajaNagaSoz i'd personally keep it for a few patches. it has potential

@loberno i think you misunderstood me. i suggested kevlar/leather etc because it's cheaper than high evade shade gear and physical mitigation is usually much easier to stack than evasion for melee players. i also think tanking is a more effective method in the early levels versus evasion.

i assume you're using 1h/shield. if so, i think you have the general gist of it. i can't imagine any other fighting style that'd benefit from full shield gear over 1h/shield

Is there any level 200+ melee players or do all players eventually turn mage. Just wondering because i see going 100 plus rounds later or 300 plus rounds item world to be a real turn off for melee chars.

A-yup. Hurts a lot. But I've bought some Kevlar pieces recently so now I am @ 77+33,5% physical mitigation and that allows me to clear the Trio arena with just 2 or 3 pots (while it took me up to 7-8 per same challenge in Shade equip). Also now I feel myself capable of farming an IW on Heroic for up to 200 rounds with ease.

@loberno i think you misunderstood me. i suggested kevlar/leather etc because it's cheaper than high evade shade gear and physical mitigation is usually much easier to stack than evasion for melee players. i also think tanking is a more effective method in the early levels versus evasion.

i assume you're using 1h/shield. if so, i think you have the general gist of it. i can't imagine any other fighting style that'd benefit from full shield gear over 1h/shield

^This, there is absolutely no reason to pick up a shield if you're not in Heavy Shield equip. You'll suck up too much damage even in Kevlar, since 1H+shield is "slow but steady" build and it takes the highest turn/round stat amongst melee specs.

@spartan
https://forums.e-hentai.org/index.php?showtopic=38059 <- that link tells you about armor proficiency bonuses

saving bosses til later is perfectly fine. i didn't attempt my bosses until 80+ (manbearpig/etc) and then i did schoolgirls at 120+ and just recnetly i finally took a jab at Real Life. i'm not one of those guys in a hurry to kill the gods but i know others are. they become much much easier as you level though

@RajaNagaSoz i'd personally keep it for a few patches. it has potential

@loberno i think you misunderstood me. i suggested kevlar/leather etc because it's cheaper than high evade shade gear and physical mitigation is usually much easier to stack than evasion for melee players. i also think tanking is a more effective method in the early levels versus evasion.

i assume you're using 1h/shield. if so, i think you have the general gist of it. i can't imagine any other fighting style that'd benefit from full shield gear over 1h/shield

So is shade gear of the fleet the best? Going for evade?
I was kinda actually going for arcanist, or possibly shadowdancer if I can get my hands on it, for minimum compromise and better magic accuracy (I use weakness and poison quite a lot at higher difficulty).
Is resist not all that good to aim for?
Does evade rule supreme and of fleet beats of negation?

And how does shield armors block bonus stack? If you got a shield with 30% block and 5 pieces of shield armor with 4% block each, do you actually get 50% block (plus stat/proficiency), or does it add up like evade+parry+block and give diminishing returns?

When fighting waves of mobs most of the damage will come from physical attacks, so yeah, having a decent Evade would probably help.
I am a mage and I basically survive on Evade + Shadow Veil alone.

If you do decide on a high Evade/low Defense setup, you'll want to kill enemies as fast as possible so they can't rape gang up on you, since Evade can only help you so much.

So these are the two equipment sets I have. I'm pretty satisfied with Set 1. I can comfortably get to round 50 or so of normal grindfest without using a single item (other than powerups). With Set 2, I barely made it to round 31 just now before getting killed on my first turn. My light armor prof is about equal to my heavy prof (both are 32), though my DW is about 1/3 of my one-hand (17 vs 49).

How should I fill out the body and feet slots on Set 2: try to get more shade pieces or use kevlar? I'm aiming for base evasion of 4.0 on shade which is kind of expensive. How much absorb/mitigation should I go for if I choose kevlar?

So these are the two equipment sets I have. I'm pretty satisfied with Set 1. I can comfortably get to round 50 or so of normal grindfest without using a single item (other than powerups). With Set 2, I barely made it to round 31 just now before getting killed on my first turn. My light armor prof is about equal to my heavy prof (both are 32), though my DW is about 1/3 of my one-hand (17 vs 49).

How should I fill out the body and feet slots on Set 2: try to get more shade pieces or use kevlar? I'm aiming for base evasion of 4.0 on shade which is kind of expensive. How much absorb/mitigation should I go for if I choose kevlar?

Infact I am facing the same problem now, but for a different reason. I am feeling fairly vulnerable when I do arena stages nightmare or above with full set of shade.

This post has been edited by MidNightPass: Aug 25 2011, 16:06