Relative Newbie Questions

[proudofthefish]

Hi all,

First I am brand new to MMO's in general although I have looked around this board a found it helpful. I don't consider myself a very good player. Some of that is out of my control but that is neither here nor there. I am a level 28 Sentential and I keep dying all the time on story bosses which is frustrating partly because I want to finish act one and unlock legacy and start experiencing other story lines. Knowing what I know know I probably should have rolled a guardian, but I have no interest in rerolling.

 

I have some thoughts but would love suggestions for what I see as my specific difficulties.

 

I usually try to stay a level or 2 ahead of mobs but right now it doesn't seem to be helping. I just respeced from combat to watchman to try and get the self healing but I am not quite clear on how that works. Is it linked to cauterize?

 

I know I need to keep gear up. I was mostly using drops for this until I got to Valis and died many many times. Is there a time when just picking up from drops becomes an obsolete method?

 

Along those lines is there an easy way to tell if I need to upgrade my gear? For example if you are a level 28 your Armor rating should be above 50 or something?

 

Finally I am stuck at Lord Pavern ( and feel like I shouldn't be there's not nearly as many complaints about him as there was Valis) and one thing I noticed when I watched a video of the combat was the player constantly moving side to side. Does this actually have strategic value--like making you hard to hit or does it just look cool?

 

I know these might be simple questions but not having had any exposure to MMO's I've had a very steep learning curve. Thanks for any help in advance.

Edited April 22, 2012 by proudofthefish

[RankorSSGS]

Hi all,

First I am brand new to MMO's in general although I have looked around this board a found it helpful. I don't consider myself a very good player. Some of that is out of my control but that is neither here nor there. I am a level 28 Sentential and I keep dying all the time on story bosses which is frustrating partly because I want to finish act one and unlock legacy and start experiencing other story lines. Knowing what I know know I probably should have rolled a guardian, but I have no interest in rerolling.

 

I have some thoughts but would love suggestions for what I see as my specific difficulties.

 

I usually try to stay a level or 2 ahead of mobs but right now it doesn't seem to be helping. I just respeced from combat to watchman to try and get the self healing but I am not quite clear on how that works. Is it linked to cauterize?

 

I know I need to keep gear up. I was mostly using drops for this until I got to Valis and died many many times. Is there a time when just picking up from drops becomes an obsolete method?

 

Along those lines is there an easy way to tell if I need to upgrade my gear? For example if you are a level 28 your Armor rating should be above 50 or something?

 

Finally I am stuck at Lord Pavern ( and feel like I shouldn't be there's not nearly as many complaints about him as there was Valis) and one thing I noticed when I watched a video of the combat was the player constantly moving side to side. Does this actually have strategic value--like making you hard to hit or does it just look cool?

 

I know these might be simple questions but not having had any exposure to MMO's I've had a very steep learning curve. Thanks for any help in advance.

 

1. Yes, the healing comes from cauterize, and once you get overcharge saber it comes from that. There is a talent in tier 2 of watchman where critical hits from you burns heal you. OCS and cauterize are your attacks that cause burns.

 

2. Basically, if its better than what you have, equip it. I try to get as much of my gear from commendations as possible, but even then I'll occasionally get a drop that's better than what I have currently. So gearing exclusively from drops will leave you weak, but drops are great for keeping pieces up to date that are not available from commendations.

 

3. It is called strafing, and while it does offer some help with kiting, it does not actually boost your attacks. A slash with your saber does not get boosted from running into your enemy.

 

4. I just fought Praven myself 2 days ago. Big thing is to interrupt him whenever you can, but if you have gotten passed Valis, you should know that by now. Being a few levels up from quests is very helpful, as knight story bosses are often very tough. Thanks to all the bonus content from the Rakghoul event, I was level 31 when I took Praven down. That is a bit excessive yes, you do not need to be that far ahead, but a lvl or 2 will help greatly.

 

Hope this helped you.

[proudofthefish]

1. Yes, the healing comes from cauterize, and once you get overcharge saber it comes from that. There is a talent in tier 2 of watchman where critical hits from you burns heal you. OCS and cauterize are your attacks that cause burns.

 

I finally saw some of the healing, but a question about mechanics: I have overload saber and I know it stacks up to three. Should I wait until I have 3 of OLS and then use Cauterize? Does Cauterize trigger the healing or is the effect immediate once a burning attack starts.

 

2. Basically, if its better than what you have, equip it. I try to get as much of my gear from commendations as possible, but even then I'll occasionally get a drop that's better than what I have currently. So gearing exclusively from drops will leave you weak, but drops are great for keeping pieces up to date that are not available from commendations.

 

Is Armour rating a quick way to tell if something is better? I just find that the information is a lot to comprehend even with the side by side comparisons. I have some orange pieces, but with out mods I was finding better things at drops. I only recently remembered about commendations.

 

3. It is called strafing, and while it does offer some help with kiting, it does not actually boost your attacks. A slash with your saber does not get boosted from running into your enemy.

 

I looked up the definition of Kiting and am still confused. Is it better to strafe because it will be harder for the boss to get a bead on me? Or does it have no defensive value?

 

4. I just fought Praven myself 2 days ago. Big thing is to interrupt him whenever you can, but if you have gotten passed Valis, you should know that by now. Being a few levels up from quests is very helpful, as knight story bosses are often very tough. Thanks to all the bonus content from the Rakghoul event, I was level 31 when I took Praven down. That is a bit excessive yes, you do not need to be that far ahead, but a lvl or 2 will help greatly.

 

Heh good to know I do know about interrupts but can his black bubble thing be interrupted? I think Watchman will help but he seemed to be absorbing some of my stronger attacks so we will see. I'm going to try and get at least to 29. Part of my problem is that while the game looks cool I find it very visually overwhelming . I have to watch AND try and keep track of cool downs. i think I am at a bit of a disadvantage

Hope this helped you.

 

This was awesome and I appreciate your thoroughness. Thanks!

[RankorSSGS]

I finally saw some of the healing, but a question about mechanics: I have overload saber and I know it stacks up to three. Should I wait until I have 3 of OLS and then use Cauterize? Does Cauterize trigger the healing or is the effect immediate once a burning attack starts.

 

 

 

Is Armour rating a quick way to tell if something is better? I just find that the information is a lot to comprehend even with the side by side comparisons. I have some orange pieces, but with out mods I was finding better things at drops. I only recently remembered about commendations.

 

 

 

I looked up the definition of Kiting and am still confused. Is it better to strafe because it will be harder for the boss to get a bead on me? Or does it have no defensive value?

 

 

 

Heh good to know I do know about interrupts but can his black bubble thing be interrupted? I think Watchman will help but he seemed to be absorbing some of my stronger attacks so we will see. I'm going to try and get at least to 29. Part of my problem is that while the game looks cool I find it very visually overwhelming . I have to watch AND try and keep track of cool downs. i think I am at a bit of a disadvantage

 

 

This was awesome and I appreciate your thoroughness. Thanks!

 

If you use OCS on a single target, you do not actually put 3 separate burns on him, it is only 1 burn, but the damage per tick goes up per stack. Cauterize's burn is separate from this, but it also counts as a charge of OCS.

For example, you have a target with no burns at all. You pop OCS and use cauterize straight after that. 2 burns wil go up on the target, one will be from cauterize, and the 2nd will be from OCS. Using another melee attack will put a 2nd stack on the OCS burn, same with the third. You now have 2 burns going on your target. If a tick from either of these crits, you get healed. The OCS burn is completely separate from the cauterize burn. The effect is immediate, and passive, meaning you do not have to do anything.

 

Armor rating is typically a bad way to judge. The best way is to looka t all the stats, but if that a little overwhelming, just look for whatever has the most of your primary stat, in your case, strength.

 

Strafing will normally have no defensive value in PvE, in PvP it can help against melee, but being a melee yourself, not really.

 

I don't remember all of Pravens attacks off the top of my head, interrupting heals is the top priority. Yes, it is a lot to look at, but it will come with practice. I'm a clicker, and I've found a way to deal with it, so don't worry, you'll find a way to make it work