Bard kiting questions

[Alarria]

Hi, hoping some bards can help me out here!

1- How exactly do you go about swapping your lute for horn, when alternating between Chords and Devon's? I have been doing fine swarming, using the strafing method, but I am obviously missing something. I begin my strafe by holding my left and right mouse to run forward, holding strafe key, hitting enter 2x and then im locked into a sideways strafe if I let go of my mouse. I have to hold both mouse buttons to circle while strafing, and can use hotkeys to switch songs, but my mouse is being used, so how do I swap lute for horn and vice versa?

2- For charm kiting, I've been told that due to how pet aggro works, you can't pull a group and charm 1 and have social aggro get the pet super low and break/dot to death? I'm not level 27 yet, so I haven't been able to test it.

Thank you for any help!

[astuce999]

1. Can't help ya there, I AE kite with autorun and non-drummed selos, so I'm just using 1 key to turn left over and over which leaves my mouse available for clicking the instruments.

2. Correct. The other mobs will beeline for you and leave your pet fighting one mob only; unless your pet is really low on health.

cheers,

Astuce

[Alarria]

Hey, thanks for responding! So for 1, could you explain how you do the strafe kiting? I've tried locking in strafe with autorun and don't seem to be able to. And you turn with a key? Sorry, not trying to be obtuse I just don't understand. I've read and watched so many guides on it that the way I described is the only way I've been able to get the strafe locked in, but locks my mouse into use, so no weapon swapping.

As for the charm kiting, I watched this video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LimMzIaR7QQ&t=404s, which admittingly is from 2019 but it's on P99 blue, and it seems to work. Did they remove or change it since then or something?

[astuce999]

I don't strafe. Just auto-run turned on with selos (no drum so it's not super speeds), and I just use the left key (num4 on keypad) to keep turning in circles.

From the video you posted; it's very intriguing since it contradicts the behavior I've seen first-hand in all the zones I've tried.... including last week again "just in case" on dwarves in butcherblock. Social aggro exists but it's very fragile, and even when we can replicate all the mobs going after the pet initially, as soon as that first mob is dead none of the others care about the new pet and they beeline for you, no matter how many times you make them "walk over" your pet and the mob its fighting.

Godspeed,

Astuce

[Videri]

Swapping: if you hold left click on your primary weapon slot, you can create a hotkey for that slot; do the same for secondary slot and for two top-level inventory slots and you can create a hotkey set that lets you swap instruments and weapons. It doesn't work with item slots inside bags; only top-level inventory slots. Of course, this means you should only be carrying six bags (some players carry even fewer).

This would probably be hotkey set 2 or 3, or at least something other than 1.

Note that you can cast songs by hitting Ctrl-1, Ctrl-2, etc.

[Ripqozko]

Get jboots, don’t use selos. No need to strafe just turn inward to hit. Make large oval shaped circle.

[Vivitron]

Hi, hoping some bards can help me out here!

1- How exactly do you go about swapping your lute for horn, when alternating between Chords and Devon's? I have been doing fine swarming, using the strafing method, but I am obviously missing something. I begin my strafe by holding my left and right mouse to run forward, holding strafe key, hitting enter 2x and then im locked into a sideways strafe if I let go of my mouse. I have to hold both mouse buttons to circle while strafing, and can use hotkeys to switch songs, but my mouse is being used, so how do I swap lute for horn and vice versa?

You need to hold you keyboard forward key instead of left click. It should lock in a straight line movement going diagonally forward.

Swapping: if you hold left click on your primary weapon slot, you can create a hotkey for that slot; do the same for secondary slot and for two top-level inventory slots and you can create a hotkey set that lets you swap instruments and weapons. It doesn't work with item slots inside bags; only top-level inventory slots. Of course, this means you should only be carrying six bags (some players carry even fewer).

This would probably be hotkey set 2 or 3, or at least something other than 1.

Note that you can cast songs by hitting Ctrl-1, Ctrl-2, etc.

That seems to be the most popular way to do it, but I keep a bag open and swap instruments from the bag instead of inventory slots. Saves on both inventory slots and hotkeys, but you have to reopen the bag every time you zone or use your close all bags hotkey.

I recommend rebinding the spell hotkeys to something more comfortable than Ctrl 1-8.