Yelinak - What Alt to play?

Discussion in 'Time Locked Progression Servers' started by Midnitewolf, Aug 23, 2022.

  1. Midnitewolf Augur

    Ok so my main character, a Shaman, is 60 and we have a bonus XP weekend coming up soon with Labor Day right around the corner so I am trying to figure out what alt to focus on bring up to max level. Hoping you all can give me some opinions. Here is my line up so far and my impressions of each.

    Monk - Level 17. Having a lot of fun soloing him. Love the DPS but his combat style is pretty much hit auto-attack and beat the mob down. Haven't did any group play so no pulling experience yet. Pulling seems like it would be fun and it would be nice to see more of the zones. For grouping they seem to be a nice to have but no required so not sure how much in demand they are.

    Shadowknight - Level 18. Always like the idea of a Shadow Knight but if I have to be honest, I didn't find them to be fun until they reached the 50 and current play is no exception. I know they get very powerful at higher levels though and always wanted to have a max level SK but never played one that long. One concern I have it gearing. This is an Alt and will not ever have the best raiding gear so without that is it ever really worth it to play one and keep it max level throughout content? Also, while the SK gets all these cool dots, lifetaps and such, it seems that in its primary group role, tanking, kind of prevents it from going all out on DPS since it needs its mana to hold aggro and never gets to sit in a group. One big plus with the SK is that there seems to be a huge shortage of tanks on Yelinak so I should also be able to get a group.

    Ranger - Level 8 - Always loved Rangers but Rangers never seemed to be loved. I also like that unlike the SK, they are more of a DPS focus class that can tank rather than the SK's tank that can sort of DPS. My biggest concern with a Ranger is in being able to get groups in order to level him up efficiently. I know right now in Kunark they aren't held in very high regard though the shortage of tanks seems to give them a bit better chance for getting chosen as the group tank. I don't think they improve much in Velious either but I am given to understand they start really shinning in Luclin and PoP. My question is, do they shine enough up through Luclin and PoP to get them groups?

    Ok so what are your opinions on these three? Give me the good, the bad and the ugly.
  2. Chuuk Augur

    Monks shine for pretty much forever. If you like and are good at pulling, you will be in crazy high demand. Most people just want to semi-afk play these days it seems.

    SKs can dish out some decent DPS and even without raid gear can tank plenty, especially with a shaman. They're pretty much the best group-tank for the whole game.

    Rangers are a mixed bag. They are absolute monsters in Luclin and PoP, but then come back down to earth. Headshot is fun to mess with also in PoP.

    You honestly can't lose with any of the 3 - shamans are beasts paired with almost any melee class.
  3. Midnitewolf Augur

    I don't box so won't be pairing my Shaman up with the Alt. Just looking for a fun alt to play overall, something basically to change it up. That is also why being able to get groups is also important to me. I don't want to spend 2 hours a night LFG which honestly might take a Ranger off the list.

    The way I see it right now on Yelinak is there is a huge shortage of tanks so much so that I have had a few groups fall apart just because no one could find a replacement tank so a SK stands out in this regard but if I have to be honest, I hate the sub level 50 SK grind worth a passion. Then again with the upcoming bonus XP over Labor Day, I might be able to bypass quite a bit of it.

    As far as the Ranger, I played one originally back in the day and though it was one of the most fun classes I have ever played......except when it came time to get a group. I mean I love the playstyle, kind of as close to a battlemage as you can get in the game, but that difficulty in getting invited a group as me wary of diving into the class fully. Traditionally they seem just above Rogues and Wizards in terms of desirability in groups which is to say, most any other class seems to get picked first unless there are no tanks or no better options for DPS. I am not sure if this changes come Luclin/Pop and/or if it continues to be the case after PoP and they come down to earth as you describe.

    Monk is a wildcard for me as I have never played one before. So far having a lot of fun but only in regards to how fast it can tear through mobs. My concern here is that it will get boring though from the pulling standpoint, I guess there is a lot of depth to the class so many I am missing something.