Coming in from EQ2

[cdec518]

Hey I bought DDO finally after playing EQ2 for the past 3 years. And yes my main was a Monk, so the new monk class was definitely a factor.

I was just wondering if there were any other people who played Everquest 2 and now play here that could tell me anything important. I guess some of the important things would be:
-How does grouping work? Is it the old Tank/Healer/4 DPS from EQ2?
-What ratio is there between soloing and grouping?
-What classes are the best at soloing?
-How is loot dispersed? Does certain loot drop off certain mobs? Or is it random like Diablo 2?
-How much table top D&D is needed to be successful at this game? I only have a little experience in the tabletop game :0(
-How much effect does race play in your class selection? Can all races play all classes?

Any help, suggestions, or opinions are welcome.

And for the record, I am thinking of rolling a ranger and/or a monk when they come out. And since monk is new and not much is known about them yet (I assume), can you give me a feel of how a ranger is at soloing/grouping? I also like the bard maybe.

And do any classes get pets?

Oh and are there any side-programs I need? EQ2 had the map and the ACT parser to check your damage that were legal (in addition to thousands of UI mods)..anything like that here?

[Lithic]

-How does grouping work? Is it the old Tank/Healer/4 DPS from EQ2?
The majority of quests can be done with any 4-6 people, as long as they arent idiots. THe harder ones (esp raids) usually need 1 healer, 1-2 arcanes, couple dps, maybe a rogue.

-What ratio is there between soloing and grouping?
100% can be grouped, and is usually more fun in a group. About 95% of the game can be solod if you know the quests and have the cash to support yourself.

-What classes are the best at soloing?
lvl 1-6, any melee character, especially rangers, paladins and clerics. lvl 7-12, most classes can solo decently well (rogues usually have trouble though), lvl 13+ pure casters, especially WF wizard and sorcerers, as well as well built clerics can solo most everything. Melees have problems.

-How is loot dispersed? Does certain loot drop off certain mobs? Or is it random like Diablo 2?
most loot is random. Some monsters have a chance to drop a named item (which is usually a rare/impossible combination of properties, though the vast majority of named items are "nice", but hardly overpowered. Raids have lots of named items).

-How much table top D&D is needed to be successful at this game?
None, though you may find all the options daunting. Dont be afraid to ask for help.

-How much effect does race play in your class selection? Can all races play all classes?
All races can play all classes. Some races are better for some classes, but theres nothing stopping you from making any race/class combination (though any character can only have levels from up to 3 classes).

And do any classes get pets?
Most classes get summoned monsters, but they all pretty much suck. At best, they are cannon fodder you try to pawn your aggro off on.


Answers in quote

[Sabotage]

I will try to help as much as i can. This game is really geared towards grouping, there are a few things made to solo but not many. Group make-up has alot of flexability, there are plenty more options then just needing a tank, healer, and dps (you dont have to have a tank or healer). The loot that drops from a chest is all yours, and there are named items that drop from certain mobs. As far as having table-top DnD exp, it helps from the start but is definetly not needed. Race can play a pretty big role depending on the type of class you want to play, but its nothing game-breaking.

Hope some of this helps.. :)

[Depravity]

The majority of quests can be done with any 4-6 people, as long as they arent idiots. THe harder ones (esp raids) usually need 1 healer, 1-2 arcanes, couple dps, maybe a trapmonkey rogue.


Fixed that for you. :) Good combat rogue will have nice AC and serious DPS as long as he can manage aggro. Run by a competent player with some experience(I don't claim this, my rogue needs to be rerolled :D), a rogue can pull aggro away from pretty much anyone, despite having the subtle backstabbing enhancements running.

That said, a broken rogue, and many trapmonkey builds, aren't so hot when it comes to the hurty-stabby.

cdec, aranticus just put up a "template" thread (here (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=147492)) specifically for simple, non resource intensive builds aimed at beginners.

Also, lack of tabletop experience may actually be a plus in that you won't be so weirded out by some of the things DDo does differently than DnD.

Welcome to DDO, and happy hunting.

[Arianrhod]

Hey I bought DDO finally after playing EQ2 for the past 3 years. And yes my main was a Monk, so the new monk class was definitely a factor.

I was just wondering if there were any other people who played Everquest 2 and now play here that could tell me anything important. I guess some of the important things would be:
-How does grouping work? Is it the old Tank/Healer/4 DPS from EQ2?
-What ratio is there between soloing and grouping?
-What classes are the best at soloing?
-How is loot dispersed? Does certain loot drop off certain mobs? Or is it random like Diablo 2?
-How much table top D&D is needed to be successful at this game? I only have a little experience in the tabletop game :0(
-How much effect does race play in your class selection? Can all races play all classes?

Any help, suggestions, or opinions are welcome.

And for the record, I am thinking of rolling a ranger and/or a monk when they come out. And since monk is new and not much is known about them yet (I assume), can you give me a feel of how a ranger is at soloing/grouping? I also like the bard maybe.

And do any classes get pets?

Oh and are there any side-programs I need? EQ2 had the map and the ACT parser to check your damage that were legal (in addition to thousands of UI mods)..anything like that here?

Played EQ2 for a couple years (left when DDO came out - not enough time for 2 games)

Grouping: It's definitely helpful to have a cleric (healer) and someone who can do damage (DPS), but there are so many ways to put together a character, let alone a group, that there really isn't any one "best" combo for all quests. That said, there are certainly people who will look for a particular combination of classes to fill out their groups (especially for specific quests, and even more so on "elite" difficulty). Quests are (supposedly) balanced for 4 characters, and up to 6 can be in a group, so (at least on "normal" difficulty), there's quite a bit of room for variety in group composition.

Soloing vs. grouping: DDO is designed to be a group game. There are a few easy quests at low levels that have "solo" difficulty settings, and some highly skilled players can run almost any quest solo, but for the most part, it's a good idea to plan on grouping a lot.

At low levels, paladins are good at soloing (high armor class + self-healing). At higher levels spellcasters do quite well. For obsessive "completists", rogues can be a good choice (they're hard to solo with though) due to their ability to disable traps & pick locks.

Loot comes in chests, and is automatically assigned (can be reassigned before taking it out of the chest). Different quests have different random "named" loot, and some quests (especially quest chains) have named end rewards. Raid loot also comes in chests, and some groups may ask members to agree to a particular distribution before beginning (otherwise, it's randomly assigned like any other chest).

Experience in tabletop D&D is certainly helpful (there are a lot of rules to learn), but not required. Even experiences "PnP" players have a lot of changes to get used to when they start playing.

All races can play all classes, but each has different strengths and weaknesses (dwarves, for instance, are especially good with axes, and elves have a bit of an advantage bows. Warforged get a lot of immunities, but have special rules for healing).

Ranger can be fun for soloing with (self-healing, good with bows, good at dual-wielding, some handy buffs), but have to get to mid-level (6, 7, 8+) before they really start to shine.

No class currently has persistent pets, just short-duration summons (though high-level rangers can keep animals charmed for a good portion of a quest, if there are any to be found).

Good luck, and welcome. Feel free to come back to the boards with any further questions :)