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Shaman Basics Thread
After years of wanting the class but being intimidated by it I finally picked up Shaman. The class seems really complicated so I figured I would start this thread for future Sham noobs and my own benefit as well. I just wanted to explain some basics I've learned and let the better ones add to it as they will. Some...ok most of what I put here is probably only half of the picture, but here it goes.
Firstly, choose your spirit bonds before you get into anything. Some like Ri'shen are great for bashing, but there are better choices for PvP. You cange them out freely so make yourself a script to change "sets" for what you want to do. It doesn't take particularly long to change them up but it isn't something you want to do in the middle of a fight. If you have to, run somewhere you can breathe for a second and change.
Pay attention to the benefits of attunes when choosing your spiritbind setups, they are important!
Swiftcurse is your friend. Make sure it is up before you get going, if you are jumped on then still put it up, it is pivotal in getting your early momentum going so you can get them bleeding a bit and get into coagulation. Attuning Teraile helps immensely here, it makes all curses cause some bleeding.
You can jinx the next balance after a curse, this includes after coagulation (correct me if I'm wrong there) so be sure to alternate. Swiftcurse counts!
Puppets are strong, but the method in using them is very different. Manaleech is your buddy for fashioning, you get 8 stacks per fashion if they have manaleech and I believe more than that if they are low on mana but I haven't messed with lowering mana.
Start off simply, get the basic lock down first before trying all the other fun things. Mixing bleed into your curses to keep coagulation going is the ticket!
Comments
Good thread, biggest thing I'll mention before @Amranu hops in and gives a full rundown is to be familiar with your invoke timings. Invokes are huge and a big part (alongside vodun) of what makes shaman more than just "worse serpent", but if you aren't aware of how long coagulation is on cooldown if you blow it early, for instance, you have a good chance of missing a lock window. Soulscrouge is incredibly useful as well, just know it deletes your doll so there's some drawback to it.
Glad to see this as there has been a recent increase in class members. There have been a lot of shaman threads but a lot of them are outdated. One of the main problems people new to the class have is others using CURING PRIOAFF HAEMOPHILIA. Maybe someone can adress that as well!
Going to inject some things gleaned throughout my discussions with Amranu.
(foreword: Marak is probably the best 'core' bind to have. Soulscourge has a LOT of uses, and more health is never bad)
1) Don't fall into the trap most new Shamans do, and solely lean on maligus/teraile as your core attunes. Neither are 100% necessary attunes, helpful as they may be. The same can be said for Aspar. All three are great in their own right, but don't feel the need to use them, including the binds themselves.
2) Going off the above, if you're not using (and binding) Teraile, don't use Aspar either. It's a dud bind if you do, and could be replaced with something better.
3) Probably the best thing from the OP, is creating a lot of sets of binds and changing them based on who you're fighting. Make sure to have one that's good for both bashing and PvP, just in case.
Won't get too into fighting, because this is the basics thread. But to dispel one or two misconceptions, which I'm sure Amranu will verify (since he's the one who largely started doing this)...
4) Swiftcurse isn't always the way to go. Slowcurse (even without an invoke)/jinx has its uses, so don't discount it. You can also vodun paralyse to guarantee paralysis goes through (when clumsy might otherwise make it miss). Clumsy won't ever fire if the target is paralysed, so keep that in mind.
5) To clarify: 8 fashions is the max fashions you can get. Manaleech guarantees 8 always, otherwise it's like every ~8% mana missing or something (don't remember exact numbers).
6) It's perfectly viable to not even use any invokes, and use pure defensive ones, though that's for more experienced Shamans. But I'd still say at least Marak will be used.
PS for if you're using Daina bind... Get trigger lines for weapon hits, and make them CURING PREDICT SELARNIA if you get hit and don't receive an aff. Most will give you it before you're locked, because there's no line for it. No downside to doing this since it's a 1s salve cure.
Disappearing from Achaea for now. See you, space cowboy.
smileyface#8048 if you wanna chat.
Yeah feels like the right binds for the right classes is key once you get to a certain stage.
At first you think swuftcurse is cool until you disover that certain afflictions are very powerful when combined until you stumble across the next bump because most momentum classes are going to outpace you so you're starting to prep using vodun.
The clumsy vodun paralyse literally is a game changer.
Tarnel ist the best bind in game I think.
From what I remember when I did look into it I started using soulrend when mana is at 70%, that makes it worth offering those extra seconds. Vodun status is available at 15 fashions from there it's easy to track since it is balanceless.
Fight some shaman and have a look at what they blight and what they relapse to give you a good idea. If you can survive just using CURING PRIOAFF HAEMOPHILIA and cursewarding then you should look for someone more experienced!
Shaman or shamans for plural? Feels wrong either way!! I am German though so that excuses all my bad English.
Question on draining mana for fashioning since just say fuck vodun and going for the lock doesn't work most of the time. What are you using for mana drain? Pressure bleed route and fashion with soulrend? What about whales with l3 mana regen and l3 mana sip? I basically just bloodlet on cooldown, curse/jinx par > haem > stupid with the bleed attune
Manaleech guarantees max fashions.
swiftcurse para, para, asthma, para (they tree), asthma, para, manaleech
-> curse para invoke soulrend will equal herb bal, will take like 4-5 eats before they finally get to eat kelp/tree comes back.
Pretty much the same sort've concept that Jester follows with gallows. They aff for a few seconds then get a burst of fashions 2-3 bals in a row.
Versus stupid people you can just blight manaleech and spam breach/soulrend, but almost every competent person has a check for manaleech nowadays.
Disappearing from Achaea for now. See you, space cowboy.
smileyface#8048 if you wanna chat.
Shamelessly promoting an idea for Sham. Basically asking to make dolls made outside the arena "not exist" inside the arena so we don't have to destroy the doll to make a new one when we spar allies that we keep dolls of for raiding purposes.
Idea #250
Umm. PUT DOLL (target) IN PACK, FASHION DOLL OF (target).. solves that issue