Best Overall Melee???

[Uberom]

Hey guys and gals! I'm back!!!

Question: What is the best melee class in the Kunark era and why?

Backstory: I'm bored with my Mage from classic era and am thinking of rolling something else.

[Seaweedpimp]

necromancer

[Daldaen]

BRD isn't an option makes me sad.

A well played paladin can do some amazing shit. But most paladins are just mediocre so meh.

[Estu]

Obviously it's about what you're looking for in your melee, but monks are one of the best melee soloers (especially in good gear), the second-best melee DPS, and OK casual tanks. They also have feign death. Only other contender is SK, which is a better tank but worse DPS.

[Snaggles]

Best melee?

I can't even touch that one. Most dps? Rogue easily.

The rest depends on what best means to you.

[Softcore PK]

Bard imo. Unless you're going for melee dps or tanking ability? You didn't give us much information.

[Mardur]

Obviously "best" is meaningless here because each class has their own merits. It's no secret that Rangers are underpowered in this era, so they're out. SKs and Paladins are great tanks, but not as good as a warrior, and their dps is worse. They're out for not being specialized.

Warriors are easily able to take more of a punishment than any other melee class. Their DPS is also very comparable to rogues and monks, especially considering their great gear selection (blade of the black dragon eye, offhand wurmslayer, etc).

So I vote Warrior.

If we're considering epics, Rogue would be a close 2nd with the huge DPS boost a Ragebringer provides.

Before epics: WAR > MNK > ROG > PAL > SHD > RNG
After epics: WAR > ROG > MNK > PAL > SHD > RNG

But again, comparing these classes in this way makes no sense.

[loopholbrook]

Obviously "best" is meaningless here because each class has their own merits. It's no secret that Rangers are underpowered in this era, so they're out. SKs and Paladins are great tanks, but not as good as a warrior, and their dps is worse. They're out for not being specialized.

Warriors are easily able to take more of a punishment than any other melee class. Their DPS is also very comparable to rogues and monks, especially considering their great gear selection (blade of the black dragon eye, offhand wurmslayer, etc).

So I vote Warrior.

If we're considering epics, Rogue would be a close 2nd with the huge DPS boost a Ragebringer provides.

Before epics: WAR > MNK > ROG > PAL > SHD > RNG
After epics: WAR > ROG > MNK > PAL > SHD > RNG

But again, comparing these classes in this way makes no sense.
Let me edit that.
Before epics: RNG>WAR>MNK>ROG>SHD>PAL
After epics: RNG>WAR>ROG>MNK>SHD>PAL

[Phatso]

Warrior: Best damage sponges, more aggro weapons than in classic, and discs make them desirable on raids. They also get utility items (ToD, incardine bp, jws, snare whip)

Rogue: Double backstab, a very doable epic with pick up raids, sneak/hide = easy corpse runs & easy getting to already established groups deep in dungeons, and the most important thing is the pick lock skill. Seb, Com, and HS all have locked doors. Some groups will always need a rogue just on the pick lock skill alone, not to mention best dps.

Monk: Can do everything well, and are the best pullers. Really get good with velious and all the 0.0 weight gear

Pal/shd/rng: I think they get better in velious.


I went warrior, but I think it matters on your play style. If you hate pulling go rogue. If you really like pulling, setting pace of group go monk.

[Snaggles]

For melee dps in an apples to apples comparison rogues and warriors are close. Backstab as a melee attack is another stab so on par with any kick (besides a monk) so the warrior might edge them in crits. So two bloodpoints for a rogue or warrior should be a wash. Monks do FAR more damage than either melee wise and their staffs are just plain sick for ratios.

Backstab is the playing ground leveler though. Even in Kunark a monk with a T-staff is going to be hard pressed to keep up with a rogue using good gear. Rogue aggro dump is amazing. The epic really does spread the classes a large amount and more importantly gives 90%+ of high end rogues a brainless primary weapon pick, 40% haste, and a bucket of stats in one slot (that can be offhanded even!)

For how pathetically narrow-focused a rogue is they deserve the dps crown. Monks and Warriors have many advantages. As Mardur said one boon (of many) of a warrior is weapon selection. The cost of having comparable Rogue dps weapons is very high.

[Uberom]

Thanks to everyone for their input. I realize my question was very vague but I intended it that way so you could elaborate however you choose. It worked because I got the type of answers I was looking for.

I was told long prior to Kunark that SHD and PAL get OP in this expansion, but this seems to not be the case.

Also realize I chose to omit the BRD class because , well, I'm just not interested! I also have no desire to play a MNK.

So I guess my choices are :

Great DPS/Utility: ROG
Good DPS/Tank: WAR

Is it accurate to say that a fully geared ROG with epic will beat out a fully geared WAR with epic in DPS?

[Snaggles]

An epiced rogue can probably do twice the dps of the best Velious geared warrior. The numbers are insane. Warrior epics are ok but mainly for taunt and stats.

Rogues will have problems doing much else though besides sneaking/CR. What I refer to as a tungsten carbide wood chisel: Amazing at a couple things and lacking versatility in others.

[falkun]

Monk are OP in Kunark and Velious. I've seen parses (with P99 data) that show a monk is pretty much the best tank outside of a defensive warrior, and they'll only get better with Velious gear. Monks are also the best pullers, soloers, and top-3 melee DPS.

There is a reason both Thott and Furor went on massive rants about monks back in classic, and they will be valid again on this server. If you want to be the best overall melee, you will be a monk.

With that said, I still love my bard and hoping once I've got him where I want him that I can bring up my baby paladin. I have a lot of things I missed on Live with both of those that I want to see. **Dreams now about SSS (http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=348), Primal Spear (http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=5944), PHF (http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=7040), ND (http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=4646), and FD (http://everquest.allakhazam.com/db/item.html?item=3572).

[Vondra]

Monk should be the best overall. Honorable mention for rogues if you really don't want to pull or tank, since you won't be asked to =).