Pale Trapper - Question about skills...

[Laeelin]

I plan on playing a 18 Wizard / 2 Rogue Pale Trapper build next life and I'm very short on skill points. Here is the order of importance I'm putting on the skill points. Does anyone have any suggested changes?

UMD (Special - Only if I can max it)
Concentration
Heal
DD
Search
Balance
Spellcraft
Jump (10 Points only)
Hide
Open Locks

[Daliena]

Wouldn't Knock do the job of Open Locks? And I imagine there are a number of jump-buffing items you could carry around to save those ten points as well. Mind you i'm kind of a novice to this business.

[Lanhelin]

Wouldn't Knock do the job of Open Locks? And I imagine there are a number of jump-buffing items you could carry around to save those ten points as well.

I'd raise Jump to ten too and let the Jump spell increase it to 40, so there's no necessity to carry jump items around. Open Lock I'd push at least to 1, because there easily could be situations where the Knock spell fails multiple times and/or there are not enough SP left to cast it (again). Just yesterday I did the Tarashk Arena on eHard and didn't have enough SP to open the two locked doors after the final fight with the spell. I was glad that I had skilled Open Lock too, to be able to open them despite not having enough SP.

[bsquishwizzy]

I plan on playing a 18 Wizard / 2 Rogue Pale Trapper build next life and I'm very short on skill points. Here is the order of importance I'm putting on the skill points. Does anyone have any suggested changes?

UMD (Special - Only if I can max it)

As a pure PM, the only need I have for UMD is…uh…none. Sing that you will be arcane-focused, UMD, I think, is a low, low priority. UMD is good for rogues for healing and using Raise Dead scrolls – Divine stuff. Rogues also use it to bypass weapondry constraints (like a chaotic character using a lawful sword), and arcane buffs, and so on. Weapon constraints on an arcane are a REAL low priority, and there is next-to-zero need to UMD arcane wands and spells. You are a PM so self-healing is covered. The need for UMD on a Pale Trapper type, I think, is pretty minor unless you absolutely must have the ability to Raise Dead or something like that. Then again, I play pure casters and rogues. Something to think about.


Concentration

This is a matter of debate. People will tell you that Concentration if a noob trap, and that every spell you cast should be quickened. My response is that it is tough on the SP pool. I highly suspect that people who advise the former either rely on melee more heavily than I, or run around with a large cache of SP pots at all times. Concentration is a cheaper alternative.


Heal

I think heal bumps the effectiveness of your auras. Research that. My opinion is that this is something you want to take.


DD

Yes. Invest in this.


Search

Yes. Invest in this.


Balance

Nice to have, but not a requirement. You are not a full rogue.


Spellcraft

Again, one of those debatable skills. I invest in it because I am an arcane, and the main job of any arcane is to kill stuff with magic (in DDO).


Jump (10 Points only)

10 points is good. Don’t forget that you get the Jump spell (or you can scroll this) and farm for Boots of Propulsion (one of the best overall pieces of gear to have, in my opinion).


Hide

If you don’t invest in the other stealth skill, investing in Hide is useless. Stealth is VERY nice for solo work…then again so is Invisibility. The changes to stealth make stealthy solo work much better, especially with the aggro changes. So, something to consider.


Open Locks

A debatable talent. For a pure trapper? Yes. For you? Maybe not. You should be able to Knock about 75% of the stuff out there. There are a few chests – like the first optional chest in Servants of the Overlord – where you NEED a trapper with a high Open Lock skill because it is virtually impossible to Knock. Aside from that, you can maybe let this one go.