47 warrior returning, need stat/cman/hunting/etc advice

[jafo]

I'm trying to get ramped back up enough to venture out in the wilds, need help getting my head around what all I need to do.

COL aligned.

free training points:
Phys: 461
Mental: 540

Armor Use..........................| 180 80
(i think this is low intentionally because i was using a metal breastplate when i resigned since crit padding from an mbp actually protected your whole body)
Combat Maneuvers...................| 196 96
Two-Handed Weapons.................| 196 96
Brawling...........................| 5 1
Ambush.............................| 90 20
Multi Opponent Combat..............| 120 30
Physical Fitness...................| 217 117
Dodging............................| 188 88
Magic Item Use.....................| 50 10
Harness Power......................| 20 4
Perception.........................| 164 64
Climbing...........................| 78 17
Swimming...........................| 58 12

Stats: Normal (Bonus) ... Enhanced (Bonus)
Strength (STR): 100 (25) ... 100 (25)
Constitution (CON): 100 (25) ... 100 (25)
Dexterity (DEX): 100 (35) ... 100 (35)
Agility (AGL): 100 (30) ... 100 (30)
Discipline (DIS): 80 (10) ... 80 (10)
Aura (AUR): 83 (21) ... 83 (21)
Logic (LOG): 68 (9) ... 68 (9)
Intuition (INT): 54 (2) ... 54 (2)
Wisdom (WIS): 58 (4) ... 58 (4)
Influence (INF): 57 (3) ... 57 (3)

Skill name Mnemonic Ranks
Specialization I wspec1 5
Weapon Bonding bonding 5
Parry Mastery pmastery 3

Available Combat Maneuver Training Points: 12

Key items:
8x heavily crit weighted katana
8x decent crit padded metal breastplate
necklace with umlimited rubs of deep blues

Armor specialization what?

[Jace Solo]

Nifty katana

[BriarFox]

Nice gear all around. Three excellent pieces.

[Androidpk]

8x heavily crit weighted katana

Falchion based? :)

[Manamethis]

Don't sell without getting appraisals or putting them up for auction without buyouts. Each item is valuable!

[jafo]

Falchion based? :)

True Katana. Scripted out the wazoo but I honestly can't remember all of them.

[Androidpk]

And by true katana you mean new style or old?

[jafo]

Two hand switchable.

[jafo]

Okay, unless I am reading incorrectly, with a 13 pound MBP, I'm guessing I should put 2 ranks into Armor support? Trying to catch up here but there are so many mechanics in the game now...

[BriarFox]

I wouldn't even do anything with the armor/shield/cman options you have yet. Take your time and figure things out and then make good choices. Though, on the upside, you have a fixskill now to burn, and the annual one is released 5/20 (they don't stack), so you could mess around a bit.

[Suppressed Poet]

Alright - here is my advice, assuming you have a fixskill to use. These are bare basics...might have to add to some but that is going to depend on your warrior. Don't use it yet, but the below are must-haves so factor these TPs as gone:

Get 140 ranks of armor use. Your a warrior and should wear full plate and you also want the points for armor specialization.
2x physical fitness
2x cmans
1x dodge
.5x perception
Get climb and swim to 20 ranks each

Now before we continue, you need to tell us how you want to hunt. In today's Elanthia, you have two basic mainstream options and a whole lot of A-typical ones.

The two mainstream ones are swinging a big ass THW, or sword/blunt and board. THW you will kill a bit faster, but you are also going to have a bit lower defence. One handed and shield just had some major overhauls for warriors that have made it viable to kill well and have great defence. You have shield specializations too.

I'll let others comment on the a-typical builds but there is unarmed combat, ranged, and two weapon combat. Tell us what you want your warrior to do and make it your own choice.

Also - the gear you have is nice but I'm going to recomend you sell it. There is better gear you need for your warrior - like some nice full plate and a good weapon of choice. MBP is a common choice for rogues and paladins. You need the TD from full plate and there is a ton out there. The katana is nice, but never really an ideal weapon base for a warrior. The deep blues unlimited item is nice, and will net you good coins as a luxury item, but it's so easy to get that spell from TSC you might as well sell and use for better gear that suits your needs.

First tell us what you want to do. The community will help you from there.

[BriarFox]

Right now is *not* a good time to sell your gear. Prices are massively depressed thanks to upcoming festivals, since everyone's hoarding coins.

[Androidpk]

With a crit padded MBP you'll have padded plate coverage on your torso and padded chainmail coverage everywhere else.

[BriarFox]

That's sort of true. You'll have the DF of plate, but the crit divisor of chain. It's better than chain alone would be, by a good bit.

[Suppressed Poet]

Right now is *not* a good time to sell your gear. Prices are massively depressed thanks to upcoming festivals, since everyone's hoarding coins.

It's a good time to buy and make trades. If he wanted cash I'd agree with you, but other items he needs are in abundance with people itching to sell.

[BriarFox]

It's a good time to buy and make trades. If he wanted cash I'd agree with you, but other items he needs are in abundance with people itching to sell.

Yes, buying is fine, selling, on the other hand, is a bad idea, unless he's desperate or doesn't care.

In any case, the OP has great gear and, in my mind, should try it out and see if it works for him before he goes running out to change things around.

[jafo]

With a crit padded MBP you'll have padded plate coverage on your torso and padded chainmail coverage everywhere else.

Yeah, and for NPC combat I never had a problem with it before. Before I played the toon as a quick gibber. Quick round times and the ability to focused mstrike or ambush in 6 seconds. Light, fast, and deadly.

[Suppressed Poet]

I just feel that none of the gear he has is an ideal fit for any type of warrior build. He needs some good full plate and there is a ton of it out there. He needs a better weapon than a katana, and he can get one for equal value to that item. The deep blues thing is a luxury item that he can go without to upgrade essential gear.

To be clear, I'm not interested in any of those items so my intentions and advice is not clouded.

[Suppressed Poet]

Sure - you would do just fine with that katana and MBP. Nothing bad about it.

You would however do better with something like 5x hcp full plate and either a good lance/maul/claid OR a good shield and one handed weapon.

Just my 2 cents and take it with a grain of salt.

[Suppressed Poet]

Yes, buying is fine, selling, on the other hand, is a bad idea, unless he's desperate or doesn't care.

In any case, the OP has great gear and, in my mind, should try it out and see if it works for him before he goes running out to change things around.

It's moot point. He might not get a premium for those items, but the silver value is down for everyone. He can pickup other gear he needs cheaper too right now. It essentialy equals out.

[Androidpk]

It all depends on what he hunts. I used one of the 6x eahnor new style katanas and on certain critters it was downright brutal.

[Suppressed Poet]

I would agree though, if you just want to get back into the swing of things and use what you have - by all means do so. What are you looking to do? That's really the key.

[Suppressed Poet]

Also keep in mind, if you have a fixskills available, the annual giveaway fixskills day is coming up soon. So you can use one in the near future and you will have another one to use soon if you want it.

I'd recomend experimenting in something you have wanted to do but haven't tried it out, because you have the perfect opportunity to do that right now.

[jafo]

I'm not even sure at 47 what I should be hunting. Should I be training a couple of defensive spells with mental points? What is the main warrior two hand attack style?

What is the current thinking on PhysFit and Dodge? 2x, 3x, 1/2 alternating?

[senorgordoburro]

I would say 2x PF and Dodge... but it all depends on your build, never lowe than 1x IMO.

[MrMortimur]

Your current training fits your gear with the exception of your MOC being a tad low. I personally like katanas but I'd suggest getting at least 55 MOC for a triple strike versus one target. 90 MOC would let you quad strike..but that would be a hefty amount of points.

I value PF far more than dodge as I know I'm going to get hit so I'd prefer just to have some solid redux over the defensive perks of dodge. PF also gives you more stamina, which means more resources to spend on CMans. My warrior has 3x PF and between 0-1x dodge..but then I also spelltank when I'm not being lazy. 2x-2.5x PF and 1-1.5x dodge would be plenty.

The 20 ambush is a good amount to have for aiming purposes. All around your character is fairly solid if built slightly roguelike.

You could train in more armor if you wanted the benefits of the ARMOR buffs or even if you decide at some point to wear heavier armor. It likely wouldn't hurt to stay 2x in armor and at least benefit from the buffs. Fairly cheap investment at 4/0 for second rank of armor. If you decide to stay in the MBP well you'd also begin reducing the Action Penalty of MBP at every 50 ranks you overtrain for that armor.

May 20th is the annual fixskills, go mess around on your guy this week and see what you think. I'd recommend sticking to lighter armor foes while using your katana. Fighting something in plate might frustrate you and give you a false impression of your char.

Lochiven

[Tylec]

I'm not even sure at 47 what I should be hunting. Should I be training a couple of defensive spells with mental points? What is the main warrior two hand attack style?

What is the current thinking on PhysFit and Dodge? 2x, 3x, 1/2 alternating?

My warrior is a little lower level wise than yours. With THW I simply leg and then aim for the head, feint for casters to stance/roundtime them. I recently switched my guy over to sword/blunt to try out the shield skills and it was a far cry from being fun, to me. The extra DS was nice, but the dump in offensive power vs. ambushing with a two-hander simply kept me in danger longer, especially trying to juggle multiple casters.

My guy is 3x Armor, 1.5x dodge, 3x PF. 30 ranks of ambush for aiming help and 55 MoC in case I feel like airing that out or I hit something that is being a pain.

I'm far from an ideal build guy or a min/max'er, just know what I've been fairly successful with.

[Jeril]

I'd say 3x armor as well, 20-30 ambush, 1x in MoC, maybe push to have 55 ranks earlier because that triple strike is fun. I'd call 1x dodge a base and you should work your way up to 2x in it. I'd keep PF at 2x then work towards 3x once you have dodge at 2x, at 47 you are either done or almost done with training armor if you triple, being a sylvan I'd suggest you get armor support, and with one more level you could have 150 ranks armor, enough for rank 5 support and of course you'd be trained for fullplate already. I think using that katana is fine although you may want to pick up a blessable weapon to hunt undead with. From around level 60 to 95 I used a 4x warsword and a 4x katana as my weapons, as a giant and without using enhancives I much preferred the speed of the lighter weapons and when most things die in one swing anyway, does it really matter what you use? Of course my main weapon for years now has been a maul but it just suits me better. I still carry around a flaring espadon(warsword), a katana, a knuckle-duster, and a fist-scythe.

[Jace Solo]

Re: board and blunt.

If you're using two shots to set up for a THW...legging then heading...why aren't you doing the same with the blunt?

I'm generally two short if things, especially if they are squishy casters. I didn't think I'd like it either but with shield skills (bash works much better than I thought) you'll put things down pretty quickly.

I can't wait to get another rank or two in shield strike just to see if it will down something and smash it. I think, with three ranks, I've only gotten a one shot maybe three times.

[Tylec]

Re: board and blunt.

If you're using two shots to set up for a THW...legging then heading...why aren't you doing the same with the blunt?

I'm generally two short if things, especially if they are squishy casters. I didn't think I'd like it either but with shield skills (bash works much better than I thought) you'll put things down pretty quickly.

I can't wait to get another rank or two in shield strike just to see if it will down something and smash it. I think, with three ranks, I've only gotten a one shot maybe three times.

I definitely use the same system. The difference being that with a claid, it's pretty much 2 shots (leg/head), 3 if I happen to miss or I catch a random parry or block. With a blunt I found myself hitting the head, but short on crits heavy on damage, especially vs. Grim.

[jafo]

I'd say 3x armor as well, 20-30 ambush, 1x in MoC, maybe push to have 55 ranks earlier because that triple strike is fun.

1 lesson learned. I tried 55 ranks of MoC out and while it was FUN, it did have an 8 second RT. The risk with a 6 second RT on a 2 hit strike is much lower when stance dancing. It's safer to leave it at two strikes when heavily scripting? I may go back to two strikes for now.

Btw, thanks to everyone on LichNet who answers my "ive been in a cave for 8 years, humor me" questions.

[Jeril]

Well for when you are scripting you can set your max strikes to two and change it when you are more active and behind the keys.

s>mstrike help

Usage:
MSTRIKE - Attempt to strike multiple creatures
MSTRIKE {target} - Attempt to strike a single target multiple times
MSTRIKE SET {attacks} - Set the maximum strike attempts for multi-target MSTRIKE
MSTRIKE SET FOCUS {attacks} - Set the maximum strike attempts for focused MSTRIKE
MSTRIKE SET RECOVERY - Toggle ability to use MSTRIKE during MSTRIKE recovery period.

You are not currently controlling your focused MSTRIKE.
You are not currently controlling your multi-target MSTRIKE.

See HELP MSTRIKE for more information.

[jafo]

Awesome thanks. I can even add mstrike focus 2 to prehunt commands.

Btw. I've got wtrick sattack working from bigshot so I can stun caster mobs right off the bat. Hopefully spiffyjr will add my code changes soon.

[jafo]

I still seem to be running into a mob gap.
My normal critter selection search is:
not undead -> stunnable -> greater than or equal to my own level (i can fudge this one within reason) -> has loot (a plus, but can be skipped for a few levels)

I've been downhunting at lvl 48 (49 as of last night). Kiramon, Trali, etc. It seems like everything in the 49-55 range is either undead or in an area with large disincentives to hunt.

I'm over punching myself in the nuts to grind in games. If the area has me falling down all the goddamn time, random environment death touches, etc, fuck it. Gaming has progressed beyond those things.

[Donquix]

Kind of a crappy stretch. I think all the things good to hunt there are undead. I really enjoyed the citadel in river's rest, but all undead and it's RR (which is either a dealbreaker or awesome, depending on your point of view of RR). There's also bonespear in sol, exact same caveats.

[jafo]

Kind of a crappy stretch. I think all the things good to hunt there are undead. I really enjoyed the citadel in river's rest, but all undead and it's RR (which is either a dealbreaker or awesome, depending on your point of view of RR). There's also bonespear in sol, exact same caveats.

Yeah, getting a blessing just gets more difficult with fewer players logged in during peak. I just made a mental note to not hunt undead as a warrior (re: punching myself in the nuts to grind in a game).

The revamped RR hunting area has a troll mob in it, I might go check it out. RR isn't a dealbreaker with ;go2 .

[Suppressed Poet]

I started hunting mtks and harbingers at 49, albeit I'm a sword and board bard. If you survive a hit from defensive stance in 530ish as when the mtk's froth...they are incredibly easy. I just waited for them to go nuts and miss me, then their DS is ridiculously low and I think it's robe armor. Just one two attack mstrike and they are dead. You can also disable them (knock them down or lock into RT) if you can manage that and their normal DS is 250ish. No deadly manuevers, no spells...and at your level it's really quick to fry plus some insane loot.

Harbingers generally stick to another area and they come in riding nightmare steeds which are undead. Harbingers themselves are not undead though (yeah I know..makes a lot of sense). They have some non-deadly spirit spells like bind and unbalance. The highest they swing their broadsword is 415ish AS which is irregular and only with spirit guide. They wear MBP, have a low ammount of hit points, and do have some natural padding. Again no deadly manuevers to worry about or anything.

[Suppressed Poet]

Also - for whatever reason that area of darkstone doesn't have the random dispels like the other places, which is nice.

[Donquix]

Yeah, getting a blessing just gets more difficult with fewer players logged in during peak. I just made a mental note to not hunt undead as a warrior (re: punching myself in the nuts to grind in a game).

The revamped RR hunting area has a troll mob in it, I might go check it out. RR isn't a dealbreaker with ;go2 .

Yeah there's two main areas inside the citadel. The higher level area is pure undead with the phantasmal things, then there's another area with flesh golems (undead), and tomb troll necromancers (54) and plain tomb trolls (52). Both are fine as a warrior, trolls are pretty standard physical attack and the necromancers just feint and blow them up. The flesh golems aren't too much of a problem either. Should be able to fry fine off the trolls.

Watch for disarm though, if i remember the necros do itchy curse.

[jafo]

Yeah there's two main areas inside the citadel. The higher level area is pure undead with the phantasmal things, then there's another area with flesh golems (undead), and tomb troll necromancers (54) and plain tomb trolls (52). Both are fine as a warrior, trolls are pretty standard physical attack and the necromancers just feint and blow them up. The flesh golems aren't too much of a problem either. Should be able to fry fine off the trolls.

Watch for disarm though, if i remember the necros do itchy curse.

That area for the trolls looked really small on the map.

[jafo]

30 ranks of ambush for aiming

What is the current thinking on that? I know open combat ambush is based on CM and AMBUSH skill. CM I am already maxing.

[Aganii]

The dungeon of marsh keep only has Flesh Golems, Troll necromancers and tomb trolls and seems to be its own spawning zone with a decent size. You could very well just hang out in the dungeon and avoid the golems I would think. Only other things I would say to look out for in addition to normal golem and troll tactics is that the golems have a brutal disease manuever, the necromancers will animate dead trolls in the room and tomb trolls will eat dead trolls in the room for a buff.

[Jeril]

The thinking on ambush is get enough ranks to where you feel comfortable with your ability to aim then stop. It is based on skill bonus so once you hit 40 ranks diminishing returns kick in, so that is the furthest that skill tends to get taken until postcap. As a giantman I had 40 ranks, most elvish types only need 20-30 ranks to be satisfied from what I've seen.

[jafo]

I definitely am not understanding martial stances. Probably a case of me overthinking it.

Also, with spell changes over the last 8 years, I'm not sure where you would stop learning arcane symbols if you are only concerned with solo hunting. Scrolls only have so many key spells for warriors whereas the rest are sorta bling/brag.

On martial stance:

For a solo THW warrior, mongoose is the clear winner if his playstyle is 1v1 hunting. (?)

For a solo THW warrior hunting multi-mobs, berserk plus either dervish or executioner is probably hot?

[Valyss]

i'd recommend staying away from mongoose, due to bugs and occasional RT lock, see this thread:

http://forum.gsplayers.com/showthread.php?80557-New-CMANs/page3

[jafo]

I just wanted to thank everyone who helped with getting me back in the saddle. I'm back to uphunting easily (which means more time for hanging out in town while absorbing), I made guild master, and I've got a pretty good synergy going on with my cmans, stats, and hunting style.

Valgrom, Jeril, et al. Thanks guys.

[jafo]

Gotta love crystal holding jewelry. Stone trolls can be annoying since they heal while you are in roundtime.


Out of the corner of your eye, you see an ancient stone troll approaching. He must be the creature that you've been tasked to kill!
R>

>rub my brac
You rub your golden imflass bracer.
1d100: 62 + Modifiers: 65 == 127

An invisible force guides you.
Cast Roundtime 3 Seconds.
>
[ Spirit Strike: +0:02:00, 0:02:00 remaining. ]
The crystal set within your bracer suddenly shatters!
>stance offensive
You feel recovered from your whirlwind flurry of strikes.
>
You are now in an offensive stance.
>ambush
You swing a silver-hilted dark steel katana at an ancient stone troll!
AS: +458 vs DS: +173 with AvD: +29 + d100 roll: +77 = +391
... and hit for 125 points of damage!
Awful slash nearly decapitates the stone troll!
That's one way to lose your head.

[You have completed this portion of your Adventurer's Guild task.]
The stone troll topples to the ground motionless.
The air about an ancient stone troll stops shimmering.
The guiding force leaves you.
Roundtime: 6 sec.

[jafo]

Parry Mastery + Combat Mobility + Mongoose Stance + Weapon Bonding at Max

TL;DR version of what follows: I get quaked, trolls swings at me (automatically makes me stand), I parry the hit, mongoose triggers, and I get a weapon bond flare, for 2 hits in 3 seconds reactive.


The ground begins to shake violently, making it hard to stand.
You lose your balance and fall over.
PR>
Sensing an impending attack, you manage to roll hard to the side, and then leap to your feet!
A stone troll swings a war hammer at you!
As you parry a stone troll's attack, you see an opportunity for immediate retaliation!
You swing a silver-hilted dark steel katana at a stone troll!
AS: +382 vs DS: +147 with AvD: +29 + d100 roll: +39 = +303
... and hit for 96 points of damage!
Deep slash to the stone troll's right side!
Several inches of padding sliced off hip....
From the inside!
The stone troll is knocked to the ground!
The stone troll is stunned!

You feel your dark steel katana straining back towards your foe! Taking advantage of this, you manage to effortlessly reverse your momentum and strike again!

You swing a silver-hilted dark steel katana at a stone troll!
AS: +382 vs DS: +97 with AvD: +29 + d100 roll: +78 = +392
... and hit for 130 points of damage!
Spectacular slash!
The stone troll's right arm is neatly amputated!
The stone troll rumbles in pain as his heavy stone arm falls to the ground!
The troll's war hammer falls to the ground.
Roundtime: 3 sec.

[jafo]

I had 6 minors going into a battle with an ancient stone sentinel. Not a warrior friendly mob.

He opened with this:

An ancient stone sentinel gorges itself on the body of a dead stone sentinel.
An ancient stone sentinel opens its mouth and spews out a shower of stones at you.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You are hit by a stone.
... 10 points of damage!
Light blow to your left arm.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You are hit by a stone.
... 10 points of damage!
Blow to your neck tears tissue.
You are stunned for 1 round!
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
You are hit by a stone.
... 5 points of damage!
Strike glances off your chest.
You narrowly miss being hit by a stone.
!S>

On top of this, I forgot to reload my blue crystal holder. Things are not going my way. Some of my minors are now S2 and bleeding. I tough it out, open with mstrike. Force a second. I'm in trouble, my AS is dropped from HP loss. His next hit could stun me and put me in a world of hurt.

!R>
An ancient stone sentinel pounds at you with its fist!
As you parry an ancient stone sentinel's attack, you see an opportunity for immediate retaliation!
You swing a silver-hilted dark steel katana at an ancient stone sentinel!
AS: +372 vs DS: +70 with AvD: +21 + d100 roll: +40 = +363
... and hit for 62 points of damage!
Strong slash to the stone sentinel's right hand cuts deep.

[You have completed this portion of your Adventurer's Guild task.]
The stone sentinel totters for a moment and then falls to the ground like a pillar, breaking into pieces that fly out in every direction.
A stone comes hurtling in your direction. You leap away narrowly dodging the rock.
The very powerful look leaves an ancient stone sentinel.
The white light leaves an ancient stone sentinel.
The brilliant luminescence fades from around an ancient stone sentinel.
Roundtime: 3 sec.
!R>

EAT THE MONGOOSE BITCH.

[jafo]

I uploaded a slightly modified copy of bigshot called proshot (the name is intentionally pretentious as a joke, this is bigshot with 2 small changes).

1. mstrike checks for adequate stamina and popped muscles first
2. adds "sattack" as an attack, this checks for stamina, popped, etc and does wtrick sattack

3. I'm thinking about adding a third attack that does mstrike, sattack (im thinking if stam is >=90 so we do fall back on kill to get bonding flare), or kill deterministically. Occasionally I get something weird like a bounty to kill very crit resistant highly armored mobs, and I just need to reduce their hitpoints to zero as fast as possible vs going on a 35+ second joyride of evaded or missed head/neck ambushes. killitdead (xx)

[jafo]

I wasn't happy to run a script that just refreshed cman surge when it was down, or to use the surge buff function in bigshot. I also didn't want to call an external script to run surge.

I uploaded a new proshot to the repo, this one has a "surge" verb.

The idea is:

hunting commands: wait 8,surge,mstrike(xx)

So surge is first called before an actual swing, each time you initiate combat, it will check the cooldown and your stamina when you rub the verb again and refresh then. So I try to get the most surge uptime while actually in combat. Works nicely.