A quick how-to?

[Venjamin]

Alright, I've got the build planner, but in truth, I'm still trying to define a 'build'.

I've played since back when the game was still ten-cap, but I took a long break from it, and now there's all sorts of new things and what not. In truth, I really love this game [ abandoned WoW to come back ] but the complexities are still difficult for me to piece together.

So my question becomes, what defines a 'build'? What it's supposed to accomplish? What's supposed to make it stand alone? I'm just not sure.

Anything will be helpful. Thanks. <3

[Locathus]

I'll give my usual not-so-helpful answer:

Your build is your character design - your blueprint for what you want your character to do. People do them because some mistakes can't be fixed, and since most characters spend their time capped and in the end stages, you want it to be what you are looking for.

That said, a build can accomplish whatever you want it to. Most people go for a standard min/max strategy. They want to be the "best" of their class when they hit the appropriate levels. Of course, what the "best" part means can be nebulous, especially for classes that can go in a few different directions. A fighter, for example, could strive to do the highest damage possible, or it could be designed as a defensive tank. If you decide to do the highest damage, you can make a build that will get criticals often and make them hurt, or you can design something with UMD so you can use some of the cool weapons out there, or you can just make him big and strong and give him a greataxe to swing.

Your build should do whatever you envision your character doing - no build is "wrong", and no build is better or worse than any other unless you decide so as the player. That said, it is usually a good idea to post build ideas in the appropriate class forum (or ask advice from others that have a high level toon in that class) so that you can learn from their mistakes. On my caster, for example, I spent too many points in Dex and not enough in Con. It doesn't make my character useless, but it is something that I would change if given the chance.

Anyway, I don't know if that helps or not, but that's my answer...
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[Venjamin]

Actually, it helps a lot. n_n! I've never had a high-level toon, but I know that for some strange reason, I chose 'acrobatics' as one of my wizard's feats. Luckily, I had enough money to trade for a different feat. -Shrug- I'm a spaz, I guess.

Thank you very much!