Best solo melee class?

[kjs86z2]

If you aren't full BiS at level 46 are you even playing p99?

[DeathsSilkyMist]

Originally Posted by Ephirith [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

But you will tell a newb iksar SK, with a statistically infinitesimal chance of making it to raid gear, to put their starting stats into INT instead of STR, STA, or even DEX which is horrendous advice. We know from past data that most people drop their hybrids around 45-52, at a greater rate than other classes. You proceeded to spend 60 pages consistently minimizing the contribution of increased output, with is directly proportional to sustain, in favor of a tiny amount of max mana that might some day be useful when fully raid geared and raid buffed.

There, in page after page, you weighted max mana comparatively highly against various other considerations, and here, page after page, you consistently minimized max mana against various other considerations, because it suited your rhetoric and whatever point you were making. To the extent that you're now both noting that a hybrid should almost never run out of mana, and yet recommending it as a priority stat for iksars in the same post.

The problem here is you have a bias against me, and are thus doing mental gymnastics to try and attack me. You aren't trying to have a real conversation.

Any person with a basic understanding of Everquest can tell you starting stats are a different discussion from itemization.

Starting stats cannot be changed once you create your character. This means you need to consider how your character will look at the end, not just how they look at level 20. Leveling from 1-50 is quite easy, so it is a very short sighted idea to put your unchangeable starting stats into STR just for that purpose. This is especially true considering how much STR gear is available. I have a Gnome Warrior who didn't put any starting stats into STR, and he has like 140 STR already just from EC gear.

And yes, you can have nuanced opinions about stats. Max mana can be useful in certain situations. I am not sure why you think people cannot have nuanced answers.

Finally, you aren't reading what I am saying about Iksars correctly. I am not sure how much simpler I can say it:

1. Non-Iksars can increase the time between med breaks via sustain from Blood Ember Clickies.

2. Iksars cannot use Blood Ember clickies. This means if Iksars want to increase the time between med breaks, INT is their primary option before Soul Defiler and Flowing Thought. There may be a camp of mobs that needs 2000 mana to clear, and the respawn timers do not allow a med break at 1500 mana, as a simple example.

Originally Posted by Ephirith [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Glad to know +HP is optional because if we all play perfectly we'll never die. Bonehead logic, this could be said about any non-output stat. Don't forget rangers are usually DPS and there is a massive opportunity cost to stand there for 4 seconds hard-casting a snare to save 15 mana. Yes you can cast it on pull, but you can also get in a med tick in on pull and generate a lot more than 15 mana.

More silly attacks that make you look bad. We are talking about swapping a single item. 74 HP at level 60 isn't a lot of HP when mobs are htting you for 140+. Saving mana via clickies could give you enough mana for an extra 270 HP heal. 270 > 74 last time I checked.

A lot of non-clickie spell cast times are around 4 seconds too. That isn't an exceptionally long cast time by any stretch of the imagination. Are you going to tell a 60 SK to avoid casting Drain Soul because it has a 6 second cast time? Even with the hybrid reduction in cast time, you are spending at least 4 seconds.

[shovelquest]

Originally Posted by kjs86z2 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

If you aren't full BiS at level 46 are you even playing p99?

Yeah, all it takes is a pair of Tolan's gloves for ranger.

[sajbert]

Originally Posted by Ephirith [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

But you will tell a newb iksar SK, with a statistically infinitesimal chance of making it to raid gear, to put their starting stats into INT instead of STR, STA, or even DEX which is horrendous advice.

Nah. First of all, INT will be more useful than STA 1-60 and especially with shittier gear. With gear there won't be anything you can't group tank either so STA is basically dead. The extra damage from STR is negligible and UNLESS you are doing some weird solo minmax speed leveling shit it won't matter.

Also, sometimes it's less about achieving BIS and more about living the dream.

[sammoHung]

So, if I can summarize what the last 20 or so pages have been about --

Monk is best solo melee?

[bcbrown]

Good advice Snaggles, thanks. Looks like a Blue Diamond will keep me covered until I get a Fingerbone.

Originally Posted by Goregasmic [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Where do you pull that MR is that significant?

Not pulling, but I mostly want resists for dragon AOEs. A skeletal scryer fucked me up pretty bad in KC last night with those 600dd nukes, though. Also nice in Droga if I wanna go farm more skins.

Originally Posted by DeathsSilkyMist [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Hammered Golden Loop would give you like 74 more max HP over Woven Bark if you aren't STA capped, but the mana savings from the clickie are going to help you more than 74 max HP.

I'm using the damn clicky earring (which you've never used) and I'm telling you the mana savings aren't important. Furthermore I'm very rarely low-mana. The other night I was constantly nuking off my excess mana and didn't snare a single thing.

Originally Posted by kjs86z2 [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

at least someone else out there is seeing what im seeing when it comes to DSM lol

Oh we all see it.

[DeathsSilkyMist]

Originally Posted by bcbrown [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

I'm using the damn clicky earring (which you've never used) and I'm telling you the mana savings aren't important. Furthermore I'm very rarely low-mana. The other night I was constantly nuking off my excess mana and didn't snare a single thing.

I've used snare clickies before. I have multiple videos in this thread. You don't need to play a ranger to understand the following:

1. Click the clickie
2. Mob is snared
3. You spent zero mana
4. A 4 second cast time is not long, especially when compared to many other non-clickie spells that people cast often.

Please stop using the argument from authority fallacy. I'd love to hear about this supposed knowledge that can only be gleaned from clicking Woven Bark earring specifically.

You can of course have Hammered Golden Loop bagged for scenarios where you don't use snare if you have the bag space. The downside with earring slots is they are swapped for resist gear, so you need to know how to play with less max HP anyway.

You have 3 basic scenarios:

1. When using snare, 5 clicks of woven bark earring gives you enough mana for 270 HP via Greater Healing, which is better than +74 max HP from HGL.

2. When not using snare and not needing resists, you can get +74 max HP from HGL.

3. When you need resists, you are either losing all max HP in that slot for Blue Diamond Earrings, or you have basically the same max HP as Woven Bark Earring when using Earring of Essence.

Until you get a nice all purpose raid earring like Essence Pearl, Vulak Earring, etc., you aren't going to be permanentally using one earring.

[Jimjam]

Originally Posted by Goregasmic [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Ghosts and scryer IIRC. Figured with sow, snare and how twisty KC is you can LOS all the way back to camp most of the time, if we're talking pulling. IIRC some of the ghosts are clerics so you get more mileage out of MR by resisting nukes too. Blind and slow also sucks on shamans.

Plenty of good reasons for MR but nothing make or break in an exp group I feel, especially if not tanking. Solo is different since you have the mob's attention for the entire fight.

The clerics only know cheal.

The callers have nasty spells with their slow and stat/ac debuffs. Also you’ll have to tank swarmcaller, nature’s wrath, etc.

[sammoHung]

The caller's damage will come from their cold nukes (SV COLD)

and the DoTs (Poison, Disease)

And the pet.

Yeah, you might be able to avoid slow - but with ~ 80 MR I routinely resist Togor's.

Again, though... the vast majority of mobs in KC are melee.

[bcbrown]

Originally Posted by DeathsSilkyMist [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Please stop using the argument from authority fallacy. I'd love to hear about this supposed knowledge that can only be gleaned from clicking Woven Bark earring specifically.

Yeah, I don't believe that. I could explain (again) but you'll just ignore my reasoning so you can argue with me some more. You're far too stubborn to ever change your mind and I'm not interested in arguing about this with you. I wanted some advice on upgrades from the rangers in this thread and Snaggles provided an excellent suggestion for an upgrade path.