SHIXON
Aelotoi Bard
12/03/2015 10:07 AM CST
I'm returning to the game. The last time I played, aelotoi were brand-spanking new. Now I am playing one. Unfortunately, my 30-day stat fix is running out SOON. And I need help.
I tried to make my bard using a stat cruncher for the optimum, but found that it placed certain stats so low that he was not able to fight.. pretty much at all. IT took several minutes to hack away at rats and he was weighed down after picking up only a few items. Someone told me I need to increase certain stats, such as STR, AGI, INF, and AUR so he can fight as a youngster, then change it up later to capitalize on stat growth. Makes sense.
The problem is, now that I have him fighting well, he simply doesn't get enough training points. I want him to be TWC, and I didn't think that that was a lot to ask, but I cannot train regularly in some pretty important things... he's going to start losing his ability to survive in fights again if I don't fix him soon.
Here's what I have:
level 9
Strength (STR): 87 (13)
Constitution (CON): 53 (1)
Dexterity (DEX): 68 (14)
Agility (AGI): 82 (26)
Discipline (DIS): 62 (11)
Aura (AUR): 82 (16)
Logic (LOG): 61 (10)
Intuition (INT): 53 (6)
Wisdom (WIS): 63 (6)
Influence (INF): 83 (11)
According to my calculator, that gives me 45 PTP and 47 MTP
Two Weapon Combat..................| 20
Armor Use..........................| 9
Combat Maneuvers...................| 6
Edged Weapons......................| 20
Physical Fitness...................| 11
Dodging............................| 10
Harness Power......................| 9
Mental Mana Control................| 6
Elemental Lore - Air...............| 5
Mental Lore - Manipulation.........| 1
Perception.........................| 8
Climbing...........................| 4
Swimming...........................| 3
ANY advice would be welcome. But please quickly. I believe the 5th is when it runs out.
LEDBETTERM
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/03/2015 01:14 PM CST
I can't get into stats at the moment, but I can say some about skills. I think that there are two main reasons for feeling a TP crunch. You are going a little heavy in some utility skills, and dodge is a big TP sink at first. This is the skill plan that I made for a sylvan TWC bard with stats set for cap and how I made his skills fit.
CORE SKILLS
2x Edged
2x TWC
1x CM
1x PF
1x HP
1x Spells
1x Lores
OTHER SKILLS
1x armor until 35 ranks for brig
.5x climb and swim until 30 ranks
.5x MMC to 30 ranks
35 ranks MOC at level 36
Starting at level 36 put all spare TPs into dodge - will catch up to 1x at level 82, finish 1x to cap
All spare points into MOC starting at level 82 until 60 ranks at level 93
Climb, swim, and MMC are spread out more at just .5x per level. The points that dodge would be eating up are spent on getting to where you can do a focused mstrike and can open mstrike 4 things, then it switches to dodge. Low level hunting is pretty easy and I would suggest shooting for 1010, then 414, then 1020, so at level 33ish you will get 1019 and the phantom dodge ranks it grants and then start training dodge at 36. This build had 193 PTPs left over, so some could be put into perception, but I just couldn't easily fit it in while leveling. If you only train to .5x dodge instead of 1x it will open up a lot of TPs that could be used there.
CORE SKILLS
2x Edged
2x TWC
1x CM
1x PF
1x HP
1x Spells
1x Lores
OTHER SKILLS
1x armor until 35 ranks for brig
.5x climb and swim until 30 ranks
.5x MMC to 30 ranks
35 ranks MOC at level 36
Starting at level 36 put all spare TPs into dodge - will catch up to 1x at level 82, finish 1x to cap
All spare points into MOC starting at level 82 until 60 ranks at level 93
Climb, swim, and MMC are spread out more at just .5x per level. The points that dodge would be eating up are spent on getting to where you can do a focused mstrike and can open mstrike 4 things, then it switches to dodge. Low level hunting is pretty easy and I would suggest shooting for 1010, then 414, then 1020, so at level 33ish you will get 1019 and the phantom dodge ranks it grants and then start training dodge at 36. This build had 193 PTPs left over, so some could be put into perception, but I just couldn't easily fit it in while leveling. If you only train to .5x dodge instead of 1x it will open up a lot of TPs that could be used there.
LEDBETTERM
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/03/2015 01:17 PM CST
And, and depending on how you do your song/MnE split, 1019 will grant somewhere between about .25x and .45x in phantom dodge ranks at cap. So only training enough dodge skill to bring your skill + mirrors up to 1x total is definitely an option to spread some TPs around.
TANDL
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/03/2015 06:42 PM CST
As an outside perspective I would...
Take Mental Lore: Manipulation to 0 ranks, this is much more useful for 'pure' bards than swingers.
Take Perception to .5x, useful skill, but there are other needs and .5x until older will get you into or out of areas easily.
Take Mental Mana Control down to 0 ranks, useful skill for 1013 and 1040, but you are a long way away from being able to utilize either.
Take Two Weapon Combat down to 1.5x, Mostly due to expense. A capped character would sacrifice 20 off-hand AS by being 1.5x instead of 2x... and save 300 physical and 200 mental TPs.
Keep dodge at 1x unless you have easy access to outside spells.
Raise CM to 1x, for both cman points and AS.
Use extra physical points, if any, for either raising Armor to whatever tier you want to sit at for awhile or extra ranks of lore. If lore, I'd do 18 or 25 telepathy and then swap over to air lore training, but that's largely a matter of preference.
By the time you're 30 you should start having breathing room above and beyond bare minimum base training, but it will be a tight ride getting there.
Tal.
Take Mental Lore: Manipulation to 0 ranks, this is much more useful for 'pure' bards than swingers.
Take Perception to .5x, useful skill, but there are other needs and .5x until older will get you into or out of areas easily.
Take Mental Mana Control down to 0 ranks, useful skill for 1013 and 1040, but you are a long way away from being able to utilize either.
Take Two Weapon Combat down to 1.5x, Mostly due to expense. A capped character would sacrifice 20 off-hand AS by being 1.5x instead of 2x... and save 300 physical and 200 mental TPs.
Keep dodge at 1x unless you have easy access to outside spells.
Raise CM to 1x, for both cman points and AS.
Use extra physical points, if any, for either raising Armor to whatever tier you want to sit at for awhile or extra ranks of lore. If lore, I'd do 18 or 25 telepathy and then swap over to air lore training, but that's largely a matter of preference.
By the time you're 30 you should start having breathing room above and beyond bare minimum base training, but it will be a tight ride getting there.
Tal.
GILCHRISTR
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/06/2015 07:41 PM CST
dodge...
Yea, I'd say spend TP on skills that let you do something cool.
Yea, I'd say spend TP on skills that let you do something cool.
LEDBETTERM
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/09/2015 05:50 PM CST
>Keep dodge at 1x unless you have easy access to outside spells.
Do you really think that is needed at the lower levels? I've never considered dodge to have much of an impact until at least post-30, things are just too easy to kill before that.
Do you really think that is needed at the lower levels? I've never considered dodge to have much of an impact until at least post-30, things are just too easy to kill before that.
TANDL
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/09/2015 08:14 PM CST
Most skills aren't particularly effective before 30, but 30 comes very fast these days. Also having a sudden need to 'catch up' on expensive skills like that at later levels can be hard on people. Not in the points aren't there sense, but it makes for more complex training setup then a lot of our playerbase seems to be looking for for whatever reason.
I should note I have always built very defensively. My pure bard (94 atm) is fully 2x shield use, 1x weapon, 100 armor ranks (since 70 or so) and will be 2x PT in 2 trains. Most of my hunting is in the wee hours of the morning when dying can easily lead to rotting, and I refuse to stick to 'easier' hunting areas because of it.
Tal.
I should note I have always built very defensively. My pure bard (94 atm) is fully 2x shield use, 1x weapon, 100 armor ranks (since 70 or so) and will be 2x PT in 2 trains. Most of my hunting is in the wee hours of the morning when dying can easily lead to rotting, and I refuse to stick to 'easier' hunting areas because of it.
Tal.
LEDBETTERM
Re: Aelotoi Bard
12/10/2015 08:54 AM CST
That is a very fair point, I am definitely more willing and able to work up and go with a more...unusual training plan than most. I like to be able to use the earlier levels to get some low end skill milestones done and then move fully into the sustained training stuff. I like to get my climb/swim, mana controls, MIU/AS, etc. done earlier and then get more focused in the 30+ range. Hell, at level 50 my pure bolting empath is more than 3x lores - 57 transformation, 65 blessing, 39 summoning - and working up towards 3x PF. I need to remember that I'm crazy.
