trying out live server, questions

Discussion in 'Casters' started by select21, Dec 31, 2016.

  1. select21 Journeyman

    My eq experience has been from '00-'03, then again when the Lockjaw opened last year for about 3 months. I haven't played the live server at all.

    So i've been boxing a BL/Brd/Dru on Lockjaw and have been just wanting to see the "newer" side of EQ. Also I've been wanting to box some pet classes for some ultra relaxed playing. My other box team is fairly involved.

    So to my questions:
    1. How strong on pets on live vesus tlp? Can I rely on them to tank for me or will they die fast?
    2. How fast is leveling on live versus tlp?
    3. What pet box would you recommend? Would mage x 3 work well or would you mix it up with like a mage/nec/ench?
    4. Any other advice for a complete newb to the live server would be great.
  2. IblisTheMage Augur

    3 & 4:

    I have tried mage x 3, and it was not that great. I currently play mage/bard/enchanter, which is a really good combo. I use IS-b_oxer, and melee with the bard as well (it takes 2-4 sec pr mob to position), and use the chanter for runes and CC. Later I plan to nuke as well with chanter. The mage pet tanks single mobs really well, with runes and maxed pet AA. The problem is multiple mobs, which is the reason I have the chanter. The bard can also help out with CC, but as you play the team, you build a feel for which tools to use when, obviously. I can do a Gribble in about 20-25 min, which is fine, it allows me to jam in 2 Gribble handins in a single Lesson. In EoK, I can hold my own as well.

    The good thing of having a bard is that it makes you more wanted in groups. Of course you have to develop your gameplay a lot to be able to bring value to a group as a boxer, so make sure you use as many of your abilities on the toons as soon as they are up, for added value. It is a combination of hotbuttons, multibinds, broadcasts to other toons, and I would advice getting a many-button mouse that can have autofire while you hold certain buttons depressed (old fingers get tired.... :) ).

    This setup maximizes fun for me, since I have to "solve" pulls and CC. It is far from the most powerful. For more power, take a SK as the core, both DPS and ease of play will go up, but at the cost of having a game that is quite a lot easier, which is not for everyone. You will then be focusing on your SK, using ISBuxar to activate the two other toons. I would suggest at least a wizard, maybe two, two healer mercs on Balanced and Reactive (remember to block slow heals, so that you force the mercs to cast faster heals), and a nuker merc. Perhaps SK/Wiz/Bard... I have not tried this myself, but there are plenty of posts that gives good advice on this topic, my input here is only to give an overall frame for a decision: pet tanking or a tank class.

    You can save yourself from leveling your group by paying for it starting at 85, but if you only want to play for yourself, then this option just reduce the amount of playable content for you. It will however allow you to get to 105, which is the level most toons play at, so in order to start playing with other, this is an important thing.
  3. Laronk Augur

    If you want a mage and an enchanter I wouldn't do necro also. Necros have a lot of button pushing. As far as pets tanking, pets tank fine.
  4. select21 Journeyman

    aweosme, thanks for the replies! Not sure how much I want to do SK. I dont' really feel like maining a tank in this game tbh. I might do something like mage/mage/ench?

    Also, since I'm not used to having mercs yet, maybe it would be a good idea just to solo for a bit until I get the hang of the live server. If I did that would a monk do well?
  5. moogs Augur

    2) Much faster. Not even close.
    select21 likes this.
  6. kthehammy Elder

    I would suggest mage/bst/enc. Mage pets are fine tanks, and they have nice utility like grp perma invis and coth, but they are not good dps right now. in fact they are pretty bad. I would not recommend 2 and def not 3. The bst brings a lot more dps and adps as well. Plus the ease of just letting the pets do their thing when ya want.

    another option that would be easier to box would be mage/enc/wiz. lots of easy power there.
    select21 likes this.
  7. Brohg Augur


    Respectfully disagree. Magicians gained considerably on their caster brethren with new EOK abilities. Especially in a group-content milieu, magicians have more powerful sustained dps now than they have had for quite some time. If you haven't incorporated them into how you play yet, you should reevaluate after putting /pet swarm, Firebound Orb, and Chaotic Fire into high rotation.
  8. IblisTheMage Augur

    I am doing exactly that, and with a bard in my box, I am between 60k and 100k dps, with mediocre group gear, and 15k AA. I add Fickle and Force of Elements... I am not sure how that competes, but it feels all right.
    Brohg likes this.
  9. Brohg Augur

    Fickle is pretty shady, no better now than it was pre-EOK. Certainly ain't a patch on Chaotic Fire. That's the right scale, though, totally.
  10. IblisTheMage Augur


    Being it that Fickle benefits from


    Flames of Power (4) 105 70 / 106 - 1: Cast: Flames of Power Azia III on Spell Use (100% Chance)
    2: Limit Spells: Fickle Fire
    3: Cast: Flames of Power Beza III on Spell Use (100% Chance)
    4: Limit Spells: Fickle Inferno
    5: Limit Spells: Fickle Pyroclasm
    6: Limit Spells: Fickle Blaze
    7: Limit Spells: Fickle Flare
    8: Limit Spells: Fickle Flames
    9: Cast: Flames of Power Caza III on Spell Use (100% Chance)
    10: Limit Spells: Fickle Magma
    11: Cast: Flames of Power Dena III on Spell Use (100% Chance)
    12: Limit Spells: Fickle Conflagration
    13: Increase Max Hits Counter by 1
    14: Limit Spells: Flames of Power
    This passive ability gives your Fickle spells (Fickle Fire, Inferno, Pyroclasm, Blaze, Flare, Flames, Magma, and Conflagration) a second 34% chance to trigger their recourse effects offering a 25% chance to imbue you with Flames of Power and a 1% chance to curse you with Flames of Weakness.
    Rank 4 improves your Flames of Power effect allowing it to increase the damage of 2 spells.

    as well as

    Focus: Fickle Conflagration (7) 105 35 / 140 - 1: Increase Base Spell Effectiveness by 14%
    2: Limit Spells: Fickle Conflagration
    This passive ability increases the base damage of your Fickle Conflagration spells by 2% per rank.



    (emphasis added), you don't the spell being in a OK place? It is not as good as Chaotic Fire, but both benefit from Flames of Power 4 with regards to the 2 counter upgrade, and they are fast casts, with good mana-dam ratios, which as you pointed at makes them good spells in group context. Also, the 14% damage upgrade is something that Chaotic Fire does not get, narrowing the gap (18.4k vs 20.4k for rnk II). I can't remember right now if there is a spell specific booster thingie for both spells... My subjective experience is that Flames of Power triggers very often, benefitting each other, as well as of Many, with the wonderful 40% focus AA boost that of Many got.

    I like that they are fast casts and mana efficient, it means that I can just keep nuking until the mob dies, without having to worry whether to save the last nuke, either for mana or time reasons...

    I would love the Firebound Orb to have more charges though, or it being non-lore... just one of those Quality of Life-things ;-)
  11. Brohg Augur

    Fickle is efficient. Not as efficient as the rain spells, but efficient. And not near as efficient as Chaotic. Base mana cost & damages are comparable, but Chaotic has 1/3 shot at just being free, 1/4 shot at wrapping in a huge deagro, and the rest of the time does way better stuff than those options.

    The type3 aug for Fickle boosts Chaotic Fire as well.

    Above I mentioned rains, as the de facto efficient damage spells. That's not without tradeoff, of course…

    Fickle does have the benefit of playing nicely alongside CCd mobs, which Rains kinda don't - except that Rains are even better when there's two targets :p

    Rain spells don't benefit from Heart/Union, but those are redundant with the Flames of Power focus, too, so when they're up you're doing Chaotic just for the Twins & Refreshes, not the focus proc; Fickle has only the focus proc. Also the rains don't benefit from First Spire, but you're pretty much Doing It Wrong if you're Fickling with the real discs (ITC/1st) running :p

    Fickle is immediate, so you can use it and be sure it'll land for its full damage, while in the last 7 sec of a mob's life. Rains may waste a hit. My view on that situation is that the one spell cast is nearly irrelevant if a mob is expected to die that soon. You can cast a rain that may miss a hit, or just use the time to Gather Magnitude, recast your Dark Mod / Dark Symbiosis - or whatever.

    The only reason I can see to run Fickle alongside Chaotic is if you have such a hardon for Alliances that you want to use them even partnered up with just exactly one more mage. A trio of Chaotic+Fickle pairs, plus two Firebound nukes, would fit in each Alliance's trigger time. I haven't added it up the overall efficiency of that plan, I guess it could be a cool way to do massive golem type mobs in tier2?
    IblisTheMage likes this.