Ranger vs Monk (SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY)

[Reliel]

I'm coming back by the end of the week and I was curious as to what class I should roll up. I'm torn between Ranger and continuing as a Monk. What it boils down to is the core difference between brawling, the effectiveness at higher and lower levels (ease of hunting), and how strapped I would be for points per level. I know what to expect for a Monk but seeing as how this is essentially a fresh look at being a Ranger I'd like to get some input before jumping into it.

So...anything you fine folk would like to say?

[Tgo01]

Empath.

[Reliel]

Why T?

[Androidpk]

All depends on how long you plan on playing for. Comparing low level hunting vs higher level hunting is pretty drastic.

[Reliel]

I plan on being around for a while.

Hm. Well, what would I expect as a low level ranger hunting? As a monk I had a pretty tough time unless I was spelled. I'm going to assume it's the same for a ranger?

[Androidpk]

For the most party hunting levels 1-20 is almost the same for every class. Pump up your physical stats and swing a claid for the first 30 days, adjust accordingly.

[Reliel]

I see.

Okay. Would a Monk do better in the brawling area than a Ranger? Would I expect to excel due to spell differences? Would I suffer in the long run (have to fall back to a secondary weapon style/have to invest in it) as a brawling ranger?

[Androidpk]

This is all speculation on my part since I have played neither a ranger nor a monk but I would assume that even at cap a ranger fully trained in brawling could hold his own with the unarmed combat system. During the beta for monks there were logs posted of capped monks hunting in the high end areas like the rift and temple and they did a pretty good job. You seem like you're pretty interested in the RP side so in your case I would probably go with whatever class lets you RP according to how you want to.

[Tgo01]

Make a female Monk and name her Chun-Li.

[Reliel]

You shut up T.

PK, I enjoy the aspects of both classes and can find a way to RP around them. Though I really love the animal companion and assume aspect thing that rangers get. I'm just trying to look at it via a mechanical stand point as well as an RP one.

[Androidpk]

I'm sure there is at least one ranger that is playing full on brawl mode that can divulge some actual playing facts. Pretty hard to beat animal companion though. I'm almost tempted to play one myself strictly because of that. Plus I haven't played a ranger since the first time I played GS in 94' or so. I'd probably do twc though, assuming I get the type of weapon I'm aiming for.

[Reliel]

The new combat system is pretty sweet. I'd like to open combat vs ambush since I'm not too sure if you can ambush with the new commands.

[Androidpk]

You can ambush with the new UAC and it is quite deadly. I forget who it was but someone posted a bunch of logs of a rogue using the new style from hiding to great effect.

[Reliel]

Ah. Excellent.

I'm leaning towards ranger than. Monk is good and fun but if I can use a bunch of spells to make my hunting easier and deadlier, I'd say it's a better alternative.

[Androidpk]

Have a tiger companion and just role play being a monk. Or monkish.

[Reliel]

Are you reading my mind?

[Androidpk]

I read your diary.

[Reliel]

Damn it. Why can't you people respect my privacy?

[Tgo01]

Damn it. Why can't you people respect my privacy?

We're the PC bitch. Respect.

[Reliel]

Well, if anyone wants to post a log (or knows of one) feel free to throw it up here. Builds help as well. Cookie cutter or otherwise. The more information I can gather up before the end of the week the better.

[Tatetrick]

Experience as a lvl 75 ranger:

Ambushing UAC automatically escalates the damage tier by 1 regardless of attack type (jab, punch, kick) without playing paper-rock-sissors. 2 casts of camo will get you to tier 3 on a critter, which is necessary if you want a chance to crit or do any damage worth a damn.

I ended up dropping 2x brawling off my ranger. Compared to longbow eye crits, UAC was cumbersome, and I would frequenty get caught in the open in offensive.

I do tend to gravitate toward functionality though, and not roleplaying. If roleplaying IS the function you are looking for, I'd very much recommend this route.

Main concerns:

+Minimum 3 attacks for any kill; probably 5 attacks average
+Multiple opponent defenses