Quick Questions

Kuruvar

Is Viridian thornrend damage based on strength or intelligence? If strength, does that create a split between damage stats for sylvans, and how do experienced members of the class deal with that?

Blujixapug

Wilhelmina said:

Is it true that Venoms will be taken from serpents and made a general trade skill? If so, what will happen to relapse?

It seems safe to assume that as a unique affliction so important to serpent PK, scytherus/relapsing will be either moved into Subterfuge, or into whichever new serpent class skill replaces Venoms. We don't yet know for sure though.

Kuruvar said:

Is Viridian thornrend damage based on strength or intelligence? If strength, does that create a split between damage stats for sylvans, and how do experienced members of the class deal with that?

It is based on intelligence, as is almost everything else in Elementalism, making intelligence the primary offensive stat for sylvans.

It was formerly based on strength. This did make it awkward to try and spec for stats, and most people either went with int, or con for tankiness.

Kuy

Is there a post somewhere that gives a decent layout of what there is on Meropis?

I tried bashing the Sirroco Fortress, but it's not giving me enough xp to warrant straying from the mainland.  I'm not quite big enough to do the jungle yet, but I remember hunting undead dwarves somewhere with a friend - I just can't seem to find them

Alcinae

I know there is a help scroll on that, somewhere in 'help geography' but I am not logged on so I cant check, though Ill get back to you if Im not correct!

As for hunting, try the Mirror Caves or Ulsyndar Guards? They are not bad, at least from what I have experienced.

Primrose

What are the huge differences between Paladin and Runewarden in combat? I cannot decide on which class to choose. I believe it was mentioned that due to the room-wide nature of rites, a group of Paladins are less dangerous than a group of Runewardens? Do rites make up for the lack of empowed weapons and armor that Runewardens receive?

Mithridates

Primrose said:

What are the huge differences between Paladin and Runewarden in combat? I cannot decide on which class to choose. I believe it was mentioned that due to the room-wide nature of rites, a group of Paladins are less dangerous than a group of Runewardens? Do rites make up for the lack of empowed weapons and armor that Runewardens receive?

Well, runewardens can use runelore, allowing them to give huge damage stacks with thurisaz, hugalaz, etc.

Paladin can either disembowel or Damn, but damning is.... damn hard. 

Anedhel

It boils down to Paladin being a more reliable class for dueling, Runewarden more solid for group fights, specially since the secondary skill, Devotion, is (mostly) shared by Priests. If you're planning to do a lot of one-on-one, pick Paladin, for sure, their finishers are more solid. If you're doing virtually anything else, Runewarden's probably easier.

Runewarden makes the cost of being a knight way cheap, since you don't have to pay out the nose to get usable swords, like Paladins do. Runes are a constant hunting aid, though hands and revitalization can be situationally more helpful, but it's not enough of a difference for me to categorically state that one's a better hunter than the other- just a matter of adapting.

Pilgrimage is generally more useful than Raido for getting back home, but pilgrimage depends on people. Then again, you can pilgrimage to other places, whereas Raido is fixed to one spot, so it's kind of a trade-off.

All in all, you'll probably be happy no matter which way you go.

Xae

Beeecause I am derp, I didn't grab the deathsight after my ritual thingy for the choker. Does anyone here log deathsights? *sway*

Caladbolg

Anedhel said:

It boils down to Paladin being a more reliable class for dueling, Runewarden more solid for group fights, specially since the secondary skill, Devotion, is (mostly) shared by Priests. If you're planning to do a lot of one-on-one, pick Paladin, for sure, their finishers are more solid. If you're doing virtually anything else, Runewarden's probably easier.

Runewarden makes the cost of being a knight way cheap, since you don't have to pay out the nose to get usable swords, like Paladins do. Runes are a constant hunting aid, though hands and revitalization can be situationally more helpful, but it's not enough of a difference for me to categorically state that one's a better hunter than the other- just a matter of adapting.

Pilgrimage is generally more useful than Raido for getting back home, but pilgrimage depends on people. Then again, you can pilgrimage to other places, whereas Raido is fixed to one spot, so it's kind of a trade-off.

All in all, you'll probably be happy no matter which way you go.

Just going to throw this out, feel free to call me wrong but I personally think Runewarden is better for 1v1 because of the speed boost alone, While rites are awesome as balls, and disembowel is naturally higher due to higher strength. There's a reason we all use rapiers speed wins.

That and how the F do you damnation someone with fitness.

Edit: Oh and for the record getting your weapons runed by a runewarden makes Paladin a better pick over runewarden anyday imo

Aerek

Yeah, Runewarden is better if you're on a budget. It gives you everything you need to be a larger threat than you technically should be. Runeblades turn mediocre weapons into great ones, Jera/Berkana are essentially free artefacts, and Algiz really does let you tank things you shouldn't be tanking. Paladin's Rites are cool, but Uruz, Dagaz, and Hugalaz all give Runewardens similar or watered-down versions of Rites, so you don't really suffer there.

It's true, If you're a Paladin and can constantly get runes, you kinda have the best of both worlds, but if you're not especially well-connected, that's not always possible. (I'm a longstanding member of the Runewarden House, and I can't even get runes all the time) I definitely wouldn't plan to have runes as part of your decision.

Primrose

Thanks for the answers. I have more questions.

Is the pool of devotion points a problem? Is it common to run out of it? Also, wouldn't the gold spent on inks by Runewardens make up for paying less for rapiers over time? Which class is easier for a combat newbie to pick up and/or master?

Agrias

With inkmilling in effect, you no longer need to spend gold purchasing inks.

Anedhel

I've not heard of someone running out of Devotion in a -long- time.

The amount of money you need to spend on rapiers as both classes, for very high-end, usable rapiers, I suspect, would fit somewhere in the following scale (keep in mind these are hugely fluctuating, and assuming you buy the rapiers, not forge them yourself).

A runewarden can get away with using something like 70/150/227, which you'd pay a couple dozen thousand gold for (30k-50k, probably, if you're not buying from someone who wants to completely stiff you).

A paladin can get away with using something like 60/150/235, which you'd like end up paying a couple dozen credits for (probably around 50, if someone really likes you, usually much higher). Assuming you're paying 6,000 gold per credit (which is fortunate, if you can find a seller that cheap), you're spending 300,000 gold for 'em, six times more than I've ever paid for a sword I've owned.

Even without inkmilling, the cost of inks is not great. The most commonly used ones are reds and blues by far, followed by yellows. I'd say I spend about... 10,000 gold every two-ish years IC on ink, but I fight a whole lot, and rune people for free, without asking them for ink.

If you're on your own, don't fight a whoooole lot, you can easily get away with under 800 gold a day on runes

ETA: @Caladbolg: I should've said- assuming you can get the right equipment. If by some miracle you get good swords cheap, Paladin > Runie for dueling.

Achilles

Anedhel said:

I've not heard of someone running out of Devotion in a -long- time.

Tesha runs out all the time, Niks does too and that's in 1-2 hours.  If you are actually doing it correctly, delivering allies, handsing allies, rezzing allies, laying necessary rites you'll definitely burn 40% of your devotion pool per hour.

Datrius

Maybe that's doing it wrong!  :P

Caladbolg

Achilles said:

Anedhel said:

I've not heard of someone running out of Devotion in a -long- time.

Tesha runs out all the time, Niks does too and that's in 1-2 hours.  If you are actually doing it correctly, delivering allies, handsing allies, rezzing allies, laying necessary rites you'll definitely burn 40% of your devotion pool per hour.

Oh your full of shit I run out of devotion daily, and I bitch about it constantly in the same clan your in @Anedhel

Almost impossible to fight for an extended amount of time and keep devotion even with chain AND the trait.

Edit: To be fair though I fight about 100% that im online and im not getting food/stepped outside to smoke.

Edit: And im assuming Paladins also use less devotion than priests since other than droping rites the only thing we really use out of devotion is inspiration unless going for a damnation, Hands is pretty low on the devotion cost..

Melodie

You definitely CAN run out of Devotion, but it's all dependant upon how much you fight, if you do a rite or not, and if you have the trait or not.

I only did during extended skirmishes. If you fight a lot (outside of the arena), then yes, it can become a problem. I believe that might be getting addressed some this classleads though.

Isera

Isn't the point of Devotion that you can run out of it?

Caladbolg

Isera said:

Isn't the point of Devotion that you can run out of it?

Yeah, I should've classleaded a better way to get devotion back than tree'ing the people you just killed. >_>

Melodie

Of course. But how fast/often can be a problem. Mostly that, when you hit 0, you're pretty boned because there's no way you're getting much back anytime soon (unless you do a battle rite of dawn, which'll net you 15-25%, maybe a bit more, but that's once every 24 hours). Immolating is generally not practical, espcially in the middle of a raid.

I hear that belt in the SoW is pretty useful though. Wouldn't know myself.

Ruth

@Tecton/@Sarapis:

Just needed confirmation, is the No-Brainer 1000 lesson package here to say as a permanent thing?

Nim

As a substitute for a direct answer from them, here is what @Sarapis had responded in the past to that question. Maybe their stance has changed since then, maybe not, but enjoy posts and links to said posts anyway!

Sarapis said:

@apolinario Well, anything could be removed, but it's not intended to be temporary.

[...]Worth experimenting with (and keeping unless it fails) though, and I hope it's permanent.

Wessux

I have no pity for devotions 65000 pool. Essence on the other hand, in any fight, if you aren't conservative you'll burn it all in ablout 3 minutes. 100% then each ability takes somewhere around 1-6%. It goes pretty fast if you aren't careful.

Sena

Devotion lasts a long time, but is slow to recover. Essence is lost quickly, but also gained more easily.

Kafziel

Caladbolg said:

Oh your full of shit I run out of devotion daily, and I bitch about it constantly in the same clan your in @Anedhel

Almost impossible to fight for an extended amount of time and keep devotion even with chain AND the trait.

Edit: To be fair though I fight about 100% that im online and im not getting food/stepped outside to smoke.

Edit: And im assuming Paladins also use less devotion than priests since other than droping rites the only thing we really use out of devotion is inspiration unless going for a damnation, Hands is pretty low on the devotion cost..

Maybe don't put rites in EVERY room on clouds when you're fighting someone there
:>

Sena

Daeir said:

except Karma, apparently - since the living book allows members of the Occultist House to have a practically infinite pool of karma available to them (limited only by how often they keep the book filled with karma items as a House).

It is practically infinite, but it still takes time to study and recover your karma. It's basically a master crystal (before the recent changes) for karma. In raids/combat, it can also be a disadvantage compared to occultists outside the house.

Arador

Yeah the only time I have heard people running out it is when they do the whole carpet rites thing. We have had this discussion before and if you want to maintain rites in 5+ rooms the whole time then sorry but you are going to run out.

Same things happens to me if I try and carpet gravehands all over or frenzy every time I end up in a melee. You can get the benefits of such large rite carpets and run out quickly or you can minimize and use where the greatest impact will be and pretty much keep going for a long time.

Anedhel

@Caladbolg I don't ever really remember you complaining about -that-, but I believe you!

I suppose if you sit around delivering, resurrecting, hands'ing, and keeping every rite up, you'll run out, but if Caladbolg's the only paladin complaining about it, you should be fine :P

Hanley

I changed to serpent at roughly around the start of the year and I've been trying to figure out what race would be best for serpent with the new changes to dstab and how dex effects its speed now. I've narrowed it down to mhun, rajamala, and atavian due to the fact that when you pick the dex spec for them you have 15 dex, however I've been confused about something with rajamala. Rajamala get a dodge bonus, and I was curious to know how much of an increase it is to dodge with trans avoidance compared to mhun and atavian?

Wessux

Comparable to two points of dex if memory serves.