[X] My Assistant

Agi increases evasion and action speed. Lots of mages/light armor melee rank it as a top 3 attribute

My current Stats are layout as follows. Any recommendations to improve my attributes?
[attachmentid=10242][attachmentid=10243]

While we're on the topic of evasion, is it reasonable to try and get 100% evasion? This includes parry chance.

At my level and with crappy light melee gear and shortsword/dagger DW giving me the highest possible parry, I even end up with 19.3% evade (23,16% with shadow veil) and 29,7% parry.

My current Stats are layout as follows. Any recommendations to improve my attributes?
[attachmentid=10242][attachmentid=10243]

If you're going full melee, I suggest dropping alot of INT. Personally I pick 4 core stats and keep those at the same level if my experience allows it. Since melee only has use for INT for getting mana (1 every 4 INT) I personally keep my INT 60 levels behind my core stats.
Most people tend to keep a x3 ratio for INT/WIS. So if INT takes 100 experience and WIS takes 200, get wisdom, but if WIS takes 300, get INT

This post has been edited by rawrpies: Dec 5 2011, 10:50

My current Stats are layout as follows. Any recommendations to improve my attributes?
[attachmentid=10242][attachmentid=10243]

Echoing rawrpies, I'd suggest you drop int a little. IMHO mages and melee both have 1 "dead" stat that gives them much less benefit than the other 5. For melee it's INT. For mage it's DEX. Some other players may disagree but that is what I think.

@rawrpies I've contemplated the "ninja/assassin" strat a feel times (ridic high evade+high parry) but imo it doesn't really work out. The damage output is simply *too low*. In the environment of HV, I'd rank killspeed as a top 3 priority if not no.1

And if I recall correctly, SV gives you a flat 20% evasion bonus (it doesn't fluctuate depending on your evasion from stats/gear)

This post has been edited by dcherry: Dec 5 2011, 10:57

Echoing rawrpies, I'd suggest you drop int a little. IMHO mages and melee both have 1 "dead" stat that gives them much less benefit than the other 5. For melee it's INT. For mage it's DEX. Some other players may disagree but that is what I think.

OK, I'll try it out right now. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

@rawrpies I've contemplated the "ninja/assassin" strat a feel times (ridic high evade+high parry) but imo it doesn't really work out. The damage output is simply *too low*. In the environment of HV, I'd rank killspeed as a top 3 priority if not no.1

And if I recall correctly, SV gives you a flat 20% evasion bonus (it doesn't fluctuate depending on your evasion from stats/gear)

Thought so that it would not work, since even 99% evasion and taking 100 turns for one round still means you would die due to damage output becoming ridicilous.

But also from the wiki: http://ehwiki.org/wiki/Damage_Avoidance

Damage Avoidance: The various factors that go into avoiding attacks are a player's: Evasion stat, Chance of blocking, Chance of parrying, Chance of resisting a magical attack, Evasion granted by Shadow Veil. It is important to note that these stats are calculated in a multiplicative fashion rather than additively.

This tells me SV makes it your evade %*1,2 instead of adding a flat 20%.

From Tenb,

It adds 20% to evade, multiplicatively.

So it should be something like

Total evade = 1 - (1 - SV modifier) (1 - other modifiers), where SV modifier = 0.2 at this moment

This post has been edited by varst: Dec 5 2011, 11:10

Reduced my INT by 2 & put it into AGI, applied SV during battles, & I do see more evasions from attacks by the monsters.

Thanks for the Help! (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

you miss very key point. Without Mace. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif)

WITH mace I am DEFINITELY able to clear IWBTH below LEgendary Runs. Still lazy, yeah.

i have a question to expert melee. it is possible for melee to do all arenas on bt/iwbth without use mace?

Somehow I doubt it.
I might not be as high as some others out there, or with access to their level of gears and hath-perks.

But still, I can't do the schoolgirl arenas even with a mace, on any higher difficulty, and it's hard enough even on normal.
The problem isn't tanking the damage, or even mana, those I can all manage pretty well with my current setup.
But it simply takes too long, and their heavy specials hit me a bit too often, meaning that in the end, I tend to run out of spirit points, which doesn't regen as fast as mana.
Maybe it would work better if I stock up on spirit potions, but to me it feels like this problem would become even greater at higher difficulties, since they would hit harder, costing more spirit points and they would last much longer, meaning they can hit you many more times, again costing more spirit points.

And that is with a mace (non-etheral though).
I find it much easier to clear it with a mage setup, even if my magic, staff and cloth armor proficiencies are really low and I got few magic spells.
Also, I aplyed with light armor and staff, meaking a big dent in my damage output, but gave me a lot of survivability, with ether theft giving endless supply of mana and a kevlar set making me a hard target, it feels like I can do almost anything.
Just that it will be slow....

This post has been edited by Randommember: Dec 5 2011, 15:17

Hello,
I've got a question I guess everyone besides me knows the answer to:

Cure Spell (source: EHWiki):
Restores a moderate amount of HP to yourself.
Health restored = (base_health / 2) * (1 + curative_proficiency / 200) * (1 + holy EDB / 100)

Is holy EDB the same as Divine Proficiency? (So using Spells like Condemn will rise it and in the end your Cure gets stronger as well?)

No, check the "Statistics" pane on your Character page.

Holy EDB = Spell Damage Bonus → Holy
Divine Proficiency = Effective Proficiency → Divine

Holy EDB can be boosted through equipment (Heimdall gear or Katalox/Oak Staff).

Ok thank you!
Good to know I don't have to train using holy Spells ^^

Thought so that it would not work, since even 99% evasion and taking 100 turns for one round still means you would die due to damage output becoming ridicilous.

But also from the wiki: http://ehwiki.org/wiki/Damage_Avoidance
This tells me SV makes it your evade %*1,2 instead of adding a flat 20%.

I believe what it meant by multiplicative fashion in that sentence was simply: reaching 100% is near impossible. Almost everything avoidance-wise is multiplicative now. If you had 0% evade, shadow veil would give you a pure 20%. (Since it's the only thing affecting your evasion)

If you have say, 10% evasion from gear. Shadow veil will give you 20% evasion to the 90% of hits that will be coming through to you (which should equate to a 28% evasion equivalently if my math works out right 1-(1-0.1)*(1-0.2))

Now if you add in parry etc

The chance to avoid the physical hit will be that 28% evasion multiplicatively aided by the parry/block

1-(1-0.28)*(1-parry)*(1-block)

@Aspire I think that's mainly due to the Shadow Veil. The AGI difference won't become apparent until you reach much higher levels =) (don't get me wrong though, it's still a very useful stat!) But like most (if not all the attributes) I don't find attributes provide much "ooumph" per stat when increasing it 1 by 1 - rest assured, they are giving you proper benefit though =)

For example. I'm sitting on 300+ AGI right now. http://ehwiki.org/wiki/Character_Stats
That equates to 12%+ evasion before gear! Adding 1 point at a time probably didn't provide me with any noticeable difference but there's no way I could have gotten to where I am without adding the AGI points 1 at a time =)

WITH mace I am DEFINITELY able to clear IWBTH below LEgendary Runs. Still lazy, yeah.

yes, i know with mace every grandma and their dog can do it so nothing special. that why i'm asking if anyone done it without using the cheap boring weapon.

Somehow I doubt it.

i think you right. so far only replys are from mace users when i kept saying i don't care what mace users can do. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

@Aspire I think that's mainly due to the Shadow Veil. The AGI difference won't become apparent until you reach much higher levels =) (don't get me wrong though, it's still a very useful stat!) But like most (if not all the attributes) I don't find attributes provide much "ooumph" per stat when increasing it 1 by 1 - rest assured, they are giving you proper benefit though =)

I looked at the earlier posts & adjusted slightly my stats as well. I'm using heavy power/shield & my stats are attached.
I've only recently reached lvl100+ & even under normal, it's getting tougher just to get thru' the higher arenas w/o using up my (godly) mana potions at times.
What recommendations do you propose on the distribution of my stats accordingly to better optimize my play?
Any improvements to my game would be much appreciated. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)
[attachmentid=10251]

i have a question to expert mages. it is possible for mages to do all arenas on bt/iwbth without use any items?

yes, i know with mace every grandma and their dog can do it so nothing special. that why i'm asking if anyone done it without using the cheap boring weapon.
i think you right. so far only replys are from mace users when i kept saying i don't care what mace users can do. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif)

Prior to the patch (I forgot which) where monster damage was jacked up, other weapons were viable contenders - namely high bleed scythes and estocs (I think?)

But in came the patch and many high level players got massacred. I remember monster lab owners were very happy and sad (since they were often the victim+cause of death themselves). And that's when everyone turned to the Mace. 4 turn incapacitation!?!? Better than sliced bread (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/happy.gif)

I looked at the earlier posts & adjusted slightly my stats as well. I'm using heavy power/shield & my stats are attached.
I've only recently reached lvl100+ & even under normal, it's getting tougher just to get thru' the higher arenas w/o using up my (godly) mana potions at times.
What recommendations do you propose on the distribution of my stats accordingly to better optimize my play?
Any improvements to my game would be much appreciated. (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)
[attachmentid=10251]

Like I'd advise all melee's, I'd drop your INT a bit. As for shield gear, I'd recommend replacing it with Power gear or Plate gear. Plate is your no.1 choice for survivability and Power is your no.1 (only) choice for offensive ability. I think the Mace is still a viable weapon for you despite your heavy set up. Unless you're playing on very high difficulties, it's very difficult for monsters to lap you in turns so as long as your AGI is within 10 points of your level I think you should be relatively safe as far as movement speeds go.

Your goal should be to stun most of the monsters you run up against and tank the remaining hits (it shouldn't hurt you too much)

I'd recommend look to a melee for advice since I never really spent a lot of time melee-ing. Things you would want to look into though are:
Is haste worth it? (my hunch = no)
Is protection worth it? (my hunch = yes)
Is shadow veil worth it? (my hunch = maybe...)

And of course, make sure your health/mana tanks are maxed always =)

As for potions, don't be afraid to use potions! Unless you're buying them from the bazaar, the arenas will reimburse you for them handsomely! And think of it as short term payment for long term gain! (the higher level you are, the more credits you have at your finger tips)

Haste is worth it, it effectively makes each point of agi =.45 speed instead of .3. I can often double and triple hit things now. As plate though haste may be too expensive to use due to how interference decreases your proficiencies.

Protection is total crap. It currently affects only your mitigation from equipment, and not the specific mitigation. It also boosts absorption, but absorption becomes null once incoming damage goes over 100 because of how slow absorption scales. To make protection worth the same amount as shadow veil you would need 80% mitigation from gear... Like if you have 50% mitigation from gear and get hit for 100 damage before mitigation you would only take 50 with your mitigation. With protection you get 50/4=12.5% more mitigation which brings up your mitigation to 62.5% which means you only take 38.5 damage a hit instead of 50. Interference again ruins this.

Main problem with protection from what I understand it only works from equipment, not from additional mitigation from str/end/wis

Shadow Veil essentially decreases the amount of times you get hit by 20%. If you get hit 100 times out of 100, with shadow veil you only get hit 80 out of 100 times. Again as heavy it might not be worth the mana it costs due to your interference. Shadow Veils advantage is that it doesn't care how much evasion you already have, its always 20% multiplicative

This post has been edited by skillchip: Dec 5 2011, 20:21

Prior to the patch (I forgot which) where monster damage was jacked up, other weapons were viable contenders - namely high bleed scythes and estocs (I think?)

But in came the patch and many high level players got massacred. I remember monster lab owners were very happy and sad (since they were often the victim+cause of death themselves). And that's when everyone turned to the Mace. 4 turn incapacitation!?!? Better than sliced bread (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/happy.gif)
Like I'd advise all melee's, I'd drop your INT a bit. As for shield gear, I'd recommend replacing it with Power gear or Plate gear. Plate is your no.1 choice for survivability and Power is your no.1 (only) choice for offensive ability. I think the Mace is still a viable weapon for you despite your heavy set up. Unless you're playing on very high difficulties, it's very difficult for monsters to lap you in turns so as long as your AGI is within 10 points of your level I think you should be relatively safe as far as movement speeds go.

Your goal should be to stun most of the monsters you run up against and tank the remaining hits (it shouldn't hurt you too much)

I'd recommend look to a melee for advice since I never really spent a lot of time melee-ing. Things you would want to look into though are:
Is haste worth it? (my hunch = no)
Is protection worth it? (my hunch = yes)
Is shadow veil worth it? (my hunch = maybe...)

And of course, make sure your health/mana tanks are maxed always =)

As for potions, don't be afraid to use potions! Unless you're buying them from the bazaar, the arenas will reimburse you for them handsomely! And think of it as short term payment for long term gain! (the higher level you are, the more credits you have at your finger tips)

I agree with you on the current use of the mace.
I used to use the scythe for quick kills, but now even when they bleed, the monsters can still deliver devastating blows.
At least with the mace, they are literally stunned when proc.

I activate protection at almost all times, & using haste/SV when encountering more monsters in the round. My health/mana tanks are already filled up, & I guess I'll have to start shopping for some more power gear.

To the Heavies,
Any other advice you could offer? (perhaps even free gear (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) , seriously...I need all the help I can get)
Regards (IMG:[invalid] style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

i have a question to expert mages. it is possible for mages to do all arenas on bt/iwbth without use any items?

Probably. Definitely not worth it though. You're already ET-ing at the end of every round on the later IWBTH arenas, no sense torturing yourself more than necessary. Not that you'd want to IWBTH more than once anyways.